Episode 7 Transcript:
Hello everyone, welcome back to the show. Thanks so much for being here. Okay, so today's episode is something that has been on my mind for many years that I think about often, especially around like holidays, Black Friday, usually times when we're like kind of pressured into buying things, if that makes sense.
So a couple years ago, my husband and I, we watched, there was a couple of things that I think like influenced us in this experience. One was the, there was like a minimalist show on Netflix. I feel like a lot of you have probably seen it. It's about like these two guys that decided to just have like a totally minimalist lifestyle and just have like the bare minimum of what they needed. And I thought it was a very intriguing idea.
I will say, be the first to say, we are not minimalists. We do try to not have crazy amount of stuff, but I would say we're probably pretty average. I don't know of the American, oh, maybe not. I don't know. I do feel like we really try to get rid of stuff often, but I would say that we are nominalists. So So you can relate with that at all. But we do try to kind of like not fill our lives just with junk.
The other thing that really influenced us at this period of time, during a road trip, we were listening to a book. The book is called More Than Enough by Miranda Anderson. Miranda Anderson, I have been following her for years. She has an amazing podcast and just an amazing person. I've been lucky enough to get to know her in person and actually work with her. I highly recommend looking at all of her things.
So she wrote a book called More Than Enough and it came out a while ago. I'm trying to remember because I listened to it probably four years ago, maybe five years ago. Maybe even before that, I don't know. And then I know it had been out for at least a couple years. But great book.
So in her book, Miranda talks about a challenge that she and her family did of not buying non-consumable items for a year. She had a list of exceptions. If her kids were growing and needed new shoes, obviously they were going to get them new shoes. But they had a rule that they could only buy shoes that would replace the shoes that they already had, if that makes sense. So she had a handful of rules that they followed and of course they would get shampoo. So things that run out and you need, but they wouldn't buy anything else. They would spend their money on adventures and travel instead. And in her book, and and and I were both just intrigued with this idea.
And And does such a lovely job in her book of explaining their experiences and what they learned. And just this idea that we already have more than enough. What we own right now is more than enough of what we need. And that idea has stuck with me ever since that book. And it really, I think, has affected my life. Just kind of having that bountiful mindset or that gratitude mindset of we have enough.
We have what we need. Like we're fine, we're okay, we're happy, healthy, safe. Luckily my family is in a wonderful position of being in a safe place and having clothes and having food and things. Like I know that's not everyone does. So that's why I think this idea of just knowing that we have enough, more than enough, is so powerful. Because it completely changes our mindset of knowing that we're not wanting for anything. And just being grateful for what we have instead of always looking for what we don't have.
I think that this book was a real turning point in me and Garrett's lives. We, so for the past, I don't know, six years. I mean, just this past year, we have been in an adult job, if that makes sense. Before, ever since we got married, we've been in school. So So and I finished our bachelor's degrees and then Garrett did a master's and then he did a PhD. And he just finished that about a year ago, a year and a half ago. So we have been living with very little, with support, with student loans. You know, all that goes into student living, right? And renting and all those things. So I share that because we are not rich. We're not one of those people that have a ton and are like, oh yeah, you know, we have more than enough.
And having said that, I recognize that we really do have a lot compared to many people, which I am so grateful for. And which brings me back to we have more than enough, right? Even Even living the student life and working hard through those school years, we have enough. And that just really like, through those years was such a blessing in like not being, what's, how's that a good way to put it? Like it helped us not resent where we were. It helped us not resent our school experience and just helped us find gratitude and happiness along the way. Which was, which was so great.
One experience I had during those years of the student life was I had decided to train to be a high fitness instructor. So I paid a certain amount of money, went to Dallas for a day training to become an instructor for high fitness, which is a certain type of class. It's really fun if you haven't tried that, you should totally should.
While in this class, while I was being trained, there were a bunch of other women also being trained. The only other woman in the room from Fort Worth, her name was, well, okay, well, maybe I should call her Jane. I'll call her Jane. Just in case I don't want to say her name, but but call her Jane for now. The only, she was the only other woman in the room from Fort Worth from where I was from. So we immediately connected and exchanged phone numbers because we wanted to like teach together and, and also try to help high fitness grow in our area because we were literally like the first instructors in our area. If you go to like Utah, there are high fitness instructors, like everywhere. But where I was, there was literally no one. So we were the first we wanted to grow, we wanted to like work together to get people to come. So she was, she's a lovely woman. I was really excited to get to know her better and work with her.
So I went back and we connected and decided to practice together so that when we taught together, we would, you know, be in sync and be on the same page. So she was so great. So awesome. She texted me saying, Hey, like, do you want to practice at my house, your house, like, anyone works? And I was like, Well, you know, like, I'm happy to practice at my house, but we don't have a ton of room. Like, could we come to your house and she's like, Sure, she's like, bring your kids. No problem. Super, super sweet. So I drive over to her house in my little like beat up old car with my two girls in the back. You guys, I am driving to this address.
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Back to the episode...
I turned down a road. I immediately recognized this road. This road is full of mansions. And when I say mansion, like, I literally mean mansion. huge beautiful homes that I actually drove down this street a couple times because I randomly found it one day and the homes are just gorgeous and just have charm and beauty and I just love looking at fun homes and so sometimes I if I was in the area I'd like go down this road just to look at the fun home and you guys she lives on the street I was shocked she was so sweet and just so like an assuming like you would never expect that she lives in a multi-million dollar home.
So I'm like shocked as I drive up to her address I have to like call in at the gate I'm coming up to this gorgeous gorgeous mansion I'm like just like a little intimidated but she just comes out welcomes me just the sweetest sweetest woman so we come in she gets like toys for my girls and she has boys so she she had lots of toys and and she got them all set up and we went to her basement and practice so lovely woman we had such a great time teaching high fitness together a couple of times and as I taught with her and and also did other things like together we went to like this other high fitness thing together anyway we did something together I learned more about her and she told me about some of her like childhood traumas and and also a little bit more about her life.
So she her boys attend this private school in the area that cost let's see four or five times more than my university education and I'm not even joking granted my university education cost less than your average but I was just like shocked especially as it's like poor like PhD like you didn't family I'm just like oh my gosh that's amazing I can't even like imagine but so her boys go to this amazing beautiful private school she tells me about like I you know just in conversations like products that she loves and like all these things and and it's she's obviously living a very different lifestyle than I am right and and then she tells me about yeah about like her traumas her her past and also like the hard things that she was going through in her life and she talks about I just I pick up on things like the pressures of the other women the other mothers of this at this private school and the pressures and expectations of always like looking perfect and having like the nicest clothes and cars and things obviously that these people can afford but like but it just seems like such an intense pressure a completely different pressure than I was experiencing with women in my circle.
And you guys I I did not envy her at all hearing about the things she has been through hearing about the pressures she experiences hearing about just the hard parts of her life you guys it didn't matter how much money she had it didn't matter that she lived in an incredible mansion or the type of car that she drove she still had hard things going on in her life right.
And I just that has stuck with me like I it just it really it doesn't matter you know like everyone everyone is struggling somehow and in some way everyone celebrities billionaires millionaires everyone has something that they're struggling with right like whether it's depression anxiety having terrible marriages or just horrible relationships in their lives family problems eating disorders I mean you name it right like no one is immune to life difficulties no matter how much money you have no matter your circumstances no matter how much money you don't have we just we all we're all struggling you know again I do say this knowing that money can bring a certain level of happiness and comfort I know that's very real and I know that it's real to a point right and I say that knowing that like just being rich is not going to solve your problems right that's the point I'm trying to make or having all the new toys and gadgets and products and you know all that stuff.
I don't know it's just been on my mind a lot and it often comes up when I feel like pressure to buy things and I've I've I feel like I've come to this spot where I can really appreciate like nice products and things and of course I am interested in many and and would love you know so many things and at the same time I also recognize that you know it's it's okay I don't have them I'm I'm happy you know I have enough and and I'm happy when other people are happy if they you know buy something that they love I think that's so great and but just having that that happiness and gratitude no matter what I think just makes such a difference in our lives and of course I'm not perfect of course like there are so many things I look at my oh that would be so great and but just practicing that gratitude of you know like we have enough you know we we have enough we have more than enough.
I know it's just this is just been on my mind lately I don't know if you'll resonate with anyone but it's something I have been wanting to share and it's interesting because I think there's also like a huge balance and like different dynamics when you are happy with or knowing that you have enough and still wanting to progress and do more and have more and and I think that's fine I think that balance is personal as well I think we should always you know be striving to be better and do better and progress in life I also like don't believe that like wanting more money is evil or more things is evil I guess what I'm trying to say and I guess it's hard to describe this you know balance but maybe and and and this isn't the answer but but kind of my thoughts on it are maybe it's just being happy with what you have and still and and feeling peace with that and still working towards more maybe maybe just being grateful in the process.
I don't know you'll have to tell me if you have any thoughts about this about where like the balance lies because I'm still working on it I think a lot of us are working on it yeah let me know if you have any thoughts about that but I think like just this this idea of believing that you have more than enough and being happy with that can can give you also that power and hope for the future and in reaching for your goals and for and for doing more if if you want and but just living with joy in the moment I think is so so powerful.
And this has like again like I said I feel like this is really influenced my husband and I and even moving out here to Ohio we were able to buy a house and this is the first time we've bought and again we like we cannot afford a huge house right and we were fine with that we know that it's where we're at in our life we're so grateful for this chance to buy a home and we also knew that this small house that we were able to get which we love is more than enough.
It's more than enough for what we need and our kids are growing and I'm sure that as they get bigger maybe the house will feel smaller but and we also know that we could live here forever and still be happy and still have enough room with creativity and you know getting rid of things downsizing all those things just being intentional with our living space we know that that it's more than enough and I think just just knowing that just believing that makes a huge difference and in in how you feel you know about where you are in life about where you live all these things.
Anyways just has been on my mind lately so hopefully this maybe resonates with one of you maybe a couple of you but I would love to to know you know if it does if you have any thoughts or feelings about this so please message me DM me or something with any thoughts that you have and so grateful to start this new year looking forward to it thank you again for tuning in and hope you have a great day love always
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