CHAPTER 14
DEVELOP A STRONG LIFE – THE POWER OF YOU
Develop a strong mind and you will live a strong life. A strong mind is built by feeding it with positive thoughts and learning new things every day. When I say this I don’t mean every now and then, or perhaps just for a little while, I mean expanding and using the power of your thoughts every single day. Your mind and your soul are like muscles. The more you engage in such practice and awareness, the stronger your understanding will be. If your world is in alignment, things will happen for you naturally. You don’t have to fight or force or be desperate for things to change. You actually have to do the opposite. The art in gaining the life you want so much, and creating happiness, abundance, tranquillity, and clarity is to let go. Trust the universe and trust your own process.
Embrace good clean food and healthy living and understand that, as I said before, it isn’t about living forever, it’s about opening up the possibility of all sorts of incredible opportunities while you are here on this planet and making the best of every single day. I believe if you sit on the sofa all day, drinking, smoking, and eating junk food it clouds your mind, fogs your brain, and numbs your soul. A strong mind is built with daily gratitude and when you are grateful for everything you do there is no room for negativity, and no room for doubt and anxiety. Even if you are in the worst position possible and right at this very moment you feel as if your life couldn’t get any lower, then reset your mind. Grab the opportunity with both hands to see how this truly works; after all what do you have to lose?
A strong mind is also built with goals. Goals that give you a reason to get out of bed and seize the day – ‘carpe diem’ as the roman poet Horace said many times. This basically means enjoying the present and living for the moment. To make the most of today by achieving fulfilment in a philosophical or spiritual sense, attacking the day’s efforts with vigour and purpose.
You must stop waiting and start living and make the time for the things you want to do. Say ‘yes’ to whatever is important and ‘no’ to what is irrelevant.
Say ‘yes’ to what feels right in your heart and ‘no’ to people that waste your time. Bring your best to the table each and every day and whatever you do, be there fully. Show what you really feel and do not let fear rule you. Be courageous!
Another rule for building a strong mind is accepting that you are the only person responsible for your life. Yes pretty ol’ you! Not the hunk you hitched up with last week, or your wife or husband you’ve been with for 30 years, not your children, not your lover, not your best friends. You and only you can make your dreams come true. Your results, your successes, and your failures. And who gives a rat’s arse about your failures? I’ve had loads. Failed marriages, business ideas that didn’t work, and no one really remembers them but me. Why? Because everyone is getting on with their world, their bubble of life. And if they do care, and bring you down in any way, send them love – lots of love. There is such power in admitting your mistakes and owning them. Most importantly, continue to learn from your mistakes and expand your mind by developing your skills. Growth is the key to life. If you are growing and challenging yourself every day, you will automatically feel better about yourself. If you are not, you may suffer from loss of confidence. The mind likes to be challenged, it gets stronger when you embrace new things, when you push it to its limits. The more you do this, the better the things you attract. Surrounding yourself with the right people will elevate you and raise your vibration. Do not let the negative opinions of others redirect the course of your life. It follows its own path no matter what. You must visualize what it is you want and be prepared to work to make that picture come true. Do not let fear get in the way and create doubt. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you.
Be careful of your words, too. Words matter, the words you think, the words you say out loud, and the words that you listen to from others. However, when your words are mixed with your belief, this is when you start noticing shifts in your life and this is what truly creates your reality. What you speak during your life is what your life will become. If you are always talking about how you are stuck, and how you cannot find a way out of the situation that you are in, how you never get any luck, and how you will never be wealthy, you are right, because that is what you will create. If that is what you say, then that is what you believe. Instead of saying ‘I don’t know how to do it’, how about saying ‘I am committed to learning how to do it’? Instead of procrastinating and always finding excuses why nothing ever gets done, how about finding something that matters to you more than anything and then deciding and taking action to get the job done?
Instead of saying that you are a failure, say ‘I failed, and I have learnt my lessons’. When you become a huge success, it is the failures that make the most interesting of stories. Take Vera Wang, the famous fashion designer, as an example. She wasn’t always known for her designer wedding gowns. She was a figure skater that failed to make the US Olympic team. She then moved to work for Vogue but was turned down for the editor‐in‐chief position before leaving to become the incredible designer she is today. Another fine example is Jeff Bezos, who created Amazon. Before Amazon became a household name, Bezos, had several failed ideas, one being an online auction site, which evolved into ZShops, a brand that ultimately crashed and failed. But with determination and belief, he repurposed the idea into what would eventually become the Amazon Marketplace. Peter Thiel lost 90% of his $7 billion assets invested in the stock market, currencies, and oil. He then started PayPal and invested in names like Facebook to gain greater success than ever before. The list goes on and on. You may be reading this thinking that this is not the kind of success you want at all. My point is always that no matter what you want in life, however big or small, even if it is simply peace and contentment, the same principles apply.
Have you ever heard anyone saying ‘My best days are behind me’? What about saying ‘My best days are yet to come’? Others are not born lucky or with special gifts, you just need to believe deep in your heart that you are capable of anything. The only limitations that you have are those that you apply to yourself. Your restrictions belong to you, and no one else can do anything about that. Connect with great people, surround yourself with greatness, and become a great person in your own right.
Daily affirmations are so powerful. When you first start to say them, you may feel slightly uncomfortable. But keep repeating them day after day and your mind will start to believe in what you are saying. Start with these and see what happens.
- I am a great person
- I am a kind person
- I am strong
- I am capable of anything
- I am growing more and more
- I am committed
- I am determined
- I have no limits
- I have the health and the body of my choice
- I can have the wealth of my choice
- I do deserve abundance
- I am worthy
- I can make a huge difference in others’ lives.
Remember: your beliefs become your thoughts, your thoughts become your words, and your words become your actions. Then your actions become your habits and your habits become your values and your values become your destiny. When you start blending your beliefs and your words together, they become so powerful you can move mountains. You are the creator of your destiny and it starts with the words you speak to yourself and in your life. Bring positive things into your daily practice. Speak love and happiness and abundance and bring them into your life if they’re not there already. Speak good of others and avoid negative gossip. Speak your dreams into existence and they will become a reality. Live as if your desires, thoughts, and feelings are real, and they soon will be.
Muhammad Ali said he would be the greatest, and he became the greatest. He had no doubt in his mind, and that is the level of certainty that you should speak about your thoughts, dreams, and desires.
I am healthy, I am wealthy, I am wise.
Opportunities pop up everywhere. Money flows with ease, joy is everywhere, and watch what you are attracting when you vibrate at this level. Feel blessed, surround yourself with blessings. Know that you have more than enough and are full of endless energy. Say to yourself that you are strong and fit and that you are such a positive influence on those around you. Say you have amazing friends, say it all out loud! Say that you are abundant in all areas of your life and that you are constantly growing your income if that’s what you want. Say to yourself: I am getting healthier, stronger, and fitter every day and that your relationships are becoming more meaningful and always growing. Say out loud that there is more love and joy every day in your life. Sticks and stones may break your bones, but your words can shatter your dreams.
Your beliefs, thoughts, and dreams will determine your destiny. Whatever you believe is your limit, is your limit. The person you will be in the future is based on everything you do today. The workouts you do, or don’t do. The foods you eat today, or don’t eat. The books you read, the people you surround yourself with, and the thoughts that feed your mind. Your future self wants you to show some discipline, work hard to achieve your goals. Whatever you want out of life, put the effort in now. If you want success, put the work in, if you want health and fitness, put in the work. If you want peace and happiness, be clear on what you want.
At night‐time when you sleep, you are essentially fasting. It gives your body the rest it needs in order to renew and repair your gorgeous cells, but you can use this time for something else too. Recently a client said to me she felt regretful and as if she had wasted the last 10 years of her life being ill, separating from her partner, and not enjoying her job, etc. We can be full of regret, but the most important thing to remember is that every day, every hour, every minute can be a fresh start, so why not use waking up as the perfect opportunity to press your restart button?
Before your feet hit the floor, as soon as thoughts enter your head, make them positive. Stop worrying about things that have been bothering you and allow your energy alignment to take place. Release any feelings of resistance. Go to sleep with gratitude and positivity, and that’s how you will wake up. Lay in your bed and appreciate everything and anything that doesn’t take you into any negative energy. Think about things that can bring you back into alignment. Bask yourself to sleep with delightful thoughts and then when you wake try to get your immediate thoughts back into the zone that you were in the night before, by reclaiming those happy thoughts. Go right into a list of positive aspects before you start your day. Then your day will be amazing. It takes time, patience, practice, and dedication to do this, but it’s so worth it. The results will change your life.
Take whatever you want from this information, run with it, live by it, but I will always stand by my advice to you and say this.
Balance is key in everything you do. You can party all night long if you want to, laugh and be happy, but the next day practise yoga and drink green juice in abundance. Have a chunk of chocolate when you want to, and a bowl of green leaves to keep your body strong when you need to. Put your suit and smart shoes on one day and your trainers the next. Walk barefoot on the grass and then put your stilettos on tomorrow. Love your body whatever your size, shape, or gender. Live high, take risks, be brave, be bold, be spontaneous. Grab opportunities by the horns when they come along. Find your silent peace and be comfortable with who you are. If you are not, then find ways of getting there. Be kind to others always and make time to be kind to yourself. Make your own rules, and follow your own path. This is your life and you deserve only the very best … for you.