Episode 11 - The One Where I Drop A Bonus Epi

In this BONUS episode I am recapping my trip to Newfoundland where I attended the SHIFT event!

11/10 recommend checking out the magical humans that put on the event!
insta handles:
Emily King 

Gina Keeping 

Also my girl Jess Clerke that spoke at SHIFT - she's a kick ass confidence coach!
 

I would love to connect with you ✨

I spend most of my time on insta so if we’re not already friends let's change that right meow: @freespiritstitches 

Grab your free 20 page joy guidebook right here!

Check out my website for all your cute, cozy + chic crochet goods you didn’t know you needed: freespiritstitches.com

If you’ve been searching for a new hobby/obsession - check out my online self paced ‘learn to crochet’ course: Learn to crochet! 

You can also find me on Facebook: @freespiritstitches

Transcript

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Sarah 0:01

Let me guess you've been feeling overwhelmed, disconnected, or like the world has totally gone to shit. Well have no fear you're in the right place friends. Our mission here at free spirit stitches is to create more joy in the world anyway we can and one of those ways is with the create more joy podcast. So join me, Sarah D your joy seeking, donut eating, crochet obsessed host as we chat about all things joy and how to create more of it in your life, because we know the world really needs it. Now, I'm not gonna pretend it's always sunshine and rainbow because it bloody well isn't, but I do know among all those messy bits, there's lots of joy too. You're guaranteed to hear some F bombs, that's what she saids and lots of tangents. But if you hang with me, I'll help you create more joy. Hello, I am coming at you with a bonus episode of the Create More Joy podcast. So we're in between right now, we're in between season one and two. I'm getting ready to start recording episodes for season two, but I couldn't wait. I didn't want to wait on recording an episode to chat about an event that I went to about a week and a half ago. In St. John's, Newfoundland Shift put on by the magical humans, Emily King and Gina Keeping. If you were around last year on social media, or you listened to season one of the podcast, I did an episode recapping my weekend when I went to the first shift event that they put on last June. So I wanted to get on here and just recap a little bit of what went on at the event because it, it's, it, it's just, it's so fun and magical and also hard work and really a lot of reflection and kind of looking inward So there was lots of laughs. there was definitely dancing and there was tears too. There was sadness. When you do actually sit and reflect and think about why are you letting yourself stay stuck? Why aren't you moving forward with what you actually want? And that's really what shift is all about, is having you make teeny, tiny, small shifts or actions. Within your life, whether it be daily or weekly, whatever it is, but little shifts that get you to that thing that you want. So I am I describe myself as a delayed processor. And so what I mean by that is I need to take some time to actually sit with and feel into either an experience or information that I've consumed or something that I've been involved with. I can of course give reaction and my thoughts. In the moment in that particular timeframe. But I really do like to sit with it and especially something like Shift. It's a whole day event and I was also part of the VIP festivities that happened after the event, which was a private dinner, drinks, dance party. All the fun to keep connecting and chatting and just enjoying the time with those other people that wanted to get in the room. And so I. you know, sat down and recorded this the day after or once I got back home from Newfoundland. But to be honest, I was really zonked. I was exhausted for the first few days afterwards. It was it was a fabulous weekend. I tacked some extra time with a few other ladies that I went to the event with this time and it was so worth it and we were able to just hang out, spend some quality, fun time together prior to the event. then we went to the event. We were all v i p. So we just kept the good times rolling honestly, until we had to leave and go home and go our separate ways at the airport. So we packed as much time as we could into the few days that we were together. so once I came home, I was exhausted, kind of in every way, shape and form. Also, I reaggravated an injury that I got the beginning of December. I had hurt my ankle really, really bad. And like I said, there was dance parties and little dance breaks and in the evening, and it is really, really hard for me. If you know me, it's really hard for me to sit still if there's music on, especially music that I love. So I may have re-aggravated that a little bit too. So there was a bit of healing and resting that I needed to do, that week after I got back home. And then after that I'm not, I'm not gonna lie, I hymned and hod whether or not I was gonna do it. It's like, is it too far past the event for me to come on here and do a recap? But honestly, it's been. Like maybe 10 days since the event. So, no, the answer is no. It's just me getting in my head, overthinking about it. Even if this was something that happened last year or two years ago, five years ago, if it's on my heart to talk about today, it's because there's something that I feel like I need to put out there. And I feel like it's something that you need to hear. It might inspire or motivate you to do something, to take a small little action that you've been sitting on because you're afraid. So yeah, shift. I went last year to shift, which was really awesome, and after that event, I ended up meeting a couple. people there. They were actually from Nova Scotia around where I live, and we ended up going out to dinner together. And so the four of. This year for shift kind of went together as a package deal. We got the v i p and we decided to go in. The event was on Saturday. We decided to fly in to New Finland on Thursday so that we could really have some time together, and it was super, super fun. It was really special. We got in Thursday. I won't bore you with the diatribes of flying nowadays, if you know, you know so of course there were delays there and back, but it was all good. We got there. That's the most important thing we got there. We had the experience that we wanted to have and we got back home safe and sound. So Thursday night we got in and we went to dinner and had some spicy margaritas at one of our favorite places. that we frequent when we were there last June as well, and then Friday we really lived it up. We had one of the girls that came had suggested maybe we get somebody to come into the hotel and do facials or do massage or, you know, something kind of to really spoil ourselves and love on ourselves and, and just be there and have a total day of relaxation. And so, we did. We asked for what we wanted, we put it out in the universe. And it happened. We had a local aesthetician come into the hotel. It was something that she had never done before and you know, she had kind of admitted that she was a bit nervous cuz it wasn't something she's done before. Normally she's at her salon and, you know, has everything and the systems and all of her processes that she'll go through when she's giving any type of service then we're here asking her to kind of pick that up and travel with it. But she did, she was up for the challenge, which was really awesome. And she's actually somebody that was attending the event as well. And so it was really special for us to encourage each other to step out of our comfort zones and do something that. does make us slightly uncomfortable. Not to the point of that we are hurting ourselves or somebody else, but it's like, okay, what's the worst that can happen? And it ended up being such a super fun time. We loved it. So we even had matching jammies. Yes, we are that extra. But it just, it just amped up the fun, amped up the joy of the weekend and the energy of just being there, being silly, being a little bit vulnerable, and just being together. So we had a nice time on Friday and then Saturday is the day the big day that we had the event and then our private dinner and drinks and party afterwards. but through the day, through Saturday there was a lot that went on, a lot that went on this time. They had a couple guests come, which was really fun. They didn't have that at the first shift event, so they had two women come in and speak to us, and one of them. Well, I feel very, very special because one of them was my friend, Jess clerk, and she was one of the four it was so awesome seeing her up there on the stage and going outside of her comfort zone and getting up on the stage and speaking. It was the first time she spoke at, at an event like that with. Confidence coaching business. And I tell ya, I had some tears in my eyes when she got up on the stage cuz I was just so bloody excited for her. She killed it. Kicked it. No, not kicked it out The park. hit it out of the park. She kicked its ass. Whatever you wanna say. She did phenomenal. seeing her in her realm, it was really, really special. And that is really what the day is about and what shift is about and what Emily and Gina want us to get out of something like this. a group of people coming together to encourage, empower, love on one another and also hold space for the vulnerable side of things as well. And the sadness and anger, frustration, whatever it may be, to hold space for both. Cuz one thing that they also. love to remind us, and we talked about it a lot during the event, was two things get to be true at the same time. So you can be super, super excited to be there and to be ready to do some work and look in on yourself and, and have some self-love and self-care time. But you can also be scared about it maybe because you're going by yourself. And you don't know anybody. Maybe you've traveled and you know you've left home and left maybe children behind and a partner behind that you might not have before. And so you're worried about them and wondering if they're okay and if PS they are doing okay, it is okay for you to go and do something for yourself. So they are okay. But those two things can be true. At the same time, the world will not implode. You will not implode, and you have no idea what you might find out about yourself, what opportunities might present themselves to you. You just have no idea what will happen, but just know. and be at peace with the fact that two things can be true at the same time, and two polarizing things I think is the important part that can be true. At the same time, it is normal and it is okay. a theme that I saw throughout the day was looking at where you want to go, where you see yourself going. It has nothing to do to, it has nothing to do with being a business owner. There were business owners there. There were also folks there without businesses. There was mothers there, there were folks there without children. if you want to show up for and make an investment in you, then you were there. Those are the people that showed up to shift, showed up for themselves and showed up for each other. And there's really something to be said in community and having a group of people that are desiring the same thing in the sense of desiring, looking into themselves, desiring to. See how they can get to where they wanna go and making their dreams a reality. not staying stuck. Cuz we're always gonna feel stuck at certain points just because you do this inner work or you put yourself out there doesn't mean you will never feel stuck. You 100% are going to feel stuck along this journey. But that's exactly what it is. It's a journey. So if you do get stuck, then you might just have to pause and either enjoy the rainstorm or just look at the rainbow, right? It just because you're stuck, it doesn't have to be a bad thing, but what you wanna do is keep moving. And that's a lot of what Emily and Gina, encourage us to do. They want us to determine what is keeping us stuck and why. And an exercise that we did was to list out things and reasons why and limiting beliefs on why we can't have what we want. So basically all that shit talk that goes on in our heads when we're like, I would love to do this, or I would love to have this, or I would love to be this. As soon as usually, and a lot of times, as soon as somebody puts something like that out there, says it out loud. Has that thought. Then her ego kind. has a freak out. I was like, oh my God. No, you can't. No you can't. Because it's different. It's a little bit scary because we haven't maybe experienced that before. We haven't done it before, but we would love to do it. But then our brain goes into survival mode and tells us, no, this is like intimate danger, danger, danger. Do not past, go do not collect your $200. Stay where you are and. Then our brain and our body feels like, oh my goodness, okay, I'm must stop that. Because if I don't do that action, if I don't move forward, then I'm not gonna feel scared. Well, spoil alert, there's gonna be something else that you're gonna be scared about the next day or even in the next hour. And so our brain is a funny thing and it's designed to, of course, keep us alive. But the things you have to watch out for is that it could also stop you from doing truly what's on your heart and what you know you're meant to do or getting that thing that you want so much for your life. So we had to list out reasons why we believed we couldn't have that thing or do that thing or be that thing that we wanted. it kind of sounds doom and gloom, but we gotta get that stuff out of our mind. We have to get it out of our body so we don't have those thoughts and feelings. trapped inside. Once we get that out, then we want to, we want to shift those thoughts. We wanna shift that mindset or that frame of mind that we have and say, if we didn't have those thoughts, who would we be? What would we do? And it's really fun when you get to give yourself permission to write down. Yeah. Okay. If I kicked that nasty ass thought to the curb, tossed it out on garbage day, What could I think instead? What would I think instead? What am I going to think instead? And it's pretty cool When I did that exercise and was writing down those things and then writing down the new thoughts I felt pretty badass. they also had us do another exercise that was similar talking about. Alter egos. there were two of them that we would have. And so one was this nasty scared ego that they wanted us to write down, okay, what are we thinking or what is this person doing? And you know, it's things like they're playing small. They're not asking for what they want, they're not asking for help, they believe that nobody wants what they have to offer, what they want to do. They believe nobody will wanna do X, Y, Z. They just play really small. They don't take any action. So then of course, they're going to just be stuck in that. And then on the flip side, we write down all the qualities or the actions or the mannerisms or the posture or wherever it may be of what we would call like your, the most favorite version of yourself. And, and write down, okay, so what, what are they, what are they thinking? What are they doing when they get up in the morning? how are they talking? How are they speaking to themselves? their partners or their friends or their children, or the person at. bus stop or the mailbox or wherever. Can you tell I don't get out much. The bus stop in the mailbox is just across the street from my house. But what, or on the phone. I mean, I do talk to people. Okay. So how is that favorite version of you showing up? What are they doing? You know, what are they thinking about themselves? What are they eating? How are they dressing? Once you have that, do that. Take one little thing and start doing that today. Just one little tiny shift because then that will give you the motivation. That'll give you the courage and it all snowballs into medium shifts over time than bigger shifts over time. you know, 10 little mini shifts is gonna look pretty huge when you look back. The thing about joy is that we are an active participant in our joy. We cannot simply just wait for it to happen to us. We cannot just wait to feel it. We must create it. We must create it for ourselves. Spoiler alert. We are in full control. Of our joy. So my goal with each episode is to leave you with a takeaway what I'm calling a joy challenge, something that you can do to take actionable steps right now today to start creating more joy in your life. So I hope you enjoyed this bonus episode of the Create More Joy podcast and your joy challenge for today will be do that exercise whichever one you want. They are very, very similar, but what are some of your limiting beliefs that you have of why you can't get those things that you want, or do those things or be those- write them down. we do a fun Hulk smash exercise at Shift where we write things down on Post-It notes, they aren't very nice. We do stick them on people, which really isn't nice. But it's just the fact that we would not write that down and stick that on somebody else. Why are we sticking it on ourselves. And by thinking those limiting beliefs and thinking those nasty thoughts of why we can't be what we want, why can't, why can't we do what we want? So if you really wanna amp it up, this would be really fun actually. Write down all those things on pieces of paper multiples if you want, And then crumple them up and literally Hulk smash them on the ground. I know it's hard cuz it is paper. So you gotta really give er but call bullshit on all that stuff that you're telling yourself and you know it is actually really freeing and it's super fun and you feel badass. And if you feel badass you're gonna wanna do the next little shift and the next little thing and the next little thing that then becomes those bigger things. So Hulk smash all that shit and we'll see you next time. Love yas. Thank you so much for listening. I hope you enjoyed that episode. And if you did, please spread that joy everywhere. Also make sure that you're subscribed so you don't miss any of the fun. And if you're feeling really fancy, go ahead and leave me a review. I spend most of my time on Instagram, so you can find me there at free spirit stitches. And I would love to know when you're tuning in or taking part in a joy challenge. So tag me free spirit stitches and use the hashtag create more joy podcasts so I can celebrate right along with you, or if that's not your jam, just slide into my DMS and say, Hey! Now if you really wanna double down on the joy, I have an amazing free 20 page guidebook to creating more joy when you subscribe to my newsletter. So you can grab that now on my website free spirit stitches.com. Till next time I'm sending you all the joyful vibes.