I decided to open the box.

One of my biggest highlights back in the day was listening to Lewis Howes’ podcasts. He taught me SO much about storytelling and how to ask questions. Just over 2 years ago, I said to myself that I was going to break the stigma on mental illness. I bought a microphone off amazon and it stayed in its box for over a year. It even moved homes with me, unopened. I was SO nervous about the idea of simply starting and had so many fears – what if nobody liked it? What if I failed? What if I hurt my family? What if I hurt others?

My mentor, Heather walked alongside me through this entire journey. Driven by fear that I had no clue about how to even create a podcast, she took me through each step and held my hand, at my own pace. First, I actually opened the box. Then, I practiced putting the microphone on and speaking into it and today, I barely even think about it. I meditate, say my prayer, ask God to guide my mouth that I shouldn’t hurt anyone and I just start talking.

Today we are celebrating 2 years of the Hope to Recharge podcast, 2 years of breaking the stigma, 2 years of spreading hope, inspiration, insight and tips, 2 years of my own internal growth and hearing people’s stories, 2 years of tears and 2 years of gratitude. These past 2 years have been incredibly life changing. Today we have over 160 episodes, over 55 episodes on the power of gratitude and many more on my own thoughts, story, different insights throughout my journey, many interviews with other heroes who have lived and survived mental illness, as well as with practitioners and experts in this field. Heather reminded me of how far I’ve come with my fears and this is why I believe that the first step in anything is always the hardest step. But the truth is this: if you don’t take that leap of faith in your relationships, your health, your physical health and vision, you will always remain in your little box.

It’s so important to surround yourself with people who inspire you. Find your boundaries and make them clear. Each day, work on stepping just a little more out of your comfort zone. I can tell you this: If I didn’t take that leap of faith, if I didn’t have Heather and my trust and faith in God, I would’ve still remained within my little box. If we get stuck in our fear of failure, our box will never open and our gifts won’t come out. And if I didn’t have the continued support of my family and Ari who listens to hours and hours of my anxieties, my kids, my friends, community, audience and OUR mentors – If I didn’t have them, my box with my microphone would still be closed today.

So, I want to thank my mentors and my community and listeners, but I also want to importantly thank myself. We have to choose ourselves first and learn how to show up for ourselves – I teach this to my clients constantly. So to Matana, thank you for your boundaries, vision, for doing the hard work, for giving and letting go, for crying through the night, for speaking your mind, for stepping out of the stigma when the stigma is so strong. I want to thank myself for not getting in my own way and overcoming my fear of failure and embarrassment and together with God and my staff, creating this amazing platform of Hope to Recharge. God helps me with my fears, struggles, anxiety, vision and dreams. So, thank you God for helping me, holding my hand and never letting go of me.

Now, it’s time to open the next box..

The next box which I am unraveling on this special day is something which is coming in October this year. It’s our special 3 and a half day Gratefulness Retreat which we’re going to let you know more about in the next few weeks. We’re taking a very small group of like-minded people who are eager and excited to take the next step into living with a full, grateful heart and stepping into a grateful life. A full grateful heart means that even when nothing is happening, everything is happening and we live with an open joy and anticipation, even during the hard times – this is the “great-FULLLNESS” of life. When we practice gratitude, we move into a state of gratefulness and we’re going to discuss this topic at length on this retreat. Of course there’s going to be music and massages and food and we’re only handpicking 10-15 people maximum who fit our profile. We want this retreat to be very committed to the idea of transforming ourselves into people who live with this gratitude constantly and using gratitude for everything in our life, so stay tuned!

Thank you to my clients for trusting in me and teaching me about awesomeness and greatness and hope, joy, pain and how to walk through it. My clients are my biggest mentors and I am so in awe of each and every one of them. Thank you to Heather, my staff, my mentors, my community- I love you. Let’s see how many more boxes we’re going to open.

And to you today: What box are you holding closed? How brave are you willing to be to finally open it?

Work 1 on 1 with Matana – With our 1 on 1 coaching program, you can work directly with Matana. Get a free 30-minute fitting tryout call to see if this is right for you. You do not have to walk through your mental health struggle alone. Because as always, together is better!

There is no substitute for a listening ear. Get Your Free 30 Minute, 1 on 1 Consultation Today.

https://hopetorecharge.com/1on1/