This day is so special to me as it might also be for you. 

You see, my father, who has now been in heaven for 15 years, was the most incredible human I have met to this day. 

Because he influenced me and so many in very powerful and profound ways, I want to share the top lessons he taught me. 

He was amazing! Everyone loved him…and if you didn’t know him, you would have loved him too. 

He impacted many people’s lives and left an imprint in many people’s hearts.

It’s been 15 years since his death. Earlier in the grieving process, I shed more tears and I felt an unfairness to life because of my loss at such an early age (32). It’s never easy to lose someone close to you, especially a parent.

However, with each year that passes, his loss stings a little less. It was around year 7 that everything changed.

It’s like I went from grieving to deep acceptance and to seeing him as “love and peace” doing important work somewhere in heaven. It’s like his role changed and he now became my teacher and angel as opposed to “my earth father that is no longer here”.

I gained an angel and made peace with the fact that he couldn’t be here on this earth with me any longer.

Around that same time, I started to take massive risks in my life and fear was cropping up more than ever. Aside from prayer, what got me through it (and still does today), was how he lived his life.

He always told me I had a choice in how I manage my mind and the thoughts I let in my world.

When I think of my father now, I always choose to uncover wisdom and insight from him and how he showed up in life, and through this process, he has truly continued living in my heart in a BIG way.

So to celebrate him on Father’s Day, I want to share the 3 most profound lessons he taught me and lessons I strive to embody today, and I invite you to take them in because these are universal and I trust they will support you where you’re at in your journey.

3 most profound lessons my father taught me

1. Lead by example. 

In December 2018, I was cleaning out my whole life from my NYC storage units (that I stored there before leaving NY to travel the world for 18 months) as I was guided by God and it was time to let all that go. The most precious items in the entire 2 storage units that I found were 2 engraved jewelry boxes from my father, gifted to me within a few months of his passing.

He had always told me “there were no doubts allowed” when it came to pursuing my dreams. In fact, that was engraved on one of the boxes! The other box was engraved with a message that told me that even if I did not see him, I could always look for his example to show me the way. To this day, so many of my dad’s one-liners and nuggets of wisdom still guide me, and I strive to be a leader who leads by example for my clients and with my family and friends.

Leading by example is the most effective way to make an impact in this world. Fifteen years later after my father’s passing, I still reflect back at how he would have handled my challenges and adversity if he were in my shoes today. The answers always come and it’s always a response that stretches me, calls me forward and higher. 

You too are a person of influence, take that responsibility seriously.

2. We choose the narrative we want to tell in our lives. 

When my dad was first diagnosed with cancer, he chose to create the narrative that he was going to be well. He kept working and living his life. Fully living (as much as the fatigue would let him). He decided he wasn’t sick. He told the doctor he didn’t want to know any bad news – “you do the medical part, I will do the mental part.”

What he didn’t know was the day he told his oncologist that the doctor told my mom and uncle that he might only have a year to live. My mom never told my father that. He had chosen the narrative and decided what he was going to believe, be fully alive and get through this! He lived 8 years after that day and remained a top producer in his finance business that entire time. He would even say to the team he was managing “how come I am bringing in more clients than you and I am going through beating cancer? What’s your excuse?”

What are you choosing to tell yourself about your life? Are you choosing to tell yourself it sucks or tell yourself how you’re never going to get where you want to go? Or are you giving yourself a narrative that you can overcome? A success story? A leader? It’s completely up to you, and what you decide will change everything.

3. Fear and money should never be reasons you don’t fully live your life. 

With money, you make the decision of how much you want to make, and you do not wobble in your decision. You align yourself to Source (money is a Frequency), let go of the fear blocks and then you take all the actions (despite your fear) to align with what will produce that result. And you don’t quit!

Even though my father was a very successful man in Mexico City (where I was born), he had his fair share of “restarts” and rebuilding in his life. The most powerful being when I was diagnosed with cancer at 16. At that time, the company he and his brothers had started when we moved to Vancouver from Mexico was failing and there was no income coming in. I watched him be depressed for a week, and then –  he made a decision to stop with that and do whatever it took to move forward! 

He bought books, trained his mind and decided that he would start over. He got clear on the income amount he wanted to make and he got clear it was going to happen no matter what. He was focused and he had conviction (another lesson he taught me about success). He went looking for work in finance and asked: “can I make XYC amount my first year here?”,  The guy interviewing him said “well…. yes if you work hard for it” my dad said, “great, where do I sign.”

He was committed and nothing stopped him despite his fear.

In his second year he won an award for his success and was promoted to district manager. He decided that lack of money and fear were never going to be reasons he couldn’t do something!

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning. But anybody can start today and make a new ending.”

My dad was a master at taking charge of his mind, and I invite you to take charge of your mind too.

Because 5 years from now you won’t want to look back and say.

“I could have done that… I could have traveled there… I could have taken that risk….. I could have opened my heart… I could have let go and just been me…. I could have written that screenplay…I could have played bigger…… BUT MY FEAR got the best of me!!!!

NOOOOOOOOO…. Ain’t nobody got time for that!

You will wanna say that fear tried to cheat you out of the best things in life, but YOU CHOSE NOT TO LET IT! 

Here is to celebrating all the fathers in our life and the wisdom they have taught us!

Britta XO