In last week’s podcast – episode 42 – I was talking about the many benefits of slowing down. It’s summer here in the UK, schools are about to break up for the long holiday, offices get quieter as people take their summer holidays and the long light evenings encourage us to spend more time socialising and making the most of what good weather we get.

We can choose to slow down at any time of year but as I’ve already said, the things that can be done at any time can end up being done at no time. In other words they just don’t happen. And so I encourage you to take time to consciously slow down this summer. To give yourself the space to be in the moment and savour all that the season has to offer.

This week I'm sharing five books for when life is tough because let’s face it life is really tough sometimes. These books have all helped me in some way over the last two years. Sometimes to better understand what others are going through so I can support them, but most of the time to help me get through what has been a tricky couple of years to put it mildly. Some of these books I have mentioned before but I thought bringing them together would be really helpful.

I love a list. To-do lists, packing lists, shopping lists, reading lists, lists of the things I want to experience and enjoy each season... the list of lists goes on! But, like everyone else, I have to admit that there are sometimes things on those lists that have been there for weeks, sometimes months and occasionally years. And, those things, even if they were put there with the best of intentions sap my energy, make me feel guilty and even like a failure. They are no good at all for my confidence levels.

The first weekend in June, here in Britain, we have a four day weekend to allow us to celebrate, if we wish, 70 years of the reign of Queen Elizabeth II.

Whatever your thoughts on whether we should have a monarchy or not there is no doubt that 70 years of service is remarkable. I accept that the Queen has had a hugely privileged life with access to wealth beyond the wildest dreams of many of us but she has also lived her life in the public eye constantly aware of her duty.

Service is a wonderful thing and it’s quite right that we celebrate it whether with jubilees, retirement celebrations, anniversary parties or medals and awards. But there are also lots of acts of service that go unnoticed and unthought about every day and it’s important that we recognise those, especially when we’re the one who is undertaking that act of service. It’s far too easy to just say, “Oh anyone would do the same.” or, “It’s just what’s expected.” But that doesn’t make it any easier. That doesn’t mean you don’t deserve a great big pat on the back.

Finding joy in the little things in life is so important if we don’t want to spend our lives living for tomorrow rather than today. Joy is my word for 2022 and I’ve found three books that have really helped me to focus on finding joy in the ordinary. I usually whizz through books, but these are ones to savour.

At the end of March I provided you with some pointers to past blogs that would help you with the inner work and moving into action to help you build your confidence, clarity and courage. This week I thought it would be useful to highlight some of the podcast topics that I’ve covered over the last 16 months of podcasting! You don’t have to take my word for how useful listening to the podcast is. As one reviewer on Apple Podcasts put it, “Such an inspiring and interesting listen and so easy to act upon when things are unlocked by Clare’s gentle but thought provoking and motivating approach. Recommend you listen to this – it will change your life!”

So, using the words of my reviewer, these are the ten episodes that I think have the most potential to create real changes in your life!

Whether you celebrate Easter as a Christian, as a secular long weekend with bonus chocolate or as a festival of spring I wish you joy and happiness. This Easter feels like it’s been a long time coming. Since last August when I had my surgery and my chemotherapy and radiotherapy regimes were being discussed mum and I have been thinking ahead to Easter with the words “it will all be over by Easter.” It turns out not quite over but the light at the end of the tunnel is almost blinding it’s so close now.

Over the last two years I have published over 100 blog posts and I thought it was about time I provided you with easy pointers to some of the most useful and most popular posts to help you to grow your confidence, clarity and courage to build that happy and fulfilling life we all so desire. So here are pointers to ten of my most useful posts – even if I do say so myself! Five on doing the inner work and five on taking action.

Spring is in the air. The days are getting longer, the spring bulbs are bursting with colour and I’m so glad that the clocks will be springing forward to British Summer Time in just over a week.

As the season changes I find it a really good time to check in and see how I’m doing with my intention for the year and I encourage you to do the same. As I shared in January I chose joy as my intention for 2022. After lockdowns followed by a cancer diagnosis what I want more than anything else this year is to feel and experience joy. I chose not to put that intention on hold until after my treatment finished, instead I wanted to start looking for and experiencing joy as much as I possibly could.

Last time’s round up of books to help you grow your confidence proved so popular that I thought I’d follow up straight away with four more recommendations so here we go. This week I have books to help you with creativity, business, rest and happiness.

I am an avid reader. I get through 140 plus books most years. In fact it was more like 200 in 2021! Every now and again I’ve recommended a book here on the blog and in episodes 10 and 20 of the podcast I provided a roundup of books I recommend. As I’ve never done that here I thought I’d remedy that today! And, if like me you enjoy listening to your books all five of these are available as audiobooks.

The last couple of years have taught us that being resilient is so important, enabling us to cope with the curve balls that life throws at us. I explored this topic in my podcast in November and want to share it with you here too.

What is resilience?
According to the Oxford dictionary resilience is the ability to recover quickly after something unpleasant, such as shock or injury. The American Psychological Association goes further saying, “As much as resilience involves “bouncing back” from these difficult experiences, it can also involve profound personal growth.”

We’re three weeks into a new year. The run up to Christmas is a frantic time for many of us and as we launch headlong into the new year it’s very easy to get swept up into all the good intentions of New Year resolutions, health kicks, new term, new projects…the list goes on. It’s also a time of year when the days are short, there are coughs, colds, flu and worse doing the rounds and if we’re not careful we end up sick, burnt out and thoroughly fed up. As such I thought that it would be a good time to revisit something I wrote about the importance of me-time.

Happy New Year!

Here we are. A fresh new year. In my last blog and in episode 30 of my podcast I talked about the benefits of choosing an intention for the year, usually in the form of just one word so it’s easily memorable. I also promised that I’d share mine.

So, this year my intention is JOY!

The big day is almost upon us. Are you all done or still running around buying gifts and food and wrapping presents? Even though I’m writing this early I can confidently say that by the time you’re reading this I will be done as I’m due to have chemo on 21st and whatever isn’t done before then won’t be getting done!

As always as we approach this last couple of weeks of the year my mind turns not just to Christmas but to the New Year and thoughts about what my word, my intention for next year will be. I usually use the time between Christmas and New Year to make my decision.

One of the things I like the most about Christmas is not the day itself or the presents but the anticipation!

There can be so much joy in anticipation if we allow ourselves to experience it. Often it’s half the fun. The anticipation of a holiday is as lovely as the holiday itself whether it’s your annual summer getaway or the time off you’re going to enjoy over Christmas.

It’s that time of year again. It’s a month since the clocks went back and only a month away from the shortest day. I have made no secret of the fact that I find winter tricky. Seasonal affected disorder means that my mood can take a nosedive and my anxiety levels rocket. Not fun. Regular readers will know that every season I choose to be intentional about the things I want to savour and enjoy. This is especially important to me in winter to look after my wellbeing and mental health.

As this blog is being published on 11th November – Remembrance Day I thought it would be a good day to revisit something I wrote a couple of years ago about remembering those who’ve gone before us.

In my spiritual tradition the whole of November is dedicated to remembering and praying for the dead. We celebrating All Saints’ Day on 1st November and All Souls’ Day on 2nd November. These are important feasts when we remember those who’ve gone before us.

This may sound morbid but in fact it's a great celebration to honour those who we have loved and have left this world. It's also such a good opportunity to remember and honour what they left with us.

I have to confess that I’ve never been a huge fan of Halloween. As a child we played duck apple and trying to eat the sticky bun hanging from a string with our hands behind our back. It was never a big thing in our house. There was no trick or treating, especially at that time here in the UK the trick or treaters expected to be given a bit of spare change rather than sweets so it was basically door to door begging in my parent’s eyes! I never felt I was missing out. There was not lots of talk at school about who was dressing as what or of parties. It just wasn’t a big deal.

That said I’m not a complete killjoy. I love seeing children enjoying themselves at Halloween, dressed up, accompanied by a responsible adult calling at the houses that have decorated for Halloween. That seems to be the code in our local area. The children can knock at the doors and yell “Trick or treat!” as loudly as they like at the houses where they have put the Halloween decorations up. I have to confess to really enjoying the year that my sister dressed my then two-year-old nephew as a pumpkin and let him answer the door to the trick or treaters. That and the Halloween episode of Peppa Pig! Best Halloween ever.

At the beginning of April last year when we were in the very early stages of lockdown I wrote a blog with this same title. I was reflecting on how much things had changed so very quickly. How so much we thought was within our control turned out not to be and the effect that was having on me and those around me. For some people turning to food for comfort was a thing. For others, like me, it was a struggle to manage the normal three meals a day thanks to the stress and uncertainty.

I decided to focus on the things that I could control. To ensure that how I spent my time, what I chose to eat and drink would nourish me and help me thrive in difficult circumstances. I could control what I read, watched, who I video called etc. I could also choose to exercise daily and get out in the fresh air and daylight.