One week out from the 20th anniversary of the Pumpkinman Triathlon & Running Festival, Rachel’s brain has approximately 847 tabs open.

In this FIO Friday, Rachel shares one of the simplest tools she uses when everything feels urgent and the to-do list feels impossible: First Things First.

Rachel shares how she mentally walks through the experience of producing a 1,000+ person event to separate what absolutely HAS to happen from all the things that would simply be nice to do. She also talks about brain dumps, unfinished tasks, distractions, and why figuring out what needs to happen next can quiet the “brain tornado” that comes with an overwhelming workload.

Whether you're juggling work, family, a big deadline, or just too many things at once, this episode is a reminder that you don't have to figure out everything right now.

You just have to figure out what comes first.

This week’s FIO Move: When you catch yourself in a brain tornado, ask yourself:

What absolutely has to get done right now—and what can wait?

Then start there.

→ Follow Rachel and FIO Friday on Substack: https://rachelmartinmaine.substack.com

→ Register for the Pumpkinman Running Festival: https://runsignup.com/Race/ME/SouthBerwick/PumpkinmanRunningFestival

Stay curious and keep figuring it out.

Episode 64, and I'm recording it sweaty from my sauna because sometimes showing up doesn't look polished. It just looks like getting it done.

This week I'm talking about why being real matters more than ever in a world where we can edit, filter and polish almost everything, including ourselves. I've missed weeks, changed things and figured this podcast out as I've gone, but I keep coming back. Maybe that's the point.

Your FIO Move of the Week: catch yourself editing who you are for someone else's approval, and choose the real version instead.

Less polish. More you.

Follow me on Substack too for more FIO Friday, the things I'm figuring out along the way, and what's coming next:
https://substack.com/@rachelmartinmaine

As Pumpkinman celebrates its 20th anniversary, Rachel reflects on why we spend so much time looking back at our accomplishments instead of asking what they make possible next.

In this FIO Friday, she shares how experience, relationships, and even mistakes become the foundation for a bigger impact and why the best question you can ask isn't "What's next?" but "What does everything I know now make possible?"

If this episode resonates with you, read the companion essay and subscribe to FIO Friday on Substack for weekly reflections and practical ideas to help you keep moving forward.

https://substack.com/@rachelmartinmaine

Stay curious and keep figuring it out.

A race. A book. A podcast. A community. The Lenz. I thought I was building separate things. I'm starting to realize they're all connected.

In this FIO Friday, I'm sharing what I've been noticing about curiosity, connection, belonging and the thread connecting everything I'm building.

The question I keep coming back to is: What could we figure out together?

Come along for the journey. Subscribe free on my Substack and stay curious.

Rachel

Rachel is back from an intentionally quiet summer with a new series: Lessons I'm Collecting. In this first installment, a Noah Kahn concert at Fenway Park becomes a powerful reminder that people don't remember what happened, they remember who they became. She shares why every race, business, and event is just the vehicle, the real work of creating belonging, and one question that changes how you lead, parent, and show up.

Rachel shares the two-decade-old phrase that rewired how she handles anxiety: see things how they are, not worse than they are, then control the controllables. She breaks down the brain dump method that turns a spiraling mind into a clear action list, and gives this week's FIO Move. Want more like this every Friday? Join FIO Friday: https://thefiomindset.kit.com/d33acbd37e

ORDER THE FIO MINDSET book here: https://a.co/d/0d5I39xQ

What if you could see a transcript of everything you complained about today — and had to read it out loud to someone?

Gary V dropped that challenge this week and Rachel Martin couldn't let it go.

In this episode, Rachel connects that question to something she watched unfold in her own backyard: South Berwick's 9th annual Tuskegee Sister City gathering — a decade-long project built entirely on one decision to ask "how do we make this better?" instead of "why is this so broken?" The result? Musicians collaborating across state lines, hard conversations held with love, and 45 people sitting down to dinner in the rain because that's what happens when you choose building over complaining.

This is the FIO flip in real life.

Rachel breaks down why awareness is always step one, why this isn't toxic positivity (Rachel Hollis said it best this week), and why the shift from "why is this happening TO me" to "how is this happening FOR me" changes the energy you carry, the results you create, and ultimately — the life you build.

Your FIO Move: catch yourself complaining once this week. Flip it. Watch what shifts.

New episodes every Friday. Join the FIO Friday email list at thefiomindset.kit.com/d33acbd37e.

The most meaningful things in Rachel's life — Pumpkinman, Race Across America, the Tuskegee sister city project — had zero master plan. Just a feeling, and a first step. This week, Rachel shares what's happening in her hometown this weekend, why your next big thing doesn't need a blueprint, and the one move you can make in the next 48 hours to stop waiting and start. FIO Move included.Want this in your inbox every Friday? Join FIO Friday at thefiomindset.kit.com/d33acbd37e

Rachel missed two weeks — but has been incredibly intentional. In this episode, she breaks down the glass balls and rubber balls framework: some things in your life shatter when you drop them, while others simply bounce.

Rachel shares what was pulling her energy over the past two weeks (Hazel's fourth surgery, Rick's Run's 10th anniversary, a moving her son back to Boston area, Tuskegee weekend, a tummy-time moment with the twins she would not trade for anything) and how asking "glass or rubber?" helped her stop carrying everything with the same white-knuckled grip.

Practical, personal, and exactly what you need if you're trying to hold it all together right now.

FIO Move: Two columns. Glass Balls | Rubber Balls. Ask yourself what would happen if you accidentally dropped each thing on your plate. The answer will change what you say yes to this week.

Want more episodes like this delivered straight to your inbox every Friday? Join FIO Friday at https://thefiomindset.kit.com/d33acbd37e

Your brain is answering questions all day long. The problem? Most of us are asking the wrong ones.

This week I'm talking about the power of expansive questions, how your RAS (reticular activating system) locks onto whatever you tell it matters, and why swapping "why am I stuck?" for "what is one move forward?" can change everything.

Plus, I'm giving you a 7-day challenge to catch your thought patterns and flip them.

🎯 FIO Move: Notice. Stop. Rewrite.

Send this to someone who needs to hear it. Follow the show so you don't miss a Friday.