As I sat back and hit ‘Publish’ on Amazon KDP, I let out a huge sigh. It’s a strange anti-climax after 3 years of working on something, to click a button and realise you’re ‘done’! Of course, this moment is only the beginning in some ways.
The next moment I began to wonder: what happens now? I don’t know what is going to happen with the book once it is available to buy. Will people buy it? Will people enjoy reading it? Will it help them to see things differently in their life? Maybe some might start to look at themselves and the life they are living in a slightly different way. Maybe it will inspire them to see that they are not the victim of their life and the body they live in. There is a different way to look at life, yourself and your health; I feel the sense of it every single day.
I let those thoughts pass and go with the flow. The truth is, I was going with the flow at least most of the time I was writing the book! I wasn’t overly attached to a deadline, how many pages it might have, or how it might turn out. I just let the words flow out of me. Now and then I thought it was done, but it always needed more. Here and there it needed something else and over time, it came together. Somehow, don’t ask me how, I persisted and even enjoyed it. I loved revisiting what I teach others: that my experience is created from passing thought.
I had some moments of feeling utterly frustrated that it still wasn’t finished and there were more changes needed, I took a step back, put the writing to one side and did something else for a while. I knew my experience would change and then I would be able to continue.
Creativity unfolds if you give it a place to just be. That’s why often in the middle of the night when our minds are quiet, we come up with brilliant ideas. Whether you’re out in nature or sitting on a busy tube or train, it is not where you are or what you’re doing that matters. The moment when a lot of unnecessary thought disappears, when all the chatter, overthinking and self-judgment falls away: that’s when creativity sparks into life.
Another big challenge for me in writing this book was of course that English is not my native language. Who would have thought that I, a German-speaker, would ever write an English book. Not me! Back in school I actually wanted to learn French, but my teacher advised my parents to encourage me to concentrate on my English. It never ceases to amaze me how life works out.
Life often leads us down the path we least expect. Sometimes we assume when we want something, we just need to continue trying hard and it will work out. But life has its own way to deliver. Writing this book has been a great reminder that the more I go with the flow, rather than being attached to the outcome, the less frustration I feel and the more magic I invite into my life.
Conflict happens within us when we want our lives to look different from how they are presented to us. Don’t forget, intelligence is behind every step you take. I felt that very much whilst writing this book. Even up until the last day when I was making the final changes to the manuscript, I saw things I hadn’t seen before: spelling mistakes, missing full stops and so on. But at some point I had to let it all go. The book is done now and I truly hope it serves as a guide to help you live the life you want to live.