EP 07: Nov 15, 2023
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My friend, let's have some fun today.
Welcome to the Pivot with Passion podcast. Hi, I'm Penny Casselman. I believe everyone is deserving of a phenomenal life. And that life starts when you grab a red marker and claim what you truly desire. Regardless of where you came from, where you're at, or where you think you're headed, life is what you make of it.
And when you learn to pivot with passion, your world expands. Explodes with opportunities. Go grab your favorite beverage and let's shake things up as we explore how to pivot with passion.
Before I dive into the meat of this episode. I just want to take a pause. And share some of the amazing reviews that I've received on apple podcast
First one comes from. Pod guide JT. Who said I was delighted to hear such a professional speaker with sound ideas and advice. Great personality. And sounds like she's been podcasting for years. Highly recommend. Aw. Thank you. That made my day.
There's another one from CC, Sammy.
And she writes.
I had an unexpected issue with an ex that sent me over the edge. You sharing about the calendar and resentment. Aided me to brush what happened aside. Thank you.
CC Sammy. I am so glad that what I'm sharing resonated with you and helped you move beyond the issue you were facing. Then there's this from modern little me. This has become my favorite podcast to turn to light a fire under me. I listened to it. First thing on my longest, most focused Workday. And find myself excited to tackle something I've been pushing off. Thanks for making me more passionate and productive. Yay. Virtual high five to you, modern little me. Thanks so much for joining. Then there's X Clevelander who just wrote red marker at the ready. Yes. Yes, I am so excited for you.
Ex Clevelander Bravo.
thank you to everyone. Thus far who has left me a review on apple podcast. I so, so appreciate you. And the time that you took out of your day to leave a note. I absolutely read them all. now let's get into the meat of our episode.
I remember, I could hardly believe my eyes. I looked outside and went, oh my God. Look at all the leaves. There are so many leaves. I can see the shape. I can see them dance and twist in the breeze. Now I'm paraphrasing here because I was 15 years old when I said that. You see, I had just barely. passed my driver's permit. Eye exam.
At the motor vehicle. Bureau.
I was very fortunate that as I was tearing up. Taking the exam, the tears. Helped me focus.
And pass. The vision test. I then. Quickly made an appointment for the eye doctor.
And it was when I put on my glasses for the very first time and walked outside. I was in awe. I was having so much fun that day, looking at everything around me, things far away things up close the trees, the grass. I had no idea.
The amazing world I was living in. And. I realized then everything is so much richer and more vibrant. When fun. Is involved.
And yes, it absolutely helps when you also have corrected 20, 20 vision.
As adults, I don't need to tell you. But I'm going to say it anyway. Advances. In this world have far outpaced our brains ability to adapt as quickly as. The advances come.
Just think about the demands. That you currently have placed on your time, your finances, your mental capacity. It can all.
Compound over time. And lead to overwhelm.
So I want to push back a little and say, as adults. Fun. Isn't optional. It's mandatory.
Why is it so important for us to prioritize fun? In our every day.
Let's not forget that we spent more than a year. Where fun was almost non-existent thanks to a global pandemic.
I ran across an interesting study that was done in 2022, where a group of adults were asked about stress.
And of all the adults polled, 76% of them said they were stressed about events outside of their control. Now that was in 2022. Where we sit in 2023 given events around the world. And even those close to home. I think
That the responses would be higher than 76%.
And for those of you who are curious about this study, I will link to it in the show notes.
But today.
I want to help you consider what more fun could look like in your day today.
And I'll walk you through some strategies I use to infuse a little bit more fun. When things are feeling a little too heavy. .
It's time for a clarity cocktail.
Stop shoulding on yourself. I think that's probably the greatest nugget of wisdom. That I've received from a friend slash business connection. Shout out to Emily. I don't remember the topic that we were talking about, but. As we were going along, I started launching into this list of, should I should do this?
I should be further along. I should have a better business card, et cetera, et cetera.
And suddenly Emily interrupted. And said, penny. Quit shoulding on yourself.
I just had to laugh. I mean, it's just, it's fun to say. Right? But what I realize now is with every should statement. I was sucking every ounce of fun. Out of my entrepreneurial journey. Like there was no fun. When all I was doing is I should, I, should I, should, I should.
And what's interesting is just thinking about the word should. Carries with it. All of these. Feelings like shame. Guilt anxiety like should is a very loaded word.
And like I talked in last episode, who's in control of everything you do, who has the red marker. You do I do my friend. After that. Conversation with Emily. I really, really started to think. I need to stop shoulding on myself. And so I thought, what could I do to help myself?
How about, I just change the word.
Should. To the word. Could.
I Could be further along. I could have a better business card. I could. Because just that one word switch. From should, which carries with it. Shame guilt anxiety. To could. Could as much more.
Optimistic more. Considering of options.
by making that little switch, I could release. All of those loaded feelings. And. Start thinking about, well, is that true? Should I be doing something? And honestly the answer most of the time was no. I could. But when given everything else that was on my plate. Could was good enough for me to pass over and move on to the next thing. So I just love this little word shift. To help me embrace my options. And design a better path forward. Which in turn allowed me to implement a little bit more fun. Into what I was doing. Because I quit shoulding on myself. And started to see. The options. And opportunities. That were in front of me. So my friend, I want to tell you today.
stop shitting on yourself. And pivot with passion. To swap.
Should with, could.
And now, back to the episode. Cheers.
Jumping back into our discussion about fun. One of the mistakes that I. See.
In our world today is that as adults. The belief that fun has no place. In the Workday. Thinking it's frivolous and it wastes time that you could use to accomplish yet. Another task on your list. I know for me,
I would feel guilty if I was having fun.
Because I would think. Oh, my goodness. I have to accomplish more. I haven't done enough. And all that did created more stress. And more burnout.
And in actuality. Lowered. My productivity.
There are so many studies out there that support infusing more fun. just Google. But it's no wonder. That we think fun doesn't have a spot in our day. As I was growing up. One of the things I always looked forward to as a child was recess. But I think around fifth grade is when recess was taken out of our day. A time set aside just to play. Was taken away. And I honestly remember. Thinking to myself at the end of my fourth grade year. How am I going to survive fifth grade without. Recess.
I probably lost some sleep over this as a child.
Then I remembered this one, breakfast cereal, commercial.
Side note. I love cereal. It is not just for breakfast. My friend.
It is also for lunch, snack and dinner. Okay. Just so that we're clear. But I think back to, uh, an ad. For Trix cereal.
Trix was this fruity. Breakfast cereal. And there's a rabbit as a mascot. And in these commercials, he would try to steal the box of tricks from kids and they would always snatch it back from him and say, silly rabbit. Trix are for kids. And honestly,That. Box is a metaphor for fun and the bunny is adults. Somehow along the way.
Institutions think we're too old. We need to be serious. We need to stay focused and be very productive. And so we are going to snatch the box of fun. Away from you.
It makes me a little sad inside. Because just like cereal can be eaten at any time during the day.
So to fun. Should be infused. At any point during your day.
.
Let me share a few of the strategies I use to infuse a little bit more fun throughout my day.
everything seems to be gamified. You know, our phones are bright colors. Text messages are instant. Everything is quick. So one of the apps I never thought I would use. Is Snapchat. But I have to tell you my friend. I am a complete convert. It makes me look
Absolutely. Ridiculous. When I send messages to my friend. In fact, I don't send messages unless I have some form of a filter. On myself while talking. Let's see, I have looked like a kitty flying through the air over a rainbow. I have looked like a character from the movie avatar. I've looked like a troll doll, a piece of pizza. The list goes on and on. But it truly is so ridiculous.
There are times where I almost have tears. Rolling down my face. As I'm leaving a message. So. Give it a shot. It's ridiculous. But it's so fun and playful. The next thing I do is I will enlist, help. I have a dear friend. Shout out to Lori. Who.
I call goofalicious because she is so fabulous. She is so goofy.
When I talked to her, we are laughing. About every 90 seconds, if not more. And if I ever
need some help.
In finding the bright side. Of life. I know. With 100% certainty. She is the girl I go to. And it's even more ridiculous when I reach out to her and we snap. Back and forth.
Oh, my friend, I'm having fun. Just sharing these. Goofy insights with you. Uh, this one may be more up your speed. And it's a new one for me. I used to only listen to podcasts that dealt with personal development or entrepreneurship. And I have to tell you after. Only having those type of podcasts in my repertoire. They just started to get heavy.
So I slowly started introducing some. Not related to anything that I do. Comedic.
Shows. And.
It's been awesome. Because I've gotten to know the hosts who. I see on TV or in movies.
I get a little peek behind the curtain of what they're like on the daily and they're hilarious. And it. Gives me a little reprieve. When things are heavy. So that's another little. way to infuse some fun. And of course. If you have a hobby. By all means, carve out some time to make that happen. And like I said, in the last episode,
Be masterful with your time. Fun. Is mandatory. My friend. It is not optional. To survive this thing called life. Make sure you infuse fun throughout your day. Because I want you to be. Excited for your future. So here's the challenge. Go grab a red marker. Grab an index card and write in all caps fun. And set it somewhere where you can see it. Often.
That way as you move throughout your day, you'll be reminded. That. Yeah. Fun is mandatory.
Lastly. I probably sound like a broken record, but I would love for you to rate and review this show on apple podcast. And share it with a friend.
Who knows you may get a call out. On a future episode.
Now wouldn't that be fun to hear your review read on this podcast. I know I'd have fun reading it.
As always, I would love to hear your thoughts. Drop me a note. On my website. I really do read every submission. And I can't wait. To see you again next week.
Friend, thanks for listening to this episode of Pivot with Passion. If you've been feeling stuck, exhausted, or frustrated, this is your permission slip to go grab a red marker and claim the life you desire and deserve. If you enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend, and then hop over to rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts.
Because my goal is to put a red marker in everyone's hand and I need your help to spread the word and make that happen. Until the next episode, go grab a red marker, get excited for your future, and make your first move to pivot with passion.
