Get Your Spark Back - Part 1 of 3

Have you ever felt like you lost your spark?  Maybe you feel that way today.  I often hear people say, "I've lost my spark."  To them, it feels as if it's truly lost.

May today's episode remind you that your spark isn’t something outside of you, it’s inside you AND it's actually your responsibility to keep it alive.  

The good news is you have full control to get your spark back. 

This episode is a first of a series to teach you the "Art of Sweeping" a practice to keep your spark alive. 

Get ready to identify the thoughts and words that are diminishing your spark and learn how to get it back!

Enjoy!

Get Your Free Get Your Spark Back Workbook!

Episodes Mentioned:
Sweep Your Relationships

Learn more about Carla:  https:/www.carlareeves.com/

Connect on LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reevescarla/
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Explore Coaching with Carla:  https://bookme.name/carlareeves/lite/explore-coaching

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Learn more about Carla:
Website: https:/www.carlareeves.com/
Connect on LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reevescarla/
Connect on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@differentlythepodcast

Go to https://www.carlareeves.com/getunstuck.com to download Carla's on demand journaling workshop + exercise to help you stop spinning and start moving forward.

Explore Coaching with Carla: https://bookme.name/carlareeves/lite/explore-coaching

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

I'm Karla Reeves, and this is Differently. Whether you feel stuck in survival, navigating a change or seeking more for your life, may this podcast be your weekly nudge to take a risk to build a life that is uniquely bold, authentic and in alignment with your deepest values. After a decade of coaching individuals from corporate leaders to creative artists to multi-million dollar CEOs I'm convinced we are far closer than we realize to what we deeply desire, and it's a willingness to do differently that can change everything. Happy December Differently listeners. Have you ever felt like you've lost your spark? Maybe you feel that way today. Often, when people reach out to explore coaching with me, they express one of their greatest desires is to get their spark back To them. It feels as if it's lost and maybe never to return, and like it's something outside of them. You can think of your spark as your spirit, your vitality, your energy, your prana. Your spark isn't something outside of you, it's inside you. I have goodness for you. What I believe to be true is that it's not lost. It's inside of you and it's actually our responsibility to keep it alive. Unfortunately, we aren't taught this and a lot of life has likely happened, and when that happens, the experience can be that it's gone, but it's really just trapped under a pile of life. The good news is that you have full control to get your spark back. Today's episode and the next several, we're going to dive into how to get your spark back using the art of sweeping in different areas of your life.

Speaker 1: 1:52

Let's talk about sweeping for a minute. In my private life strategy coaching, one of the tools we talk about and use is the art of sweeping. Imagine how dusty your home would be if you hadn't dusted for months, or maybe even years. Would you even recognize that once remarkable furniture you treasured finding so many years ago? Or see the charm and appeal that drove you to buy your home to begin with? The same is true for your spark. It's natural for dust to build up over time and dim your spark, and over time that dust builds and builds and eventually prevents us from seeing or feeling our spark. These are things like negative thoughts or old ideas and beliefs that you hold about yourself and the world around you. Events, maybe, that left us discouraged or heartbroken. We don't address them at the time they happen, thinking oh, maybe it's not that big of a deal. But over time, all of these little and big things become the dust that clouds our access to our spark. The good news is, it doesn't have to be this way and there are specific steps you can take to restore the connection and the magic and keep your spark alive. The art of sweeping is something that my husband and I created out of a realization in our own life and marriage years ago that that magic that you feel when you first come together doesn't just fade away with time, but it's up to us to keep that alive, and that's true for relationships and also for our own vitality.

Speaker 1: 3:30

You can go back to that past episode called Sweep your Relationships. It's one of the very first, I think within the first 10 episodes of this podcast. If you're listening live, it's the end of the year and this sweeping practice is great to do at the end of the year to clear and make space for new things in your life, but honestly, it's a practice that, when incorporated on the regular, will help to elevate and maintain your energy and spark. In today's episode, we're going to talk specifically about sweeping your thoughts and words. Your thoughts and words create your world, what you allow to hang out in your mind and the words that you speak, that we speak in our daily life are shading our entire experience. This is one area where you have control and huge influence over.

Speaker 1: 4:20

One of the first places I go to when my energy or spark feels off is to my mind, and when my clients show up to a coaching call and feel like they've slipped or lost motivation or lost their spark, we always look back and kind of take an inventory. What happened since the last time we talked? Inevitably, without realizing it, something happened. Maybe it was something small a project went awry, or there was a conversation that left them upset, or simply thoughts that crept in and caused them to forget who they are and what they're up to. So we take a little inventory, and that's what I want you to consider today is sweeping your thoughts and words, and so let's first talk about what to sweep. These are things that you're going to take stock of.

Speaker 1: 5:08

Things like your thoughts. What thoughts are hanging around words and language, the way that we talk to ourselves and the way that we talk to others. What are the words that you use on the regular? Are they life giving or life diminishing? Think about these. Go to thoughts and phrases that we tell ourselves like I'm so busy or I don't have enough time. What we tell ourselves and affirm over and over about a situation has a huge impact.

Speaker 1: 5:39

Another thing to sweep is looking at assumptions. What assumptions are you making that give you what you see? For example, if I'm assuming people aren't going to like my ideas, I might shrink from sharing them. If I'm assuming my friend isn't interested in hanging out, I might not extend that invitation I so deeply want to extend. Another thing to sweep is beliefs. What are you believing about this new endeavor you're taking on, or this new client, or your marriage, or the future of your business? Taking stock of what you're currently believing about these things is a really important practice, because these beliefs are impacting you whether you realize it or not. Those are some ideas around what to sweep. When we're talking about our thoughts and our language.

Speaker 1: 6:31

Let's now talk about how to sweep. How to sweep? The best way is to get out a journal, a notebook, a sheet of paper and take a moment to check out what's been hanging out in your brain. If this sounds scary, I get it, but know that what's on the other side of doing this is so incredibly valuable. We all have cred that hangs out in our brain. The most important thing that we can do is to take ownership for clearing it out on a regular basis. You might start with a prompt, like what I've been thinking about lately is, or what I've been stewing about or worrying about or rehashing or ruminating on. Start with that prompt and then let your thoughts pour onto the page without judgment. Just let them flow out.

Speaker 1: 7:20

If you're a list maker, which I know many of you are, you might just make a list and you can even break them into categories like thoughts and language, beliefs, assumptions or stories. I'm telling myself and others, simply getting these things out and onto the page is a huge step and might be the only step you take, and that would be good. If you want to go further, after you've got it all down on the page, ask yourself some questions like which of these things do I want to keep? Because there might be some thoughts, some beliefs and ideas and assumptions that are actually helping you highlight or cross out the ones that are not. Ask yourself what do you want to let go of and what do you want to trade up? Are there things that you could trade up your thinking or language just ever so slightly? That would make a difference in the way that you respond and react and take action around those things. Play with this a little bit. As you change your thinking, what becomes possible as far as your actions, the possibilities open up significantly.

Speaker 1: 8:23

Then what you're going to want to do is choose one area. I choose one. You might choose one thought pattern that you want to focus on for the next week. Apply it to one area of life where you're wanting to see a positive shift and practice changing the way you think and talk in that particular area for the next week and watch what happens. Experiment and refine. As you go and rinse and repeat. As you do this as a regular practice, you're going to see patterns of thought and speech. These are great indicators of places where you might be stuck in some old, outdated beliefs and ways of thinking and surviving life.

Speaker 1: 9:02

There are times in my life, especially of late, where this practice is a weekly practice. I find when I'm starting something new or doing something that feels big, I have to work extra hard to slay the mental dragon. If this feels overwhelming which it could if you've never done this, this is a great time to get support, and this is where coaching comes in. In my foundational coaching program, we address this very first. We sweep your mind, your thought patterns, outdated beliefs and thinking and blind spots that have derailed you for years, so that your past is no longer defining your future and so that you can be free to build the life you know that you're here to live In this foundational program. You don't have to know how to do this. I guide you through the very steps and take out a lot of the heavy lifting. Coaching is great if you are someone who wants help, knows that you have some blind spots and you want to travel with greater velocity. 2024 just might be your year to do differently. Once you've cleared some of this initially, a regular practice of sweeping is far less daunting and highly effective.

Speaker 1: 10:16

So, as we complete this episode, in summary, sweeping your thoughts and your mind and your language starts with identifying, examining, getting it out of your head and then really choosing intentionally about what you're going to let hang out in your thoughts and in your language going forward. The next step is taking action, choosing just one thing to work on and focus on, and then refine, rinse and repeat. Be on the lookout for two or three more episodes where we're gonna dive into more ways to get your spark back and keep it alive. I'm working on some new things that I am getting very excited to share with you, so be on the lookout for those coming soon. And, just so that you know, I also have some private coaching spots opening in January and February. Be sure to secure your spot. And, in closing, imagine knowing how to sweep and clear the dust to keep your spark alive, and committing to a practice. This means that, as things happen, instead of brushing it aside, you address it simply directly and let it go.

Speaker 1: 11:24

The artist sweeping might sound corny to some, but it has the potential to change the quality of your life forever. I never thought it was possible to maintain your spark and energy for long periods of time, but guess what it is? Until next time, go do differently, I dare you. Hey, thanks for tuning into this episode of differently. I hope it stirred your thinking and I invite you to take one inspired action from something that stood out to you. If you wanna hear more conversations like this, be sure to hit follow on your favorite podcast app, and if this episode could impact someone you know, please help us spread the word and pass it along. Remember, new episodes drop weekly. See you next week.