Motivation

Friday Favorites (Links I Love)

KimLeave a comment

This is where I share inspiration from the week–podcasts, books, music, art, movies, food, and more!

FOOD

Alan and I made a fantastic new vegan gluten free soup recently in the Instantpot. Although I’m not much of a gadget person, since my mom gave me an Instantpot, (thanks, Mom!) we gave it a try and the soup was amazing. Honestly, I probably could’ve made the soup just as quickly on the stovetop. It’s not “instant” at all.

First you have to wait for the pressure to build (about 20 minutes), then it cooks (about 25 minutes for this particular soup), and then the pressure slowly releases (another 15 minutes). But it would come in handy if I was cooking several dishes at once and needed an extra burner.

Here is the soup recipe for Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup from Gimme Some Oven. This is one vegan soup that is so creamy and delicious it can fool the dairy eaters in your life.

BOOKS

I have four great books to share with you and I recommend all of them. Yes, all of them! They are like vitamins that will boost your nutrition in different ways.

Keep Going: 10 Ways to Stay Creative in Good Times and Bad by Austin Kleon can be read in about an hour. If you’re an artist, maker, entrepreneur, influencer, etc., grab this book and prepare to be encouraged. Kleon’s ten ways are so helpful to be reminded of: The first one is that “Every Day is Groundhog Day”, meaning every day we start over. Have a to-do list and work through it.

The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success by Deepak Chopra is also a shortish book. This book was the first I’ve read by Deepak Chopra, and it won’t be the last. The Laws include The Law of Pure Potentiality, The Law of Giving, and The Law of Intention and Desire. At the end of each chapter are several ways to practice and act upon what you’ve read. If you know you have inner work to do in order to develop a more mature character who can handle success, start with this book.

Body Thrive: Uplevel Your Body and Your Life by Cate Stillman is a 10-week introduction to Ayurveda. Since I am studying Ayurveda with Yoga Veda Institute, I absolutely wanted to read this to see what I was in for. In her straightforward, no-nonsense way, Cate shares ten ways to take your life to a higher level.

Where does she start? With earlier, lighter dinners, moves on to go to bed early, and start your day right. Ayurveda is super practical and gets right to work dealing with your habits and what needs to change in order to have a better life. If you need a wellness boost or want to learn more about Ayurveda, here is practical place to begin.

Emergence: Seven Steps For Radical Life Change by Derek Rydall is one of two books by this author I purchased this summer. There is so much in this book that was new to me and many things that aligned with what I learned while living much of my life in a Christian culture.

Some of the many valuable pieces of wisdom he shares on are: giving, generosity, visualization, and acting from where you want to be, not where you are. This book is great if you recognize you need to develop a more positive, grateful mind and attitude and if you have goals you are working toward but have a feeling it all starts with you. This book will show you the way!

PODCASTS

Brendon Burchard had a few recent podcast episodes that I listened to several times over: Developing Momentum helped me stay productive right before school started, and Take Back Your Morning are all about morning routines. This has been a theme in my life since starting Ayurveda school: I wrote about this topic in Monday’s post and did a Live video on Facebook about it last week.

OK, that’s it for now. I would love to hear about what’s inspired you this week.

Slowing Down for Sunsets, Sleep, and Smiles

KimLeave a comment

My motivation and energy have been a bit tapped out lately. I’m guessing the combination of end-of-year school activity and a bout of anemia is mostly to blame. And a very full workload. Naps have become a part of my daily routine and I haven’t produced much in terms of music, writing, and new products for my business. I’ve read plenty of books, but that’s about all I have to show for the past month.

Usually, when I get into a phase like this, I just push myself harder and talk myself out of the slump. But this time, my intuition told me it was more important for me to recharge and take time for recreation. And to take an iron supplement. The second definition of recreation, according to Lexico.com, is the action or process of creating something again. What I’ve been needing to recreate is my sense of growth and expansion.

A few years ago, I had a two year period when I tried a lot of new things, took chances, and changed my life in dramatic ways. But it is so easy to get comfortable and settle into familiar routines and, basically, to shrink. Which is what I’ve been doing. I realized I needed to challenge myself to grow in new and different ways and do more things I’m afraid of. But before that, I took some time for rest and fun.

Alan and I just had a few days at home sans kids for the first time in three months. Rather than simply working harder, unhindered by family responsibilities, we decided to spend most of the time together doing enjoyable things like listening to live music, sitting in the gazebo as the sun went down, taking a walk and run together, watching a couple of films, and generally taking a break from our regular work schedules.

I admit to staving off guilt when I thought of all the tasks I was allowing to pile up. I thought of how far I need to climb to become a success on social, with my online shop, with this blog. My tendency has always been to work harder, but this time I knew it was time to breathe, laugh, relax, sleep more, and slow down.

At the end of our long weekend, before sitting down to write, I took a walk in the twilight. Redwing blackbirds sang in the cattails, the orderly fields with their rows of soybeans and corns rested, the trees at the edges exhaled, and I felt more connected to the universe and to myself with every step. I felt my imagination stir, and, as I turned back up the hill and headed home, I looked forward to work once more.

If you’re feeling burnout, I hope you can find or make pockets of time to relax and recover. Maybe you can’t take a weekend, but maybe one day or even an hour a day to do something you enjoy. If you have favorite ways to avoid burnout, please share in comments!