My Journey

In the traditional sense of the word, I have always found success.  My personal drive wouldn’t allow for failure and I would not give up until I achieved what I thought was the ‘right’ goal—yet, I found that I was still unfulfilled.  With each new achievement, I just kept setting the bar higher and felt like I was on the hamster wheel of life.

My struggle

I achieved much perceived success in my life:

• A grades in school

• First-Class degree from university

• Leading the largest sales organisation in the company

Even at play I was an over-achiever, and sailed around the world.

But, in my heart, I knew there was more to life than what I was experiencing.

So, I continued to fill the void the only way that I knew how: by setting progressively higher goals and working harder to achieve them.  As the feeling continued to plague me, I simply pushed harder. 

My internal belief system was constantly propelling me to put success and achievement above everything else. I wanted desperately to find my purpose and calling in life but every self-development modality I explored couldn’t help me with how to find my true passion.  My pleas of “but I don’t know what my true passion is” were met largely with derision and “yes, you do’s” and some platitude about allowing myself to be open to it.  I was frustrated and unsure if I would ever find my true calling in life. 

My new path

Then, I was introduced to the practice of Alchemy, the Creative Orientation. The premise that we have two orientations in life:

• Sprit: connecting us to our true nature and purpose

• Identity: connecting us in our beliefs about ourselves and about life

Alchemy teaches that our intuition serves as the bridge to our genius.  

Once I understood these concepts, the rest came far easier.  The truth is, for years my identity had been running my life.  I struggled with a fundamental belief that I wasn’t good enough or worthy of having what I would love; therefore, I clung to my inner achiever to carry me through life.  Pursuing achievement after achievement led me further and further away from my personal truth and the joy in my life.

Suddenly it was okay not to have my true life’s purpose and ten-year plan mapped out.  I could rely on the strength of my inner genius, and had my intuition to guide me.  During this time, I learned techniques to connect to what I would truly love and create visons of end results that are in line with my heart, rather than my identity.  The inner nag of ‘you should’ turned into ‘you would love’, and I found overwhelming inner peace. 

Meeting my Spirit

I was able to reconnect with my true passions through:

• Creativity—I started to paint

• Travel—I reunited with my sense of adventure

• Teaching—I started coaching and training others to create the life they love

Most of all, I realized that I was living a shadow career.  My job was close to my true passions, albeit a ‘safe and secure’ version that ultimately was unfulfilling.  My identity loved my career because it was safe and secure, but my inner genius was stifled.

Believing in the power of creation

In December 2015, despite my identity’s fear and resistance, I followed my intuition and spirit to live the true vision of my life—one of adventures, family, friends, writing, teaching and transforming lives.   I handed in my resignation notice and started my coaching and training business.  My intuition led me to spend two months sailing from St. Lucia to the Galapagos, while learning about myself along the way.

Since then, I’ve built a true commitment to my creativity:

• A thriving consulting business that ranges across several continents

• A network of hundreds of clients

• A renewed sense of adventure:

  • Sailing across oceans and conducting my business from boats in deserted bays

  • Writing articles in the Galapagos and finding inspiration from hikes in the Grand Canyon

  • Visiting new cities with old friends

And, most importantly, I’m living the life I love with no compromise and supporting others to do the same.

One of my true passions in life is helping others unlock the power of their inner genius.

Please feel free to contact me at ellen@expandingpossibilities.today for more info.