To bridge the gap between where you find yourself and the life you truly want, I believe you need to understand three foundational elements.

Firstly, being aware of your inner assets, your unique essence that no one else can be.

Secondly, the ability to align with opportunity and cosmic timing because you understand your ‘why’ and want to become the architect of your own life.

Thirdly, the wisdom, self-awareness and courage to take the leaps of faith that build the life you’re meant to live.

Your unique path forward is always going to have twists and turns. What turns a great life into a magical one is knowing how to transform obstacles into opportunities and how to build up the momentum to breakthrough into the experience of life that is truly fulfilling.

I’ve always believed life is full of leaps of faith. We don’t always see them, understand them or go through them. But if we can recognise the empowerment they represent, these doorways can always bring the person you’re meant to be one step closer.

When I was just about to turn 13, one of those doors opened up in my life.
I got an invitation from Switzerland to meet my penfriend of two years.

With chocolate box views to explore, this European invite represented a Nostalgia packed Christmas fantasy journey of my young life. Before internet or mobile phones, this was a time warp when people wrote to each other with ink pens! The only mail you got had a stamp and took weeks to arrive.

But before I could finally meet my friend, tuck into Swiss cheese mountains and ski snow clad alps, I had to deal with my inner critic.

The phrase imposter syndrome hadn’t been coined at this time but I don’t mind saying fear and anxiety were up close and personal glaring straight at me.

Fortunately, I didn’t have to look far for my first opportunity Mentor – My Mum. Born between the first and second world wars, she was no stranger to courage, turning personal crisis into confidence, and ‘make do’ into daily miracles.

She never hesitated to create her world from conscious choices and how she felt. Digging deeply into her inner assets, and relentless circumstances, she knew how to stay aligned, energised and balanced no matter what.

I now understand what she meant when she said ‘be careful what you wish for.’ Not because she was being negative or trying to discourage me. It was the complete opposite.

She was emphasising how our individual creative capacity is so potent. You can create what you want everyday of your life if you are prepared to channel your energy consciously and understand the path you’re building.

So now it was my turn to apply what I’d learned.

After realising what I’d committed to I had my first wobble. Could I really do this trip all alone?

My mother ‘got me’ and like any great creator, she could see how I was beginning to align my heartfelt dream while I planned my practical steps.

As my vision blurred temporarily, she helped me be part of my solutions rather than get embedded in the fear of the unknown and all the drama detours that could possibly go wrong.

She said gently but firmly ‘the heart creates – the mind administrates.’

‘You can do anything, I have faith in you,’ were just the words of encouragement I needed to hear.

Her calm ‘grace it, co-create it and get on with it’, quickly dissolved the fear of failure narratives and my plans began to actualise.

At every stage from confirming dates, visiting the travel agent and packing my luggage she was there. Just close enough to radiate her wisdom in my direction but far enough away to allow me to work everything out in my unique way.

I began to understand how mentoring helps you see what you could have easily overlooked. How you refresh your perspective with another pair of experienced eyes. And how much struggle can be edited out, just by listening.

She helped me stop, rebalance and process too. When I got frustrated forcing half my wardrobe, just in case, into my bag she helped me reconsider.

I began to realise just because I could create anything, it still needed self-love, time management, co-creation and understanding to come together.

When frustration, anxiety and temporary disappointment crept in, I held my nerve and kept up my preparation momentum.

I was adapting, juggling finishing school, planning my holiday and letting the biggest excitement of my teenage life sink in.

6 weeks evaporated into 2 and before I knew it, it was time to leave.

I can still remember feeling like Phileas Fog eager for the trains, planes and automobile experience. Yes, when I look back now from electronic convenience and instant communication, it was soooo analogue, but this was the ‘make it happen’ of its time.

I had so many tickets I was scared I’d lose them. So I kept everything in the deep pockets of my winter coat smudging the ink as I held them so very tightly.

After the car, train, bus and plane, I arrived in the Banking capital Bern.

Operation – ‘get to Switzerland’ achieved. I was beginning to relax. All I had to do next was get to the train station for the final leg of my journey.

When you arrive somewhere you’ve never been, with people who speak a completely different language, it can be a little daunting.

What I didn’t realise when I left home was, Swiss people speak Swiss German, French and Italian with their own dialect additions. I spoke German and French. My penfriend had always written to me in standard German, so I assumed that was how it was. One adaptation shock coming right up!

Fortunately, I was on a high that I’d got this far without a hitch so when my German wasn’t well understood, I guessed the signs and adapted with maps and hand signals.

The most important part I learned from the Airport to the train station was, keep balance and keep riding the momentum of self-belief. Trust the process rather than shut down when what you don’t expect happens.

As the train pulled out of the station, I could feel my confidence soaring.
Luggage under the seat, rucksack at my side and ticket at the ready. Everything had come together beautifully.

Impressive buildings gave way to the gentle magnificence of Mother Earth, as the local express rocked its way through the jaw-dropping landscape.

As we got closer to Thun, an advertising billboard appeared framed by mountains on either side. Its message read :

“Money Talks, Wealth Whispers.”

It was a brilliantly crafted Ad campagin for the Swiss Banking giant UBS.

I smiled when I remembered what my mother had said when I found out how much my trip would cost. ‘You are always wealthy if you understand the quality and value of what you want before you ask the price.’

I reflected on the quiet confidence of wealth. Whether immaterial or material it gave a much needed space to soak up all the benefits of your life or to rebalance before another expansion. Just like travelling by train, you could really take in what was flowing through your life being present and prosperous.

Little did I know the universe was sending me a message. Like a Shakespeare play ‘Money Talks – Wealth’ whispers was foreshadowing what I was going to learn about my immaterial and material worth on my return journey.

For many people mentoring is about building prosperous foundations and material success. Don’t get me wrong it is.

But as our world transforms and evolves, I think we can all say that material success while very important, is only half the equation.

Our immaterial assets, our health, family, wellbeing, wisdoms and how we relate and co-create our life experience, are becoming more and more significant with every passing day.

Many now accept the concept ‘your conscious thoughts or intentions create your reality’ and the empowerment we can all enjoy by choosing to fuel consciously what we know and want deep down.

As a result, aligning with opportunity means you need to understand your immaterial assets and heart – mind connection because it’s crucial in building success from the inside out.

Making the effort to understand what your heart is telling you, your ‘why’ and how you feel, ensures that you choose a flexible foundation that always has room to transform and adapt while remaining authentic to who you want to become. You’re investing in your best fit and your Best Life.

Knowing yourself from your heart can’t inoculate you from misunderstandings or mistakes. But it can help you build wisdom so that doing it the hard way and ‘all trying no thriving,’ dissolves out of your life for good.

The more time spent consciously, the more you understand balance the more you can slow down so wisdom doesn’t have to chase you!

The more you focus on what is actually working and build upon it, the you’re your energy or narrative is highjacked by the voice of anxiety or the nagging of your inner critic.

After two great weeks of all things Swiss, I thanked and hugged my host family and climbed onto the country express. I know it’s a cliché but I was very happy to have plenty of chocolate for the journey home.

When I arrived at Bern, I thought ‘I’ve got this,’ it’s just my last trip in reverse. What do they say ¬– assumption is the mother of all muck ups?

It was very cold on the platform and I walked quickly towards the airport connection.

As I looked up at the Swiss Air flight board my flight was showing ‘departed.’ I refocused and checked my flight number with my ticket. It was correct and more seriously it was still departed.

I couldn’t believe it, I should have had atleast one hour to spare.

My suitcase fell from my hand as the information board broke into a flurry of clicking and my flight notification disappeared replaced with the next imminent departures.

My first big learning which I tell all my clients, when what you didn’t expect happens, don’t rush into all or nothing scenarios or blame yourself or the world around you. If you are in trouble, you need all the unity and balance you can get.

The bigger the blame-game, the more you weaken your ability to create and leave the one place that has all the answers – your heart. I have believed from this day that ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ was all about staying out of fear and close to the flow of unlimited possibilities in your heart.

However, there was plenty to panic about. I’d spent most of my cash leaving only a few British coins and a hand full of tickets and connections that were now void.

Delete, delete, delete ran like a press feed before my very eyes.

In the days of no mobile phones, credit cards or internet my options were simple. Go to Swiss Air and sort it out.

When I arrived at the office it was empty apart from one counter where a smart Swiss Air representative was preparing to open. The whole office radiated clinical efficiency.

I approached the counter with my ticket. The lady took one look at it settling into her chair and said ‘your flight left this morning at 7:30am.’
She pushed it back towards my hand.
‘But how am I going to get home?’ I replied.
She looked at my ticket again and replied
“ It’s now void you must buy another ticket.” She quoted a price that was double the total cost of my whole holiday. My mind went blank.

I thanked her, took my ticket and left the office quickly before I burst into tears.

I walked around and around outside with tears streaming down my face, all alone with some British coins, void tickets, and bags getting heavier by the minute. I slumped on a bench in front of the departure board.

Then I heard my Mum saying to me “there’s always a way, take your time, you’ll find it.”

One of the greatest learnings of this return journey was not how life wisdom smooths your way but how it helps you the most when you temporarily run out of road.

Yes, grounding yourself with a to do list or a set of priorities is the most common place to start. Do what you know. But however comforting it can be to seek refuge in your head, I knew it was just the starting point. If you want answers that will take you to your next step, you need to be in your heart, and harness your inner assets.

Thanks to my Mother’s guiding practicality one asset I had learnt to build was courage. Courage got her through the aftermath or one world war and the duration of the next, so I’d learned courage could certainly get me a ticket home.

I clarified my situation. I couldn’t ring my penfriend because I had no Swiss coins. I couldn’t buy a ticket because I didn’t have any Swiss money. Logic had run out. Next stop was the immaterial assets.

Still crying but surrendering to my situation, I stopped judging myself or trying to find out how this could have happened. I went quiet and asked for help. Known or unknown, I was open to my best next step.

As a new alignment settled, the door of opportunity opened. I saw a man walking towards me in a heavy full length navy blue coat and briefcase. He could see my distress and spoke to me in Swiss German.

I tried to explain my situation in German but he only spoke Swiss German. So back to sign language.

Without hesitation he used the payphones nearby called my penfriend and explained what had happened.

He then gestured to go to the Swiss Air office. I hurriedly dried my tears grabbed my bags and followed. The lady looked astonished to see me and softened her matter-a-fact efficiency in the face of this charitable stranger.

After a focused discussion, the lady asked me to sit and wait for the money draft to arrive from my host family and then my ticket would be issued so I could fly home.

Before I could turn around and thank my travel angel, he was gone dissolving into the next rush hour crowd spilling onto the main station concourse.

This was one of the times in my life when I felt loving connection coming from all directions. I had yet more tears in my eyes but now it was a rush of euphoria that confirmed to me how there was always a way.

I was a complete stranger and kindness had arrived out of nowhere helping me through my next opportunity gateway. One mistake turned into a mini miracle and showed me you are never alone, you’ve always got yourself, an endless flow of opportunity and most importantly – your inner assets.

Money is never a substitute for Humanity. Yes, it is a medium of exchange but when I thought I had nothing and no one, I still had value. As my Mum told me when I set off. “Experience is an invaluable currency. It’s always there to fuel a quality life and show you the value not the cost.”

Many people would be astonished and most likely criticise my Mum today for letting me go unaccompanied at such a young age.

But in truth, like any great mentor, it’s about celebrating the successes of your clients transforming their lives, their way.

I think, she was much braver than me, to allow me to test who I was and build parts of myself I have relied upon ever since.

What blew me away before every subsequent trip was her absolute faith. She was my promotor, wise visionary and the most honest feedback form you’ll ever read!

She never wavered, always rebalanced and came out with another way. She could laugh while I went on the wildest of excursions full of the twists and turns where realisation lives. From India to LA, Moscow to Mexico she always showed me how I’d packed everything I needed even if I didn’t think I was enough.

Did this crisis deter me from travelling? Nope.

The trip taught me mentors are part General well organised and focused. Capable of editing out FAQ, road blocks and detours.

Part loving parent reinforcing your progress so you persist to the place where it all comes together.

And lastly, part explorer showing you how this is your life not a rehearsal. Moreover, no matter how lost you may feel, you are always connected and there are always resources at your disposal.

If you think you’ve got to do everything all on your own, you will shut out help. So, never give up on your Humanity or the Humanity that surrounds you.

What you believe in times of crisis forms the next step. Don’t lower your value by beating yourself up with coulda, shoulda, oughta. Rebalance, adapt and see everything as a co-creation with Team universe. There is no room for a blame game that isolates you from the flow of answers. Collaboration is key to what goes around returning back around.

Whatever personal transformation journey you are on, I would be delighted to help you become the architect of your own life to consciously embrace the person you’re meant to be.

If you’ve said to yourself, ‘I want a different life,’ but need help truly understanding what that means to you, it’s time to break out of conditioned life loops or limited beliefs.

The Best Version of yourself doesn’t need to be a distant goal always appearing to be just out of reach.

Understanding how you can become the architect of your own life builds a whole new dimension of yourself, enriching your awareness of your unique essence, your why and your when.

In the last 36 years my Mastery project has taken me places that even I couldn’t dream of when I started journeying at 13. But 1 million frequent flyer points later, I never underestimate the wealth of immaterial assets at my disposal. They might whisper but their value is undeniable. And I know your inner assets are the key to opening the door to a whole new dimension of yourself.