<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[Paula Johnson]]></title><description><![CDATA[Paula Johnson is an author, designer, bodyworker and wanderluster.]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/blog</link><generator>RSS for Node</generator><lastBuildDate>Sun, 14 Jun 2026 09:37:14 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://www.paulajohnson.co.nz/blog-feed.xml" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><item><title><![CDATA[The Unique Benefits of Writing Retreats]]></title><description><![CDATA[A writing retreat is more than just a change of scenery - it can be the spark that reignites your passion and creativity. ]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/the-unique-benefits-of-writing-retreats</link><guid isPermaLink="false">68d059c3f8183e24929540a7</guid><pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2025 05:20:38 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_ccd60c505b874c018cbd6895dbfdc7a1~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_960,h_648,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Power of Journalling]]></title><description><![CDATA[Writing a journal is a great way to keep memories of moments past from slipping completely from existence...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/the-power-of-journalling</link><guid isPermaLink="false">677dec08815f28cd2e4362a6</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 Jan 2025 03:15:19 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_586776ca07874b1aa34c9eb57f3383f9~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_665,h_499,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Words Have Power]]></title><description><![CDATA[Words have power. Truly. And so every year around this time, I've usually been thinking of my WORD for the next year.]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/year-end-rituals</link><guid isPermaLink="false">677de4b40a262a4e8724395d</guid><pubDate>Wed, 08 Jan 2025 02:53:32 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_6895a7f87ba44ed791905cb96ad5c450~mv2.png/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[My Dad]]></title><description><![CDATA[28 September 2024 is a day of remembrance. A day where I slow down and reflect on the man that was my dad. ]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/my-dad</link><guid isPermaLink="false">66f74a0bd928c37957327249</guid><pubDate>Sat, 28 Sep 2024 05:56:31 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_a227ef9b97f64e3ca513e4e9cce6a143~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Writing a Book]]></title><description><![CDATA[Writing a book or a legacy piece is an incredibly powerful experience. ]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/writing-a-book</link><guid isPermaLink="false">66d64041fb99f49d04514159</guid><pubDate>Mon, 02 Sep 2024 23:10:37 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_2a029d82bd9f4a77b17001cd05bf176a~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_499,h_437,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Travel always teaches...]]></title><description><![CDATA[There's always pros and cons to exploring a new destination, but you can always guarantee travel will teach you something...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/travel-always-teaches-us</link><guid isPermaLink="false">66c95f8e8033c3d5a52cc21b</guid><pubDate>Sun, 25 Aug 2024 21:51:13 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_09a2fb24d1ce49068bd1860472ea3af3~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_454,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[2024, The Year of Abundance!]]></title><description><![CDATA[It's that time of the year again where I start taking stock of the year that's been and the energy I want to bring in and embody]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/2024-the-year-of-abundance</link><guid isPermaLink="false">675238302d7cf67cc7c5cbc7</guid><pubDate>Fri, 22 Dec 2023 03:04:38 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_4c5f13a0368b42abababdf6f8f78b865~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_600,h_600,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Wow 2023, you sure delivered!]]></title><description><![CDATA[It's that time of the year again (already?!) where I start taking stock of the year that's been and the energy I want to bring in and embody for the new one... I've been doing this for 12 years now and it's absolutely part of the the secret sauce for living an intentional life.  My word for 2023 was E X P A N S I O N and boy did I expand! There was a lot I covered off this year: Self-publishing my book after 11 years in the making. You don't know what you don't know and there was a LOT I...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/wow-2023-you-sure-delivered</link><guid isPermaLink="false">65725f3325fc4336f3d6a7bf</guid><pubDate>Fri, 08 Dec 2023 01:15:38 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_abc42f5ad3c9402ebf4837cec42c08e7~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_962,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Jumping to Conclusions]]></title><description><![CDATA[I've had a good lesson in jumping to conclusions and assuming this week. I’ve been staying a small hotel in Ubud that I've not been at before. As with many places you select to stay, the photos online often don't match the reality. At first glance I was disappointed, but once I had settled into my new surroundings, it was fine. The bonus being it was central to town and easy walking distance to most of the places I wanted to go. “Change The Way You Look At Things And The Things You Look At...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/jumping-to-conclusions</link><guid isPermaLink="false">64ae7ca26aabc954c060cf67</guid><pubDate>Thu, 13 Jul 2023 01:57:01 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_6dc352ddc57344caa0bd1a493e420888~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_640,h_463,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Nothing Stays the Same]]></title><description><![CDATA[My first week in Bali has now rolled into week 2. So, how's it going? Well, pretty much everything I had imagined it would be has not come to pass. For one, the weather has been unsettled and very unseasonably wet, so my image of lizarding by the swimming pool, doing a spot of sunbathing and swimming, sleeping and reading hasn't happened. I've managed to do that for maybe two hours in total in the 10 days I’ve been here. The rest of the time it's been pretty wet, and you can't really do a lot...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/nothing-stays-the-same</link><guid isPermaLink="false">64a6a93d8cd0019ed0753ed8</guid><pubDate>Sat, 08 Jul 2023 09:28:34 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_de4d7fc029914e37bee182a45b87ec85~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_979,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[There is no such thing as Time]]></title><description><![CDATA[It's been an interesting arrival back in Bali. I wondered how I was going to feel coming back after five years away. Knowing Bali has been like my soul home and means so much to me, I was curious as to how I would feel when I finally got back here. “You get a strange feeling when you’re about to leave a place. Like you’ll not only miss the people you love but you’ll miss the person you are now at this time and this place, because you’ll never be this way ever again.” Azar Nafisi And it was...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/there-is-no-such-thing-as-time</link><guid isPermaLink="false">64a6335116a451e14675f3ba</guid><pubDate>Thu, 06 Jul 2023 04:24:26 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_c342074ba79b40528e4128a164b54d6f~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Publishing a Book is Like Running a Marathon]]></title><description><![CDATA["Slowing down your pace is the single best way to run longer without stopping. Rather than focusing on your pace at all, focus on your effort level." (from marathonhandbook.com) I've wondered why I've hit the wall today... thinking it was because I've had a super busy few weeks juggling work and getting my book to the next stage... this last week being particularly hard out. Then I realised... I've just today sent my baby off to the PROOF READER (another massive milestone reached). The amount...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/publishing-a-book-is-like-running-a-marathon</link><guid isPermaLink="false">642205e22f485204e59a4753</guid><pubDate>Mon, 27 Mar 2023 21:14:49 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_38dc21de95164364a68cff23749b0ed0~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_800,h_800,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Recognising How Far You've Come]]></title><description><![CDATA[I’m feeling emotional as I write this. Sometimes the pain of others shows you how far you’ve come… what you’ve overcome, to be where you are right now. And it’s an ever-evolving process, but I’ll relish in the deep gratitude I’m feeling at this moment in time. In November 2022 I celebrated 6 years of self-employment. But also in November, I was just about done with it all and I was looking for jobs. In a last ditched attempt to change things, I had signed up for Penny Green’s, The Year of You...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/recognising-how-far-you-ve-come</link><guid isPermaLink="false">63c73156e704a94644a0aae9</guid><pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2023 23:57:06 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_90b435fd42f04d629ec131ac0ed8c694~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_736,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[End Of Year Traditions]]></title><description><![CDATA[As the current year draws to an end, I start thinking about a word that resonates with me and embodies what I want the intention for the next year to be, the energy I want to bring to that year to help me fulfil my dreams. I’ve been doing this for a number of years now and it works so well. Whenever I feel myself slipping from my path or getting wobbly over things, I remember my word, reconnect with its energy and come back to centre.  For the past 2 years I have felt myself shrink, barely...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/end-of-year-traditions</link><guid isPermaLink="false">63a385a0c2b70500ad07560e</guid><pubDate>Wed, 21 Dec 2022 22:23:07 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_5accbb7d8d9a4a2d8514322f9725fe78~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_600,h_668,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Numerology - The magic of Numbers]]></title><description><![CDATA[11.11.22. A powerful numerology day. It's also the 11 year anniversary of one of the most potent and powerful times of my life. It will be forefront in my mind all day today, wishing I had a time machine to zoom straight back there...  11.11.11. I was participating in a self development workshop in Bali with my dear Bali brother Rick Pursell facilitating his wisdom. It was at the end of a five month journey where I had been living in Bali with my partner at the time, volunteer teaching in a...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/numerology-the-magic-of-numbers</link><guid isPermaLink="false">63a3a3368aca209692d894b8</guid><pubDate>Fri, 11 Nov 2022 00:26:01 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_20a44dd5d7114f41a1bb725329fcdcc6~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_843,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Turn Writing Into A Ritual]]></title><description><![CDATA[One thing I've learnt over the years, is that by turning WRITING into a RITUAL it's a lot easier to get your bum in the chair to actually get something done.  I MAKE TIME. I make a date with myself, my pen and my paper. I promise I will write for a MINIMUM of 15 minutes. 15 minutes is doable. And more often than not, 15 minutes turns into 30 or 60... There's a great sense of satisfaction when I stop. I know I've made progress, even if it is only a baby step, it's still better than doing...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/turn-writing-into-a-ritual</link><guid isPermaLink="false">63a3a62dde75896f7f91c8a0</guid><pubDate>Mon, 31 Oct 2022 11:00:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_69c5a44c0d6747709623f0c5e63465a8~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_800,h_800,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[The Simplicity of Life in Sidemen, Bali]]></title><description><![CDATA[I'm missing Bali terribly at the moment...it's been 4 years since my last visit, and given I was going yearly for various stretches of time, it's hurting not being able to get there.  As Google showed me my snapshots of 8 years ago this morning, I disappeared into the time machine in my mind...back to Sidemen, one my most faviourite places on the island. Sidemen is where I held my writing retreats. It's quiet, it's real, there's no retail shopping, it's just a place to BE and soak up the...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/the-simplicity-of-life-in-sidemen-bali</link><guid isPermaLink="false">63a3a8e4db2beae769f4d532</guid><pubDate>Wed, 15 Jun 2022 12:00:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_bf55549de53041df84c8c30afc3e1e4f~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_750,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[2021 Reflections]]></title><description><![CDATA[This post may trigger, and you may likely disagree, but in sharing my own truth, I hope to bring a glimmer of light to others... As I reflect on 2021 and all it has brought…the good, the bad, the ugly, I am filled with very mixed emotions. I am bloody glad it’s nearly over. Much like 2020, it has not been a year to enjoy. Both years have brought me to my knees, and both years have seen me rise above. My word for 2021 was EMPOWERED. For most of the year I felt far from empowered. In fact I...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/2021-reflections</link><guid isPermaLink="false">654ea59143c3db028bab318c</guid><pubDate>Thu, 30 Dec 2021 21:53:18 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/nsplsh_4563677972794779676545~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[No Mud...No Lotus]]></title><description><![CDATA[Sometimes this world is too harsh for those of us who are sensitive and empathic. But we’re here for a reason. We’re here to soften the sharp edges of the world. We’re here to light up the darkness of the world. Quite often, over the past few weeks I’ve been haemorrhaging anger at the Universe, at God, whatever you want to call it, saying, ‘I didn’t sign up for this!’ ‘Why am I here?’ ‘This isn’t how my life is meant to be!’ But I realise this IS why I’m here. To be the sensitive, empathic...]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/no-mud-no-lotus</link><guid isPermaLink="false">61300f8e8837b60016283e1b</guid><pubDate>Thu, 02 Sep 2021 02:25:44 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/a38528_2cfb1094398d4aa592c6b3b415af802f~mv2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item><item><title><![CDATA[Happiness – Stretch That Comfort Zone!]]></title><description><![CDATA[Stepping out of your comfort zone can be really, really scary.  It’s only natural that when we step into unknown territory fears arise because we have no idea what we are doing or what the outcome will be.  But the more we stretch our comfort zone the more we grow and the fantastic thing about that is – it helps us feel fulfilled which in turn makes us happy!   I loved this article by Louise Thompson.  She has some great advice on fear and your comfort zone…(re printed with permission)....]]></description><link>https://www.paulajohnsonnz.com/post/happiness-stretch-that-comfort-zone</link><guid isPermaLink="false">60191ad3a4e54e002dc55696</guid><pubDate>Sun, 31 Jan 2021 11:00:00 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://static.wixstatic.com/media/nsplsh_793279576e4f6b4f554d30~mv2_d_5173_3233_s_4_2.jpg/v1/fit/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_80/file.png" length="0" type="image/png"/><dc:creator>Paula Johnson</dc:creator></item></channel></rss>