Aspire Magazine: Inspiration for a Woman's Soul.(TM) Oct/Nov 2016 Aspire Mag Full Issue | Page 88

opportunities; have access to more things in life; to achieve success. Structure is good when it supports. It’s not so good when it precludes. Because a small segment of the world’s population controls the majority of wealth, abundance and success feel exclusive. Security and wealth appear difficult to attain, perpetuating the belief that one needs to overcome, work hard, sacrifice and struggle to succeed. Social groups, like women and ethnic minorities, face additional challenges in this system of success because most are entering the success race further back from the starting line. The sad thing is, so many find that once they’ve achieved their goal, they soon discover it doesn’t bring them the happiness and security they thought it would. Research tells us that things like status, power and (once we get beyond the poverty level) money don’t satisfy our desire for happiness. So where does that leave us? With the opportunity to rediscover what does bring us joy, then setting our goals and building our life around THAT. This is the feminine path to success. The feminine principles of intuition, integration, collaboration, compassion, and generosity naturally lend themselves to achieving success in a way that feels fulfilling. It offers us the chance to look not only at our own needs and desires but to the needs and betterment of our community. Community includes our family and friends, the organizations and groups we belong to. Community is the towns and cities we live in, the countries we are born into and from a global perspective, the planet we live on. Women are nurturers. We are relationship builders. We are creators. We are receivers. And we feel a profound sense of satisfaction when we support and help others. To stifle, or worse deny, these intrinsic parts of us creates detachment from the very things that feed our bliss. It drains us. Is it any wonder so many women suffer from hormonal imbalances, adrenal fatigue and other stress-related diseases? 88 www.AspireMAG.net | October / November 2016