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Experience a nine-minute walking meditation journey focused on presence, noticing, and gratitude. This mindful practice transforms ordinary walking into a conscious act of coming home to yourself while deepening your awareness of the world around you.

• Standing still to ground yourself before beginning the walk
• Setting an intention to make the walk an act of remembering rather than escaping
• Cultivating gratitude for your body's ability to move
• Noticing the mechanics and rhythm of your walking
• Opening your attention to surroundings with soft, gentle observation
• Identifying something you hadn't noticed before
• Practicing gratitude with each step
• Allowing emotions to walk beside you without judgment
• Returning to your space with renewed awareness
• Finding something new in familiar environments

Take this awareness with you as you step into the rest of your day. Namaste.

If you are enjoying the show please subscribe, share and review! Word of mouth is incredibly impactful and your support is much appreciated!

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg

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🌿 A reflection on creative worth, momentum, and sharing what still matters.

Have you ever created something you're proud of, only to let it fade into the background? That moment when you decide your work has passed its prime—even though its value remains unchanged?

Summer mornings by the lake have become my sacred ritual. I wake with the sun, tiptoeing past sleeping pets before donning my protective "moon boots" against the morning dew and perhaps Gary the garden snake. With green tea in hand and books tucked into my basket, I step outside to breathe in gratitude for this beautiful, safe place. These solitary moments connect me with both the natural world and the wisdom of authors whose words accompany me each day.

While reflecting on my dock this morning, I realized it's been exactly one year since I published my book. Though the writing process never felt like work—I sometimes miss it—I've stopped promoting it, telling myself the momentum is gone. But why? Has the value of those words diminished, or am I simply afraid of how they'll be received? When we create art of any kind, we engage in a vulnerable act. Yet keeping our work hidden might actually be selfish. If I worry about what others think of my creation, that's just ego talking. I can't control whether you like my book, but I can offer it wholeheartedly, aligned with my values.

This morning brought clarity: there is no shelf life for insight. Good ideas don't expire. They remain valuable whether discovered today or years from now. I invite you to consider what you've created that deserves to be celebrated and shared again. What wisdom have you kept to yourself that others might benefit from? Join me in honoring our creations without fear of judgment, because authentic expression never goes stale.

If you are enjoying the show please subscribe, share and review! Word of mouth is incredibly impactful and your support is much appreciated!

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg

Let us know what you enjoy about the show!

Ever found yourself exhausted from battling negative thoughts? You're not alone. What if those pesky inner critics weren't actually your enemies, but misguided protectors you could transform into powerful allies?

Throughout this episode, I dive into the counterintuitive approach to handling the negative voices in our heads—what I playfully call our "gremlins." These aren't malevolent forces conspiring against us, but outdated protection mechanisms trying to keep us safe in the only way they know how. Drawing from personal experiences and professional coaching insights, I share why fighting against these thoughts actually amplifies their power and drains our precious energy.

The transformation begins with a simple yet profound shift: instead of resisting your gremlin, invite it in. Acknowledge its message, thank it for its protective intentions, and then offer it a new role in your life story. This ritual of recognition and redirection doesn't reject the gremlin's energy but repurposes it for your benefit. As one client beautifully described after practicing this approach, "My gremlin has become my greatest ally—checking in regularly to ask how it can support me today."

Whether you're facing important decisions, stepping into new challenges, or simply tired of the energy drain from negative self-talk, this episode offers a practical framework to shift your relationship with your inner critic. Take a moment today to tune into that voice—what outdated message is it repeating, and how might you thank it and rewrite its script? Your transformed ally is waiting to support you in ways you never imagined possible.

If you are enjoying the show please subscribe, share and review! Word of mouth is incredibly impactful and your support is much appreciated!

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg

Let us know what you enjoy about the show!

This guided meditation helps you release the mental weight of hopes, dreams, and expectations that keep you awake, teaching you to temporarily set aside both worries and positive anticipations to make space for restful sleep.

• Identifying how hope itself can sometimes become a burden that prevents present-moment awareness and sleep
• Using breath work and body relaxation to prepare the mind for release
• Visualizing thoughts as paper lanterns on boats drifting across a lake
• Understanding that temporarily letting go of hopes doesn't mean abandoning them
• Recognizing that rest is an essential part of becoming and achieving what we want
• Creating a mental image of being supported under a starry night sky
• Learning to trust the natural unfolding of life without constant mental management
• Embracing the permission to rest before everything is resolved or completed

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg

Let us know what you enjoy about the show!

A simple morning ritual sparked a profound realization about perception, gratitude, and finding beauty in life's small annoyances. What began as frustration with a persistent spider web across my doorway evolved into a daily practice of mindful appreciation.

Walking you through my morning routine—making coffee, preparing my reading materials, and stepping outside to enjoy my garden—I share how clearing away the inevitable spider web shifted from being an unwelcome disruption to becoming an integrated part of my ritual. The transformation wasn't in the web itself, but in how I chose to see it.

Today's revelation came when I paused to truly observe the web glistening in the sunlight—its intricate geometry, perfect symmetry, and the remarkable persistence of its creator who rebuilds this masterpiece daily without complaint. This spider doesn't create art for my appreciation; it's simply following its nature. Yet in doing so, it offers an unintended gift to those willing to notice.

This reflection touches on our tendency to project human qualities onto nature (like in Charlotte's Web) when perhaps there's equal power in appreciating nature on its own terms. I've learned to acknowledge my instinctive fear of spiders while transforming it into awe for their remarkable abilities. Though I still clear the web each morning, I now do so with reverence rather than irritation—a practice that extends beyond spider webs to how we might approach all of life's persistent challenges.

What daily frustrations might you reframe as opportunities for wonder? Join me in finding unexpected teachers in ordinary moments and discovering how shifting perspective can transform our experience of the world around us. Remember to live in the moment and find gratitude in the smallest details of your day.

If you are enjoying the show please subscribe, share and review! Word of mouth is incredibly impactful and your support is much appreciated!

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg

Let us know what you enjoy about the show!

We unpack what it means to truly own your worth without performing it, proving it, or apologizing for it. This conversation explores the difference between authentic confidence and performative self-worth.

• The misconception that client interactions are about proving ourselves rather than delivering value
• How trying to "wear hats" or personas prevents us from accessing our authentic capabilities
• The distinction between confidence (internal) and cockiness (seeking external validation)
• Confidence as a result of facing challenges and discovering your competence
• The metaphor of "wearing the shirt" without defending your choice to wear it
• Embracing negative thoughts as teachers rather than enemies
• Inviting your "inner monsters" to dialogue instead of fighting them

If you are enjoying the show please subscribe, share and review! Word of mouth is incredibly impactful and your support is much appreciated!

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg

Let us know what you enjoy about the show!

We explore the importance of reconnecting with our creative essence and overcoming the blocks that dim our inner spark. This meditation guides you through remembering your creative self, beyond judgment and beyond comparison.

• Creativity exists beyond resumes or past achievements – it's about tapping into intuition and letting go of self-judgment
• Fear often blocks creativity – particularly fear that our next creation won't measure up to past work
• Visualization helps reconnect with moments when we felt creatively alive, remembering the sensations and emotions
• Personifying creativity as a spark or firefly creates a relationship with our creative essence
• Asking "What would I create if I didn't need it to be perfect?" liberates us from perfectionism
• Transforming limiting beliefs about creativity through conscious affirmations rebuilds creative confidence
• Small daily creative acts maintain our connection to creativity without overwhelming pressure
• Creativity can be quiet – "sometimes the spark is in the whisper"

Take a moment today for one small creative act that's just for you. Your spark is still here, and it's yours to tend.

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg

Let us know what you enjoy about the show!

A chance encounter on a train becomes a moment to challenge assumptions about nationality and kindness. When an elderly couple attributes my patience to being Canadian, I return to clarify that values, not citizenship, define our interactions with others.

• Reassuring an anxious elderly couple that their pace wasn't inconveniencing me
• Couple assuming my kindness was because I was Canadian
• Returning to explain I'm a dual citizen and my kindness comes from within
• Reflecting on how assumptions rob us of authentic connections
• Understanding that values, not nationality, shape our interactions
• Making choices that create space for reflection and deeper understanding

Remember to live in the moment.

If you are enjoying the show please subscribe, share and review! Word of mouth is incredibly impactful and your support is much appreciated!

Support the show

🌟✨📚 **Buy 'The Places Where There Are Spaces: Cultivating A Life of Creative Possibilities'** 📚✨🌟
Dive into a world where spontaneity leads to creativity and discover personal essays that inspire with journal space to reflect. Click the link below to grab your copy today and embark on a journey of self-discovery and unexpected joys! 🌈👇
🔗 Purchase Your Copy Here: https://a.co/d/2UlsmYC

🌟 **Interested in finding out more about working with Lisa Hopkins? Want to share your feedback or be considered as a guest on the show?**
🔗 Visit Wide Open Stages https://www.wideopenstages.com

📸 **Follow Lisa on Instagram:** @wideopenstages https://www.instagram.com/wideopenstages/

💖 **SUPPORT THE SHOW:** [Buy Me a Coffee] https://www.buymeacoffee.com/STOPTIME

🎵 **STOPTIME Theme Music by Philip David Stern**
🔗 [Listen on Spotify]
https://open.spotify.com/artist/57A87Um5vok0uEtM8vWpKM?si=JOx7r1iVSbqAHezG4PjiPg