I'm Not Good Enough...YET

One of my biggest takeaways from the #Influencers2019 event a few months ago was something that Tom Bilyeu shared and that was “I’m not good enough...yet” 

Maybe you’re not there yet, or you’re not great yet, or you’re not at the level you desire yet; but things take time and experience to get there. It’s about recognizing what you’re willing to do to fill in that space between not good enough...and yet. Too often we want to skip over this part of the process; we succumb to the victim role and the fact that we aren’t good enough. Period. We forget about the “yet”. We don’t give ourselves enough credit for the process, the learning and the journey of it all. This is where we evolve and where we see what we are truly capable of; and when you embrace that, it feels fantastic. 

That’s not to say that the work isn’t hard; bridging that gap between “not good enough” and “yet” can be incredibly difficult. This is why so many people stop with the thought of not being good enough or capable enough - because they aren’t willing to do the work. This is why coaching, self-mastery and self-work is so important; because it allows you realize that it’s all hard. Choose where you want your hard to be. I’d rather do the hard work than sit back and have a hard existence because I’m not willing to do the hard work and move myself forward. 

That word YET is so important because that’s what gives you the opening to bring in more joy and more excitement into the process. What are you going to do for the yet? 

3 Steps To Rising Above in Difficult Situations

Lately I’ve been hearing from people who are just getting so frustrated with certain behaviours, certain people around them or certain situations they find themselves in. They feel like they are just hitting a wall; and the problem is that often times, the go-to reaction for them is to lower themselves to that level because they simply do not know what else to do.

When instead, what we should be striving to do is rise above and role model being our best.

If you’re dealing with a difficult situation, behaviours or people around you (especially the ones that you aren’t able or willing to cut from your life), here the 3 steps you can take to rise above and move forward in a way that is going to feel good, aligned and positive.

1 - Always role model being your best

They have WON when you start to lower yourself down to their level; it’s something that might feel good short term, but in the long term it is only hurting you. The default for most people is to respond to the energy of a situation; if someone is defensive, you get defensive right back. If someone is really moody and low energy, you become moody and have low energy.

Taking on the energy of a situation or a person is dangerously easy to do and when that energy is not positive, everyone in that situation suffers. Instead, role model how you want the situation to go or what kind of energy you would want to feel. 

2 - Set boundaries

Set yourself boundaries, either within yourself or with them, depending on the situation. That might look like simply saying to yourself “I know this person triggers me a lot; I will make sure when I talk to them, its not during a time that I need to be super focused on my work”. Or you will set boundaries in terms of the time you give someone. Recognize what triggers you and work proactively to avoid those situations in the first place as much as possible. 

3 - Compartmentalize and see the good

The more conscious part of this process is to remember that you were given that person or situation for a reason. It is a blessing and a gift (even when it doesn’t feel like it) because there is something within that situation that needs to teach you something; you need to master it before you can get to your next level. You also get to decide how much weight you give that situation in your world; how much do you allow it to affect you? And how can you redefine that situation in your head so that it no longer carries the same burden?

When you can pair the tactical strategies (setting boundaries, role modeling certain behaviours and not lowering down to someone else’s level) with the conscious learning you are having in terms of how to have more influence in your life - that’s when you truly gain control of your life and your energy.

When Are We Going to Use This in Real Life...?

A couple of weeks ago I shared my thought processes that went behind releasing the new phase of my website (you can read that blog here). The key takeaway was to stop waiting for things to be perfect. Stop waiting until you have all the pieces figured out. Be okay with it being “good enough” and just get something out there.

Let’s take it old school today and go all the way back to high school science class  - which was over 20 years ago for me but here we go 😂 Thankfully I have my girl Jacqueline (who’s a science teacher) to help me realize when we can actually use some of that stuff we learned in school! LOL!

Newton’s first law of motion states that an object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion.

Once you put your idea or whatever it is out there - into MOTION - it’s going to keep moving. It’s going to evolve and grow and change naturally in the way it is supposed to.
You’ll reflect, you’ll get feedback and you’ll be part of the process in allowing it to evolve and grow. Once it’s in motion, it evolves. 

If it sits on the shelf forever until it’s “perfect” - that’s where it will remain. 

If we want to be in growth, we have to be willing to make the choices that push us into the uncomfortable zones. That energy, paired with your intentions, is what helps that thing actually evolve. There’s where the magic happens. 

Everything for growth is dependent upon an actionable step that pushes you out of your comfort zone and that allows things to get into motion. It’s just science, friends 😉

Now - go put something out there!!

Just Put It Out There!

Phase 1 is complete of my website for Thrive Coaching & Consulting!! It is also connected to my main website charlotteferreux.com, so that you can choose between individual programs and/or ways for me to work in connection to organizations.

I started Thrive in 2012 and it has been a journey that landed me right back to where my passion started me and now with the incredible mastery skill of being a High Performance Coach and merging all my teaching around conscious leadership together. The main focus for my work with organizations are: developing high performance teams through High Performance leadership, culture creation + clarity, communication mastery (especially how to effectively communicate through transition and change) and what systems/processes are needed to accomplish all of the above. 

People are your greatest asset and that is why everything comes back to "Leaders creating change through people".

It's a soulful, performance driven, intentional and impactful process that delivers the next level of performance and results. We help individuals and organizations SHIFT from the inside-out 💜 You can check out the new site here: www.thrivehighperformanceleadership.com

Aside from wanting to share with you my new website, I wanted to share this lesson...something that I haven't always held myself accountable to (but did this past week and it felt incredible!) 

Stop waiting for it to be perfect. 
Stop waiting until you have ALL the pieces figured out. 
Stop waiting until you have a certain number on your email list, or a certain number of followers or whatever other thing you're claiming to be important. 

Just put the damn thing out there. 

Whether it's a blog post, a new product, a vulnerable post - the momentum that you feel from just doing it and putting it out there is HUGE. You can sit on your ideas forever and continue to make excuses as to why you haven't put it out there yet, and then feel unsatisfied and frustrated that things aren't progressing forward. 

OR...

You put it out there. 
You tweak it. 
You get feedback. 
You tweak it again. 
You gain momentum and traction and feel PROUD of yourself in the process. 

Because here's the good news - it's your life. You can change and evolve whatever you want; just because it's out there now, doesn't mean it needs to stay that way forever.  The key lesson is not to overthink it. Be okay with "good enough", move forward and allow it to naturally evolve and shift over time.  I have been going back and forth on how to incorporate my business work with my more spiritual, personal work and coaching and I've been hesitating for SO long on putting anything out there. Then last week, something just hit me; the words just flowed and shit got done and I released my new website. 

It's not perfect. I know it will keep evolving and changing. But it's out there. And that's the important thing. 

This week - take a bold step towards something you've been putting off 💪 

Your Team is Your Mirror

If you’re not getting the right results or don’t have the right team around you, the only thing you can do is look in the mirror. There is either a lesson that you need to learn, somewhere you need to grow or something you haven’t been fully stepping into.

It all comes back to you.

And if you didn’t choose your team, but are now in the position of leading them, it’s your responsibility to take them to that next level. You’ve been given them for a reason because there is a lesson and a learning there for you to step into being a greater leader.

Reflect on the type of leader that you currently are.

- Do you create an environment of trust and safety?
- Do your people know where you stand with them?
- Is how you lead and treat others on a daily basis aligned with your highest self?
- Do you catch your emotions and your thoughts before reacting?
- Are you committed to challenging yourself and those around you for the greater good of the team, the organization and for their own personal development? 
-Do you have proactive conversations when difficult topics or situations arise?

Yes, being a great leader and transforming your team will take more time on your part. But you can’t expect greatness if you’re not leading and role modeling through greatness and showing them the way. It starts with you. 

Part of what we do at Thrive is help organizations and leaders create a people-focused, High Performance Culture and to help leaders create more leaders within their teams. We provide the tools and training for organizations, leaders and individuals to shift from the inside-out and create a purpose-driven entrepreneurial team environment.

The world needs strong leaders now. Better leaders. More courageous leaders. We need those leaders to start showing up in all areas of life. If this resonates with you and you’d like to see how Thrive could help your organization, check out my website: https://www.thrivehighperformanceleadership.com

Learning to Trust Yourself & the Timing of the Universe

If you’ve been following me over on Instagram, you’ll know that I recently completed my certification in becoming a yoga instructor.  I’ve had a lot of people wondering if this new path means that my career will also be changing course. My answer? 

Kind of. 

Everything in my life connects; in my work, I really weave in all the pieces to my story, my certifications, my trainings and my experience. I truly believe that we don’t compartmentalize who we are; we aren’t one person in this life arena and a different person in another. Who we are in life is who we are in life. 

Leadership is a conscious journey that begins with self-mastery. You need to be able to understand yourself first in order to influence others in a positive way and as your highest self. In addition to the tactical, strategic, concrete training and coaching, I always include a very conscious, intentional component and yoga seemed to be a perfect fit. 

We shift from the inside out and a lot of my clients, especially those who have been working with me for a long time, are now also trying to figure out what their conscious journey looks like. I’m so excited to bring the tools and strategies that I am learning with my yoga certification to my coaching and my trainings.  Becoming a certified yogi was a very personal goal for me and I can honestly say that I felt called to do it. It was something that kept coming up for me and I knew that this needed to be a piece that I needed to add in; it wasn’t always the right timing, but I knew it was always there. And this time - the time just felt exactly right.

The cool thing about tuning into your own self-mastery and your own conscious journey is learning how to trust and listen to yourself and to the timing of the universe.

Trust in the fact that where you are right now is exactly where you are supposed to be. The Universe has a plan - be thankful for everything that's gotten you to this place. The most important piece is when you know better you do better and you use each learning to grow. These situations give you the clarity as to what you want or, more importantly, don't want in your life. And along the way, don’t forget that growth and any type of transformation doesn't just happen in a straight line. You don’t just decide that you’re going to change and it’s this perfect system that starts to happen. It looks messy. It feels messy. Some days, you’re going to feel amazing and other days you’re going to feel like you're going backwards. 

It’s not a linear process. And it's not meant to be.  You're meant to be tested all the time. If you are wondering why you are attracting the same scenarios all the time, it’s because you're handed the same test over and over again until you actually move through it.  And then you’ll still be tested. But that next time, it'll be easier to move through it.  Trust the process and remember that growth is not meant to be an easy, straight path.

This is something that I’m going to start incorporating, as well, into my monthly membership site The SHIFT. We will be incorporating monthly meditations, masterclass trainings and different tools to help you tap into your own conscious or spiritual journey (whatever that looks like for you). Lots more info to come on that so stay tuned :) 

If you want to join us for a free 1 month trial, head to the link below to access our October Masterclass training and downloadable PDF. This month’s theme was all about shifting our money mindset 🔥

https://charlotte-ferreux.mykajabi.com/TheSHIFT1monthtrial

Part-time hiring opportunity for someone who lives in or around Castlegar, BC

We are looking for a responsible and entrepreneurial Personal Assistant to provide personalized administrative support in a well-organized and timely manner. You will work on a one-to-one basis on a variety of tasks related to the manager's working life and communication. 

You must also be committed to your personal development, positive and effective communicator, a problem solver, and lots of fun. I need you to be humble and willing to do what is needed within work and home. 

*Looking for a long-term addition to our team*

Responsibilities:

• Act as the point of contact between the manager and internal/external clients

• Screen and direct phone calls and distribute correspondence

• Handle requests and queries appropriately

• Manage diary and schedule meetings and appointments

• Make travel arrangements

• Shopping and sending out shipments and mail

• Take dictation and minutes

• Source office supplies

• Produce reports, presentations and briefs

• Devise and maintain office filing system

• Manage budget along with CEO

• I literally need you to be 2 steps ahead of me and seeing what needs to be done :) 

Requirements:

• Effective and professional communication

• Ability to work well remotely (independent yet a great team player) 

• Must have a permanent driver's license and a vehicle 

• Some tech devices will be supplied but you must have an office set up

• Knowledge and experience using Apple products 

• Proven work experience as a personal assistant

• Knowledge of office management systems and procedures

• MS Office and English proficiency

• Outstanding organizational and time management skills

• Up-to-date with the latest tech gadgets and applications 

• Ability to multitask and prioritize daily workload

• Excellent verbal and written communications skills

• Discretion and confidentiality

• High School degree

• PA diploma or certification would be considered an advantage

There is possibility for growth if you are being an incredible team player and showing us that you have a proven work ethic and outstanding energy. 

Please read carefully as anything send that is not in this completed package will NOT be an acceptable candidate.  

To apply, please send me by 9am on October 4th, 2019 (thrive.leadership@gmail.com and 1 by phone)

• Your personalized resume 

• a scanned, handwritten cover letter explaining why you would be the best fit and why you want to work for Thrive Coaching & Consulting.

• Text me a 3 minute video explaining this question: "You’ve been given an elephant. You can’t give it away or sell it. What would you do with the elephant that would help your community?" ... also find my phone number :) 

Good luck and I can't wait to see who will join my team!

~Charlotte 

Embracing Social Media for your Business & Life!

I’m going to get real with you for a second.

When I first started my podcast, my intention and my goal was to release one new episode each week. It was going great for awhile….But I will admit this to you - the last new podcast I did was released in January.

That’s the funny thing about business. You set goals and intentions and need to have consistency and discipline. But at the same time, you need to listen to yourself. You need to shift and pivot and refocus your attention and your energy sometimes into different areas. You need to do what brings you joy, but also need to make time for the tasks that don’t, because those are critical as well.

It’s finding that balancing act and it’s always going to be a work in progress.

Am I beating myself up over it? Absolutely not.
Am I promising myself that I will get back to doing one new episode a week? Nope.

Building out a business is HARD; it takes consistency, discipline, courage but also compassion and kindness and grace towards yourself. It takes developing out a strong mindset so that you can bounce back when you hit tough times, so that you can have a thick skin when you face failure and so that you have the mental stamina to make it for the long haul.

In this episode, we are touching on something in business that actually has been coming up a lot in my conversations with people lately. Whether you are developing yourself as an entrepreneur, starting your own business, leading an MLM or trying to level up your brick and mortar business, a huge part of your business is how you show up on social media. It’s a massive part of the game. You can listen to episode 62 on itunes, spotify or podcast addict: http://bit.ly/CHANGEbyCHOICEpodcast

I’ve been talking to so many people lately who hate that that’s the reality we live in right now; they dread social media, they can’t figure it out, they struggle learning it, they compare themselves to what everyone else is doing and it all leads to fears, doubts and hesitation when it comes to branding themselves and showing up online.

In this episode, I share why showing up on social media is so important and some tips on how you can do it with joy & with purpose to really make an impact on your life and your business. And if you’re the person who already is showing up on social media, some of these tips will really help you take that content, that message and that online presence to the next level!

You can listen to episode 62 on itunes, spotify or podcast addict: http://bit.ly/CHANGEbyCHOICEpodcast

Here are my top tips for showing up on social media for your business or your life!

1 - Consistency

If you are really serious about building yourself out online, you need to be consistent. Pick a platform that brings you joy and dive into it. Be willing to do a lot of trial and error in terms of what works for you, do some research and learn what you need to learn in order to make this commitment to yourself. Social media is where the future is headed and if you’re not consistent with your message, you will simply get lost in the thick of it all.

2 - Don’t Take Things Personally

It’s not about you. I know that sounds counter intuitive when this is all about how to brand yourself or your business on social media. But it’s not about you; it’s about your message, your purpose and the level of service that you are providing to others. The moment you make it personal, you’re disconnecting from why it’s so important that someone hear your message. It’s about delivering your message with heart, joy and purpose for the people who need to hear it and the people you want to serve. Taking yourself out of the equation helps when it comes to sharing vulnerably, as well. If you are hesitating to put yourself out there, then you’re not being in service to the people who need you (and there are people out there who need you!). What is your purpose? What is your message? How do you want to help people? Make it be about that and not about whether or not you feel like doing it, feel brave enough to do it or have enough friends or followers to do it.

3 - Let Go of Expectations

There are thousands of other coaches, businesses, people in MLM’s, entrepreneurs, etc. out there on social media sharing their purpose and story and mission with the world. That doesn’t mean that you can’t or shouldn’t because they don’t have YOUR message. They don’t have your story. We are all individuals with our own journeys, stories and experiences and that is what each of us brings to the table.

You are not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. And that’s okay. Not everyone is going to want to hear what you have to say or have a positive reaction to it. That’s okay. Again, don’t take things personally. They are on their own path, just like you, and the message they may need to hear may not be your’s. But someone needs to hear it.

Let go of expectations when it comes to your social media. If you allow every obstacle, every naysayer, every post that got zero likes to affect you and bring you down, then you’re going to have a very difficult time remaining consistent and building out that business or brand. You need to develop a super strong mindset here and remember WHY you’re doing what you’re doing.

4 - Be Vulnerable

There is a huge shift happening in the last few years and what so many of us are drawn to when it comes to social media now is vulnerable, real, raw content. We want to feel related to, like we aren’t alone in our struggles and feel validated in what we are going through. If you want to create a tribe of people who really want to share and connect with you, then start to share more vulnerably. You don’t have to air all your dirty laundry for the world to see, but share in the form of lessons or just in moments of raw emotion.

5 - Seek Help if You Need it

There is so much information and training right at our fingertips to help us with literally everything nowadays. If you don’t know how to create an ad or if you need help with marketing or with perfecting your speaking voice, there is help out there. Get yourself trained, get a coach, find an accountability partner; you are not helpless in this. The help is out there if you are willing to invest some time and money into yourself to getting it. And remember that nothing is going to be, or needs to be, perfect. You don’t need the perfect logo right now or the perfect website; just start! Things will shift and change as you go and you will learn so much in the process.

I have some exciting things in the works; I am working on some new programs to help women step into their voice, become strong leaders and really develop out their businesses. I’ll be merging my two worlds of High Performance Coaching with business coaching and I couldn’t be more excited! So often, people will get business training or coaching, but what they lack is the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual side that is really required to succeed. When things get tough, they don’t know how to deal with it. When they hit an obstacle, they want to quit. You really need to develop the mindset and the High Performance piece along with the business side of things.

I’ll be running some beta test groups for this new program, so if this sounds like something you’d be interested in, please send me an email at success@charlotteferreux.com or a message over on Facebook! Most of all, have fun with it and show your personality. It’s going to take consistency and it’s going to take time, so find the joy in the process. Keep your purpose and your mission of service to the world in the forefront and don’t take things personally.

Understanding All the Flavours of Joy - My Interview with Sherry Belul

A few weeks ago I sat down and interviewed Sherry Belul on the Rebel & Rise podcast. As a fellow Certified High Performance Coach, I first met Sherry a couple of years ago. Sherry is the most kind hearted, connected and present person I’ve ever met. She truly treats each moment as a gift and there is a genuine feeling of love, compassion and kindness in every interaction you have with Sherry.

This was such an inspiring conversation and I want to share with you some of the highlights and lessons that Sherry spoke upon.

1 - Happiness is a Choice

Sherry has a company called “Simply Celebrate” and on hearing it, most people jump to the conclusion of “oh she must jut be one of those lucky people who is just naturally happy and who bounces out of be each morning”. But what you see isn’t always what you get. 30 years ago, Sherry was overcome with anxiety, darkness and thoughts of ending her life. She still lives with some of those negative thoughts at time, but she knows for a fact that if he stops being consistent with all of the habits she has implemented into her life, they will come back full force. Happiness is a choice; it takes a lot of hard work and discipline to remain happy through the good times and the times where life isn’t going the way we want it to. You get to choose how you show up each day and the kind of person you want to be for the ones around you.

When you’re going through a hard time, it’s easy to look at people on the outside and project our thoughts on to them; how easy they must have it, how lucky they are and if only we were that successful and pretty and smart and etc. But the truth is that we are so similar. What we don’t always remember is that those people are waking up each morning with the deliberate habit of practicing joy, love and appreciation. It’s not something they are just born with or that necessarily comes easily. Instead of looking at those happy people with envy, instead ask yourself what they have to do in order to be that kind of person and if you could do those same things, too?

2 - Understand all the Flavours of Joy

Sherry spoke about the animated movie, Inside Out; in the movie, the emotions of joy and sorrow work together. Sometimes, joy is connecting with someone else on something difficult that is going on. In those times of sorrow, look for those moments of joy; when you connect with someone, when you learn a lesson, where you find gratitude for other aspects of life. When you’re in a difficult place and people offer you compassion and love - that’s joy. It’s a flavour of joy that we aren’t used to and it doesn’t look like laughter and smiles, but it is joy nonetheless. There is joy in sorrow and joy in connection.

3 - Connect With Yourself First

So many people in this world are lacking true, intimate connection. There is a powerful “them vs. me” mentality where so many of us feel as though we need to go through life alone, afraid to ask for help. In order to really have those connections, you need to have it with yourself first. When Sherry reflects back on those hard times in her life, she didn’t accept the darkness within herself and so she couldn’t ask for help because she didn't want anyone to know. She shut herself out from anyone else who was also in the dark because being in the dark was “not allowed”. When she finally grew in term of her connection with herself, she was better able to connect with others.

4 - Pain Isn’t Solid

Sherry speaks in our interview very candidly about her darkest days and those times where she felt she wanted off this planet. She was in a meditation class, focusing in on her in and out breath and in one breath, for that one moment in time, she didn’t feel any pain. It was a little pin prick of light shining down on her which created that conscious awareness that her pain was not solid. Her depression was not solid. There were moments of light where she didn’t feel the pain. She taught herself and practiced how to notice and look for those moments, those pin pricks of light coming through the darkness.

Pay attention to those moments of well-being that you experience, even in the midst of tremendous pain. Once you start to recognize them, you can start to create them. You can start to ask yourself “what would be a pin prick of light in this moment?”. Pain is not solid.  It’s about making the choice to say I’m going to just turn my attention to the light for a moment. You don’t have to do it all day, but for one moment, focus on feeling nothing but love and joy.

Sherry’s brand, Simply Celebrate, is all about being present to what’s in your life, being intentional and showing up. It’s about moments; those pin pricks of light which saved Sherry’s life. Sherry’s work is about celebrating ordinary moments and creating unique gifts to celebrate other people and the love you feel for them.

You’re always going to be busy; you’re always going to be overwhelmed and have an excuse to put something off. This is why intention is so important. If you’re aware of it now, do it now. Celebrate now. Say it now. Don’t think “oh, that would be a great thing to do for her 60th birthday next year”. Do it now. There is no shortage of loving and appreciative acts in this world. We truly don’t know what tomorrow brings us. Be intentional, be loving and share your love with the people in your world. That is what Simply Celebrate is all about. Sherry’s new book, Say It Now, contains creative ways to say “I love you” to the most important people in your life. They’re fun, crafty and whimsical ways of showing the other person that you see them, you appreciate them and how much joy they bring to you. You can find the book here.

Thanks again Sherry for such an incredible conversation; can’t wait for part 2!

Energy is Everything - My Interview with Maria Flynn

I truly feel as though people are craving connection now, more than ever. I absolutely love having the opportunity to sit down and have real, meaningful and connected conversations with people and my interview with Maria Flynn was so enlightening. I left the conversation feeling like I had so much in my own life to reflect on and think about; Maria’s energy and presence are just magnetic and I felt as though I could have talked to her for hours. To watch the full interview, head over to my Rebel & Rise page here.

I wanted to share with you some of my biggest learnings and takeaways from my chat with Maria and also some of the wisdom that she shared because it helped me and so I’m sure it will help you as well.

1 - Are You Forcing Gratitude?

Think about your life right now; perhaps you have a family, a spouse, a great job, a roof over your head, beautiful & smart children, a great social life, etc. Do you ever feel shameful for “wanting more?” As though it’s not okay to want more, because of all the great things that you already have?  Are you forcing gratitude? That’s not to say that you aren’t grateful for what you have; it’s about feeling like there is something missing. That feeling, is what Maria describes as the “ache”. And in her own life, that ache that she personally felt is now the stimulus behind everything that she does.

Too many women (and men) feel like they are doing all the right things. They multitask and are highly productive and they do everything for everyone. They are positive and grateful because they feel like they should be. It’s important to not mask the ache that you’re not answering. If you start to listen in to your soul, to your intuition, that’s when you start to transform into your authentic self. We need to remove the shame that’s attached to people “wanting more”. It’s not about having it all, it’s about answering what you are here on this planet to do.

Maria says, “Don’t forget your spiritual force because that’s your intuition, it’s your divine guidance, it’s what leads you to your purpose in the world and what gives meaning to everything that you’re doing. You are a sacred thumbprint of this universe. You are here with divine purpose. You don’t have to worry about the sun rising and the seasons coming. There is perfect order. You are not separate from that perfect order. That is the ache; you’ve been doing all this other stuff, which you must do to allow yourself to live on this earth, but there is a divine purpose for why you’re here. That’s the spiritual force telling you to listen. There is more for you to do. There is something else for you to do.”

2 - Aim for a Steady State of Growth

Some ups and downs in life are inevitable; the goal is to get away from having sharp peaks and deep valleys and instead, invision your life as a steady state of growth. Life will always happen and sometimes, horrible things will happen to us. Growth and personal development don’t negate those things from happening. When you integrate your spirituality and you integrate a strong mindset and daily personal development, you might have setbacks or plateau for a bit, but you don’t drop down into that deep valley everytime. You bounce back much more quickly each time, and each time you get stronger. Aim for that steady state of growth; don’t wait for something bad to happen to start working on yourself and don’t just work on yourself when things are going great. As Maria said, “You don’t have to wait for the breakdown in order to have the breakthrough”.

3 - Be Present

We live in a world where everything needs to be bigger, better, faster. And in that, we tend to tune out. We scroll our social media accounts as a way to numb out and avoid the realities of our present world. Being present is what the most successful people are amazing at. Be present for what each moment is bringing you; that will allow your intuition to speak more clearly to you.

4 - Energy is Everything

Energy is the most important thing. Whenever you come to a crossroads and you’re trying to figure something out for yourself, tap into the energy that you are feeling. When you are around certain people or in certain situations, pay attention to the energy that you are feeling.  Your energy is precious. You don’t have to explain yourself to the people who want to keep you small. Let those people speak their peace, thank them and move on. Don’t feel like you have to win, or convince anybody. Trust the process and trust the universe. It can be really difficult because our ego kicks in and wants to defend or make them understand; practice not engaging and losing your energy to the situation.

When you start to practice this more, you gain so much confidence that you don’t need to over communicate or explain. You just are. Practice and model what it is that you want from them because energy attracts energy. You need to have the higher energy and the other person will either step into it or will step out of it. It’s that simple.

Trust the universe and trust the filtering process. It’s not always beautiful or easy or a straight path; but trust it. Allow yourself to communicate from a place of love, respect and freedom. If someone is behaving a certain way, give them the freedom to behave that way. It’s not our job to control them just like you don’t want to be controlled. Allowing them to behave a certain doesn’t mean they “win” or you “lose”; it just is. Protect your energy and choose what you are going to engage in and allow in your life.

There were so many other great insights from this interview, including what Maria feels are her biggest gifts she has given to her children - be sure to check out the full interview here.

Thanks again Maria, for such an amazing conversation! Can’t wait to connect for part 2! You can find Maria here: https://www.facebook.com/MariaLFlynn/

Trusting the Process - My Interview with Lauren Jawno

Last week I had the incredible honor of sitting down with Lauren Jawno. Lauren is a Certified High Performance Coach, my boss at Growth.com and the co-creator of Mojo Mastery. I always admire Lauren for her openness and ability to be so vulnerable; we can all learn so much from each other and we connect on such a deeper level when we all let our guards down a little. Lauren did just that in our interview; she shared some amazing tips and coaching on how to push through adversity, how to trust in the process, how to bounce back without guilt or shame when you haven’t been acting as your best self and why finding a deep sense of WHY is the key to it all.

Such an amazing interview and conversation. You can find Episode 3 on the Rebel and Rise Podcast on iTunes, Spotify and Podcast Addict: http://bit.ly/rebelandrisepodcast

I’ve known and worked with Lauren for awhile now, and even I had SO many takeaways and new insights from our interview. I know that a lot of people who watched and listened to the interview felt the same way - so I wanted to share some of the biggest learnings with you from my chat with Lauren.

1 - Be attached to your goals but unattached to the time it’s going to take or the path it’s going to take.

Let go of attachment and expectation when it comes to your goals. Remain attached to the goal and know where you are headed, but be open to the fact that it’s going to happen on it’s on schedule and in it’s own way. When you have your blinders up and have convinced yourself that the only path to success is on the trajectory that you have decided in your mind, you’re not allowing yourself to be open to all the other possibilities that might come your way. When you let go of those expectations, you open yourself up for amazing things to come into your life that you otherwise would’ve shut out because they weren’t in “the plan”. By letting go, you’re also able to enjoy the process more with less stress and less pressure; you can have an intentional path but also have flow and openness within that.

2 - If it seems like it’s not working out and nothing is going right and the pieces aren’t coming together...they are. You just don’t see it yet.

You need to trust that things are working out the way they are supposed to be. As Steve Jobs says, “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.” In the last few years, this is one of the things that has allowed Lauren to find such success; she has enough experience to now realize that the dots always connect. Even if you can’t see it in the moment, know that they will and it will all make sense; the pieces are falling into place even if they don’t seem like the pieces you think they should be.  

3 - Your WHY is everything.

Understanding why you want to do something is huge; but it’s not just the why. Lauren says it has to hit you in the core; the reason must be so deep it brings you to tears. When you connect to THAT, then nothing will stop you. The challenges will still present themselves, and they won’t be any easier, but getting through them will be. There will be people who don’t like what you’re doing and will be critical of you on your journey. There will be bumps and struggles and really hard times along the way. There will be times where you feel like you’re hitting the same wall, over and over again. If you allow those things to stop you, then you just haven’t connected deep enough to your WHY.

4 - Be intentional with every moment.

Every morning, Lauren takes time to think about what’s on her schedule for the day and she asks herself what it’s going to take for her to show up in the best way? In every situation and every interaction or task you have in the day, ask yourself “How would the BEST version of me show up right now?”

In the moments where you catch yourself not being your best self, be very intentional with resetting yourself. Recognize quickly when you’re not showing up as your best, regroup and learn from it. It’s not about beating yourself up; it’s about learning and doing better next time. When you’re not being your best self, ask yourself what about that situation was threatening to you or made you feel insecure in some way? Or perhaps it was an external circumstance - you didn’t get enough sleep the night before, for example. When you take the time to seek clarity in those moments, it reveals where more work needs to be done in terms of how you can do better for next time. It all comes down to being honest with yourself.

5 - Don’t give up.

Lauren has faced a lot of adversity in her life -  immigration, not following a typical career path and the tragic loss of her mother. She never thought that success would be in her future. Today, she is an accomplished author, High Performance Coach, director of coaches at Growth.com and is the co-creator of her own coaching program, Mojo Mastery. Lauren faced so many times in her life where she felt like things were never going to get better; but even in all those times, she had such tenacity and just never gave up. She sees now the reason why she never gave up; “if it sucked at the time, and I gave up, it’s going to suck even worse”. If what you’re going through is hard, giving up is just going to get worse. It was never an option for Lauren to give up; she just found a way and did it.

If you want to connect with Lauren, check her out on Facebook. You can also check out Lauren’s coaching program, Mojo Mastery (she’s the co-creator with the incredible Maria Flynn). What’s unique about this program is that it beautifully combines the topics of High Performance coaching with the spiritual side; and it’s a program that is more accessible which allows them to serve people in a much larger capacity. Learn more at www.mojomastery.net.

Lauren shared that every year, she chooses a quote for the year and puts it up in her office. I’ll end this blog with her quote for 2019, which I thought was so incredible:

“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. And in that space is our power to choose a response. In our response, lies our growth and our freedom”.

Again, you can find Episode 3 on the Rebel and Rise Podcast on iTunes, Spotify and Podcast Addict: http://bit.ly/rebelandrisepodcast

Having Ambition Without Losing Yourself in the Process

We are already almost 4 weeks into 2019. How in the world….?!
How’s it going with those goals and intentions you set for yourself?

I’ve been talking to a lot of people lately who are feeling overwhelmed; feeling like they just can’t do it all. Feeling disappointed in themselves, being hard on themselves, feeling discouraged.

First of all - if this is you, give yourself GRACE. Change is hard. It takes time and there are going to be so many bumps along the way.

In this new episode of the Change by Choice show, I tackle this topic a little further and dig into how we can be ambitious and have big goals and so many things that we want to do, but without losing ourselves in the process. Listen here.

I am a super ambitious person - I’m a High Performance Coach, a single mom, an entrepreneur/business owner, business consultant, spin instructor and the list goes on and on. I could easily get lost in all of that; I could easily allow myself to feel discouraged by every bump in the road or everytime I make a mistake or something doesn’t go the way I’ve planned. But this is about so much more than just my goals and my to-do list; this is my LIFE. And I’m in control of my happiness, my peace and my mindset.

First of all, I couldn’t do what I do without having certain systems, habits and disciplines in place. And not only are they in place - they are dialed in nearly 24/7. I keep an organized schedule, I prioritize my to-do list, I set reminders and time block all of my tasks into my day. Those systems are critically important if you want to be productive instead of just being busy - you know the feeling, spinning your wheels and putting out fires all day but not actually accomplishing anything. For more on those systems, check out this past blog.

What I want to dig into today are 3 deeper things I do to help me get a lot done - the things that help me have such high ambition in my life but here’s the key...how I do it without LOSING MYSELF in the process.

My life is busier than it’s ever been; I’m doing more and accomplishing more now than ever before. But I feel so peaceful, aligned, happy. I don’t feel overwhelmed or stressed (most of the time). Even on the bad days, I have worked so hard to not be hard on myself when things don’t go according to plan. Even when I don’t reach my goals or if my results aren’t at the level I was hoping for - I don’t let that derail me completely.

Before I dive into the 3 things that really help me, I want you to take a minute to reflect. Where are you at with your ambitions in life? Do you set goals? Do you procrastinate? Are you the person who is very clear on your goals and the results you want but your sense of identity and worth is so connected to those goals that when you don’t reach them, you are tremendously hard on yourself? Or maybe you’re the kind of person who has no goals? You’re just going through the motions of life and living the status quo?
Or maybe there’s something deep inside of you that wants more, but you are lacking in clarity and just don’t know what the next steps are? Wherever you are at - see how you can start to implement these 3 strategies into your life.

1 - White Space

If you are keeping yourself so busy that you have no time to pause, think, reflect and make connections as to what’s really going on in your life - you're just going to keep spinning those wheels. Give yourself enough white space in your day just to BE - to think, listen to yourself, journal and reflect. This is where you get clarity as to what’s going on for you - why you’re not reaching your goals, why you’re feeling a certain way, why there’s tension in a certain area of your life.

You need to explore those areas. In my white space time, I really listen to my body. My body tells me when something is not aligned or something isn’t right. I allow myself to feel what I’m feeling; I observe it without judgement. It’s not meant to make me feel bad or guilty or judgemental of myself. It’s information that I can use to move forward.

But you’ll never gain that information and that clarity unless you give yourself the white space to actually explore and listen.

2 - Self Care

How we look at the world and the situations that happen to us is based on how we feel about ourselves, what we’ve gone through and how we feel on the inside. This is why self care is so important; if you don’t treat your body and mind properly then things are going to feel harder than they need to. With strengthening your mindset, it allows us to look at every situation without immediately jumping to the negative; we can look at it and move forward in a really positive way.

Here’s an example. You have an off day; something doesn’t get done or you didn’t get the result you wanted or it just didn’t go as planned. If you’re not feeling good about yourself, if you’re not taking care of your physical and mental selves, then the easy path and the instinctual path is that you’re going to head into a really bitter place. You’re going to either place blame, feel angry, be judgemental and really hard on yourself. You start an internal dialogue that sounds like “I knew I couldn’t do this”, “I’m not good enough”, “I’m not worth it”, “look at all these other people succeeding but I can’t”.

When you’re in a really healthy state and your self care is on point, how you see and think about that bad day is totally different. By strengthening our mindset, we can look at that bad day and think “Okay. Today wasn’t great. How can I do better tomorrow? What do I need to do right now?” It allows you to look at every situation as a lesson and an opportunity for growth.

Here’s where the white space comes into play again; you give yourself some time to analyze the situation and figure out what derailed you and what you need to do to move forward in a positive way.

That is all based on how you take care of yourself and where your head is at in terms of your mental strength and mental clarity. So often, people get to a place where they just quit because they can’t handle those bad days, the ups and downs, the rejection and the way they allow themselves to feel about themselves throughout the journey.

3 - Live in Gratitude

You should feel great about yourself throughout the entire journey - not just on the good days or when you reach those goals. That’s like saying you only love your children when they’re well behaved; that’s ridiculous. Love yourself and enjoy the entire process because this is your LIFE.

How do I do this? I live in gratitude and I am in healthy control of my life.

Everything that comes into our lives can teach us incredible lessons...IF you allow them to. I am so connected to a deeper purpose and I truly believe that everything we are handed in life is there for a reason. Sometimes, we learn that lesson instantly. Sometimes, that lesson takes years before we really understand why we had to go through the things that we did. But the lesson always comes.

That’s why I have such gratitude for every moment in my life. I give thanks for each moment - even the shitty ones. Because through the worst moments is when you learn the most important lessons and is when you really grow the most. That’s how you learn what you need to change, who you need to let go of or what you really need to add into your life.

My goal for you is that in 2019, you get the tools, clarity and support you need to feel free. Regardless of what may be going on around you - I hope you feel the freedom that you’re in healthy control of what’s going on inside of YOU. It’s not about controlling the external or falling victim to our circumstances.

Start moving forward with some changes that will actually be long lasting. Let’s stop with the superficial stuff and going for the quick wins. Dig deeper in the process and I promise you you’re going to feel different, you’re going to BE different and your results are going to be elevated. You’re going to be able to have high ambitions, reach those goals without doing so at the expense of your family, your health or your mental well-being.


For more, come join our monthly coaching program, The EDGE Insider. For details, head here:  https://charlotte-ferreux.mykajabi.com/p/theedgeinsider

The Upside of Anger...Use it to be Your Best Self!

I need to be honest with you...the last few weeks, I’ve felt angry. I’ve been triggered in a way that I haven’t experienced in a long time. I obviously won’t share the details, but know that I’ve really been tested with how I choose to show up and how I choose to interact with people based on situations that are affecting those that I love most. (...and breathe lol)

Had this been a few years ago, I wouldn’t have responded or acted in a way that I would necessarily be proud of...perhaps more reactionary. Fight or flight mode would’ve taken over and I am certain I would have said things that weren’t aligned with me being my most true, authentic and BEST self.

Thank god for personal development and all the mindset work I do! I’ve managed to handle the situation with composure and grace and in a way that is truly aligned with my best self. It’s inspired me though to record this podcast.

Not everything around anger is bad. We think it is, because usually when we are angry we react and respond in a way that isn’t aligned with our best selves and leaves us feeling badly about ourselves. But if we can learn to take some space between how we are feeling and how we are reacting, and if we really start to use that fire and frustration to fuel us moving forward, then it can be a powerful thing.

Anger in our lives CAN be a good thing. It can do us some service. In this episode, I want to start to break down how to USE those times where we are triggered, angry and frustrated and channel it in a way that’s going to produce a powerful and positive outcome in our lives. We can turn use those situations that anger us so much and bring some purpose into it; we can use that fire to create the life we want and really stand up for the things we deserve in our lives.

Check out Episode 59 on Podcast Addict, iTunes or Spotify: Click Here. 

I want you to start to reflect on your own life. When you start to feel anger and frustration; when your blood starts to boil and you feel triggered and extremely unsettled.

How do you typically react in those situations?
And how do you typically feel afterwards about yourself and the way you handled it?

I want to focus in not so much on those times, but how you can actually USE the fire of that frustration to move you forward in life. Personally, in the times I’ve gotten really fired up about something, it’s actually been a blessing because it shows me what my values truly are. It shows me what I need to protect in my life. It gives me clarity as to where my line in the sand is and what I will and will not stand for in my life. It’s those times that we get so much clarity it’s almost beyond us; it becomes so clear that we are no longer going to tolerate the things that we have been and that we are going to move forward with action.

I think we sometimes get caught up in thinking that we can only be one emotion at a time...we are just angry, or we are just sad. But there are so many combinations that can and should happen. You can be angry and frustrated, but also calm and direct. I always look back to something I was taught by my mentor, Brendon Burchard; he said to always live into your highest self words. Everyday, my job is to choose and to act into those words. For me personally, my three words when it comes to my interactions with other people are: Direct, Calm and Intentional. So when I’m feeling angry and fired up, I pair that and respond in a way that’s aligned with my highest self; I react in a way that is also direct, calm and intentional. It doesn’t mean I’m not fired up or angry; I am just choosing to respond and react in a way that is authentic and true to my highest self.

If you choose into your words with every interaction, not only do you go to bed at night feeling confident and happy with the choices you’ve made, but you can start to really use those situations that bring you anger and frustration to help propel your life forward. Instead of allowing those situations to bring you anxiety and sadness and stress, we can use them to help move us forward because you’re removing yourself from the victim role. You’re putting yourself into a position of control; you create more skill in this area, you build more strength in terms of your voice and you feel so much better about yourself because you’re not just allowing things to happen to you in your life. You’re taking charge of your life and you’re truly in control.

When you take those situations and really take control of them, it helps you develop a stronger sense of self and a deeper understanding of what your values are and what you are willing to stand for. Getting angry and frustrated should never be about losing control and screaming and not acting as your best self (though we have ALL been there). This is about working as hard as you can to be your best and rather than losing control, being FULLY in CONTROL.

You can be angry about something but still be caring. You can be frustrated but still clear and direct. You can be fired up but still have the best intentions for yourself and everyone involved. We don’t have to get to a place where things unravel and get so out of control that we don’t feel good about our choices. I want you to take a step back and think about how you’ve shown up in situations where anger has gotten the best of you? Where could you have acted differently?

Live your most authentic life and use those hard situations to live even more authentically. I hope I’ve given you some actions and inspiration that will help you create more purpose around the elements that have held you back in the past. Think about what words describe the BEST of you and intentionally live into those words day in and day out.

If you want more on this, come join us in High Performance Group Coaching. Click here to get more info about how it can help you level up your performance and leadership.

Is The Fear of Loss Stopping You From Moving Forward?

I’ve been on quite the health journey over the last couple months. I’m playing around with different foods and eliminating certain foods and adding in others. I’m feeling amazing and really feel like my sugar addiction has taken a backseat (which is amazing!).

It’s funny, though, because before I really jumped into these changes, I had a few moments of fear. Part of me didn’t want to give up those foods. Part of me didn’t want to make any shifts or incorporate new ways of doing things because I was so attached to the way I was operating. For years now I’ve started my day with a protein shake. Every single day, no exceptions. I was almost addicted to it and I really felt like I could never start my day without it. For you, maybe that’s coffee? So when I decided I wanted to play around with my eating schedule and routine, giving up my shake in the morning and moving it to the afternoon was scary because I really felt like I couldn’t function without it. But a couple of days in and I realized I was totally fine. I was totally fine.

It’s amazing what happens when you realize that you don’t “need” anything; that is beautiful, healthy control.

Have you ever been in a situation where you’ve wanted to do something or make a change or take some action….But the mere thought of what you could possibly LOSE in the process stops you dead in your tracks?

In this episode, we tackle what some of those fears are that come up for us when we feel like we’re going to lose something in the process of making a change or reaching a goal. I’ll share a few tips on how you can actually start tackling those fears and how you can gain more confidence in your ability to push through those fears so that you can start living the life you really want.

Because on the other side of those fears? Is your desired life.

Check out Episode 58: Is the Fear of Loss Stopping You From Moving Forward on itunes, Spotify or Podcast Addict.

To start, you need to really identify two things. First - what are your working towards? What are your goals? What are the changes you want to make? Maybe it’s around your finances, your career, your relationships, your health. Wherever you are at, write down some of these goals or shifts that you would want to make in your life.

Next, identify what is coming up for you that’s holding you back? Specifically, what is coming up for you that you’re afraid to lose? Maybe you’re afraid to give up certain foods or you’re afraid to go to the gym because it’s uncomfortable and intimidating; maybe you want to leave your job but you fear giving up having access to certain freedoms that come with the money you earn at that job. Maybe you’re afraid giving up a certain lifestyle or certain people. Get clear on exactly what those fears are that are holding you back. I want you to be brutally honest here; no one else is going to see or hear your fears but you. You don’t have to share them with anyone; but you’re never going to push past them until you stop avoiding and you start acknowledging.

Because here’s the thing: on the other side of those fears is your freedom. You choosing you and being able to control your life. That’s healthy control and that’s freedom.

Start to write down what you fear losing in order to get to those goals that you have. Write them all down and then categorize them by “fear factor” (most scary, moderately scary, least scary). It’s important here to write down ALL the fears you have, no matter how small (like having to give up putting sugar in your coffee, for example).

It’s all a mental game; in our minds, we have placed importance on certain things and we’ve convinced ourselves that in order to be happy or feel a certain way, we need to have that thing in our lives. We’ve placed so much attachment on that thing and as soon as we don’t have it, we have convinced ourselves we just won’t feel happy. Part of this is getting ourselves away from needing those external factors to fill us up; we have everything we need inside of us to have peace and happiness in our lives.

So how do we get away from this attachment and move past the fear? You start small and you practice. Focus in on one of the fears from the “least scary” category and start to make small changes. It’s about building up consistency and building up your confidence that yes, you can make these changes and you’re perfectly fine. I’m not saying it’s always easy, even with those less scary fears, but the more you do it and the more consistent you stay, you start to lose that attachment. You begin to realize that you can still be happy and fulfilled without it in your life. And you strengthen your mindset and you feel better about yourself in the process because your choices are in alignment with your goals. So you do it again. And again. And each time, you get more confident and feel better and better.

Start going through your lists and maybe you tackle something on that moderately scary category; maybe you jump to the scary list. We might be talking about the fear of loss in your life but this can apply to anything you’re doing. Practice builds the muscle and before you know it, you realize that you don’t need to be attached to anything. However you want to design and create your life, you’re capable of doing it. Make sure that you always trust the process and have the right support systems, information and knowledge in place to really set yourself up for success.

Here’s my last tip. Whenever you go to a place of loss, immediately ask yourself “what specifically am I going to GAIN?” Really focus in on that; yes, you might lose something, but what is the gain? The moment you connect to that, you’ll feel the benefit of that choice and have the emotional connection to the goal you’re working towards.

Start making those lists; prioritize them and start to tackle the least scary ones first. Build up that muscle and that confidence so that you can start to tackle the scary ones. And always remind yourself what you’re gaining in the process of that loss. It’s so important that we develop the ability to push past our doubts and our fears and the things that hold us back from living our best lives. We have the ability to choose past that. 

I’d love to hear from you; send me a message over on Instagram or  at www.charlotteferreux.com. Let me know what has been holding you back in terms of what you’re afraid to lose in terms of making big choices and changes in life?

Because on the other side of those changes is that desired life you want; the desired relationship, the desired body/health, the desired strength you’ve always wanted in your life. It all comes down to your choices.

What Elite Athletes Do Differently...And Why We Should All Follow Suit

A few months ago, I interviewed Coach Tim Adams on my podcast. He’s a world class athletic coach, an industry leading author, speaker and performance coach who has trained World Champions, Olympic medalists, NFL and NHL all-stars and MVPs. Check out my blog about our interview here or go back and take a listen to Episode 34.

I’ve wanted to speak on this topic ever since our interview. Why are elite athletes so damn good at what they do?

Yes, they have rigorous training schedules.
Yes, they have a lot of pressure and demands on them to perform so well.
Yes, they have trainers and coaches and lots of people helping them out.

But none of that matters if they don’t have:
Discipline.
Laser focus.
Determination.
Habits.
Passion.
 

Have you ever watched and noticed how athletes prepare themselves before their games and competitions? The amount of focus and discipline and preparation for those moments is remarkable and so admirable.

Here is my question, though: Why can WE not apply those same principles - discipline, focus, determination, habits, passion - into our EVERY DAY lives?

Take a step back and evaluate your life right now...you are a player in that game. And that game is happening every single day.
We are handed a blank slate every single day, and yet we don’t put in that same amount of effort? We don’t have that same discipline in what is, truthfully, the most important “game” - our lives. We are taking that time for granted.

Just imagine the productivity, the effectiveness, the pride in yourself you would feel if you started each day with that same level of discipline and focus (and then used that momentum to carry you throughout the day). Yes, athletes make a lot of money, performing well is their “job” and they have lots of people helping them out. But you can also carve out a little time each day by placing priority on the right things; by doing that and making small changes, it will lead you to ultimately getting the right results in your life; a life that you can look back on and feel fulfilled, engaged and like you made the best of it.

Athletes don’t work really hard for one game and then totally slack on the next; they bring 110% to every single moment. I’m not saying that’s for you; burning yourself out is not my intention here. But you can bring YOUR BEST to each day. Whatever “your best” is on that day - do that. Some days, we crush it. Other days, we need to honor ourselves and not push it so hard. That balance is key; but as long as you commit to yourself to doing your own personal best each day, that’s what will lead to a life where you feel fulfilled and without regrets.

This is your game. How you choose to play it out is totally up to you. You can do more and have more and do better. You don’t have to be an athlete to apply the same disciplines and habits and focus; you can do everything that they do. You can lean on the same habits. The recipe for success is there - you just need to start viewing your life a little bit differently.

What is that next step for you? If you could start to implement just one new habit into your day, what would that be? Decide where it is that you’re lacking (momentum, productivity, clarity, energy) and then focus in one habit to help you in that area of your life.

Whatever is coming up for you...really assess why can some do it, and some can’t? The bottom line is this: do you want to? And if you don’t, why? What’s missing that you feel like you don’t want to play all out and do your best in the days that you have? Do you think that you’re going to escape the regret? I always say that the cream rises to the top; there’s no escaping anything and no avoiding anything. Everything always comes up. We get handed the same tests over and over again until we actually conquer them. Whatever you avoid still rears it’s head eventually; the things that we don’t start to tackle and deal with show up as unhappiness, bitterness, resentment. When you start to sit with those feelings and work through them, you start making movement towards your best life. A life that is free. It’s not that things become perfect or things become easy, you just get stronger in the process.

Here’s what I don’t want for you - I don’t want you to look back on your life with regret. Regret that you could’ve tried harder, done more, challenged yourself more to be your best and live your best life. We have to realize that we don’t have all the time in the world and we have no idea what life has in store for us.

The recipe for success is there. And if you want to know more, reach out to me. Because we all can do what those elite athletes do. It’s not them versus us. We’re all the same; they’ve just chosen to be super disciplined and focused at something; they’ve chosen to settle for nothing short of the best. And when we start to use that in our day to day lives, it’s magical. You feel it and you see it; the people around you feel it and see it too. Your results shift. Your relationships become stronger. You become more clear, more focused and more productive.

It’s worth it. Start with those small steps and small changes you can make to your daily routine. I hope I’ve given you some things to think about and reflect on. Do me a favor and take some time to reflect; take some time for you. Change truly happens one choice at a time; you can do this.

And please reach out if you need some help in this area!

Group Coaching just kicked off and we have room for a few more! If you’re interested in learning more, send me an email at info@charlotteferreux.com and I’ll send you the details :)

Pushing Past Discouragement When You're Not Seeing the Results You Want

7 years ago, I left the city, left an incredible career and moved back to my small hometown. I was a single mom, living with her parents and her new baby boy, in a small town. I was in debt and my fashion degree was no good in this town of 7,800 people...I also had just finished up my career with Lululemon Athletica and didn’t see a close alternative here to work for.  

I could've easily fallen into mediocrity....working a job I wasn't passionate about, living in a body that I didn't necessarily love or treat well, and going through the motions that I thought I was "supposed" to be going through.

I knew I wanted more. I knew I was destined for more in my life.
So I went to work.
I launched my own consulting business from the ground up.

And I can say that I’m in a great place NOW, but that certainly wasn’t always the case.
I had so many slumps and hard times over those years.

I was working so hard.
I felt so clear on what I was working towards.
I was taking the right steps, aligning myself with the right people and making smart choices to push myself and my business forward.

And yet...it took a long time to see the progress that I wanted.
I felt like my hard work wasn’t amounting to anything.
I didn’t feel any closer to my goals and felt like I was just spinning my wheels.

It’s discouraging and it’s frustrating to say the least.

I could’ve easily given up and gone down a more “traditional” route.
I really had to self-coach and lean on the tools I learned and the tools I now teach on in High Performance coaching to get myself through those hard times.

In this episode of the Change by Choice show, I share how to push past discouragement in your life so that you CAN reach those goals. Listen to Episode 56: Choosing Past Discouragement on iTunes, Spotify or Podcast Addict.

Let’s start to explore when we feel discouraged and frustrated when we are trying to achieve something, start a business or meet a goal. You see obstacle after obstacle and you just don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. I’m going to give you some tips on how to move yourself forward so that you can honor that space you’re in, find joy in the process and start achieving those goals.

1 - Identify and Acknowledge


First off, as always, it’s about reflection. Recognizing and acknowledging where and when you get frustrated and discouraged is key; start to understand what your triggers are. When you start to feel those things creeping in - disappointment, frustration, discouragement - take some time to journal. Identify what is causing those feelings to come up for you. Once you’ve identified it, you’re better able to navigate through it. Too often I see people making reactionary decisions because they’ve acted before they’ve even acknowledged WHY they are feeling a certain way and where it is coming from. You can start to be proactive here, too; be present enough with yourself that you can recognize what is coming and  you can catch yourself before falling into those feelings.

2 - Keep the End in Sight

Remind yourself why you’re putting yourself through all of this; keep that end goal in your mind always and don’t lose sight of it. Connect in and visualize the excitement and the feeling you’re going to have when you do achieve that goal. Visualize that win, the goal, that greatness. You need to be very mindful here and consciously remind yourself, day after day, of what the end goal is and why it’s so important to you.

3 - Trust the Process


Nothing is built overnight. Everytime you push through an obstacle and commit to yourself and your goals, you’re reminding yourself how badly you want it. The more you do that, the stronger you become. You never know which moment will be the one where all of a sudden, everything just connects. Trust in this process. Don’t allow your ego to take over, who wants to quit when things get hard. 

4 - Honor the Struggle


As Brendon Burchard says, you need to honor the struggle...because it’s not supposed to be easy. Reaching your goals isn’t easy; if it was, every one of us would accomplishing every single thing we ever wanted to in life. It just doesn’t work like that. You are going to hit obstacles along the way, but when you honor the struggle, you view each of those obstacles as a blessing, a learning and something to be grateful for. Because every mistake, every obstacle, every mis-step along the way gives us more information and clarity as to what we want, what we don’t want, what’s working and what isn’t, who we are and how strong we really are. Part of going through this process is discovering that yes, it is hard and there are no short-cuts, but you can find the good behind each of those struggles.

5 - It’s Worth it, Regardless the Outcome

There is no quick fix (at least not if you want something that will last long-term). But when you embrace the struggle and you trust in the process, you’ll know that you’re going to feel so good at the end of it, regardless the outcome. Have the mental strength to tell yourself that wherever this leads you, whether it’s right to your goal or not, it’s where you are meant to be in your life. Sometimes, we don’t even know where life is going to lead us and that’s so exciting. Embrace that change and that uncertainty in this process. When you resist that, everything becomes hard. When you embrace the fact that regardless the outcome, the process will be worth it, you’re going to have more fun with it. You’ll have more joy and more excitement and less dread. That’s how you push past the discouragement; instead of viewing it as an obstacle in your path, view it as the universe giving you an alternate path that you hadn’t thought of before. Look at things differently; that is the power of shifting your mindset.

6 - Be Strategic


On a weekly basis, reflect and debrief what worked and didn’t work. Then make some strategic shifts for the following week so that you don’t keep doing the same things over and over again. It’s easy to stay discouraged when you keep spinning those same wheels and making no progress; at least if you’re making shifts and changes and trying new strategies, you’re learning so much in the process.

These are all things that we go through in HIgh Performance coaching and what I am bringing my group coaching members through. If you’re lacking in these areas, it’s so important that you get the tools you need so that you can succeed. I so often see people struggling and they don’t have the right tools or the right support around them; they get discouraged because they aren’t making progress (because they just don’t know HOW to anymore) and they give up on their dreams. It doesn’t have to be that way for you. Please reach out to me or to someone who you feel like would be the right fit for you. Take that step; your goals aren’t going to magically fall into your lap. You have to start taking those steps to get there.

If you want information on Group Coaching, send me an email at info@charlotteferreux.com . And please reach out to me on Instagram (@charlotte_ferreux) and share your struggles, your successes and what you’re working on! I’d love to hear from you!
 

Keep moving yourself forward!

How To Sell Without Being "Salesy"

Hands up if this is you: You walk away from a bad sales experience and you just feel GROSS? 😤

They certainly didn’t get your business, and you definitely won’t be in a hurry to return.
Yup...we’ve all been there.
 

If you’re in sales in any regard:

💲selling is your full time job

💲you run your own MLM

💲you are a leader or CEO

💲you’re trying to sell your thoughts or ideas as a thought-leader

Then you’re going to want to listen to keep reading...because it’s time we step away from those slimy, sleazy sales tactics.

If you’re NOT in a traditional “sales” role, you’re going to want to listen too. Because truth is, we are ALL selling something...everyday you are trying to influence someone, persuade someone or try to share your information or point of view with someone. Whether it’s convincing your spouse that going ahead with that kitchen reno is a great decision or trying to sell your children on the importance of doing their homework each night - we are constantly in a place of trying to “sell” and sometimes, we fall into methods and habits that just don’t work.

It’s time we start to explore what it means to nurture and develop strong relationships. Because if you really want long term wins and long term success….it’s going to come from developing those relationships and acting with integrity and in congruence with your best self.


I break it all down for you in this week’s episode: Episode 55: How to Sell Without Being Salesy. You can listen in on itunes, podcast addict or spotify.

Think back to those past sales experiences that have made you cringe...whether it be a phone call, an email or a face to face interaction...you left that interaction feeling less than pleasant. Why is that? What was it about that interaction that left you feeling that way?


I’m willing to bet it was because:

1. You didn’t feel valued, heard or cared about

2. You felt pressured into making a choice that wasn’t in alignment with your goals or your choices

3. As soon as you said “no”, you were either disrespected, dropped completely and made to feel as though that “relationship” meant nothing
    

I will keep coming back to this because of how important it is and how strongly I feel…people are your greatest asset! (Check out last week’s blog if you missed it).

The biggest part about running a strong team? Making sure your people are your greatest asset and making sure they feel valued and cared for.

The biggest part about selling (regardless of the specific realm you are in)? Making sure the people feel like they are valued and cared for.

It’s really about how you are choosing to nurture those relationships; and I will constantly keep coming back to this because this step is constantly being MISSED. Why? Because nurturing relationships takes time. It takes genuine effort and commitment. People are way too impatient in this process; if you are too focused on the short-term wins and just making those sales, you are missing out on an opportunity to gain that long term client or customer. Your level of patience in this process is a reflection of how you view your people. If you treat people like they are disposable and only good for that one sale...you’ll only ever get short term wins. And you’ll keep spinning in that hamster wheel, playing the same games over and over again.

Shift the sales approach to a place where it’s no longer about selling anything. Instead, make it about relationships. Make it about getting to know your potential customers, about providing them value (whether they buy from you or not), about giving them information and knowledge about what you’re selling and make it about giving people an overall positive experience when they interact with you.


Prepare yourself for these interactions; be prepared with knowledge of your business, your products and your experience with it. Be prepared to ask the right questions and have the answers to their questions. Practice beforehand how you’re going to speak, how you’re going to act, what your body language is going to look like to make sure the other person feels as comfortable and pleasant as possible.


Then give them some space; ask them those right questions and see what might be missing for them. Look at their body language and listen to those gaps of silence. Start to tune in and stop focusing on what’s going on with YOU; your job is to serve them. 


If you’re taking time to build and nurture those relationships, you need to protect them. If they say no, you need to HONOR that. Honor the journey that each person is on. A no right now doesn’t mean a no forever, but if you react in a negative way and stop taking care of that relationship, then chances are that no WILL become a no forever.


Give people space. Ask them questions. Don’t take things personally. Because as soon as you start throwing into those dirty sales tactics of guilt, anger or strong-arming people, that trust is broken and it takes a really long time to build that relationship back up. It’s not about you; it’s about them. Show them that you really feel it, but in a genuine way.


If we come at this from a place of truly wanting our communities, our businesses and our relationships to thrive, we have to start doing things differently. Don’t take for granted the people that enter your lives; they are all there for a reason and for a lesson.

Nurture the relationships you have in your life; protect them and honor them.
Look at the long-term successes as opposed to the short term wins.
Have patience in the process.
Watch. Observe. Pick up on the cues of other people. Give them space when they need it and answer their questions when they need it.
Have genuine care and excitement for other people, regardless of the decisions they make towards you and what you are selling.


Not only will doing this shift your financial results, but you will shift within your life. You will develop stronger, deeper, more connected relationships and you will feel better about the results you are getting because they are from a place of integrity and alignment with your best self.

Reach out to me at www.charlotteferreux.com if you need help with this; it all comes down to communication to get the results you want in full alignment and connection with yourself. And I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic - head over to my Facebook page and share what your worst sales experience was or your biggest takeaway from this blog! More to come on this topic so stay tuned.  
 

We are also tackling this topic (and so many more) in The EDGE Insider, click the link to learn more:

https://charlotte-ferreux.mykajabi.com/p/theedgeinsider

People: The Greatest Asset You'll Ever Have!

Are you treating your people like they are your greatest asset?

I received so much feedback from last week’s podcast on Effective Hiring (Episode 53 if you missed it!) so I wanted to continue that conversation this week!

Here’s the question to you...and I touched on this in last week’s episode…

Are your PEOPLE your greatest ASSET?

In business, in relationships, in life...people aren’t just a means to an end. They are everything.

Whether you lead a team within your business, within an MLM, within a volunteer organization or even within your family…Your PEOPLE are your greatest ASSET.  Are you treating them that way?

Listen in to Episode 54 of the Change by Choice Show: “Are Your People Your Greatest Asset” for my thoughts on this; why your people aren’t just part of your business, they ARE your business, why it’s so important and how you can start to shift in the right direction.

So let’s start to assess where you’re at. How do you view people? Do you view them as an asset? And if you do, is that sentiment backed up by your ACTIONS? This isn’t just something catchy that we say and plaster up on our walls; your words are no good unless they backed up by your actions and your behaviours.

Why is this so important for your team?

1 - For the Success Of Your Business

Plain and simple when you have people working for you that are feeling fulfilled and who have “bought in” to your vision and are committed to the business, your business will be more successful. People are more likely to work hard and do their absolute best when they feel appreciated, when they feel supported and heard and like they are a valued member of the team. If you want the best from your team, treat them that way. Your people are the forefront of your business; without them, you have no business.

2 - They are Human Beings

The people on your team aren’t just machines that you pay to do a job. They aren’t just means to an end.

They are human beings.
They are connected to other people.
They go home to families.

How you treat them, how you set them up for success, how you listen to them and be present with them and effectively lead them affects how they feel when they go home. Which affects their relationships. It affects their health. It affects how they show up for other people.

Your choices and your actions have a ripple effect; especially when you’re in a leadership role and you need to take that seriously. In our inadequacies and our own struggles, we develop different means of protection but the problem is that in doing so, it hurts other people.
 

There is a better way. You can either be part of a process that builds up healthy human beings or part of a process that breaks human beings down.


3 - Energy is Contagious

How we treat people and the impact that our actions have on them connects to the energy that we transmit and the energy that they feel. We’ve all walked into a room before and felt when there is negative, toxic energy; where someone’s in a bad mood or something bad has happened. Words don’t have to be said, but something is off and you can feel it. Or when someone walks into a room and the energy in the room instantly takes a turn for the worse. My question for you is this: when you walk into a room, what energy does your team feel from you? Are you aware of what you’re putting out there? Are you leading with fear-based intimidation because that’s what has gotten you results in the past?

Be mindful of how your energy affects the people around you. And I want you to explore the idea of doing things differently and not just keep doing what you’ve always done. That’s what got you here, but it’s not going to get you to that next level. Gone are the ways of fear-based, intimidation-style leading and if you’re still stuck in that, it might be time to reach out for some personal development in this area.

What we need right now in this world is more heart. More value. People are leaving their jobs because they are more stressed and more overworked. They leave their jobs because they feel undermined, they feel like the bottom line comes first, they feel like their word or their contribution doesn’t matter. People want to feel fulfilled, purposeful, acknowledged.


Your people matter. Start to believe it for yourself and start to show it in an authentic way.

I challenge you to hold yourself to a higher bar when it comes to your leadership. Take some time to reflect on where you’re at right now. And if you’re already doing a great job here, what could be your next step? Don’t get too comfortable because comfort is an easy slope down to mediocre. How are you going to keep up that level of leadership and how are you going to maintain it when things get hard?

Make a decision - what is one thing you could focus in on and start to create some action with that will level you up as a leader? I’d love to hear from you! Reach out to me on my website and let’s continue this conversation! And if you need coaching on this, please reach out to me!

And if you’re ready to start levelling up all areas of your life, come join us in The EDGE Insider! We have so many amazing guest contributors and content coming up in the next couple months! Click here to join us! https://charlotte-ferreux.mykajabi.com/p/theedgeinsider

Are You Hiring Effectively?

I have a lot of different roles within my work; I’m a High Performance Coach with my online brand, Change by Choice. I’m also the owner of my business, Thrive Coaching and Consulting and I work directly with businesses on their communication, human resources, productivity and hiring/recruitment. I do workshops and also consulting work based on the needs of the organization.

One thing that comes up so much (and actually is a passion of mine) is recruitment and hiring.

If you’re a business owner, whether it be brick and mortar, online, MLM...you’re going to definitely want to keep reading.

If you’re not? You should also keep reading….because truthfully, the hiring framework that I’m going to go over can be applied to how you choose a partner, how you choose your friends, how you choose who is going to babysit your children, how you choose a contractor to renovate your home. I speak specifically in regards to hiring an employee for a business, but you can take the same principles and really apply them to all areas of your life.

We all know what happens when we have the wrong people in the wrong roles within our teams (or our lives). We all know what having high turnover does for the health of your business (not to mention the time and money it costs you).

So how can you start to level up this process? How can you start to be more strategic and really hire effectively? So that you create a team that’s fulfilled, that’s happy and that’s committed to the success of your business?

In the latest episode of the Change by Choice Show, I’m going to walk you through the hiring framework that I implement and train businesses on. And I want you to really analyze what you’re currently doing when it comes to hiring, where the gaps are and where you can start to make some changes.


Click here to listen to Episode 53: Are you Hiring Effectively? http://bit.ly/CHANGEbyCHOICEpodcast

Nothing hurts a business more than hiring the wrong people and making reactionary decisions when it comes to hiring. If you’re the one doing the hiring, it really tests your leadership. If it’s not you who’s doing the hiring within your business, you are still accountable to it. You need to make sure that the person responsible is following this framework as well.

Why is this so important? Because taking someone on into your organization is a huge responsibility. It’s not a place to feel entitled. We should feel genuine pleasure and honor to have people want to work for us. We get a huge portion of their time in their lives and we really have to be responsible and mindful of how we show up with them and how we set them up for success. We are talking about people’s lives here; the highest amount of responsibility should be taken here. In these roles, we impact how people are in their lives, how they show up for the world and for their families. Do you want your people leaving work feeling completely unfulfilled, unhappy and stressed and carrying those emotions back home to their families?

It’s also important because your team is your strongest asset and when you really treat them that way, they are going to give so much and you’re going to receive the benefits of that long-term. Your business is going to thrive when you have people who are passionate, innovative and committed to the growth of the business. The health and happiness of your staff and your team ends up being the health of your clients and the health of your business. You should want to not only have a profitable business, but one that has a great legacy in terms of how they treat people.
 

So here it is, the HIRE framework:

H - High Bar Standard

This is two-fold; you need to make sure that you are bringing a high bar standard to the table and that you’re looking for that high quality person on the other side. Here is where you really need to be asking the right questions; what level of quality can they produce? What examples have they shown in the past? I’m also making sure I am sharing what they can expect with full clarity. Hold a high bar when it comes to what you’re asking, what you’re communicating and hold them to a high bar in terms of what you’re looking for.

I - Intuition

Intuition is huge. You’re going to receive lots of information in this process; from their resume to the answers they give in the interview to what you see and what you hear. You really have to trust what your intuition is telling you. Are you excited to talk to them? Do you want to work beside them? Ask yourself those questions. Are they the perfect fit on paper, but something just doesn’t feel right? Trust your intuition. You want to make sure they aren’t just a good technical hire, but it’s also somebody that fits beautifully into the team. Based on the information that you’ve gathered, give yourself some time to analyze how you feel about it.

R - Reflection

Give yourself some time to really reflect. Too often people make off-the-cuff, quick decisions because they have to, not necessarily because it’s the right thing to do or the thing choice to be make. Really be mindful here and reflect on the information you’ve gathered and what your intuition is telling you. If it’s possible, be really proactive here so that you have enough time to do this.

E - Educate

A huge part to the success in this process is really educating people on the role, the culture and what is expected of them within the job. It is your responsibility to educate them and give them the clear picture on what they are getting into. This is also their time to gather the information they need to determine if your workplace is the right place for them. It’s important to remember that hiring is a two-way street; it needs to be a right fit for both sides. When you’re so clear with them, there’s no surprises and your chances of hiring in the right person are so much higher.  

It also incorporates how open the person is to receiving coaching, to learning and being educated once they are in the position. Are they guarded, stuck in their own ways or think they “know it all” or are they excited to learn, want to contribute and be innovative within their roles?

---

Wherever you’re at, start to analyze how you’re currently doing things; see where your gaps are and use this framework to determine what you need to bring in and shift in the process. Reach out to me and get yourself some coaching if you need it so that you can really level up yourself and your business. Click here

And if you really want to level up ALL areas of your life, come join us in the EDGE Insider for all the tools, downloads, content and training you need. Click here for all the details

My Journey Back to Good Health

It’s time to get real with you.

Because I feel like in certain ways, over the last couple of months, I have not fully been practicing what I preach. I know all the best practices when it comes to our health and nutrition and exercise. I know what to do. I know why we should do it. I know the vast benefits that come from it, and I know the consequences that follow when we don’t.

But for the last few months, I’ve been on a downward spiral when it comes to allowing sugar and bad carbs back into my diet. I know better, but I haven’t been DOING better.

I feel comfortable sharing this with you because I am certain that we ALL have been there in our lives at certain times. None of us is perfect; that’s not what this is about.

If you’ve been watching my Instagram stories over the last couple of weeks (@charlotte_ferreux), you’ll know that I’ve really been making some significant shifts and changes when it comes to my health.

In this week’s podcast episode, I’m getting real personal and breaking it down for you….

How did I fall off track, the slow decline that my health took (despite my knowledge and best intentions), what my doctor finally said that was the wake up call I needed, and what I’ve been changing and shifting in my life to move myself forward. Listen to episode 52 on the Change by Choice Show on iTunes, Spotify or Podcast Addict here: http://bit.ly/CHANGEbyCHOICEpodcast

We all struggle with our health; it ebbs and flows and none of us is perfect. We all have triggers and we all have different times in our lives where our health fluctuates. And sometimes new things enter in our lives, or things leave our lives, and that can really offset our health habits and disciplines.

Let me go back a few months and really explain what I’ve been going through.

I’ve always been an active person; I’m a spin instructor and I love running and going to the gym. I’ve also always been pretty consistent with my eating habits and I love healthy food. Back in February, I got super sick. I had a terrible lung infection and it really took me out for a good 6 weeks. I was still mostly able to do my work, but I definitely couldn’t work out. As a coach, it’s really important to me that I show up at 100% for each and every one of my clients; they deserve my full engagement and energy in every single session. That meant that I really had to protect myself and heal myself properly in order to maintain that. I had to completely cut out physical activity in order to really rest and heal myself from this infection.

And it's just a vicious cycle; falling out of one habit lead to me falling out of others and falling back into more unhealthy habits. I started to allow the sugar and the carbs back into my life, I started to drink more caffeine again and everything just slowly started to unravel. It was a slow decline and I’m sure we have all been there; we have the best intentions to get yourself back on track, but you don’t. You know that you should, but you don’t.

Up until this point, I had really cut back on my sugar intake, I wasn’t taking in any caffeine and my eating habits were really strong. And when I started to decline, half of me was still eating really healthy. I love healthy meals and that was never the issue. But the other half of me? I was like a teenager who just wanted to eat hamburgers and french fries and ice cream all day long. So even though I was still eating lots of healthy food, I was allowing way too much of the junk back into my life.

Throughout all of this, I remained really strong with my water intake, my sleep and my meditation/self care habits. My energy stayed high and I was still able to do great work. But could it have been better? Yes, probably. And as the months went on, I really started to feel my body changing. As soon as we start treating our bodies like garbage cans, you start to see and feel the consequences of those choices.

I remained really consistent with my journaling, and of course I journaled about how I was feeling each day. I was very mindful of the process as it was going on. I knew better, but I wasn’t doing better. I just couldn’t seem to get myself out of it. I wanted to be able to eat what I wanted MORE than I wanted to have the best health and be at my best.

I finally went to see my doctor for my yearly physical exam and I was very open and honest about what was going on and how my body had been feeling. I felt like my skin was starting to discolor, my hormone levels seemed all over the place, I was experiencing more pain, more tension and more headaches than I ever had before. I could feel my pH levels changing. And it was all due to my nutrition habits and my lack of consistent exercise. My doctor told me that it sounded like I was starting to become resistant to insulin.

Oh hell no.

That was it. I was not expecting to hear that at ALL; it was not even on my radar that it could be a possibility. I was shocked but what a blessing because that was the wake up call that I needed. I left the doctor that day with a new mindset that things MUST change and they must change now.

For myself, when I need to get back on track, I have to be really extreme with it at first until I am at a place where I can get back into a normal flow. For others, that route just does not work. You might need to take it one small step at a time to get yourself back on track. There is no right or wrong way here; the point is that you start taking those steps to take control back over your health.

Which is exactly what I’ve been doing in these last few weeks. My doctor recommended I implement a keto-style diet, with lots of proteins and healthy fats and lower on the carbs. I’m not going super extreme with it, but I’m playing around with different things and finding what works for me. Huge kudos to my girl Kayla (The Roasted Chickpea); she does my food prep for me and it’s been so great working together on eliminating certain foods and trying new things and getting creative in the kitchen.

I’m also starting a month long hormone test with Dr. Diana Draper to really get a good picture of where everything is at within my body. I will definitely be sharing more of that journey with you as well so make sure you’re following my instagram stories!

I’ll leave you with a few takeaways that I really want you to think about in your life.

1 - Go see your doctor

Make sure you are seeing your doctor on a regular basis! Go there with questions and concerns and talk to your doctor; they are there to help you. This is your life and your body - start talking about and addressing the things you are experiencing. Don’t allow the fear of “I don’t want to know” to hold you back. Knowledge is power and you can’t fix what you don’t know is broken.

2 - Journal!

A key part to this journey for me has been my consistent journaling; about how I’m feeling, what I’m experiencing, how my energy and vibrancy has been. Keep track of these things so that you have a benchmark to go by moving forward.

3 - Reflect

What is coming up for you? What can you relate to from my journey? Explore all the different areas of your health, your nutrition, your sleep, your exercise, your water intake. Where can you make some small shifts? Where have you allowed some bad habits to creep in?

Choose your hard. You can either start to shift now and do some things that maybe aren’t as enjoyable, or you can feel the long term consequences on your health later in life. If you knew that the choices you are making in your life NOW are shortening or lowering the quality of your life...would you start making different choices?

Don’t wait until you hear bad news to make those shifts. Just start with one small thing each day. I promise you...you shift how you eat, you change your life. That’s the bottom line.

My challenge to you is to really take a good look at your health, talk to your doctor and start to analyze where you can make improvements. Let’s make the rest of 2018 your healthiest months yet and I promise you, you’ll look back on this next year and you won’t even be able to imagine going back to how it used to be.

Reach out to me if you need some coaching or tools to help you with this. I would love to hear your story and what your struggles and your successes have been. And if you really want to dig into this, come join us in the EDGE Insider because our theme for August is the “HEALTHY BODY”. Click the link to join: https://charlotte-ferreux.mykajabi.com/p/theedgeinsider