I’m not carrying around a story in my head that I’m busy, I don’t have enough time, that I’m unhappy. I’m choosing to bring the energy to everything of “I have time, I have space, this is what I have chosen, and thank you more please.”  – Alexia Vernon

On this episode of the Plan Simple Meals Podcast, I’m so excited to talk with Alexia Vernon. She’s somebody I know outside of this show, and she’s the person behind any reason that I stand on a stage with any amount of confidence. She helps people get over their fear of public speaker to stand in their own spotlight. She’s also the mom to a 3 ½ year old. We start out talking about balance.

To me it seems like Alexia is doing the dance of the ebb and flow of time between family and work. She says that things adjust seasonally, though what she is doing now isn’t what she was doing a year ago or will be doing a year from now. Right now, she’s in the midst of a shift as she works on a book.

And that shifting and morphing isn’t new. When her daughter was born, she moved from a very travel-intensive business to an online business that worked better with her life. I love seeing how different people make things work.

We talk about:

the problem of underestimating the help you need

how the self-care we choose and fit in can change in different seasons of our life

not getting stuck in our stories

reverse engineering timelines for goals

having a day during the week when you don’t work

making simple meals

BIO

Alexia Vernon is the go-to expert for helping TEDx speakers, entrepreneurs, executives, online experts, business professionals, educators, and creatives get over their fear of public speaking and deliver their spotlight talks. A motivational speaker focused on heart-centered and high impact communication, values-driven leadership, and women’s empowerment, Alexia not only cultivates the voices of thought leaders, she is one.

LINKS

www.hotshotspeaker.com

Spotlight Speakers Salon on Facebook

Find Alexia on social media @AlexiaVernon

Doable Changes from this episode:

WRITE DOWN HOW LONG THINGS TAKE. A lot of us underestimate how long thing take to do right. That means we get frustrated because we don’t get things done in time or our schedules get off as we scramble to finish. Try taking notes on how long it really takes to do something. Use this the next time you are planning.

STOP SAYING I’M BUSY. Busy can be a state of mind. If you are too busy, it may be time to take something out—or it may be time to change your mind. If you really want to be doing everything you are doing, stop saying you are busy. Say, “I have time. I have space. I choose this.” See if that shifts things for you.

MAKE SIMPLE MEALS. Meals don’t have to be complicated or fancy to be healthy and tasty. Pick a few things that you can repeat again and again. Meals that don’t have a lot of prep—like Alexia’s salmon with coconut aminos, brown rice, and veggies—make getting dinner on the table less stressful so you can enjoy dinner time more.

REALLY getting healthy as a family can be a big lifestyle change. But no matter how insurmountable it may feel, focusing on one doable change at a time can help you take small steps toward your big goal.

A healthy lifestyle is really made of lots of little things that when repeated regularly and added together over time make a huge impact on your life.

Choose one Doable Change every Sunday night — one thing that you are willing to play with for the week. The key is to keep it doable and fun! Write that thing on a sticky note or your phone so you remember it. Then put 3 things on your calendar that support it.

Choose from the changes above or download a list of 101 Doable Changes we made for you.

http://plansimplemeals.com/101-doable-changes/

If you are as psyched as I am to grow veggies on a patio this summer and indoors all winter, you are going to want to check this out! I have watched friends have these for years, and am so excited to have my own! (Psssst… There are amazing curriculums that have been created by the company, to make these a no brainer for schools too!) Read more here, or contact, [email protected] to learn more, and set up a free 20 minute phone Q and A.