Are you ready to put yourself first in your 55+ years? Your host, Laurie Adams at 60+, successfully did that and is here now to help you discover what you want for your own, full second act in life. She lived in the people-pleasing era where young girls learned to put themselves last and how, as experienced, mature women they can rekindle dreams and realize them. A certified life and weight loss coach, Laurie, along with her variety of guests, share how they have shifted into their best years yet. If you’re stuck on the back burner and ready to fire-up at mid-life and beyond, tune in weekly to hear inspiring conversations and personal journeys with info you can apply to get going. Real self care and moving from hope to success starts here—for a new companion, or career, retirement, mastering weight loss, fitness and more. And if you’d like to work with Laurie 1-on-1, contact her at hello@laurieadamscoaching.com.
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When you get what you pay for from a workshop, so far so good. But when I got more, more, way more, from the “Think It, Ink It, Shrink It” bootcamp in November … well, mind blown!. And credit where credit is due: this remarkable event was taught live by Corinne Crabtree for her No BS Weight Loss members. It launched my much-deeper dive into journaling. It became my “think outside of the box” journaling. It spurred an engaging journaling practice that I’ve done now for 63 days straight! Today I focus on the foundation and the prompts that began my plunge, and what I have discovered on my own since. You don’t need a daily streak, but putting pen to paper or using a journaling app on the regular is life-changing.
Hi, and welcome to the Fire Up at 55 Plus Podcast, a show about how to put yourself first in your second act of life. I'm Certified Life and Weight Loss Coach Lori Adams, here to empower you to let go of guilt, take charge of your health, then find and fulfill your dreams. It's never too late, so let's get started. Hi, you're listening to episode number 42. Oops, I learned something again. When you get what you pay for from a workshop, so far so good, but when I got more, more, more, way more, from the think it, ink it, shrink it boot camp in November, well, mind blown. And credit where credit is due, this remarkable event was taught live by Corinne Crabtree, one of my favorite coaches for her NOBS weight loss members. It launched my much deeper dive into journaling, the topic for the weekend. It became my think outside of the box journaling. It spurred an engaging journaling practice that I've done now for 63 days straight. Today, I focus on the foundation and the prompts that began my plunge and what I have discovered on my own since. You don't need a daily streak, but putting pen to paper or using a journaling app on the regular is life-changing. Just take it from actress Jennifer Aniston, who went from hit show friends in 1994 to still going strong 30 years later in the latest Apple TV hit The Morning Show. She said, Writing in my journal was like having a conversation with myself. It allowed me to uncover my true desires, set meaningful goals, and work towards achieving them. Now, I'm relying on my revived journaling practice to focus on what's still ahead in my second act of life, working towards achieving goals that meet my true desires. The overarching lessons that I took away from the boot camp I mentioned is that journaling has really three components to serve me, to serve you if you let it. See, I had been writing to Dear Diary, as we used to say, mainly to catalog the happenings of my day or my travels, when I felt moved to do so. Or I would unload sadness or complaints on pages when I felt life wasn't treating me fairly, or others weren't treating me fairly, and then when I started getting coached, and then becoming a coach, I discovered the benefits of doing what we coaches call a TDL, jargon for thought download. Early in the day I would write everything down that mostly was worrying me upon waking up, bothering me, and irritant, or two or three, and by clearing my head of concerns I could move on with my day, unfettered, or I could use the model I learned in coaching school, to examine how one of the expressions in my TDL was creating negative thoughts that led to a loop of sad emotions and then unproductive actions that didn't provide me with any new results. I certainly did learn too, eventually to flip negative to positive models and then make progress and brainstorm productive actions for good, better, then best results. Now and again I would work with a coach or take an outside class that emphasized going deep on my past and childhood thoughts and feelings, what Corinne reminded us as inner child work, or I would do an exercise where I wrote to my past self and eventually to my future self. So up until this recent workshop, I did learn a lot about myself through journaling, but what hit me hard during this particular weekend was the realization that most of what I've been writing was all about past problems, childhood issues, grievances, and thought downloads that were largely negative, that had to be cleared from my head. But since the workshop, I've been thinking more like Jennifer Aniston, focusing more on what I want in this new life I've created in the past couple of years, letting it grow and evolve, and setting my goals towards achieving happiness, real service to my clients, and a continually thriving business. Yes, at my age. fifty five plus plus So I journal daily, sometimes a little, couple lines, but more often a lot, and I will stop during the day and record what I'm thinking. Self coaching by journaling, but most of all doing it with the excitement, the possibility now of what I'm creating for my future self, what I really prefer to call my identity, and creating it with the time I want to take, to consider new paths, thinking outside of the box and not in a rush. So just how am I doing this now? Well you might have a natural talent and certainty for listing what you want, but even if you do, well you likely don't know what you don't know. As you get to know yourself better and expand your horizons for what is possible, some amazing ideas will spring out of the box and your brain will go to work, seeking how you'll take an idea from dream to reality. It won't be forced, it will come out of your practice of journaling and the thoughts that emerge. See, focusing on the negative keeps you dwelling in it. Addressing the negative on your journal pages, and then focusing on the positive alternatives is safe. A journal is private. There's no fear of acting out. It does take courage to face and pivot from unproductive thoughts and feelings, but we can do it more often when we journal. We get in the habit of it. That's a true gift to our self development, to our transformations. So how to get started? Well, sounds as easy as, you know, putting pen to paper. But what are you going to write about? I would start by doing some of those thought downloads and notice what is troubling you most, then write about it, along with an opposite thought that you could try on to get you motivated. For example, you might write, I am so overworked that I'm too tired to have any fun, except at night to turn to wine and TV. So you're feeling overwhelmed, which leads to acting like that couch potato, and these actions are on repeat. So in your journal, you could question your thought. Just start by questioning those thoughts, then the feelings and action or inaction that springs from it. You could write, I'm gonna try going straight from dinner upstairs to my reading chair, with a cup of new flavor of decaf tea and the latest best selling mystery. I'm gonna be calm. I'm going to realize that I don't need outside stimulus. So try that thought on. Record it in your journal, and that you honored the idea by doing it, trying it, and then maybe even putting your Netflix subscription on hold. Or in nicer weather, maybe taking a walk after dinner. Eventually, reading so much, finding or starting a book club. There you go. Life changed by using your journal to address an issue. That's how you grow. In addition to self-questioning, there are just about a zillion journal quote unquote prompts you can find online or in guided journals, or by brainstorming your own list of things you'd like to write about. Focus on the positive ones. That's the life-changing, more effective part I'm doing now. As Corinne suggested to us, speak up for yourself in your journal. Have your own back. And on the safety of those pages, give yourself permission to try something new and even risky. Maybe something you've been curious about but reluctant to try. That's getting you into the Aniston zone of goals. How can you, or will you, take a small step, then maybe another, and another to try, to make progress on that new thing. Pickleball anyone? A new language. Creating an itinerary, a dream itinerary for everything from a road trip to international travel. Your journal can serve as a roadmap, a record of dreams, or a concrete blueprint for what you want to try, and a record of what you are accomplishing, or even rejecting as you grow and change. As Corinne explained, quote, you can dislike an experience or something happening and recognize its value or lessons. And you don't have to be grateful for that lesson. There's no rules. This is where I'm going to emphasize the value of pivoting versus dwelling on something you dislike. You've heard me mention the amazing coach and author Elizabeth Benton, who taught me that you can learn how to pivot quickly when you recognize an unhelpful thought or desire to fall back into comfort, such as buffering by overeating. You learn how to pivot quickly by practicing it, by doing it. Again, I suggest you read her book Chasing Cupcakes, which goes well beyond the topic of weight loss in life-changing guidance. Probably my number one choice in self-development books. And more recently, while expanding my journaling capacity, I turned to the new best-selling book, The Pivot Year 365 Days to Become the Person You Truly Wanna Be by Brianna Vist. The daily profound meditations are deep thought provoking. I started day one with a couple of notes in the margin, and over days expanded to filling those margins with my reactions, and then started to journal about them with an eye toward becoming that growing identity, the future self I fully desire. Can't wait to see what happens after number three hundred sixty five of this book. There are so many others you can turn to for essays, reflections, understanding compassion, guided meditations, like the 2004 Gold Standard Meditations for Women Who Do Too Much by Anne Schaef. I can't even begin to count how many copies of that little book I've given out. It was so valuable to me, especially when I was a working mom of young children. Or have you read The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck? Or maybe your adventures in journaling can start on the lighter but still effective side, with musings in The Coffee Self-Talk Reader by author and podcaster Kristen Helmstedder. It's become somewhat of a franchise. She's got tea self-talk, I think even lipstick self-talk at this point. Really like her. Or if you're looking for faith-based reflections or guided journals, there are so many, such as 100 Days to Brave, Devotions for Unlocking Your Most Courageous Self by Annie F. Downs. And the amazing Michael Hyatt, he produced the Full Focus Journal from his line of full focus planners and system teachings, and from where I went through planner certification. He offers periodic reflection pages and daily pages in the full focus journal with room to write along with suggested prompts about feelings, decisions, what might be holding you back, and more. And as much as I value pen to paper, I've really been glad to have my phone with me when I've had a thought in a waiting room, a parked car, or other place where my journal was sitting on a shelf alone at home. There's notes, Apple Pages, or Microsoft Word, on smartphones or iPads, and apps such as Agenda, Bear, Day One, Xinia, and a very recently released journal app from Apple available for free to its iPhone users. I've used a couple of these to keep my habit consistent, or when I just feel the need to make an entry before it escapes my mind, in the moment. And of course there's the tried and true gratitude journaling. You could even add a few sentences of gratitude in your regular journal, or of course you can buy a tailored gratitude journal. This practice is scientifically proven to open up your eyes and mind. So for more about gratitude and its value, go back to my episode number thirty, titled Gratitude Gimmick, Gift or Game Changing. The best part you can start now, anytime. The effective part? Well, to make it a regular habit. Two or three times a week up to daily. It's your journal, your unique pages, your safe place to write, to vent, to dream. But to go beyond effective, to really be expansive, as I've been doing since this workshop, focus on what you want your life to be, what it can be. Ditch the limiting thoughts that are likely to come up with an intentional pivot. Write it all down to journal regularly with courage. Face the issues. Move beyond them. And imagine how extraordinary your life could be just weeks from now or months from now. Or after an entire year of your adventures in journal. I've got one more apt quote from international speaker, podcaster, and best selling author Mel Robbins. She explains that quote, keeping a journal enables me to process my thoughts and emotions in a constructive and organized way. It acts as a sounding board, a brainstorming tool, and a source of motivation that propels me towards my professional goals. PS Here's my essential tip. Start messy. If you're harboring perfectionist thoughts about pristine, neat pages, never fear. There are no journal police coming for you. Just get going. To coach with me one on one, to reap the benefits of self-care, supportive tools like journaling and thinking outside of the box, or to focus on weight loss results at MidLife Plus, please just send me an email to Hello at LoriAdamscoaching.com so we can schedule an easy conversation about what you want. And to keep the transformational information coming each week, please follow FireUp at 55 Plus wherever you download your podcasts. And if on Apple, share a review and star worthy rating. It's much appreciated. Hey, thanks for listening. To contact me directly, please reach out via email to hello at laurieadamscoaching.com. And I invite you to take a look at my flaming hot webpage, fireup at 55plus.com. That's FireUp, the word at 55plus.com. And until next week, make the most of your sizzling second act.
