(Dress – Free People, Shoes – Cole Haan, Necklace – Nordstrom)

Photo by Raj.

“And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs, Stanford commencement speech, June 2005.

Outer Beauty

A knit dress is usually flattering because it fits your body perfectly. Good tailoring and a proper fit could emphasize a person’s most attractive features. Here, I am wearing a red knit dress by Free People, one of my favorite brands. The knit in this dress is not too thick or too thin – just perfect. To match the dress, I am wearing a red necklace made of crystals by Nordstrom.

I love this pair of nude heels by Cole Haan with Nike Air technology as it is made for comfortable walking.

Inner Beauty

Courage is the ability to face fear, danger, difficulty, uncertainty or intimidation. In other words, one chooses to act regardless of one’s fear.

1. Leave your job if you are unhappy. If you are unhappy with your job but you are afraid of uncertainty and a lack of financial security, first be assertive by asking for more responsibilities or a raise and begin searching for a better opportunity. Find an opportunity that aligns with your personal values. You may be a lot happier as a result! If you are looking into a career change, begin research into the new career now. Take small steps to reach your goal until you are fully there. You will demystify the process and will become more confident as you step closer to your goal and and your dream.

2. Have courageous conversations. No relationships are going to be perfect and thus, resolving conflicts will be imperative throughout life. Personally, I prefer deep meaningful relationships over shallow ones, and in order to have deep meaningful relationships that last, one must maintain them. Instead of cutting people you love out of your life, openly and honestly discuss these conflicts, put yourself in their shoes and find resolutions to the conflicts so they will not repeat in the future. Most importantly, while having courageous conversations, remember the big picture – you want to maintain and deepen the relationship out of and with love.

3. Face your fears head on. I am afraid of heights. Thus, I was not thrilled to go zip lining in Costa Rica. However, I faced my natural fear of heights by first admitting that I was afraid. In conversations, I told people that I was afraid of heights and asked for advice that may help me face my fear. Some people told me that they were afraid too but after zip lining a few times, they loved it.  “Maybe it wouldn’t be that bad!” I thought. In addition, I considered other aspects of zip lining that may alleviate my fear such as safety wires and additional precautions that the company uses, encouragement from tour guides and written experiences of other people whom were also afraid of heights. Knowledge is power, and I had fun zip lining in Costa Rica despite my fear of heights!

Have a beautiful day! – And let your inner beauty shine!

© 2013, Fish and Cars. All Rights Reserved.