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Although we’ve talked about storytelling before on the podcast, I keep coming back to it because the truth is that there is something deep about connecting to our own personal story - it can elevate you or bring you to your knees. So, we have to be careful what stories we tell ourselves and the world. The more I experience life I know this to be true. So, on today’s podcast I wanted to bring Lindsay Hotmire on to share her take on storytelling - mostly because I enjoy reading her content and feel that she really seeks to understand her clients from the inside out. Lindsay herself has always felt like an old soul to me, but it turns out what makes her so good at brand storytelling has more to do with her own curiosity about herself, her values and her own mindset. I love how deeply Lindsay thinks about storytelling and really the way we show up in the world and I know you will too. I’m grateful she decided to join me for this special conversation.  

When it comes to growing your business, it’s no secret that I believe mindset needs to come first, but it’s not all about working on your mindset. You have to take action if you’re going to move through life’s plateaus and achieve next level growth. But not all action is equal. One thing I’ve learned is that as a quick start I can take action, but that doesn’t mean it’s always right action. Same goes for my counterparts who want to think through every single possible outcome before they take action - that may not always lead to right action either. Today on the podcast I sit down with Frenchie Ferenczi to talk about the tactical side of mindset. Frenchie is a business growth strategist who hasn’t always bought into mindset because she says that sometimes you need to action your way out of a situation. But not all action is equal. On this episode we talk about the fine balance between mindset and action and how you can use both to really grow your business and get to where you want in life.

It can be hard when things don’t go the way you’ve planned or if the business you’ve worked hard to build suddenly feels like it’s sliding downward rather than growing and thriving. But how we handle these backslides, missteps, mistakes or even failures can indicate how we’ll rebound and how we’ll handle the next big challenge. I often think that backslides can be an invitation to grow bigger and to challenge what’s really possible. But that’s not always how I handled them and chances are it may not be how you’re handling a backslide or bad situation in your life or business. This episode talks about how you can get better at handling adversity and really using it to reflect and grow.  

One of the things I don’t often talk about on the podcast is my constant fascination and observation about the ways we run away from ourselves. We live in a society that glorifies numbing out as a way of dealing with discomfort and I see that more and more the business world seems to address stress, anxiety and crisis with substance. I know personally I have had those days where wine becomes the go-to as a way to destress, but in reality it makes things worse. I also have seen people abstain but still struggle with finding greater satisfaction. Today on the Mindset First Podcast I want to break through all this and redefine success through Soulbriety. Dr. Elisa Hallerman is the author of this incredible book that I recently listened to and read that has made a big impact on how I face the obstacles to success - whether it’s in my personal or business life. I felt compelled to share her with you because every day I see so many of us dealing with trauma - and brush it aside as nothing. Today we talk about why it’s so important to heal our trauma so we can return to our soul and that place where we get to experience true success. I’m beyond thrilled for you to listen.

As someone who grew up with a clear message to make myself indispensable in any situation, hustling and making things happen are almost second nature to me. But hustling can lead to a lot of frenetic business growth and personal overwhelm. I know because I have been there many times in my life. This hustle mentality is certainly encouraged by our culture with little isms like “the early bird gets the worm”, “hustle brings the dollar” and others. And although many of us who are business owners started our own businesses to rebel against that kind of hustle culture - I’ve often found that business owners are horrible bosses to themselves and end up doing too much just for the sake of growing their business. In this episode, I explore the hustle mindset and share with you ways to become more intentional about your growth without always having to bump into new obstacles that thwart upward momentum.

There is nothing better than a good story to pull people in. I know I’m a sucker for a good story and love anyone who elevates storytelling to an art form. Yet most of us get stuck in the mindset that our story isn’t good enough, important enough, different enough to garner attention or help us share who we are. So, instead we hide or remain uncomfortable sharing who we are. Because I often surround myself with marketers, lawyers, writers, interesting business owners and creatives, I am lucky to have learned some great techniques surrounding storytelling - but get that this is a place that too many business owners get stuck - so on today’s podcast I wanted to share with you Amy Collins, story guide, email maverick and comedian. It’s been fun to watch this last part of her story come out. Amy shares with all of us how to tap into that part of us that is interesting and how we can use it to create better connections with those we serve.

It’s interesting, but the term manifestation and manifesting seems to be popping up everywhere lately. I think when we face turbulent times like a recession or economic downturns, manifestation comes back into vogue because we aren’t really sure how we’re going to make it through the rough times - so instead we double down on wishing for things we want and trusting that the universe will bring it to us. The problem with the way manifesting shows up in this online world is a little bit confusing at best and perverse at its worst. If you’ve listened to this podcast before, then you already know that I’m not a fan of sitting back and waiting for things to come your way - but I do believe that your thoughts and your actions do draw in exactly what you intend. So, it’s important to align all your thoughts and actions into the right direction so it can result in the right action. This episode is dedicated to helping you use manifestation to help you get exactly what you want this year and beyond. I can’t wait to see what comes true for you!

After my interview with Per Andreasen on why mindset strategies sometimes don’t work with people who have ADHD (episode #111), I was flooded with comments from people who felt like they had been seen for the first time. People who have various challenges from anxiety to being on the spectrum - and how that impacts them in both business and in life. I personally have struggled with anxiety and panic attacks (it can literally feel like you have a gun to your head when no real danger exists). Remaining present can feel impossible when your brain can’t seem to shut off - let alone do the things necessary to build momentum and create change. Add to that the fact that you don’t feel very understood by the world, it can feel impossible to accomplish what you truly desire. On today’s podcast, I brought on Gillian Jones to talk about what it means to live life as a female on the spectrum - in life, work and business. Gillian’s honest portrayal of life as it was before her diagnosis and how she lives life now will hopefully help someone who might be struggling to manage life and not sure why. She shares how things like radical acceptance and meditation have helped her, but she’s still figuring out what works - as we all are.

It’s the end of the year and inevitably you’ve already started to think about what 2023 is going to look like. Maybe you’ve even planned out what you’re going to be doing in this upcoming year and you have some big goals set up. But here’s the thing - too many of us forget to look backward before we plan our businesses forward. Maybe it’s because we don’t want to face the reality of what we see - maybe it’s too hard - maybe even for some we have shame. Or alternatively - we think we’ve done really well and we’re just going to be doing the same thing. Only with more clients and perhaps higher pricing. But what inevitably happens when you plan only looking forward is that you end up repeating bad habits and patterns that may not elevate your business to the next level. So, today on the podcast I’m going to show you what it means to look back and reflect on this past year in order to create something better for 2023.

Time is one of the biggest struggles every single person faces - it doesn’t matter if you’re a business owner, an employee, a corporate executive, there isn’t a single person I’ve met in the last year that hasn’t at some point said they needed more time. But the truth is that many of us just can’t make the rigid rules of time management work. And there’s a good reason - I’ve often said that the problem with time begins with how we think about it, how we talk about it and how we focus on it. We come from time with a scarcity mindset and so, no matter what tools we apply - they just don’t work. So, what can we do? On today’s podcast episode, I sit down with holistic time coach (yes, even I didn’t know one existed) and talk about a better way for us to think about time and manage our time. Becca shares her personal story of how burnout and overwhelm impacted her and propelled her to help others who struggle with time and well - no time. This is a great episode for pretty much everyone so we can adopt a more healthy and workable relationship with time in our life and business.

A few months ago I had this epiphany. I realized that I had spent my life pushing open some really heavy doors. What do I mean by that? Well, if I wanted it and I didn’t get it, I would work harder - more diligently to get it. But after years of pushing open heavy doors just to get what I want, I realized that maybe, just maybe, I have been doing it all wrong. On today’s episode of The Mindset First Podcast, I want to help you think differently about what you can accomplish when you look not just for the easy door to push, but the open doors. The reality is that many of us take pride in pushing heavy doors open . . . but at what cost? For me that cost has been disappointment, exhaustion and definitely a loss of self-esteem. But realizing I don’t have to keep pushing heavy doors has been an incredible awakening. I’m excited to share this insight with you and hope that by the end of this episode, you’ll commit to stop pushing heavy doors!

I often talk about how there is an entrepreneurial ceiling that many business owners struggle to get past. They are able to get their business up and running, but inevitably hit a financial plateau and find themselves working too hard, not having the freedom they want and still unable to invest in the resources they need to grow bigger. It’s often where business owners get stuck, start to resent their business and have to make a tough decision - do they continue on this path, or do they give up and go get a job. Today, on the podcast I sit down with Chris Orzechowski to talk about how to bust through that ceiling and the mindset it takes to become a 7 figure business.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all only had one limiting belief we had to tackle in order to move on and be great? Like if I only had my stupid belief to contend with I’d have been fine a long time ago. And if that belief didn’t have tentacles and layers to it that drove my fears, my unconscious commitments and my actions - wouldn’t life be grand? Well, yes. The truth is that we have more than just limiting beliefs that hold us back, We have fears, resistance and unconscious commitments and years of conditioning that can make change hard. In this episode, I want to explain how all of the various things going on in your brain are actually interacting and causing a tapestry of beliefs that can make change hard - but not impossible. So, if you’re curious why you haven’t been able to achieve all those goals - tune in.

Do mindset strategies work if you have conditions such as ADD or ADHD? The truth is that it absolutely can. But what’s worse is that if you’re someone who hasn’t recognized that you have ADHD until adulthood, chances are you’ve been carrying around some stories about who you are - misbehaved, unorganized, unmotivated or undisciplined and that can impact how far you really go in business and in life. Today I sit down with my friend Per Andreasen who wasn’t diagnosed with ADHD until this past year. He explains why it helped him unlock a lot of answers to his life and how he can now actually apply mindset strategies in a whole new way. This is a great episode for anyone who does struggle with ADHD or has struggled to implement mindset strategies - and what you can do first.

This is an episode I’ve been excited to share for some time. And as an extrovert this might seem like a bit of a funny one for me to deliver - actually I think I might categorize me more as an ambivert because I do love my alone recovery time as much as I love my energizing time out with people. But, here’s something I’ve noticed. There are people out there who might be incorrectly diagnosing themselves as introverts - or actually might be feeling some things they ascribe to introversion that has nothing to do with being an introvert. Here’s what I’m talking about today - there are a ton of you out there that are leaving networking events, small group interactions, 1 on 1 interactions - feeling exhausted. And you might say to yourself - oh, it’s because I’m an introvert. But what if it’s actually something else - something you can shift and feel like you can actually get energized by the interactions you have with others? Today on the podcast, I want to talk about the mistaken introvert and how you can begin to feel less exhausted from your interaction with others.

I wanted to invite my friend, Kira Hug back to the podcast because Kira is someone I have observed intentionally work on getting to know herself and the shifts I’ve seen in her as a leader. Kira has always been thoughtful, caring of others and very deep - but as she gets to know how the world actually impacts her and how she wants to show up, I’ve seen her get more intentional about how she serves those in her circle. Kira has graciously come back to talk about her own personal journey with how working on changing her habits and patterns - and getting to know herself better has helped her step into herself in a more powerful way. If you’re someone who does feel impacted by the world and is trying to figure out how you want to show up - this episode is for you.

I sometimes hear from business owners who tell me that they don’t dare put their vision for their business (or life) on paper because they don’t want to be disappointed if they don’t get it. They fear that if they put it on paper it means they won’t get it - or alternatively, if they put it on paper and they do get it - that they then have to manage the dream. Both options can be scary, but the truth is that fear can cloud your ability to dream for your business or see what you even want for your business. Instead we end up consistently chasing some unknown goal that never feels complete or fulfilling. On this week’s episode of The Mindset First Podcast I share how fear can cloud your clarity and how to move past fear to dream bigger. 

The last time I had Jude on my podcast, it turned out to be one of my favorite conversations and one of the reasons I wanted this season of the Mindset First Podcast to go deeper. Jude helps business owners leverage the power of storytelling to grow his business - but somehow we don’t ever really get to that topic because this time I invited Jude back to talk about what it means to have relentless courage in business. Jude has worked with 7 figure businesses to grow their business using documentaries - but now he’s in a bit of a transition that many might think is crazy. Or at the very least contrary to what most do in business. But that’s who Jude is and how he has actually grown his life and self in ways that many of us don’t even dare. I hope this episode inspires you to think about your own life and what it means to have relentless courage.

You’ve been told to stay away from politics in your business, right? Well, I know that as someone who does have some strong opinions - this one has been hard for me. I struggle with my own personal values, the fact that I spent most of my life as an advocate and then also respecting the idea that my business is a separate entity that may not carry some of the same opinions. This can be a mindset struggle for many because as a person you feel strongly about certain things, but unsure how to talk about it or if you even should. On today’s episode, I bring on messaging strategist Peta O’Brien-Day to help me sort through where that line is. And how we can examine our mindset before we choose to share any political opinion. This is a juicy podcast for any business owner contemplating talking about anything that has the potential to piss off your audience.

So, if you’ve hung out with me and listened to this podcast before, you know that I love talking about fear. Not because I have some dark fixation around it - but really because I know how much fear can dictate choices and limit growth. I personally struggled with so many fears that held me back from really achieving my full potential for years and years - so, once I understood how to break free - it felt a bit like a miracle I had to keep sharing. Today on the podcast, I talk about how our first natural inclination with fear is to pivot or paralyze and how both can be detrimental to growth. I share why this happens and how you can start to shift from either position into intentional action that aligns with your vision and builds greater things. So, if you’re someone in either of these two camps - or if you’re not sure, but experience a lot of fear - this episode is for you.