#55 Uncovering the Power of Mindfulness and Self Discovery w JJ DiGeronimo

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[00:00:04] Natalie: I am so excited to have with me JJ DiGeronimo.

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[00:00:16] Natalie: Oh, thank you so much. JJ, I want you to introduce yourself to the listeners in your own words and then we'll get started.

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[00:00:45] Natalie: Okay. Wow. What an interesting introduction because you said so many words, gatherer, being on a journey. I definitely want to dig into that and I want to start with your backstory. How did you come to be in the line of work that you're in right now?

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[00:01:17] JJ: figure out who I was, because I had always defined myself by my title, my salary, the company I work for, the last trip I went on, the last award I won, and It was hard. I truly believe I was depressed and I ended up in a therapist's office being like, I have no joy. I don't know why I don't have any joy.

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[00:01:59] JJ: Uh, so that really was the beginning of the journey that brought me to this point, because once I figured out how to really live in the present moment, how to think about my energy level, my frequency. And I didn't really have true gratitude. Things really shifted for me, but that was like an eight year process.

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[00:02:22] Natalie: You know, I'm really glad that you talked about it being an eight year process, because I think so many times in life, we want everything fast, right? Just like the microwave, we want to put it in. Even for myself, yesterday I put something in the microwave for, it was supposed to be for two minutes, and at a minute and thirty, I was like, oh, I'm hungry, I'm going to take it out.

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[00:03:04] Natalie: So eight years like that is a long commitment, but I'm so glad that at the end of that eight year mark, you feel like you got to a point, now when you look back, this is why all of those pieces were kind of, you know, lining up the way that they were.

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[00:03:26] Natalie: Yeah, definitely. And I think that's a great idea to have a lifelong journey and it just shows a growth mindset, right?

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[00:03:40] JJ: Oh my goodness, how I talk to myself. How I supported myself you know, Bernie Brown talks about it all the time, right? That self talk, you know, the subtitle of my book is like not only raising your energy, but sidestepping your self doubt.

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[00:04:10] JJ: People aren't going to like it. Like I have those voices and I feel like that has been the biggest lesson for me is learning how to work around those thoughts so that I can really align more with kind of a loving conversation with myself, which is not easy. I mean, it's an hour by hour situation over here.

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[00:04:45] Natalie: But then you're asking yourself, how can I change my talk? How can I reframe those thoughts? How can I start telling myself things that do align with actions that I'm taking and the things that I am doing. How can I start telling myself that truth?

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[00:05:10] JJ: And so being in the present moment, you can recognize the stories you're telling yourself, how you're talking to yourself, how you're talking about others, you know, what opinions you have. And through those years, I had to train myself to kind of really sidestep the negative and focus on the positive. And I hear it in so many books, like, Oh, be positive, be positive.

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[00:05:52] JJ: I just, I really do try to find gratitude. And, you know, what did it prevent him from that weekend or the week ahead? You know, I really do believe there's a bigger plan for you and that if you can really focus on having gratitude for the small things, and not always wait for the big things, you really can shift your energy and light to shine more brightly because.

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[00:06:25] Natalie: No, definitely. And actually, as we talk about energy, I want you to tell me what do you define energy as, because there's kind of two different ways of thinking about energy.

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[00:06:56] JJ: That's a great question. A great question. You know, I think of energy like radio stations, you know, FM radio is frequency modulation. So I think like, am I at 92. 7, am I in an 88. 4, am I at a 97. 3 or am I at a 102? Because if I'm doing a lot of things to my day that are draining me, it's very possible my energy is a representation of my choices.

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[00:07:44] JJ: platforms in and like panels, I get invited to. As I spend more and more time working on raising my radio station, raising my frequency. I get like frequency back. Like you attract what you're at and where you're at. And like you, if you don't like what you're seeing, if you don't like what you're doing, you can raise your energy by how you talk to yourself.

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[00:08:09] JJ: what you eat.

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[00:08:26] Natalie: And we have to be intentional about raising our energy. So what do you commonly see is draining people's energy? Because I don't think that sometimes people are aware. Not everybody's doing that check in to realize that they feel drained, that they feel depleted. So if you can give us some ideas that the listeners would be able to say, Oh, that's what might be draining my energy.

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[00:09:07] JJ: Like, where are you in your journey? Fourth column is energy. Does it give you good energy? Because when I was swimming in the mud puddle, I was in the wrong job. I was talking to people that also were in the mud puddle with me. I was aggravated about everything. And I really had to start, like, inventorying my life, not only my internal conversations, but the things I said yes to, because I was on a mission to get out of that mud puddle.

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[00:09:38] Natalie: Okay. Yeah. . I love having those different columns. And I think it's so important because this gives you a starting point, right? And you can then put everything on paper. And I think when you have things on paper, it allows for clarity of mind.

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[00:10:08] Natalie: And what is a way then once you have that information and you see the different tasks that you're doing that are draining your energy, how can we raise our energy?

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[00:10:36] JJ: And just as we were talking, a hummingbird just came by my window. Uh, and just notice 20 things and it couldn't be just things you see, it could be things you smell here, you know, maybe even taste. And I think many of us getting in the moment, really being in the moment is like the greatest gift you can give yourself, but it takes a lot of practice.

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[00:11:12] JJ: And so even though I was looking forward to that woman's night out or that night, you know, that I was going to go away or whatever because I was so busy striving and driving or reflecting and analyzing that I didn't really wasn't in the moment.

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[00:11:30] Natalie: there is something to be said about just slowing down and giving yourself that space. Even sometimes you might have to stop doing something. You have to have space to notice what is happening around you.

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[00:11:58] JJ: So my, my third book is seeking and seeking is really.

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[00:12:23] JJ: I didn't know why all women were so many women were in middle management. And so accelerate your impact is really about building that. Second plan. So you do great in your job, but like you have to work on your career and there's very specific steps to get to those board seats and executive positions.

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[00:12:54] JJ: I, you know, the relationship within my relationships, my, flag of perfectionism, you know, how I. Really had so much guilt and so many of my decisions because of my family and I feel like it's so many of the topics that I've heard over the last 10 years working with women that are holding them on the sidelines from not leaning into what is really calling them.

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[00:13:36] Natalie: And we're not even quite taking account of what's happening. And you feel that great sense of uh, disappointment or almost like you're not fulfilling your purpose. You're not, you're not doing what you were supposed to be doing. And I think, uh, nobody wants to live that way, right? You feel empty or you, you just feel like you haven't reached your maximum potential.

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[00:14:12] Natalie: What do you mean by that?

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[00:14:34] JJ: Oh, you don't know sentence structure. So the thought of writing my first book. All of those came back, all of those came back, and I sat on it for a little bit because I was like, well, I'm not a good writer, and I got these on my papers, and how could I possibly write a book? But the universe has a crazy way of like interweaving people and ideas and stories and just experiences your way that gave me kind of a framework of people to work with to make it happen.

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[00:15:15] Natalie: Yeah. And you know, what's so funny is that releasing your story actually allows you to tap into your power.

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[00:15:42] Natalie: I 100 percent believe that. So I think it's really important to unlock those stories and, and, and dig deep because sometimes we don't sit and we forget, and sometimes we forget to dream too. And stories are a part of dreams too, right? It's really important to tap into them for sure.

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[00:16:11] Natalie: So for myself, as a wellness coach who supports women professionals and entrepreneurs, I see so many women who are going through wellness challenges and they feel like they're alone. And it's not true. Uh, we are all going through challenges, but sometimes we keep things to ourselves and we don't talk about it.

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[00:16:39] JJ: Well, I think disease is this sneeze, right? Just like, um, from, uh, Louise Hayes, right? Heal yourself. And so I see this in so many people and I see it myself, you know, we store energy in our bodies and we have tactics to work through that energy.

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[00:17:04] JJ: And I just love working with ancient practices. Even today, I've been to acupuncture this week. I've done a cold plunge. So I feel like there's just many, many things you can do to take care of yourself that can be right out your back door. You don't have to go sit on a hill to take care of yourself, you know, somewhere you can just walk your block or go to a practice, or if you're not into yoga, which I'm really not, you know, you could do Pilates or you could do strength training, or you can do TRX bands, or you can just

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[00:17:49] Natalie: Yeah, that's, that's the honest cold truth. And it's so true that when we are. pursuing our own well being and maintaining our own well being, you have to find what works for you, right? You can't just do what somebody else did. Just like how you don't like Yoda, neither do I. And the listeners are very well aware of that.

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[00:18:23] Natalie: those things are so important. And JJ, it's just been such a great conversation. Thank you so much for coming on the show. Please tell the listeners, how can they learn more about you, more about your books and what you offer?

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[00:18:40] JJ: So I listen to audibles. I'm always listening to books. I listen to YouTube and do all my meditations from my phone. So all of us have, like, honestly, a school right here that we can do anything we want with. We can learn anything. We can talk to anybody and we can find that sacred space for ourselves to really just help.

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[00:19:18] JJ: You can look up seeking. Don't do it alone. Cause then you're going to end up on some like dating sites. So seeking JJ and 74 and you'll find it on Amazon.

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[00:19:51] Natalie: And until next time, everyone continue to serve yourself, your loved ones, and your community from a full cup.