As I enter my early 40s, I’ve come to realise that personal transformation comes from our ability to live in our truth. When we’re able to tune into who we really are, what we really want, and we’re willing to see what’s getting in the way of us stepping fully into our power, that’s when we’ll be inspired to change. When we know who we are, the light and the dark, we’re awake. We’re no longer falling asleep on ourselves. We can make choices that are aligned with who we truly are. This is what it means to be living a life of intent.

Being awake is not the same as being perfect. The journey to waking up is sometimes smooth and joyful. And sometimes it’s incredibly ugly and messy. Because life’s not perfect and we’re not perfect. And the sooner we come to embrace this, the lighter we’ll start to feel.

I used to have a sense of striving that came from a place of “not enough”. Achievements were less about the joy of fulfillment and more about proving I wasn’t “less than”. I tried hard. At everything. And it was exhausting. And as I got older I realized that I wasn’t the only one living this way. Everyone around me was also pretending, living their lives numbed out, disconnected or guarded in some way. The sense of relief that came from admitting how I was feeling opened up a spaciousness within me. And interestingly, it gave others permission to do the same. Now, I still strive, but it comes from a different place. It comes from wanting to live intentionally, wanting to show up fully in the world and wanting to experience joy.

I still fall asleep on myself. But now I feel it so deeply and so intensely that it’s easier to course correct. It’s no longer possible for me to numb out from my life and my emotions, ignoring the uncomfortable symptoms or signs in the hope that they go away on their own. Now, I pay attention to what my body is telling me and gently guide myself back to my truth.

Some of the things that help me live in alignment are:

• Taking time to come home to myself every single day: this is different for everyone but we know it from how it makes us feel – connected, aligned, relieved. For me, it’s making sure to move my body every day and to spend some time in stillness.
• Being crystal clear on how I want to feel: I discovered this concept through the work of Danielle La Porte and I resonated right away. When we know how we want to feel, we can make choices, set goals and design our lives in alignment with that. This year, my words are connected, inspired and playful and they’re proving a powerful guiding light to how I show up in the world.
• Personal reflection: staying constantly curious and questioning what worked, what didn’t work, and what I’m going to do differently next time.
• Being willing to laugh at myself: I mess up. A lot. And I can spend way too much time in my head. Being able to laugh lightens the load and reminds me not to take it all so seriously. After all, joy is the whole point, isn’t it?

Jessica Uys

Honest. Intuitive. Inspiring.

Bio

Jessica is a Coach, BodyTalk Practitioner and Enneagram Facilitator who helps women part with perfection and find freedom in letting go. She’s big on self-care, self-awareness and small, gentle changes that empower you to get to the root of what you really want and desire.

Jessica has been described as smart, funny and daringly honest. Her clients value her empathy and insight, her ability to see things from a different perspective and her practical and straightforward approach.