Full disclosure: I have written the opening line for this blog post about 15 times now. There is no concise way to open this post and capture the phenomenal speaker and individual that is Heather White. She really is just that ah-maze-ing.
I was lucky enough to attend the Pink Tank Group event on Wednesday evening where Heather spoke. The event was held at the beautiful Dermalogica offices, where I was greeted by a fabulous bright pink carpet and glass of wine within seconds of walking in. The event was already off to a good start! Thank you, Reagan! After some mingling with the intimate crowd of warm and accomplished women, we took our seats and waited for Heather to begin speaking.
The minute Heather smiles and begins speaking, you adore her. She is so honest, real, brilliant and inviting, and you can literally feel her spirit. Heather is such a natural that she prepared no powerpoint, no notes and no podium. She just took her place at the front of the room and not only provoked multiple ‘aha’ moments for all of us in the audience, but facilitated such a real discussion that there was no longer a separation between her and us. It was like sitting in a room full of your best friends, talking about life, happiness and how to bring your heart and soul to work.
One of my favourite lessons of Heather’s was to always trust your gut. We all have this built in guidance system that Heather refers to as our internal compass. Sounds simple, right? Raise your hand now if you’ve ever quieted that compass. Keep it up if you’ve told a friend to trust her gut while not following your own advice. Thought so. (you can put your hands down now)
It is so important to honour and trust ourselves. Whether this means avoiding that dark alley or acknowledging that something is off in our lives, we have to start more actively listening to that inner compass. Our bodies really do know best. The next step is figuring out what it is that is throwing us off balance. Between careers, friendships, relationships and everything else life throws at us, it can be difficult to pinpoint where that unsettled feeling in our gut is coming from. And if you’re like me, even more difficult to take the steps to rectify it once you do. But it’s worth it. Trust me. Better yet, trust Heather.
Then there was the ocean analogy. Heather explains that our bodies and emotions resemble the ocean, where there are big waves on top but an incredible sense of peace and calm below. We spend far too much time at the surface with the big waves, big reactions to challenges and high levels of emotion, when we need to spend more time below where that inner compass lies. Accept new challenges as they are. Hey, no one ever said life was easy or perfect. It’s welcoming those challenges and working through them in the pursuit of inner peace and happiness that makes life, well, life. The more in-tune you are with your inner compass, the easier it’ll be to tackle challenges with that calm energy.
In an effort to keep this under 16,000 words, I will share one last amazing Heather moment. I loved it when she encouraged us all to “pull back the kimono” and be who we are. “Hello, world! This is me!”, says Heather. Another simple message, right? Be who you are. But when Heather divulges her own personal experiences with why this can be difficult and why it’s such a freeing experience to figure out exactly who you are, it’s another ‘aha’ moment. Be who you are. Accept who you are. Love who you are. That is powerful stuff.
I can say with 100% confidence that if you ever have the opportunity to listen to Heather speak, you must do it. You will not be disappointed and you’ll walk away with a new perspective on life.
The coolest thing about Heather is that she’s the best friend you’d love to have, the girlfriend guys would kill for and the boss everyone dreams of – but yet, when you talk with her, she’s just Heather. Brilliant, beautiful, spiritual and funny-as-all-get-out Heather. Sure, she has a lot of it figured out, which is why she is such a powerful speaker, but Heather is honest enough to let you know that she finds new challenges every day, and works towards her own inner peace and happiness just as hard as the rest of us do. How refreshing.
Oh, and she gives great hugs. What’s not to love?!
@Heather2020
@PinkTankGroup
@lizsauve
Heather is also our connector of the month! Check it out!
Fantastic capture of the magic that Heather and each of us there created. I agree, the conversation was exactly what I wanted to have and didn’t know until it happened!
I also loved the thought that Heather brought up at the end “what’s right for you is right for everybody, you just might be going first.”
Things that make you go “hmmm”.
Thanks again for the great summary!