December 2, 2024 • 43 mins
EP 92 Introspection
In this episode of the All Things Good for You podcast, hosts Amy Christensen and Brian Bowen delve into the importance of introspection during the winter season. They discuss the significance of the water element in personal growth and share techniques to face fears, cultivate energy, and prepare for a transformative spring. Join them as they explore how to store and build energy, challenge limiting beliefs, develop a stronger willpower and overcome obstacles on your journey to becoming a better, more empowered you. Happy Thanksgiving!
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Nourishment Reflection
00:34 Welcome to All Things Good for You Podcast
01:12 Thanksgiving Greetings and Turkey Talk
02:35 Transitioning from Fall to Winter
03:05 Embracing the Water Element
06:39 Introspection and Fear
08:51 Challenges of Self-Contemplation
14:52 The Importance of Connections
16:38 Willpower and Introspection
20:47 Contribution and Purpose
22:20 Navigating Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
22:48 Self-Awareness and Honest Reflection
24:26 Energy Cultivation and Willpower
26:22 Winter Introspection and Goal Setting
30:28 Overcoming Limiting Beliefs
32:06 Practical Introspection Tools
35:57 Transformation and Personal Growth
39:08 Wrapping Up and Looking Forward
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/all-things-good-for-you--4972263/support.
In this episode of the All Things Good for You podcast, hosts Amy Christensen and Brian Bowen delve into the importance of introspection during the winter season. They discuss the significance of the water element in personal growth and share techniques to face fears, cultivate energy, and prepare for a transformative spring. Join them as they explore how to store and build energy, challenge limiting beliefs, develop a stronger willpower and overcome obstacles on your journey to becoming a better, more empowered you. Happy Thanksgiving!
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Nourishment Reflection
00:34 Welcome to All Things Good for You Podcast
01:12 Thanksgiving Greetings and Turkey Talk
02:35 Transitioning from Fall to Winter
03:05 Embracing the Water Element
06:39 Introspection and Fear
08:51 Challenges of Self-Contemplation
14:52 The Importance of Connections
16:38 Willpower and Introspection
20:47 Contribution and Purpose
22:20 Navigating Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
22:48 Self-Awareness and Honest Reflection
24:26 Energy Cultivation and Willpower
26:22 Winter Introspection and Goal Setting
30:28 Overcoming Limiting Beliefs
32:06 Practical Introspection Tools
35:57 Transformation and Personal Growth
39:08 Wrapping Up and Looking Forward
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/all-things-good-for-you--4972263/support.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
Contemplating or thinking or planning while you're feeding yourself in
this introspective wintery space, knowing that you're going to do
a lot of building. It's okay. I think we should
look at the reality of what is really nourishing, what
is really bad quote unquote, and why would we think
(00:27):
that it's bad? Is it inherently bad or is it
just not working in the plan for us that we want.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Hey, friends, thank you for listening to the All Things
Good for You Podcast. Join us as we explore ancient traditions,
modern tools and practices in the world of health, wellness,
and personal development. I'm Amy Christensen, your host and your
curated mind coach.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
And I'm your co host, Brian Bowen, founder of Integrative Health, Inc.
And Better Human Company High Performance Coaching. Are you ready
to take control of your life and start feeling enthusiastic, empowered,
and limitless each and every day for a life well lived?
Let your curiosity flow with.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
All things good for you.
Speaker 4 (01:16):
Happy Happy Turkey Day, Happy Thanksgiving, Amy.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Morning, Happy Happy Thanksgiving. I am thanks, thankful for authentic fun.
Speaker 4 (01:32):
Just in case those of you who are listening, this
is All Things Good for Your podcast, Just to make sure,
my turkey called it and throw you off. But did
that sound like a real turkey?
Speaker 1 (01:41):
Man? It seems so real. I was looking for the
feathers to fly in. I was already mixing up the gravy.
Speaker 4 (01:51):
So you hear that, you think about just eating the turkey,
not watching how the beautiful bird walks through the foliage.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
And hides out, And yeah, I think about that, and
then I think about eating it.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
I think about injecting it with my my, my butter compote,
my her butter compote.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
Sorry to all the vegan friends out there, but I
am not bad, No neither. And I grew up with
cousins and uncles and husbands going and hunting and bringing
home turkeys and such. Always fun.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
Always.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
I think it's great, And I think you did a
fantastic job speaking turkey.
Speaker 4 (02:33):
Thank you very much, Thank you very much. We are
going to jump into transitioning. For those of you who
did not listen to the last podcast, it's very better
to do it, So go back and listen to that
because we're doing some seasonal stuff. And so we shifted
from fall and what does that mean and things that
you could do and some frameworks to think about breaking
(02:54):
our life up into chunks, so we have these moments
that we can really allocate to different sorts of mindset
and personal development and so forth. And so we're going
to be tapping in today to the all important winter components,
which is reflected in the water element. So I know
(03:16):
that sounds a little woo woo. We're gonna just hang
in there. We're gonna we're gonna jump into this and
why that's important. Amy, we're into.
Speaker 1 (03:22):
The woo here.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
I'd like it problem we get the woo woo going.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
I know we dived into a little bit, we started
to delve into it on our last one, but we're
moving away. Yeah, like you said, from metal to water,
is that right?
Speaker 4 (03:39):
Mm hmm, yeah, yeah, metal to water. So the base
energy to think about when I say base energy, for
some people, if you're into yeah, that means different things.
But I think everybody can associate to the observation of
when we're moving inward or we're expanding outward, and so
(03:59):
that's the kind of energy that I'm talking about. So
the metal element was very much more of an outward
kind of energy. Really really thinking about letting go of stuff,
what values you truly hold on to what are things
you're holding on to that don't have value, completing task,
finishing things up, clearing the debris, getting rid of the clutter,
(04:24):
things that are burdens to us or bogg us down
or are causing stagnation in our lives. And so that's
very much of a kind of an outward moving energy.
And so this time, this framework is great because now
we have a three month period of moving into the
water element into the winter, which is very much more
(04:45):
inward energy. And so just like the observation of nature,
like all the leaves have fallen off the tree, the
plants and everything are storing up their energy and they're
going to hold onto that energy until they explode into
the spring. And so that's what we want to do.
We want to go inward now, and we're going to
take that yummy energy and pull inward and we're going
(05:07):
to talk about what we're going to do with that
in a bet. But then that's going to really te
us up. So when spring comes, we have this expansion
and this really beautiful energy that's moving us into a
growth phase. And so this is huge and for preparation
of what do we want that look like, which is
awesome because we are of course we'll be moving into
(05:28):
a new year, so yummy, yummy, stop well, and it's just.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
Perfect with the natural rhythm like we I think we
mentioned this last time too. It's just the natural rhythm
of earth and nature and just our habits in general
that we've adopted, and then just the traditions that we've created.
Where you said letting go of some things moving forward,
but the winter turning that inward, but more in a
(05:53):
reflective growth mindset, like looking back. Probably people are moving
away from fear and failure and self abuse at the
end of the year, moving into the new year, and
more of a what did we learn, what did we
experience from the previous year, and then how do we
(06:15):
want to take that and wrap it up into the
new year and continue moving forward? What things need to
be reviewed and of course we'll look at that again
in the new year. But in that winter time, that
going inward, creating that self hibernation, it's just I think
beautiful that we just naturally do that internal review in
(06:37):
that time.
Speaker 4 (06:38):
Yeah. Yeah, introspection is a key kind of word for this,
and they're the out of balance emotion. Just so everybody's
aware that's associated to the water element is fear. And
the reason I bring that up now is because when
we are diving in and trying to have more respection
(07:01):
we can be we want to do it with courage,
and we want to do it with truth, and we
want to do it with non biased approach. We need
to be vulnerable and just be totally open to where
it could take us. I think that when we start
getting into that, we can tend to overthink it. We
(07:24):
can tend to have a ton of biases and blind
spots around it that can really block us from having
that deeper inner wisdom show up. So there's too much
external feedback and things that are going on, and lack
of openness can really block us from really having true
deep introspection and of course the discomfort that it can
(07:45):
bring us. Sometimes we have to have reflection and really
think about all the details, whether it's how we behave
our actions are, the way we're showing up in relationships,
the way we're showing up at work, maybe being in
a place of something doing that doesn't fit you anymore,
and that we need to move on from what are
(08:05):
some of those bigger what is that bigger life purpose?
That maybe you have not been allowing to flow into
your life or not stepping into And that's the challenge
with this introspection is just really being vulnerable to it
and trying to remain open because it's very much the
water element is very much that aspect of our intuition too,
(08:29):
So what is let that intuition percolate up from those
kind of that deeper inner wisdom? The water element is
very much about that deeper inner wisdom.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
And yeah, I think do you and you can tell
me what you think.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
Yeah, I think that is I'm going don't worry, I will.
Speaker 1 (08:47):
I know it's along so well. Do you think that
it's challenging or easy for people to have true self
contemplation and awareness to do that deep into place behaviors.
Speaker 4 (09:07):
Yeah, no, I think it's a huge challenge. I think
that going back to things we've discussed before, we all have,
we've all been conditioned, and even more so now than ever.
I think people are really understanding the word of influence.
There's nothing that you're not exposed to that is trying
(09:27):
to influence you in many ways, good, bad, or other.
And I think that we've been influenced throughout our lives,
and certainly things get anchored in at an early age,
as we've discussed in previous podcasts, and we have to
operate through those, and a lot of times we've we
get anchored in that, and then we don't get into
(09:50):
the idea of neuroplasticity and being able to change and whatever,
and we get stuck in those things. Just like in
five elements, we should flow effortlessly through all of them,
but people in the getting stuck in three and one
is really really stuck and you're jammed up in this.
And so I think the more fluidity you have through those,
the more groundwork that you've done, the easier it is
(10:13):
to have that introspection and to really be true to
that and not let these influences really impact are thinking.
I think if we can learn how to ask ourselves
really hard questions too. So let's say I'm doing some
introspection and an idea comes up and I'm like, oh
my gosh, like this is powerful, Like, then how do
(10:36):
we challenge that to find out some of its truth?
Is that rooted in something that you just really want,
that the ego wants, is that you're just trying to
make something happen the way you'd like to see it
turn out to benefit you, like what's really happening. And
so to ask yourself those questions, to challenge that is
an important thing that I just don't think that we
(10:57):
typically do.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
First of all, unless you're around somebody or open to
observing the real results and interactions of your life and
your behavior, you're thinking, we do have to get okay
with being challenged. And most people don't like feeling wrong
or disliked or guilty or shamed, or like they did
(11:22):
something wrong or they hurt someone's feelings, or they failed
at something, or they didn't do as well as they
should have. It's not a good feeling. But again, it's
so rooted in our understanding of these high expectations and
what that is, defining of self instead of defining of
a moment in a decision or a misunderstanding. And you
(11:43):
can be aware of the fact that we all, every
single one of us. It's so easy to say we
all make mistakes, we all say something that we think
makes sense that they's totally nothing or the complete opposite
to somebody else, and or we have intention for business
or whatnot. In your work and work and it doesn't
turn out being okay with That's part of the process
(12:07):
of Like we've talked about purpose, that is the process
of living and finding and being in purpose. I really
don't think we can expand and grow if we're not
willing to look at the things that we didn't do well.
If you're lucky, you have people around you that support
(12:28):
you through that and help you see it and aren't
shaming you or ending your friendships, your connections, your business
relationships because something didn't go well, But those happen. And
I think allowing ourselves to be compassionate and understanding and asking,
just like you said, ask these questions of what's triggering you.
(12:52):
I think that can be an overused phrase, but look
at what is being stirred up in you, what you're feeling,
even if it's only four thing feelings Brian.
Speaker 4 (13:05):
At four, you remember you remembered that I forgot because
I alway have for that I forgot. I even't had
a feeling about the feeling that I have. Feelings.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
If you only have four, just pick it and ask
why what is this? Why do I have this feeling
and this, why is it maybe making me feel uncomfortable, upset, frustrated,
disappoint it, sad, angry, judged, blooh, whenever, what is this
that I'm it's making me dislike or fear or want
to avoid this discomfort and resistance. And we'd have to
(13:38):
ask why and where's that really coming from? And I
would say that something I have had to work very
hard at does not always come easy, and sometimes it
takes a little bit of time. But if there is
that question coming up for you about whatever the scenario is,
and there's a blame process of something or someone outside
(14:00):
of you, go a little deeper. It's not that there's
people and scenarios don't have their place and things are
done maybe unfair or I'm misunderstood or quote unquote wrong,
but go deeper into what that means to you and
always bring the question of discomfort and frustration back into
(14:24):
what that means to you and why. And it just
I feel like that helps you get closer to the
real process of self reflection and introspection, is that you
just bring it back into what's coming up for you.
Oh trail there.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
But that's good. There's I want to back up to
because when you're talked about connections and you were talking
about other people and the connections to other people, And
I just wanted to bring up that that's another really
big part of the water element too, is the depth
and connections to the people around us, and it taps
(15:01):
in that part of it's not just about us, it's
how we contribute to the greater whole. So everything we do,
just like the rivers joining oceans, all the individual efforts
and stuff that we do flow into something larger. So
it's an important thing to remember that the things you're doing,
what is it flowing into? And how can we have
(15:22):
deeper connections to other to contribute to the whole. And
that's why community is so important and tapping into the
other thing you were just talking about about that introspection
the water element. So there's I'm not going to get
too crazy with the oregons here because I want to
confuse people, but you do have the kidney and urinary
(15:42):
bladder meridians which are associated to that element. But the
water element houses your zirr and your zhi and r
as will and so I do feel like it's interesting
to just grade yourself right now. If you were to
really have true introspection and just think about this question
(16:05):
so go inside, close your eyes, breathe. By the way,
anytime you're really trying to see things clear, early in
the morning is an amazing time to really tap into
this stuff because all the external noises are dialed down
a lot, and getting rid of all as much external
noise as you can your nervous systems more in pairasympathetic
(16:25):
and not sympathetic, so you're at a lower brainwave of state,
which is more in a meditative state versus the higher
frequency states of anxiety and overthinking and all that stuff.
So tap into it in the morning, close your eyes, breathe,
and on a scale of one to ten, scale a
one to ten ten being like I kick ass and
have the most abundant zer or will Ever, where would
(16:51):
you rate yourself zero, I have no willpower, I have
zeros or where would you put yourself now? Obviously that
could be circumcis cinantial to the activity or goal or
job or relationship or whatever it is. So rate yourself
and just think about think about that, because when you're
going and you have to and we're trying to tap
(17:12):
into stuff, it does require some serve, some willpower. So
if you like don't even want to take the time,
which is fine, be honest with yourself, to spend the
time to have self reflection, to spend the time going
internal Why if you have no willpower to do that?
What is that about? So right yourself? And then and
(17:32):
this is the opportunity to be ask those questions, why
do I not care enough to put the energy, time,
effort and resources into making into diving into this right
and pick whatever that thing is. But it is interesting
to observe people in your life, people at former associates,
(17:54):
former employees, former relationships, and think about their zerve And
I don't know, it's just interesting because people will put
the time and energy into the things that are extremely
important to them. Whether you disagree or agree with the
importance of that, of your perspective of it, it's interesting.
And that's why again the metal element was important, was
(18:18):
to discern how much zerr or will were you putting
an effort into things that didn't really give you as
much value, So you could trim that back shift and
really put that into the stuff that is really more
in lined with your purpose and more in line with
your values, more in line with your true self.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
And again I think you were saying this but just
to reiterate it that it's not your overall will, it's
will around a certain scenario. And because we can we're
all very willful about many things. We are all very committed,
we all have a habit, we all have choice is
we have behaviors that we're very good being willful on.
(19:05):
But when it comes to something that's maybe challenging or
uncomfortable or new or what have you, that's where that
will comes in. And like you said, what I look
at it is like the will, But what's it costing
you to either achieve it or let it go or
not focus on it? What's it costing you to stay
(19:26):
where you are as opposed to what's it going to
cost you to be where you want to be in
a scenario or situation. And that's where your I think
your will, your determination, your willingness to sacrifice or your
willingness to commit to something, your willingness to let go
of what it takes to get to where you want,
that's where the will, I think falls in. When you're
(19:49):
from my perspective is what if I'm hearing what you're saying,
I think it's just important to remember that when I
hear will sometimes I hear it in a global sense
rather than the specifics to this scenarrea that you're dealing with.
Speaker 4 (20:01):
Yeah, and we could totally get philosophical about that, because
there's part of me that just wants to be reactive.
And like, I've met people that I really think have
no will, but I clearly they do, just because they
maybe they play video games all day and don't have
a job or whatever, and to me, that's dude, you
don't have it, But clearly they have enough will. Yeah,
So like for the thing that's important to them, just
because I just disagree with that, because for me, I
(20:24):
have this whole thing about maybe I over think about
productivity and contribution and service and so forth, and it's okay,
what contribution, what service? What productivity? Like, how's that? How's
that helping you evolve? How's that helping you grow and
move forward? How's that helping the world and the people
around you move forward? And so for me it's not there.
But hey, I don't know. Everybody gets you touch with
(20:45):
somebody's lives one way or another somehow, and what is
that you're putting in again, going back to contributing to
the whole, right, So we just get introspection of hey,
how am I showing up in life? What are actions
things I'm doing? Am I a good role mom? Am
I influencing people in a good way? Am I doing
this to contribute to this greater value or this greater
(21:06):
whole of something?
Speaker 1 (21:07):
I like that?
Speaker 4 (21:08):
Right?
Speaker 1 (21:08):
He talks the Power of Now and it's a great book.
It's probably time to go back and reread it. It's
been many years since I read that book. He talked
a lot about the whole process of being in purpose
and part a big part of that is the cultivation
of contribution service, being in your community, in your relationships,
(21:33):
something outside of yourself. And while yes, there is the introspection,
but there's also the connection and what's your bigger purpose?
And then what Maslow's hierarchy is the same way, right,
there's all of these aspects of you create your baseline,
you're safe, you're fed, you have your essentials, and then
(21:54):
you move outside of that to how do I make
myself a little bit more, do more for me? And
and it's more from that of like, how do I
create this connection with something close to me? And then
as you move out of that, how do I make
this connection of something bigger than me and even my
close relationships to then even the higher point of a
(22:15):
fifty thousand foot view of how it all works together energetically.
And I think you have to decide where you want
to be and we all, I think we stare step
back and forth. If you're looking at it from the
Maslow's triangle, right, hierarchy with need or what would you
call that layers, But we're always going back and forth
(22:36):
in those different layers of where you're acting. It's not
like you have achieved this level of enlightenment and you
stay there all the time, unless maybe you're a Chinese monk,
I don't know, whatever, the Buddhist monk, maybe they're there
all the time. But most people have to go back
and forth. And it ties into with everything that we
talk about all the time, is the self awareness and
(22:57):
taking time to look at yourself honestly and look at
what you're interested in or what you're giving yourself to
and what's the bigger contribution. And it doesn't have to
be this week you change the world. It's what have
you done the last ten years? What do you want
to do in the next ten years. I know a
lot of people's brains explode and they can't think that
far ahead, or they don't want to think that far ahead.
(23:19):
Like sometimes I'm like, oh, dear lord, I'm just going
to get the laundry done on Wednesday, right, But that's
okay too if you look, but get uncomfortable looking forward,
get uncomfortable looking back, and ask people around you that
(23:40):
can give you honest input, that care about you, that
you trust, that can give you good reference to your
overall progress or overall contributions, interactions and how you are
presenting yourself. And if it doesn't align with what you
really want one take it to heart. That's coming from
(24:00):
another person's perspective with all of their stuff piled up
in their goggles. But also what is it really? Are
there areas that we want to work on and grow
in or do you just want to play the video
game and ignore it all? Strong will? And if your
will is to ignore it all and disengage in a
large portion, that's saying it's not okay every now and again.
But if you're disengaging as a whole, it's going to
(24:23):
show up. And that's where your will is to disengage.
Speaker 4 (24:26):
I do want to bring up something that we talk
about a lot, and again that's like cultivating energy or
leaking energy, and so all those things you're talking about
one other thing to apply to it. Is this causing
you to drain energy or leak energy or is it
building and cultivating energy? The water element winter going into
(24:46):
this winter as a storehouse of energy, right, So we're
going in and we need to be storing and building
this energy because think about like you wake up in
the morning and after that hot shower for me, because
I do not feel like I do not feel like
I'm going to conquer the world until I take a
hot shower. So I wake up and I'm like introspective
(25:07):
in the morning, my pair sympathetic nervous systems nice and chill.
I sit on the couch and I do my meditative
coffee drinking, which is possible, so don't judge me. And
I'm going inward. And then I things are just percolating
and popping up. It's like popcorn just popping up out
of nowhere, just and I write them down and then
(25:28):
I go get in the and take a hot shower,
and I get out the shower and I'm like, all right,
I'm gonna conquer it, and I see it, and I
have this energy and this willpower, and then I go
to work for thirteen hours and at the end of
the day, I'm just dog tired, and maybe things that
you know, I you know, your willpower is lower right
when you're exhausted. So and then you go home and
(25:51):
maybe I wasn't going to eat that amazing age cheddar
cheese with a pretzel and drink a beer, but I
do it anyway because my will my willpower is so
weak that I just vone to it. And so that's
just an example of a micro kind of scale of
things that can happen on a bigger level. So we
need to be doing those things that are storing and
(26:12):
building and cultivating the energy and prevent the leaking of energy,
because that's your willpower is stronger with that reserve of energy.
So if we have a goal, a purpose that comes
to us during this introspective time, we need to be
cultivating and storing that energy so that when the spring
(26:32):
is here, we are ready to shoot out of that
cannon with power and force. And moving into the wood
element is about courage. So when we have strong willpower,
we're going to be able to really embrace and have
more courage moving into those things that we're going to do,
(26:53):
and then it's going to help carry us through because
there's going to be struggles when you're creating something new,
or you're starting something, or you're trying to have this
transformation into something that's more purposeful in your own light,
with your own life. It takes courage to do that,
and that courage and that will's going to help pull
you through some of those initial struggles of things and
help us pivot and be more flexible. Like a healthy
(27:13):
wood element should be the wood element.
Speaker 1 (27:18):
Healthy wood element more would please. I think when you
look at the winter process, and I always think about
you've planted some seeds and they're buried, and they're deep,
and they're growing roots, and they're taking energy and getting
energy from the soil, knowing that they're going to start
(27:39):
pushing and striving to get to the surface and you know, bloom.
When we're in this winter phase again. I go back
to what like when you said the whole you've got
decision fatigue, you've got life fatigue. You're coming home. And
what I teach myself, my other and my clients is
(28:00):
you will at the end of the day or the
end of the week. Have decision fatigue. So make sure
that your decision is easy. If it's around nutrition or fitness,
set yourself up to not have the pretzel and cheese
and beer if that is a determinate a determent for
your health goals. Otherwise, why wouldn't you? Yeah, what is
(28:24):
bad about the pretzel and the cheese and the beer.
It's very comforting and nourishing and dope dopa mean feed
dopa genetic right, it's everybody needs that.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
What else can I give you to help? What else
can I give you to help justify my habits?
Speaker 5 (28:43):
We can talk about your overall life goals and strategy
that I know you you work out a lot, and
you're healthy, and I hate saying this necessarily, but however,
it's also true.
Speaker 1 (28:55):
You've earned that those carbs most likely, right, and like
you did the things that put in the work, and
you've eaten healthy, and you've done the exercise, and you've
mitigated throughout the week how often you're doing those things.
It's just like with the video game. It's just like
with social media and everything else that is enjoyment driven.
(29:17):
It's okay to have that but if you're overdoing it,
it's going to show up in your health, in your waistline,
and your productivity, in your bank account, and your connection
with your spouse or your mate, and it all shows
up when it's too much. It's just how often are
you making sure that it's not a smack in the face, like,
oh ooops, I've been doing this for too long because
(29:38):
I've been completely really unaware, and I've just been living
and doing and I've just been making choices as they
are without really contemplating or thinking or planning. While you're
feeding yourself in this introspective, wintery space, knowing that you're
going to do a lot of building, it's okay. I
(29:59):
think you're I think we should look at the reality
of what is really nourishing, what is really bad quote unquote,
and why would we think that it's bad. Is it
inherently bad or is it just not working in the
plan for us that we want.
Speaker 4 (30:16):
I think I've earned some fish and chips today, good.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Job, I have earned workout programs.
Speaker 4 (30:26):
Now I'm going to the gym right after you. So
I think, clearly, just to recap a couple of things
moving into winter, introspective facing fears. Tapping into deeper wisdom
helps develop that intuitive space. Are you is it cultivating energy?
(30:47):
Is it leaking energy? What contributions are you adding to
the whole purpose reservoir of energy to help explode into
spring to have more courage, building willpower? Right, So those
are some yummy things. And so the introspective part, again,
(31:08):
I think is a very key word here and again
core energy, holding on storing that energy for this personal growth,
for this next thing, Being true to yourself during that
introspective period, and really making sure you're not just overthinking
and going into conditioned responses, negative thoughts, things like that,
(31:31):
making sure you're balancing that reflection with action. Are there
any blind spots that you're hitting or biases because of
your patterns or external feedbacks it's blocking you from deeper introspection,
really feeling okay with being uncomfortable and asking yourself the
other big questions about is it true? Like why am
(31:52):
I thinking this? Is this? What purposes is showing up for?
Like being able to ask whatever reflective questions you can.
And by amy, do you have any ideas or suggestions?
I talked about introspection being very important in the morning,
but what are some other practices of introspection, just to
(32:14):
help give people an idea of other things they can do.
Speaker 1 (32:18):
We have lots of tools that we know about right
We know journaling and mindfulness, meditation, self assessment tools, knowing
your personality type, being in nature. We've talked about gratitude practices.
These are all tools. I think something that can be
helpful is to just be aware of the obstacles and
some things you can do to overcome some of the
(32:40):
obstacles we have when we're looking at ourselves and our behaviors,
because it is challenging. We will find ourselves when negative talk,
we will bump up against limiting beliefs, and man, those
limiting beliefs are really hard to see, and we will
fight tooth and nail to not really clearly see those
(33:02):
limiting beliefs. Being still and reconnecting with what's really going on.
Like we've mentioned, be gentle, but be stern and honest
with yourself and always direct those feelings back into why
it's you, not them, Not saying that them didn't do
something wrong, but you. Why bring it back into you.
(33:22):
Really figure out those limiting beliefs, and it is very
hard to overcome limiting beliefs, like you've got to look
at the truth of is this one hundred percent true?
And if it's not, where do you think that you
are unique and special in this inability to achieve something
(33:45):
or do something? Obviously seeking mentorship and coaching, I find
somebody that you can work with or talk to help
you with a little guidance and change of perspectives, and
then start taking small actions. If you're not a person
that's really good at being comfortable with the uncomfortableness of
looking at your hard feelings or your achievements or lack thereof,
(34:10):
or whatever it might be, take a small step, start tracking,
Just blurt it down, use some of those tools we've
talked about, but just do it a little bit at
a time. It doesn't have to unravel your life. It
can be those quiet moments at that right before you're
waking up that you just I don't jump up, I
(34:32):
stay cuddled up in bed and I just take a
few minutes of quietness and then I jump up and go,
because I typically wake up with a ton of stuff
on my mind and raring to go. And if I
do that, I blurt I just I like, like you said, Brian,
I journal it all down and then you just wait. Understand,
(34:53):
this is a journey and that is the process. It's
not that we have to create this angst turmoil over
this end result, and that is so hard, especially for me.
I want to see the results. I want to see progress.
I want to know what I'm doing matters, and that
I often have to stop and go, Okay, what is
(35:16):
happening now? What is happening today? Right now? Who am
I being? No matter what the doing is or the
process is what? Who am I being right now? To myself,
to my next outer level of people, and to the
bigger level of my commitment and hope to expand. Like
(35:41):
I think being in those basically five steps is a
great way to start your introspection. I'm also to not
if you're if you really have a hard time with it,
jump into some shadow work uncomfortable.
Speaker 4 (35:54):
Yeah, now those are all great steps. This is it's such,
This is about transformation. It's a transformative process. And the
nice thing is moving into this water element we can
we have to have clarity and we have to be
in line with purpose to really have this transformative process,
really engaged and really cultivate something new. And help us grow.
(36:19):
And I feel like the limiting beliefs when I was
much younger, that was something that really I was fortunate
enough to have just hit me smack in the brain,
smack in my face. Is I was like, I can
transform and be anybody who I want to be. Yeah,
And to this day, I still one hundred percent firmly
(36:41):
believe that if I don't like who I am, or
if I don't like certain things that I'm doing, or
if I don't like whatever, I can create something new.
I can change, I can transform, I can become somebody different.
There are no limitations. And I think you know, for
if you're struggling with that, you could just really tell yourself,
(37:01):
if you can really believe I can transform into anybody
or anything who I want to be, it's so freeing
and so liberating and true.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
By the way, Yeah, don't believe that that's a limiting belief. Yeah,
if you really believe that there's something innately wrong about
you or hard or you're either, Yeah, that's the limiting
belief to step into.
Speaker 4 (37:26):
Ooh that's you know what, this that's really good. I'm
going to use that so anytime I'm in a heated
conversation with somebody that there's there or maybe somebody is
really fixed on their perspective or opinion instead of arguing,
I'm just gonna be that's a limiting belief. Like that
just diffuses it, just like interesting, that's a limiting belief.
(37:47):
How do you argue with that?
Speaker 1 (37:47):
For you or them?
Speaker 4 (37:49):
For them?
Speaker 1 (37:51):
And what would I say to that?
Speaker 4 (37:54):
You can't that's just or interesting that's a limiting belief.
Speaker 1 (37:58):
Or it's our limiting belief like exactly like yeah, I
think that's a good way to do it, is to
just be like when we're very That could be a
whole nother podcast, Brian, Like when we talk about people
with differing beliefs that they are really held to, Yeah,
(38:21):
is that their will and purpose and direction and clarity
or is it a limiting belief? And if we judge
them in a limiting belief, is it our limiting belief?
I don't know. That's a whole other philosophical circle we
could get into about why we might need somebody to
change their perspective.
Speaker 4 (38:40):
I feel like we should also blend this with if
we were going to go into nature and do a
hike and microdose mushrooms, maybe these all maybe that would
go really well into that.
Speaker 1 (38:52):
Don't microdose with the mushrooms on the trail. I think
that'd be great. I think that'd be awesome. This is
why my friends always told me, like, you don't need
to do drugs. You're like already there. Yeah, I'm naturally
in that state.
Speaker 4 (39:06):
Please don't do drugs. Please don't do drugs.
Speaker 1 (39:09):
So I think, as we're wrapping upward today, as I'm
excited looking forward, and maybe maybe we should possibly do
a podcast about shadow work, because I do think it's
really important to understand what that looks like and the
practice of it, and there is some there are some
steps and things people could do that help you look
at yourself in a non harsh, non judgment way and
(39:31):
with more curiosity. And I think when we do get
comfortable with ourselves, we get comfortable with other people who
aren't like ourselves.
Speaker 4 (39:40):
Yeah. Actually, I think if you're comfortable, I think that
would be perfect. And on our podcast next week, we
can actually share our own personal stories of because I'm
going to do this, everything we're talking about I do,
so I will be doing my introspective work and would
be very comfortable bearing some of my AHA some of
(40:02):
my challenges, some of my struggles in a podcast so
people can really have a more of a visceral sense
of a real life experience with it.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
Yeah, let's get even more vulnerable and authentic.
Speaker 4 (40:16):
So that this could go south. So make sure you
turn it. Tune into the next episode of All Things Good.
Speaker 1 (40:21):
For You Dud.
Speaker 4 (40:23):
When Amy and Brian get vulnerable.
Speaker 1 (40:28):
Yeah, I think that'd be great. Let's wrap us up
this week with the understanding of leaning into winter, leaning
into introspect, and taking some time to go within, listen
to what's coming up for you and become fear Sorry.
Speaker 4 (40:44):
Just gonna say it. I mean I meant to say face.
I meant to say face. Fear Sorry, That's what I
meant to say.
Speaker 1 (40:52):
Put it in the bucket. Yeah, and just embrace it.
I get it. It's there for a reason. It's telling
you something. It's just not always true. Go forth and
be brave, go forth and go outside. I'm going to
be doing squats this a lot this week on skis.
Speaker 4 (41:14):
Squats on skis, I like it work does, likes work does.
Thank you, Amy, and thank all of you for spending
your time with us today. I really appreciate it. Amy,
tell them what they need to do from now now
moving forward.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
They need to tell somebody to come listen to our podcast.
I need to share this with a friend and make
some oh self development fun and a little silly sometimes,
and leave us a hello. Go on down below or
up above and click on that little star buttoner thing
and leave us a comment and maybe give us some review.
(41:49):
That would be helpful.
Speaker 4 (41:51):
Yes, and the three friends, five friends, six friends. Actually
everybody is going to be sitting with a handful of
people of family at their Thanksgiving dinner. That's a great
time to share all Things Good for Your podcast. Maybe
you guys can desid around and listen to an episode together.
Speaker 1 (42:06):
That would be so nice. We're going to do and
there's been one of us is putting out a short
this week too, so there'll be another quick little dozable
Things Good for You coming up. Ye go seek out
those turkeys people.
Speaker 4 (42:26):
Happy Thanksgiving, buying me, Thank you, thank you all, buye.
Speaker 6 (42:31):
Hey friends, thank you for tuning in to the All
Things Good for You podcast. Please note any information, experiences, ideas,
or opinions discussed today are for educational, thought provoking purposes
only and not intended as medical advice. If anything piqued
your curiosity, please consult with your doctor or personal medical professional.
(42:51):
And if you're enjoying all things good for your podcast,
hop on over and leave us a five star review
so we can continue delving in and providing great content.
Thanks again, and we hope you are inspired to stay
informed and responsible along your health and wellness journey.
Speaker 5 (43:10):
M
Contemplating or thinking or planning while you're feeding yourself in
this introspective wintery space, knowing that you're going to do
a lot of building. It's okay. I think we should
look at the reality of what is really nourishing, what
is really bad quote unquote, and why would we think
(00:27):
that it's bad? Is it inherently bad or is it
just not working in the plan for us that we want.
Speaker 2 (00:34):
Hey, friends, thank you for listening to the All Things
Good for You Podcast. Join us as we explore ancient traditions,
modern tools and practices in the world of health, wellness,
and personal development. I'm Amy Christensen, your host and your
curated mind coach.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
And I'm your co host, Brian Bowen, founder of Integrative Health, Inc.
And Better Human Company High Performance Coaching. Are you ready
to take control of your life and start feeling enthusiastic, empowered,
and limitless each and every day for a life well lived?
Let your curiosity flow with.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
All things good for you.
Speaker 4 (01:16):
Happy Happy Turkey Day, Happy Thanksgiving, Amy.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Morning, Happy Happy Thanksgiving. I am thanks, thankful for authentic fun.
Speaker 4 (01:32):
Just in case those of you who are listening, this
is All Things Good for Your podcast, Just to make sure,
my turkey called it and throw you off. But did
that sound like a real turkey?
Speaker 1 (01:41):
Man? It seems so real. I was looking for the
feathers to fly in. I was already mixing up the gravy.
Speaker 4 (01:51):
So you hear that, you think about just eating the turkey,
not watching how the beautiful bird walks through the foliage.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
And hides out, And yeah, I think about that, and
then I think about eating it.
Speaker 4 (02:04):
I think about injecting it with my my, my butter compote,
my her butter compote.
Speaker 1 (02:10):
Sorry to all the vegan friends out there, but I
am not bad, No neither. And I grew up with
cousins and uncles and husbands going and hunting and bringing
home turkeys and such. Always fun.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
Always.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
I think it's great, And I think you did a
fantastic job speaking turkey.
Speaker 4 (02:33):
Thank you very much, Thank you very much. We are
going to jump into transitioning. For those of you who
did not listen to the last podcast, it's very better
to do it, So go back and listen to that
because we're doing some seasonal stuff. And so we shifted
from fall and what does that mean and things that
you could do and some frameworks to think about breaking
(02:54):
our life up into chunks, so we have these moments
that we can really allocate to different sorts of mindset
and personal development and so forth. And so we're going
to be tapping in today to the all important winter components,
which is reflected in the water element. So I know
(03:16):
that sounds a little woo woo. We're gonna just hang
in there. We're gonna we're gonna jump into this and
why that's important. Amy, we're into.
Speaker 1 (03:22):
The woo here.
Speaker 4 (03:23):
I'd like it problem we get the woo woo going.
Speaker 1 (03:28):
I know we dived into a little bit, we started
to delve into it on our last one, but we're
moving away. Yeah, like you said, from metal to water,
is that right?
Speaker 4 (03:39):
Mm hmm, yeah, yeah, metal to water. So the base
energy to think about when I say base energy, for
some people, if you're into yeah, that means different things.
But I think everybody can associate to the observation of
when we're moving inward or we're expanding outward, and so
(03:59):
that's the kind of energy that I'm talking about. So
the metal element was very much more of an outward
kind of energy. Really really thinking about letting go of stuff,
what values you truly hold on to what are things
you're holding on to that don't have value, completing task,
finishing things up, clearing the debris, getting rid of the clutter,
(04:24):
things that are burdens to us or bogg us down
or are causing stagnation in our lives. And so that's
very much of a kind of an outward moving energy.
And so this time, this framework is great because now
we have a three month period of moving into the
water element into the winter, which is very much more
(04:45):
inward energy. And so just like the observation of nature,
like all the leaves have fallen off the tree, the
plants and everything are storing up their energy and they're
going to hold onto that energy until they explode into
the spring. And so that's what we want to do.
We want to go inward now, and we're going to
take that yummy energy and pull inward and we're going
(05:07):
to talk about what we're going to do with that
in a bet. But then that's going to really te
us up. So when spring comes, we have this expansion
and this really beautiful energy that's moving us into a
growth phase. And so this is huge and for preparation
of what do we want that look like, which is
awesome because we are of course we'll be moving into
(05:28):
a new year, so yummy, yummy, stop well, and it's just.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
Perfect with the natural rhythm like we I think we
mentioned this last time too. It's just the natural rhythm
of earth and nature and just our habits in general
that we've adopted, and then just the traditions that we've created.
Where you said letting go of some things moving forward,
but the winter turning that inward, but more in a
(05:53):
reflective growth mindset, like looking back. Probably people are moving
away from fear and failure and self abuse at the
end of the year, moving into the new year, and
more of a what did we learn, what did we
experience from the previous year, and then how do we
(06:15):
want to take that and wrap it up into the
new year and continue moving forward? What things need to
be reviewed and of course we'll look at that again
in the new year. But in that winter time, that
going inward, creating that self hibernation, it's just I think
beautiful that we just naturally do that internal review in
(06:37):
that time.
Speaker 4 (06:38):
Yeah. Yeah, introspection is a key kind of word for this,
and they're the out of balance emotion. Just so everybody's
aware that's associated to the water element is fear. And
the reason I bring that up now is because when
we are diving in and trying to have more respection
(07:01):
we can be we want to do it with courage,
and we want to do it with truth, and we
want to do it with non biased approach. We need
to be vulnerable and just be totally open to where
it could take us. I think that when we start
getting into that, we can tend to overthink it. We
(07:24):
can tend to have a ton of biases and blind
spots around it that can really block us from having
that deeper inner wisdom show up. So there's too much
external feedback and things that are going on, and lack
of openness can really block us from really having true
deep introspection and of course the discomfort that it can
(07:45):
bring us. Sometimes we have to have reflection and really
think about all the details, whether it's how we behave
our actions are, the way we're showing up in relationships,
the way we're showing up at work, maybe being in
a place of something doing that doesn't fit you anymore,
and that we need to move on from what are
(08:05):
some of those bigger what is that bigger life purpose?
That maybe you have not been allowing to flow into
your life or not stepping into And that's the challenge
with this introspection is just really being vulnerable to it
and trying to remain open because it's very much the
water element is very much that aspect of our intuition too,
(08:29):
So what is let that intuition percolate up from those
kind of that deeper inner wisdom? The water element is
very much about that deeper inner wisdom.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
And yeah, I think do you and you can tell
me what you think.
Speaker 4 (08:44):
Yeah, I think that is I'm going don't worry, I will.
Speaker 1 (08:47):
I know it's along so well. Do you think that
it's challenging or easy for people to have true self
contemplation and awareness to do that deep into place behaviors.
Speaker 4 (09:07):
Yeah, no, I think it's a huge challenge. I think
that going back to things we've discussed before, we all have,
we've all been conditioned, and even more so now than ever.
I think people are really understanding the word of influence.
There's nothing that you're not exposed to that is trying
(09:27):
to influence you in many ways, good, bad, or other.
And I think that we've been influenced throughout our lives,
and certainly things get anchored in at an early age,
as we've discussed in previous podcasts, and we have to
operate through those, and a lot of times we've we
get anchored in that, and then we don't get into
(09:50):
the idea of neuroplasticity and being able to change and whatever,
and we get stuck in those things. Just like in
five elements, we should flow effortlessly through all of them,
but people in the getting stuck in three and one
is really really stuck and you're jammed up in this.
And so I think the more fluidity you have through those,
the more groundwork that you've done, the easier it is
(10:13):
to have that introspection and to really be true to
that and not let these influences really impact are thinking.
I think if we can learn how to ask ourselves
really hard questions too. So let's say I'm doing some
introspection and an idea comes up and I'm like, oh
my gosh, like this is powerful, Like, then how do
(10:36):
we challenge that to find out some of its truth?
Is that rooted in something that you just really want,
that the ego wants, is that you're just trying to
make something happen the way you'd like to see it
turn out to benefit you, like what's really happening. And
so to ask yourself those questions, to challenge that is
an important thing that I just don't think that we
(10:57):
typically do.
Speaker 1 (11:00):
First of all, unless you're around somebody or open to
observing the real results and interactions of your life and
your behavior, you're thinking, we do have to get okay
with being challenged. And most people don't like feeling wrong
or disliked or guilty or shamed, or like they did
(11:22):
something wrong or they hurt someone's feelings, or they failed
at something, or they didn't do as well as they
should have. It's not a good feeling. But again, it's
so rooted in our understanding of these high expectations and
what that is, defining of self instead of defining of
a moment in a decision or a misunderstanding. And you
(11:43):
can be aware of the fact that we all, every
single one of us. It's so easy to say we
all make mistakes, we all say something that we think
makes sense that they's totally nothing or the complete opposite
to somebody else, and or we have intention for business
or whatnot. In your work and work and it doesn't
turn out being okay with That's part of the process
(12:07):
of Like we've talked about purpose, that is the process
of living and finding and being in purpose. I really
don't think we can expand and grow if we're not
willing to look at the things that we didn't do well.
If you're lucky, you have people around you that support
(12:28):
you through that and help you see it and aren't
shaming you or ending your friendships, your connections, your business
relationships because something didn't go well, But those happen. And
I think allowing ourselves to be compassionate and understanding and asking,
just like you said, ask these questions of what's triggering you.
(12:52):
I think that can be an overused phrase, but look
at what is being stirred up in you, what you're feeling,
even if it's only four thing feelings Brian.
Speaker 4 (13:05):
At four, you remember you remembered that I forgot because
I alway have for that I forgot. I even't had
a feeling about the feeling that I have. Feelings.
Speaker 1 (13:14):
If you only have four, just pick it and ask
why what is this? Why do I have this feeling
and this, why is it maybe making me feel uncomfortable, upset, frustrated,
disappoint it, sad, angry, judged, blooh, whenever, what is this
that I'm it's making me dislike or fear or want
to avoid this discomfort and resistance. And we'd have to
(13:38):
ask why and where's that really coming from? And I
would say that something I have had to work very
hard at does not always come easy, and sometimes it
takes a little bit of time. But if there is
that question coming up for you about whatever the scenario is,
and there's a blame process of something or someone outside
(14:00):
of you, go a little deeper. It's not that there's
people and scenarios don't have their place and things are
done maybe unfair or I'm misunderstood or quote unquote wrong,
but go deeper into what that means to you and
always bring the question of discomfort and frustration back into
(14:24):
what that means to you and why. And it just
I feel like that helps you get closer to the
real process of self reflection and introspection, is that you
just bring it back into what's coming up for you.
Oh trail there.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
But that's good. There's I want to back up to
because when you're talked about connections and you were talking
about other people and the connections to other people, And
I just wanted to bring up that that's another really
big part of the water element too, is the depth
and connections to the people around us, and it taps
(15:01):
in that part of it's not just about us, it's
how we contribute to the greater whole. So everything we do,
just like the rivers joining oceans, all the individual efforts
and stuff that we do flow into something larger. So
it's an important thing to remember that the things you're doing,
what is it flowing into? And how can we have
(15:22):
deeper connections to other to contribute to the whole. And
that's why community is so important and tapping into the
other thing you were just talking about about that introspection
the water element. So there's I'm not going to get
too crazy with the oregons here because I want to
confuse people, but you do have the kidney and urinary
(15:42):
bladder meridians which are associated to that element. But the
water element houses your zirr and your zhi and r
as will and so I do feel like it's interesting
to just grade yourself right now. If you were to
really have true introspection and just think about this question
(16:05):
so go inside, close your eyes, breathe. By the way,
anytime you're really trying to see things clear, early in
the morning is an amazing time to really tap into
this stuff because all the external noises are dialed down
a lot, and getting rid of all as much external
noise as you can your nervous systems more in pairasympathetic
(16:25):
and not sympathetic, so you're at a lower brainwave of state,
which is more in a meditative state versus the higher
frequency states of anxiety and overthinking and all that stuff.
So tap into it in the morning, close your eyes, breathe,
and on a scale of one to ten, scale a
one to ten ten being like I kick ass and
have the most abundant zer or will Ever, where would
(16:51):
you rate yourself zero, I have no willpower, I have
zeros or where would you put yourself now? Obviously that
could be circumcis cinantial to the activity or goal or
job or relationship or whatever it is. So rate yourself
and just think about think about that, because when you're
going and you have to and we're trying to tap
(17:12):
into stuff, it does require some serve, some willpower. So
if you like don't even want to take the time,
which is fine, be honest with yourself, to spend the
time to have self reflection, to spend the time going
internal Why if you have no willpower to do that?
What is that about? So right yourself? And then and
(17:32):
this is the opportunity to be ask those questions, why
do I not care enough to put the energy, time,
effort and resources into making into diving into this right
and pick whatever that thing is. But it is interesting
to observe people in your life, people at former associates,
(17:54):
former employees, former relationships, and think about their zerve And
I don't know, it's just interesting because people will put
the time and energy into the things that are extremely
important to them. Whether you disagree or agree with the
importance of that, of your perspective of it, it's interesting.
And that's why again the metal element was important, was
(18:18):
to discern how much zerr or will were you putting
an effort into things that didn't really give you as
much value, So you could trim that back shift and
really put that into the stuff that is really more
in lined with your purpose and more in line with
your values, more in line with your true self.
Speaker 1 (18:43):
And again I think you were saying this but just
to reiterate it that it's not your overall will, it's
will around a certain scenario. And because we can we're
all very willful about many things. We are all very committed,
we all have a habit, we all have choice is
we have behaviors that we're very good being willful on.
(19:05):
But when it comes to something that's maybe challenging or
uncomfortable or new or what have you, that's where that
will comes in. And like you said, what I look
at it is like the will, But what's it costing
you to either achieve it or let it go or
not focus on it? What's it costing you to stay
(19:26):
where you are as opposed to what's it going to
cost you to be where you want to be in
a scenario or situation. And that's where your I think
your will, your determination, your willingness to sacrifice or your
willingness to commit to something, your willingness to let go
of what it takes to get to where you want,
that's where the will, I think falls in. When you're
(19:49):
from my perspective is what if I'm hearing what you're saying,
I think it's just important to remember that when I
hear will sometimes I hear it in a global sense
rather than the specifics to this scenarrea that you're dealing with.
Speaker 4 (20:01):
Yeah, and we could totally get philosophical about that, because
there's part of me that just wants to be reactive.
And like, I've met people that I really think have
no will, but I clearly they do, just because they
maybe they play video games all day and don't have
a job or whatever, and to me, that's dude, you
don't have it, But clearly they have enough will. Yeah,
So like for the thing that's important to them, just
because I just disagree with that, because for me, I
(20:24):
have this whole thing about maybe I over think about
productivity and contribution and service and so forth, and it's okay,
what contribution, what service? What productivity? Like, how's that? How's
that helping you evolve? How's that helping you grow and
move forward? How's that helping the world and the people
around you move forward? And so for me it's not there.
But hey, I don't know. Everybody gets you touch with
(20:45):
somebody's lives one way or another somehow, and what is
that you're putting in again, going back to contributing to
the whole, right, So we just get introspection of hey,
how am I showing up in life? What are actions
things I'm doing? Am I a good role mom? Am
I influencing people in a good way? Am I doing
this to contribute to this greater value or this greater
(21:06):
whole of something?
Speaker 1 (21:07):
I like that?
Speaker 4 (21:08):
Right?
Speaker 1 (21:08):
He talks the Power of Now and it's a great book.
It's probably time to go back and reread it. It's
been many years since I read that book. He talked
a lot about the whole process of being in purpose
and part a big part of that is the cultivation
of contribution service, being in your community, in your relationships,
(21:33):
something outside of yourself. And while yes, there is the introspection,
but there's also the connection and what's your bigger purpose?
And then what Maslow's hierarchy is the same way, right,
there's all of these aspects of you create your baseline,
you're safe, you're fed, you have your essentials, and then
(21:54):
you move outside of that to how do I make
myself a little bit more, do more for me? And
and it's more from that of like, how do I
create this connection with something close to me? And then
as you move out of that, how do I make
this connection of something bigger than me and even my
close relationships to then even the higher point of a
(22:15):
fifty thousand foot view of how it all works together energetically.
And I think you have to decide where you want
to be and we all, I think we stare step
back and forth. If you're looking at it from the
Maslow's triangle, right, hierarchy with need or what would you
call that layers, But we're always going back and forth
(22:36):
in those different layers of where you're acting. It's not
like you have achieved this level of enlightenment and you
stay there all the time, unless maybe you're a Chinese monk,
I don't know, whatever, the Buddhist monk, maybe they're there
all the time. But most people have to go back
and forth. And it ties into with everything that we
talk about all the time, is the self awareness and
(22:57):
taking time to look at yourself honestly and look at
what you're interested in or what you're giving yourself to
and what's the bigger contribution. And it doesn't have to
be this week you change the world. It's what have
you done the last ten years? What do you want
to do in the next ten years. I know a
lot of people's brains explode and they can't think that
far ahead, or they don't want to think that far ahead.
(23:19):
Like sometimes I'm like, oh, dear lord, I'm just going
to get the laundry done on Wednesday, right, But that's
okay too if you look, but get uncomfortable looking forward,
get uncomfortable looking back, and ask people around you that
(23:40):
can give you honest input, that care about you, that
you trust, that can give you good reference to your
overall progress or overall contributions, interactions and how you are
presenting yourself. And if it doesn't align with what you
really want one take it to heart. That's coming from
(24:00):
another person's perspective with all of their stuff piled up
in their goggles. But also what is it really? Are
there areas that we want to work on and grow
in or do you just want to play the video
game and ignore it all? Strong will? And if your
will is to ignore it all and disengage in a
large portion, that's saying it's not okay every now and again.
But if you're disengaging as a whole, it's going to
(24:23):
show up. And that's where your will is to disengage.
Speaker 4 (24:26):
I do want to bring up something that we talk
about a lot, and again that's like cultivating energy or
leaking energy, and so all those things you're talking about
one other thing to apply to it. Is this causing
you to drain energy or leak energy or is it
building and cultivating energy? The water element winter going into
(24:46):
this winter as a storehouse of energy, right, So we're
going in and we need to be storing and building
this energy because think about like you wake up in
the morning and after that hot shower for me, because
I do not feel like I do not feel like
I'm going to conquer the world until I take a
hot shower. So I wake up and I'm like introspective
(25:07):
in the morning, my pair sympathetic nervous systems nice and chill.
I sit on the couch and I do my meditative
coffee drinking, which is possible, so don't judge me. And
I'm going inward. And then I things are just percolating
and popping up. It's like popcorn just popping up out
of nowhere, just and I write them down and then
(25:28):
I go get in the and take a hot shower,
and I get out the shower and I'm like, all right,
I'm gonna conquer it, and I see it, and I
have this energy and this willpower, and then I go
to work for thirteen hours and at the end of
the day, I'm just dog tired, and maybe things that
you know, I you know, your willpower is lower right
when you're exhausted. So and then you go home and
(25:51):
maybe I wasn't going to eat that amazing age cheddar
cheese with a pretzel and drink a beer, but I
do it anyway because my will my willpower is so
weak that I just vone to it. And so that's
just an example of a micro kind of scale of
things that can happen on a bigger level. So we
need to be doing those things that are storing and
(26:12):
building and cultivating the energy and prevent the leaking of energy,
because that's your willpower is stronger with that reserve of energy.
So if we have a goal, a purpose that comes
to us during this introspective time, we need to be
cultivating and storing that energy so that when the spring
(26:32):
is here, we are ready to shoot out of that
cannon with power and force. And moving into the wood
element is about courage. So when we have strong willpower,
we're going to be able to really embrace and have
more courage moving into those things that we're going to do,
(26:53):
and then it's going to help carry us through because
there's going to be struggles when you're creating something new,
or you're starting something, or you're trying to have this
transformation into something that's more purposeful in your own light,
with your own life. It takes courage to do that,
and that courage and that will's going to help pull
you through some of those initial struggles of things and
help us pivot and be more flexible. Like a healthy
(27:13):
wood element should be the wood element.
Speaker 1 (27:18):
Healthy wood element more would please. I think when you
look at the winter process, and I always think about
you've planted some seeds and they're buried, and they're deep,
and they're growing roots, and they're taking energy and getting
energy from the soil, knowing that they're going to start
(27:39):
pushing and striving to get to the surface and you know, bloom.
When we're in this winter phase again. I go back
to what like when you said the whole you've got
decision fatigue, you've got life fatigue. You're coming home. And
what I teach myself, my other and my clients is
(28:00):
you will at the end of the day or the
end of the week. Have decision fatigue. So make sure
that your decision is easy. If it's around nutrition or fitness,
set yourself up to not have the pretzel and cheese
and beer if that is a determinate a determent for
your health goals. Otherwise, why wouldn't you? Yeah, what is
(28:24):
bad about the pretzel and the cheese and the beer.
It's very comforting and nourishing and dope dopa mean feed
dopa genetic right, it's everybody needs that.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
What else can I give you to help? What else
can I give you to help justify my habits?
Speaker 5 (28:43):
We can talk about your overall life goals and strategy
that I know you you work out a lot, and
you're healthy, and I hate saying this necessarily, but however,
it's also true.
Speaker 1 (28:55):
You've earned that those carbs most likely, right, and like
you did the things that put in the work, and
you've eaten healthy, and you've done the exercise, and you've
mitigated throughout the week how often you're doing those things.
It's just like with the video game. It's just like
with social media and everything else that is enjoyment driven.
(29:17):
It's okay to have that but if you're overdoing it,
it's going to show up in your health, in your waistline,
and your productivity, in your bank account, and your connection
with your spouse or your mate, and it all shows
up when it's too much. It's just how often are
you making sure that it's not a smack in the face, like,
oh ooops, I've been doing this for too long because
(29:38):
I've been completely really unaware, and I've just been living
and doing and I've just been making choices as they
are without really contemplating or thinking or planning. While you're
feeding yourself in this introspective, wintery space, knowing that you're
going to do a lot of building, it's okay. I
(29:59):
think you're I think we should look at the reality
of what is really nourishing, what is really bad quote unquote,
and why would we think that it's bad. Is it
inherently bad or is it just not working in the
plan for us that we want.
Speaker 4 (30:16):
I think I've earned some fish and chips today, good.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
Job, I have earned workout programs.
Speaker 4 (30:26):
Now I'm going to the gym right after you. So
I think, clearly, just to recap a couple of things
moving into winter, introspective facing fears. Tapping into deeper wisdom
helps develop that intuitive space. Are you is it cultivating energy?
(30:47):
Is it leaking energy? What contributions are you adding to
the whole purpose reservoir of energy to help explode into
spring to have more courage, building willpower? Right, So those
are some yummy things. And so the introspective part, again,
(31:08):
I think is a very key word here and again
core energy, holding on storing that energy for this personal growth,
for this next thing, Being true to yourself during that
introspective period, and really making sure you're not just overthinking
and going into conditioned responses, negative thoughts, things like that,
(31:31):
making sure you're balancing that reflection with action. Are there
any blind spots that you're hitting or biases because of
your patterns or external feedbacks it's blocking you from deeper introspection,
really feeling okay with being uncomfortable and asking yourself the
other big questions about is it true? Like why am
(31:52):
I thinking this? Is this? What purposes is showing up for?
Like being able to ask whatever reflective questions you can.
And by amy, do you have any ideas or suggestions?
I talked about introspection being very important in the morning,
but what are some other practices of introspection, just to
(32:14):
help give people an idea of other things they can do.
Speaker 1 (32:18):
We have lots of tools that we know about right
We know journaling and mindfulness, meditation, self assessment tools, knowing
your personality type, being in nature. We've talked about gratitude practices.
These are all tools. I think something that can be
helpful is to just be aware of the obstacles and
some things you can do to overcome some of the
(32:40):
obstacles we have when we're looking at ourselves and our behaviors,
because it is challenging. We will find ourselves when negative talk,
we will bump up against limiting beliefs, and man, those
limiting beliefs are really hard to see, and we will
fight tooth and nail to not really clearly see those
(33:02):
limiting beliefs. Being still and reconnecting with what's really going on.
Like we've mentioned, be gentle, but be stern and honest
with yourself and always direct those feelings back into why
it's you, not them, Not saying that them didn't do
something wrong, but you. Why bring it back into you.
(33:22):
Really figure out those limiting beliefs, and it is very
hard to overcome limiting beliefs, like you've got to look
at the truth of is this one hundred percent true?
And if it's not, where do you think that you
are unique and special in this inability to achieve something
(33:45):
or do something? Obviously seeking mentorship and coaching, I find
somebody that you can work with or talk to help
you with a little guidance and change of perspectives, and
then start taking small actions. If you're not a person
that's really good at being comfortable with the uncomfortableness of
looking at your hard feelings or your achievements or lack thereof,
(34:10):
or whatever it might be, take a small step, start tracking,
Just blurt it down, use some of those tools we've
talked about, but just do it a little bit at
a time. It doesn't have to unravel your life. It
can be those quiet moments at that right before you're
waking up that you just I don't jump up, I
(34:32):
stay cuddled up in bed and I just take a
few minutes of quietness and then I jump up and go,
because I typically wake up with a ton of stuff
on my mind and raring to go. And if I
do that, I blurt I just I like, like you said, Brian,
I journal it all down and then you just wait. Understand,
(34:53):
this is a journey and that is the process. It's
not that we have to create this angst turmoil over
this end result, and that is so hard, especially for me.
I want to see the results. I want to see progress.
I want to know what I'm doing matters, and that
I often have to stop and go, Okay, what is
(35:16):
happening now? What is happening today? Right now? Who am
I being? No matter what the doing is or the
process is what? Who am I being right now? To myself,
to my next outer level of people, and to the
bigger level of my commitment and hope to expand. Like
(35:41):
I think being in those basically five steps is a
great way to start your introspection. I'm also to not
if you're if you really have a hard time with it,
jump into some shadow work uncomfortable.
Speaker 4 (35:54):
Yeah, now those are all great steps. This is it's such,
This is about transformation. It's a transformative process. And the
nice thing is moving into this water element we can
we have to have clarity and we have to be
in line with purpose to really have this transformative process,
really engaged and really cultivate something new. And help us grow.
(36:19):
And I feel like the limiting beliefs when I was
much younger, that was something that really I was fortunate
enough to have just hit me smack in the brain,
smack in my face. Is I was like, I can
transform and be anybody who I want to be. Yeah,
And to this day, I still one hundred percent firmly
(36:41):
believe that if I don't like who I am, or
if I don't like certain things that I'm doing, or
if I don't like whatever, I can create something new.
I can change, I can transform, I can become somebody different.
There are no limitations. And I think you know, for
if you're struggling with that, you could just really tell yourself,
(37:01):
if you can really believe I can transform into anybody
or anything who I want to be, it's so freeing
and so liberating and true.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
By the way, Yeah, don't believe that that's a limiting belief. Yeah,
if you really believe that there's something innately wrong about
you or hard or you're either, Yeah, that's the limiting
belief to step into.
Speaker 4 (37:26):
Ooh that's you know what, this that's really good. I'm
going to use that so anytime I'm in a heated
conversation with somebody that there's there or maybe somebody is
really fixed on their perspective or opinion instead of arguing,
I'm just gonna be that's a limiting belief. Like that
just diffuses it, just like interesting, that's a limiting belief.
(37:47):
How do you argue with that?
Speaker 1 (37:47):
For you or them?
Speaker 4 (37:49):
For them?
Speaker 1 (37:51):
And what would I say to that?
Speaker 4 (37:54):
You can't that's just or interesting that's a limiting belief.
Speaker 1 (37:58):
Or it's our limiting belief like exactly like yeah, I
think that's a good way to do it, is to
just be like when we're very That could be a
whole nother podcast, Brian, Like when we talk about people
with differing beliefs that they are really held to, Yeah,
(38:21):
is that their will and purpose and direction and clarity
or is it a limiting belief? And if we judge
them in a limiting belief, is it our limiting belief?
I don't know. That's a whole other philosophical circle we
could get into about why we might need somebody to
change their perspective.
Speaker 4 (38:40):
I feel like we should also blend this with if
we were going to go into nature and do a
hike and microdose mushrooms, maybe these all maybe that would
go really well into that.
Speaker 1 (38:52):
Don't microdose with the mushrooms on the trail. I think
that'd be great. I think that'd be awesome. This is
why my friends always told me, like, you don't need
to do drugs. You're like already there. Yeah, I'm naturally
in that state.
Speaker 4 (39:06):
Please don't do drugs. Please don't do drugs.
Speaker 1 (39:09):
So I think, as we're wrapping upward today, as I'm
excited looking forward, and maybe maybe we should possibly do
a podcast about shadow work, because I do think it's
really important to understand what that looks like and the
practice of it, and there is some there are some
steps and things people could do that help you look
at yourself in a non harsh, non judgment way and
(39:31):
with more curiosity. And I think when we do get
comfortable with ourselves, we get comfortable with other people who
aren't like ourselves.
Speaker 4 (39:40):
Yeah. Actually, I think if you're comfortable, I think that
would be perfect. And on our podcast next week, we
can actually share our own personal stories of because I'm
going to do this, everything we're talking about I do,
so I will be doing my introspective work and would
be very comfortable bearing some of my AHA some of
(40:02):
my challenges, some of my struggles in a podcast so
people can really have a more of a visceral sense
of a real life experience with it.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
Yeah, let's get even more vulnerable and authentic.
Speaker 4 (40:16):
So that this could go south. So make sure you
turn it. Tune into the next episode of All Things Good.
Speaker 1 (40:21):
For You Dud.
Speaker 4 (40:23):
When Amy and Brian get vulnerable.
Speaker 1 (40:28):
Yeah, I think that'd be great. Let's wrap us up
this week with the understanding of leaning into winter, leaning
into introspect, and taking some time to go within, listen
to what's coming up for you and become fear Sorry.
Speaker 4 (40:44):
Just gonna say it. I mean I meant to say face.
I meant to say face. Fear Sorry, That's what I
meant to say.
Speaker 1 (40:52):
Put it in the bucket. Yeah, and just embrace it.
I get it. It's there for a reason. It's telling
you something. It's just not always true. Go forth and
be brave, go forth and go outside. I'm going to
be doing squats this a lot this week on skis.
Speaker 4 (41:14):
Squats on skis, I like it work does, likes work does.
Thank you, Amy, and thank all of you for spending
your time with us today. I really appreciate it. Amy,
tell them what they need to do from now now
moving forward.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
They need to tell somebody to come listen to our podcast.
I need to share this with a friend and make
some oh self development fun and a little silly sometimes,
and leave us a hello. Go on down below or
up above and click on that little star buttoner thing
and leave us a comment and maybe give us some review.
(41:49):
That would be helpful.
Speaker 4 (41:51):
Yes, and the three friends, five friends, six friends. Actually
everybody is going to be sitting with a handful of
people of family at their Thanksgiving dinner. That's a great
time to share all Things Good for Your podcast. Maybe
you guys can desid around and listen to an episode together.
Speaker 1 (42:06):
That would be so nice. We're going to do and
there's been one of us is putting out a short
this week too, so there'll be another quick little dozable
Things Good for You coming up. Ye go seek out
those turkeys people.
Speaker 4 (42:26):
Happy Thanksgiving, buying me, Thank you, thank you all, buye.
Speaker 6 (42:31):
Hey friends, thank you for tuning in to the All
Things Good for You podcast. Please note any information, experiences, ideas,
or opinions discussed today are for educational, thought provoking purposes
only and not intended as medical advice. If anything piqued
your curiosity, please consult with your doctor or personal medical professional.
(42:51):
And if you're enjoying all things good for your podcast,
hop on over and leave us a five star review
so we can continue delving in and providing great content.
Thanks again, and we hope you are inspired to stay
informed and responsible along your health and wellness journey.
Speaker 5 (43:10):
M
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