Everything moves so fast now. It’s so easy to get caught up in it all. In every waking moment, we have the ability to be bombarded with information from our so-called ‘smart’ phones, computers, TVs, magazines, etc. Unless (and even if) you can unplug and get quiet with yourself on a daily basis, the society most of us live in these days is often teetering on the edge of chaos. Ok, no, it IS chaos. It can be challenging to hear the authentic voice of our own hearts and Souls above all the chatter in our heads. You are here for a seemingly simple reason: to be happy and love your life. Perhaps you already know what that is to you, or perhaps you don’t. If you do, perhaps you feel you’ve veered off in an unwanted direction and have somehow de-railed from where you imagined you’d be at this point of your life. Or perhaps you are flooded with so many ideas and inspirations, you feel like a deer staring into oncoming headlights, paralyzed and unable to take action for fear of making a wrong decision. Or maybe you feel you’ve been successful and living a pretty good life, but you still feel like something important is missing. Whatever it is, the fire and the passion has died out a bit and you are left with a dark, unclear place inside.

If this sounds like you or someone you know, I want to tell you about a woman I had the honor to meet while working at a Health and Wellness Expo about 5 years ago. Her name is Shani Momi Odo, and she is a Life Stylist and Intuitive Consultant based in Honolulu, Hawaii. From the moment I met her, I knew she was the real deal. I was drawn to spend time with her and have a session with her, which I now do whenever I feel like I’m getting a little spun out and need a ‘reboot’. It’s like maintaining my car, but even more important. It’s about maintaining ME.

The first time I worked with Shani was like having a locksmith pick the locks to my heart that I had misplaced the keys to. I was amazed at how relaxed I was with her. Her approach is zero BS and is filled with real, “of-this-world”, practical tools and incredibly strong intuitive insights that helped guide me to my truth and my purpose. Every time I work with her I find myself laughing and crying, as she creates such a supportive environment in which to face my fears, issues or challenges. She is a sincere, real, honest, HUMAN being…no fluff.
I have never met anyone like Shani. Having a Become Magic session with her is nothing like a psychic reading, psychotherapy, or even standard life coaching, although it contains elements of all. She is a one of a kind intuitive consultant who truly guides you in awakening your inner magic, and opening the doors to your authentic voice and heart. You will find yourself feeling deeply empowered and inspired, equipped with action steps to move you forward. If you are looking for someone to help you ‘cut through the crap’, light your inner fire, and find your true bliss, consider spending some time talking with Shani. Don’t wait.

I was inspired to write this article about Shani because now, more than ever, the world needs each one of us to rise up into our full power. Even healers, counselors, coaches and teachers need to have their fire re-ignited on occasion. We are all here sharing this human experience together. Shani gets people back to their WHYs and HOWs, so they can proceed with focus, confidence and their very own magic.

SHANI MOMI ODO is an Intuitive Consultant and Life Stylist. Born in Hawaii and raised in the Bay Area of California, Shani spent the first 20+ years of her career immersed in luxury retail management. After leaving a lucrative career to follow her heart and devote herself to her own “spiritual journey”, she founded Become Magic. She now works one on one with her clients, offering strong clarity, perspective and life guidance to support them in making the necessary changes to have what they truly desire. Learn more about Shani’s story or find out how you can schedule a personal session with her at www.BecomeMagic.NET.

The Author, NANCY MILLER, is a professional dating and relationship coach. For almost a decade, she has helped hundreds of women reclaim their confidence, strength, and courage to bring true love into their lives. She won the prestigious award of ‘Best Dating Coach’ at the iDate Conference in 2013 and worked with one of the top Matchmaking Agencies in Los Angeles, Cupid’s Coach. Nancy holds a Master’s Degree in Spiritual Psychology. She currently resides on the beautiful island of Kauai and travels around the country speaking and teaching others about how to manifest conscious, loving, and empowering relationships. Schedule a coaching session with Nancy by calling 808-635-3463.

(Featured in Spring 2015 “Hawaii’s Inspiration” Magazine.)

An old Cherokee told his grandson, “My son, there is a battle between two wolves inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, jealousy, greed, resentment, inferiority, lies and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, empathy and truth.”

The boy thought about it and asked, “Grandfather, which wolf wins?”

The old man quietly replied, “THE ONE YOU FEED.” -author unknown

You may have read this story before, but I’m sharing it again because I find it to be such a wonderful reminder. It is a check and reset for myself on so many levels; my thoughts, my words, my behavior, my intentions, my energy. Are they all feeding the good wolf? When those five things are all in alignment, we are in our Zone. We become focused, powerful and impactful. We get in touch with our Magic.

I will admit that, from time to time, I have a less than fabulous day. It happens. On days like that, my mind can fill with thoughts that are less than sugary, my energy can be blah and my intentions can be described as perfunctory at best. Ideally, this is when I recall the wolf story. The story re-inspires me to feed the good wolf in all areas. No excuses! Time to do the work to flip the switch on my insolent thoughts, jolt my dim energy and lift the shade on my waning intention to get back to the person I am happy and proud of, through and through. I walk, read, swim, nap. Focusing on quiet and peaceful activities works best for me to positively feed my soul and get me out of my funk. I affectionately call this ‘going into my cocoon’. It brings me back to the best version of myself. And what happens when I get back to the best version of myself? Things seem to start getting back on track all around me.

The wolf story reminds me how important it is to keep all my facets of myself on the same team and focused on feeding the good wolf. It’s crucial for a truly happy me.

I challenge you to ask yourself these five questions: Which wolf are you feeding with your thoughts? Which wolf are you feeding with your words? Which wolf are you feeding with your behavior? Which wolf are you feeding with your intentions? Which wolf are you feeding with your energy?

What we feed, we grow.

Shani Momi Odo is an intuitive consultant that offers life guidance to support her clients in achieving their personal and professional goals. Learn more about her story and inquire about working with her one-on-one at www.BecomeMagic.NET.

(Featured in Winter 2015 “Hawaii’s Inspiration” Magazine. Read the entire issue.)

I first heard the story of the Golden Buddha from the Joseph Campbell inspired film “Finding Joe”. It’s a story I have since recounted many times, both for myself and for my clients, as it provides a powerful and symbolic analogy of personal concealment and subsequent discovery.

Many centuries ago, there stood the most amazing giant Golden Buddha. The shrine was the cherished responsibility of a group of dedicated monks. When the monks received word of an impending invasion from a neighboring army, they were certain their beloved possession would be pillaged. To protect their shrine, the monks camouflaged the Golden Buddha by covering it with a foot of clay; masquerading the Buddha’s exceptionality and uniqueness. The ruse worked. The nondescript statue of clay and modest details received minimal attention and was not perceived as having any significance. Sadly, the occupation of the neighboring army continued for many years and included the demise of the monks and their secret cover-up.

Many years passed and the country was reclaimed, allowing monks to return to the temple. No one, including the new generation of monks, knew of the very special Buddha statue they had in their possession and the modest clay shire was relocated multiple times. The Golden Buddha remained covered in clay; an unremarkable and characterless figure that was often unwanted due to its massiveness and commonplace composition. Then, in the 1950’s, the Buddha was to be relocated once again. This time, in the process of trying to move the massive figure, the crane’s rigging broke, dropping the Buddha and compromising the clay’s shielding layer…the unfortunate accident had loosened the clay shell. That night, before the Buddha could be safely moved again, a major rain storm occurred. One of the monks responsible for the care of the Buddha went to check on the statue in the mist of the night storm and noticed a tiny glimmer coming from beneath the area that had been damaged in the crane accident. He called to the other monks and they began to hammer and chisel at the clay to reveal the most beautiful and precious Golden Buddha. What was uncovered that night is known today as Phra Phuttha Maha Suwan Patimakon, the world’s largest solid gold statue.

I am of the school that we are born pure and uninhibited; we all come into this world a Golden Buddha. As time passes, we too pile on layers of muck concealing our true self. Whether it be a layer of protection from social pressures, restraints created from our upbringing or family expectations, or fears of denunciation for self-expression;

it’s a cover-up we add to conform, to fit in, to be an acceptable participant of the status quo. As time passes, we are so masked and concealed with layers we forget we are Golden. Often, something happens in our lives….a tragedy, a misfortune….or is it? An event occurs that cracks us open to reveal something hidden within… something so precious that we forgot ever existed.

What if I reminded you that YOU are a Golden Buddha….that there is treasure within you? Would you keep yourself covered in muck? Would you wait for an event to break you and break you open? Or would you start a proactive, consistent process now? The statue had to wait to be revealed, but we don’t have to! You choose. Reveal your Golden Buddha….by water or through the flames….probably a bit of both. Explore, challenge, excavate….reveal.

YOU are Golden…

Shani Momi Odo is a life stylist who coaches individuals on reclaiming their magic and breaking-through challenging circumstances to achieve their highest personal and professional goals. Learn more about her at www.BecomeMagic.NET.

At the ripe age of 38, I did the unthinkable……I had a mid-life crisis. All my joking and laughing at this ridiculous label given to other women….how could this happen to someone as smart and ‘together’ as ME?! Well, Karma can be cruel. I had accomplished everything I thought would make the perfect life….a marriage and family that looked right, a glamorous career that was lucrative, a big home, fancy things and financial security. Why, then, did I feel like I was slowly being smashed and asphyxiated by the weight of maintaining the image of the “girl who had everything”? Oddly, I had the most money and 'stuff’ ever but, instead of feeling a sense of calm and security, I was becoming more obsessive and crazed about maintaining, protecting and increasing all of it!

Needless to say, I rebelled. I busted out of that life guns-blazing (as only a drama queen like me can do). I walked out of my marriage, quit my job, and took over a year to put the shattered remnants of myself back together. I’m ashamed to admit that, at first, I naively pictured it to be a 'vacation’ of sorts. Pictures of zen spas, fancy retreats, and fun get-togethers in chic coffee shops danced in my head. As Fate would have it, that was not to be the case. The money that was supposed to last me a year lasted a whopping three months and I was reduced to scaling my lifestyle back severely in response. No luxurious heroic journeys to exotic destinations, I had to start counting quarters….no five-star restaurants, just picnics in the park. Do you know what happened during this time?! The most beautiful and unexpected thing! I remembered that the best things in life cost nothing. I appreciated walks in the park with my little girls, birds flying, and sunsets at the beach…..I started to experience the World with the same wonder of a child again! I had found great peace in how simple my life had become.

Shortly after, I started to look all around me. I saw all the things I had accumulated over the years that once held such an immense value to me. They were gathering dust, unused and unloved…like sad trophies. At this time, the next miracle unfolded for me…I started to share those things. Showing true compassion for those in need and sharing with others (expecting nothing in return) made me start to LIKE myself again. And, believe me, the words 'sharing and expecting nothing in return’ or 'true compassion’ would have been odd words to hear coming from my lips prior to that. I started letting go of all the things that no longer served a purpose in my life…..and it was a lot. I was called a 'hippie’ or a 'tree-hugger’ by people who knew me before…the butt of many jokes. I just called myself 'human’ again.

Well, here I am 4 years later. Back to 'ME’ and happily on a new path. I have not forgotten the lessons I learned in that experience, though. Everything means nothing if we don’t appreciate and enjoy it now….and 'stuff’ will never replace true relationships and deep connections with those we love. In fact, nothing replaces true LOVE (for yourself, for others, and for the World around you).

What do you truly need and appreciate in your life? Keep and protect those things with every cell of your being. The rest of it? Just let go. And, now that you’re traveling 'lighter’, watch yourself rise to heights you never thought you could reach….and make room for beautiful new things to enter your life.

Shani Momi Odo is a life stylist who coaches individuals on reclaiming their magic and breaking-through challenging circumstances to achieve their highest personal and professional goals. Learn more about her at www.BecomeMagic.NET.

It’s hard to tell when my Spiritual Journey began. I tell others that my awareness of my Spiritual Journey began a few years ago. A lot of things were the catalyst at that time but, mostly, I think it was the feeling that I had ‘settled’ in too many areas of my life…not to mention that I could no longer ignore the gaping hole in me that felt like something important was missing. An old friend told me that I said to her one day, very seriously, “I’m going on a Spiritual Journey." Although words like that sounded nothing at all like me, she insisted. So, the drama queen in me has decided to mark that moment as the beginning of my search for purpose and meaning in my life…i.e. something to fill that gaping hole. I wanted to feel blissfully ALIVE again.

My adventure began gently by exploring anything that fascinated me and that I would have normally felt uncomfortable about. I spent a lot of time in centers for alternative thinking and "New Age” gathering places. In the beginning, it was overwhelming (and a little weird), to say the least. There seemed to be such a huge gap between living 'of this world’ with a normal job, friends and a little mainstream religion to top it off vs. delving head first into the vast sea of Spirituality. I was scared! Everyone in this alternative world seemed over the top and, dare I say, a bit out there. Was I really ready to live off the grid? At first, I was cautious…fearful of getting sucked in and losing all that I was familiar with. However, I stubbornly refused to let my fears create judgments about things I had yet to experience myself and proceeded to set forth walking at the edge of the 'Spirituality shoreline’, gingerly dipping my feet in and spending time learning about anything that struck my interest. Slowly and quietly, a hunger in me grew and I began to immerse myself more deeply in the exploration of more new perspectives. This may not be a big deal to many people, but I felt wild and free! I felt empowered and proud of this little bubble-gum, jimmy-rigged spiritual mission I had embarked on…all in the pursuit of discovering my life purpose and, ultimately, how to fill that empty space I had been carrying around within myself for the last 15 years.

Let me tell you, I explored everything and anything! Cutting-edge, radical new perspectives and long-standing beliefs. All the while, my daily mantra was a quote from Buddha-

“Believe NOTHING,
no matter where you read it
or who has said it,
not even if I have said it,
unless it agrees with
your own reason and
your own common sense."
-Buddha

That being said, the entire World was now open to me - there was NOTHING taboo! I explored Hare Krishna, Buddhism, yoga and yogis, tarot cards, meditation, Wicca, the Bible, energy healing, frequency of stones, the Tao, the law of manifestation, life after death, pendulum, aromatherapy, acupuncture, ionic, magnetic…..anything and everything that sparked an interest in me. It was beautiful and enlightening. So many outlooks wrapped in a variety of colorful words and interesting packages….who was I to say what was right or wrong?! In this buffet of information, I served myself a meal of everything that peaked my curiosity! It was the most satisfying 'meal’ of my life. I started to watch sunsets, sunrises, birds flying, clouds breaking, grass growing, people living……all with new eyes. Different books started to interest me…Louise L. Hay, Doreen Virtue, Don Miguel Ruiz, Paulo Coelho and even Chelsea Handler! When I ceased judgement of what was right and wrong, important and unimportant, I found a little lesson in everything and started to form MY TRUTH, based on things that resonated deeply with me.

As someone who has taken my first leap to explore new frontiers of Spirituality, I have a few suggestions for those of you that have decided to embark on your own journey to reconnect with yourselves and find your Truth:

1. Take time alone in peaceful silence and reconnect with nature regularly.
2. Explore things that are oddly intriguing to you or that you know you have irrational fears about…gently expanding your boundaries.
3. Select three priorities in your life and 'feed’ each of those things daily. For example, if your health is a priority, exercise 30 minutes a day. Maintaining priorities in your life helps you to maintain your balance.
4. Follow your heart. Our minds are important, but they will always keep you in your 'safe zone’. Nothing revolutionary is revealed in our comfort zones. Do what makes your heart sing!
5. Seek a person that you can relate to who is already on this journey, a spiritual mentor of sorts. After all, this new adventure can seem overwhelming at first. Be sure that you feel comfortable and supported by this person, rather than directed to be on a specific course. You are not looking for someone to put you on their path, but to offer you assistance as you begin to blaze your own trail.

If you’re feeling a 'void’, chances are good it’s not going to be filled with anything you’re doing now. Consider the option of adventuring outside of your comfort zone, in little ways (or big)…it may reconnect you with all the amazing things you are capable of! In my personal adventure, going through experiences which challenged my boundaries made me see a strength, courage and passion I didn’t think I had anymore….and this was my key to filling my void. Dare to open yourself up to a magical World and find your key.