Where did you grow up and what was your childhood like? Did you have any particular experiences/stories that shaped your adult life?

I grew up in Yorkshire, England, one of four children with fabulous supportive parents. I spent hours playing outdoors so this early connection to nature has stayed with me for life. I was out playing for hours at a time and only came home when I was hungry or thirsty!

At the suggestion and recommendation of my junior school headmaster, I went to a private boarding school as a full-time boarder when I was 11 years old. This was a huge change from living at home. This experience shaped me as a young girl and impacted my adult life in terms of being able to adapt quickly to new environments and, just as important, mix and make friends with people from very different backgrounds. I stayed as a boarder until I was 18 and was appointed Head Girl in the final year which was a huge boost to my confidence! It was challenging being away from home from such an early age, I sometimes felt I was missing out on not being with my parents and siblings. It certainly made me really appreciate time with my family during school breaks and leave weekends. Learning to be self-reliant yet also being able to ask for help was a useful skill I developed during this time period. For sure the experience of being away from home at such a young age has helped me adjust quickly to being an ex-pat over the last 20 years of living in the Middle East and Asia!

What is something you wish you would’ve realized earlier in your life?

That nature is our greatest teacher, healer, and guide. She holds the answer to everything. When we think of the attributes, innate intelligence, and resilience of the mountains, forest, ocean, desert, wind, sun, moon, flowers, animals and acknowledge that we are part of nature ( not apart from it ) we can truly flourish. I was very fortunate to spend a lot of time playing outdoors as a child and still do as an adult. I wish I had been introduced to adventure sports much earlier. I climbed my first mountain when I was 40! My wish for everyone is to spend more time in nature ( away from the hustle and bustle of the city technology ! ) to develop a deep love and appreciation of nature’s raw and honest beauty and realize that time spent in nature is an investment into our health, well-being, creativity, and overall happiness – whether we enjoy it alone or with family, friends or clients. 2020 has certainly reminded us to appreciate the ability to walk freely in nature as the perfect anti-dote to lockdown and isolation at home. It’s time to REWILD!

What are bad recommendations you hear in your profession or area of expertise?

Thankfully it’s very rare I hear bad recommendations. That could be because I choose wisely who I hang out with. My view is that good, bad, right, or wrong recommendations can actually activate self-inquiry. Recommendations are just that, they are not the law or not the only way to approach the challenge or question at hand. The danger lies when recommendations do more harm than good; I have seen this more widely in the medical, financial, exercise, and nutrition world. I am a huge advocate for sharing information and resources and empowering my client to do their own research and make decisions for themselves based on a spectrum of information and action what feels right for them rather than the “ do as I say” or “ one size fits all “ approach. I created an acronym to help clients through the process of self-inquiry: A.U.D.R.E.Y © Awareness- Understanding-Disassociate -Rescript- Emotionally charged – YES!

Tell me about one of the darker periods you’ve experienced in life. How you came out of it and what you learned from it?

I was unexpectedly and very suddenly widowed at the age of 36 when my husband of 7 years, a professional squash player, collapsed and died after a squash match. He was super fit ( or so I thought ) and only 41 when he passed. We lived overseas so it was very complicated as well as being a highly emotional and stressful time. Thankfully I had a lot of support from the company I worked with and my parents flew out to help me. Initially, I stepped into the hyper-practical mode. I am sure this is what kept me together. It was only when everything had been completed with the repatriation, burial, family, and legalities that what had happened and how it impacted me actually sunk in. I took a nose-dive into a deep valley of emptiness. I was running on autopilot, definitely in denial, didn’t want to burden family or friends with my woe, and threw myself into work to distract myself.

A year after he passed I finally accepted that something needed to change so I stepped down from my job and took a travel sabbatical – the classic tears, a journey, and a journal story. I kept a journal, spent a lot of time self-reflecting in nature, balanced solitude with social connection, read soul searching books and eventually, I started to think about what I wanted to create for the next chapter of my life. I shifted from victim to master acknowledging that I was not the only woman in the world who has ‘ lost’ someone or something they held dear. Who was I crying for? For me or for my husband? If things were to change, I had to be the change; to look in the mirror and say YES to Julie.

After my travels, I spent some time diving deeper into my core values, strengths, passions, skills, and overall life purpose. I decided to explore adventure travel and joined an adventure tourism company as a business development manager. The salary was shockingly low however it gave me access to the mountains, forests, deserts, and oceans and they became my deep healing playground.

On my 40th birthday, I climbed my first mountain in Malaysia and had an epiphany at the summit which led me to start my own adventure travel company in 2003. Nature was my healer, my guide, my path to a new life of inspiring and guiding others to explore the world, connect with new cultures, and find a renewed sense of clarity, joy, direction, and love of life in the process. I learned that no matter what happens we have the ability to break free from the victim’s story and write a new storybook. I realized the importance of ‘going and growing’ through every experience and choosing to focus on love and gratitude instead of fear and lack.

Nine years after his death I remarried at the age of forty-five. Ten years into the marriage my husband was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer that had metastasized to his brain. Again, I stepped into the practical mode, did lots of research, drew on all the lessons from nature and the many books/ philosophies I had experienced, and together, along with medical and alternative support, Calin is now 100 % clear and living a full and fulfilling life. Every single experience we have, no matter how hard it is, helps us become the most empowered person in the process and a person that can help others on their healing path.

What is one thing that you do that you feel has been the biggest contributor to your success so far?

Taking good care of my mind and body so it can take care of me! Leading by example, walking my talk, learning new skills, focusing on being of service, and offering unique experiences for personal and professional growth based on my own diverse, unusual, and often challenging experiences. Health is my top value so every decision and choice I make moves me towards vibrant health. When I talk about health I refer to physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, financial, psychological, and biological health. Our health is our first wealth and allows us to successfully activate our dreams, goals, and visions as well as help others achieve theirs.

What is your morning routine?

Wake up at 5 am, say thank you three times, trip to the bathroom! Meditate, hot water and lemon then off for a walk/ swim / HIIT training session outdoors. Bullet coffee, draw a card from one of my oracle decks and reflect on its meaning, read for 20 mins, check in with my vision board and my mind map for the day. Energy shower ( hot and cold water ) sing, hum, whistle, dress, and ready for action 8/8.30 am. I am a morning person. I am in bed by 9.30 pm so certainly not a night owl!

What habit or behavior that you have pursued for a few years has most improved your life?

Taking care of my health, learning, reading, staying active, meditation, and nature immersion are a few of my top power habits along with giving myself the daily gift of stillness and silence with a healthy dose of social interaction. This is a lifelong habit and an investment in my future. My Mum is currently 96, my father passed when he was 92 so there is a long life in our family – I have at least another 40 years on this planet!

What are your strategies for being productive and using your time most efficiently?

Being very clear and conscious about how I spend my time and who I spend my time with! Making sure that every choice/ decision I make moves me towards my goals. Taking consistent action and quality recovery time. Blocking out focused periods of time for specific tasks. Total immersion means eliminating all distractions. Phone off and out of sight. Deciding on what I need to do, what I can delegate, or simply need to ask for help with. Taking energy breaks between intense work periods. Getting a good night’s sleep, eating well, sleeping well, moving well, and staying hydrated so that I have the energy to fuel peak performance. Saying ‘no’ so I can say ‘yes’ to myself and setting healthy boundaries!

What book(s) have influenced your life the most? Why

For many years I have been drawn to books on self-development, health, psychology, travel, adventure, nutrition, spirituality, nature, and various philosophies. I tend to speed read books and use a highlighter pen to mark sections that really resonate with me so it’s easy to dip in and out of them for a refresh. Books give us the chance to get into the author’s mind and see things from a different perspective or simply remember something we know yet have forgotten. I love reading at the beach, outside on café terraces, or sat curled up on my sofa with a huge cup of tea ( and some yummy biscuits or dark chocolate !) It’s easy for me to spend hours in a bookstore, so my husband always knows where to find me at the mall!

Several years ago I picked up a book titled Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water – Reflections on Stress and Spirituality by Dr.Brian Luke Seaward. I enjoyed the book so much that I contacted the author; to my surprise, he agreed to meet me for a coffee on my next trip to Colorado. Spending time with the author of a book that has impacted you is such a blessing and, in this case, led to me signing up for Luke’s Stress Management certification program. The content of Luke’s book/s and the course took my own self-awareness to a new level and enabled me to better guide people through challenging periods of their lives. I implemented the positive coping strategies and relaxation techniques myself and also with clients. I am delighted that Luke will write the forward for my next book “ Spirit of Water “. So the moral of the story is to flex your courage muscles and reach out to authors that resonate with you and see where the conversation goes!

I have a similar story after reading Linda Leaming’s book Married to Bhutan I reached out to her via Twitter and she responded immediately, the conversation moved to email and 6 months later I took a group of 16 clients to Bhutan and we actually meet Linda and her Bhutanese husband in her home and enjoyed afternoon tea, lively conversation, book signings and an introduction to Bhutanese art as Linda’s husband, Phurba, is a renowned artist who has created/ creates fabulous thangkas, Mandela’s on canvas and on silk.

Do you have any quotes you live by or think of often?

“Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water” – Lao Tzu

This simple ancient proverb is still as relevant and meaningful today as it was thousands of years ago! There are times in life when we need to stand grounded, resilient, and strong like a mountain, weathering the storms and knowing that they will pass. There are also times when we need to let go and move in the direction the river of life is taking us rather than grasping onto the sides refusing to move or attempting to swim against the current! The Zen proverb – ‘ let go or be dragged ‘ springs to mind! When I am faced with challenges I ask myself –‘ is this a time to be a mountain or do I need to let go and flow like a dynamic river weaving around obstacles, finding a way, and adapting to the environment along the way.

Another quote I tap into is one of my own and is actually the title of chapter 8 in my book ‘Moving Mountains’ – Discover the Mountain in You. The quote is “ What brings you joy gives you energy “. It’s super simple and super effective when you need to get out of a rut; simply tap into the people, places, activities that bring you joy and make sure you take ‘ joy breaks’ across the day. Create a joy board and jump for joy!