Akosua Dardaine Edwards's Blog, page 68

All choices have consequences

Each of us is responsible for our choices and actions, and the consequences that flow from them. Whatever you think, choose, create or do, you have the capacity to nurture and bless, or fragment, harm and burden your world and the beings with whom you share this planet. Hiro Boga
Each choiceEach thoughtEach purchaseEach business you developEach song you createEach relationship that you choose to remain inEach relationship that you choose to let go of
All of it, if you do it, its your responsibility and you alone have to deal with the consequencesI love that because it puts me squarely in my life and shows me how powerful a creator I am.And that I can make another choice.
Peace

What is an Aware Teacher?

An unaware teacher teaches you to think like them. An aware teacher teaches you to think like yourself. Minna Salami
Think about your teachers, your best teachers. What stands out for you when you think about them?
I remember the teacher who had the biggest impact on me, she challenged me in so many ways and despite the discomfort I wanted to remain in her prescence to learn, to be seen, to be challenged. There was never a question that I had to follow or be like her, just for me to be my best self. Be your best self, do your best. Fulfil the potential you know that you have. Show up.And most importantly - Be better than me, do better than me.That blew me away.
I took her formula.I teach to make others better than meBecause that is how we learn.that is how we growwhen we create other thinkers
Peace

Have you read any of Akosua's work?

What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

Start with Yourself First

Start with yourself first, not with the market or what you think you should do.Start with what brings you alive, what gets you up and excited. Build a business around that.Amplify that energy into your conversations, your online presence and your marketing. Your offer will resonate only with some people — the right people. And there are plenty of those. Alicia Rodriguez

This morning, I was having a conversation with someone I consider a very dear friend. The conversation centered around the marketing of a service that I want to offer in the near future (stay tuned because I would love for you to join me on this journey.) 

She asked me ,who was the target and what is the intention. All valid questions to which I responded very logically. I responded with what I learnt in business school, with the popular jargon. When it left my mouth and hit my ears I felt nothing. No connection, no fire, no excitement, no fuel. Which was strange because preparing the service I felt all of those emotions. 

That was when I realised that I took myself completely out of the process. I was now just following a template and there was no "me" in the equation.

How could that be? When did that happen?

Without me then what is it?

Without YOU in your work, your decisions, your business, your love then what is it then? Is it just a follow fashion formula of what we believe would work because someone else told us that, of what is safe and status quo?

 Of course we can learn from others, the challenge is in the learning to keep YOU, your essence, your soul, your passion, your excitement, your love in it. If these emotions are missing then chances are that we need to go back to the why. Why are we doing this. and Whether or not we need a rest or  to be doing something totally new.

Bring your full, whole self with you to whatever you are doing, and if you can't or don't want to its time to ask yourself why.

Peace

Have you read any of Akosua's work?

What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

The Bounce Back

the bounce back after allowing yourself to be sad is top tier . Foxy Fractals
Have you ever stifled your feeling of sadness? Have you ever convinced yourself that you have no time to be sad? You have no time to feel any of your feelings?You just continue to live and work, and show up because you believe that you absolutely need to. Sometimes you say to yourself, I will deal with the situation later.
Have you ever noticed what happens when you stifled these uncomfortable feelings?Pay attention to what happens not only in your life, but in your body.
I have seen that the sadness sometimes turn into angerThe doubt turns into lack of self confidenceThe fear turns into cynicismThen my body gets involved with backaches, flu and injury or someother bodily discomfortWhen I drop into the feelings, get curious about them, invite them in we are able to stop reacting, to get the guides to make decisions which are in our best interests.We simply heal.And who wants to be wounded?
Peace

Have you read any of Akosua's work?
What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

Courage requires showing up real

 “Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.”― Maya Angelou
The biggest lessons I learnt about courage came from the worst mistakes & messes I made.
(And, upon realizing the mess, deciding to learn from that). Losing friends.
Sleeping with the wrong guy(s). Ahem.
Expending effort trying to get the wrong people to like me.
Wasting time on better looking, more impressive titles, thinking that it would give me something, somehow.
Questioning every obvious sign the Universe threw me.
Doubting the support & love of people who truly cared.
Taking out my anger at people who didn’t deserve it.
Hesitating.
Doubting.
Judging.
Self-righteousness.
Complete & utter lack of boundaries.
Alienation & isolation.
Holding back.
Not being myself.
Not telling the truth-truth-truth.

You have to develop Courage; Like a habit. It’s a practice that you create & cultivate over time.
Courage is keeping your word, first to yourself
You can be scared + courageous

Courage requires showing up real. Trusting yourself.

It involves making mistakes. Failing. Pissing people off. Giving up the illusion of Control. Uncertainty. & radical self love.

Courage is required for living on purpose
Peace
Have you read any of Akosua's work?
What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

Choice is Your Power

Choice is Your Power - Iyanla Vanzant

Some of us feel that we have no choice, some of us underestimate the power of choice. Some of us never take the choice we have for granted.
Making a choice is how we take our power back.Are you choosing consciously?Are you choosing not to make a choice?Are you unconsciously?Are you choosing by default?
What are you choosing for yourself?
What  I am choosing for myself is ForgivenessWhat I am choosing for myself is FunWhat I choosing for myself is Financial FreedomWhat I am choosing for myself is HealthWhat I am choosing for myself is ClarityWhat am I choosing for myself is BoundariesWhat I am choosing for myself is Excitement 
Take a deep breath and ask yourself from within, what are you choosing for yourself and answer with the entire sentence as what you put your I Am before you create
PeaceHave you read any of Akosua's work?
What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

Emotional Connections

Since emotional connections are based on feelings, if you cannot feel much of yourself, it will be difficult for you to establish a deep emotional connection with others. Focus more on how your body feels. The better your connection with your body, the more you can feel yourself . Inner Practioner

If you are a regular reader on this platform, you would have seen on a few occasions that I have started to feel my feelings instead of ignoring or dismissing them. I have started to use my feelings as a guide.Acknowledging my feelings has brought me to a point of awareness where I can be present to deal with the issues at hand. Without awareness there is little chance to find solutions, there is an opportunity to pause before reacting.Our feelings make us know that we are alive.Our feelings make us aware of what needs to shift and changeOur feelings are valid and are not to be dismissed.Our own feelings allow us to be compassionate to ourselves and to othersWhen that is missing we miss opportunities to connect in a real and deep wayWe are all connected even if we don't believe so, the happenings over the world over the past few months have shown us that.Ignore your feelings at your peril.
Peace
Have you read any of Akosua's work?
What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

Ask Yourself and Be Totally Honest..

Don’t wait for things to be, look, or feel perfect to create change. Start now, from wherever you are. Lalah Delia

As soon as I find myself pointing fingers outside and blaming others then I have given away my power. I know that the moment that I take responsibility and feel my feelings I can make a choice, a new decision. I can make a change- an internal one.
Upon reflection
I asked myself this morning:
1. Do I spend my money consciously, where are my dollars going?
2. What must I do now that I have not done before?
3.Have I questioned my perceptions deeply?
4. Do I promote 'isms, greed, injustice, inequality and are ignorant about it?

This is my start of how I move forward as of day
Peace

Have you read any of Akosua's work?
What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

Healing is not a one size fits all.

Those who have hurt you have no say in how you heal  

How you heal is your responsibilityHow you heal is your businessHow you heal is your journeyHow you heal is on your timeHow you heal is your for you, not for anyone else
Healing is not a one size fits all.
Healing is individual.
When others police and judge how you heal, and you listen and pay attention, you have given up your power, you have placed a judgement on yourself. They are paying attention to you and have less time to pay attention to themselves.
Many times, many many times there is some grief, there is anger, there is some rage involved in getting to our healing.What we do with that when we have no tools, even when we do have tools, is on us. The deeper the wound, the more pain and more time it takes to heal.
Healing takes time, it is a process. 
When we are not supported in our healing there are consequences for everyone involved. Everyone involved will be called in to account.
Feel. Deal. Heal.
That is the process
PeaceHave you read any of Akosua's work?
What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook

Growth is a Process

  Give yourself grace as you journey toward who you are becoming. Growth is a process and the road usually includes some valleys. Dr Thema
Growth is a processEvery aspect of growth is a process.
You name it, the growth process takes time and involves uncertainty, risk and failure.
A baby - nine months in the womb, fraught with uncertainty, is a process.
Cocoa - months of planting, pruning, and waiting, is a process.
Getting a degree - months or years of study. This is a process.
Growth and development of self as well is a process. A process, not an event.A process is a series of actions and events leading up to a specific goal or target.
As part of the process there will be decisions, risks, set backs, uncertainty because of that we must have faith, trust in self, lack of judgement and self belief.
Many times we fall into the trap of believing that a process is an event and so we put these limitations on ourselves, sometimes we put expectations on ourselves which are filled with judgement and doubt.
We seem to want to want what we want immediately, When this does not happen doubt sets in, we look to find an outlet. If its an external outlet of not being held responsible it turns to blame and guilt.We seem to want what we want without inconvenience or discomfort. There are always growing pains.
Look at the processWhat are we missing or skipping in the process?Look at what is missing in the process.This is where the gap is.
I want to grow by writing a book by the end of this year, the process is to discipline myself to write. some days I will not feel to write, this is okay, knowing the consequence may be that I will not finish. It may also mean that I have to learn discipline in the process.To complete the process, I must believe that I can write a book. If there are more doubts than self belief, there will be some subconscious self sabotage.I noticed for me, when tough parts of the process pops up, I get up I leave the room and I go to eat, watch a  movie and distract myself. Not because I am tired or need a break, just because it is a difficult part or I am doubting myself.
When I remind myself that growth is a process, I can remain calm that there will be uncertainty and risk, there will be good days and better days, there will be setbacks and it's all part of the processPerfection is an illusion. Looking for illusion is madness!
Slowly gets us there- with new and improved skills and structuresDiscipline, Love, Self Belief, Consistency, Patience
PeaceHave you read any of Akosua's work?
What Did I Learn Today? Lessons on the Journey to Unconditional Self Love

Nyabo (Madam) - Why Are You Here?Daily Lessons on the Journey - A JournalFollow Akosua onTwitterInstagramFacebook