She looked as lost as I was, wandering along a suburban street in the cool night air which is autumn in Melbourne. Our phones in hands, our heads oscillating between the screen and the numbers painted on the buildings which stood idly beside us, in their neat row. ‘Is she going to the same place as me, I wondered?’ and decided to ask. She looked at me, almost in horror that this strange woman had spoken to her, replied she was going to yoga and quickly scuttled away. So, not the same place as me. Right. Within seconds of our interaction I spied my destination and made my way inside. The circular room, in a council-run building in the suburbs of Melbourne, was dimly lit. Warmth enveloped me as I entered, not only in temperature but via the loving and welcoming embrace I received from our hostess. She then directed me towards a pathway on the floor, lit by flicking tea lights. I greeted those already present, placed my red, orange and brown (autumn inspired) cushion on the floor and knelt upon it. Before long the group was complete. The atmosphere was filled with excitement and uncertainty. We were then asked the obvious question one by one – ‘Why are you here?’ My reply ‘Because the moment this invitation hit my email inbox, it scared me. I registered instantly.’ I didn’t add, ‘before my head got in the way and I changed my mind’. I noticed nods from the others – this statement resonated with them. The event kicked off and two hours later it was over. The result? Like most things I’m afraid of, but step into anyway, it was Not A Big Deal After All. Does this resonate with you? Can you bring forth in your mind a time you leaned into something that raised some fear in you, only to discover it was No Big Deal After All? We are taught from an early age to be fearful of the unknown. If you were lucky, you were protected tirelessly by your parents and/or guardians. They cared about you, right? Don’t go there…don’t do this…don’t do that… don’t speak to them… don’t wear that… don’t speak up… don’t cause waves…be careful… It’s Not Safe! One of my faves – it’s not you we don’t trust, it’s other people. We are taught that the ‘known’ is safe. People, places, activities, events, situations that we have already experienced are a-okay. Anything we have not experienced before? Well, holy moly, be careful because anything could happen right? As we move into adulthood, we become adept at spotting dangerous situations for ourselves BUT we can also become averse to discomfort. And what often causes our discomfort? The unknown. The Fear of the Unknown can play out in a myriad of ways in our everyday lives – in fact it is so sneaky, tricky and sly that we play into it unconsciously. It wasn’t until I started doing my own growth work that I realised that I’d made multiple decisions in my life based on Fear of the Unknown. In both my professional and personal life. So I made a new decision that I was Done With That. I would actively choose to bring things into my life that scared me – sometimes and little and sometimes, believe, me a whole lot! This one decision has helped move me from a life of scarcity, disconnection and loss of self into one of abundance, joy and freedom – and let’s not forget a whole lot of love. Simple, but not easy. It’s living in conscious thought and action. It’s feeling the fear and doing it anyway. It’s being open to failure. It’s risky! But something I’ve learned in the past few years is that to be truly human is it to live fully – to play full out. And how lucky am I that I surround myself with a group of people who feel and do the same … or they are ready to. People who, deeply within, feel there is more to their current reality and are eager to experience it. They can see the door, they come to me for the key. And it’s So Much Fun. If this is something you’d like to learn more about – unlocking the door to a life of freedom, joy, excitement and peace – with me, there are a couple of opportunities open right now and they are listed below. One is free, one minimal cost and the other dives a little more deeply. Scroll down to check them out.
SO EXCITED that I've been invited to speak LIVE this Thursday night in the THRIVE Facebook group, founder the incredible Alicia Dumais Temmerman. My topic? How to Take a Quantum Leap. If you'd like to join me CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE GROUP and I'll see you this coming Thursday night!
A Salon is a welcoming, safe, nurturing space where you come together with like-minded souls and leave completely transformed. You exit the doors feeling like a new, more empowered, more confident person. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE or hit reply to this email to book a conversation with me.
Have you grabbed your copy of Become Extraordinary, the book, yet? This is is a book not designed to be read once and placed on a shelf. It contains Janelle's very own personal stories (some not so flattering), real client case studies (so inspirational) and activities and tools so you can begin your own adventure. CLICK HERE to order a soft copy or ebook.