Jen Gotch is OK...Sometimes

Hi, hello and Happy New Year! It's Jen Gotch here, to share a little bit of JGOK info with you! Press play to hear breaking news on Season One of Jen Gotch is OK,,,Sometimes and to hear me tell you I love you once again...Because, I do. Bye! Bye. Byeeeeee.

Howdy partners! Many say that you need to hear something seven times before you truly engage with the message, so I thought I would take this opportunity to say I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you I love you. Oh, and also to remind you of some of the advice I've given you throughout this year. Lauren, my good friend and amazing producer has taken the most useful clips from all of my episodes and jam packed them into one place—right here. Let’s think of this episode as "Jen’s helpful hints on how you can feel your best in 2019." So, help is on the way. Like right now. You just have to listen (and take notes). OK, go get ‘em.

Seeing as the holidays are upon us, I thought I would give you the gift of all gifts...My parents; Dr. Jamie and the amazing Saerina. You’ve heard them before, but have you heard everything? Nope, you haven’t. So I’m releasing the motherlode—no pun intended. We’ve worked tirelessly to compile their best work as broadcasters, podcasters, interviewees, and just being the parents that you know and love. Looks like Mom and Dad just got a Greatest Hits episode! So without further adieu (to you and you and you), I give you the gift of my parents. Happy holidays.

Well hello. Today I'm going to take you on a journey—a trip, or even a voyage. OK fine, we are actually going inside one of my anxiety attacks. I recorded myself having an anxiety attack (that's something most people do, right?). I’ve shared something similar to this before when I took you inside my depression and you let me know it was very helpful in identifying and understanding your own struggles. So, I felt it was time to share this with you. This audio is from a while ago—June to be exact. I’m telling you this because you'll hear me reference some things that are no longer relevant to my life and, well, some things are are still super relevant. Life is weird. Okay anxiety, here we come.   

Resilience has always been a very important word to me. It’s been vital to my success in business, relationships, mental health, and just life in general. So, I cannot wait to share some of my thoughts on how you can become more resilient, too. Oh and we may or may not have a special guest. OK, we have a special guest. It’s my mom, the amazing Saerina! Wecan all become resilient, even if, at the moment we aren’t feeling very strong. I believe in you. You can do this.

Hi hi. It’s Jen. Jen Gotch. You know me, I’m the host of this podcast. Remember my episode on travel anxiety? Well, I’ve been working really hard to try to overcome those feelings and I’m making huge strides that I wanted to share with you. In this episode, I'll recap the origins of my anxiety, some examples of how it rears its ugly head, and finally, how I managed to succeed in dealing with it—almost flawlessly—on a recent trip. Oh and I’ll answer some of your anxiety questions, too.

Hello hello. Welcome back. Are you ready for part two of "What I’ve learned about business"? I hope so, because that’s what you are about to get. Last week, I shared everything I learned in the first five years of building ban.do. And today, I’m sharing what i learned in the second five years. In this episode, you’ll learn what it takes to scale a business and also how it feels (surprise: It doesn’t always feel good). I’ll share tips on management, hiring, and organization—and I'll tell you more about the importance of intention and transparency in your work. Your about to get a brain full of business. Away we go! 

Well helloooo. Not so long ago, I shared my experience building ban.do with you—and you really seemed to like it! So, I thought I would dig in a bit more and share what I’ve learned through that experience. It’s been 10 years and as you can imagine, I have learned a lot—so I’m gonna do it in two parts. This episode, as you may have guessed, is part one, covering the first five years—the years when I thought i had it all figured out...but then later found out that that was not the case. 

This is an episode about finding joy. I’ll talk about the difference between happiness and joy, explain why I choose joy and why I think it's important and possible for all of us to find that in ourselves. If you feel happy, this will hopefully bring you further on your path to joy. And if you are, well, not happy, this will shine a light on your potential for future happiness and joy.

Hi! Hello. What’s up? I always wanted to have my own advice column, and this episode gets me one step closer to it. If you know me, you know I love giving advice—taking it, not so much, but I’m working on that. But, enough about me. This episode is all about you. I’m going to answer a bunch of your questions about all things work-related: career, business growth, pursuing your passions, and professional success alongside mental health struggles. Think of it as a gift from me to you. Is it your birthday? I feel like it’s your birthday. 

Hello, hello. Today, I'm going to take you on a journey...through my bookshelf. And when i saybookshelf, I mean the piles of books that are literally all over my house. No space is safe. Not the bathroom, not the kitchen, not the bedside table. Honestly there are books in my bed under the covers. I’m sleeping with books—there, I said it! Consider this chapter one in "Books Jen Loves and Feels Like You Will Love, Too!" If you’re looking to enhance your personal growth, open your mind, or create more positive opportunities in your life, these books will be great tools for you. So without further adieu, boooooooks!

Two years ago, I was at one of the lowest points in my life. I was getting a divorce, self medicating with food and alcohol instead of proper medication, digging ~deep~ into my anxiety, and fueling toxic relationships and toxic work behaviors. I generally felt like...a mess. Thanks to a ton of work (over months and years), focus, patience and a true desire to heal, I am in a much better, healthier place today. Having come out on the other side of that experience, I wanted to share what I did and how I did it. If you’re in a low place and need some guidance on how to find your way back to yourself, definitely give this episode a listen! 

The best and brightest female entrepreneurs, creatives, and founders get really real with host Noor Tagouri when it comes to nurturing self-development and well-being in a bustling, always-on world. Whether it’s identifying a sense of purpose in your day-to-day, finding productivity hacks, taking care of relationships, changing careers, or cultivating a greater sense of self-love, this podcast presented in partnership with TUMI is an unmissable toolkit for the on-the-go individual in search of a happier, more fulfilling life.​

On last week’s episode of JGOK, i took you inside my depression and you lived to tell, Yahoooo. This week i thought i would give you some more pointed information on depression - the different types, the symptoms and some ways to identify and work through the issue.  If you or a loved one have depression or have ever suspected you have depression, this will be a really informational listen. Check it out!

This week, I wanted to share something a bit more intimate (if that's even possible) and take you inside my depression. Think of it like a phone call from me to you, while i'm going through a depressive episode. I figure since we are best friends now, you'd want me to call you when I'm feeling low. And then, next week I'll follow up with a full, incredibly useful episode explaining everything I know about dealing with depression.

Have you ever had a creative block? Yeah, me too—and they are the worst, especially when your job is tied to your creative performance. And even if it isn't, we all want to be able to access our own creativity. That's why I want to use this episode to get to the root of creative blocks, outline some reasons why we get them, and of course, offer some solutions to get past them. Oh, also, there’s singing. OK, let's knock the socks off these blocks.

Hi. Welcome to an episode about having emotions in the workplace—also known as crying at work. As a C-level work crier, I wanted to share some of my most emotional experiences with you. I also want to discuss how we can regulate and manage our feelings as both employees and bosses, without making work a cold-hearted place where emotions are non-existent. I'm not crying, you're crying. JK, we're all crying. 

In this episode, I am going to talk about my good buddy, anxiety. This is a mental health issue that I have struggled with for a large portion of my life and one that has been on my mind a lot lately. Over the last eight months or so, I have been actively trying to understand and reduce it—and I actually think a lot of my efforts are paying off. So, here’s what i’m going to do: I'll tell you a bit about what anxiety feels like for me (and probably for a lot of people), and then I’m going to talk you through identifying your own anxiety. Plus, I'll share some tips on how to manage it. If you’re suffering from anxiety (and 40 million of us are), this one's for you! 

Alright, here it is, the "Everybody quit social media right now!" episode. Not really, but at the least, I want us all to become aware of how and when we use social media and identify what our intentions are when we use it.  Let's take a step back and evaluate whether or not we think we are addicted. Oh, and even more importantly, let's recognize that it can contribute to our anxiety and depression and obviously our FOMO. I'll share some ways that we can combat the downsides of social media and embrace the positive aspects.  Let’s start a movement by setting a positive example. Set boundaries with your social media, be intentional, avoid the obvious pitfalls, pass it on. Tell your friends. We can do it. Bye.

This episode is dedicated one of the topics I get the ~most~ requests for: THERAPY. I am so excited to answer many of the questions you've emailed me, messaged me, or stopped me in the street to ask. Today, I’m talking about my own experience with therapy to give you insight on what to expect, how to find a therapist, the benefits and responsibility of therapy, tips on financing therapy, and a whole lot more. Therapy is another great way to invest in your mental health and personal development, so I wholeheartedly support it. It is an investment that you make in yourself—and you're absolutely worth it! 

I get asked a fair bit about my experience with my meds, a.k.a. psychiatric medication, so i wanted to share more about it with you. Hopefully, my story can help some of you figure out if this is something you want to pursue—or even help you if you've already started to pursue it, but are wondering if you're “doing it right.” Going on medication for a mental health issue is a big step and a huge responsibility. I want to use this episode to give you insight and know-how to help get to the right medication faster (with your doc). Plus, for anyone who wants to understand what being on meds—and figuring that out—is really like, this should help. So, whether you're curious for you or just trying to understand a loved one better, there's something important here. Oh, and the after-show is a compilation of some of my favorite voicemails my dad has left me over the past year. Too good to miss!

In this episode I’m going to tell you how my team and I built ban.do from the ground up—with no prior business knowledge. Maybe that’s not something to brag about, but I actually think it is. Because I want you to understand that it can be done—and is done, more often than you think. What we used, and still use every day, to build this thing: passion, creativity, optimism and a touch of anxiety. That’s right. You, too, can start a business even if you feel challenged by a lack of experience or struggles with mental health. Listen up and then go become a millionaire. Disclaimer: I cannot guarantee that; I just said so you would listen. Bye. 

As kids, we are given food to soothe us, to reward us and to celebrate happy occasions. So it makes sense that as we get older and control our own food intake, we might start to use food as a crutch, or even as a drug. It’s emotional eating - The perfect mix of self soothing and self sabotage and food, unlike many other drugs, is legal and easy to get your hands on.  If you are struggling with some bad eating habits and consider McDonald's french fries to be a stronger, more satisfying drug than cocaine, i encourage you to give it a listen.

PSA: You can suffer from mental illness and still maintain good mental health. (I mean, look at me!) That’s not to say that every day is going to be amazing; after all, we need bad days to recognize the good ones. But it does mean that your illness and even the circumstances that might be getting you down don’t have to limit on how good you can feel. You are in control here. And there are a ton of things you can do right now—like right now, starting today—to help you begin to feel better. Let's do this. 

So, this is an “in the moment” episode that i recorded at the beginning of April after having several bouts of severe travel anxiety (the very same type of anxiety that i naively thought i had previously overcome). Knowing that so many of us travel over the summer and also struggle with this kind of anxiety, I thought this would be the perfect time to put it out into the world. If the thought of travel excites you, but also simultaneously paralyzes you with fear, this one's for you.

So this is an episode about perfection . . . and imperfection. The pressure and anxiety we all feel to be perfect and the idea in our head that perfection is actually a real thing, that can be achieved.  It’s not.  I’ll be honest, I’m gonna cry a little during the episode. But that’s me.  That’s all of us. And if you struggle with feelings of imperfection and not being enough this episode will have value for you.

My first job was as a waitress at an old-age home serving primarily, you guessed it, buttermilk. In this episode I’m taking you on the journey through my twisting, turning career path so you can see how you don’t have to figure out what you want to do for the rest of your life at 18, 28—or really, ever. Career paths don’t have to be linear, and horrible jobs sometimes lead to really amazing ones. Oh, and I wrote a song about the whole thing, which promises to be the song of the summer. Dance remix forthcoming. 

Hi! Hi!  As it turns out, creating and subsequently launching a podcast is hard, especially when you have tendencies towards self doubt.  I spend this episode exploring the origins of my own self doubt (hi mom, hi dad), discussing my self doubt triggers, and offering up some potential solutions for those who suffer from it as well (maybe 95% of all of us?).  Here's hoping that by hearing me talk about it you will see that you are not alone—and that self doubt does not mean that you can't face fears and ultimately find success.

Welcome to my Emotional Rating System. It’s an adaptable, numerical rating system my mom and i created to help me identify and easily communicate my mood. It also helped me and my doctors accurately diagnose my bipolar. This system is an easy way to get in touch with and convey how you are feeling at any given moment—and it's easily adaptable to other mental health issues as well. Plus, Dr. Jamie and The Amazing Saerina are back this week rating their own moods and talking about why this tool was important for them—but absolutely zero sex talk, I promise. 

Hi. I’m back! In this episode, I chronicle my struggles with mental illness from a young age up through my early thirties when I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. This episode will be especially valuable to you if you are dealing with depression, bipolar, or anxiety—or if you suspect you might be, but haven’t received a diagnosis, or if you know someone else who is struggling with it. And as always, the hope is that in sharing my personal experiences I can help you build emotional intelligence and become more self aware.

I'm Jen Gotch and, yes, I'm actually typing this. Welcome to the intro episode of my new mental health podcast where you hear my voice and decide if you like it.  Hear my parents’ voices, decide if you like them and hear the truth behind the origins of the pod, the intention behind it and why it will have value for you.  Oh, and my parents describe the time they had sex and made me. Listen, judge for yourself and then share it with friends to see if they feel the same way.

"Jen Gotch is OK...Sometimes" launches May 29th,