Exit The Matrix with Me Experiment: Guest: Define Your Radiant Abundance

Welcome to Exit the Matrix Stories of Success with your host Jane Slack-Smith, where we celebrate the incredible journeys of individuals who've transcended their limitations and achieved extraordinary success. All right, hello, it's Jane here, and welcome again to Exit the Matrix with me this let's say, crazy world-first experiment where you get to see the research in real time as I'm researching my next book. Now the next book, let's just talk about this. We're up to like week 28. I've spoken to the most incredible thought leaders around the world, and this lady in particular, there's been a few issues in trying to get us together on, on this interview, which made me want to talk to her even more. Because let's face it, when someone has a podcast that is just about abundance, and I'm writing a book about what it is to have an abundant life in all aspects of your life and true to your heart's desire. Because let's face it, we don't want to be rich and unhappy. Then when I saw that Alana Cohen had this podcast Creating Abundance and has written books on— and I think I can see one in the background there— Mindfulness Mantras and Meditations. And she's spoken to people for years about what abundance is. She's a Reiki master. She, she's a follower of the, the Buddhist traditions. She's a shamanic person who's done all of these, you know, incredible naturopathic work. She's done so many things, and I thought, for someone who has such a plethora of experience and has had the opportunity to speak to so many people about abundance, I'm going to track this woman down and get to talk to her. So thank you, Ilana, for finally being able to be here with me.

It's a joy to be here. Thanks for inviting me, Jane.

So this is, I guess, this crazy experiment is— has gone through a few, uh, weeks of exploring, you know, that kind of awareness that there's something missing. You may not, you know, have everything in your life that you thought you had. You've got the doodads, but you know, there's something deep inside that's calling to your soul. We kind of also experimented in, in talking about what's the messy middle. Why do people always go back to the familiar rather than into, you know, this new path where they get to explore what it is to, you know, create abundance, manifest, and, and have the life they desire, and choose that and boldly go for it. And I'm at the part in my book where I'm exploring what is abundance. Like, it seems that I've kind of missed the mark here. I've gone all this way into how do we get there. I was like, wait a second, what is it? So I'm just going to start off and crack right into how do you, Alana, define abundance?

I define abundance by creating radiance in your life. So radiant health, radiant wealth, and radiant happiness. So you want to— or, uh, to me, it's again, it's not just one, it, it's all of it. Because I know plenty, I have plenty of clients, uh, have had and know plenty of friends who are extraordinarily wealthy, but they're suffering. Emotionally. They're not happy. So I don't know if you remember the Beatles song, but money can't buy me love.

Yeah.

And so love is that inner peace, right? To, um, be able to go into your heart center, right? So that energy center is right in the center of your chest, also known as a chakra. And that's where our deepest feelings of insecurity and love and compassion sit. And I think what happens, especially as Westerners— I'm not sure, is Australia considered Western? I think it is. Okay, sorry about that. I thought as much, but we're driven, we're very ambitious for monetary reasons and material wealth. And I have that. I've accomplished that, but it wasn't my sole goal. And I think it's so important to have that inner sense of peace, which is really your spiritual nature. Um, some people— most people I know believe in God or believe in a higher power, uh, believe in their higher selves, um, the divine, the sacred. And when you're able to really embrace that in your life in whichever way you were raised or you feel comfortable with, uh, that's what's going to crack open your heart to allow forgiveness and letting go of any of the trauma that you may or may not be aware of, because that is what prov— that is what is between you and your happiness more than anything. Accomplishments are great, I'm all about it. I believe that being goal-oriented is wonderful, but I'd like to shift that word to intention setting so that it's not an unobtainable thing, but it's an intention you're setting. It's saying, well, I'm not going to lose 20 pounds I'm in the process of losing. I set my intention to consciously lose 20 pounds. It's easy to, to think of something more concrete like that. Um, but when we think about our happiness, even weight loss doesn't necessarily bring us permanent happiness. The happiness is really a feeling of belonging, I believe. Of a sense of community and connection and being understood, being heard, and having people who accept you for who you are, not what you are.

Oh my goodness, so many threads there. I just wanted to stop about 5 times ago. Let's go down this little rabbit hole. But I'm just going to— your, your words resonate so deeply because there's a couple of things there that I've found in talking to people about this. I love the word radiance, and I want to explore what radiance is because we talk about abundance, but you can have an abundance of debt and an abundance of ill health. We're talking about positive abundance. So putting that radiance, uh, you know, in front of that and having radiant abundance of health and wealth and spirit and connections is important. The connections is, is also important because if we see ourselves as the divine sacred creator of our own paths with our intentions that are directing them. How does that relationship with the connections of others— like, we're social creatures, and you— we, we want belonging, we want connection, we don't want to be, you know, outcast from the tribe. How does that duality stand, or is it just something we accept, that we want the social connections but we are our sovereign selves?

Okay. I'm going to try to answer that. I think I understand the question. We are all unique individual beings, and we all have, I believe, our own unique strengths and sparks, right? Our own sparks. And it's the spark within each and every one of us that makes us who we are.

Mm-hmm.

And what I have found is some people get that spark stomped out of them at a very young age. Uh, and so let's say for instance, um, you're a natural born writer and you love writing poetry, but your parents are doctors and you are going to be a doctor. There is no choice in it. Uh, What's important is not to allow that spark of the creative to get completely wiped out, because then you will suffer and there will be a pain within you. So it's to allow that to manifest some other way, to write your book at night, to go to, uh, poetry readings, uh, to go to the library, find a group, something like that. The other thing is, so, so that's being seen, and there's nothing wrong with that, actually, you know. Um, I think often our jobs, our career paths are a little bit off from what that spark is. But how do you use that spark? And maybe in the idea of the doctor, to be the more poetic one, to be the more sensitive doctor, to be be him or herself, you know. And so I think that's really important, is to show up as you. You can conform into a role to a certain aspect, but you don't want to lose sight of yourself. You know, sometimes I say you want to dust off the guitar that's been sitting on the shelf, uh, you don't want— you want to dust off whatever spark has been dampened inside of you so that you can be vibrant. And I believe that the more vibrant we are in this life, that we attract more vibrant people to us. And again, it's very intentional.

So with that, I guess We know more from science now about how as children we orientate our beliefs of what we need to keep ourselves safe or belong or accepted or validated or secure or whatever those things are that we perpetuate into later life. And I'm interested in what you just said around the spark can get drummed out of us. And maybe that's through someone else's involvement, maybe it's through trauma, whatever that is. How do you reconnect to that spark? Like, if it's there, like, I imagine a lot of people have lost complete connection to the fact that there is a spark in them. They're just on that, that, you know, mousetrap— mousetrap— mouse wheel that, you know, that's just going and going, and they're going to work and they're coming home and looking after the kids and doing whatever they have to do. Like, how do you find that?

I love that question because that's what I'm all about. And the answer is one word: meditation.

Wow. Okay, take, take me through that.

Okay, so I started meditating at a very young age, and I was describing this earlier to a client that meditation can be anything from kneeling in a church to prayer to sitting and gazing out at a beautiful sunset. It's about quieting your mind. It's about being fully in the present moment. And just as you said, our minds are— we live lives like a hamster wheel, right? We're on 24/7, always on the go, and that leaves little time to really see and feel and, and be present. But being present is the first step to meditation, and the simplest form of meditation is focusing on your breath. Um, simply close your eyes and take a deep breath in and out. And if you do that 3 times, that's all it really takes to help get you centered and back into the present moment. To allow what has been referred to as the monkey mind to settle down, right? So to get off the hamster wheel. I like to use the word pause. So if the idea of meditation sounds terrible, think of it as pausing. And especially for those of you listening who are working and you're running from one meeting to the next, if you literally feel yourself rushing, I'd like you to be aware of that and stop in your tracks. Stop. It doesn't matter if people have to walk around you. Just stop, pause, take a breath, be aware of the hectic nature that is happening, and consciously slow it down. We're, we're under this belief that, um, productivity is all about accomplishing, accomplishing, accomplishing, getting things done, getting things done, but at the expense of your health. And then eventually when you, if you're working with a company or an organization or your own business and you overwork and overexert yourself, your health suffers, and then you can't work, then you're out of commission. And, and so it's all relative, really, much like the story of the hare and the tortoise, right? The Tortoise and the Hare. The tortoise is slow, the rabbit's like, I'm going to win this race because I'm so fast, and then he takes a detour and falls asleep, and the tortoise wins. So sort of like that.

Meditation, it's interesting, isn't it, because in this consumer world, we're looking for the gadgets and we're looking for the hacks and we're looking for, you know, the, the easy access. You know, so-and-so bought this, I reckon if I buy this and I've got a, you know, red light sauna, or I've got the, the latest supplement, or I'm on lion's mane, whatever it is, you know, I'll be fixed. Where it comes down to something as simple that's free for everyone, which is pause, breathe, be present, reorientate, start again. Like, it's— it doesn't seem like rocket science, but we've overcomplicated things so much. But you, you mentioned that you started meditating very early, so can I go back and just explore your journey that you've brought coming to this? Did you grow up in a family that was, you know, open to these things and it was a natural progression, or did you have a bit of a sliding door moment of your own that took you on this path?

That's funny. I was raised in a Roman Catholic home, and wonderful, wonderful parents, loved them. And I actually went to Catholic school for 6 years, and, and I always felt close to God. I have to say, that was a very natural thing. My mother was a scholar, and And so, no, the meditation was not anything that was introduced to me in my home. But as a teenager, I started reading books, and somehow the book of TM, Transcendental Meditation, made its way into my hands. And that was my first open introduction to meditating. And I found it was really easy for me. I'm a creative. I'm an artist, a singer, a musician. And it's just— and I think that those things do help one to, to meditate.

Oh yeah.

Although I want to step back because Zen is its own practice, which is very different. It's very black and white. So it's not necessary. But for me, in my case, being creative, I think, supports my meditation practice. And I do believe I'm naturally spiritually oriented. So I'm interested. I can meditate every day and read nothing but Thich Nhat Hanh and, um, Deepak Chopra. And, you know, I just, I just love it. I love everything about holistic health, natural health, yoga, etc. So, um, so I went to Catholic school, and in, in high school, uh, I also read some books about what they do to cattle on farms and decided to become a vegetarian. And, you know, my mother didn't know what to do with me. I wasn't going to eat meat anymore. Meditation— she didn't know what that was. So then I went off and I moved to New York with a degree in theater, and I sang in a band, and I became a member of the Holistic Learning Center, which at the time was in SoHo, and it lasted many decades. It only recently closed. It closed during the pandemic. I don't know if it's reopened, but that's where I met all these gurus, and I was introduced to all kinds of Eastern philosophies, the Whirling Dervish. We had yogis come from India and, and from all over the world, really, musicians and doctors, Chinese doctors, and, and so I just found it always fascinating. And there I studied and practiced and studied and practiced. And, and I really discovered how deeply intuitive I really was. And it all really opened up. And so that is what pushed me even more, I literally felt like a hand on my back saying, you need to understand your true nature. And so I feel that I am an intuitive healer. And so I've learned many modalities to support that natural way of healing. And for me, I think the best way to heal anyone is to teach them how to meditate, because meditation is not sleeping. It's not just relaxing, it's actually a focused quiet time. So it's, it's a concentrated effort that instills peace and clarity, and that inner peace and clarity clears away the gunk. It also sometimes allows those traumas that you may not be aware of, like I mentioned earlier, could be something as simple as, you know, your, your brother got to go on a ride and you didn't. Or it could be something much more severe, but those things rise up and then they, they go away. And that removes these internal blocks to your joy and happiness. And then you can ask yourself, am I happy with my finances? And if not, okay, let's, let's shift that. Am I happy with my weight? Without beating yourself up. It's like, okay, I'm a human being in this, in this shell that I like to call, um, our, our sacred temple, really. But it's easy to get lost with so many choices in the world. So by giving yourself even 5 minutes a day, 5 minutes of concentrated effort in being in the present moment is enough to help you to recharge your battery and apply that awareness to times when you're not feeling happy and to say, why? I've got all the money, I've got all the love. What's missing? What do I need? And it might be a walk, and it might be a nap, and it might be a hug. Ignore all that because we're always on the go.

You know what's so beautiful about that? And, and my observation, I've been a concentrated student of developing my intuition since about 2018 and pretty much stepped it up since 2020. And what you're saying there has resonated in such a powerful way because unless we're in the present and we have a mechanism to get into the present, we can't access our intuition or the the clarity of the gut feel or the inner knowing or, you know, transmissions, whatever people want to call it. But unless you can have that quiet, quietness of the mind to really tap into with intention what, what is coming up, then you miss it because you're living in the future or you're living in the past. And it's just intuition doesn't exist in those places, right?

Right. Absolutely.

Um, I, I love the, the story you've told. I grew up in a Catholic— no, I won't say Catholic family. I grew up with a Catholic mother and a Church of England father. And it was funny when they got married, we were just talking about this on the weekend, um, they, they covered the altar in black because my mother was marrying outside of the faith. Like, it was like, you know, we're losing her to not a Catholic man. And my dad you know, very farmer and very— I don't know if there's even a definition of naturally spiritual, like, you know, just appreciation of the land and the animals. And, and he had that spirituality and definitely, you know, didn't stop or prevent our religious nature. You know, we'd go off to mass and he wouldn't, and he'd come to midnight mass on Christmas and drink whiskey with the Irish priests, and they'd have a great old chinwag, and the priest would come for dinner. And, you know, so we had this beautiful relationship with, with the church. And, and when they were building the new church, my mother was very much involved with it. So as kids, we would play around in the church while they're building it. So it was just this place that was familiar and wasn't a dogma or a structure. We had these lovely relationships. And, and having had 12 years of the Catholic Church, but my mother was very spiritual. And I remember in the '80s, like, she'd used to say, come to the bottom of the garden, this is where the fairies are. And she'd read Eckhart Tolle. And we're just like, she just, mum would be off on these things. We're just like, whatever, mum. And so when, since we've kind of like, my sister and I have kind of experienced these things in the last 10, 20 years, she's like, ah, you're catching up, that's good. But that kind of I guess what, what you're talking about there, that experience of going into being aware of these different modalities and being aware that there's so many paths to what I'm hearing is love, joy, peace, inner contentment. Now that, that sounds to me like what we're seeking. And does that have to be abundant? Is there, does abundance play a role in that?

An abundance of inner peace.

Like when I'm thinking about we, if we are on a human journey in this physical body, experiencing everything we experience to learn lessons or, you know, be heightened in our awareness of what the world is and, and who we are and our identity. And really at the deep core in our heart center, what we're striving for is peace, love, joy. We've defined this almost capitalism, capitalism of abundance, right? Of you need to have more excess. Um, it's not going to be an inner glow, it's radiance. I'm just, I just, when you said that, I was like, I've never explored the fact that You know, the simplicity of the breath that brings you calm. Is it a simplicity of just being content? Like, do we need abundance?

Well, that's a good question. What we need is food for our body and food for our soul. Shelter and the safety of, you know, security. So, you know, um, we're human beings, but I believe that we are also spiritual beings.

Hello, just a quick message. I hope you're enjoying this podcast bonus session. Now, if you have heard this interview, then you're probably sitting in there going, what is this all about? Well, this is all about my Exit the Matrix experiment. Now, I decided to write a book because I'm really interested in how do we go from the existence that we have now to exiting the matrix and living with intention from our hearts, following our heart's desires, but also creating abundance in all areas of our lives. And hence, whilst I've been researching this book, I thought, this is a really solitary journey. I want people to come on this journey with me. And hence I've got this very special group. Now come and join me. The first month for founders is free. And if you decide to stay, fantastic. So what I'm doing is I'm interviewing incredible people. I'm getting insights about what's this awakening that people are getting, you know, what is the exit the matrix kind of sliding door moment for them. Now I've obviously run this podcast for over a year now and I have more than 30 stories but I'm also interested in those people who are in this transformational space who are actually not just awakening themselves and they're awakening others. What is the mechanism? As Bashar talks about it, it's the permission slip. Are they going through astrology or meditation or yoga or breathwork? Are they just going within and getting a sense of what's really going on? So that's what all the Exit the Matrix experience is about. I'm going to let you get back to the interview, but if you want to join me, go to exitthematrix.today. /etmwithme, which stands for Exit the Matrix with Me. So that's exitthematrix.today/etmwithme. Sign up. I'd love for you to come along. I'm creating courses. There's currently courses in there around 4D gratitude. There's more courses to come. I'm creating custom GPTs on how you can exit the matrix and helping you uncover what lies beneath your subconscious and holding you back, and also other custom GPTs that I'm sure you're gonna love. And most of the speakers are actually really motivating me. So I'm creating courses, I'm creating ebooks, I'm creating experiments you can try, I'm creating tools that you can use, and I'm also writing a book. So at some stage I'll get to writing the book. At this moment, it's just all about the research, and I hope you choose to join me because I'm really excited about this experiment. So I'll get back to the interview now. Enjoy yourself. And as always, here's to your success.

And both, both need to be nurtured. So the physical being, I believe, needs to be nurtured in health, nourishing your health, your body, by exercise and eating wisely, and by having a, a lovely home. It's a lot nicer to have money than not to have money. I've lived in both worlds, you know, but would I say one brings me joy over the other? No. What brings me joy is my state of mind. What brings everyone joy is their state of mind. And I think what that means is to be true to your nature, which goes back to allowing your spark to shine and loving that, because the spark is almost like your soul self, right? And so self-love is the core of peace. And as you love, not in love with yourself, not adoring yourself, but just simply loving as you would love a baby, uh, a pet, then you're able to more easily love others and be lovable.

It's real acceptance, isn't it? It really is acceptance, yeah, of where you are in the present and that inner belief that it's all right just now. I mean, the, the perfect time in the perfect experience. And even if it's a challenge and, you know, there's some tension around the experience of being in the present, pause. And as David Ginn talks about in the Kabbalah, pause. What a gift, you know. Where is the, where is the gift in the present? And even though there are potential challenges, there's an opportunity always to stop and consider where the abundance, the gift, the, the knowledge, the, the opportunity to learn or grow is. And yeah, that, that really resonates with me because I think that a lot of times we do get caught up with, I want to create the beautiful home. I want to create, you know, the wealth so I feel safe and secure, or I want the house by the beach, or I want the international travel, but But in reality, it's what those things give us. They give us an opportunity to learn more about cultures and put ourselves out into something different, which I think the more I speak to people like yourself with theater and music and, and singing and creative art, those people who have that creativity background and also those that are, you know, intrepid travelers who are going into cultures there, there must be, in my mind, or scientists or those on this, um, exploration of something different— I'm going to try a different note, I'm going to try a different tune, I'm going to go to a different culture— that expansion of the brain and the new neuroconnections or the new ways of thinking, I think, is almost a, a, an access way into this acceptance and into this living abundantly and radiantly because we're growing, which is really, I think, what we're here for, this human nature experience. Is that something that resonates with you?

Absolutely. Yeah. Um, I don't know where to go with this.

I'm just thinking, I'm thinking about these access points into becoming abundant. And I've spoken to a few people who've started in that artistic way, or I know them to be travelers and always trying to go to somewhere new. And it just strikes me that, that, you know, if I was on this quest of going, okay, I wanted to find abundance, and it— to find it for me is having something or feeling something or experiencing something. How do I— what are the steps that I do to get to that? And so I'm looking for the access points, and it just strikes me that a number of people I've spoken to have that creativity as an access point where they can be fully in the present, fully focused on something new and interesting, but also those who are traveling somewhere unusual, although those who are scientists or, you know, finding and discovering something. I think there's, there's something in that. Does that— that's what I'm asking you.

Okay, well, I actually have a course called Being in Balance And it is step by step to create abundant health, wealth, and happiness. And I've turned that into a book that will be published soon through the Los Angeles Tribune.

Yeah.

Um, so it's definitely—

yeah.

What are the tips? So, so along your questions, it, it's, uh, you know, the course itself is an 8-module course that gives you downloadable documents that you can follow and meditations and exercises that you can take to help you find, discover, and empower your soul purpose. So as you know what makes you tick and you can do that every day, you will be so excited to get up and you'll tired, a good tired, and you'll be excited and a good excited. And when you get compensated for that, it's going to be so fulfilling and rewarding. Um, it's very— it's, it's interesting because it goes back to the doctor who is a poet. I have, um, a client who, uh, had given up her career path to take care of her children And she was so depressed, so depressed. And so we worked together for a long time, but during the first year, she decided she wanted to go back to school and get graduate degrees. She's— her graduate degrees was a medical degree and a law degree. A little bit of a Type A personality, God bless her. But she, you know, wanted to stay balanced. Throughout it. She didn't want to leave her children. She wanted to, to still be there and raise her family and have a healthy marriage, but she didn't want to leave herself out. And so she now has what she calls her dream job, and she learned how to dance, something she always wanted to do but never thought she could, and is competing nationally. So in a way, we're often not only stopped by the parent who says, this is the better career path for you, or, or the person who's on their way to become something and then suddenly has obligations to loved ones, family, whether it's elders or children, but going back I think it's always to say, okay, it's all right that I've paused it. But now I'm going to practice what I always wanted to. Now I'm going to learn the piano. Now I'm going to go to overseas and travel the world. And, and so it's really about— so in, in my course and in the book coming up, it's a step-by-step to really help you find out what that light is within you, what's been blocking it. Not only that, but what's been getting in the way between, between you and the financial goal you want to have, the health goal, the weight loss goal. Um, and a lot of it is, is about how you treat yourself, about not just accepting yourself but honoring yourself and loving yourself. Then that, you know, let the blocks drop away. I'm good enough. I'm worthy. Let's do this. Let's do what makes me excited. And so when you travel, I'm a world traveler myself. I love it. And I've always wanted to go to Australia. So now I'm meeting more and more Aussies. I better make my way there.

I've got a spare room when you come down, Alana.

That's on record.

Done.

I personally, I love learning about the world. I think, you know, when I was in college, I studied in England for a year, and it, it just came my way, and I took advantage of it, and I made it happen. And I remember coming back for my senior year thinking I learned more in that one year of simply living in another culture Then all of my school years, all of the college, all of the classes, I learned about life. Yeah. And about people and how we may talk different, we may look different, but we are all the same. All we really want is to love and be loved.

It's interesting, I'm having a conversation, my, um, my husband and I been academic. You know, he studied at university and did multiple degrees and masters in politics and economics and many things. And I studied mining engineering. And, and so, you know, we were part of the system, I guess. And here I have got this podcast called Exit the Matrix Stories of Success where people talk about getting out of the system. And my son's in his— so our son's in his final year at school. And he's just declared that he thinks he might take a gap year. And my husband's going, oh my goodness, like, if he loses the momentum, how can he go back to study? And, and I'm sitting here in these two worlds. I'm holding this duality of I want him to do— have this exploration, but on the other hand, I kind of feel that, you know, as, as young adults really, university is a holding ground until our brain develops enough to make good choices. I don't care, you're just learning to learn. I really don't care what you learn, but just like get in there and, and be safe for a while. And, uh, and I was saying to him the other day, trying to be open and, and hold this tension that I have, um, what is it that you think you would like to do if you took a gap year? And, you know, he had— he's very interested in business and entrepreneurship, and he has been— had many online businesses since he was about 15. And, um, I expected him to go down that path because he previously said, I'd like to do a couple of internships with business. And he said, I think it'd be really good to learn how to be a mechanic and know how a car operates. I was like, oh, okay. And he said, so I think I'll have a number of mini explorations, and I think it would be really like to be a tour guide in Italy. Doesn't speak Italian, never been to Italy. And I was like, okay. And all I could hear was all my head going, never been to Italy, can't speak Italian, wants to be a tour guide. What? And then I'm thinking about a client of mine who was a coach who took a US tour to New Zealand and had never been to the country, but she was the tour guide. So I'm like, well, who am I to stop this? And he's like, wouldn't it be interesting to be able to fly into a different country? I could be a steward for 6 And I'm like, you know, all of these things take training. Like there's years of training and all of these, and he wants a buffet of life. And all I could do was stand back and hear all of these conditions and all of these limitations. And then experience it from his point of view, which was the world's an oyster. I can experience anything and, and just allow him to have that and step back and go, 'If he's going to have a year off, I'm going to just have to sit with that and, you know, let my little boy go out into the world and make his own choices.' And as I'm experiencing all of this, I'm also thinking, these are the conversations going on in people's heads, going, 'Wait a second, I've climbed this career ladder, I'm at the pinnacle, but I now want to go and learn to dance and maybe do a course in comparative religions.' Like, there's always this call to, I'm going to call it the matrix, but there's this call to societal norms. And then there's this heart call. Are they always in, I mean, you've coached so many people in abundance and bringing abundance in their lives. Is there always this kind of challenge or tension or dichotomy between where I am and where I want to be? And I'm interested in if there is that and you've experienced that, how do people face that and get over it?

Okay. So for, you know, I worked in the— I like to call it the real world. The 9-to-5 job was helping to run a business technology incubator. And that's where people took their dreams and really invested everything to, to have them become a startup company successfully. Um, and so I love the entrepreneurial spirit. I think that's wonderful. I'm an entrepreneur, and that's what you're doing right now, and that's what it sounds like your son is, is curious about, would like to explore. Um, I have this, um, memory that comes to me over and over and over again, and it was while I was working at the incubator. and there was a UPS delivery guy, and every time he came in, he always said hello. He knew my name. He knew— he seemed to know everyone's name. And one day I said, how is it that you are so happy? And he said, because every day is a reason to be happy. And I just thought, wow. Isn't that something? So, so that's saying I'm going to let my spark shine wherever I am in whatever I'm doing. And it circles back to something I said earlier. If you are— find yourself working in an office setting that feels too conservative, be yourself. Be the one who's not. Be the one who thinks outside of the box. So, you know, having car mechanic skills are going to come in handy.

Going to Italy, what fun!

Exactly. I just was in Italy. It's fun.

Yeah, yeah.

Amore.

Yeah, it's, it's interesting with the clients that you've worked with and helping them choose abundance and create abundance. Have you got like a case study or a story of, of someone who has, you know, really created incredible things in their lives? Because I want to move into manifesting and what that means, because I know that, that that's something that you're an expert on as well. But I'm interested to have how you've explored that and seen that develop with some of your clients.

Okay.

Uh, so, um, do people remember, I want to create wealth in my life, and they leave with something completely different? Or do they come with the, with the, just a feeling that something's not right and they live with, you know, what suits them?

Okay.

Uh, oh, both.

Um, okay, so a few, um, concepts are coming up. Uh, briefly I'll touch upon Kim, who came to me, and she was an engineer, a mechanical engineer working in a male-dominated Fortune 1000 company. And she was managing a group of 10, and she wanted to feel stronger in her voice without losing her feminine self. She wanted to be herself and be respected. And so, uh, within a year of coaching, uh, she shifted her mindset, and then She was her— she was given, I don't know, like 300 people, and then a year later she was leading 1,000 people, and today she's a director. And so she does what she loves, but now she really loves what she does because she's being recognized, and she was stepped into her power. Um, so there was another woman, uh, who was burnt out from the, from the rat race. She had started out in the field with environmental— I don't know what the word is— technology. And then she got into the corporate world and rose and rose and rose, and she wasn't doing what she loved anymore. And she quit. She hated it. And then she was depressed because she didn't know what to do. So we worked together and found out that she had a very shamanic nature. Teacher. And so I trained her and helped her to understand shaman healing, uh, and we worked together a bit more on her entrepreneurship. And what she decided she really wanted to do was to study Ayurvedic, um, the, the whole nutritional concept and yoga concept of Ayurveda health. And so she, uh, enrolled in a 3-year course and, um, she now does that on the side. She manifested— she also took my courses and training in, um, being in balance and creating abundance. And she told me the story of how she found another company that had a position with the kind of environmental science that she loved to do. And she parked her car outside of the company and meditated and did manifestation exercises before she went and applied and interviewed, and she works there now. She got the job and she's happy. She's working out in nature. She's doing what she loves and being compensated very well for her work, and she does the fun stuff on the side.

I love that. Also, so you touched on manifestation. Manifesting. And, you know, intention, goals, visions, manifesting. I'd love to explore that with you because, you know, how do we create that world or that experience or that job or that house or that relationship or that, you know, health challenge that we're getting over? How do we, how do we manifest? What, what's the path to manifestation? I have, I have this feeling you're going to say meditation, but I'm going to, I'm going to try. Nope, no, tell me the path to manifestation.

You are creating your, you are manifesting every moment with every thought. Every thought that goes on in your brain is manifesting the future. And that's where meditation's really important. I call myself a mindfulness coach because the Meditation is sitting on the cushion, going into that silent reflection or style of meditation. Mindfulness is taking that wisdom and awareness and presence out into the world. And the more aware you are, the more you're able to pause and listen and pay attention to your thoughts, just as you shared about your thoughts about your son. But this is his life. It's time to perhaps let your baby boy go and explore his desires, right? That's, that's your, that's up to you. But it's being aware of that and then asking what those thoughts are and what is it that you want to manifest. So Shannon's situation was beautiful because she was very intentional. She did something physical. She drove there, she stopped, she meditated. She said, I see myself working there. I got the job, I'm happy, la da da da da. All kinds of stuff that goes in that. But often life will throw, you know, a curveball in your way, just as it did with Lily. She didn't think she was going to drop her whole career to raise a family, and it, and it got her depressed, right? But she was able to eventually get back up. But there's always a reason for curveballs too, I believe. You know, I don't think the world wants to be brutal. I think, I think when you do get hit with a ball, it's an opportunity to pause. And sometimes those pauses are a couple of years. Sometimes it is the time to simply reflect and look and reevaluate your value system, your, your house system, your finances, everything. So Number 1, you are always creating with your thoughts. Every thought you have creates your reality. I believe that 100%. So be aware of your thoughts. Shift the thoughts. If you're angry, simply be aware of it. Don't beat yourself up. Just say, oh, that was a negative thought. I'm going to drop it. How do I reverse that thought? Well, I'm not going to spend any time around that person because that person creates negative thoughts in my mind. That's one way. Or simply say, well, you just need to turn it around somehow, whether it's about someone, something, or yourself. And more often than not, it's self-judgment. We're simply not aware of it.

You know what I love about this, the simple things that you've mentioned, like the UPS driver, right? He chose every day to be happy. And, you know, your words around the fact that it's— we, we are creating in every moment our presence. And if we understand what the thoughts are or what the blockages are, or, you know, the conversations going on ahead, however they, they turn up for us, if we're aware of those and we choose to be vibrant, we choose to be radiant, we attract more of that vibrance and radiance. So the stories that we're telling ourselves and the words that we have are orientating us to the next present moment. And so it completely makes sense to me in, in what you're sharing, is that abundance and this radiance of abundance in all things is a choice that we make intentionally. In every moment. And we have something as simple as taking 3 breaths to get out of whatever the stories are that have made us get to this point at the time and give us pause to make the next choice that's in the highest good for ourselves. Would that, would that be a good summary from what we've talked about?

Yes. And I'm going to add something to that final phrase that you just shared, to manifest what is in our highest good and the highest good of everyone involved. And that is conscious leadership. That's what will really give you the peace, is knowing that what makes you happy will serve and make others happy. Really, it's, it's about everyone and everything. And that's where you feel connected and useful and needed and of service and following your purpose.

And yeah, so once you know yourself, we go back to that original part of the conversation is how you interact with others, because until you're true to yourself and you claim what you want, you can't be authentic and honest in your relationships. And when you do have that inner whatever that is that you're, you're seeking and you've, you've claimed, then that has a flow-on effect to all those around you. So acting in your highest good first, then has that flow-on effect to everyone else.

Yeah, absolutely.

Where most of the time all we're doing is we're looking externally going, how can I turn up? Up, you know, in whatever way for that person? And how can I be this at work? And how can I be a dancer or an Ayurvedic person as well as an environmental, you know, expert? So we, we've got all of these kind of functions, but until we come into the center of what we really are, our divine spark, we can't actually turn up in any authenticity anywhere else in the world.

I love it.

Yeah, well, you have given me so much clarity, Alana. I really appreciate it. And people can contact you at alanacahoon.com. And, you know, obviously you've got courses, you've got the book, you've got a book coming out, so I can't wait to, to get into that as well. And, uh, the podcast Creating Abundance. So there's so many ways that, uh, people can connect with you, but I really, I really appreciate, um, your thought leadership on this and your experience, because I think that just the definition of having that radiance of abundance in all these aspects of life and not sacrificing one for another, but choosing what you want, and it all comes down to, to you. And be it, you know, you follow a path of Reiki or Buddhism or breathing or meditation or art or theater or you know, whatever your, your career path is, that's your path to achieving, you know, that divinity of, of yourself and, and claiming yourself so you can then have what you want in the world and, and, you know, have a bigger impact. So I really appreciate, uh, you giving me the time to interview you. Thank you so very much.

Oh, it's been wonderful. We could go on forever.

We could, and I think we may in the future. Thank you so much for being such a beautiful soul, and I appreciate— I, I knew intuitively I had to just keep stalking you and going, Alana, can we get on? I really need to talk to you. So I appreciate you, uh, putting up with my persistence. But, um, and, and I look forward to listening to more of the podcast, your podcast, as well. So thank you so very much.

Thank you.

And everyone listening, as always, here's to your success. All the best.

Thank you for listening to Exit the Matrix Stories of Success.

Make sure you subscribe to future episodes at www.exitthematrix.io. Until next time, here's to your success. Sankumulu nethiwa.

Sankumulu aniwa.

Waila ethiwa.