This Summer I'm Choosing to Bloom Where I'm Planted | Ep. 82

I hope you've been taking care of yourself in navigating these times . I hope you have been centering your joy and your peace . I hope you've been connecting with community . I hope that , as much as you're pouring out and into others , you are refilling your own cup in the process . I hope that you are calling in aligned connections .

I hope that you're continuing to take inspired and aligned action to meet your goals . I hope that you're resting and taking it easy whenever and wherever possible . I hope that you're happy . I hope that you're well . I hope that you're taken care of . I hope that your loved ones are taken care of and I hope that everything is on the up and up for you .

Thank you for tuning into this episode and coming to spend some time with me . I've been well On the consulting front . I'll be wrapping up a couple of project management and communication contracts between this month and over the summer and looking to what's next .

At home , I feel like there has just been a lot going on over the last year , year and a half , but I've moved , and not to a new place or a new city or a new state a new place or a new city or a new state .

I live in a generational home with family and recently I swapped apartments and I have a bit more space and a lot more light , which makes me happy .

It's a lot more to clean Still very much in the throes of things right now getting everything situated and organized , making some upgrades to the space to really make it my own and get it to a place that I'm comfortable with .

So I have been in the throes of that and I will be in the throes of that for a little while longer , but I'm really looking forward to feeling really settled and comfortable and just getting the space to a place that makes me feel happy and comfortable and relaxed . Living in a generational home .

This is a house that my grandparents built in the 70s and it's a property that they've always had among other properties they've always had among other properties .

I've lived here for most of my life , outside of small stints living in states like Florida and Arkansas and in other counties in New York , but for the most part , this house has always been home In swapping apartments . I'm now back in the unit that I was in when I was really little . What is now a spare bedroom was my childhood bedroom .

So in some ways it's a fresh start , but in a lot of ways it's not . It's familiar , it's home . It's where I've had a lot of memories growing up . It's where I've been for most of my life , especially in my adult years . So I'm grateful

and overwhelmed at the same time and just trying to get everything in order and to a place that feels good . For the most part , I am one of those people where my environment is a direct reflection of my mental state and my mental health .

It's very hard for me to operate in chaos , disorder , dysfunction , if things are out of place and out of whack at home . So it's been an interesting several weeks and , to be honest , this process has been long .

So it's been an interesting several months going through the throes of this very long drawn out transition and I'm just really looking forward to getting back to a place where everything is set up , organized , cleaned and comfortable for me . So that's that .

That being said , for folks who watch full guest interviews or any full solo episodes on YouTube , you may notice in some upcoming episodes that my usual setup is different . It's changed . It's not the same .

That is because I am in a transitional period and at some point there will be a new setup or a similar setup to before , something that just feels aligned and appropriate . So something to note Outside of that y'all like , all I'm really focused on right now is having fun and being outside .

Like it's springtime , summer is on the way , right around the corner , and I just I am blooming and growing and stretching and I just want to be in the sun . I want to have a good time . I want to do fun activities with friends . I want to be outside and just enjoy myself . I really haven't felt this way about summer in a really long time .

I think the pandemic and the last several years just stole that energy and that desire for me , and this is the first time in a while where I'm like I'm in NYC , I live here , I want a fun New York summer .

I want to do some of the activities that really lit me up in the past , because a lot of them still light me up , some of those fun outdoor activities that only come around in the summertime .

I want to enjoy those things and I want to do those things and I want to be outside so that , and while I'm still holding space for all of the crazy things happening in the world around me and around us , I still want to continue to feel alive , I want to continue to bloom and fall off the hardness that I've built up in response to the world in a lot

of ways and I just want to be and I just want to exist this summer . I'm interested in events , museums , activities , picnics , hiking , glamping all of the things that help me to feel whole and myself and well .

So I'm looking forward to that and in a lot of ways I've mentioned on the podcast before that I am writing a book and it is about my single season , because my single season has been very long and I actually referenced an older episode of the podcast recently and I was kind of shook to look that far back and realize that I had been talking about working on

a project , about my single season . Then too . At that time it looked totally different . It was not a book , it was something else . That project has just morphed

into a book , and in writing it it's opened up my heart and healed me in ways that I didn't expect . It's brought some feelings and some thought to the surface that I honestly had buried and just not thought about , and writing has been really therapeutic in that way .

And as much as I'm creating this project for others who might be aligned with it , I'm also creating it for myself , and I've come to some really deep realizations throughout the process . And it's like I said , it's opened for activities and fun with friends . I'm also trying to be on the sidewalk , not necessarily in the streets .

In that sense too , on that front , I'm just open . I'm open to new connections and I'm excited about that .

I think in terms of friendships too , establishing new friendships in this season of my life has really , really really opened my heart up and let a lot of sweetness and softness into my life in ways that I just didn't expect , and that's been beautiful , getting to build new connections and relationships that meet me where I'm at now , and even in doing that , it's

taught me how to cultivate and nurture existing relationships too . It's refreshed me in a lot of ways that are really important , and I'm so grateful for that . So this season of my life is very good . It's very blessed .

I'm very blessed , I'm very grateful and I want to soak it in , I want to enjoy it , I want to get settled , I want to have fun , I want to feel alive again and that is what I'm focused on . What's next for me is I'm calling in more aligned opportunities , more career growth . Also more love in all capacities .

I'm ready to grow in relationship with someone else , not just myself , not just platonic friendship , but beyond that too . So being open in a way that I just really haven't . Spending time with friends , I'm getting dolled up for special occasions , I'm continuing to get my body to a place where I feel comfortable and confident and healthy and strong .

I'm having fun , I'm making travel plans and I'm just living and enjoying life .

Life is short . We're not here for a long time , but we should make damn sure that we're here for a good time . Now , here's what all this means for the podcast . I have been doing so much reflecting about the show and I've decided that I'm taking a step back and taking the pressure off of myself to show up every week .

2024 was a transitional year in a lot of ways . I made a commitment to myself . Last year I saw it through . I had episodes for the most part going out every week for most of the year . It was just a really good year for the show .

I had incredible conversations with incredible guests and I was just on it in a way that I was free to do because of the evolution of the show . I just felt free to do it and I still feel very free to do it and at the same time , I don't have the energy to do it the way that I had previously done it . So I am pivoting .

I've mentioned before that the frequency of the show might change . The original format of the show when it first started was on a bi-weekly basis and I feel like for right now , bi-weekly feels really really good .

So the next several episodes that are coming out really incredible guest interviews will be coming out on a biweekly basis and that feels good for me for summer .

It gives me the spaciousness to just enjoy my summer and to still create and to still have incredible conversations and to still connect with you , but it gives me a little bit more space and a lot less pressure . But it gives me a little bit more space and a lot less pressure .

So , while I'm not pressuring myself to just go hard and go nonstop this year , I'm really excited for what's coming up on the show and I'm really excited about the conversations that we'll be having in the coming weeks .

And the good thing about a podcast is that it is always around , as long as the host does what they need to do to ensure that it is still around and

still available . I'm really excited that this platform exists , so proud of the archive , I'm so proud of previous episodes , and it's always here and binge-worthy . If you're new to the show and you would love to visit past episodes that call out to you , do that . It's always here .

I feel like one of the things I love about this iteration of the show is that I really focus on evergreen content and conversations . The solo episodes that I do , the conversations that I have with incredible featured guests , are timely . They're always on time , they're always relevant , especially when it comes to creativity , to purpose , to alignment .

They're always available . So check out some episodes you may not have listened to before . You might hear something that feels right , on time for this season of your life .

As always , the best way to know when new episodes are coming is to make sure you're following the show on your favorite podcast platform , wherever you're listening right now , and , of course , on social media for any and all updates In this season of the show . I'm also learning to be comfortable with imperfection and not critiquing myself so damn hard .

I recently got advice from a much bigger and more seasoned podcaster than me . Shout out to Ashley Leggs , who hosts the Slay Girl Slay podcast , and she encouraged me to let my episodes breathe and that doing the interview and editing the episode is enough .

I don't have to listen again and again and be so hellbent on constantly improving , and that advice took a weight off of my chest . You know this podcast is currently listed in particular categories For you as a listener .

You may look at the podcast platform that you're listening to this episode on right now and when you go to the show , you'll see certain categories that this show falls in and right now across you know Apple , spotify and other podcast platforms .

The show is currently listed in like the education category with like the self-improvement or self-help subcategory under that . Some podcast platforms allow you to list more than one category , so sometimes you'll see other ones show up . So , depending on what app you're listening on right now .

You might also see society and culture slash personal journals , or you might also see business slash entrepreneurship .

It just depends on where you're listening right now , and I've been experimenting with these and other categories since around March 2024 to help the show reach its target audience , which , if you didn't know , is definitely Black women , femmes and other women and femmes of color who are new or seasoned in their creativity and seeking a like community .

It's open to everybody . Everybody can listen . But as a Black woman who loves to uplift the voices and stories and experiences and brilliance of other Black women , who loves to be in conversation with wise , worldly , spiritual women , this podcast is for me and it's for us spiritual women . This podcast is for me and it's for us .

So I've been experimenting with those categories to help the show to reach its target audience and results vary . The reality is that shows grow

best by word of mouth and also from me being a guest on other shows with similar audiences . So I know that my community , the people who are meant to hear the show , will find the show . Those of you who are already here , who tune in every week or bi-weekly or when new episodes drop , who share the episodes with your friends , your tribes , your circles .

I'm so grateful for you and I'm so thankful for you . I could not do this show without you , without your support . I know that my people will continue to find me and I feel assured in that and confident in that and hopeful in that , and I'm really excited about and looking forward to getting to know my community more with this show .

So , you listening right now , I'm so excited to learn more about you and why you tune into the show each week . So if you would like a deeper connection with me in the way that I would love a deeper connection with you , you can always leave a review for the show .

You can always send a text message to the show and just let me know what you're thinking . You can also send a voice note . If you'd like to talk back to me . I would love to hear from you . I would love to play your voice note on a future episode as well , and all of the links to do all of those things are always in the show notes .

They are always in the episode description so you can do that at any time If there's ever an episode that resonates with you , that speaks to you , if there's ever a guest that really touches your heart . Please let me know that feedback matters to me first and foremost , and also reviews help me tremendously in the podcasting world .

They help others to discover the show as well . It helps to have feedback from listeners who love the show , who share their thoughts , because reviews can either help or deter a new listener from checking the show out .

So please , please , please , take a moment out of your day , take a second out of your time to please rate and review the show on the podcast platform that you're listening to it on right now . It goes a long way and I would really , really , really appreciate it . So thank you in advance .

And , on that note , if there's someone you know that needs to hear this show , please tell them . Don't gatekeep , we don't do that around here .

Let them know about the show , and if there's a show you'd like to hear me on as a guest , let me know , send a text to the show , send in a voice note , leave a review and also let the host of that show know . Thank you in advance for your support . Friend , I appreciate you All . Right , that's all I've got for today .

So , as a friendly reminder , new episodes will be dropping , but they'll be coming out biweekly for the next several weeks , so stay tuned , make sure that you're following the show so that you know when new episodes drop , and I'm so excited to chat with you again soon .

And if you're missing the show on the off weeks , definitely revisit the catalog and check out some episodes you might not have heard before . Be sure to drop a comment on your favorite episodes on YouTube and Spotify .

Please , please , please , help me out by writing a review if you're listening to the show on Apple Podcasts or any of your favorite podcast platforms , and be sure to share the show and your favorite episodes with your tribe . Thank you for lending me your time , your energy and your ears , and we'll talk again very soon . Bye , friend .

Catch you on the next episode .