New Personality Declaration

Yesterday I wrote about not just waiting around to find your calling, but making a conscious choice about who you want to be and how you’re going to show up in the world. Today I want to share with you who I have decided to be. This was first inspired by Jane McGonigal’s book and Ted Talk for being SuperBetter.

The new (not so Secret) Secret Identity I chose for myself is

Sassy, Go-Getter Febbie

I have a Never Give up, Never Back Down, Go-Getter Attitude

I am a Blogger, Eternal Student, Fun-bassador, HoliWellness Advocate and Guru

I am Beautifully Authentic, Magnificently Brilliant, Genuinely care for others – and people Love me for it

So pop the bubbles of Doubt, Insecurity, and Fear and make up your new Identity. With your New Personality comes your NEW PERSONAL REALITY.

Feeling Lost? Still haven’t found what your calling is?

This will be a quick post. I just want to share a chapter from the book I’m currently reading – Wealth Warrior by Steve Chandler.

He talks about a client of his who has been struggling to find his life’s vision and purpose.  As a lot of us often do, we sit on the sidelines waiting for the coach to put us in and give us the game play. In this instance, we wait and wait and wait, waiting for that inspiration or divine intervention, a sudden realization of what our passion and calling is.

But… what if we got it all wrong? What if destiny is not something that comes to us? Or something that we find? What if our destiny is something that we choose.

“If you want a vision of who you want to be, what’s stopping you from developing that vision? Like an architect might develop a small community in a third world country? What stops you from crafting it and bringing it into existence yourself?”

I know, I know. Easier said than done. That’s something I can definitely relate to. For the last 3 years I’ve been stuck at Analysis Paralysis. There’s so many thoughts and ideas floating in my head on what could possibly be my “Ultimate Career”, things I want to be doing, what businesses I could put up – Yoga teacher, flight attendant, health food store, food delivery service,, work as a QA, retreat organizer, customer support, organic farm… idea after idea, after idea, after idea. But there really wasn’t a feeling of “aha! that’s my true calling!”

Just like how one reads the menu in a restaurant to order his food, look at what life has to offer and choose what appeals to you. Steve’s friend actually looked in the phonebook and read each of the ads to get ideas of possible career paths (I assume this was way back in the 90s… who still uses the yellow pages?) and pick. Focus. Think. Choose.

Repeat after me — Focus. Think. Choose.

ONE MORE TIME — FOCUS. THINK. CHOOSE.

That’s the most powerful tool we have as human beings – our beautiful brain that allows us to choose how we perceive, interpret, CREATE our reality.

Think about what you wanted to be when you were a kid. What were your favorite subjects? If money was not an issue, what would you like to be doing? Who inspires you? What do they do? What job would you dread to be doing every day? What do you love doing on your off days?

Give it some thought, when you’re done asking yourself questions like this, pick 3. Just three. Make a decision and stick to it. If you’re anything like me tho, you’d be extremely tempted to overthink and make pros and cons. But hard decisions are not about choosing which one is better. It’s about asking yourself “Who do you want to be? What do you stand for?” 

Once you’ve chosen, watch life unfold. The path will reveal itself once you know where the destination is. And that destination is determined by you.

So maybe not the quickest read… lol. But I hope it pushes you to consider that maybe today is the day you choose who you show up as to the world. Decide who you want to be, the kind of life you want to live. Start there.

Steve Chandler’s book “Wealth Warrior: The Personal Prosperity Revolution” is available on Amazon.

1 Week of Wim Hof Method

I’m sure you’ve heard of the Wim Hof Method by now. Wim Hof a.k.a The Iceman holds various Guiness World Records for withstanding extreme temperatures. He claims that with his method, he’s been able to climb Mt.Everest and Mt.Kilimanjaro wearing just shorts and shoes, stay for hours long in ice baths, and running a marathon in the desert WITH NO WATER – and that any other regular joe can harness that power and achieve the same feat.

Now, I live in the Philippines where extreme heat is a regular thing. As I’m writing this, my phone sensors tells me it’s 32.11 °C and 69.69% Humidity. I’m acclimated to the hot weather but I’ve always been sensitive to the cold. I cuddle up and cover myself in a blanket during rainy seasons where the weather is at most 20 °C. I also have an Autoimmune Skin disease that manifested more than 2 years ago and I have yet to find a way to manage it without the use of steroid creams. The method also claims to improve our body’s immunity. So why not give the Wim Hof method a try?

I’ll follow up with a more detailed look at the method but for now, I want to focus on my progress in this first week. The main component of the method is the Breathing exercise. After you do 30-40 of hyperventilation-like breathing, you hold your breath for as long as your body allows. Here’s my record for the entire week.

	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4
Apr-29	1:09.95 sec	1:17.87 sec	1:22.53 sec
Apr-30	1:06.95 sec	1:24.51 sec	1:45.31 sec
May-01	1:19.38 sec	1:32.45 sec	1:49.85 sec
May-02	1:19.12 sec	1:40.21 sec	1:56.63 sec
May-03	1:05.57 sec	1:25.53 sec	1:28.04 sec
May-04	1:31.11 sec	1:47.49 sec	2:03.70 sec
May-05	1:23.86 sec	1:50.36 sec	2:05.36 sec

I have to note that I usually do the breathing exercise while seating but on the 5th Day, I tried it lying down. That’s the only difference I made that day so I guess it wasn’t a very comfortable pose for me. Tho there’s a bit of yoyo-ing, from the very first Round I did to the last round for the week, there’s about 55 sec. of difference – a definite improvement.

The second part of component is the exercises/yoga poses. Since last year, I’ve already been doing yoga so this wasn’t such a big deal for me… except for the last exercise. I have to do a bit of adjustment to it. Basically, you lie down, lift your feet off the ground and start swinging them in front of each other. Maybe it’s lack of core or back strength, maybe it’s my Scoliosis, but when I first tried doing it, my lower back curves and lifts off the mat which I know is bad for the back. To make it easier on my back and maintain proper for, I prop my hands on my butt to give it a bit of a lift. During Day 1, I could barely finish it, I actually took a break in between. Succeeding days went much smoother. There was even a day where I started before they did so I got extra few seconds in. I can now get thru the entire time and do it with them, with my upper body also lifted giving more of a workout.

The last part is the Cold Shower. Because it’s currently summer here in the Philippines, the water coming out from the faucet is already warmed up by the sun. I use a pail and “dipper” (locally called a tabo) and put ice in it for my cold exposure. I take a regular bath with warm water first as Wim suggested and end it with a few seconds of Ice bath. During the last few seconds, I put my ice in, let it melt a bit and start my cold shower. Day 1 I was really shaking that I had to take a few breaks in between. Day 7 tho, I get a bit of shake on that first pour, I take a deep breath in and out to warm up and then it goes much smoother. I also talk to my mind a bit and keep reminding myself that I’m in control and I can handle more than I think. I feel like I can actually take much longer cold exposure now, so I’m thinking of just using the ice bath throughout… we’ll see.

So that’s my first week. I’ve watched the Week 2 video and the push-up challenge starts. I’m really looking forward to this because I still have yet to do a full chaturanga to upward dog  so seeing an improvement to that would just be so amazing for my yoga practice. We’ll have to wait and see!

It starts right here… where you are

Crazy to think I’m back right here. When I was a tween, I would spend so much time starting so many blogs about my weight loss journey but I kept it for myself. I wasn’t ready for the world to see ME just yet. Then last night, I get the same voice, the same idea, START A BLOG. All night long, I keep getting idea after idea. So here I go. When you hear that voice, that calling, that idea, you have to act on it. Starting, or rather Restarting it all again. This time around, no more hiding. I’m ready to be seen. Whatever comes next…. only time will tell 🙂

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton