Podcasts about inward journey

The inward journey is often one of the last adventures men will go on. For some reason, we find it easier to take on the world than we do to take on ourselves. The danger for us is not going on the inward journey. When we don't we become men who obey our low-level appetites, this has been obvious throughout history.We must build our inner character as men or we will allow outside influences to control and dominate us. Our strength begins on the inside; to tap into it, we must go on the inward journey.Defining the Inward JourneyThe ability to understand what we think and feelThis takes work=reflection.It moves us past our animalistic tendenciesReflection can also help us wrestle with our purpose and our meaningWhy the Inward Journey is HardReason 1: It takes time and effort which is why so many men don't do itThere aren't quick wins, but long protracted strugglesWe tend as men to think outside things will change us on the insideReason 2: It's not very flatteringIgnorance is bliss. (Procrastination)Reason 3: It isn't laid out for us clearlyWe like structure. Whether it's sports, video games, or playing music; we want to know the rules so we can win.Because every person is different, the inward journey will look different for everyone. Even how we start will vary.The Key Word is JOURNEYThe inward journey isn't something you can do in a sessionIt is a practice you have to make a habit. Think of it as a skill that takes time to build and maintain.Reflection isn't something we often feel like we have time to doReflection is a learned habitYou are never done but you get to new levels of understanding and opennessThis makes your life more meaningful and your relationships deeperCHALLENGE:Start doing something to learn how to reflectA time of prayer each day, reading the daily proverb and then praying over it to see how it appliesJournaling a few times a week - not a diary, but a place to put what is happening in your mind, writing is processingGet a group of guys together for deep discussions (friends who are connected and want to do the same thing)RESOURCES TO HELP YOU THRIVE AS A MAN========================Thriving Man Coaching Resources4D MODEL FREE PDFLearn about the 4 fundamentals of a Successful LifeDiscover OUR SPEAKING AND HOW WE HAVE EMPOWERED THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE ACROSS THE WORLD

Receiving comes from the root word take-back… are we taking in what is ours? All the love, connection, opportunities, wealth and abundance around us? Self-worth can block us from receiving all there is for us, and this episode and meditation will open us up for more. This is the last of season 8, look for more in 6 weeks, after a lovely summer break. In this episode: how well do we receive compliments, connection and love from others? is our self-worth blocking us from receiving, and how can we open up ourselves to more? 3 practices to help ourselves to receive more (including a short and supportive meditation) ---Join me for this same work at our next retreat. 3 days of rest, receiving and change, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreat

Language matters- are we creating inclusive spaces in our homes, schools and communities? Or are we pushing away those who need accommodations the most? We can listen to our children, and to our own inner wisdom, and figure out what our kids truly need and help them to feel more connected and included. Join Siris Raquel Rivas-Verdejo and I as we talk all about how to advocate for our families and help our children find their unique gifts. Siris is the owner of Empowering Light Language LLC and works with busy individuals and families virtually to improve their communication and self-care facilitated by a greater connection with their bodies and powered by a greater awareness of how their language impacts their lives. On today's episode you'll hear: How children's behaviour is communication and how we can figure out what our kids are really saying to us.How to create inclusivity at home and school through connection. Creating a healthy environment where all children feel thought of, accepted and wanted. Working with our children's strengths and interests to help them see their unique magic and create connection within the entire familyHow to tune into our “yes” and “no” and help our kids do the same (ie. what is your body telling you?) To Connect with Siris Raquel Rivas-Verdejo:Website: empoweringlightlanguage.comEmail: empoweringlightlanguage@gmail.comPodcast: https://bit.ly/CaDFwSpodcastIG: @empoweringlightlanguage---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you aways have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join). Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Sometimes the best prize of all isn't a trophy. In a culture where outcome production and tangible results are celebrated, how do we teach our kids to accept all parts of themselves- mistakes, bumps in the road, big emotions, and all? Join this conversation with Chasta Hamilton and me, as we discuss this topic and her new children's book “The Trophy Trap”. Orphaned as a child, Chasta found comfort in the creativity, play, and catharsis of the performing arts. This led to a life as an arts entrepreneur, where she believes that everyone has the power to reach their fullest potential and disrupt the status quo in an empowering and inspiring way. She's a founder and CEO as well as a bestselling author (Trash the Trophies and Handle the Horrible) and speaker (TEDx: “You Weren't Built to Break”). Today you'll hear: How we often teach growth mindset (and other socioemotional skills) in performative and ineffective ways, and how we can change things.Less talk about the “outcome” and more about the process (ie. Allowing failure and discussing it, without the shame). How to create a culture of leaders and changemakers through allowing more vulnerability, authenticity, and celebrating of our children's inner voice. Growing self-awareness in our kids (and letting the next generation of youth change the world for the better). Connect with Chasta:Website: https://www.chastahamilton.com/IG: https://www.instagram.com/chastahamiltonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chastahamilton/---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you aways have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

This week Ivy Slater, host of Her Success Story, chats with her guest, Amilya Antonetti. The two talk about embracing resistance and change for the betterment of self and business, the pain involved in true growth, and how we can condition ourselves for full awareness and sustainable success. She tells us, “Your emotions can only live for 90 seconds unless you feed them.” In this episode, we discuss:   How her career started, and has led her to become the successful leader she is today  What challenges she has overcome along the way, and the obstacles that she most often sees women in business have to face  Why she sees such benefit in having to start so young, and when the market caught up to meet her where she was Why parts of you must die in order to become your future self What kinds of businesses Amilya has been involved in, and where her secret sauce lies What a behaviorist does, and why they tend to come with an ouch factor How Amilya defines introvert and extrovert, and how this relates to energy and self-care What most surprises her about the human experience, and how we can condition ourselves for sustainable success A valuable tip for staying present and being your best self on a daily basis   According to the 2022 Gallup and McKinsey & Co. reports, companies face an $8.8 trillion "people problem." Amilya Antonetti is one of the world's most sought-after Human Behavior and Strategic Advisor experts. She is leading the "People First Initiative," and for the first time, her IP discovers, measures, and trains soft skill development in real-time taking results all the way to the balance sheet. Amilya has deep behavioral knowledge and "in the trenches" experience with 6 successful exits while leading 53,000 employees of her own. Amilya speaks from experience as an active CEO. She has worked shoulder-to-shoulder with some of our greatest CEOs, People Officers, and Global advisors to bring "real-time" knowledge and solutions to her audiences.   Amilya addresses real problems facing C-Suite and HR executives, such as the "MANAGER SQUEEZE," which majorly impacts companies across industries. She discusses the drastic changes in our workforce, from Quiet Quitting to Coffee Badging, and how these "people problems" have real-time measurable solutions. Her vast knowledge of business, leadership, technology, systems, and behavioral processes mesmerizes audiences. She gets them to think deeper and take action by introducing what has been missing in measuring organizations and what addressing the "whole employee" looks like from an in-depth perspective.   She has built or advised on over $2 Billion in sales for companies and high-profile clients such as Snider Fleet, Mass Mutual, Steve Harvey, Alliance Financial Group, RISD School District, Mike Tyson, Listerine Strips, Sharper Image, Cold Stone Creamery, George Foreman Grill, Data Doctor, and more as companies and leadership face some of the toughest challenges of their careers.   She has appeared as a regular business and behavior expert across channels from FOX News, CNBC, BBC, and Livestream/Podcasts. She is a familiar face in Daytime with her quick behavior games, tips, and communication starters in empowering people to heal and reunite families, relationships, and communities. You have seen her on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Steve Harvey Show, Dr. Phil, Positively America, CBS This Morning, and more. Website: https://amilya.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmilyaAntonetti Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amilya_antonetti/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amilya/ Twitter: https://x.com/amilya

Last week I talked about understanding and healing our pain story. This week I am talking about the inward journey mentioned last week. It's a journey that is crucial to our healing and self-discovery journey available to us during and after a divorce. Healing after a divorce is a deeply personal and multifaceted journey that involves emotional, mental, and sometimes physical and spiritual practices. Here are several strategies and practices to help you turn inward and find healing: Emotional healing and mental/cognitive healing are closely related but distinct aspects of overall psychological well-being. Understanding the differences between the two can help in addressing each area more effectively. Emotional healing deals with processing and releasing emotional pain, while mental/cognitive healing focuses on reshaping thought patterns and improving mental clarity. Both are essential for overall psychological well-being, and integrating practices from both areas can lead to more effective and holistic healing. LINKS MENTIONED AND MORE Sign up to be the first to know about the August 1st re-launch of the Rising Free divorce support community happening this summer www.theseparationclub.com/rfwaitlist The Healing Heart: https://www.theseparationclub.com/healingheart Join our 2025 retreat in Costa Rica, Feb. 22 - March 1, 2025 https://www.theseparationclub.com/costa-rica-retreat BUY THE JOY JOURNAL: https://www.theseparationclub.com/the-joy-journal I would love to work with you towards your healing, self-discovery and in creating your new life. Working with a coach is a great way to discover your purpose, your path forward while gaining clarity on your beliefs and core values. I have openings in my calendar for some new clients. https://www.theseparationclub.com/coaching Download the free Separation Checklist with all the important first steps as you embark on this journey https://theseparationclub.com/separation-checklist Join the private and free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theseparationclub/ You can also find me on Instagram @elisabethjoy444 where I share daily inspirations and tips as you navigate your divorce. And the brand new Instagram account for The Joy Journal: @thejoyjournal444

Dads can connect to their kids in an amazing way- and teach, lead and guide through that connection. Join Tal Eyre and I on the podcast this week as we talk about his new book (Dad Mode), self-connection, connection with kids and more. In December 2011, Anita and Tal welcomed their daughter, Annina, into their family, and Dad Mode was officially activated. Tal went on to earn a Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) degree at the University of Pennsylvania and then applied his learnings with his family and as a Swiss-based leader in global business development. Through it all, Tal's highest priority has remained his family and Dad Mode reveals some of his key learnings along the way. Tal and his family live in the Swiss Alps.Today you'll hear: Self-connection and shadow work, and how they are at the center of increasing our connection with kids The 4 parenting styles, and how connection helps you maintain healthy relationships Teaching our children through our own failures and imperfections (not through never messing up)Crystal defines what connection-based parenting means to her, and why it's so important Dropping permissiveness, yelling and coercion and parenting with love, while maintaining boundaries Get the book HERE!!Website: taleyre.com IG: HERE---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you aways have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join). Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Suicide has deeply impacted my family circle over the years, as it has so many of you around the world. Today I share some ways we can work on preventing suicide in our homes and communities though talking more openly about mental health in clear and frank ways- and become willing to open ourselves up to potentially awkward (but SO important) conversations.  Note: be tender with yourself if this episode is triggering for you, come back to it later if you need to... and KNOW that if someone in your circle has passed away due to suicide that it was NEVER your fault, and when we talk about prevention it's not for situations in the past, but how we can support others in the future. Suicide Hotline US & Canada dial 988---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you aways have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

The more deeply we know ourselves, the more God can do His good work within us. It begins by inviting the Holy Spirit to search, reveal and heal the world inside.

Do your kids struggle to eat the food you prepare at the dinner table each night? If you have a picky eater, you probably already know that dinner can become a stressful, high-pressure, and sometimes highly contentious time. If you want dinner to be fun, engaging and connecting instead, tune into this conversation with Shawna Hughes for ideas on how to help reverse picky eating. Shawna Hughes is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and mother of 2 girls. She specializes in eliminating picky eating using a positive, child-centered approach that the whole family enjoys. She sees adventurous eating as a learned skill and shows parents how to create an ideal learning environment and easily teach children how to go from picky to foodie.In this episode: We talk about ADHD behaviours and how regulation and mood are connected to the foods we eat What foods to implement with our ADHD kids (and all kids) to help support nutrition How do deal with hangry kids (and why it's happening) Picky eaters and how we can do our part as parents to help grow adventurous eaters Making dinner time fun again Connect with Shawna- Shawna has a background in Psychology and specializes in providing individualized Nutrition support for children with ADHD. You can contact her at hello@shawnahughesnutrition.com or find her online at www.shawnahughesnutrition.com---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you aways have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join). Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Does sex get often put on the backburner in your relationship? Maybe after parenting, work and balancing life and motherhood (or fatherhood) … sex just becomes something to cross off the never-ending to-do-list. Tune into this conversation as we talk about what blocks sexual desire, what stops us from receiving pleasure and what is dampening our sexual relationships. Not only will this episode help with your sex life, but it bridges the gap between all areas of life- and shows how healing one area of life- can affect so many others. Carlie Palmer-Webb joins me in this episode. Carlie is a gender and sexuality researcher, data-nerd, enthusiastic Jesus-lover, new mama, and The Christian Sex Educator. She has made it her life mission to provide shame-free sex education for Christians in every life stage. In this episode you'll hear: How low-desire partners can start tuning into their sexuality and pleasure How to help your low-desire partner (and how low-desire men might feel in partnerships) Tapping into desire in all areas of your life (and why it's not selfish) Un-shaming sexual beliefs to help increase pleasure in your sexual relationship Connect with Carlie at thechristiansexeducator.com or on IG at @thechristiansexeducator  “Shame-free sex education for Christians in every life stage.” Want the Learning to Orgasm Guide? DOWNLOAD THE FREE GUIDE NOW---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you aways have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join). Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Episode Notes My guests include Pastor Dianne Marshall Young co-founder of the Healing Center. She along with her late husband Bishop William Young were given a vision from God years ago to make our community whole in spirit, soul and body. They were also leaders in the conversation surrounding mental health. She joins me to discuss her latest campaign regarding our youth. Al Lewis is a long time community activist who is as passionate as he is opinionated. These days, he is working with inmates and dealing with trauma through an ‘Inward Journey'. He explains. Finally, not everyone is college bound, but that should not limit anyone's success. Tangua Houston is the Executive Director of Universal Achievers Foundation in Frayser. Her auto body repair program is changing the lives of young people for the better and she tells us how. This and more Monday both on air and online on WYXR 91.7 FM, the WYXR app, Tunein, Facebook Live, YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts. It's time to talk!

One of my favourite episodes by far, is this honest and tender-hearted conversation that I have with my husband on the podcast. We open up about the tough moments of parenting, managing neurodiverse challenges, and our own personal change and growth over the years. Meet JD Haitsma, my hubby (who is very much NOT a parenting coach). In this conversation, we get into: JD's perspective on parenting years ago when I first learned about connection and attachment. The difference between living from the belief “Why wouldn't this happen to me?” versus “This shouldn't be happening to me”. Modifying behaviour (like is so often done with animals) vs helping our children to BECOME.What changes have happened as we've parented differently, and what to do if those around you disagree with you.How children are natural learners and are innately good… and why this belief creates changes. Connect with JD through his website.Website: https://www.thecoachsupport.comLearn About Kajabi: https://www.thecoachsupport.com/blog/kajabi-pricing---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children who leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you always have, and you always will. Isn't that what we all want deep down? That is my goal for me and for you… and for the future generation of children, we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join). Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Are you parenting a child with ADHD, or struggling to parent as an adult with ADHD? Maybe you have been wanting to learn more about ADHD to further support yourself or those around you in a healthy way. You will love this conversation with Kristen Carder today, an ADHD expert, top podcast host, and internationally-recognized life coach for adults with ADHD. Kristen's life's purpose is to help adults with ADHD accept themselves and move from Point A to Point B. She does this through the I Have ADHD Podcast and her group coaching program, FOCUSED. Today you'll hear: Kristen's background with ADHD and how it affected her lifeHow Kristen noticed a huge gap missing in ADHD education and support years ago, and helped to fill in what was missing The difference between “character flaws” and ADHD symptoms (this is a BIG one!)How to support ourselves and those we love (and what signs to look for when it comes to ADHD). Parenting an ADHD child (both the struggles that come with it and how we can do better)Kristen's FOCUSED program HERE. Connect with Kristen on IG HERE. ---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you always have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join). Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Do you feel like parenting certain kids seems harder than others? I have a few spicy children and parenting them has been one of the biggest challenges of my life (and also SO rewarding). Join Mary Van Geffen and I as we chat all about spicy ones, both in how to parent them, and how to parent as one. In this episode you'll hear: Parenting spicy ones can differ from typical parenting struggles, and we talk all about tips to help you parent them in a way that fosters their sparkle.What we can learn from spicy ones (and other difficult relationships).How to NOT get on the same page as your partner, and parent super effectively anyways.How to bring in some FIRM to the “gentle parenting” (and why our kids need it).We also dig into how to help dads who may not “get” connection-based parenting, and how to decide what kind of parent-child relationship we want in the future, and what we can about it now to get there.Mary Van Geffen is the international parenting coach for moms of Spicy Ones TM️. She helps people who are highly competent in life but overwhelmed by motherhood to lean into the spiritual discipline of staying calm and cultivating warmth and tenderness all while trying to wrangle fiery future CEOs. Often this requires serious skill-building and the balm of self-compassion.Mary is a certified Simplicity Parenting Counselor® and Professional Co-Active Coach, but her greatest achievement is cultivating a calm, kind and firm relationship with her Spicy go-getter daughter (now 18), mild child son (16) and un-Enneagramable hubby.Connect with Mary on IG: HEREJoin her FIRM class: HERE---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you aways have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth.emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mindconnection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join).Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Did you feel entirely unprepared for new-mom-hood with your first child? Or maybe you're currently prepping for that experience and looking for support? Dr. Erin Appleton, MD IBCLC FABM, joins me on the podcast today to discuss the BIG things: breastfeeding (and infant feeding in general), postpartum anxiety and depression, and the trauma that mothers deal with when delivery and postpartum are so vastly different than “the plan”. Dr. Appleton discovered her passion for breastfeeding after enrolling in specialized courses in breastfeeding support while completing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. In 2012, she began her breastfeeding medicine training, eventually co-founding the Nurture Family Feeding Clinic, and in 2014 became an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), then in 2018, she became one of only a few hundred MDs in the world with a Fellowship in the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (FABM).While she's proud of her education, training, and experience, she believes that some of her most valuable lessons have been firsthand, with her struggles with feeding her children, and with helping the thousands of new families that she's seen over the past decade of her career (including me!).In this conversation, we cover: Common breastfeeding issues and how to prepare yourself beforehandPostpartum depression and anxiety signs, and how to know if you need helpThe gap between what we “plan” for in birth and postpartum and what actually happens (and how painful that can be)Social media and the rise of anxiety (seeking connection and not finding it)Dr. Appleton's journey with her babies and nursing (and how we met!)Connect with her below:Latching logic: www.breastfeedingmd.comBreastfeeding support: Www.nurturefeeding.comIG: @breastfeeding.mdFB: Nurture Family Feeding Clinic and Dr Erin Appleton, MD IBCLC FABM---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you always have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth.emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mindconnection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join).Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

Today I talk to you about the various wounds and pain we feel as a result of divorce. And more importantly I want to help you heal it and move forward. Sometimes I feel like I shouldn't talk about the pain because it keeps it alive, but I also know that it is alive and well in you and in order to get over it and move forward we do have to feel it. So let's find a constructive way to deal with and understand what we are feeling so we can let go of feeling this way. One of the traumas or challenges I have dealt with in my personal life is what has inspired this episode. It's my own abandonment wound and I am going to start sharing more about this here with you because I believe so many of you also deal with this. And if you didn't have it before your marriage then you likely do now. But I will say that in most cases it already existed prior to this relationship - so there's that. So join me for this new episode and important conversation about your healing regardless of whether it is from your divorce, family, and work relationships or any other relationships. This episode is brought to you by a brand new course or program in The Separation Club - The Healing Heart LINKS MENTIONED AND MORE The Healing Heart: https://www.theseparationclub.com/healingheart DON'T MISS THE ITALY RETREAT: Step into a dream and join us in Italy June 22-29th for a week of sisterhood, Italian wine and ancient towns with cobblestones and beautiful shops selling olive oil and pottery. It's the ultimate girls' trip https://www.theseparationclub.com/italy2024 EARLY BIRD PRICING IN EFFECT. Join our 2025 retreat in Costa Rica, Feb. 22 - March 1, 2025 https://www.theseparationclub.com/costa-rica-retreat BUY THE BRAND NEW JOY JOURNAL: https://www.theseparationclub.com/the-joy-journal I would love to work with you towards your healing, self-discovery and in creating your new life. Working with a coach is a great way to discover your purpose, your path forward while gaining clarity on your beliefs and core values. I have openings in my calendar for some new clients. https://www.theseparationclub.com/coaching Also make sure to download the Free Separation Checklist: https://theseparationclub.com/separation-checklist Join the private and free Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theseparationclub/ You can also find me on Instagram @elisabethjoy444 where I share daily inspirations and tips as you navigate your divorce. And the brand new Instagram account for The Joy Journal: @thejoyjournal444

We are wrapping up our 8-month international Worldschooling journey. We have been travelling since the end of September with our 4 kiddos, making it around the world and back again. I thought I would share some practical tips on travelling with kids, and what I've learned- but what came out of this episode was much deeper than that- how I have fundamentally changed as a human- and the life lessons that have come to me.In this episode you'll hear: How flexibility is the key to travelling effectively, and how inflexible I found out I really wasDropping control and ego and living into intuition, even when it comes to travel planning, and how I saved myself dozens of hours of travel planningSeeing the lives of people around the world, and sharing that with my children has changed us forever (for the better), and expanded my compassionMy role as a parent has changed, or rather, I see it in a new way… what my responsibility is in helping my kids access their WisdomTriggers, glimmers, and radical honesty: how life is changing me, always (and the lesson from Boddhisatva's)**Inner child healing is the work we need to do to parent in the way that we want to, and the benefits for us are huge, the ripples last for generations. It is also THE thing that changed my children's behaviour for the better- more than anything else. Join me for today's powerful episode, and integrate this work with me as your mentor- through Parent School and my women's retreats. ---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you always have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth.emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mindconnection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join).Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

A childhood full of fun, confidence, peace, safety, rest and SO much play, is not only healthy for our children now- but can have an amazing impact on them in adulthood. Tune into this episode where we tackle the intersection of inner child healing, parenting in a way that feels good to our souls and protecting our children's childhood. Inner child healing is the work we need to do to parent in the way that we want to- and the benefits for us are huge- the ripples last for generations. It is also THE thing that changed my children's behaviour for the better- more than anything else. Join me for today's powerful episode, and integrate this work with me as your mentor- through Parent School and my women's retreats. On this episode we dig into: What my childhood looked like (and yours might have to)The benefits of play, rest, and safety in childhood Inner child healing and its efficacy from a securely attached spaceWhat blocks our children from childhood in our current world (tech, screens, busy schedules and more) and what we can do about itLet's band together and create a change in our world by choosing intentionally what we want our children's childhood to include, and what we want to opt out of ---Join the re-parenting movement, at my next retreat, The Inward Journey: www.coachcrystal.ca/the-retreatParent School: Discover your own unique path, with confidence… raising emotionally intelligent children that leave your home knowing that you truly, deeply care for them… that you always have, and you always will. Isn't that we all want deep down? That is my goal for me, and for you… and for the future generation for children we are raising. To be seen. To be heard. To be valued. To feel loved. To feel supported. To feel known. To welcome them to be themselves- fully and completely. That is The Work. I am here for it. Welcome. Join me for the LAST LIVE round of Parent School:shame resiliency: how to feel shame and move through it, what triggers us and why, and how to move through heaviness and use it for growth. emotional regulation: what co-regulation is and how to support our children from our energy- not our words (not scripts and mantras, this work is much deeper than that), how to support ourselves and our kids through big emotions.the power of our thoughts and beliefs: how to separate who we are from what we think, how to create the exact relationship we want through the power of our mind connection-based parenting: why it's the way of the future, how to parent in a relationship-first manner, developing deep and lasting connections that last a lifetime.6 modules covering all these topics, and more. 2 group coaching calls to get support in your individual family situations. (add-on available for your partner to join). Find all the information HERE.Contact me via email: crystal@coachcrystal.caAudio/text message me on Voxer HERE.

In this episode, Eric chats with Meditation Guide and 500 Yoga Instructor, Eileen Rose, on the importance of body/mind connection in the space of recovering from an eating disorder.  Eileen talks about her experience with this disconnect between her body and mind when she was struggling with her eating disorder and talks about what healing that connection has looked like for her.  Eric and Eileen talk about the importance of being able to trust our inner voice and lean into our heart space as we continue to heal. Because once we can learn to trust our hearts and bodies a little more, the mind will follow and begin to trust more. About Eileen Rose Miles:    Eileen Rose Miles is a Meditation Guide and 500 Yoga Instructor who shares her transformative practices through leading meditations on Insight Timer, on her Podcast 'The Inward Journey' and conducting virtual Meditation Teacher Trainings. She leads retreats and workshops as well as 1:1 virtual Meditation Sessions. With her husband by her side, she embarks on a nomadic journey in her camper van, growing her passion to create more meditators and meditation guides while embracing the beauty of travel and adventure. Eileen's Instagram: @eileenrosemiles Link to Eileen's Meditation Podcast called The Inward Journey: https://open.spotify.com/show/45Z3cMVyEYLroan0oWWAoD?si=c0a42efb06c04e9f Link to Eileen's Meditations on Insight Timer: https://www.insighttimer.com/eileenmcnally Follow Eric on Instagram for more content and podcast updates! Personal: @epothen

I’ve seen so many people who are on social media talking about their journeys to exotic places and natural wonders. These can be amazing places and very interesting to see! But I’ve noticed that many of these creators are repeating over and over again the benefits of challenging yourself and pushing and driving yourself to your limits! Does this really help you know yourself or create confidence that you can apply to the rest of your life?? Is there an alternative? We have a different perspective that could change your thinking about this topic! Watch Here: https://youtu.be/p1sTCrqtoRM

Message from Jefferson Tokurah on March 23, 2024

What a great conversation we had with Chad and Eileen Miles from “The Miles Van Life.” The couple have been traveling in their self-converted van for 18 months, along with their Australian Shepard, Sadie. They run several businesses and share the both the struggles and joys that van life brings them. Cost Did you know living in a van could actually be more expensive than a typically home? We take a deep dive into some of the expenses Chad and Eileen face while on the road. Routine Often, what's not thought about before someone makes this type of a commitment is how their routine will be affected. If you are currently working from home, you have probably set up a morning routine that allows you to get an early start and stay productive. We discussed that although you don't necessarily have to say “goodbye” to your routine, you have to be prepared for some changes. Setting  up and taking down your office everyday takes time, and you may find yourself having to pump out your tanks midway through the day. Places to Stay We discussed how at first, finding places to stay was difficult and how they were frequently paying for campsites. Tune in to see how they have learned to not stress out so much over where they are staying, and how nowadays they mostly stay for free. Chapters 00:00 Introduction 02:00 What do you do for work? 06:00 What is a typical day or week look like? 08:00 How is your work routine affected by working out of a van? 11:30 How has Starlink worked for you? 14:15 How long did it take you to travel once you got the idea? 17:00 Was van life always the plan? 18:30 What was the van build process like? 23:30 What are your biggest travel frustrations? 27:15 What do you love most about your travel lifestyle? 29:15 What does a weekly or monthly budget look like? 32:00 How much does Starlink cost? 33:15 What is it like traveling with a dog?  34:45 Is van life sustainable and how long do you plan on continuing? 36:00 What has been your coolest travel experience? 37:30 What have you learned you need and don't need while traveling? 41:00 How do you find places to sleep? 43:30 What is an actionable step someone could start doing now? Chad and Eileen on Social: ·        Miles Van Life: https://www.instagram.com/themilesvanlife/ ·        Eileen's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eileenrosemiles/ ·        Eileen's Website: https://www.eileenrose.me/ ·        Eileen's Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-inward-journey/id1666397129 ·        Chad's IG: https://www.instagram.com/chadmmiles/ ·        Chad's Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2228949/share Links ·        Insight Timer Meditation: https://insighttimer.com/ ·        Kindle: https://amzn.to/49RxkAV ·        National Park Pet Policies: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/pets/visit.htm We may earn commission from products purchases on this page   Sleeping ·        iOverlander: https://www.ioverlander.com/ ·        Google Maps: https://www.google.com/maps   Past Episode ·        Linneas Episode #9: https://atravelpath.com/solo-female-van-life/   YouTube Channels Referenced: ·        Living Big in a Tiny House: https://www.youtube.com/@livingbig ·        Chris and Sarah: https://www.youtube.com/@chrisandsara ·        Sarah and Alex James: https://www.youtube.com/@SaraandAlexJames ·        Mathers on the Map: https://www.youtube.com/@MathersOnTheMap ·        Linnea and Akela: https://www.youtube.com/@Linneaandakela     Most Popular Blogs: ·        Most Popular Travel Hacks: https://atravelpath.com/money-saving-travel-tips/ ·        Travel Gear: https://atravelpath.com/travel-gear/ ·        How to Budget For Gas on a Road Trip: https://atravelpath.com/how-to-budget-for-gas-for-a-road-trip/ ·        Our Favorite RV Upgrades: https://atravelpath.com/rv-upgrades/ ·        How Much We Made Renting Our RV: https://atravelpath.com/renting-camper-van/ ·        Never Run Out of Gas on a Road Trip: https://atravelpath.com/road-trip-tip/   *All content from atravelpath.com, including but not limited to The Travel Path Podcast and social media platforms, is designed to share general information. We are not experts and the information is not designed to serve as legal, financial, or tax advice. Always do your own research and due diligence before making a decision.   Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/sky-toes/gently-comes-tomorrow License code: JNNG98EA42W634JP Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/abbynoise/rocky-mountains     Transcript Host: Chad and Eileen, welcome to the Travel Path Podcast.   Guest: Hey, thanks for having us. Hi, so happy to be here.   Host: Yeah, so we know you on Instagram as the MilesVanLife. You travel with your dog Sadie. You've been to 47 states, which is a heck of a lot more than Hope and I have been to. Got a few businesses between teaching meditation, marketing consulting, and hosting a podcast, which I know is no small feat. So, a lot to uncover here. Why don't we first just start by having you share a little about yourselves?   Guest: Yeah, so we're Eileen and Chad. We have been living in our van on the road for about 18 months full-time. We completed our van about two years ago, and so we've spent about 18 months traveling, and now we've spent five months back here in Michigan. As you said, we have a 50-pound Australian Shepherd, her name is Sadie, and she lives in the van with us as we travel. And yeah, we're just very passionate about this lifestyle, so we're excited to dig into it more with both of you.   Host: Currently, you're working as you have your own businesses, right? Marketing consulting and then teaching meditation. How did you get started in that?   Guest: I started leading meditations when the pandemic hit, and before we hit the road, I got into teaching meditation on Insight Timer. And then from there, I did actually, before we hit the road, I did take on a part-time job because we needed some consistent income. And then it wasn't until about, actually, I was just looking at this, it wasn't until about September last year, I decided to, well, the year before that, I forget that it's a new year. It wasn't until about September 2022 when I decided to dive in fully and lead meditation from the road and lead meditation teacher trainings from the road too. And yeah, it's been super fulfilling and really hard at some points, but it's been really, really exciting and something that Chad and I work on together too. And for me, I do marketing consulting work. I had a full-time job leading a small marketing team at a financial firm in the Metro Detroit area before we were living in the van. And so part of the process of transitioning into van life was me leaving that job, going and starting my own business, and that's what I run today.   Host: Very cool. So between the travel and the remote work, which came first? Did you have this dream and this desire to hit the road and then work towards finding remote jobs? Or were you stuck with remote jobs and realized you could travel?   Guest: It was more so we had full-time jobs that required us to be in a certain location, and it was during the pandemic that it really opened up our eyes to the idea of remote work. When the pandemic hit, we went and we did some traveling, and we spent some time up in Northern Michigan, and we were working remotely for three or four months. And I think that's really when it got our gears turning, and we started thinking, could we make this more of a permanent lifestyle? So then that started our gears in the whole process of starting to make decisions and think about all right, well, both of our jobs required us to be in the office and were likely going to require us to go back into the office. And so we had to start thinking about how we were going to create work that was going to allow us to live this remote lifestyle. So we had to adapt and make some changes in order to make this a reality.   Host: Nice. And Eileen, you had mentioned when you first started out, you had picked up a side job remotely to help fund your travels. How were you able to get that job?   Guest: That was just something I looked for. I spent quite a few months kind of looking online and figuring out what felt in alignment. And they were open to me working remotely. And then it just didn't work out, unfortunately. And I also see it as a sign of, okay, you need to dive in fully and lead meditations and do what you really, really love. So it's all worked out.   Host: Was that like a meditation-related job, or did you find it through Upwork doing like blogging, that type of stuff?   Guest: No, it was a totally different job, just working for a mental health company, which I did love because I was able to work remote, of course. And then I was a part of a community and a team, which felt really good because I loved going to work. It was almost social for me too. And so then when the pandemic hit, it was hard. And even now, entrepreneurship is lonely, but I find ways to feel a part of a team. But yeah, it ended up working out.   Host: That's great. So between the three businesses you have going on right now, right? So between those three hats you're wearing, what does your typical day-to-day or week look like?   Guest: Yeah, I mean, I think a week like ours, although it can vary, a lot of times we have evening meetings that we have, or we will be leading a meditation in the evening. We also do a meditation teacher training. A lot of times, those are in the evening. So aside from those things, I would say we still work a relatively normal 9-to-5 type schedule with the clients that we work with and some of the different projects that we're on or meetings that we have are typically scheduled during the workday. So a lot of times, Monday to Friday, we are a little bit less mobile. We're camped out somewhere, whether that's by a city or if we're positioned somewhere and we've got our Starlink. We're not really moving as much during the week. We are, for the most part, working in a fairly typical schedule. And then the weekends are a time where we really go unplug and explore and take advantage of the fact that we don't have people maybe calling or emailing us. So it looks different in the van, of course. There's always unique elements to the work. There's always things that you don't necessarily plan for. And as we like to say, things tend to just kind of go slower or take longer than you think. But for the most part, our weeks resemble a typical workweek.   Host: I feel like that's the big distinction between people who are van-lifing like vacationing for extended road trips versus people who are working full-time. Like when we did our trip a couple of years ago, it was a two-month vacation. We went, we saw, we were driving like 500 miles a day, going to different destinations. But now this next trip we're going to be taking is going to be much similar to what you guys were explaining, where we're going to be working probably in the same location for like six, seven days and just working all day and then making those smaller movements. You know, perfectly down south, it's freezing right now in Connecticut. But one question I wanted to ask was, and this is probably getting a little bit selfish because this is what we're going to be doing, but how much time would you say, if you're working remotely at home, a physical Sticks and Bricks house, versus working remotely in your van, but the van's stationary? How much time does it add to your day between setup and take down and all that?   Guest: Yeah, I mean, it's hard to say, but the one thing I would say for sure is that if you picture being in your home office and if you work remotely and for the most part, let's say between the hours of 8 to 5, you could be sitting at your office getting work done for a majority of that time pretty consistently, you might have small breaks, you might stop for lunch. I have found, we have found that it's when you're traveling full-time in the van, it's hard to get that same, I guess, productivity of work done on a consistent basis because there's constantly things that are going on throughout the day that might need your attention, or you've got to drive somewhere, you've got to move, or you've got to go dump your toilet or fill up on water. There's all these different things that you have to think about and plan for. So I would just say, in general, it is a little bit more challenging to have those long, sort of productive days when you're working in the van because there's just a lot more variables.   Host: Yeah, so it sounds like that routine is something you're giving up.   Guest: Yeah, for sure. Every day is different. And I mean, it is distracting when you're working and it's a beautiful view, and okay, I'm going to go do a workout and then cold plunge and then, oops, it's been a couple of hours, you know? But what's great too is that we can choose when we want to work as well unless we have meetings or calls or trainings to lead. But we can choose that, and then the evening can look like a hike or something. Or we can start our day earlier, and there's just that flexibility that's so, so great.   Host: Yeah, I think it's important to just talk about that too because a lot of people might not realize that. But like right now, we've been working remotely in this house for a couple of months now, and we've developed this routine. And it's, you know, get up, get some work done, go to the gym. And then I'm in here, and I know you have the same routine. So that is something that people might not expect or anticipate if they're working from home now and they want to plan, you know, full-time travel and working in their van, something to definitely consider.   Guest: Yeah, I mean, if you want to live a lifestyle like this where you are traveling full-time, if you live in a van, I don't think it's fair to say you have to completely say goodbye to routine. But you definitely have to become a lot more comfortable living without it because there are so many things that happen, there are so many changes that you're constantly having to navigate that you can bring a little bit of structure into your day, but it's difficult to maintain consistent routine.   Host: Are you taking down and setting up your office every evening?   Guest: Yeah, well, our layout, which we're sitting at right now, has our table and seating area, which we love, and then we convert it into our bed. And so we do that every day in order to enjoy our food here, unless we want to eat outside and everything. And then work at this table. Chad's really excited because he got a table up front with our swivel seat up there. But yeah, and then if we're in the middle of nowhere, we have to set up our Starlink. And so it's definitely a process.   Host: Have you had luck with the Starlink?   Guest: So far, the Starlink has been amazing. We went over a year without it, and, um, I mean, we did just fine. We had one of the little Verizon hotspots, so that was dependent on our cell phone service. When we knew we were going to go to Alaska, it was actually funny. I mean, we were up in the Seattle area and we were about to start the trip to Alaska, and we were panicking because we didn't have one. So, I ended up finding someone in Seattle and buying a used one online. Anyway, we could not have done the trip to Alaska and back without it, so we've really enjoyed having the Starlink. It just gives you the opportunity to go to much more remote areas, and so that's made us, uh, it's allowed us to go off-grid a lot more and stay away from some of the bigger cities like we used to have to hang around. So, it's been really nice.   Host: Have you had luck with it, with Starlink in, like, National Forest areas?   Guest: Well, you might answer this better, but I will. That brings me back to a really frustrating moment when we tried to use it for one of my virtual events and it just wasn't working because, yeah, we were in, yeah, it was a heavily wooded area and I think there was a couple I don't even remember exactly where we were. All I remember is it was very frustrating. Yeah, it wasn't working, but that was probably the one to two times where it didn't work. Otherwise, what would you say? It's definitely not perfect. Yeah, you've got to be set up in a good position. If you're in a heavily wooded area, you're going to have a lot of problems. Typically, you can get really fast internet, but you're probably going to have a lot of outages. And even as we've traveled with it, we have noticed, like, for video calls like this, um, it's pretty common that it's going to drop for a couple of seconds every, like, 5 to 10 minutes. So, it's not perfect for video calls, so you've got to kind of feel out how it works and in what situations it doesn't work as well. So, it's not perfect, but it does unlock a lot of unique opportunities that you couldn't have without it.   Host: Yeah, yeah, we're kind of rolling the dice on this next trip. We're not going to get it quite yet. We're going to see because we've heard the consensus on the podcast so far has been the T-Mobile HotSpot, but we are planning on going a little bit more remotely and, I've been asking, I haven't gotten an answer. I think yours is the best answer so far about how it works in the National Forest because the national forests are where they're remote, they're usually free camping, but there's forest and that's when the Starling tends to not work when it's shaded although there are areas where it's a little bit more thin you can get away with it, but yeah, we're thinking of just starting with T-Mobile and then seeing if we need to invest in Starlink. I think it's more East Coast from what we've heard is better service where we're going to be and then out west is where you can really start losing your data in your service.   Guest: For sure.   Host: So, from, I guess backtracking a little bit from when you guys thought about taking this trip when it first became, when it first came to your minds and you wanted to take whether an 18-month or just start full-time travel until the day you were actually able to do it, how long was that time frame?   Guest: I was kind of the first one who was interested in this whole van life thing, and that probably, that interest started like 5 years before we ever decided to actually hit the road. And it was one of those things where I followed some people on Instagram, I just thought it was really cool, I liked traveling, I had been on some road trips with my family and with some of my friends, and you know just kind of got the gears turning and made me think like I feel like this would be really fun. And then life happens, you know, we're young, we're graduating college, we're starting our careers, and so it just never really felt like there was a good time to pursue a lifestyle like this. And so then as we said when the pandemic happened we started working remotely, I think that really got us interested again in this lifestyle, and throughout the whole entire process it was probably, I would say 18 months to two years before we actually hit the road that we started to get really serious about it and eventually had to just essentially plant the flag in the calendar and say our goal was by January of 2022 we were going to hit the road and we missed that by a few months, we hit the road in April but it's one of those things where there's never a convenient time to uproot your entire life and go live in a van and travel full-time so I think eventually just came down to the point where we had to just pick a date and figure it out.   Host: I think it's smart and it's there's power in setting a date to April 2022 we had the same thing we wanted to take this trip before my 30th birthday and there's definitely power in whether you're writing it down or just you make a deal and make this goal together it just makes you want to work towards it that much more. How about you Eileen, did you have that same vision for that long or did you take a little bit of convincing?   Guest: I'm easily convinced, I mean, you know, as cheesy as it sounds I'm in love with Chad so wherever he goes I go. But I mean we started doing some traveling to tiny houses and we're like oh yeah we could do this we can live in a small space and it was super fun and my family growing up we didn't travel a ton and his did and so yeah I think he sparked within me something that was within me, the travel bug and I was easily convinced honestly.   Host: Very cool. So over those 18 months, did you have any other means like were you thinking of doing a travel trailer, buying a different vehicle or was it always van life?   Guest: Well, it actually started as, like, originally we were just kind of interested in the idea of living small and so at first we thought we were going to do a tiny house of some sort and maybe it was going to be more stationary and then we're like well but I think we actually want to have the mobility and we want to be able to travel and so then we started thinking about a tiny house maybe that was on a trailer. And as we went through the whole process there was a period in time where we were looking at buying an RV something that was a little bit bigger we just kind of kept going through the process and going to the process and factoring in all the costs that were involved with all those routes and all those options and eventually I think the both the cost and some of the flexibility in ability of the van is what ended up appealing to us most but yeah it went through a lot of iterations of what we thought this lifestyle might look like.   Host: Yeah, yeah, sounds like a way a similar path we considered a few different things we looked at like those little small tab trailers, which I was not going to be able to fit in, and then yeah the van, the mobility that's kind of what sold us. We had a 20-year-old 30-foot Wildwood which we thought about briefly taking cross country which I'm glad we did not. I think I'm convinced van life for couples is just the best way to travel, it's mobile, it's really all the space you need and yeah we had a blast doing it.   Guest: That's awesome. I agree, I think I'm glad we chose this van and chose to build it too we were looking at already built out ones and looking at RVs and it just didn't feel right I think we also were up for the challenge of building it out too.   Host: Very cool. So, speaking of that, so over those 18 months, you obviously had a few challenges getting into and transitioning to Van life. What was the build process like?   Guest: That was fun. I actually really liked it. I think he did a lot of it. I chose, you know, a lot of the paint colors and things like that and I learned how to use a drill and all of that. But I mean if there's one thing that any anyone listening needs to hear I feel like it's this, you don't have to be in construction or know what you're doing because I sure didn't when I started building the van. But I think it was a really difficult process but really rewarding. And now, kind of like I said a moment ago, you know, we're up for the challenge of building it and now looking around and feeling proud that we built it and we made it our own it's really rewarding, but I'm sure you have more to say on that. So, we bought our van as an empty cargo van in December of 2021 and it just kind of sat until January and it wasn't until January where we really got serious about our build. So, all in all, the build took us about four, four and a half months which I feel like compared to some other builds was pretty quick and it was because we were working on it almost full-time. I mean I would spend almost the entire day while it was bright out working on the van doing as much as I could and then I would go do some of my work for my clients in the evening or in the morning. And then, I mean Eileen was with me often so we put a lot of time into our build which I think allowed us to get it done a little bit maybe sooner than most but it was a very intensive roller coaster of an experience. Yeah, it was hard.   Host: Yeah, I think that is the record, that's a record on the podcast. I know we've had between like 9 and 13 months I think it's been. We've had three van builds so far. Was so four and a half months was that what you expected how long it would take?   Guest: That's a good question. I guess I think it was about what we had planned for or expected, you know, it's one of those things where you when you start a project like this you just have no idea what it's going to entail if you've never done something similar it's just so hard to imagine all of the pieces and components that go into building a van and all of the unique challenges. So, I think in our minds we were thinking we could probably complete it in less than six months and that was the timeline that we had set and so it also towards the end especially became one of those things where we just started putting more time toward it to try to hit the timeline that we had established it was a lot of work.   Host: So, about four and a half months working basically full-time on it, were there any mistakes you made along the way that could potentially save a listener from some future troubles?   Guest: That's a good question. You know what I would actually say, which is probably not even what you're looking for, is it's okay if your van's not done, you can still go. Like, I think that's actually, in a roundabout way, like a mistake a lot of people do make is they really want it to be perfect and done before they leave, but I'm looking, we still have a little bit of reflection on our door and it's fine and it hasn't ruined our experience, you know? And your van is still... you're able to sleep in it and go see the world. So, um, but I don't know, can you actually think of one? I wish I had something more specific or tactical of, you know, make sure you don't do this. I think Eileen would often give me a hard time because there'd be many days where she would come and I'd be out in the van and I would just be sitting staring at something, and then she'd come back out about two hours later and I would still just be sitting and staring at the same thing. It's true. So, I do think there's taking the time to plan and to think about your layout in general and to think about the systems and the subcomponents, and I spent a lot of time designing things on paper before I actually started building. I think all of that planning and a lot of the strategy work of how the whole thing was going to work, I think that probably lent a hand in allowing us to build more efficiently. All that time spent just kind of sitting and staring at things made it so that there really weren't any major mistakes that we made that really slowed us down. And so I think that was probably a big factor into the timeline that we achieved.   Host: Yeah, no, it sounds like just taking the time to prepare, you've avoided some of those mistakes you might have fallen into. And to your point, Eileen, you guys... it wasn't quite finished, but you guys have been able to, you know, here you are 47 States later versus somebody who was waiting until it was complete and ready to go, they're probably still working on it, right?   Guest: Yeah, there you go.   Host: Um, I guess fast forwarding a little bit to your current travel lifestyle, what are some of the big frustrations you currently face?   Guest: It's hard, especially being two entrepreneurs, it's hard to coordinate our schedules, that's the number one thing for us because sometimes we're in trainings or on calls that need to be really quiet. Um, and coordinating that can be difficult. So, um, I would say that's the number one frustration. I think the other sort of consistent frustration, and it's the thing that took us time to adjust to, and I don't know if you ever fully adjust to it, but when you live in a van like this, you have to get used to the fact that everything that used to be infinite becomes finite. So you have finite amounts of power, you have finite amounts of water, you have finite amounts of internet, all these different things that you never used to have to think about, now you have to think about every single day, multiple times a day. So wait, can I share my favorite stat? My favorite stat is that the average American uses, I think it's 133 gallons of water a day, I think 33 a day, and we only... how many gallons? I already forgot, we have a 30-gallon water intake to use for four days at least, you know? So, yeah, to your point, that's one... my favorite stats to tell my friends, and they're like, "What?"   Host: So precious water. One tip we learned, we actually put... I'm not sure, do you have a shower in yours?   Guest: We do.   Host: We had the shower kitchen, but one thing we did is we put in a 5-gallon water jug with a pump on it so that we just, that's what we consumed. So, we never consumed any water from like our sink, so we basically had an extra 5 gallons, which again, you're using 133 gallons a day, but yeah, how long were you guys going between when you had to refill and pump out?   Guest: Typically, we would need to refill our water every four to five days. There's a lot of factors involved in that, but I would say with our sort of normal usage, a lot of eating in the van, a lot of doing dishes, we do drink water out of it, we have a water filter for drinking water, and then showering, we're typically not showering every day, we're certainly not taking long showers when we do, but usually we can get through probably about four to five days at a time.   Host: Yeah, they are lightning-fast showers. Yeah, you guys... we would typically... we have a 27-gallon freshwater, I think 14-gallon black and gray, and we would go between like 2 and 4 days before we had to refill, so depending on how conservative we're being with our resources. So just to note, you're not in a camper that has, you know, 50 or 100-gallon tanks, you're... it's really limited.   Guest: And sometimes you have to plan for the situation, you know? If you know you're going to be going sort of off-grid for a week, then you've got to plan accordingly. And then you've got to plan and think about all of your meals or maybe you're not showering as much, and so these are just all the things that are part of the lifestyle that you have to be aware of on a consistent basis. Maybe have to shower in the lakes, which we do a lot. Yeah, which is actually nice.   Host: It is freeing.   Guest: And I want people to know that we do shower, just maybe not as often, or we do use, you know, wipes or something to help freshen us up, and we do wash our face.   Host: You are clean people. Yeah, and this time of year, those, uh, baths in the lake, those are now cold plunges like you talked about earlier.   Guest: They are, but yeah, it's refreshing, it's good for you.   Host: Yeah. Now we talked about some of the frustrations. Now we'll transition a little bit. What is the one thing you love most about this travel lifestyle?   Guest: The thing that comes to mind first for me is... is the freedom of it. So, uh, one of my favorite stories is we were traveling on the west coast, and we were in Malibu, California, and, um, we were planning on continuing to go up the west coast, and we looked at the weather. It was... it was a Friday, it was about 10 a.m., and it was pouring rain. We looked at the weather, it was going to be in, like, the 40s and 50s for the next 10 days, it was rainy, and then we texted some of our friends who also live in a van, and they were in Phoenix, and they were by the pool, and it was 75 degrees. And so they were like, "Hey, why don't you come to Phoenix?" And so 10 a.m., we were in Malibu, and by like 6:00 or 7:00 p.m. that night, we were in Phoenix with our friends, sitting by the pool. So, that freedom, where you could really go anywhere that you want to go... there's always certain restrictions or limitations that might apply to what you can do and where you can go, but for the most part, you have the freedom to choose where you want to go and when you want to go there, and that's a really freeing feeling. I just love seeing the world, or the country, rather. Um, it's just the coolest thing, you know? What I miss the most when, you know, we're in Michigan right now, but what I miss the most about being out on the road is we wake up and you open the door and you go right outside, for the most part. So, I just love that, being immersed in nature and getting outside every day and having those beautiful views to look at while you do work or relax. Now, it's not always a beautiful view, I want that to be made clear as well, as sometimes it's a parking lot view, but, um, I just... that's my favorite part, is seeing the country with my favorite person and meeting people along the way. That has been really special too.   Host: Yeah, the freedom, the beautiful places, and meeting all sorts of people, yeah. Um, we'll transition a little bit to some of the finances with life on the road. Can you break down what a monthly or weekly budget would look like?   Guest: So, I think one of the misconceptions about living in the van is that sometimes we'll tell people like, "Oh yeah, we live in a van and we travel," and they'll say, "Oh my gosh, you must save so much money, that must be such a cheap lifestyle," and it's really not. I mean, we've been home for the last five months in Michigan, and our expenses as we've been home, we're still mostly living in the van, but we spend a lot less money than we do when we are traveling full-time. So, to give an idea of some of the big things, you know, we do have loans and insurance for our van and so on. On a monthly basis, that costs us like $750 a month. Our two biggest expenses when we're on the road are our gas and our food, and between the two of those, we can easily be spending $2,000 a month, especially on gas. We drive a lot, so um, $800 to $1,000 a month is pretty typical for us as we're on the road. And then we're both self-employed, so we have to pay for our own health insurance as well, um, which is expensive. That costs us between five and $600 a month. So, when you start to add some of those, you know, foundational things together, and that's before we get into some of the more discretionary spending, that's a typical month for us. And so, yeah, it just, people tend to think it's a very, very cheap lifestyle, and some people do, that could be the case, I guess, for us, that hasn't been our experience.   Host: Yeah, no, yeah, you're right. And thank you for breaking it down so accurately, and it's a good point. I mean, when you're driving a lot like you guys are, you're spending a ton of money on fuel. But the alternative is if you're not driving a whole lot, you're probably staying in places longer. It doesn't necessarily balance out. I found it's more affordable to be a little more stationary. Um, but it all depends on how much you're driving, what state you're in, and yeah, there's a lot that goes into it. And groceries too, you're buying groceries more often because you have a smaller fridge, you're not buying in bulk. Um, and yeah, there's a lot to consider for sure. Are you guys typically looking for free spots to sleep for the night, or do you like the campgrounds? How are you finding spots?   Guest: We started with using campgrounds in the beginning, just because we weren't as comfortable with stealth camping, and we also had, like, an electrical power situation that wasn't working out, so we wanted to plug in more often. But now, I don't know, I think that was like the first six months of our travel. Now, we 100% try to stay in BLM spots out west for sure, or, you know, we'll find different areas near apartment complexes or parking rides even, you know, we, yeah. So, I don't even remember the last time we stayed at a campground.   Host: Nice, that's good. And as far as, so you're using the Starlink all day, and that's something you pay for per usage. So, how much is that costing you, being your sole internet source?   Guest: The way that the Starlink works is that, first, you have to buy the actual piece of equipment itself. That is $600, it's a one-time fee. And then, if you want to have their Roam service, which allows you to get internet from anywhere, you're not tied to one location, it's $150 a month. So, it does come with unlimited speeds and unlimited data, that part of it is very nice. But that's what it costs, $150 a month for the ongoing service. The other nice thing about it is that you can stop and start your service as you'd like. So, since we've been home back in Michigan and our Starlink has been stowed away the whole time, we've been using our hotspot. We just paused our Starlink service, so we haven't had that fee on a monthly basis. And then, when we hit the road again in a couple of weeks, we'll start it back up.   Host: Nice, cool. You travel with your dog Sadie. What would you say to somebody who says they cannot live this type of lifestyle because they have a dog?   Guest: I would say that bringing your dog in a van with you is the most joyful thing in the world because I can tell she loves to see all the views as well. And I mean, yes, the beginning is a little bit difficult to get your dog, or I've seen people have cats too, um, to get them kind of adapted to the lifestyle. But it's doable and it's just, it... I don't know what our van life experience would be without Sadie. So, I think I would say, yeah, don't let that hold you back. Um, I believe that we're giving our pets the best life ever, um, and ourselves. And it's just so much sweeter with them.   Host: Yeah, on your Instagram videos, it looks like she's having a blast everywhere you guys go.   Guest: So, yeah, the only thing I will say is, number one, is that, um, National Parks do not allow pets for the most part.   Host: That is mostly true. There are a few national parks that are more dog-friendly than others. I'll put a link in the show notes so you can check that out.   Guest: So, that can be the part that's tricky. But if you want to stay outside of the national parks or go into the national parks and we've, you know, left Sadie at a Rover, which is someone who personally watches the dog, and she has a field day. She loves it there too. So then we can go into longer hikes in the national parks. You know, you can make it all work out.   Host: Yeah, sure. Is this sort of thing sustainable? I know you said it costs you, if not the same, a little more living on the road. Is it sustainable, and how long do you plan on continuing van life for?   Guest: Yeah, I mean, I definitely think you can make it sustainable. And I think you can look online and see many examples of people who also make it sustainable. We've made it work for 18 months. And our intention as of right now is to, when we hit the road, travel for another year full-time. We're planning on going back to Alaska again this summer. So, does that mean it's easy all the time? Absolutely not, especially when you run your own business. Does that mean that our income doesn't fluctuate sometimes, and sometimes we can relax about money, and sometimes it's a little bit tighter? We experience all of those things. So, you know, if you apply all of that into your definition of sustainable, you can definitely do it for a long period of time. And there's plenty of people who have lived in their van or something similar and traveled for a lot longer than we have. So, I definitely think it can be... You've got to get creative, takes a lot of problem-solving, but you can definitely do it.   Host: Cool. A couple more questions before we wrap this thing up. What has been the coolest experience you have had while traveling?   Guest: There was this moment where, um, or weekend rather, we met up with a couple van life friends that were from Michigan too, shout out to Dave and Ally, we love you. Um, that's what's so cool is you meet these van life people and you're like, "I already love you, you're awesome." Um, but we went out to dinner with them, and then the next day, we went rock climbing with them. They let us borrow their gear and guided us through one of my scariest things I've ever done. But that was just such a cool experience and memory, um, because, yeah, just shows you how quickly we can make these friendships and trust these people and have a really, really good time. Well, the other one that I think is just a cool moment that we treasure is a similar group of people. We were... We had met people at a couple of different events on the road, and we all got together out in some State Trust land out in Arizona, outside of the Phoenix area, and we spent a week together, camped out there, and just being with people. There were like five vans that were all circled around for the week, and during the day, everyone would get their work done, but you get to hang out with your friends at certain points, and then at night, we'd all cook meals together and sharing different things, then we'd have bonfires, and one time we had a someone had a projector, and we watched some sports and some TV on the side of the van and sat outside. So, you just... You have these really unique moments that I don't know, normal life just doesn't quite afford you in the same way.   Host: Yeah, it is. Yeah, it's a community. And here we are talking to you guys. Has there been anything outside of internet that you've learned you can't live without, Starlink?   Guest: Yeah, I say that just because, as I mentioned earlier, if you want to be able to travel to some of the more remote locations, if you want to stay off-grid longer, if you want to stay in BLM or National Forest Service, if you want to go up to places like Alaska, if you want to be in the more remote places away from the city, I do think it has made that a lot easier and it just made it possible for us to do that. That wasn't really a part of our lifestyle before we got it. So, that is something that I've definitely enjoyed. I would say my Kindle, if you like to read, definitely have a Kindle because there's only so many places you can stuff your books in a van. So, that's been a lifesaver for me.   Host: Yeah, the Kindle, that is a new answer. Starlink, we've heard a few times, but the Kindle, that's a good point. Yeah, because if you're an avid reader and you're in a van, there's not a lot of room. If you're in the middle of nowhere and you finish a book and you want a new one, you have to wait till you get to a city or you have to figure out how to get it to you. So, that's what's great is that you can pick up and read another one right away. Has there been anything you've learned that you don't need while traveling?   Guest: I would say a full wardrobe. I'll shout out to another one of our great van life friends, Dedra and Garen. We went to Alaska with them, and Dee and I wore the same crew neck, Denali yellow hoodie or crew neck together, like, probably five or six days straight. You know, it's just... You don't need all these different options. And less is really more. And when you're out traveling, seeing the country and seeing beautiful things, it doesn't really matter what you look like. And re-wearing stuff as long as it's not filthy is totally fine. So, I would say you don't need a full wardrobe and tons of different shoes and all those things. Definitely get rid of stuff that you don't need and only take what you love. For me, I would say... I know it's not a super specific answer, but there's a lot of things that you don't need. I was... I was one of the people who, before we left, I wanted to have a plan for everything, for every random little thing that could happen or occur while we were on the road. I wanted to make sure that I had the right thing and I had a plan for it. And we traveled for like two or three months, and then we stopped back at home in Michigan, and we... We ended up just dumping so many things that we brought with us. And so, it's just a reminder that you can figure things out on the road, and if you need to go pick something up at the store, you can do that. If you need to make a plan for something or you need to solve some kind of problem, if you need to borrow tools from someone, you can find ways to solve any problem that you run into while you're on the road. And so, you don't have to plan for everything beforehand because you can never predict what's going to happen once you hit the road.     Host: Yeah, no, good points. If you could have listened to this podcast when you were first starting out, what is one question I didn't ask tonight that you wished I would have, and how would you answer that now?   Guest: I think for me, the biggest question that I had when we were thinking about living in the van was so unsure about what sleeping would look like, where we would sleep, and how we would find sleeping spots. So, I guess maybe the question would be, how do you go about finding places to sleep? So, to give a couple of thoughts on that, you know, the first thing that I would say is whenever you're going to a new area, I would suggest doing a little bit of research and having a general idea of what options might look like for you to stay. For example, if you're heading into an area like... I'm gonna use Sedona, Arizona, because we're going to be heading there once we hit the road, learning a little bit about, okay, it's difficult to stay in Sedona, Arizona, so when you get there, you're probably going to have to plan for the fact that you're going to have to stay 30 to 40 minutes outside of there. That's an example of just being familiar with some of the restrictions that might exist. And so, then you need to plan for that. Whatever you're doing that day, you need to allow time to go drive away and find somewhere else to sleep. So, that's kind of step one. And then using apps like iOverlander have been huge for us. They give you some good ideas of places that you could stay, very specific locations that might work. And so, I would recommend going and checking out apps like iOverlander. And then the last thing is, some of this is you kind of learn it through experience, but we've started doing a lot of stealth camping. Essentially, camping within cities and just trying to blend in with other cars at night. And, you know, you can develop a little bit of comfort with when you get to an area, feeling out what the situation might be like, do you feel comfortable there? I tend to go on Google Maps a lot, and I'll look at the satellite view overhead and I'll look for apartment complexes or streets that seem to have a lot of overnight parking. And then, we'll just go try to blend in. And if you're going to go that route, arrive late, leave early, and stay very low profile. But I think that was one of the biggest mysteries for me before getting in the van, was where the heck are we going to sleep? And maybe that's helpful. Yeah, I was definitely anxious about that too, and I felt like I would start the day already worrying about where are we going to sleep at night, right? But you really figure out where we're going to go every night, which is helpful.   Host: Yeah, those are both great answers, and I think we share your frustration or the troubles we had in Sedona with trying to find a place. We looked a long time for a place to sleep there. It's a good tip you bring up about pulling up Google Maps in the satellite and just looking where there is overnight parking, big parking lots, just finding out where that is and hunkering down there. In most cases, the worst thing that will happen is you'll get a knock and you have to leave. But when you don't have any other options, it's something. Yeah, for someone listening to this podcast right now who wants to set up a lifestyle similar to yours but isn't quite there yet, what would be one thing they could start doing today?   Guest: I think get clear on what is important to you and what would excite you the most. Do you want to live in a van or an RV, or do you want to travel in Airbnbs? Or, if you had a van, what would be important to you as well? So, I think just getting clear on that. And I mean, we did a lot of journaling before, too, and just kind of writing down, "Okay, what would be the top three most important things in the van for you?" And really discussing that. So, that's what I would say. And then, go try to experience things in some way. You don't have to buy a van or build a van in order to go try. Maybe traveling in a van, like Eileen said, we started going and traveling and staying in tiny houses just to get a feel for what that experience would be like. Are we okay existing in this smaller space? So, I think you can do some of that planning. If this is something that you're thinking about, and then ultimately, I think you just have to make a commitment and say, "We are going to commit to this lifestyle and pick a date, plan for it, and say, 'You know what? This is when we commit to living this lifestyle by.'" And you'll be amazed that if you do that, you'll be amazed at how you can solve problems and how you can figure out how to get to that point because you can figure out a lot of things. I was just going to say, too, we also set a date to have a little van life going-away party. So, when you have over a hundred people that are showing up to this event to give you hugs and see you later, that's also a really great motivator too because one of my favorite things Chad has said and really helped us start this whole journey is that going for your dreams or going after your dreams and creating the reality of your dreams is inconvenient. There really is never going to be a perfect time. So, just committing to a date, going for it, yeah, it's the best route.   Host: Yeah, that's a great point. Yeah, there is no better time than right now. And when you have that party and a hundred people showing up, that's a lot of pressure to make sure you get going. Otherwise, it's anticlimactic if they all celebrate and you aren't leaving.   Guest: Yeah, totally.   Host: Have there been any other... I know you mentioned one previously, any other YouTube channels or books or other influences that helped motivate you and inspire you to travel?   Guest: Yeah, you know, I also, during this conversation, I totally forgot about our guy. We have a couple that we're going to share, but who's that Australian guy that we used to watch all the time? Oh, Bryce on Living Big in a Tiny House. He's great. We watched those a ton. He just would interview people, and there'd be tours of their tiny houses. So, that was really inspiring and exciting. And then Chris and Sarah, they are on Instagram and YouTube, and they really showcased what living in a van would be like. We loved watching their YouTube channel. And then Sarah and Alex James, they are the ones that we purchased the van life build guide off of, and so they were really, really helpful as well. Yeah, and then once we started our build, Mathers on the Map was a channel that we watched a lot of, and so they helped us a lot of the build process. And then, I know you had her on the podcast, but Linea and Akela, that was a channel that I spent a lot of time... I remember specifically on some of the wiring and some of the electrical components, I watched a few of her videos and found her to be really helpful during the build process.   Host: Nice, yeah. She has a great channel, and she talked a lot about, like you said, not only all the benefits and all, like, kind of the sunshine and rainbow, she went deep into kind of the downsides and everything that's involved with building in van life. So, yeah, she has a great channel. Check out. We'll link all those channels you mentioned in the show notes below. And one more time, guys, while my audience is checking those out, where can they find out more about you?   Host: We are @TheMilesVanLife on Instagram. And then my personal Instagram is @EileenRoseMiles. That's where you can find my meditation podcast called The Inward Journey. And then I'm on Instagram as well. I am @ChadMMiles. And my podcast is called A Level Deeper.   Host: All right, perfect. We'll link everything below. Chad and Eileen, thanks again.   Guest: Thanks for having us.   Host: Thanks, friends.

The focus of the Sant Satgurus, the Saints of India (Santmat, RadhaSoami, The Path of the Masters) is not upon constructing earthly temples, building organizational structures, or temples of the mind. Rather, they guide their students into entering the Temple of the Spirit. The Portal or Doorway to this Temple is within, at the Third Eye Center. Masters say: "An intense longing to meet the Supreme Lord during one's lifetime is the first and foremost qualification for Initiation. 'Seek, and ye shall find', is the principle'" (Kirpal Singh). Being properly initiated into the secrets of meditation -- the Mysteries of the Kingdom of the Heavens (diksha/deeksha) -- by a living Master is the beginning of the Inward Journey. Then, go and do the meditation. (Radhaswami)    "The tenth gate is the gathering point of consciousness. Therein lies the path for our return. The tenth gate is also known as the sixth chakra, the third eye, Bindu, the center located between the two eyebrows. This is the gateway through which we leave the sense organs' gates, enter the divine realms, and finally become established in the soul. We travel back from the Realm of Darkness to the Realm of Light, the Light to the Divine Sound, and the Realm of Sound to the Soundless State. This is called turning back to the Source." (Swami Santsevi Ji Maharaj)   "From time to time, great Saints come with the Grace of the Almighty, and They direct the lost souls and get them connected with the Almighty through the Sound, Surat Shabd, and guide them on the Path back. In India, there are several ways of worship. But the Saints have only three practices for getting back to the Almighty. They are Satsang *, Seva **, and Bhajan Simran ***." (Baba Ram Singh)   Notes:  Satsang: Association With Truth;  Seva: Selfless Service; Bhajan Simran: The Meditation Practices of Sant Mat   In Divine Love (Bhakti), Light, and Sound, At the Feet of the Masters, Radhasoami   James Bean Spiritual Awakening Radio Podcasts Sant Mat Satsang Podcasts Sant Mat Radhasoami A Satsang Without Walls Spiritual Awakening Radio Website: https://www.SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com      

Week 1 - Lent 2024 2-18-24 Sunday service (11am)

"The main thing God gets out of your life is the person you become" - Dallas WillardOur calling isn't just about what we do with our lives: it's also about who we become. John Mark talks about the inward journey: who we are called to be as believers, and how to get there.Key Scripture Passages: Matthew 4v18-22; Matthew 9v9-13Discussion Guide: https://practicingthewayarchives.org/identity/part-threeOther Resources: The Road Back to You, Suzanne CollinsInvitation to a Journey, Robert MulhollandThe Road to Character, David Brooksenneagraminstitute.comThis podcast and its episodes are paid for by The Circle, our community of monthly givers. Special thanks for this episode goes to: Barbara from Mesa, Arizona; David from Portland, Oregon; Josiah from Byron Center, Michigan; Renee from Cambridge , Massachusetts; and Kyle from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Thank you all so much!If you'd like to pay it forward and contribute toward future resources, you can learn more at practicingtheway.org/give.

Today during this Sant Mat Satsang Podcast readings from Sant Kirpal Singh's, Spiritual Elixir, Baba Garib Das (Anmol Vachan), Swami Sant Sevi Ji, Don Howard, Jesus (Yeshua, Gospel of Thomas), Baba Ram Singh, and Mystic Poetry of Kabir. "Today's karmas become the fate of tomorrow. According to our last life actions, our mental tendencies are formed in this life. Because of our pure actions we will have the desire to seek the association of Sants (Living Masters) and to meditate." (Swami Vyasnanand, The Inward Journey of the Soul)   In Divine Love (Bhakti), Light, and Sound, At the Feet of the Masters, Radhasoami   James Bean Spiritual Awakening Radio Podcasts Sant Mat Satsang Podcasts Sant Mat Radhasoami A Satsang Without Walls Spiritual Awakening Radio Website: https://www.SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com    

This is a reading of selected pointers for meditation taken from the book "This" by Papaji. Formatted as a guided meditation. Sri H. W. L. Poonja (1910 -1997) was born in Lucknow, India, known as "Poonjaji" or "Papaji", was an Indian sage who taught Self-enquiry as advocated by Ramana Maharshi. Music: David Parsons - "Inward Journey" https://www.discogs.com/artist/308912-David-Parsons

The greatest gift you can give yourself isn't a physical gift. It's the gift of allowing yourself the time and space to be with you and go on the Inward Journey.You are a beautiful and complex being worthy of being discovered, explored, and held through all moments in life. You are worthy of your own curiosity, care, and love. Today, join me as you rediscover your own self-love and peace by cultivating loving awareness toward yourself.p.s. have you ever wanted to learn how to create and lead your own meditations? Learn more about my Meditation Teacher Training and join the waitlist using the link below. Learn more: https://www.eileenrose.me/meditation-teacher-trainingEXPERIENCE MORE OF MY OFFERINGSGet Access to More of My MeditationsJoin My Course on Anxiety Relief - Chaos to CalmGet a Personalized Meditation Made Just for You (By Me)Work With Me 1 on 1 - Book a Virtual RetreatCONNECT WITH MEFollow Me on InstagramSubscribe on YouTubeMeditate with Me on InsightTimer

In this episode, Dr. Hardison discusses how personal tarot year cards can give you a glimpse into the themes and life lessons for the year and how to use that to your advantage. Plus, she shares a spread for the 2024 Universal Tarot Year Card and discusses global themes we'll experience next year as a collective. Companion Blog on ⁠healingthrutarot.com⁠ that goes with this podcast episode ⁠click here⁠ Affiliate links below - it helps me out a little if you purchase from these links. Tarot for yourself: A workbook for the Inward Journey 35th anniversary edition by Mary K. Greer Use my ⁠⁠⁠Writual ambassador link here ⁠⁠⁠along with my discount code HEALING (all caps), which gets you 15% off your Writual purchases when you use that affiliate link and code. ⁠⁠⁠Magic Mind link⁠⁠⁠ - use discount code HEALING20 (all caps) ⁠⁠⁠The Divining Sisters Series Novels⁠⁠ ⁠⁠ Healing Thru Tarot Spread Ebooks for sale - 5 spread ebooks offered To purchase my Healing Thru Tarot Life Path and Purpose spread eBook ⁠⁠click here. ⁠⁠ In this 5th spread ebook in the Healing Thru Tarot Spread Ebook line, I include 15 custom spreads I've created to help you identify and align with your life path and sail to success. Spreads like the life path alignment spread, lightwork path guidance spread, conquering obstacles on my path spread, advice from my future self-spread and karmic healing path spread will help you position yourself to step into your full power and achieve the purpose you incarnated to fulfill. Plus many more spreads offering guidance and advice to get on path and stay on track. $12 on healingthrutarot.com My social ⁠Biolink for all my social accounts⁠ Insta ⁠@healingthrutarot⁠ ⁠Pinterest account⁠ ⁠⁠healingthrutarot.com⁠⁠ ⁠⁠author.heatherhardison.com⁠⁠ Enjoying the podcast? Buy me a coffee for a couple of bucks. ⁠click here⁠ Disclaimer: The information contained in this podcast is not a substitute for consulting a mental health care professional. All information included herein, including information relating to physical, mental, emotional, psychological, and spiritual health, is for educational or entertainment purposes only. While I utilize my psychological knowledge and background in everything I do in life, I am not acting in the role of a psychologist when offering my thoughts in these episodes. Seek professional help for psychological and emotional issues as they arise. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/healingthrutarot/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/healingthrutarot/support

On today's episode, we explore the world of dentistry and entrepreneurship with Dr. Jack Bayramyan. As the co-founder of Optimize Practice Services, Dr. Jack stands at the forefront of a new wave of dental support organizations. He fervently believes in crafting a strategic blueprint for growth, ensuring that dental professionals aren't merely reacting to circumstances but are proactively setting the stage for future successes, reduced stress, and optimized financial outcomes. For many fee-for-service business proprietors, the idea of amplifying their business to churn out millions annually, and then positioning it for a sale worth many times more, seems more fantasy than fact. But for Dr. Jack, this wasn't just a fleeting aspiration. It was this very vision that fueled his journey from a hands-on dentist to a formidable leader and investor in his practice. And he didn't stop there. He expanded and scaled his dental practice, pushing boundaries and shattering his own expectations. During our deep dive with Dr. Jack, we discussed: Strategies to consistently access capital for growing one's practice. The intrinsic motivation that prevents retirement and drives continuous growth and passion. A peek into Dr. Jack's inspiring book "Extraction," where he unveils his personal journey, detailing the transition from hands-on dentistry to exponential growth. He generously shares a formula that any small business owner can adopt to actualize their expansion dreams. To gain insights or to get in touch with Dr. Jack Bayramyan and learn about the incredible work he's been doing, visit https://optimizeps.com. EPISODE RESOURCES https://optimizeps.com https://www.truedentalsuccess.com Dental Success Network Subscribe to The Dentalpreneur Podcast

In this episode Dr. Jeff Myers speaks with Kevin Devries, who runs Grace Explorations, a ministry that helps other ministries reach more men through gospel centered storytelling. Their most recent project, The True Summit, is a 30-Minute Award-Winning Everest Documentary follows 14 men and mountaineer Kevin DeVries on a trek to Everest Base Camp after a cardiac arrest. It was theatrically premiered last fall and digitally distributed to men's ministry leaders this spring. Learn more at: www.graceexplorations.com Listen to every episode of the Dr. Jeff Show wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from Dr. Jeff on YouTube visit http://bit.ly/3flbj2j For more resources from Summit Ministries visit their Resource Library at www.summit.org/resources/

Gratitude is like a superpower y'all. It can shift our entire mood and perspective. The good news? All that's required to create more gratitude is awareness. This meditation is all about taking a moment to recognize and honor the things in our lives that deserve attention our attention. Let's take a few minutes to notice and create awareness for the things that already are. Take 10 minutes and let this feeling of gratitude uplift you today. ✨Want to become a meditation guide? My Fall Meditation Teacher Training is open for enrollment! Learn more at eileenrose.me/mttp.s. have you ever wanted to learn how to create and lead your own meditations? Learn more about my Meditation Teacher Training and join the waitlist using the link below. Learn more: https://www.eileenrose.me/meditation-teacher-trainingEXPERIENCE MORE OF MY OFFERINGSGet Access to More of My MeditationsJoin My Course on Anxiety Relief - Chaos to CalmGet a Personalized Meditation Made Just for You (By Me)Work With Me 1 on 1 - Book a Virtual RetreatCONNECT WITH MEFollow Me on InstagramSubscribe on YouTubeMeditate with Me on InsightTimer

I think you know the feeling as well as I do…It hits you immediately when you wake up.You've got…A big test…An important meeting…A presentation…A first date… A class to teach… Something that's bringing you a wave of anxiety, fear, stress, and worry. This meditation is for those moments.Let's take a pause, bring awareness to how we are feeling, and signal to our minds and bodies to slow down. p.s. have you ever wanted to learn how to create and lead your own meditations? Learn more about my Meditation Teacher Training and join the waitlist using the link below. Learn more: https://www.eileenrose.me/meditation-teacher-trainingEXPERIENCE MORE OF MY OFFERINGSGet Access to More of My MeditationsJoin My Course on Anxiety Relief - Chaos to CalmGet a Personalized Meditation Made Just for You (By Me)Work With Me 1 on 1 - Book a Virtual RetreatCONNECT WITH MEFollow Me on InstagramSubscribe on YouTubeMeditate with Me on InsightTimer

The question that Jesus poses to Mary at his empty tomb is the central question of Easter: who, or what, are you looking for? What kind of Jesus are you looking for? What kind of Christianity are you looking for? Where do you see hope in the resurrection of Christ? We invite you to join us this Easter Sunday as we finish our Lenten series, The Inward Journey and boldly proclaim the hope that we find in the resurrection of Jesus. www.TheLoftLA.org

Jesus quotes the psalmist when he cries out on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” His final lament gives voice to all those who have been forsaken—those who suffer injustice, those who are abandoned, those who are unjustly convicted. And yet, when we read this lament in light of his prayer in the garden of Gathsemene that God would “take this cup of suffering away from me” we see that these words are the culmination of a prayer between he and God. In his quest for God, in giving up his life, Jesus shows us that we can be confident in knowing that for every sunset there is a sunrise. www.TheLoftLA.org

Risk is an inevitable part of our quest for fulfillment. However, as Jesus and the Samaritan woman demonstrate, if we are to change our present circumstance we must not be daunted by fear of taking those risks. These two essays from Howard Thurman's Inward Journey will help inform our conversation on Sunday. Some questions that I would love for us to discuss during our gathering are: What are some of the fears that arise within you when you make the decision to act in ways that resist cultural norms? (i.e. attending a LBGTQ affirming church despite push back from family). How do you work through those fears and decide to act? www.TheLoftLA.org

After his baptism, Jesus continues his Inward Journey in the wilderness. Wandering alone, he spent time in prayer in fasting as he sought clarity about what the next steps in his ministry should be. This time in the wilderness gave him the opportunity to discern what a meaningful life would be for him. The quest for a meaningful life is as old as humanity. From Adam and Eve to Jesus to today, all human beings embark upon this quest. In his essay “When the Knowledge Comes” Howard Thurman invites us to consider how this quest is a perpetual journey from innocence to knowledge. As we continue our own inward journey during this season of Lent, we too should ask ourselves, what does a meaningful life look like for ourselves? When we quiet our minds to listen for and seek an answer, who are we listening to? How might we filter out the noise so that we can hear the prompting of the Spirit?  www.TheLoftLA.org

In today's episode I had the honor of speaking with Amilya Antonetti and Patricia Wooster who combined their genius to write the book "Designing Genius: Success is an Inward Journey."  Amilya is a sought after behaviorist who's vision of a healthier relationship between people and companies has earned her global respect and numerous awards. She has helped change the paradigm of how companies, opportunities, and the greatest asset “THE PEOPLE” work together.  Patricia Wooster is the founder of  WoosterMedia publishing where they help experts, leaders, executives, and entrepreneurs convert their intellectual property into print and digital products, so they can build brand awareness and reach a global audience. In this podcast you'll learn: To unlock your highest potential it's an inward job. How to create your life book. How highly successful people spend their time. The importance of understanding the art of behavior to move people to a desired destination.  What's most important for your children to have in order to succeed. Why replacing your ego with curiosity would make the world a better place.  To learn more about Designing Genius go to designinggenius.com.  

This Lenten season at The Loft will be a time of reflection and self-examination to prepare for the ministries that God has gifted and called us to live out, both as individuals and as a community. At its best, the spiritual path of Jesus is an Inward Journey that leads to profound transformation; his spiritual practices, boundary-crossing relationships, and social teachings reveal that his quest toward God set him on a path where he sought to liberate and heal his community from the trauma of empire. Where might this quest lead us today? This is the central question that will animate our conversations during this Lenten season. . The writings and teachings of Howard Thurman will help guide us on our Inward Journey. This Sunday's gathering will be informed by his essay “Jesus: An Interpretation” from Thurman's most popular book, Jesus and the Disinherited. The context surrounding Jesus' life was complicated by poverty and Roman colonial occupation. How might understanding his earthly background help us to recognize the importance of his baptism as a way to prepare for his time in the wilderness, his inward journey? www.TheLoftLA.org  

Today is Ash Wednesday, and it marks the beginning of Lent, a season of forty days, not counting Sundays, which ends on Holy Saturday, the day before Easter. The forty days represent the time Jesus spent in the wilderness, enduring the temptation to sin - the temptation to love oneself more than your neighbor or God. This wilderness experience prepared him for his ministry. This podcast episode is an invitation for you to begin your Lenten journey by meditating on Jesus' time in the wilderness as a way of preparing us for our own Inward Journey during these weeks of Lent.

The journey of self-discovery around our identity and calling requires us to deal with the reality of our brokenness - or what the scriptures call our sin. The beauty of this journey is that when we invite Jesus into our brokenness, he brings forgiveness, healing, and new life.CITY CHURCH EXISTS TO HELP PEOPLE FIND THEIR WAY TO GOD FROM WHERE THEY ARE.You can find us here:www.citychurchboulder.com www.facebook.com/citychurchboulder www.instagram.com/citychurchboulder

Okay friends, today's episode starts with a personal story of how I apply meditation and mindfulness into my everyday life - and how you can too. I want you to remember that your breath is always with you and it's such a powerful tool to help you self-soothe and recalibrate your nervous system. I'll share two practical breathing techniques you can use to feel calm, grounded, and steady.Learn the Alternate Nostril Breathing TechniqueDisclaimer: if you are experiencing extreme panic attacks and anxiety breathing techniques can be helpful however, in addition, ask for professional help. Visit Psychology Today  to find a therapist and/or psychiatrist to get the help you deserve. p.s. have you ever wanted to learn how to create and lead your own meditations? Learn more about my Meditation Teacher Training and join the waitlist using the link below. Learn more: https://www.eileenrose.me/meditation-teacher-trainingEXPERIENCE MORE OF MY OFFERINGSGet Access to More of My MeditationsJoin My Course on Anxiety Relief - Chaos to CalmGet a Personalized Meditation Made Just for You (By Me)Work With Me 1 on 1 - Book a Virtual RetreatCONNECT WITH MEFollow Me on InstagramSubscribe on YouTubeMeditate with Me on InsightTimer

Mystics have universally taught, East and West, that "the Light of God is within everyone", as George Fox, founder of the Quakers once said. If we can transcend cultural blinders that imply it is impossible for us to see spiritually, mystically or inwardly with the Single Eye, there is indeed hope for us to reunite with the Divine Light, right here, right now, in the present moment, see for ourselves and discover that "darkness is not really dark" (Psalm 139: 12). Once we are open to this possibility, then there is the potential of adopting a contemplative meditation practice that leads to the experience of the Inner Light. There is hope we might be able to temporarily transcend the world of the five senses during our meditations and finally begin our journey exploring the "New World" of Inner Space, the "Kingdom of the Heavens" that are within us, the Kingdom of the Light. "If one is whole, one will be filled with Light, but if one is divided, one will be filled with darkness... there is light within a Person of Light, and it illuminates the entire cosmos." (Gospel of Thomas) "If your Eye be Single, your whole body shall be full of Light." (New Testament) If the energy of our attention is scattered and dissipated into the world of the five senses, when we close our eyes we naturally see darkness, but if our attention or awareness returns to the Single Eye -- Third Eye, the seat of our soul -- Light shall appear. "Do not cease seeking day or night and do not let yourselves relax until you find the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Light, which will purify you and make you into pure Light and lead you into the Kingdom of the Light." (Book of Faith Wisdom, Pistis Sophia)   Hazur Baba Sawan Singh says, "The Masters come and They tell us, They initiate us and They tell us, about the different planes within. They tell us about what are the Sounds within, what are the Lights within in the different planes. They tell us about the path of how one has to transcend across these planes." Baba Somanath: "The darkness in the well of the world is driven away when the Self-Effulgent lamp of Knowledge sheds it Light... Rivet my attention at the still-point between the eyes [Third Eye Center], and show me the Light of Spiritual knowledge... Between the two eyes, be baptized in the Immaculate Light."   On today's Spiritual Awakening Radio Podcast a satsang format with the theme of finding the Inner Divine Light, exploring the wisdom of Plato, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Matthew, Gospel of Philip from the Nag Hammadi Library of Egypt, the Gnostic Book of Faith Wisdom (Pistis Sophia), the medieval Beguine Christian mystic Mechthild of Magdeburg from her spiritual classic, Flowing Light of the Godhead, George Fox, a Bhajan (Mystic Poem/Hymn) of Sant Namdev, Guru Nanak from the Adi Granth (Sikh scriptures), the Sar Bachan Radhaswami Poetry of Swami Ji Maharaj, Swami Sant Sevi Ji Maharaj from, Quintessence of Yoga: Secret of all Success, Swami Vyasanand from, The Inward Journey of the Soul (Chal Hansa Nij Desh: O Swan-Soul Return to Your Abode), Yogani Mataji of the Radhasoami Faith (Sant Mat), Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Ji, a long reading from selected Bhajans (Mystic Poetry/Hymns) of Baba Somanath on the Inner Mystic Light of the Inner Regions, Santji, and excerpts from the Satsang Discourses of Baba Ram Singh Ji.   In Divine Love (Bhakti), Light, and Sound, At the Feet of the Masters, James Bean Spiritual Awakening Radio Podcasts Sant Mat Satsang Podcasts https://www.SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com https://linktr.ee/SpiritualAwakeningRadio    

"Without love, there is no spiritual path. The path lives in love. With intensification of love, one comes in contact with the True Sound, And like a lotus in water, abides in its peace and bliss." -- Sant Dariya Sahib of Bihar   "The Supreme Being Radhasoami Dayal [Merciful Lord of the Soul] is, the Ocean or Reservoir of Love, and Surat [the Soul], which is His particle, i.e., emanation or current, is also of the essence of love. Therefore, unless love is engendered in the Surat [the attention-faculty of the Soul], it cannot merge into its Reservoir. In other words, the practice of traversing on this path and reaching the Source (which is known as the practice of Surat and Shabd [yoga or meditation]) could never be performed properly or correctly carried on." (Huzur Maharaj Rai Saligram, Radhasoami Mat Sandesh)   "Love is that power that makes God break His own laws in order to serve the devotee. Love is that meditation or method that makes the impossible possible. That which is harsh becomes gentle; the enemy becomes friend; the weak become strong; the concealed becomes revealed. Even though it is said that it takes many lifetimes to realize the Divine, if a devotee performs sadhana [meditation practice] with true, unwavering devotion, then the Divine Will manifest at that moment." (Swami Vyasanand, The Inward Journey of the Soul)   "Without Bhakti [spiritual love] and devotion, nobody can swim across the vast and deep ocean of this samsara [sansaar, world of changes] even if one makes use of lakhs [thousands] of ways and means; but if one takes to the Word and develops love for Shabd [the Sound Current], one will one hundred percent go to his eternal abode." (The Essential Kabir, M.G. Gupta translation)   "How can one sit so still, repeat only holy names and think of God constantly? 'By falling in love,' Mataji answered serenely. 'Because when one is truly in love nothing but the beloved can enter one's mind. So the secret of surat shabd yoga and of mysticism,' she goaded, 'is not necessarily practice and more practice, but love. To be so devoted to one's Lord that nothing can stand in the way-this and nothing else is the truth of Sant Mat,' Mataji stressed." (Yogani Mataji, Enchanted Land)   "There never was or ever will be anything but love, expressing itself infinitely." (Sant Jnaneswar of Maharashtra)   In Divine Love (Bhakti), Light, and Sound, At the Feet of the Masters, James Bean Spiritual Awakening Radio Podcasts Sant Mat Satsang Podcasts https://www.SpiritualAwakeningRadio.com https://linktr.ee/SpiritualAwakeningRadio    

Message from Jason Freeman on January 22, 2023

In this chapter of Inward Journey, Haven is in Asheville for business and sees Stan at a restaurant with his co-worker Rita. They engage in some drinks and interesting conversation which is then brought up when she returns home to find Stevie visiting Rio. Some of the themes discussed in this episode are emotional processing, staying grounded when not having all of the information in a situation, discernment around decisions, how to stay out of drama and gossip and many more.

In this chapter of Inward Journey, Stevie takes a day off of work to visit Rio and share her recent experiences and breakdown and to inquire how she could have handled it all more consciously. Some of the themes discussed in this episode are emotional processing, Divine Order, trust, faith, non-judgement, spirituality practice, anxiety, our wants and needs and many more.

In this chapter of Inward Journey, the video call with Louise has just wrapped up and we observe how Michael and Janet handle their communication after the friction around the call. Some of the themes discussed in this episode are conscious relationships, conscious conflict resolution, emotional processing, standing in your power, avoidance, addiction, family lineage trauma, stopping the ripple and many more.