This topic is full of nuance and depth and I’m not a doctor nor do I play one on tv.

Just sharing what works for me – someone who has struggled with general anxiety. So please take from this what helps and kindly leave what doesn’t.

I recently shared on social media about how I had to cancel a trip to NYC for a work event, because I had a stomach flare up. I’ve been dealing with a gut auto-immune disease for 24 years, so it’s nothing new, but I’ve also..

• Been single parenting four kids for 6 years.
• Running a business, and re-branding a second. 
• Struggling to find more hours in the day or clone myself.
• Oh, and we recently got a puppy!

And my body feels those events as well.

Emotional trauma can be stored in various areas of the body and present themselves physically:

• Headaches
• Tension
• Lethargy
• High cortisol levels

Stress can impact how we process information and our ability to focus. Additionally, trauma can make it harder to self-regulate (i.e., calm down). When experiencing a threat (or perceived threat, like an email from your boss that your brain mistakenly equates to a tiger in the jungle), the brain releases stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol.

So, if you’ve been feeling a lot of tension lately, your body might be storing the stress of events you’ve experienced or the trauma of constantly facing the world’s problems on social media.

✨Let’s talk about cortisol.

What is it?

Think of cortisol as your built-in alarm system. It works with your brain to control mood, motivation, and fear. When you are under threat or perceived threat, cortisol is released to help you conserve energy and slow down systems to deal with the threat.

But what if you’re under constant stress and the alarm button stays on? 

It can derail your body’s most important functions and lead to several health problems, including:

• Anxiety and depression
• Headaches
• Heart disease
• Memory and concentration problems
• Digestive issues
• Trouble sleeping
• Weight gain

My goal?

Stop allowing my brain to think I’m under constant attack.

I need to recalibrate the stress in my life and lower my cortisol.

But I have a confession.

I’m not good at meditating… or turning my brain off. 

I’ve tried many times, but unless I’m in a group setting with an instructor and have distanced myself from my daily life, it feels impossible.

So, I’m sharing my four alternatives to meditation if you are like me:

✨#1 Be Still:

• You can’t be aware of your feelings if you’re always in motion. Slow down and be present in your body. See how it feels to be still. Resist the urge to grab your phone or think through your to-do list.

✨#2 Stretch it out:

• Movement is medicine, and certain movements can help release stored stress and trauma. Yoga is great for releasing tension, but if yoga is not your thing, try a 10-minute stretch at night before bed. This has helped me a lot with my teeth grinding. Stretching is the new Nyquil.

✨#3 Breathe Intentionally:

• We can breathe without thinking, but intentional breathing helps your body relax by bypassing your conscious mind. Trauma can overstimulate the body’s sympathetic nervous system (your ‘fight-or-flight’ response). Breathwork settles it down.My favorite is Box Breathing:
  • Breathe in for 4
  • Hold for 4
  • Breathe out for 4
  • Hold for 4
  • Repeat 4 times

✨#4 Tap it out:

This is a different type of tapping that has helped me when I feel anxiety ramping up to an attack.Tapping is similar to acupuncture and focuses on meridian points — or energy hot spots — to restore balance to your body’s energy. Based on Chinese medicine, meridian points are areas where energy flows through the body. Acupuncture uses needles, but tapping uses fingertip tapping to apply pressure.Tap each of the following points seven times, in this order:

• EyebrowSide of the eyeUnder the eyeUnder the noseChinBeginning of the collarboneUnder the arm

Everyone has a stress threshold.

Even the highly ambitious who read this newsletter.

Trauma happens when this threshold is crossed, and you feel unable to cope with the situation at hand.

If you are feeling the physical effects of stress and trauma it’s important to talk to someone to help work through it and find your own ways to release it.

Hugs

✨Nominate us for a Sass Choice Award!

Will you nominate us? 

Click the link below and scroll to Local Woman Owned Business

Type in “Marielle Agency” and click Submit! Easy Peasy.  

•  VOTE FOR US HERE

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

As we approach 2025, I want you to start envisioning a year where you’re fully in control of your time.

If you often feel like the hours slip away before you can focus on what truly matters, this simple time audit exercise will help you take back your schedule and align your daily actions with your biggest business and life goals.

Accountability

As business owners and professionals, it’s easy to feel like time slips away between meetings, emails, and daily tasks.

That’s why I’m sharing one of my go-to exercises with my clients to help you reclaim your schedule and refocus on what truly matters. Conducting a personal time audit is a simple yet powerful tool to gain clarity on where your hours are going and how you can better align them with your business and life goals. Let’s dive in!

Aspiration

Take the Next Week to Conduct a Time Audit

When someone tells me, “I just don’t have enough time,” I use this 4-step process to help them spot the gaps. It’s a 20-minute-a-day activity designed to show you exactly where you’re spending your time and where you can delegate or stay laser-focused on the tasks that truly matter to grow your business and enrich your life.

What You’ll Need:

• A notebook or paper
• 20 minutes each day
  
  Step 1: Record Set reminders for yourself at 10am, 2pm, 5pm, and 8pm. Each time the alarm goes off, jot down everything you’ve done over the past few hours—meetings, emails, deep work, social media, random interruptions, whatever it may be. This step takes just 5 minutes, and it’s the foundation of understanding how you use your time.
  
  Step 2: Categorize Now, organize your activities into categories like emails, meetings, deep work, personal time, and social media. Feel free to assign colors to each one for a visual breakdown. Here’s an example:
  
• Email: Blue
• Meetings: Yellow
• Deep Work: Green
• Relaxation: Purple
• Scrolling: Red This step will help you identify patterns and areas where you might need a shift in focus.

Step 3: Spot the Time Wasters Now, take a look at your list. How often are you jumping from one task to another, especially between productive deep work and distractions like social media? Recognize the moments when you lose focus, and ask yourself:

• Are there patterns to when I’m most distracted?
• What’s causing the interruptions?
• Where do I need to devote more time to deep work?

Step 4: Assess & Align Finally, calculate how much time you’ve spent in each category. Then ask yourself:

• Are these activities aligned with the goals I have for my business and life?
• Am I investing enough time in the most impactful tasks? Remember, if you don’t control your calendar, someone else will. Prioritizing deep work over admin tasks can be the game-changer you’ve been looking for.
  
  Want to dive even deeper? The Goal-Setting Workbook will walk you through defining your goals and building accountability into your routine. 

Ambition

Need even more? While this time audit can show where your time goes, but true progress comes from aligning it with your larger goals. Sometimes, an outside perspective is key to identifying where to focus and what to delegate.

Let’s work together 1:1 to streamline your strategy and unlock your full potential.

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

You may have seen that last week we launched the Goal-Setting Workbook. Let’s take a page from the book and dive into the work of aligning your mindset and actions with your goals. 

We’ll explore how you can use this powerful tool to create more balance and accountability in your life.

My hope is that you make space in your week to truly sit with the question below.

Why?

A lot of my external growth—managing a business, raising four children, and finding success in my professional life—happened when I took my internal growth seriously.

Balancing these responsibilities requires more than just structure; it demands intentionality, self-awareness, and, most importantly, alignment. I like to refer to it as, “clicking in”—that feeling when you start living a life that feels more in sync with who you are and who you aspire to be.

Accountability

Signs you are out of alignment:

• A general feeling that things are “off”
• IAnxiety and feeling unsettled
• Loss of spark
• More friction in everyday activities
• Increased numbing behaviors like zoning out or procrastination

It’s easy to get overwhelmed when you’re wearing so many hats, but alignment and mindset are key. The exercises below are tools I personally use to stay grounded amidst the chaos of running a business and raising a family. They’ve become my lighthouse to ensure I’m always steering in the right direction.

Aspiration

Set aside 10–20 minutes. Grab some paper, find a quiet spot, and let’s dive in.

The question I use to “click back in” when I feel out of alignment.

Question: What’s my perfect day?

Story time: As a business owner and mother of four, it’s easy to get swept up in the daily grind. But I realized that unless I define what truly makes me happy, I’ll just be spinning my wheels. So I set out to imagine my “perfect day.” What would it look like if I could control every element, from the morning I wake up to the moment I go to bed?

Start by asking yourself these questions:

• What does your bedroom look like when you wake up?
• What’s the weather like outside?
• What are the first smells you encounter?
• What do you eat?
• Who do you spend time with?
• How do you spend your day?

Write down as many details as you can. The more vivid, the better.

Once you’ve taken the time to define your perfect day, here’s the follow-up question:

Does the path I’m on get me closer to my perfect day?

Ambition

The process of balancing my family and business while also striving for growth wasn’t (ISN’T) always easy, but defining my perfect day and continually working toward it makes a huge difference. I learned that when you make space for what you truly want, it becomes easier to align your actions to achieve it.

Now that you’ve imagined your perfect day, ask yourself: How does your current life compare to that vision? Is your present path getting you closer to your perfect day, or is it pulling you further away from it? What actions can you take today to align more with that ideal vision?

As you reflect on your perfect day and assess how aligned your current life is with that vision, remember that clarity is key to making meaningful progress. 

That’s why I created the Goal-Setting Workbook—to help you take these insights and turn them into actionable steps. It’s designed to guide you through defining your goals, shifting your mindset, and building accountability into your daily routine. 

Whether you’re balancing the demands of running a business, raising a family, or pursuing personal growth, this workbook is a powerful tool to keep you on track and “clicked in” to the life you truly want to live.

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

What if you started viewing YOU as the business?

Tired of setting goals that never seem to stick? Struggling to stay motivated or on track?

That’s why I created our brand-new Digital Goal Planning and Goal Tracker Workbook  that is here to change the game.

Download here! 

Accountability

4 Reasons why you need a business goal: 

• Set the GPS for your personal business / brand
• Identify + reach milestones
• Understand the resources necessary
• Clarify projected revenue streams

Why most fail when starting a business:

The 3 things I see when someone starts a business….

No Operating System: We’re so excited in the beginning and emotions start to rise. We buy new equipment, software and domains.

Then we hit the high stress zone and, if we don’t have a clear operating system, we lose momentum as time progresses. Eventually it fizzles out.

No clear roadmap: This leads to a lot of talking and learning without the push we all need to force ourselves to get something out there to learn from.

No accountability: A study on accountability was done by the Association for Talent Development. The researchers found that individuals have the following probabilities of completing a goal by taking these actions:

• Having an idea or goal: 10% likely to
  Consciously deciding that you will do it: 25%
• Deciding when you will do it: 40%
• Planning how to do it: 50%
• Committing to someone that you will do it: 65%
• Having a specific accountability appointment with someone you’ve committed to: 95%
  
  This 95% is why I am launching Ambition Alcove Hours in October!
  Join the waitlist here.

Aspiration

This workbook isn’t just a planner—it’s a complete goal-setting system that keeps you motivated, organized, and on track. Here’s what it can do for you:

• Stay Organized: Easily track your progress with an intuitive layout, ensuring your goals are always in sight.
• Stay Motivated: Regularly reflect on your achievements, make adjustments, and continue your growth journey with confidence.
  
• Accountability Built In: With built-in tools to assess and celebrate your progress, you’ll stay on track and committed.

Ambition

Unlike traditional planners that focus on daily to-do lists, our workbook offers a self-guided system designed for long-term success. 

Download the Digital Goal Planning and Goal Tracker Workbook today and take the first step toward meaningful progress. Then, join us for Ambition Alcove Hours and watch your goals come to life!

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

Today I’m going to talk about core values along with

a 10 minute exercise so you can align your actions, relationships and decisions for optimal growth.

Let’s talk about growth for a minute.

​The hardest part of growth and self discovery is learning which people, places and opportunities create an environment conducive for positive change vs. those who benefit from you staying exactly as you are.

You cannot fully embody a new version of yourself when your brain is triggered to regress into old habits and ways of behaving.

If you notice yourself revisiting past behaviors, habits or thought processes when around an old friend, role or environment, you might have outgrown that younger version of you. It may feel awkward or uncomfortable but this a sign of growth.

But how do you know which environment is right for you?

Keep reading.

Accountability

Are you a boat or a dock?

My therapist gave me this analogy and it stuck with me.

Picture a boat floating in the water with no anchor. It drifts around….. and around..… until an anchored boat invites it over. So the anchorless boat ties up and joins the party and people.

Then the party ends.
So they untie the boat and it drifts away.

The anchorless boat sees another group of boats. It drifts over and gets tied to one of them….joining those people until they decide they are done and untie it.

And the anchorless boat drifts away again…..waiting to see who it can anchor itself to.

This is what it feels like to navigate life without a defined set of core values.

Core values act as a filter for

• Relationships
• Opportunities
• Personal brand
• Content creation
• Decision making

Without core values, every passing thing can pull you in, creating a false sense of safety and stability for a short time.

Growth requires you to be a dock, not a boat.

A dock is a person with a defined set of values that pulls in people and opportunities.

It’s stable.
Others come to it.

Let’s make sure you’re a dock, not a boat……

Seeking more alignment in your life? Keep going…..

Aspiration

Write every day? It doesn’t take years of self-reflection or therapy to define your core values.

This simple 10 minute exercise will help you create your values so you can start aligning your actions with the right people, decisions and opportunities.

Step 1: Reflect

Reflect on your life and answer the following 4 questions:

• When was I happiest in my life & what was I doing at that time?
• When was I the least happy in my life & what was I doing at that time?
• If money was no object, what would a perfect day look like?
• How do I spend my free time?
  

Step 2: Create a list of 10-15 words
Based on those reflections, choose 10 – 15 words from this list.
A few notes :

• This list is not exhaustive – you may think of another word
• Personal values may vary from person to person
• Your values have evolved and will continue to evolve. Stay focused on now.
  

Step 3: Refine your list

Bucket your words into columns based on similarities.

Then highlight one word per column so you refine it to 4-5 values that are clearly distinct and represent different parts of yourself.

Ambition

Step 4: Pair with a verb

Now it’s time to make impactful statements for each word.

Here’s mine….

• Create & maintain meaningful relationships.
• Seek opportunities for growth.
• Live in control of my time.
• Always make time for play – never take life too seriously.
• Protect my mental and physical health.

Step 5: Make them visible

• Make them your phone backdrop
• Add them to your computer wallpaper
• Write them in the front of a notebook
• Put a post-it on your desk

CONGRATS! You just created your core values and can start aligning your actions with the right people, decisions and opportunities.

Bonus: This is also great exercise to do with a partner or team. We did this at a recent mastermind to help create attendees individual culture and value system. 

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

Imagine this scenario:

• You and a friend make plans to go to coffee.
• You arrange your entire day around it.
• When the time comes you show up, find a table and start perusing the menu.
• You wait for 15 minutes, checking the clock.
• Then they text and say “nevermind”

How would you feel?

• Frustrated?
• Angry?
• Disrespected?

We would never do this to someone we care about.

We respect them and their time too much.

But 70% of people do this every single day…..

To themselves.

A study of 1,700 people and their sleep habits found that nearly 70% routinely hit the snooze button.

• They made a plan with themself.
• Structured their day around it.
• But when the time comes, they say “nevermind”.

This is not a newsletter about why you should wake up at a certain time but it IS about self respect and discipline.

Many people like to joke that I get more done in a month than most do in a year. Planning my calendar ensures I inject my life with novelty which has been proven to slow down the feeling of time.

The Three Versions of Ourselves

When we make a plan and then discard it, we are essentially telling ourselves that we are not worthy or don’t deserve it. By making a new choice in the present, we discount the person we were when we made that plan and disrespect the person we want to become.

We all have three versions of ourselves:

Past: The planner who charted a path for us to become our future self.
Present: Often driven by short-term desires, seeking immediate gratification, and avoiding discomfort.
Future: The version we aspire to become, for whom we set goals and make plans.
Present you should not be in charge. The past version of you set the path to become the future version of you. Present you needs to follow that path.

When my alarm clock goes off at 5 a.m., I refuse to hit the snooze button. It’s the first opportunity in my day to say “I respect you” to myself—to honor the plans we have made: the person I was and the person I want to become.

Most people who fail to achieve their goals are failing to build the muscle of discipline and self-respect. Much like in a friendship where one person keeps letting the other down, you will struggle to grow if you don’t show up for yourself.

So, how do we build the same self-respect for our goals and plans that we have for our friends, colleagues, and family?

Accountability

Accountability is the Answer.

It’s the reason I created Office Hours – to build the support and accountability to help people build their brands, side hustles and solopreneur businesses.

Every day we will share our to-do list and how we are moving toward our goals.

Quick note: I am opening up 10 spots to be the first to join my Office Hours at a discounted rate.

The built-in community meets regularly to ensure you are making progress toward your goals.

Anyone who joins in July & August will get a free 1:1 with me to set your goals and audit your calendar.

Sign up here if you are interested.

Think about something you want to add as a habit in your day.

Aspiration

Write every day?
Go to the gym?
Get up at 5:30am?
Now create a text chain with yourself.

Literally just text your phone number.

This text thread now represents the past and future versions of yourself who made the plan and are waiting for you to arrive at the destination.

Text yourself a picture of the thing every time you do it.

Start treating yourself with the same respect you have for others and watch how your life changes.

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

Since we can’t clone ourselves or create more hours in the day, let’s explore the art of relationship-building. Our latest article in SASS Magazine offers strategies for nurturing romance, friendships, and family ties.

✨The Balancing Act: Nurturing Romantic Relationships

• Quality Over Quantity: Schedule regular date nights or spontaneous getaways.
• Open Communication: Share schedules and challenges with your partner.
• Embracing Unconventionality: Surprise your partner with unexpected gestures.

✨The Social Network: Cultivating Meaningful Friendships

• Scheduled Friend Time: Treat friend dates as important as work meetings.
• Celebrate Milestones: Acknowledge personal and professional achievements together.
• Virtual Connections: Use technology to stay close with long-distance friends.

✨Managing Family Ties

• Quality Family Time: Plan activities that create lasting memories.
• Incorporate Family into Your Business: Involve family in your entrepreneurial journey.
• Set Boundaries: Establish clear work and family time boundaries.

 ​Read the Article Here: 

https://7b41076f.flowpaper.com/SassMayJun24BOSSDIGITAL/#page=51

Nominate us for a Sass Choice Award!

Will you nominate us? 

Click the link below and scroll to Local Woman Owned Business

Type in “Marielle Agency” and click Submit! Easy Peasy.  

•  VOTE FOR US HERE

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

Read the Article Here: 

https://citylifestyle.com/articles/the-power-of-your-busines…

Ready to elevate your business game?

• Join us for an exclusive event (only 4 spots left!) It’s your chance to shine in the spotlight with our unique “hot-seat” experience. Picture this: You, surrounded by a supportive group, all focused on YOU and your goals. Whether it’s tackling a challenge, clarifying your vision, or seeking guidance, the hot-seat is your time to shine!

• Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/may-mastermind-lunch-tickets-87…

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

Micro Living and Micro Working

In the wake of the COVID pandemic, as time seemed suspended and the distinction between days blurred, many of us turned to a practice of micro living and micro working. Instead of focusing on grand ambitions and macro-level goals, we honed in on the minutiae of daily life, stacking small tasks to create a semblance of productivity.

During the pandemic, micro living manifested in mundane yet essential questions:

• “What’s my next meal?”
• “Is my sourdough ready yet?”
• “What show should I watch now?”
• “Which Zoom happy hour is happening tonight?”
• “What TikTok dance will I learn next?”

In this quest for busyness, we inadvertently fell into the trap of the busyness pandemic. We filled our days to feel a sense of purpose, but in doing so, we neglected the quality of our activities.

Similarly, in the realm of work, the pressure to stay busy can lead to a frantic pace devoid of meaningful progress. We convince ourselves that constant activity equates to productivity, perpetuating a cycle of mindless rushing from one task to another.

As John Wooden wisely observed, “Never mistake activity for achievement.”
Yet, in our post-pandemic world, many continue to conflate the two. Micro living and micro working may seem like pathways to fulfillment, but in reality, they often lead to burnout rather than joy. It’s time to reevaluate our approach and prioritize meaningful engagement over mere busyness.

Break Free from Micro Living: 5 Powerful Questions

Here are 5 important questions to ask yourself when you’re feeling caught in the busyness trap:

Am I running towards something or away from something?

My coach likes to remind me that when I start filling up my schedule externally, it might be a sign I’m trying to avoid dealing with something internally.

It’s like emotional whack-a-mole. If I can just keep moving, it can’t catch me!

Stop and ask yourself if there is something you don’t want to feel and that’s why you are running away from something vs. running toward something.

Am I focused on quality over quantity?

• I’d rather complete 1 project than start 4.
• I’d rather have 2 present hours with my family than 4 distracted hours.
• I’d rather have 1 quality dinner with friends than trading Instagram DMs.
• I’d rather schedule a 10 minute phone call than trade 30 slack messages.

Pause and think about how many interactions you are having and rate them on quality and determine how to swap them for more quality interactions.

Do I have permission to unplug?

In 2024 I believe everyone has a technological “numbing cycle”: a series of clicks we perform when we are exhausted, stressed and need a break but don’t feel like we have permission to unplug.

• Instead we open and close a series of apps without even thinking about it.
• Instead of checking email while we’re out to dinner just enjoy a nice meal.
• Instead of watching a webinar while we’re working out focus on your exercise.

Am I trying to fill every hour? Steal my 4-3-2-1 method.

• 4 Hours of Deep Work + Meetings a day. 
• 3 Hours of Intentional Family Time. 
• 2 hours of Movement. 
• 1 Hour of Rest. 
  

You don’t need to schedule every moment of your day. I use that time to do whatever feels right for that day.

Time IS money. Am I overspending?

Imagine you were given $100 a day and, without thinking, you gave out $20 to the first 5 people you saw. Every day you would be broke.

Think about your time as currency.

Stop giving it to every single person who asks for it.

Every Sunday I look at my calendar and ask myself 3 questions:

1. Do these meetings get me closer to my goal this month? If yes, keep all. If no, proceed to question 2.
2. Do these meetings increase my luck surface area? If yes, keep most. If no, proceed to question 3.
3. Do these meetings increase good will & positive value? If yes, keep some. If not, cancel.

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.

How Do We Pick Up Speed When We Don’t Know the Destination?

Here are tools I’ve picked up along the way to help me make the best decision possible.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is a form of talk therapy focused on changing unhelpful or unhealthy ways of thinking, feeling, and behaving.

Unlike other talk therapy that focuses mostly on the “why” we feel a certain way, CBT focuses on the “what do we do about it?” CBT is all about tools and strategies.

My 2 goals for therapy:

• Make the subconscious → conscious (Do I know why I feel and act the way I do?)
• Run on current programming, not old programming.

By knowing my original programming (some call this your inner child), I can make decisions based on what 39-year-old Danielle wants and needs (not 6-year-old Danielle).

CBT has allowed me to understand that the fear around climbing this next mountain was coming from old programming that a mom should look and act a certain way.

Creating Mental Space

When we look for advice from others, we create external noise that can make it hard to hear what we want.

If you find yourself googling “should I do X”… chances are you know what you want to do and are actually seeking permission to do it.

Two practices I find particularly effective are:

1. The Three-Hour Walk: Disconnecting from digital distractions and immersing oneself in nature for an extended period fosters clarity and vision.
2. The Three-Day Retreat: Temporarily disengaging from the daily grind to prioritize self-care and reflection. This structured approach, focusing sequentially on mental, physical, and emotional well-being, facilitates holistic alignment with one’s true desires.

7 Powerful Questions for Decision-Making

As you potentially find yourself wanting to shift into a different gear, here are seven powerful questions to ask yourself if you feel you are at a crossroads and need to make some big decisions:

1. When was the last time I felt really happy?
2. What was I doing at that time in my life?
3. Is my current path growing me or leading me to growth?
4. What advice would I give to someone in my shoes?
5. What is my fear in going after the thing I want?
6. Whose voice do I hear in that fear? My parents? My friends? Society?
7. What could go right?

Two Key Principles to Remember at a Crossroads

1. There is no right or wrong answer. Gather enough information to make the best decision for you, and then spend all your energy making it the best decision for you.
2. Nothing is permanent. Make a decision, try it out, learn, and then make another one.

This was an intense one. Thank you for reading!

If you are ready to take your Ambition to the next level, here are 3 ways I can support you.