Reflecting on why the phrase “success leaves clues” has always felt incomplete to me.

And how looking at **your own life** tells a much truer story.

Join me to noodle on:

• Self-defined, context-dependent definitions of success (of course)
• Presence, inhabitation (fave word of late), and feeling alive as core measures of success
• Using memory and imagination as tools for grounding in the present
• Time as feedback, not pressure
• How past experience and future desire can inform this moment (without getting stuck in either)

A philosophical yet practical take on paying attention to the clues your life's leaving AND letting that guide how you show up today.

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In case you're allergic to religion and/or language that leans woo:

When I say "spirit" - I mean that non-physical life force that animates us.

The undeniable breath and energy that leaves the physical building on our last day in this form.

Spirituality, then, is defined as what brings us to life. What gives us the truest most powerful energy.

In other words: our highest values. Our telos. THE thing that matters most to you.

(That we uncover and refine every quarter in our What Matters Workshops.)

We define spirituality in this way because it's grounded, personal, and usable.

More in the episode, and those to come. ✨

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PRACTICE.

My word o' 2026. (I usually resist words of the year, but this one came through loud and clear at the end of last year.)

I'm sharing this not for external accountability but for shared humanity, in case you're naturally nosy curious like me and love behind-the-scenes documentaries:

My plan is to record and publish 52 episodes for On Her Terms® in 2026, each corresponding with the 12 monthly themes I've laid out for myself and my clients behind-the-scenes.

My filter: If I could only share 4-5 notes on this topic, what would they be?

(In theory I'll lather, rinse, repeat, and continue to expand the living library year after year till I run out of breath or things to say, whichever comes first ;))

Letting this feed continue to serve as evidence of my humanity and evolution of thought.

An audio archive / public notebook where I'll continue to share useful reframes and insights for you and for future me.

In the ep I share more about my "ideal" recording conditions and how today was exactly not that, which turned out to be pretty perfect anyway.

I'm quite curious how having a regular publishing cadence (new for me 🙃) will impact my own energy, creativity, etc.

I'll take notes and park the overflow in my clients-only feeds. The restraint will be a practice in itself!

First theme: SPIRIT in January.

Meet you there.

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

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We made it to episode 100! 🎉

All those extra zeroes before episodes 0–99 were officially worth it.

In this episode, I revisit the year-in-review practice I created last New Year’s Eve, and how this year taught me the value of returning to it far more often than once every 365 days.

Taking time to reflect on what has mattered most to us -- what we lived, learned, and still feel sparky revisiting-- is never wasted time.

Especially when we use that insight to inform what happens next.

Why wait until the end of our days—or our 100th birthday parties—to look back and take stock of what a life well spent actually looks like?

I’m learning to shorten the feedback loop while I still have the chance to make shifts, course-correct, and choose more deliberately.

Minimizing regret and maximizing enjoyment in this lifetime - the #onherterms way.

Join me.

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

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A metaphor upon which we can hang our open tabs and mental laundry with more grace and a lot less guilt.

We care about a lot - our work, our people, ourselves.

And we know life doesn’t happen in neat lines.

More like spirals, squiggles, and polka dots.

The carousel of progress* visual shared in this episode gives us a way to see and welcome that.

It helps us look forward to what’s coming, be more present with what’s here, and appreciate what’s already passed and quietly making its way back to us in perfect timing.

In other words: it’s a visual model for chilling TF out about not being able to do and care about everything all at once.

What if we could relax, knowing the things that matter are present and accounted for? Bobbing and weaving, but not lost.

Just waiting for the moment when we actually have the desire and capacity to meet them.

Life in layers.

A rhythm of return.

Part of our growing #onherterms visual values language -- from recycle emoji, to the lazy Susan, to baggage claim, now this.

Tune in for more, and let me know what resonates.

*Title used metaphorically, of course. No affiliation or endorsement implied. But if you know someone...

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

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A through-line of 2025 and beyond.

We're exploring how thoughtful prep can make a moment richer and more meaningful, not less.

This lesson was inspired by a tagline brainstorm for Holidays On Her Terms—a field guide designed to help my clients (and me) create holiday experiences we actually look forward to, enjoy in real time, and love to look back on.

To me for a long time, prep felt sterile, boring, and overly controlling.

I believed that as an info artist (my mental label for what I do), I needed to protect spontaneity.

There does need to be room for spontaneity, of course. But I’ve come to see that it's often a *byproduct* of preparation, not its opposite.

Muscle memory creates space for real presence.

We don't have open loops or mental energy wondering what's about to pop out from behind the corner.

Less anxiety, more presence. Less distraction, more playfulness.

When I’m prepared, I can actually be where my feet are.

Acting, dance, firefighting, medicine, performance of all kinds (even improv has its own guidance!) - prep is useful and important. We know it!

But it's easy to resist it so strongly in personal lives - creative work, finances, even social connections.

Instead of thinking of it as rigidity, I'm thinking of it as care in advance.

It’s how we create the conditions to show up more embodied, calm, and available vs. troubleshooting chaos in real time.

(Which is probably why I love behind-the-scenes documentaries so much. Hello, Eras Tour. The magic isn’t accidental.)

More prep, more presence.

Try it on and let me know how it fits.

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

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if you cringe at the thought of adding another thing to your calendar (yet hate the feeling of "that was TODAY?!" schedule surprises)...

if you relish the thought of rolling around in white space (till you find yourself lost in a scroll or clown-kerchief of chats you'll forget by tomorrow)...

Hear me out on this one.

Scheduling is devoting.

When we take time to actually pre-commit to what truly matters most, we're designing the lives we wouldn't trade for anything.

We get to fill our plates with what we want.

We get to add margin and buffer where we know we'll need it.

We get to make clearer decisions and say an easy thanks but no thanks when something would feel too crunchy, because we've already filled that space with something that matters more.

It's not restriction. It's reverence.

You're a powerful creator, and the calendar is your canvas.

What do you want yours to look and feel like in the new year?

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

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Next time you're in rush mode, try this thought on for size:

"I have all the time that I need."

Best case: It's TRUE! And your brain will start searching for evidence to make it so.

Worst case: It will at least help you feel a little better while you're speeding from this to that.

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

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The pace is the point.

When life is fuller, (some) things take longer.

Instead of feeling sad about that (which is, of course, human and allowed), what if we choose to see this as the scenic route™?

We're not forcing patience or settling for a slower pace.

We're focusing presence and savoring it.

When we remember to, anyway ;)

This has been one of my biggest lessons of 2025. I didn't realize how often I was comparing my pace to my 10-year-ago self, who had 1-2 kids and a husband who was gone most of the time.

I now have three kids, at three different schools and stages of development, a husband who works from home most of the time, and a budding knowledge of perimenopause and what I can do to keep my knees strong for my Nana years.

This is a very different daily setup.

And it's I used to DREAM of. Thankful for the moments I can remember that.

The pace is the point on the scenic route.

May we appreciate it for what it is, as deeply and as often as possible.

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

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Inspired by a game I’ve been playing with my gas tank this year.

If abundance = having what we need when we need it… where could we gift that to ourselves proactively?

Adding a buffer to the baseline – in the gas tank, the savings account, the retirement account, the toilet paper or fave family cereal stash – helps quiet a lot of unnecessary survival noise.

It's a very practical (and underrated) form of self-care.

Example that sparked this field note: This year, I started refilling my gas tank closer to the halfway mark vs. waiting for the final 1/8th of a tank (or last 11 miles, with a car full of kids en route to or from school 🫠). Why do that to myself when filling up earlier is an option I'm grateful to have?

Aside from the first half-tank reset ($30ish max in Texas at the time), filling closer to half doesn’t actually cost more. It’s just more frequent, quicker stops.

But the margin I feel when I see my tank as more-than-half full gives me a little boost every time I notice it. ⚡️

That compounds.

Running on fumes happens. We know this.

And it’s not a moral failure.

I'm suggesting we reframe it as a math problem or a design challenge instead of a total surprise.

Some moments in life are genuinely out of our control. Sick kiddos (selves, parents, etc.). Unexpected job changes. Extreme weather.

Let’s save our “running on fumes” budget for those moments, and design more margin everywhere else while we can.

📮 Thoughts? Qs? Requests? Share with me here in the comment box >> onherterms.com/convo

❤️ Loving this episode? Tap the menu to share with a friend or three!

📱 Are we connected on IG? Join me there @nikkielledgebrown and tag me in a screenshot as you listen.

👑 Want my pro support in bringing your ideas to life while valuing your fam and your well-being? Click here to tell me more.

🎧 This private pod magic is made possible by Hello Audio.

(I'm obsessed. And an affiliate. >> nikkielledgebrown.com/helloaudio. 10/10 recommend.)