Penny Casselman [00:00:00]:
I have no idea where I heard this, but someone reframed the question, can I have 10 minutes of your time? Right? How often have we heard someone say, oh, do you have 10 minutes for me? Do you have 30 minutes for me? But what if you reframed it and said, can I have 10 minutes of your life? Can I have 30 minutes of your life? And I offer that up as a quick perspective shift because if you don't have 30 minutes for yourself, for your life, what will happen when you just leave it to chance that you're going to end the year with the feelings and emotions and excitement that you want to bring. Make the time for yourself. You deserve 30 minutes of your life to think about the balance of the year. Welcome to the Pivot with Passion podcast. Hi. I'm Penny Casselman. I believe everyone is deserving of a phenomenal life. Regardless of where you came from, life is what you make of it.
Penny Casselman [00:01:13]:
And when you learn to pivot with passion, your world explodes with opportunities. Go grab your favorite beverage, and let's shake things up as we explore how to pivot with passion. Hello, director. Welcome to another week. How are you today? I woke up with some really good intentions today. And so far, I'm hitting the mark on all of them. And I was very proud of myself last night. I spent a few moments blocking out the day, and although I'm not a 100% hitting the time slots, I'm still progressing through my tasks at a rate that I'm pretty proud of.
Penny Casselman [00:02:02]:
So this is just me celebrating with you. What is something you can celebrate today? Think about this weekend, maybe this morning, yesterday. How is your week going so far? I believe that what we think about, we bring about. And when we are in a space of intention with focus, we will bring those things about in our life. For instance, last night, I was intentional about blocking out my day today. And I woke up focused and ready to tackle what I set out to do. So I will ask you one more time, what can you celebrate today? If you are new to the show, thank you so much for joining me this week. You might be wondering why I call you director right off the bat.
Penny Casselman [00:02:57]:
That is a term that I have bestowed upon all of my listeners because I firmly believe that we are the director of our lives. We call the shots, we set the vision, we pull in the resources, the belief, we call action on everything that helps to move us forward. And if you have been feeling a little lackluster as the director of your life, guess what? Today is another day to pick up your red marker and claim it back. Because every day we get a redo, Every day we get to state an intention, show up with purpose and focus and take action. We get bombarded from every angle for things vying for our attention. And that's why I believe we have to be very intentional with our focus, very intentional with how we want to show up every day. And knowing that we are in November, we are screaming towards the end of this year, let's be intentional about the attitude we want to bring to close out 2024. Now I can't be certain if you have experienced what I'm about ready to share, but one of the cars I purchased, I was so excited.
Penny Casselman [00:04:24]:
It was beautiful. It was blue with the color I wanted. It was sporty. It was 2 doors. And I just, I remember thinking, people are gonna see me on the road and be like, oh, what's that car? Right? I even got to drive it off of the showroom floor. I was so excited. But what happened on my way home, I saw 3 more cars just like it on the road. What? Suddenly, my joy and excitement was very much tampered with the fact that it apparently was not such a special car after all.
Penny Casselman [00:05:05]:
It was a car that clearly many people already had, but why hadn't I seen it? Right? And here's why. My focus was not on that car until I drove it off the lot. Then it was my world, it was the car I was driving. And so my brain was set now to notice that. The same thing happens with everything that we feed our brain. If we feed it negativity, we are going to feel negativity. We are gonna see it show up everywhere around us. So choose wisely as we head into the balance of this year, because it is my hope that we collectively are bringing joy and optimism with us into the new year.
Penny Casselman [00:06:00]:
And I invite you as we go through this episode to think about how you can be intentional with your words, with your actions so that we can feel joy, aliveness, be energized, grateful, and humble for everything that we have. Because director, you deserve every single one of those things. It's time for a clarity cocktail. Today's clarity cocktail comes from Robert M Persig, and he writes, the only Zen you can find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there. I could not have thought of a better quote to support this episode. Let me read it again. The only Zen you can find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there. Boom.
Penny Casselman [00:07:03]:
Why do I love this quote so much? Because it is all about intention. It is all about your focus. Yes. I fully believe there are climbers who choose to go up big mountains and get to the top and suddenly feel exhausted and tired and concerned about the descent, concerned that there's a storm coming or what if this happens or what. But then in the same group, there is probably someone who brought and expected and whose focus is on the awe that is in front of them when they reach the top. And that director is all that they see. It is so true when you think about times in your life when things were going well, you saw everything around you going well. I still remember once I broke up with someone in college, I was just consumed with grief and despair, and I couldn't eat for a couple days because that's what I chose to see.
Penny Casselman [00:08:12]:
I wasn't good enough for this person. I started to believe I didn't have what it took to be a good girlfriend, etcetera, etcetera. And it was a good 3 days where I could not pull myself out. Obviously, I stand here today, a much more well adjusted human. But in those moments in college, I didn't understand the importance of intention and focus when it came to more of the soft skills. I was certainly focused and intentional with my schoolwork, but intention and focus is ubiquitous in our life. Everything we do have want, need, requires intention and focus. Feel free to write this quote down, post it somewhere that you're gonna see it as we move through Q4.
Penny Casselman [00:09:07]:
Maybe you post it by your bathroom mirror. When you brush your teeth, you can read it. When you wake up in the morning after your shower, you can read it, because it rings true. So hold this close. The only Zen you can find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there. So director, be selective about where you throw your attention because you'll get what you give. And now back to the episode. Cheers.
Penny Casselman [00:09:39]:
Coming back around to this idea that what you think about you bring about, and really summoning intention and focus for yourself as we slide in to the end of 2024. I wanna invite you to consider these three questions that together will help you ensure that you bring all the goodness that you want into q four. Question number 1. What attitude and feelings do you want to generate? That's it. Easy question. Right? But how often do we think about the feelings that we want to generate as we move through our life? I would venture to guess that most of our time, I know I probably have this default, is we just move through the day and whatever emotions or feelings that we have, our reaction to something that we've done. But remember that what we think about, we bring about. So if we start something with the intention of bringing joy, our brains will find the joy.
Penny Casselman [00:10:52]:
Our brains must answer questions. I talked about this in episode 39, so I will link to that in the show notes, but it really was this idea that our brains must answer questions. Think about anytime that you've been asked a question, your brain immediately goes into overdrive, trying to find the answer. That's why you wake up at 3 AM when someone says, do you know that movie with Jennifer Garner? Yeah. The one about her being a kid, your brain will work while you sleep until it comes up with the answer. So what attitude and feelings do you want to generate in the balance of this year? You can take a few moments right now and think about that. Do you wanna bring love into your life, the balance of the year, or peace, abundance, joy, excitement, connection? Any and everything that you want to experience, you can make happen. But you first have to be intentional and you first have to call it out.
Penny Casselman [00:12:01]:
Question number 2, where do I get derailed? This is kind of the magic secret sauce in this 3 question formula, because we all know where we get derailed. Maybe it is scrolling on social media. Maybe it is the onslaught of emails that you have subscribed to, and now during q 4 are going to ramp up. Maybe it's people in your life who can derail your efforts and your intention. Maybe I know this might sound a little silly, but for me, I can get derailed by the weather. I am very sensitive to overcast days and cold. Some might ask, Penny, why do you still live in Cleveland? Because the weather changes on a dime, and it's very cold. However, I love Cleveland, so there's so many more things going for it than against it.
Penny Casselman [00:13:02]:
So anyway, I digress, but ask yourself and be honest with where do you get derailed? Because that's gonna help clue you in on how to hold your intention at a higher level. And question 3 is this, what steps can I take to lessen the impact of my answers to question number 2 so that I can see more of what I want from question number 1? They can be small things. But when you zoom out to look at all three of these questions together, what it really comes down to is this idea of, first, I have to be aware of what I want to bring into my life. The second thing is you have to accept what could get in the way. And the third thing is aligned action. What can you do to mitigate the effects of question 2 and support you for question 1? So awareness, acceptance, aligned action. Awareness. What attitude and feelings do you want to generate? Acceptance.
Penny Casselman [00:14:12]:
Where do you get derailed? And aligned action. What steps can you take to lessen the impact of number 2 and elevate number 1? Director, we are halfway through November. And I know that in a blink of an eye, we will find ourselves staring at December 31st. You might already be feeling the pressure of time to get everything done. And for most people and businesses, this is the busiest time of year. But what happens if you don't make the time to ask those three questions? Do you think your life will be better if you ignore these three questions come December 31st? Or will it be worse if you don't ask these three questions? I recently was exposed to an idea, and I apologize. I have no idea where I heard this, but someone reframed the question. Can I have 10 minutes of your time? Right? How often have we heard someone say, do you have 10 minutes for me? Do you have 30 minutes for me? But what if you reframed it and said, can I have 10 minutes of your life? Can I have 30 minutes of your life? And I offer that up as a quick perspective shift because if you don't have 30 minutes for yourself, for your life, what will happen when you just leave it to chance that you're going to end the year with the feelings and emotions and excitement that you want to bring? Make the time for yourself.
Penny Casselman [00:15:56]:
You deserve 30 minutes of your life to think about the balance of the year. You deserve 30 minutes to ask yourself those 3 questions and jot down some notes. I firmly believe that even if you carve out 30 minutes, 15 minutes of reflection on those three questions will absolutely help you show up feeling and generating all of those emotions and feelings that you want to experience in the balance of the year. On my office wall, I have the entire 2025 calendar taped to the wall, and it's huge. It is at least 8 feet tall and probably 4 feet wide. I am being very intentional with my year next year. I am being very planful and optimistic and focused for next year because there's so much I want out of life. I want to make sure I set myself up for success.
Penny Casselman [00:17:09]:
Director, I want you to know you deserve a phenomenal life. Full stop. No strings attached, no conditions. You deserve a phenomenal life. And I want you to feel empowered to make new choices. Ask yourself those 3 questions. Be intentional. Hold your focus because you hold the red marker.
Penny Casselman [00:17:36]:
You make the choices about what you do. And I want you to take action that supports all the goodness that you want to realize in your life. I believe in you. And if you're not quite there yet, borrow my belief and make it yours. Director, I have one ask for you at the end of this episode. If you have found inspiration, optimism, a new idea, had a new thought, took action to support your dreams because you listened to an episode of Pivot with Passion, would you share it with a friend? I know we could all use more joy, optimism, intention, and focus in our lives, and it would mean the world to me if you did that. Also take a moment to rate and review the show wherever it is that you listen to your podcast. There is only so much I can do, so I'm asking for your help to spread the word.
Penny Casselman [00:18:39]:
Until next week, get out there, grab your red marker, ask the questions, and watch the magic unfold. 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.
