I could have the health that I was desiring. It was up to me. If I believed it, I could have it. And I didn’t have to do it alone.

On this episode of the Plan Simple Podcast, I’m doing something a little different. I celebrated my birthday recently, which is a time of reflection for me, and I decided I wanted to share my story in a different way. Nine years ago, I was an exhausted, uninspired, fat, workaholic mom of three kids under five. I hit a wall and knew something had to change.

I had no idea how profound the changes in my health, happiness, family, spirituality, and work would be.

Today I’m focusing on three key lessons I’ve learned in the past nine years, and talking with two of the people that I’ve learned from and with too!

These are the core lessons I’ve learned:

1. Change starts with me, but I can’t do it alone.
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5. I have a lot to learn – and there are so many people who can help me.
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9. Accountability by friends can make a huge difference.
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I’m going to talk about all of these today because I think we all need these lessons, and even if we’ve learned them, we need reminders. (Myself very much included!)

Believe in the Change You Want

When you’re ready, you know it. And all you have to do is take the first step. I had no idea how I was going to change, all I knew was that I was ready to do whatever it was going to take to not be tired, not feel yucky, not feel like a bad mom, not have so much extra weight on my body …

I met one of my mentors, Taylor Wells, the next day, and she gave me my “last diet.” She had me eat real food. Lots of fruits and veggies, nuts and seeds. But besides the food, Taylor taught me a bigger lesson: That I could believe that I could have the health that I was desiring. That was up to me. If I believed it, I could have it.

Taylor shares these bits of wisdom:

• I believe that when you feel something in your heart and it resonates ... go with that.
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• What you focus on, grows. Choose to focus on things that make you feel good.
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• Stop arguing with your limitations. Tell me what you can do, what you love, what you want.
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• Whether it’s creating a vision for yourself or starting a morning routine, start where you are, any way that you can. Just start.
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Mentors Matter

After Taylor got me on my path, I got really excited about learning. I found so many teachers and mentors (you’ll find a lot of them in the links). Nina Manoloson taught me to cook. And she taught me the 10.10.10 Method. The idea that scheduling 10 minutes for something for you makes a huge difference.

From there it was like a web of meeting people. One person led to another, and I found that what I needed kept showing up in my life when I needed it. I learned so much about food and family (and bringing the two together). As I explored the idea of bringing kids along for the ride, I found Kim John Payne and integrated a lot of his simplicity parenting ideas.

I learned about blogging and organization and abundance. And just when I realized I was creating an expensive hobby, I found Marie Forleo and B-school and learned how to love marketing. She also taught me that everything is figureoutable. Through B-school, my circle continued to widen.

Get an Accountability Buddy

I eventually ended up doing a year-long program...