How to Quit Being an Ostrich and Become a Giraffe, the lifestyle book for the woman brave enough to stick out her neck
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About this ebook
This book invites you to step out of your comfort zone, to stick out your neck and get the best out of yourself, resulting in more peace of mind, more energy and more joy.
Lifestyle embraces more than just healthy eating and regular exercise. Lifestyle is life's complete package in all its facets: mental, physical, emotional and spiritual.
The questions and exercises in this book explicitly invite you to examine your own situation and to take action. Every change begins with taking that first step. Are you going to take that step today?
Hester de Jong
Hester de Jong is NLP Health Coach and Classical Homeopath. She is also trained in Systemic Work and Solution Focused Therapy. With PasoPaso Training & Coaching she concentrates on the area of personal development. Her aim is to reconnect women with their inner drive, inspiration and passion.
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How to Quit Being an Ostrich and Become a Giraffe, the lifestyle book for the woman brave enough to stick out her neck - Hester de Jong
How to Quit Being an Ostrich and Become a Giraffe
© 2014 Hester de Jong
Original title Hoe je van een struisvogel een giraffe wordt
The following companies contributed to the realization of this book:
Cover design by Idvisual, Haarlem
Dutch text edited by -Lein | redactie & vormgeving, Utrecht
English translation by Write Away, text and design, Alphen a/d Rijn
Published by aquaZZ Arnhem | www.aquazz.com
ISBN 9789491897252
NUR 860
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval systems without permission in writing from the author.
Hester de Jong
How to Quit Being an Ostrich and Become a Giraffe
The lifestyle book for the woman brave enough to stick out her neck
With special thanks to
Remy, Jerome and Dion
always my mirror.
This book is dedicated to
every woman brave enough to stick out her neck
and get the best out of herself.
I believe in a river
that flows from the sea
to the mountains.
Contents
Introduction
PART I Be done with that ostrich attitude
Chapter 1 Stop sticking your head in the sand
PART II How to quit being an ostrich and become a giraffe
Chapter 2 Stick out your neck and take control of your life
Chapter 3 The wheel of life
Chapter 4 Purpose and work
Chapter 5 Relationship and family
Chapter 6 Relatives and friends
Chapter 7 Fun and relaxation
Chapter 8 Health and wellbeing
Chapter 9 Personal development
Chapter 10 Spirituality
Chapter 11 Finances
PART III Once a giraffe, always a giraffe
Chapter 12 How to make sure you stay a giraffe?
Introduction
At this point in my life I see it as my mission to help every woman brave enough to stick out her neck and get the best out of herself and, as a result, live a balanced life with more relaxation, more energy and more fun!
I chose to write this book specifically for women because I believe that women in particular have excelled in push-ing their boundaries to meet the demands of today´s so-ciety. I too, always wanted to be the superwoman who could do it all, who was always strong and willing to please anyone and everyone. A couple of serious life lessons made me under-stand that if I am not there for myself first, I cannot be there for anyone else. Moreover, it has become clear to me that I really do not need to be Mother Teresa, Evita Perón or Florence Nightingale in order to succeed in life. And the more strong, courageous and loving women there are who become aware of this, the more beautiful the world will be.
The reason for writing this book is, among other things, my work over the past few years in treating substance abusers. I am grateful for the fact that I was able to sup-port many clients to find new purpose and so change their behavior patterns and (re)discover their own self-esteem, and that I was witness to their quest for spirituality.
But even without the illness of addiction there are proba-bly enough moments, for you too, when you realize that your lifestyle is not entirely healthy. Lifestyle is about more than just healthy eating and regular exercise. Life-style is about the big picture of your life in all its facets: mental, physical, emotional and spiritual.
This book will help you to bring balance into your life and get the best out of yourself. Of course, you need courage to get started and persistence to keep going. But remember, you can always do more than you think and if you consistently take small steps, all these small steps together will inevitably make a significant difference. Because if you, as a woman, are completely empowered, you have so much to give!
PART I
Be done with that ostrich attitude
Chapter 1
Stop sticking your head in the sand
Congratulations!
The fact that this book has caught your attention, means that you are probably experiencing a lack of balance in your life and that you are prepared to stick out your neck to bring about some changes. You have obviously had enough of your own ostrich attitude and no longer want to stick your head in the sand! Time to take action! You have the right intention!
If you stick your head in the sand, that still means you are sticking your neck out, only in a direction that is probably of no use to you. If, starting today, you resolve to change those things that are preventing you from living the life you really want, then this is the perfect book for you.
You may have bought books with the best of intentions more often and never looked at them again. Don't worry, you are not the only one.
You may be familiar with the situation that once, when you felt you were 5 kilos overweight, you decided to go on a strict diet. Losing those three extra kilos in four weeks had to be possible. Did you succeed? Of course, but a month later you had gained them all back again.
What about the time you resolved to get more exercise? You signed up enthusiastically for the gym and planned to work out three times a week. How long did you keep it up?
What is it in you that will make sure that this time will be different?
Are you willing to change?
Every time you say 'but', you're not willing to change.
Every change begins with the willingness to face that change, to be open to it and to accept the sacrifice that the path to change brings with it. Issues such as time, practice, pain, discipline and perseverance, but money may also play a role. Whatever result you want to achieve, you must be willing to pay the price.
For every negative experience we undergo, we decide we never want to go through that again. We make every effort to avoid any similar experience and so limit ourselves in our freedom of movement. Avoidance actually means that we are trying to control life and because we think we have control, we feel safe. This false sense of security is motivated by fear and, in most cases, avoiding fear generally brings even more fear, until we become imprisoned by our fear of fear. So, basically what we do is create prisons in our own heads.
img1Just the willingness to do things differently, gives you an immediate sense of having more space. Be prepared to dive in at the deep end, then doors will open for you.
What or who is stopping you from changing?
The instant you start to behave differently, you will notice that you are constantly bargaining with yourself about this new behavior. But also the people around you, your part-ner, your children or your friends may occasionally 'push' you - consciously or unconsciously - back into your old behavior. If something changes in one person, it takes some getting used to for the other. Talk about it. In particular, talk about your motivation for changing your behavior. Involve your partner, children and those around you in your process and ask for their cooperation. The power of putting things into words is greater than you might think. If you change,