Mind Body Garden

Late starts and missed moments of opportunity are easy to blame your procrastination on, but I've found the most important thing is to keep pressing onward. You can't beat yourself up over what you did wrong, you just gotta keep moving forward and accomplish the next things on your list. We either want it all or want nothing - what is that all about? Set your intentions and most important goals for the day and find a way to make it happen 👊

Morning routines are either put on a pedestal or dragged through the mud, but I've been having great success with my routine and it's helped me build on my goals by being consistent. Today's episode talks about the importance of setting an intention for something you HAVE to do - for me that is writing my Morning Pages. Morning Pages are a stream of consciousness writing designed to get you out of creative funks and enhance your creativity. I talk about why I think morning routines are important for me and how writing and art is a form of therapy because of the expression and exploration of emotions that happens. What are you morning routines and how do you stick to them?

After being at a trade show from Wednesday to Friday, I didn't think I would be doing much the rest of the weekend - but I'm so glad I did! Saturday I went indoor rock climbing at Urban Krag in Dayton with my brother Adam. We didn't know what to expect but we ended up having a blast, just climbing and playing like little kids 🧗‍♂️🧗‍♂️ Needless to say I think we found a new hobby and activity we can do together besides lifting 🏋️‍♂️ hiking 🥾⛰️ and video games 🎮🕹️ Other than that me and Kyla went out to eat with friends on Sunday and are finally following through on our resolutions to hang out with friends and family more this year. Hope you had a great weekend and have an awesome Monday! 👊

Day two of MANTS was another great one and even busier than the first day! I felt much more on top of my game after getting a full night's sleep and had a full day of talking shop and networking with growers and suppliers. Today's episode talks about the connections I made, the importance of trade shows and networking, and I came away with a few business ideas for Gardening 4 Gains as well. The show may be coming to an end but that just means the growing season is getting closer and I can't wait to get plants in the ground!

It's a late one podcast today but that's because I had to wake up before 3am to catch a flight to the MANTS Mid-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show. Today's episode is a recap of day 1 of the "masterpiece of trade shows" on its 50th anniversary. I talk about what I like and dislike about trade shows, my mission at shows, and why MANTS is the best show in the industry.

Today's episode is focused on the importance of morning routines and how I'm using mine to unlock creativity. Recently I began the practice of mindfulness meditation and I have also started a creative course called The Artist's Way which involves writing "morning pages". Morning Pages are done every morning upon waking and essentially is a 3-page stream of consciousness writing - no topics, no flow, no sense-making necessary. The important thing is to Do, to write despite what the Censor in your head tells you. What do you do to unblock yourself creatively? Have you ever tried Morning Pages or read The Artist's Way? Would love to hear your thoughts on what gets your creative juices flowing 🧘‍♂️👨‍🎨👨🏻‍💻👨‍🌾

It may be January, but that doesn't mean the garden isn't on my mind! In today's episode I talk about the crops that I am focusing on growing: tomatoes, bell peppers, potatoes, root veggies like carrots, turnips, and beets, and then lettuce, spinach, leafy greens, and herbs. Last year I wasted a lot of space by testing out veggies that took up space, and didn't perfect up to expectations. I believe that my focus on succession planting will ensure a continuous harvest of greens, while the focus on long-term storage veggies like carrots, potatoes, turnips, and beets will ensure that we will have a continuous supply of those hearty veggies for customers.

The next step for my garden is to lay out the full propagation plan so that I can understand the planting dates, space required for each crop, potential yields & harvest dates - and to figure out how many people I can feed from my 1,000 square foot backyard urban garden. This year I am putting much more focus on building my business & the products/services I offer. Currently my main product is the CSA (weekly veggie subscription box which I call the CropBox), but I want to expand into apparel, and ancillary gardening products - or maybe a product of the garden like herbal teas & spice blends.

Also, today's episode was the first time I have recorded with a professional microphone - the Yeti Blue. I haven't listened back to much of the audio, but excited to take the podcast game to the next level!

Either way & needless to say - I'm super psyched to grow Gardening 4 Gains in 2020!

For the past few years I have actually written down my resolutions and I believe it helps me achieve the goals that I set for myself. Not only do I write them down, but do a monthly check-in to see how I'm doing and redirect course as needed. In today's episode I talk about how having an open mind is critical to allowing yourself set goals and to pursue them. I also talk about my resolutions ranging from daily rituals of mindfulness meditation and writing my Morning Pages to things we want to do to the house. Do you set resolutions every year? How do you hold yourself accountable?

We started 2020 off with a bang 💥 I asked Kyla to marry me in Tawawa Park on New Year's Day - and she said yes! It was a long time coming but everything worked out perfectly from the weather to the sunset and her beautiful reaction 🤗 so excited to spend the rest of my life with my soul mate 👩🏻‍🌾👨‍🌾

Last week I attended the Great Lakes Expo in Grand Rapids. This show is more focused on fruit & vegetable production and the small farmer looking to diversify their operations to create more opportunities for profit and attracting customers. Typically my main goal when attending trade shows is to find new suppliers or products, but there is just as much, if not more, value in attending the education sessions. In today's episode I talk about the education sessions I attended, some things I've learned, the ROI of those insights and trade shows in general, and some new types of crops I want to plant for the CSA next year as a result 🌼🌻🌺🌹🌷