In learning to be more awake and present in our day, what we discover is how much more clarity we have, how much more we're able to skillfully navigate obstacles, how much more our relationships improve through deeper listening, how our health changes for the better and something that's made a huge difference in my life is how we become more curious! So if you aren’t where you thought you would or should be by this time in your life, I invite you to celebrate where you are now and the journey you have been on this far. Everything you have been through up until now has been preparing you to fully live your life’s purpose. Sometimes we get caught up in the idea that we need to achieve certain things by a certain time of our lives. When we don’t it’s easy to feel like a failure or beat yourself up for not being where you expected.

Then, the intersection was changed to a roundabout (traffic circle) with no stop signs. Here, people decided when they would go. In this configuration, the most amount of traffic passed in a 15-minute interval. Do you ever finish a bag of chips or eat a bowl of ice cream before you even realize what you've done? You could call this mindless eating, or eating on autopilot and it can leave you feeling unsatisfied, hungry and wanting more. After working that job I disliked, I decided I wasn’t in the right place, physically or psychologically. In addition to this, imagine discovering there's a way to happiness and less stress which is far more rooted inside of yourself, than anything that exists in your physical surroundings.It’s not that you’re in the wrong place per se (as we’ll explore shortly), but consider the following smoke signals: For my birthday this year my niece sent me a beautiful card–on the front there was a gorgeous image and above it she wrote, “You are exactly where you need to be.” Kute is a next generation world leader out to awaken millions to Love and to Live their inspired destiny. Instead of changing our externals, we simply need to redefine our relationship with the world around us. We have to stop telling ourselves that we are failing. We have to stop telling ourselves that we won’t make it because we haven’t yet. We have to stop telling ourselves that we are losing. Because there’s nothing to lose.

Detours can take you to an undesirable part of town, a place you will be so glad to get out off before something bad happens. Detours can also take you to a beautiful part of town, places you may have never otherwise seen. What at the surface looked like a disaster at the time (a crippling disease, the loss of a job, the death of a loved one) usually leads to something better. Yes, even when someone pulls out in front of you at the last second and causes you to slow down, it’s still the fastest way for both of you. Detours The real measure of success is more about the degree that you live your life with integrity. Are you becoming who you were really meant to be? Thousands of moments led up to this. Hundreds of decisions and actions. Millions of tiny thoughts and mistakes and blessings have brought you are. And here is good.

I truly believe that in every moment we have the opportunity to nurture ourselves when we learn to embrace that we have a choice in how we respond to our experience. It’s nothing personal. But oftentimes when we have big goals for ourselves, we need to become the person that can achieve them. Oftentimes, this means shedding the “old” you and stepping into the “new” you. Everyone in life is on their own unique path, and people may serve you well at certain points of your life. However, if it’s time to make space and it’s time to welcome in new people that are aligned with you, then there is no room for things that are no longer worth your time. If you are constantly growing into the person that you want to become, then you are on the right path. 8. You are genuinely happy. Unfortunately, many of us spend the present moment waiting for something else to happen, or feeling regret or sadness about the past, or anxiously planning what will come next instead of being in the now. As a result, we miss being truly present and the opportunities to nourish, cherish and encourage our growth and potential. The beautiful thing is that when we decide to release our resistance about things not being as we wish they were and appreciate what actually is in this moment, the challenging experience is transformed.

Frequently, we feel we’re not making sufficient progress or that we’re treading the wrong path entirely. When we’re constantly being flooded with other people’s highlight reels, we start to feel like our own accomplishments aren’t enough. They are. I’ve been running a startup for the last two years, and it has been among the most humbling and hardest things I’ve ever done. Not everyone is able to operate on a level of higher consciousness and awareness. The moment I realized that people in my life did the best they could with the state of consciousness (awareness) available to them at that time, the floodgates of forgiveness and love poured from my heart. There was less anger, animosity, and trepidation that lingered. Instead, I was able to release energy that debilitated my growth of exercising love and compassion. Try on compassion with all walks of life and notice how you feel. 7) Gratitude. Start your day with a simple thought of gratitude and everything will shift…for the better. Cliche, yes, but at the very same time, if you are pursuing the path that feels most true and right to you, then oftentimes you will just be genuinely happy for both yourself and for others. True happiness is independent of circumstances, and it’s a daily choice that comes from within. If you’re genuinely happy, it means that your life is moving in the direction that fulfills you, and you not only want the best for yourself, but genuine happiness for others as well. Shortly after the hives manifested, I began exploring the lessons my body was trying to teach me. I have come to understand that this experience is another opportunity to bring more awareness to myself in this moment and to accept that I am exactly where I need to be. When I embrace these opportunities to learn more about myself, my needs, and my body instead of ignoring the lessons or wishing they would just stop, I feel more empowered and hopeful.We get older. Careers change. We move homes. We fall in love multiple times. Priorities and goals shift. Bring awareness to the effects of how you may cling to what once was or what is expected to be and how current levels of happiness fluctuate. Let go of lofty expectations, perceived outcomes, and a fixed mindset to open the doors for embracing change. Who knows, you may be surprised as to what you discover? 6) Forgiveness. Be kind.

You’ve realized that failure is simply a part of the process and serves as a crucial stepping stone to wherever you want to go. You’ve detached yourself from external outcomes and instead use your internal thoughts and feelings to judge your progress. If you’ve detached yourself from circumstances in regards to your dreams, then that’s a sure sign that you are on the right path towards them. 5. You feel like you are exactly where you should be. If you don’t like where you are now you have the power to change it! Just because you made your bed doesn’t mean you have to lie in it. You can remake your life at any moment, if you choose. When you don’t get what you thought you wanted, see it as the grace of God at work in your life. And that something better is seeking to happen than you can see right now.

CAHPERD: California Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, & Dance State Conference “2020 IN-FOCUS” Hyatt Regency, Orange County