The Mindful Path: Recent Episodes
Isabelle Griffith
We live rushed and overwhelming lives, but a simpler, more mindful way of life is within our reach.
The Mindful Path podcast is all about slowing down, and learning to shift from ‘doing’ mode to simply ‘being’. It’s about bringing more mindfulness, space and purpose into your life.
In each episode, I share little nuggets of wisdom, insight and experiences that have unfolded along my mindfulness journey to help you along your own. I hope these simple practices, rituals, and tips help you transform your life, one small habit at a time.
To discover more ways to bring mindfulness into your life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
In this short episode, I talk about detoxing our diaries and detoxing our lives, and living deliberately by reflecting on what really matters.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In today's daily pause, I talk about dealing with a fuzzy and uncertain future, and the future you are creating today.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I talk about how most of us are trying to be in 3 places at once, causing ourselves to feel overwhelmed.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I talk about who we are beyond our habitual busyness.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I share a simple 4 step technique to help you feel difficult emotions when they arise.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I talk about what may be keeping you dissatisfied, and how to find more ease and joy at any time.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I offer a simple strategy to give ourselves a break from our busy mind.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I share two types of thoughts which I refer to as 'stuck thoughts' and 'supportive thoughts'. I offer a practical way to move forward when you experience 'stuck thoughts'.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this short episode, I share the concept of delayed happiness and encourage you to consider where in your life you may be delaying happiness.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this short episode, I encourage you to consider who you are being and how you can live more deliberately, even in challenging times.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In today's short pause, I invite you to consider what's in your emotional cup and the emotional imprint you are leaving on those around you.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode I talk about our tendency for self-judgment and how we can be more supportive to ourselves.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode I share what it feels like to live fuelled by fear rather than by love, and how you can lean into the latter.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I share a simple practice that you can use to start the day feeling calmer and more positive.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
Today I talk about it being ok to feel like we are on an emotional rollercoaster in difficult times.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode I talk about the need to ask for help and resource ourselves first, so we can best support those around us.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode I share practical questions we can ask ourselves when we get stuck in judgement.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode I talk about why allowing ourselves to have fun and seek joy is vital, particularly in difficult times.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I talk about how to get unstuck from looping worry thoughts.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I talk about the importance of knowing our triggers, and how to manage them to live with more ease.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I talk about the importance of honouring our pain, and how we can do that.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode I share why it's vital that we practise seeking the good on purpose, particularly in difficult times.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I share what I call the '3P's' - how we can support ourselves in difficult times.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I explore why it's important that we give ourselves permission to rest, particularly when we are facing uncertain times.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I share 3 simple ways you can use to cope with stress and anxiety when they arise.
This episode is part of the Daily Pause series - micro episodes (between 2-5 minutes long) where I share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
In this episode, I share more about the daily pauses that I will be offering over coming weeks.
Each day, I will be releasing a micro episode (between 2-5 minutes long) where I will share insight, reflections and practical steps you can take to cultivate more calm and live with more ease in uncertain times.
For more free support, join me in The School Of Me Hub - a free online community, where I help women to develop their inner resilience and live with more ease.
If you are feeling unsettled or anxious, try this short, free meditation to reset your mind and restore your calm. A moment of stillness to resource yourself for the rest of the day.
We all have a tendency to block our own happiness or wellbeing by getting stuck on ‘if only’ thoughts and beliefs.
'If only' thoughts might look like this:
“If only I had had that promotion at work, I would be fulfilled”
“If only my partner was more supportive, I would feel content”
“If only I had more money I could travel the world and I would finally be happy”
This applies to ourselves too. Have you have had the thought:
“If only I was taller/more extroverted/smarter/smaller/slimmer/more confident/more resilient/less anxious/ etc. I could finally be happy.”
In this episode, I talk about the beliefs behind these 'if only...' thoughts, and how to let go of resisting reality to feel happier.
music by www.hooksound.com
I used to suffer from 'destination addiction', even in my personal growth.
I thought that if only I could just 'fix' myself as quickly as possible, delete all the parts of me that I was ashamed of, all would be well.
I had no interest at all in the journey itself. I just wanted to wave a magic wand and be exactly who I thought I needed to be. Immediately.
But in the absence of magic wand, we have no choice but to stay committed to the journey and ride the waves of its ups and downs.
As the end of another year approaches, it’s tempting to look back and feel disappointed that we are not further down the path. Whatever that journey looks like for you: whether it is working on your relationships, feeling less anxious, managing your emotional wellbeing more skilfully, developing the self-trust you need to take bolder decisions, or working on your self-belief and confidence.
In this episode, I share 7 tips to stay committed to your self-growth journey when you feel discouraged or stuck.
Reference:
To join my free community, The School Of Me Hub, simply click here.
music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, I’m delighted to interview the amazing Anna Parker-Naples.
Anna is an entrepreneur, host of a highly successful podcast called Entrepreneurs get visible, speaker, business coach and voice actor. Anna's first book “Get Visible, how to have more impact, influence and income” hit number one in several Amazon categories upon release.
Most importantly, Anna is an INCREDIBLY inspiring woman who has overcome a lot of adversity using the power of her mind. She went from being wheelchair bound to walking down the red carpet in Hollywood and more. Anna shares with us the power of hope, of seeking opportunities, and more than anything, the power of mindset and language to transform our lives.
I know you will resonate with what Anna shares, and I hope this episode leaves you inspired to go after your dreams and desires.
You can find out more about Anna here.
And buy her book here.
If you are on a mindset journey and would like to learn how to tame your harsh inner critical voice and develop a kinder inner dialogue, find out more about the PAUSE formula here.
music by: www.hooksound.com
A lot of us talk to ourselves in a voice that we wouldn’t dare to use with anyone else. Sometimes it can be so harsh that it feels like we have an inner tyrant running havoc in our mind.
That voice is often propagating self-blame and even self-hate. It’s as if we had someone sitting on our shoulders belittling us up for every perceived inadequacy. It can be truly relentless and damaging.
If we don’t learn to develop a kinder and more supportive inner dialogue, we end up having programmed thoughts belittling, hurting and criticising us on repeat. Over time, they erode our self-belief, self-acceptance, and self-trust ; and undermine our ability to live the life we desire and deserve.
In this episode, I share a simple 5 step formula which I have created to help us turn our harsh negative self-talk into a kinder and more compassionate voice.
To download the accompanying PAUSE formula workbook, click here.
To watch the free 5 day mini-training on how to use the PAUSE formula to turn our negative self-talk into an inner ally, join me in The School Of Me Hub. my free community for women who wish to re-connect with themselves and develop self-trust.
Reference:
Episode 5 - How to relate to our inner critic differently to soften its impact.
Self-sabotage is often referred to as ‘getting in your own way’ – in other words, we self-sabotage when we deliberately hamper our efforts towards a goal. We create unnecessary problems for ourselves which keep us from taking action and moving towards the goals we want to achieve.
In this episode I explore why we self-sabotage, what self-sabotage might look like (it's not always easy to identify) and how to break the cycle of self-sabotage.
You will also hear about the handful of Clarity intensive coaching experiences I am offering before Christmas to help you end the year with clarity, calm and purpose. You will find all the details here. If it resonates with you, don't delay as this will only be available until Wednesday 27th November 2019.
References:
Episode 37 - The truth about perfectionism
Episode 40 - How to overcome procrastination
Have you joined The School Of Me Hub yet? My free Facebook community for women who desire to re-connect with themselves and achieve self-trust. Come and join us!
Whilst Christmas and the end of the year celebrations can be fun and exciting, they can also be a source of stress and anxiety. In addition to our normal busyness, this time of the year adds a whole new layer of commitments and activities both at work and outside of work.
For some of us, Christmas can also be a difficult time due to life events that have happened in the past or in the course of the year. A separation, a first Christmas without our children, difficult family relationships.
If you feel stressed, overwhelmed or anxious as the end of the year approaches, this episode will give you practical tips to approach this time of year feeling calmer and better resourced.
To join The School Of Me Hub (my free community for women on a journey to re-connect with themselves and achieve self-trust), click here.
Download the free 5-step PAUSE formula to turn your inner critical voice into a kinder, more compassionate voice here.
Episodes mentioned:
Episode 5 - How to relate to your inner critic differently to soften its impact
Episode 13 - S.T.O.P. - a simple technique to reset your mind when you're having a hectic day
Episode 15 - How to create more harmony in your relationships
Episode 45 - How to let go of the desire to control life and feel happier
Self-acceptance has been and continues to be a significant part of my own personal growth.
It’s one of the most important aspects of the journey that I take my clients through. I see the shift in them, as if a gentle light was getting ignited in their heart. One that they can continue to nurture and tend to for the rest of their life.
When the light of self-acceptance is ignited, everything shifts, because:
“When I accept myself just as I am,
I am freed from the burden of needing you to accept me.” - unknown
Self-acceptance is accepting all parts of ourselves unconditionally – in the moments where it’s easy and particularly in the moments where it’s hard.
It’s being willing to give ourselves unconditional kindness regardless of what we may have said or done.
Most of us walk around with a narrative in our mind about who we are and for most of us it includes a story of being broken, flawed, not good enough – something is wrong with us.
If this resonates, then this episode is especially for you.
Resources:
To help you start shifting towards self-acceptance, I have created a 5-step PAUSE formula which will help you turn your inner critical voice into a kinder, more compassionate voice (I call it our inner ally). These are the steps that I use personally when my inner critic starts to play loudly in my mind.
This FREE workbook explains each step of the PAUSE formula in detail and offers journalling prompts to help you reflect on your own personal journey.
If you resonated with this episode, the PAUSE formula will really help you to start making the shift towards more self-acceptance. Click here to download it.
Other references:
Join me and a small group of like-minded women on a self-growth journey in my free community: The School Of Me Hub.
Episode 43 - You are not your story.
Do you ever feel stuck and powerless?
You desire to make changes in your life but you don't seem to be able to?
If so, this episode is for you. I talk about what being in a victim mindset looks like, and how to reclaim your power of choice.
Now you might think – this really isn’t me Isabelle – but trust me, often when we are stuck in that mindset, we are the last ones to know.
So what does it feel like to fall into a victim mindset:
- We believe that we are at the mercy of our circumstances, our story, other people, the world around us, and life in general.
- We feel dis-empowered, powerless over our life. Things happen TO us and we don’t have options or choices. We are stuck.
- We have a tendency to believe that the world is against us, and we seek evidence to prove it in our everyday life.
- We may want to take action and create change in our life, but we often have a long list of excuses as to why we can't.
In this episode, I talk about how self-responsibility is the antidote to a victim mindset and how you can transform your life by reclaiming your power of choice.
References:
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Episode 22: how to cope with our emotions
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Episode 27: does our emotional wellbeing depend on other people's behaviour?
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The School Of Me Hub (my free community for women on a self-growth journey)
People pleasing is a tricky one... You see, on the surface, it seems inoffensive. After all, wanting to make others happy is altruistic, generous and selfless, right?
Well, people pleasing isn’t what it seems…While it does seem innocent and sweet, it’s actually not as selfless as you think.
Here are a few tell-tale signs of people pleasing:
You pour your heart into making everyone around you happy, often at the expense of your own needs and happiness.
In exchange, you expect their recognition and gratitude as it makes you feel loved and validated.
But deep down, under the altruistic façade, you feel depleted, exhausted and run down.
You become resentful as you sacrifice yourself pleasing everyone rather than investing in your own wellbeing.
Often, others don’t recognise the extent of your efforts which leaves you feeling undervalued, unappreciated and victimised.
If you have nodded as you read the above, this episode is especially for you.
Have a listen to find out the uncomfortable truth about people pleasing and a few tips to start shifting away from this pattern, recovering your energy and reclaiming your life.
References:
1) Episode 26 - Why we need healthy boundaries and how to set them
2) Join me and a small group of like-minded women on a self-growth journey in my free community: The School Of Me Hub.
As always, if you feel stuck in your life, and you are ready to do this deep work with a compassionate coach, do get in touch at hello@lightupandthrive.com. I’d love to support you on this journey of uncovering, accepting and trusting yourself.
The need to control life is one that comes up a lot in the work that I do with my clients.
It's a subject that we have talked about quite a bit over the last few weeks in The School Of Me Hub (my free community for women who are on a journey of self-growth - http://bit.ly/2ky8yCx).
What do I mean by the desire to control life?
Let me ask you these questions:
- Do you struggle to trust others to do tasks'the right way' and feel compelled to do things for them?
- Maybe you hover over your partner when they cook a meal?
- Or you get tempted to take control of your child's homework when it's not up to your standards?
- Perhaps you re-write reports prepared by your team at work to make them 'just right'?
- Do you believe that having a plan and organising life helps you to keep your worrying at bay?
- Do you find it impossibly frustrating not to know what the outcome of life situations will be: will your child make the team? Will your project be successful? Will your family Christmas happen just the way you imagine it?
Then this episode is for you.
I explore why we have the desire to control life and the impact that it has on our life. I share tips on how to loosen our grip on life to feel happier.
Because the truth is, our desire to control life is controlling us.
References:
1) If you have a desire to develop the quiet and deeply-rooted knowing that you have the inner resources you need to cope with anything life brings you, join me in The School Of Me Hub: http://bit.ly/2ky8yCx.
2) Episode 44 - Give yourself permission to press pause http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode44/
As always, if you feel stuck in your life, and you are ready to do this deep work with a compassionate coach, do get in touch at hello@lightupandthrive.com. I’d love to support you on this journey of uncovering, accepting and trusting yourself.
Are you living life in the fast lane, feeling hectic and rushed most days?
Do you regularly experience the ‘overwhelm fog’, where so much is going on in your life that you don’t know where to start?
Do you feel like you live on a hamster’s wheel and that life is passing you by?
Do you have an overactive, overthinking mind?
Do your emotions seem to go up and down like a rollercoaster?
If you nodded at any of the above, then this episode is for you.
In this episode, I share why pressing pause gives us the freedom to show up in the world in a way that aligns with our values, and why I believe it is the gateway to live the life we desire.
I also share many practical ways to press pause for a few seconds, a few minutes or longer periods of time.
References:
1) If you have a desire to develop the quiet and deeply-rooted knowing that you have the inner resources you need to cope with anything life brings you, join me in The School Of Me Hub: https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheSchoolOfMeHub/.
2) Episode 19 - How to step out of our autopilot: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode19/
3) Episode 33 - How to overcome negativity and bring more positivity into our life: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode33/
4) ‘Follow your breath mediation’ (8 minutes): http://www.lightupandthrive.com/resources/
5) How to take S.T.O.P. : episode 13: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode13/
As always, if you feel stuck in your life, and you are ready to do this deep work with a compassionate coach, do get in touch at hello@lightupandthrive.com. I’d love to support you on this journey of uncovering, accepting and trusting yourself.
We are all storytellers.
We all have stories that we tell ourselves about ...ourselves.
Stories we crafted from our experiences, and stories we borrowed from those around us.
We adopt and create story after story.
These stories put together make up who we believe we are.
As the stories accumulate, we lose sight of who we really are.
But you are not your story.
You have simply been telling yourself stories for a very long time.
By releasing these stories and beliefs you will find yourself again.
In this episode, I share tips on how to let old, unhelpful stories go.
Reference:
The School Of Me Hub (https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheSchoolOfMeHub/) is a free Facebook group where I support women on a path of self-discovery and self-trust. It’s a safe place to connect, share your experiences, and get support from each other and from me. I would love for you to join us!
We all live rushed and busy lives.
Between developing a successful career, caring for our family, being present for our children, and ensuring that life’s logistics are ticking along nicely, there is little time for ourselves.
Our energy is literally scattered in a multitude of directions. But when the to-do list is ticked (if it ever fully is) and everyone else’s needs are met, what’s left of us and what’s left for us?
When we continuously put ourselves last and fail to take time to invest in our relationship with ourselves, we start feeling disconnected. This impacts all areas of our life.
In this episode, I explore what feeling disconnected from ourselves feels like, how developing a relationship with ourselves can change our life, and how to get started in a few simple steps.
I am also delighted to tell you about The School Of Me Hub (https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheSchoolOfMeHub/) - a free Facebook group which I have created to support women who are on a path of self-discovery and self-trust. It’s a safe place to connect, share your experiences in a compassionate environment, and get support from each other and from me.
In this episode, I share what self-trust means to me and why I believe it is the foundation to find greater fulfilment, inner peace and live life with gusto.
Achieving self-trust is trusting yourself enough to take that big leap, make that bold decision, take the first step to change the part of your life you have desired to change for years.
It is trusting yourself enough to step off the emotional roller-coaster because you trust that you can handle any emotion with more ease.
It is trusting yourself enough to let go of your grip on life and know that you have the capacity to cope with anything.
It is trusting that you are whole, lovable and self-resourced just as you are.
I am also delighted to tell you about The School Of Me Hub (https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheSchoolOfMeHub/) - a free Facebook group which I have created for women who are on a path of self-discovery and self-trust. It’s a safe place to connect with women like you, share your experiences in a kind and supportive environment, and get support from each other and from me.
I created this community to connect with you at a deeper level, and to support you more personally. If connection is as important to you as it is to me, and if you are on a self-growth journey, I would love for you to come and join me: https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheSchoolOfMeHub/.
I look forward to seeing you there!
Isabelle x
In this episode, I explore a topic which comes up regularly in the work that I do with my clients: procrastination.
According to the dictionary, we procrastinate when we:
keep delaying something that must be done, often because it is unpleasant or boring
Does that sound familiar?
Do you have a tendency to delay tasks you know you have to do?
Do you often prioritise urgent, less important tasks to delay tackling the most important ones on your list?
Have you been known to put your head in the sand about important tasks?
Maybe you find all sorts of distractions to avoid having to tackle them (hello social media feed!)?
If so, there is a good chance that you are procrastinating.
But don't be too harsh on yourself, procrastination is a manifestation of your brain wanting to seek pleasure and avoid pain.
In this episode, I talk about why we procrastinate and offer practical steps to overcome procrastination. You won't want to miss it!
Reference:
James Clear, Atomic Habits -
Ted Talk - Tim Urban: Inside the mind of a procrastinator
The Mindful Path episode 29 - How to train your mind to change your life
The Mindful Path episode episode 24 - Who are you choosing to be
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, I explore a few misconceptions about the idea of managing our mind, based on your feedback on what managing your mind means to you.
Does managing our mind mean controlling all the thoughts coming in?
Does it mean emptying our mind of all thoughts?
Isn't managing our mind like trying to control the clouds in the sky - impossible?
I share what I do to manage my mind every - single - day. Because managing our mind is not a quick fix but a lifelong journey.
References:
Episode 8 - How journaling can help us nurture our emotional wellbeing
Episode 23 - Five practical steps to get unstuck in your life and in your relationships
Episode 33 - How to overcome negativity and bring more positivity into your life
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
A lot of us think that forgiveness is about condoning what someone else has done. We believe that it is saying: “What you did is ok” or "You were right in behaving the way you did".
In fact, forgiveness is freeing ourselves from the anger and resentment that are plaguing us when we do not forgive.
It is making an active choice to be free rather than holding on to a desire to be right.
When we forgive, we choose healing over conflict.
Reference:
Episode 30: How to ease our suffering.
Episode 20 : How to manage your thoughts
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
As perfectionists, we often think that we simply have unusually high standards. The thought of producing lesser quality work is just not an option in our mind.
But what’s REALLY going on when we are constantly seeking perfection?
Is it truly just that we hold ourselves, others and the world around us to the highest standard? Or is it a disguise for something deeper?
Tune in to find out the truth about perfectionism and how to let go of striving for perfection.
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Inevitably, we are the hero of our own movie. The movie of our life is played in our mind as life happens and there is only ever one perspective; one narrative: ours. The entire movie is about us, it is filmed, and edited by us. We live our entire life from the perspective of ‘I’.
As we go through life and continue creating this movie, we develop a sense for who we are: our ego. It is made of an amalgamation of beliefs and thoughts that we gather along the path of our life.
Noticing our ego can be tricky, because it is a collection of beliefs.
The easiest way to become familiar with it is to notice the emotional trail that it leaves behind. When you feel overly attached to being right, when you are desperately justifying your behaviour to yourself, when you are reacting disproportionately to someone else’s behaviour, it may be a sign of your ego in action.
In other words, when you make it all about you!
Tune in to find out how to move beyond your ego to live a happier life.
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
The past no longer exists anywhere but in our mind. It has come and gone. In fact, what exists in our mind isn’t the past but our story about the past, our thinking about the past.
When we look back at past events, we have a choice on how we want to think about them. And as our thinking always happens in the present, our thinking about our past inevitably affects who we are and how we behave in the present.
So although the past has come and gone, it has shaped and still shapes who we are today.
Note: If you have suffered from past trauma or suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, I recommend that you skip this episode to avoid any triggers.
Reference:
Episode 15 - How to create more harmony in your relationships.
Episode 24 - Who are you choosing to be
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Life involves feeling comfortable and uncomfortable emotions on a daily basis. While most of us have no issue with feeling emotions such as joy, contentment, excitement, and awe, we aren’t so keen on emotions such as anger, impatience, frustration, shame or sadness. Those are much less comfortable to feel.
When we experience difficult emotions, we tend to resist or ignore them. But there is a more skilful way to deal with difficult or uncomfortable emotions.
In this episode, I share some tips on what you can do preventatively, as well as when difficult emotions arise.
References:
Episode 20 - How to manage your thoughts
Episode 22 - How to cope with emotions
Episode 23 - Five practical steps to get unstuck in your life and in your relationships
Reference to the research: How emotions are mapped on the human body.
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
As we dive more deeply into training and managing our mind in Season 3, exploring negativity felt like an important concept to share with you.
As Rick Hanson says: “The brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones.” We are naturally wired to look for the negative, the risky, the unpleasant. And these negative experiences get stored quicker in our brain than positive ones.
So, if we want to bring more positivity into our life, we will have to work extra hard to tilt our perspective against our brain's natural tendency. And the only way to do this, is by training and managing our mind.
Listen in to find out how you can tilt your life towards the positive.
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Mentioning the word meditation tends to have a bit of a Marmite effect on people. They either meditate and love it, or the word alone instantly creates resistance.
Perhaps the thought of waking up at dawn to fit in an hour of meditation before heading to work, green smoothie in hand, has something to do with it. It’s hard to relate when you feel like you barely make it out of the door each morning with your children in tow and a black coffee in hand in lieu of breakfast (if you’re lucky!).
Yes, tales and myths about meditation are plentiful.
Yet, it is probably one of the simplest and most accessible ways you can use to manage your mind.
In this episode, I explore how meditation can help us train and manage our mind, a few popular myths about meditation and how to get started.
Want to give it a try? Here is the free meditation I mentioned in this episode (8 mins) http://www.lightupandthrive.com/resources/
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
A very personal episode where I share a glimpse into my journey and the most powerful skills I have learned to tame my overthinking and worrying mind.
From feeling burdened by stress and anxiety to learning how to cope with these feelings with more ease. From feeling that 'something was wrong with me' to being more accepting of who I am.
It’s hard to bring to life the powerful effect that mindfulness and training your mind can have. It is best experienced. But trust me when I say that it will help you to come home to yourself, uncover who you are under these layers of mind clutter, build resilience, live more and worry less. It’s a lifelong journey but the scenery can be spectacular!
And you deserve to take this journey.
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
As human beings, pain and suffering are an inevitable part of our life.
When we experience pain, whether it is physical or mental suffering, we tend to do one of two things: we either block the pain or we drown in the pain.
When we block the pain, we resist it, we push it away and avoid experiencing it. When we drown in the pain, we are so preoccupied by it that it becomes all consuming. We feel overwhelmed by it, as if we were literally drowning. Our life seems to revolve around nothing but our pain.
In both cases, we add a layer of mental suffering to our initial pain. While the initial pain may be unavoidable, the layers we wrap around it, which amplify the pain are avoidable.
Tune in to find out how we can lessen our suffering in 5 steps.
Reference:
Vidyamala Burch, Living well with pain & illness - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Living-Well-Pain-Illness-mindfulness/dp/0749928603/
The brain continually remodels itself as we experience the world around us. Each interaction is a new data point for the brain to process and learn from.
What is fascinating is that when our mind changes, our brain changes.
This means that we are not powerless. We don’t have to be who we’ve always been. We can create change. We do this by training our mind. As Rick Hanson puts it “What flows through our mind sculpts our brain”.
This is a journey of deep transformation, the path to authenticity and living with more ease.
For more tips on how to live with more ease and purpose, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
A lot of us rush through life, living at 200 mph.
The race starts as soon as we wake up. We barely open our eyes and thoughts about all we have to do that day start competing for our attention. Throughout the day, we juggle, organise, hurry, coordinate, achieve, and deliver.
We go to bed at night exhausted, and often feeling like there wasn’t much joy in our day.
The trouble is, when we run through life, we miss out on all these tiny opportunities for joy. There may be dotted along the path, but we go so fast that we don’t see them. And without seeing them, we can’t enjoy them.
So how can we bring more joy into our life when it feels like we live on a hamster's wheel?
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Most of us believe that our emotional wellbeing depends on what others around us say and do. We believe that our happiness is conditional on them saying or doing certain things.
Is it possible that our wellbeing, that the feelings we have depend on other people's behaviour? Is it true that those in our life 'control' us like a thermostat, setting our emotional temperature to whatever they like, simply by being a certain way? Can they 'make us' happy, sad, frustrated, angry?
In this episode, we explore that belief and how it may affect our life.
References
Episode 20 - How to manage your thoughts
Episode 22 - How to cope with our emotions
Episode 26 - Why we need healthy boundaries and how to set them.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Author and Researcher Brene Brown describes boundaries very simply as ‘what’s ok and what’s not ok’, regardless of the area of your life which you apply these boundaries to.
Boundaries are not about separating ourselves from others, but about respect. By setting boundaries, we show others that we have respect for our time, our emotions, and other areas of our life. And we invite others to have respect for these too.
A lot of us don’t set boundaries for a number of reasons. Perhaps we want to be the perfect partner, parent, friend, or child. Perhaps we want people to like us. Maybe we don’t want to disappoint anyone, or we might want to be seen as being a certain way (as someone kind and helpful for example). The irony is that the lack of healthy boundaries does not make us perfect in any way. When we fail to set boundaries, we end up saying ‘yes’ to things that we don’t feel ok with. We aren’t being honest with ourselves or with others. In other words, it compromises our integrity.
In this episode, we look at what boundaries are, the benefits of setting healthy boundaries and how to do just that.
References
In this episode, I refer to Episode 24 - Who are you choosing to be (and how to set personal values). I also refer to Episode 25 - How to avoid spiralling down the exhaustion funnel.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
The concept of the ‘Exhaustion Funnel’ was created by burnout expert Professor Marie Åsberg of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. It shows how the demands of everyday life can lead us down a spiral of exhaustion and possibly lead to burnout.
In this episode, I share 7 tips to avoid falling helplessly down the exhaustion funnel and re-balance our life when it feels like the tide is shifting. Before it's too late.
I hope this episode inspires you to make small shifts in your days to create a daily routine that nourishes your mental and physical health, and supports you in creating the life you wish to live.
If you feel that you are slipping down the exhaustion funnel and would like some help to resource yourself and cope with the challenges of everyday life with more ease, I can help. Simply email me at hello@lightupandthrive.com.
References:
In this episode, I refer to Episode 22 - How to cope with your emotions.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, and to discover how to work with me personally, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode we talk about how we can deliberately choose who we are being.
Living intentionally means making conscious choices as our days, weeks and months unfold. Every one of these choices is a piece of the puzzle that fits into who we are becoming.
You can be deliberate about these choices, or you can let your autopilot make these choices for you. The difference is that you are not deliberate about who you are being or becoming.
In this episode, I share a simple exercise you can do to find clarity on who YOU may choose to be.
This episode comes with a companion guide which you can download here.
References:
In this episode, I refer to Episode 19 - How to step out of autopilot and be present in your life.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, I am exceptionally joined by the amazing Shira Gura. Shira is a Master STUCK coach and educator. She is the creator of The S.T.U.C.K. Method®, author of the book Getting unSTUCK: Five Simple Steps to Emotional Well-Being, and host of the Getting Unstuck podcast. Through her courses, workshops and retreats, Shira guides people from around the world to get unstuck in their lives and in their relationships.
The S.T.U.C.K. Method® offers 5 simple steps for any of us to get unstuck in our life and in our relationships.
I know you will love everything Shira shares in this episode. It is a little longer than the usual episode but so well worth a listen. Enjoy!
References:
To find out more about Shira and her work, and take the unstuck quiz, visit www.shiragura.com.
Episode 8 - How journaling can help us find clarity and nurture our emotional wellbeing.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, we talk about emotions and how we can be more intentional about managing our feelings and our emotional wellbeing.
Emotions comes in all shapes and sizes. Throughout our days and our life, we experience a whole array of emotions. They vary in tone and intensity: we are acutely aware of some feelings when they arise whilst others almost go unnoticed.
We rarely tune into our emotions on purpose and we tend to push away feelings that we see as unpleasant. We are simply not resourced to lean into our emotions and cope with them confidently.
In this episode, I share 4 tips to better cope with our emotions and develop greater emotional wellbeing.
References:
Episode 13 - How to reset your mind when you are having a hectic day (by taking a S.T.O.P.)
Episode 20 - How to manage your thoughts
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
A lot of us experience a feeling of 'not being good enough' a lot of the time. In this episode, we explore why we have a tendency to feel inadequate or not good enough, and how we can let go of this belief and develop greater self-compassion.
Leveraging the work of Kristen Neff, we look at what self-compassion is, why it is important and how we can start practising it.
This episode is for anyone who has a tendency to feel unworthy or 'not good enough' ... which is all of us at times.
For references mentioned in this episode, please go to the episode's full shownotes.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, we explore the power that our thoughts have in shaping our world, and how we can develop a greater awareness of our thoughts to engage with them more effectively.
We discuss 3 very important concepts about our thoughts, and I share 5 tips on how to manage our thoughts mindfully.
You will hear me refer to Episode 5, where I talk about our Inner Critic in a lot more depth. If, like most of us, you tend to have self-critical thoughts, this episode is worth a listen too.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Over years of living, our brain has acquired a lot of knowledge and used it to create automated ways of thinking and reacting to our environment and circumstances. This is what we refer to as our autopilot.
We live on autopilot nearly 50% of the time! And whilst it can be very helpful at times, it can leave us feeling disempowered and unfulfilled. As if we had no control over our life.
Unhelpful thinking patterns and behaviours can also slip into our autopilot without us noticing. These become part of our default thoughts and reactions. We may not like them, but we feel unable to control them.
In this episode, we explore how to step out of autopilot and make conscious choices about how we want to think and respond to our experiences. This is the foundation for living intentionally.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In today’s fast-paced world, a lot of us have lost the ability to truly be in the moment, to simply be. Our society glorifies the busy, the juggling, the rushing and the doing. We live our lives running towards the next achievement or milestone. We strive for more, bigger, better, moving the goalposts as soon as we reach them. We tend to spend most of our time in DOING mode with very little time in BEING mode.
In this episode, we look at what each mode entails, how to recognise the mode we are in, and how to intentionally choose whether to be in doing or being mode at any time.
Consciously choosing which mode you want your mind to be in is a huge step in living intentionally. And the truth is, the choice is truly yours.
If you want to find out more about how to take a S.T.O.P., listen to episode 13, where I cover this coping strategy in detail: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode13/.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Today I want to talk about starting the new year feeling inspired and worthy, and why I feel that the traditional New Year New You saying does not serve us.
In this episode, we explore how to set mindful intentions and goals for the year ahead. Not changing our true nature, not being led down the path of confusion by the pressures of society. But creating goals that are authentic to us and help us live the life WE wish to live.
To help you set your own authentic goals, I have created a beautiful FREE visualisation meditation for manifesting the feelings you wish to bring into your life. Simply click here to claim your FREE visualisation.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Welcome to Season 2!
In this very first episode of Season 2, we discuss the difference between living on auto-pilot and living intentionally.
A lot of us live on autopilot, we are led by habitual ways of thinking and behaving. The automated processes which our mind has established and fine-tuned since we were born run the show. We aren't really in the driver's seat of our life and we tend to feel unfulfilled.
Living intentionally means engaging with life and living ‘awake’. We are at the helm of our own boat, and have a sense of empowerment and fulfilment. Life doesn't just happen to us, we make conscious decisions and live intentionally.
This season will be all about exploring the skills we need to live an intentional life. And who wouldn't want that?
This podcast is for you and I hope you find each week practical tips that you can adopt to live more mindfully and happily. If you enjoy listening, one way of showing it is by leaving a review on itunes. I would be eternally grateful. Honestly :).
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
As the holiday season approaches, a lot of us will be spending time with friends and family. And as wonderful as that may be, it can also come with its own set of challenges. Relationships can be joyful, fun and energising, but they can also be complex, tense and energy-depleting.
Relationships involve humans … humans in all their beauty and in all their complexity. Bringing different personalities, attitudes, pasts, aspirations, motivations, feelings and expectations together is likely to be challenging.
This is true at this time of the year and of course at any other time.
In this episode, we will look at ways in which each of us can create more harmony in our own relationships. And I use the word ‘create’ deliberately…
Useful links:
In this episode, I refer to the S.T.O.P. technique which I explore in detail in episode 13: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode13/.
I also refer to episode 14, where I talk about mindfulness and anger: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode14/.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
Anger is often perceived to be a ‘negative’ feeling but it is simply one of the many emotions we experience as human beings. What we do with anger, how we react to it, is what we need to be mindful of. In this episode I explore:
- A few things to know about anger
- The difference between repressing and managing our anger
- How mindfulness helps us deal with the inner feeling of anger
- The mindfulness principles and techniques which have helped me most with managing anger
I hope you find this episode useful in framing anger differently and managing it mindfully while it’s still a niggle.
In this episode, I refer to the S.T.O.P. technique which I explore in detail in episode 13: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/episode13/.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
We all have hectic days, where we feel that our mind is going into complete overdrive and our body feels tense.
S.T.O.P. is a simple mindfulness technique, which any of us can practise at any time. We can take a S.T.O.P. when we want to find stillness and reset our mind before re-engaging with the rest of our day.
When we are in worry, stress or overwhelm mode, our mind isn’t functioning at its best. If we can quieten down the stress and worry chatter going on in our mind, find a place of peace and calm, we are better able to reflect, think clearly, and make useful decisions.
The holiday season tends to be a busy time for a lot of us. This is the perfect opportunity to practise taking a S.T.O.P. when things become too much!
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, we explore how gratitude can make us feel happier, and I share ten practical tips on how to cultivate gratitude in our daily life.
I like to think of gratitude as a warm glow of appreciation towards something or someone. It’s the ability to see goodness in what surrounds us and to experience the positive feelings it triggers within us.
There is increasing scientific evidence that gratitude can have many positive impacts on our life. These include better physical and mental health, as well as greater happiness and life satisfaction. And why wouldn’t we want to bring more happiness into our life if we can?
Tune in to find out how you too can bring more gratitude into your life, feel happier, healthier and more fulfilled. You have everything to gain :)! Why not adopt one of these practices for a week and see how it makes you feel?
In this episode I refer to a wonderful Ted Talk by Dewitt Jones titled ‘Celebrate what’s right in the world!’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gD_1Eh6rqf8. It’s funny, wonderful and only 18 minutes long.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, we explore the link between kindness and happiness, and I share practical tips on how mindfulness can help us bring more kindness into our life.
Much has been written about kindness in recent years, in particular about the link between kindness and happiness. Recent research has showed that kindness does nudge us towards happiness.
Giving and receiving kindness makes a difference to the way our day might unfold. The great news is that being kind creates a mini ripple effect. Your smile could light up someone’s day, soften their heart, and simply make them feel seen in a world where we all rush past each other. It might, in turn, encourage them to smile at the next person they cross paths with. And on goes the kindness ripple…
Tune in to find out how mindfulness can help us bring more kindness into our world. And in the coming week, why not try ‘living awake’ more often, noticing the acts of kindness people around you do for you, and triggering a few of your own kindness ripples …
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
This episode is part of a mini series about mindfulness and stress. In this episode (Part I), we explore preventative selfcare practices which can help us to build resilience, feel generally calmer and more grounded.
In Part II (episode 10), we will look at specific mindfulness practices, which we can use when stress starts arising in our body. We will learn how to intercept the 'fight or flight' response before it gains momentum so that we can choose to react to stress in a more intentional way.
Would you like to practise mindful techniques to bring more calm into your life? If so, consider joining my free 7 Day Stress to Calm Challenge. Over the course of 7 days you will create small new habits, which will give you a taste for what living more mindfully could do for you. It’s entirely free. To find out more, take a look here.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
This episode is part of a mini series about mindfulness and stress. In Part I (episode 9), we explored preventative selfcare practices, which can help us to build resilience, feel generally calmer and more grounded.
In this episode (Part II), we will look at specific mindfulness practices, which we can use when stress starts arising in our body. We will learn how to intercept the 'fight or flight' response before it gains momentum so that we can choose to react to stress in a more intentional way.
Would you like to practise mindful techniques to bring more calm into your life? If so, consider joining my free 7 Day Stress to Calm Challenge. Over the course of 7 days you will create small new habits, which will give you a taste for what living more mindfully could do for you. It’s entirely free. To find out more, take a look here.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, I share a little bit about my journey through journaling, why I find it to be such a powerful tool to nurture my emotional health, and a few tips on how to get started.
Journaling is simple, it’s the act of recording your thoughts, emotions, feelings, and experiences with pen and paper. I have been keeping a journal on and off for many years (in all honesty, more often off than on until recently). My goal with this journal was quite simple – I wanted to keep a little trail of my life over time to remember (in my old age, as I sit in my rocking chair by the fire) what life was like when my children were young, and as I went through the various phases of my life. So over that period of time, for me, it was very much a keepsake for treasured memories.
However, I discovered recently a very powerful way to use journaling to process my emotions and nurture my emotional wellbeing. It isn’t so much about recording the events of my day to remember them at a later stage, but about genuinely pouring my thoughts out on paper and exploring what comes up. This has completely changed my relationship with journaling. It has helped me uncover thoughts and beliefs that I didn’t know I had. It has helped me to develop more empathy and compassion for both, myself and others. It has helped me work through emotions.
It has been so much more beneficial than I anticipated…
Whether you are familiar with journaling or new to it, if you are interested in exploring how it can help you nurture your emotional wellbeing, this episode is for you.
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For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, I lead you through a beautiful meditation for simply being in the present moment. We focus our awareness on our outer and inner body experiences to anchor our mind within the body. As our body can only ever be in this moment, anchoring ourselves in the body is a simple way to bring our mind back to the here and now.
Listen to this episode any time you wish to take a pause in your busy day to nudge your mind back to the present.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode I talk about the importance of learning to pause, to give our busy mind a rest from the whirlwind of thoughts constantly occupying it.
Most of us have a constant stream of inner chatter going on in our minds. And if, like me, you have a tendency to be a bit of an overthinker, it can feel quite relentless. So it’s no surprise that sometimes, it does feel like our mind is literally bursting at the seams.
In this episode we explore why it is important to give our overthinking mind a rest, and how we can practise taking a pause from the ongoing chatter in our mind.
As mentioned during the show, to listen to my free 'Follow your breath' meditation, simply visit: http://www.lightupandthrive.com/resources/.
Music by www.hooksound.com
In this episode, I talk about our inner critic and share some thoughts on who it is, the role it plays in our life, the impact it has on us, and how we can relate to it in a different way to lessen its impact.
The inner critic is this voice inside our head which jumps in at times to offer harsh and unsolicited criticism. Its purpose is to protect us from exposing ourselves to hurt, rejection, and pain. It stems from good intentions but tends to undermine our self-worth, our self-love and our self-confidence. It encourages us to stay within our zone of safety, to think small, play small and live small.
In this episode, we explore how to recognise your inner critic and relate to it differently, to help lessen its impact.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
In this episode, we will be looking into how mindfulness could help you when you are lying awake at night.
If, like me, you have an overthinking brain, a tendency to feel anxious or get stuck on worrying, you might find yourself struggling with getting a peaceful night's sleep at times. Perhaps you go to bed and lie awake for a long while before eventually drifting off to sleep. Or maybe you fall asleep quite easily but then wake up at two or three in the morning feeling anxiety slowly rising in you as you try to go back to sleep. If that’s you too, this episode is for you.
In this episode, I share eight tips, which I have found useful to deal with these sleepless nights. I hope you find them useful too.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Mindfulness has soared in popularity in recent years and seems to be talked about everywhere you look. You might be wondering what all the fuss is about and intrigued to find out more. After all, those practising mindfulness seem so passionate about the impact it has had on their life that you can’t help but wonder what impact it could have on yours.
In this episode, you will find out what mindfulness is (and isn’t), and discover 5 myths which might be holding you back from getting started.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
In this episode, I share with you my experience of attending a one-day silent mindfulness retreat and what I learnt from it:
- How silence is a welcome relief from the busy world we live in
- Why being in silence with others helps to build true connections
- How the lack of distractions encouraged us to focus within
- Silence + no distraction =peace
- How simple experiences become richer when we engage with them fully
- The calm most of us are looking for is within us all along
We might not all be able to attend a mindfulness retreat day, but why not try to create a mini mindfulness retreat in our busy day? A few moments of silence, away from distractions and intrusions. Even a few minutes could help give our mind a well deserved rest.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.
Hello and welcome to Episode 1 of The Mindful Path podcast.
In this episode, I share a little bit about my mindfulness journey, and some of the challenges that I experienced when I first started to meditate.
And as the best way to truly understand most things is to experience them first hand, I end this episode by leading you through a short meditation practice, so stay tuned until the end.
For more tips on how to live a more mindful and purposeful life, hop over to www.lightupandthrive.com.