I spent the first 40 years of my life believing I could never have a career I loved, a happy relationship or make much of a difference in the world. Since I learned the 3 Magic Secrets 25 years ago, I have a great 23-year (and counting) marriage, a very happy and rich life coaching and writing and an ability to bounce back from anything including, most recently, loss of money. Once Upon a Time There Was You: Three Magic Secrets to Finding Your Real Self will teach you what I now know:

That you can easily find exactly what’s good about any situation – from your lack of clarity about your future to being stood up on a date or even really big deals like bankruptcy or loss of a loved one.

• A proven method to cultivate a positive attitude using simple tools that will actually help you create the life of your dreams.

• Advice on how to find the right kind of support that may be the necessary ingredient for you to create your life changes.

• To see the big picture and regain clarity about your future.

From Inside the Author’s Mind, 10/16/2008:

I’ve been reading, as usual, and learning, as always. And… couldn’t resist the opportunity to share what I’ve discovered – about me! Not that you asked for it, but here it is anyway. My latest revelation came in the form of an ebook written by a very inspiring woman, Maia Berens.

Maia’s program, “Once Upon A Time There Was You”, is a wonderful journey into yourself. It starts out by telling you a story about a little girl. This story is told as you would read it to a child. The real kicker is, YOU ARE READING IT TO YOURSELF AS A CHILD.

I couldn’t help but connect to this story. My inner self related to this child-like tale on so many levels that I even ended up crying. Yes, I know… I’m soppy enough at the best of times. But this got me right where I live – right in the soul. Maia made me look at my life from the time I was born as a brand new person, full of hope, love, light and possibilities. Her story took me through my dark teenage years and into adulthood. It made me really see me as I am, and, most importantly, me as I could be.

This is more than just another self-help book to discover new ways to find yourself. This is a journey to the centre of yourself and back out again. Not only does this ebook give you the key to YOU, but it also helps you to fit it into the lock and turn it.

As many of you know, I call myself a “soul healer”, for want of a better term. I deal with people’s emotions, past lives, fears and soul-deep damage. I try to help others reconnect with themselves and the universe, to accept themselves and to love all that they are. This is not something I’ve learned to do in just one life time. This has been a very long haul of lives and experiences. One thing I can assure you is that what I do for other people, I am also constantly doing for myself. However, healing yourself when you don’t have any help or instructions can be an extremely long, hard road to trudge along. Believe me when I say I’m still walking that path, even though I started putting one foot in front of the other several lives ago! Maybe I’m a slow learner.

I wish someone had read Maia’s book to me as a child. It would have led me to a greater understanding much sooner, and possibly without half the scars. I would have believed in myself and my own inner light much sooner. These tools would have helped me through many dark times. I also wish I had this book to read to my two sons when they were little. What wonderful possibilities there would be for a child who grows up with this philosophy, and with the tools Maia has blessed us with.

Within the book are, as I’ve just mentioned, tools. Tools for life – keys to open the door to yourself. There are exercises for us to do as well. Being me, I couldn’t resist the exercises. The following are some of the lessons, or realizations, that I learned. Most were no surprise for me, as soul-searching and analyzing moments of my life is something I do quite often. Some realizations were quite surprising – even for someone like me who considers themselves adept at digging the positive out of the negative.

For what it’s worth, here are some things I’ve learned from the darkness:

I thought about all the many minor things that bug me about my life at the moment and what lessons I’ve learned from those. I have learned that I’ve been given the time to reconnect with myself, and to connect with the universe again on a deeper level. I’ve learned patience and endurance. How to live in the here and now and cope with the practical day-to-day physical plane of existence. Most importantly:- I’ve learned how to be me and how to stay true to myself when others can’t/won’t/don’t want to see me or accept me for who I really am.

I thought about the slightly more serious negative things about my life.

I’ve learned resilience, lateral thinking and problem solving. I’ve discovered how different situations and emotions impact upon me, my life and emotions, physically, mentally and spiritually. I’ve learned how to deal with them, how to embrace them and own them as a part of me and my journey. I’ve learned how to live through them and with them.

Now for the major problems and really negative parts of my life.

I’ve learned that my inner self is strong. I’ve learned that my spirit and soul cannot be destroyed by despair and cruelty. I have learned that hate cannot destroy love. I know that the harsher and darker the world/people are, the brighter the light that shines from within me. I have gotten to know myself. I know I’m a work in progress, but I also know that I am worth working on.

…and so the journey continues.

Please surf on over to Maia’s web site, http://www.allaboutlifecoaching.com and check out “Once Upon A Time There Was You”. This is not an ebook you’ll read once then put aside. Thankfully it is an ebook and not a print book. I’d probably wear the print off the pages by constantly thumbing through them!

It’s never too late to work on yourself, and think what a wonderful gift this knowledge would be for any child or teenager in your life. Thank you, Maia, for helping to spread light in the world.

Cheers,
Brittany Kinsgston