Ever notice how easy life becomes when we’re feeling good?
Strangers smile in our direction, we notice the beauty around us, and that important contact you’d given up on, well, they just emailed. Amazing!
Life ceases to be hard.
Whereas during seasons of cascading fails, it can feel like we need heavy machinery to leverage out of the shade. It's one disaster after another.
Thanks to our mind’s baked in negativity bias, it's very easy to stay focused and spinning in a downward direction.
Tough chapters are part of our life's story. They're unavoidable. But when you're traversing one, how can you invite in more of the good and less of the grind? Start by considering:
What are you feeding yourself?
Where are you focusing your attention, placing your energy and what entertainment are you snacking on during tough periods?
Olympic athletes don't become champions by obsessively ruminating on their shortcomings. They encounter adversity as we all do. Sometimes years of it. Champions invest in training their minds and bodies. They invest in top coaching. They're intentional about where they focus and how they refuel.
If we want to live differently, we need to think differently and this includes feeding ourselves differently.
Here’s a sampling of my favorite inspiring media to fortify the mind and spirit. It's healthy and way tastier than a bowl of kale. I promise.
Streaming
The aporism anything is possible can ring hollow at times. Yet for this all-Nepalese climbing team, it’s truth. And they prove it. Their journey isn’t just about training to climb the world’s tallest peaks, it’s also a story about tenacity and rock-solid self-belief; it’s a story about family, the drive to make our parents proud and practicing faith in ourselves and our vision even when it feels like no one is watching. A heroic, majestic story with breathtaking visuals.
The Dalai Lama, Archbishop Tutu and an interviewer sit down to discuss joy, hardship and what really stands in the way of happiness. Think this will be a slow moving and pedantic conversation? Wrong! I had no idea the Dalai Lama was so mischevious! Appropriate to the title, you’ll laugh A LOT. Learning more about their challenging life experiences only amplified the power of their shared message.
I’m not a big sports person, but this made me a forever fan of Doc Rivers. Learning his maxims as a championship coach gave me a lot to contemplate. The stories and anecdotes are exciting and moving. But Rivers’ character as a coach and human being left the strongest impact. In recounting a dark period, he coached his team as they confronted racism and navigated intense media all without losing sight of their shared mission. Powerful. This one I had to watch twice.
Podcasts
I’ve been a fan of Krista Tippett for eons. This New York Times top rated podcast doesn’t shy away from big, thoughtful topics—spirituality, joy, creativity, philosophy and others—yet the tone of each conversation is relaxed, intimate and approachable. Guests include poets, scientists, authors, and spiritual leaders. My favorite episodes: Meeting Matthieu Ricard and Maya Angelou. Always elevating.
For those considering reinvention or new directions, this podcast is inspiration gold! Launched to share the stories of female founders, designers, artists and creatives, its premise is grounded in a quote by Marian Edelman: You can’t be what you can’t see. By elevating the stories and experiences of groundbreaking and courageous women, they aim is to inspire others to reconsider what’s possible.
I admittedly fell down a rabbit hole here, but after dozens of listens, I’m a fan. Susie Moore’s sunny energy and shortie podcasts function like little power injections on my slow mornings. She’s also hosted some impressive guests for conversations I’ve listened to on-repeat (they’re SO good!). My top two: An interview with Martha Beck and Gabor Maté.
Books
Stoic philosophy. Bran flakes. So good for you and yet…must we really? Well, this modest book was a game changer for me in 2022. I’ve recommended it so much, I ought to be on the payroll of the publisher. Holiday knows what he’s up against and wisely stocks the book with amusing stories that are as surprising as they are illustrative. He often highlight little known details of famous leaders to make a point. I found it engrossing, full of wisdom AND inspiring.
This is a staple for dreamers and doers around the world. Coelho has written many bestsellers but this remains my favorite (and is an international phenomenon). Through storytelling he sheds light into the common challenges, illusions and rewards of pursuing your purpose. It’s symbolic and simply written, but meaning-full and short enough to read in a weekend.
An image-heavy guide to life by fashion designer Norma Kamali, this book features empowering quotes, anecdotes and a voice that’s legit and life-tested. Now in her 70s, Kamali shares her take on health, purpose, worklife and style, among other subjects as she details her journey from small time entrepreneur to fashion icon. I love the bold energy in this book and although I don’t subscribe to ALL of her guidance, I love that I can break it open and readily pull out a gem like this one: Little girls with dreams become women with vision. Truth!
Got a few recommendations to share? Email me or reply below. Let’s build on this list!
Comments