September 15, 2025 • 34 mins
Have you ever felt that quiet tug toward something greater? A whisper so subtle you might miss it amid life's constant noise? That inner voice holds the key to your authentic path, if only you'd slow down enough to listen.
In this deeply reflective conversation, Anita Adams guides us through the process of distinguishing true inner wisdom from fear-based thinking. When your soul speaks truth, you'll often experience a feeling of expansion, excitement, or lightness that feels different from ego-based resistance. She shares a beautiful guided visualization practice for connecting with your higher self, whether you're in nature or not, and explores the three essential questions that form the foundation of self-discovery: Who am I? What do I want? Why does it matter?
The interplay between movement, nature, and self-acceptance emerges as a powerful catalyst for meaningful change. Observing the "imperfections" of the natural world offers profound metaphors for embracing our own uniqueness. This process isn't merely self-improvement; it's what Anita calls "soul care," a deeper practice that ripples outward to transform our relationships and communities.
Join us for this soul-nourishing journey that might just inspire you to step away from the noise, lace up your walking shoes, and discover what your own inner wisdom has been trying to tell you all along.
About Anita Adams
Anita Adams, bestselling author of Whispers of the Soul and creator of The Wisdom Way, empowers individuals through a transformational approach to conscious living and courageous leadership. By integrating nature-infused strategies, she helps people connect with their higher selves, develop deep inner listening skills, and gain clarity of purpose to create a life of meaning, well-being, and joy.
www.joyfulinspiredliving.com
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I'd LOVE to hear from you! Send me a text!
Heart of Motion Podcast host Susannah Steers is a Pilates & Integrated Movement Specialist and owner of Moving Spirit Pilates in North Vancouver, BC. She is passionate about movement, about connections and about life.
Through movement teaching, speaking, and facilitating workshops, she supports people in creating movement practices that promote fitness from the inside out. She loves building community, and participating in multi-disciplinary collaborations.
Along with her friend and colleague Gillian McCormick, Susannah also co-hosts The Small Conversations for a Better World podcast – an interview based podcast dedicated to promoting the kind of conversations about health that can spark positive change in individuals, families, communities and across the globe.
Social Media Links:
Moving Spirit Pilates Instagram
Moving Spirit Pilates Facebook
Susannah Steers Instagram
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Susannah Steers (00:00):
Welcome to the Heart of Motion podcast.
I'm Susanna Steers and I'll beyour host as we explore the
heart, soul and science ofmovement as a pathway to more
active, vibrant and connectedliving.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves, so let's get started.
Welcome to the Heart of Motion,where we explore the heart, soul
(00:22):
and science of movement.
Motion where we explore theheart, soul and science of
movement.
I'm your host, susanna Steers,today.
I'm thrilled to welcome AnitaAdams.
Anita is the best-selling authorof Whispers of the Soul and
creator of the Wisdom Way.
She empowers individualsthrough a transformational
approach to conscious living andcourageous leadership.
By integrating nature-infusedstrategies, she helps people
(00:45):
connect with their higher selves, develop deep inner listening
skills and gain clarity ofpurpose to create a life of
meaning, well-being and joy.
Anita and I first met not toolong ago thanks to Donna
Cravatta and her Real 50 Over 50project.
As Anita and I spoke that firsttime, I felt a connection,
(01:06):
maybe a kind of synchronicity inour work, and I knew I had to
connect to talk about it somemore.
So here she is.
Welcome to the podcast, Anita.
Anita Adams (01:16):
Thanks so much, Susannah.
It's so great to be here and,yeah, I felt that connection too
.
It was like, okay, this is likea soul sister and we need to
keep this connection going.
So thank you for the invitationto be on your show.
This is so wonderful.
Susannah Steers (01:29):
I want to dive right in.
Your work centers on listeningto the whispers of the soul,
connecting with inner wisdom andliving authentically.
What does inner wisdom mean toyou?
Anita Adams (01:42):
It means tapping into our true self, really
quieting the noise out there andlistening to what's within, and
I feel we have forgotten, manyof us have forgotten how to do
that and turn outward, tosociety, to others, to you know
(02:05):
figures in our life, to themedia, to be given direction on
how to live, how to be, what todo, and in the process we really
lose ourselves.
So my mission is to help peopleslow down, tune out all of that
(02:26):
noise, unplug and then plug into self and plug into nature,
actually because I find andunderstand who we are,
understand ourselves and thenmake choices that are aligned
(02:50):
with who we really are.
So that's inner wisdom, that'stuning in, to listen to our
inner compass.
Susannah Steers (02:57):
What inspired you to go down this road, to
start thinking about things thisway?
Was this something that youwere always interested in?
How did you get to this and howdid it shape your own journey?
Anita Adams (03:07):
Yeah, thanks for asking.
I've been somebody that's tunedin a lot for many years of my
life, but it really came to acrossroads, I guess, when I was
the founder and executivedirector of a national arts
organization and chaos struck,as it struck many with the onset
(03:28):
of the pandemic and with thateverything was shaken to the
core.
My organization was supportedby government funds and sponsors
and investors and all of asudden they all pulled out,
everybody pulled out, and I wasfreaking out, to put it mildly.
(03:50):
I was freaking out and I had astaff across the country that I
was responsible for and suddenly, you know, it was all pulled
out from underneath me and Ineeded to figure out what I,
what I was going to do.
And I would ask everybody whatam I supposed to do?
What am I supposed to do?
Because I was just so, soscared about this reality that
hit me and I brought thatquestion to my business coach at
(04:13):
the time and Lisa Marie Platsky, somebody I deeply respect, and
she asked me well, anita, whatdo you typically do when you're
stressed?
I'm like, well, I usually gofor a walk in the woods.
She's like perfect, here's whatyou're going to do every day
for the next 30 days.
You are going to go for a walkin the woods.
I'm like what?
Give me a break.
What kind of business coachtells her clients to go for a
(04:36):
walk in the woods?
I need business advice, notnature therapy.
But she really pushed to get meto do this.
She knew that this was mine todo, and that's one of the things
I love about Lisa Marie she isso tapped in and she listens to
the divine, the divine within,and she understood that what I
(04:59):
really needed was to unplug fromthe kick, the crazy, the chaos,
because I could not.
I could not understand my mynext steps, because I was so
wound tight that I needed tostep away.
And so I did.
I stepped away and I went intothe forest and every day I was
(05:19):
you know this raised to the sky.
What am I supposed to do?
Like, I was just so stressed.
But over time I started torelax, I started to calm my
nervous system, I started toreally connect with the
beautiful environment around meand I started to feel this inner
peace and I even started tofeel grateful for all of this
(05:43):
environment that I was immersedin and grateful to Lisa Marie
for getting me out in this, inthese woods and in this higher
state of being.
I asked again what am Isupposed to do?
And that's when I heard thewhispers within really speaking
to me.
When I heard the whisperswithin really speaking to me,
(06:05):
and ever since I'm like okay,you know, this is I was reminded
.
I was reminded about the powerof the pause, stepping away and
tuning in and listening.
I got the guidance I needed andwhat was really interesting,
susanna, is that the first thingthat I heard when I really
(06:25):
started to listen.
Was that what I wanted was toclose this business?
And that shocked me actually.
It was like what do you mean?
No, I don't want to close thisbusiness.
No, you know, and I reallypushed back.
I can't be right.
I can't be right Because it wasmy identity, right?
I built it 18 years I've beenrunning this business and the
(06:49):
idea of letting it go scared me.
But when I really dug in andreally listened to those
internal knowings, I understoodthat, yeah, I actually lost my
passion for that business yearsago and I was holding on to it
like a life raft because Isimply didn't know what else I
(07:10):
could possibly do and I didn'twant to let go of that identity.
The ego, you know, was reallyholding on to that pretty
tightly.
But I did.
I listened, you know, and Itook the time.
I actually found more money forthat, sustained us for another
year while I wrapped up things,helped my staff transition, and
(07:33):
then I started to listen, likereally listen.
So what is it that I want, youknow, and started following that
journey and it led me on acompletely different path.
And you know what I've beenfollowing, my joy, and I really
think that that's the key is towhat lights you up, what sparks
(07:55):
joy in you.
Follow that and you won't bemisdirected.
So that's been my journey.
Susannah Steers (08:02):
Well, it seems like I mean.
So much of what you're sayingresonates with me, and you know
nature and I find that movementand embodiment is part of that
process for me.
In a world full of noise anddistractions and goodness, it
just seems to get worse everyday.
(08:22):
There's just more piling in andmore information and more noise
and more things that we'resupposed to attend to.
You know, it can be hard torecognize our own inner guidance
.
Like you say, it's like thislittle whisper in the background
.
What maybe, are some signs orexperiences that suggest that
(08:42):
it's the soul that's speaking toyou and that it's telling the
truth, that it's not just somefantastical imagining that
you're creating for yourself.
Anita Adams (08:52):
Yeah, great question.
So, Susannah, what I would sayis you need to really tune into
how it feels in your body.
Does it light you up?
Do you get excited?
There might be fear thatpercolates, because when your
soul speaks to you, when youactually really get good at
(09:12):
listening to it, it's going tospeak bigger and bigger, in the
sense of your potential is goingto be.
The vision it paints is big.
It's a big vision and it can bereally scary, but it can also
evoke this sense of oh, wow, oh,could I, could I do that, you
(09:33):
know?
So this is this is what we lookfor, this is what you look for
in your body.
How does it feel?
If you, if it feels icky orfeels uncomfortable in the sense
of like, oh, you know, do youknow what I mean?
Like that tightness around it,then no.
But if you're feeling somethingthat sparks joy, sparks some
(09:57):
excitement, and it feels thatthere's that tingling in your
body or for me, it feels like atingling it feels no, what it
feels like is expansion.
It feels like there's this thatis happening.
It's like, oh, you know, wow,that's kind of cool.
I remember one of the firstthings that I got as a hit was
(10:22):
to create a retreat center likea place to bring people to.
And there was that like whoa,wow, that'd be cool.
And then there was like ooh,ooh, I don't know, that's scary,
right.
So it's the noticing that firstimpulse, because if, once our
(10:43):
eagle gets in there and ourbrain starts to take over, it
can feel we can move to thatfear side.
So it takes practice, you know,it takes practice to really
recognize the signs and I findthat when we make time for
ourselves and, as I mentioned,the walks in nature really help
(11:03):
that, creating that space,creating the time and space, you
tap into the sensations morereadily more easily.
Susannah Steers (11:13):
I think you've created some specific practices
for tuning into your innerwisdom.
Is there anything that, in afew minutes, you could walk us
through?
Maybe one of your favoritemethods for quieting the mind or
inviting those soul whispers?
Anita Adams (11:26):
Yeah, absolutely.
When I take people out intonature, I walk them through a
practice, and so that's a bigpart of what I do is I actually
take people with me, but youdon't need to have a guide.
You can head off into nature onyour own.
I'm wondering would it beappropriate here to walk through
(11:49):
like a visualization exercise,that?
Susannah Steers (11:51):
would be great.
Okay, yeah, let's do it.
Anita Adams (11:53):
Okay.
So sometimes you just don't havethe time to get out, you know,
and I get that.
So I have a gentle littlepractice that I do with some of
my clients and you can do thisanywhere anytime.
So I invite you, if you'redriving, don't do this, put it
(12:16):
on pause and come back andlisten to this at a later time.
But if you're at home orsomewhere that you can just get
comfortable in a spot, I inviteyou to put your feet on the
floor and I invite you to closeyour eyes and we're just going
to take a couple deep breaths inthrough the nose, out through
(12:39):
the nose, do one more time inthrough the nose and out One
more time and release.
(13:00):
I want you to imagine yourfavorite place in nature.
It could be the beach, you know, standing by the ocean, your
feet in the sand.
Maybe it's a favorite foresttrail, maybe it's on top of a
mountain or by a river.
(13:20):
Just find that place thatyou've been to before, that you
love visiting.
Maybe it might be an oldchildhood place that you've gone
as a kid.
Pull that place up in yourmind's eye.
Now I want you to really noticewith your eyes, your closed
(13:47):
eyes, your eyes and your mind.
What do you see in thisenvironment?
Notice everything.
Notice the grass, the ocean,the trees, whatever it is, the
ocean, the trees, whatever it is.
(14:09):
Take in as many things fromthis environment.
Now, what do you hear?
Maybe bird songs, crickets, thesound of water rushing over
(14:33):
rocks.
Maybe the wind in the trees.
Maybe the wind in the trees.
Maybe the wind in the trees.
Maybe the wind in the trees,maybe the wind in the trees.
Can you smell anything in theair?
The tang of the ocean, the saltwater?
(14:54):
Maybe the flowers, pine needles, rich scent of the earth.
Now, what can you feel?
(15:16):
Maybe it's the warm sun on yourskin, the wind blowing through
your hair, even feeling theclothes on your back, your feet
(15:37):
in your shoes.
What are you grateful for inthis moment?
The space that you're in, thepeople that are in your life,
(16:03):
the comfy shoes you're wearing,and the smallest thing.
Now turn inward and what do youfeel on the inside?
Breathe into the feelings.
(16:29):
Is it love, contentment?
Maybe you're feeling somethingthat happened in a relationship
(16:51):
and it feels heavy.
That's okay too.
Just acknowledge it.
Just acknowledge it, breatheinto it.
Just acknowledge it and breatheinto it.
Take a couple deep breaths,move back into gratitude, pull
(17:25):
back and see your space again,take it all in and maybe even
see yourself standing in thisbeautiful environment and when
you're ready you can open youreyes.
So that's a little bit of agrounding exercise that can help
(17:47):
you get really present.
It's I know I kind of I wentthrough it fairly quickly
because we're on a podcast whenyou go into nature it's the same
, the same idea like really takea moment to connect with your
environment.
Notice with your eyes everythingyou know, from the different
(18:09):
colors, the shapes, the way theclouds are forming.
Notice with your nose thescents in the air and sometimes
you can even taste the air andif there's safe berries to eat,
pop one you know in and reallyenjoy it.
Notice what you feel.
(18:31):
Stop and touch a flower or someof the bark, put your hands in
the ocean, let your hands sinkinto the soil and just really
feel it and then think aboutwhat you're grateful for.
The gratitude really expands,it opens our hearts, right, and
(18:53):
then go inward and check on whatyou're feeling.
Don't always feel great andthat's all right.
We can acknowledge thediscomfort, the sadness,
(19:15):
whatever it is, and just allowit to flow through.
Because when you open yourselfand allow and accept, then it
actually does flow through andit can flow, flow out as well,
so we can make room for the joyand the love and all that other
beautiful stuff.
(19:35):
So this is the practice toconnect with your higher self,
to tune into that inner wisdomand, like I said, I encourage
you to be outside in nature andto walk in and move the body in
that environment.
And sometimes we just can't,for whatever reason.
And so taking five minutes todo this practice, to go to that
(20:01):
favorite place in nature in yourmind's eye and just really see
it and imagine you're describingthis to a loved one who can't
be there and you want them toexperience it.
So go into the details as muchas possible and it's incredibly
releasing, freeing, and it willmake space for you to receive
(20:29):
that's such a beautiful practice.
Susannah Steers (20:31):
First of all, thank you, I appreciate that.
Um, I want to talk more aboutthe natural world and how it
relates, and when we spoke we,we kind of took a deep dive into
our perspectives on nature.
And for me, as a movementeducator, I have this belief
(20:51):
that movement is relational andit connects us to ourselves, to
each other, to the land, to thewater, to the air, the creatures
around us, and maybe it soundskind of hippy-dippy, but when I
can immerse myself in thatrelational feeling, then I'm a
part of nature, I'm not separatefrom it, and it really gives me
(21:13):
a sense of, as you spokeearlier, a sense of grounding, a
sense of connection, a sense ofpeace and often a sense of
wonder too.
You spoke earlier about naturebeing a sacred portal to your
higher self.
Can you say more about that?
Anita Adams (21:29):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
It is a portal to our higherself.
It connects us.
It helps us also recognize thatwe are part of this incredible
web of life.
We are one, we're part of it.
Nature reflects back to us whowe are in many ways too.
(21:52):
So when we're immersed in anatural environment and we can
see the beauty of it and itsimperfections, like there's
nature's not perfect, but it is,and it's perfect perfect in its
imperfections Everything workstogether.
You know, I remember when I waswalking early on this, that 30
(22:15):
day challenge and which neverstopped, you know, like that,
that was gosh five years ago andI'm still pretty much out every
day walking in nature.
But it was pretty early in thatjourney where I started to
really notice the imperfectionsof nature.
(22:37):
You know the burls, the bigbumps coming out of the trees
and these gangly roots, and youknow there's something called
dog's vomit slime mold.
That's actually what it'scalled Dog's vomit slime mold
and it's this bright yellow moldand it looks so cool, so neat,
(23:00):
but it's, you know, looking atthe imperfections of nature and
appreciating it and then turninginwards and going, wow, that's,
I'm like that, I'm imperfect,I've got bumps and extra bits
and things that you know I mightnot before have loved.
(23:21):
And now I look at my body andmyself and I'm like, okay, you
know, like you're perfect theway you are and you know I'm 56.
It's taken me that long toreally come to accept all of who
I am, and nature played a hugerole in that.
(23:42):
Just really stepping out andseeing the beauty and the
imperfection around me help meappreciate and see the
imperfection of who I am.
We're all imperfect and it'sperfectly beautiful.
Susannah Steers (23:57):
Your book, the Whispers for the Soul, is
described as a love story aboutlearning to love yourself deeply
.
What does that process looklike?
Is it the same for everybody?
Is it different for everybody?
What does it look like?
Anita Adams (24:13):
I think that what is the same for everybody is
really giving yourself the timeand space to build a
relationship with yourself.
That's how you fall in lovewith yourself is by giving
yourself time and space, and forme, I love that time and space
in nature.
I think it speeds up theprocess of falling in love with
who you are.
And that's what most people arenot doing.
(24:36):
They're not slowing down,they're not making time for
themselves, they're not makingthemselves a priority.
How can you know yourself ifyou never make time for yourself
, you never slow down to reallytune in.
And that's how you lovesomebody is when you give time
to them, right?
That's how you fall in lovewith whoever.
(24:57):
It's by getting to know thatperson.
And so what you want to do tofall in love with yourself is to
really get to know who you are.
And that might sound weird.
You might think, oh, I know whoI am, but a lot of people don't
.
They're so tuned intoeverything else out there and
what society dictates we shouldbe like and how we should live
(25:20):
and all that that we've lostconnection to what's really
important to us.
So, making time and space foryourself, honoring your soul,
this is more than self-care.
Self-care is, you know, takinga beautiful bath with candles
and whatnot, and that's great.
I'm talking about soul care.
(25:41):
Soul care is really going togetting out to know who you are.
Asking questions and thequestions there's three.
I call them the three mostimportant questions, three MIQs
who am I, what do I want and whydoes it matter?
Why does it matter?
(26:01):
Why does it matter?
So you need to ask those firsttwo questions.
First, who am I?
And I'll tell you who you are.
You are love, capital L.
You are light, you are joy, andwe need to come to really
embrace that, because we're alllove, light and joy.
(26:22):
That's the divine within.
That's the divine within.
And when we can tap into that,when we understand the divinity
within us and we tap into thatlove, light and joy, then we
fall in love with who we are andwe understand that there's so
(26:42):
much possible for our lives.
Susannah Steers (26:46):
It seems like that's probably a place where
you can let go of a lot of stufftoo.
I mean, as you said, likeletting go of a business that
you didn't know that you wantedto close until the soul whispers
gave you the idea, and or maybeit was already there in seed
form inside you.
But I think there's a place inthat, as you get to really sink
into yourself and yourself,knowing that a lot of the noise
(27:09):
can fall away because it's justnot important anymore.
Anita Adams (27:13):
A lot of the noise falls away and what else happens
is we begin to trust ourselves.
And that's so powerful, it'sempowering, it's enlightening.
It's when you can really trustyourself and make decisions from
your authentic self.
Then you move through life withgreater ease and you do let go
(27:37):
of all of the BS, you let go ofthings that really don't matter.
Susannah Steers (27:48):
I'm kind of coming back to this relational
idea because movement is my jam.
I'm thinking when you asked whydoes it matter?
After you've done some of thatdeep soul work and asked the
first couple of questions, andwhy does it matter?
That sort of seems like a placewhere the rubber meets the road
right?
(28:18):
That's where we meet the worldaround us with this self that
we've come to know.
Do you see some kind ofinterplay between that mindset,
that deep inner work, andmovement in your work?
Anita Adams (28:23):
So I just came back from meeting a group of women
on the Camino in South France.
So it was a 10-day journey.
We walked 115 kilometers andwhat I discovered is that people
really opened up and foundclarity through movement.
(28:44):
And it was because, again,you're away from the computer,
you're away from thedistractions, you're walking,
and there was a lot ofone-on-one that happened with
these women where I would askthem questions and guide them
along on this journey.
And there was an opening, arelease, a understanding, a
deeper connection to self.
(29:05):
And it is through the movementthat helps that.
It helps to stimulate somethingin our bodies.
It releases the stress, thecortisone levels drop, you are
starting to really feel relaxedand when you have that sense of
(29:27):
being grounded and more relaxed,there's an opening that happens
and things start to emerge andclarity comes to you.
So the movement plays a bigrole in really understanding
self and finding the claritythat so many of us are seeking.
Susannah Steers (29:46):
One of the things that I see sometimes well
, quite often in the Pilatesstudio if I've been working with
people for a while is that thechanges that happen for people
as they really sink into anunderstanding of their own
bodies and being in their ownbodies and their patterns and
their movement and how they'reliving inside of all of that and
it's kind of like the worldopens up in brand new ways and
(30:08):
sometimes in ways that theynever anticipated, like your
company.
But I'm curious you speak alittle bit about a ripple effect
with this kind of personalgrowth and that connecting more
deeply with oneself can lead tostronger, more compassionate
communities too, and I think inthis day and age we need as much
(30:30):
of that as we can find.
Can you share how connectingwith your own inner wisdom has
maybe influenced things likeyour relationships or your role
in community, or what kind ofripple effects you see happening
in the people that you workwith?
Anita Adams (30:44):
Yeah, absolutely so .
When you build a relationshipwith yourself, when you start to
really love and accept yourselfand you have self-compassion
that spreads out, there's theripple effect You're able to
have deeper, more meaningfulrelationships with others.
There is this sense ofexpansion that happens my
(31:09):
relationship with my husband,for instance.
I'm able to not freak out forlack of better words on certain
things that used to bother me,because I'm accepting myself now
and I'm understanding thatthere is this is my stuff that I
(31:30):
need to work on.
If he does something thatupsets me, it's like well, why
is that?
Why is that upsetting me?
It's because I'm not valuingmyself.
I'm interpreting his actions asnot valuing me, but it's really
me not valuing myself.
So I look at those incidences astriggers for you then to go
(31:54):
inward and explore why am Itriggered by that?
And that helps you understandyourself at a deeper level.
And when you can understandyourself at a deep level, then
you can be in the world in a waythat is embracing and accepting
and loving of others as well,and it all comes home to self
(32:17):
right.
So I believe the world would bea much healthier, happier place
if more people worked tounderstand who they are and to
love and accept who you are.
So when you have that love andacceptance of self, you are able
to have that love andacceptance and tolerance and
understanding of others as well.
(32:39):
So that's how it spreads out.
But it has to come home to selffirst.
Love and accept yourself andyou'll love and accept the world
.
Susannah Steers (32:48):
And others If there were one piece of wisdom
or advice that you could leavewith our listeners what would it
be?
Anita Adams (32:57):
Love yourself, make time and space for you, slow
down, unplug, go for a walk innature to honor your soul.
Susannah Steers (33:11):
I love it.
Anita, thank you for sharingyour insights and your presence
with us today.
For listeners who want to learnmore, where can they find you
and your book?
Anita Adams (33:22):
Yeah, thank you, you can go to my brand new
website.
I'm really excited that I justlaunched a new site.
It's joyfuljourneyca and that's, yeah, the joyful.
I call my followers the joyfuljourneyers, so I'd love you to
become a joyful journeyer, andthat journey is all about
(33:44):
connecting with self, and mybook is available on my website
and on Amazon, so you can findWhispers of the Soul there
Fantastic.
Susannah Steers (33:53):
I will put links to that in the show notes
so if you didn't catch it, youcan go back to the show notes
and find them there.
Anita Adams (33:59):
Awesome.
Susannah Steers (34:00):
Thank you so much for joining me today.
I always love talking to you.
It's been an absolute pleasureand I hope we can talk again
soon.
I always love talking to you.
It's been an absolute pleasureand I hope we can talk again
soon.
Anita Adams (34:08):
I would love that.
Thanks so much, Susanna.
Thank you very much.
Susannah Steers (34:12):
Bye-bye.
I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
Subscribe and, if you love whatyou heard, leave a five-star
review and tell people what youenjoyed most.
Join me here again in a coupleof weeks For now let's get
moving.
Welcome to the Heart of Motion podcast.
I'm Susanna Steers and I'll beyour host as we explore the
heart, soul and science ofmovement as a pathway to more
active, vibrant and connectedliving.
Nothing happens until somethingmoves, so let's get started.
Welcome to the Heart of Motion,where we explore the heart, soul
(00:22):
and science of movement.
Motion where we explore theheart, soul and science of
movement.
I'm your host, susanna Steers,today.
I'm thrilled to welcome AnitaAdams.
Anita is the best-selling authorof Whispers of the Soul and
creator of the Wisdom Way.
She empowers individualsthrough a transformational
approach to conscious living andcourageous leadership.
By integrating nature-infusedstrategies, she helps people
(00:45):
connect with their higher selves, develop deep inner listening
skills and gain clarity ofpurpose to create a life of
meaning, well-being and joy.
Anita and I first met not toolong ago thanks to Donna
Cravatta and her Real 50 Over 50project.
As Anita and I spoke that firsttime, I felt a connection,
(01:06):
maybe a kind of synchronicity inour work, and I knew I had to
connect to talk about it somemore.
So here she is.
Welcome to the podcast, Anita.
Anita Adams (01:16):
Thanks so much, Susannah.
It's so great to be here and,yeah, I felt that connection too
.
It was like, okay, this is likea soul sister and we need to
keep this connection going.
So thank you for the invitationto be on your show.
This is so wonderful.
Susannah Steers (01:29):
I want to dive right in.
Your work centers on listeningto the whispers of the soul,
connecting with inner wisdom andliving authentically.
What does inner wisdom mean toyou?
Anita Adams (01:42):
It means tapping into our true self, really
quieting the noise out there andlistening to what's within, and
I feel we have forgotten, manyof us have forgotten how to do
that and turn outward, tosociety, to others, to you know
(02:05):
figures in our life, to themedia, to be given direction on
how to live, how to be, what todo, and in the process we really
lose ourselves.
So my mission is to help peopleslow down, tune out all of that
(02:26):
noise, unplug and then plug into self and plug into nature,
actually because I find andunderstand who we are,
understand ourselves and thenmake choices that are aligned
(02:50):
with who we really are.
So that's inner wisdom, that'stuning in, to listen to our
inner compass.
Susannah Steers (02:57):
What inspired you to go down this road, to
start thinking about things thisway?
Was this something that youwere always interested in?
How did you get to this and howdid it shape your own journey?
Anita Adams (03:07):
Yeah, thanks for asking.
I've been somebody that's tunedin a lot for many years of my
life, but it really came to acrossroads, I guess, when I was
the founder and executivedirector of a national arts
organization and chaos struck,as it struck many with the onset
(03:28):
of the pandemic and with thateverything was shaken to the
core.
My organization was supportedby government funds and sponsors
and investors and all of asudden they all pulled out,
everybody pulled out, and I wasfreaking out, to put it mildly.
(03:50):
I was freaking out and I had astaff across the country that I
was responsible for and suddenly, you know, it was all pulled
out from underneath me and Ineeded to figure out what I,
what I was going to do.
And I would ask everybody whatam I supposed to do?
What am I supposed to do?
Because I was just so, soscared about this reality that
hit me and I brought thatquestion to my business coach at
(04:13):
the time and Lisa Marie Platsky, somebody I deeply respect, and
she asked me well, anita, whatdo you typically do when you're
stressed?
I'm like, well, I usually gofor a walk in the woods.
She's like perfect, here's whatyou're going to do every day
for the next 30 days.
You are going to go for a walkin the woods.
I'm like what?
Give me a break.
What kind of business coachtells her clients to go for a
(04:36):
walk in the woods?
I need business advice, notnature therapy.
But she really pushed to get meto do this.
She knew that this was mine todo, and that's one of the things
I love about Lisa Marie she isso tapped in and she listens to
the divine, the divine within,and she understood that what I
(04:59):
really needed was to unplug fromthe kick, the crazy, the chaos,
because I could not.
I could not understand my mynext steps, because I was so
wound tight that I needed tostep away.
And so I did.
I stepped away and I went intothe forest and every day I was
(05:19):
you know this raised to the sky.
What am I supposed to do?
Like, I was just so stressed.
But over time I started torelax, I started to calm my
nervous system, I started toreally connect with the
beautiful environment around meand I started to feel this inner
peace and I even started tofeel grateful for all of this
(05:43):
environment that I was immersedin and grateful to Lisa Marie
for getting me out in this, inthese woods and in this higher
state of being.
I asked again what am Isupposed to do?
And that's when I heard thewhispers within really speaking
to me.
When I heard the whisperswithin really speaking to me,
(06:05):
and ever since I'm like okay,you know, this is I was reminded
.
I was reminded about the powerof the pause, stepping away and
tuning in and listening.
I got the guidance I needed andwhat was really interesting,
susanna, is that the first thingthat I heard when I really
(06:25):
started to listen.
Was that what I wanted was toclose this business?
And that shocked me actually.
It was like what do you mean?
No, I don't want to close thisbusiness.
No, you know, and I reallypushed back.
I can't be right.
I can't be right Because it wasmy identity, right?
I built it 18 years I've beenrunning this business and the
(06:49):
idea of letting it go scared me.
But when I really dug in andreally listened to those
internal knowings, I understoodthat, yeah, I actually lost my
passion for that business yearsago and I was holding on to it
like a life raft because Isimply didn't know what else I
(07:10):
could possibly do and I didn'twant to let go of that identity.
The ego, you know, was reallyholding on to that pretty
tightly.
But I did.
I listened, you know, and Itook the time.
I actually found more money forthat, sustained us for another
year while I wrapped up things,helped my staff transition, and
(07:33):
then I started to listen, likereally listen.
So what is it that I want, youknow, and started following that
journey and it led me on acompletely different path.
And you know what I've beenfollowing, my joy, and I really
think that that's the key is towhat lights you up, what sparks
(07:55):
joy in you.
Follow that and you won't bemisdirected.
So that's been my journey.
Susannah Steers (08:02):
Well, it seems like I mean.
So much of what you're sayingresonates with me, and you know
nature and I find that movementand embodiment is part of that
process for me.
In a world full of noise anddistractions and goodness, it
just seems to get worse everyday.
(08:22):
There's just more piling in andmore information and more noise
and more things that we'resupposed to attend to.
You know, it can be hard torecognize our own inner guidance
.
Like you say, it's like thislittle whisper in the background
.
What maybe, are some signs orexperiences that suggest that
(08:42):
it's the soul that's speaking toyou and that it's telling the
truth, that it's not just somefantastical imagining that
you're creating for yourself.
Anita Adams (08:52):
Yeah, great question.
So, Susannah, what I would sayis you need to really tune into
how it feels in your body.
Does it light you up?
Do you get excited?
There might be fear thatpercolates, because when your
soul speaks to you, when youactually really get good at
(09:12):
listening to it, it's going tospeak bigger and bigger, in the
sense of your potential is goingto be.
The vision it paints is big.
It's a big vision and it can bereally scary, but it can also
evoke this sense of oh, wow, oh,could I, could I do that, you
(09:33):
know?
So this is this is what we lookfor, this is what you look for
in your body.
How does it feel?
If you, if it feels icky orfeels uncomfortable in the sense
of like, oh, you know, do youknow what I mean?
Like that tightness around it,then no.
But if you're feeling somethingthat sparks joy, sparks some
(09:57):
excitement, and it feels thatthere's that tingling in your
body or for me, it feels like atingling it feels no, what it
feels like is expansion.
It feels like there's this thatis happening.
It's like, oh, you know, wow,that's kind of cool.
I remember one of the firstthings that I got as a hit was
(10:22):
to create a retreat center likea place to bring people to.
And there was that like whoa,wow, that'd be cool.
And then there was like ooh,ooh, I don't know, that's scary,
right.
So it's the noticing that firstimpulse, because if, once our
(10:43):
eagle gets in there and ourbrain starts to take over, it
can feel we can move to thatfear side.
So it takes practice, you know,it takes practice to really
recognize the signs and I findthat when we make time for
ourselves and, as I mentioned,the walks in nature really help
(11:03):
that, creating that space,creating the time and space, you
tap into the sensations morereadily more easily.
Susannah Steers (11:13):
I think you've created some specific practices
for tuning into your innerwisdom.
Is there anything that, in afew minutes, you could walk us
through?
Maybe one of your favoritemethods for quieting the mind or
inviting those soul whispers?
Anita Adams (11:26):
Yeah, absolutely.
When I take people out intonature, I walk them through a
practice, and so that's a bigpart of what I do is I actually
take people with me, but youdon't need to have a guide.
You can head off into nature onyour own.
I'm wondering would it beappropriate here to walk through
(11:49):
like a visualization exercise,that?
Susannah Steers (11:51):
would be great.
Okay, yeah, let's do it.
Anita Adams (11:53):
Okay.
So sometimes you just don't havethe time to get out, you know,
and I get that.
So I have a gentle littlepractice that I do with some of
my clients and you can do thisanywhere anytime.
So I invite you, if you'redriving, don't do this, put it
(12:16):
on pause and come back andlisten to this at a later time.
But if you're at home orsomewhere that you can just get
comfortable in a spot, I inviteyou to put your feet on the
floor and I invite you to closeyour eyes and we're just going
to take a couple deep breaths inthrough the nose, out through
(12:39):
the nose, do one more time inthrough the nose and out One
more time and release.
(13:00):
I want you to imagine yourfavorite place in nature.
It could be the beach, you know, standing by the ocean, your
feet in the sand.
Maybe it's a favorite foresttrail, maybe it's on top of a
mountain or by a river.
(13:20):
Just find that place thatyou've been to before, that you
love visiting.
Maybe it might be an oldchildhood place that you've gone
as a kid.
Pull that place up in yourmind's eye.
Now I want you to really noticewith your eyes, your closed
(13:47):
eyes, your eyes and your mind.
What do you see in thisenvironment?
Notice everything.
Notice the grass, the ocean,the trees, whatever it is, the
ocean, the trees, whatever it is.
(14:09):
Take in as many things fromthis environment.
Now, what do you hear?
Maybe bird songs, crickets, thesound of water rushing over
(14:33):
rocks.
Maybe the wind in the trees.
Maybe the wind in the trees.
Maybe the wind in the trees.
Maybe the wind in the trees,maybe the wind in the trees.
Can you smell anything in theair?
The tang of the ocean, the saltwater?
(14:54):
Maybe the flowers, pine needles, rich scent of the earth.
Now, what can you feel?
(15:16):
Maybe it's the warm sun on yourskin, the wind blowing through
your hair, even feeling theclothes on your back, your feet
(15:37):
in your shoes.
What are you grateful for inthis moment?
The space that you're in, thepeople that are in your life,
(16:03):
the comfy shoes you're wearing,and the smallest thing.
Now turn inward and what do youfeel on the inside?
Breathe into the feelings.
(16:29):
Is it love, contentment?
Maybe you're feeling somethingthat happened in a relationship
(16:51):
and it feels heavy.
That's okay too.
Just acknowledge it.
Just acknowledge it, breatheinto it.
Just acknowledge it and breatheinto it.
Take a couple deep breaths,move back into gratitude, pull
(17:25):
back and see your space again,take it all in and maybe even
see yourself standing in thisbeautiful environment and when
you're ready you can open youreyes.
So that's a little bit of agrounding exercise that can help
(17:47):
you get really present.
It's I know I kind of I wentthrough it fairly quickly
because we're on a podcast whenyou go into nature it's the same
, the same idea like really takea moment to connect with your
environment.
Notice with your eyes everythingyou know, from the different
(18:09):
colors, the shapes, the way theclouds are forming.
Notice with your nose thescents in the air and sometimes
you can even taste the air andif there's safe berries to eat,
pop one you know in and reallyenjoy it.
Notice what you feel.
(18:31):
Stop and touch a flower or someof the bark, put your hands in
the ocean, let your hands sinkinto the soil and just really
feel it and then think aboutwhat you're grateful for.
The gratitude really expands,it opens our hearts, right, and
(18:53):
then go inward and check on whatyou're feeling.
Don't always feel great andthat's all right.
We can acknowledge thediscomfort, the sadness,
(19:15):
whatever it is, and just allowit to flow through.
Because when you open yourselfand allow and accept, then it
actually does flow through andit can flow, flow out as well,
so we can make room for the joyand the love and all that other
beautiful stuff.
(19:35):
So this is the practice toconnect with your higher self,
to tune into that inner wisdomand, like I said, I encourage
you to be outside in nature andto walk in and move the body in
that environment.
And sometimes we just can't,for whatever reason.
And so taking five minutes todo this practice, to go to that
(20:01):
favorite place in nature in yourmind's eye and just really see
it and imagine you're describingthis to a loved one who can't
be there and you want them toexperience it.
So go into the details as muchas possible and it's incredibly
releasing, freeing, and it willmake space for you to receive
(20:29):
that's such a beautiful practice.
Susannah Steers (20:31):
First of all, thank you, I appreciate that.
Um, I want to talk more aboutthe natural world and how it
relates, and when we spoke we,we kind of took a deep dive into
our perspectives on nature.
And for me, as a movementeducator, I have this belief
(20:51):
that movement is relational andit connects us to ourselves, to
each other, to the land, to thewater, to the air, the creatures
around us, and maybe it soundskind of hippy-dippy, but when I
can immerse myself in thatrelational feeling, then I'm a
part of nature, I'm not separatefrom it, and it really gives me
(21:13):
a sense of, as you spokeearlier, a sense of grounding, a
sense of connection, a sense ofpeace and often a sense of
wonder too.
You spoke earlier about naturebeing a sacred portal to your
higher self.
Can you say more about that?
Anita Adams (21:29):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
It is a portal to our higherself.
It connects us.
It helps us also recognize thatwe are part of this incredible
web of life.
We are one, we're part of it.
Nature reflects back to us whowe are in many ways too.
(21:52):
So when we're immersed in anatural environment and we can
see the beauty of it and itsimperfections, like there's
nature's not perfect, but it is,and it's perfect perfect in its
imperfections Everything workstogether.
You know, I remember when I waswalking early on this, that 30
(22:15):
day challenge and which neverstopped, you know, like that,
that was gosh five years ago andI'm still pretty much out every
day walking in nature.
But it was pretty early in thatjourney where I started to
really notice the imperfectionsof nature.
(22:37):
You know the burls, the bigbumps coming out of the trees
and these gangly roots, and youknow there's something called
dog's vomit slime mold.
That's actually what it'scalled Dog's vomit slime mold
and it's this bright yellow moldand it looks so cool, so neat,
(23:00):
but it's, you know, looking atthe imperfections of nature and
appreciating it and then turninginwards and going, wow, that's,
I'm like that, I'm imperfect,I've got bumps and extra bits
and things that you know I mightnot before have loved.
(23:21):
And now I look at my body andmyself and I'm like, okay, you
know, like you're perfect theway you are and you know I'm 56.
It's taken me that long toreally come to accept all of who
I am, and nature played a hugerole in that.
(23:42):
Just really stepping out andseeing the beauty and the
imperfection around me help meappreciate and see the
imperfection of who I am.
We're all imperfect and it'sperfectly beautiful.
Susannah Steers (23:57):
Your book, the Whispers for the Soul, is
described as a love story aboutlearning to love yourself deeply
.
What does that process looklike?
Is it the same for everybody?
Is it different for everybody?
What does it look like?
Anita Adams (24:13):
I think that what is the same for everybody is
really giving yourself the timeand space to build a
relationship with yourself.
That's how you fall in lovewith yourself is by giving
yourself time and space, and forme, I love that time and space
in nature.
I think it speeds up theprocess of falling in love with
who you are.
And that's what most people arenot doing.
(24:36):
They're not slowing down,they're not making time for
themselves, they're not makingthemselves a priority.
How can you know yourself ifyou never make time for yourself
, you never slow down to reallytune in.
And that's how you lovesomebody is when you give time
to them, right?
That's how you fall in lovewith whoever.
(24:57):
It's by getting to know thatperson.
And so what you want to do tofall in love with yourself is to
really get to know who you are.
And that might sound weird.
You might think, oh, I know whoI am, but a lot of people don't
.
They're so tuned intoeverything else out there and
what society dictates we shouldbe like and how we should live
(25:20):
and all that that we've lostconnection to what's really
important to us.
So, making time and space foryourself, honoring your soul,
this is more than self-care.
Self-care is, you know, takinga beautiful bath with candles
and whatnot, and that's great.
I'm talking about soul care.
(25:41):
Soul care is really going togetting out to know who you are.
Asking questions and thequestions there's three.
I call them the three mostimportant questions, three MIQs
who am I, what do I want and whydoes it matter?
Why does it matter?
(26:01):
Why does it matter?
So you need to ask those firsttwo questions.
First, who am I?
And I'll tell you who you are.
You are love, capital L.
You are light, you are joy, andwe need to come to really
embrace that, because we're alllove, light and joy.
(26:22):
That's the divine within.
That's the divine within.
And when we can tap into that,when we understand the divinity
within us and we tap into thatlove, light and joy, then we
fall in love with who we are andwe understand that there's so
(26:42):
much possible for our lives.
Susannah Steers (26:46):
It seems like that's probably a place where
you can let go of a lot of stufftoo.
I mean, as you said, likeletting go of a business that
you didn't know that you wantedto close until the soul whispers
gave you the idea, and or maybeit was already there in seed
form inside you.
But I think there's a place inthat, as you get to really sink
into yourself and yourself,knowing that a lot of the noise
(27:09):
can fall away because it's justnot important anymore.
Anita Adams (27:13):
A lot of the noise falls away and what else happens
is we begin to trust ourselves.
And that's so powerful, it'sempowering, it's enlightening.
It's when you can really trustyourself and make decisions from
your authentic self.
Then you move through life withgreater ease and you do let go
(27:37):
of all of the BS, you let go ofthings that really don't matter.
Susannah Steers (27:48):
I'm kind of coming back to this relational
idea because movement is my jam.
I'm thinking when you asked whydoes it matter?
After you've done some of thatdeep soul work and asked the
first couple of questions, andwhy does it matter?
That sort of seems like a placewhere the rubber meets the road
right?
(28:18):
That's where we meet the worldaround us with this self that
we've come to know.
Do you see some kind ofinterplay between that mindset,
that deep inner work, andmovement in your work?
Anita Adams (28:23):
So I just came back from meeting a group of women
on the Camino in South France.
So it was a 10-day journey.
We walked 115 kilometers andwhat I discovered is that people
really opened up and foundclarity through movement.
(28:44):
And it was because, again,you're away from the computer,
you're away from thedistractions, you're walking,
and there was a lot ofone-on-one that happened with
these women where I would askthem questions and guide them
along on this journey.
And there was an opening, arelease, a understanding, a
deeper connection to self.
(29:05):
And it is through the movementthat helps that.
It helps to stimulate somethingin our bodies.
It releases the stress, thecortisone levels drop, you are
starting to really feel relaxedand when you have that sense of
(29:27):
being grounded and more relaxed,there's an opening that happens
and things start to emerge andclarity comes to you.
So the movement plays a bigrole in really understanding
self and finding the claritythat so many of us are seeking.
Susannah Steers (29:46):
One of the things that I see sometimes well
, quite often in the Pilatesstudio if I've been working with
people for a while is that thechanges that happen for people
as they really sink into anunderstanding of their own
bodies and being in their ownbodies and their patterns and
their movement and how they'reliving inside of all of that and
it's kind of like the worldopens up in brand new ways and
(30:08):
sometimes in ways that theynever anticipated, like your
company.
But I'm curious you speak alittle bit about a ripple effect
with this kind of personalgrowth and that connecting more
deeply with oneself can lead tostronger, more compassionate
communities too, and I think inthis day and age we need as much
(30:30):
of that as we can find.
Can you share how connectingwith your own inner wisdom has
maybe influenced things likeyour relationships or your role
in community, or what kind ofripple effects you see happening
in the people that you workwith?
Anita Adams (30:44):
Yeah, absolutely so .
When you build a relationshipwith yourself, when you start to
really love and accept yourselfand you have self-compassion
that spreads out, there's theripple effect You're able to
have deeper, more meaningfulrelationships with others.
There is this sense ofexpansion that happens my
(31:09):
relationship with my husband,for instance.
I'm able to not freak out forlack of better words on certain
things that used to bother me,because I'm accepting myself now
and I'm understanding thatthere is this is my stuff that I
(31:30):
need to work on.
If he does something thatupsets me, it's like well, why
is that?
Why is that upsetting me?
It's because I'm not valuingmyself.
I'm interpreting his actions asnot valuing me, but it's really
me not valuing myself.
So I look at those incidences astriggers for you then to go
(31:54):
inward and explore why am Itriggered by that?
And that helps you understandyourself at a deeper level.
And when you can understandyourself at a deep level, then
you can be in the world in a waythat is embracing and accepting
and loving of others as well,and it all comes home to self
(32:17):
right.
So I believe the world would bea much healthier, happier place
if more people worked tounderstand who they are and to
love and accept who you are.
So when you have that love andacceptance of self, you are able
to have that love andacceptance and tolerance and
understanding of others as well.
(32:39):
So that's how it spreads out.
But it has to come home to selffirst.
Love and accept yourself andyou'll love and accept the world
.
Susannah Steers (32:48):
And others If there were one piece of wisdom
or advice that you could leavewith our listeners what would it
be?
Anita Adams (32:57):
Love yourself, make time and space for you, slow
down, unplug, go for a walk innature to honor your soul.
Susannah Steers (33:11):
I love it.
Anita, thank you for sharingyour insights and your presence
with us today.
For listeners who want to learnmore, where can they find you
and your book?
Anita Adams (33:22):
Yeah, thank you, you can go to my brand new
website.
I'm really excited that I justlaunched a new site.
It's joyfuljourneyca and that's, yeah, the joyful.
I call my followers the joyfuljourneyers, so I'd love you to
become a joyful journeyer, andthat journey is all about
(33:44):
connecting with self, and mybook is available on my website
and on Amazon, so you can findWhispers of the Soul there
Fantastic.
Susannah Steers (33:53):
I will put links to that in the show notes
so if you didn't catch it, youcan go back to the show notes
and find them there.
Anita Adams (33:59):
Awesome.
Susannah Steers (34:00):
Thank you so much for joining me today.
I always love talking to you.
It's been an absolute pleasureand I hope we can talk again
soon.
I always love talking to you.
It's been an absolute pleasureand I hope we can talk again
soon.
Anita Adams (34:08):
I would love that.
Thanks so much, Susanna.
Thank you very much.
Susannah Steers (34:12):
Bye-bye.
I hope you enjoyed today'sepisode.
Subscribe and, if you love whatyou heard, leave a five-star
review and tell people what youenjoyed most.
Join me here again in a coupleof weeks For now let's get
moving.
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Dateline NBC
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CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.