Saturday Musings - Opportunity abounds, you just have to go and find it

I consider myself very fortunate to live in Australia. Yes, we have our problems, but on the whole we are much better off than many other countries around the planet.

I have to say that I get rather fed up with all the doom and gloom put out by the Media on a regular basis telling us how bad the economy is, how difficult it is for everyone and how it can only get worse. As a result, I do not watch the TV news or read the newspapers.

It all comes back to belief. If you believe what the Media tell you, then your life will be difficult. Finding you way will be hard. 

However, there is plenty of opportunity out there it is just a matter of being open to finding it; but there are some things that you need to do:

My latest opportunity

• Know what exactly it is that you want in your life
• get out and meet new people and find out what they are doing. Opportunity often arises when you meet someone new
• be open to change. Clinging on to your old habits and ways of thinking will not help you to find the opportunity that you want
• and when an opportunity presents itself, have the courage to follow through.
• Be prepared to ask for help. People love to help, it is a natural part of being human.

So keep your eyes and ears open. No matter how bad your situation or how much doom and gloom is publicized  There is opportunity; you just have to go out and find it.

For example: a couple of months ago I met a lady at a business networking event who introduced me to a company called Melaleuca. 

I followed up on that opportunity and now I am healthier, my home is healthier and I am helping the environment.
I am also able to make myself some extra income by helping others do the same. A win win all round. 

I could not have done this if I had not been open to grabbing an opportunity that presented itself and making some changes.

One more thing; ignore the naysayers in your family and friends. Sometimes those who are closest to us do not want us to change and grow. So if you have someone in your life like that, bless them and let them go. Never let them hold you back on your journey. 

Hilary Thompson
The Out and About Therapist

Friday musings - Letting Go!

I was standing by my window watching the first of the autumn leaves fall, when it came to me that trees, unlike people, are very good at letting go.

Autumn leaves

The deciduous trees drop their leaves in autumn when the leaves have served their purpose, allowing new growth to happen in the spring. Gum trees let go and peel off their bark, allowing their “new skin” to show.

We all have times when we have to let go of something or someone.

We need to let go of jobs that are not fulfilling and enjoyable. We need to let go of relationships that are toxic and holding us back.

Parents need to let go of their children when they are grown, to allow them to make their own way in life.

We sometimes need to let go of a house in which we have lived for some time and move into more suitable accommodation. 

We need to let go of possessions that we have accumulated and no longer need and sometimes people or situations let go of us.

At another level, we need to let go of old beliefs and behavior patterns that are no longer serving us. It is important to let go of old resentments, angers, jealousies, hurts; old ways of thinking that keep us locked up in the past.

And sometimes we have to let go of someone that we love.

Bark peeling off a Gum tree

What stops us from “Letting Go”? Basically it is fear. Fear of what will happen to us if we let go. Fear of the unknown. Fear of being hurt and fear of being out of control. Fear of all sorts of real and imaginary things that keep us in a state of paralysis, and stop us from moving forward in our lives.

We know when we have to let go of something or someone. At least we know in our hearts that is what we need to do, but our minds often tell us something different. So we allow our mind to keep us holding on.

Does this make us happy? No it does not. In fact holding on can make us sick.

We need to listen to what is in our heart, what we know deep down is right for us and for others that may be involved. So there comes a time when we have to take a deep breath, conquer our fear and just Let Go.

Hilary Thompson

The Out and About Therapist

Saturday Musings - The winds of change

I grew up during the 1950’s and 60’s when life was very different. The amount of change that I have seen in my life so far is astonishing especially when it comes to technology.

My childhood TV

I remember the first TV that we had was in black & white, no colour in those days. It had a small screen surrounded by a wooden case. No wonder it became known as "The Box".

The picture would sometimes go fuzzy or disappear altogether and we would be shown a message saying something like “Normal transmission will resume as soon as possible, do not adjust your set”.

My TV

Now we have slim line digital TV’s with beautifully clear colour pictures and quality sound. What a change.

An old Bakerlite Telephone

My modern Telephone

The telephone is another great example of how things have changed over my life time. I remember the old Bakerlite phones sitting on the hall stand in our house. We had to share a line with some of our neighbours, so you could only make a call when the line was free.

Now we have mobiles, androids and landline phones that we can use anywhere. That is a huge change.

All this technological change is wonderful, but I suspect that we have been so focused on gadgets and technology; we have, as a society, often forgotten that we need to make other changes as well.

For us as human beings to grow, we need to look at changing the ways that we think. We need to let go of the old outdated ways of thinking.

We need to change attitudes like: “my father did it this way, my grandfather did it this way and my great grandfather did it this way too, so I will continue to do it the way they did. It was good enough for them so it’s good enough for me.”  

Attitudes like this stifle us and can easily stop us from living a prosperous life in this changing world.

Here is another example of a way of thinking that needs to be changed. 

We need to let go of the fear of people who are different from us. This may have been useful when we lived in a tribal situation, but in today’s society hanging onto this fear encourages at best isolation; and at its worst racism, violence and discrimination. In fact we need to let go of fear altogether for our society to survive and evolve.

Change is not always easy. It can be very confronting, make us fearful and resentful. However, it does not have to be like that. It is all about how you think. If you tackle change with courage, enthusiasm, a willingness to learn and perseverance then change is your friend.

So think about what you need to change, and which attitudes you are holding onto that are not serving you. Take a deep breath and just do it. You will be glad that you did.

Hilary Thompson

The Out and About Therapist

Facilitator at Flourishing Relationships Retreats