Nurturing the spirit and the soul is a good way to support your mental health and growth. It can also have a profound effect on your physical health.

Studies show for example that people with a positive outlook live longer and are at lower risk for heart disease and hypertension disorders.

A 2004 study at the Psychiatric Center GGZ in Delfland, Holland showed optimistic participants as having a 55 percent lower risk of death from all causes and a 23 percent lower risk of death from heart failure. A 2003 study at Duke University in North Carolina had similar results. There have been no local studies but my personal experience with people is in keeping with the scientific data.

Bearing this in mind I attended a motivational conference last week. The Being Fearless conference was organised by the Omega Institute, a holistic living organisation that offers courses in disciplines like yoga, past life regression, different forms of meditation and programmes that support the environment.

I took my mother so that she too would have a chance for some mental growth. After three days we both emerged a bit wiser and motivated to face any fears in our lives head on.

I know that not everyone is able to take the time to attend these types of conferences. The three days in New York were not relaxing as the conference schedule was incredibly hectic. There were talks, workshops and activities taking place from 7.15 in the morning until 10 at night.

Most of us prefer to take time off that will relax us. So I took lots of notes and will share much of what I learned in upcoming articles in this section.

Seven Expressions of Greatness personal transformation coach Debbie Ford lectures widely in the US on personal growth and wellness. Once a student of Deepak Chopra she now offers a host of training in her own right.

She is a New York Times bestselling author and has a weekly Internet radio call-in show.

She claims that seeing yourself as you truly are is the way to overcoming fear and experiencing joy. She holds that we store emotional trauma in our bodies that can lead to disease. It is therefore of the utmost importance that we detoxify our mental and emotional states. “I do emotional panchakarma to detoxify my emotional body,” she said. “Only after the emotional body is clear can you plant in it.”

She lists compassion as the first expression of greatness. “You have to be accepting,” she said, “If we don’t understand what it is to be human we cannot have compassion.”

She acknowledged that this is not a simple feat. “It is hard to stop beating up on yourself,” she said. Her advice is to accept all your personality even those aspects you have been conditioned to deny. She advises that you should stop trying to be sweet because that’s what others expect. You need be true to yourself. She said the reality is that if your actions are largely guided by how you feel others will perceive it, you are accomplishing little, because there will always be people who are not happy with who you are and what you are doing.

It is healthier mentally to recognise and accept this fact, she said. She also warns that simply willing yourself to change is unlikely to work. This is because your emotional body needs to be detoxified. “People often wonder why affirmations do not work for them,” she said. “This is why. It’s like putting ice cream on top of poop.”

Humility is the second expression of greatness, Ms Ford believes we should cultivate in ourselves. The existence of ego makes it difficult for us to be humble and pain, she said, is “the great motivator that supports us in opening up”.

The ego is that part of us that is concerned solely with self, when we are able to move beyond or outside our egos we find ourselves in a non-judgmental place — a more loving, accepting and compassionate place.

Courage is an attribute she said that allows us to be open-minded and also to stand up for our beliefs and ourselves. It is at the core of being fearless but is better able to be achieved through being compassionate and humble.

Being shameless, forgiving/self accepting are also expressions of greatness, according to Ms Ford. She says that if you take a close look at what it is that you hate about others or in the world you will learn something of your true nature. “What you hate in the world is the part of you, you detest,” she said. “You have to ask yourself: How do I find the gift in that which I hate?”

For example if you know that you are stingy, instead of denying it just admit it, then agree to love yourself anyway. Through the admission you may be able to work on honestly on changing that aspect of you — denying it will only bury it in your emotional body. It will become a personal regret you carry about yourself and according to Ms Ford, “Regret covers your light”. Being focused on what it is you want to achieve and where you want to go in life will help you on your journey to personal greatness. “You must have clear intent,” said Ms Ford.

Finally, the ability to truly love yourself is that expression of your greatness that happens as a result of adherence to the all the previous six — compassion, humility, courage, shamelessness, forgiveness and focus.For more information go to www.debbieford.com/forgive