Hello sunshine,

It’s the first Monday of 2025; how are you feeling? 

I turned 33 last week; the low-key celebration and the messages I received from across the world filled me with so much gratitude and love. A new year brings an opportunity for renewed energy, greater wisdom, and the perfect setting to absolutely kick ass!

My birthday wish is to continue positively impacting the beautiful community I’m creating, so I want to thank you for making my wish come true—you are magic!
This Friday, 10th January, we’ll be coming together for the first community session of 2025 to build a strong foundation for your 2025 and beyond vision.
Want to join? Let me know, and I’ll add you to the invite!

This newsletter focuses on challenges and how they’ve been impactful for me.

Why do I want to talk about challenges? Challenges have a bad rep because, well, they are hard. The fact that they are hard makes them a challenge, but that doesn’t have to be a negative thing.

Key Takeaways

• Challenges are hard, but that’s not always negative.

• Challenges allow you to show up for yourself.

• Challenges remind you how strong and resilient we are.

• Challenges are opportunities for learning and growth.

I choose to set myself challenges so that I can show myself the power I have inside me.

Committing to challenges and completing them is an incredible reminder to myself of just how much strength, power, confidence, and determination I have. And let’s be honest, this can be something we easily take for granted or forget if we’re not taking the time to acknowledge it.

Each one of us has so much potential and power inside of us that we often ignore or forget. We allow ourselves to be caught up in the every day and forget how extraordinary we truly are.

Let’s also remember that challenges look different to everyone; to some, the challenge may be moving abroad, trying a new cuisine, taking on a fitness challenge, or starting a new job.

Challenges come in all different shapes and sizes. What’s a challenge to you may be easy to someone else, but that doesn’t make it any less of a challenge for you.

Don’t forget that. And don’t undermine your challenges by comparing yourself to others. We are all on our own journeys. And we all show up for ourselves in significantly different ways; the important thing is that we show up!

The hardest challenge I’ve set myself to date has been running the London Marathon. For some, a marathon is a fun activity, something they repeat year in and year out. For me, the non-runner, it tested me both physically and mentally to an extreme I’ve never reached before.

Many people didn’t think I could complete it.

Although it felt good to prove them wrong, it felt even better to prove myself right!

I learnt so much about myself.

I learnt about what makes me feel good and what areas I need to work on. I learnt that my limits can be pushed further than I ever thought possible, but I also learnt when to say, "enough.” I learnt to take risks and believe in my ability to push outside of my comfort zone and still feel amazing in the end.

Although I never plan to run a marathon ever again, it was truly a life-changing experience, and I’m so glad I bet on myself and took the challenge on.

Other challenges aren’t chosen and may catch us off guard, throwing us off balance. But even unwanted challenges don’t need to be doom and gloom. It’s all about your mindset.

Last year I faced several surprise challenges that I didn’t sign up for, including challenges in the workplace and personal losses. It was tough, and sometimes I felt that I wanted to give up and simply crawl under a rock. But something in me told me to keep going, to continue pushing and believing in myself. And those challenges, those unwanted, tough moments, guided me to where I am today.

Every moment we live is an opportunity for learning and growth, and challenges increase those opportunities because they force you to push yourself that little extra. Consider a challenge to be a mini-test. Congratulations, you passed!

My monthly challenge is to think about your biggest challenge to date. How did you feel when you completed it? I bet it felt great! Take a moment to think about what each challenge has taught you and how it influenced where you are today.

Hit reply and let me know about your experiences, lessons and tips on overcoming challenges.

Shine bright.

This month’s quote:

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With love,

Nadia