You are a mentor to the people who witness you
living your life whether you know it or not.
You are teaching the people around you. Are you
an example or are you a warning? Think about
the unexpected teachers in your own life. Have
they shown you what to do or what not to do?
Who have you learned from and what have you learned
from? These questions from one of my favorite
books that I've referenced on previous podcasts
Finding the way by Siri Lindley. These are her
words from page 228 of her book and I had to
stop when I read those pages and and she always
has journaling prompts at the end and really
think about the people I've learned from the
most powerful learnings I have had from observing
other people and what I have learned about myself
in just these last 90 days that my life has been
shifting. So that's what we're going to get into
today. I am going to target I guess three different
people that I have learned from and probably
have influenced my most recent decisions the
most, and then help you and guide you through
some of these prompts as reflection and action
steps. So let's get started. This episode of
life's next lesson plan is sponsored by literatus.
Literatus is more than just a bookstore. It's
a hub for connection, community, and incredible
stories waiting to be discovered. Rather than
sending my listeners to big online retailers,
I want to encourage you to support this beloved
local business. Whether you're picking up a book
we've discussed on the podcast or browsing their
website for your next literary adventure, Literatus
has you covered. Every week on the podcast, we
dive into books that inspire, challenge, and
transform. And now I'm thrilled to share a way
for you to get those books while supporting a
local treasure, Literatus, right in my own town
of Watertown. By shopping at Literatus, you're
not just buying a book. You're investing in our
community. And who doesn't love the smell of
fresh pages while you sip one of their handcrafted
drinks, enjoying the charm of your local bookstore
visit? Stop in today at 401 Vain Street in Watertown
or visit their social media or website to order
online. Let's support the places that make our
town special. Thank you for joining me for another
episode of Life's Next Lesson Plan. I'm Rachel
and I started this podcast during my 29th and
last year as a high school teacher. The goal
of my work with Life's Next Lesson Plan as well
as my Live and Learn Patreon is to create a connection
where we are all teachers. We all have lessons
and stories to share that can help others. I'm
so fortunate to be able to extend the four walls
of my previous classroom to an unlimited audience.
where we can all learn from each other. And my
guests are some of the most inspirational people
with the best stories and lessons I know, which
is why I want to share them with you. Their words
are something everyone should hear. It is my
hope that you are able to take away something
from each episode to apply to your own life,
whether that be a career search, path to a more
fulfilling life, or new ideas on current topics.
Before I start this solo episode today, I just
have to share it is really fascinating to me
what has transpired in my life since starting
this podcast and It's not even so much the decision
that I made to kind of change the trajectory
of my life but I've always kind of shared things
on social media, but pulled back a little bit
in the past recent years. But now with this podcast,
I'm just gonna say it. I've been getting phone
calls, texts, and emails from people going through
major changes. I just got off the phone five
minutes ago with someone who's going through
a major change and wanted some advice. And just
last week when I recorded a podcast, another
major life shift. was talking to this person
about and two weeks before that someone else
reached out to get together just about like being
at a crossroads days before that I mean I love
it It's crazy. It's it's community. Right. And
it just goes to show that like we are all no
matter what age we're at, we're all struggling
with big decisions, no matter what they are about
relationships, career, family. I mean, wow, I
love it. I love it. I love it. I love it. Because
as I sit here by myself talking into my computer,
you don't really expect that to build community.
Although I know when I listen to podcasts, you
sort of form your own little community with the
people who listen to the same podcast or the
podcaster. But it's just been, I think, one of
the most unexpected and my favorite parts of
podcasting. So I just have to say that. Thank
you so much for reaching out and for sharing,
you know, your life journey with me and your
questions. And I'm always here. You have many
ways to reach me on social media or email or
those of you who have my phone number. Absolutely,
like we can work on this together. And I think,
you know, I'm a pretty straight shooter and Again,
probably don't make all the best decisions, but
I'm trying to make the best decisions for me
So that kind of ties in with what I wanted to
talk today be talk about today because when I
again I'm like Taking my time through Siri Lindley's
book because I love it so much. I don't want
it to end and There's so much to dig into because
as I said she has questions for you to contemplate
at the end of every chapter, and they're so good.
Like, I really like to sit and think about them.
And sometimes, we've... done our sauna talks,
which I put on social media a little bit, but
Brett and I, because there's not much that you
can do in a sauna. But, you know, I usually bring
like a couple questions to talk about, or we
have something in our lives that we need to talk
through. And sometimes, you know, after I'm done
reading her book, I'll have been thinking about
something and wondering what he would think of
the question, you know, from Siri Lindley's book.
So a lot of, you know, what I talk about on the
podcast. becomes part of our sauna talks which
I would like to share some of that either on
here or I think that might become a monthly installment
on patreon our sauna talks because we do have
some great conversations in the sauna when there's
really nothing else that you can do but connect
and sweat together so all right today This will
be another pretty personal one and I usually
like to save these for Patreon, but yeah, it
is what it is. I hope that you can take something
from it, but I've chosen kind of three people
or one is a pair of people that I have, you know,
learned either what to do or what not to do or
basically have kind of guided, I would say definitely
my recent decisions. like within the last year
for sure, as I was reflecting with series prompts.
We're going to talk about that. and then you
know just kind of the last 90 days and then the
next 90 days I think would be good for us for
you to kind of look at that overall you know
who have been the biggest influences on me and
that's gonna change I mean I've lived 51 years
so some are more recent than others and then
you know I've had a big past 90 days and we'll
have a very big next 90 days and just kind of
think about that in the frame of your life as
well. So we'll get to that a little bit later
on. But I'm going to start with my absolute number
one, like hands down, biggest teacher of my life.
Anybody who knows me probably knows immediately
who I'm going to say. But that is my grandma
Weibel. And anybody who knows her, any single
person, whether you're related to her or met
her once or twice, everybody will say the same
exact thing about her, most amazing woman who
ever lived and walked the earth. This woman had
10 children, lived on a farm in the middle of
nowhere, Wisconsin, and Eventually, they moved
down the road from this farm into a house. I
look back now, that house seemed so big when
I was younger, it had one bathroom. And granted,
not all 10 kids lived there at the same time,
but if her kids weren't there, her grandkids
were there. You know. It was full all the time.
And I think, you know, upstairs and we had a
boys' bedroom and a girls' bedroom upstairs because
she had five boys and five girls. And the boys'
bedroom could sleep one, two, three, four people,
enough beds. And the girls' room could sleep,
I think, three and there was a baby crib in there.
So then their bedroom was downstairs with the
living room and kitchen and one bathroom. And
I don't ever remember anybody griping about it,
which just is crazy today. And I think that's,
you know, kind of part of like what she taught
me is just like simple is fine, right? Like,
and... The importance of home is that you're
all together and you get a feeling when you're
there. Anybody who visited their house, definitely
you're greeted with food. You're greeted with
warmth and welcoming. And, you know, that's what
her house was. She was the most selfless person.
There's nobody who could argue that. The kindest
person. who truly, as a human, showed unconditional
love. Unconditional love. Bar none. Never judged.
You never, I don't know a single person like
that, truly, today. And that's why everybody
loved her so much. And some of my cousins, who
obviously there are a lot of because she had
10 children, some have named their children after
her, rightfully so. I thought about doing that
as well. The way my life worked, which we'll
get into a little bit in this episode. because
of another choice that I chose as a teacher today,
but I lived with my grandparents in that house
and for sure one of my aunts part of the time,
you know, the youngest of the 10, until I was
in kindergarten. from what I can remember. I
don't have a lot of memories because I don't
have a lot of memories of my mother before kindergarten
because my mom had me right out of high school
and I didn't know my biological dad. So I was
tooling around with my grandparents, you know,
from birth until my mom got married when I was
in kindergarten and I was adopted under that
person's name. And my grandma taught me everything.
I mean, all life skills, how to tie my shoes,
how to read, but mostly just how to love. And,
you know, I remember going to church with them
every Saturday night. I remember my grandpa trying
to entertain me with these weird, they were like
green, I don't know. I don't even know if you
can call them mints. But, you know, That was
a ritual. I was basically like another one of
their kids. And so those are my very, very early
memories and I'm getting emotional talking about
it just because I learned the most I think about
being a mother and just how to treat people and
I don't know, unconditional love from her. And
again, the most important things in life are
simple because I don't ever once remember them
going out to eat. Every meal was cooked from
home and she cooked every meal in front of you
while you stood there or she got the leftovers
out. Never griped about it. I mean I did a lot
of dishes there at Right Fleece Sew as I should
have to help, but setting the table and I mean
just always felt so safe. I remember during very
difficult parts of my life people saying maybe
you know tongue -in -cheek but think of your
safe place or your happy place and there are
many many times growing up that I just pictured
myself in that house, and I can still picture
it in my mind. And that was my safe place. And
because of the way that my life went, I went
back there. I mean, when I would come home from
college, oftentimes I stayed there for various
reasons we won't get into, but... Yeah, I mean
and bless her lived into her 90s died in her
sleep as an angel should but I really really
when I was making this decision about you know
what to do and agonizing over, you know money
being left on the table and life being short
I Really thought about her And, you know, you
ask many different people for advice. And if
I could ask her for advice, you know, I knew
what she would have said. And, you know, have
a roof over your head. You know, have someone
who loves you. Show other people love. Be happy.
And that's why I chose her as my number one teacher.
I'm sure a lot of us can relate to having influential
grandparents. I know when my students would write
a paper where they would interview an elder,
you know, a lot of them said that they chose
a grandparent because of their values that they
had shown them. And I know that's probably a
pretty popular choice. So my second choice, oddly
enough, I'll explain the connection, but kind
of is related. I don't know. I couldn't explain
this feeling. This is going to sound really dumb,
but I'm going to say it anyway. I saw a quote
from someone who had said, you know, that they
felt that they had met the love of their life
and they felt that their grandmother had sent
them to her. She'd said this. And I was like,
OK. This was like in the last two months that
I saw this. That is exactly how I feel about
meeting my significant other Brett. And I really
have to say, like, I got it wrong many times
in my life. You know, and we get older and we
get wiser 100%. And I didn't grow up with the
best role modeling or stability necessarily outside
of my grandparents and some aunts. But yeah,
Brett is my second choice, especially for recent
decision -making. I've never met anybody like
him. I honestly, a hundred percent, and I've
told this to friends, From the first times I
came to his house I Felt the same exact feeling
getting emotional again the same exact feeling
that I felt when I was at my grandparents house
I've never ever ever felt that way anywhere else
and I don't know how to explain it and it is
because He has a lot of those same values that
I learned from my grandmother. And he's, you
know, a 46 year old man. So that's kind of funny
to say, but he believes less is more. He has
seen things through his time in the military
that make him feel that way. You know, he would
always say, I saw people living on landfills.
who were happy. That was their life. And they
woke up every day with a joy for life and were
good to people. And look what we have in the
United States and what he fought and risked his
life in Iraq for us to have. It's such a perspective
shift to talk to someone who's lived like that
and seen those things. And it's almost difficult
then to see the consumerism, the materialism,
which I definitely will admit I prioritized at
parts of my life. You know, we all fall into
Especially with social media look what these
people have look where these people are going
look you know look at the house They bought or
the car they bought holy crap who cares? Who
cares? What you really should be looking at is
look at how happy they are together Look at how
wonderful they treat each other Look at the quality
of their life together And this has been such
a good shift for me. And just even, you know,
going back a little bit because I've had this
conversation with someone recently of he has
taught me never to settle because he never settled.
He was never married. He never lived with anyone.
He doesn't have children. And, you know, at 40,
whatever age she was when we met, 43, 44, he
just always said, society pressures you to take
so many paths. And I never felt I had met anybody
that I wanted to marry. I had never met my soulmate.
I never met anybody that I would want living
in my house. And I didn't Feel pressure or a
time clock, you know to do that so that's refreshing
but also just Less is more You can have so much
joy through simple things in life and Really
looking at what is important to me in life And
going back to the train of thought I was on before,
I had said to somebody, you know, when you, if
you would have, you know, talked to me after
my divorce in 2020, I told people, I will never
date again. There is no way I will get married
again. And people were like, oh, okay, sure.
Uh -huh. But thank goodness, not thank goodness
for the pandemic, but thank goodness that I was
forced in isolation, because not that I wouldn't
have done the work on myself, but I think I would
have distracted myself more and maybe got off
path with the work that I needed to do, which
was I absolutely had to be alone, I think. Everybody
should spend time alone You have to know that
no matter what you will be fine and happy alone
And that's what Brett always said to me like
he had so many hobbies He went you know had no
problem going and doing things that he enjoyed
by himself if he wasn't dating someone at the
time And you have to be okay saying if I never
get married I will be okay because if you don't
meet that right person and you settle, we all
know why the divorce rate is so high, right?
Every second person I talk to seems to be contemplating
or going through a divorce. And part of that,
I am going to argue, maybe I'm wrong, but part
of that I think is people settle or people don't
want to be alone or, you know, biological clocks
are ticking and absolutely like, hi, I'm sure.
Hmm, I've settled in my life. I know I have because
it seemed like the easier path for me and that's
what I admire so so so much I Wow It just has
changed so many mindsets of mine mindsets about
money mindsets about just like What true happiness
and life means and where you can get that from?
how important it is to live every day because
tomorrow is not promised. Someone always has
it worse than you. You know, be thankful that
you have a roof over your head. When I was a
single mother, there were some scary freaking
times. You know, when, yeah, we'll just say that.
And if you have a roof over your head and someone
who loves you you are ahead of a lot of people
more than you know and then with that if you
have that and You have hobbies and you have things
that bring you joy whether you're alone or in
a relationship that is what life is about and
so oh it just really made me think about money
is important in so that it can keep you safe
and beyond that sure you can buy a fishing boat
and that will make you happy you can buy a camper
which we are doing but to cut costs on other
things like hotels or to help you achieve more
joy and if if a goal of yours is to get out more
in nature and this camper allows you to do that
then that is a good use of your money but not
having a house that makes you house poor not
having brand name purses brand name cars brand
name shoes Yes, do we like to go out to dinner
and look nice and dress up? Yes, but so so so
different from the things that I used to value
and Just the the feeling of safety and unconditional
love and The simplistic way of life so refreshing
so refreshing With that, we're going to take
a little bit of a break to hear some ads and
some Ask the Teacher Anything questions. I wonder
if I need to rename that segment when I'm not
a teacher anymore. Maybe that's where I should
put the sauna talks. Let me know, please, what
you think. If you have a new title for Ask the
Teacher Anything, because I only have 40 more
days of being a teacher when I'm recording this.
And, you know, what I should replace it with
or what I should call it or if I should do something
else. I need to steel myself, you know, brace
myself for my third teacher after our break.
So we'll be back, hopefully. keep my composure.
100 % of men and women have hormones, and with
the increased presence of processed foods and
environmental toxins, it's more important than
ever to make mindful choices in the products
we use every day. That's why I trust Q and Grace,
high -performing clean products designed to support
hormone health while reducing exposure to harmful
chemicals. because this topic has been my primary
focus since ending birth control in 2024 and
an attempt to regulate my changing midlife hormones.
After making healthy swaps in my diet, personal
care products, and exercise routine, I've been
able to lower my dose of anxiety medication I
once relied very heavily on and have restored
balance to my nervous system and cleared up the
brain fog I was experiencing in perimenopause.
Pugh and Grace has played a key role in this
transformation, offering safe, effective, non
-toxic solutions that support my wellness journey.
If you listened to episode 16 with certified
Mayo Clinic health and wellness coach Tracy Danielson
Mitchell, you heard our talk about the importance
of hormone health. To share with you everything
I did throughout my journey to balance my hormones,
I did a deep dive on my Live and Learn Patreon
about all of the tests and supplements that I
use in order to navigate this journey in my 50s.
To find this episode, you can just visit patreon
.com slash live and learn. Some of my favorite
products I use every day include Hue and Grace's
hydrate and detox that contains powerful antioxidants,
electrolytes, and prebiotic fiber. Their popular
blue drink you see me drinking on Instagram is
their triple boost hormone support protein powder
with blue spirulina that I mix with their daily
collagen supplement. I also keep my skin hydrated
and smooth with their spray -on body oil. I love
putting this on before going out and it gives
my aging skin a more dewy look. I've also switched
out my hair care products to Hue and Grace's
Your Best Hair Day line with all natural ingredients
that help nourish my hair and stretch out time
between washes. If you're on this journey with
me and are interested in exploring Hue and Grace's
trusted non -toxic products for 10 % off and
free shipping, you can use my discount link at
hueandgrace .com slash lesson plan and reach
out anytime via email at nextlessonplan at gmail
.com with questions. Live and learn with me as
we focus on living fully and feeling our best.
Visit hueandgrace .com to see how easy it is
to start making some healthy swaps on your way
to non -toxic living. To those of you who have
followed me for a while, you know that I value
mental and physical wellness. Personally, I've
worked with a few different coaches over the
years and even been one myself. If you are looking
for education and support in your own wellness
journey, I would love to invite you to the wellness
community I am currently in that keeps me accountable
daily with my nutrition and movement. If you
are a Facebook user, you can search for our free
group called Team MG. This group is led by my
coach, Megan Grimord, who is a certified trainer
and nutrition coach. She offers lots of education
and support for your wellness journey. If you
want to get to know Coach Megan Moore, you can
follow her on Instagram at all lowercase, Megan,
M -E -G -A -N, underscore, grimoire, G -R -I
-M -O -R -D, or even listen to her on episode
10 of the podcast. She has also created a discount
code for my listeners. Just go to her website,
www .team -mg .com. and enter code LESSONPLAN10
to get $10 off any of her premium coaching packages
for the first month. Coach Megan is a busy mom
like me who works full -time, so I appreciate
her practicality mixed with some tough love to
keep me going. It is Ask the Teacher Anything
time. So, first question. How do you keep the
balance between structured content and natural
conversation? I was not good at this in the beginning.
I'm probably still not good at this, but I know
that I feel more comfortable now. A lot of my
guest podcasts follow generally the same sort
of outline, which I do share with my guests ahead
of time so they know where the conversation will
go. But oftentimes now I've been straying from
that a little bit because I'm so interested in
things that they're saying. And if I think that
I have a question that other people might have
and want to hear the answer to, then I sort of
add that into the conversation. I've been a little
less, I won't say less structured, but I've allowed
myself to stray, I would say, from the outline
a little bit. In my solo episodes, I've definitely
been doing less scripting, because I think the
more personal they've gotten, that's just stuff
off the top of my head. Some of them I do a little
bit more research for, and I have some facts
and things that I'm borrowing that I wanna get
right, so I have an outline in front of me. Um,
and you know, those maybe sound a little bit
more scripted today. I definitely had an outline
and had thought about what I wanted to talk about,
but I've been up since 10 to four this morning
because I had to help do inventory at my second
job and, uh, this podcast is due tomorrow. It's
the latest I've ever done a podcast, uh, before
it's supposed to go on. So, you know, Most of
this is just off the top of my head, which is
good. I think people who've been doing podcasting
a long time, that's why people like them because
it's more natural and authentic and vulnerable.
So I think I've gotten better with, you know,
hopefully it's sounding a little bit more natural.
Question number two, how will you define success
for yourself when you're no longer a teacher?
Yeah, great question. I stopped chasing success
as a teacher quite a while ago. I would say just
before the pandemic or even maybe when the pandemic
hit because it changed so much of what we could
do. But also just, again, change my perspective
and like, you know, what's important to chase
after and, you know, maybe why I was feeling
so burnt out. And during the pandemic, I was
asked to step in to teach at Mount Mary University
at night. They needed some help for two years.
It ended up being teaching their journalism class
there, their news magazine and their website.
And so I was teaching during the day during a
pandemic off and on in person at home. And same
thing at Mount Mary, going through a divorce,
going through a pandemic. That was kind of a
different measure of success. I did not apply
for that job. Someone literally called me and
said, hey, we need help. Are you still in the
area? I thought of you. And I was like, dang,
pretty cool. Someone also reached out to me during
the pandemic and was starting a company and needed
a wellness blogger who could write. and also
was interested in wellness. And I did that for
like a year during the pandemic. And to me it
was like, all right, this is like a different
measure of people are seeking me out to do things
that they need because of my skills. And I think
that's exactly how my next chapter came to be.
They did not have a job Posted I went to them
and said hey, you know, I'm leaving teaching
and I'm exploring opportunities and You know
here is my skill set. They didn't know me a little
bit or know of me Do you think I could be of
help to you and We basically spent months and
are near the end now of negotiating just like
how could they use my skills? And so I think
that's how I define, will define my success is
like, am I still being of value based on the
skills that I have? I always love to learn and
grow. So am I continuing to learn new things
and to grow and to be of value to a company?
It's, you know, I have a whole classroom full
of awards. I have a resume full of accolades
and burnout to show for it. And some very great
stories and relationships, obviously. Many of
my guests were part of that journey. But I would
say to anybody, to them, to myself, now is like,
do you enjoy what you're doing? And I did at
the time, for the most part. It became harder
at the end, you know, so my success will be learning
You know as much as I can each day using my skills
and adding to my toolkit of skills and enjoying
what I'm doing and At my going away party last
week for from school When I started talking to
some people about what I was going to be doing
and mentioning the names of my new bosses everybody
was like What? They're like so fun and so energetic
and I was like, I know. That's, you know, a huge
perk. Like I'm really excited to work for people.
They are all siblings. It is a family business.
They are uber talented and fun and prioritize
their family relationships first over their business
and have been really successful doing that. And
I'm just so looking forward to hopefully osmosis,
getting their energy and enthusiasm. And I'm
going to have a huge learning curve. And I love
learning and learning something. I learned yearbook
from the ground up 11 years ago. This will also
involve something's yearbook as well, almost
signed on the dotted line. And I'll be able to
tell you for sure soon. And so, yeah, that's,
I think, how I'll measure success in my next
chapter. You can submit questions, as always,
on social media or on our website at Life's Next
Lesson Plan dot com. Please, please, please tell
me what I should name this segment of Ask the
Teacher Anything, Ask the Former Teacher Anything.
I don't know. Please, please, please send me
your ideas because I'll need help. We're back
and I can't put it off any longer, but I'm kind
of dreading this part of the podcast a little
bit Maybe with that said I'll just I'm gonna
probably keep it shorter Than my normal rambling
self just because I think a lot of it would be
better on Patreon But I I always want to be a
hundred percent honest And I am who I am and
I'm learning a lot about other people who maybe
have experienced some of the same things that
I have. And I think it's really important for
us to share and be honest about what we've been
through because the one thing as a teacher is
that if you can help one person through teaching
or through sharing your stories. then it's worth
it. I'll just say that what I chose as my third
and final teacher for this segment would be two
people and I'm, you know, working on forgiveness
because we do the best we can at the time with
what we know and we all make mistakes. We'll
just say that. And so this isn't a judgment.
in any way. And I think, you know, it's also
a lesson in if you can do better when you know
you can do better, then do better. And some people
take advantage of that and some people don't.
But long story short, I would say my biological
parents have taught me many things. You know,
we can't choose our family. I've said it once
and I'll say it a million times and have said
it a million times. You know, there were many
times in my life growing up that I said, you
know, and felt like if you didn't want to have
me as a child, maybe my life would have been
better off not lived. I don't believe that today,
but because of the way I grew up and, you know,
again, any of you were a mistake. children and
you knew full well and it was thrown in your
face that you were a mistake child um you know
therapy and you know you can get over that in
some ways but it does continue to come up and
i'm learning more and more about even though
you feel like you've put your past or your childhood
behind you it definitely affects you when you're
older um but I will say it does not matter where
you come from. It matters where you're going.
And I definitely learned an important lesson
that you can only rely on yourself. And if you
want something, you have to get it for yourself.
There will be people along the way to support
you, maybe not the people you thought. But Huge
lesson the same thing. I you know wanted to say
earlier with you have to be okay being alone
You have to be okay leaning on yourself, and
you have to enjoy your own company because you'll
never heal if that's not the case and So a lot
of work goes into that and and holy cow I've
overcome so much Also, family is a very loose
definition. You know, blood is blood, and blood
is supposed to equal family, but it doesn't all
the time. And family isn't always healthy. And
if at some point you think you would be healthier
and better with stronger boundaries, It is okay
to put yourself first and your mental well -being
first because hurt people hurt people. And I
heard it from two therapists in my last relationship,
you know, marriage counselors always say, Every
marriage is solvable and fixable if both parties
are willing to change and work Sometimes some
people think they are right all the time And
the other person is wrong and the other person
is to blame and this isn't about my marriage.
This is about family but Some people will never
be wrong and Anything you try to do will come
up short. And again, I'm not going to say too
much. except that I have said that I did not
meet my biological dad until, well I didn't,
until I was in college and that was a short relationship
and probably, you know, very overwhelming because
of the stage of life that I was in at the time
and I understand that. I wish I would have done
better at that time. It is what it is. All of
this to say is, you know, we teach people how
to treat us. We are allowed to make choices in
our lives about who we Surround ourselves with
and I just think you know communication is so
important and if you are feeling something express
it and Depending on how that is met make your
decisions accordingly and Huh, I am no expert
This is not something that is easy for me or
for anyone But over time I think You know Your
intuition we talk a lot about intuition on this
podcast and if you follow your gut and you know,
what is right What is right is sometimes hard
So again, we're focusing on, you know, what people
have taught us. And sometimes, you know, lessons
are hard to learn. There is a lesson in everything.
There's a lesson in every single relationship.
And decisions can change. Some people can change.
And I hope if you are wrestling with similar
type situations that you are able to find support
and guidance for seeing your way through that.
Okay, so. For our action steps today, I mentioned
this earlier, but I like these questions that
Siri had in her book about what have you learned
in the last 90 days? Maybe that's attached to
a person, maybe it's not. And then looking ahead
to what you might learn in the next 90 days,
I would say personally, I learned to trust my
gut. I've learned about the power of decisions
and the role of energy in the universe. I've
learned so much from the guests that I've had
recently on the podcast who I've never met in
person, Laura, Tracy, one coming up who you haven't
met yet, Betsy. Wow. Amazing stories and just
could have talked to them for hours and hours
and hours and I think Such interesting shifts
happen once, you know, you make a big decision
and once you put yourself out there and you go
for it I mean, you know, I've said it before
I knew Even though I was not ready to resign.
I did not have a job lined up I did not know
what I was gonna do. I just knew I had to do
it things started to happen once I did that Because
four years before that Even though I was applying
for jobs and testing out the waters outside of
teaching When things didn't fall the way I wanted
them to it just oh, I'll just go back and I think
you know You know yourself best, but I knew that
I'm a grinder I find answers and I work until
something works out. And so I really learned
in the last 90 days that if you want to make
something happen, you can. Make a list, make
a vision board, make a tough decision, and force
yourself into a corner to make it happen. And
these recent podcast guests have all been through
that. And I know Laura Flowers, I love her podcast,
Rediscovering You. She talks a lot about intuition
and energy, and that's part of her job as a life
coach and a Reiki master. But I won't say I was
skeptical about it, I just hadn't seen proof
of it necessarily in my own life, and now I have.
And so for the next 90 days, I mentioned this
already, I'm so excited to learn a new career.
I'm so excited to have new bosses. I mean, you
know, 29 years of doing the same career, although
I've learned a lot of new things in that career,
it's gonna be terrifying and exciting at the
same time, and I'm sure a different level of
exhausting. I'm going to be shifting into a new
identity as a career and a big shift at home
with my daughter going on to college. And so
there's going to be a lot to learn. This is a
very pivotal point in my life. And so I'm excited.
And I want you to really think about the teachers
that you've had again. Maybe you've learned what
to do or what not to do. What have you learned
just in the last 90 days? And is it attached
to a person or is it just a sort of a journey
you've been on? And what can you learn in the
next 90 days? And again, we are in charge of
our own destiny. And so that can be a really
exciting journey. Thank you so much for joining
me today as I unpack the lessons from some of
the most unexpected but deeply influential teachers
in my life. From Grandma Weibel's quiet wisdom
to the unconventional clarity Brett offers just
by being himself and even the hard but necessary
lessons from my biological parents. Every one
of them has helped shape how I move through the
world. Whether someone shows you who you want
to become or who you don't want to be, There's
a lesson in every interaction if we're willing
to pay attention. I hope this episode inspired
you to reflect on your own mentors and moments
of growth. Maybe even you write down who's been
shaping you on purpose or by accident, and what
they've taught you. And as we step into our next
90 days together, ask yourself, what am I meant
to learn right now? And who might be showing
up to teach me, even if I don't recognize it
yet? If you love this conversation, be sure to
subscribe, share it with someone who might need
to hear it, and I'd love it if you'd leave a
review. Just scroll all the way down on Apple
Podcasts and click leave a review. It helps the
show more than you know. Until next time, keep
learning, keep listening, and keep leaning into
your life's next lesson plan.