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For me, in so many areas of my life, this consistency thing has been an interesting thing to fall in love with and just be like, okay, if I have a goal in any area, it's like name the goal. The second thing I try and do is like find a way I can get there that I actually enjoy. Welcome to the Tips for Parenting Youngsters podcast, which explores how to grow as individuals and create healthier, happier relationships.
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This episode is part two of my inspiring conversation with Jessica Johnson. If you've ever felt stuck between learning and taking action or struggle to balance persistence and self-compassion, this episode is for you. Jessica shares her wisdom on overcoming fears, embracing imperfections, and the power of consistency in pursuing your passions.
We'll discuss finding joy in the journey, learning from life's seasons, and how curiosity can lead you to unexpected opportunities. Plus, Jessica opens up about her experiences with growth, coaching, and building a life filled with purpose and passion. Tune in for an uplifting and thought-provoking discussion that will inspire you to take the next step toward your dreams imperfectly and confidently.
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Don't forget to subscribe and listen to the full episode. But I'm noticing too in so many times with in podcasts or that as much as you read, you also have to take the action. Yes.
Right? Because only words and if all you're doing is getting the words without the actions, nothing is going to change in your life either. And that is just something I've been thinking about lately. You know, like, how is there a way to get somebody to do something? Not really.
But is there a way to inspire them? I don't know. What is your how are you have what experience been? And yeah, you've done some coaching and that and yeah. Yeah, I think that that is a big trap that people can fall into.
And I certainly have is just the information kind of trap of like, it's amazing to learn. But also there is a point where you need to take action. And sometimes learning and absorbing can feel like action because you're like, let me just tinker with my website over here for a little bit while longer, instead of going out and having a scary sales conversation with someone or like truly talking and offering my services, or let me take another course instead of actually saying to the world, this is what I'm doing or pitching 10 different clients via email or things like that.
So I definitely agree with you. I think there's a balance where you can have the input, but you have to match it or exceed it with the output. So does that then take us back to with procrastination that you talked about? It kind of takes us back to our fears again.
Yeah. And I wonder, how do we find that balance in our lives? I mean, because I'm as guilty. The same way, sometimes I will hesitate on, I don't know, an episode or something, just even life in general.
And sometimes I'm, I'll say rewarded because I did need another piece of information. And then other times it's like, Oh, yeah. Okay.
No, I was really procrastinating. I don't know. Like, do you have a way for discerning yourself? Like when you're standing? Yeah.
Like when you're truly procrastinating because of fear versus you do need more information. Yeah, I know. How do we tell that with myself? Well, I think on one, it's like sometimes an intuition thing where you kind of know, deep down, if you truly don't know how to do something, or if you're just holding back because you're scared.
So I think that's part of it is like, you kind of have to check in with yourself. You know, you can also try and look objectively at your own efforts and be like, have I spent time learning this? Like, have I gone through, if it's a podcast, maybe like, have I truly like watch the videos on setting up the tech? Have I taken the course? Have I gone through it? Or, you know, whatever your scenario is, and however your learning style is. And if you have done all those things, there's that moment where you just like have to leave.
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So that can be part of it is like just looking and seeing like, do you really need more information or not? And then what I try and remember that helps me is like, your efforts don't have to be perfect. I really think that people react and engage a lot more with your intention and the energy you put out there than the perfect website. And if you have a spelling mistake, that is not going to affect people, the way that your energy and you speaking to them authentically and with your heart and with your message well.
And I've seen that modeled by a few, you know, leaders I respected where I saw this one businesswoman who had a website and it was riddled with a few little spelling errors and things like that. And people were kind of harassing her a little bit online as the internet can do and saying, you know, how could you be a successful million dollar business owner with mistakes all over your website? And her response, instead of feeling bad for it was like, I love that I can be a successful million dollar business owner and still have mistakes on my website. And so she had just reframed it around like, it doesn't matter.
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And you can think about your own habits when you're talking with someone or you want to engage, you want to be mentored by someone, you want to listen to someone's like episode. I don't know about you, but like, I love the human humaneness behind it. I don't care if there's a little mistake or they say, um, or I don't even notice when it's someone else, you know, we notice with ourselves because we're, we can be our, our harshest critics, but it's really truly about their heart, their message they're putting out there.
So I just think giving yourself that kind of permission where it doesn't have to be perfect is so freeing because you will always evolve. You will always look back and know you could do better than you did on your first try. But like, thank goodness you got out there and got started.
Otherwise you'd be in the same spot. At least you're a little bit further along from like trying imperfectly. Yeah, no.
And it's so true because I was, as I was listening to you, that was the word that I was thinking. We've, it was humanized, right? With the spelling, like, it was like, yeah, I'm a human. I'm not perfect.
I make spelling mistakes and we're so quick to judge other people and everything has to be perfect. And, you know, and that's what's holding so many of us back from even trying because of those kinds of comments. And like, at the end of the day, if a period is missing, does it really affect the message that the person is trying to convey to you? No, it doesn't.
And what, uh, there was another point, but one of the things that I was thinking about too, um, because the last episode was on persistence. Yes. And maybe you could speak to that because it also ties in with, well, what if things aren't going your way? You start a podcast and, you know, this door closes or whatever your passion writing books or, you know, and it's like, oh my God, this and that's happened.
And then it's like, because in the chapter on persistence, that's so many people just throw in the towel, the first, you know, obstacle they come to. So how did you overcome your obstacles or what was your getting through your persistence? Gosh, it's such a hard one because sometimes when you're starting, there can be so much energy at that starting point where like, like we were talking about, you've learned all the things you're announcing it to the world. And then you kind of expect that to be the hard part.
But really that's when that's like the starting line. That's like when the work begins, you know? And so, gosh, for me in so many areas of my life, this consistency thing has been an interesting thing to fall in love with and just be like, okay, if I have a goal in any area, it's like name the goal. The second thing I try and do is like find a way I can get there that I actually enjoy.
So if it's like, if it's a health thing, if I don't like running, that's not going to be my best way to get to my healthy active goal. You've got to choose the thing you look forward to, whether it's nice long walks outside dancing, like swimming, whatever your thing is, you know, if it's a business school, you know, like if you don't love, let's say for podcasting, you really find that you love solo episodes or you love talking to others, like finding your way that makes you look forward to it. When it's writing a book, like as you know, that can be a long process.
And so if you can find a way that you look forward to, whether it's like, maybe you always go to your favorite coffee shop and you get a nice little drink that makes you so excited. You feel like such an author sitting in writing or, or you're at home by cozy by a fire. But like, I think really set your goal.
Number one, number two, find a way you can be consistent with that you really enjoy. And then number three is like, just be consistent, like set your inner interval for how much you can do it and stick to that. I just think so what I learned in my business journey and some mistakes I've made, it's like, I think if you only get into something for a little bit of time, and then you switch to the next shiny thing, you lose so much progress than the deep work of staying with something for years and years.
So for me, I really had to catch myself on that. And I think a lot of entrepreneur minded people do because we love the creation process. We love figuring out a challenge and a solution.
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And so the things I've had the most success with have been the things that I've stayed with, you know, for a long time, whether it's writing a book and finishing it, whether it's like growing the business, and instead of just like, stopping it, if I need to pivot, pivot, but like keep it going and keep building all that you've built for all those years, whether it's, you know, an audience, a skill, your whole body of work, like, I don't know, I've just been so amazed by how the slow steady consistency is like, is the thing. And for me, like all the things that I would do, like all the podcast episodes, all the blog posts, like, all that stuff became the book. I didn't know what my book would be one day.
But it was from like writing kind of little tidbits here and there on social media are starting to see themes and what I love to talk about and learn about that became a book. So you never know like what your consistency will lead to. You don't always see the reward like at the outset, but it becomes the reward from the consistency like you're you're sharing on your episodes as well.
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Yeah, it's it's just so true. And I think the thing that I've discovered lately is you have to go through each of the seasons. Yeah.
Like when you you know, the kind of spring when you're all excited and you're planting the seed, and then you go through summer where you're nurturing it. And then it goes through the fall and then it goes through the winter. But then it comes back full circle to spring again.
And all of a sudden, after a year, it's like it everything just seems to take off. It's like and I do it's just I don't know if it's a spiritual a biblical thing. I know it is in the Bible.
But I think that was a change a mindset change for me was that yes, I'm not going to be you know, the the best podcaster in my first episode or my 10th or my fifth. Like, you just you keep the consistency thing. You just keep getting better.
You find June, you put yourself out there. And I think one other thing I've changed again about my mindset is everything can be fixed. Right? Yes.
Like you can go back if you put out and you got spelling mistakes. You can go and fix that. Yeah.
Right. Like I've always so why should it hold me back from being perfect? Because I'm always have the mindset. Any problem can be solved.
Yeah. So so get get myself out there or just just try it. So yeah, like what you talk about with relationships and parenting, and it's like, even if you're not perfect in a relationship or an interaction, you can always apologize.
You can one of my mentors and friends, she has this quote that she lives by, which is I won't always get it right. But I can always make it right. And so she gives herself that freedom of like, I'll do the best I can.
But I know I'm gonna mess up and make a mistake. But I can trust myself that I know, I'll go back and I'll do everything I can to fix it or to make it right. And so it's full circle, whether it's like business or relationships or families, it's like anything.
It's like, you know, you can you can fix whatever your maybe your best effort isn't like there from the start, but you can always go and correct it once you learn more, which takes us back to being human again. Yeah, we're not gonna Yeah, like we're not gonna say the perfect thing. But sometimes, you know, if we stick with relationships and parenting or with our kids, like, yeah, maybe we say something in the moment.
We also need to that other person needs to speak. Yeah, right. Okay, like that, that didn't sit well with me.
But you know, sort of way but so many times we just were afraid of doing that nowadays for whatever that is. But yeah, yeah, I think we need to really be be human and understanding of each other. And that Yeah, we you know, we can say sorry, or, or I love that saying where we can make things right.
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Is there anything then that we any last points or that that you would like to that we haven't discussed? Well, that's a great question. You know, just that I think that this to your to your point is just it can relate to any part of your life. So whether you're listening, and you're like, I'm not satisfied in my career, I want more passion, more fulfillment, you can go back to that question of what does like the best, brightest vision for my career look like, but you can also do it with family life, because you mentioned so much of that.
And you have so much wisdom to share there of like, maybe it's not the career for you. But maybe it's just like, what does my home life look like when it's at its best and its brightest? And how does it feel? And what's different than it is now? You can do it with health, you can do it in any kind of area. So I think that that's just the big thing is like, doesn't have to be career driven.
If you're not an entrepreneur, you don't want to be a business owner, a podcaster, an author, if you do, by all means, but like in any area of your life, it can be this constant unfolding of like, okay, I know I want something different, let me name what it actually looks like. Because that's the point you can start to lean into those things that speak to you to chasing your curiosities to looking at the beliefs that you have running the show, to, you know, improving and doing the best you can now and then gaining wisdom and experience and doing better. So I think it always, you know, can come back to that no matter the area.
And I think that's just an important kind of full circle place to bring in. And I think and in Napoleon Hill's book, too, it's about the person we become on the journey. Yeah, it's not, I mean, yes, the journey, but it's like, how have we evolved? And how have we changed or not changed? And, you know, much like we talked about what are self limiting beliefs, and, you know, and that's where so much, like you've talked about, like journaling, and self awareness and self reflection is so important, like either daily or weekly, where you go back and go, Oh, what did I like this week? And what didn't I like? Because, like what we said, what we don't like is as important as what we do like.
And yeah, and I think to touch on it's so much that feeling like I heard use that, not that you overused it, but it's so much how we feel about things. Right? It's like, Oh, I tried this. And I love that word you use to the curiosity.
And I don't think we're curious enough, like, you know, or maybe we're curious, but we're too afraid to just even try like, try that new course that you Yeah, you know, that started you on a whole path that you probably wouldn't even have thought of before if you hadn't, you know, yeah, so important. Yeah, I had this one season of my life where every month, I would do like one new thing. And it was always something a little outside of my comfort zone.
But something I was curious about, and that's all the requirement was, it wasn't like it had to lead to a promotion or more income or, you know, validation from anything. It was just like, like, bickering yoga sounds fun. Let me take a class like kayaking sounds kind of fun.
Like I even once just tried to sit at like a bar alone and just see what that was like, you know, I was young and, and so it was scary kind of in the moment. And I had things that epically failed, like I almost passed out in bickering yoga. Like I had so many funny experiences from that that did not go flawlessly and didn't become my future.
But I did also find things that I really loved. And I built a lot of like courage for being uncomfortable. And so the same for anyone listening, we're like, you never know where that class you want to take is going to lead.
You don't know who you'll meet at that one event. Like you don't know who could be your next best friend that you just have to get out there in order to cross paths with. So I kind of love like how I don't know life works like that.
And it can kind of cross you with those people and experiences and, and next chapters. But it does take getting out there. But life becomes so interesting right away.
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When you start doing things, just because like you're curious, and they sound fun and interesting, like, I think that's a big secret. Yeah, I mean, you touched on another thing, because I know you travel a lot, and just meeting other people. And I think one thing, just to touch to everybody has a story.
Yeah, I love to travel or take a course because like you said, you don't know who you're going to meet. Yeah. People have such fascinating stories.
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And what I mean by that is they overcome, sometimes more than you need to overcome, which they become your inspiration. How have you experienced that with your traveling? Yeah, I always meet someone interesting, or like you say, everyone has a story. And so it's kind of finding the things that, as you mentioned early in the episode that their eyes light up about, or that they want to keep talking about, or that they know more than you about.
I mean, I think that's one of the most interesting parts of it, as I just feel like there's always someone that brings some new richness. And, and so many of the people we've met have become our best friends through the years, like we just were in Colorado now. And this couple we met on our honeymoon in Greece years ago, you know, we've kept in touch, and we just messaged them and come to find out they're now in Colorado.
And so you just never know, like where those paths will intersect. And so I think staying open to that, like really adds so much, why not learn from someone else? Yeah. Yeah.
And I think just to touch back to on, about talking about your passions. One thing that we can do as somebody listening, which really helped me most recently, is actually let the other person know how much excitement they have in there. Like in a nice way.
Yes. Like, oh, my gosh, your face lights up when you talk about that. Yeah.
Because if we're trying to find our passion, and we need feedback, and that's an awesome way to give somebody feedback to help them find their passion. Yeah, I love that point. I've never thought of it that way.
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But I love that just calling it out for someone else and being like, you really light up when you talk about this probably helps them so much to know that, you know, I think number one, if if you're unsure of your passion, it helps to validate that you're on the right path. And I just it happened most recently. And I just remember it so well, because it just warned my heart that it was like, oh, yeah, okay, I'm on the right path.
Because sometimes too, when we're feeling we hit that persistence, or a challenge comes up, and we're ready to throw in the towel, that thought or that sentence comes in, oh, but I'm so passionate. Like it keeps driving that passion within us to give up, because that's what we're most passionate about. So yes, I love that.
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So what is just in closing, what is in the future for Jessica? I know, I'm so excited. It's like the New Year energy of thinking through all of that. I think I definitely have some more books in me, you and I were talking before the podcast episode.
And just we found I feel like our US base. So moving in here and feeling like a little more settled, feels so good, because we've been so nomadic for years and years now. So kind of getting my little office together, maybe doing some more videos as a channel, and just building the community, getting to mentor more women, and just continue learning myself, which, you know, as you learn, you just love to share more.
So whether that's on my podcast, or books, or coaching, whatever channel, I'm just excited for all of it. I feel very like, I don't know, inspired by it and this path. So and then travel.
Lots of travel as well. Yes. So can you tell us a bit more about your coaching and how people could you or Of course, yeah.
So if you go to my website, hi, Jessica johnson.com. There you can find all the different channels. So whether it's book, podcast, coaching, and my coaching program is essentially a 12 week program that really is modeled after my book. So if you have no idea, like what's next, or what you want, it starts out with like dreaming, like we talked about and getting clear on what that vision looks like.
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And then each subsequent week, we work through another step of bringing that dream to life, which includes things like working through your fears, looking at the beliefs that are under the surface, and getting comfortable with shining and taking up space or receiving that dream when it comes. So each of my my chapters, my book is kind of modeled after another part of that. And then the coaching tracks that as well, because I've just found, at least for me, like that is part of every dream, whether it's a business dream, a relationship dream, a health dream, fears come up, you got to overcome like your own self imposed kind of limits, and the limits around you.
And, and so yeah, so that's what the coaching is, I love doing I get to do with a few women for that 12 week journey at a time. So yeah, check it out if you're interested. And we'd just love to chat more about any of this stuff.
As you know, we can just talk all day, I feel like about all this stuff. We just so thank you so much for being on this podcast. Thank you so much for having me.
I was so inspired, Kathy, like by all you do, and just your heart and your message and that you have gone from having like an idea about books to putting them out in the world. And they're beautiful. And they're making such a difference.
And just your podcast topics are just so helpful and interesting. So I just could sing your praises as well. But I'm just very grateful to know you and be connected.
And then just to see all your work, like your heart coming out and all of your work and all the different ways. That was again, such a pivotal moment that we that we shared. And I can see that now without crying.
So I love it. It was so powerful, like on both ends. So I'm grateful to have just been there to witness it.
So well done. There is always time to rewrite your family story. Break free from patterns that no longer serve you and create a home filled with love, understanding and unwavering support.
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I'm here to guide you every step of the way. As I conclude this episode, I must state that this podcast is designed solely for educational and entertainment purposes. While I bring my experience as a parent and grandparent, it's essential that you know, I am not a licensed therapist.
This podcast is not a substitute for professional advice from a physician, professional coach, psychotherapist, or other qualified professional. Got it? Awesome. Until next time, what is one thing you are grateful for?
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