Appreciation – such a beautiful word. It means: Recognition and enjoyment of the good qualities of someone or something. A full understanding of a situation. I often sit (or stand) back and look at my life with appreciation.  How wonderful life feels right now and how...

When we think of creativity we often think of art and painting or beautiful crafts. And if we're not very good at any of those things we make statements like "I'm not creative". Except we're ALL creative in our own way. I used to say "I'm not creative" regularly...

We tend to think of feeling joy when things are going well. And of course it’s easy to be joyful when life is good. However I’ve discovered that in truth instead of joy being something we experience when things are going well – joy is actually something which comes...

Interestingly I sat down to write about the Gift of Appreciation today but nothing was flowing. So I looked to see what other gifts I could write about and the Gift of Nourishment leapt out of me. Quite topical for this busy time of year when there are endless jobs to...

Many people have told me they are inspired by my blogging challenge – they are cheering me on and are impressed at my dedication. I’m impressed myself because had I undertaken this challenge at the beginning of 2018 there was no way I would have blogged consistently...

A few years ago I was at an event totally enthralled by one of the speakers. She was amazing – the whole audience loved her. She was an expert in her field, authentic and spoke with such integrity – everyone wanted to learn from her. I was in awe of who she was and...

How much should I charge? This is a question that gets asked a lot, and one many people (including me) agonise over! No matter what business we’re in – whether we’re selling shampoo, clothing, consultancy, coaching – or even doing Airbnb - there’s a huge price range....

Christmas is a time of giving. I love to give gifts! I put a lot of thought and love into sending gifts I think people will like.  I don't always get it right but I hope people can feel the effort and love that goes into it. However there was a time when I would give...

I was scrolling though Facebook (as you do) when I saw this in my feed: It turns out this person paid £400 for a phone and then the person she paid disappeared off the face off the earth!  She had paid via Paypal but used the friends and family option which has little...

In yesterday's blog post I spoke about my experience with BNI - and how I had a filter running through my head which meant I wouldn't consider it as an option to it being a possible lead source for my business. I had an "already knowing" about it which meant I was...

Today I went to a networking meeting in my home town.  As I hadn’t done any face to face networking for over a year, I was slightly apprehensive about going (you had to give the 1 minute spiel which I’m not a big fan of) but I was also excited.  I had been...

How well do you know your own rhythm and process? Are you familiar with how you operate naturally?  Or how you might be sabotaging your own natural rhythm which in turn perpetuates a “not good enough” story? This is something I’ve been exploring over the past...

Do you ever hesitate doing something because you’re concerned it might not work? That something sounds great but you don’t say yes because you’re worried it won’t deliver the outcome you want?  Or maybe you’re afraid you won’t follow through? We’re even more cautious...

One of the things I would beat myself up about over and over was not getting things done. For more years than I care to admit I would go to bed wondering where the day had gone feeling like I’d not achieved anything. I would start the day full of enthusiasm with a...

Do you see yourself as a “work in progress”? Whenever I hear someone say that about themselves I want to scream “no you’re not.  You're an extraordinary, amazing human being." When we look at a little baby or a young child we don’t see them as a “work in...

  Is a lack of time something that stops you doing all the things you’d love to do?  Often we’re so busy doing everything we have to do – going to work, running a busy, endless meetings, bringing up a family, cooking, cleaning, supporting others – that’s there’s...

So here we are, exactly one week into December and the craziness of Christmas.  Every year I tell myself “next year I’ll be more organised and start preparing for Christmas sooner”.  And every year December 1st comes round and all I’ve done is start thinking about...

3 weeks ago I wrote to my email community inspired to share something that had moved me to tears.  Marianne Williamson is campaigning to stand for President. My FB feed was full of the news and it touched me so deeply I felt compelled to share it with my community. ...

It’s day 2 of my 30 day blogging challenge! “What shall I write about today?” I ask myself. Quickly followed by: “It doesn’t matter Melina, pick a topic and write!  You don’t have time to spend hours choosing!” “Ooh but should I talk about magic being in the moment...

I’m sat here, at my desk doing my usual (frustrating) thing of “struggling to write to you” (it’s getting very tedious!) Having a gazillion (ok half a dozen) topics of what I could write about that you’d probably find helpful/interesting/inspiring. I could: Share some...

There are moments when I wish I just had a job – a job I could go to, work my hours, know exactly what I’m doing, do it, and go home. I experienced one of those moments last week, as I struggled – yet again – to write a newsletter to my email subscribers.  I figured...

For the past 5 days I have been getting up at 6am. Which may seem like no big deal if you’re an early riser – but for me it’s huge because “I don’t do mornings!” I love nothing better than a lie in! So when my mentor suggested an experiment of 6am starts I thought it...

I first heard the term “happy place” last year.   It was a description of the holiday destination of a dear friend of mine. Within a couple of days I then heard several other people mention their “happy place”. It really had an impact on me – this concept of a “happy...

It’s always wonderful to receive great feedback like this from a consultation: “Thank you so much for today!  Made more progress in a day than I have in months.”...

“Holding Space” was not the topic I intended writing about when I sat down this morning!  And indeed like all my writing this email has meandered and changed course several times prior to it appearing here! Over the past few months (probably the past few...

If you’ve ever wondered why things seem to work wonderfully for some people and not for others no matter how hard they try, chances are it’s because what they’re doing (or trying to do) is out of alignment with who they are. Being human we have a tendency to put a LOT...

Last week I wrote a blog post entitled “When ….then …. the search for that final missing piece” You can read it here:  https://www.melinaabbott.com/when-then-the-search-for-that-final-missing-piece Well, that post nearly didn’t get published! Before I uploaded it I...

So here I am, once again with a blank screen in front of me, wondering what to write. To simply start and see what flows? Or pick a topic and write something that will educate, inspire and help move you forward on your own journey to …. To …. Which is where I always...

Over in Wonderland we are exploring our relationship with time. This week we’ve been looking at getting things done and how distractions often get in the way! You know, you wake up in the morning with lots of plans (usually in your head), but then one thing leads to...

It is a beautiful spring day in Shropshire and I have opened the French doors which lead onto our front garden and I’m enjoying a lovely cup of tea whilst writing to you. Feeling very blessed that I am able to sit down, relaxed and at ease, feeling the gentle breeze...

In the past month in my Facebook Group we have been exploring The Art of Receiving – and in particular how to receive what you truly want.  If you’d like to join the conversation you can do so by clicking on the link below and asking to join:  Join the conversation...

Yay!  Another day of glorious sunshine.  Isn't there something about sunlight that just lifts your spirits? At last spring has arrived. And what never ceases to amaze me is how quickly things can change – in just a few days flowers are blooming and the trees are...

Somewhere deep inside of you there’s a part of you that wants to be unleashed. A part of you that wants to sing, to dance, to laugh, to run, to fly... A part of you that craves freedom above everything else. It’s time … Time for that part of you to come...

I recorded a brief video whilst out walking the dog to wish you a very Happy New Year. I hope 2018 brings you all your heart's desires.

What do you really want? (When I ask those words I always hear the Spice Girls singing – which I think is probably the perfect juxtaposition between something very deep and profound and something very light-hearted and trivial). I believe asking the question “what do...

I believe that the number of gifts we receive is directly proportional to how good we are at receiving. And I am talking about all gifts – support, love, help … not just actual physical gifts. Several years ago I went through a phase of winning something in every...

Today is National Stress Awareness Day! I awoke to posts on my Facebook feed asking what steps we take to manage stress. Stress has become so much a part of our lives that managing stress is considered to be very important skill to learn. But whilst I’ve seen many...

In the personal development world it is often recommended that we publicly announce our commitments – maybe not to the whole world, but certainly in a nurturing group who will hold us accountable and support us when we fall down. I joined a group in June to support me...

Do you ever get that feeling? That you hate your life? Or is it just me? Because right now that’s EXACTLY how I feel. And no, don’t worry I’m not going to give you a sob story about my woes and precisely what it is I hate about my life! Instead I’m going to share some...

Well, it’s been a while since I blogged! I took most of August off and it's taken me longer to get back into the swing of things than I anticipated. I spent a wonderful 2 weeks in Corfu where it felt like time stopped. No emails, very little Facebook, just lots of...

Do you ever feel that you’re the only one who thinks a certain way? That if you tell people what you actually believe and how you actually feel they’ll cast you out quicker than you can say “but that’s not what I meant”? That in a group situation you always feel that...

Imagine waking up each and every morning with a feeling of excitement and joy bubbling up inside of you. Knowing that today is going to be amazing – no matter what happens. You know the feeling – the one you get at the start of your holidays, on the eve of a big...