Letting Go of the Perfect Outcome: Creating a Life That Feels Aligned: March BTS

Letting Go of the Perfect Outcome: Creating a Life That Feels Aligned

In this March Behind-the-Scenes episode of Clear & On Purpose, Christina sits down with K. Margaret for an honest conversation about intentional living, creative growth, and what it looks like to move forward without forcing the outcome.

As we transition into a new season, there’s a noticeable shift in energy — collectively and personally. Instead of operating from inherited structures, expectations, or pressure to “get it right,” this conversation explores what it means to consciously create a life that feels aligned.

Together, they reflect on:

• Moving from head-led decisions to heart-aligned action
• Letting go of attachment to a perfect result
• How creativity often expands when we loosen control
• The difference between operating inside limits and creating from possibility
• Seasonal living, recalibration, and embracing spring energy
• Why joy and non-attachment can actually enhance performance and growth

Through personal stories and real-time reflection, this episode invites you to step back, reconnect with your values, and consider where you may be forcing an outcome instead of allowing something new to emerge.

If you’ve been feeling:

• caught between structure and freedom
• ready for change but unsure how to move forward
• creatively restless
• attached to a specific outcome that feels heavy

This conversation offers perspective, clarity, and a gentle invitation to shift.

As we enter spring, this is your reminder: you can stay committed to what you want — without gripping so tightly that you lose the joy in the process.

🎧 Listen in and explore what it might look like to create instead of force.

Resources Mentioned:

• Join The Village: Click here to connect with our community.
• Sign up for the Momentum Challenge: Click here to get started.

Resources & Links

• Follow Christina @christinaslaback
• Email us at hello@christinaslaback.com
• www.christinaslaback.com

Transcript

  This month on clear and on purpose, we're talking about what it looks like to move forward without forcing the outcome. So many of us are used to building our lives from the structures we've inherited. What's expected, what's familiar, what's worked before. But lately we've been noticing a shift toward creating something more intentional from what actually feels aligned.

Even when that feels uncertain. In this behind the scenes conversation with Kay Margaret, we explore what it looks like to release the need for a perfect result and instead move from creativity, curiosity, and connection, and how that itself can open up entirely new possibilities.

Welcome to Clear and On Purpose. I'm Christina, and around here we slow down, get honest and talk about the real life moments that shape us each week. I share personal stories, perspective shifts, and simple truths to help you live with more intention and ease. I'm glad you're here.

 Hello, Christina. Welcome back. Nice to see you again. Happy March. How are you? 

I'm doing well. How about yourself? 

Same. We were just talking a little bit before we push record, how it still feels like this energy of 2026 that has brought lots of. Change in terms of like, I feel like the rule book has changed or the approach has changed, has carried through February.

Lots of highlights, lots of good things, lots of new ideas, but I am, yeah, definitely just a different vibe. 

Yeah. And I think that that's something that I am hearing across the board too, is that there's just a different energy and I think that we're kind of entering this new stage. And so moving away from some of like the collective patterns and things and moving more into this, like, individualistic, like actually reclaiming our own energy and kind of like you were talking about, pushing aside some of the.

Structures that we've been given, that we kind of inherited and just had. And so really leaning into this like, what's actually working for me? What do I wanna take forward? And I think that some of that, and I don't know if you're hearing any of this either, but if some of this can be a lot of upheaval, like there's just a little bit of 

Yes.

Anxiety, I think on a collective level right now, there's just,

well, change is new and change is not easy. And even if we understand cha change is good for us or that change is constant, wherever you wanna add all those phrases in, it's not easy. 

No. And I think that something that I've found that I can really take forward, and I think my entry in this into this year has been so.

Smooth and nice compared to, um, what I anticipated or what sometimes it'll be. And what I, what I think has really been helping is just leaning into practices that are really grounding me. Things that are really, setting kind of rhythms and moving into the areas that I want to, but doing it on. A really intuitive, intentional level and being able to bring more of that.

And I think as we move forward, you know, we're starting to move into spring, we're starting to move into the equinox and that like balance point again. Mm-hmm. And moving out of some of this reflective and some of that. So bringing in, but doing it gradually and bringing in some of these. Like, what am I clearing space for?

What am I, letting go of and what am I giving space to? Kind of like, what do I wanna start to germinate? What do I wanna start to incubate? What are the ideas? What are the practices? What are the habits that I kind of want to start to create? And bringing that more in so that I don't have. Control over the outside world.

I don't have control over all the chaos that's just going on everywhere. I don't have control over what other people do or what other people expect, but what I do have control over is how I'm gonna let that affect me. How much of that I'm gonna let in, how I'm going to move about my day, and what things I'm gonna choose to focus my energy on.

Because there's a lot of things that can be distracting. There's a lot of things that can take my energy. For me, just blocking out all the things that I know are not beneficial to me at this stage and really focusing on the things that I can control, the work that I wanna do, the impact that I wanna make in the world, and being able to focus on that and letting go of everything else has really just allowed me to intentionally kind of just move forward.

And I think that it's. Impacted all the rest of my life too, in that like, I am having a lot more fun. I am doing a lot more enjoyment. I'm, I'm feeling rested, and doing all this from a space of just not letting in all that chaos. 

That was fantastic. I hear two things really jump out to me. When you were talking that first kind of last month, we were talking about heart aligned actions and leading from the heart instead of the head.

And a lot of that feels like feeling your way into it in less of. What do I need? And then I also heard, which I've actually today especially been mulling over, is this idea of really owning the creativity that comes with building the life you want. A lot of times or in the past of, I like food, so what came to me is the food example.

Like I really prided myself in being able to create meals out of leftovers. And it's like, but that was kind of how I lived. Life too. Like here are the structure, like here are some pieces that are involved in my life. How do I create the most awesome thing from all these pieces that are here? Instead of looking at it as a whole blank canvas and going, cool, opportunity.

What can I create? And then incorporate all those things like making a decision and making it work for you instead of, you know, worrying about making a decision that works for you, if that makes sense. 

Yeah. I think what I'm hearing you say is that like going forward and having a little bit of that constraints, so having that open canvas of all the possibilities, but like you're saying, like using what I have.

Being able to have that as kind of a launchpad and to create creativity from there to be able to generate ideas, to generate feeling in your case, you know, like generate entire meals, right. 

But also to not let it be limiting. I think in the past I've let it limit me, whereas now with this fresh perspective, and I'm really looking forward to bringing it.

Those feel more like opportunities where before they were like, okay, here's the boundary of where I can play. And so now it's like, oh no, the boundary has opened up. Where, what, what, what do I wanna do? And then I can incorporate these different ingredients, so to speak. 

Yeah. I wonder, do you feel like I, when you're speaking and when you're talking about that.

Sometimes I think that being able to view those, like you're saying, like what could have been D Deter or viewed as limits or things that you were having to like bump up against, and being able to reframe the whole thing. Is it because you think that you are more intentionally choosing where those boundaries are so you are creating it or are you able to.

Take a different perspective and see, you know, sometimes they talk about how creativity actually evolves from limits. So saying, you know, I have to make a song and, and make it reach this three minutes, 30 seconds, like that in itself generates creativity even though it's a limit. 

Really good question. I think you just broke my brain with, I dunno that I have the answer.

I think it's more this year I've just been learning the way I was. Operating or doing things, it didn't best serve where I wanted to go. And so I'm being, I've opened the field in terms of, one, recognizing those instincts and aren't necessarily in alignment, but two, being open to other solutions. So the creativity.

It feels like a breath of fresh air and something to look forward to, but very scary at the same time. 'cause I, it, it feels a lot more, a little bit of practice what you preach where like the action, so we take, might fail, but then we can pivot and learn and keep going. So it's feels more heart led for me in terms of l living and less thinking first and then living.

Mm. Yeah, and I think that coming to it from that probably feels more freeing. And I think that both are contributing to that, right? Like being able to have the different perspective and then coming from this thing of like. Not overthinking it and just being and intentionally like living in it. And then that's generating more of that positive intention.

And then you're bringing more of those solutions that you might not have considered before. You're bringing in more of those opportunities that you might not have thought of before and they're just kind of like circling in and and building on each other. 

Right, which initially feels really. Confusing and off balance.

So I'm looking, when you said Equinox, I balance, I was like, ah, this is what I'm missing is like the pendulum swung way the other way. And I have to Yeah. Learn, find the ground. 

Well and moving away from, because it does feel chaotic, especially when we're moving away from something that's familiar, but.

In this example, like the familiar isn't necessarily like that's the comfort zone, that's safe space to expand beyond not 

the growth zone. Mm-hmm. 

And once you expand beyond that, it can be really disorienting. 

Mm-hmm. 

But being able to bring that in and have that become part of your new baseline and then using that to find that new balance point.

Right. And that's where, when you talk about spring, I get excited 'cause I feel like all of this. Cocooning of winter and confusion is just at the risk of using entirely too many analogies in one podcast, like The Fertile Soil for these new seeds to grow. And then I don't even, because it's a new base, I don't even, I can't even conceive of how good that could be.

Yeah. And you have so much more possibility because I think that over this past season of winter and whenever, a lot of what I've been doing too, is that clearing out of all the things that no, I don't want anymore. Mm-hmm. And like you're talking about, like creating that fertile environment for more opportunities to be able to come.

And now looking at this new point of like, as I'm establishing what this new balance line or balance and baseline is for me, how can I take that? And take what I've learned from before and be able to bring that in and then start to like bring in some of those like little ideas and things that I wanna start to incubate.

Doesn't mean that everything's gonna grow abundantly all at once. 'cause I think that that can be overwhelming too. So like, I'm planting all these things and now all of it's coming. But how can I start to incubate and, and start to bring in some of these other things that I might want to. Create and that I've made space for, but now I'm choosing and I get to kind of like be the gardener then that's choosing Yes.

The seeds that I'm planting and, being able to do that in the frame of like creating that overall life that you're desiring. 

Yes, and I, yeah. You're very good at always aligning with values, but I love how this is, feels like another perspective on the same conversation, but just opens it up. 'cause it allows for that creativity and that new energy and that, that spring feeling of like, okay, can get outside now and do something.

Yeah. You had mentioned something earlier and you said, like allowing you that space to try things out and to maybe not have everything work Exactly. Or, you know, to like fail. Um. And I am a huge Olympics nerd, so I have been spending couple of weeks just in like in, you've had so much fun with that.

And what I really just love about it is I love watching people pursue things that they desire and things that they want, and being able to see them go through and try something that's really hard and being able to like celebrate with them when they do it. And also like the comradery and everything that's that's involved in it.

And when they don't. Quite get where they want to, like seeing that part of it too. And I don't know if you've followed any of it all, or, Alyssa Li was a figure skater and I guess she retired like when she was 16 or something. She just got sick of it. It wasn't fun anymore. The pressure, whatever. And then about a year ago, she decided that she had gone on, she did all these different activities and, um.

Like climbing and whatever. And she went skiing one time and realized that she was getting like this adrenaline, like that energy was coming back from it. And she's like, that's exactly how I used to feel when I was skating and I was competing and I want to bring that back. So she went back and she went to her coach.

She was like, I wanna try again. He is like, no way. Like that's not gonna work. And she's like, oh, just let me try, like, I just wanna do it the way that I want to this time. And so she went through and did all this stuff too. Do it on her own terms, in her own way. She went to the Olympics and was just like, whatever happens, like it's great, it's fine.

Um, and she did amazing and she got the gold medal and whatever, but that's like, besides the point of it, because the attitude that she brought to it, and I, and I saw somebody had said that one of the things that she had said was, it's all just a story. And whether I am. Achieving what I wanted or what I had had meant to.

Or if I fail completely, like that's still part of the story and I'm just here for the story. And so either way I win, like it doesn't matter. And having that attitude of like, I. I am connected and I'm like committed to what I want, but I'm not attached to it. And I think we've had these conversations all the time of like, I'm aiming for something, I want something.

I have this big desire and intention. And also being able to bring that like non-attachment to it and just be, and I think that that allowed her in the moment to just soak up the moment that she was in and how amazing that, you know, then. Other people are able to witness that. 

That's an absolutely beautiful example.

We did get to watch her Gold when she was in that gold outfit, the one that won her the gold medal, the final one. And that's all we kept saying the whole time. This is amazing. 'cause the energy was so different, you know? Mm-hmm. In between her jumps, she was just, you know, happy and joyful. And energetic was the word my daughter used, but it was just.

You could tell that even in the small moments in between the difficult technical sections, she owned that feeling and she was, soaking it up and just enjoying it. And yeah, we say in our house, you can't beat somebody who's having fun. 

Seriously. And what a great reminder for all of us too to like have that and be like, yes.

It's a different way of getting there. 

Yes. And like, it's not that she wasn't working hard. I'm sure she was working very hard. Like she had spent all this time, she spent all of these hours and training, whatever, but she was doing it on her terms. And I think that, 'cause sometimes you can see, and I think especially in like figure skating and gymnastics and stuff like that, you can see the pressure mm-hmm.

That these, these young, often young kids are under and just like them crumbling under all of this weight of other people. The energy that she was able to just bring because she was doing it for her more so than anyone else. And she was the one that chose, like she wasn't just following along. She had taken that break.

And sometimes I think that we need that ability to just kind of step back, recalibrate. It doesn't mean, oh, this isn't meant for me anymore. It doesn't mean, oh, I have to give up on this thing that I thought that I wanted. It just means, no, I need to step back. 'cause I need to get a different perspective.

I need to try something else. I need to be able to connect. It's that feeling and that energy that I have, and then maybe I decide that that is what I want and I can go and pursue that in a different way. Or I decide that, you know what, actually this thing that I've been playing around with over here that's really interesting and exciting, and I'm gonna take these skills that I learned in this other area that I've been been working on and transfer them over to something else completely,

being able to be open to that instead of looking at things and being like, oh, this isn't going the way that I want it. This isn't what I thought that it was gonna look like, and now I'm just gonna have to push and grind and, and keep going to try to get what I want. To take that step back and just say, you know what?

Like, let's, let's hold it. Let's see, and find that spark and that joy again. 

Yeah. That's powerful and wonderfully inspirational and right on point, I think for this month. 

I know that we have been, you know, kind of focusing more on, on some discussion points about the time periods, but are there things that you are planning or wanting to incubate coming into this new season?

Are there things that you, behind the scenes are kind of moving forward or things that you're letting go of? 

Good question. I think I'm. In general, the conversation we just had trying to let go of creating this perfect outcome that I had in my head and allow more following my creativity. I'm creating a new freebie, like a spring energy checklist that I'm really excited about.

So I think overall my goal is just to get the word out more. What are different ways I can. Talk more about the work I love to do, get the message out so people know that I'm there, that kind of thing. So that's kind of been, my focus. I haven't been working on my second book as much and I really wanna finish that 'cause that brings me a lot of joy.

I goal this year is to publish more courses on Insight timer that seems to be popular. So I've been kind of repurposing some material that I used before that I think is valuable. Um. And then like you said, just being open to how can I, um, how you described it so well and the words are a loss for me.

Like how can I make that feeling the goal? Like I really enjoy the home energy work, but I had someone bring up recently that, well, what if you did that for corporate spaces? Same kind of idea, different angle. And so then I've been mulling about that. Trying to figure out what that offer would be, that's something I'm working on too.

Yeah. And being able to do those check-ins. I like that as we talk. And I think one of the things that I really find valuable in our conversations, is. Those check-in points and like, this is what I'm trying to 

do.

I've been journaling a lot more. And I keep my to-do list in my journal now, which is really funny. I just put a paper clip in so I can constantly flip back and look at it every day. Instead of having like a separate this side of the brain book and this side of the rain book, it's right now altogether.

That's really a great idea because I do constantly find myself, especially when I'm doing my morning pages, like half of it is just like ideas of things that I wanna do or things that I need to do. And so having those two together, I think that's a great idea. 

Not it just happened 'cause it was more setting aside, regular time to journal.

And then like you said, that's kind of what's on your brain too, so it all comes out. 

Right. Well, and your brain doesn't necessarily is like, oh, and now I'm speak strictly creative. And now 

how about you? 

Yeah, I think that, you know, I've been working on more collaborations and partnership opportunities.

I've been working on different ways of consolidating the work that I do with clients and being able to put that out in little bite-sized pieces for people to be able to resonate with, a little bit more. And honestly, I mean, as I've been looking in and thinking about, you know, okay, we have a few weeks until we really get into that spring energy, but.

For us up here. It was so nice last week and so it really got me excited for that. It's, it hold again. So that's a disappointment of another, but um, being able to start to look at and start to think about, what I want to incorporate in that time of year and, moving into spring and starting to get my mind towards, um.

What that means for me. And I think that like part of living seasonal for me, which I've been really trying to do more intentionally over the past few years, is looking at these places and these opportunities to be able to find those recalibration points. And so moving in and moving out of the winter months and moving into spring and summer and thinking about like, okay, well what is that?

Mean for me and what things can I do in my daily life to connect myself more with those cycles, to be able to be more in alignment with, the natural world and like being able to bring my energy along with it. Because I think that when I lean more into that, that I feel better. I feel like I'm more connected, I'm more grounded.

In the winter, having. The darkness and whatever, and having more of the cozy hobbies and the, warm drinks and the warm food and, allowing myself to rest a little bit more and doing some of that. In the spring as it's starting, I'm like, okay, you know what? I've been starting to.

Not be up because I usually will get up in the morning, but typically in the winter I'll get up and then like journal and meditate and do all of it in my cozy bed and like stay in that space for a little bit. I'm like, no, I think I wanna start moving where I start to get that sunlight, a little bit earlier.

You know, get outside, be moving some of that. Um, be able to. Clear out some more of the, the things that are in our house, you know, start to move into bringing in more of the plants and the greenery and all of those things, which I think is probably things that you talk about in your spring Reset checklist too.

Yeah. 

Light air in nature. You, 

you hit them all. Yeah. So bringing like all of those things, like what can I do in my physical environment, what can I do in my personal environment and like my routines and rhythms and the way that I'm eating, the way that I'm drinking, the way that I'm spending my time and start to bring into more of that, the way that we're spending our adventures and our energy.

And even like from a perspective of like my digital space too, because I feel like that's kind of gotten cluttered and I haven't been. 

Hmm 

as good about releasing some of that. And so like, okay, well taking maybe some of this time to do a little energy audit in those places and set myself up for spring energy and being able to bring some of that in.

And just like looking at it from that way, but like, what are just tiny little things. That individually don't take a lot of time. They don't take a lot of the digital reset. Depending on how intense I go, could take longer, but you know, like a lot of these things don't take a lot of time or energy. But when I add them in, they start to bring me into and like reconnect me with.

The magic that's happening in our world every day that's all around that I'm not necessarily connected to. It makes each day feel new instead of feeling like the same old, same old that I'm just living in treadmill, because I'm bringing in all these things. I think it's, the Japanese have like 72 micro seasons or something.

It's all like equitable. Oh wow. 

Write that 

down, which is so cool. But they're like looking for these just little things in every, you know, couple weeks they're in this new little micro season and looking at it and thinking, oh, well this, this, or this year is just gonna be the same or this, whatever. But being able to look at and identify and notice those different things and just adjusting my routines a little bit.

So it feels a little different. It feels a little fresh. It feels a little new. Mm-hmm. 

Yeah. Can I bother you for a card pull? They're so exciting. 

Yeah, I have,

I have happiness. 

Oh wow. 

And we got some dolphins and some sunshine here. And it's shimmering sunshine. Our sun is at the center of our solar system. Our planet and our lives revolve around its cycles of lights and dark. Our inner and outer biological rhythms, as well as the rhythms of every anate and inert part of life are ruled by this celestial force.

In the far past, the sun has been thought of as a God. Traditionally, it has been associated with happiness, joy, hope, enlightenment, illumination, truth, cheer, warmth, and goodwill. Additionally, sunlight is an expansive force. When something is heating up by the light of the sun, it enlarges without the energy of the sun.

Things contract. The sun carries the deepest energies of expansion in life. So to receive this card is to know that you are expanding. Click your heels and shout for joy. The signs are with you. Let your light shine. Abounding, good luck awaits you. A gateway is opening for even more joy and happiness. Your life is expanding.

Opportunities are emerging. This is the time to go forward with glee, love deeply and fully. Embrace life with open arms. Goodness is flowing to you. The only thing to be aware of is to monitor your expansion in a metered way. Too much, too fast can be overwhelming. 

Perfect for the way to start Spring, and I feel, I don't know why I feel like we may have had that card before.

Mm-hmm. But I think as we grow, you know how when you have a beloved book and you read it again and you read what you read, it feels different. Or you notice different de or favorite movie or whatever it is. 'cause you've changed, even though it hasn't changed. I felt that way when you were reading. I was like, oh, you know, it was almost like I could feel the sunshine pouring and felt like the seed myself.

It was really nice. 

Absolutely. I think it's, it's perfect and, and you know, monitoring your expansion, but having that connection, I think it fits with all the things that we've been talking about too, of just like connecting to that energy, that joy, that knowledge, that things are gonna be great and that I can just lean into that and not have to be pushing and, and forcing.

Amen. Well, thank you so much. This was wonderful. 

Thank you too. It's nice to see you. 

Thanks.

/

 One of the biggest threads that I found in this conversation was the shift from trying to make the right decision to allowing yourself to create something that works for you. When we're overly attached to a specific outcome, it often keeps us operating inside from familiar limits, pushing, forcing, or trying to optimize what's already there.

But when we loose that grip just a little bit, we create space for something new to emerge. Like we talked about, it's the difference between building your life from leftovers and stepping back to see the whole blank campus. You can stay committed to what you want while letting go of the idea that there's only one way to get there.

And sometimes that openness is what brings the joy and the creativity back into the process. As you move through the rest of your week, you might notice where am I trying to force an outcome and what might change if I allow myself to create instead? Thank you for tuning in.

Thank you for tuning in to clear and on purpose. If this conversation resonated, the best way to support the show is to rate, review or send it to someone who'd love it to. And if you wanna be the first to hear about new offerings or coaching spots, you can join the wait list@christinaslayback.com.

Until next time.