Lewis Howes is the host of one of my all-time favourite podcasts, “School of Greatness”. Lewis says that “Greatness is the result of visionaries who persevere, focus, believe, and prepare. It is a habit, not a birthright.” I encourage you to check out his podcast for some incredible interviews and conversations. Inspired by Lewis I have been reflecting about how this summer is going to be a summer of greatness and whether you know it or not you can inspire yourself to become someone great.
Summer is a time for ambition. It is when things heat up – literally and figuratively! This is when things start to ramp up because it is the halfway point in the year. On July 22, the sun will enter the Zodiac sign of Leo. This is the boldest, brightest, and bravest sign of the zodiac. You will probably recognize people born under the sign of Leo as natural-born leaders, who are creative, energetic, passionate, and thrive in the spotlight. Everyone has the potential to be a leader in their own way and we can use this time and tap into this Leo energy of confidence, power, and charisma to blaze our own trail and to activate your authentic leadership potential.
Your greatness comes from within, which means we may have some inner work to do first before your greatness can shine out. First, you need to rekindle your spark to light and then feed that fire.
Think back to the start of this year. Do you remember January 2022? Did you set your goals for the year, and did you make your vision board? Now would be a great time to pull out that board and ask yourself how is it going? Analyze your progress over the last six months and celebrate what you have started and, or achieved so far and, think about where you want these next six months to lead you. Remember too that it’s not to late to start from scratch! It’s never too late to become great (or a greater version of yourself); when it comes to greatness there is no finish line in my opinion.
If you did not get to make a vision board at the start of the year then we still have half a year ahead of us, so why not make one now?! Perhaps you have a few days of downtime this summer to reflect and envision where you want the next six months to take you. That is what I will be doing! I’m looking forward to getting away to my family’s cottage mid-month for some quality time with family and for creating some space for myself to reflect, recharge and recommit to my vision for 2022.
If you would like to follow a similar practice, then check out my MO’ving your WHY Forward Guide. I created this free resource at the start of the year to help others move forward and to inspire others to take the necessary steps to do so. If you already filled out your guidebook at the start of this year, now would be a great time to review what you wrote then and reconnect and recommit to your vision and your WHY. (P.S. the guidebook teaches you how to make your very own vision board using your WHY statement as MO’tivation and inspiration which I think is a GREAT activity!).
Taking time for self-care is MO’re important now than ever before to ensure our fire burns bright. Nourishing our bodies and minds with nourishing foods, physical activity and healthy environments are important elements. Social connection is another. We need great friends to become great ourselves. We cannot go it alone—we will burn out on our own. Connection and a sense of belonging are critical to cultivating your greatness and helping others cultivate theirs.
I can’t think of a better place to meet great people than at canfitpro’s Women Who Influence Event. For almost a decade, this annual event has brought together women in the fitness industry to connect, learn and grow stronger together to go out into the world and go after their greatness.
I wanted to let you know that this year, if you register for Women Who Influence by July 11 and we will enter you into a draw to win a fabulous prize from one of the event sponsors, THINK Yourself Academy. The prize is the THINK Yourself® A MARKETING PRO online course, a 15-step Social Media Strategy to transform social media fans into paying clients (value $397 value).
Also, your Women Who Influence registration includes a FREE Online Women Who Influence Delegate & Presenter Social from 4:30-5:30 pm on Thursday, July 14th. This is an opportunity to connect with fellow event attendees before the event; meet your hosts – myself, Samantha Montpetit-Huynh, and Beth Yarzab; light a spark around this year’s theme of Belonging and receive event highlights.
So here is what I would recommend. Take the first half of this to sit back, reflect, and look within. Spend some time journaling or fill out my MO’ving your WHY Forward Guide. Reconnect with your WHY and your fire within. Then, start looking outwards for opportunities to connect with other leaders in your profession or field. Find an event, conference, or opportunity for social engagement to fuel yourself and your vision. Come join me at Women Who Influence Event and the pre-event social on July 14th if you register before July 11th.
One of my favourite sayings, an African Proverb, is “If you want to go fast, go alone; but if you want to go far, go together.” Greatness is a journey and if we want to be someone great, we have to be on this journey for the long term. Like Lewis Howes says, it has to become “a habit” and become part of our lives. Finding your path and your purpose will get you started, but we need each other to keep going and keep the fire and desire for greatness burning.
It’s time to be bold and courageous and become the lion or lioness you were meant to be. Don’t shy away – shine like the sun and let’s blaze ahead into the second half of this year. This is your MO’nth to inspire greatness within! Why wait to be great tomorrow when you can be great right here, right now?!
