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Do you feel overwhelmed with your todo list? Is "creating fulfilling happiness" missing from that list? Everyday Happiness with Katie Jefcoat is here to help you. In 2-minutes a day, over time, you’ll discover how to reduce overwhelm and create lasting happiness through Katie’s signature method of Intentional Margins, happiness science, and musings about life. Start your day with a positive mindset. Many of us can get deep in the feeling of overwhelm. The anxiety of our own ambition can weigh heavily on our thoughts and emotions. We lay down and close our eyes at night and our chest begins to feel heavy. More items on the to-do list than the day before. How will we ever going to get off the hamster wheel of to-dos? When are we going to start living life for more than the hustle? As a recovering lawyer and passion driven entrepreneur, Katie knew something had to change. What she found is that you can have harmony, be intentionally productive and create massive impact, all at the same time - without feeling guilty. So she asked herself a simple question: "How can I get off the hamster wheel and how can I show others how to do the same? She knew she'd had a system for herself, but she’d never put it into defining words. On August 15, 2019, she sat down at her dining room table with her friend Jenna (her business bestie). Post-It notes covering the table. This is where she first defined the concept of Intentional Margins. What are Intentional Margins? INTENTIONAL MARGINS™ (n): A buffer of space and time to create harmony between your to-do’s and your priorities. Now you can get the support you need to manage your overwhelm, one little tip at a time. Regardless of the industry, Everyday Happiness blends inspiration with a pragmatic approach to finding Harmony. You'll be encouraged to throw “balance” out the window for a more achievable approach called harmony. Through Intentional Margins™, you'll be encouraged to develop what harmony means to you, by identifying your priorities at work and at home. Every day, we'll end the podcast help you feel equipped to jump off the hamster wheel of overwhelm and go out there and crush your day. --About the Host-- Katie Jefcoat is a community curator, speaker, author and motivator who supports ambitious women (and a few good men) move from feeling hectic to harmonious. As a recovering trial lawyer, she knows first hand what it feels like to have a demanding job. As an entrepreneur with a passion that lights her hair on fire and a busy family she’s in the thick of it with you. Many people strive for balance and think overwhelm is just a part of life. Sadly, the hustle culture and our never-ending to-do list is creating a life where our priorities are getting the leftover scraps of time. Katie introduces people to what she calls - Intentional Margins™ - a kind of life in which they reduce randomness, create harmony between their to-dos and their priorities and intentionally enjoy the meaningful parts of life - without feeling guilty. Without exposure to a different way, we remain stuck on the hamster wheel of to-dos and never find the “balance” we yearn for. Katie works diligently to expose her community to different ways of doing things, because she fundamentally believes we deserve to make time for our priorities. We deserve to live a life of harmony. And it’s within our control to create it. Katie curates a smorgasbord of content related to managing your calendar, handling overwhelm, setting boundaries, reducing randomness, saying no, self-care, the power of your choices, and more in her Intentional Margins™ Membership Community -- which she calls the coziest virtual coffee shop (on Facebook). Connect and learn more at www.katiejefcoat.com.
Episodes
Saturday May 07, 2022
Saturday May 07, 2022
A conversation with some moms about choosing high school electives and what I learned.
Transcript:
Welcome to Everyday Happiness where we create lasting happiness, in 2-ish minutes a day, through my signature method of Intentional Margins® (creating harmony between your to-dos and your priorities), happiness science, and musings about life.
I'm your host Katie Jefcoat and I was on a group chat recently with a bunch of moms talking about their kids are transitioning from elementary to middle school and middle school to high school and this convo started down the path of choosing high school courses and choosing extracurriculars and then the impacts of college and all the things. Not only was my head spinning, but I could feel my blood pressure start to rise. So many opinions on what to do to prepare for college and what not to do and so many choices.
Wow, it’s a lot, friends, and having never gone through this my head was a puddle.
But one comment stood out to me more than anything else.
The mom said, she asks her kids “does this make you happy”?
Wow, that’s interesting? Not, will this help your GPA? Or how will this look on a college essay or transcript? But instead, will this make you happy?
I mean, we’re all trying to raise good kids that are kind and come out of adolescence with some shred of confidence and a strong sense of their own mental health. The research suggests that happy optimistic people are more successful. So maybe this mom is on to something?
Now, of course I am not saying to throw the gradebook in the toilet and joy ride through high school. But I wonder if the mounting pressure is the right move? It seems harder now than before. Maybe that’s my own mind’s revisionist history, but adolescence seems harder these days.
I would argue, perhaps, this is less about “does this make you happy” and the question really is, do you enjoy it, even when it’s hard work, because even things that are our passion still require hard work and can make us stressed and possibly unhappy sometimes, but it should also bring purpose and fulfillment. Now, not every high school or college class is going to be great. Don’t get me wrong. What I am fearful of, is kids being part of clubs for the sake of college essays and doing things for the wrong reasons that they end up miserable, and that can’t be good either.
I don’t have the answers and I don’t have a crystal ball. Every kid is different, of course. But I wonder if we ask our kids: where are they the happiest or most fulfilled in the elective curriculum and extracurricular activities, if that allows them to really shine. If they are happy with those choices, perhaps that mindset carries over to the mandatory curriculum and frankly parts of life.
As adults we all know life isn’t a party all the time, but we get to have moments of joy mixed in, with hobbies and philanthropy we are passionate about. Maybe letting the kids take that lead would also be a step in the right direction.
This is what I am pondering today. If you have any thoughts on this, please send them my way as I really need to explore what this looks like. Until next time, remember, kindness is contagious.
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Links: https://onamission.bio/everydayhappiness/
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