LIVING & LEARNIN G


I have always loved words, positive quotes and affirmations. They have helped me so much in my life. That was my starting point to finding my tribe.


I know that for so much of my life I felt


I had to prove myself to my father. I had always been such a Daddy’s girl. I wanted to be financially successful, and that’s at first all that mattered. Once I started my design business I made good money, travelled every year and had all the toys and material possessions I wanted. Of course both my parents were very proud of me, especially Dad, who loved to brag about his daughter. I was on a mission to retire at 45, which I did. I loved what I was doing for most of that


time until the last three to four years of my design business. I burned myself out and I was totally out of balance. My 19 years as an entrepreneur was the best personal development experience I could have had. I learnt so much about people and myself. I had so many incidents of being ripped off. There was the neurotic pregnant studio manager, the bipolar suicidal receptionist and the pedophile sales manager, to mention a few. I was fortunate that, after seven years of fumbling along, making loads of mistakes, I could start going to both business courses and personal development workshops, and I got a life / business coach. My thirst for all of this rapidly accelerated. When I got burnt out I began my education into heath and wellness while seeking out spirituality too. I was able to live the dream for nine years during this time of healing myself, re-energising and getting in touch with my heart. I do remember going to a workshop where the trainer greeted me with, “Wow you are heading for an iceberg”. Having spent a lifetime of rescuing others


and never nurturing myself, I needed to learn why I did this. I discovered that the martyr complex had been passed down through my parents and that I had real issues myself. My identity was all tied up in wanting so badly to be a good person at a cost to myself. It’s taken me many years to know who I am. I believe I know this very well now but still fall into old patterns of behaviour. When I do, I try not to beat myself up, and instead sit in this realisation, allowing it to pass.


SEEKING YOUR PURPOSE IS VERY SEXY All of this has led me to be called to do what I’m doing today. This happened in


10 NOVEMBER 2014


February this year when I just woke up with an incredible desire to make a difference. I know this must sound clichéd, but it’s true! It was very surreal really. I did try to ignore it. However, we all know how that works. The more you avoid, the more you get chased. Once I realised there was no escape I


went looking for how I could make this difference. I have always loved people. I am a true extrovert most of the time – people re-energise me. I decided to create a heart- centred community. I was so sick of the way humans are so disconnected from one another. I felt so many people were craving oneness, but how would I help? I have always loved words, positive quotes


and affirmations. They have helped me so much in my life. That was my starting point to finding my tribe. I started a FB


and Instagram page under the name Soul Republic. When I began this journey of sharing powerful visuals with words I wanted to inspire and connect to others, yet I had no idea about social media. It was a steep learning curve. However, it’s opened up amazing relationships with many people, now dear friends. This was further evidence to me that it did not matter where in the world one might be – the power of human connection is so strong it can transcend any physical limitations. After a few months, I was down at the


beach sun-baking when I decided to do a thong, or flip flop as they are known internationally, which could carry my messages of inspiration while leaving an imprint in the sand too. I love thongs because they are associated with relaxation, good times at the beach and on holiday, and


IMAGE COURTESY OF ZAHRINA PHOTOGRAPHY


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