Today on the blog, my client, Miranda Allen, is sharing her story. I was so excited when she reached out about life coaching earlier this year. She had so many of the fundamental building blocks in place, but she needed an outside perspective to help steer her towards her true self and heartfelt desires. The rest of this post is in her words!
What Keeps Us Stuck
Tell me this, have you ever in your life felt completely stuck? Maybe everything seems great and it makes no logical sense that you have this restless feeling inside of you because from the outside looking in, life looks good. People would say you are successful and have a great life but internally something is off.
Gifts that give back... and people actually want!
What’s better than seeing a smile on someone’s face when you give them a gift!? Giving them a gift that gives back or makes an impact in some way!
Every holiday season I try to get creative with personalized gifts for people. This year I decided I wanted to give even more… meaning I wanted to support brands or small companies that were doing what they could to make a difference in some way.
Initially I thought that would be tough because can you really find gifts that give back but are still thoughtful, personalized, and that people would be excited about!?
Turns out there are some really great options!!
You Have Everything it Takes
Today, I want to tell you something so important… You have everything it takes. A month ago or so, I had the honor of speaking to new coaches starting their journey. When I was first asked to speak in front of the group, I almost said, “no.” I quickly realized saying no would go against everything I believe.
What is the Difference Between Setting Goals & Setting Intentions?
This week let's go big with Intentions! This is a long lesson but trust me it's an impactful one! Setting a daily intention is something I challenge myself to each day. It helps set the tone for my day and feel as though I am accomplishing something worthwhile each day. Before I jump into all of this - first I want to draw attention to the difference between Intentions and Goals.
Are you Addicted to the Struggle?
A Perspective Shift to Calm Anxiousness
“It’s ok to be happy exactly where you are” -Nicole O’Neill
You’re probably reading this and thinking one of two thoughts…
That can’t be true, there’s so much more I need to do before I can be happy.
Or
Duh Nicole... and if you feel this way I applaud you! You have already embraced what I’m about to share and it’s a powerful perspective to have in life. I encourage you to share it with others because it’s something most struggle with.
Personally this statement - that it’s ok to be happy exactly where you are - has been a major life revelation for me over this past year, and I’ve come to realize I’m not alone....
Tell me if you can relate to this ….
Your whole life you’ve felt like you’ve had to accomplish something more, be doing the most you possibly can to overcome what you’ve been through...but it’s never enough. Regardless of how much you do, how much you accomplish, how much you overcome you still feel as though it’s not enough.
And as a result you feel guilty about resting, slowing down, or being happy with where you are because deep down you feel like you have to prove yourself in some way.
This is been my way of life for as long as I can remember. As a result I’ve gotten caught up in a constant mindset of what’s next, what else I can do...and I put this crazy pressure on myself to figure it out, to do more. It drains me, and truthfully makes me feel quite anxious and depressed which is no way to live.
But recently I had an epiphany. One day as I was walking my pup in our adorable new town surrounded by nature and thinking about all the good stuff I have to be grateful for, it hit me like a ton of bricks... why the hell am I rushing ahead?!
I’ve worked so hard to get to where I am, been through so much.. why wouldn’t I slow down & just freaking ENJOY it?!
I’m all about learning, growing, becoming your best self, and making the most of life... but sometimes the best is exactly where you are right now and there’s no need to think about what’s next but rather enjoying where you are and trusting it will be revealed when the time is right.
As soon as I allowed myself to entertain this thought, this approach to life, it was like a wave of relief came over me. It’s so simple, makes so much sense, but I had been refusing to entertain it as truth.
So my message to you is…
If you can relate to this constant go go go
If you struggle to feel like you are enough or that you are doing enough
Know that there will always be more to do. There will always be ways to grow and evolve. What but is the point of it all if you are not allowing yourself to enjoy it as it comes?
If we keep rushing ahead, we’ll be sure to miss out on everything we’ve worked so hard for, prayed for, and have around us right now.
So today I encourage you to enjoy exactly where you are right now. Celebrate all you have accomplished in your life.
And the next time you feel that pressure creeping in, those vicious self thoughts of not being or doing enough…. allow yourself to press pause. Tell yourself to shut up, shhh, or be quiet (whatever works for you 😉) and shift your perspective to everything you have in your life right now that makes you smile.
Look at everything you have accomplished, all the good you have around you, and allow yourself to feel happy for where you are in life right now.
Soak in the moment and enjoy your life now before it passes too quickly ❤
And if you could use a tool to help you shape this perspective in your life, download my secrets to happiness guide. It walks you through the best habits for calming your anxiousness and being happy in the now!
Wishing you all the love and happiness,
Xo
Nicole
How your Passions Can Manifest in your Life
Why Peace & Purpose is so Important
How to Find Happiness in Life
Happiness...it’s what we’re all after.. What makes life worthwhile, am I right? But why does it feel like such a struggle sometimes. Believe it or not, it actually makes no logical sense that I have never faced full on depression or completely derailed in life. No really... it's actually something my doctors, therapists, and personal coaches have all told me.
Read this when you feel alone in what your purpose is…
6 Questions to Ask Yourself When You Don't Know Your Next Move
We all go through phases in life where we start to question just about everything in life. From the outside looking in everything might seem great.... happy & successful even. But internally you're feeling completely lost and stuck. You're struggling with who you are, what you want, what you're really made for. Maybe you’re going through some major life transitions, facing loss, insecurities, a breakup, or just feeling disconnected from yourself....
Healthy Fall Comfort Food
Paleo Veggie Shepherd’s Pie
My latest obsession - figuring out ways to make unhealthy fall/winter comforty foods a little more healthy.... ahemm...and easy to make for all us challenged chefs out there.🤩
So I decided to tackle one new recipe a week this year and the lucky boyfriend gets to be our guinea pig! (hehe ok maybe not entirely lucky... the poor guy has had his fair share of complete food failures 🙈) but when I create something he agrees is tasty, I'm going to start sharing them with you guys as well!
First up a Veggilicious Paleo Shepherd’s Pie that is absolutely delicious and going to become a regular must have meal for us.
Apple Picking in New England
Must Visit Festive Farms in New England
Fall is here - YAY! This is hands down my FAVORITE SEASON. I don’t know if it’s because I have been spoiled with the perfect weather and gorgeous colors in New England my whole life, but every year I get more and more excited about ways to get festive and enjoy the season.
Top of the list for many… apple picking and exploring cute farms of course! There are so many to choose from so I thought I would share some of my absolutely must visit with you :)
Ladies Living on Purpose Feature
Stories of Empowering Women
Overcomers who are leaning into their adversity as a way to rise up in life.
I am just getting this off the ground but I see it giving so much hope, inspiration, and strength to people all over the world🙏
This is a project near and dear to my heart. Throughout the years of trauma and adversity in my own life, I came to find that sometimes hearing powerful stories of other women facing adversity gave me hope and strengthened my spirit to maintain a positive outlook and persevere through.
As time went on I came to realize we all have a story, we all face pain and adversity… and in sharing those stories we feel more connected, more empowered to rise above what tries to knock us down. With this powerful realization the idea for Ladies Living on Purpose was born.
This is a place for me to share stories of wildly empowering women. To highlight overcomers and true warriors in life who have not only leaned into their adversity, struggle, & pain, but have maintained a positive outlook....have used it to rise up and live more intentionally in their life.
My hope is that in sharing this we will be able to inspire others to find the power in their own story. Help people realize that while pain doesn’t have to be our purpose… it can serve some purpose. It can empower people going through tough times to find the strength and perseverance to not only get through it, but to use it as a platform for transformative change in life.
It will enable more and more people to tap into the personal power they have over their own life so they can truly LIVE & THRIVE in their life.
With that I am honored to share the story of one of our first features... Meet our Lady Living on Purpose, Bridget here…
Secrets to starting an online business
How can you actually start an online business?
There are some things that just work over and over again.
In growing my business, as well as the business' of my clients, I've come to find that these 4 key elements were needed to create the success we were all able to achieve.
Missing 1 of these elements led to struggle, lack of clarity, not enough customers, and overall limited success.
I'll show you how these 4 elements work together to provide the pieces of the puzzle you need to create the life you've been searching for by growing your business in a way that serves both you & your audience.
Believing You ARE Enough
Alright ladies who out there puts an insane amount of pressure on themselves? Regardless of how much you do, how much you give, how much you accomplish you find yourself feeling inadequate? Feeling like you can never do enough?
So many of us do! Well today I’m going to share a little something I learned that has helped give me new perspective and peace.
Overcoming tough times in life
Facing adversity for more Happiness in Life.
One of the most common questions I get is how I have been able to stay so positive through so much adversity in my life.
Initially this was a hard question for me to answer but then I realized there were some fundamental tools that helped me to get through some really dark times and persevere forward…
Starting A Lifestyle Business
Live your Passion
Truth talk….for most of my life I lived in survival mode. What do I mean by this? Oh you know I followed the path I thought I was “supposed” to follow. Went to the college, got the job, put 110% into the job, was in the comfortable relationship, bought the house… and while on the outside it looked like things were great… internally I felt completely empty. Like something was off and that there had to be something more. Sound familiar!? If so please read on because this post is FOR YOU!
July 4th Easy Healthy Apps
Easy and healthy apps for July 4th! This is a little something something for all of you out there who love entertaining, hosting parties.. but hate cooking. Ok maybe hate is a strong word but if you are a challenged chef like me you need to check out these recipes. So easy to make, healthy, and crowd favorites!