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And just like that ... it's fall again. Both of my kids have moved away for school. I work from home. Football is in full swing. My house has never been quieter. It's WEIRD ... but I like my house, so that's good. That's the POINT though to me. I think we should absolutely love where we live.
COFFEE TALK
I read this on social media the other day. It was one of the stories of Albert Einstein. p.s. did you know that he had difficulties with speech, social skills, had difficulty reading out loud, struggled to retrieve this thoughts ... believed to be dyslexic? (Just a bit of trivia for ya but I thought it was interesting)
OK here it goes ...
One day Albert Einstein wrote on the blackboard:
9 x 1 = 9
9 x 2 = 18
9 x 3 = 27
9 x 4 = 36
9 x 5 = 45
9 x 6 = 54
9 x 7 = 63
9 x 8 = 72
9 x 9 = 81
9x10 = 91
In class they mocked him and made fun of him because he had made a mistake, as the correct answer for 9 x10 is 90. Albert Einstein waited for everyone to shut up and said: ′′ Despite me answering the first 9 questions correctly, no one congratulated me. Instead, when I got one wrong, everyone started laughing. This means that despite being very successful, society will only notice the smallest mistake and make fun of it. Don't let simple criticism destroy your dreams ". MORALE. Only those who do nothing don't make mistakes. Work hard everyday.
I read this and instantly felt so sad. Sad, that the interpretation of the story would be to expect that people will make fun of you, but do it anyway. Here's the thing though ... what I love about our minds is that our perception of the world is solely based on our past experiences and beliefs so to Einstein (who was possibly teased a lot given the whole host of learning and social issues he had growing up), his lesson in all of this makes sense.
I, on the other hand, used to hyper focus on the ONE thing I wished I hadn't said in a presentation over all of the things that I said where people laughed and cheered. EVEN WHEN I had tons of people come up to tell me what an amazing job I had done without notes at all ... I still thought about that one word I screwed up on.
Sandra's morale of the story: our lives will change when we focus on all that we do WELL, on the best moments of our day, instead of the rare moments when we "learn".
I'd love to know what your takeaway from this example is. What is YOUR morale of the story? There is no right or wrong, good or bad, just our own interpretation of stimuli based on our past experiences.
FENG SHUI TIP OF THE MONTH
OK now that you know the inner workings of my brain (seriously it's not just all F-bombs and Feng Shui ... it's a mine-field of philosophical thoughts on life) let's chat closets shall we?
THIS ... is my daughters closet in her room in our condo. Oh. My. Gosh. She and I are both obsessed with it.
The room was actually built without a closet (weird?) so this is something that was purchased separately and built. IKEA maybe? Anyway, it is so dang pretty. It has tons of storage on either side, a glass top where you can see all of the pretty things she has displayed (or for ties if you're a dude who likes them).
She purchased rose gold hangers so that everything looked super pretty and chic. This is SOOOO her I can't get over it ... and her room is just as gorgeous.
Now here is the Feng Shui part ...
As we were purchasing the various things for her room, adding flowers and bedding and pictures, my husband said: When I was in University I had a mattress and some milk crates for my clothes ... does she NEED all of this???
(Can you picture me rolling my eyes at him?)
It's EXTREMELY important that you feel good in your space. It's important that you feel safe, secure, inspired and like the next level version of yourself. We did not spend a ton of money and if milk crates was her vibe ... we totally coulda done it ... but for our bougie daughter with the rose gold coloured hangers, milk crates for her underwear are definitely not her thing.
She loves her room and every day she can't wait to get back to cozy up in there. THIS, ... is good Feng Shui.
Find a place in your home where you LOVE ... make it you ... and spend time there.
WHAT (or who) INSPIRES ME
OK who doesn't get inspired by THE ROCK? I love his story of overcoming adversity and mental health challenges, how kind he is and how appreciative he is every damn day.
Some of you may not know that he is an owner of an XFL league (an independent league from CFL and NFL). When the XFL was facing bankruptcy after 2020, Dwyane Johnson and a partner purchased it for $15 million dollars.
He wears the number 54 because it has personal significance. Here is the story:
Prior to his wrestling and acting careers he had a huge dream, focus and drive of making the NFL. It would mean no more struggle and no more hard times. NFL was his ticket.
There are 53 men on an NFL roster and he was always number 54. He continually heard: DJ you're GOOD ... but you're not good enough .. and unfortunately this is where your dream ends and there's nothing you can do about it.
His response to that situation:
"When I was told I wasn't good enough ... the flame that that lit inside of me ... the fucking chip that that put on my shoulder ... it will never go away."
He used that failure as a means to push himself even harder and he says that he relates to others who feel that they are always number 54. "It's not an athlete thing it's a human psychology thing ... when someone says you're not good enough and we say "fuck that ... watch me".
What if THAT is the key to success and what if we chose to take that stance in everything we do.
When I first left my 6 figure a year job I received comments from others telling me that it was the dumbest thing I could have done. What if it doesn't work out? What if I don't make enough? What if I regret it? (in fact I was told that I WOULD regret it).
My response: "fuck that ... watch me"
and to this day, it still drives me to do better, think better and BE better. ;)
FUN STUFF from the INTERWEBS
COOL SHIT
Ok so my daughter is intending on going into medical aesthetics. This is not just a one year process, but she will need to be a nurse in addition to an esthetician ... and I cannot think of a better career for her quite frankly.
She is always searching for the best makeup, the best skin care line or treatment (p.s. she recommends hydro-facials always). She also has had every beauty treatment out there I swear: brow lamination, henna brows, various facials, gel nails, pedicures, manicures, lash lifts and tints and extensions, waxing I'd never do lol
She is researching the best of the best always ... and has for years. So ... when she says that something is amazing ... we listen. This is one of her newest recommendations:
CHARLOTTE TILBURY Airbrush Flawless foundation
While I don't typically love a full face of foundation just to sit in my house with Marley my black lab, if I were going to wear some .. THIS would be it. Oh my gosh it is soooo light and there are a ton of shades. It's absolutely incredible.
WHAT'S COMIN UP?
What's coming up ... I'm so excited for. I'm running another round of ...
THE POWER OF YOU
This program has been such a game changer for me (and for the ladies who have taken prior rounds in the past). It literally helps you to THINK differently, WORK differently and BECOME the best version of yourself. You will regain your own personal power, find your own personal zone of brilliance and live every day with a lighter, more playful energy.
If you think about it ... where will you be in ten years? TEN YEARS FROM NOW ... when you look in the mirror ... what will you wish you had done?
I know what I wish I had done ten years ago and ONE of those things was "get over my own shit".
This is the program that will help you do that and I completely believe that it will change your whole damn life.
We start mid-October
I have three options for payment so that everyone can join
It's lifetime access so you pay once and you get access to any future rounds I run
This one includes a voxer mastermind for the 4 weeks
OK I'm ready
Oh and ALSO ...
WHO IS LISTENING TO MY PODCASTS!!!???? I am OBSESSED with them lately. I have two ... my newest one launched in August:
Click here to find the episodes
and then my very first one that my co-host (the lovely Leigh Kubin) and I have!!! We are almost at 50 episodes!!
Listen on Spotify right now!
TASTY SHIT!
Jamie Olivers Mexican Tomato Soup
It's starting to get a little chillier so I made this soup again this week. SO DANG GOOD and healthy for ya too.
Ingredients:
1 small bunch of green onions, chopped into big pieces
olive oil
1 bunch of fresh coriander (stems only, leave the leaves for the garnish)
4 cloves of garlic
80g leftover cooked basmati rice
450g jarred red peppers
2 x 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
800ml water (optional)
Optional toppings:
chopped cherry tomatoes
avocado, sliced or chopped
feta cheese
squeeze of lime
drizzle of olive oil
plain yogurt
fresh chilies
pickled jalapeños
Nachos (place in an oven to melt cheese and serve IN soup or beside soup):
fresh red and green chilies
tortilla chips
cheddar cheese
Directions:
In a large pot, heat some olive oil (2tbsp or so) and add chopped green onions, cilantro stems and garlic cloves. Stir continuously for a few minutes until fragrant. Add in rice, canned tomatoes, a jar of roasted red peppers and 800g of water.
Heat until boiling and then reduce for about 20 minutes. Use an immersion blender to blend it all together and then spoon it out and serve with any of the things I've listed in the optional toppings (or ... use none of them ... I'm not gonna judge but the toppings make it better)
Our Tips and Tweaks:
- I love to use canned roasted tomatoes .. which is why this soup looks like it has some black bits in it. I think it gives it a bit of a depth of flavour but any canned tomatoes will do
- Do yourself a favour and used the diced tomatoes (or chop them) and chop the jarred roasted red peppers. Do you NEED to? No and the original recipe doesn't call for that, but the less time with the immersion blender the better for me. I think my blender is about to call it quits ...
- you can now buy precooked rice in a bag. This is WEIRD to me and reminds me of Clark Griswold taking the kids to Wally World: "Anyone for MILK? 8 years old. It's my long-life food preservative!" SEEEEEMS QUESTIONABLE ... but if you're in a pinch I say try it. It's LIKELY safe .... ;)
- if you wanna make it uber fancy, blend some plain yogurt with a few tsp of the pickled jalapeño peppers (thin it out with some water or use the fat-free kind) and then swirl it onto the top of the soup. Super cute
- I love the tiniest bit of olive oil swirled around the soup too ... use your thumb over the olive oil so that it comes out in a thin stream
- I also love to make the nachos and use them almost like croutons in my soup. I just add them along the side and they look really really pretty.
Seriously this soup is a great healthy dish for company!
If you try the soup, I would love to see what they turn out like!!! Post a pic on your social media and tag me!
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Well that's it for random stuff from September 2022!! Once again, from the bottom of my heart, thank you SO much to all of you who regularly email me, recommend my group, my courses, my coaching or this newsletter to your friends and colleagues, your biz besties and your family. I appreciate every one of you and every message that I receive.
OH AND ONE MORE THING!!!
If you're loving this email but you're wanting all the blasts from the past, you can now access ALL MY PRIOR NEWSLETTERS on my blog!!
www.thefengshuichick.ca/blog
"Life is not meant to be an assembly line of tasks ... it's meant to be a masterpiece. Only you can hold the brush".
Sandra Priestley
XO
If you've got a friend who might be interested, invite her into my free community recently renamed to:
from here to EXTRAORDINARY
You can also direct her to my IG account: sandrarpriestley. The link to this newsletter is in my bio and I LOVVVVVE seeing the number of subscribers go up!!!
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