10 kms a day can be done!

On By tina-clarkIn Uncategorized2 Comments

I am very excited that the Michelle Richmond Foundation website has gone live and that we have officially launched the 100 kms for 100 kids.

I have been talking about the 100 kms event for a while now and the thing that always comes up is how do you walk 10 kms a day?

In this world where we are all time poor, this can be hard, but some days it just happens.  I do make time in my day to walk as it helps me relax and clear my head.  Usually I pack my walking clothes in my car and stop on the way home. I do a 5kms walk which can take between ½ hour and ¾ hour. Add that to a normal day of walking, between meetings, around the office talking on mobile, etc then 10 kms can easily become a reality.

The other day – I clocked up 6.50 kms and I didn’t do a big walk, it was just what I clocked up by the end of the day.

My day went something like this –

  • First thing I went to Yoga, – so I walked the 12 minutes up to Yoga, after the class I walked home – that was 1 kms.
  • I went for a walk at lunch, running errands, ended up with a ½ hour walk, and I covered 3kms (I walk slower in high heels)
  • A client wanted to have a debrief so instead of going for coffee we walked around a large block, this cleared her head and she was calmer, another 1 kms
  • Got home and had to walk the dog and go to the shops, walking up there and another 1.5 kms done. 

These extra Kms, only take about 10-15 minutes each time, so I am not spending chunks of time walking but moving my body at intervals during the day, which is now proven to have a range of health benefits.   

Ask yourself where can YOU add more KMs during the day?

Want to join us on the 100kms for 100 kids, please register and keep in contact.

Goals and what I plan to do in 2019

On By tina-clarkIn Pondering, UncategorizedLeave a comment

2019 – here you are – I did start writing this at the end of January and now we are nearly at the end of February, timing is everything 😊

After the flurry of Christmas, the rush to get things done, 2019 arrived in a relaxed way and I am trying to keep it that way (and that’s probably why I haven’t got this finished and published, but again I digress).

Lucky for me, we went were able to go away for a couple of days to the beach, hang out in nature and spend a week just doing nothing.  This gave me time to think about what I really wanted for 2019.

I really don’t like setting New Year resolution, they are a waste of time, but I certainly have some plans for 2019.    I can feel it will be a big year but what that actually means, is anybodies guess, all I know is that I am very excited to find out what 2019 holds for me. 

The things I most desire, or you could call them goals are –

  • No more heath issues (after the current treatment on my face, which is healing very nicely at the moment).  I would like a year free of medical stuff, no more blood tests!  I am feeling the best I have felt in a long time, so 2019 are about keeping the stress levels and visits to the Dr down.
  • I turn a significant number this year, and want to walk the Camino De Santiago on the Spanish Route, it is about 800 kms and I am up for the challenge, thinking of doing this in September if anybody would like to join me.
  • Don’t buy anything new (in the way of clothes and works shoes) – I did this a lot at the start of last year, when my hair suddenly got short.  I have a full wardrobe and don’t need any more clothes. There will be some exception though – walking shoes/ runners I go through them every 3-4 months, so will need to buy a new pair – oh and when I go to Europe, I will be buying new clothes, that is just a given 😊
  • To pay down as much debt as possible in 2019, and still enjoy a European trip. 
  • Get 100 kms for 100 kids launched – it is nearly there stayed tuned.

The Camino is a huge walk, so I will be doing lots of training and walking but I don’t want to get too carried away. I am sure laughing and dancing can still be counted as training days because the most important thing I want for 2019 it to have some FUN.

What goals do you have for 2019 and have you scheduled in some fun?

Still Walking….

On By tina-clarkIn UncategorizedLeave a comment
Visit to the Skin Dr had unforeseen circumstances.

Wow what an end to the year! December has just flown by, what with all the corporate parties, catching up with friends, actually getting some work done and Christmas, it is one of those months that is just busy.

 

This year was a little different, in all the mayhem I managed to get to the skin specialist for my normal skin check- up. I am one of those very fair people, freckles all over and a tan to me means turning a different shade of red! When I was a kid my Mum always encouraged me to “get outside and get some colour”.  But this check-up didn’t go according to plan!

I have been watching a spot on my face for some time, make -up makes it disappear but it had gotten to the stage that I thought I should see somebody about it.  The Dr was very through, checking all my freckles and moles.  I ended up having 5 possible suspects burnt off my face, 2 on my arms and another 2 that were really suspect which had to be biopsied and sent away for testing.  What I thought was a normal check-up turned into burned spots all over my face, and 2 spots with stitches – the Dr didn’t think it was funny when I asked for a paper bag (to go over my head) so I could enter the world and continue with my day!

I still went out, and people would ask me what had happened, I just said Skin Dr and I got the nod of approval.   Living in Australia we all know somebody who has had a run in with the Skin Dr!

About 5 days later, first thing one morning I got the call from the Dr, the leg one had come back all clear, it was just an ugly mole, but the one I was worried about, turned out to be cancerous.  What a shock, not the news I was expecting, all I heard was spot on leg OK and one of face is cancerous – he did say a lot of other words too, but all I could think of was the C word!

I must admit it did send me into a little tail spin, and I didn’t do very well at work that day, it took me a couple of days to process this information.  Back to the Dr’s I went, got the stiches out and I was told my options.  Good news is I can still have our planned beach holiday as I am waiting for the current wound to heal.  In a couple of weeks, I will start putting a cream on my face which will hopefully burn the cancer out this will take about 6 weeks, during this time I will have to limit my sun exposure.  

This doesn’t mean I am giving up walking, far from it. I am still walking BUT this year I am wearing a wide brim hat, 50 spf sunscreen and trying to keep my face protected at all times. I will be celebrating the fact I am the palest person on the beach!

If you do see any spots on your body that you are not too sure off, go get them checked – you just never know.

Are you a businesswoman?

On By tina-clarkIn Uncategorized2 Comments
Trinity Beach North Queensland 

This one question turned my world upside down and luckily I had a chance to change my perception.

Recently I attended an Activation Retreat with the amazing Michelle Richmond .  I always see her as my fixer upper – when life gets crazy or when things just aren’t going to plan, Michelle seems to pop up,or offer a Retreat or Safari which I can’t say no too! 

The retreats allow me to get away from my everyday life and concentrate on issues that have been holding me back, usually I have no idea what these issues are, but they come and unexpected things just seem to show their face!

Which is exactly what happened when Michelle asked me the question ‘Are you a business woman?’

As soon as she spoke those words I felt my stomach contract and my whole body went stiff, I actually felt sick to the stomach, my body was rejecting this claim.  

Equally….my head was bemused and saying ‘Yes of course I am a business woman’. I part own a business, I talk to business owners all the time, put strategies in place for the business to grow, and actually act like a business women, so why oh why was my body rejecting these words?

Is it the Imposter Syndrome, deep down inside of me? 

Suzanne Mercier an expert on this states that,  “The Imposter Syndrome is a deep-seated belief that we aren’t good enough. It’s a case of mistaken “ identity” – Wholly crap that is me. I have been following Suzanne for years, and  felt that this hadn’t resonated with me, and that everything was fine. I could spot it in others but not own it myself. But buried deep down inside of me was this notion I am NOT a business woman! (sorry Suzanne for not not listening)

To me I see a business woman as someone who has their shit together, beautifully manicured, perfect make-up, not a hair out of place, a wardrobe of fully tailored clothes and an air of confidence around them.  Well this is certainly not me.    I acted like a business woman, but hidden away in my subconscious, I didn’t see myself as a business woman, I didn’t own that I am a business woman.

 I still felt like the uneducated little girl from country Victoria that was only playing in the business world.  I don’t have a university degree, my degree came from travelling the world, whom am I to say I am a business woman?

Why this has turned into such a shock was that by not believing in myself, I was sabotaging myself, in little ways but actually making a bigger impact on myself.   Some circumstance that’s how I was treated, like an employee, not like a business owner.

Thank goodness, after the retreat I gave myself a mini break, spent a couple of days staring at the beach, reading a trashy novel,drinking gin and hanging out with Michelle. But she didn’t feel that I was“finished”.  On my last day, off to the beach we went.

Sitting on a secluded beach in Northern Queensland we gave that little girl permission to own her authority.  With some intense work, we flipped this dumb notion that I am not a business woman and I finally cleared out a lot of fears I had been holding in my gut.

Coming back to Sydney I can now feel the difference. One of the funniest things to happen was that I attend a monthly dinner group with business owners, and I was sharing what happened and they all started laughing– they are all successful business women and they come in all shapes and sizes and most importantly I AM ONE.

What do YOU want?

On By tina-clarkIn Pondering, UncategorizedLeave a comment

I was out walking the other day, enjoying the changing colours of the sunset and pondering life. When I got struck by a thought: What do I want?

I seem to have been having this conversation with a lot of people at different financing events lately. One guy who refers me business said wants the same type of lifestyle I have with my business partner. We have created a partnership that involves a lot of time away out of the business, either on holidays (him) or me on RDOs (I work a 9-day fortnight). The business is growing, so it is more of a lifestyle choice for us. During our discussion about various things I asked my colleague outright: What type of life do you want?

He stared at me blankly and said, “good question”; I left it to him to think about. A couple of days later, I had nearly the exact same conversation with another finance specialist. It is a hard question to answer as we have been conditioned to work hard and pay off things, like cars, houses, school fees… But, if money wasn’t a problem, what kind of life would YOU want?

As I continued on my walk, I ran these conversations around in my head and then started thinking: What do I actually want from my life?

The business coaches/ lifestyle coaches are all about, creating a life you want – but quite frankly what type of life do I want?  To me this is like asking a kid – What do want to be when you grow up? (I still don’t know and when do you become an adult)

I have been pondering this question for many years, and thought I knew, but it seems to change constantly. If money was no object, I would be travelling and helping others in the community. But since I have to earn money, am I really doing what I want?

Another couple of kilometres passed and I come up with the following:

I have slowly been creating the life I want for some time now and, guess what, it changes constantly and that is OK!

I also came to the decision that I could sit and dwell on the stuff I don’t have and get really depressed — or I could be grateful and happy for what I have achieved and be excited for what the future may hold.

The things I am grateful for include:

  • I have a partner who supports me
  • I have a cat who loves to give cuddles
  • I have friends who support me and live all around the world;
  • I can volunteer with charities of my choosing, (ie. Youth Off the Streets, the Michelle Richmond Foundation and I help two foster boys through the Aunties and Uncles Program
  • Every year, I get to take a holiday, and every second year I jet off on a seven-week holiday to an exotic location; I have been to places like Kenya, Rwanda, Chile, Peru, Bolivia and the list goes on
  • I am now a partner in a firm that I have been working at for 12 years, with a view to taking over the business when my business partner retires
  • I have investments — both shares and properties — that will support me in my old age

I pondered all this as I walked, and a big smile crossed my face… I ACTUALLY LOVE MY LIFE. I have been subconsciously creating the life I wanted all this time. Yes, there is room for improvement, but I am going to stop beating myself up about it and keep working towards the smaller things that make my life even more enjoyable on a day-to-day basis.

Now I ask you again: What Do You Want? Are you creating the life you want?

sunset walk

Walking in the North Kenyan Desert

On By tina-clarkIn UncategorizedLeave a comment

I wrote this as our little plane carried us from the North Kenyan desert back to the real world.  I am not the best flyer and feel even worse on small planes, but I had to get on the plane to get home.  I distracted myself by writing this blog…

 camel safari 9We all shed a tear as the plane pulls away from an amazing 10-day trip spent with the beautiful Samburu men of Northern Kenya.  It was a great honour to have the opportunity to get to know their kind and happy natures.

Waking up at 5am to the best alarm clock ever, Creepy’s singing as he fills our water trough, the love filled singing and the calls of “Jambo” (‘hello’ in Swahili)  certainly wakes you up with love in your heart and a smile on your face.  Within half an hour of waking, we hit the trail; if there is a hill to climb, Helen finds it, especially with the help of Lemongas leading the way with no map and a broad grin on his face. We blindly follow, trusting him to take us where we need to go.

Down the Lugga (river) we go, followed by six beautiful camels carrying our day packs and breakfast.  Most mornings we are lucky to see footprints of some description; I now know what elephant, aardvark, goat and camel prints look like.

The Samburu walk with a feather-light glide – they can easily walk for hundreds of kilometres without water or food – while us Muzungos (Swahili for ‘white people’) stomp around, frightening any animal that happens to be in the vicinity.  Some days, we walk 10 or even 20 kilometres, whatever is required; and even though we are in the desert, the scenery changes constantly. Sometimes, we must channel our inner mountain goat as we scramble over the passes, passing local people along the way.  One particular day we encounter the most beautiful ladies looking immaculate in their bright clothing but dressed in simple kikoy, their hair cropped short and necks swathed in the most amazing layers of woven necklace. We aren’t allowed to take photos but I can still picture their faces.

Another day we came around a bend in the Lugga nearing the end of the morning walking session, to come across a group of ladies singing; they are singing for rain.  The women move away up the Lugga as the Samburu started making camp and we think they have gone, only to be treated to them coming back down the Lugga and standing right in front of us, singing.  It is the most unearthly sound, penetrating right into the soul, it gives me goose bumps and the most spiritual feeling…

camel safari 5

This is where I stop my recount of my time in the North Kenyan desert as the plane suddenly lands.  I am very relieved to land safely, but also very sad to be back…   

The Safari was organised by Michelle Richmond, who is running different Safaris throughout Kenya and Africa.  The safaris are extraordinary and will change your life.

If you’d like to know more, drop me a line and I would be happy to share.

Walking to change energy

On By tina-clarkIn Uncategorized2 Comments

beachSometimes, you just don’t feel like going for a walk but being outside can be the best for your health and wellbeing.

We look after two foster boys (aged 15 and 12) one weekend a month. Last time I picked them up, they seemed very agitated and the younger one had been in trouble at school, playing up so much he had been suspended, only seven weeks into the new school year.  His Carer told me what was going on, but he was denying everything and didn’t want to come to our home as he knew my partner would be disappointed and would come down heavily on his attitude.

After an hour of driving, I got the boys home and both talked loudly all the way back and the younger one had trouble sitting still.  I encouraged them to help me get the dinner ready, preparing the dessert and making a lasagne from scratch.  It gave them something to focus on. It was a beautiful day, so I decided the best thing to do was go to the beach for a walk. Both of them complained most of the drive to the beach, but I chose to ignore them.  The first half of the walk was very slow; I had to do a lot of encouraging/blackmailing/cajoling (whatever you call it) to get the youngest one moving.  He only wants to do things his way and at his own pace, in this case, 1 kilometre an hour (I normally walk around 5km an hour); it became a battle of wits.  I managed to push the boys to where I wanted them to be, 3km from the car.  We stopped for about half an hour to watch the wave boarders and then turned around and walked back. 

On the way back, we took off our shoes and walked on the beach and in the water, and this is where I saw the transformation.  The youngest boy transformed from a child that was fidgeting a lot, and looking for ways to cause trouble, to a young man who was happy to walk and talk with me.  For the first time that walk, I felt l was connecting with him again; his energy levels seemed to be returning to something he could control.

What I learned from this walk:

  • Just get started, do whatever you can to get moving and stop listening to the negative talk
  • Don’t give kids the choice, choices can be overwhelming, especially for kids with ADHD
  • Nature is powerful and great for changing energy levels for the better
  • Walking 6km tires kids out, and they sleep so much better and are happy to go to bed earlier!
  • Because his body had become calmer, the younger boy actually started telling the truth, and we found out what has really been going on in his school and home life

I am not a parent and this is not a lesson on what to do with your kids, but more of what I observed in dragging the young boys along with me, as I encouraged them to join me in doing something that I love that definitely helps settle and soothe me.

The older boy didn’t want to walk on the beach, after all he had his phone and seemed to be more connected to that, which I have thoughts about that I will save for another blog!