Unicorns, Dance Parties, And The Power Of Micro Moments (Vault)

We share 10 lessons Jo learns from her daughter Stella that cut through self-doubt and bring you back to what matters. We turn unicorns, poopy corns, dance parties, and hugs into practical mindset shifts for balance, mood, and connection. 
• choosing belief over other people’s limits 
• finding the gift inside hard seasons 
• adding colour and brightness to your day 
• leaning on classic self-care that actually works 
• using movement to change your mood fast 
• deciding how you want to feel regardless of circumstances 
• focusing on small things that create big change 
• giving yourself permission to ask for what you want 
• learning to feel deeply instead of numbing with busyness 
• building relationships through micro moments of real presence 
If this resonated, share it with a friend who needs to hear it today. 
And don't forget to subscribe to Balance and Beyond for full episodes and more of these bite sized breakthroughs. 

The Balance & Beyond Podcast Hosted by Jo Stone, founder of The Balance Institute

For women who are already succeeding, but beginning to wonder if they're willing to keep losing themselves in the process.

We know high achievers, because we are one. This podcast draws on Jo's 20 years in global leadership and thousands of hours coaching executives and ambitious women: the patterns she sees, how to untangle them, and what it actually takes to keep your success without paying for it with yourself.

If something landed today, there's more where that came from.

And if you know a woman this would resonate with, send it her way.

🎙️https://www.balanceinstitute.com/podcast
🔗 www.balanceinstitute.com
💼https://au.linkedin.com/in/stonejoanne
📷 @therealjostone

Transcript

Believe In What You Want

Find The Gift In Struggle

Add Colour And Sparkle

Classic Self-Care That Works

Move Your Body To Shift Mood

Choose Your Mood Over Circumstances

Small Things Make Big Shifts

Ask For What You Want

Feel Deeply Without Numbing

Hugs And Micro Moments Of Connection

Share And Subscribe

Jo Stone (Host) 0:28

Welcome to Balance and Beyond Moments, your weekly dose of insight, wisdom, and mindset shifts, all in 10 minutes or less. Whether it's a powerful truth, a fresh perspective, or a spark of inspiration, this is your space to pause, reflect, and reset. Let's dive in. Now we all know that if you've had kids or you've been around kids, they can be our greatest teachers. So in honor of my little one who's called Stella, I wanted to share with you 10 lessons that I have learned from her over the years. And lesson number one: unicorns are real. Do not believe anyone who tells you otherwise. She's adamant. I still remember the day she said to me, Mummy, I want a mermaid corn. They don't exist. Well, lo and behold, at the Easter show, we came across a mermaid unicorn. So the lesson here for you that I invite you to take on board. Don't believe what other people tell you. Particularly when it comes to things like having balance or having the life that you want. She has zero doubt. She is 100% mind, body, soul aligned that these things are real and you need to be the same with what you want, or else you are not going to get it. Now, lesson number two is also around unicorns. And lesson number two is that a poopy corn can make everything better. Stella came home recently with a little squishy toy, which seemed to be all the rage, and it was a poop emoji, and it had a horn. And I said, What is that? And she said, Mummy, it's a poopy corn. The lesson here is, what is the gift in your struggles? Very often when clients come to me, they find themselves in what we call the poop pond, where life is a bit challenging, where things feel a bit murky and it can feel like you're swimming and poop. Is there a secret poopy corn waiting for you on the other side? And very often that is where the greatest gifts are. The greatest gifts are in our struggles, they're in our challenges, they're in solving our problems. So the next time you're suffering, just ask yourself, how can I turn this into a poopy corn? Lesson number three is that life should be lived in colour. Rainbows, pink, sparkles, glitter make every day more fun, and they should without question be an essential component of any outfit. I still remember the day we took Stella shopping for her first black school shoes, and we had a tanty in the shop because she said, Why are they all black? Black is boring. I want rainbow shoes. And I looked at her and thought, hmm, you've got a point. They are all black and they are all boring. And so many women I meet are wearing black because they're a bit scared to wear colour. They're a bit scared to stand out. They just want to blend into the background. The question I have for you today is: where can you add some color or brightness into your day when it is often surrounded by grey and neutral tones? Can you be a bit brighter for those around you? Can you put on some nice big earrings? Can you find a nice tree? Can you bring in some color or some sparkle into your life? So it life doesn't always have to be so serious. Lesson number four is that there are values in the classics. Some of Stella's favorite songs over the last few years. We've had some Michael Jackson. There's been some Elton John. And if we bring this to one thing most women need the most is, you know, is there a simple piece of self-care that's a classic that you've forgotten about? You're going for a walk for five minutes. Can you light a candle when you take a shower or a bath or sit by your desk? Sometimes the classic ways to nourish our body are actually the best. So what's a classic way of looking after yourself, of having fun, of doing something you enjoy that are gonna make your day much better? Lesson number five is to have more dance parties. At the slightest hint of a beat, Stella is up and she is grooving like nobody is watching. In the car, she boogies, she walks past a shop and she hears a beat and she makes it a shuffle. She knows that music makes her feel good and she knows how to get herself out of a funk. So my question to you and the lesson you can take from Stella here is how can you bring more movement into your day to groove a little more to get you out of a slump? Hacking your physiology is actually one of the fastest ways to change your mood. You can't think your way out of grumpiness. You need to move, you need to move your arms, you need to move your body. And when it's very easy to spend our entire day slumped over a laptop or at a desk feeling like we've got to punch out XYZ stuff before we can ever do anything. But you know, jumping up, putting on one song and having a bit of a boogie will elevate your mood way better than a glass of wine or some chocolate or perhaps some of those other things that you're doing to try to make you feel better. Lesson number six here is stuff the weather. Stella decides what she wants to wear first based on how she feels and then checks outside. A few years ago in Palm Springs in the US in July, where it was 45 degrees outside, and she put on trackies and a jumper and said, This is what I feel like wearing. Likewise, in winter, she's put on a leotard and gone, this is what I feel like wearing. Now, as a grown-up, sometimes we have a parental responsibility to make sure that our clothing is weather appropriate. But the lesson here for you is how different would your mood be if it wasn't impacted by the weather? I know so many women check their inbox first and then decide how they want to feel. Oh my god, a day of back to bags. Oh, I'm gonna be so tired. And then that sets their mood. Instead of waking up and saying, Well, how do I really feel? How do I want to feel today? Okay, day of back to backs, right? Well, there's a three-minute break there for a dance party. The world changes when you decide I'm gonna be happy today and stuff the circumstances. Lesson number seven is that the little things make a big difference. If Stella was an animal, she would be a bower bird. Since birth, this child has been holding tiny, shiny objects in her hands. I still remember one day when she was maybe about 18 months old, she used to always walk around with clenched fists, but she had stuff in them. And we prized open her fingers as you went to put her to bed, and we counted 26 little tiny blocks of Lego. You know, those little tiny wanas, and they were all different colours, and some were the shiny ones, and some had holes in them, and some were clear, and she had little flowers, little Lego flowers in her hands. She knows that little things make her happy. So your lesson here is how do you switch your focus from searching for this big thing instead of actually recognizing that small changes are really what makes a difference in life. So, where can you find a small thing? What can you do that's gonna make the shift? Lesson number eight is that nachos should be eaten every night for dinner. Yeah, sure, you know, nutrition, vitamins, and all that, health, but that doesn't stop Stella asking for nachos almost every night. Now, sometimes she does get nachos if there's leftovers because have permission to ask for what you want. And so many women who I talk to don't ever feel like they're not meant to have that thing or they shouldn't be doing that thing, or it's not the right thing. How much fun could life be if you occasionally let yourself break the rules and did something just for fun? And who decides what's right anyway? If I decide that I want the fun thing, well, what I choose for dinner is gonna be very different to what is the right thing by whose determination? A 1950s housewife, my mother, society? I mean, we can never align to any of those, so stuff that. How about you start doing a little bit more of what you want? Lesson number nine, feel deeply. Stella is a highly sensitive child, and every day always gives me this constant reminder to tap into my feelings. You know, when she feels sad, she doesn't just get a bit sad, she feels very sad. And I've come from quite a long line of non-feelers. I've got English and Irish heritage, so maybe a bit of guilt. And I have been on this really fascinating journey of actually tapping into what's going on inside me and not shoving it down. Sometimes we just spend too much energy trying to actually numb it. So the lesson for you today is how could you learn to better feel your feelings and not numb them by being busy? What if you could let go of the resentment, the anger, and start feeling more joy, start feeling more bliss? And that's one thing this child can do, man. When she is happy, she is delightful. So how do you start feeling more deeply? But open up to this joy and this fun. And then lesson number 10 is that the best way to start the day is with a hug. The best kinds for Stella are the ones under the covers. She still creeps into bed. And the lesson here is to never forget the power of a micro moment in connecting with the people around you. And I see too many people getting this, yeah, yeah, yeah, because off you go, off you go, off you go, sort of tiny little pat pat pat. And there's no real connection there because yeah, yeah, I'm busy, I'm busy, and they're already, you know, writing the next email or they're about to jump on a call. And I get that, I'm busy too. But there is something magical in waking up in the morning or seeing your child for the first time, you know, after you've picked them up from school or seen them in the evening, and actually getting down on their level and being truly present, putting everything else to the side and saying, hello, how was your date? Give me a hug, and actually hugging them and feeling them. It doesn't have to be a four-hour date night. It doesn't have to be this full big planned family outing with the picnic and kumbaya moments. And whether this is with a friend or a partner or your kids, never ever underestimate the importance of these tiny micro moments. We can very easily in our intimate relationships fall into transactional nature. And that's really tough because then all the love can start to fade and we wonder why we're here. So they are the lessons from Stella that I would really encourage you to take on board today. So unicorns are real, poopy corns can make everything better. Life should be lived in color. There's absolute value in the classics. Have more dance parties, stuff the weather, the little things make a big difference. Nacho should be eaten every night for dinner. Feel deeply, and the best way to start the day is with a hug. Thanks for taking this moment for yourself. If this resonated, share it with a friend who needs to hear it today. And don't forget to subscribe to Balance and Beyond for full episodes and more of these bite sized breakthroughs. See you next time.