65: How to be Chic with Fiona Ferris

Are you content with the way things have turned out in your life?
Some people spend too much time and energy living with regret or
wistfulness for what they WISHED would have happened. Today’s
show is about embracing what life gives you and running with it
to follow your personal path to gratitude, satisfaction, and
peace.


Fiona Ferris lives in beautiful Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand. She
writes about living a simple, beautiful, and successful life and
believes you don’t have to spend a lot of money to do it. Through
her books on Amazon and her popular blog, How to be Chic, Fiona
provides thousands of women from all around the world with the
tools and inspiration to elevate the everyday from mundane to
magical. She lives with her husband, Paul, two rescue cats, and
two rescue dogs. 


"We can’t imagine our life any other way than it is. We
are grateful for that and for the way things have worked out
perfectly for us. We feel like the luckiest people in the world."
 - Fiona Ferris


What you’ll hear in this episode:


For Fiona, it was both circumstances and choice that have led
to her not having a child.

She married her husband in her mid-30’s and they tried to
conceive for a couple of years. When it didn’t happen, they
decided not to pursue it further and steer their life in a
different direction.

Does Fiona have regrets? No--she is grateful and happy with
how things have worked out and feels lucky to have permission to
live in an exciting and non-traditional way.

How she feels a small amount of grief in feeling like they
will miss out on certain life experiences as parents, but she
says that’s only about 1% grief compared to 99% happiness!

The assumption that people make that EVERYONE wants to have
children and that you can’t be happy and complete without them.

The myths that people say about not having a child, having an
only child, and not having someone to care for you when you’re
elderly.

A dream came true for Fiona when she published her first
Kindle book that was a collection of her blog posts, Thirty Chic
Days, in 2016.

How publishing her first book gave her the confidence in her
writing and her ability to teach others how to do it.

Her home in the country on four acres with her pets, cows,
and sheep.

Her five books that are available online and a couple are
being translated and published in other countries.

Taking control with self-publishing: 75% of Fiona’s sales are
Kindle books and 25% are print copies.

How she helps others with their writing through her 6-week
e-course, Create Your Dream Life, and her Writer’s Encouragement
email newsletters.

Why we should view writing as sharing personal experience and
inspiration ---it’s a shame to keep it to yourself!

How writers share their tone and voice and actually become a
friend to their readers through their books.

Using nurturing qualities in her writing and work instead of
raising children--if her life had taken a different turn.

How we each express creativity in many ways that show we
value our strengths.

All the “shoulds” that burden our days if we don’t “let them
go”.

Why it's better to attempt to not to be overly influenced by
other people’s opinions, but stick with what aligns with our
personal life path.



Resources:


Find Fiona’s books on Amazon


Check out her blog at www.howtobechic.com


Visit her website: www.fionaferris.com


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I would love to hear in the comments below what you
found most helpful about this interview? Thank you.