You Don't Need a Guru

You can find me online at www.rorschachyourreality.com or www.instagram.com/hannah_hassler. Let's connect!

Welcome to Season 2!

My hope is to get to the heart of creativity. 

In that pursuit, this season will contain conversations all about how creativity can be used to expand your world. 

From guided visualizations, interviews with folks who use creativity in their daily lives, and real life conversations about creativity in business - it will all be here! Offering these perspectives on creativity is so important to me, and I can't wait to hear how you're inspired to utilize them in your own life!

In this episode, I discuss some ways creativity has come alive in my own life, and leave you with this question for yourself --

How will you use creativity to expand your world?

Melanie is a multitude of things! Her passions include movement, writing, speaking, and mentoring others on their journeys.

This multi-passionate career wasn’t her starting point, however. Melanie spent over 15 years climbing the corporate ladder. A few months after high school she entered the workforce as a young single mother. As part of a career program, she got an office job and was off and running. Along the way she attended night school to get her college degree.

Long hours at work, staying up late to study for her college courses, and being the best parent she could be were draining. At some point, Melanie believes she lost sight of not only who she was, but also who it was possible for her to be. There wasn’t a lot space for conversations or thoughts about what she “wanted”. Instead, each day was jam packed and left little room for contemplation.

Melanie believes that now, at age 41, she’s finally had the chance to pause and consider what she wants to be when she “grows up”. In a way, this was thrust upon her - she was working 40 hours a week at a corporate job, while also running a yoga studio on the side. She was struggling to make it all financially feasible, and then within a few months, she closed the yoga studio, which is also where she had been living, and unexpectedly lost her job.

She feels the universe cleared EVERYTHING off her plate and effectively helped her hit reset. With a clean slate, Melanie took a good long look around and started making changes.

This catapulted her into an international move and the space to finally complete her book, which was sitting with a publisher at the time of this recording and is now available on Amazon!

Even though these changes were difficult, Melanie has nothing but gratitude for the changes she experienced during this time. She was good at her job, but she’s glad she left. She feels that, like many humans, she was stuck in her routines and habits. The gift of actually contemplating (and then acting on) your desires is amazing! Melanie knows that if she hadn’t been let go by her job, it would have taken her much longer to ever leave.

What part of you feels “stuck” in a certain position or way of being? How can you start moving towards freedom today?

Who you are as so many layers, and Melanie hopes to help others discover (or rediscover) who they really are.

During this interview, Stacey shares openly about many of the stages in her own journey. These included raising a son with a chronic illness,  working her way into her dream career position, and ultimately leaving that role to protect her own health. You can learn about self-care, dealing with the pressure to be perfect, and navigating career change in this informative episode.

I appreciate her candor, her positive outlook, and the twists and turns her journey took!

[Quick Note: If you’re specifically interested in Type 1, Type 2, Type 1.5, or double diabetes (yes, these are all real!), you’ll want to tune in at minute 21 for Stacey’s quick PSA on diabetes diagnosis and types. Crazy interesting!]

Stacey Simms’ new book is called The World’s Worst Diabetes Mom. She has a podcast and blog that inform, educate, and connect families that have children with diabetes. Ultimately, she shares that connections are what she is most passionate about.

Why “world’s worst” as part of her book title?

Stacey has noticed that parenting in general comes with a HUGE amount of pressure — everything from what schools your kids get into, to what you pack in your kid’s lunch (and how it looks, of course). And when your child has a diabetic diagnosis, you’re measuring so many additional variables on a daily basis, which adds a whole other level of striving for perfection.

While in an internet “discussion” with a women who strongly disagreed with parenting choice she had made, Stacey fired back with “Well, I guess I’m the world’s worst diabetes mom!”. After the heat of the moment cooled, she realized there was something in that statement that resonated.

The philosophy she devised? Give up the fight for perfect parenting!

Stacey shares that her son’s diagnosis occurred in 2006. The iPhone didn’t exist, and Facebook was only for college students. There weren’t all these “voices” sharing tips and advice…or condemnation and criticism. Once social media became accessible, she appreciated the opportunities for getting new ideas, helpful tips, and the support of people who were in the journey with her was amazing. On the flip side…getting judged by strangers on the internet who disagreed with her choices and were quick to share all about it was a new struggle.

Stacey realized that pre-internet she didn’t know she was “supposed” to feel guilt about some of her parenting decisions, so she didn’t. She also realized that giving her son independence and some level of “normalcy” was really important to her.

During these early stages of being a parent and having a young child with a diabetes diagnosis, Stacey had her dream job. She absolutely LOVED it. She also realized that it was draining her, and wasn’t going to be sustainable in the long run. The straw that broke the camel’s back was her own diagnosis with ulcerative colitis.

Her solution? Ultimately, she left. Even though it was a hard decision, she absolutely new it was the right thing to do. While talking about the transition from her full time position, I really appreciated that Stacey acknowledges the privilege that allowed her to make these transition choices. Everyone’s journey looks different, and the choices available to every individual are going to be different.

To learn more about how Stacey navigates change and implements self-care, listen in to the full episode.

How is your brand like a budget?

Well, sitting down face to face with your money can be STRESSFUL....but once you know where you stand, you can finally make plan and start moving forward.

When you haven't updated your brand in a while, it can be overwhelming to think of sitting down and facing up to what's working and what's not. However, you NEED to do it! After all, you can't improve it if you aren't clear on existing strengths and weaknesses. Right?

If you haven't been keeping up with the workbook, I'd challenge you to consider if it -

1. Isn't a priority because it truly doesn't need to be.

2. Isn't a priority because you're scared of what you'll find. ("Scared" may show up like dread, defiance, "I don't even care", or general avoidance.)

And if it hasn't happened because you're dreading that actual act of making it happen, trust me....

It's not that bad!

And once you've done the audit, you'll have such a load of stress stripped away.

Long story short:

Ready?

Grab the audit, and join the FB group.

Get into the FREE group today -- everyone who joins and comments on the welcome post before Saturday, December 14th is eligible to win prizes that include a $197 brand call, a $57 audit, and a $27 Amazon gift card.

Interested?

https://www.facebook.com/groups/moveyourbrand/

And if you haven't grabbed your copy of the workbook yet, you can get it here:

freebie.createbrandmagic.com

http://bit.ly/brand-audit-2 

Are you ready for your brand to do more for you than just look pretty?

We are too!

No matter where you are in your journey, we would encourage you to complete this brand audit. As you work through each part of the 4 piece workbook, you’ll have the chance to explore your processes and enhance your brand.

This week, we’re all about mission and core values.

As you learn to break the tangibles (the “doing” part of your business) apart from your values and mission, you’ll find that there is something bigger and deeper that acts as the driving force behind your business decisions. You’ll learn how to set your compass to true north, and to venture into your journey with confidence - even it you’re pivoting, expanding, and easing back.

Want the workbook?

You can grab the amazing, FREE brand audit here!

Want more support & connection?

Join the FB group!

PS - Curious about co-founder Madeline Adamson? Read more about her!

Your brand needs to do more for you than just look pretty. (I mean...otherwise what's the point?)

If you've had a pivot, a shift, or a couple new offerings since you last did your brand work, you may be a bit out of alignment.

If you did all your brand work yourself, you may have a few gaps.

If you never really did any foundational brand work at the start of your branding process, you may have never had an aligned message to start with.

Whatever applies to you....

You need to check out this amazing, FREE brand audit to make sure you have the foundation you need to amplify your clients and conversions in 2020.

Ready?

Grab the audit here: 

http://bit.ly/brandauditpart1

And join the FB group here:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/moveyourbrand/

Brandy is practicing law full time as she grows her speaking & coaching business.

She attributes her own personal self-love journey to the discovery of her calling and passion, and is excited to empower other women in the same way.

I love her honesty as she shared about the reality of being in the beginning stages of leaving a stable career with solid benefits. (Especially when your education and life have all been geared towards achieving your current role!) If you’re wading through the transition yourself, you’ll appreciate her encouragement. You don’t need to have every step figured out, but you do need to create a plan and start taking action. Following your purpose and calling DOES pay off.

Nothing is a wasted experience, especially when it involved educating yourself. Don’t stress about the time, energy, or finances you put in to a certain degree program or certification. Everything you know can be applied, and it will serve you! Don’t hold yourself back from a pivot just because your new dreams don’t utilize your old degree.

If you’re not building your dream…you’re building someone else’s.

Brandy’s site and business is built around the concept of the “self-love challenge”. She believes that you can accept and love yourself even while you’re working on transforming into your best self. She attributes her own yoga experience, and it’s emphasis on slowing down and appreciating your full self, with the start of her growth. In addition, she was reading personal development and self-help books. As her mindset began to shift, she started actually implementing what she was learning.

The Self-Love Challenge was born as the culmination of all of these personal transformations! (And it started as a squat challenge!)

When you commit to loving yourself wherever you’re at, your self-love will only continue to grow.

Listen in to hear the full interview!

And you can find Brandy online at https://brandymwilson.wixsite.com/theselflovechallenge.

Hailey is a business coach for coaches who want to book more clients and hit their first 5-10k months.

She is passionate about working with coaches who struggle with limiting mindsets, as well as addressing the thought patterns that are holding them back from living out their full potential. She also believes that many certification programs don’t always provide the business foundation necessary for success. Her own background in business development and marketing helped her when she kicked off her coaching business, and she loves to help other coaches develop systems and foundations as well.

Hailey left her own coaching business to pursue her dream job…and 8 months later was let go, along with her entire team. As she rebuilt her business, she recommitted to never giving up on having something of her own again.

Wondering about getting certified?

Hailey shares that it isn’t technically “required”, but advises that it can certainly be helpful and increase your own confidence. She cautions that you shouldn’t put every dime you have into the certificate portion however; remember to budget for actual business needs and development too! There’s more to becoming an actual coach than just getting certified as one.

It’s selfish to keep your message to yourself. People need that! Rather than getting caught up in your head and stressing about what people are thinking — show up!

Create a mission that is bigger than the mess-ups and mistakes. Stop trying to be perfect, and put your ideas out into the world! Get comfortable with B+ work that is actually in the world (that’s way better than A+ work that only exists in your brain).

If you’re trying to start building your confidence, Hailey believes in taking action. The more you do, the braver you get! If you’re at least 40% sure that you could get a positive result by giving something a try — then DO it! As an entrepreneur, you have to become decisive. Give yourself permission to go for it, and quit waiting for someone else to tell you you’re “allowed”.

Really hung up on a negative message? Ask yourself, “What else is true?” Look for all the evidence as to why you CAN succeed, you CAN be confident, you CAN move forward with courage. (She knows saying it is easier than doing it…but you have to do it if you want it to work!)

Hailey does NOT believe in balance! (Listen in to the interview to hear about her philosophy on this!)

My favorite advice - don’t wait! The best time to start building new habits and changing your life is NOW!