A Wish for My Daughter

"Children are likely to live up to what you believe of them"

Lady Bird Johnson

This week marks the end of my daughters' years in primary school. She is heading off to high school next. It has been wonderful to watch the emotions that she has experienced in the lead up to this event. Everything from fear and nervousness before her first interview with the school, the happiness and excitement after her orientation day. The more she learnt about her new school, the more knowledge she gained, the more people she met - the more comfortable she has become with the thought of leaving behind what she knew and heading into the future.

On the brink of this new stage of my baby's life, I began to reflect on my hopes for her. So Beautiful Girl it is my wish that you can see yourself as I do and embrace the following beliefs about yourself.

I am perfect exactly as I am

I do not have to prove to anyone or anything who I am

I am a stunning example of feminine strength

I blossom with joy and beauty

I now choose to eliminate from my life and mind every negative, destructive, fearful idea and thought that would keep me from being the magnificent woman I am meant to be

It is safe for me to grow

I now stand on my own two feet and think for myself

I am a blessing to the planet

My future is bright and beautiful

I am a kind-hearted and sensitive soul

Together we lovingly nourish an even more beautiful world

With joy, I recognise my perfection and the perfection of Life

So Little Miss Jess Lyn, I ask that you may take these beliefs with you throughout your life. To take on the challenges that you will encounter with determination, to cherish the friends that you will make, to enjoy the opportunities that come your way, to know that you can and do make a wonderful contribution to the world, to let yourself shine and inspire others and to never forget that you are a special, unique and amazing individual.

I love you, I am blessed to have you in my life and I am proud to be able to call you my daughter. So when you look in the mirror, remember that you may not always hear all the compliments that you sweetly deserve, but you are worthy of all the friendship, treasures, love and joy in the world

A Wish for My Daughter

Living on Purpose

To get the most out of life, it must be filled with passion and significance. For this to happen, you need to know what your purpose in life is. When you discover your life purpose, or better yet when you are actually living it, you are filled with an overwhelming feeling of joy and fulfillment. It gives you the way to direct your values and passions in a meaningful way. Your life purpose is the foundation of what makes you a unique and special individual, it is the very essence of who you are.

People can be divided into two categories in terms of having a purpose in life. There are Leaders and Sleepers. Leaders are out there taking charge and responsibility of their own lives, have a compelling passion for life and are respected for what they achieve in their lives. Sleepers are those who meander aimlessly through life with no purpose. Leaders thrive on overcoming adversity on their path through life. While sleepers are just waiting out their time before they expire. When a Leader meets a challenge, it is head-on until they are triumphant. When a Sleeper finds a problem in their way, they turn around and wander away. Which are you?

There are numerous inspiring tales throughout time of Leaders who appeared to know what their destiny was in life and spent most of their lives accomplishing greatness. While that's awesome, most of us are not that fortunate. We get to discover our own destiny and alas the majority often discover it very late in life, if at all. So to make your adult life much more rewarding and easier, let's go about discovering what your life purpose is.

Lots and lots of people mix up their life purpose with their role in life or career (such as mother, father, husband, wife, teacher, lawyer or many other roles). While these are just vehicles by which you can achieve your life purpose, and are not by themselves your life purpose. For example, your life purpose may be to help people achieve wellness. This can be done through the roles of doctor, nurse, ambulance officer, dietitian or many others.

Being aware of what your purpose is in life drives you towards numerous achievements and allows you to live a full passionate life. There are two elements involved in discovering your life purpose. They are your highest values and your strongest passions.

Your highest values are the base level beliefs, morals and standards that guide your behaviour and make you, you. Other things in your life may change, but these values do not.

Your strongest passions are how you express and share your values. These are what you absolutely love doing in life. They may include specific skills or talents you have. As well as things you would love to do someday but haven't tried yet.

Defining your purpose in life can be done in 4 simple steps and requires only some paper and a pencil. Divide the paper into two columns and on the left list your values and on the right your passions.

Values are those things that describe you as an individual. They can include such character traits as love, humour, strength, creativity, compassion, resourcefulness. you can come up with at least 5 to 8 relevant to you.

Then list how you express that value, these are your passions. For creativity it might be artistic endeavours, dance, problem solving or whatever is right for you. They are what you love doing or would love to do. They can include goals and dreams you plan to have in your life.

Now looking back at your column of values, select the top three that are extra special. The MOST important ones for you. The three that there is no way you could live without them.

Finally take these top highest values and their related strongest passions and create your own mission statement. The following statement is just a basic guideline.

"My purpose in life is to [highest values] through [strongest passions]"

My own mission statement is "The purpose of my life is to create and inspire with beauty and wisdom to help myself and others learn and grow even more."

Use you own words until you get a mission statement that feels right for you. CONGRATULATIONS!!! You have just discovered the purpose of your life. Now go and live it. And know that you are the master of your destiny and can change or modify your mission statement as you grow and change as an individual.

Living on Purpose