Heart-Centred Leadership and Purpose

Heart-centred leadership is something I’ve worked hard to cultivate, particularly since cranial surgery in 2010. That experience opened my eyes, mind and heart to a whole new and deeper appreciation of life and of being alive! I now view every day, every moment, every breath as a gift. And I give thanks for these gifts which?we can so easily take for granted.

This has had a profound effect on how I live and lead my life, my family, my relationships, and my business. I lead my life more intentionally, consciously and with greater purpose.

Adversity can result in pain. Pain leads us to change, and change is an invitation to learn and grow.

B R E A T H E.

Each breath is an invitation to guide and expand our awareness of the many gifts and blessings of our every day life.

Take an inventory right now. What can you see that you can be grateful for? What can you hear that you can give thanks for? Do you have an able body that transports you from place to place? What moments in your day fill your heart with joy if only you could slow down long enough to embody the joy and pay attention to them with you whole self, not just your mind?

I once loved my corporate career which afforded many and varied experiences to learn and grow. Today, 22 years into an entrepreneurial lifestyle working directly with c-suite leaders and people intent on living life to the fullest, and leading by example, I enjoy life even more. I’ve discovered what lights me up is enabling and supporting others to be light bearers in the world – for their families, friends, corporations, and their communities.?It’s a gift that keeps on giving.

So what has all this got to do with heart-centred leadership? Everything. The more you tap into the energy of that which brings you joy and lights you up, the closer you are to determining your purpose in life.

For so long, I thought success and happiness was about striving and achieving.?

As I near my 55th?rotation around the Sun, I’ve learned that life is indeed about finding your joy, and being of service for the greater good. It is in my service to you, through the energy of joy in my heart, that I serve my purpose for this life.

So here are some reflection questions for you to explore your path to greater purpose:

• What lights you up (your passions and joys)?
• When do you experience losing all track of time and space?
• How can you serve others by being uniquely you?

Since 1991, when I was first diagnosed with malignant cancer and given 6 months to live, each morning and each afternoon as the sun rises and sets respectively, I stand by an eastern-facing kitchen window, raise my face to the skies and say ‘thank you’ – thank you for a new day, for this breath, for this moment, for life!?

Thank you is my morning and evening prayer.?

Thank you keeps my heart open and full.?

Thank you reminds me of what I do have, rather than focusing on scarcity or lack.

Thank you is a very powerful way of re-centring yourself and remembering how blessed you really are.?

The reason why I can be grateful, most of the time, for the health challenges I’ve experienced is it has become very clear that when I react with my mind to whatever level of pain I’m experiencing, it only keeps me caught in struggle. But when I respond with my heart, meeting all the parts of me that are scared, overwhelmed, frustrated, hurting, and resistant to what is going on, I usually open back into the ease and peace that come from meeting life through the spaciousness of my heart.

It seems that the more challenging my health becomes, the more my heart opens and for that, I am oh so grateful. I woke up one morning last week with this song singing itself to me: “how sweet it is to be loved by you.”

I felt deep joy for this gentle, loving reminder that touching my challenges with kindness and understanding, whether they are a physical upset, emotional distress, or a struggling mind, makes life so much easier.

I took this song as a message from all the parts inside of me that are struggling, reminding me that they are so grateful that most of the time I can meet them with kindness, and care, remembering that the heart has room for everything.?

So the invitation is to notice that you, just like me and others, have been trained to withdraw and resist the pains of life and, this only amplifies your pain. Are you willing, just for this day, to notice when you are reacting to the challenges of life and instead, place your hand over your heart? Then, for a moment, meet yourself as if you were the most precious person on this planet, deserving your own kindness and care? For you are that precious! And you are deserving of the healing balm of your own loving heart!?

My newest online program called?RECREATE?will teach you how to incorporate these lessons into your life. You’ll learn practical ways to reframe trails or challenges as opportunities to learn and grow; how to fall in love with yourself and no longer be defined by the past or trauma; and how to become greater than your circumstances, and much much more.

From my heart to yours, may the flow be with you!!

Josie x