At 8.34am on Saturday 2nd of May, a new princess was born – Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana; she immediately became 4th in line to the throne and throngs of people celebrated…
Amidst the celebrations, what had the biggest impact on me was the picture of Kate Middleton on the steps of the hospital as the little princess was presented to the world. How did Kate manage to look so good – with impeccable makeup, a beautiful smile and heels less than 10 hours after the birth of her 8lb+ baby? Being a woman too and with the experience of having big babies, I know the only thing on most women’s mind in those hours after birth is just to lie down, do nothing and have no care what everyone else in the world is going through…
As I pondered this, I remember a few weeks ago, while designing my brand, I had chosen a SWAN to represent me. I was particularly drawn to this bird as it is one of the most graceful birds you will ever see – it glides on the lake, like it has no care in the world, however take a peep under the water and you would see the amount of work being done by the swan with its feet to maintain that poise and dignity. Despite this calm demeanour, do you know that the swan is the fastest waterfowl in water and in air? I guess this goes to show that a calm and dignified appearance, underpinned with hard work, that is not necessarily transparent to the world does not compromise effectiveness!
Back to Kate Middleton, watching her over the years as she matured to who she is today, one quality few will beguile is her passion to ‘keep it all together’. She obviously treasures her duty and role as a future queen and exemplifies the notion of DUTY INSPITE OF THE PAIN. As someone who would naturally elicit lessons from day-to-day life, I think this picture of Kate should speak volumes to us! Just think, in the daily execution of your life goals,
- What did you do when have you had valid reasons to just lie dormant?
- What message is perceived by those around you in the pursuit of your goals – pain or gracefulness?
- Is there a need to ‘put on’ an appearance and go beyond the expectations of others to portray an attractive image?
- What is your persona and what does it say about you?
You can tell I’ve asked myself a lot of questions and believe me I am still asking. What I do know though was on the 2nd of May, my respect for Kate Middleton went up a notch. She quietly taught me that the world doesn’t need to know what I am going through, that I can be respectable, graceful and attractive when duty demands – NO DRAMA!
Kate Middleton looking impeccable
This really resonated with me. It means it does not matter who you feel, when duty calls, you show up for duty and do duty. Somehow I have been struggling with updating my blog because of a few reasons but I have a responsibility, duty and a commitment to keep