I went along to the first meeting of the Consciously Female Silver Club last night. I was more nervous than I thought I would be and chided myself the whole way there - just get on with it, you're a big girl and you'll be fine, stop being a wuss, nobody is going to notice you anyway. I chanted these mantras in my head as I walked through the west end to the hotel.
I met the girls in the room Dawn had held the taster session in last week and the familiar surroundings helped. Everyone was sitting in a circle chatting so I pulled up a chair and joined in. As I rummaged through my bag looking for my glasses so I could read everyone's name tags, I came across the little card Dawn had given out at the taster session. On the back it said: 'My three wishes are....' and I had put a 'lifelong successful career' at the top, then to 'have a happy family' and finally to 'live every moment.' Anyone who knows me and the shape of my life at the moment would agree, those are pretty big asks. The self-assurance I had written those wishes with was gone - in the space of a week. I doubted that I could have any sort of career, never mind a 'lifelong successful one.'
Dawn started us off and we were asked to describe the kind of animal, insect or bird we felt we were most like at the moment and the animal, insect or bird we would like to be. Elephant came straight into my mind followed immediately by the picture of a butterfly. We were then told to stand up and mingle and tell someone our answers. I explained to a girl with long dark hair that I felt like an elephant because I felt slow, lumbering, weighed down and also fatter than I'd like to be.
I'd much prefer to be a butterfly, a light, colourful, free spirit going from one new thing to the next without fear. It's funny, but since sharing that, I see butterflies everywhere I look. The next girl I spoke to had colourful butterflies on her shirt. Just sharing something so simple with each other was a great ice-breaker and the room seemed to breathe more easily afterwards. We had several other opportunities to interact as the evening went on and it was a positive, encouraging experience. We have that bond of women together, all there for a common goal.
We were each given a workbook, a cd of affirmations and a beautiful soft covered journal to write our thoughts in as we progress through the programme. Being a writer I was most excited about my new journal and have christened it already!
Tomorrow I am going to begin a daily routine of listening to Dawn's cd (twice a day as recommended) and recording my thoughts. We also have a mood monitor chart in our workbooks. As I am by nature a moody type, I'm interested to see how that will look by the end of the week :)
Of course you can have a 'lifelong successful career'. It can happen at any age, anytime. Studies now show that people will have several careers in their lifetime. You don't have to start slogging your guts out at 21 until you retire.
ReplyDeleteI only really found out what I wanted to do when I was 29, having trained (at great expense) for something entirely different. I am now at the top of my new profession, but I know in my heart I will do at least one more thing before retirement. Maybe write the book?
My mother didn't really get started in her career until she was in her fifties; at 65 she's a top exec, jet setting round the world. She shows no signs of slowing down, she's just getting going.
Don't beat yourself up for what 'hasn't' happened yet. Life doesn't work to a timetable - leave school/university, start career, get married, have kids, retire etc. Those who try to plan it this way often finds it falls spectacularly, or it isn't what they wanted at all.
Life starts now, learn from the past, look at the future and keep working towards it. Everything that you want is possible.
Hey lady, thanks for such an encouraging comment :) It's good to be reminded that life is journey and it's never too late to learn and progress.
ReplyDeletexxx