Breaking Free from the Hamster Wheel of Business With MJ Stock

If you’ve ever ended your week feeling exhausted but still questioning what you actually accomplished, this episode is for you.

So many business owners find themselves stuck in what feels like constant motion—answering emails, managing clients, checking off tasks—yet not truly moving forward. It looks like productivity on the outside, but internally, it can feel like you’re spinning your wheels.

In this episode, I sit down with MJ Stock, small business owner, mindset coach, and competitive athlete, to talk about what it really looks like to break free from that cycle. We dive into the difference between being busy and being intentional, how to recognize when you’re operating in survival mode, and the mindset shifts required to start building a business that actually supports your life.

We also talk about:

•  How to identify busy work vs. growth-focused work 
•  The role of fear and self-sabotage in staying stuck 
•  Why everything feels urgent (even when it’s not) 
•  Practical ways to create more clarity and direction in your business 
•  The importance of balance, health, and stepping out of constant pressure 

This conversation is a powerful reminder that working harder isn’t always the answer—and that real growth comes from intentional action, not constant motion.

If you’re ready to step off the hamster wheel and start moving forward with purpose, this episode will give you the clarity you need.

Thank you to our generous sponsors!

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Visit us at jenniferannjohnson.com and learn how Jennifer can help you build the life you dream of with her online academy, blog, one-on-one coaching, and a variety of other resources!

Transcript

The Hamster Wheel Problem

Jennifer Johnson 0:37

So many business owners find themselves trapped in what I call the hamster wheel of survival, running faster and faster just to keep up, working harder, but not necessarily getting ahead. And they're feeling busy, but they're not feeling fulfilled. You all know the feeling. You're putting in the hours, you're managing the day to day, but at the end of each week, you wonder what you're actually moving towards or if you're moving forward at all. You're managing the day-to-day, but at the end of each week, you just wonder what is happening. The truth is there's a big difference between surviving and thriving and getting off that hamster wheel, is what I call it, requires intentional shifts in how we think about and approach our growth. Today I have the pleasure of speaking with MJ Stock, who is a small business owner, a mindset coach, and a competitive athlete. I can't wait to talk about that, dedicated to living a purposeful, faith-guided life. She founded All Athletes Women's Gym or All Athletes Welcome Gym in 2019 and is soon expanding, launching other adventures. We're going to explore how to break free from the survival mindset and create a more sustainable growth that actually moves you forward. Welcome, MJ. Thank you so much for having me. It is a pleasure to

Meet MJ The Competitive Athlete

Jennifer Johnson 1:56

be here.

MJ Stock 1:56

It's a pleasure to be here.

Jennifer Johnson 1:58

I'm excited to have you. And athlete, when we say athlete, what kind of athlete? Were you? Are you?

MJ Stock 2:05

I love that question because I feel like now I've really developed into so many different types of athletic disciplines. But I started when I was really young. So when I was maybe seven or eight, my dad got me into uh training for triathlons. So I of course, even before that, I kind of was just a kid in gymnastics. But uh growing up, I really asked my dad, like, please push me hard. He was in the military. I wanted to train, like I was in the military. So he just kind of got me into this path of competing and like learning the ropes and what it means and the mindset and when you come in second, when you come in last, you know, when you get first place. So kind of that started at a young age. And then I basically did every sport you could think of. Um, then when I was kind of a little bit older, I really got into the CrossFit world. So I was kind of a competitive CrossFit athlete, got into the coaching realm, kind of ran the gamut there, and then got out of that to get into more of the powerlifting realm. Also, sort of just went down that path really hard. Yeah. I had like a couple numbers, big goals I wanted to hit. And then for me, once I checked that off, I really started to go into other disciplines. So I I've I would say I've competed in so many things. So after powerlifting, I went into endurance running. Um, and then I went into endurance horse racing. And um, then those two sort of got blended together. Um and after that, I really got into competing with team roping and uh now breakaway roping, so kind of more in the rodeo realm. So Dapel did just out of that.

Jennifer Johnson 4:01

Yeah. Wow, that is very cool. And and you also coach business owners on mindset, which is a lot of what we're gonna be talking about today. And I want to start by painting the picture. How do you realize that whether you know it's just individually or it's as a business, that you're you're on that hamster wheel where you're just surviving, you're just getting through the days versus actually growing and thriving. What how do you know that? How do you feel that?

MJ Stock 4:34

So I think when it comes to dysregulation, essentially, when you don't feel like you're in control or when you're doing what you set out to do and you're sort of just like in chaos, I really believe it feels like disruption of your peace.

Signs You Are In Survival Mode

MJ Stock 4:51

But also, of course, you know, some of the obvious things that people struggle with is the anxiety, the depression habits that, you know, negatively affect them, like over or under-eating, like alcohol consumption or even like doom scrolling on your phone. So just these habits that a lot of us, you know, we don't necessarily talk about them, but if, you know, behind closed doors, we would recognize them in ourselves, you know, as just unhealthy. And so I think if that perpetuates, a lot of that can lead to hormonal disruption and you know, adrenal disruption. So then it becomes, you know, physiological and that can start affecting your mentality and your mood, and you know, maybe your friends and family, you know, don't want to be around you as much anymore. So it kind of spirals, and then all of a sudden you just feel all these areas of your life have sort of erupted into chaos.

Jennifer Johnson 5:49

So I'm curious, was there a moment in your life that really made you stand up and pay attention to this? And where you realized, you know, I'm not really working as fast towards what I wanted to, or I'm not reaching the goals that I wanted to in my timeline, that that kind of thing. What was what was your indicator?

MJ Stock 6:09

You know, this is an interesting question because for me, it was a little bit of the opposite, where instead of me taking a step back from my goals, a lot of it was I caught myself in just this high achiever mode where it was too much, too overwhelming. Like I would just work like a dog day and night and you know, didn't have much balance in life. And so I really started to watch these heavy ups and downs. And of course, I really believe in if you're going to achieve something or work towards something, those intentional, really strong blocks of hard work are important. But I think when it's a little bit more chaotic is when you don't plan the ups and you don't plan the downs. So you're just kind of going through that process of working until you can't anymore. And then whether it's your body, your mind, you know, your health and wellness, it crashes you. So I've just over the years, um, when I got into my business, I was really young. So I didn't quite have a handle on, you know, okay, I've had all this energy that I can give to this, but oh my gosh, it's just really wearing me down. And so I'd catch myself on these patterns.

Jennifer Johnson 7:35

So there's there's one thing of, you know, you're working towards a goal, like you said, and and you're just putting in the hours and pounding it out and getting to your goal. How do you distinguish between that, which is being productive, and then doing things that the activities that are not going to make you productive, but it's busy work. You feel like, you know, you're wearing that busy badge. Oh, I'm so busy, but it's not getting you anywhere. How do you distinguish between the two?

MJ Stock 8:05

Yeah. You know, I think someone would probably say the obvious answer would be um what is bringing the money in. But I I kind of go back and forth with this question because again, when I first started my business at a young age, I didn't really know the difference between, you know, what was going to work and what I was doing.

High Achievement Without Balance

MJ Stock 8:31

So there was so much that I did that was a waste of time and essentially, you know, would look as like failure. But at the time also, I didn't realize what was actually going to make the money. So you really do sometimes have to do something. Sometimes you don't know if it's the right thing. So you also have to gauge, okay, am I doing this because I'm using it as a vice to get out of other things? Am I busying my work because I don't want to make that phone call? Am I doing busy work because I have this long list of things that I actually need to do? That's hard. So I think really auditing between the hard stuff that you know is going to bring the money into your business and have like a tangible outcome, and then also trying things, but doing it maybe with a timeline or a sense of intention versus like this is what I have to do, and you know, I'm wasting four hours doing it, but it's not really paying off, and I don't really know what I'm doing. So just kind of being intentional.

Jennifer Johnson 9:46

You know, I'm I'm actually this is kind of funny. I'm having a thought in my head about this. It's kind of like as a first-time parent, when you have your first child, we're so naive, we have no idea what what lies ahead for us. So we're like, well, we're just gonna do it. It's very much like being a fur like a first-time entrepreneur. You don't really know what lies ahead, so we're very naive to that path. Absolutely.

MJ Stock 10:15

Absolutely.

Jennifer Johnson 10:16

So we just do what we think is right.

MJ Stock 10:18

Yes. And of course, that's where mentorship comes into play. Where, of course, if you can bounce something off of people, get a mentor. But the reality is there, is especially when you're first starting out, a lot of people don't know who to go to. They don't know what to even ask, they don't know, you know, even they don't have a path or trajectory that they're on. So, you know, I think a big part of that is understanding your vision is as a whole, even though you may not know how to get there, it's gonna give you a trajectory, um, which I think is huge, but at least you can kind of fill in the space and then you're working towards something, but you know, maybe with a goal in mind that you can talk to somebody about.

Jennifer Johnson 11:06

And and that's kind of the plus side of having the mentor because that mentor has been through it and they can see what lies ahead. Because another question that I was curious about was is how do you actually, you know, put pen to paper and evaluate each of the things that you're doing, like a almost like a time audit of what you're doing to make sure that the things that you're doing

Busy Work Versus Real Outcomes

Jennifer Johnson 11:31

are aligned with your goal and are going to be ones that move you forward, or you know, do you ever do something like that?

MJ Stock 11:39

Yeah, you know, I think with some of my habits, I try to get everything out of my head and onto paper. Um, so I really think just sort of laying everything out, whether you think it's gonna be worth it or not, um, and then just even the big stuff, the small stuff, getting it down. And then really, you know, a big part of it is I try to create timelines. So if there's something that I feel would be beneficial in my business, I really try to create a timeline as to when I can fit that in. So if it's this monster project that I have to take on, you know, I really think about okay, do I have the ability right now to do that? And how much money will be generated from that? So a lot of times we do things that don't really bring a return, or even if it's not a monetary gain, if if I'm not making connections or networking with people. So you kind of get stuck in these loops of doing things that only really you know that you're doing, and really only you know that you're doing in the business. So just something that you can, whether it's an internal fix or an external, just something that's going to tangibly be, you know, uh obvious to notice and just see when you can fit that in on the timeline. Because if you're so busy, you know, maybe do some some small things, um, you know, and and kind of fill the space with that, and then really prioritize when you can do those bigger chunks. So I think I think really prioritizing timelines as far as the calendar and your schedule goes, because so often we get caught up in this day-to-day process and we're not looking at those bigger things, nor are we doing some of these smaller projects that could really benefit us.

Jennifer Johnson 13:35

You know, um, as we're sitting here having this conversation, I'm thinking, well, there's also the idea of fear. Do you think that any part of this lends itself to being someone being fearful or being comfortable, perhaps if you look at it the other way, being comfortable in okay, I'm doing these tasks because I know how to do these well, and it doesn't require a lot of extra from me, or I'm fearful of success, because sometimes people have that. I can't remember the name of the book, but there was a book and an author that wrote about the fact that once you start seeing success, your temperature starts rising. Proverbial temperature starts rising, and then you go, Oh my gosh, uh, this is not comfortable, this is not comfortable, and then you cool yourself down and bring yourself back because that was uncomfortable. Is there any part of that that you think plays a role here?

MJ Stock 14:34

Yeah, of course. And uh I know what you're referring to, and um, you know, uh essentially that's just self-sabotage in a way, um, you know, just a different word to put on that, because a lot of people don't want to feel that they are holding themselves back or self-sabotaging themselves. So, you know, they do these things that side of sort of quietly do that. And honestly, it kind of goes back into my, you know, athletic

Timelines Time Audits And ROI

MJ Stock 15:01

competitive nature, where, you know, if you're doing something competitive, you're holding yourself to a standard or an outcome or a goal. And so I think that people that struggle with fear or self-sabotage, you know, may be afraid of the goals that they've put out there. And so I think a lot of it, you know, if you can put yourself into more of those situations where you shoot for something, you try something, you get positive feedback from it, I think the better you are going to be across the board. So uh that's kind of what I do with competition, where I do something where I'm like, gosh, this is a big, big thing to accomplish. And you sort of have to convince yourself that you're capable of doing that. So that's kind of how I use the competitive nature for me to build trust in myself. Because I think what it comes back down to is people don't trust in themselves that they can actually do what they've set out to do. So in business or in competition, if you can give yourself small wins or small goals where you can say, gosh, I was really supposed to call my accountant today and I just couldn't bring myself to do it because I know they were going to tell me something bad. You know, if you could think of that, like, oh no, right. So yes. So, like little stuff like that where it's a mental block, but if you can start to kind of look at it like maybe a little mental goal, mental competition with yourself, mental achievement of I have to do this, I've set this out that I have to do this, and doing whatever it takes, whatever your training requires to get you to do that, even something as stupid and simple as making a phone call, or as something as grandiose as, you know, entering into a fitness competition, there's little tangible steps that you have to reach along the timeline to then have that goal and really rise to the occasion. So I think when people set goals, it's the pressure that they feel that they're actually gonna have to hold themselves accountable and the self-discipline that it takes to get there.

Jennifer Johnson 17:33

That's very true. So once you I'm I'm gonna ask for for one step. Once you recognize that you're on that hamster wheel and you just keep going and going, what do you think the number one first step is that you should do?

MJ Stock 17:50

This is a toss-up because I want to say so many different things. I really strongly believe that when we're dysregulated in our system and life and the world is chaotic, and we just can't seem to get a grip. I really think that we should prioritize health and wellness. And what I mean by that especially is nutrition. So so often we're misguided as to what people think, feel, and believe is healthy. So we're over consuming caffeine, we're, you know, stimulated on energy drinks,

Fear Self Sabotage And Self Trust

MJ Stock 18:31

we're under-eating, you know, we're trying everybody's trying to lose weight, so nobody's eating anything. You know, so all of those things are going to disrupt what's happening inside, which essentially the internal will affect the external. So I think if you're heavily dysregulated, how much water have you been drinking? You know, do do Don't ask me that. Yes, exactly. Exactly. That's a that's a common thing, you know. And uh the reality is when we become dysregulated or feel like our world is chaotic, the main things that go are the main things that are going to keep us stable and alive, essentially. But, you know, eating and drinking water, deprioritizing alcohol as a vice, you know, just basic movement, things of that nature. But I really think a lot of it can stem from, you know, just supporting your mind and body with the nutritional side of things.

Jennifer Johnson 19:32

So there's a lot of talk about how you should be working on your business, not in your business, right? And we've we've all been to seminars or read books on it or taken classes on it, whatever. But how do you make that transition when you're already stretched thin and when you already feel like I don't everything seems urgent to be able to prioritize that above everything else? I know it was kind of two questions in one. Sure.

MJ Stock 20:07

You know, I don't want to give bad advice, but the reality is that everything seems urgent, but truly like everything is not urgent. And that's easier said than done, of course, especially when you're in the chaos. But and you know, in my life recently, we've been really experiencing this. So it's given me an opportunity to really focus in on my mindset because when something happens to you or your family, you realize, gosh, everything that I'm working on, it's it's not that urgent. So things in your life and priorities and values, core values that you have, will prioritize themselves. You know, it's the classic example of, you know, not putting your family first. So they'll always be banging on your door, you know, trying to get your attention. Same thing with, you know, health and wellness and nutrition. Like there's gonna be core values in your life that will prioritize themselves. So just remembering the balance between work and business and your goals and what you've set out to do, and the things that really truly matter to you, you know, your core values, because there has to be balance there. Because if not, naturally, you know, we're going to gravitate most likely

Regulate With Nutrition And Wellness

MJ Stock 21:31

to the things that make money, most likely to the things that are going to serve our selfish nature and selfish desire, which is fine as long as there's good quality balance. So I would say that's the that's the thing there is everything seems urgent, but it is not. So just really trying to meditate on that and giving yourself balance. Easier said than done, of course. So, you know, outside of you know, working in versus working on the business, I really like to work seasonally because of that balance. So people, when I first started doing that, and I'll kind of explain to you what I mean by that, but when I first started kind of this little ebb and flow being in or out or working on my business, people would kind of judge me for that because it's not normal to do, to say, all right, you guys, everything's functioning fine. But it's, you know, maybe it's not perfect, maybe it's not great, but I'm gonna take a step. Out or start to work on some of the back end stuff to hopefully, you know, uh improve when I am in my business. So a lot of times what I'll do when I work seasonally is for every business, I feel there's natural ebbs and flows throughout the year. So if you can capitalize on those ebbs and flows, like if business is booming and I feel like I really want to be a part of that, I'm gonna step in my business. I'm gonna be talking to people, I'm gonna be there, I'm gonna be networking, I'm gonna be making those relationships, I'm gonna be checking on everything. If business is slow for me, I'll be like, okay, well, this is natural. You know, there's maybe I've done everything I can do. And so since it's slow, I'm gonna take that as a time to step out and maybe work on the business so that when things are crazy and busy and fun and enjoyable and everything's flowing, that I can kind of see, you know, all of the what I've done on the back end. So, you know, just trying to really um improve systems, uh, things like that throughout the year, so that you can be in versus working on or working out of the business. Because again, with the balance and you know, prioritizing family, um really having those seasons, whether it's a week or a month, where you're just like, okay, guys, I'll see you later. You know, good luck. And and really that's a great strategy to audit your business because you know, you can see who is reliant on you, what's gonna go wrong, why are why are these things reliant on me? And then that's gonna help you when you do work on the business. You can put those systemizations in place, strategies in place,

Core Values And Seasonal Work Cycles

MJ Stock 24:31

SOPs in place of, hey, when I'm on vacation for a month, what the heck is gonna go wrong?

Jennifer Johnson 24:40

And I love this idea because I rare I I I think you're the first entrepreneur that I have heard talk about working seasonally in your business. It's a great concept because there's always a season or a reason, right? And you can have that in your business. It's taking a sabbatical for a little bit from your business. And this kind of goes into my my next question, which is about delegation. Where does delegation, and you've kind of already touched on this, but where does delegation fall in this whole realm?

MJ Stock 25:15

You know, that's interesting because uh it depends on if your business is just you and you're the main person doing the work, you know, making the money. So that's a lot of pressure on you. And you know, uh it's very easy for business owners to say, I'm the one that can do it the best, I'm the one that can make the most money, I'm the one that knows exactly what's going on. No one else sees the vision the way I do, you know. So it's very easy to just give yourself all that load. And then later on, we're like, gosh, I'm so busy. I have so much going on. And it's like you you gave it to yourself, you know. So when when you're the only one, I really think that that's when you are going to look at how can I systemate, systemize or automate my business. So using these things, um, you know, we we have so much technology these days. And I remember a time when I did not have my business uh more automated. So I was picking up the phone all the time, texting, like, oh, hang on, guys, I gotta, I gotta quit and do this, you know, because I thought that if it was automated, people were not going to like that. The reality is, is so many people like the automation. Majority of people don't want to jump on the phone with somebody, have a quick chat, and you know, then go on with their lives. A lot of people now in the age of tech, they they just want to log on and you know, maybe meet up some type of person. But so if if you're the only person doing the work, I would try to automate things. But in my case, what I feel blessed with is that I have brought people into my space. So with my gym, uh we have personal trainers that work under the roof. So with all those people, you know, I I really uh have believe in them and trust them. And so a lot of times, let's say I'm in the hamster whale or I'm chaotic, I'll reach out and I'll say, Hey guys, you know, this is how I'm feeling. Who who's willing to rise to the occasion? Or what are you guys capable of doing? And some people will, you know, raise their hand and say, Well, I'll I'll take on these three

Delegation Automation And Systems

MJ Stock 29:57

things, you know, and I I felt burdened by even saying, like, oh, can somebody help me out? You know, so it's a lot of people will rise to the occasion if you just kind of give them insight as to what's going on, how you're thinking or feeling. But a part of that also means including them in the vision and the grandmaster plan, you know, because so many people they'll they'll buy in to your vision and you'll see them rise to the occasion. So I think really uh bringing people into what you're trying to do versus trying to do it all by yourself.

Jennifer Johnson 30:34

I think that's great. So, what is business and what does life look like on the other side of the hamster wheel? I know everybody wants to know.

MJ Stock 30:44

I think this is great because I think it is so much less selfish. And I I know saying that, a lot of people will think, well, you know, I'm running a business and I'm making money, so I'm not being selfish because with the money I'm making, I'm supporting my family. You know, I'm dogging it out, but you know, there's food on the table, my family's happy, things like that. Although I think when you're in a state of chaos in the hamster wheel, you are so in your own bubble. So if someone comes over and says, Hey, MJ, I need you. I need you to show up in my life today. We are so much less likely to do that if we're just like drowning ourselves, right? So I think it's so healthy to want to get out of the hamster wheel so that you can have more time to be of service to others. You can be there when someone knocks on your door, you know, because if someone's in need and you're going through it yourself, you're gonna say, Oh, I'm I'm way too slammed. I'm sorry, I can't help right now. So I think that's important. Yes, yes. And I think figuring out a why, like what is your goal to get out of the hamster wheel? Right? What what outside of yourself, outside of having freedom, you know, what can you do with that spare time? So, you know, having hobbies, maybe you're going to church more, maybe you're being of service to your neighbor more, maybe you're reading more, you know, doing these things that you know in life you want to experience. So it I think it becomes more experiential versus you know, reactive, situational. I'm stuck in this world that I'm just kind of going day by day, and instead you're more maybe more planning to kind of live life. Right. Mm-hmm.

Jennifer Johnson 32:57

So as we start to wrap up, if someone is listening to this and they are feeling like they're completely trapped on that hamster wheel, what would be your one piece of advice to them?

MJ Stock 33:09

I would say probably years ago, I my advice would be so much different. Um, you know, I'd probably have advice that was like tangible, you know, that uh really logically made sense. But for me, as I've gotten older and as I've gotten off of the hamster wheel and really recognized what has actually worked for me when I was on the hamster wheel, my advice would be to pray. And I don't pray in a traditional way where, you know, I say a 10-second prayer and I go on with my day and just forget that there's a greater plan and everything's kind of laid out for me already. So it's so easy to forget that. So oftentimes what I'll do is have alone time and I'll go on a walk. And what I'll do is I'll just openly, you know, verbally talk. And whether it's me getting, you know, my thoughts out and I'm just talking to myself, or if I'm talking to God, or, you know, whatever your thing is, just going out and getting it out of out of your body and and verbalizing that what you're afraid of, what you've noticed. Lord, I am doom scrolling like crazy today. Take it away from me. You know, give me the strength, the clarity, the reason, the why to stop doing these things. So I think so frequently we are stuck in our patterns. We're not even telling ourselves that we're struggling. So if you're going out and you're going on a walk and you're just letting it all flow out of you, and you know, maybe it's emotional or you know, maybe you feel silly or you don't know what to talk about or whatever, just say stuff and and just you'll kind of see where where it takes you. And if that's you know not your style and and you don't want to walk down the road and talk to yourself, you know, journal

Thriving Through Service And Prayer

MJ Stock 35:06

or write. So just really kind of bringing that to light.

Jennifer Johnson 35:14

Just to get it out. Yeah. We're gonna move into the final four portion of our podcast. I love this section because I ask four questions of every guest that is on my show, and I usually get four completely different answers, and I love it. So, first question is what is your favorite book and what has made it stick with you?

MJ Stock 35:38

Oh, so I read a lot, a lot, a lot. So I I was kind of like, what book should I pick a past old good one? And you know, one actually that just popped into my mind because it's so uh perfect for this podcast, I feel like. And one that I I I would read it five times over is um it's called Dream to Destiny, and it's by Robert Morris. And it's a faith-based book, but it's so special because it was gifted to me. So someone, you know, someone that I love and trust said, Hey, I think this would be a good fit for your pursuits and your goals and the type of person that you are and what you have in your life. So for months I packed this book around, never read it, didn't I was on the hamster wheel essentially at that time. And I thought, why would I read this book that it's all about your vision and it's about your dream, and it's about, you know, I'm like, I'm working on my dream, I'm working on my goals. But that book really laid it out for me as like a step-by-step. This is what you ought to prioritize if you're going to live faith-oriented and just prioritize your faith. And then that compounds and will grow and develop your vision. So I really enjoyed that book because it really helped me rework my mind to where I got a sense of peace and clarity and just finally like it's not in my hands. I love it.

Jennifer Johnson 37:17

I love it. Do you have a favorite quote or piece of advice that you find yourself coming back to time and time again?

MJ Stock 37:26

So I would say my favorite is it's a it's a Bible verse and it's Proverbs 16, 9. And it says something like, a person plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps. So so frequently, and again, if if you're not religious, and I mean that's a great quote if you think about it. Like, whether whoever you believe in, whatever you believe in, you can figure out these steps on a day-to-day. You can be in the hamster wheel. But the reality is, is it's gonna go how it goes. You know, I

Books Habits And Family Wisdom

MJ Stock 38:06

I say this all the time where I plan out tomorrow, and I I got 16 things on my to-do list, and all of a sudden something goes catastrophically wrong. You can't even do one of those things. So, you know, you you wasted hours thinking about tomorrow when you could just be in today.

Jennifer Johnson 38:26

It's a great message, it is. What is one habit or practice that has genuinely changed your life?

MJ Stock 38:34

Genuinely, genuinely reading, reading. I was not a strong reader growing up. I actually was in, you know, the special class for reading to try to, you know, bring up my reading skills. Now you love it. I love it. And so it's so funny because and I think adults can even relate to this where it is a forced skill. You you have to force it, especially with technology and this day and age where everything is just you get the information within like 0.5 seconds, like truly. So I would say reading has helped just build my stamina, build my patience. It's given me an emotional and mental out. You know, even if you're reading about what you're trying to do, you're no longer heady and and trying to figure it out yourself, but you can get lost in the text and give yourself a break in a healthy way, versus you think you're giving yourself a break by just being on social media and all that stuff.

Jennifer Johnson 39:43

Right. We're not surprised. Right, because you feel worse that's right. And if you could have dinner with anyone. Right. If you could have dinner with anyone, who would it be and why?

MJ Stock 39:55

My grandparents. So my grandma and grandpa have passed away. Um, but now as I've grown older, I have realized the importance of talking with older generations and really just not being a know-it-all and just kind of sitting with people and learning about them, and especially with your family, because families are so separated now that we don't really even get to know our grandparents. Oftentimes we're separated from our parents, you know, whether that's a personal choice or just we're living cross-country or something's happened, or, you know. So I I really would say I would love now as more of an adult to be able to sit with my grandparents and and learn them and know them and try to ask them questions and get advice. So if anything, I would say uh the goal there, you know, with if I could have dinner with them would be, you know, getting to know your family more, more deep, you know, and and then not being surface level because so frequently we just know people for, you know, what we see versus really talking with them and getting to know your family and and your loved ones.

Jennifer Johnson 41:19

That is very true. You have shared some wonderful advice with our listeners today, MJ. I am so thankful that you were able to join us. If our listeners want to learn more from you, how do they get in touch with you?

MJ Stock 41:33

I would say right now the best way would be on Instagram, which is my handle is MJ Stock Official, or through my website, which has a informational form, all athleteswelcome.com.

Jennifer Johnson 41:50

Fabulous. Thank you so much, MJ.

MJ Stock 41:53

Thank you, Jennifer.

Jennifer Johnson 41:54

I really thank you to my audience.