FINE is a 4-Letter Word

Meet Elaine Blais, a certified life coach who specializes in empowering women to reclaim their personal power through the art of self-approval. Elaine has a unique perspective on life, having spent much of her own journey pleasing others and trying not to be difficult. Through her own experiences, she has come to understand the power of embracing all aspects of oneself, even those that may be perceived as "difficult." Now, she is passionate about helping others do the same, by writing a new story for their lives. Elaine believes that being a "difficult" woman is not only acceptable but powerful and she is here to support and guide you in your own journey of self-discovery and empowerment. So if you're ready to step into your power, join Elaine as she shares her insights and guides you toward living the fullest version of yourself.

Guest’s hype song is Be Who You Were Born to Be by Bliss

Resources:

• Website: elaineblais.com
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/elaine-blais-lifecoach
• Facebook: facebook.com/elaine.b.blais
• Instagram: @elaineblaiscoaching
• Join Elaine’s upcoming class, The Art of Self-Approval: elaineblais.com/selfapprovalintro

Today’s episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. If you’d like to find peace of mind amidst the chaos and no matter what’s going on around you, you’ll find a whole bunch of free resources, like meditations and articles at ZenRabbit.com. And while you’re there, if you’re curious about how you might stop working so hard and achieve more success at the same time - get a copy of The Five Easy Ways to Start Living a Sabbatical Life. It’s a short guide to working less and living better. Find it all at ZenRabbit.com.

Joe Kelley is a self-proclaimed life hacker and head honcho at Obtaining Mastery, a company dedicated to helping people reach their potential and achieve true mastery in life. He's a lifelong learner who loves to explore the world and uncover life's secrets. Joe has dedicated his life to helping others unlock their potential and unlock their greatness. His passion for learning and teaching has led him to write books, create courses, and lead seminars and workshops around the world. He loves to learn new skills, challenge himself, and share his knowledge with others. Joe is a firm believer that anyone can achieve greatness with the right guidance and motivation. He is always looking for new ways to share his knowledge and help people reach their goals.

Joe had a family background of firefighters, nurses, and police officers. His dad wanted him to join the police department, so he decided to use his athletic ability to do something where he didn't have to sit behind a desk. Joe got a job with the Department of Children and Family Services and after six months, he got into the police academy. He found out quickly that it was not exactly what he had envisioned as a child because of all the extra stuff that comes with it. He ended up getting addicted to pain pills and losing his job. The chief offered him help, but Joe felt like he was being set up to be fired and kept his problems to himself.

We talk about his dramatic tale of burnout from overworking, leading to drug addiction, divorce, and eventually jail time. Thankfully Joe’s story doesn’t end there, as he gained the tools and coping skills to change his outlook and turn his life around. His book, Badge, Bars, to Beyond, tells his story while also giving tangible tools to apply to your life today.

Guest’s hype song is Eye of the Tiger by Survivor

Website: www.obtainingmastery.com

Book: Badge, Bars, to Beyond

Facebook: www.facebook.com/badgebarsbeyond

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/joe-kelley-255b29137

Today’s episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. If you’d like to find peace of mind amidst the chaos and no matter what’s going on around you, you’ll find a whole bunch of free resources, like meditations and articles at ZenRabbit.com. And while you’re there, if you’re curious about how you might stop working so hard and achieve more success at the same time - get a copy of The Five Easy Ways to Start Living a Sabbatical Life. It’s a short guide to working less and living better. Find it all at ZenRabbit.com. 

Ileana is a master of transformation and a free spirit, world traveler, and pillar of light. With her background in psychology and human resource management, she uses her many challenging life experiences to help others find fulfillment and inner peace. She is an adventurous, loving, passionate speaker, lightworker, and inspiring role model who loves nature and animals. Her greatest joy is helping women become strong, confident, and empowered individuals. Ileana has a strong value base focusing on kindness and generosity of heart, which has led her to do work to empower women. We discuss how programs such as Ileana's can help people work through difficult times, and that it is important not to go through it alone. She shares the details of her sabbaticals and how the lessons she learned from them still shape her decisions today. Lastly, we break down the importance of self-care and some powerful mental frameworks for prioritizing it in your life.

Ileana’s hype song is Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars

Website: www.empoweredwomennow.com

Follow Ileana on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ileana.rontea

Connect with Ileana on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ileanarontea/

Today’s episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. If you’d like to find peace of mind amidst the chaos and no matter what’s going on around you, you’ll find a whole bunch of free resources, like meditations and articles at ZenRabbit.com. And while you’re there, if you’re curious about how you might stop working so hard and achieve more success at the same time - get a copy of The Five Easy Ways to Start Living a Sabbatical Life. It’s a short guide to working less and living better. Find it all at ZenRabbit.com. 

Dave Houser calls himself “The Finance Nomad,” and he helps people create a life of fulfillment on their terms. He’s a proponent of taking time away from work, also known as sabbaticals. We discuss how stepping away from work and focusing less on business can actually attract more business opportunities, finding purpose in the things you do every day, and finding the clarity you need to figure out what it is you want to do. He also shares how even the most skeptical workaholics can find the time, money, and motivation to take a sabbatical themselves.

Guest’s hype song is Highway to Hell by AC/DC

Connect with Dave on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dave-houser-1247451bb or Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dave.houser.5/ 

Today’s episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. If you’d like to find peace of mind amidst the chaos and no matter what’s going on around you - or if you’re curious about how you might stop working so hard and achieve more success at the same time - get a copy of The Five Easy Ways to Start Living a Sabbatical Life. It’s a short guide to working less and living better. Find it at ZenRabbit.com. You’ll also find a whole bunch of other free resources there as well, like meditations and articles.

Thanks for listening to the show in 2022! As we head into a new year, I'm sharing 5 ways to prepare yourself better than setting outdated resolutions. Because resolutions feel like ultimatums, which aren't welcomed by anyone.

1. Consider WHO you'd like to be, instead of what you'd like to accomplish.
2. What are the values you'd prefer to live into? Get the list of values I mentioned HERE.
3. Eliminate the word WANT from your vocabulary. (It's not so easy and you'll hear it slip into my conversation a few times on this one!)
4. Think about how to incorporate more fun into your life. And while we're at it, how about making "how can I?" your default question in any situation.
5. What will you START doing? And equally important, what will you STOP doing?

I share this quote in presentations all the time:

Let's get ready for an amazing year ahead! And remember to get your copy of the “5 Easy Ways to Start Living the Sabbatical Life” at ZenRabbit.com.

Is hell freezing over? After 30 years of talking about it, my college friend Steve and I have finally gotten into a studio together and recorded a show.

In the premiere of this new segment, which we'll likely name "And That's What Happened," we get Steve's equipment unboxed, meet Cal the cat, and hear about his adventure at Bass Pro Shops. We're also talking World Cup and what it has to do with how Steve and I met.

Want to know what your fave college team is not doing if they've having a losing season? Steve has the answer.

It's all fun and games here - and no one gets hurt!

Want to see the video recording? Head over to the ZenRabbitVideo channel on YouTube to watch.

Also, if you'd like to have more time to relax and reset every day, go grab your copy of the new guide, "5 Easy Ways to Start Living the Sabbatical Life" at ZenRabbit.com.

Why hasn’t there been a new episode in so long? Great question!

The real, answer is I got a little burned out on putting it all together every week. I got to the last interview of Season 2 and kept telling myself I had to record this last wrap-up episode and then let a whole bunch of other things get in the way.

In Season 1, all the interviews were with very cool women. You got to hear all their vulnerable stories about being stuck in a place where they said everything was fine but it was not even CLOSE to fine.

Then in Season 2, I mixed in some stories from incredible men who were willing to open up and share their stories of living through fine/not fine times. The diverse perspectives were fascinating to me. And proof that yes, men and women are different, but I saw that much more in the choice of hype-song than in the feelings and experiences around living in Finesville.

Humans are humans. Our souls naturally strive for growth and expansion and are designed to live in joy, gratitude, and love. When we’re not allowing ourselves to live that way, it causes all kinds of dis-ease. (More about the topic of allowing further into the show.)

In Season 3, we're going to talk more about the topic of Living the Sabbatical Life. And how to take your own own sabbatical. Or create a sabbatical life, that allows you to live every day like you're on sabbatical. That doesn’t mean not working. It means consciously creating a way of living that supports doing what you need to do and having plenty of time to relax, enjoy life and recharge. So that when you sit down to work tomorrow, you’re not burned out, stressed out, and unable to focus from overworking today.

You end up being more creative, focused, and guess what? More successful – however you choose to define success.

There’s a lot of reprogramming that goes on here. Rewiring of the brain. You’ve heard me talk about that a bit. You’ll hear even more because this is how you go from feeling like life is chaos to feeling calm and grounded and joyful.

To help you with this, I created a short guide called 5 Easy Ways to Start Living the Sabbatical Life. You can get it for free over at ZenRabbit.com

And stay tuned for the new, monthly And That's What Happened live segment with my long-time, most hilarious friend Steve.

Today's episode is sponsored by Blonde Beard's Buffalo Sauce. Checkout their reasonably priced gift packs for all your holiday giving. Use code LORI20 to get 20% off your order at https://blondebeards.com/

My guest on today’s show is badass business owner Keri Sicard. For several years, Keri commuted 4 to 7 hours A DAY to her job, where she struggled to fit into a toxic work environment. For most of that time, she thought SHE was the problem. Then she realized the business model was broken. So she set up her own practice and created a healthier, more sustainable atmosphere.

In this episode, we’re talking about finding the belief in yourself, the three most valuable people to have in your posse, and morning routines, which I’m convinced more than ever are crucial to having a good day.

Keri brought up the importance of shedding the shoulds, which was a topic originally mentioned by my very first guest on episode 2 in the first season - Dara Goldberg. If you haven’t heard that one yet, go back and find it.

I’m excited you’re here to learn from this mom of 3, racecar driver, who is passionate about turning businesses’ ideas into valuable assets. and adamant about honest, truthful lawyering.

Keri’s hype song is Roar by Katy Perry

Website: www.virtualipllc.com

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/keri-sicard

Today’s episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. If you’d like to find peace of mind amidst the chaos and no matter what’s going on around you, get on a complimentary call with me. In less than 30 minutes, you’ll get insight on any issue you’d like to bring to the table. And you’ll leave the conversation with clarity and renewed energy. Find the booking link here. Or text me at 571.317.1463.

And if you’re not into chatting just yet, you can go to ZenRabbit.com to find free resources, like meditations and articles.

From the moment I met Billy Lahr, I knew he would be someone I’d want to stay in touch with. I wish he lived locally so we could hang out together because he is inspiring, smart, and hilarious. I’m so happy to have him as a guest on today’s show.

He was home in the States when we recorded this, but as you’ll hear, he’s gone back to live in Korea again this month. In this one, we’re talking about finding and settling into a sense of clarity, living and lingering in the gray area of life, and Billy’s strong stance on the phrase “everything happens for a reason.”

If you’re up for some laughs today, keep listening.

Billy is currently the host of The Mindful Midlife Crisis, a podcast for people navigating the complexities and possibilities of life’s second half. Billy spent 21 years as an educator but became disenfranchised the last half due to budding mental health concerns and unrelenting social media harassment from students.

In 2021, Billy left his job as dean of students to travel the world in search of more meaningful life experiences. After an emotional breakdown in Korea, Billy’s path in life became crystal clear. Since then, he’s been focused on navigating his own midlife crisis more mindfully and helping others do the same by using his life experiences as a guide for others to reflect, learn, and grow.

Today’s episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. If you’d like to find peace of mind amidst the chaos and no matter what’s going on around you, get on a complimentary call with me. In less than 30 minutes, you’ll get insight on any issue you’d like to bring to the table. And you’ll leave the conversation with clarity and renewed energy. Find the booking link here. Or text me at 571.317.1463.

And if you’re not into chatting just yet, you can go to ZenRabbit.com to find free resources, like meditations and articles.

Billy's hype song is Refuse/Resist" by Sepultura

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billylahr/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Mindful-Midlife-Crisis-Podcast-106476821546123

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mindful_midlife_crisis/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MindfulMidlife

Here's the meditation Billy created for Fine is a 4-Letter Word.

And you can listen to Billy interview me on The Mindful Midlife Crisis here.

Today’s guest is Joe Bravo. As with many of the fantastic people in my network, Joe and I met through LinkedIn. I’m telling you, it’s not just an online resume place where people pitchslap you all the time. You can make valuable connections there!

Joe and I are talking about living through and learning from traumatic situations, how pain is a great communication tool, and the role complaining has in growth. Joe also shares how he’s used authors, historical figures, and fictional characters as role models when he hasn’t had an appropriate role model physically in his life.

Joe Bravo is a senior brand ambassador for a company called Get Staffed Up. They provide virtual assistants to lawyers and other types of business owners all across the United States and beyond.

He says he started as a broken man, moved his way up to healthiest unemployed person ever. Today he’s finally able to share his story and what he learned from it!

Today’s episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. If you’d like to find peace of mind amidst the chaos and no matter what’s going on around you, get on a complimentary call with me. In less than 30 minutes, you’ll get insight on any issue you’d like to bring to the table. And you’ll leave the conversation with clarity and renewed energy. Here's the booking link. Or text me at 571.317.1463.

And if you’re not into chatting just yet, you can go to ZenRabbit.com to find free resources, like meditations and articles.

Joe's hype song is The Alan Parsons Project's Sirius

Website: https://getstaffedup.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joebravo/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GetStaffedUp

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getstaffedup/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Getstaffedup1