7 Ways to let Adversity be the Wind in your Sail!

Hi EveryOne,  Happy July – I hope you are all staying warm, safe and happy.  But just in case, lets set an intention for this month… Lets focus on staying positive by reducing stress and negativity and by letting adversity be the wind in your sail!… And to help you with that, here are 7 tips 🙂

First some news…

• As you know, since Covid lockdown in March, I’ve been making videos on my new Youtube channel, for anyone struggling to cope with change https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfV1hFboVS7u0W-Btr9zEaQ/  The videos take a lot of time and I’m still navigating through this large learning curve, so I didn’t manage to get June’s newsletter out… The videos are free for anyone to take benefit so remember to subscribe to my channel if you want to be auto-notified when a new video has been added. You can check out my Youtube channel here https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfV1hFboVS7u0W-Btr9zEaQ/  The name of my channel is Annemarie Happy Heart 🙂

• Thank you to those who make time to subscribe, like and comment on my videos. Knowing you’re getting some benefit makes it all worth it – and I really appreciate your support. You inspire me to keep going, to keep growing and to keep on giving 🙂

• Thank you to my local clients and those around Australia (some overseas) who take that extra step to seek my professional expertise (therapies / coaching) to improve their health / life. Thank you for trusting me through the process and for showing such courage. And as a small businesses owner working hard to survive in these tough times – I thank you for supporting my business 🙂 www.happyheartholistichealing.com.au 

• Lastly ** IMPORTANT ** I’m being ‘called’ to expand spiritual service and holistic health, globally. So to ease the load, I’m gradually upgrading some of my online services – starting with automating this email list. For 10 years I enjoyed keeping it personal (sending group emails and responding to every one of your emails).  Unfortunately I won’t be able to do that so much any more. So I need you to do me a favour…  First, if you want to stay connected and keep receiving my newsletters I need you to respond to this email with ‘YES’ so I can transfer you onto my automated list. *If you don’t respond I will take it as ‘no’ and I will remove you from the list.  Second, thank you for sharing your victories with me from time to time, I love hearing about them, please keep them coming! However, I ask you to refrain from sending me long emails about your challenges in life and ask that if you want any type of guidance, or simply want me to hold space for you (so you can vent and release) please book an appointment with me. Alternatively you can check out my blog www.willtowonder.com.au I’ve shared bucket loads of FREE self empowerment tips here. And of course check out my meditation videos https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfV1hFboVS7u0W-Btr9zEaQ/  My aim is to keep moving forward spiritually and I would love you to continue to join me but if life has another journey in store for you, then I wish you all the very best 🙂

7 Ways to let Adversity be the Wind in your Sail!…   

At this time of intense uncertainty as the world spirals out of control – we are each challenged to change ourselves – but how do I as an individual not get pulled down by the undertow? How do I stay afloat in a cesspool of fear, hatred, anger and contempt, of stress and anxiety, despondency and depression? How do I not ‘lose it’ at the many broken systems that desperately need a spiritual injection? How do I cope with isolation and division while keeping abreast of current affairs? How do I not victimise myself or lash out at others in these times of unease? How do I accept situations that are out of my control – how do I let go? How do I survive and even thrive when life is set to wipe out my plans? How do I stay the course and keep looking forward with enthusiasm – and BE that light in this dark tunnel?…

1. Start each day with an attitude of gratitude… Appreciate the little things in life to keep your perspective honest and clear. Be grateful for what you have, don’t get stuck on what you don’t have or worse, stuck on wanting more than you have! Entitlement breeds insecurity and justification – violence is often justified by those who incite it. Gratitude opens doors to many possibilities by shutting down narrow-mindedness, narcissism,  expectation, disappointment and blame. What you do with those possibilities is entirely up to you. But remember – if you don’t use it, you lose it!

2. Change the way you think… * Albert Einstein says – You cannot change a problem with the same kind of thinking that created the problem in the first place… You know, we can blame others as much as we want but ultimately how happy we are depends entirely on the type of thoughts we create! So if you’re not happy it’s time to change – time to change your thoughts. The amount of power any person or situation has over you is in direct relation to the amount of control you have over your own mind. If you’re harbouring ‘justified’ anger towards someone for example (regardless what they’ve done) you’re handing them the reins.  You can’t control how others behave but you can control your own responses (with practice). Don’t waste your energy being their judge and jury – that’s not your task – and by the way, anger is never justified! So to take control – take a breath – and simply change your thoughts. Some days will be easier but keep going because it frees you from becoming a hostage in someone else’s drama. To check and change your own thoughts means to stop yourself from becoming a puppet in someone else’s puppet show. Discipline and control your own mind or someone else will!   

3. Check your own vibration… In this heated climate when we are reaching many new levels of ‘low’, it’s absolutely essential you keep your vibration high. Not only for your sanity (and those around you) but for your immune system as well. If you’re unsure about vibration – think about that time you walked into a room and thought ‘woah, I can cut the air with a knife’ – then you know energy, you know vibration (albeit at a lower level) but you know it!  To stay low (in the thick of it) is a choice our own ego often seeks because it’s easier to seek revenge based on what happened ‘to us’ rather than rise higher and resolve the issue. Victimising yourself is limited thinking – narrow mindedness keeps you stuck in that lower vibration. So rise up now and change by choice, while you can. Don’t make time your teacher (wait till you’re forced to change)! Rising up and staying above the dense vibration of injustice we know so well today, is not always easy to do but it strengthens resilience and when you succeed, the powerful pathways to healing that open up, benefit the highest good of all.

4. Use your Power to Face (a lot) … Familiarity can be a dangerous thing. Comfort begets complacency. And complacency begets blame. Current times dictate we step out of our comfort zone – in our thoughts and in our behaviour. At the very least we must start stretching it – so don’t wait for opportunities, create them! Don’t reduce your value by point the finger of blame, don’t abdicate your power! Take the reins of your story now because if you’re not moving the needle in your own spiritual progress  (if there’s not even the slightest stretch forward) then you’re staying low by choice – making you vulnerable to external influences. Courage is your little helper – it doesn’t mean there will be no fear – instead it helps you work through the fear and keeps your vibration high.  Use conscious, gentle even breaths to steady yourself then taking one baby step after another, walk through the fear with faith.  Courage to face your own inconsistencies as a means to bring about peace, is not only your right, it’s your responsibility… So release those inner demons and break the chains of feeling helpless. Face any inner doubts, fears and insecurities head-on with love and compassion.

5. Live your worth – Knowing your spiritual value and living your life accordingly, enables you to keep your vibration high without losing your equilibrium or appearing passive or non-caring. Living your worth can be tough but it’s what keeps you safe. Lowering your worth to fit in with the standards of others may be easier short term but long term everyone loses because who’s going to pull you up then? Living your virtues, embodying your virtues, showcases your spiritual worth – and it’s this authentic presence that gives you spiritual protection. Wear it like your body armour and no negativity can penetrate – keeping you high and above the current dense global climate. Instead of letting others pull you down, you will have the strength to pull them up 🙂

6. Believe!… When feeling isolated or separated from others, it’s important to focus on your positive beliefs (to stop feeding the weak and destructive ones). Practice turning inward and if you want to take it a step further (something I highly recommend you do) then practice turning upward. The stronger your inner (and upper) connection, the stronger your outer protection!  And Trust! You have the ability to accept life as it is which enables you to rise up again and again. Believing in possibilities increases creativity and draws courage to create these opportunities. It also gives you courage to take opportunities as they present themselves. Thus bringing about a rich experience that automatically strengthens your faith. Faith lets you surrender (let go) because it says that even though you can’t see beyond the corner, you trust that the rivers flow will take you in the right direction. To surrender affirms that the Soul is no longer willing to live in pain. This deep cleansing ends your struggles because it transforms your negative emotions.

7. Look Up… That’s it – plain and simple – just look up! How often do you consciously look up? Our modern lifestyles are meant to make life easier yet somehow life’s complications have a way of infiltrating our wellbeing and we start to look down. Looking down gives a rather limited view of life. Looking up gives infinite possibilities. If you’re down-hearted you will be down-headed and vice versa. Either way, your shoulders will droop and your chest will cave in – don’t need to read the chronicle to know what happens next – but let me briefly share anyway… Reduced oxygen intake > muddled thinking > disempowered reactions – ie rage. Regularly looking up not only increases your oxygen levels but your responses will be more powerful because your thinking will be clearer. You will be kinder to yourself enabling you to be kinder to others 🙂

Change is happening – thick and fast – whether you like it or not!  It’s happening to every living being on the planet in some form. So no use feeling sorry for yourself or sticking your head in the sand. At the end of the day, it’s not what happens that determines the quality of your life but what you choose to do with the winds of change. How will you set your sails? You know, how you set your sails (how you think and react) has a much greater capacity to destroy your life,  then any life challenge you will ever face! When the winds change, the sails must change, I must change!… So to finish, here are two of my favourite Victor Frankl quotes to keep you on track:

1. When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.
2. Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response.  In our response lies our growth and our freedom.

Question:   How will you set your sails?

Contemplation:  What stops me from using the wind to my advantage?

Action:   For the next month or so, pay attention to your attitude. As Brahma Kumaris we live with some disciplined principles. Here’s one – My attitude creates a vibration and that vibration creates the atmosphere! So pay attention to your own attitude (your own thoughts, words and deeds, your own weaknesses and indeed your own strengths). And remember to reset yourself often 🙂

Happy practicing everyone – and ps – thank you for your patience and understanding as I transition into a new way of offering my service.  Love Annemarie x