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Ever feel like you’re caught in this rut or a storm of frustration and you’re just wondering “why me?”   We’ve all been there and it’s a suffocating feeling to not know which way is up on certain days.  It’s when we stop and realize that the storm is actually clearing the way for better days that we embrace these times as opportunities to learn, grow stronger, and improve who we are as people.   In this episode, I share how tough times are like sculpting a statue. You’ve got to manage the pressure and removing unnecessary weight and things from your life to become the work of are you are deep down.   For more content like this, please subscribe to this channel and The EnRich Your Soul Podcast on your favorite podcast platform!   For more information about booking me to help your company, conference or cause as a keynote speaker or consultant, please contact rich@richbracken.com.   You can learn more about me at richbracken.com   Thank you for stopping by!

There are times in our lives where we take on a ton mentally and emotionally. Especially in the last few years, there have been more and more reports of people suffering from anxiety and burnout because of the stress they put on themselves to perform while managing their mental and physical state.  While we are all familiar with the feelings of stress, are you aware of how it actually affects your physical and mental wellbeing as well as your ability to have mental capacity for critical thought? In this episode, I share the impacts that stress and anxiety can have on your brain, your physical wellness, and how you can get mentally unstuck when you are feeling out of inspiration.

We all do it. We speak to ourselves in a defeatist, finite tone that limits where we are and where we can go. Don’t think you have? Have you ever said “I can’t do…” “I can’t figure out…” “I don’t know…” Sure you have, we all have. This is where it changes with one simple word: yet. By adding “yet” to the end of any statement that applies to your growth, learning, goal achievement, or abilities, you open the door for progress. I kinda knew it worked for me when I was conscious in doing it, but when my easily frustrated 6 year old started changing his mentality by doing it, I knew there was something there. In this episode, I share how the addition of the word “yet” can blow open a world of success and achievement when you feel stuck in life and down on your ability to improve it. For more episodes, content, and contact info, visit richbracken.com

We’ve all been there before…. You wake up and your emotions and thoughts are off to the races and you become the mental/emotional equivalent of the dog walker holding onto the leash trying to keep up with the gigantic dog who’s chasing something. This sometimes goes on until you lay your head down that night. Just hanging on for dear life, unaware of where the hell you’re going and what you’re feeling from minute to minute. You feel frazzled during the day, uneasy every second, and then completely baffled at the end of the day wondering “What just happened??” I too have felt that and found myself in an exercise this morning that changed the game for me. While I have love and respect for my go-to Peloton meditation instructors Anna Greenberg, Ross Rayburn, and Kirra Michel, Aditi Shah blew my world wide open this morning. In this episode, I share the exercise that transformed my mental and emotional clarity and how I combined it with a recent article I read on how we should be more specific when describing our emotions. The pairing of these two has brought me an immense amount of joy and energy and I had to share it with you.

We live in a distracted society, full stop. With our attention span being at that of a goldfish, it’s no wonder there studies galore about how our focus and productivity is being demolished by the day. Consider these statistics: CARLETON UNIVERSITY SURVEYED 1,500 PEOPLE IN SIX ORGANISATIONS AND FOUND THAT, ON AVERAGE, THEY WORKED 47.2 HOURS A WEEK AND SPENT 17 OF THOSE HOURS ON EMAIL. EMAIL INTERRUPTIONS INCREASE EMPLOYEES TIME ON TASKS BY ONE-THIRD. THE AVERAGE OFFICE WORKER IS PRODUCTIVE FOR ONLY THREE HOURS A DAY. 36% OF MILLENNIALS AND GEN Z ADMIT TO SPENDING TWO HOURS OR MORE CHECKING THEIR SMARTPHONES AT WORK. Source: Sereneapp.com So, if you’re a motivated, goal-achieving person, how do you battle these odds? Simple, starve your distractions and feed your focus. In this episode, I share some top tips on how to reduce (or eliminate) distractions from your day to strengthen your focus, energy, and productivity. All of these tips provide instants lifts and cost nothing to achieve. As mentioned in the episode, I am also sharing my go-to work focus playlists on Spotify. Feel free to use and follow as I’ll be updating these. House Focus - Instrumental chill/tropical house music for a good focused groove. Brain Food - Experimental electronica created to spark your focus and creativity. Best Classical for Work - The classics to make you feel focused and help you create that creative masterpiece.

It’s not often that you hear the words harp, piano, metal, gothic, and award-winning in the same description of someone, but here we are. Lindsay Schoolcraft is a one-of-a-kind musician and talent. Her music is the perfect blend of beauty and emotion with some haunting, darker tones. She combines her classically trained voice and talent with the energy and power of metal music. To see her perform and listen to her messages in music is an absolute game-changer, to talk to her and get to know her is a blessing. In this episode, we discuss her musical upbringing, her passion for storytelling, and how she blends her unique sound to capture the hearts and minds of millions. We also discuss the critical nature of discovering your voice in the world and not being afraid to own who you are and how you feel. This approach has allowed her to have a genuine connection with people and fans all of the world and she shares messages on how everyone can own their story and connections in the world. She also shares how the pandemic affected her work style and how it’s opened up new opportunities to perform and to coach and consult other musicians. You can learn more about Lindsay on her website, Instagram, or Patreon. You can also follow her Spotify channel to hear her amazing music. It’s such a special opportunity to mark 150 episodes, on my birthday, with one of my favorite singers and people in the world!! Thank you for all your support! About Lindsay Juno Nominated Lindsay Schoolcraft composes and performs Ethereal Gothic music exploring orchestral soundscapes and heavy metal. From the small city of Oshawa, Canada, LINDSAY is a hauntingly enchanting Singer, Harpist, and Pianist, and was presented with the 2021 Oshawa Music Award for Artist of the Year. Releasing her own solo work since 2010 with the debut full length metal album Martyr, co-written by Grammy Award Winner Rocky Gray (Formerly Evanescence), releasing in 2019, and her harp-driven, orchestral offering Worlds Away in 2020.  Her music is elegant and yet powerful, delivering a compelling sound fuelled by raw emotion. Lindsay’s style prevails effortlessly through every composition whether focusing solely on orchestral instrumentation or delving into the realms of heavy music. Lindsay received her musical education from established vocal instructors, the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto), and briefly at York University for Opera and Theory studies. She continues today to study in the fields of business, musical theory, and music production. Lindsay works with a wide variety of artists and different sub-genres in metal. She has recently featured on gothic-metalcore hitmakers MOTIONLESS IN WHITE’s “Cyberhex”, hardcore outfit CANCER BATS’ “Hail the Acoustic Destroyer”, black/folk metal artist MYRKUR’s single “Rivers Blessed” on harp, and released “Stolen Light” with Sarah Jezebel Deva. Lindsay embraces the creativity of musicians around the world leading to the production of some extraordinary collaborations.

What is the best version of yourself? Before you give that answer too much thought, I want you to also stop and ask yourself, “When was the last time I invested in my own clarity and confidence?” What I mean by this is that we are typically running on the treadmill of life; exhausting ourselves and not going anywhere because we get caught up in the day to day of demands. We rarely step off the treadmill just to check in with ourselves and we often miss valuable time and opportunity because of that. I spent the morning in longer meditation than normal and wound up taking a class from Aditi Shah of Peloton. It was a class called “Peak Performance” and the mentality that she shared with me was transformative and I couldn’t wait to share it with you. This episode will transform how you view the best version of yourself and allow you to free yourself from the mental restraints that yourself and others have placed on you.

Stress, worry, and anxiety can make you feel like you’re wandering around in the dark with no direction. While these times feel like they take forever and there’s not an end in sight, they truly are temporary; just a page or two in the story of you. To increase your self-management and emotional intelligence, do these three things: 1. Remind yourself that this is temporary. Knowing that a finish line is out there somewhere will clear your thoughts. 2. Find 1 thing to have gratitude for. It’s the little positive steps that walk us out of the dark. 3. Reach out to a supportive friend. They can help you find your way out. For more information about booking me to help your company, conference or cause as a keynote speaker or consultant, please contact rich@richbracken.com. You can learn more about me at richbracken.com

If you’re like most of us, you have ups and downs, ebbs and flows of life that may find you in a place of stagnation. Maybe you’re feeling over-protective of yourself, afraid to step out of your comfort to try something new or go after a goal or change you’ve been wanting to pursue. Just kidding, we’ve ALL been there. That’s why this episode is a bit different than most. In this episode, I share my thoughts about digging deep within yourself, to that place that blends your purpose, determination, and resilience to turn and face your fears with a smile. Whether you’re battling self-doubt, insecurity, or you’re just flat out scared of change (most of us are) this is absolutely for you. Take a listen and know that I’m cheering on what’s about to happen for you!

Way before I was a speaker and podcaster, I was a DJ. It started as a semi-fluke when I was a 15 year old and became one of my favorite things in the world for the following 25 years. Avicii, Kelly Rowland, Roger Sanchez, Betty Who, were some of the brilliant names I performed with during my career and I got to play for crowds in Chicago, Vegas, Miami, London, Boston and scores of others. What I will say is that for those who think DJing is just pushing a couple of buttons (ok for some people pretending to be DJ’s it is) it is a much more complicated scenario than you think. In this episode, I share 5 of my life lessons that DJing taught me that have carried over into my personal and professional worlds. These educational opportunities provided me clarity on my self-worth, personal branding, communication, and relationship management. As a bonus, I’m excited to share one of my favorite mixes that I did a few years back that has still held up well. Even if you call all dance music “techno” there will be some familiar songs remixed in here. So whether you are reminiscing on a time where I got to play for you, or you just need some motivation to move your body, I hope you enjoy it.

Life is tough. Even before the pandemic, millions were dealing with issues that affected their emotional and mental well-being while keeping their feelings to themselves.    Even with the conversation around mental health and self-care becoming more prevalent, there are still way too many people keeping themselves in the dark, out of fear, embarrassment, or sheer confusion on what to do.   It's time we open the blinds of our mental house, to let the light in and shine light on what we need help with.   This conversation encourages you to reach out if you're struggling, or if you know someone who might be.   For more information about booking me to help your company, conference or cause as a keynote speaker or consultant, please contact rich@richbracken.com.   You can learn more about me at richbracken.com  Thank you for stopping by!

Life is tough, challenging, and can throw you for a loop when you least expect it. This existed before the pandemic and has become a mental and emotional dodgeball game ever since. The silver lining is that more and more conversations are happening about self-care, mental health awareness, and how we can be better people holistically every single day. In this episode, I chat with Natalie Ottosen, Founder of Soul Sister Coaching. She is a Certified Transformational Life Coach, Reiki practitioner and Astrologist. She is also a Mother to two amazing children, wife to an adoring husband, and seeker of light and truth. Natalie leverages her knowledge with her experience battling traumas with fitting in, self-love, self-worth, and finding her place in this world. She’s now on a mission to help others like yourself, find your place, your love and your worth. We discuss her path to becoming a Life Coach, how she incorporates energy work and astrology with her clients, the benefits of meditation, and how you can live a Soul Led Life. She offers courses, coaching and a fantastic monthly membership engagement that’s full of value added content at soulsistercoaching.com.

I have always been a proponent of being absolutely authentic on social media; it’s actually why I started this podcast. It’s refreshing to see people bring their true selves to any social platform to share their personality, get their messages across, or just have fun. Nobody does it better than Britney Crosson. As a podcaster, social media company owner, and Peloton/Wine/Comedy social media influencer, Britney quickly became one of my favorite accounts to follow to inspire and entertain me. Her blend of social media tips with hilarious dancing videos (sometimes even on her Peloton equipment) are incredibly fun to watch. In this episode, Britney and I discuss tons of topics including the power of social media, how to step into your authentic brand, and how to balance life as a business owner. You can learn more about Britney at britneycrosson.com and her company Fun Love Media funlovemedia.com. About Britney Britney Crosson is the host and producer of The Social Sunshine Podcast, owner of Fun Love Media, a social media management and content creation agency based in Houston, TX, and the founder of Small Biz Social Society, a membership that helps ambitious entrepreneurs stand out on social media. As a performer from the age of 3 with a total of 30+ years experience on stage and screen, Britney developed a natural love for being in front of audiences via social media. She has used her love of social media and her experience as an actor and dancer to help her clients, membership members and podcast audience to use their existing talents, skills and knowledge to create exciting online content for their businesses. When she's not working hard on her businesses, you can find her having a dance party with her two kiddos or cuddled up on the couch with wine and her husband watching their favorite tv shows.

As you progress to goals, happiness, & success, you will have to make changes. There will be things that remain the same, but some habits, people, tendencies, will have to go. We can not improve our lives by living the same way that we currently are. In this episode, I will share the value of the self-audit to optimize your time, your energy,  and your “emotional gas tank” on the road to success. This will empower you to choose what serves you and provides you with the drive to push through. I will also share a special announcement as part of this episode to show that I’m walking the talk.

WELCOME TO EPISODE #141 OF THE ENRICH YOUR SOUL PODCAST I’m a huge fan of seeing people succeed. It brings me joy to watch people build their presence, their voice, and their success. It makes me even happier to watch it happen to someone I’ve known for a long time. Like, Middle School long time. Erin Lopez is a friend that I’ve known for a long time and in the past several years, I’ve applauded her explosion as a positive personality in the worlds of business, women empowerment, and speaking. She brings a background of success and humility to her energetic social media content and her speaking engagements as she encourages other women to find their own success. In this episode, Erin shares her path to success and what she holds near and dear to her heart that continues to drive her, and support others. We discuss: Her journey to success Her jump from corporate to entrepreneurship Advice to anyone starting a business to invest in themselves The strength of an authentic personal brand How to strike balance in life You can learn more about Erin on her Instagram page at @alopezlifestyle and on her Facebook page and her website www.alopezlifestyle.com. About Erin Erin took her 25 years of the fashion industry along with her business mindset to the world of network marketing. She quickly grew an organic organization in a few short years and became a top earner and leader of the industry. Don't be fooled by her smile, she knew nothing of the industry and was determined to learn every bit of it while claiming her way to the top. Through her social media techniques, unique online tools, she has been able to duplicate her success with her personal team while sharing her secrets throughout the industry. Erin quickly fell in love with knowing that in order to become successful, you have to help others become successful. Successful in business but also in life. Erin is a keynote speaker breathing light and motivation regarding true beauty, mindset breakthroughs, stories that move you out of your seat and how success can look on anyone listening. Erin is captivating and brings her positive energy with a clear message, style and innovative ideas to a room. She and her husband live in Houston, TX with their two daughters and two golden doodles . If not hustling, she can be found shopping for her select group of wardrobe clients, playing on Tik Tok with her tweens and reading the latest edition of Vogue.

In life, specifically in social media, we are bombarded with images, stories, videos, and other “proof” of success in others. Whether it’s the luxurious vacation sunset, the new car, the growing business, or some other form success example, there are so many who are trying to show their rank. And why not? I’m sure they deserve what they’ve worked hard for. But have you ever felt yourself caught up in the image? Frustrated that it’s not you taking the picture of the sunsetting on the ocean, or the crowd, or the car? Have you ever allowed yourself to doubt your own success or journey based off something you’ve seen? Of course you have, we all have. In this episode, I share some insights based off observations and self-experience on how success may look one way esthetically, but there’s always a story behind it. Everyone’s definition of success is different when you look at the full picture. They may be traveling a ton for work, but what is that doing to their family life? How do they balance it? They may be driving a fancy new car, but what nights have they missed or how much sleep have they lost in the pursuit? So when you consider the full 360 view, what does success look like to you?

In our lives, we will constantly be bombarded by change, uncertainty, and challenge. But when we embrace who we truly are and are open to growth potential, we can withstand anything that comes our way. Stacie Wimer is a perfect example of that. She is the host of the Man Shopping Podcast, her own venture into the unknown of sharing her stories as a divorced, single mom, re-entering the dating scene. In her podcast, she bares her soul, her heart, and her bashfulness at times, so that women and men, single or married, can find their own self-appreciation in the midst of finding love. In this conversation, we discuss: Why she started the podcast and what type of response it’s gotten What she’s discovered about herself in the process How her podcast has helped her open up a strong line of communication with her teenage daughter How her vulnerability and self-acceptance journey has helped so many discover their own needs You can learn more about Stacie at https://manshoppingwithstacie.com or on Instagram @stacie_wimer. About Stacie Stacie is an unabashed 43 year old twice divorced single mother of an amazing teenage daughter and the best black lab shelter mutt ever. She is a pharmaceutical & medical device sales professional by day and a writer, podcaster, cooking & baking enthusiast by night. She is a true extrovert with a passion for helping people. Born and raised in rural Missouri, Stacie graduated from the University of Central Missouri with a degree in Organizational Communication and Business management. After spending several years living in Minnesota, Kansas, and Georgia, Stacie calls Kansas City, Missouri home.

What are you holding on to? We all have things that we are carrying consciously, or subconsciously, that constantly drain us or weigh us down. Previous struggles, impostor syndrome, fears, doubts, negative interactions. We leave that door open behind us to let those negative voices continue to restrict us from moving forward. This prevents us from maximizing our potential and sharing our gifts. In this episode, I will share a couple of tips on how you can not only identify what those things are that hold you back, but how you can drop them, leave them behind, and kick open the doors in front of you.

When you think about the road to success, what does it look like? Chances are, it’s an inclining path which gets harder as you get closer to the top. But, if you zoom in and look closer, there are many ups and down, cliffs to climb and fall off of. It’s never the same for any two people, and these fractures in the the straight line can come at any moment. So, how to you keep moving up? In this episode, I share some insights that I’ve learned and witnessed over the years of how to navigate these changes in trajectory while also keeping your eye on the finish line. For more information about booking me to help your company, conference or cause as a keynote speaker or consultant, please contact rich@richbracken.com. You can learn more about me at richbracken.com Thank you for stopping by!

Impostor syndrome is a momentum killer. In certain scenarios, it will prevent you from even starting a new project, goal, or achievement. It's that feeling that we are not worthy of what we achieve or that we might not be qualified enough for certain recognition. If you've suffered from this, you're not alone. Studies show that 75% of Americans have been halted by impostor syndrome at some point in their life. But what if you could use the problems caused by impostor syndrome to your advantage? In this episode, I give you three ways that you can turn this horrible status into your advantage! For more information about booking me to help your company, conference or cause as a keynote speaker or consultant, please contact rich@richbracken.com. You can learn more about me at richbracken.com Thank you for stopping by!