by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Feb 5, 2021 | Life, Relationships, Wellbeing
“Life is available only in the present moment.”
― Thich Nhat Hanh
I’ve had a lot of conversations lately with individuals, parents, organizations and individuals who are struggling with relationships in one form or another. In each of these conversations we spent quite a bit of time talking about the power of presence.
The only time you will fully be able to experience life is in the present moment. When you are really present you are not engaged in time travel to the past, or to the future. It’s the only opportunity you will ever have to experience this moment in real time – we often underestimate the value of that. It offers you the opportunity to learn, to be curious, to let your body lead rather than your mind.
There is a vast difference between physical presence and the quality of your presence. Both are important, however, the latter is where the gold is.
As you go into the weekend notice the quality of your presence with your kids, with your partner, etc. How are YOU showing up?
Have you decided how a conversation will go before you have it? Have you decided what your child’s behaviour will be before it happens? Are you on devices or otherwise engaged while having a conversation with someone else?
If you answered yes to any of these I encourage you to try something different. Go into a conversation with curiosity and no expectations. Notice how it feels for you. Maybe there is a lesson in there for you.
Being in the moment is being fully alive, experiencing life in real-time it’s all about the power and quality of being fully present. We all want to feel like we are being heard, that we matter. The quality of our presence is a great way to show our employees, kids, partner, loved ones, etc that they are a priority – that they matter.
It’s not just about others, it’s also a great way to gauge how you are showing up in your own life.
Much love,
Jessie-Lynn
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Jan 1, 2021 | Life, Potential, Resilience, Wisdom
“Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars and see yourself running with them.” Marcus Aurelius
The first day of the new year always feels so fresh, like a big, beautiful canvas just waiting to be filled with your magic.
When I think back on the past year, it is like one big beautiful mess. It is a year that has rocked our worlds in so many ways. We have experienced such loss and grief on a global scale, tragedies that have impacted and united people around the world. Family and friends have divided over differing beliefs, compliance or non-compliance based on individual perceptions of their inner and outer worlds.
It has rocked people to their core, pushed people beyond their perceived edges of safety and yet when we take the time to dig deeper, there is so much more.
On the flip side, we have witnessed incredible innovation, potential, resilience, kindness, growth and we have witnessed people around the world coming together in the most beautiful ways.
I spent the morning reflecting on the things that both shaped and supported me throughout last year. I had to pivot my work as a self-employed, single parent when schools shut down in the spring. One of the most challenging things was not being able to see my Mom who lives in a retirement home that was in lock-down for several months, the death of two family members, my son getting COVID and the subsequent challenges of continuing long term effects.
These events have shaped how I showed up in my life this year. I have been rocked to the core, experienced fear and sadness so intensely and spent a great deal of time being comfortably (and at times uncomfortably) numb.
Yet these moments were surpassed by an incredible outpouring of love and support from others, my relationship with my son is so strong, my mom’s home has been successful at keeping COVID out of the home, my on-line coaching continues to thrive with clients around the world, I have been able to continue my volunteer work with women and children who have been trafficked, I love coaching kids and teens and we had a great launch for our ‘It’s Good To Be Me’ workshops for kids and teens.
So. Totally. Blessed.
I decided to take some time last night to reflect on things I appreciate about the past year. I received a beautiful journal as a Christmas gift (I am a journal junkie). The quote at the beginning of this post is the one I chose to put on the first page. I spent the evening doing a 10 x 10 exercise (it sounds technical, but I just made it up). I highly recommend taking the time to do this, it’s a gift to give yourself as you start the new year.
Here’s how you do it:
Choose 10 themes (for me I chose things like Mom, Friendships, Knowledge, Health, Personal Life, etc) and for each of these things write down 10 things about each of the themes you appreciate. Sounds simple enough right? I’m only halfway through because it is a beautiful, reflective way to close out 2020. I think this is something I will do at the end of/beginning of each year.
I love how fitting it is that hindsight really is 2020!
Wishing you all a spectacular year ahead filled with much love, laughter and wonderful adventures.
Much love,
Jessie-Lynn
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | May 14, 2020 | Children, Parenting, Wellbeing
Join us for a small group online exploration of the potential of exploring parenting from a different lens.
There are times when we feel like being a parent is the most rewarding gift, and other times, it can test everything we stand for. We can feel out of our depth, overwhelmed and highly reactive. In those truly challenging moments, we might question our ability as a parent.
If you’re tired, confused or simply curious about different ways to approach parenting, we invite you to look beyond the box of traditional parenting beliefs, techniques and theories and explore parenting from a more curious, and open perspective.
This is an opportunity to join a small group of parents from the comfort of your home as we delve beneath the surface of parenting and consider what might be possible for you and your family. We will be exploring parenting through a different lens knowing that when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.
Hosted by coaches Jessie-Lynn MacDonald and Michelle McCartan we will meet weekly online to connect, share, explore, and get curious. In this highly interactive workshop series we will explore:
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Uncovering our unquestioned ideas about parenting
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Navigating the emotional rollercoaster
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Dealing with parental guilt and fears
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Expectations and behaviour – parents and children
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The wonders of communication
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Creating wellbeing and resilience for all the family
We’ll bring this new parenting perspective to life by exploring your real-world parenting challenges enabling you to build a new foundation from which to parent now and into the future.
This is a time to share, explore and get curious about your parenting and relationship with your children. In this judgement-free environment, there will be a lot of opportunities to connect, reflect, engage, explore, and share.
WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT. Alongside the weekly workshops, you’ll receive extra videos, articles and audios that align with each step of our exploration as well as having access to your coaches for questions and clarity.
LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE. Our priority is to ensure you get the most out of our time together. We have decided to make this a very small, intimate group. If this sounds like it’s for you, or you would like to find out more, contact us and we’d love to connect.
SMALL GROUP ONLINE EXPLORATION STARTING TUESDAY 26TH MAY 2020.
6 WEEK ONLINE EXPLORATION- INTRODUCTORY PRICE OF £250 PER PERSON.
For more information please email: jessielynnmacdonald@gmail.com or michelle@michellemccartan.com
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Jan 7, 2020 | Life, Mental Health, Wellbeing, Wisdom
“Today Is The Most Important Day Of Our Lives.” – Thich Nhat Hanh
I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and are feeling recharged as we enter into a new decade.
Big changes have been happening over the past few months. In September of last year, I took the lead on an exciting new campaign in Canada – My Mental Health Rocks. This amazing campaign started in the UK is all about promoting wellbeing, resilience and raising awareness of our innate mental health and wellbeing in children, youth and teens. I’ll provide more details about that in a separate post.
This new role has taken all my focus and effort, as a result, I put The CPR of Life podcast on hold. I’m happy to be starting it up again next month with some fabulous new conversations focused on mental health and wellbeing.
For now, I want to share a few words with you as we enter 2020.
I see a lot of posts about resolutions, not having resolutions, what the new year means, etc. I wanted to share a few thoughts as we begin a new decade. Let this time be whatever best serves you moving forward in your life.
If it helps you to have resolutions go ahead and create a list, but leave room for the beauty of the unknown. Don’t get caught up in the anxiety of not meeting an expectation you created for yourself. If you have no desire to create a list then don’t.
There is so much magic in the unknown. Be curious, be open to new experiences, opinions, beliefs.
My wish for you as you start this decade is that you embrace your greatness. No-one can do you as good as you can, so you do you. Embrace all that you are beyond the stories you engage in – beyond the fears, the judgement and the criticism. You are a beautiful bundle of infinite potential.
Stop searching and start living. Often when working with clients they are striving for something, to be something, to have something. They are so focused on all the absence of things they are missing out on the most incredible gift we all have – the present moment. What about right now?
Be grateful for all that you are, you are enough, right now just as you are. Whatever you are searching for will not make you more amazing. I’m not saying don’t try to better yourself, to learn a new skill, etc. Just know that you are starting from a place of already being more than enough, just as you are.
Be more than kind to yourself, your inner being is always with you, it is the unique light that makes you literally one in 7.8 billion. Read that again, you are one in 7.8 billion! As you move forward in this decade embrace that unique statistic. Embrace all the things that make you so incredibly unique. Have more presence, find beauty in the ordinary, have amazing adventures and beautiful connections.
Cultivate the most extraordinary relationship with that inner being that is always with you. Ready to shine through the layers of judgement, criticism, the excuses, the stories. I promise you that it will be the most rewarding relationship you will ever have. It will be the most valuable way to spend your time as you move forward.
I wish you all much love, peace, gratitude, curiosity and presence as you begin 2020.
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Sep 20, 2019 | Deep Listening, entrepreneur, Leadership, public speaking, The CPR of Life Podcast
You can speak well if your tongue can deliver the message of your heart.” John Ford
Who doesn’t want to feel more comfortable speaking in public?
Whether presenting to an audience, pitching to clients or networking having a clear message is really important. In this episode, I chat with public speaking coach and the owner of ‘How to Present Training and Mentoring’ – Briohny Williams.
Some of the things we talk about:
- Being grounded in your message;
- Tips for presenting;
- Public speaking isn’t just about being on stage, for entrepreneurs it about every interaction; and
- Don’t hide, you have a purpose and a message – if you are in the service-based industry you are there to serve and help others.
Here is an important thing to remember: when you are speaking to an audience they are not there to see you – they are there to hear your message. Defining and refining your message is such a valuable investment of your time and energy.
Here are a few thought bomb takeaways:
- Public speaking is much more than presenting to thousands, it’s about being clear in your message whenever you are interacting, networking, engaging with others;
- Often fear of speaking isn’t about standing up in front of others, it can be fear of showing up, of having a voice, etc. tapping into this space helps address some of the reasons you may be hesitant to engage in speaking opportunities;
- As entrepreneurs we often overthink the notion of the ‘elevator pitch’, an easy fix for this is to take a bit of time and prepare so that your message comes from a space of truth rather than a sales pitch; and finally
- I like the analogy Bri mentioned about developing the skill of public speaking is much the same as when someone is mastering a craft whether that be an athlete, a musician, etc. There is much repetition, time and activity put into mastering their craft – once they do the work tends to become more effortless and there are many more opportunities on the flip side.
Briohny has a wonderful and very engaged FB group ‘Public Speaking for Entrepreneurs’. I highly recommend you check it out.
Until next time: Be well. Be inspired. Be You.
To listen to this episode on Podbean:
https://thecproflife.podbean.com/e/taking-the-fear-out-of-public-speaking/
To listen to this episode on iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/taking-the-fear-out-of-public-speaking/id1438553484?i=1000450432172
Much love,
Jessie-Lynn
To find out more about Briohny:
http://howtopresent.com
For more information on Briohny’s FB group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/presentationstoprofit/?source_id=168550113908668
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Sep 6, 2019 | Children, Mental Health, Parenting, The CPR of Life Podcast, Wellbeing
Hello my beautiful souls. Today I am so happy to share a beautiful conversation that everyone can benefit from listening to. I have a lovely chat with the founders of the My Mental Health Rocks campaign. This is a topic near and dear to my heart, I see the difference this conversation makes every day with others. Co-founders Leanne Macdonald and Julie Brown both work in the area of mental health and wellbeing. They are blazing the trail with this campaign. Their passion is evident and the difference they make in the lives of others is admirable.
In this episode we talk about:
- What the ‘My Mental Health Rocks’ initiative is;
- Raising awareness about mental health takes a village;
- Teaching versus exploring with children and youth; and
- Children are never broken and don’t need to be fixed.
My mental health rocks initiative really drives home the point that it takes a village. When that perspective is embraced amazing things can happen. I think the combination of Kids being Kind magazine and my mental health rocks initiative has the potential to make a huge impact.
Here are a few thought bomb takeaways:
- Teachers already have so many demands placed upon them. Adding the responsibility of emotional learning neither reasonable nor fair. Of course, there is so much emotional learning that already goes on in day to day life at school, but that should be based on what a child already knows.
- There is a difference between teaching versus exploring. Teachers have a set curriculum they have to follow. This initiative focuses on exploration – which is so fun, insightful and life-changing;
- Teachers have an incredible impact and responsibility. As Julie mentioned, everyone can remember a teacher, whether that be because of a negative or a life-changing experience. Teachers are definitely a crucial part of creating the future of our children; and
- This message is one every person needs to hear: you are not broken, life is limitless when it comes to potential and a reminder when you are struggling, whatever you are going through is a temporary experience. Knowing this makes life flow in a much more natural and less stressful way.
Until next time: Be well. Be inspired. Be You.
To listen to the podcast on Podbean:
https://thecproflife.podbean.com/e/my-mental-health-rocks-episode-33/
To listen to the podcast on iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/my-mental-health-rocks-episode-33/id1438553484?i=1000448770991
Much love,
Jessie-Lynn
To find out more about My Mental Health Rocks:
https://www.mymentalhealthrocks.com/
https://www.facebook.com/mymentalhealthrocks/
To find out more about Kids Being Kind Magazine:
https://www.kidsbeingkindmagazine.com/
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Aug 23, 2019 | Be You, Children, Mental Health, The CPR of Life Podcast, Wellbeing
“Children are likely to live up to what you believe of them.” — Lady Bird Johnson
Working with children is an absolute passion for me. There is magic in each and every child. It’s an honour to be in the presence of children and young people. It’s a gift to have conversations where we get to highlight their wellbeing. In this episode, I chat with Vicky Otter, a former teacher who followed her passion and now works as a wellbeing coach and facilitator. Vicky’s enthusiasm for all she does is evident. Vicky has such a lovely presence.
In this conversation we talk about:
- Running a workshop without a set agenda;
- The power of connection, when you are completely present in the moment, with little attachment to the outcome true connection is powerful.
- All feelings are okay; and
- The benefits of having a ‘come as you are’ conversation.
I’m so happy to have connected with Vicky. She has such a beautiful heart and passion for what she does. It’s nice to exchange ideas and takeaways. This conversation was a beautiful example of the power of connection and the beauty of conversation.
Here are a few thought bomb takeaways:
- There are huge benefits to having a loose agenda for a workshop, doing so creates the opportunity for the participants to explore their own creativity;
- Listen to yourself, that’s where the wisdom is;
- In conversations the speaker often has a purpose in what they are sharing, what we often forget is that the listener will receive the information from their own personal lens – it is through that lens that they will hear the message; and
- The power of connection is immeasurable when you are truly present you give the opportunity for those you work with or are conversing with to feel like they matter. As Vicky said with her pilot project, they came together as strangers and left as friends.
Children are so authentic. Take life with a pinch of sparkle…Best advice ever.
Until next time be well, be inspired, be you.
To listen to this episode on Podbean:
https://thecproflife.podbean.com/e/highlighting-childrens-wellbeing-episode-32/
To listen to this episode on iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/highlighting-childrens-wellbeing-episode-32/id1438553484?i=1000447626857
To find out more about Vicky:
https://www.innateconnection.org.uk/?fbclid=IwAR0BD7228BAaLpu7sKcTqUviyVtYsSaVMszG_gEmt7sO_oX-r6QJueJUN7o
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Aug 10, 2019 | Leadership, The CPR of Life Podcast, Wisdom
Leadership is at the forefront of global discussions right now. To me, it’s not just about leadership in the present moment, it’s about the legacy.
“You were born with potential. You were born with goodness & trust. You were born with ideals & dreams. You were born with greatness. You were born with wings. You are not meant for crawling. So don’t. You have wings. Learn to use them and fly.” – Rumi
How will your actions impact the future? What is your message? What kind of culture do you want to create?
I loved chatting with Robert Heath about his vision of legacy leadership. He is a passionate and dedicated individual who has visions of creating a legacy of leaders. Robert is a former teacher, lawyer and US marine corps officer about his amazing transition to being an author, empowerment speaker and leadership development coach.
In this episode we talk about:
- Living a life with an enquiring mind,
- Robert’s book,
- What is leadership and what makes a good leader;
- The power of seeking and understand the world through various perspectives;
- Interdependence is the space where interconnectedness and creativity happens; and
- Managing people versus leading people.
Robert’s passion is so evident in this conversation. I love his movement toward legacy leadership. I look forward to seeing what transpires through Robert’s work.
Here are a few thought bomb takeaways:
- Leveraging talent and delegation paves the way to do more in less time and facilitates and foster the growth of others. This is the space where overall exponential growth happens;
- Prioritizing, having clearly defined and communicated systems and boundaries and working from a proactive approach leads to a less stressful, more productive, and dedicated company culture;
- A leader is one who embraces personal growth and cultivates it in others. It is about facilitating the manifestation of the greatness in others; and
- Great leadership embraces the aspect of legacy. As Robert says when we empower people to be their greatest selves, we don’t just change them, we change everybody that gets to benefit from their gift.
FREE GIFT!! Robert has kindly offered the listeners of this podcast a free e-copy of his book: “Why Can’t People Just Do Their Jobs? The Empowering Leader’s Guide to Having More Fulfillment, Less Stress, and Getting the Best Out of Those You Lead.”
I would highly recommend you reach out to Robert and take him up on this kind offer. His email is:
robert@legacyleadershipmastery.com
To listen to the podcast on Podbean:
https://thecproflife.podbean.com/e/the-power-of-legacy-in-leadership-development/
To listen to the podcast on iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-cpr-of-life/id1438553484
Until next time: Be well. Be inspired. Be You.
Much love, Jessie-Lynn
To reach Robert:
https://legacyleadershipmastery.com/home
To buy a copy of Robert’s book:
https://www.amazon.com/Cant-People-Just-Their-Jobs/dp/1795195630/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=why+can%27t+people+just+do+their+jobs&qid=1565463168&s=gateway&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.ca/Cant-People-Just-Their-Jobs/dp/1795195630/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1565463235&sr=8-3
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Jul 25, 2019 | Life, Resilience, Self-Love, state of mind, The CPR of Life Podcast, Wellbeing, Wisdom
Life is a journey. Depending on the stage we are at, we may be discovering something new about ourselves or rediscovering something we touched on at another time in our journey. In this podcast episode, my guest is author and coach Ankush Jain.
It’s a wonderful and easy read. It was great to talk to Ankush about writing a book and the wisdom behind rediscovering (or discovering) who you really are.
We talk about:
- Why Ankush wrote the book;
- The process and challenges of writing a book;
- The ebb and flow of life; and
- How transformation is at the heart of everything Ankush does in his work.
As I mentioned I recommend this book, it is an easy read filled with gorgeous nuggets. It’s always nice to hear the background of how and why a book is written.
Here are a few thought bomb takeaways:
- Our reality is a reflection of our thinking moment to moment. There is a tremendous benefit to tapping into who we were before getting caught up in our thinking;
- Younger children show up unfiltered, without a lot of thinking about who they are (or are not), how they are showing up, etc. When we learn how our reality is created we are more likely to tap back into this unfiltered presence; and
- When being of service is at the heart of your coaching business (and really for any business in general) clients feel that and are more likely to gain insight and experience of transformation.
I hope you enjoy this conversation.
To listen to the podcast on Podbean:
https://thecproflife.podbean.com/e/rediscovering-who-you-really-are/
To listen to the podcast on iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/rediscovering-who-you-really-are/id1438553484?i=1000445340272
Until next time: Be well. Be inspired. Be You.
Much love, Jessie-Lynn
To reach Ankush or to access the many valuable resources he has on his webpage:
https://ankushjain.co.uk/
Ankush’s Book “Sweet Sharing”
https://www.amazon.com/Sweet-Sharing-Rediscovering-REAL-You/dp/1796646830/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2ULLM1LJ4YR5E&keywords=sweet+sharing+ankush+jain&qid=1564112912&s=gateway&sprefix=sweet+sharing+ankush+j%2Caps%2C283&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.ca/Sweet-Sharing-Rediscovering-REAL-You/dp/1796646830/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1564113832&sr=8-1
by Jessie-Lynn MacDonald | Jul 12, 2019 | Deep Listening, Love, Self-Love, state of mind, The CPR of Life Podcast, Wellbeing
You not only are loved, you ARE love.
What do you think of when you hear self-love? I have been having a lot of beautiful conversations with my clients about this. Like my clients, it’s also a journey I spent a lot of my life in search of. For many years I like so many people thought of self-love as a state to get to. What if you have been looking in the wrong direction? What if your journey is futile? I invite you to consider that YOU ARE LOVE. What if there is no journey to go on nor a place to get to?
In this conversation, my guest Phil Goddard and I are taking a deep dive into the topic of love. Phil is a romantic at heart who has written a couple of books about love. I was intrigued to hear more about his journey, why love and how he brings this into his coaching practice.
In this episode we talk about:
- Why Phil embarked on a journey to understand love;
- What self-love is and what it is not;
- Why life is more enjoyable and fun when we stop searching; and
- The innate wisdom within every human being.
This timing of this conversation was serendipitous as it echoed the conversations I’d been having with my clients. I have seen a change in Phil’s dance with the concept of love over the past few years. It was fun to have the opportunity to connect with him.
Here are a few thought bomb takeaways:
- What would love do? It is a great question when you are stuck, struggling or unsure of something, reflecting on this question can bring more clarity about the situation. It’s the type of inquiry that brings out the best in us;
- Love is something we define through our own personal lens. That lens changes from moment to moment. Knowing that love is an idea allows us to approach it in a lighthearted and fun way;
- When we are feeling stuck, heartbroken, depressed, etc., it is a gift to share that this moment and more so the feelings are transient and will pass; and
- I loved our discussion around the concept of self-love. When you are searching or embarking on a journey of self-love it is really a denial of accepting or embracing the love that is innate and lies within.
To listen to this episode on Podbean:
https://thecproflife.podbean.com/e/self-love-a-discovery-or-a-journey/
To listen to this episode on iTunes:
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/self-love-a-discovery-or-a-journey/id1438553484?i=1000444273429
Until next time: Be well. Be inspired. Be You.
Much love,
Jessie-Lynn
To get in touch with Phil:
Facebook: Fbphil.com
Website: philg.com
