The meaning of meaning choosing happiness courage creativity freedom peace personal growth

I was kind of a nerdy kid, and sometimes for fun I would read my dad's dictionary (you're learning a lot of fun facts about me here 😅). I still love to dig into definitions and think about how they connect with what I'm learning. 

Exploring the word meaning is an interesting exercise. It appears as t...

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Trying to be someone you're not courage enough faith freedom personal growth potential

Some criticisms are pretty funny if you actually look at what's true. One of my favorites is, "it's like you're trying to be someone you're not."

Um... exactly. 

How else are we going to become stronger, wiser, kinder, more generous, more powerful, more true, more fearless...if we only try to be who ...

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Strong enough to show up tired courage enough freedom motherhood motivation personal growth

I stayed up later than I wanted to last night, watching TV with my husband. While I was glad to have that 1:1 time, I regretted the decision this morning. Then I remembered a song I heard, "I can do it with a broken heart," (T.Swift) and I decided I was strong enough to do today tired. It was shocki...

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What if choosing happiness courage creativity faith fear freedom potential trust

Anxiety and possibility are closely related. Both use the imagination, and both can be identified by one question: 

What if...?

The difference between anxiety and possibility, then, is what the What if question is combined with.

What if + fear = anxiety (what if the stove catches on fire)
What if + hat...

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Working in drafts courage enough freedom motivation peace personal growth trust

There's nothing wrong with working in drafts. In fact, it's actually recommended! Make a solid attempt, step away, and come back to it with fresh eyes and new input. It'll get better and better with each pass. Progress is enough.

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30 minutes from now courage faith fear freedom motivation personal growth practical tips productivity

When you're attempting something new or stretching outside of your comfort zone, it's really easy to put off doing it... because you just don't feel like it. Your brain is trying to keep you safe and comfy, and it has a lifetime of practice doing it.

I've learned a good response for those thoughts te...

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Taking council from someone else's fear courage fear freedom

It's one thing to take council from your own fear -- not to the point or paralysis, but at least to the point of consideration. After all, your own fear has the good intention of keeping you alive (and you can reason with it, assuring it that you're safe and good to go). 

But what about when we take ...

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Hopeless? courage enough faith freedom personal growth potential trust

If you feel called to "something bigger" but can't see how you could ever possibly go for it, maybe it's not possible for you right now. 

But it's not hopeless, either. 

Do we look at an infant -- unable to crawl, scoot, or even lift her own head -- and think, "Well, shoot. This one's hopeless. She'll...

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"Or" is old school co-working with kids courage creativity freedom money well-being work+life

My client and now dear friend, Gail, has a fantastic new blog called "Real Talk." I'm thinking of adding a category with that name in her honor, and this will be its inaugural post. 

For this post, I want you to imagine we're sitting down on the couch, face-to-face, and I'm speaking to you with all t...

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More money, more problems? freedom money personal growth

I realized something important this week. I've been holding a pretty powerful belief about money, without really even realizing it. I made a list of all of the thoughts I had about the topic of money, and all of the "what ifs" came down to one statement: More money, more problems.

I don't even know w...

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Add two dots... enough faith freedom jesus personal growth trust

Sometimes when things feel final it's because they actually are. But more often than not, life continues. Not as we pictured or hoped, but it does continue. And we get to choose what we do from that point forward. 

When we're inclined to see a situation as ending with a period, what if we try adding ...

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What's on the (spiritual) breakfast menu? creativity freedom personal growth productivity

Creating something new requires all of the spiritual and emotional fuel we can get. Scrolling social media or even flipping on the news first thing in the morning drains us of the vital nourishment required, taking our energy and leaving us in a deficit throughout the day.

If you feel stuck or block...

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