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Differently: Stop living by default. Start living by design.
Differently is for when you need to get out of your head and back into your life.
Created and hosted by Carla Reeves, creator of The Differently Journal, her work is built on over 20 years of helping people use writing to navigate real life. Not as a habit to keep up with, but as a way to calm your mind, get clear, and move forward.
You are always writing your life, whether it’s in your mind or on paper.
It's time to take the pen back.
Turn overthinking and self doubt into clarity, confidence, creativity and momentum.
Stop surviving your life. Start creating it.
Differently: Stop living by default. Start living by design.
Spring Cleaning for Your Frame of Mind
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Happy May!
Let's do some spring cleaning! Not of your home, but of your mind. ;)
Spring cleaning can go beyond our physical spaces and be applied to our mindset.
Our frame of mind is shading the color of how we see everything else in our lives. Think of it like a pair of glasses. Over time, and even over the course of a day, that pair of glasses can get smudged with all kinds of negative thinking, especially if things are not working out as we had planned.
Today, I'm going to share three ways you can do some spring cleaning for your frame of mind.
Here's to doing what it takes to clean up and maintain your frame of mind.
Enjoy!
Hal Elrod's Book - The Miracle Morning
Special Journaling Giveaway
The Differently Coaching Experience
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Connect on Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/carlasreevesaz/
Explore Coaching with Carla: https://bookme.name/carlareeves/lite/explore-coaching
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Learn more about Carla:
Website: https://www.differentlyco.com
Get The Differently Journal:
https://differently.myflodesk.com/journal
Connect on Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/differentlyco/
Connect on LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reevescarla/
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Go to https://differentlyco.com/events to get The Class schedule, sign up, and/or pass it on to a friend. Come hang out and learn with us for FREE!
Book a Complimentary Strategy Call with Carla: https://bookme.name/carlareeves/strategycall
- If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to share it with a friend.
- A free way to support our show is by leaving a five-star rating and review on your favorite podcast player. It’s a chance to tell us what you love about the show and it helps others discover it, too.
Thank you for listening!
Spring Cleaning Your Mind
Speaker 1I'm Carla Reeves , and this is Differently . Whether you feel stuck in survival , navigating a change or seeking more for your life , may this podcast be your weekly nudge to take a risk to build a life that is uniquely bold , authentic and in alignment with your deepest values . What if you worried less about the bumps in the road and instead got equipped for the journey ? Get ready to rethink what's possible . Welcome to another episode of Differently . Today we're talking .
Speaker 1Today , we're taking a different spin on spring cleaning . Instead of focusing on cleaning out our closets or scrubbing our floors , we're talking about cleaning up our mental landscape . Yep , spring cleaning . For our state of mind , it's a thing . Honestly , it's the best kind of spring cleaning .
Speaker 1Spring cleaning can go beyond our physical spaces and be applied to our mindset . Remember , our frame of mind is shading the color of how we see everything else in our lives . Think of it like a pair of glasses . Over time , and even over the course of a day , that pair of glasses can get smudged with all kinds of negative thinking , especially if things are not working out as we had planned . Today , I'm going to share three ways I like to think about spring cleaning for your frame of mind , if your mind is telling you right now that you don't have time for this , this is when you definitely want to buckle down and keep listening . Sometimes that old mind of ours does not have our back , and this is a really good thing for you that , honestly , I feel like it will give you back time somewhere in your day if you take the time to do some spring cleaning there , and obviously it's not just for spring . I know this slant on spring cleaning might sound weird , but we humans and I find this especially true for business owners and entrepreneurs entrepreneurs is that we can get so fixated on strategy and execution that we can lose sight of our inner game , which is made up of our thoughts and our perspectives and our beliefs , and that mindset that it underpins everything else . Your mindset plays a huge role in how you navigate your day and lead your business . Just recall a day when your mind was in the dumps , let's say , compared to a day where your frame of mind was on the up and up , and how that frame of mind impacted the quality of your day . So let's get started . Here we go . Three steps . Number one not a surprise to you clean up your thinking , and this is a daily check-in . That's why I talk about it so much .
Speaker 1If you wake up with mental clutter , guess what it's . Normal Clutter can look like unresolved issues from yesterday or last week . It can be negative self-talk , over-commitment things that are weighing on you because you've over-committed your list of to-dos . It might look like rehashing conversations and situations that happened yesterday or last month . Clutter distracts us from the present moment and while we are physically in one space , our presence and attention is lost in our head . Ever felt that way Many days .
Speaker 1I wake up unmotivated , tired , feeling like there's cobwebs in my mind that literally formed overnight . This clutter has the potential to disrupt the entire day and it can affect productivity , decision-making , communication and just your overall wellbeing . Maybe you've been feeling this way for a while and that's a good sign that it's time for some spring cleaning . When it's been around a while , you can's a good sign that it's time for some spring cleaning . When it's been around a while , you can start to feel powerless , like this is just the way things are . But the truth is much , or maybe all , of the way that you feel can be caused by your thinking , and so the truth is , if you can take some time to examine this and take the lead of your thoughts and lead them in a new , better direction . You're going to feel the effects of that rather quickly .
Speaker 1Here's how . Think of it . Like when I clean out my closet , I like to take everything out first so that the space is all clean . This is what you want to do with your thoughts . So start by taking a few moments to sit quietly and tune into your thoughts . Let them flow , without trying to control or judge them . You're just going to be the observer of your mind , and that's always a reminder to me that you are not your thoughts . They are separate from you because you can watch them . Then you're going to open your journal and start writing about one of the . Take one of the thoughts and just start writing it on the paper , and you're going to let the thoughts just fall onto the page , one followed by another . Know that this doesn't . There doesn't have to be any rhyme or reason or order to them . They don't have to make sense , they don't have to be smart or brilliant . Um , the whole goal is to let them spill onto the page Like think of , like a pitcher of water , and it's pouring out . That's what you're going to do with your thoughts . Don't worry about grammar or coherence . The goal is to just get them out and down on the paper or on a Google doc . This process alone will clear your mind and relieve feelings of being overwhelmed . Get it all out . Anything lingering keep emptying .
Speaker 1I'm going to take a short detour here just for a moment to share something with you . I have help in my business in a way that I've never had , and I am feeling so blessed because I have more support . And because I have more support , more things are happening and we're able to do more like create gifts for you . So I , if you're not already on my email list , I want to invite you to join . We are working to sync it up with the podcast , and just this past week we gave away a journaling worksheet to go along with an episode , and you can grab that too . I'm going to put a link in the show notes for you and it will also take you to where you can get on my email list if you are not already there .
Speaker 1Okay , step two prioritize . Organize your thoughts , much like decluttering a closet my closet I'm thinking of in the moment . I make piles of things , so I pull everything out of that closet and then I make piles of things , things that are throwing , going to the trash , things that are going to Goodwill , things I need to try on to see if they still fit or feel like my style anymore , and then a pile of things to store for winter or summer , whatever the season you're in . We can do the same sort of process prioritizing and organizing and sorting through our thoughts , and this looks like so . After that free writing that you are going to do , you're going to go back and read what you've written and take a minute to just reflect on these thoughts , see if there's any patterns or reoccurring themes , reoccurring words . Organize these thoughts into categories , if possible .
Speaker 1This process can provide insight into your thought patterns and help you identify areas you might want to focus on or change . Here are some categories you might choose . You might have one category of goals and aspirations , and these are thoughts that you're related to future plans or ambitions or things you wish you had in your life or would like to achieve . Second category could be worries and fears . These thoughts are going to revolve around your concerns , your anxieties , things that scare you , things you're worried about . Another category could be daily tasks and responsibilities . So these are the things that are coming up in your thoughts that you have to do related to your everyday tasks , chores , job responsibilities and other obligations , and then you might have a category for relationships . So these are the thoughts that are about the people in your life , your loved ones , your family and friends , and spouse and children and colleagues , and then extra credit for this exercise is going to be to go back and cross out anything in these lists that you can't control and then circle the things that you can . This is going to help you with focus later .
Speaker 1Categorizing your thoughts can help you better understand where you're spending your precious mental thought energy and where you're spending it on things that are actually outside of your control . It also allows you to identify places that might need some attention or a different approach , something you know . Sometimes we get thoughts that we're just noodling on for way too long , and giving them light and air to breathe can give you some new insight on how to address them so that they aren't taking up your energy anymore . Sometimes this process can reveal blind spots , and these can be the very things that might be slowing you down or keeping you stuck in your business or in a relationship so that you can really spring forward .
Speaker 1I want to take a minute here to . I've been trying to be better about sharing with you what is going on behind the scenes over here and how it can impact you . So recently I updated a foundational program that I have been coaching for years . It's now called the Differently Coaching Experience and it's a unique 12-week one-on-one live coaching with interactive online journaling program for individuals who want to build a better way of life . I've taken hundreds of people through this over the years and it's newly updated . I want you to imagine having a personal coach , a guide , right by your side , helping you shed mental noise and old thought patterns that keep you stuck . Helping you shed mental noise and old thought patterns that keep you stuck . Helping you gain control over the direction of your life so that you can take new , aligned action and feel peaceful , confident and purpose filled . That's the goal of our one on one coaching sessions . But since life doesn't wait for your next coaching session , the interactive journaling program provides a space where you get to reflect and write , and you and I are connected in between our coaching sessions so that when you're out in the trenches of your life , I'm sort of in your back pocket and can support you along the way .
Speaker 1You don't have to be a journaler or a writer . The journaling is just the vehicle , not the focus . The focus is you . After 12 weeks , you won't just walk away with ideas . You're going to leave with a toolkit a toolkit for navigating your everyday life . So are you ready to take your eyes off the bumps in the road and instead get equipped for the journey ? Go to visit carlareevescom to learn all about this unique coaching program .
Speaker 1Okay , on to step number three envision something new . Choose your focus , set your eyes in a new place . This step is so important . Just like in the example of cleaning my closet , now that everything is out , sorted and organized , I like to envision how I want my closet to look before I put everything back in , and that guides everything I do . Next , it's the same with your thinking . Now that you've cleaned it up , sorted through , brought some light and air into that mind , we want to set our eyes and thoughts on something new . This way , we can aim our thinking and our doing to that particular goal . When we do this , we feel better and are able to get ourselves back in alignment with a bigger purpose and feel like we're back in the driver's seat of our life .
Speaker 1I once heard that goals are a place to come from instead of get to , and I love this so much and find it to be absolutely true . Knowing where I'm aiming in a big picture sense whether it's in my marriage , in my parenting , in my business it gives me my actions for this day . Be intentional about where you put your focus , because what you focus on grows . What are you aiming for ? I want you to really think about that . What are you currently aiming for and is your frame of mind on board ? I hope that now you have the tools to shift your frame of mind , and this , again , isn't just a spring cleaning . This is a daily habit and it's one that I want to keep top of mind more and more for you , so you can be on the lookout for more episodes like this . More and more for you , so you can be on the lookout for more episodes like this . My clients tell me that they forget to do this and that it makes such a difference in the way that they lead their day and the way that they show up and are able to communicate with their team , with their family , the clarity that they have in making decisions and being able to move with greater ease through whatever shows up in the day . It's a game changer . Here are the things that we talked about today Three steps Empty your thinking .
Speaker 1Give it some light and air . Reduce overwhelm and stress by sorting , prioritizing and organizing your thoughts into those categories . Next , choose your focus . Take the lead of your thoughts and align them to where you want to be heading today . If your mind is still telling you that you don't have time , consider talking back to it .
Speaker 1Ask it is that really true ? I want you to really think about this . If you did this spring cleaning once a week , how might that impact your energy , your relationships , your mood , the way you show up to your work ? I dare you to try it out . I think you will be surprised . I know you will be surprised . That's it for today , my friend . Here's to doing what it takes to clean up and maintain your frame of mind . It's with you 24 seven . Let's do everything we can to make it shine .
Living Life Differently - Spread Inspiration
Speaker 1Thank you for tuning in to this episode of differently . It's been an honor to share this conversation with you . You know , one of the keys to living fully is to take action when you're inspired to do so I hope you found that spark of inspiration today and would you help us spread the word . Did someone you know come to mind while you were listening ? If this episode could impact someone you know , please share it and pass it along . New episodes drop weekly , so tap that subscribe button and join us next time as we continue to challenge the status quo and get equipped to live life differently .