Raise your hand if you have ever felt absolutely overwhelmed, drained, exhausted, depleted and basically like someone who you didn’t even recognize on the outside anymore? Like the “to do” list of life has literally taken over every waken moment and here you are trying to keep it all together, but really just feeling totally burnt out, possibly broken and not at all like yourself. Our inspirational and beautiful Red Bra Project guest, Jody Agard is a wife, mom of 2 boys, best selling author & self care coach who works exclusively with busy moms who want to feel less overwhelmed and more fulfilled. Now that sounds amazing! But, Jody didn’t just fall into this area of personal development accidentally she actively learned how to help herself first and then committed to helping others find the same fulfillment, calm and happiness that EVERY one should be able to experience.
Rewinding back to 2010 when Jody had an incredibly pivotal moment one night whilst cleaning up dinner and standing over her kitchen sink she heard herself yell at her boys and at that exact moment realized she didn’t like what she was hearing or who she was becoming. At the time, Jody was a single mom, working full time, not taking care of herself who always believed that her kids had to come first. She felt a tremendous feeling of overwhelm and just wanted to breathe. Something wasn’t working which is what she recognized as she felt completely depleted, she knew her life had to change. Not knowing how or what that looked like, she began with self care and learning to make self care her number #1 priority….yes, even with being a mom.
What happened from there?
Jody worked to drastically shift the belief of always putting her kids first to making sure that she is taken care of first. She discovered that then and only then can she truly take care of everybody else and low and behold became an even BETTER mom! Through practice, play and passion Jody learned how to put self care for herself first, release feelings of guilt, self doubt and the idea that “I’m a busy mom, I don’t have time for myself”. Jody has dramatically improved her life – all areas….health, career, relationships and even money by learning the significance of self care and how to apply it to a busy life. Which is exactly what she has been helping so many other busy moms do!
We are SO excited we had the opportunity to sit down with Jody and share her passion, a few tips & caring expertise with all of you!
Let’s start with self care. What do you typically think of when you think self care? Nails, massages, pricey facials? While all of those things are amazing, self care goes well beyond spa days and nail appointments. Self care is something that can be implemented every day, in the nooks & crannies of the day and cost absolutely nothing, but give you so much in return. Jody shares with us, “I LOVE working with my Clients and seeing their lives change right before my eyes! I love watching a busy mom or woman go from this idea that they don’t have time for self care, to seeing how easy it is to implement. I get excited to show others how practical self care can really be!”
Before we dive into some of the incredible tips Jody shared with us we feel it is important to reflect on a crucial part of the conversation we had with Jody. At one point before Jody had a blog, website, self care coaching business and a best selling book, Jody admits to actually hating writing. Yessss……she thought it just wasn’t her thing, at all. Then, as she was learning about how to change her own life and everything self care she continued to feel a tug at her heart to yes, you got it…write. As much as she was learning, she knew she had to share with other women. Unlike what society teaches us, it became her goal to normalize self care for the busy, modern day mom / woman! She leaned in, listened to that tug and the words flowed. Flowed right into countless resources, a life changing self care guide and words of hope for a more fulfilling, less chaotic feeling life that is within reach. It turns out that Jody didn’t hate writing, she actually loved it. She just had to write about what set her soul on fire!
So good, right?! Just when you think you know it all about yourself, when you allow yourself to listen to that little voice and you find the courage to follow it, it often leads to incredible destinations and opens doors you couldn’t have ever imagined.
A Few Self Care Tips That Can Be Implemented Today, From Jody
1. Self Care Ideas: a walk, taking a few minutes to sit down and breathe, calling a good friend for a power catch up, reading, listening to an inspiring podcast, a short meditation, stretch, put the phone down and look out the window to clear your thoughts, snuggle with your pet…Jody’s list of ideas is fantastic and ongoing!
2. Sprinkle Self Care In: it can be in 5 minute intervals throughout the day. Maybe you start with committing (1) five minute sprinkle self care session a day. The thing is it doesn’t have to be a long block of time to experience the results. Give it a try. (We love that Jody refers to it as “sprinkling” self care throughout the day. 😉
3. Transitional Self Care: Add in self care every time you change hats. Think about how many “hats” you wear in a day, quite a few right?! It can feel non – stop running from one task to another. IE: make breakfast, drop kids at school, do errands (not the fun kind), go to work, clean house, laundry, return messages, make appointments, take kids to activities, make dinner. From taxi driver to chef to career woman, the list can be daunting. How about adding in a little self care every time you switch hats? Even if just for two minutes before switching gears can add up to feeling more relaxed & refreshed for your next task!
4. Do it NOW: don’t wait. Don’t wait until you lose “x” pounds, until you get a new job, until this crazy week is over, until you get through this work project to apply self care. The secret is you MUST start NOW.
Ladies, this is just the tip of the iceberg! Jody has created numerous resources to help guide, create and implement the incredible powerful gift of self care. From a free Facebook group, Mommy Reboot Community where a group of open – hearted, non judgey moms come together to learn to group coaching, 1:1 coaching, a blog with a ton of GREAT, short posts packed with inspiring info and a best selling book, Mommy Reboot, A Busy Mom’s Guide to Self Care (available on Amazon) Jody is on a mission!!
Jody’s Red Bra Moment (Mission): “Putting myself out there and sharing this message every day. I have to be bold and support my fellow women despite my fears.”
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Speaking of fears, we all have them that’s for sure. One of our favorite questions we love to hear the answers from our guests is, “How do you push through fear?” Jody chooses to make friends with her fears. She knows they aren’t every really going away. She detaches herself personally from it and recognizes that fear is there to keep her playing safe and in her comfort zone; which is actually the harder and more uncomfortable road. “I need to expand, my soul craves it…so I lean into that,” she said.
Jody, you are making such a positive, powerful impact in our world day, especially for all of the moms. We were so honored to have you as our guest and encourage everyone who reads this to share it with another women who could use it, we know they’re many out there! Thank you for joining us!
Jody’s analogy is this, like a computer with too many tabs open (we’ve allllll been there!) it slows down, gets really sluggish and eventually crashes. CTRL + ALT + DELETE. We all can use a reboot from time to time. Catch episode 33 with Jody Regard, founder of Mommy Reboot for a great dose of daily inspo you can use to improve your happiness, health & lifestyle. Find Jody Here:
Thanks for stopping by, you are so appreciated! We hope this story inspired you or someone you know on some level. We know it did us, please share away. Always wear that red bra underneath it all and make sure to join the party over @theredbraproject!
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Xx,
Renee & Shawna
