Everyday Strong Radio

All good things must come to an end. This podcast has been such a wonderful experience for me, but it's about time I start taking some of my own advice and close this loop. As I reflect on my time recording these episodes, I realize that I learned and benefitted from the advice I gave just as much as my listeners. Sometimes the coach a coach needs is herself! Thank you for growing with me and for your support. And keep on using your Everyday Strong!

Not all of my clients come into coaching convinced it will work. In this episode, my client even tells me what she REALLY thought of our first session! Episode 94 Client Spotlight: Patricia Bradford showcases just how effective coaching has been for her and what knowledge she will be using throughout her life. Not only has she been able to implement mindset training, but she has also been enjoying a new practice I've been training to be a coach in called Positive Intelligence (PQ). No matter what practice she is using, it all circles back to our thoughts and how we assign value to our circumstances.

Has anyone else been having issue after issue come up the last few weeks? Astrologists say Mercury in retrograde can be a time of tension, miscommunication, and mishaps. Whether it's Mercury in retrograde or just a week that will not give you a break, we all need tools to help us get through the tough times. Slowing down to speed up is a way to step back from the problem long enough to detach ourselves from the thoughts that are holding us back or keeping us frantic. Join me on this week's episode to figure out how to put Slowing Down to Speed Up into practice in your life.

In Episode 92, I address a roadblock that many of us come upon in our coaching journeys. What can we do when we are using all the tips and tricks at our disposal, and we still run into a situation that has us feeling defeated and small? What happens when our mindset work becomes perfunctory? You can do all the thought downloads you want and follow the thought model perfectly, but still end up with thoughts that negatively affect our results. It happens and that's okay. Episode 92 is all about How to Coach Yourself from a Place of Love. Join me this week to hear some ideas on how to step back, evaluate where feelings and thoughts that seemingly come out of nowhere come from, and coach yourself with compassion.

Every few weeks, I like to do a Client Spotlight to showcase a client who has really applied the concepts they learned from coaching. In Episode 91, I sit down with one of my longest standing clients, Tracy Mikol. Even though Tracy is no longer my client, she continues to use techniques from our time together in her day-to-day life, relationships, and parenting. Like many go-getters, Tracy lived solidly in the “A” Line. She went from always questioning what to DO, to figuring out who she really wants to BE. Her ongoing mindset work concentrates on what thoughts and questions are useful to her, closing loops that slow her down, getting clear on what she wants, and making decisions ahead of time.  Do those concepts sound familiar? This episode is a must listen to see how the topics I cover in other episodes come together as a final result!

Getting clear is all about asking the right questions. In episode 90, I offer you my list of useful thoughts and questions to ask yourself to get clarity and plan for your future. You may recognize a few of them from previous episodes, but you've come so far since  you first started listening and the list was worth updating!

Do you know what it's like to love yourself unconditionally? Carola Fuertes, my guest for Episode 89, is dedicated to helping her clients expand their capacity for love and cultivate skills to help them create love on demand in their lives. Join me as we delve into how Carola's coaching has helped me personally with my latest passion project, and how her desire to create more opportunities to uplevel self love has developed into her own passion project too!

I've said it once (or several times) and I'll say it again. Words matter! In Episode 88, I tackle the difference between Judgement and Discernment. These concepts arise in coaching quite often, and their differences may seem very subtle, but the impact of utilizing discernment versus judgement can be huge. Listen along to see if you can discern how discernment has more value and usefulness in your life than judgement. 

For Episode 87, I want to focus on closing loops. Do you often find yourself waiting on input from other people to make a decision?  Many of us do this so we can gain as much information as possible and get outside perspectives.  But at a certain point, it slows us down and can leave us feeling stuck without that outside input. Or, on the other hand, it can leave us paralyzed by the amount of information we get in return. Decisions by committee are the safe option, but not the one to help you grow. Closing loops is about losing the weight of carrying around unmade decisions. It's about being the best advocate for yourself and trusting that you will make the best decisions for you. 

This week's episode is one of my favorite kinds. A client spotlight. Ellen Mitchell shares her journey from being skeptical of coaching to retiring a whole 4 years ahead of schedule!   Ellen not only retired early, but she now has the freedom to do the work she loves and give to those around her in meaningful ways. She started by investing in and showing up for herself, but the ripple effect of those shifts in perspective are just beginning.  Her journey through coaching is a perfect example of how getting clarity on what you actually want and trusting yourself (even if you need to borrow your coach's belief in you for a while) will make all the difference in achieving your goals.  This episode is a must listen!  

My episode this week is all about midlife and the opportunities that come with it. For most of our lives, we have a playbook to follow whether its on how to be a good student, spouse, parent, employee, etc. Now that you have reached midlife, there is no instruction manual. So, what's next?  What's next is that you get to write your own manual without any expectations already laid out for you. This is your chance to become all you came here to become and unearth your authentic self. 

Today's episode is on lagging indicators. We usually think of lagging indicators when it comes to the financial and business world, but today I'm talking about it in terms of your life.  Why?  Because most people decide their future on what they have evidence of from the past.  This is how you sell yourself and the people around you short.  Using lagging indicators is making decisions about your future based on the past.  It's capping what's possible for you and causes resignation, discouragement and blame. Just because it's always been a certain way, doesn't mean it always will be. Tune in to get the shift you need to start making decisions about your future, from your future….right now.

This weeks episode centers the story of my life at this moment. We often live our lives on the go, constantly looking for the next thing, the next project, the next goal. But sometimes stillness allows us to realize that we are already the person we have been working so hard to become.  Where do we go from there? How do we overcome discomfort in the stillness? The possibilities are endless, but no matter what path you take, you do not need to do it alone, and you get to do it on your own terms. (If your terms include an Oracle Deck, I highly suggest the Work Your Light Deck I use) This weeks podcast is about being your future self now and enjoying having already arrived. 

This week's episode is something I haven't done in a long while - a Client Spotlight. I'm thrilled to have my client Nancy Olson join me as she shares where she was when we met and where she is now.  Nancy is the perfect example of someone who took what she learned, implemented it and created the results she was looking for in her life in no time flat. From being in a time deficit to having an abundance of time….from feeling like everyone owned her life but her to disentangling herself from things that no longer serve her….from having fractured family communication to fantastic communication….Nancy is an incredible example of what the power of mindset can create in your life. This is one you won't want to miss!

This week the podcast is back and with a very special guest, my dear friend and a coach too, Carola Fuertes. Carola and I talk about the difference between trust and belief, what each truly means, why one can be stickier than the other, and how both can be especially useful in your day to day life.

I had different plans for this episode but changed them this past weekend when Norm and I were working outside getting his house ready to go on the market. When we paused to admire all the hard work we've done we joked about how great everything  looks just as we are about to leave.  And isn't that the thing?  So often we wait for something to happen or be a certain way before we enjoy it. But why? Why not enjoy it all now? Then I realized what I've been forgetting to remember….and what you can remember too, in any given moment. Tune in to this short ‘n sweet episode for your mission over the next couple of weeks - should you choose to accept it - and learn how to remember what we so easily forget.

Episode 79 One of the most common things clients or prospective clients want to work on together is time. They think there's not enough of it. They don't feel they have control over it. They feel everyone and everything else is taking up all their time. Or they feel like time is getting away from them and there's nothing they can do about it. It's exhausting and it sucks the life out of you.  And it's all optional.  Join me for this week's episode on collapsing time….meaning how to make more of it so you can get what you want in your life faster. 

Today's episode is about being clear. It's something I've been practicing since I joined my business Mastermind a year ago. And it's a skill I've been having my 1:1 clients sharpen more and more each week. But what does it mean to be clear? It means cutting through all the mind drama and deciding something. This may sound simple at first blush, and the idea of just deciding is simple, but it's not always easy. Why?  Because for most people just deciding something is scary. The brain will tell you, you don't have enough information to make the decision. Or you don't have any evidence the decision will work. It will say, slow your roll, little lady….what do you think you're doing or who do you think you are deciding something like this? And that question is what plagues many of the women I work with. In some areas of life it's easy to be clear.  Yet in other areas, like say, what you're going to do with the next 30 years of your life now that your kids are gone….it can be paralyzing.  Tune in this week to learn what being clear looks like and what it doesn't look like...then see for yourself how you can simply be clear….in every area of your life.

This week I dive into the concept of overfunctioning, which is when we use tools, skills, and know-how from one aspect of our life and apply it to a different aspect of our life, except it’s not needed.  If you’re a teacher, it looks like interacting with your kids or partner as a teacher instead of a partner or mom.  If you’re an accountant, it looks like making sure everything is in balance and all loops are closed in other areas of your life, not just on the spreadsheet.  It’s the brain’s way of taking what has worked in the past and applying it to the situation at hand, and while it seems like it would be helpful, it often causes a ton of unnecessary stress and drama.  The thing is, overfunctioning is something I’ve done a lot in my life, and I bet you have too…..all unknowingly.  Tune in this week to learn more about what overfunctioning is, how to tell if you’re doing it and how to use a more useful strategy instead.

Sometimes life hands you a plate filled with so many situations it’s hard to handle it all at once. Yet, if you’re like me, you still try.  And try and try.  But no matter what your Action Line is filled with, you can never outrun thoughts that don’t serve you.  This week I share what’s been going on behind the scenes here, how trying to keep all balls up in the air showed up as emotional neglect, and what I was forgetting to remember.

I had the chance to talk about being responsible for your own happiness recently in a small group coaching call.  Boundaries, demands and ultimatums are all ways we try to get someone else to do something to make us happy.  The thing is, it’s not up to others to make you happy or do things for you so you feel better.  That’s your job. When we rely on others for our happiness we’re outsourcing our emotional wellbeing. Tune in for this week’s podcast on being responsible for your own happiness and how fun it really can be. 

A client recently asked me what the gold nuggets were from the day I spent with Brooke Castillo. The discussion started with an answer to her question and expanded on what I’ve learned from Brooke and Abraham Hicks, and the mindset I’m using going into the next 12 months. Wherever you are in your life and whatever you’re working on, concepts from this conversation can be applied. Take a listen, consider applying what resonates and see what happens!

Today marks one year since I left my job of ten years, sold my home and moved not once, but twice. It marks 12 months of entrepreneurship, becoming a coach who works from anywhere, training volunteers on mindset and helping women live the second half of their life on purpose.    Why do I tell you all of this? Because there is nothing special about me.  I’ve simply learned how to manage my mind. In this episode I talk about my last 365 days, and the thing is, your version of this story is 100% possible for you, too. Listen and learn how.

Words matter. And the words team and alliance matter a lot when we’re thinking about people we have to work with, volunteer with or are in any type of relationship with.    A team is the joining of forces or efforts but an alliance, on the other hand is an agreement to cooperate for specific purposes.   The thing is, we often think we’re on a team when the other person sees it as an alliance. This can cause a whole bunch of unnecessary ruckus and drama, so in this episode I go over both, give examples and a tool to help open the conversation with others to find out just which one you’re on. Listen on your favorite podcast provider to find out more!

Equal airtime is a wondeful concept to remenber. It's ensuring you spend as much time looking at possibility and the positive as our brain does looking at the negative and what's going wrong. Where your focus goes, energy flows. This isn't always easy to do so in this epsiode I give your simply, easy tips on how to keep the focus exactly where you want it to be. 

How much of your life have you resigned yourself to? It looks like thinking, that’s just the way my partner is. That’s just how they do things at work. That’s just how my kid is. That’s just how the world is.  How do you know if you’re resigned to something? By the way you feel.  You’ve stopped resisting or trying to make the situation different but you still don’t like it. You’re not happy about it and in a way, you feel a bit powerless. It feels like a bad taste in your mouth.  Acceptance on the other hand is when we allow the situation to be what it is (and often it’s a situation we’re not so keen about), and we don’t try to change it or protest it. We let it be what it is. But there’s one more important facet that plays a bigger role than you’d expect in terms of being able to accept something rather than be resigned to it. Listen to find out. 

When Spring comes you clean up the yard so your flowers have a healthy place to grow. You water and care for them until they become established. After that you check on your plants, deadhead them as needed and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Taking care of your thoughts is the same exact thing. Learn how in this episode!

This past week marked 12 years since I was divorced. When I look back over the past 12 years I can see how I was operating and why. I can see the thoughts, the dedication to the action line at all costs and...what it cost me. It wasn't until coaching came into my life, first with nutrition, then life coaching, that I saw how it was even possible for me to be a creator in my life instead of at the effect of it. Maybe, you'll see some of you, too, and these insights will offer a little perspective.

If you're anything like me, you probably get in your own way from time to time. The thing is we don't always realize we are or understand why it's happening. It all comes back to our thoughts - as expected - and I share how, why and how I've done it time to time, too. 

March 8 was International Women’s Day, and, not coincidentally, Everyday Strong Radio’s second birthday.  That said, this episode is a little different. It’s filled with some history, some stories, some inspiration all of which may create a mindset shift in you about who you are and how you show up in the world…..in the best way possible.

Today I’m talking about helping from a clean place - which is something one of my clients and I came up with recently during a powerful coaching session. What we’re talking about is helping others or doing things for others from a clean place in your heart. How can you not help from a clean place in your heart? Easy, and it’s sneaky too. Tune in this week to how and why helping, doing nice things and being generous in the world can backfire on you.

“As I’ve said a hundred times, we don’t have to let our brain be in charge. It will always come up with negative thoughts. It will always push the worst case scenario to the forefront of our mind, then press the repeat button over and over again. But our job isn’t to fight the thoughts that don’t serve us, our job is to say….I see you. I hear you...and it’s ok.  I get it.  And then it’s to go on and ask, “What am I forgetting to remember about me?” Tune in and learn how to remember what you forgot about you.

Who am I...without the title Mom, boss, employee, volunteer, wife, aunt, sister, neighbor, co-worker? We often define ourselves with a description about what we do or the role we play in the world.  This is how society is constructed and how we make sense of things.  What I’m asking you to think about is who you are without those things. Who are you as a person? What kind of person are you? What’s important to you? Where could that lead you? Find out for YOU in this episode.

We all know February is about love. And any minute now the media and advertising will start dumping all of their thoughts about love into your feed, your inbox and mailbox reminding you to BUY things to show others how much they mean to you. But where is any advertising or media leading with loving yourself?  This all said, I wanted to make this episode about loving yourself. What I’ve done is captured some of my favorite quotes about self love and will share them then talk a little about each one, and how mindset plays into each.

There’s one reason you’re not getting the results you want in your life: you brain. In this episode understand how it sabotages on the regular then learn the 3 simple steps to creating what you DO want in your life and how to use your everyday strong.

The feeling of gratitude never really sat well with me in most situations but I couldn’t put my finger on exactly why. ⁣ ⁣It just felt obligated to me. ⁣ A little less than….if that makes sense. ⁣ It’s not that I wasn't; thankful, because I was - 100%. ⁣ ⁣I just didn’t feel grateful.⁣ ⁣Listen to the rest of the story on this week's podcast and learn the similarities, and the differences....and which word is more powerful and why. ⁣

How often do you think about your past and give yourself credit for all you’ve accomplished in your life? Learning how to say thank you to your past you, and appreciate all decisions you made up until this very day is powerful. In this podcast I tell you the why and the how behind giving yourself credit as well as the role it plays in your goals for today. 

Today’s episode is the audio from the workshop I recently hosted.  If you’ve followed me for any amount of time you know I firmly believe, words matter, and they matter a lot when it comes to creating a life you love.  On January 1, millions of people created resolutions for themselves to adhere to in the New Year.  Others created intentions for themselves instead.  How are intentions and resolutions similar and different at the same time? And how will one serve you far better in the New Year? This is what I covered in the workshop. I hope you find a few nuggets of gold to take away from it and create your own intentions for an amazing year. 

Happy New Year! Today's episode is short and sweet...and invites you think about 2021 and what you want to create for yourself.....as soon as now. Enjoy!

Reflection, introspection and direction are the 3 steps to duplicating what's going well in your life. Because our brain is always going to look for what's wrong, what’s not going right and could go wrong, it’s even more important to spend time looking for what went right or is going right, and understand how you made that happen.  This is the exact work I did with some ladies in my recent workshop, Reflection, Introspection and Direction.   We took some time to identify our wins, think about how they were accomplished, pulled out the super thoughts that created those positive results and looked for ways to use them again in the future. It was a fantastic conversation and they came up with some real magic to carry them into 2021. This week’s podcast is the recording of the workshop. Finding your wins is an extremely useful habit that can change your life one celebration at at time.  

Mental gymnastics describes really well what our brain does when it comes to doing something new or aiming for a new goal….or sometimes just in life in general. It's taking action from negative thoughts to create a positive outcome. The thing is when we use negative thoughts to create something positive, we become emotionally exhausted, and any progress to the goal goes out the window. Learn the nuances and simple changes you can make to easily create the positive outcome you're looking for. 

Minimum life standards are tools I created for myself this year, not only because of the pandemic, but because of all the changes I was making. There were so many positives happening, but still I felt a lot of sadness. Instead of trying to fix myself, because really, this was all part of the process, I decided to use what I knew from the child welfare system and put it to work for me. You can too. It will be your buoy at any time in your life and help you keep on, keepin’ on. Tune in to learn how.

It’s clear nothing will change in terms of the pandemic by Thanksgiving, and highly likely not by Christmas either. Maybe you're worried about the annual family obligations, or have a tendency to people please during this time of year especially. Nothing has gone wrong. You’re used to traditions and were looking forward to them.  So why do you feel anxious or worried? Because there’s a thought problem here, that’s all.  Tune in and learn how you can sort out your thought problem and create your own roadmap to a calm and connected holiday. This workshop comes complete with the slide deck, a PDF workbook and mini coaching sessions to help you prepare for a holiday you’ll want to remember. 

How do I take a song from the 80s and turn it into a coaching example? Easy peasy. Tune in to learn how we actually work against ourselves when we are fixated on a particular outcome. Yes, you want to get the job, meet the person of your dreams, lose the weight, retire early and travel. And you probably have a pretty good idea how you're going to do that. But what if the Universe has an even better idea? How might you be preventing an even better result for yourself by not holding on loosely? 

People pleasing is something we all do in some aspect or another in our lives. Maybe with our partner, our boss, or even our kids. But why? How can being helpful and accommodating really be hurting us? Tune in to find out. 

Today's episode takes a deep dive into self confidence, why we have or don't have it, how it's different from arrogance and how to grow your self confidence on the daily. This mini workshop enhances the Self Series on self esteem, self confidence and future self. 

Asking effective questions is one of the best skills you can develop in your self coaching practice, not only for you, but for those around you. Level up your questioning power and you'll level up your life. 

Letting or assuming others will notice your accomplishments, achievements and other good work is a mistake. Advocating for yourself and reminding the world who you are doesn’t come naturally to many.  In this episode learn what other people are assuming instead, and why, how to prepare to advocate for yourself when the time comes, and ultimately, how becoming your own biggest fan changes the default assumptions of everyone around you….for the best.   

Today’s episode is a discussion with my dear friend Ann McCoy. We talk about how our uncannily similar lives have presented us over and over with the opportunity to have our own backs. Divorce, single moms of two boys, sole proprietor and fundraiser, supportive boyfriends, opportunities to chase our dreams and now heading out into version 3.0 of our lives…. having our own back was the key to all we’ve accomplished, and will continue to accomplish going forward.

Our brain makes sense out of the information it receives by categorizing it. It’s also how our society thinks. We have good people and bad people. We have people who are right and who are wrong. People who do good things and people who do bad things. But what if everything was bad, and good? Right, and wrong? How would this influence our thinking? What would be different? How could it be more helpful than harmful? Tune in to find out. 

If we want to feel good, we’ll do something that makes us feel good. Conversely, we will also do something so we don’t feel bad.  Can you hear that difference? We'll talk about these tricky statements in this week's episode so you can start working more effectively instead of working harder.