Shahinaz El Hennawi

My biggest teacher is my mother. I lived so many years with a mother wound, and I figured out that her strength helped me so much in where I am, because I was growing up in resentment that she wasn't loving enough, and she was very powerful and very tough. But as I went through my own healing, I realized that I had a big part of that strength, and that was a gift for me. I needed it, because I was so vulnerable, and when I needed it, it just came up. And this is what she was trying to give me. She was having a masculine power, and I was in resentment, but I came to peace with it, who she is, and I was able to find the gift in the challenge.

The best spiritual advice I got from my spiritual mentors is about letting go - letting go of attachments, and letting go of wanting something so bad. I'm not saying don't have visions, and don't have dreams, and don't do the work. Do everything, but also in your heart, if something is not meant to be, don't let the pain be a deep struggle. Go through all life experiences, but also see the bright side of things. The best advice is that I am always supported, no matter what happens, just trusting and having faith.

I would tell them to be open to the divine wisdom, to connect, and to be able to connect to their deep intuition, and have this open connection with the divine. Not everything that seems challenging has to stay that way - I'm not bypassing the current situations, but they can always come to a place within themselves that they will be able to find peace in whatever challenge they're going through. And this is the walking, and this is the path, and doing it again and again. Not giving up, because sometimes we think we have everything, and then we have the next fall. So, just being resilient and open to seeing beyond how things appear.

The biggest challenge in my industry is what my mentor calls marketing assault - over-promising and under-delivering, especially in the coaching industry. Not being authentic, and giving a lot of promises, and making things easy, like on social media saying 'come, I'll teach you how to make six figures.' It's very disappointing and very disheartening. Many people do not give the honest picture of what needs to happen, or they give up very easily. The biggest opportunity is that there's always someone there needing our services. There's always people who are looking for hope, but it's just knowing yourself very well, and who you are, what is your message. You need a lot of clarity before going out there and trying to invite others to join you or to listen to you. You need to know yourself very well, be authentic, and know your message.

Compassion, love, peace, trust, and wisdom. These are my main core values. Peace at every level - inner peace first, peace at home as a mother of two young girls, peace at work, peace in the community, peace with Mother Earth.