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The Mike Muldoon Podcast: Bite-Sized Coaching Sessions Empowering Transformation in Small Doses
Unlike those who’ve already reached their goals and now tell you how to get there, The Mike Muldoon Podcast isn’t about preaching from the finish line. We’re (yes, me too) on this journey together. I’m walking it with you—growing, learning, and striving side by side. This is about elevating our lives, building a stronger, more empowered mindset, and unlocking our full potential with clarity, confidence, and purpose.
The Mike Muldoon Podcast: Bite-Sized Coaching Sessions Empowering Transformation in Small Doses
Your Peace Is Non-Negotiable
We're living in a world that constantly demands more – more work, more success, more commitments – making it dangerously easy to sacrifice inner tranquility for productivity or approval. But at what cost? The science is clear: chronic stress leads to anxiety, depression, and even physical ailments like heart disease. Yet many of us continue pushing through toxic environments and unhealthy relationships, fearing disappointment or judgment.
Today I explore how true happiness comes from activities that enhance rather than drain our energy. You'll learn to recognize the warning signs that something's costing too much peace: persistent exhaustion, ongoing anxiety, compromised values, and stunted personal growth.
Most importantly, I share practical strategies to reclaim your mental wellbeing. From setting boundaries and learning the power of saying "no" to surrounding yourself with energizing people and redefining success on your own terms – your roadmap to peace starts here. Remember, it's never too late to change direction. Your speedboat might have become a cargo ship with responsibilities, but course correction remains possible. After all, happier people create happier societies.
What's draining your peace today? The time to reassess is now.
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Hey y'all and welcome to this week's episode of the I'm Michael New podcast. As always, thanks for joining me. Glad to have you. It's awesome, man, it's already Thursday. Again. It's Thursday. It's crazy. How time is just flying by. Am I the only one? You know it's Saturday and it's Thursday and before you know it's from Thursday and it's back to Monday. Time is flying by. It is crazy.
Speaker 1:But you know what? I'm happier because the weather is getting better. I know I talk about the weather a lot. I get it. It's funny.
Speaker 1:It's a very English thing to talk about the weather. You don't realize that until you actually live here. But when you start seeing the sun again and it gets warmer out, it really does change things and the days are getting longer. So I'm sure everybody else likes that. When there's more sun out there, it's great. It's great for all of us to get out there. But anyway, again, hope you're doing well, glad you're here with me.
Speaker 1:So listen, I want to talk about something today, you know, because the thing is right. When the sun's out, you're feeling good and everything. You kind of feel at peace, right, you kind of feel happier about things. Things seem to go a little bit better in your life. You know, I don't know, maybe that's just me, that's how I feel, but I want to talk about anything you're doing.
Speaker 1:In your really good barometer for whether or not this is something you should be doing and whether or not it's going to really keep you happy in the long term, is this little thing that says if anything costs you your peace, it's just too expensive. See, the thing is we live in this world that constantly demands more from us, right? More work, more success if you're comparing yourself to the social media worlds or feeling like you just have to keep up with the Joneses. More commitments, right, gosh, and the further along in life you get, and you're married, and then you have kids, and then you have school, and you got events, and you get outside sports, you get all these other commitments. It's very easy to fall into this trap of sort of sacrificing your peace for productivity or even approval for a lot of people. But seriously, at what cost? See, the idea that if it costs your peace, it's too expensive isn't just a catchy phrase. It's a vital principle for really living a fulfilled and happy life, and that's what I want to talk about today.
Speaker 1:So psychologists and neuroscientists have really long studied the effect of chronic stress on the body and mind, and I've talked about this before on podcasts in the past, and actually there was an article in the american psychological association that basically reports and again we've talked about this prolonged stress contributes to anxiety, depression and even high blood pressure and even heart disease in many cases. There was a study actually done in 2021 that where research found a strong correlation between high workplace stress and an increased risk of burnout, which really is just leading to severe emotional exhaustion. Yet, knowing all of this and it's talked about, it's so available now right? Everybody knows stress can lead to these damaging effects, but yet many people still push through toxic environments, stay in unhealthy relationships and deal with overwhelming obligations, and a lot of times it's because they fear disappointing others or, in some cases, just appearing weak. But the truth is, sacrificing peace for external validation is a deal that never benefits you in the long run.
Speaker 1:Dr Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi he's a psychologist. He's basically known for developing the concept of flow. You may have heard this term thrown around a little bit, but he basically found that people are happiest when they're engaged in activities that bring them deep focus and fulfillment, things that enhance rather than drain their mental and emotional energy. This means that prioritizing peace isn't about avoiding challenges. It's really about ensuring that the things you invest in bring genuine meaning and joy to your life. It's similarly to basically, you're probably familiar with Maslow's hierarchy of needs, which really suggests that once your basic needs are met psychological well-being, including self-fulfillment, inner peace become a top priority.
Speaker 1:See, people who neglect this in pursuit of external achievements often find themselves feeling empty, even when they basically have it all right. They have it all by society's standards and yet they feel empty. They feel lost, stressed, anxious. So how do you know when something's really costing you too much peace? What are those red flags, mike? Well, you probably know right, because you're probably sitting around going. You know what I'm feeling constantly drained. I mean, if something or someone is really leaving you feeling exhausted more often than energized, it might be time to start thinking about how much more they're taking from you than they're really giving.
Speaker 1:You know, if you're experiencing persistent anxiety or stress, you know, in your job, your relationship, a commitment that causes ongoing distress. It isn't worth your mental health. You know, are you losing yourself right, when you start compromising your values, your boundaries or that joy, just to maintain in a situation, it's time to reassess that situation. See, there's no room for personal growth if you're stuck in a cycle of stress, with no time to pursue what truly matters to you. That cost is too high.
Speaker 1:You know, when I talk to people who find themselves in these situations, I just often encourage them to sort of you know, look at peace in your life as like a non-negotiable value. Set clear boundaries with people. Learn to say no to commitments that don't align with your well-being or something that you want to be doing. Nothing's worse than committing something you really don't want to be doing and, to be honest with you, it's not fair because you're doing something, you don't want to be there and then you're really not putting the energy into it anyway. Recognize toxic patterns. Identify and step away from situations that drain you without adding value to your life. Prioritize yourself. We talk about this all the time. This is probably the number one thing that most people don't spend time on, but true peace really comes from within. So I don't know, maybe for some of you. I am not a big meditation guy. I can't really get into it, but maybe meditation is good for you. Maybe that works for you.
Speaker 1:Journaling exercise is probably one of the best things you can actually do for yourself, and really the simplest thing is just try to surround yourself with the right people. Energy is contagious. Spend time with those who uplift and inspire rather than those who deplete you, and maybe, just maybe, redefine success. See, success isn't about how much you accumulate. It's about how aligned you feel with your purpose and the values and how you feel when you get out of bed every morning. What you're thinking, you know. Are you energized because you're excited about what you're about to do, or are you just miserable? See, at the end of the day, your peace that is priceless. There's no amount of money, status, approval that can replace a life lived in alignment with your values and well-being. If something is costing you your peace, it's too expensive.
Speaker 1:Period, the key to true fulfillment is really learning to invest in what brings you joy, balance and a deep sense of inner calm, because when you protect your peace, you protect your happiness. So if you're struggling with this balance, you know, just try to take some time to find that clarity. Take steps towards a life that you know generally starts feeling good right. You know it's never too late to change For some people. You know it may be a little harder, right? If you want to go, maybe a new direction in your life, a new career, do something else.
Speaker 1:You know I always say you know, when you're young, in your 20s, you got no attachments or anything going on. You're a speedboat going across the ocean. You want to change directions. You turn around right back as you get, you got more responsibilities, maybe marriage, kids, mortgages, all this other stuff. You're more like one of those cargo containers moving across the ocean, but it doesn't mean it can't turn around. It just might take a little bit longer, but ultimately, you know, let's work together to make peace more of a top priority, because the thing is, happier people make happier societies. All right, all right people. That's all I really got for you today. Thank you so much for being with quick to the point. Make sure you're sharing this with your friends. Hit that like button. You know reviews are always great, whether it's on Spotify, apple, wherever you're listening to. Again, I appreciate you for being here. Have a great weekend and, as always, I got another below. We'll see you next time.
