Recently, when my dentist mentioned a spat with her 15-year-old daughter, the hygienist and I both reacted similarly, remembering our own teen moodiness. When you’re 15, you’re simply trying to survive a roller coaster of emotions. But what happens when your body settles down? We assume our minds and emotions do as well, but why? If there’s one thing I know for sure, it’s that there’s no adulting roadmap that tells you how to turn that roller coaster into, say, a gentle float down a lazy river. Today, let’s all be open to learning more about how to live the lives we want.
WOMEN IN NUMBERS: Much More
At 15, most of us were sassing each other about all kinds of stuff. (Honestly, does a 15-year-old really need a reason to be sassy?) I now see that kind of blatant criticism as flat-out negativity, and it can spread wicked fast. Now science may have the reason for it. According to recent research, our brains naturally weigh and respond to negative information much more so than positive information. Basically, our brains find bad to be stronger than good. Think about it: If your boss showers you with compliments but sneaks a criticism in there, which part of that interaction do you most remember? Researchers identify this phenomenon as negativity bias, and it’s partly responsible for our feelings that when it rains bad news, it pours even worse news, and may be the reason why negative headlines online receive more clicks than positive ones.
WOMAN TO WATCH: Jess Lively, Host of The Lively Show Podcast and Creator of Life With Intention Online
OK, so we can’t control what mood-dampening headlines pop up on our newsfeeds, but we can control our reactions to them. That’s where today’s Woman to Watch comes in. Jess Lively hosts a wonderful podcast called The Lively Show, and teaches online courses about living an intentional life. In complete sincerity, Jess has truly changed my life! (Admittedly, I’ve said that before about a milkshake, but I digress.) The fact is that Jess’ intuition-focused beliefs and philosophy of living with values-based intention really speak to me.
And I’m far from alone. The Lively Show has had more than 6 million downloads in some 216 countries and territories, and Inc. Magazine called it the “number one podcast that all female entrepreneurs should listen to.”
Jess’ career started at that sassy age of 15, when she began making and selling jewelry. After business school, she pursued that endeavor full time before transitioning to business coaching. But along the way, she had what she calls a “huge aha moment,” one that enabled her to tap into her intuition and guided her to close her successful accessories company and focus on her podcast, as well as commit to developing her online course, Life With Intention Online.
During this process, Jess got married, curated the ideal home and attained picture-perfect success. But soon enough, her intuition kicked in again and guided her somewhere else. She ended her marriage and sold her home, along with everything in it, and began traveling the world, staying in light and bright Airbnbs and, as she would say, moving to the pleasure of her soul.
If you want to experience a little bit of that Jess Lively magic, write to your intuition the next time you’re feeling stressed about making a decision or feeling just all-around icky. Pull out a pen and paper and ask yourself a question. Write down whatever comes to mind. Then be silent and listen to what your intuition—your heart or your gut—has to say, and write down the response. Then ask another question and so on. It’s like talking to a best girlfriend who literally knows you inside and out!
QUITE THE QUOTE
Today’s quote from inspirational writer Eckhart Tolle is a favorite of Jess Lively’s, and it’s clear why. He said:
“When you get the inside right, the outside falls into place.”
This is Melinda Garvey signing off until next time. Remember, ladies, empowered women empower other women. Share On the Dot so more women can have a voice. Thanks for getting ready with us.
To learn more about our conversation, check us out at OnTheDotWoman.com and talk to us @OnTheDotWoman on Twitter and Instagram. We’d love to hear your voice.