Episode 158: Make the Most of Your Life

Episode Summary

Our brain’s number one job is to keep us alive. All the thoughts that it offers us day in and day out are meant to protect us in order to meet this objective. However, the very thoughts that our brain offers to keep us alive are also the very thoughts that can keep us from actually living the life we really want to live.

Over the past month, I’ve had some experiences that have reminded me again how lucky I am to have the chance to be alive and that the only thing that keeps me from boldly getting everything I want from that life are the fears and doubts of my own brain.

Today on the podcast, I am sharing three lessons I have learned over the past month that have given me a new appreciation for my life and a new perspective on where my brain is hold

Episode Transcript

Welcome to the 100% Awesome Podcast with April Price. You might not know it, but every result in your life is 100% because of the thought you think. And that, my friends, is 100% awesome.

Hello podcast universe! Welcome to Episode 158 of the 100% Awesome Podcast. I'm April Price and I am so happy to be back with you. Back behind my microphone, back home. I spent most of the month of April traveling, and it was amazing, and fun, and wonderful. But isn't it good to get back to your own bed? Isn't it good to get back to your schedule and your routine in the gym, you know, and just all of it? I'm so happy to be back here, and to share some things that I learned, we will get to that in just a minute. I am so happy to be home and back with you and I feel like I have been gone for so long. It's so interesting because it like so much has changed since I've been gone. Like it is noticeably warmer here in Phoenix, I feel like when I left it was spring and now like that he is coming and I can feel the difference in the air and the sun in the mornings. Like when I get up I can tell like the sun is coming up and I almost don't need the lights on my car as I'm driving to the gym.

And it just reminds me that on a daily basis we don't notice all these little subtle changes and kind of sneaks up on you, right? But when the time accumulates and you're gone for a bit, you can clearly see the difference and you can clearly see like that accumulation of daily changes. And it just is such a good reminder for those of you that are working on things in your own life, like day to day, you might not notice. Day to day it might feel like it all looks the same and nothing has changed. And I just want to encourage you to look back over a larger swath of time, look back over two months or three months or six months, and notice the changes that are happening in your life so that you can stay motivated and keep going, keep creating the things that you want in your life because it's all adding up, I promise you.

And speaking of staying motivated, and not giving up, and working towards the things you want, I have a brand new free class that I'm offering to any of you that would like to take it. It's called Excuse Proof Your Life. And in there I give you three keys to really like getting over your excuses and getting the things you want. Start doing the things that you always say you want to do and actually start doing them. So, it's just a free class, there's even some worksheets that go along with it to examine the excuses in your life and start to like excuse proof your life, and start getting the things you want so you can get that by going to my website, aprilpricecoaching.com and you can download that little class, or you can text the word excuse to 66866.

And so if you text excuse to 66866 it will send you a prompt where you give your name and email and then they will send the class to your inbox and you can watch that and start getting busy getting over your excuses. I just want to also like invite you to share the things that you're learning here on the podcast with somebody else. If you find this podcast helpful, if it's making a difference in your life, I really want to encourage you to share it with somebody. Recently, a couple of friends shared a podcast with me that I have been enjoying so much, and I just I think it's good to share the things that are making a difference so you can share it on social media. If you tag me, I'll share it on my stories as well, or you can just send somebody a text and if you hear an episode that you think they might appreciate, that might help them, that might inspire them, that might like make their life journey a little bit easier. I would love it if you would share with them.

So, onto the podcast. So today's episode, like I said, I did a bunch of traveling in April and I felt like everywhere I went, every experience I had, there were lessons that I learned, lessons that have helped me, that have changed the way I think about myself and my life, that have helped me create new results in my life that just have been so helpful in giving me some important shifts in the way I think about my life and and the way I think about the thoughts that my brain gives me. And so, I wanted to share some of those with you today. And I just have I went three different places. And so, I have three different lessons that I want to share with you today that I hope will help you make the most of your life.

And so the first trip, the first week in April, I went to the Life Coach School Mastermind in Austin. And so, this was an event hosted by the Life Coach School where I got certified for all the coaches that they have certified. And it's just a couple of days where we come together to get inspired, to be taught, but to be reminded of the things that we know and the things that we've learned and the ways that we can help our clients so that we can get better at sharing that work, better at coaching, better at building our businesses and better at managing our own thoughts about all of that. And it was such a fun event, I got to actually go with my son, Caleb, who is also a certified coach. And so, we went together and had a great time and it was really awesome for me because I got to see and even in some cases meet for the first time in person.

Many of the coaches that have made such a huge difference in my life. And you know, these women that I have worked with that have shared their thoughts with me that like we've coached over Zoom for many months together, it was really awesome to be able to meet them in person and to thank them for the difference that they have made in my life. And the lesson that really struck me throughout that weekend as I was, you know, learning and and remembering the things that I know is, is this idea that there is an unlimited amount of good that can be done in the world. There is an unlimited amount of good that you can do in the world. And I want you to know that. And I also want you to know that there is an unlimited amount of good that you can do that only can be done by you. And I think that so many times our brain offers us the thought that it's already been done and that somebody else is doing it better, and that the amount of influence and the amount of good that you can do in the amount of impact you can have is limited right, and many times limited by the other people who are doing the same kind of work in the world.

And we think that impact and influence is just limited to the chosen few, the special ones, right? And we tell ourselves that we are one of them and we tell ourselves that that we can't, like, make the impact we want because maybe somebody else is already doing it. Somebody else is doing it better, and this is never true. They whoever you are looking at, they are doing their work, not your work. And it is so important that you understand that all you need to do is be yourself to show up in the world as you. You have gifts, you have nudges, you have talents. You have thoughts that no one else has. And they matter. And the way that you make a contribution, the way that you heal this world, the way that you make the world better is unique to you. And no one else can do that work, now, your brain is going to tell you, like my brain tells me that it doesn't really matter that somebody else is surely doing it better anyway and that there isn't enough room for you and it's too hard and it's too late or you are too loud or you're too something.

Like brain's always like you're too old, right? But like, all of this is just your brain trying to keep you small and safe, trying to, like, prevent failure, trying to prevent rejection. And, like, I just want to offer you that all the people that you look at in your life, like we all have different mentors. We all have people that we look up to. We all have people that we would like to, like, model our own lives after. And I want you to know that all those people in your life that you see in that way, the people that you see doing extraordinary things, extraordinary things that you want to be doing.

I want to tell you, they are just ordinary people. Who have learned to manage their mind. They are just ordinary people who have learned not to listen to that voice that says they can't. They are just ordinary people that have that have decided to believe that their contribution matters. And you are an ordinary person that could make that same decision. You can decide that your contribution matters and that there is no limit to the amount of good that you can do in this world. So, as part of the mastermind, there's a portion of that where they give out awards and all the coaches who have hit six figures in their business, they get it. If you've done that in a 12 month period. So, for 2021, if you did that, you've got to go on stage and get an award. And this year I was one of those coaches that got to be on that stage. And as I stood there, it just occurred to me that like somebody out there, like watching me, looking at me, thinks that what I've done is extraordinary, but it really wasn't, right?

It was just showing up a day at a time, managing my brain, managing my fear, managing my doubts, and just continuing to show up. I am in no way capable of more than you are. And as I stood there on that stage, I looked at many of the seven figure earners, those who have earned over $1,000,000 in their coaching business. They were there kind of there on the on the front row. And I have worked with many of them. And I just had this moment where I was just like, they are ordinary, too. They just kept believing that their contribution mattered. They just manage their doubt and their fear, just like I am. And if you keep doing that, your success is inevitable. I just it was just a moment of clarity where I could see like, oh, they are not any different than me. And I just want to offer you that if your brain thinks that you're different than me or different than your mentors are different than the people that you look up to, I want you to know that it's wrong that every one of us are just ordinary humans and those of us who who get to do extraordinary things and live the lives we want to live like those are just those of us who have learned not to listen to our brain.

You are not limited and the amount of good that you can do in this world is not limited. Your brain and its thoughts about what you are, who you are, how you are not enough, how you're not good enough, all of that. That is the only limitation you have. And it's going to take courage to overcome that voice in your head. It's going to take courage to overcome the thoughts that tell you like this isn't for you. But as you do that courageous work, as you do that brave work. As you work to manage the negative thoughts in your own head, your own doubts, your own insecurities. As you do that work, other people will be blessed. Their lives will be impacted, like as I stood there looking at the coaches who changed my life, I was just struck by like they went to work on their own brains. And that work blessed my life.

So, as you go to work on your brain, it will change your life and it is for your growth. But the but the contribution doesn't end there. That will have a ripple effect. The work you do on your own mind to manage your own doubts and your own fears will have a ripple effect and will do good in the world, will impact other people and will bless their lives. So, I really want you to ask yourself what it is that you want to do that your brain is disqualifying you from. What is it that you want to do? What good do you want to contribute in the world that your brain says is a job for other people and not for you? What are the things you want to create? What are the relationships you want to have that your brain says like, No, not for you. And I want you to simply start believing that you can have what you want.

And I'm going to talk about this a little bit more at the end of this podcast. But I just want you to start by recognizing, like, the only thing between you and and whatever goal you have are these limited believes that it is only available to certain people. And I want you to simply believe that that is not true and that you can have what you want, that no one is disqualified. And what qualifies us for it is the willingness to not listen to our own brains.

I was just talking to a client this morning who's like who was telling me, like, wow, I'm really trying to believe this. And I just said, stop trying, okay? Like, stop trying to believe and just decide that you do, stop trying to believe it. And just decide that you can have all the things you want and then take a step towards it. And as you move forward day by day, you just going to manage your brain along the way. Your brain is going to protest, it's going to disqualify you. You're going to wake up tomorrow and it's going to be like, oh, yeah! Remember when I said you couldn't you still can't write like that, but like, this is why we have coaching. This is why I have a coach so that we can, like, decide not to believe those things and move forward and believe that we can.

The second lesson that I have for you I got when we were on our trip to Hawaii as a family. So, as you know, David has been planning this trip to Hawaii for about two years, as long as Savannah has been on her mission. And he knew that there was going to be this little window between Savannah coming home and Ethan leaving on his mission. And he's like, we are going to Hawaii. And like, everybody had a conflict, nobody could make it work in their schedule. But eventually we found a week and we all spent a few days in Hawaii as a family. And there in Kauai we have a favorite beach that we go to several times when we're there. And on the last day we went to this beach. And at this beach there is a kind of this rock formation that you can climb up on and jump off into the ocean. And some of the kids and David had done it earlier in the week, and I was just like, No, I'm too scared, I can't do it, right?

But finally, it was the last day we were going home and I told myself, I'm going to be brave and I'm going to go jump off those rocks. And as I did that, like I was waiting, I didn't want to hit the bottom. Like I didn't want to like run into rocks and on the bottom. So, I was kind of waiting for the ocean to like, like come in with a high wave and then I would jump in. But for whatever reason, the moment that I jumped in, this huge wave came down on me. And then, almost immediately there was another wave on top of it, and I could not get to the top of it, I just was like rolling and spinning under that wave and really being sucked in by the current, and I couldn't kick my way to the top. And finally, I, like, kick as hard as I can. I finally get a little breath of air and another wave comes and knocks me over and rolls me into those rocks. I bang up against the rocks and I, like, go back under. And my kids, who are like on top of the rock watching this are freaking out because they can't see me. And they're seeing me thrown away by around by this wave. And David's on the shore and he's yelling at the kids, like, jump in and save your mom. And so, Caleb jumps in, he tries to save me. And I'm just, like, rolling under this wave, and I can't even reach him. Like, he's reaching out his arm and I can't reach. And the wave is like sucking me back and pulling me in the current and, like, kind of like tucking me under these rocks.

And I had this moment where I was like, Oh, I'm going to die. I'm like, Oh, this was so stupid. What a dumb way to die, right? And I just in that moment realized, like I don't have any control here. I don't have any control over the force of these waves. And I was like, I am not in charge. I couldn't, I wasn't strong enough to get out of the current and there is nothing like a feeling that you might die to bring everything into focus and see what's really important. And I just had these, like, moments where I was trying so hard to get to the surface and realizing it's not up to me. And I think so many times in our lives, we sort of forget that. We sort of think it is up to us that we can just wheel our way to life. I think we can just decide that I'm not going to die and we can just like make sure that happens, right?

I think so many times we think we're in charge of when we come and when we go in this life and that we believe, like I've got more time and we can make more time. And like, I haven't lived my life the way I want, but I've got plenty of time and we put off the things that we really want. We put off healing the relationships we want to have. We put off achieving the things we want. We put off trying the things we want, thinking like there's still more time. And really implicit in that idea that we have more time is that like this idea that we are in control of that, that we're in control of when we come and when we go.

And I just like I said, just being trapped in that water. I realize, like, oh, I have been lying to myself. I don't have any control over that, like my days are already known. And what I have is right here in front of me. And I either use it or I don't. But I don't control how long I get to use it. You know, there's that quote by Gary Vandenberg. He always says, like, I heard him talking to somebody one time that said, like, you know, motivate me in three words or less. And he said, this is all you need to know, you're going to die, right? Those three words, you're going to die. That should be the only motivation that you need. And I just bring this up because sometimes you need to remember that your life is a gift and that every day is a gift so that you can ask yourself if you're getting what you want while you're here, if you're getting what you want out of the limited time you have. Are you living in a way that really prioritizes what's most important to you? Are you living in a way that is getting the growth that you came for? Are you stretching yourselves in the way that you wanted to before you came here? Are you learning the lessons and the skills that you really wanted to learn that you can only learn in a body? You know, is your spirit running the show while you're here.

You just like making decisions on default, whatever your brain wants, whatever your body wants. Are you putting off the life you really want because you're certain you have more time? And listen, like we're all subject to this, like we just get in the routine of it. We just get in the ordinariness of living and and we forget that it's a gift we put off living the way we really want because it takes effort and energy and our brain is always talking us out of that. And we put off living the way we want and doing the things we want because we're scared. We're scared about what other people will think. We're scared about failing. We're scared about humiliation or looking stupid or making mistake or, you know.

But like in that moment in the water, I realize, like, all the things I'm really scared of aren't actually scary. They aren't at least they're not actually dangerous. They're not actually life threatening, right? Like whatever I'm putting off because I'm scared. Like, none of those are going to take my life. Like, Caleb and I, my son and I have this joke. Like, when we do scary things in our business, like I'll do a webinar or whatever and I'll text him like, well, I didn't die, right? Because, like, our brain is so certain we're going to die. And those are not the things that are going to end our life.

And we're like, but our brain can't differentiate those fears, right? Like my brain was just as scared jumping off that rock, which was actually life threatening as it is when I posted on Instagram or when I do this podcast or on Saturday, I went to a training session at the gym. After two weeks of being aware, I was like, so scared. I have like so much fear about it. It was just as scared in that moment to walk into the gym as it was jumping off those rocks like my brain can't tell the difference between like what is actually like the fear is the same, whether it's life threatening or not.

And so many times we are limiting ourselves because of our fear when it is actually not life threatening, right? It's nowhere near the same level of danger in our brains are confused about what is truly dangerous and the things you want, the things that you want to do, the things that you're putting off. They aren't actually dangerous. I know that you're scared. I know that your brain is scared, but you can manage that because they aren't actually dangerous and you have to manage it to get what you want out of your life. You are not in charge of when you come and when you go from this earth. But you are here now. Make the most of it. Today is the day for action. Today is the day to love. Today is the day to grow. Today is the day to, like, do the uncomfortable thing. As Tommy says, like we're the lucky ones. We're the ones who are still here. So, live like you want to live.

Okay, so that was a little less dramatic, my last one is not that dramatic, but I think it will be useful to you as well. So, the last one happened last week, I went to Savannah, Georgia and met with my coach in my business mastermind, which is always such a joy, is always just so good to feel so loved, so supportive, so believed in. And that's like why I love having a coach and I think you all should have a coach now only to like sort out the thoughts that aren't serving you to manage your doubt and your fear and your disbelief and all of that, but also to just be in a place where somebody believes in you wholeheartedly.

Someone's brain who doesn't have the doubts that you have. It's just like such a. Incredibly like comforting, inspiring experience. So anyway, it was such a good week examining my thoughts and all of the things that my brain was certain are true that are like holding me back right now, being able to question all that and see that actually all the problems and obstacles and all the impossible things are just actually made up in my head, which it's just like, so good to know, right? But the lesson that I want to share with you is that you get to believe you can have what you want. You just get to believe that you can have what you want. And maybe that sounds obvious to you, but our brains truly do spend a lot of time telling us we can't, that we can't have the things we want, that it's delusional to believe that we can have the things we want. Like, yeah, like I said before, like, maybe other people can have what they want, but you can't because of your unique flaws or problems or deficiencies. And so I wanted to give you an example of this from my mastermind, something that I got coached on.

And so, it applies to my business. But I want you to know that the principles apply to you in your life, no matter what it is you want for yourself. Now, what or what it is you want to create for yourself. Like these same principles, believing that you can have it apply if you want an amazing marriage or if you want to be financially secure, if you want to love your body, if you want to compete in an endurance event, you have a goal of some kind, like whatever it is you want. You are allowed to believe you can have it no matter what your brain says. So, for about six months I have had this little belief and it started out little, I should say, but it just felt like it kept getting bigger and bigger, like my brain kept finding more and more evidence for it. But the belief was that like, my business is going to fail. I don't know what I'm doing. I've made too many mistakes. I can't keep this up forever. It's taking me too long to learn how to do this. And I would tell my coach, like, I just feel like my business is dying and I'm the witness of its death.

So, like, my brain, you guys is so dramatic. Just like yours has such a dramatic story about my problems and what what is possible for me and what's going to happen to me, right? But this idea that my business was dying and just sort of felt like the truth. My brain could only see, like, how I couldn't have what I wanted and that I was doomed to failure. And it was all going to end, right? And the problem was, is that I understand that my thoughts create my life, right? My thoughts like whatever I'm focused on that is going to I'm going to create that in my life.

And here I was focused on how my business was going to end. And I kept thinking like, oh, my gosh, I got to stop thinking this because I'm just going to create it, right? And so then I would just get more panicked and more freaked out and just, like, more sure that I couldn't make it work because I couldn't manage my brain and I couldn't think the right thoughts. And like, I just I just kept spiraling on this thought. And the more scared and the more panicked I became, the more fixated on failure my brain became. So, I was at Mastermind last week and like, all kind of just came to a head. And I remember thinking like, I will give up any thought to change this, I am willing to think anything, right? And I remember telling my coach, like, I am willing to give up whatever thought I need to give up so that I can change. This is like, please help me, right?

So, as she's coaching me, she asked me about my marriage and she said, like, how much time do you spend thinking your marriage is going to end? And I was like, zero. Like, I spend 0 minutes thinking my marriage is going to end, right? It's like not even a thought in my head. Like, this is a totally foreign thought. And she said, why? Why don't you spend any time thinking it could end? She's like, it could be like you are married to a human who gets to choose, right? Like you are actually vulnerable here, and yet you don't spend any time thinking about it, right. Why not? And she said, like, just notice you don't spend any time thinking about that, but it's literally just as vulnerable as your business.

They could both fail, but you never have that thought in your marriage, she said, just notice for a minute what would be different in your marriage if you did. If, like, you spent all your time thinking about how it happened and you felt all that fear and anxiety and dread, like how would that affect your marriage? Just notice, like if you chose to think about how it could end, because it could if you chose to concentrate on that, how it would change your marriage. And suddenly, like, I could just see that, like, choosing that thought and choosing to think about it would, would change my marriage so much, right? Like, I would have so much fear and anxiety and dread and, like, grasping this and desperation and anger and frustration, right?

And I was just like, Oh, well, yeah, I would never choose that because that would be awful to fill all that. And all of a sudden my brain was like, Oh, so why am I choosing it in my business? And all of a sudden, like a light bulb, literally, I was like, Oh, it's just a thought. It's just a thought that it could end. And as long as I think it, I feel all the fear and anxiety and dread and I hate, you know, and it affects my relationship with my business. And I'm just like constantly filled the scarcity and dread and desperation and anger and frustration and all the things. And I was like, Oh, and it's just thought. I don't have to keep thinking it. And like all of a sudden, like, my grip on that thought just disappeared. Like, instead of spending any more time noticing how it might fail, because that is true of everything in this uncertain world.

I just get to believe that, of course it will succeed, just like I do in my marriage. And suddenly, this thought that had plagued me for months just dissolved. I stopped being mad at me. I stopped being mad at my business and decided to just believe I could have what I want. And I could put all of my thought and all of my belief and all of my trust in that. And I want you to know that it's the same for you, that whatever your brain says, you can't have, that whatever your brain says is never going to work and is surely going to fail.

And you're never going to make it. You're never going to succeed, right? And when he keeps showing you that and noticing it, how you're sure to fail and how it can't work, I want you to know that that's just a thought and that you can just release it and you can just decide to believe you can have what you want. And I also want to just recommend that for all the areas that it's hard to believe you can find a place in your life where it's easy to believe, where you never questioned, you never have doubts.

And you can use that model. You can use the thought you have in that area to help you believe in the things that feel less certain to you. Because listen, we are humans and we are living on a fallen planet. And the truth is, everything is uncertain, even the things that you're certain about. Hey, but the only reason we're certain is because we don't spend any time entertaining our doubts. And you can do the same things. You can practice those same thoughts in the areas where you feel less certain, where right now you feel doubt and worry and disbelief. You can choose to believe that in all the things that you feel uncertain about right now, and we can't see that for yourself.

Come and get coached. Hey, like I'm a coach, I know how this works and I still couldn't see it for myself. Like, we're living inside the container of our brain, and sometimes we just can't see it any other way. Like, I could only see disaster, and my coach showed me the truth. Right. Because she's outside of it. She sees the truth of it. That is the difference that coaching can make. It just reveals all the alternatives to you, the beliefs that you just can't see for yourself that are right there available to you.

Like available for you to choose any time you want. What I want you to see is that believing is always a decision. It doesn't always feel like that, but it is. It is a choice. It is a decision. I choose to believe in my marriage that it will never fail. And I can choose to believe the same thing about my business or my upcoming endurance event or whatever it is that I have doubts about. I can choose to believe that I can have it. Believing is a decision. And you can decide to believe that you can have what you want and that will change your life.

Okay, my friends, that is what I have for you today. There is no limit to what you can do, and the good that you can create. Your life is a gift in which you get to do that work. It's all going to happen in your own mind. Stop putting it off. Now is the time. And in order to do that work, in order to get into action, you have to believe that you can create what you want, that you can have it in you. When you remember these things, you can make the most of the life that you have been given. And that, my friends, is 100% awesome. I love you for listening and I'll see you next week.

Thanks so much for joining me on the podcast today. If you want to take the things I've talked about and apply them in your life so that you can love your Earth life experience. Sign up for a free coaching session at Aprilpricecoaching.com This is where the real magic happens and your life starts to change forever. As your coach, I'll show you that believing your life is 100% awesome is totally available to every one of us. The way things are is not the way things have to stay. And that, my friends is 100% awesome!