Do you ever feel stuck? Like nothing is ever progressing or changing?

When we continue to operate in habit and in our comfort zone, we not only miss some amazing opportunities but we risk stagnation (things staying the same).

Often we approach our days with routine, our life with comfort and familiarity. We often steer away from unknowns, things that make us feel uncomfortable. But what I have learnt is that growth and the most amazing opportunities can happen when we tackle our fears and work through those uncomfortable feelings. This is when the magic truly happens. When we open up the parts of ourselves to let our light shine and our souls sparkle.

If you have been following our Thrive journey for a while, you may already know that each week our staff choose a value to focus on, embrace and include in our personal and professional lives. This week, our value is FEAR. Sounds strange huh! But setting this value is only going to help us reflect on our individual areas of development and really allow ourselves to grow.

I am so excited to see what magic comes out for everyone this week.

Well for those who know me, they will know I have pretty much worn makeup everyday since I was 11 years old. Every day to school, every day to work. I would even put on makeup to go to the mailbox.

For me, makeup has at times been a space for self care and a way to ground myself and prepare for the day. But it has also been a way for me to ‘hide behind a mask,’ use the foundation and colours to build my confidence and not feel so ‘naked,’ ‘exposed’ or ‘uncomfortable.’

These feelings have been reinforced by words from family and friends who have at times said I look “better” with make up on, obviously not knowing the long term impacts that some words can have on someone.

So for me, this week, I have tackled my fear of not wearing makeup. Not only of not wearing makeup just in a general day, but not wearing make up to a day of work, to seeing clients and working with other services and not wearing makeup while going out of the house to the grocery shopping! This might not seem much to others but it is huge to me.

Me tackling this fear may not result in absolute pure magic and growth in the essence above but it has allowed me to build my confidence, tackle the judgements I had in my head and allowed me to free myself from others not so kind words. I have allowed myself to feel more free. Not only did I gain all of these things as a result but I also gained more precious time with my loved ones in the morning.

Tackling a fear or something that makes us uncomfortable can be so hard and so damn scary. But also so rewarding.

If you would like to join us on our journey of FEAR SETTING (just like we would set goals, we have set a plan to reflect on and work on a fear) then please let us know and we will send you a copy of our resource that we are all currently going through.

- Your fear tackler, Decinta- 
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#nofilters #TacklingFear #growingwithuncomfortable

As the year draws to a close this is often the time when people get out their pens and paper (or technology devices) and start making New Years Resolutions. Creative vision boards, sticky notes on the fridge, a dream item of clothing hung up, a reminder on your phone; whatever your methodology, these resolutions can often be the same year in and year out. We finish the year and commence the new one with good intentions, we start off well, but for most, with time, our motivation can drop, ‘life gets in the way,’ and old habits resurface.

For many, this time of the year can be a realisation that their previous resolutions did not stick and were not achieved. This can be quite disheartening. However, we do need to cut ourselves some slack here too. They may not have stuck because of many reasons including; a change of mindset, priorities have adjusted, time, finances, energy levels, lack of commitment, minimal support and the list goes on. These ‘not so achieved goals’ and resolutions, as well as the challenges and hurdles we have faced throughout the year, are never mistakes or failures, as long as we choose to use these moments and experiences to learn and grow.

Therefore, with any goal setting or New Years Resolution making, it is just as important to reflect on what has been, and what is, before we set the scene moving forward. In fact, if we do not reflect on our lives, on our feelings and our behaviours, then nothing will change. Year after year moment after moment will continue to all blur into one. Not reflecting also continues to allow the time and the years to be in control per se.

So what is reflection you ask? It is the process of asking yourself thought-provoking questions in order to develop a deeper understanding of yourself or situations. By engaging in reflection, we often explore how we feel about something, how it impacts us, what is important to us, why we reacted a certain way etc and this can help us to change not only how we view ourselves but also how we act.

When we get stuck in ‘day to day’ living and the ‘busy-ness’ of life, often running around like headless chooks or operating in the ‘monkey brain,’ we do not allow ourselves the virtues of stopping and reflecting. Ultimately this can delay our growth, lead to greater burn out and reduce our successes in life.
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If you are new to reflection, it can feel uncomfortable in the beginning and often you may forget to practice it regularly. However once you make the effort you will find a greater sense of awareness, greater insight and for many, a greater sense of control over their lives and future directions. Life can stop feeling like it is happening ‘to us,’ and start feeling like we are making it happen.

Some of the tools we use to help us reflect include:

• Asking yourself why. Over and over and over. This could be about a feeling, a reaction, a dream, a goal we want to set etc. Ask yourself why! Then when you get that answer, ask yourself why again!! Often “Five Whys” can unsurface gold nuggets that otherwise could be hard to discover.
• Tracking our emotions for the day. This might involve writing down how we felt when we woke up, had lunch and were finishing up for the night. Identifying why these feelings are present and what is impacting on them, can really help us to stay in touch with ourselves and ultimately make decisions that help steer us to healthier and more positive emotions.
• Force field analysis. This strategy involves analysing the forces that are either helping us towards our goals or blocking us, which can assist to keep on track with our momentum for change and achieving our dreams. It is important to remember that there will be things we cannot control, however we may have a choice about how much we let that situation, person or event impact on our momentum.
• Thinking about our strengths and areas of development can also help us to determine appropriate courses of action with regards to achieving our goals, utilising our resources and investing energy into certain aspects of growth.
• Writing a daily journal. This strategy not only allows for reflections but also for additional processing which can increase our ability to move forward from difficulties and start the next day afresh.
• Talking to someone about our understanding of situations, events or ourselves. Getting feedback and allowing yourself some time to understand the “whys” of all of the information at hand.

 
Of course, we do not implement all of these at once and there are many more tools and strategies available to engage in reflection. It is important, like anything, to practice practice practice and identify what works for you!.
 
If however you are unsure where to start or are not sure how to implement reflection into your daily life, or you have trouble viewing set backs and challenges in a different way, then please do not hesitate to contact us. Further if you want help to develop SMART goals or need someone to support you and assist with accountability then we are here for you.
 
So take back your time, stand up for you and reflect in order to move forward.

​Change can be unsettling, difficult, daunting and overwhelming. But it can also be exciting, refreshing, motivating and inspiring. Hmm confusing huh?.
 
Do you struggle with the idea of change and how it makes you feel?
 
If you do, you are definitely not alone. We as human beings naturally prefer consistency. It can make us feel safer. Further, resistance to change is biological as we have been wired for survival since our existence and our brains are designed to create habits. Some people also worry about change because they believe that they do not have the resources to cope or that the change will be far greater than they can handle.
 
But by avoiding change and focussing on things staying the same, we may never gain anything either.
 
We also know that each and every one of you reading this will have gone through unexpected changes in the past and you have still made it here today. In fact, change can also bring benefits, freedom, happiness and endless opportunities.
 
If you have ever wondered how other people experience change or how they get through these times then keep reading as we are about to share some golden nuggets with you based on our very own recent experiences.
 
Over the last couple of months our Thrive team have experienced sooo many changes that it has felt like a whirlwind at times. However, with the right mindsets, approaches and support that whirlwind has actually been one of positivity, eagerness and joy.
 
Not only have we had a change of name, staff changes and new contracts to assist communities across the region but we have also opened up an additional office location, travelled and released a book.
 
How did we get through all that change with smiles on our faces you ask? Simple, we practiced what we preach and what we support others with – amazing but easy strategies.

• We prepared for the changes by discussing things in advance
• We met regularly as a group to discuss the upcoming changes and how we were all feeling
• We acknowledged any uncomfortable feelings, listened to what our bodies and minds were telling us and identified ways to look at the positives and opportunities
• We embraced a positive mindset of growth, opportunity and discovery
• We increased our levels of self care through fitness, mindfulness, healthier food, hobbies and more time with family and friends
• We acknowledged that not everyone deals with change the same way and that is ok
• We checked in on each other and regularly checked in on ourselves and our own mindsets
• And we asked lots and lots of questions

 
 
Approaching it as a team really helped us to not feel alone, to not feel daunted and to help us feel in control.
 
That’s why we want to continue to help you and be here as a team for YOU. If you need a team, if you need a support, if you need someone just to explore ideas of change with, or a journey of change, than we are here for YOU.