Leaving Your Comfort Zone: The Courage to Follow Your Calling

[00:00:00] LuRae: Welcome. I have a very special guest today, Sarah Hussain. She is the founder of SOM. She's a former engineer turned spiritual and wisdom coach. And she will, I would love you to share more around yourself and then we'll talk through how you made that transition and how you're here touching the world and changing the world.

[00:00:30] Sarah: Yeah, thank you for having me, LuRae. It's so nice to meet you and so nice to finally be chatting here on your show.

[00:00:39] LuRae: So great. So great. So talk about your path coming through your education and engineering to the realization that you were. Wanting to shift direction. That is really an interesting story.

[00:00:55] Sarah: Yeah, yeah, of course. Let's I was thinking I'll give a brief introduction about myself. Um, and then, as you said, when the shift happened, so the engineering to a spiritual advisor and founder of song. Um, so I grew up in a very academic family, and we were all quite passionate about learning and getting.

[00:01:21] Sarah: Excellence in education. That was the main theme as I was growing up. I have a family of 6 daughters and my parents. Um, and yeah, that was the main focus on the family and, um, I grew up, became an engineer and very academic oriented and, um, what started to happen around the time I graduated was there were 2 things happening simultaneously.

[00:01:46] Sarah: 1st was, I was now out of a system which would incentivize me to do good, right? I was out of this education system where you do well, and you get a good grade, you go higher, and then you do well, you get a better grade, then you get to university, you choose a major that you like, you graduate with good grades, you get internships you like, um, and so on.

[00:02:06] Sarah: So I'm out of that system now, and I'm into the corporate world where I'm not really being facilitated by a university anymore. I'm on my own. And I have to carve my way out myself, so whatever it is that I want to make out of my life. Now it is in my hands. Um, so this was happening and it come, it came with a little bit of a cultural shock for me, because at the time I was in Turkey when I graduated from engineering and I, though I did, you know, though I did.

[00:02:36] Sarah: A semester in Calgary in Canada. I was a still very much, um, in the European Turkish sort of that kind of culture. Um, and then when you come to North America, there is a shift of a culture, but also it's a completely new space for me and I don't have friends and I don't know the people here and I now have to make alliances, but I also want to, you know, mingle and be part of the corporate community. So that with the economic situation in the oil and gas was a factor, which got me quite sad because I wasn't able to, you know. Make as many friends as like, because life is different after university. You don't have all those opportunities to make friendships and you don't have, you know, the, um.

[00:03:28] Sarah: Enthusiasm as well, because you already have friends and now you're like, oh, I'm in a new space and I don't know how to interact. So I was coming with a lot of that. And I was also feeling like, oh. You know, now that I'm not in a system where I'm being incentivized, I'm really getting a chance to look within and see if this is something I would love to do as a petroleum and natural gas engineer.

[00:03:51] Sarah: Is this something that I want to do for the rest of my life? Is this going to give me fulfillment? Um, so I still, I still got into. The workforce, I still started working, um, and I was, it was difficult to get a job at that time. Um, but I pushed through and I was getting roles, not ideally what I would love, but I was getting roles in the sales, um, you know, domain and other areas, which were connected to oil and gas. And so I was now, you know, working, feeling not so fulfilled and also feeling spiritually inclined to talk about spirituality and to zone in and, you know, lean more into spirituality because, um, I was. Yeah, and I should mention this at this moment before I forget about this as I was growing up. I was born with certain gifts, so I would be able to, you know, have heightened intuition, um, have a good understanding.

[00:04:52] Sarah: With, you know, when it came to other people, relationships, empathy, um, but also have a little bit more insight than normal for people of my age, whenever I would talk to people, talk to others, or talk, you know, talk to people who have complex situations out there, and I just have a little bit more wisdom to share. And I thought that is it. I thought I'm just, you know.

[00:05:13] LuRae: Right.

[00:05:14] Sarah: Um, and I'm just, I just have a good, you know, intuition and a good, good feeling about things and it works out. And that is all, um, but what is starting to happen for me that a feeling unfulfilled in a corporate world and be realizing that, you know, my spirituality is when I talk to other people in my, um, atmosphere,

[00:05:39] LuRae: Mm hmm.

[00:05:40] Sarah: not only able to understand it the way I understand it, So I thought, wow, there is a true disconnect between spiritualism and science. Science doesn't really talk about spirituality, and science doesn't talk about a lot of the areas of spirituality which are so true to the human experience. So, how do I bridge the gap?

[00:06:01] LuRae: Mm hmm.

[00:06:01] Sarah: talked to my friends who are also engineers, um, Most of them almost all of them. Um, they just happen to be quite, um, scientifically driven.

[00:06:12] Sarah: They wanted to know the rationale they wanted to know the science behind it. And I felt myself quite dumbfounded in those conversations because I didn't have much to share. So that was a thought. You know, that was something that was going on. Um, but that was not when the shift happened. A few years went by like this.

[00:06:32] Sarah: I kept feeling, feeling unfulfilled. Um, and also I started to have life experiences, which were really difficult, you know, traumatic, just challenging life situations. Um, and. I would, you know, it'd be related to family. It'd be related to love life. And it was just really difficult. Um, and I just didn't understand how to kind of, how to make the most of it.

[00:07:01] Sarah: You know, it just really, really was difficult at the time. Um, and around COVID time is when I was healing from those challenges. Um, so. What started to happen for me was that I went back to my spirituality to heal, and I started to really, you know, go within. Um, it was such a dark time for me, LuRae, that I felt that a human being won't be able to heal me. So I could talk to a therapist, I can, you know, take help, but I don't think anybody can heal me the way I want to be healed. I'm really, really upset. And I'm disappointed in so many things. So, but I do believe life is still beautiful and I do want to, you know, live enthusiastically, um, something out of my life, but I'm so I feel so defeated in career too.

[00:07:52] Sarah: I don't. feel fulfilled in what I'm doing. so during COVID is when I really started to meditate and dive deep into spirituality, started to really, um, facilitate my healing, hoping to get somewhere, you know, hoping to feel alive and happy and peaceful. And, you know, it's okay. Um, I can still build. With what I have again, um, so what I started to get was that there's a lot of resourcefulness when you start to meditate.

[00:08:23] Sarah: I started to feel that I have a lot of support from the angelic realm When I say these things, I'm completely aware that some people are like, what are you talking about? And you're like, wrong, um, but that's what I witnessed. Um, so around that time, uh, during COVID, um, after life challenges, I'm feeling very defeated.

[00:08:46] Sarah: Now I'm going back to spirituality.

[00:08:48] LuRae: Mm hmm.

[00:08:48] Sarah: into my meditative skills to heal, to empower myself, to find peace again. Um, I started to also notice that my spiritual gifts are awakening. So I would be able to, you know, before I had heightened intuition somewhat, you know, I had also really good empathy, right?

[00:09:06] Sarah: As I mentioned, when people had something to share, I would have just more insights to share. And I thought just good at figuring things out when I listen to them. Even though the information may be limited, I just have a good maybe imagination or idea of what it must have happened, but it was actually more than that. Um, I realized that when I was meditating and getting into my own spiritual awakening, that that was people's consciousness that I was able to pick up information from.

[00:09:34] LuRae: Wow.

[00:09:35] Sarah: So. I was like, Oh, this is, this is really cool. And particularly third eye meditation, just opening up the third eye. That was, um, I think that shifted a lot for me.

[00:09:48] Sarah: Cause now from picking up information when somebody's talking to me, I'm able to visually see, you know, what must have happened. So,

[00:09:57] LuRae: Mm.

[00:09:58] Sarah: seeing through space and time. Just became a lot more visual for me right before it was Understanding through when I'm meeting somebody through my feelings and the information I'm getting and my imagination, you know as what must have happened And now after meditation Number of meditations my third eye opened up and whatever I was feeling.

[00:10:21] Sarah: I'm also seeing I'm also getting the But I you know, I'm also Getting a lot of other information from this virtual world now. So, because I'm so in tune, I'm getting wisdom. I'm getting messages. I'm getting spiritual guidance. I'm getting intuitive hints as to what will happen, how I can, you know, help people, what I can tell them, how I can help them heal.

[00:10:45] Sarah: And I was like, oh, this is really, really interesting. Um, so I started sharing that with my family and they already were aware, you know, that. Because I already had that a little bit of that, but I was like, no, you know, there is, I think, I think there's something more and I feel very confident now that I can help people and I feel that there's something I need to explore and so.

[00:11:10] Sarah: So I'll have my siblings come sit with me and go like, okay, you know, just can you read me like Because they were always they knew from the beginning but it was during that time that everything was solidified So we're like, okay, let's do it all over again, you know And so I would read them

[00:11:28] LuRae: Mm.

[00:11:29] Sarah: and that happened things that told me things they didn't tell me And, you know, things that were really personal to them

[00:11:36] LuRae: Mm.

[00:11:38] Sarah: only they knew about it in their consciousness and, you know, what must, what must have happened in the past with a certain person or in a certain situation, um, why they were led to that.

[00:11:49] Sarah: So, spiritual guidance as to, you know, from source as to why they were in that situation, what needed to happen. If there is an ailment that they're struggling with, what needs to happen for that ailment? So understanding that there is healing that I've learned to do. There's also reading, but it's spiritual guidance.

[00:12:07] Sarah: There's a whole spectrum of things and that was quite enlightening and I loved it. I felt like there's so much there that I can do to help someone. It really transforms. The trajectory of their life. Um, so yeah, that is where Psalm started.

[00:12:27] LuRae: That's so good. You had like a built in clientele. Your sisters who are ready for you to, yeah, practice and yeah, and thank goodness they were open to you.

[00:12:41] Sarah: They were open. Yeah. Um, and you know, they were distressed because of their own experiences and they were friends and then we had, you know, neighbors and relatives and, um, it just started to be like one of those things like, hey, why don't you talk to my sister? Talk to my sister. She can help you out. And then now they're reaching out to me and then I'm helping them out in their life situations.

[00:13:01] Sarah: And that started to open me up into the possibility Of having a full on, you know, business where I'm like, I will be helping people. I'll get the opportunity to do this because now this is what I'm meant to be doing. I'm meant to be of service, but I can also research on consciousness and tell people about it through the lens of science.

[00:13:22] LuRae: Right. Which is so cool. I want to go back to, I think just for a minute, because people listening to this, so many people get to the place of going a certain direction, making certain decisions, then thinking, Oh no, I can't change now. It's too late. I'm too, it's too late for me to do something else. Or I've got.

[00:13:47] LuRae: Like they can't see their way clear to transition out. And I think sometimes people, many people will, it's common for people to resort to substances to block it, to block whether it's drinking after work or it's, you know, some other kind of substance just to, or it's shopping or it's some other distraction to not have to look at that.

[00:14:11] LuRae: So I just commend you for. Taking the steps to, you know, heal yourself, recognizing what was going on. I think that COVID period woke many people up and, and it was a catalyst for, for transformation for those who are, who were willing and ready to do that. So I just wanted to comment on that because. It would have been easy, you know, had you been inclined for some other direction, but you stayed the course, went through the process of inner work, exploring yourself.

[00:14:47] LuRae: And now you're, I think it's one of the best ways to start a business is teach others what you've learned and conquered for yourself. Um, because you've got all of the lessons that you learned along the way to get you where you are now.

[00:15:03] Sarah: yeah, yeah. Thank you for bringing in that perspective. Um, and, you know, it was not easy. Um, it was really, really difficult. Um, and I remember there were, I think I talked to you about this too in our 1st meeting. There were so many sleepless nights, you know, there were a lot of sleepless nights in the beginning of covid because you're pretty much left with yourself

[00:15:28] LuRae: Right.

[00:15:28] Sarah: and the world is.

[00:15:32] LuRae: Chaos.

[00:15:32] Sarah: what was happening. It was hard to dig out anything out of it. Right. So, um, I was, yeah, I was just left by myself. I was in an apartment in downtown Calgary living by myself cause I needed that space to heal. Um, and I, yeah, I was just like, wow, now, you know, social media is the only means to connect with people.

[00:15:55] Sarah: And, um. You cannot meet people because social distancing. So you're really pretty much left with your own devices to do anything difficult that you're dealing with. And I was going through this very difficult healing journey where I'd be crying quite a bit and I would be, you know, I was like, wow, I'm hurting because I was going through challenges.

[00:16:16] Sarah: As I mentioned, I was recovering from them. And I was also, you know, then I look at my career and I'm not fulfilled. I was like, I don't know what I'm doing in life. Um, so yeah, just going back to that part, Luray, which you were talking about where a lot of people, they feel very discouraged, a hundred percent.

[00:16:34] Sarah: It is a difficult thing to do. It is sometimes unfathomable. Um, because You know, you just don't know what to do about it, what to do about feeling unfulfilled. You can talk to your friends, you can talk to your coworkers, you can talk to other people, you can listen to stories, but those things just give you a hint that there's something going on.

[00:16:58] LuRae: Right.

[00:16:59] Sarah: The real work starts when you look within, and that is when you actually have a conversation with yourself, with your higher consciousness, and you realize. I'm unfulfilled because I'm just not in the right space at the moment. Um, and I need to make some changes and I don't know what those changes are.

[00:17:18] Sarah: So I really encourage people to like tune into their higher self because that is where they will find answers, which, you know, higher self consciousness. When you tune into that, um, yeah, that is where you find the answers. Everybody else just hints to you that, yeah, you know, sure. You're not unfulfilled and there is something wrong.

[00:17:37] Sarah: Um, But you're left with little to work with. You're given advice as to what you can do, but you're left with little to work with. Um, and it is only when you tune in with yourself, which we'll talk about, um, in a bit, um, that is when you start forming your

[00:17:55] LuRae: Right.

[00:17:56] Sarah: and you start being guided.

[00:17:58] LuRae: Yeah. Absolutely. I mean, it's making me, it's taking me back to like 2015 when I left my agency role in our ad agency role in New York City. And you know, I was getting, I had gotten loud messages, you know, from my higher self and you know, external that, you know, it's time to move on. It's time to not be doing this anymore.

[00:18:22] LuRae: And I think it made me also think of, you know, even scrolling through LinkedIn, I think there are, you know, there are a lot of people, you know, and it's no different than social media, people will put out a life or a version of themself that everything's okay, like I'm, I've got the, I've got this, or I, this latest thing happened and look at me celebrating whatever, and I know from walking through it that what appearances aren't always what's just as you were alluding to is not what's going on.

[00:18:51] LuRae: And the longer we drag that out, I remember having the question to my, that I asked myself one day, walking from the bathroom back to my office, when will my sentence be up? And it almost like it was a cage I had created around myself that all I needed to do was make the decision, take the steps and get out, which is partly why.

[00:19:12] LuRae: I started You Can Be Free because we can all be free. It's a matter of realizing we do have choices. We do have options that may, to your point, we may not know exactly what the next thing is to do, but at least giving ourself permission to acknowledge how we really feel about our life and what we're doing with our time, that time is the one thing we'd never get back.

[00:19:37] LuRae: It's an investment once it's made. You can get money back, you can get a car back, you can get possessions, but time, there's nothing you can do. People on their, you know, with terminal illnesses will get their anything to have the time, you know, to, or their health back. So yeah. Anyway, that, that, I think to that point of we get nudges from the universe and it's so important to be brave enough.

[00:20:05] LuRae: And step out and if you're not feeling confident, just doing it by yourself, reach out and connect with someone like you, someone like me, whoever, get, connect with someone to walk through that process because it can be overwhelming.

[00:20:20] Sarah: yeah. Um, and I was noticing that the people I'm speaking with are mostly people who are, um, very happy where they're at. They haven't yet made any changes. So, I thought that, well, I didn't know whether they will have the right suggestions for me because they haven't walked my path.

[00:20:40] LuRae: hmm.

[00:20:41] Sarah: And then I remember reading a post to social media.

[00:20:44] Sarah: It's like, you know, it's, we're so in, um, we're, We're in the algorithm, and so it just gives us the right post. Sometimes I read a post, which said, go to people who have walked the path of the people who are where you are something along those lines and that was pretty accurate. Um, so, yeah, to what you were saying.

[00:21:08] Sarah: 110 percent um. You know, you really have to tune in and you have to have a very honest conversation with your consciousness. Otherwise it does hurt. Um, and it's not great. Um,

[00:21:24] LuRae: And I mean, I'm remembering a reflection also because I had graduated from the New York Open Center, um, and coaching for transformation. And I hired one of my peers to coach me as I was wanting to leave New York so desperately and felt there were, I had so many stories of why. Why I couldn't do it.

[00:21:44] LuRae: And I remember sitting on a park bench, you know, talking with her on the phone and she made a comment and asked, made a statement back to one of the sentences I had said, because I said it was some excuse. And she said, is that the truth or is that a story you're telling yourself? And it just stopped me in my tracks because it wasn't like, Oh, I didn't think I could do the same or make as much or whatever that thing was.

[00:22:11] LuRae: And many times we're not able to. Catch the stories and tell someone outside ourselves, interjects and just poses that question and it can just be that was such a profound to this day. I don't know that she knows that was such a profound turning point because I literally went back to my apartment and reached out and contacted.

[00:22:34] LuRae: People that I knew where I wanted to go and literally within less than a month, I was packed and moved and in a brand new role at that point, I was working, you know, in the SILNA agency world, but I was on the West Coast. That was where I wanted to be and. It just, it took just someone outside myself to interject that, breaking the cycle of the thoughts to think a new thought.

[00:22:56] LuRae: And so, yeah, so good.

[00:22:59] Sarah: very wonderful and very timely as well for you.

[00:23:03] LuRae: Yeah.

[00:23:04] Sarah: Yeah,

[00:23:05] LuRae: So talk a little bit about your science background with spirituality and, and your thinking around that because I think that's so fascinating.

[00:23:16] Sarah: yeah. So, um, around that time when I wanted to start some, I was noticing that a lot of people still do not understand consciousness, especially when it comes to science. Um, there is little, you know. Talk about it in the scientific world. Um, there's research that's ongoing, but there's not enough to talk about consciousness with.

[00:23:38] Sarah: So, um, I started to look into, you know, a lot of institutes around the world at the moment, um, who are doing research on consciousness and then I found. Myself, um, talking with, um, someone called Roland McCruddy, he is president, um, of HeartMath Institute in Pennsylvania, um, and he does research on consciousness. So I connected with Roland, and I wanted to learn about what it is that he's doing, and he was, um, so now I'm a part of a project, what is the Global Consciousness Project. This project, um, and they are studying, um, the consciousness of the world. So in terms of the science part of it, my efforts are to affiliate form affiliations, um, to institutes and, you know, organizations that are working to learn more, um, about consciousness and take that knowledge and share it with people on song talks, which is the podcast.

[00:24:33] Sarah: Um. Independently, I also love to research on consciousness through the lens of quantum mechanics. Um, and a lot of people, um, are now, they're starting to understand that quantum physics does have, you know, um, bits and pieces of spirituality said in a scientific manner, and I think that is useful. Yeah, so talking about that, there, there are parallels between quantum physics, spirituality and philosophy, and it is very interesting to see how the world of philosophy and science and spirituality starts to merge, and I'm fascinated by it, and that is what I started to focus on on the podcast as well.

[00:25:19] Sarah: The podcast also talks a lot about self growth. So, How I work is, I go to those concepts of science, spirituality, and philosophy, and I draw parallels, and then I make it very simple to understand and relatable in one's current life. And from there on comes the suggestions, tips and tricks, wisdom to share how to tackle situations that they may be in.

[00:25:43] LuRae: It's so great because I was reading back through how we initially met through LinkedIn. You know, thank God LinkedIn is such a great connector of people.

[00:25:51] Sarah: Love LinkedIn.

[00:25:51] LuRae: Yes. And, and just reading your focus and then going to, I'm going to link your podcast in the show notes below so people can go and listen because it's so interesting.

[00:26:02] LuRae: I mean, we, the things that you talk about are so. It's just so interesting and the guests that you have, sometimes it's to you and then sometimes you, you know, have a guest, but it's so, all of it is so, so interesting. And I think your scientific approach and thought process is unique and being able to connect the dots that have not been connected yet.

[00:26:25] Sarah: Yeah. Yeah. Thank you for saying that. Um, sorry, you were saying?

[00:26:28] LuRae: Yeah, to connect the consciousness with, you know, how, how the spirituality and, and our,

[00:26:36] Sarah: How we operate?

[00:26:38] LuRae: Yes, absolutely.

[00:26:41] Sarah: Um, about the podcast. So. I was going to say that, um. I will be starting a new season. I am at the moment recording it. So I'm very excited about it. Um, I have this whole, I'm inspired, pretty much inspired. I'm in a really good time in my life where I have a lot of time and I'm in the right space where I can pump out a lot of great material.

[00:27:06] Sarah: Um, so it's going to be all my personal story plus, um, you know, the scientific findings and. Whatever it is that I learned, because the research is ongoing, um, and it is fascinating. It is robust, so I'm very excited to talk about it. Um, and also the healing power our consciousness brings, and how our intentions and actions bring in the healing power, and what it is that we need to sustain, but to also thrive ourselves, um, in the current environment.

[00:27:34] Sarah: Um, so yeah. That's coming out soon. Um, by soon, I mean, um, probably 21st of February, um, and, you know, once you put the link in the, um, description box, they should be able to see the updates once they subscribe.

[00:27:51] LuRae: Yeah. And there's lots of episodes that are past episodes that are so interesting

[00:27:57] Sarah: yeah, you want to, you want to listen to the early Sarah reporting from her apartment during COVID. Yeah, please go back to the first episode. I talk about subconscious mind programming. I still remember everything I talked about because everything is, it's my brainchild. I've thought about it. I've created a framework.

[00:28:15] Sarah: I've talked about it. Um, and so, yeah, it's a labor of love and I, I just, I just love it when people listen to it

[00:28:21] LuRae: Yeah. So good. And, and I know, I mean, the subconscious mind that is fascinating also because of the fact that 95 percent of our daily operating system, we don't think about what we're doing. We just are habitual creatures. So, whatever we've got programmed in our belief system, that is going to orchestrate and drive what we think is possible for us.

[00:28:48] LuRae: And,

[00:28:49] Sarah: for sure.

[00:28:50] LuRae: so do you want to talk a little bit about that in relation to people not feeling like they can make a transition and how to overcome that?

[00:28:56] Sarah: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Um, I wanted to say, Loray, like, those are one of the best things for me to, like, research on, um, and to help people with, um, because I'm a believer. I think it's, it's connected to my personal mission statement that I love to see people changing their trajectories, change. How capable they are and how powerful they are in their beings.

[00:29:23] Sarah: It doesn't matter where they're coming from, what the beginnings were, if they intend to change the trajectory of their life, they can, and they're more than empowered to do that. Um, so yeah, to your, to your question, subconscious mind programming, um, it is, you know, so for people who don't know what it is, um, you are picking up on information ever since you were born.

[00:29:46] Sarah: Even before that, right, even when you were in the room, you're picking up on your information, and it is being collected and stored here in your brain. Um, and then as you grow up, you start to form belief systems, and you start to have perspectives. And, um, now your brain is developed, and it has all this cognitive power to bring forth those belief systems.

[00:30:09] Sarah: Um, And all that, sorry, to to form belief systems, but also bring forth the programming that you have been grown, you have grown up with. So, what it starts to happen is that the programming starts to help us make belief systems.

[00:30:23] LuRae: Yeah. Mm

[00:30:24] Sarah: if somebody is programmed to believe, you know, let's just say, let's just talk about.

[00:30:30] Sarah: Let's just talk about money, because a lot of people, you know, they'd love to understand where the programming is coming from, but as you grow up while you're in the room or you're at home or outside, you're picking up on the information and now you start forming frameworks of how things work and your early systems, which is your early, you know, information that you're getting from your parents, from your grandparents, from your aunts and uncles and adults around you.

[00:30:58] Sarah: Um, They give you an idea of what the world is, and let's say what money is and what it can do for you. So you can either know that money is, you know, you'll form a belief system, which can sound like money is, it's difficult to earn, and it goes by really, really fast. And that can be a belief system as you're now going to school, and then you go to college, you know, university, um, and you're going to notice that what starts to happen with our brain is that we have something here called the, um, RAS. is a system in our brain, which is a filter. It's really fun. Look it up on Google. Um, it is called RAS. It is a filter that we have in our brain. What happens is that when we have a belief system, our brain uses this filter to find evidence in our surroundings to validate that. Yeah. But it's a scary.

[00:31:53] Sarah: What if your belief system is just not all that great? what if you think money is just really difficult to earn and it goes by really really fast and People don't like to give money. So, you know, it's difficult to find jobs and whatnot What's going to happen is that as you move as you put your foot forward in the world?

[00:32:12] Sarah: Your RAS system is activated how that belief is going to be validated by a conversation you're having with a colleague by what you're experiencing and reading on the Internet by what you think is happening in somebody's life around you, you're picking up all of that information and validating the belief system you very rightfully think you had because of that childhood programming because of the programming you grew up with, which is that money is difficult to earn and it goes by really fast. And now what happens is when you're spending, when you're earning, when you're thinking of money, you have that belief system and you never really, you never really fully enjoy earning money because again, it goes by really, really fast and it comes very, you know, comes with a lot of difficulty and you're also straining yourself.

[00:33:03] Sarah: You know what I mean? And that's the path you're going with. Um. And now let's look at another belief system one may have. Um, one can think that money comes easily, and, you know, money comes easily, and when you spend it responsibly and when you're responsible with money, it cultivates into a lot of wealth. So if this is something that is given to them by their parents, especially, you know, whoever is dealing with money at home, if they go like, you know, when you're when you're responsible with money and you invest in it and you, you know, you do this and you did that, you can make a lot from that quantity that you have. It's a great. Knowledge to give to the kids. Um, it's also something really nice to talk about with the youth because the money is what drives everything. So they need to understand what to do and how to think about money. So now, when this child grows up, um, he's going to start forming that belief system.

[00:34:02] Sarah: And through the RS system, whatever it is that he's doing, um, it's going to validate that. So let's say that now he's, you know, investing and he's learning about stocks and he's like, or learning about, you know, different investing, um, possibilities, any kind of gain, any kind of great output is going to validate that belief system in him.

[00:34:24] Sarah: So, um, So, yeah, going through subconscious mind programming, this is just a belief about money, but we have belief about everything, including our own image and what we can do in life. It is all something that we have picked up while we grow up. And so I would say that when you're sitting with yourself and you don't feel that you have, you know, um, a great understanding of who you are, um.

[00:34:51] Sarah: Trust that when you let go of the older programming and you look within, you'll start to find that you have a lot of things to offer and build a belief system based off of that. Ask yourself, tune in, ask what is the belief system that I need to propel forward and you are going to notice that your consciousness is very resourceful.

[00:35:11] Sarah: So, as you sit in meditation and you're asking those questions, you will get the right, precise information that you need to then move on with. Let's say that, you know, um, for as an example, let's say that you're sitting down and you're trying to understand what is the right belief system I need to have about my talents and go to meditation and you're getting the idea that for your talent, um, your belief system is that when you trust your instincts, great things happen. And you come out of meditation and, you know, Now you think you're thinking, okay, when I trust my instincts, so you start tuning into your instincts and you're like, yeah I'm doing great things because when I'm listening to my instincts are actually guiding me through the right path and to do greater things So this is just kind of an idea of how it works Obviously, there is a more you can always learn more, listen to the podcast, you know, engage with the website.

[00:36:08] Sarah: I'm here to write to me your thoughts and ideas, but, um, you know, working on yourself. And I know that you're going to agree with me already, because you have been on the path is 1 of the most rewarding things. That you can do for yourself, you can do for your life, for the generations to come, for everybody around you.

[00:36:27] Sarah: It is so empowering to be empowered in yourself, and it is also empowering for other people to be around you and learn from you.

[00:36:35] LuRae: Absolutely. Yeah. So when you talk about that, the RAS, Reticular Activating System, yeah, I'm so familiar with that and, and the dynamics of how our beliefs, how our beliefs shape what we think is possible because we're meaning making machines. We will look for, oh, this thing happens, so that must mean this, and whatever it is, we will find a way to tie it back to that belief without even realizing, oh, I am just running on autopilots, and one of the things I've done it also is this.

[00:37:09] LuRae: You know, had written for even myself, write down what, you know, what are the beliefs around each of the major, major categories, you know, like money, relationships, my belief system, work, where I live, you know, and then what is, what is my belief around that? And then what, if it's, if whatever the limiting part of that is right on the opposite side of the paper, the opposite.

[00:37:34] LuRae: of that belief. And so money doesn't grow on trees or only the best people get the good jobs or, you know, I, I'm not cut out to be an entrepreneur. What's the opposite of that? I am capable of learning. All new things I and, and, you know, I am abundant and all my needs are met and like the contrast of that and to the point of writing it on an index card and carrying it around with you and referring to it because rewiring our subconscious mind, we have to, it's repetition, repetition, repetition,

[00:38:09] Sarah: Oh

[00:38:09] LuRae: which is there like the three, six, nine method where you write whatever your affirmation is and feel it.

[00:38:15] LuRae: You know, three times in the morning, six times midday, nine times before you go to sleep and go to sleep with that thought and feeling of whatever that thing is that you're wanting to attract, maybe it's transitioning out into your ideal income way of working and helping make the world a better place. thing I was going to say is 2025 is a year of shedding. I think people, we've been going through this since, since the, you know, the bell went off with COVID's here and, and we've all been going through whatever that process was of either accepting everything that was being said or, you know, questioning everything that's being said.

[00:38:57] LuRae: And we're going to feel And if anyone listening to this, if you're feeling uncomfortable in your own skin or where you are at or what's happening in your life, it's because you are meant to shift, you're meant to let go of whatever that thing is that isn't really you,

[00:39:16] Sarah: Yeah.

[00:39:17] LuRae: a subconscious belief you picked up when you were younger, something that's been reinforced that isn't you.

[00:39:24] LuRae: And I can see you, you're in agreement with that one.

[00:39:28] Sarah: oh, yeah, with, you know, loudly in agreement. Um, and I also do want to add that, um, when you're doing those things, right, when you're writing down your belief systems, and now you're working on rewiring yourself, because sometimes people are like, oh, you know, I've heard this affirmations. They don't do anything.

[00:39:46] Sarah: That is true. They won't do anything when they're just affirmations. The key over here is that when you're sitting down and you are writing those belief systems and you are attempting to rewiring yourself, you, when you're narrating those belief systems to yourself, your impulse will be to take action.

[00:40:06] Sarah: You will feel like you need to take action and you must follow that because that brings about the rewiring. A lot of people think that all you have to do is change a perspective and that's it. You know, sometimes it works if it is something that is of a lower degree,

[00:40:23] LuRae: Right.

[00:40:24] Sarah: it is. But on the other hand, if there's something, if there is a belief that is deeply embedded, and it is related to how you're functioning in life and your operating system altogether, in that scenario, action is viable.

[00:40:37] Sarah: Action is necessary. You got to do the work. And it doesn't, yeah, and it doesn't mean, oh, what does, you know, what does work mean? So let me help you understand that. So, essentially, taking action means that when you're, when you're rewiring yourself. And you're bringing in the new you. You will feel the impulse to, Okay, I need to clean my space.

[00:40:58] Sarah: You clean your space. I need to start working out. I need to do these breathing exercises or this meditation started doing this because you are building your toolkit. You're giving yourself things that you need in order to prosper in that belief system in that new stage of rewiring and when you start to do it, you know, you're changing your habits, right?

[00:41:17] Sarah: You're cleaning up. You're, you're using tools like meditation. You're being resourceful towards yourself. Now you're having a different perspective about. Okay. Because you're realizing, oh, this is actually making me feel happy. I'm getting clarity. I think I need to sit with myself and journal a little bit more.

[00:41:32] Sarah: I need to ponder about this. Now you're not going to be having time for things that are not meant for you. So like spending a lot of time on let's say social media or just chatting or You know, things which are not fruitful for you any longer by draining you, you would, you're going to start cutting that out and you'll be very selective with what you're doing.

[00:41:54] Sarah: And yeah, I thought, you know, this is, this is the icing on the cake. Understanding that rewiring means change of habit, means change of behavior, means change of an identity within self,

[00:42:09] LuRae: Mm hmm.

[00:42:09] Sarah: to bring about change in your life. That's just how it goes. When a person cannot say the affirmations and yet go through no changes, if they, you know, if they choose to just say the affirmations, it won't work.

[00:42:22] Sarah: If you're saying the affirmations, you It's almost like a promise you say to yourself and you got to fulfill it, you know, you fulfill it with these additional things, um, the change of behavior, a change of habit, you know, putting in the action, listening to your intuition, listening to your mind, what would you feel like doing?

[00:42:41] Sarah: Sometimes you feel like, okay, I really need to, you know, um, now that let's say I've set a goal for myself, maybe I really need to study a little bit more. So take out the books and study, you know, it's, it's, it's never too late. It's. Okay. It's not about judging yourself again. It's about, it's about facilitating.

[00:42:56] Sarah: It's about being who you truly are. Um, and it's needed when you're looking to change.

[00:43:04] LuRae: Absolutely. And I know I'm thinking of something I read the other day also that was just a reinforcement of what I already know, that action creates clarity. Many times it can be common for people to sit in analysis paralysis. What should I do? Maybe I should try this. Maybe I should try that and not take steps forward by even researching.

[00:43:26] LuRae: Let me look and see what's out there, what I could be doing in this area or in this area. The wetter current. I'm feeling pulled in that direction. What would be some steps? What would I need to do? I mean, to use myself as an example, like I was a managing director working for a large ad agency and went to an open house for a, that coaching for transformation program.

[00:43:49] LuRae: And I knew before I left that building that evening, it was a Friday evening that I caught a cab and, you know, got there and went through the. the orientation. It was like a just an open house to see what it was. I knew I was meant to do that. And so for the next night, it was like nine months and 140 hours of, you know, of work, but it was of work, technically work, learning, learning.

[00:44:14] LuRae: It was the most alive part of my life that when I look back at that time, it was magical. Like the experience, the people, the process, everything I learned and just being true to myself. And Allowing myself, even though I was, yeah, I was working, you know, technically a nine to five, which was probably more than nine to five, but then on the weekends, it was, you know, on those nine months, we would have one or one or two days, a Saturday or a Saturday and Sunday each month that we would get together and then there was an online class.

[00:44:45] LuRae: So it's like taking the action gives you that clarity to move forward. So just reinforcing what you, what you're saying, yeah,

[00:44:56] Sarah: yeah,

[00:44:56] LuRae: thinking it, it's taking steps that inspire you and you can take a step and then realize, oh, I'm gonna, I'm gonna go this direction a little bit because this feels right.

[00:45:09] LuRae: We don't have to know the whole,

[00:45:11] Sarah: You don't have to know the whole thing.

[00:45:13] LuRae: the whole direction.

[00:45:14] Sarah: path. You just need to like, start taking action. Oh,

[00:45:17] LuRae: the journey. Yeah.

[00:45:19] Sarah: Yeah, I've been there. Um, I wanted to, in addition to what you were saying, sometimes we have, um, you know, um, paralysis, right? We're not, just freeze. We're unable to move out of our zone.

[00:45:32] Sarah: It could be comfort, it could be feeling stuck, um, it could be lethargy, but we're in a zone and we're unable to move out of it. Um, And there, there is a triangle, um, the top is emotion or doesn't even have to be top, but 1, 1 side is emotion. 1 side is thought. 1 side is action and all of them are interconnected.

[00:45:54] Sarah: So, when you start with 1 and action, you will feel the emotion as well, and you'll get the thought as well. Right? It's just how our body system is, but this is really important for people who are frozen. Because it happened to me and I wouldn't be able to come out of a, you know, decision paralysis or just like overanalyzing things.

[00:46:15] Sarah: Um, and this helps because sometimes it's hard for you to, let's say, feel like doing something, right? Um, but it's easier for you to just do it.

[00:46:25] LuRae: Mm hmm.

[00:46:26] Sarah: And then after doing it, you feel better.

[00:46:28] LuRae: Mm hmm.

[00:46:29] Sarah: if it's difficult for you to feel like doing something, it's okay. Try taking action. Do you still feel difficult?

[00:46:36] Sarah: Try the thought. Does it still feel difficult? Maybe a thought can help you out. Something, you know, you start with one and the other one kind of proceeds

[00:46:45] LuRae: Right.

[00:46:46] Sarah: So you start with a thought, the emotion comes by itself, the action happens also. If you start with the emotion, the thought comes, the action also happens.

[00:46:53] Sarah: So it's about just picking up one, one side of the triangle and you'll see that because We're one body connected, so the others follow. And, um, yeah, it just helped me kind of stay afloat during times when I was, um, I was sad. I was very, very stuck. Yeah, and I talk more about it and so on talks as well. So, um, that's a great, you know, tool for people if they're looking to kind of go through the transformation.

[00:47:22] Sarah: Um, I'm with you. I've been there and the work, um, I know what it feels like and it can get really glim at times. Um, so, yeah, keep track of.

[00:47:33] LuRae: Yeah. And Mel Robbins has that great, I think she's even written a book on it, the, the, the five second rule where you just, I'll use the example of people wanting to get, get up in the morning and get up and not to hit the snooze button that she would say, just count backwards, five, four, three, two, one, just get up because otherwise our brain will.

[00:47:55] LuRae: Talk us into, and that could be with anything, going to the gym. Like, oh, should I, should not. We have conversations with ourselves all the time. It's like, if we ever ask someone, do you talk to yourself? It's like, we all do, all day long. And we have to stop and sometimes just five, four, three, two, one, just do it.

[00:48:12] LuRae: And then to

[00:48:13] Sarah: very smart rule. That's a very smart role because you're not giving yourself time to overthink it. You just do it. The focus is on doing it. So, yeah, I love that. I also love now.

[00:48:23] LuRae: Yeah. So, so, as a wrap, I guess, what would be like some words of advice for people who are, they know they may have been where you were, you know, or they may be where I was, I feeling I know something needs to change and I'm not happy doing what I'm doing, but I'm just not sure what, and I'm not sure that I can even make a change.

[00:48:50] LuRae: What advice would you give to people who are listening?

[00:48:54] Sarah: that bias I would give, um. I would give a few things. Firstly, listen to a book called The Secret by Rhonda Byrne, um, and, you know, she talks about the thought process, thinking good, bringing good to your life. I think it does wonders, um, and it, it is a good catalyst to get you outside of the space. Date of, uh, repe, you know, repeated cycles of just self pity or not feeling great about yourself.

[00:49:23] LuRae: Mm hmm. Mm

[00:49:23] Sarah: book is awesome. Uh, the second thing is that, you know, when you're saying those things to you that you don't know where you are, you're confused. Um, you are right. You're being truthful to yourself and that's a great stepping stone. Uh, next I would advise to, um, try out meditation. Um, and I don't really, you know, there are different kinds of meditations.

[00:49:45] Sarah: The one that I'm referring to is when you're connecting with your subconscious. So that, that is the alpha level meditations. Um, and also the theta level meditations. Um, again, um, Luray will have my. Um, information, um, in the description box, so you can reach out to me and, uh, for help. Um, but, and, you know, guided meditations and whatnot.

[00:50:07] Sarah: But if you read into those meditations and if you want to try them out at home, uh, there are a lot of online resources. Um, I particularly love the alpha level meditations. Um, what it does, Loray, is that it helps calm your conscious mind. Um, and it gets you in a relaxed state where you are passively, passively attentive.

[00:50:28] Sarah: And you start to access your subconscious when you meditate there. Um, and that is when a lot of the habits that we hold on to, um, you know, a lot of that behavior, uh, we're feeling limited in action, those things, um, you can get help in that state. Because what happens is that, uh, you're now accessing your subconscious.

[00:50:48] Sarah: Start seeing like, why am I doing this? So if there's something that you want to get an answer of within yourself, that is a great exercise. And the 3rd thing I would say is that, you know, if you're feeling that you're not happy or not fulfilled, um. It's not going to be that difficult. A lot of people think that making the change is so, so hard.

[00:51:11] Sarah: Starting is the hardest part and it gets easier because you start getting facilitated. So, you know, be courageous and. I'm here a little razor. There's so many other people who are, um, happy to facilitate that who have done the work. Um, you may have friends. You may have family members, um, use them as support.

[00:51:32] Sarah: You know, we use those resources. Um, they're incredibly helpful. They're incredibly useful in this time and slowly. And surely just make the jump, take action, make the changes, because when you, when you're stuck in 1 place, it's just really, really painful. Um, and it's just quite rewarding when you start to make the shift, because you start to see the action in my life, the way it has turned around, um, it's, um, it's a great story.

[00:51:59] Sarah: And someday I'll tell you when you tune in, um, or, you know, someday when we meet, um, or, you know, just. To you LaRay. Um, yeah. It's, it's just taken a massive shift and it all started with me not wanting to stay stuck any longer. It starts with that small, intuitive nudge and then the trajectory of your life gets influenced.

[00:52:22] Sarah: Um, so yeah.

[00:52:24] LuRae: So, yeah. Once, if you're sick and tired of being sick and tired, it's time to make a change.

[00:52:30] Sarah: Oh, I love that.

[00:52:31] LuRae: So thank you so much for coming on with me to share your wisdom.

[00:52:37] Sarah: Thank you Loray. It was wonderful.

[00:52:38] LuRae: Beautiful.

[00:52:40] Sarah: Yeah, it was so nice. Thank you so much.