Building Psychological Strength

I want you to think back to a time that you had to do something truly hard. A time when you found yourself in really difficult circumstances. A time when a ‘successful’ outcome wasn’t guaranteed, or even at all likely.

How did you judge yourself in that situation?

Did you do what I, and so many other people, tend to do and judge yourself by the outcome of that situation? If things didn’t go smoothly or end up in a good place, did you judge yourself accordingly?

How different would you have felt if you would have judged yourself based on your EFFORT, rather than on the OUTCOME?

That notion came up in this week’s podcast interview with Amy B. Butler, and it stopped me in my tracks.

You see, Amy is a Mitigation Specialist/Dispositional Advisor that provides criminal defense attorneys with assistance in some of their most difficult cases. She helps uncover the whole story behind what an accused person may have done, and she has the difficult responsibility of recommending to the judge how the person should be handled going forward.

She has been involved in some incredibly difficult cases, and the outcome doesn’t always go in her favor.

In my interview with Amy, we get into some amazing topics:

• The importance of radical responsibility

• The role that gratitude plays in moving through difficult circumstances

• The power in judging your EFFORT, not the OUTCOME

I can’t wait for you to meet Amy B. Butler!

As we wind down toward the end of the year, many of us begin taking stock of how things are going.

Does our life look and feel the way we want it to feel?

Have we made the progress we wanted to make?

What changes do we want to make in the coming year?

Many times, the changes we want to make or the barriers we want to get over can feel too big to tackle. We find ourselves feeling stuck because we can’t see a path forward.

If you’ve ever felt like that, this is the episode for you.

In this week’s episode of the podcast, I’m reintroducing you to Dr. Beth Westie. I had the pleasure of interviewing Beth for episode 0025 of the podcast, and in that episode, we focused on her work helping women eat in alignment with their monthly hormonal cycle.

This time was more personal.

This time, Beth and I focused on her personal path from hitting rock bottom in her marriage toward rebuilding her relationship and her thriving business at the same time.

We got into an incredibly powerful discussion about the notion of radical responsibility (taking 100% responsibility for 100% of the situations you find yourself in), and the massive impact that a 1% daily effort can have when compounded over time.

This episode is so much more than one woman’s triumphant story. This episode is a battle cry to every woman who wants to change her life.

You absolutely can change your life.

Take responsibility and do it one day at a time.

The barriers you believe stand in the way of you going after your dreams are merely untested assumptions.

BOOM.

That was my massive take-away from this week’s podcast interview with Jessica Dawson, otherwise known as Halcyon Dreams.

Let that sink in for a second. '

You’re not moving forward because you think other people will judge you? That’s just an untested assumption. You don’t know what other people are going to think (nor should you care, btw). You’re not moving forward because you think some aspect is going to be too hard to learn? Another untested assumption.

This week, as you listen to my interview with Jessica, I urge you to bring forward that big goal you have filed away in the back corners of your mind. Think about the barriers that you believe are standing in your way. Then, ask yourself this:

How many of those barriers are simply untested assumptions?

Then go one question further:

What am I missing out on by assuming I’m going to fail?

This week, you’ll be inspired by Jessica’s story of reinvention. In the last year (in her late 30’s, mind you), she started her fashion blog, landed a modeling contract, became a fashion influencer, and began working with brands like Ann Taylor. She did all of this despite being “too old,” having kids, being married, having a full-time job, and being afraid of what others would think of her.

Today, she is inspiring women to step into their own personal style, and through her blog and Instagram account, she’s making the world a more joyful, beautiful place.

I can’t wait for you to meet Jessica Dawson!

Friends, the Women Inspired podcast is turning 2! I released my very first episode on December 4, 2016, and wow has a lot happened in the past 2 years.

On this week’s episode, I’m going to recap a big transformation that has been happening behind the scenes. This week’s episode is a conversation among friends. I want to fill you in on the direction I see the podcast and my broader work going.

Bottom line: a HUGE announcement is coming toward the end of the year, and I can’t wait to tell you about it.

Leave me a rating or a review on iTunes by clicking here!

Tell me if this sounds familiar: You’ve taken on a big project at work or have decided to chase after a big goal. (Hooray! GO YOU!) As you’re going, you inevitably run into snags, barriers, and your own limitations along the way.

You find yourself floundering because you aren’t sure how to move past those barriers….and the self-doubt kicks in. “See, you aren’t cut out for this. There’s no way you’ll get there - you can’t get past this obstacle.”

Or, maybe you persist and reach out to others for help! Maybe they help you, and you continue to make progress….but the self-doubt kicks in. “See, you aren’t cut out for this. You didn’t have what it takes and had to rely on other people to keep you going.”

We’ve all been there.

This week, I’m going to urge you to take your victory lap anyway!

This week, I’m featuring the incredible story of a group of friends who started a technology company, even though they admit that they aren’t tech-savvy.

This week, I’m chatting with Acacia Sieling and Bre Blakely of Mindful Menu. Their company helps families meal plan, shop, prepare, and eat healthy meals, in spite of our busy lives that can get in the way.

What began as a simple emailed PDF has turned into a fully-functioning app on the app store, and the path these women took to get there is nothing short of an INSPIRATION!

They had an end goal in mind that none of them knew how to reach on their own. With some creative Googling and some help from their friends and family, these 5 friends achieved their dream!

At the end of this episode, I have a special message to you about taking your victory lap, even if you needed help along the way.

Thanks for listening!

Sign up at www.aprilseifert.com to get instant access to April's Life Blueprinting tool! Gain clarity on the areas of your life that are most in need of improvement and start to make changes to design your best, most joyous life!

Leave me a rating or a review on iTunes by clicking here!

Have you ever met someone who stopped you in your tracks? Someone who made you think about and appreciate life more fully?

That happened to me when I recorded this week’s podcast episode.

This week, I’m talking to an incredible woman who has an appreciation for life that is unmatched by almost no one I’ve ever met. And, if you know me, you know how big of a statement that is.

Mettie Spiess lost two brothers to suicide. Now, as you can imagine, these two events shook her family to its core.

However, Mettie did something that many of us probably wouldn’t do. Rather than shutting down, she channeled her love for her brothers into a movement to remove the stigma around mental illness to rid the world of suicide.

I won’t lie, this episode is a heavy one.

However, more than that, this episode is one of hope. Mettie delivers such a powerful message about how precious life is and how important it is that we love and support one another.

Sign up at www.aprilseifert.com to get instant access to April's Life Blueprinting tool! Gain clarity on the areas of your life that are most in need of improvement and start to make changes to design your best, most joyous life!

Leave me a rating or a review on iTunes by clicking here!

Let me ask you a basic question: how important to you are the values of compassion, empathy, and kindness? Pretty important, right?

Here’s another question: when you watch our political process on the news, to what degree do you think our elected leaders are acting out of compassion, empathy, and kindness?

Do you realize that you have the power to impact that? No really. You actually do!

What would this country look like if women got LOUD about the issues we are passionate about? What if we spoke with our voices, our money, AND OUR VOTES?

What if we held our elected officials to a standard slightly higher than we all hold our toddlers to?

• “No, you can’t just take someone else’s things.”

• “We don’t make fun of people and call them names.”

• “When you see someone who needs help, go ask them how you can help them.”

How would this country look if we all voted in alignment with those values? How would it look if we kept in mind the benefit of the entire country, not just the benefit of a few people?

So many times, the values of compassion, empathy, and kindness are ascribed to women, and as a result, they’re seen as soft or weak.

This week’s interview challenges that notion.

This week, we’re talking to Sara Berliner, founder of Vote Like a Mother. She’s here to tell her story of how a small cardboard sign turned into an activism movement that is mobilizing women to change our society for the better.

Listen. Share. And go vote like a mother.

Sign up at www.aprilseifert.com to get instant access to April's Life Blueprinting tool! Gain clarity on the areas of your life that are most in need of improvement and start to make changes to design your best, most joyous life!

Leave me a rating or a review on iTunes by clicking here!

How many hats do you wear on a daily basis? How much responsibility do you shoulder as a result? Do you find yourself rushing from task to task, feeling harried, stressed, and stretched thin as you attempt to get it all done?

So many of us feel this way. We strive to perfectly get everything done, and as a result, we run ourselves ragged.

But, let me ask you this: What are you missing out on because of it?

What if you’re missing out on the small, truly meaningful moments that happen each day? Moments with your family. Moments in nature. Moments when you’re alone.

We each only get 1 life, and those small, meaningful moments are the ones that truly make us feel alive. Yet, we rush past them without giving them the attention they deserve, because we have no attention left to give after we’ve given all of it away to the million tasks we try to single-handedly accomplish on a daily basis.

In this week’s episode, I’m urging you to rebalance.

This week, you will meet a woman who reached her breaking point within her family and went on strike. That’s right, she marched out of her house and sat in her front yard for a week in protest of the unequal balance of duties in her household.

And, in doing so, she and her husband learned more about themselves, about each other, and about the beautiful imperfection of life than they ever thought possible.

This week, I am so happy to introduce you to Nicole Hogan.

From the ashes of her experience on strike, a new project is rising: Housewife on Strike. She is cultivating a community where women can share their struggles and their stories of imperfection in order to give and receive support from one another.

That is the beauty of imperfection.

Sign up at www.aprilseifert.com to get instant access to April's Life Blueprinting tool! Gain clarity on the areas of your life that are most in need of improvement and start to make changes to design your best, most joyous life!

Leave me a rating or a review on iTunes by clicking here!

Few topics make grown women clam up like an open, honest discussion about sex and intimacy.

What’s more, a recent study showed that 62% of women are unsatisfied with their sex lives.

Whaaaaaat?!

It’s terrible to think that a topic that is so basic to the essence of being human is one that we’re so uncomfortable with! This week, we’re tackling that topic with Jamie Thompson.

Jamie is a sex and intimacy expert, and she helps women figure out what it is that they desire and helps them get more of it in their intimate relationships.

Score!

Here’s the thing though, this episode goes way beyond sex. As it turns out, the ability to figure out what you want and then ask for it is a pretty useful and powerful skill for nearly every aspect of our lives.

I’m so excited for you all to hear this open, honest, candid conversation. I know it’ll motivate you to start thinking about what it is that you desire.

Sign up at www.aprilseifert.com to get instant access to April's Life Blueprinting tool! Gain clarity on the areas of your life that are most in need of improvement and start to make changes to design your best, most joyous life!

Leave me a rating or a review on iTunes by clicking here!

Is this all there is? How many of you have examined your life and asked yourself that exact question? Be honest.

The thing is, many of us shared at least some of the following life goals:

• Graduate from college

• Score a great job & start climbing the corporate ladder

• Get married

• Buy a house

• Have a/some kid(s)

Maybe you didn’t have all of those goals, but you certainly had your own list. And, after we achieved our list of goals, many of us found ourselves looking around wondering, is that it? Is there no more to life?

So many of us can easily fall into that trap of thinking, “I’ll be happy when…” but the thing is, many times, it’s the journey that makes us happy. It’s the feeling that we have something we’re striving for. It’s the passion that comes from working toward something meaningful.

This week, we’re talking about that very topic.

As it turns out, we never stop searching for meaning in our lives. As soon as we achieve a goal, many times, we feel the void open because, we never lose the urge to strive for meaning. And here’s the kicker: the way we derive meaning is different for each of us.

This week’s episode is a giant permission slip. Stephanie Pierce and I are giving you permission to take the time to really think about who you are, what makes you happy, and permission to go after it.

Stephanie Pierce is an HR Director in Talent Management for General Mills. She recently took a sabbatical from her job to pursue her passion of bringing women together to make meaningful connections and find support in a diverse group of women.

Sign up at www.aprilseifert.com to get instant access to April's Life Blueprinting tool! Gain clarity on the areas of your life that are most in need of improvement and start to make changes to design your best, most joyous life!

Leave me a rating or a review on iTunes by clicking here!