99. The Four Steps to Happiness with Valerie Sheppard

Today I talk with Valerie Sheppard who is the bestselling author of Living Happy to Be ME. Besides being a popular coach, speaker, and author, she was previously the VP of Conagra Brands where she managed a popular food brand portfolio with net sales close to a billion dollars. She is also a catastrophic stroke survivor and believes in living life through happiness no matter what the situation. She has broken down achieving happiness down to a four step process and she shares that process with us today. Find Out More About Valerie Here: Living Happy To Be Me WebsiteLiving Happy to Be ME!:Dancing Your Soul LightstyleThe Heart of Living VibrantlyValerie on Twitter @ValerieSheppardValerie on FacebookValerie on LinkedInEvolutionary Business [email protected] In This Episode: [01:36] - How Valerie's book has become a labor of love. It is the result of her own journey of personal transformation. [02:39] - Valerie's four step process that she learned from her happiness journey. [03:47] - Waking up to the truth of who we are and living our magnificence essence. [04:34] - Shaking up and releasing things that aren't in alignment with our true selves. [05:30] - Making up a new story of a higher version of ourselves. [05:54] - Taking up the reins and living our new awakened life. [06:46] - How Valerie had the book ready to go before she had her stroke. She uses the information and the four steps every day. [08:39] - The story of the biggest surprise of Valerie's life which was the stroke. [11:28] - After the stroke, Valerie woke up 4 days later, unable to speak and paralyzed on her right side. [12:18] - She did regain her ability speak the next time she regained consciousness. [14:47] - How the stroke was an opportunity to welcome a more fulfilling way of living that doesn't depend on outer circumstances. [15:33] - Laughter can heal, keep a lightness about us and travel our journey in a lighter way. [17:53] - How Valerie wished that she had brought spirituality into her job. Her energy was filled with things she wanted to get rid of. Things like anger, fear, and guilt. [19:57] - She had to have an awakening and see herself through her own eyes and how other people saw her. [20:55] - How spirituality became the pillar of how she created her life. [23:52] - Valerie experienced heart attack systems and went to the emergency room. There was an effect on her heart that was potentially deadly. Yet, there wasn't a diagnosable cause. This process made Valerie begin to ask questions. [27:27] - Valerie was on a retreat and had an encounter in the woods with a buck deer and that was when she realized that she was wounded. [28:53] - Feeling a connection at a deeper level. [30:10] - Miracles happening one after the other after having an awakening. [31:49] - Valerie thought miracles happened in her life all the time. [33:45] - Wake up and realize who we are and that the biggest miracle is when we realize that we are miracles. [35:09] - Living in harmony with the universal laws. [35:42] - To be happier go inside and allow happiness inside of you. [37:20] - Nonviolent or Compassionate Communication. Communicating in a way that allows love and honor through communication. [39:28] - Heart-centered living and HeartMath tools. Studies the power that resides in the heart. There is rigorous science that underlies the organization. [42:09] - The soul lightstyle concept is about lightening up and letting go. [43:16] - Sacred Contracts or higher principles for living and knowing who we are at different levels. There are no accidents we are eternal beings. We have sacred contracts for those we come in contact with. [49:06] - How feeling loved needs to come from inside us. We embody love. [49:48] - Laughter Yoga is where laughter and yoga are combined as a practice because laughter is a healing modality. Improv is used with laughter and yoga. [56:08] - Meditation going into the silence and unplugging and cultivating a relationship with your inner self. Links and Resources: Oneness UniversityHeartMathHeartMath InstitutePodcast with Jonathan FieldsAmma the Hugging SaintLiving Happy To Be Me WebsiteLiving Happy to Be ME!:Dancing Your Soul LightstyleThe Heart of Living VibrantlyValerie on Twitter @ValerieSheppardValerie on FacebookValerie on LinkedInEvolutionary Business [email protected]