Gotta Love Family Podcast

My friend Livia read a book about Neal A. Maxwell. In the book, they used the phrase 'peaceful intensity' to describe how he managed his busy life. It’s a way of being that can be cultivated. It involves how we perceive what is happening in the moment. Maxwell said you can be busy but still function from a place of peace. As Livia and I talked I wondered, “How can those two words even go together?” I was intrigued by the idea and this unique phrase.

This is becuase I've been experiencing this place of busy peace in the last few years. It happens when I have this thought, STOP and TURN. In other words, shift how you see what is happening. When I listen and follow the thought I manage better. Even if the pace doesn’t slow down, my heart does. Imagine how life would be if this was our way of being most of the time.

Join me as I share what I have learned about living a life of peaceful intensity. I share two real-life experiences that will leave you wanting to know more.

Your love of learning and growing is a legacy you leave for your children. But how can you find the time to read, study, or write while raising a family? It can be a challenge, but I know it can be done becuase I am doing it now, amid the chaos of a four-generation home, caregiving, and a busy life. This is something we can all do.

Join me as I share an example of the importance of giving your children an example of learning and growth. This can be done by anyone, no matter your circumstances. Let me show you how!

My husband was watching the show The Irrational. It’s about a behavioral science professor who solves tough police cases. I was in the kitchen and could hear it. The main character had an appendix surgery. He tried to rise from his bed a few times because there was a case he wanted to get going on. His sister had to nag at him to remain in bed and heal. At one point the professor spoke with a priest, while still in the hospital. The priest said, “St. Stillness has visited you." Then he smiled and the professor replied, “Oh, stillness. I’m not very good at it.”

This intrigued me because one of my favorite scriptures is “Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10, from the Christian Bible. However, I, like the professor, must work to be still.

Join me as we explore how stillness is connected to rest and rejuvenation and how you, as a busy person, can have more rest in your life.

I have learned from lived experience that simple systems are usually the solution to difficult problems in time and life management. This was not an easy lesson to learn. In fact, understanding what a system looked like took some time. Join me as I help you understand what a simple system looks like and how it can be life-changing in your life and family.

This week, as I walked with my friends Livia and Alysia, the conversation turned to their teens and the issues surrounding accomplishing things at home. At one point, Livia mentioned the need for successful systems. I told them how interesting the conversation was because I was working on my article for today, and it was about creating systems that work. Life can be so serendipitous. : )

When I began speaking and teaching, I met a woman who became a friend and mentor, Kim Flynn. She was a systems specialist and helped me and other women find time to build businesses and successfully raise a family by using simple and workable systems. At the time, Kim had owned five successful businesses while raising her family.

I spent plenty of time in Kim’s home and with her children. I saw firsthand how well she did the very thing she taught others to do. During the time spent in Kim’s home, I noticed that she not only had simple and successful systems, but she had gotten her family to enroll in the systems and, for the most part, they used them successfully. I took notes. Join me and I will share them with you.