Going after something GRAND – By Amy Collinson
Going after something GRAND - By Amy Collinson
Going after something GRAND – By Amy Collinson
I am on the road again! I decided to hit the road and spend this summer exploring different stables and systems. My plan for the next few months is slightly unknown but I am just going with it – once again embracing the gypsy life. I packed up my life, my two horses and the cat then headed off to the first stop – PRZ Dornermuhle, Singen, Germany. It was a 950km road trip from Normandy, France which meant I had to drive through Paris. Normally driving through Paris is fairly easy, you get to see the Eiffel Tower in the distance before heading off the ring road onto the highway direction Lyon. However, this time as I approached the Lyon exit, I noticed it was blocked off. This meant the only option was to continue with the horse truck into the center of Paris!
Next minute I can see the Arc de Triomphe!!! Panic suddenly set in, I decided to put my hazard lights on and pull over. Luckily, I had my friend Christina following behind in the car. She decided to take the lead and guide me as she could drive ahead to see if the roads were ok for the truck. We managed well and ended up driving along the seine past the Louvre and Notre-dame. Upsilon, ET and Mandy got their tour of Paris. After that escapade we made it to our night stop in Barbizon at 1am. The second trip went well, I had to drive through the mountains in the black forest which was a little scary but so beautiful. One of turns the speed limit was 10km so you can imagine how tight it was!! I was surprised we did not get stopped once during the trip. Not from COVID or from trucking in Paris! Fear nearly held me back from this adventure but I pushed through. An interesting reflection from this is it shows all the fear of what you think might happen is mostly a waste of time. Sometimes you have to set yourself up and take a leap of courage.
Recently I have been sharing many ideas with an acquaintance from Waikato University – Jarrod Saxton. We started talking after I linked in with Matthew Hussey through zoom during one of his live self-improvement webinars. I had a cool opportunity to talk to Matthew and share to the 800 viewers about my love of riding horses. That little moment is what started the initial conversations about performance type ideas with Jarrod.
Jarrod then asked if I would be interested in testing out his new life purpose process. I agreed but I was wondering what value could be added? As I have already found what I love and currently following it. However, I was surprised by the new insights attained from his process. One of the cool points was looking into how I trap myself into continuing on my journey, and the fact this is what makes it easier to take that leap of courage. Jarrod also helped me to further connect to my “WHY” this helped me understand the reason I am continuing with the Show Jumping. This point helped me further understand the difference between core confidence vs surface confidence (this is something for you, the reader to research!). It further showed me that my journey is not about the results, it is about all the connections made and the lessons learnt on the way – like how to cope with stress and feeling vulnerable, for example driving a truck past the Arc de Triomphe.
An interesting side of this is I often find myself questioning what I am doing and worry if it is heading anywhere worthy of the time and effort. I would have moments where I would stress myself out thinking – what if I never get to a level admirable of sacrificing that “normal” life style. Jarrod helped me structure a better road map which has given my mind (basket of cats) some peace. This all relieved my stress as it connects everything back to the true WHY. It also connects to the important point that going after something grand is what gives you the important foundations to build core confidence and happiness. Whether you make it or does not matter – it is like that saying “aim for the moon even if you miss you will be amongst the stars.” The result at the end is just icing on an already good banana cake. Those of you who know banana cake, will understand that a good one does not need any icing.
As you can see after completing Jarrod’s new process, I have gained a few more interesting insights, I would recommend linking in with him if you feel like you need more direction or if you would like to further connect to your WHY. I now have many new ideas and scary goals to continue on my journey. First up is to create a Ted Talk – say tuned for the story about that new struggle. But I now know whether I fail or win I’ll still grin.
jarrod@jarrodsaxton.com
