The Convenient Counselor

This episode encourages you to stop and ask "am I living my life in auto-pilot?" Authenticity is key to fully experiencing your life, and it is easy to slip into automation instead. Listen in how I learned this quite recently!

*This will be the last episode for 2019, as Grace in Progress will be taking a holiday break - new episodes will begin again on Wednesday, January 8th, 2020!*

We all have many different types of friends (acquaintances, coworkers, neighbors, etc), but this episode dives into a special type of friend that I call a "mat carrier," based on the miracle story in Mark 2. Learn what this important friend looks like with 5 characteristics of a mat carrier, and how to recognize/apply these characteristics in your life.

Bible verse:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%202:1-12;&version=NIV

Maybe it doesn't quite feel like "the most wonderful time of year" to you - it's the beginning of December, and you might already be approaching holiday BURNOUT. Listen to this episode and learn six steps to avoiding total holiday burnout (or at least taming it a bit!) and have a more peaceful, grace-filled Christmas this year!

Helpful info:

https://nypost.com/2018/11/20/1-in-3-americans-get-holiday-burnout-before-christmas/

1.Take care of your body
2. Check expectations
3. Find YOUR why
4. Communicate your desires
5. Seek info from those close to you
6. Give yourself grace

It seems only natural to be thankful for the positive things in our life - but have you ever taken a moment to reflect and be thankful for the not-so-great moments in your life and their impact on who you are today? This type of "gritty gratitude" can help you potentially rewire your brain and appreciate those moments in a new way!

I'm challenging listeners to come up with three of these in the week ahead - Happy Thanksgiving!

Article referenced:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/prefrontal-nudity/201211/the-grateful-brain

What would you in two months tell the you right now about the upcoming holiday season? Use this quick and easy self-talk practice to "reflect" on what lies ahead.

Reflection prompts:

I know going into the holiday season, you were feeling _________________.

And you decided to really focus on _________________.

I wish you would have focused a little more on _____________________, but I'm proud of you because you _____________________.

Continuing from last week's episode of "rethinking self-care," episode 11 explains the three types of self-care: Self-Soothing, Self-Repair, and Self-Maintenance. Learn how these work as well as some realistic examples of using this in your life!

What pops into your mind when you think of the word self-care? In this episode we dive into what self-care is NOT, as we start to rethink about the topic overall. This is part one of a two part series!

Reference:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+11%3A28-30&version=MSG

Who have you spoken life into lately? Whose day have you turned around with the nice words you've shared? This episode discusses the power of our words towards OTHERS, which is a slight change from the usual introspection of this podcast. :)

Info referenced:
https://www.reviewtrackers.com/reports/online-reviews-survey/
https://twitter.com/iamkidpresident/status/508249108893937664

Presets are the "knee jerk" reactions or automated thoughts you have in a situation...from your alarm going off in the morning, to when someone questions your judgment. Are you aware of the dialogue going on in your mind on a daily basis?

Learn about recognizing, naming, and replacing (if needed) these presets that shape your everyday life in this episode.

Have you ever had those moments where you think, "oh I don't want to forget this" or "I wish there was a way that I could remember more of this?" In our culture of constant notifications, never ending to-do lists, and looking foward to the next thing on our calendar, it is difficult to be fully present in our lives. 

Listen and learn this easy practice to tap into all five of your senses...not only to keep yourself more grounded, but also to help you brain retain the memory even more!