Skip to content

Your work is to remember who you *really* are. Who you are is not defined by your family history or the pains or tragedies you experienced growing up. Your parents loved in the best way they could. Moving into compassion for them can bring you to a place of liberation you only dreamed was possible.

The ability to feel grateful is one of the biggest gifts we have been given. Every morning, take a few minutes to express your gratitude for the simple things in your life.

The simpler your life is, the happier you are. In fact the fewer decisions we have to make each day, the more contentment we feel. Your sense of joy and satisfaction are not reliant on what you have or your physical surroundings. Ever.

Keep opening and softening your heart every day to people, to new experiences, to life. Moment to moment, there are only two choices: love or fear. Which will you choose? Every interaction is motivated by one of these feeling states.

What is it that you *must* do? After you know this, give your heart wholly and completely to this and “feel the fear but do it anyway”.

Know your portals for self-nourishment and healing: Music? Movement? Nature? Dance? Writing? Travel? Drawing? Determine what feeds you and keep doing these things. Every day.

Self-awareness and self-acceptance are the doors to freedom and peace. Don’t be afraid to become deeply intimate with your fears, dreams, personality, self-limiting beliefs, strengths, shadow and brilliance. Love ALL of who you are.

Service to others is your path of practice. But doing this in a way that feeds you rather than drains you, is your life’s work.

Build your tribe. Reach out and ask for help. There is never any reason to go it alone. We were designed to be inter-dependent. Cultivating this ability is key to your emotional health.

Go within for the answers. Don’t be afraid of becoming very still. You already have ALL the answers within you. You just have to get quiet enough to hear them. And, listen to your body. An uneasy stomach, tight shoulders or a clenched chest is your body talking to you. Listen to and respond to this amazing internal GPS system.

Release “should’s” and become comfortable saying “no” with grace and ease. And, watch the Universe respond with delight in delivering to you what you *really* want, not what the media or society dictates you *should* want!

Lastly know your ordinary self is enough. You don’t need to do or be for anyone to elicit worthiness. Allow yourself to be vulnerable and let people see your fragility as well as your strength. Sharing all of who you are is transformative and freeing.

Avatar photo

Renée Peterson Trudeau is an internationally-recognized life balance teacher/speaker. Raised by spiritual seekers, Renée is the oldest of seven Montessori-inspired children. Growing up in Northern California, she attended a yoga school based on the teachings of Parmahansa Yogananada, rode horses bareback and hiked in the vast wilderness of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and learned stained glass window-making and philosophy from the Bhagavad-Gita.

Her clients include Fortune 500 companies like IBM and Ernst and Young and national women's organizations/conferences and her work has appeared in The New York Times, US News and World Report, Good Housekeeping and more. She is on the faculty of Kripalu Center for Yoga & Wellness and Esalen Institute and she speaks and leads life balance workshops/retreats for corporations, conferences and organizations worldwide.

The author of the award-winning The Mother's Guide to Self-Renewal: How to Reclaim, Rejuvenate and Re-Balance Your Life and Nurturing the Soul of Your Family: 10 Ways to Reconnect and Find Peace in Everyday Life, (March, 2013), thousands of women in more than ten countries participate in monthly Personal Renewal Groups based on her work.

Renée lives in Austin with her husband and son. Learn more at ReneeTrudeau.com and facebook.com/liveinsideout.

For more information, please visit reneetrudeau.com

This Post Has 3 Comments

  1. brilliant; thank you for sharing: to know yourself is, too, transformative and freeing

Leave a Reply to peter verin Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *