1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:12,440 Imagine if the world's greatest innovators had waited for the perfect moment to act. 2 00:00:12,440 --> 00:00:18,280 James Clear in his book, Atomic Habits, emphasizes that successful people start before they feel 3 00:00:18,280 --> 00:00:23,840 ready, highlighting that waiting for perfect conditions can hinder our progress. 4 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:28,960 Mal Robbins in one of my favorite books, The Five Second Rule, encourages us to count down 5 00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:36,000 from five and then take action, preventing us from overthinking and missed opportunities. 6 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:42,840 Steve Jobs exemplified this by taking bold steps into uncharted territories, often pursuing 7 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:48,560 innovative ideas before the market or technology was fully ready. 8 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:54,920 In today's episode, we'll explore how embracing action over hesitation can lead to remarkable 9 00:00:54,920 --> 00:01:02,280 achievements. 10 00:01:02,280 --> 00:01:05,720 Thank you for joining me for another episode of Life Snacks Lesson Plan. 11 00:01:05,720 --> 00:01:11,920 I'm Rachel and I started this podcast during my 29th and last year as a high school teacher. 12 00:01:11,920 --> 00:01:16,960 Goal of my work with Life Snacks Lesson Plan as well as my Live and Learn Patreon is to 13 00:01:16,960 --> 00:01:19,280 create a connection where we are all teachers. 14 00:01:19,280 --> 00:01:23,320 We all have lessons and stories to share that can help others. 15 00:01:23,320 --> 00:01:28,320 I'm so fortunate to be able to extend the four walls of my previous classroom to an 16 00:01:28,320 --> 00:01:32,640 unlimited audience where we can all learn from each other. 17 00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:37,400 And my guests are some of the most inspirational people with the best stories and lessons I 18 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:41,240 know, which is why I want to share them with you. 19 00:01:41,240 --> 00:01:43,400 Their words are something everyone should hear. 20 00:01:43,400 --> 00:01:48,280 It is my hope that you are able to take away something from each episode to apply to your 21 00:01:48,280 --> 00:01:54,600 own life, whether that be a career search, path to a more fulfilling life, or new ideas 22 00:01:54,600 --> 00:01:59,040 on current topics. 23 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:04,760 Today we are talking about building trust in ourselves and how to have the confidence 24 00:02:04,760 --> 00:02:10,080 to try new things, take a new leap, start a new journey. 25 00:02:10,080 --> 00:02:12,400 Breaching to my own choir here. 26 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:17,120 We've had some guests in the past walk us through some of these things and explain to 27 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:19,320 us how they have done it. 28 00:02:19,320 --> 00:02:25,560 I know personally, obviously this is the territory that I'm in right now. 29 00:02:25,560 --> 00:02:31,680 And whether you are embarking on a new journey right now or perhaps might be down the road, 30 00:02:31,680 --> 00:02:39,000 hopefully today you can take some action steps with you. 31 00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:46,920 We're going to start by talking about how small wins can help you build trust in yourself. 32 00:02:46,920 --> 00:02:52,560 So the importance of setting small achievable goals as we're getting started with something 33 00:02:52,560 --> 00:02:54,320 new. 34 00:02:54,320 --> 00:03:03,280 Instead of diving into a huge four year program or certification, in the past episodes I have 35 00:03:03,280 --> 00:03:11,040 talked about committing to 10 or 15 minutes a day on a skill that you want to develop. 36 00:03:11,040 --> 00:03:18,280 Be your learning a new language on Duolingo or your doing daily design challenges or writing 37 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:20,360 prompts. 38 00:03:20,360 --> 00:03:28,640 Small commitments that build consistency will help you feel successful. 39 00:03:28,640 --> 00:03:33,240 This is what we need in order to build confidence. 40 00:03:33,240 --> 00:03:39,640 Another thing which might be scary at first is to build accountability by sharing your 41 00:03:39,640 --> 00:03:42,240 goals with the public. 42 00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:48,160 For example, if you're thinking of starting a blog, you could write one short post and 43 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:55,000 share it with a trusted friend or on one social media platform for feedback. 44 00:03:55,000 --> 00:04:00,840 This would allow you to test an idea and gain confidence without the pressure of a large 45 00:04:00,840 --> 00:04:02,960 audience. 46 00:04:02,960 --> 00:04:06,320 You can also test a business idea through small pop-ups. 47 00:04:06,320 --> 00:04:14,680 I know I helped my daughter with this two summers ago when she had jewelry business in 48 00:04:14,680 --> 00:04:15,880 the summer. 49 00:04:15,880 --> 00:04:25,520 She used Instagram to promote her products a little bit and then we branched out to participating 50 00:04:25,520 --> 00:04:34,200 in a local market at Maxwell Street Days and then also reaching out to businesses to have 51 00:04:34,200 --> 00:04:40,400 a little table set up and sell products and receive feedback. 52 00:04:40,400 --> 00:04:44,360 It was a really great experience for her. 53 00:04:44,360 --> 00:04:54,960 I enjoyed helping and it's really fun to help them build a lot of skills, social media, 54 00:04:54,960 --> 00:04:59,800 communication, marketing and promotion, budgeting. 55 00:04:59,800 --> 00:05:06,280 These are all great real world experiences to learn at any age. 56 00:05:06,280 --> 00:05:12,760 Those small wins can help create a snowball effect which will help you build confidence 57 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:15,760 over time. 58 00:05:15,760 --> 00:05:20,920 Some real life examples of this, some of my favorites, again one of my favorite podcasts 59 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:24,200 to listen to is How I Built This. 60 00:05:24,200 --> 00:05:30,800 It's through that podcast that I learned the story of Sarah Blakely who is the founder 61 00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:32,640 of Spanx. 62 00:05:32,640 --> 00:05:38,960 If you're not familiar with Spanx, it is a very, very popular, started as a shapewear 63 00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:48,280 company, but now they have expanded into athleisure, obviously bras and underwear and just really 64 00:05:48,280 --> 00:05:51,800 expanded even into jeans. 65 00:05:51,800 --> 00:05:59,320 She's a multi-millionaire, very successful entrepreneur, but Sarah Blakely's journey 66 00:05:59,320 --> 00:06:01,560 began with a simple idea. 67 00:06:01,560 --> 00:06:06,880 She was trying to fix actually a problem of her own. 68 00:06:06,880 --> 00:06:13,680 She had some white pants that she wanted to wear to a special occasion and she didn't 69 00:06:13,680 --> 00:06:17,040 like how her legs appeared underneath the pants. 70 00:06:17,040 --> 00:06:22,680 She wanted to create kind of a smoother look underneath these white pants. 71 00:06:22,680 --> 00:06:28,640 She started by cutting the feet off a pair of pantyhose to wear underneath the pants 72 00:06:28,640 --> 00:06:31,120 and that seemed to work. 73 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:39,960 She started small by developing a product to do similar things for women in her apartment 74 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:44,120 and then she pitched her idea to local department stores. 75 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:49,280 She had no experience in business, no experience in fashion. 76 00:06:49,280 --> 00:06:55,640 She tested her idea with her own friends and built her confidence one step at a time. 77 00:06:55,640 --> 00:07:01,000 Today Spanx is a billion dollar company and her story shows the power of starting with 78 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:08,920 one small idea, trying to fix a problem, trusting yourself to grow from there. 79 00:07:08,920 --> 00:07:18,280 A similar story is that of Stephen King, who you most likely know for his novels and writing. 80 00:07:18,280 --> 00:07:27,560 His journey to writing his first novel, Carrie, he initially threw that manuscript into the 81 00:07:27,560 --> 00:07:28,560 trash. 82 00:07:28,560 --> 00:07:31,600 He just doubted his own potential. 83 00:07:31,600 --> 00:07:38,920 His wife, Tabitha, pulled it out of the trash and encouraged him to finish it. 84 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:46,360 So King started small by writing in his spare time while working as a high school teacher. 85 00:07:46,360 --> 00:07:54,040 When Carrie was published, it became his breakthrough novel, proving that taking a small chance 86 00:07:54,040 --> 00:08:00,520 and leaning on support systems can lead to life changing outcomes. 87 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:06,920 And if you want more stories like this, I highly recommend the How I Built This podcast, 88 00:08:06,920 --> 00:08:12,240 the stories behind the people who built the brands we love. 89 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:19,280 So thinking about this in regards to your own life, what is one small step you could 90 00:08:19,280 --> 00:08:23,080 take toward a bigger goal you have? 91 00:08:23,080 --> 00:08:29,640 With that in mind, we're going to move on to the next section of the podcast, the power 92 00:08:29,640 --> 00:08:34,240 of action over perfection. 93 00:08:34,240 --> 00:08:42,600 So going along with Mel Robbins' idea of five, four, three, two, one action, action Trump's 94 00:08:42,600 --> 00:08:43,600 waiting. 95 00:08:43,600 --> 00:08:52,120 Her quote, confidence comes from doing, not waiting, encapsulates Mel Robbins' philosophy 96 00:08:52,120 --> 00:08:59,280 that taking action is essential for building your confidence. 97 00:08:59,280 --> 00:09:04,600 These ideas reflect the core message of her teaching in her book, The Five Second Rule. 98 00:09:04,600 --> 00:09:15,560 I do discuss this exact book on my Patreon in episode four, much more in depth. 99 00:09:15,560 --> 00:09:22,320 Robbins emphasizes the importance of initiating action to overcome hesitation and self-doubt. 100 00:09:22,320 --> 00:09:29,480 So she introduces the concept of counting down five, four, three, two, one, and moving 101 00:09:29,480 --> 00:09:31,240 forward. 102 00:09:31,240 --> 00:09:38,560 If we take more time than that, research shows that our brains will talk us out of this. 103 00:09:38,560 --> 00:09:44,000 In that Patreon episode, I talk about all the instances in my life where I've used 104 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:50,360 this mostly in the mornings before school to get out of bed. 105 00:09:50,360 --> 00:09:57,760 I've lent my book to a friend and shared this with many friends who are in my accountability 106 00:09:57,760 --> 00:10:02,720 group for working out before our work day starts. 107 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:07,120 Many of us use the Five Second Rule. 108 00:10:07,120 --> 00:10:14,520 So what she is advocating for is the power of proactive behavior, that by engaging in 109 00:10:14,520 --> 00:10:23,320 deliberate actions we can develop the confidence we're looking for rather than waiting passively 110 00:10:23,320 --> 00:10:25,760 for it to manifest. 111 00:10:25,760 --> 00:10:31,360 So if we want something, we have to take the first step. 112 00:10:31,360 --> 00:10:37,000 And when we continue to take that first step, getting out of bed without pushing the snooze, 113 00:10:37,000 --> 00:10:39,760 for example, we start to gain confidence. 114 00:10:39,760 --> 00:10:42,720 We start to build confidence. 115 00:10:42,720 --> 00:10:49,640 Think about times in your life where you felt proud for taking the first step, even though 116 00:10:49,640 --> 00:10:53,920 you didn't feel ready, even if you were unsure. 117 00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:59,000 There have been many instances that have turned out to be the best decisions in my life. 118 00:10:59,000 --> 00:11:07,080 Again, I talk about this in that Patreon episode where I had to just start messy, start before 119 00:11:07,080 --> 00:11:09,040 I was ready. 120 00:11:09,040 --> 00:11:14,120 Being over the journalism program, which ended up being my favorite part of teaching, I was 121 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:15,200 not ready. 122 00:11:15,200 --> 00:11:18,720 I hadn't done journalism in over two decades. 123 00:11:18,720 --> 00:11:22,920 I had never done your book in my life. 124 00:11:22,920 --> 00:11:27,880 I had to take the job or miss out on the opportunity. 125 00:11:27,880 --> 00:11:29,880 And I'm so glad I did. 126 00:11:29,880 --> 00:11:33,240 When I became department chair, I didn't feel ready. 127 00:11:33,240 --> 00:11:34,640 I jumped in. 128 00:11:34,640 --> 00:11:36,840 I tried it. 129 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:41,080 There are many cases podcasting being one of them. 130 00:11:41,080 --> 00:11:43,040 I didn't have everything perfect from the start. 131 00:11:43,040 --> 00:11:45,640 I still don't have everything perfect. 132 00:11:45,640 --> 00:11:52,200 Don't have everything figured out to a T. But I'm doing it, getting good feedback and 133 00:11:52,200 --> 00:11:55,360 gaining confidence as I go. 134 00:11:55,360 --> 00:12:00,080 So take it from a recovering perfectionist. 135 00:12:00,080 --> 00:12:05,360 If you continue to wait for the perfect time, it will never come. 136 00:12:05,360 --> 00:12:06,360 We know this. 137 00:12:06,360 --> 00:12:08,160 It's never a perfect time. 138 00:12:08,160 --> 00:12:11,240 It's just another form of procrastination. 139 00:12:11,240 --> 00:12:13,560 It's another form of delaying this. 140 00:12:13,560 --> 00:12:16,120 Well, what if, what if it doesn't work out? 141 00:12:16,120 --> 00:12:17,280 What if I don't like it? 142 00:12:17,280 --> 00:12:20,480 You don't know unless you try. 143 00:12:20,480 --> 00:12:25,680 Okay, so action trumps waiting. 144 00:12:25,680 --> 00:12:31,520 Next, we're going to talk about the role of failure. 145 00:12:31,520 --> 00:12:33,800 This is an F word that scares me. 146 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:36,720 It's not my favorite F word. 147 00:12:36,720 --> 00:12:39,520 So failure is an essential part of growth. 148 00:12:39,520 --> 00:12:43,760 We've all heard this, but we, none of us like it. 149 00:12:43,760 --> 00:12:47,880 Well, maybe some people do, but I'm not one of them. 150 00:12:47,880 --> 00:12:54,560 Taking action, even if it's imperfect, moves you closer to your goal. 151 00:12:54,560 --> 00:13:00,360 And through that journey to success, you might fail. 152 00:13:00,360 --> 00:13:10,160 But again, let's go back to some people who are large success stories, who went through 153 00:13:10,160 --> 00:13:11,800 the pain of failing. 154 00:13:11,800 --> 00:13:17,800 So let's go back to Sarah Blakely and Spanx, a billion dollar company. 155 00:13:17,800 --> 00:13:23,800 Before founding Spanx, Sarah Blakely wanted to be a stand up comedian. 156 00:13:23,800 --> 00:13:32,240 And as they explained in her episode, she even worked door to door selling fax machines. 157 00:13:32,240 --> 00:13:39,920 She faced countless rejections, but would always reframe her failure as a learning experience. 158 00:13:39,920 --> 00:13:44,800 Her father actually encouraged her to celebrate failures. 159 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:49,600 At the dinner table, they would discuss, what did you fail at today? 160 00:13:49,600 --> 00:13:57,480 It's almost like a celebration, because if you fail at something, it means you took action. 161 00:13:57,480 --> 00:14:02,360 You moved forward, you tried something, you stepped out of your comfort zone. 162 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:06,920 So this mindset actually helped her persist. 163 00:14:06,920 --> 00:14:14,160 When some manufacturers that she showed some of her prototypes for Spanx to rejected her 164 00:14:14,160 --> 00:14:17,440 idea for footless pantyhose. 165 00:14:17,440 --> 00:14:21,960 Instead of giving up after a few failures and saying, well, I guess it's just not going 166 00:14:21,960 --> 00:14:23,720 to work out. 167 00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:28,280 She used their feedback to refine her pitch. 168 00:14:28,280 --> 00:14:32,040 And now she has a billion dollar company. 169 00:14:32,040 --> 00:14:38,240 So a no or a setback is an a dead end. 170 00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:44,040 It's a step toward a better version of your idea of yourself. 171 00:14:44,040 --> 00:14:51,320 If something doesn't work, analyze why, adjust it and try again. 172 00:14:51,320 --> 00:14:54,000 Again, easier said than done. 173 00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:59,080 I'm still not great at criticism, accepting criticism. 174 00:14:59,080 --> 00:15:05,120 But I am trying to frame it in that whoever is giving it to me is giving it to me to help 175 00:15:05,120 --> 00:15:07,880 me succeed. 176 00:15:07,880 --> 00:15:12,760 Another example we're probably all familiar with Oprah Winfrey. 177 00:15:12,760 --> 00:15:20,080 So Oprah was once fired from her job as a TV news anchor in Baltimore because producers 178 00:15:20,080 --> 00:15:26,840 said she was too emotionally invested in stories. 179 00:15:26,840 --> 00:15:33,520 Instead of seeing this as the ending of her career, a failure, Oprah leaned into her natural 180 00:15:33,520 --> 00:15:37,240 ability to connect with people. 181 00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:39,160 We all know what happened. 182 00:15:39,160 --> 00:15:47,360 This approach led her to host the Oprah Winfrey show where her authenticity and emotional engagement 183 00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:49,800 became her greatest strengths. 184 00:15:49,800 --> 00:15:57,480 Again, sometimes what seems like a failure is actually a redirection toward something 185 00:15:57,480 --> 00:16:01,200 better suited to your strengths. 186 00:16:01,200 --> 00:16:10,800 When a door closes, ask yourself, what skill or passion can I lean into instead? 187 00:16:10,800 --> 00:16:12,880 I've said this before. 188 00:16:12,880 --> 00:16:18,920 I am someone who wishes all the time I had a crystal ball. 189 00:16:18,920 --> 00:16:22,840 Where is this going to lead me five years from now? 190 00:16:22,840 --> 00:16:26,240 And I have to be okay with we don't know. 191 00:16:26,240 --> 00:16:34,920 But if I fail, if the door closes, I have gained skills and hopefully it leads me somewhere 192 00:16:34,920 --> 00:16:36,400 else. 193 00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:43,320 Take your strengths and use them in that redirection. 194 00:16:43,320 --> 00:16:55,040 So think about one action today, no matter how small you can take to just move forward 195 00:16:55,040 --> 00:17:02,800 or to use some feedback you've received recently to redirect your path. 196 00:17:02,800 --> 00:17:13,400 We'll take a break before we look at some action steps and homework. 197 00:17:13,400 --> 00:17:18,160 To those of you who have followed me for a while, you know that I value mental and physical 198 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:19,160 wellness. 199 00:17:19,160 --> 00:17:24,480 Personally, I've worked with a few different coaches over the years and even been one myself. 200 00:17:24,480 --> 00:17:28,840 If you are looking for education and support in your own wellness journey, I would love 201 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:33,360 to invite you to the wellness community I am currently in that keeps me accountable daily 202 00:17:33,360 --> 00:17:35,320 with my nutrition and movement. 203 00:17:35,320 --> 00:17:42,040 If you are a Facebook user, you can search for a free group called Team MG. 204 00:17:42,040 --> 00:17:47,920 This group is led by my coach, Megan Grimord, who is a certified trainer and nutrition coach. 205 00:17:47,920 --> 00:17:52,200 She offers lots of education and support for your wellness journey. 206 00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:56,720 If you want to get to know Coach Megan more, you can follow her on Instagram at all lower 207 00:17:56,720 --> 00:18:06,720 case Megan M E G A N underscore Grimord G R I M O R D or even listen to her on episode 208 00:18:06,720 --> 00:18:09,200 10 of the podcast. 209 00:18:09,200 --> 00:18:12,240 She has also created a discount code for my listeners. 210 00:18:12,240 --> 00:18:22,720 Just go to her website www.team-mg.com and enter code lesson plan 10 to get $10 off any 211 00:18:22,720 --> 00:18:26,680 of her premium coaching packages for the first month. 212 00:18:26,680 --> 00:18:32,200 Coach Megan is a busy mom like me who works full time, so I appreciate her practicality 213 00:18:32,200 --> 00:18:37,480 mixed with some tough love to keep me going. 214 00:18:37,480 --> 00:18:44,440 I'd like to invite you since you're here with me on the life's next lesson plan podcast 215 00:18:44,440 --> 00:18:49,880 is to check out our series on my live and learn Patreon. 216 00:18:49,880 --> 00:18:57,280 In February, we have an exciting collection of self-love going on right now with each 217 00:18:57,280 --> 00:19:03,240 week focusing on different aspects of self-love with practical tools and strategies to incorporate 218 00:19:03,240 --> 00:19:05,440 into your everyday life. 219 00:19:05,440 --> 00:19:11,960 We are also going to be having a culminating book talk on March 1st with the book called 220 00:19:11,960 --> 00:19:19,640 Worthy by Jamie Kern Lima, which was recommended by Anna Strelow in her episode. 221 00:19:19,640 --> 00:19:29,160 And then in March, I'm so excited to have a heart and hormone health series with an 222 00:19:29,160 --> 00:19:34,760 upcoming guest that you are about to hear from in episode 16. 223 00:19:34,760 --> 00:19:41,320 She will actually be joining me at the end of the month for a Q&A about all things heart 224 00:19:41,320 --> 00:19:45,520 and hormone health related, which is really exciting. 225 00:19:45,520 --> 00:19:49,760 So I hope you'll listen to her on episode 16. 226 00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:55,280 Her own health journey will shock and awe you, I will just say. 227 00:19:55,280 --> 00:19:58,640 And I'm really excited to have her over on the Patreon. 228 00:19:58,640 --> 00:20:03,360 So with Patreon, if you're not sure how it works, you can do it a couple different ways. 229 00:20:03,360 --> 00:20:07,400 I do have some subscribers who are just monthly subscribers. 230 00:20:07,400 --> 00:20:12,840 They get everything on Patreon for $5 a month, which is a great deal. 231 00:20:12,840 --> 00:20:17,760 They are allowed to listen to all the episodes, participate in all the activities. 232 00:20:17,760 --> 00:20:23,200 Or if you're not ready for a monthly subscription, you can just buy collections. 233 00:20:23,200 --> 00:20:25,960 I usually offer them at half price. 234 00:20:25,960 --> 00:20:34,880 So our February collection, which is four events, which would be $5 each typically, 235 00:20:34,880 --> 00:20:39,160 is just going to be $10 instead of $20. 236 00:20:39,160 --> 00:20:44,400 And then I'll do a $5 collection for the heart and hormone health. 237 00:20:44,400 --> 00:20:49,520 I know in January, we had the Sunday Scaries series. 238 00:20:49,520 --> 00:20:54,680 And I put that together as a collection for $5 for you as well. 239 00:20:54,680 --> 00:21:02,560 So I hope you'll join us if you would like extra content over on our Live and Learn Patreon. 240 00:21:02,560 --> 00:21:08,360 We've come to the part of the episode that I keep looking forward to more and more. 241 00:21:08,360 --> 00:21:10,680 Let's ask the teacher anything. 242 00:21:10,680 --> 00:21:14,880 Today I'm going to answer two questions. 243 00:21:14,880 --> 00:21:21,520 First one I have thought a lot about in the last year. 244 00:21:21,520 --> 00:21:29,800 What does living a fulfilling life mean to you? 245 00:21:29,800 --> 00:21:40,880 I just received news that someone very near and dear to my heart who I taught English with, 246 00:21:40,880 --> 00:21:48,400 I ate lunch with her and her husband for like an entire school year every single day. 247 00:21:48,400 --> 00:21:53,720 She invited my daughter when she was into horses to come ride her horses. 248 00:21:53,720 --> 00:21:55,880 She just passed away. 249 00:21:55,880 --> 00:22:06,280 And it's the first person I have taught English with to pass away, 10 years into retirement. 250 00:22:06,280 --> 00:22:16,680 And it just reinforces again what is important in life, our time, our relationships, our 251 00:22:16,680 --> 00:22:28,480 health, our quality of life, and the time we have left, how we spend it. 252 00:22:28,480 --> 00:22:33,400 And it is not about making money. 253 00:22:33,400 --> 00:22:39,000 It's not about a lot of the things that I used to think it's about. 254 00:22:39,000 --> 00:22:42,520 It's about the small things. 255 00:22:42,520 --> 00:22:49,360 And perhaps I'm having an existential crisis or something, which probably is not uncommon 256 00:22:49,360 --> 00:22:58,720 when you make a decision like this, but really visualizing how I will feel if a year from 257 00:22:58,720 --> 00:23:07,000 now, 10 days from now, 10 years from now, 15 years from now, I'm at the end of my life. 258 00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:12,240 What will I wish I had done or hadn't done? 259 00:23:12,240 --> 00:23:18,240 And that's where I realize it's the small things. 260 00:23:18,240 --> 00:23:21,760 Not feeling rushed every single day. 261 00:23:21,760 --> 00:23:24,160 Not feeling stressed every single day. 262 00:23:24,160 --> 00:23:27,840 Not feeling out of patience every single day. 263 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:30,000 And I know that's a big part of life. 264 00:23:30,000 --> 00:23:35,160 And I've lived that for 29 or more years of my life. 265 00:23:35,160 --> 00:23:41,720 And not to say that in whatever I do next, I won't have stressful, rushed moments, but 266 00:23:41,720 --> 00:23:47,840 trying to take more control over what my life looks like is my goal. 267 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:51,840 So I won't keep rambling on about that. 268 00:23:51,840 --> 00:23:56,840 Second question, what are some common themes or lessons that have emerged from your podcast 269 00:23:56,840 --> 00:23:57,840 interviews? 270 00:23:57,840 --> 00:24:01,440 Well, these two questions might go kind of hand in hand, I guess. 271 00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:07,960 But a lot of the guests who I have had have talked about leaping at opportunities. 272 00:24:07,960 --> 00:24:13,840 I mean, I'm thinking about guests that I have coming up as well, thinking outside of the 273 00:24:13,840 --> 00:24:21,680 box, cherishing small moments, people in your life. 274 00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:27,680 I mean, I really think it's a lot of the same things I just talked about. 275 00:24:27,680 --> 00:24:29,160 What is important to you? 276 00:24:29,160 --> 00:24:34,560 I mean, my first guest, Tony Angle, what do you value? 277 00:24:34,560 --> 00:24:39,440 And how can you build your life around what you value? 278 00:24:39,440 --> 00:24:40,760 That's what he said. 279 00:24:40,760 --> 00:24:44,040 And I think that that's such an important message. 280 00:24:44,040 --> 00:24:51,120 I mean, listening to Anne Cook about how you reflect on a really successful career. 281 00:24:51,120 --> 00:24:54,640 I feel really great about my career. 282 00:24:54,640 --> 00:25:00,840 And I feel like I wish I would have had a lot more energy in the last three to five of it. 283 00:25:00,840 --> 00:25:06,920 But you know, there was a pandemic, I went through a divorce, a lot of things changed. 284 00:25:06,920 --> 00:25:11,680 And the accolades weren't important anymore. 285 00:25:11,680 --> 00:25:20,920 So I really think the lesson is create the life that you feel is best for you. 286 00:25:20,920 --> 00:25:25,320 We'll go back to the transcendentalists, episode one. 287 00:25:25,320 --> 00:25:32,800 simplify, get to the heart of what really matters. 288 00:25:32,800 --> 00:25:36,200 100% of men and women have hormones. 289 00:25:36,200 --> 00:25:41,000 And with the increased presence of processed foods and environmental toxins, it's more 290 00:25:41,000 --> 00:25:45,720 important than ever to make mindful choices in the products we use every day. 291 00:25:45,720 --> 00:25:47,920 That's why I trust Q&G. 292 00:25:47,920 --> 00:25:53,400 High-performing, clean products designed to support hormone health while reducing exposure 293 00:25:53,400 --> 00:25:56,000 to harmful chemicals. 294 00:25:56,000 --> 00:26:02,400 Because this topic has been my primary focus since ending birth control in 2024 in an attempt 295 00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:08,160 to regulate my changing midlife hormones, after making healthy swaps in my diet, personal 296 00:26:08,160 --> 00:26:14,080 care products, and exercise routine, I've been able to lower my dose of anxiety medication 297 00:26:14,080 --> 00:26:20,280 I once relied very heavily on and have restored balance to my nervous system and cleared up 298 00:26:20,280 --> 00:26:24,160 the brain fog I was experiencing in perimenopause. 299 00:26:24,160 --> 00:26:30,200 Hugh and Grace has played a key role in this transformation, offering safe, effective, non-toxic 300 00:26:30,200 --> 00:26:33,840 solutions that support my wellness journey. 301 00:26:33,840 --> 00:26:39,320 If you listened to episode 16 with certified Mayo Clinic health and wellness coach Tracy 302 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:44,600 Danielson Mitchell, you heard our talk about the importance of hormone health. 303 00:26:44,600 --> 00:26:49,160 Coming in March, I'll be doing a deep dive into heart and hormone health on my Live and 304 00:26:49,160 --> 00:26:55,320 Learn Patreon, where I'll list all the tests, supplements, and product swaps that have helped 305 00:26:55,320 --> 00:26:57,840 me balance my hormones in my 50s. 306 00:26:57,840 --> 00:27:02,760 Plus, Tracy will be back to answer all your heart and hormone health questions at the 307 00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:04,400 end of the month. 308 00:27:04,400 --> 00:27:09,240 If you're on this journey with me and are interested in exploring Hugh and Grace's trusted, 309 00:27:09,240 --> 00:27:16,720 non-toxic products, visit my link at huangrace.com slash lessonplan and reach out anytime via 310 00:27:16,720 --> 00:27:22,800 email at nextlessonplan at gmail.com if you have questions for me. 311 00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:28,040 Live and learn with me as we focus on living fully and feeling our best. 312 00:27:28,040 --> 00:27:34,000 Visit huangrace.com slash lessonplan to see how easy it is to start making some healthy 313 00:27:34,000 --> 00:27:39,560 swaps on the way to non-toxic living. 314 00:27:39,560 --> 00:27:42,440 All right. 315 00:27:42,440 --> 00:27:43,920 We are back from break. 316 00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:45,680 We're going to keep it upbeat. 317 00:27:45,680 --> 00:27:52,080 I have two confidence-building exercises for you, and then we're going to recap what we 318 00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:58,680 did today and have a few takeaways and action steps for homework today. 319 00:27:58,680 --> 00:28:05,600 Exercise number one, visualization exercise. 320 00:28:05,600 --> 00:28:16,200 We're going to pick something that you wish you could have success with. 321 00:28:16,200 --> 00:28:17,440 Close your eyes if you can. 322 00:28:17,440 --> 00:28:24,240 Otherwise, you're just going to have to picture this in your mind or pause and do this later. 323 00:28:24,240 --> 00:28:32,320 Imagine what it would look like if you had success in this endeavor. 324 00:28:32,320 --> 00:28:37,160 What does success look like in this endeavor? 325 00:28:37,160 --> 00:28:40,240 Is it a feeling? 326 00:28:40,240 --> 00:28:46,960 Is it your life looking different and how you're going to be living? 327 00:28:46,960 --> 00:28:51,360 Is it a paycheck? 328 00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:57,560 What steps did you take to get there? 329 00:28:57,560 --> 00:29:00,600 What would be the first step? 330 00:29:00,600 --> 00:29:05,760 What might happen as a result of that first step? 331 00:29:05,760 --> 00:29:12,280 What would you do next after the first step? 332 00:29:12,280 --> 00:29:20,680 Visualize yourself doing this, and it might also help to take out a pen and paper and 333 00:29:20,680 --> 00:29:23,640 write this down. 334 00:29:23,640 --> 00:29:26,840 Write down what it would look like. 335 00:29:26,840 --> 00:29:32,400 What does success look like for you in this venture? 336 00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:35,240 What are the steps? 337 00:29:35,240 --> 00:29:39,560 What are some potential setbacks? 338 00:29:39,560 --> 00:29:44,560 And then you can have your redirections. 339 00:29:44,560 --> 00:29:46,720 So that's exercise one. 340 00:29:46,720 --> 00:29:48,120 You can repeat this. 341 00:29:48,120 --> 00:29:52,600 You can do this multiple times for multiple ideas. 342 00:29:52,600 --> 00:30:00,200 Next, we're going to create an I've Done This Before list. 343 00:30:00,200 --> 00:30:07,160 So if we have pen and paper, handy, or a blank computer docked, you can use that too. 344 00:30:07,160 --> 00:30:11,280 You're going to really have to dig back in your memory here. 345 00:30:11,280 --> 00:30:19,040 And we're going to write down hard things we've done in our lives. 346 00:30:19,040 --> 00:30:24,320 I think there's a great thing I've seen on social media that's like, you've survived 347 00:30:24,320 --> 00:30:29,640 100% of what you thought were the hardest moments, like what you thought were going 348 00:30:29,640 --> 00:30:32,640 to be life-ending moments. 349 00:30:32,640 --> 00:30:35,760 Moments where you're like, I would do anything to get out of this moment. 350 00:30:35,760 --> 00:30:39,720 You've survived all of them, all of them. 351 00:30:39,720 --> 00:30:43,680 And you're here on the other side, even if you didn't think you were going to be able 352 00:30:43,680 --> 00:30:44,680 to do it. 353 00:30:44,680 --> 00:30:45,680 Oh my gosh. 354 00:30:45,680 --> 00:30:46,680 There were. 355 00:30:46,680 --> 00:30:56,480 Times during the pandemic, I didn't know if I would ever feel normal in life again. 356 00:30:56,480 --> 00:31:09,640 This is evidence of your capability to overcome 100% of your biggest challenges. 357 00:31:09,640 --> 00:31:13,600 How did you feel? 358 00:31:13,600 --> 00:31:18,880 Coming out of something you once thought was impossible. 359 00:31:18,880 --> 00:31:22,920 That just hit me actually saying that. 360 00:31:22,920 --> 00:31:34,680 The immense amount of gratitude that I have today for coming out of that dark, dark time, 361 00:31:34,680 --> 00:31:37,720 those dark, dark years. 362 00:31:37,720 --> 00:31:47,400 And yeah, I've had a lot of those in life starting at a very young age. 363 00:31:47,400 --> 00:31:50,960 And it always makes you stronger. 364 00:31:50,960 --> 00:31:53,880 There's definitely hurt. 365 00:31:53,880 --> 00:32:01,960 There's definitely scars and emotional wounds, but we did it. 366 00:32:01,960 --> 00:32:11,400 Okay, two positive exercises that you can use when you need them. 367 00:32:11,400 --> 00:32:15,320 Today was about building confidence. 368 00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:20,640 We're going to try to replace any negative self-taught. 369 00:32:20,640 --> 00:32:21,640 I might fail. 370 00:32:21,640 --> 00:32:22,840 What if I fail? 371 00:32:22,840 --> 00:32:23,880 I'm not good at this. 372 00:32:23,880 --> 00:32:26,120 I don't know enough. 373 00:32:26,120 --> 00:32:31,400 We're going to replace that with empowering statements. 374 00:32:31,400 --> 00:32:39,680 Instead of I'm not good at this, we can say I'm learning and I'm improving every day. 375 00:32:39,680 --> 00:32:46,360 I was trying to think of a name to call my little sister who's been helping me with this 376 00:32:46,360 --> 00:32:48,880 venture. 377 00:32:48,880 --> 00:32:52,760 Sometimes I just in my mind call her my marketing maven. 378 00:32:52,760 --> 00:32:55,800 But I need a good name for her. 379 00:32:55,800 --> 00:33:01,920 But all the time I feel like when she's sending me stuff, I just want to say I'm just not 380 00:33:01,920 --> 00:33:03,800 good at this. 381 00:33:03,800 --> 00:33:07,040 And I have to do this myself. 382 00:33:07,040 --> 00:33:09,480 I am doing it. 383 00:33:09,480 --> 00:33:15,160 And I'm learning and I'm getting better every day. 384 00:33:15,160 --> 00:33:16,720 And I'm doing it. 385 00:33:16,720 --> 00:33:18,200 I took the leap. 386 00:33:18,200 --> 00:33:23,000 No matter how it turns out, Miss Crystal Ball, I have to know the future. 387 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:24,520 I'm doing it. 388 00:33:24,520 --> 00:33:32,000 It's probably a good time to remind you too that I'm talking about this this month on 389 00:33:32,000 --> 00:33:33,960 my Patreon. 390 00:33:33,960 --> 00:33:43,760 We have a three part series on self love and the week two episode of the February self 391 00:33:43,760 --> 00:33:52,080 love series is all on affirmations and limiting beliefs and self talk. 392 00:33:52,080 --> 00:33:59,000 So if you feel like you need more of this, you can purchase just that one episode. 393 00:33:59,000 --> 00:34:02,000 You can purchase the self love collection. 394 00:34:02,000 --> 00:34:09,320 You can join me on Patreon for just $5 a month and get everything we've done and everything 395 00:34:09,320 --> 00:34:11,080 that's coming up. 396 00:34:11,080 --> 00:34:12,960 Really exciting stuff. 397 00:34:12,960 --> 00:34:15,880 And the next month or two that I'm working on. 398 00:34:15,880 --> 00:34:16,880 Okay. 399 00:34:16,880 --> 00:34:23,960 Confidence is not an eight, so it is a skill that can be learned and can be developed through 400 00:34:23,960 --> 00:34:26,360 practice and experience just like anything else. 401 00:34:26,360 --> 00:34:27,520 What do we tell our kids? 402 00:34:27,520 --> 00:34:29,520 What do we tell our students? 403 00:34:29,520 --> 00:34:33,760 You get better at something by doing it, right? 404 00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:38,640 10,000 hours to become a master of your craft. 405 00:34:38,640 --> 00:34:41,320 Confidence is the same thing. 406 00:34:41,320 --> 00:34:47,800 And the more we do something, we become competent, the competence fuels confidence. 407 00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:52,200 The more you know, better you are at something, the more confident you'll become. 408 00:34:52,200 --> 00:34:58,480 You can't get better at dribbling a basketball by sitting on the bench with a basketball. 409 00:34:58,480 --> 00:35:01,520 Looking at the basketball in the corner of your room and saying, I wish I was good at 410 00:35:01,520 --> 00:35:04,400 basketball, right? 411 00:35:04,400 --> 00:35:06,480 We got to take a risk. 412 00:35:06,480 --> 00:35:12,800 Basketball side of our comfort zone, even if it means failing, we're still further 413 00:35:12,800 --> 00:35:14,720 than we were the day before. 414 00:35:14,720 --> 00:35:21,280 If we hadn't tried, if we hadn't picked up the basketball, seek out as many opportunities 415 00:35:21,280 --> 00:35:27,320 as you can to learn and grow, even if they seem daunting. 416 00:35:27,320 --> 00:35:28,800 Have a phone call with me. 417 00:35:28,800 --> 00:35:35,800 I'll tell you how daunting things have felt, right? 418 00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:36,800 Always challenge. 419 00:35:36,800 --> 00:35:42,920 Hey, take on as much as you feel you can at that time. 420 00:35:42,920 --> 00:35:51,120 I feel like I have unlimited amounts of things to learn and wish every day that I were better 421 00:35:51,120 --> 00:35:56,120 at what I was doing, but every day I'm moving forward. 422 00:35:56,120 --> 00:36:00,600 So maybe I'm doing the fake it till you make it. 423 00:36:00,600 --> 00:36:06,160 I do feel confident in the primary things that I'm doing, but it's all the residual 424 00:36:06,160 --> 00:36:14,440 outside things that don't initially feel confident in, but I'm learning more and getting better 425 00:36:14,440 --> 00:36:16,640 each day. 426 00:36:16,640 --> 00:36:22,000 And with that in mind, my marketing maven, build a support network. 427 00:36:22,000 --> 00:36:26,440 Surround yourself with people who believe in you and encourage yourself growth. 428 00:36:26,440 --> 00:36:37,280 I can't say enough how much it keeps me going when someone sends me a text and says, I've 429 00:36:37,280 --> 00:36:43,000 been listening to your podcast each week and I really enjoy it. 430 00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:49,640 One sentence, huge, because as you know, when you're doing something new and the paybacks 431 00:36:49,640 --> 00:36:54,200 aren't immediate, you are like, why am I doing this? 432 00:36:54,200 --> 00:36:56,440 This is hard. 433 00:36:56,440 --> 00:36:58,240 And if it was easy, everybody would do it. 434 00:36:58,240 --> 00:36:59,240 Right? 435 00:36:59,240 --> 00:37:01,120 We've all heard that. 436 00:37:01,120 --> 00:37:04,360 Find people who are like, I really admire what you're doing. 437 00:37:04,360 --> 00:37:08,880 Hey, it's really cool what you're doing. 438 00:37:08,880 --> 00:37:16,760 I wish we did that more for other people and just really work on the beliefs that are holding 439 00:37:16,760 --> 00:37:18,760 you back. 440 00:37:18,760 --> 00:37:20,920 Okay. 441 00:37:20,920 --> 00:37:29,960 If your failure, visualize success, practice self compassion, build a strong support system. 442 00:37:29,960 --> 00:37:32,080 All right. 443 00:37:32,080 --> 00:37:35,400 Homework, action steps. 444 00:37:35,400 --> 00:37:41,160 Number one, take one small step today. 445 00:37:41,160 --> 00:37:47,360 Choose a tiny achievable goal related to your next step. 446 00:37:47,360 --> 00:37:55,360 Maybe this is just, I'm going to try to get 8,000 steps in a day for walking, which believe 447 00:37:55,360 --> 00:38:01,800 me in the winter in Wisconsin, especially when now we're headed back into negative temperatures. 448 00:38:01,800 --> 00:38:03,840 It's not easy. 449 00:38:03,840 --> 00:38:08,120 This can be applied to anything you're doing. 450 00:38:08,120 --> 00:38:16,360 Write an email, research one company, look up a question you've always had about something 451 00:38:16,360 --> 00:38:19,040 that's held you back. 452 00:38:19,040 --> 00:38:23,920 Just take the step forward and with Mel Robbins help when you're like, yeah, I should really 453 00:38:23,920 --> 00:38:27,360 do that five, four, three, two, one, go. 454 00:38:27,360 --> 00:38:28,440 Do it. 455 00:38:28,440 --> 00:38:29,440 Don't overthink it. 456 00:38:29,440 --> 00:38:31,760 Don't talk yourself out of it. 457 00:38:31,760 --> 00:38:32,880 Okay. 458 00:38:32,880 --> 00:38:33,960 Look at that. 459 00:38:33,960 --> 00:38:36,360 I've done this before list. 460 00:38:36,360 --> 00:38:38,840 Hang it up. 461 00:38:38,840 --> 00:38:41,160 Remind yourself of your past wins. 462 00:38:41,160 --> 00:38:46,040 Keep this list visible as a reminder of your resilience. 463 00:38:46,040 --> 00:38:52,040 Think about how you would speak to a friend if they were saying, well, I'm just not good 464 00:38:52,040 --> 00:38:56,560 at that or I probably won't succeed or not good enough. 465 00:38:56,560 --> 00:39:00,520 What would you say to them? 466 00:39:00,520 --> 00:39:05,360 And then speak to yourself that way. 467 00:39:05,360 --> 00:39:09,480 Practice confidence boosting exercises. 468 00:39:09,480 --> 00:39:14,760 Spend five minutes in the morning, three minutes. 469 00:39:14,760 --> 00:39:18,120 Training success. 470 00:39:18,120 --> 00:39:19,120 Use a power pose. 471 00:39:19,120 --> 00:39:23,880 I need to start playing my pump up song from Anna Straylow. 472 00:39:23,880 --> 00:39:27,440 More often I haven't played it very much recently. 473 00:39:27,440 --> 00:39:33,920 I feel like I need that before a tough day or a big task. 474 00:39:33,920 --> 00:39:38,240 I have made it through a hundred percent of my hard moments. 475 00:39:38,240 --> 00:39:39,480 Okay. 476 00:39:39,480 --> 00:39:42,920 And then lastly, it's tried and true. 477 00:39:42,920 --> 00:39:47,360 Use a New York Times bestseller for a reason, the five second rule. 478 00:39:47,360 --> 00:39:49,160 Try it. 479 00:39:49,160 --> 00:39:51,840 Use it to overcome hesitation. 480 00:39:51,840 --> 00:39:54,080 Use it to overcome fear. 481 00:39:54,080 --> 00:39:57,480 Use it to launch yourself out of the bed in the morning when you have to get up to work 482 00:39:57,480 --> 00:40:00,800 out and it's negative 10th in your state. 483 00:40:00,800 --> 00:40:06,440 That's how I use it. 484 00:40:06,440 --> 00:40:10,920 Thank you so much for joining me today. 485 00:40:10,920 --> 00:40:13,440 Best reminders. 486 00:40:13,440 --> 00:40:17,040 Confidence comes from action, not waiting. 487 00:40:17,040 --> 00:40:20,240 Small wins, build momentum. 488 00:40:20,240 --> 00:40:31,000 Visualization, body language, pump up jams are all powerful tools. 489 00:40:31,000 --> 00:40:33,840 Share your small wins. 490 00:40:33,840 --> 00:40:42,720 Reach out to me if you're having self doubt, dig in to those Patreon episodes. 491 00:40:42,720 --> 00:40:47,120 Go back and listen to an inspiring episode. 492 00:40:47,120 --> 00:40:52,640 I've listened to Anna Straylow talk in my ear when I need it. 493 00:40:52,640 --> 00:40:55,120 All right. 494 00:40:55,120 --> 00:40:59,080 We'll be back next week. 495 00:40:59,080 --> 00:41:03,160 And again, join me on YouTube where I'm counting down. 496 00:41:03,160 --> 00:41:06,440 I'm now down to 75 days left in the classroom. 497 00:41:06,440 --> 00:41:15,360 I have a video each day, something related to my classroom or leaving the profession, 498 00:41:15,360 --> 00:41:17,600 what I've got going on next. 499 00:41:17,600 --> 00:41:21,320 So join me on Life's Next Lesson Plan YouTube. 500 00:41:21,320 --> 00:41:26,240 I'd love to have you join our book group this month where we're reading worthy. 501 00:41:26,240 --> 00:41:28,200 That is free. 502 00:41:28,200 --> 00:41:32,200 You can join us on Zoom if you're on my email list. 503 00:41:32,200 --> 00:41:34,480 You've got the Zoom link now. 504 00:41:34,480 --> 00:41:38,640 If you want that Zoom link, you can sign up for emails at life's next lesson plan dot 505 00:41:38,640 --> 00:41:40,080 com. 506 00:41:40,080 --> 00:41:47,280 And don't forget to join us on Facebook, Instagram, get all our behind the scenes, and stay in 507 00:41:47,280 --> 00:41:50,160 touch with what we're doing. 508 00:41:50,160 --> 00:41:51,800 You can do it. 509 00:41:51,800 --> 00:42:04,320 Share this episode with someone you think could also use a confidence boost.