Jump Start Your Joy Paula Jenkins

Get the full show notes: https://jumpstartyourjoy.com/2024/06/what-do-you-stand-for/
 
In the first episode of Season 8 of 'Jumpstart Your Joy,' I'm returning after an 18-month break to discuss the profound changes and reflections experienced during the hiatus. The episode dives into themes of intentional living, navigating grief, the importance of setting boundaries, challenging hustle culture, and the reverberating impact of focusing on internal growth over external validation.
 
Emphasizing the significance of finding joy even amidst hard times, the host also introduces upcoming topics and invites listeners to join a vibrant community centered around positivity and personal growth.
 
Want to Learn More About Labyrinths and get a Labyrinth Walking guide? Sign up on my website. https://jumpstartyourjoy.com/labyrinth-basics/
 
Resources:

Buy Nothing, Get Everything Plan: Discover the Joy of Spending Less, Sharing More, and Living Generously by Liesl Clark and Rebecca Rockefeller

Loving What Is: Four Questions That Can Change Your Life by Byron Katie

High Conflict: Why We Get Trapped and How We Get Out by Amanda Ripley
Audible version of "Untethered life" by Michael A Singer (affiliate)

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00:00 Welcome Back to Jumpstart Your Joy
01:00 Reflecting on a Long Break
01:28 Intentional Living and Time Management
01:59 Navigating Grief and Personal Loss
03:20 Understanding Growth Beyond Hustle Culture
09:07 The Importance of Setting Boundaries
14:05 Finding Joy Amidst Societal Challenges
24:29 The Power of Intentionality and Reflection
25:11 Embracing Labyrinth Work
29:48 Looking Forward: Season Eight Plans

This week's episode is the finale of season seven where I've been talking all about intentional comfort and how to bring more comfort and ease into your everyday life.
If you have not yet listened to the episode where I did the countdown of the top 10 most downloaded episodes, you can tune in here.
1. Choose comfort, and build it into our lives.  I think we are looking for a way to wind down and a way to hold space for the things that we've done and to take a breather. It may be that the world feels heavy, and that you need a break. Mirror what you choose to do with what the seasons do. Winter is a time of darkness and quiet and solitude. And so I think comfort and joy are bookends for each other, but I think they also go hand in hand.
2. See it as riding the wave. If youcan ride the wave of whateverdifficult thing you're facing, and intentionally schedule in comfort, you will be in a better place. It can be helpful to know that this current situation is temporary, and ride it out. And, you can get through it by clinging to that intentional comfort that we are setting up for yourself.
3. Everything is cyclical. Hard times, good times. Comforting times, overwhelming times. It's all cyclical.  Knowing that there is a season for each thing that sometimes will be easier. Sometimes it'll be harder. And knowing this can maybe help you find comfort in one that the season will change just like if you ride out the wave. But in two, that, that this is part of the bigger plan and pattern.
4. Learn to live an "Untethered Life," as inspired by the book by Michael A Singer. The really big takeaway for me with that book is that you can start to question some of the patterns and habits that you recognize that you have after you spent some time looking at them. Because comfort can come from getting to know yourself instead of fighting whatever comes up and ruminating on whatever comes up.
5. Joy and happiness is comforting. Make time for whatever it is that makes you happy. Let go of the expectations and the pressure of day-to-day life that's telling us what we "should" do or want. Learning to let yourself be in the present moment, without feeling the need to document for social media or feel the pressure to share every detail with anyone else.
Resources:
Season 7 Countdown (finale pt 1)
Audible version of "Untethered life" by Michael A Singer (affiliate)
Join me for a Virtual Labyrinth walk (free) on Thursday, December 15, 2022 at 1pm PST | 4pm EST
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Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.
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Andrea Scher has thrilled and inspired others for nearly twenty years through her award-winning blog Superhero Journal, her international workshops, her Creative Superheroes podcast, and her joyful e-courses. In this episode, we discuss Andrea’s new book, Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy Today, and how and she describes why this is the perfect time to tune into the small things that bring you joy.
Read the full show notes on my website. Click here.
In this episode, Andrea and I talk about:
Why Andrea was inspired to write her book to inspire others to add more wonder and magic to their lives What a Wonder Seeker actually is and how wonder relates to joy Becoming braver and more resilient as you pivot your attention towards wonder and joy How Wonder Seekers create comfort by being open-hearted and cultivating a spirit of kindness and love  Some of the exercises in Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy Today and why 144 is her personal favorite  How Andrea sets intentions and the magic the practice can bring How to move past the rigid routines of the last 18 months and embrace the magic and wonder your world has to offer Andrea’s e-courses, retreats, and creative workshops, and how to find out more about her  Three ways Andrea recommends to jump-start joy in your life, in the world, or other people’s lives? Resources
Preorder Andrea Scher's book: Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake Up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy
Get your free gift from Andrea after purchasing Wonder Seeker here
Andrea Scher's Superhero Life
Andrea Scher on Instagram
Other books and resources we mention in this episode
The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Wisdom, and Love: Buddha's Brain by Rick Hanson
Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence by Rick Hanson
Camera Obscura in San Francisco

Intentional Comfort is the theme of this season, and in this episode I'm taking inspiration from Priya Parker's Art of Gathering, and using her 3 rules of gathering to consider new ways to reconnect with what nourishes, fortifies, and supports you.  While her Ted Talk is about how to interact in groups and gatherings in new ways, I find that her rules and thoughts offer insights on how to connect with yourself, and how to determine what is meaningful to you when looking for intentional comfort.
Here are the basics of what I'm covering:
Don't leave it to chance
This is the intentional part of things. If we leave the relationship and connection we have to and with ourselves to chance, it's far too easy to focus on the basics and logistics of life, and ignore time for self care. If you're longing for more time for yourself, or time to do thoughtful, comforting things, schedule that time in.
Embrace your purpose
For many of you, especially over the stretch of the pandemic, you may have developed some habits that aren’t really serving you. And, while they likely did serve you for a period of time, now that we’re nearly into the third year of all of this, I think the way we look at comfort and what fortifies us has likely changed. It’s become super apparent that this isn’t about a sprint, this is about a transition. What is the purpose, or meaning, behind setting up time for intentional comfort?
How can you craft something that supports and nourishes you, as we all work through this transition together?
What is the purpose of what you want to do, in finding comfort?
What would meet your needs?
If you’re looking for an escape, what does that look like given any of your current constraints?
If you’re looking for peace and quiet, why?
And if you dig a layer deeper, is there something you feel is missing? 
Cause good controversy
Priya says that “human connection is as threatened by unhealthy peace as it is by unhealthy conflict.” And, I’d add that this connection is true for gatherings as it is for the connection you and I have with ourselves. 
For this, I’d ask yourself what do you need, right now? Drop any sort of “shoulds” or polite answers. You're answering this just for yourself. 
Some of these answers might be overly simple: a walk, a shower, a drink of water, a meal
Some of these answers might be more complicated and feel harder to figure out: a feeling of connectedness, quiet time when I’m not needed by anyone else, a day to just bake cookies and connect with the holiday spirit
How can you do this? It might feel like it involves creating some good controversy, especially if it involves speaking up to divide up housework with your family, to find quiet time, to find time to pursue a hobby, or to interview for a new job. You may need help from other people to do these things. So, dive in and ask yourself what you need and then figure out what kind of help you need from other people in your family.
The other side of this good controversy could be a totally inside job. It could be that you’ve been sitting with something for a long time that doesn’t feel so great, and in order to find comfort and joy on the other side, you need to work through it. You may need to break through a Story - or something you’re assuming is true but isn’t really true.
Use "pop up" rules
Priya suggests this for groups that gather that don’t necessarily share the same background, or are part of the same generation, culture, or rules for etiquette. She says in those situations, you can set up pop up rules to encourage meaningful connection.
What if you changed your own rules for a bit? What rules could you set for yourself, just for a day or a week, to support yourself?
An example might be: set a bedtime for yourself for the next week if you are tired.
Make a rule for yourself that this week, you will slow down and have an afternoon snack and see how that feels.
Limit your interaction with peo

Signe Myers Hovem is a spiritual counselor, an energy worker, and the author of The Space in Between: An Empaths Field Guide. In this interview on Jump Start Your Joy podcast, we are talking about empaths and highly sensitive people (HSPs).
If you are a highly sensitive person, or if you have a sense that you may be an empath, then I think you're going to get a lot out of this conversation (which ties so closely to this season's theme of intentional comfort on the podcast). HSPs and empaths notice the energy around people and places and things, and this can be overwhelming to them. The Empath's Field Guide, and this conversation, offers a lot of insight on how to manage your energy, hold space, and work with your gifts.
In this episode, Signe Myers Hovem talk about:
What it means to be a functional empath. The difference between empathy versus being an empath. Exploring what it means to identify as a highly sensitive person. The power of our words and what we choose to call things. Minding your energy, and holding space without having your own energy drained. How to set up strong boundaries with people, places, or things if you feel an energetic drain and decide if you want to get involved further. How do we navigate through the space of being an empath or an HSP in everyday life? Resources
Signe Myers Hovem's website
The Space in Between: An Empaths Field Guide by Signe Myers Hovem
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Season 7 was all about "Intentional Comfort." This episode shares the top ten most downloaded and beloved episodes from season 7. 
They are:
10. Emma Loewe, author of Return to Nature
Listen to the original episode
Buy the book
9. 5 Tips to Bring More Mindfulness to You Everyday
Listen to the episode
8. Fred LeBlanc of Cowboy Mouth on Finding a Mardi Gras State of Mind
Listen to the original episode
Buy their best of album.
7. Heather Hall, Author of Step Up and Stand Out: 20 Tips for Aspiring Introverted Leaders
Listen to the original episode
Buy the book
6. Jenn Oglesbee: Intentional Comfort and Joy in the Midst of Grief
Listen to the original episode
5. Stasia Savasuk: Wearing Your Word of the Year
Listen to the original episode
4. 10 Things to Inspire More Passion and Joy in Your Life and Work
Listen to the original episode
3. Finding Your Heart's Second Home
Listen to the original episode
2. William J. Peters, Author of At Heaven's Door
Listen to the original episode
Buy the book
1. Scott Leftwich, owner of "Weiners and Losers," and 80s arcade, Airbnb and band member.
Listen to the original episode
Resources
Brene Brown's "Living Our Values" Exercise
Love the show, and what to show your support?
Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.
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