Choosing Me: Walks and Boundaries

In this reflective holiday episode, I’m sharing what the last few months have taught me since launching this podcast—and what it truly looks like to commit to yourself without guilt. From year-end reflections and vision boarding to navigating a diabetes wellness journey and reimagining a dream life, this conversation weaves together the themes of self-trust, clarity, and intentional living.

I open up about a simple decision that turned into a powerful practice: committing to walking 25 miles each week. What began as movement quickly became a mirror—revealing how often my commitments have been driven by performance, obligation, or proving my worth to others, rather than honoring myself. Through this process, I’ve gained clarity around what I truly want in this next season: space, time freedom, and sustainable well-being.

As we move through the holidays and stand at the edge of a new year, this episode offers an invitation to pause. To reflect on what you’re carrying, what you’re ready to release, and where you may be called to choose yourself more intentionally. Because self-commitment doesn’t require a grand declaration—it can start quietly, with a single step, a small boundary, or a walk down the street.

May this conversation meet you exactly where you are and inspire you to step into the new year with clarity, grace, and intention.

Transcript

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Hey friend, I'm Tracy Strader, and welcome to Beyond the Brand. I'm all about real conversations, fresh perspectives, and those little aha moments that help us grow in business or life. Over the years, I've built a multi six figure online community by doing one simple thing. Bringing people together through open, honest storytelling. I've been coaching and mentoring entrepreneurs for nearly three decades. My passion is helping others find direction, balance, and healing, and creating spaces where people feel safe enough to just be real. Each week, I'll sit down with entrepreneurs, community leaders. And everyday dreamers who are out there living boldly and inspiring others to do the same. My personal stories, business knowledge, and life experiences will be woven into this podcast as well. So grab your coffee, get comfy, and let's go beyond the brand together. Hey, welcome back. Today I wanna chat with you a little bit about my life and the things that have been going on the last couple of months since launching this podcast. If you've been tuning in, then you know the discussions we've had. I've talked about my year end reflection process. I've shared my diabetes wellness journey. I've chatted about the power of vision boarding and manifesting the next chapter or season of your life into fruition. I've also discussed with you what a dream life looks like and how to spark your imagination to get all that you've hoped and dreamt for in your life. Nine weeks ago, I made a commitment to myself, and that commitment started with a simple walk down the street in my neighborhood. From there, it turned into me walking 25 miles per week. 'cause that sounded cool. I don't know exactly why 25 miles was the magic number, but that's where I landed. I committed to myself that I would walk 25 miles between Monday and Saturday. I recall thinking. That I should be able to walk three or four miles, six days a week and make it to that 25 mile mark. Through the process of walking and being connected to nature and its early morning sounds, I realized and had to come to terms with the fact that I've never really been fully committed to myself for anything of this kind of magnitude. My commitments have been to my husband, my children, my clients, our friends, or personal development. That, again, was performance driven and conditional. The only reason I went to college was because I had applied for a pharmaceutical sales rep job back in the early two thousands, and the recruiter told me that I was the most qualified for the position, but because I didn't have a degree, he couldn't offer me the job. I asked him if the degree needed to be in sales and marketing, and he replied, Nope, it could be underwater basket weeping. Basically, it was all about doing time and proving, that I had what it took to stick with something, as if being a teen mom and keeping and raising my baby didn't show my commitment and intestinal fortitude. Anyways, I was off and running and enrolled at Berry University to yet again prove my worthiness. I obtained a bachelor of science degree in professional administration in three years, and from there, launched a business with every decision I've learned more about myself, the things I like and the things that I don't like have become much clearer through the reflection process that I teach. This process is giving me clarity on how I wanna live and experience my life moving forward without feeling guilty for prioritizing myself and asking for the things that I want and need in my life. What I want and need are not really things or stuff. I want space and time freedom. It takes me about eight hours to walk 25 miles, and there are days I feel so guilty for taking that kind of time out of my week, and yet at the same time, staying committed to myself in this process has propelled me forward exponentially. It's weird. I'm getting more done in less time. I am realizing that choosing myself isn't selfish. It's actually having healthy boundaries. I better understand how necessary these kinds of boundaries are to achieve sustainable growth and happiness in my life. As we move through the holidays and begin to stand at the edge of the new year, everything around us invites reflection, what we're carrying, what we're grateful for, and what we're ready to release. This season can be loud, chaotic, and demanding, but it's also a chance to pause and reflect if you allow the time for it. It's a chance to ask yourself where you've been showing up for everyone else and where you might be ready to show up for yourself in a new way. Commitment doesn't have to look dramatic or perfectly planned. It can start quietly with a single choice, a small boundary, or even a simple walk down the street. As the new year unfolds, my hope is that you allow yourself space, time, and grace to choose what truly supports your wellbeing because when you honor yourself first, you don't lose anything. You gain clarity, peace, and the freedom to step into the next chapter with intention. That's what I got for you this week. Thank you for joining me. If there is anything about this episode that resonated with you, please do me a favor and take a screenshot of this podcast and post it on your stories and tag me at Tracy Strader. I would love to connect with you. So thank you in advance and I appreciate you. May your holidays be merry and bright, and I will see you next year. Merry Christmas.