A weekly tradition where we pop the cork on the week that was, celebrate what worked, reflect on what didn’t, and look forward to a sparkling new week of possibility.  I hope you’ll join me  and share your reflections in the comments.

What am I celebrating?

We are moving house today!

What am I acknowledging?

That as quickly as a grey cloud descends down on me it lift agains leaving the world looking bright.

What was missing?

The week has whizzed by so fast that if anything was missing I haven’t had time to notice

What small change can I make for next week?

Continue with my mantra from last week

although we are in the second month of the year, there are still ten to go, enough time for me to Step up and shine.

Given that last week we were talking about reflections and intentions for the year ahead, it seemed a great time to revisit this post that inspired me to ask: What’s stopping us from living our dream life?

Over two decades of knowing Sara, I’ve watched her ask ‘What am I creating?’ again and again, and make conscious choices to go for what she wants. And she commits to those choices with passion and fierce determination—even when it’s been incredibly challenging.

Such choices have included returning to university, travelling overseas, extreme sports such as downhill mountain bike racing, renovating homes, marriage, divorce, re-marriage, and having children. Now I think she has found her unique extraordinary: living with her family, close to nature and with plenty of fresh air, on a rural property.

So what’s stopping us from doing the same?

Could I go bush and live the ‘simple’ life? GOOD GRACIOUS NO! But I can take inspiration from Sara’s story and ask myself some important questions…

• What am I creating right now?
• What’s it costing me?
• What is most important in my life (& am I getting enough of this)?
• Do I want to live more simply?
• What small changes could I make?
• What kind of information could help me here, and where could I get that from?

See what occurs to you as you read Sara’s story…

Email update from Sara…

*I’ve taken out some identifying information to protect the privacy of Sara and her family.

Happy New Year!

Can’t believe another year has passed! It’s been a busy one. We’ve now been on our property for almost two years and have gradually turned it into a fully functioning little farm.

We have a small herd of funny looking goats (actually pure-bred Anglo-Nubians) and I milk three of them everyday. (One of the goats has three legs, but that doesn’t stop her, and we don’t discriminate!) We have a miniature pony to help the grazing mix. Unfortunately, she’s almost on three legs too after a horrible accident on a corrugated iron gate.

Playing vet… and funeral director

I’ve had to play Vet a lot since having the animals, and am now expert at giving drenches (down the throat) and injections, wound care, castrating, diagnosing illness, and even delivered a baby goat in my lunch hour!

The young boy goats will go in the freezer when they are bigger. We also have about 50 chooks of various breeds that give us lots of lovely eggs and the young roosters will also be going in the freezer in another couple of months. Apparently it’s not a good idea to be born a male animal on a farm. Even [hubby] knows to behave himself now that I own castrating rings!!

[One daughter] has four breeding pairs of Silkie chickens in different colours, and has quite a little enterprise (with my help!). [Our other daughter] and I have 10 rabbits between us, Mini Lop Eared and Dwarf Lop Eared, and are developing a breeding program. It got off to a shaky start, when one of the male rabbits turned out to be a female! We’ve got that sorted out now, and should have some babies early in the new year.

Unfortunately, I have also have to play funeral director. Funerals range from: compost heap for chickens/snakes/rodents, shallow grave for baby goats, and full burial ceremony with candles for the dog. We lost our 10yr old doberman, Jette, this year to a snake bite. Fortunately it was instant, and no-one had to make the horrible decision about treatment vs euthanasia.

A new snake hunter and a change of heart

[Hubby] thought that with Jette gone, we’d have a risk of snakes coming into the house, so we got a cat from the RSPCA. Not being much of a cat lover myself, I agreed reluctantly. Gerry has turned out to be an amazing little fella, and has converted me! He stays inside at night, and there’s been not a single mouse/rat poo since we’ve had him, and he follows me around like the dog did, even up in the paddocks. He sits on my lap every evening, and meows at the lounge room door if I go in there without him. We’ve nicknamed him “The Therapy Cat”, as he makes me sit still and relax!

As far as keeping the snakes away…. I was called into the house by [daughter] and her friend, who I found standing on the kitchen table, yelling excitedly… Gerry had very kindly brought in a brown snake to show us what a clever hunter he was, and it was writhing around on the floor, luckily too crook to strike. Farmer Sara came in with the shovel and cut off its head! The shovel now lives permanently at the front door.

Knowledge is power

The constant rain this season has made gardening very challenging, with excessive growth of grass and weeds and lots of fungal problems on the crops. My next project is to build above ground garden beds. I have another 6 months of my Organic Farming course, which has really been an excellent resource that I can apply to the property. I reckon that without that knowledge, as well as information from lots of other sources, such as Landcare, city-slickers like ourselves could find themselves overwhelmed and give up the farm lifestyle out of frustration. Knowledge is power, and I am proud to say that our property is beginning to look well managed and is quite productive.

The trick is to get the balance right, eg. the right number of livestock to eat the grass but not overstocked requiring extra feeding. We will reduce the goat herd size in Autumn when the feed drops off (ie, eat the boys!), and the herd will increase again in spring when new kids are born, in time to keep down the grass over summer.

And there’s always fine-tuning!

We love the freedom of this lifestyle. But it is constant work, and I’m always coming up with little systems to minimise the work eg. watering and feeding systems for the chooks so that they can be left a couple of days, and nesting boxes accessible from outside the pen so that no-one has to do battle with the chooks to collect the eggs. We’ve also put the goats to work in clearing new areas. [Hubby] and I hack through the bush (lots of lantana) and put in an electric fence perimeter, then the goats eat out the enclosed area. They do a great job of it, and even though they don’t eat much lantana, they make it easily accessible for us to come in and pull it out afterwards.

I’ve designed four small paddocks that cover our hill area (not able to be mown) and rotate the animals through it. It is the best system for pasture improvement and worm/parasite control, and we are seeing positive results already.

I’m still doing occupational therapy work at the hospital as a casual, 2-3 days a week, which suits me fine. I’m quite busy enough and we try hard to manage on the income that we have. Money isn’t the most important thing all the time!

The girls are all happy and healthy and growing up to be lovely, responsible young ladies. We have a bit of an open-house and it’s nothing for us to have 6 girls overnight!

Don’t forget to pop in if ever you’re in the area, for as long or short a visit as you like. We’d love to catch up.

Stay tuned…

Although Sara’s lifestyle is by no means ‘easy’, there’s a certain energy in her writing that tells me she is living her extraordinary and fulfilling life. I’m going to be thinking more about what stops us from doing the same… and will share more on that next week.

I’d also love to hear your thoughts… What feelings/dreams/objections/questions does Sara’s story raise for you? Tell us in the comments!

Living savvy is not about unsustainable overhauls – it’s about the small changes we can make to create a life that is a little more fulfilling, a little more satisfying and a little more joyful.

Each Monday I share a few simple ideas I have to fine-tune my own ordinary to live extraordinary this week, and I hope you will  share yours!

Organise myself to have 15 minutes of reading time before I go to sleep.  I am reading Andre Agassi’s autobiography Open, it is a page turner.

Get started on professional development activities

Pick up a few bits and pieces for our “new” kitchen

A weekly tradition where we pop the cork on the week that was, celebrate what worked, reflect on what didn’t, and look forward to a sparkling new week of possibility.  I hope you’ll join me  and share your reflections in the comments.

What am I celebrating?

The first full week of my children being back at school …reclaiming my regular routine…relishing a quiet home…watching the kids rise to the expectations that come with going up another grade at school ….packing and preparing for our move next week….re-focusing on my work list of activities.  I have also taken the time to celebrate the flexibility that I have in my life that means that I can keep moving forward with work and business while managing the responsibility of family in this time of wonderful change.

What am I acknowledging?

I have been feeling out – of – sorts this week.   Not 100% sure why, I think it has something to do with the business (read financial) objectives that I have set for 2012 which are stirring up feelings of anxiety.

What was missing?

Following my rule that if I have to think to hard about this question then the answer is  – nothing!

What small change can I make for next week?

Continue to remind myself that although we are in the second month of the year, there are still ten to go, enough time for me to Step up and shine.

I’m grateful for the quiet, unplugged time and glad I didn’t push myself to write this review post before I was ready!

As the clocks tick over to January 1st, there can be a lot of pressure to jump in and make those New Year resolutions… as regular Living Savvy readers know, I don’t do New Year’s resolutions.

Instead, I sit with open-ended questions that challenge me to look within, celebrate what was achieved, acknowledged what I missed and and reflect on what I’ve learned. Then I decide how I want to put those learnings into action in the future.

New Year reflections in 3 easy steps (living savvy style)

Really, you can use these reflections at whatever time feels right for you, whether it happens to be January 1st or not. Now that the kids are back to school after the summer holidays (here in Australia anyway!), it might be the perfect time to reflect:

Step #1: Acknowledge what you have achieved in the past 12 months.
Step #2: Celebrate your achievements.
Step #3: Think about what is important to you, and what achievements you want to build on. Make a *short* list of focus areas for the coming year (brief enough so you can hold them easily in your mind as you go about your day).

My 2011

12 months ago I set my focus for 2011. I wanted to:

• Re-commit to my PhD and working out how I can do it (I know it is possible)
• Rebuild my health, well-being and endurance (I am very clear on how this will look, when I have achieved this)
• Shining the spotlight on creating healthy revenue to support the Living Savvy business

I did a rough business plan with broad objectives that I wanted to achieve, and I checked in with them a few times a year through the year.  I consciously chose not to keep this document in my direct line of sight, as I believe that the more we push to achieve things, the greater the push back can be.  My approach is to hold the things that are important to me in a more unconscious or quieter place, and trust that I will naviagate my way successfully towards my desired outcome.

My theme or context to the year was: reach out and connect.  This meant getting out and connecting with women who are living savvy in Brisbane, some of these women I knew well while others I wanted to get to know better.  I wanted to spend time with friends and family who made my life richer, happier and more fulfilling for being who they are—the people who complete me.

Step 1: What have I achieved?

I look back on 2011 with an enormous feeling of satisfaction. 2010 was a year that I was pleased to leave behind, as it came to an end I made a conscious decision to be different in 2011—to shift my attitude and take a different approach.  The theme of ‘reach out and connect’ was a perfect fit for all I wanted to achieve.  I also practiced putting my requests out there with no expectations and being more accepting and forgiving towards myself and to others.  These elements were pivotal foundations to choices and decisions I made throughout the year.

PhD research

In May 2011 I wrote about the relief in letting someone else make a difficult decision for me. It is rare for me to let go of needing to step up, make decisions and take ownership.  With support, kindness and understanding from my PhD supervisor, I completed the documentation to withdraw from my PhD studies.

Health and vitality

Three steps forward, one or two steps back on this one.  There were times in 2011 that I took great leaps forward and there were other times when I tripped myself up.  I worked hard to accept my capabilities and not to define them as liabilities.

Revenue

By the end of 2011 I answered the question, “How is your business going?” with, “It has been a fabulous year unless one of the KPI’s is financial!” I laughed when saying this because it was true. In my laughter I was celebrating all the great things that I had achieved in Living Savvy—some were planned and others were opportunities that I seized or created—while honestly acknowledging that there was still something missing.

 Step 2: How did I celebrate?

Quietly this year with a healthy break from Living Savvy.  Of course Living Savvy was with me wherever I went like a comfortable companion that I thought about often, but I stepped back from regular writing and posting. I enjoyed another delightful holiday enjoying: visiting people who are important in our lives; sun, surf and sand; time with the children; and time for just Andrew and me.

Step 3: How will I live extraordinary in 2012?

Not having resolutions or hard and fast goals doesn’t mean that I intend to keep the same old habits and routines, or not shake things up by trying new experiences. I have once again created a theme for my year and set clear intentions (things that I choose to do and pursue that keep me moving forward).

This year I do not want to hold back, so to frame that in positive language the theme for my 2012 is to ‘step up and shine’.

My intentions are:

• Continue to reach out and connect with people who interest and inspire me…this includes people who play a big part in my life, those I want to spend more time with and people I want to get to know.
• Eat food that I have purchased closer to the source of production including growing more of my own.
• Create a new home with my family in the house that we will be moving into early in February.
• Accept and understand my body for what it does for me and what it needs from me.
• Get away for short breaks to the beach every couple of months.
• Secure a publishing deal.
• Continue to build the audience and community of Living Savvy and my profile as the life coach for the real world (off to a good start, have contributed to an upcoming article in Cosmo on friendship and was interviewed for a radio program talking about work/life balance.
• Build the commercial side of my business while keeping my wild dreams alive.

Tell me about you…

Have you spent time with your reflections and intentions in 2012? What’s on the horizon for you?

Image by Neal

Living savvy is not about unsustainable overhauls – it’s about the small changes we can make to create a life that is a little more fulfilling, a little more satisfying and a little more joyful.

Each Monday I share a few simple ideas I have to fine-tune my own ordinary to live extraordinary this week, and I hope you will  share yours!

Purchase tickets to “a day on the green” at Sirromet Wines to see Noise works

Supporting the wonderful and talented Sally Collings on her epic ride to conqour cancer

In keeping with my 2012 theme of “step up and shine” I will in a small way help my friend Tara move closer  to achieving her goal.  Tara, last year set up a Kiva micro-lending team, called EffortforOthers and has set a goal of reaching 1000 loans in 2012. I will be choosing 4 entrepreneurial women in developing countries and loaning them $25.00 each.

I’m practising taking on only what is ‘enough’ for us, so we can have a fulfilling, but not busy or stressful, break together.

And so Living Savvy will be on break as well, and we will return in February 2012 with refreshed bodies and minds, to dive into our third year of fine tuning the ordinary to live extraordinary!

Until then, there’s plenty of summer reading in our archives…

Find out about the 5 steps to living savvy and discover how Karen rocked the living savvy approach in her fitness and personal restyling journey.

Follow the 5 steps yourself to see out the old year and ring in the new…

Ask

Ask the big questions:

• What am I creating?
• How do I show up?
• Who completes me?
• Where am I headed?

Do

Check out our how-to guides and choose an activity you’ve never done before to find out more about the life you are creating and the dream life you really want.

Discover

Discover how real women are living savvy with mother and rock chick, Carmel; founder of a school in Africa, Gemma; two friends who launched a business from an idea hatched on their beach run, Kris and Lisa; and many more inspiring women.

Commit

Commit to making some small changes to your daily life, your habits and your mindset to produce amazing results. Put down the TV remote and check out Living Savvy Online TV instead! Or see what Jo’s been talking about this year on the national morning program, The Circle.

Celebrate

Everything you’ve achieved this year!

All the best and see you in 2012!

A weekly tradition where we pop the cork on the week that was, celebrate what worked, reflect on what didn’t, and look forward to a sparkling new week of possibility.  I hope you’ll join me  and share your reflections in the comments.

This week I had planned to do a Champagne Friday end of year special, like I did this time 12 months ago.  The past week I have been enjoying a break from my computer. I have spent my time with my children, friends and family and when I have a moment to myself have been reflecting on the year that has been both personally and professionally and thinking about what I want to create in the year to come.  Before I put it out there, I want to feel solid and clear of my intentions and I am not quite there yet.  Sometime soon in the New Year I will post a Champagne Friday special where I look back on the year that was and look forward to the sparkling new year filled with possibility, until then I wish you all a wonderful and cheerful Christmas and bright New Year and thank you for your support.

What am I celebrating?

A wonderful week away with my children visiting family, catching up with dear friends and spending time learning how to do things differently.

What am I acknowledging?

That I have a very special family.  It would take too long to explain what we share and I don’t know if there is a bit of paper big enough to draw a family tree, we have that many branches.  My family is strong, connected and very very adaptable to new conditions.

What was missing?

Nothing was missing this week.

What small change can I make for next week?

Another week of living gently.

I enjoy re-visiting posts from our Living Savvy archives.  When I re-visit, I tend to connect to the information and stories shared in a new way, discovering something different depending on what is going on for me or people in my life.

When I am coaching someone, very often an issue will come up that will have me searching through the archives for a post best suited to help my client work through the process of Living Savvy, supporting them to ask, do, discover, commit & celebrate.

This is the second time I have revisited this post this year.  The first time was after spending Sunday surrounded by women at the Ultimate Girly High Tea hosted by the wonderful Rebecca Sparrow.  The women at this event were  sensational in so many ways, achieving big while looking incredibly glamorous.   While looking around the room I breathed a sigh of relief that I had reflected on the perils of comparing and measuring myself against the extraordinary achievements of others.  Instead of playing the comparing game, that mostly leaves me feeling very ordinary.  I instead chose  to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary women in the room while reminding myself of what makes me special.  Today I am sharing again as Christmas approaches we can find ourselves “shoulding” and “musting” more than usual.  If you need a final reminder of why comparing can suck, take a moment and visit this post by Nat Duncan on RISK 365 blog.

Playing by your rules

A couple of months ago a lot of people were talking about Sarah Murdoch on the cover of the Australian Women’s Weekly. She asked that the editor use an untouched photograph, saying women should be able to embrace the beauty of ageing.

And you know what I was thinking when I saw that cover? It’s wonderful to see the natural beauty of the ‘older’ woman celebrated, but arghhhh, never on my best day could I look like that!

Comparing and ‘shoulds’ seem to go hand-in-hand

When we put our attention on someone else’s extraordinary, we can quickly find ourselves chasing an ideal that’s hard to live up to. And that’s when the ‘shoulds’ start to pile up.

If Sarah Murdoch can look that fantastic in an untouched photograph then I should make more of an effort to look spectacular whenever I step out of the house. As a runner, I often look at champions like Catherine Freeman, who have achieved so much with their determination and disciple, and think I should, at the very least, run every day. But it’s not just the celebrities – so often we are comparing ourselves with our friends and neighbours and colleagues, and more often than not we think we don’t measure up.

Have you noticed how the comparisons and ‘shoulds’ intensify around Christmas?

Like when you have a friend who sends out beautifully personalised family Christmas cards each year, right on time, and you think, ‘I should be that organised’.

Or when you have someone in the family whose Christmas spread is always Nigella-Lawson-domestic-goddess exquisite and you think, ‘I should be making everything from scratch.

Of course, the irony is that as much as we admire (and perhaps envy) someone else’s achievements, there’s no doubt they are themselves playing the comparing game and feeling that they don’t measure up.

Your ordinary may be another’s extraordinary – and vice versa

Thinking through all this reminds me how easy it is forget that each of us is extraordinary in her own unique way. When we focus on comparing ourselves to somebody else’s extraordinary – we lose sight of what makes us special. And that is why the comparing game sucks!

Image by *Saffy*

Living savvy is not about unsustainable overhauls – it’s about the small changes we can make to create a life that is a little more fulfilling, a little more satisfying and a little more joyful.

Each Monday I share a few simple ideas I have to fine-tune my own ordinary to live extraordinary this week, and I hope you will  share yours!

Stop. Revive. Survive as I take to the road again this week and head north from Avoca Beach to the Coffs Coast

Book in for a massage with the fabulous massage therapist I have discovered in Coffs Harbour

Don’t worry about the weather.  Being on holidays is a state of mind that can be found if the sun in shining or rain is pouring