EP 248: Stepping Out of Our Comfort Zone with Jess Gleim

Do you ever pause and think to yourself, “Damn, this is an amazing life I get to live”? I do.

My weekend started on Friday with Creative Mornings. (Have you been yet? Join us on November 8th!) I worked the merch table selling T-shirts, hugged and high fived a bunch of creative, generous change makers in Sacramento before I settled into the front row for the speaker.

This month’s theme was VISION. Our speaker talked about how we can use our love of where we live to make it better by talking to each other about what we love and what would make it better. We talked about how we shift the power from a few to the many. We can make change when we show up together.

I left feeling like anything is possible.

Did you know the true definition of happiness is the pursuit of our goals? When we have the agency to move with purpose toward where we want to be, that's happiness.

Lots of people think happiness is feeling joyous moments or pleasure, those definitely can be part of the happiness experience, but the deep down satisfaction comes from moving in the direction of what you want to create.

That’s why I have been so happy lately! I see so many people moving toward their goals.

The rest of the weekend I spent with Capital Adoptive Families Alliance at the parent respite retreat. We laughed, we cried, we shared, we listened, we sat in community with one another. I spoke about creating rituals around self-care so we can model for our kids what it means to care for ourselves and each other.

I left the weekend feeling deeply seen, heard, and in deep awe of this collective group of “fancy families.” I call us that because we are the people at the IEPs, SSTS, and psychologist/psychiatrist offices. We are the people who are loving our kids’ first families, sharing humanity in the imperfect people we are, and getting up every dang day to love our kids through loss and trauma.

We need each other.

It’s time to find the people who want the same future as you and are willing to do the work to create it alongside you.

In this week’s podcast, I am excited to share my most recent chat with my pal and White Women for Harris co-host, Jess Gleim.

In this conversation, you’ll learn about the decision to host the call within 48 hours, the risks and rewards of being a vocal advocate for change, and how stepping out of your comfort zone shows you the other courageous people in the world who can inspire action in your own life.