My wonderful, beautiful sister bought me a copy of “The Rule of 10-10-10” by Suzy Welch many years ago and it was one of the easiest and most helpful reads because she provides a super simple decision making strategy that can be used for everything from what you’re putting in your mouth to how you’re living your life. 

Every time Suzi finds herself in a situation where there appears to be no solution that will make everyone happy, she asks herself three questions: 

What are the consequences of my decision: 

• In 10 minutes? 
• In 10 months? 
• And in 10 years? 

HOW TO USE THIS SIMPLE STRATEGY 

Ask yourself daily: 

• How will the choices and decisions I’m making now, this minute, about everything (how to use my time, energy, thoughts, focus, attention, body, my choices and decisions, about what I eat, drink, spend my money on and the people I have in my life or not have in my life) 

• Matter in 10 minutes, 10 months, 10 years 

LOOKING AHEAD 

The k...

Are you a rule follower or a rule breaker? 

Did you know rules are to stop anarchy? If there were no rules then life would be chaotic. But the rules we live by are often out-dated and preventing us from reaching our goals and ambitions. 

So as you step into 2024, think about the rules you were raised on: 

• Rules of your family 
• Rules of school 
• Rules of religion 
• Rules in your social groups 
• Rules in every facet of your life 

Now think about your own person rules that you live your life by: 

• Rules about weight loss 
• Rules about work 
• Rules about love 

• Rules about money 
• Rules about others 
• Rules about what success you can have 
• Rules about what you allow yourself to experience 
• Rules about life 

• Rules about the home 

Your rules are the collection of rules gathered throughout your life and this is how you're living your life right now.  

“Some rules are nothing but old habits that people are afraid to change.”  

Therese Fowler 

It’s ti...

Woop woop, it’s nearly Christmas!  

Here’s 8 Ways to Make Christmas 2023 Your Merriest Christmas Ever 

1. Laughter really is the best medicine (see last week’s blog for more on that!). Christmas can be a real mixed bag of emotions as we know and there doesn’t always feel like there is a lot to laugh about, yet with a little poking, a little prodding, a little tickle here and a little chuckle there, we can elevate our own mood and (sometimes) the mood of others. If you’ve got something super serious and intense going on, firstly, I’m sorry to hear that, because that stuff sucks, and secondly, a little chuckle or giggle here and there is important just to break through that tension, we all need relief, and so do you. 
    
2. Beat the festive season blues with happy tunes to dance to, the geekier the better: Kylie Minogue Locomotion, Abba Dancing Queen or just some good old favourites Status Quo Rockin’ All Over The World, Slade Gudbuy T Jane and their own fab Christmas song, Skyhooks, ...

Life can feel very serious sometimes can’t it?  

There are always a zillion reasons to feel cautious, concerned or even afraid, but equally there are always a zillion reasons to feel interested, light-hearted and a little bit playful.  

What if we remind ourselves every morning when we get up, that “today, I will remember to pause for some playfulness”? 

But why should you pause for playfulness I hear you ask?   

Because we‘ve have a brain that’s always on alert for things to be concerned about and all our internal chatter and dialogue, which is negatively geared because it is on alert, never stops. 

We’re also emotional beings and by default, your emotions are always reactionary to your environment.   

We need to stay playful and make the most of this totally mystifying thing called life. 

We don't know why we're here so we might as well do things that make us feel those good feelings and enjoy every waking hour as much as we can.  

If you’re overwei...

I've put together a list of simple yet effective ways for you to embrace the joy of Christmas this year.  

Let’s take a proactive, relaxed approach to 🎅Christmas and enjoy the festivities by taking the pressure off: 

😃💲Take the pressure off of your credit card and bank account: 

If people are old enough that they no longer believe in Santa, flying reindeer and elves, feel comfortable to give the gift of connection. This will relieve you of the pressure of gift preparation and the financial burdens that excessive gift giving can create. The best gift is genuine connection:  

• having real conversations with people 
• listening deeply  
• giving the gift of loving touch, hold someone’s hand, give them a longer than normal hug.  

So many people are never touched lovingly and neutrally by other human beings. Did you know that we need 5 hugs a day for general well-being and happiness? 

😃🧡Take the pressure off of your friends and families credit card and bank accou...

I was thinking about you this morning when I woke, thinking where am I going to fit in time to write a newsletter to you today? 

My mind said, “Hurry up Katie! You've got a lot on today, you don't have time to sit and write a newsletter!” 

But, I know you read my newsletters and I wanted to write to you and to connect with you today so I ignored what my mind was saying and my instinct to just hurry up and get on with things and I went ahead and did the opposite! 

Did you know that your daily instinct has you doing the same things over and over again? 

That's why I teach my clients how to go against that natural daily instinct and do the opposite. 

It’s only when you go against that instinct and stop following your daily routines and habits that new experiences can then flow into your life. 

If you’re feeling stuck right now, in your weight, health, life, happiness or mindset, it’s because daily habits, rituals and responses are governing you thoughts, feeling...

I took this picture on a walk along the Brisbane River recently as a reminder of life.

From a seedling, this mangrove bush has been inundated with water every day as the tides rise and fall.

It not only survived the daily drownings but needed them to grow to full bloom.

WHAT I’VE LEARNED 

I used to complain whenever I was inundated and felt like I couldn’t breathe and I was fearful I wouldn’t survive.

But the reality is it’s been from those times that my greatest growth has come.

When I was just a wee seedling, there was no way I could get my head up above those high tides, I was too underdeveloped, and I had to learn to hold my breath long enough, till the water subsided, and I could catch my breath and feel the sun on my face again.

I didn’t understand then that this cycle is a lifetime cycle and wishing it to be otherwise was futile. I didn’t realise that I would grow, and eventually, I’d be big enough that I would be able to keep my head above water.

You don’t deserve to be slender, fabulously healthy and happy.  

You choose it!   

Every day in every way, you have to choose it.  

From the moment you wake up you’re making, not just one, but potentially hundreds of choices and you have to think about where those choices are taking you.  

And some days it’s hard to make those great choices isn’t it, because we’re hurting in some way: 

*Mentally 

*Emotionally 

*Physically 

Mindset is everything but shit happens and most of us come from tough backgrounds, we've been through hard times and we’ve had to fight to achieve every success.  

Unfortunately, we’ve achieve it at the expense of our health.  

Because in those hard times we listened to that quitter’s mind that comes in when things are hard. The mind that says, “stay in bed”, “just have one wine tonight”, “its’ ok you can have that cookie today, you’ve earned it”. 

So how do we build our mindset so that we can overcome that quitters mind more and...

We know when we’ve lost our mojo don’t we?  

Life just feels bland, our inspiration has dried up and we just don’t feel like we’re connecting to  

*Ideas 

*People 

*Places 

*Situations or 

*Ourselves  

And that leaves us feeling a lack of  

~Confidence 

~Self- belief 

~Ability  

What’s missing is the “hum”.  

You know, that indescribable great feeling, that inner hum that we feel in our very being that gives us the impetus to get up and go?  

It sort of catches us by surprise when because we not only didn’t notice when it stopped humming but we don’t know how to turn it back on. 

We all have to deal with life, it’s not always sunshine, lollipops and rainbows, and feeling exhausted is a real thing, or is it? 

I suggest that when we lose our hum, what we lost first, was hope. Hope that something in our life will change enough that we can experience something new. I think we simply get bored with pushing through the same stuff day in day out and cons...

We can all build our resilience and learn to bounce better and there's a lot we can do to assist ourselves and others to get through the ups and downs of our lives.  

It’s what’s happening in our lives that is having the most impact on our weight and health and the more skills we develop, the more in control our emotions we feel, which leads to feeling more empowered about the responses and behaviours we have to what’s going on. 

There are great short courses around that everyone can do. I did one back in 2009 at The Hopewell Centre on the Gold Coast called ASIST – Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training. This is so you can help others but the personal value to yourself is also right there. There are actually a lot of places still providing this 2 day training and I highly recommend it. 

It’s important to build our own skills and knowledge on what to do in times of distress, whether it’s our distress or someone else’s because when the shit gets real, we all want to fee...