How do we bring more community into our busy, often isolating lives?
We are social beings & existing in community is coded in our DNA—it is intrinsic to our well-being and our capacity to flourish.
hey you!
Happy Fall! I just love the change of seasons, especially from the hustle and bustle of summer to the groundedness of fall. I love the smell of the falling leaves, the waning heat, and getting back on track with routine, habits, and goals.
In addition to the change of seasons, I have also had a big change (in geography!) as I have returned home to my community of Vancouver, unceded Musqueam territory. I have been thinking a lot about community lately and my deep gratitude for retuning to this beautiful community (and city!) I have cultivated over the past 15 years.
Community is SO important, but something many of us feel we are missing in our lives. Why is this? We can blame technology and our ‘modern lifestyles’, and these all absolutely play a part, but acknowledging it only gets us so far. How do we bring more community into our busy, often isolating lives?
This is a question I think about a lot and a value I hold dear in my personal and professional life. I have always been drawn to facilitating community spaces and believe it is more important now than ever. What ways do you cultivate community? Are there ways you want to cultivate community but come up to road blocks? Let me know in the comments below!
Take good care,
xx Erin
emotions are like slowly moving weather systems
Emotions are like
slowly moving weather
systems
—they move in slowly & pass on slowly. Can we respond to them with presence & curiosity instead of reacting? There is so much wisdom here if we allow it.
Hey you!
I hope you’re having a good week and finding small moments of presence and self-kindness! I know I sure have needed them this week!
With September just around the corner (tomorrow in fact!) I have been reflecting on my past year and getting ready to slow down and transition into the introspective realm of fall and winter.
Often we see September as the month of transition from the fast paced, action packed days of summer to more stability, routine, and going inside (both metaphorically and physically). This can bring about feelings of stress, anxiety, dare I say FOMO—summer ended too quickly and we didn’t get to do everything we had planned!
If you’re feeling a little lost, behind, or experiencing FOMO, know that emotions are like weather systems, they slowly move in and just as slowly pass on. This is especially important when we are experiencing more difficult emotions. If this sounds like where you’re at right now, know that this too shall pass. If we are open and curious with our emotions instead of pushing them away, we can learn a lot about ourselves and show up in the world, in our relationships, and to ourselves in more authenticity.
Are there any ways you can give yourself some kindness while navigating these difficult emotions? Maybe that means saying no to that request or taking the night off to watch trash TV (sometimes that’s EXACTLY what you need!).
The more we get to know our emotions and accept them with kindness instead of harsh self-criticism, the easier we can navigate the ups and downs of life. Because there will ALWAYS be ups and downs.
xx Erin
my no bullshIt approach
It all begins with an idea.
hey you!
As we near the fall, it can be a good time to start thinking about getting back on track with routine, habits and goal setting! That’s where a coach comes in handy, nobody does it alone! I wanted to take a moment to explain my approach to coaching:
My no bullshit approach
A little reminder about me and my approach: I take a no bullshit approach to helping clients cultivate well-being through research-based mindfulness and self-compassion practices and get SHIT DONE! This means supporting YOU to set goals and intentions with a kind, compassionate coach in your corner that will hold you in tender accountability to actually ACHIEVE them! What does this look like?
This means I am NOT going to:
feed you empty promises of some 'dream life'
tell you your life will change over night if you just "think positive" #fucktoxicpositivity
promise you will be a meditation master and never have an unkind thought towards yourself again
But what I WILL do is:
hold space for you to learn about yourself: your deep desires, values, strengths, personality traits (and so much more!) and use this to support you to accomplish your goals
share research-based mindfulness and self-compassion practices to help you quiet that harsh self-critic and cultivate more presence in your lifebe there to support you as you build the practice. It doesn't happen over night, but if you stay the course the results are life changing!
hold you in 'tender accountability' to first identify then achieve your goals!
help you transform from your own worst critic to taking a balanced approach to your imperfections and achieving a TON along the way!
If you’re ready to quiet that busy mind with more presence and self-kindness, while achieving those goals you’ve had on the back burner for WAY TOO long, let’s chat!
Reach out for a complimentary discovery call today to learn more about my approach!
It’s never too late to start again.
xx Erin
Feeling a little lost and disoriented?
It all begins with an idea.
Hey you!
I hope you’re having a good week so far and finding small moments of presence and self-kindness! I know I sure have needed them this week!
I just got back from a long, slow and rainy hike with my pup in the desert hillside of Syilx Okanagan Territory where we been guests on this magical land for the last 10 months. We took our time this morning and enjoyed the smell of wet sage and sandy earth, blanketed with the sweet, fresh smell of rain.
The rain here is rare. This desert landscape is harsh, hot, and one can easily get lost in its endless miles of disorienting terrain (including me!). But it is also a place to receive visions and truth, the desert has long been a place for many cultures to go inside, and explore the depths of their consciousness.
Are you feeling a little lost and disoriented? We have all been there.
But know, that you don’t have to be in a desert or go on a deep, spiritual retreat to feel less lost. It starts with cultivating more presence in your life, quieting that internal chatter, and making space for the calm that is already there.
Need some help getting there? Nobody does it alone. As a coach I can support you to not only cultivate more self-kindness and presence, but get to know yourself better so you don’t feel so lost and disoriented.
There is no limit to what we can achieve together.
xx Erin
how do you respond to change?
It all begins with an idea.
“Change is the only constant in life.”
- Heraclitus
hey you!
As summer starts to wind down and a change of seasons is approaching, I have been thinking a lot about change and the cycles of life. Why does change make us feel so uncomfortable? Ironically, the only constant in life is change, but we so often fear and resist it.
I have had A LOT of changes in the past few years: the dissolution of a long- term partnership, 3-month stint in Mexico, leaving my past career in non-profit to launch into my business, moving from the West Coast rainforest to the interior desert, and now back. Through the ups and downs, I held onto some constants to ground me: specifically, my mindfulness and self-compassion practices. I was able to maintain resilience, bounce back from the lows, and really be present and enjoy the highs.
How are you feeling as fall approaches? Could you use a bit more presence and self-kindness to navigate the inevitable changes that are upon us?
Change is always challenging, but once you get your footing, that’s where the growth happens. Let me help you get there, nobody does it alone.
xx Erin
How will we thrive if we don’t have clean air to breathe?
It all begins with an idea.
I believe that we are more isolated now than ever from each other and from the earth and that this deep disconnect directly correlates to how we TREAT both each other and the earth.
Hey you!
As I sit to write this, I look out over the dry, desert hillside and see smoke returning to blanket the landscape. Many parts of the world, including Canada, have been ravaged by forest fires this year, as is becoming somewhat of a ‘new normal’.
The clear and carefree days of summer may be something of the past if we continue at the rate we are degrading the planet. This is one of the most pressing challenges of our time. It is complex, enduring and touches all aspects of our lives.
How will we thrive if we don’t have clean air to breathe?
It is also important to note that those most impacted by climate change often live on the margins of society and lack a strong political voice. A salient example is the over 200 diverse First Nations in BC who are/were stewards of these lands from time immemorial and who have a deep social, spiritual connection to the land. As a white settler and someone who has worked with First Nations around the preservation of natural resources, I have seen first-hand the impact that climate change has on these communities and the lack of political will to mitigate this.
I don’t have the answer, I don’t believe there is just one. I believe that we are more isolated now than ever from each other and from the earth and that this deep disconnect directly correlates to how we TREAT both each other and the earth. I believe we need to fundamentally shift this relationship to move forward, and I believe this must be done in community.
But it is also important to note that we cannot reduce this to the individual level and individual responsibility. There are political and corporate structures and systems that ABSOLUTELY prop up the ongoing accumulation of profit over environmental protection. They need to be held accountable, not just by me and you, but by ALL of us.
I hope you enjoy the last days of August and that you and your loved ones are safe.
xx Erin