Mindfulness Mode

The word, fulfillment is a word I'd like to discuss. What does it mean to you? I've had a word of the year, many times, and I found it to be a helpful practice. I can use my word of the year to be inspired every day, in one way or another. Let's talk about having a word of the year. Do you think having a word of the year is a valuable exercise? Before we talk about the word of the year, I want to share with you a quote for the year that I thought was meaningful. I put it up on TikTok to share with the world. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify A Quote Here's the quote, “be the one who is so busy loving your life, that you have no time for hate, regret, or fear.” I think there's a lot to that quote that's valuable; be the one who is so busy loving your life. And that's related to loving yourself, of course, because if you have a dislike for yourself, if you have a hate-on for yourself, you're probably going to have a hate-on for your life. And so I think it's one in the same. So again, be so busy loving yourself, or be so busy loving your life. I think those two thoughts are very similar. The next part of the quote is that you will have no time for hate, regret, or fear. Those are all very different things but they are all rooted from fear. Fear is one of those emotions that other emotions come from, including hate, anger, and regret. It's important to embrace fear and just say to yourself, hey, I'm just going to let that fear happen. I'm going to examine it, I'm going to notice it, I'm going to pay attention to it. And I think for me, many times in my life, I tried to not pay attention to it. I tried to push it down, I tried to get busy, so I wouldn't be thinking about it or think about something else. What Is Fear? Fear is something that, if you welcome it, if you are open to it, if you allow it to be, then it won't seem like such a big deal. But that's why I think this quote is really great. “Be the one who is so busy loving your life, that you have no time for hate, regret or fear”. And that quote is by Karen Salmonsohn. And I didn't know this author before I found the quote but I looked her up and noticed she's the author of this book, which I think I'd really enjoy reading, called “Happy Habits: 50 Science Backed Rituals To Adopt (or stop) To Boost Health and Happiness. Keep practicing mindfulness and you will learn more and more about the definition of fear Your Word? How can I release a habit that is not serving me any longer? The answer to this question will reveal a very important way to get ahead. This is something a lot of people think of, at the beginning of the year of the year. I haven't read Karen Salmonsohn's book, but I think probably the book is excellent. But back to Word of the Year. So my word of the year is fulfillment, what is yours?  What does fulfillment really mean to you? Well, I think to me, as a mindfulness guy, I think you can choose to be fulfilled, I think fulfillment is a choice. A lot of people do not feel fulfilled in their lives. And that causes them a lot of pain, a lot of angst, a lot of anxiety. And they go day after day feeling as though they have missed the boat. Feeling thoughts like, I'm not achieving enough, I'm not enough. And that is what I have experienced with my clients. A lot of times their anxiety boils down to is this belief that they are not enough, they don't make enough money, or they haven't made enough impact on the world, or maybe haven't authored enough books. You Are ______. You know what? You are enough. I think that's what mindfulness teaches us. It teaches us to be happy at this very moment. And I think that's why fulfillment is such a great word because you can choose to be fulfilled. Now, it may not be easy to just suddenly decide, I'm fulfilled. The fact is, if you decide that you are going to be satisfied in your life at this very moment, it will give you peace, it will give you a sense of being grounded, so that you can move forward. Mindfulness certainly does mean to be happy in the moment. Mindfulness also means you can achieve incredible things in your life. It doesn't mean don't look to the future, it doesn't mean don't make goals. You can definitely set goals and have all sorts of plans for your life. But you can also be happy in the moment. So the definition of fulfillment is, “the achievement of something desired, promised, or predicted. It's important to to think logically about how to be happy in life. How can you feel fulfilled? What do you need to do to feel fulfilled? So fulfillment is my word for 2022. Why choose a word? Why is it important to choose a word for the year? Hear my thoughts by tuning into the episode. Suggested Resources Book: Happy Habits: 50 Science Backed Rituals To Adopt (or stop) To Boost Health and Happiness by Karen Salmonsohn Book: Feel Better In Five Minutes: Amanda Hainline App: Insight Timer Related Episodes 496 Stop Missing Your Life; Discover Mindfulness With Cory Muscara 367 Moving in Mindful Motion With Diena Seeger 268 Unlock Self-Love With The Mindfulness Key Suggests Joie Cheng Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach helping fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Book a Free Coaching Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life, feeling grounded and focused. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Coaching Session' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can move forward to a better life.

Jared Karol is the founder of a consulting firm specializing in guiding White people to confront racism. As a trusted advisor, he guides executives, people managers, and dedicated change agents at Fortune 500 companies, startups, and nonprofits through his work at JaredKarol.com. Jared is a sought-after professional speaker, panel moderator, leadership coach, and facilitator of difficult conversations. Jared's storytelling approach inspires and influences individuals and groups worldwide. An avid reader, accomplished musician, and active meditator, he lives with his family in the San Francisco Bay Area. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Contact Info Website: www.JaredKarol.com Podcast: A White Guy Confronting Racism Most Influential Person Karen van Dyne, Meditation Teacher Effect on Emotions Mindfulness has helped me be less volatile and to be able to sit with discomfort whether it's with my family or kids or doing this work. Mindfulness has helped me with impermanence, knowing that it's always going to pass and so how do we get through those moments of discomfort with equanimity and composure and integrity. Thoughts on Breathing I breathe every morning. In fact, I took time this morning, an hour before we recorded this. Breathing is central. I always remind myself if I'm in a tense situation or if I'm anxious to speak or facilitate a group of less than welcoming people, then I breathe. It always brings me back to centering where I can do my best work. Suggested Resources Book: A White Guy Confronting Racism: An Invitation to Reflect and Act Book: I'll Meet You There: A Practical Guide to Empathy, Mindfulness and Communication by Shantigarbha Book: The Inner Work of Racial Justice by Rhonda V Magee Book: Mindful of Race: Transforming Racism from the Inside Out by Ruth King Book: The Way Of Tenderness by Zenju Earthlyn Manuel Book: Anything by Pema Chodron, Thich Nhat Hanh Resource: Tricycle, the Buddhist Review App: N/A Bullying Story My discomfort and the fact that I get criticized and attacked and that people question my motives, my character, my ability; all that I have to absorb. It doesn't mean it doesn't hurt or that I don't have feelings or that I don't get triggered. All of that happens, but because of mindfulness we absorb that, we sit with it so that we can respond instead of react. I will say to people, that is nothing, anything that I will receive is nothing compared to what black people and other people of color, experience every day of their lives. Related Episodes Nourishing Your Truth and Finding Your Voice; Shauna Reiter Black Lives Matter With Emmanuel Songsore Thrive By Keeping Your Promises Special Offer Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach helping fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Book a Free Coaching Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life, feeling grounded and focused. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Coaching Session' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can move forward to a better life.

I just really wish you the very best, Mindful Tribe. I wish that you feel this amazing feeling in your life of calm focus, and happiness. And that's because way back in 2015, when I started the Mindfulness Mode Podcast, one of my goals was that through mindfulness, I would be able to help you, my listener, learn how to experience calm, focus, and happiness. And that's why I chose that as my tagline; reach new heights of calm focus and happiness. I've been learning the subtle details of mindfulness along with you, Mindful Tribe. I've been learning from all my fantastic guests, and I've learned that it's important to understand about our emotions. That we have to live with our emotions, and to welcome and open to our emotions. That's pretty much where it all starts. Understanding that when we suppress our emotions, that's not a good thing. It's not healthy to suppress your emotions, push them away, do things so that we can just ignore them pretend they're not there. That's certainly something I've done a lot in my life. I've learned from my guests that many people push away their emotions. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify A Book Being grateful is an important part of my life. Is this important to you, Mindful Tribe? It's great when you can truly allow yourself to appreciate whatever is in your life. a book called, ‘Letting Go; The Pathway of Surrender', by David R. Hawkins. What a great book. A number of guests on my show have recommended David Hawkins. This is only one of the books in the series, and I'm absolutely enjoying it. One of my favorite books, which has to do with letting go is called ‘The Surrender Experiment', by Michael A Singer. Quite a few of my guests have suggested this book as well. This book is written like a novel and each chapter ends with a cliffhanger and it's very much an easy-read. It's about the how the author makes a decision early in his life, to simply let go; he makes this decision that he's going to lead his life by letting go and letting things unfold naturally, and basically to say yes, to whatever presents itself. And he decides to meditate a lot and have meditation as a central part of his life and use meditation as a way that he will deal with most aspects of his life. And it's really fascinating how things turn out. So if you haven't read this, I would recommend it. A Wish My holiday wish for you is that you are able to notice and embrace your emotions, whatever they are. Some of our emotions, of course, can be very painful. The emotions of fear, anger, and bereavement, you know, if you've lost a loved one in your life, I truly feel for you. It's really important to embrace these emotions. Also, besides learning to embrace the emotions, my holiday wish for you is that you would be able to genuinely ask yourself, these three questions. And the three questions can make a massive difference in your life as to how you process your emotions, and whether you actually do process your emotions. Hold a Pen Before I tell you what the three questions are, I just want to say that, one of the things I've learned is that the most effective and most life changing things that I've learned in my life have been the simplest. As humans, we tend to over complicate things, we tend to think that for something to be effective, and really worthwhile. It has to be something that either costs a lot of money or takes a lot of time to learn, or is just very difficult to comprehend it. Well, actually, I think in some ways, the opposite is true. Sometimes some of these things are very, very simple. And the person who teaches this process of focusing on these three questions, suggests you pick up a pen and hold it. He says, just hold the pen loosely. Then he says okay, release it and drop it. Easier Than You Think That's how easy it actually is to let go of your emotion that's holding you back. Simply let go of what's bothering you. This method is taken from the Sedona Method, and that's at sedona.com. This is something that I learned from Hale Dwoskin, the man who teaches the Sedona Method. I interviewed Hale Dwoskin back in July of 2020. The episode was # 570. So you can go to MindfulnessMode.com/570, and you can hear Hale on that episode. He is a New York Times bestselling author of ‘The Sedona Method', and he's featured in a movie called Letting Go. You'll learn more about him if you listen to that episode. This method called The Sedona Method was invented first by Lester Levinson and he wrote a book called, Happiness is Free and It's Easier Than You Think. This is a five book series. The teachings boil down to three questions. What Bothers You? Think to yourself, is there a situation in your life that really irritates you, that really bothers you. Do you realize that you're thinking about this a lot? Maybe there's a person in your life, that that really rubs you the wrong way? Or maybe someone at work irritates you? Maybe you think about this person a lot and you wish that they weren't in your life. Start with this focus of, what is this thing that is bothering you? Listen to the episode to hear the three questions. Finding Peace So I encourage you to just consider these three questions. And in my opinion, that's a holiday gift is to help you understand that peace, for all of us can lie in the answers to these three questions. Calm focus, and happiness can be achieved by answering these three questions. Calm focus and happiness can also be achieved in other ways, too. I mean, there are a number of ways you can find peace in your life. Self-hypnosis is one of the tools that has really worked for me and made a big difference. The thing about hypnosis is that it works for nearly every issue. Hypnosis is incredible. I am so fortunate to be a trained hypnotist so I can help other people. But I can help myself, I can do self hypnosis, and understand that hypnosis works for almost anything that is holding you back or causing you angst, whether you're not sleeping well. Whether you have a lot of fear, you have a bad habit that you just really want to release, you want to let go of it? Well, Self Hypnosis will help you do that. And maybe it's trauma or pain or motivation, you know, you just can't get motivated for something. Well, hypnosis can help. 27 Ways? My hypnosis teacher Erica Flint taught me that hypnosis can help with almost every issue (Erica on Mindfulness Mode). Maybe you've tried 27 ways to quit smoking, and then the 28th way was hypnosis, and that worked for you. Well, hypnosis works for many people, including me. When so many other things didn't work, no matter what you've tried already, hypnosis can be the answer you're looking for. So I have been very grateful to have worked with quite a few different clients throughout 2021 and we've met with success. Suggested Resources Book: Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by Daniel R. Hawkins Book: The Surrender Experiment by Michael A Singer Book: The Sedona Method by Hale Dwoskin Book: Happiness is Free and It's Easier Than You Think by Lester Levinson App: Insight Timer Related Episodes Calmness and Certainty with Hale Dwoskin Mind Your Other Mind; Erika Flint Unlearn Anxiety & Depression; Dr. Joe Luciani Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach helping fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Book a Free Coaching Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life, feeling grounded and focused. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Coaching Session' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can move forward to a better life.

Sara Raymond is a trained hypnotherapist, pilates, yoga, and meditation teacher. As Founder of The Mindful Movement, she has become an oasis for those looking to tap into their inner calm, develop a positive mindset and heal from the stress that is blocking fulfillment. Sara has discovered that knowing what you want isn't enough and she has committed her life to help others break free from the inner turmoil that is keeping them stuck. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Contact Info Website: TheMindfulMovement.com Podcast: The Mindful Movement Podcast and Community Most Influential Person My Pilates Instructor Effect on Emotions Mindfulness has helped me deal with my emotions. That's probably one of the most significant ways that mindfulness has helped me. I was a very young mother and I just fell into motherhood. I was so focused on being a mom and taking care of my kids that I really never looked inward at that time. I didn't connect with my emotions and therefore sometimes they would just explode or they would force their way out. Having that practice of mindfulness and being able to be awake to my emotions has transformed how I deal with them. Thoughts on Breathing Breathing was really challenging for me when I first started. It was one of those things, like I said, you have to be still, you have to pay attention. You have to turn your attention onto one thing. Now I feel like, with practice, it is my go-to strategy. If I'm feeling anxious or stressed, I do a lot of humming breath. It's an auditory reminder of your breath. My son and my daughter both use it. It's wonderful. Suggested Resources Book: Emotional Chaos To Clarity: Move From the Chaos of the Reactive Mind to the Clarity of the Responsive Mind by Phillip Moffitt App: N/A It's not an app, but here's a suggestion. Pick something that you do on a regular basis, like brushing your teeth or walking through a doorway. Use that action as a signal or a reminder to pause, breathe, or connect with yourself inward. Bullying Story I shared a story about how I started hypnosis and I have a wonderful relationship with that teacher and mentor and then a couple years went by and I was looking for continuing education and I took a training with another teacher. It was great. I really got a lot of value from it and I think it has made a significant improvement in my own practice and working with clients. I have a Youtube channel and it's obviously very public and I have put out lots of content and mindfulness is helping me. Even now I'm feeling a little bit anxious talking about it, so I'm aware of that. I was contacted by this teacher's company and it really felt a little bit like they were bullying me in terms of, they wanted to take legal action to force me to take down some content that I had put up. Honestly, I think that, hypnosis is not a new thing, so to say that a specific term is trademarked, a sentence that probably every hypnotherapist has said. And I was trained to use this method. It just felt like I was being bullied. It felt like this teacher was hiding behind their big legal team and sending in the muscle to force me, this sole proprietor, to take down my content. In the end, I didn't. It's great content that's available for lots of people to use. Circling back to the point of this story, is the idea of using mindfulness. Having the awareness to connect with my emotions in response to what felt like bullying before I reacted in a way that I might later regret or could potentially have legal ramifications, I was able to check in and understand my experience and understand how I was feeling. Even more importantly, I think, know how I wanted to respond. What are my intentions in this relationship, in my business, and how do I want to show up and present myself to the world and to this organization? I was also able to see that what I imagine is the other side of the story was coming from fear and coming from the worry that someone else was going to be successful. This thought was maybe a little scary for this individual. It was still a challenging experience but I do think that my mindfulness experience and training helped me significantly get through the situation. Related Episodes Mindful Movement In Addiction Treatment; Kendra Kirane Movement Makers Community Founder, Eiji Morishita Myung Sung: The Korean Art of Living Meditation with Dr. Jenelle Kim Special Offer Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach and hypnotist who helps fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Hypnosis has helped many of my clients. I encourage you to book a Free Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Coaching Session' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can begin to live with less anxiety and more peace and happiness.

Welcome Mindful Tribe. Today the show is about seasonal mindfulness because when we're celebrating, let's use mindfulness to help us fully enjoy the moments. Enjoy the peace and quiet. Enjoy the bustle, and the hustle and joy, the vibrancy. I talked last week about how you can get through this, if this is challenging for you. If this is a season that does not feel joyous or happy or exciting, what do you do? In this case, I urge you to check out last week's episode, “Overcome Holiday Sadness”. It's Episode 718. How can we enjoy this season even more, and experience more joy and more bliss? The answer is to notice one of those things that we do every day. We do it every hour. We do it every single hour that we're alive. And of course, you know now what I'm talking about. I'm talking about breathing. And when I first started my podcast, I thought well, I'll ask every guest about breathing. Now I realize that every guest has something interesting to say about breathing, even if what they say is, wow, this is something that I don't really place much focus on. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Breathing A lot of guests have given us insight into how to use breathing to enhance your life. And you definitely can use breath to make your life better. I practice Wim Hof breathing, as I've talked about different times on the show. You can always search that on Google and and find all kinds of information about Wim Hof breathing. The bottom line is to not overthink it. It doesn't have to be complicated because it isn't really complicated. The fact is, just remember that breath is important. Remember that at different times let yourself breathe. Take a moment to breathe deeply and with meaning. A Hot Bath Surround yourself with what gives you pleasure. A lot of people find that a hot bath can be so relaxing and enjoyable. Light a few candles, enjoy some bubbles, some lotions, Epsom salts, and treat yourself to this pleasure. It doesn't matter who you are, you can enjoy the pleasure of a hot bath. I don't think I know anybody that can't enjoy that. And if you don't have the luxury of having a tub that is accessible to you, of course you can have a hot shower and just relax under the warm water. Give yourself the gift of some private time where you enjoy a hot, relaxing soak in the tub. A Photo Frame? My friend posted that she had received a beautiful birthday gift. Her husband gave her and a digital photo frame. It was terrific how excited she was. She explained that this frame was a treat, because she could put images of her favorite artwork on there. She could include some of her favorite photos, her dogs. And of course, you can very easily put some of your favorite quotes up there. I think this is a beautiful mindful thing; a beautiful gift to yourself. If you pick up a digital photo frame and load it up with some of your favorite, beautiful images. All you have to do is plug it in and turn it on. I just was thinking immediately of Monet, and some of the incredible images of Monet, that I love. And of course, there are so many artists that have created beautiful, impressive images that really can stir your emotions. Focus On Your Feelings If we did not have a variety of different emotions; sadness, pain, fear, then joy and bliss and happiness wouldn't really exist because everything would be flat. We would have no real emotions. And so it's so important to use mindfulness as a tool to help notice your emotions, help feel your emotions, and then decide what you want to do with them. Allowing those thoughts and feelings to happen and that's when you truly begin to grow. As long as we are embracing our emotions, we will learn to focus less on our thoughts, and more on our feelings. In the past, I believed I could solve all my problems by thinking up a solution. A lot of times, what we need to do is think less by focusing on the feeling. Where in your body do you feel the pain? Or the fear? Or the anger? Do you feel it in your chest? Do you feel it in your heart? Do you feel it in your gut in your abdomen? In your solar plexus? Where do you feel this feeling? Just go there, allow yourself to breathe and notice what this feeling is like, allow it. This is the complete opposite to what I used to do. You know, I used to notice the pain and then I would tighten up. The key is to think less about how to solve these issues. Quiet Time All of the above can be done through meditation. If you're like me and you enjoy a physical activity in your day like, for me, it's running. Every day, I do a one hour run. That gift of getting out there and enjoying nature, and running is a form of meditation. For me, it's also a form of self hypnosis. It's a relaxing, peaceful experience that I give to myself as a gift. So what is it for you that feeds you? Maybe it's swimming, or maybe it isn't an activity at all. In conclusion, I want to say that mindfulness is not about piling on a whole lot of things. Mindfulness is more about simplifying your life and simplifying your thoughts. Mindfulness is a way to simplify your life, rather than the opposite. I hope that this joyous season will be a time when you can allow yourself to simplify what your life looks like and what your life feels like, without trying to add on more. It's more about letting go of things that don't serve you and things that don't feed you. I honestly believe the more you can let go, the more joy you will have in your life, the more bliss you will have in your life. It is about letting go. I'm reading the book, Letting Go, right now, which is written by David R. Hawkins. It is a beautiful book to read. I wish for you a beautiful season, a beautiful, joyous season. And thanks so much for being with me Suggested Resources Book: Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by Daniel R. Hawkins App: Insight Timer Related Episodes Understanding the 3 Minds With Meagan Fettes 518 Stress Management With Warriors At Ease Founder, Molly Birkholm 455 Discover The Good Life With Songwriter, Judah Holiday Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach helping fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Book a Free Coaching Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life, feeling grounded and focused. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Coaching Session' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can move forward to a better life.

Morgan Beard has dedicated her life to using creativity to heal and empower. She received her BA in Visual and Media Studies from Duke University in 2012 and her MPS in Art Therapy from the School of Visual Arts in New York City in 2017. As an art therapist in New York, she worked in a public elementary school, an adult inpatient psychiatric unit, and a 183-bed nursing home before her life came to a screeching halt as a result of a personal burnout. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Contact Info Website: www.MorganBeard.coach Most Influential Person I met a woman who worked out of the same office building where I worked. She was a super spunky British woman and she was passionate about TM (Transcendental Meditation). She is still in my life today. Effect on Emotions Mindfulness makes my emotions feel more tangible and tolerable. It makes me feel like I can go through life with them, even though I don't like them. It just gives them an added layer of muscle or strength. Thoughts on Breathing I use breathing a lot with my clients. I use it when I'm ramping up to a meditation or a visualization that I guide them through. I usually do that spontaneously. Breathing is one of the most powerful tools for getting someone to turn the volume down on what's happening outside of them and to transition into experiencing what's happening inside of them. I usually have these dual anchors. One is, feel the solidness of the earth underneath you. It's this totally stable, unmoving force under us which is comfortable and grounding for people. Secondly, tune into the breath, which is this continually flowing and changing thing. If you can keep one foot in one and one foot in the other, you can balance life. Some things are very secure and slow moving and some things are constantly changing. If you can find footing with both of those forces then you've really got it all. You've got both poles. Resources Book: Going On Being: Buddhism and the Way of Change by Mark Epstein App: My 3 3.ie Bullying Story I'll tell a personal story. When I was in 8th grade, I had a friend who, when she initially came into our school we were close and then we stopped connecting. It seemed like she was pulling away. She was entering another, more popular group of girls at my school and I didn't understand. I kept reaching out and just kept getting nothing. At that time, AIM (Instant Messenger) was a big thing, so after school we would come home and log on all your friends would be there. One time I came home from school and this friend chats me, and I'm all excited because I thought I had this opportunity to connect with her again. She invited me to hang out. Then I found out that it was actually her friend on the keyboard, telling me all this and lying to me. She was posing as that girl. I was totally crushed. I think in that moment it confirmed something that I was already afraid about myself which was that no one wants to be my friend. I grew up as an older child with older parents and so I was a very lonely kid. I was always hungry for social connection with my peers. I was so vulnerable to rejection, pranks, and insults. Related Episodes Creativity and Mindfulness, Learn and Meditate Creativity Equals Productivity; Joe Sanok Nurture Your Soul With Creativity Special Offer Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach helping fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Book a Free Coaching Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life, feeling grounded and focused. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Morgan Beard' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can move forward to a better life.

We're talking about mindfulness and today the topic is how to ‘Overcome Holiday Sadness’. We are going to explore this feeling that there's gloom and doom surrounding the holiday. Do you have a sinking feeling at times and you just feel like you can hardly drag yourself through it? You look around seeing the bright colored lights, hearing the music, with apparent happiness everywhere. You wonder why you feel empty and alone. The holiday season can be a challenge for many people. Is it difficult for you, someone you know or maybe a partner or family member? Today I’ll be talking about self-blame, boundaries, self-forgiveness, and asserting your truth. I want to talk about rediscovering your confidence, and regaining your vibrancy. At this time of year most people want to experience peace, contentment, and happiness. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Emotional Pain Confidentiality is important in my practice as I work with clients who experience many difficulties and emotional challenges. It’s rewarding to work with a client and then have them express to me how much better they feel and how effectively their issue is solved through hypnosis. Today, I'm going to share with you some information from one of my clients who is happy to use her name and her testimonial. She wants to share her experience with the world because she feels so much better after suffering a lot of emotional pain. The Transition Natalya has had significant struggles in her life. She came from the Ukraine and life was not very good there at the time. She had a young child and she and her husband brought their child to Canada. They overcame a lot of their challenges. But more recently, she started dealing with some emotional pain that was really holding her back and causing her to struggle. And so I worked with her using hypnosis and she was astounded at the transition she experienced. Derailed? This feeling that the whole world is happy, but you are not, is quite common. Sometimes this feeling is related to self blame it sometimes is connected to a belief that you haven't succeeded in life. Some people feel as though they haven’t made the right decisions or done the right things to be successful in life. Self-blame, or self-bullying can pull us down in a major way. It's your inner bully that is pulling you down and causing you to feel derailed. Push it? There are ways to deal with that inner bully. And one of the ways is to just allow the feelings to happen. Notice these emotions and allow them to be what they are. One of the tendencies that we have as humans is, we start to feel these negative emotions, and we tend to push them away. We are inclined to think, oh, I don't like that feeling, I don't want that. And so we do something to push the emotion away. Stop And what do we do to push the emotions away? Some of us get busy, we just keep working, working, working and trying forget about the negative emotions. Some of us entertain ourselves by watching tv or movies, playing games, cleaning, or even taking care of people. Some of us eat or consume alcohol or other substances. Instead of covering up the feelings, accept them, face them, and learn to exist with those emotions. Allow them to happen. Notice them in your body. And when I say notice them in your body, stop, take a breath, and notice where the feeling exists in your body? Is it in your chest? Is it in your shoulders, or your gut? Really stop and feel where it is in your body and allow yourself to go there and feel that feeling. Boundaries I also want to talk about boundaries. We need to set boundaries and allow ourselves to give ourselves what we need and what we thrive on. Some of us need quietness, some need space, and some thrive on peace. Sometimes your life is hectic, and chaotic and we forget or don’t give ourselves permission to give ourselves the very thing that we truly need. Maybe you just truly need 15 minutes of privacy or solitude. Allow yourself to have that by setting boundaries. Boundaries are important, especially at this time of year. Become Free Self-forgiveness is also crucial. Are you feeling that blame? Are you feeling as though you are blaming yourself for the way you're feeling and for the pain that you feel deep inside? Blaming yourself for how you feel makes things worse. Many times that blame exists in our subconscious minds and we don’t realize we are doing it. Our conscious mind is not aware of it. Sometimes we can't help ourselves, but it's so important to grasp the concept of self-forgiveness. Think to yourself, if I could forgive myself, could I do that? Could I actually forgive myself? Think about what that would be like? And then think, would I do that? If I could do it, would I do it? Would I actually free myself from these feelings? Think about the answers to those questions. Methods It takes time and it takes work but following the above suggestions can help you to feel better. It is important to assert your truth. Pay attention to your emotions and do the work to get to know and understand what is happening with your feelings. Many people find that journaling is a good way to do this. There are also other ways including meditation, talking it out, spending time in nature, or using mantras. A Better Life Here is what Natalya shared with me regarding the hypnosis and coaching work we did together. “Hi, I am Natalya and I am a registered nurse in Toronto, Canada. I was lost and in emotional pain. I struggled with self-blame and lack of boundaries. I could never say no to anyone, no matter how unreasonable the request was. After just two sessions with Bruce, I started feeling an enormous positive shift. With two gentle hypnosis sessions, I have learned that I am capable of self-forgiveness, asserting my truth and keeping my boundaries. During our sessions, Bruce safely and gently took me to the sacred place where I felt confident and vibrant again; where I discovered a new and happy Natalya. Today, I am at peace with myself and my surroundings and I can say no to unnecessary pressure. I am eternally grateful for our coaching sessions. I highly recommend Bruce as a masterful and caring coach to anyone who wants to make a profound change for a better life.” Self-Forgiveness When I hear those words from Natalia, it moves me. I feel especially grateful for her transition when she talks about her past emotional pain and how much she struggled with self-blame and lack of boundaries. As she said, she had been caught in this trap where she felt she could not say no to anyone. I'm grateful that, looking back, she thinks of her experience as gentle hypnosis sessions. That's my goal. My goal is to move into this gently, and to help my client learn that they are capable of self-forgiveness. We have to start by understanding the definition of self-forgiveness. Need To Talk? Natalya was able to assert her truth as she put it, and then set boundaries. Setting boundaries and understanding the concept of self blame and self forgiveness can help you move forward, to rediscover confidence. It's possible for you to find your peace, and to get to a place where you treasure the current moment. This is something that you can you can discover on your own if you are able to stop and do some journaling and meditation. If you’re like Natalya, maybe you need to reach out to somebody to get help externally. I will share with you that I have room for one more client at this point so if you’re interested, send me an email, Bruce@mindfulnessmode.com. Put ‘holiday sadness’ in the subject line and we’ll arrange a free zoom call where we can discuss your situation. Feel Happy I'd be very happy to, to hear from you and to talk to you about the power of hypnosis to help people like you transition to a better place. Natalia is just one example. I've had quite a number of clients that I've worked with using hypnosis and when it comes to anxiety and stress, it's quite amazing how hypnosis can make a difference. You deserve to find your peace. You deserve to be content, to be happy, and to feel grounded. You deserve to feel fully satisfied and to feel content, and happy. Thanks for listening and have a great week. Suggested Resources Book: Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by Daniel R. Hawkins App: Insight Timer Related Episodes Understanding the 3 Minds With Meagan Fettes 518 Stress Management With Warriors At Ease Founder, Molly Birkholm 455 Discover The Good Life With Songwriter, Judah Holiday Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach helping fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Book a Free Coaching Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life, feeling grounded and focused. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Holiday Sadness' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can move forward to a better life

Daniel Bauer is an unorthodox Ruckus Maker who has mentored thousands of school leaders through his Better Leaders Better Schools blog, books, podcasts, and powerful coaching experiences. Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader, is a book that reimagines what professional development for school administrators looks like in order to meet the needs of all school leaders who currently feel isolated and overwhelmed. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Contact Info Website: www.BetterLeadersBetterSchools.com Book: Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader Podcast: Better Leaders Better Schools Why Ruckus-Maker? Since day 1, I've always colored outside the lines. I've carved my own path. My mom reflected this back to me. As a kid I told her, I'm never going to work in a cubicle. Being a Ruckus-Maker, carving out your own path, it's questioning the status quo, standing up for what's right and making change happen in my field of education. It's about making very positive change in the world. It's been inspired by a mentor of mine, Seth Godin. He says, go make a ruckus. That's an identity I wear. The community really resonates with it. Changes People are hungry for change in education. They're also hungry for authenticity. That's the wildest part. I used to be embarrassed. Now I serve school leaders and they listen. I have impact. I get to hear about the influence I have in their life. The new book, MasterMind; Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader, is co-published by the National School Superintendent's Association. Working With School Leaders We start teaching how to integrate more authenticity, belonging and challenge within your school culture. We dive in with both feet. They find that, [they learn by] surrounding themselves with other school leaders who all want to grow. I just had a conversation with John, a Principal in Delaware, and I asked him, what's been most surprising as you've worked with me? He said, I can't believe a group that is brought together for professional reasons to be more effective as a school leader. I was so surprised at how much personal stuff is shared, how vulnerable, and the level of compassion is apparent. You can feel it.” He said, “this is something special you are doing with your culture.” It's getting them to dive in with both feet and see that there's a space that wants to nurture and help them grow. Suggested Resources Book: Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader by Daniel Bauer App: N/A Creativity There's a million ways that we nurture creativity in leaders. Interestingly, a few years back, I think we all experienced the feeling that ‘the grass is always greener'. If my business didn't operate in education, but did whatever else, there'd be more opportunity and things would be going better. I'm sharing that because I wanted to dive into this idea of creativity within businesses. I finally am so happy and comfortable and I'm not trying to go any place else now. I share that to say, creativity has always been important to me. We infuse creativity in the mastermind experience. Related Episodes Nurture Your Soul With Creativity The Positive Influence of Bob Proctor Education On Fire; Mark Taylor Special Offer Would more confidence help you to feel better about yourself and be more successful? Your inner bully may be holding you back. Imagine if you could live a life of contentment while reaching your goals. I believe it's possible. Book a Free Consultation to help you become more calm, focused, and happy. Send me an email bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Mastermind' in the subject line. I look forward to our conversation.

Nanette V. Hucknall is a recognized authority on relationships, healing psychological wounds, overcoming obstacles and self-empowerment. She is an award-winning author, teacher, trained therapist, career counselor and painter. Through her books, classes, lectures, and retreats, she has deepened the lives of hundreds of spiritual practitioners. Nanette is the author of seven non-fiction books on the teachings of the Higher Self. Her background in both the Agni Yoga tradition combined with the application of Psychosynthesis in her therapy practice has placed her in the unique position of being able to speak to both the conceptual elements of the Higher Self Teachings and their practical applications in everyday life. Her book, How To Live From The Heart, includes compelling stories and illuminating exercises to show you practical ways to listen with your heart and relate to others. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Contact Info Website: www.nanettevhucknall.com Book: How to Live from Your Heart: Deepen Relationships, Develop Creativity, and Discover Inner Wisdom by Nanette V. Hucknall Most Influential Person My spiritual teacher Effect on Emotions When I was in my twenties, my worst problems were my emotions. If I would date somebody and break up with them, I would suffer for at least six months. If I loved the person, I would suffer for a year or two years. When I started working with my higher self, it put me in that place of asking, why am I doing this to myself; why am I not being mindful about myself. Let go of these emotions. My main focus when I was in my twenties was to really let go of my emotions. Every day at the end of the day I would do a nightly review. Why was I emotional? Who made me emotional? Now I have my clients do nightly reviews. Thoughts on Breathing I do a lot of exercise. I've done the happy yoga which is a physical yoga. They really talk a lot about breathing. I do pilates and my pilates teacher talks a lot about breathing. I'm going to a physical therapist now for some of my arthritis and she gives me all kinds of breathing exercises. Breathing is very much a part of my exercise routine. Suggested Resources Book: Mindfulness For Beginners by Jon Kabat-Zinn Book: Mindfulness Meditation by Tara Brach Book: How to Live from Your Heart: Deepen Relationships, Develop Creativity, and Discover Inner Wisdom by Nanette V. Hucknall Bullying Story I was an art director in the 1960's and there were very few art directors at that time who were women. Companies told me at the time that they never hire women. In my mid twenties I finally managed to get an art director's job. I had to work with an account exec who was an older man in his late fifties. He said he would not work with a woman. The head of the agency told him he had to work with me. The first two or three weeks he was terrible to me. He ordered me around and made me do things I didn't want to do. After that I told him, you're not my boss, you're my co-worker and you don't tell me what to do in this job. Then I started producing work and he liked my work. From then on we were very good friends. It was rough. Related Episodes Hug Your Bully To Your Heart Urges Lily Wong Protect Your Heart and Give Value Says Nicholas Kusmich You Are Loved; Heart-Centered Confidence Coach, Kim O’Neill Special Offer Would more confidence help you to feel better about yourself and be more successful? Your inner bully may be holding you back. Imagine if you could live a life of contentment while reaching your goals. I believe it's possible. Book a Free Consultation to help you become more calm, focused, and happy. Send me an email bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Nanette' in the subject line. I look forward to our conversation.

Soren Russow was diagnosed with Atrial Fibrillation (A-Fib) over 15 years ago at only 31 years of age. He was expecting his first child at the time (he now has three amazing daughters), he was playing competitive beach volleyball and eating well. Why did this happen? Would he be taking pharmaceuticals for the rest of his life? Soren made a decision to tackle this condition in a natural way and become a guinea pig of sorts. Through his research and experimentation, he has found great results in easing his A-fib and is empowered to share his findings with others. Through harnessing his story and results, Soren has shared his transformation with many people at various conferences online and in-person. He made it to the District Public Speaking Championships (Toastmasters International Speech Contest) three years in a row with this powerful message. Recently, Soren has become a Transformational Coach helping those with A-Fib discover natural solutions to transition from overwhelm around their A-Fib condition to living with more vitality and ease. Listen & Subscribe on: iTunes / Stitcher / Podbean / Overcast / Spotify Contact Info Website: EaseYourAfib.com FB Group: Laugh Your Troubles Away Book: Ease Your A-Fib by Soren Russow Most Influential Person Matti Anttila Laughter Yoga Teacher Effect on Emotions Mindfulness really helps my emotions because when you look at something and you go, oh my gosh, I can't believe someone did that, and you start to judge and go into this whole story, and then you redefine that thought. Then what happens is, it turns you from kind of a depressed state to more of an elated state of mind. That switch can happen so quickly but it takes awareness and consciousness of where that's happening. Being able to analyze your thoughts and be able to redefine them, has made a huge shift. Marcy Shimoff, who wrote Happy For No Reason, talks about the happiness set-point. So ultimately, we want to increase our happiness set-point. We all have a happiness set-point but it can be adjusted and moved up but that takes time and that takes awareness. Thoughts on Breathing Breathing helps me access the now or the present moment. One of my favorite writers is Eckhart Tolle, and The Power of Now is a fantastic book. When you just focus on breathing and take the time to consciously breathe, you're not thinking about all those things. You're just right here, in the present moment. That's where breathing, and then meditation, when you go into deep breathing for a long period of time, you start to allow yourself to just be. We're called human beings, after all, and sometimes I think we should be called human doings because we put such a value on the doing. We need to focus on the being as well. Suggested Resources Book: The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle Book: Happy For No Reason Marci Shimoff Book: Ease Your A-Fib by Soren Russow Apps : N/A Bullying Story When I was around 13, in grade 8, I had a really rough year. I ended up having to change schools. Both of my parents had lost their jobs during the recession. This was in the early 80s. I just had one pair of shorts, one pair of pants, a t-shirt, a sweater and I was going to a school where there were a lot of rich kids. They started to bully me a lot. I'm almost 6′ 3″ now, but I was the shortest in my class in grade 8. They would say nasty things to me and they would stuff me in lockers and lock the lockers so I would be in darkness for a couple hours. It was awful. One time I was attacked by two guys in my class and they pushed me over, close to this creek when I was on my way home. One of them jumped on me and the other one pulled off my shirt. The other one started to twist my nipple. It's called purple nurple; they twisted it so much that it started to turn purple. I was also thrown in garbage cans and rolled down the hallways of the school. I got through the school year with a lot of difficulty. I really could have used laughter at that time. I suppressed my tears. I was playing soccer at the time. My father was the type of person who said, “be tough”. A lot of the time I was suppressing my emotions, so laughter would have been very useful for me. Related Episodes 482 Choosing Happiness With Positivity Expert Rudrani Devi 463 Internationally Recognized Happiness Expert; Patti Montella 501 The Neuroscience Of Health, Hormones and Happiness; Dr. Sarah McKay Special Offer Are you experiencing anxiety & stress? Peace is within your grasp. I’m Bruce Langford, a practicing coach helping fast-track people just like you to shed their inner bully and move forward with confidence. Book a Free Coaching Session to get you on the road to a more satisfying life, feeling grounded and focused. See me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com with ‘Soren' in the subject line. We'll set up a zoom call and talk about how you can move forward to a better life. Send me an email at bruce@mindfulnessmode.com