“I don’t want to be famous, I just want to be wonderful…” – Marilyn Monroe. Also sometimes quoted as “I don’t want to make money, I just want to be wonderful.”
Either way, an inspiring quote by a star still considered world over to be one of the most beautiful women of all time – if not the most! Highly successful as an actress with a most vivacious personality on and off screen, Marilyn Monroe was truly ‘wonderful’.
In a way, Marilyn’s quote defines true success, does it not? To be noted as wonderful! Amazing. Incredible. Astonishing, perhaps! To be someone people will remember or think of with thoughts of fondness and even desire? I want to be one of those wonderful human beings. Oh yes! An infectiously beautiful soul that leaves lingering essences of light, love and free-spiritedness. I doubt this kind of success ever goes out of style and to me, this kind of ‘fame’ is eternal.
The question is, how to balance it? How can one achieve this ultimate aura of wonderfulness while striving so very hard to be ‘successful’ or even a little bit famous? How to keep the spirit playful amidst all the craziness & discipline of being a high achiever? We’ve all heard, sadly, of famous or successful people who lost balance and – oops-a-daisy! – toppled over. It’s not funny! So whatever mountain you’re climbing now, whether it’s Mt. Everest or Mt. Wycheproof (ha, you won’t have heard of it – apparently the tiniest mountain on earth), keeping yourself grounded and happy is the only way up!
As of quite recently, I work in Australia as a fashion model. Before that, I’ve spent most of my life raising my three children, baking sourdough bread, making raw almond milk and growing wheatgrass! Cooking has been a major passion of mine from a very young age. So as the children grew up, I got busy & started a health, beauty and wellness blog, which lead to the realization of writing one very unique cookbook!
That doesn’t mean all’s going to fall fancifully into place overnight, does it? Success for me today is to write this article, make sure my children are loved and have delicious, nutritious, organic meals. Success for me is to hopefully fit in time for a walk! Success for me is to smile and run my hubby a bath when he walks in the door, even though I didn’t get everything done that I wanted to today… AGAIN. My book is going to be totally super-awesomeness and… You know what? Who really cares? I could fall off the face of the earth tomorrow. So really, it’s all about being wonderful, right here & now.
My homemade tips for successful wonderfulness:
*Believe in your dream. Have a plan and set some realistic goals! Hopefully you’ll get someone else to believe in them, too. Talk to this person when you don’t feel like believing anymore. For years, my sole dream was to be the very best mother I could possibly be! I’ve been so blessed with the results.
*Work hard – let go. I believe in turning everything off daily. Work hard and then let go of what you can’t do. It’s good to have some ‘out’ time – surfing/yoga works for me. Choose something which gives your mind a complete rest so you can tap into you again, not just push on like a machine.
*Share what you know best. For me at the moment, that means FOOD! My cookbook is based on raw superfood chocolate with over 50 recipes in it!
*Give without expectation. For me, this means day in day out giving time to my book and various other writing pursuits, even though I’m not getting paid.
*Smile like you mean it. Believe in yourself and others will too. So true!
*Be polite. Even if you’re famous or highly successful and even in social media situations! Reply to people – answer nicely and give compliments. Giving compliments doesn’t take away from how wonderful you are!
*Look pretty – be healthy – be happy. You’re on the right website, WOOHOO! People are drawn to confidence and grace, and both attributes can be cultivated. Health and happiness go hand in hand. Take the time for you.
*Identity love. Remember: you are not your career, marriage, external person, etc. Whether it makes or breaks, be prepared to love and learn! Besides, there’ll be something else to share, give, smile and live for after today’s dream has flown high.
So whether you work in an office, work from home, wash dishes and scrub floors… BE WONDERFUL. Do what you can. Let your love, light and fun shine through. It will be the path not only to ‘success’, but to more wonderfulness than you can possibly imagine.
Love, Abigail
