Wild Souls
Welcome to the Wild Souls podcast. I’m your host, Cat Mansfield. Together, we will return to our wild instincts; reconnect to our body, to our connection to something greater, to the Truth of our divinity + infinite potential. We are here to have the raw conversations about all aspects of this human experience- the incredibly painful and the unbelievably pleasurable - the dark and the light, the death and the rebirth. This podcast is about holding space for the whole spectrum of human experience as we navigate each of our unique + divine healing journeys and step deeper into our soul’s calling. These conversations are meant to be a resource for deep self inquiry, a guidepost in cultivating a deep, unwavering self love, and ultimately, empower you to create a life so on purpose, so aligned with your authenticity, you can’t help but embody your wildest soul. Lets dive in.
Wild Souls
64. Heart-Centered Abundance & Self-Discovery w/ JJ DiGeronimo
This week I sat down with JJ DiGeronimo - author of her latest book : Seeking : 74 Key Findings to Raise Your Energy, Sidestep Your Self Doubt, and Align With Your Life's Work. With her candid stories, JJ encourages us all to listen to our inner whispers & shine brightly, fostering personal growth + empowerment.
In this episode we explore practical strategies to elevate your energy, raise your frequency, and transform your reality even amidst familiar settings that challenge your personal ascension. By shifting from head-centered to heart-centered living, find out how to transforms challenges into soul-evolving opportunities.
This episode will leave you feeling inspired to appreciate the present, embrace life's lessons, and let yout true calling unfold naturally.
Stay in touch with JJ:
https://jjdigeronimo.com/
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/together-we-seek-lightworkers-healers-sacred-teachings/id1618591942
https://jjdigeronimo.com/together-we-seek-retreats/
https://www.instagram.com/jjdigeronimo/?hl=en
Interested in being a guest on the podcast? Send me a DM :)
Follow along on instagram <3
Welcome to the Holistic Hotties podcast. I'm your host, kat Mansfield. I'm a yoga and meditation teacher who's traveled around the world in search of all things healing and true. In searching for healing, in searching for truth, I uncovered the answers to all my ponderings. I grounded into peace. Amidst the chaos, I found myself. This podcast is about breathing life into who you already are. It's about remembering the truth of your power, the truth of your perfection. In each episode, we'll talk about the beliefs, the self-imposed limitations and the mindsets that are keeping us small, and how to cultivate safety in our bodies so that we can feel safe enough to be bigger, to take up more space and to truly and deeply love ourselves. On this journey together, day after day, we're choosing intention, we're choosing growth. We're choosing to dissolve our veils and breathe into our most authentic and thus most radiant selves. We're choosing to feel good naked let's dive in. To feel good naked, let's dive in. Hello, and welcome back to another episode of Holistic Hotties.
Speaker 1:This week, I sat down and talked with JJ DiGeronimo. Jj is a lightworker, businesswoman and author that creates a bridge for people to tap into tools, practices and mindsets to illuminate their path, with three award-winning books for women and a new online community. Together we Seek. She provides action-based strategies to unleash inner wisdom with an exciting combination of energy practices and key insights. Her new book, seeking 74 Key Findings to Raise your Energy, sidestep your Self-Doubts and Align with your Life's work, is making a splash with readers seeking more. With a unique approach, she works with you to create an interactive discussion to dig deep, release the guilt, align with what you know is true and rediscover the brightness within your natural gifts. I love this conversation with JJ. Her energy is so potent and there are so many juicy insights to take away from this conversation with JJ. Her energy is so potent and there are so many juicy insights to take away from this conversation, so let's dive in. Hello, jj, welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 2:Oh, catherine, I'm so excited to spend this time with you. Thank you for the invite.
Speaker 1:Me too. Thank you for being here. So let's dive right in. I want to start with you know, we know you're a bestselling author and successful businesswoman, and I want to start with the aspect of being a lightworker. Tell us what that means to you and how you've kind of molded all of the different worlds.
Speaker 2:Well, as you probably know, many of us come down here with a lot of experiences beyond this planet. Sometimes on this planet, and I think as we move through life, we often uncover gifts that we have access to and experiences that broaden our awareness to what is possible. And I feel like now that I've entered my fifties, I've had a lot of life experiences that have really kind of pushed me to the brim of understanding who I am and why I'm on the planet. And through those experiences I've had to do a lot of self digging, digging out things that were no longer serving me, energies that really weren't at the energy level I wanted to reside at, or even activities and actions that really weren't where I was anymore. And through the process of digging out I started to feel the illumination.
Speaker 2:Through the process of digging out I started to feel the illumination, the energy from within. That sort of gives us more enlightenment and advice and whispers to what we should be doing. And so over the years I've really worked to dust off that light and work on shining it, not only for my own life's work but to brighten the path for others. And through that I've learned that that is a light worker right Using your light to determine your own path and then shining the light so bright that you help others illuminate their path. And so I am on the planet with hundreds of thousands, even millions of light workers that have chosen to be down here right now of lightworkers that have chosen to be down here right now.
Speaker 1:I love that we're starting off with that definition because it gives us that feeling of empowerment of I get to be a beacon of hope, a beacon of light for somebody else to tune into their own light, as you're saying, and to give themselves permission to shine. By giving myself permission and something that you said was tuning into the whispers and starting to, you know, open your ears or whatever however you want to visualize that to the whispers and will you walk us through a little bit more of that journey and some of the things that you had to move past, maybe specifically talking about self-doubt and starting to really hear and listen to those whispers? Yeah, Whispers for me.
Speaker 2:I I didn't really know the difference between a thought and a whisper for a long time until I really got present, which took a lot of mindfulness work. But once I started really learning and leaning into mindfulness which really helps you be in the present moment you recognize these ideas or thoughts, or maybe a whisper to you that comes from deep within. It's not your ego energy, that's like go get it, get it done, be there, you know, don't get left out, don't be left behind. You can do it. It's a voice that's kind of more subtle right. That's like maybe you should, maybe you should start a woman's group, maybe you should turn that into a book, maybe you should consider bringing women together outside.
Speaker 2:These are the whispers that I've received over the last 15 years that really were catalysts for the work that I do now. And I would agree that the first time I heard any one of those whispers, my first response was not me, I could never start a women's group, or I can't write, I'm dyslexic, or I've never been to a retreat. How could I start something, start a women's group? Or I can't write, I'm dyslexic, or I've never been to a retreat. How could I start something outside for women, and so many of the whispers came multiple times, multiple times, before I actually got them off the ground.
Speaker 1:I would say my average for a while was about two years from the time I initially heard the whisper to the time I actually activated the whisper the whisper to the time I actually activated the whisper, yeah, and I think anyone who's listening, who might be in that portal of discernment where you're discerning whether or not it's a passing thought or if it's truly a whisper that's meant to take hold and be activated, like you said, for anybody who's in that portal, I think, giving yourself some grace and knowing that it does take a little bit of time to really dig into the courage and activate those at times, activate those whispers because a lot of us are I'd say the majority of us are programmed to meet those whispers immediately with some of the thoughts that you experienced, some of the self-doubt and, and you know, just immediate kind of pushback of like who am I to do something like that?
Speaker 1:Who am I to make change? And so I'm curious, when you started to activate these whispers, like you said, was it immediate kind of response from women in your community or were you still met with kind of those opportunities to step into your confidence, to be empowered, to be embodied?
Speaker 2:Oh, certainly it's funny Cause now I don't even think about the first time I start something, like if it doesn't work the first time I started, I just do it again and I do it again, and I don't really tie my self-worth to it not working the first time, because I, right now, I actually just set up a self-care Sunday at this state, this healing estate in Vermilion, ohio. It has a lot of healing energy, a lot of palladian energy, and I just, you know, I put it up the first time knowing that it may not launch that first time, and that's okay, because when you start things from scratch, you have to kind of market and put it out there multiple times before people really get into it. I have started things earlier on too, but that people did come to initially. Like when I first started my first retreat in 2016, I had 12 women show up, which was absolutely awesome, but my price point was so low.
Speaker 2:It was so, so low. I didn't make any money. I was paying for them to essentially come. So I think that there's, like you know, if you just want to try it out and you don't mind supplementing the cost for things to get it going, that's kind of one Avenue the other Avenue is putting the price point on that actually can make some money. That might take three or four times to post it up before it kicks off, and so that might take three or four times to post it up before it kicks off. And so you know a lot of things that I post take off, but a lot of things don't take off. And I think, either way I really believe in divine timing and it's if I'm getting the whisper to host something. Sometimes the timing might not be the exact time I pick, or maybe I need to socialize it several times before it takes off.
Speaker 1:Yes, and what's coming up for me as well is detaching from the outcome, right? So, like the whisper might be to host something so that you connect with this other person who then takes you to this other person where you have something you know what I mean, versus being very attached to the whisper wanting me to host this thing. So this thing has to be the final outcome, versus the whisper might just be trying to get me somewhere where I meet the person who takes me to the next person to get to the final outcome down the road, right, and I think remaining in that place of detachment and like awe really for the journey and for the path and for the like, continuing unfolding creates so much more peace and allows us to create, from a place of, you know, detachment and more from that service and that soul's desire to give versus, like you mentioned earlier, that ego, energy.
Speaker 2:It is happening more and more to your point. Like I just had an initiation last week with the mothers and they showed me that, you know, having this initiation with them uh was during Rebecca Campbell's um, your soul has a dream and your life is it. It's her new book, and so I was on the call last Thursday and I had this amazing initiation with the mothers and after I journaled and they basically showed me that, like go back two full weeks of all the things that happened to create that initiation last Thursday and you know, and when you think about when I started following Rebecca Campbell, that went all the way back to 2016. So it's like an eight year cycle of things that were coming and aligning to really get into this space of enlightenment around the work that I do with women, and so I feel like it's hard now to think of any one thing as a standalone thing or thinking that anything is right or wrong, because, as you're mentioning, it could be just a stepping stone.
Speaker 1:Totally. And it just gives me chills when I think of that, because you get to the end of your life and you'll look back and see the interwoven nature of everything and how everything plays on everything else. You know, starting from the time where children and all of the people you meet and where you grew up and you know, moving into adolescence and then into adulthood and then later adulthood. It's just the interwoven nature of it all and the interdependence of all of us playing in this dance together and all of our journeys interweaving. It's so, so beautiful and to me it's just so clearly points to something so much more, you know, divinely choreographed than we can even conceive of right. And so I actually want to dive a little bit more into that.
Speaker 1:Like ego creation or ego energy versus that soul creation and soul energy. In a world, in a time where so many of us are, I guess, mesmerized by the achieving and by the titles and the salaries, and even, as a woman, we're very much also indoctrinated into the same hustle culture, I do think there's like a big revival of the sacred feminine happening right now, whether that be in the more traditional, like reverence for homemaking and tending to the home and child rearing or just, you know, holding a reverence for that. I think that's happening right now, but we are still in the time of being very much indoctrinated into the patriarchy. So I want to talk about how we can really step back into our soul energy and, I guess, just bring mindfulness and awareness to when we might be creating from our ego.
Speaker 2:Oh, my goodness. Well, this can be a life journey for people. Some people may figure it out and some may not. I feel like in 2016, I was really kicked into this in a really profound way. You know, things weren't happening right at work that I thought should happen Things in my relationships, things in my marriage, like there was so much, so many things that I was being like almost like shook and back and forth that I needed to redefine what I thought success was. I had a hot career in high tech for over 20 years, um, and that's how I really defined myself.
Speaker 2:And when I went out of my own business, I really struggled with the ability to find my worth initially, but then multiple things got kind of pulled and shifted and pushed around and it really kind of kicked me into this, seeking like who am I? Why am I here? What am I supposed to be doing? What really matters? You know I've been chasing this oasis of success for so long. Is that even real? And so it's.
Speaker 2:It's been a journey for me. It's been eight years and it really was the catalyst for my third book, because I had to sidestep self-doubt, I had to align with a higher frequency to ultimately align with my life's work. And, um, it's, you know, even though I have two other books, this third book, seeking, uh, it's thick, and it really was the journey of shifting out of my ego energy into my soul energy, and I would love to say that it is one thing that got me there. But, as you can see from the book, I had to really dive into multiple layers of my life, not only my childhood, my relationship with my parents, my first job, my guides, you know, with my parents, my first job, my guides, you know my mindfulness practice, that I was basically kind of guided into my relationship with perfectionism.
Speaker 2:And I feel like, for a lot of us, we don't realize that so much is happening for us and I think for many of us, we just assume that this is the way it goes. And seeking is really the guide that has helped me really dive into those stories and situations and thoughts that have driven me for so long to identify whether or not they're even relevant and do they align with my life's work. And I feel like that journey for me has been very profound, so much so that I felt the need to write it down to share with other women so that they too can use my stories and the stories of other women to help them really identify where their North Star is and the work that they can be doing while they're here where their North Star is and the work that they can be doing while they're here.
Speaker 1:Beautiful. It goes back to being a light worker and holding that beacon, being a lighthouse for someone to see. Like, okay, I can also step into this, I can also step into a higher frequency. And so your book Seeking 74 Key Findings to Raise your Energy, sidestep your Self-Doubts and Align with your Life's Work Like you said, it's not just a pamphlet, it's 74 key findings and it's a thick book, and that shows you that the process of this work and the process of you know, sidestepping yourself out and really aligning with yourself work is not an overnight process, and so maybe you could walk us through some of the ways to raise your frequency that you mentioned in the book, or just some of the key insights that you that you think are important to touch on.
Speaker 2:Yes, well, there's over 200 questions in the book and there's workbooks that go with each specific section, because I feel like we and you can jump in. I love it. So many yoga teachers like yourself and others use the book like an Oracle deck to open it up and just kind of see what the key finding is for the day, and then they talk about that in their class and how that relates, because there's just so many insights that I feel like have been channeled through me to share with the collective. And you ask about frequency and that's not something like I really understood years ago, but for me now, frequency is very much like a radio station, you know, knowing where your frequency is at, where you like it to be. What's comfortable? What are you striving for and what are you avoiding? Comfortable, what are you striving for and what are you avoiding? Because for me, you know, I'm not at 75.4 anymore, 84.2.
Speaker 2:I work every single day on raising my frequency and that's really focused in three areas. Right, it's what I talk about. Right, what do I talk about? How do I share energy, what do I communicate with other people, how do I guide and lead conversations and what conversations do I choose to be in. So you really need to assess, like, what are you talking about every day on the outside and then what are you talking about on the inside? Right? So how do you talk to yourself? Are you beating the crap out of yourself every day, or are you gentle and kind with yourself and does it depend on what situation you're in or what conversation or relationship you're in? So being mindful of not only like, what are you sharing, but what are you engaging in the inside? Okay, so those are two things. And the third thing is, like, what do you pay attention to? What are you reading? What are you watching? What are you reading? What are you watching? What are you viewing? What are you supporting?
Speaker 2:I feel like, for me, I really had to hone in these three areas to raise my frequency, because I was somebody that I would say was a pretty average soul in the sense of, like I would just get into any conversation, I'd have any, I would just talk about whatever. I would talk to myself, like most people, do you know, they beat themselves up on the smallest of things. Um, I would complain about a coffee being empty or not getting a parking spot, and I had to be very, very aware of how I move through the day and I don't think I could have done that without mindfulness. Mindfulness is an underpinning of training that I took by Jon Kabat-Zinn that really helped me be mindful of how I move through a day, the interactions I had, the conversations I had with myself and where I was aligning my time. And that mindfulness for me really helped me raise my frequency and in doing so it really kicked me out of radio low radio stations that kept me at higher radio stations.
Speaker 2:And now look at this one. It's amazing. I get this light that comes in my office when it likes what I'm sharing, and it's coming through so quick right now, like all of a sudden, everything's illuminated again here, beautiful, yeah, it's crazy. I have so much energy that comes into my office. So frequency is a really big deal and mining your frequency is absolutely instrumental if you want to choose how you move through life and what type of life you're experiencing here on planet earth.
Speaker 1:I double click on all of that and I think it's important for somebody who's hearing this and they maybe are committed to being more mindful in those three areas, in the way that they're in the things that they're speaking about and the way that they're speaking to others and the way they're speaking to themselves in the media or information or what they're choosing to consume and be a part of in the world.
Speaker 1:And in that transition and not bringing mindfulness to those areas, you may come up to resistance from the other party.
Speaker 1:If you start to choose, you know, to remove yourself from certain situations or maybe it's like a family, family gatherings, especially as you come up to the holidays and you find yourself in the same cycle of conversations, whether it be kind of talking poorly about other family members I think a lot of families can get into that wasn't very respectful and you choose to stand up for yourself, you most likely will meet resistance.
Speaker 1:As you start to choose a higher frequency for yourself, as you start to bring mindfulness to these areas in your life and choose something different, it most likely will trigger people who are still at those lower frequencies, at those lower radio stations and I think just preparing yourself for those interactions and preparing yourself for radio stations, and I think, just preparing yourself for those interactions and preparing yourself for that resistance and, I guess, preparing yourself for the feeling of belonging and learning how to create that inner source of safety, no matter what, especially, like I said, at family gatherings where you start to step into more of the black sheep archetype, and learning how to become your own source of belonging and your own source of safety, so that you know you really choose to prioritize your ascension and choosing something different for yourself, because otherwise you know you're only going to be a product of what you're around.
Speaker 2:I know I've heard a fun. I'm laughing because I've heard this quote, like I'm super spiritual and I'm totally into the Zen, but then take me to a family event and I completely lose my stuff. So I'm just laughing at that. So you know, your family is a trigger, obviously in a lot of ways, because there's some of your biggest lessons. They cultivate energy, self-talk, self-doubt.
Speaker 2:You might be lucky to have some great memories and experiences, but remember we choose our relationships, including our parents and our siblings. They are all instrumental in our life's ascension and I love how you say that and I think for many of us. Sometimes we just have to change our expectations of what the experience is going to be, or even change our boundaries. Or sometimes you have to change your time limits. Maybe you don't go for five days, maybe you go for one day, or maybe you choose not to just engage in conversations. Because it's really amazing when you just decide like I'm not going to be that kind of, I'm not going to get to that radio station, I'm not dropping down to 70.5. And no matter what is said, I'm going to just zen out and just smile and just tell myself I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you.
Speaker 2:Or whatever you need to say it's amazing how it just kind of evaporates some of these experiences, because really the experiences are there for you, not for them, and so if you choose, you no longer want to be in that experience and you prove that you don't need to be in that experience because you've learned that lesson. It's amazing how it disappears.
Speaker 1:Interesting, yeah, and I think that's telling to what happens in your whole reality. Like you mentioned, when you start to raise your frequency, everything around you starts to change. It's magic, it's like. It's like creating I've been talking a lot about this my partner recently like the hologram within the hologram. It's like creating your own hologram, your own reality, that, specifically, that is coherent to your frequency. So even amidst a lower frequency setting, you are still within the hologram. So you'll still run into serendipities or find that parking spot at the front of the, you know at the front of the store, or you know like you'll still be met with that higher frequency experience amidst the larger hologram of a low frequency environment. Have you, have you experienced something similar or speak to your experience in that?
Speaker 2:All the time, all the time, all the time. I can't even tell you how many parking spots, how many. Like just the sweetness that comes through life. You know the hummingbirds that come to my window. You know I have lavender hanging right now just like the little things that happen around me are happening for me. And the more I have gratitude for what I have right now, the more that comes my way.
Speaker 2:And I think there's so many books that I've read but, um, get rich, lucky bitch, that's what it is. She's out of Australia and that's her book title and she's like you're not going to get more unless you appreciate what you have. And she has a whole gratitude section and I really do practice gratitude every day, whether it's the hot water I'm taking a shower in the hot tea, my car, my gas in my car I mean the littlest things to some of us could be huge to others. And I feel like whatever you're doing, you can find gratitude. You can find gratitude and the more gratitude you have, the higher your frequency raises and the more like enriching experiences you can create for yourself.
Speaker 1:One of my, one of my favorite things that my partner does is he, like, verbally, expresses his gratitude so often about the smallest things, like just the food in front of him. I'm so grateful for this food. It's so nourishing and it's very much rubbed off on me. But it's also been so interesting to observe the way that his reality works, and you know, obviously I'm a part of his reality now, but at the same time I'm also an observer of it a lot of the time, and so when I first met him, it was wild to see how, just like, people would just come up to him and just give him things like here you go, I just had an extra this. Here you go, I have extra concert tickets. Do you want them?
Speaker 1:I just called him magic for the first. I mean, I still call him magic, but it was so eye-opening to me because it's exactly what you said it's this consistent expression and living in that energy of gratitude that creates the portal for abundance, like overflowing on him, and so it's this really beautiful thing to watch, and also it's like this paradox, you know cause, we're brainwashed to believe the opposite, to believe in continuing to strive for more. And until I get that higher salary until I have the bigger house, then I'll be happy, then I'll be grateful, then I'll be grateful for all the stuff I have, versus. You know, as we're saying, being grateful for the hummingbird that's there, for the sunshine that's coming through the window, for the warm water, for the warm bowl of food, that we get to have. The smaller things and that energy is just compounds into your reality and it's just been so mind-blowing to witness.
Speaker 2:I've seen it firsthand, so it it is true. It true, as you can make this experience as rich as you want it to be, and experiences and connections, but it all starts within. It all starts within.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it really does. I'm curious if there are any transformational stories in working with your clients and working in your community that you can share with us, of this transformation that can take place with an individual.
Speaker 2:Well, I've had so many great responses for people that read the book Seeking. It's amazing. I feel like a lot of people are on the edge of the pool saying am I ready to get in? Is it warm enough? Am I going to be cold? Can I do it? And after reading the book Seeking, they jump in and they do it whatever that is for them.
Speaker 2:And so I have people that have left their job after 27 years only to find a better job after reading the book Seeking. I have had teachers that have become yoga instructors after reading the book seeking. I've had people you know and relationships that they knew they needed to leave. But after reading the book they knew that if they didn't leave it it would really, um, taint their future potential. You know they didn't want it to like seep into future years and then, after reading Seeking, they got the strength to leave that relationship to open themselves up for what is coming forward. So I don't believe that I read that.
Speaker 2:I wrote Seeking by myself. I channeled the book with my guides. That created an essentially an experience in these pages that really tap into whatever is holding you back and feeling, allowing you to feel less than and I am super honored to be that channel and to watch these transformations, because our soul already knows why we're here. We're just here to figure out why we're here and it takes the digging and the dusting off that I mentioned earlier, and oftentimes that comes through our relationships and our situations that shake and rattle us up, only to hope that we will now take the time to dig into what's happening on the inside, because what's happening on the inside is a complete reflection of what's happening on the outside.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I, I mean, I'm so grateful for you putting this work into the world and really giving that or, I guess, offering that courage that you know, little nudge for somebody to, like we've said, activate those whispers and make that change, despite how scary it might feel, those big, you know, leaving a relationship, leaving a job after 27 years, moving to a different country, all these, all these callings that one might have, that feels so scary, especially if we've, you know, never done something like that before.
Speaker 1:It can be so scary. And so, having the courage to take that leap and really play with the narrative of this or something better, you know, if you know, if we're leaving a job or if we're taking that leap, really playing with what it feels like in your body to believe this or something better, so if it's not this, then I believe that something better is out there waiting for me and I'm being called to go step into that. And so, like I said, I'm so grateful for that work and I want to touch on this notion of our life's work, like you're talking about, like stepping into our calling, for example, and I think that can be something that can be really overwhelming for a lot of people to try and, I guess, intellectualize what their purpose is. And can we touch on what it means to allow for our life's work to reveal itself to us?
Speaker 2:Yeah, they just said you have to get out of the way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so you know, a lot of times, oh, I love it, I love it, yeah, so, yeah. So we, you know. So the way I envision it is, when we come onto this planet, we're essentially a teardrop of the cosmos that comes down, the higher light, the being, the one we get dropped into this human body Our eyes turn on, our head turns on, which is essentially our computer and our machine, and we are working from that head space most of our life unless we shift to the heart space. And that shift from the head to the heart can happen in all different ways, right, some people get sick, some people lose people, some people lose jobs or have to transform on the very quickly.
Speaker 2:And I feel like there's a lot of things that happen in our lives that try to get us to shift from the head to the heart. And I feel like many of us just don't know how easy it is, and I feel like you have to find a guide or something that really helps guide you to get out of the headspace into the heart space, because when you move from the head to the heart and you work from a place of love and gratitude, the whispers can move through, can find ways to kind of illuminate what is next for you and I think for many of us that are trying to intellectually figure it out. It could take a lifetime, but really the idea is to get out of the way. Get out of the way, get out of the way of your head and the intellectual mind and allow your heart to lead you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's so beautiful and I, as soon as you said that you have to get out of your own way or you have to get out of the way, it's like it feels so clear and resonant in my body that that's, you know, the answer. And and it's so simple, right like you just have to, you just have to get out of the way and you'll be guided and you'll be led and it'll be revealed to you and it's one of those things for anybody listening, that it's. It is easier said than done at the beginning, when you're, when you're not used to operating from your heart space, when you have been operating from your head for most of your life, and then you know, someone just tells you to stop operating from your heart. If you're listening, you might be like, I mean, what does that even mean? How, like that's just jargon or you know whatever.
Speaker 1:And the practice of moving from your head to your heart is also, you know, kind of what we've been talking about in this whole conversation. It's a over and over and over again, practice of noticing when we are in our head, when we're intellectualizing, when we're so tethered to the future, and the control and the desire to manipulate and the desire to you know exist in some sort of certainty quote unquote that doesn't exist. Noticing when we're there and then dropping back into the body and dropping back into the sensation, and dropping back into where the aliveness lives for you, right, like where and what do you do in your day-to-day life that makes you feel totally alive? And for a lot of us, maybe there's nothing right now, and it's about becoming curious and inviting in different activities, different hobbies, different people that might start to ignite that within us.
Speaker 1:But it's a process and even when you've been on this journey, I still find myself operating from my head at times. I still find myself, you know, feeling anxious or feeling like it has to be this opportunity or this job, otherwise I'm going to miss my purpose, quote-unquote. It feels so human, right, we're one teardrop in an ocean, right? So the more we can bring awareness to when we're in our mind and again, give ourselves a little bit of compassion, because it happens to all of us. It's part of the human condition to try and feel safe and to try and create certainty. Give ourselves compassion when we're there and move back into the heart space. Do you have practices that you use or what do you advise your clients on just simply noticing when they're in the head and moving back into the heart.
Speaker 2:Yes, yes, and this is why I've named my third book Seeking, because there is no destination, it is a journey and it's really about seeking what is calling you, seeking what is calling you, seeking what is frustrating you, seeking what is interesting you like, how you have, that interests you. And I think for many of us we have to have that level of curiosity and also create the space to shift. And I think many of us that are in that space are definitely interested but they don't know. And that's really what I cultivated with seeking was a how to guide of how do you shift out of the ego energy into the heart energy. And you know there are a lot of different ways to do it and I've included a lot of different steps that people have taken so that you could find the step that's for you.
Speaker 2:And I love to just kind of shift through the book, and I'm going to do that now. I'm just going to shift through and just pick out one of the 74, because I feel like for many of us it's really about kind of where you're at and figuring out what the next step is for you. And so key finding number 48 is we have chosen certain relationships because of the lessons these people offer for us and our growth. So, really taking a look at the relationships that you're in and the lessons you're learning because of those souls that are close to you, what is the lesson you're learning?
Speaker 1:That's beautiful, one of the.
Speaker 1:I was in this podcast a long time ago and one of the things that stuck with me from it was this visual of before we come to earth, all of us are at this round table, like my souls at this round table and all of the souls you know, my immediate family, my closest tribe, people in my life are all at this round table.
Speaker 1:And you know, before we come to earth, school there we're talking about okay, so cat soul needs to learn about abandonment, needs to learn about self-worth, needs to learn about. You know, these are the lessons that she's here to evolve and learn with and grow with. And then the people at the round table, the other souls in your life, are volunteering. They're raising their hands to say, okay, I'll, I'll teach her about abandonment. And that might look like the you know mother or father in your life who leaves and abandons you early on. And it's just a really interesting way of reorienting around some of the lessons and some of the wounds that we might have developed in our lives and thinking about these souls having volunteered to be the lesson, to be the catalyst for our soul's evolution. And it's a really I've found in my journey it's a really beautiful way of reorienting around those people and around those lessons.
Speaker 2:So beautiful I've heard something so similar and gives you reassurance that we're all in this together in one way or another, in that we're really is all coming from a place of love, even if the lessons are dense.
Speaker 1:uh, finding finding your through path that allows you to see these as lessons and as gifts yeah, and I know you mentioned that you or we've mentioned earlier in it, and it is like a popular, I guess, phrase within the spiritual development community. But the notion of you know everything is happening for you, right, all of the wounding, all of the triggers, all of the hard lessons that we're here to learn, you know it is for us, it is, it is divinely for us and it can feel, it can feel a little bit bypassy to some people, but it it also, when it's like, really integrated into your body, it's such a peaceful, peaceful truth. It's such a peaceful, you know, I guess for me it's a truth that really resonates deeply as truth, but it feels true. You know everything is happening for you the people, the lessons, the triggers, they're all gifts.
Speaker 2:They are. It's not always that fun, for sure. But I do always say to myself when I'm going through a difficult situation what is the lesson? What is the lesson Like? I want to kind of see the lesson as soon as I can see it and not prolong the experience because I'm too dense to recognize that it is a lesson.
Speaker 1:And just invite the experience to come. You know, wearing a different costume six months down the road. Well, I have so enjoyed this conversation, jj. I feel like there's so much insight and so much juiciness for people to you know, integrate and work with on their own journeys. How can people find you? Where can people find your book?
Speaker 2:Yeah. So if you look up seeking 74 and the initials JJ, you will find it on most platforms. I have a podcast where I'm interview a lot of the light workers that have helped me dig through my stories, the mystics, the healers that have given me insight and wisdom to help me on my journey, and you can always come and visit me and a healing center in Vermilion, ohio, on Lake Erie, where I'm starting to bring some of this to life. So a lot is happening over here, very slow, and it started from when I was very, very young playing on the beaches of Lake Erie. So it's kind of funny how things have come full circle 50 years later. But I feel like it has all happened in a way that makes it so visible that there is such a bigger energy happening around me and through me, and I know that is happening for all of us.
Speaker 1:Amen. And what's the name of your podcast? Together we Seek Beautiful. Well, I will have all of that linked in the show notes for people to find you, for people to tune into your podcast. And you said you're hosting retreats at the center.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we're hosting all different types of yeah, all different experiences spiritual author experiences, star seed retreats, self-care days. I mean there's just something for everybody. But the whole idea is it gives you opportunities to to really dig in from the inside out.
Speaker 1:Really grateful for you to be here and thank you for your presence and your time.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much, Catherine. I look forward to keeping the conversation going.
Speaker 1:I hope you enjoyed that conversation. I hope you enjoyed this episode and if there's anybody in your community who you think would benefit from listening to this episode, please send it their way. If you have a moment, leave a review. Subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode. It would mean so much to me and really help this message grow. I will be back next week with another conversation. Have a great rest of your day.