When you go through any challenge, you are tested, and to learn and grow we need to be challenged, it is that simple. Just last week I thought I was on a clear path, the indicators told me so, so when that wasn't so my head and heart were in conflict. It was like one of those surreal moments you are disassociated from the experience and see yourself in it. Well that was me, shocked and in disbelief. That was last week and today I am in a better place. Time does heal that is for sure. As they say one door closes and another one opens, I believe things happen for a reason, and so I have justified it and filed the moment somewhere in my learnings. I decide how I feel about things and my experiences; sure there is sadness and disappointment. However I choose to be grateful and feel loved, adored and wanted. That is a better place to resonate from. And that is what I choose. Feeling overwhelmed with emotions and stuck in the moment does not help me move on; in fact it does the complete o...

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For many of us asking for help is a difficult thing to do. We would rather stay stuck in our challenges or settle for outcomes that we are not happy with than go to someone who could offer us some assistance. So why is asking for help difficult for people?  The following are some reasons that I believe contribute to people’s inability to ask for help: Perception that asking for help is a sign of weakness; Fear of looking foolish or being embarrassed in front of others; Pride; Reflects an inability to manage areas of our life; and Having to pay someone for their assistance. Our thoughts and beliefs around asking for help have been influenced by the messages that we have been exposed to from our environments (e.g. home, social, work, school etc.). For example, you may have been exposed to environments that suggested that you should solve your own problems or that you cannot trust others to help you. If you had been exposed to these types of messages yo...

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Like a child on a car trip, I find myself thinking ‘Are we there yet?’  Ok I know patience is not one of my strong points, anybody that knows me will contest to that. Yet it is 2010 and somehow it feels like we are living in sci-fi age, and if that is the case then why do we still find ourselves waiting? We should have arrived by now.. Arrived to the age of awareness and understanding Arrived full circle to our realization that less is in fact more Noticed that there are some people born lucky and then there are the rest of them Being completely present in the moment and not daydreaming of the past or future Noticing that we can live simply and be authentically happy Questioning why we eat certain foods when we are feeling emotional in any way Making a connection with no hidden agenda Yes I can relate to most of those things, living simply and living consciously. It takes work to keep it simple and to really be present. For example being a p...

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Yesterday a client told me about his dilemma, he is a talented IT professional and gets contract after contract without really looking, his work speaks for itself. He has been in this profession all is adult life and really wants a career change, thus the coaching. It is interesting that when one contract is about to end the next job just appears for him, yet this is the time when he wants to pull back and re-train in his new path, one which is more alignment with his values and passion. It feels like the universe is testing him each time, here is a job you can do, take it, and he is standing on the fork on the road wondering if job security is more important than learning new skills. You need to be practical before taking the leap of faith into a new endeavor, as there are many considerations, being the main breadwinner in the family  you have responsibilities, and in my model of the world that takes precedence over anything else. Yet by the same token if you can put time a...

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There are more and more people starting their own business, as we reach a fork on the road with our careers and lifestyle choices many decide that working for someone else does not really provide us with enough balance and flexibility that we need in our lives.  So we take the plunge and fly solo, and this means we do EVERYTHING, from the actual work to administration, marketing, promotions and even become our own PA. Surely there are not enough hours in the day to do all those job roles and so many of us work after hours including weekends and even during our holidays after all we do not get the employee benefits anymore and we need to be available for our clients. So where did the balance go? We want our cake and eat it too, which means we are chasing our tails and often doing tasks that bring no joy as this is not want we are passionate about, we want to talk to people, create, do our thing.. Yet we find ourselves sending out flyers, typing up proposals,  making cold call...

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A client of mine was talking about all the things she has yet to do and she became a little bit disillusioned about it all, as she felt she had left her run too late. She is in her late 30s, still single and no children and she really wants a partner and family to complete her picture. She like so many women of my generation feel that we can have it ALL, career, travel, new experiences and then find Mr Wonderful and settle down with one or two children.  Time is a finite resource we all know that and if our priorities are to work and travel then you need to have your eyes and heart open to meet Mr Wonderful during  your journey.  If you keep playing the field and not commit then you risk running out of time and you may become complacent and settle for Mr Right now.  I was watching an interview with Dame Elizabeth Murdoch she will be 100 years old next month, and what really stuck me was that she was so vivid and articulate in expressing her opinions, she said that...

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Your Own Worst Enemy - How Not To Be! Top secrets to staying motivated and on track with your goals Have you ever set yourself a goal or committed to stopping or staring something (a diet, an exercise plan) and not managed to follow through?  If you are like every other person in the world then I am guessing the answer is yes, at least once! Just because you set yourself a goal it does not mean that you will achieve the outcome you want. Do you sometimes have a that little voice inside your head that says “I am finding it really hard to stay motivated to stick to this goal or “I wish I was more motivated to do the things I know need doing” For all of us at one time or another we have found it difficult to find the motivation and keep it. Unfortunately motivation won’t just fall into your lap – you have to take steps to create it. Wanting to do something and then actually doing it can be really hard.  We often mistake sheer will power with motivation. Will power is no go...

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Women With Purpose   Are you a women who is time poor but committment rich? Then you belong to a NOT SO exclusive club! I really, really dislike it when I see an advert asking me if I would like more time in the day – of course I would -  are these people idiots?   For me it has never been about more time. I knew that if I had more time then I would simply do more things and try to fit more in. If this sounds familiar then you might want to read on.....?   My name is Louise Carter and I help women to set goals for themself and more importantly STICK  to them.    I am lucky enough to meet many wonderful women every day and they all have oodles of talent and potential.   They are all successful in their own right as mothers, partners, lovers, career women, friends etc and every one of them has a goal, which is why they come to me. It is   The goals are things they are passionate about that they know will make a difference...

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It is important to understand that there are seasons in our life and that each of these seasons are helpful to us. Winter Winter is the season where we experience challenges and difficulties in our life. It can feel like a cold and lonely time. Our life may appear bleak. We may be dealing with storms in our life which creates fear and anxiety for us. However, we need periods of winter in our lives. These winter times provide us with important learning and understanding. It is through the challenges and difficulties in life that we learn our most valuable lessons. Winter also helps us to appreciate and be grateful for what we have. Without periods of winter in our lives we can take for granted all of the goodness that we experience. Autumn Autumn is the season of our life where change occurs and we need to let go of the old. During this period of our life we recognise and feel the need for change in our lives. In order for us to change we need to let go of things like the leaves fa...

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You wonder sometimes if we had ‘user manuals’ when we were born that things would turn out different, and there would be more ‘common sense’ in the world. Just reading the paper I was completed shocked to read about a mother  who left her son in the car whilst it was scorching hot outside. The mother claims that ‘she forgot he was in the car’ as she got carried away doing the Christmas shopping! I know I shouldn’t judge however this behaviour is so wrong, how can you forget your own child whilst you do the shopping? Thank goodness a passerby heard the screams and broke a window and got him out. How hysterical would that little toddler be? And the psychological damage created in that traumatic event, it could really impact him. If we had user manuals the mother would know better. It would be stated, that under no circumstances to leave children alone in the car. Yet I guess we are all so different and follow different sets of values and beliefs that to create a user manual for al...

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