Because it’s the Holidays and I like Cupcakes : Episode 8

This podcast began because helping humans live their best life and become the best version of themselves is what Desireé’s life is all about. Join Desireé as she uses her trips around the sun to throw encouragement around like confetti!

In the 8th and final episode of Season 1, we join Desireé as she answers the question, “How do you powerfully enjoy the Holiday Season (and all the hustle and bustle) and begin the new year with joy?” In this episode you will find great tips, tricks and tools surrounding the art of preparation (because it is an art… and maybe a little bit of a science too!) 😉

Topics include:

• The ultimate question (3:03)
• Simplifying your space (4:12)
• Kick worry to the curb  (5:36)
• I’m lazy and I like cupcakes… err… I mean, plan your work and work your plan (6:55)
• Know when to punt 🏈  (9:03)

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Transcript

Desire Melfi Bozzo: 0:06

Ciao and welcome to Life Out Loud. I am your host Desire Melfi Bozzo. We are going to use this space to share experiences and help you find lasting, unshakable, unwavering, unmessable-with joy and gratitude. We're going to be throwing around encouragement, a little bit like confetti and giving you support to live your very best life. Ciao friends and thank you for tuning in to another episode of Life out loud. I am your host Desire Melfi Bozzo. Friends, this is the eighth and final episode of season one. I am not entirely sure how this all flew by so fast. But here we are. This season has truly been a blast. And I've covered a lot of topics we began with the COVID pivot and a compelling why how this podcast came to be. I talked you through some secrets to a happy life. The perfect morning gone awry. Oh, my gosh, that was a doozy. But I will have you know that I have lived in a fluff pulp free zone ever since. Hey! We talked about living life in action and how unchecked injuries can lead to fractures. And if I can be totally transparent, pain. We unpacked gratitude fueled happiness and my obsession with it. And in the last episode, I posed the question, what are you reaching for? If you missed it, or any of these, definitely go back and have a quick listen, I guarantee they will be worth your time. So we are up to our ears and holiday cheer over here. And I thought it was appropriate for this last episode of season one to slow it way, way down. Sweet friends, grab your favorite cup of coffee and cozy and for the next few minutes. Take a deep breath. And let's talk through the art of preparation. There is so much filling our to do list these days, between presents to buy and wrap and send. An abundance of holiday parties to attend, cookies and delightful desserts to bake. If we let them the to do list will get the best of us. It's like a fact. It's so easy to get wrapped up in the commercialism of the holiday season. I know this because it happens to me very easily. Plus, Can I be honest in the super safe space and say that presents kind of make my heart flutter and dance with delight. It can definitely be a recipe for disaster if it goes unchecked. The more I thought about this episode, the more I knew it had to be about preparation between the holidays and the beginning of a new year. I just felt like I had to attempt to answer the question. How do you powerfully enjoy the holiday season and all the hustle and bustle and begin a new year with joy? The answer kept coming back to the word preparation. There's a super cliche quote out there that says failing to prepare is preparing to fail. And you also have to say it with that voice too. It's so cliche that it's really bananas. But it's also completely true. We can only wing it for so long before the wheels actually start coming off, right? In an effort to help you enjoy the holiday season, regardless of the amount of hustle to your bustle, and to ensure that you are ready to begin a new year with nothing but joy. I've put together some tips and tools to get you on the road to preparation. The first one is simplify your space. There was a time in life when I was lobbying Hubbz very, very hard for a tiny home. It was pre-child when the tiny house craze was just kicking off. I had watched probably one too many tiny house nations while simultaneously discovering Marie Kondo. I was tidying spaces while asking if the items I was keeping sparked joy. It was actually liberating. I kid you not. Well, I never did punch it over the goal line lobbying for that tiny house. I did actually end up with a very tidy house. I read once that living in minimalism actually pushes you to spend time in the present moment. Friends, there's something wholesome and good about getting your physical space in order. Simplification just feels good. It gives us space to breathe. It offers space to think, space to do the doing of life. So in the spirit of preparation, while still having so much joy, begin by simplifying your physical space. The next step is to give worry the boot. I know, easier said than done. But when we worry about tomorrow, we actually Rob ourselves of the joy that today hands us. That's not just a cute saying it really is the truth. Friends, I know how much there is to think about. And I know how much there is to worry about, especially in the season. Some days, literally everywhere return, there is another worry inducing thing happening to us or around us. But we can't cave to the worry. The Gospel of Luke were told who of you, by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing Why do you worry about the rest? Friends, it's not Cavalier for me to say God's got us, each and every one of us. So it's time to give worry the boot. All it does is steal our joy and the beauty of the present moment. The next one is to plan your work, and work your plan. This sounds incredibly simple. I realize that. But in a world that pulls for your attention, at every pass, it is so easy to get sidetracked. If we want to powerfully enjoy the holiday season and start the new year filled with joy. We must become masters at planning and execution when it comes to our plans. One way personally, that I do this is by blocking off time, like in my calendar for specific things. So one example is early in the morning before my house wakes up. I wake up. I make a cup of coffee, and I spend my time in the Word. Is that always perfect? Absolutely not. But it is something that I'm intentional about. Another thing that I plan, like in my calendar I block off time for are my workouts. And friends, I would love to sit here and tell you that working out gives me life and nothing tastes as good as fit feels. But the truth is really sitting curled up in a chair with a good book or can I be honest, a Ted Lasso marathon gives me life. And I can promise you that cupcakes tastes better than skinny feels any day of the week. That's a promise. And so for these reasons, because I'm lazy and like sweets, it's imperative that I plan workouts into my schedule. So when we block off intentional time in our life for things that are important to us, it ends up giving these things priority. Friends, I encourage you to figure out your priorities. And then plan your work and work your plan around them and be non negotiable about the execution. And the last way we can powerfully enjoy the holiday season and begin the new year with joy is are you ready? Know when it's time to punt. Sometimes in life, after we do our best at simplifying our physical space. After we clear out the worry that's in our mind. After we plan our work and we work our plan the outcome isn't always what we want. We reach a point and I know we have all been there. When we have worked the downs we have fought for the inches. But sometimes we just don't get to where we need to be. I can't talk to you about preparation and living powerfully with joy without acknowledging the fact that sometimes in life through our best most thought out, well prepared plans. We just have to punt. It's not fun. We don't like it. It's frustrating. And I even say it is maddening sometimes. There are occasions when we punt. And then we march our butts to the sidelines and we regroup, and then we come back stronger than ever. Friends, the art of preparation is something that we can all become masterful at. It is something that we can work toward every single day. While living with full out joy may seem unattainable, I can assure you that it's not. James Clear - is amazing, by the way. He's also an author and a speaker wrote about the aggregation of marginal gains. I am obsessed with this. This tells us that if we can move the needle 1% everyday toward the goal, in one year, we can become, Are you ready? Are you ready for this number 37 times better at something. He says and I quote, There is power in small improvements and slow gains. Can I get an amen to that because that's incredible. To powerfully enjoy the holiday season in the middle of all the hustle and bustle and begin the new year with joy. All you have to do is move the needle 1% Everyday. Simplify your physical space, give worry the boot, plan your work and work your plan. And when it all falls apart, never ever be afraid to go ahead and punt. Friends I truly can't believe I have an entire season in the books - that's crazy. It has been nerve-wracking. Exhilarating at times stressful at times, but it's also been incredibly fun and super exciting all rolled into one. I really hope that you've enjoyed this content and more than enjoyed it. Friends I hope that this was fruitful in your life. So please leave me a note in the comments. I always love hearing from you. Come back next time and let's throw more encouragement around like confetti. But be careful if you get too close. You just might get some on you. Until we meet again remember there is always always always something to be thankful for. Ciao. Thank you for joining me Desire Melfi Bozzo for this episode of Life Out Loud. I would love to hear from you. Leave me a comment. Tell me what topics you want to talk about and how you take your coffee. If you enjoyed what you heard, text a friend the link share it on social media or if you're interested in becoming a supporter, be-bop over to my webpage lifeoutloud.me and sponsor a cup of coffee that keeps this podcast fueled. Until next time sweet listeners