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Category Archives: Motivation

A Personal Story About Overcoming A Challenge

7 / 10 / 227 / 10 / 22

When I took this portrait of my daughter, she and I enjoyed a stay at a 5-star hotel. Life was great! No cooking, no taking out the trash, no grocery shopping! We enjoyed Michelin food, facials, massage, and soaked up the sun by the pool. Everything was perfect!

A few days after we had returned home from our vacation, everything suddenly wasn’t perfect! My daughter called me in the middle of the night, crying in panic. On her way home from a concert in another city, she accidentally took a train in the wrong direction. She was now stranded far away from where we lived. There were no more trains for the night, and to make things worse, she only had 5% battery left on her phone!

I think every parent can relate to the horrifying worries that entered my mind. I wanted to rescue her as quickly as possible. I wanted her to be safe. I felt powerless because I couldn’t do that immediately. I had to be patient. I had to keep my hopes up that nothing would happen to her while she stood alone in the dark at a lonely train station.

So in the middle of the night, in extreme thunder and pouring rain, I drove to pick up my daughter. The thing is; I fear driving on the highway in the dark because there’s no light. I don’t like the limited visibility! It stresses me out, and the thunderstorm made me even more anxious.

I felt fear vividly growing in me, but I refused to give in to it. I knew going into panic mode would not do the situation any good. Tears of frustration wanted to burst out, but I was determined to stay in control. I decided to be strong for my daughter; to do that, I had to overcome my own fears. 

In all my eagerness to get my girl, I had forgotten to use the toilet before I left the house. Now, I really had to pee badly, but I didn’t want to stop; I wanted my daughter safe first. After two stressful hours on the road, I was relieved when I finally found her at the deserted train station!

I ran out and hugged her with relief. As I guided her to the car, I noticed two creepy guys lurking around. Luckily, she was safe now, and I couldn’t wait to take her home with me.

But I had another emergency…I REALLY had to pee…a lot! My bladder felt like exploding. The nearest gas station was closed, and with no possibility of finding a toilet in the area, I had to “invent an imaginary ladies’ room” behind a dumpster in a parking lot… 

While I sat there, peeing amid the thunderstorm with heavy rain coming down on me, I noticed that I had peed on my left sneakers. Great! Not only was I soaked from the rain, but now I also had to drive back home with this smelly, wet shoe… 

In that moment, my mind wandered back to the fabulous days at the 5-star hotel; the beautiful infinity pool, the colorful cocktails, the calming spa treatments, the happy sunny days with no worries…

And suddenly, I laughed out loud. The contrast between “then and now” was surreal. It was hilarious! 

THIS, I thought to myself, is such a good reminder that life is ever-changing, and you never know what will happen next. You just have to deal with it the best you can and trust that, no matter what happens, you will figure out how to get through it. 

Life will challenge you in unexpected ways. Circumstances will test your willingness to act despite feeling fear. And at that moment, when you act, you understand that you can do more than you think, that you are braver than you believe, and that you can overcome most things. 

The truth is that we humans rarely intentionally leave our comfort zone. We like to be safe, avoid everything that triggers our fears, and avoid putting ourselves in situations of feeling inadequate. 

But the thing is, we grow the most from unexpected, challenging situations because they put us out of our comfort zone. 

I learned a lot about myself from this experience. I realized that I CAN drive in the dark despite my anxiety (still, I wouldn’t say I like it, but I can do it). I learned that I CAN manage my fears and worries in complicated situations, that I’m capable of finding humor in a bad situation, and don’t die from getting pee on my shoes. All good lessons to learn, right.

So what’s my point with telling you this story?

Simple: to help you look for the good in the bad.

Some of the most powerful resources you develop will arise from challenging situations. Strength doesn’t come from living the good life in a luxurious hotel – it comes from interacting with life outside your comfort zone. That’s how you get to know yourself. That’s how you become confident in your own skin and discover your true power. 

With love, and a huge smile…

Christina

FREE GOAL-SETTING MASTERCLASS: Half-Year Check-Up 2021

6 / 5 / 212 / 26 / 22

We are already halfway through 2021. Luckily, you still got six months to make this year your best year ever and your summer break is the perfect time to look closely at your life, re-adjust, re-evaluate and get back on track.

Maybe you’ve neglected some of your goals because life got busy and you got caught up in the daily grind. Or maybe reaching that goal was harder than you imagined and you gave up along the way.

It’s easy to feel like a failure when you promised yourself you would do something and then you didn’t. It’s easy to blame yourself for giving up because it didn’t go according to plan. And it sure is easy to get angry with yourself for not following through!

The truth! It happens to ALL of us.

So let’s reset and optimize your life in a positive + empowering way.

It’s time to set yourself free of the past, let go of limitations and become mindful of what makes you happy.

Because YOU deserve to live your best life.⁣⁣

Join me for my traditional half-year LIFE & BUSINESS check-up; the 2021 edition.

I’m coaching you through 16 questions designed to help you become aware of the way you live, and to look at your life with open eyes.

DOWNLOAD the worksheet, grab your best pen and get ready to create a roadmap for the rest of the year.

DOWNLOAD WORKSHEET >>

Self-Forgiveness & Flowers

6 / 3 / 216 / 3 / 21

Darling, it’s time to forgive yourself. 

Stop beating yourself up for something that happened in the past.

Why?

Because the quality of your life is a direct reflection of your willingness to forgive yourself with empathy and compassion.

You can keep brewing over the same mistakes, or you can move on and become a better, wiser, and happier you.

Forgive yourself for:

➡️ Not speaking up or reacting when you felt you should have. 

➡️ Not listening to your body when it was exhausted.

➡️ Ignoring the warning signs.

➡️ Not setting boundaries to protect your energy and well-being.

➡️ Putting yourself down.

➡️ Holding onto guilt and shame.

➡️ Holding onto the past.

➡️ Not following through on what you’ve promised yourself.

➡️ Not treating yourself with kindness, empathy, and compassion.

➡️ Listening to toxic people.

➡️ Telling yourself you are not enough.

Self-forgiveness is a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment towards yourself, and it can bring you a kind of peace that helps you go on with life.

Forgiveness makes you stronger and grows your confidence muscle.

Forgiveness means negative past experiences no longer controls you.

Forgive yourself because it can set you free of negative emotions, habits, and harsh self-critique.

Open your heart and forgive yourself because YOU deserve it. You are a loving person, a beautiful soul, and a valuable human being. 

We all make mistakes. No one is perfect! When you know better, you do better.

With love, Christina

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