“THE LIST”

The list has changed my life.

I have always been in relationships; leaving only a few weeks in between relationships, many of which lasted for years. After leaving my ex last year I wanted to spend a lot of time on myself and I didn’t want another relationship that didn’t fulfill my needs. I was sick of not being treated like I wanted to be treated.

It was around this point whilst soul searching that I got some really great advice from a person who seems to me to have wisdom far beyond his years. He and his gorgeous fiancé had a wonderful chat to me and supported me a lot. He said that at a point in his life he wrote a list of everything he wanted in a partner and everything he didn’t want and 6 months later he found the woman of his dreams.
I took this advice on board and wrote my own list, I decided that I wouldn’t leave anything out. I ended up writing 7 pages detailing everything from his smile to his sense of humour to how he treats me. Every single thing I could think of that I did and didn’t want in my dream man was put on paper. Once I had finished I read through the list (and kept reading over it every week) and deep down inside I didn’t believe that this person existed. How could that perfect man exist?! And even if he did exist what were the chances that he lived in Brisbane and was single and attracted to me!?! It seemed impossible.

Well, all I can say is I am so glad I wrote that list. About 6 months after I finished writing that list, by pure chance, I met him.

I met someone who shared my beliefs and values. Someone who, like me, doesn’t understand contemporary art. Who LOVES food, training hard and always sees the lighter side of life. Who will spend time asking me about my day, watch daggy tv shows with me and laugh at my corny jokes (and make a few of his own!)

Now some may believe it is the law of attraction that brought him to me. Some may think pure luck, chance or fate. Perhaps because I took the time to truly think about what I wanted in a person that made me more open to finding him. I knew what I wanted and so was only interested in men that had those attributes.

All I can say is I’m really glad I wrote that list.

Changing the world. Changing yourself.

Change is an interesting thing, it seems simple but can be the hardest thing to achieve and maintain. We all have things about ourselves and our lives that we would like to change. I would like to share a couple of stories with you about a few changes that have occurred in my life and how these can be utilized in your life too so you can be a happy, positive, high on life, superhuman.

There was a time when I didn’t lead a very inspiring life. I was unfit, unhealthy and unhappy. I think back to those days now and am so grateful to be where I am now having been through some dark times. I believe it is those challenges that create us into the amazing people we are. The best thing about going through an eating disorder, chronic pain, addiction, depression and self-harm is the knowledge I now have to utilize to help other people with their challenges. The most important lesson I have learnt is – everyone goes through ‘stuff.’ Some people have a lot more ‘stuff’ go on in their lives, that doesn’t matter. What does matter is what you do after said stuff. Do you stay the same unhappy person blaming life/God/other people for what has happened to you? Or do you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and MAKE SOMETHING OF YOUR LIFE!?!
For me, it took about 5 years before I gave myself a massive kick up the ass (with the help of my circle of influence) and changed my life. So change doesn’t happen instantly and don't expect it to happen immediately and smoothly.

I needed time to develop my beliefs and values to be able to ‘fire’ some people from my life and make some big changes. I moved from Tasmania to Brisbane with my then partner of 5 years. And once I started at Max (my fitness/business college) I learnt about circle of influence and how important it is to be surrounded by people with similar beliefs and values to you. I loved this period in my life, at college I was learning SO much, opening my mind and making a lot of new friends. Sadly, while I was learning all about health, fitness and creating your ideal life at the end of the day I was returning home to an unhappy relationship and a circle of influence who smoked, did drugs and drank alcohol everyday. I felt very unhappy and out of balance with this for a long time. I spent hours chatting to a couple of good friends of mine about how my partner and I had grown apart. But didn’t do anything about it. One day after hearing B-Huge chat about circle of influence and your personal beliefs and values and how important it is to be living in line with these I decided enough was enough! And I made some bloody big changes!!

And in the space of one week I had no job, no partner, no house and no car. Lucky for me I had an amazing circle of influence from Max. Amazing, goal driven people who helped me get back on my feet, fed me, let me stay at their houses and supported me through a massive time of change.

I learnt from this that the only person holding you back is yourself. If you want to change DO IT!! Think it through and if it is necessary and in line with your values and beliefs then kick yourself up the pants and take some action!! Recently I have had a few people discuss the issue of change with me and I thought that not enough of us really take enough action! What is stopping you from your ideal life? Is it you?

Finally, the best thing about change is once you have changed you can then improve not only your life but the lives of people around you.

I am only one person and I can’t change the world on my own. So I’m asking you to step up. If you know how great it is to be fit, happy, healthy and strong share that feeling to others. Inspire others to be the best they can be by being a better version of yourself; by constantly leaving a profit and improving the world just by being in it.

Love, impact and affection.

Never underestimate the impact you can have on another person’s life.
Everyone has the same ability to change someone’s life. It might be in a small way or a big way but we all have the given gift to impact on another person’s life. It might be one person it may be many; even if it you only help one person you have changed the world and made a positive impact and it may mean the world to that person! This became crystal clear to me this week. Sometimes you might not even know the person but through the internet they can read about you and gain strength from your strength, gain happiness from what you say or write. They could change their whole life because of YOU.

They might not say it out loud but someone might be dying to tell you how much you brighten their day.

You should try express your emotion in as many ways possible. Tell the retail assistant how easy they make your transaction, how their smile meant a lot to you or that they always are happy and put you in a good mood.

Valentine’s day has just been and is a day to appreciate and show love to those who mean most to us. It’s about showing appreciation and demonstrating that we don’t take the special people in our lives for granted. That we love them. Some people are hesitant to the Valentine’s Day idea. But perhaps we need a dedicated day every year to be reminded that we all need love and connection. A day to take a step back from our busy lives and just LOVE. Whether it is a girly night with tapas and cocktails, a romantic night with your partner or returning home to find your best friend has broken into your house and left chocolate roses, gifts and most importantly a letter detailing your adventures over the last ten years of friendship.

So, never underestimate the impact you have on someone. You could be the most important person in someone’s life without ever even meeting them. So make your impact on this world a positive one. Fill the internet; facebook, twitter, blogs, with positivity and love. Someone might be relying on your happiness to make their day.

A New Journey of Purpose

Live your purpose and you'll never have to work another day in your life.

Purpose is a very important thing. Many of us spend our lives searching for it but how do you know when you have found it? And is it always the same thing or is it something that evolves as we learn, live and grow?

My whole life I knew I wanted to help people - apart from being a fiend for recognition - all I really wanted to do was improve other people's lives. I never knew which path I could do this on though. I started out doing some volunteer work while at school and loved that. This continued while at Uni and I changed my path from Law to Criminology and Sociology. I had the intent of graduating and getting a job within an industry that helped rehabilitate people from jail to the outside world. But there were no jobs. So I continued my study and started my masters degree. I began to realise that I would have to work my way up in the industry and would probably spend most of my time sitting behind a desk trying to figure out why people did bad things... A long way from my original purpose. When I started fitness training, it changed my life. Completely and utterly. And I wanted to bring this absolute joy to other people's lives. I began to realise that over time our means of delivering our purpose may change.

Now I have graduated and am working in the fitness profession I believe I have found my calling. I spend most of my waking moments training, thinking about training, and chatting to people about how I can improve their lives. I am filled with love for my clients - the feeling of helping them become a better version of themselves is incredible.

Soon I am going to be marketing to a very specific target market - 20-35 year old women who have come from a background of addiction, like myself. Exercise has such a massive power on people's emotional health as well as physical health. It gives purpose and meaning to many people's lives. It gives them power when before they had none.

Watching the face of a young lady after she did 2 chin ups was mind blowing. A reason to get out of bed every morning.
A purpose filled life.

How to be Happy - Part One

Dearest friends,

Most of us spend our entire lives searching for happiness. Looking and planning for those magic moments when we will be 'happy.'

But when those moments appear are we too busy with life to notice that we should be happy?

What if you could find the joy, the happiness, the love in every moment that you had. In the hot and the cold days, in the supermarket, sitting in the car, at work, at play, morning, noon and night. Wouldn't that be incredible? I reckon that most of you would like to do that but some don't know how. "How am I supposed to find happiness when the kids are screaming and it's hot and we're stuck in the traffic and the air-con's broken?" How about REMOVING THE NEGATIVE?!

Turn each negative situation around - traffic is just cars on the road - feel blessed that we live in a country that is rich and people can afford to have cars - and remember that YOU ARE THE CARS ON THE ROAD!! Start today - turn the negative words around - say more positive happy and energetic words. Tell yourself YOU ARE INCREDIBLE. Tell OTHER PEOPLE THEY are AMAZING!! Enjoy seeing people's faces when you answer their questions with "AMAZING" "INCREDIBLE" "OUTSTANDING" Appreciate people for the amazing work they are doing. Say THANK YOU SINCERELY to the supermarket attendant, the cleaner, the retail assistant. They all need someone to brighten their day! And if you make them smile that is not only leaving a profit in their lives, but in your life, and in other's aswell.

APPRECIATE the everyday stuff! One of my latest joys is appreciating the place we live in. QUEENSLAND!! It's the best - instead of saying I live in Qld now I say "I live in a tropical paradise!" It's amazing how GREAT you feel when you are doing a quad stretch after your morning run and look up to the sky and say OUT LOUD in a nice loud happy voice "I LIVE IN A TROPICAL PARADISE!!"

And don't think that it is something you'll do when you have time. START NOW.

And please, let me know how you are going and if you have any amazing tips or hints or stories about how you are positively changing the world. :)

LOVE SMILES AND HAPPINESS

Moment times

There is much to be said about being ‘in’ the moment.

It is a phenomenon that has much written about it; books, and studies, and yet many people still struggle to live in the present. It is also something that cannot be completely achieved – that is the success of living in the moment cannot be a total immersion in the subject. You cannot live your entire life in the present moment or there would be no planning for future events or reminiscing about the past, both of which are very important in self development and personal enjoyment. Extremes in these ideas can lead to unhappiness – living too much in the past; like the man who blames his upbringing for his ‘unsuccessful’ life, or worrying too much about the future; or the woman who is forever worrying about upcoming bills. Neither of the people in these examples can live a life of complete happiness and fulfilment as they are constantly concerned with events that have either occurred or haven’t occurred yet – both of which are out of their control. We are all guilty of living out of the moment at particular points in our lives – and a certain amount of this is necessary. It is still important to plan ahead for some of life’s events; planning a holiday, planning for a wedding or birthday to a certain extent aids for a smoothly run day. However, over planning (which we are all guilty of at one point or another) can sometimes destroy the chance of the magic of the moment, and the surprise events which occur randomly. If a holiday is planned to the enth degree there is no room for discoveries, surprises, unplanned circumstances which are often the highlight of people’s lives. Some of the best days of my life can be described, at best, as loosely planned.

Personally, I have been an over-planner. I have worried too much about fitting everything into the day and creating magical experiences without actually enjoying the experience while it occurs. This can lead to remorse when the event is over. But being aware of this is half the challenge.

Time moves along so quickly – don’t ever underestimate that fact. People are here one minute and gone the next and while they are here enjoy every second of their company. When they are gone there should be nothing unsaid. Much of the melancholy felt in regards to death revolves around things unsaid.

Don’t hold anything back. Live in the moment. Live for now.

It’s Just Me.

This week I just wanted to post a little more about myself in general, I just feel like I should share a few things that I have come to my mind about the person I was and the person I want to be. There are a few stories that I still don’t want to think about – they are not my proudest moments, but I’m sure in time I will learn and grow to accept them as part of my past and then I may be able to share with you also.

Last week I was catching up with a friend that I hadn’t spoken to in a while, and she asked me how I was and… what drugs I was currently on for my back. It is so hard to describe the feeling I got when I could say; ‘well actually… none.’ She asked, ‘What? Not even tramadol?’ (For those of you who don’t know, tramadol is a strong pain killer which has some fairly nasty side effects that really took a toll on my body). And I could honestly tell her that no, I wasn’t on any pain killers; no steroids, no tram. The most I’ve been medicated in the last two or three months is a couple of panadol.

The last 6 years of my life have been filled with different drugs and it did affect both my body and my mind. It kind of feels like a haze which I have finally stepped out of. I read an article in Bmag (a Brisbane city publication) yesterday regarding addiction to prescription medication which is a real issue within our community and one that needs more attention. I was addicted to pain killers and it is a vicious cycle. I had pain so I took pain killers that the Doctor had prescribed. But, the doctors don’t stress just how addictive these drugs are. It astounds me now (as it did my mother at the time) the blasé attitude some doctors take to really strong medication. Like one physician in Hobart who prescribed steroids to me with a repeat on my first visit to him, without a second glance.
I was taking way more than the recommended amounts to just take me away from my body. To be in that haze and not be living what I perceived to be, to be honest, a crap life. I also on many occasions did stupid things like drinking alcohol which at one point lead me to believe that the bones in my arms were on fire. Which seems like a humorous anecdote now but was really dangerous for my health.

Please remember I will never write anything here for your feelings of pity. I just want to be honest and let other people know that you can turn your life around. You can go from depressed, addicted, sad, flat, lazy, upset. To AMAZING. WOW. WONDERFUL. OUTSTANDING. Try using some of these words in your everyday life. It’s super cool to see people’s reaction when they ask me “how are you” and I reply “Awesome thank you!”

If anyone wants a little inspiration in their life I would whole-heartedly recommend The Muscle Professionals Blog. The studio is located in Moray Street, New Farm for those Brisbane-ites wanting to check it out. Luke Archer, the director at the Muscle Professionals, is a professional body and lifestyle specialist. He has changed my life, and he can change yours too.

You can check out The Muscle Professionals blog at http://themuscleprofessionals.wordpress.com/blog/


Live and love every moment.

Hannah
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