Medium Lady Talks: Burnout Recovery for Millennials and Mothers

Medium Lady Talks about Five Things to Try Right Now - July 2021

Hello, hi! Today's episode ends with a five so it's back to my series on 5 things to try right now. I hope you'll try one or some, or all of them! If you do please connect with me on Instagram, I'd love to hear your thoughts @medium.lady!
1. Ask yourself "WHAT IF IT ALL WORKS OUT, WHAT IF MY HARD WORK PAYS OFF" 
2. GO DEEP ON YOUR STRENGTHS then put it on the back burner and stop thinking about it so much
3. REFRESH YOUR INSTAGRAM FEED WITH HASHTAGS. Here are a few that have contributed to changing my relationship with the algorithm this year: #amplifymelanatedvoices #shelvesofdiversity #diversifyyourbookshelf #disabledandcute #disabledfashion #fatpeopleareaspirational #pinterestbutmakeitfat #indigenousfashion
4. REVIEW THE LAST PRODUCT YOU USED UP - Bonus points if you use this as a point of conversation and ask someone to review what they're using!
5. EAT VACATION LUNCH: made fresh, eaten outdoors with a cold drink. I'm going to try doing this more often, and even ditch my phone! You can find my meal tips and tricks in my Instagram highlights.
Music is Climb by The Ghost in the Piano, I'm grateful for its availability for use with creative commons license.
 

Medium Lady Talks with Ali Oppenlaender about your Summer Reading Pile

Hello, hi! Are you prepared for summer reading!? Summer reading can feel high effort - you want to read what all the cool kids are reading and be able to talk about the latest summer releases. But what about the back list? What about the library?
Join me as I chat books with my friend Alison Oppenlaender! We'll each recommend a book for your summer reading pile and ALL of our book recommendations are from the backlist. Library users unite!
You're going to want to listen and make some plans for your summer reading in advance. Using MEDIUM EFFORT, figure out what you want to read, and then just focus on reading those books! Don't worry about all the Book Fomo this summer ;)
Our book recommendations include our "reading sweet spot", a book we always recommend, a book that surprised us and the ONE book you should read this summer....
As always please connect with me over on Instagram, @medium.lady and let me know what's on your summer reading pile. 
Books recommended, in no particular order:
112263 by Stephen King
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
Get a Life Chloe Brown, by Talia Hibbert
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
Music is Climb by the Ghost in the Piano and used with my gratitude and creative commons license

Medium Lady Talks about Minimalism with Bridget Baker

Hello, hi! Today's podcast is an awesome chat with my friend Bridget Baker. Bridget is a brand and website designer, minimalist, lifestyle blogger and RV enthusiast! We had so much to talk about, and I know you're going to enjoy this discussion.
Here's a bit of what we cover!
MINIMALISM and MEDIUM EFFORT: are they from the same family? Or can they hold hands together? 
THE APPEAL OF MINIMALISM: Bridget explains why someone like me (a person with a lifestyle that acts as a magnet for stuff) is so attracted to the idea of minimalism.
YOU DESERVE SPACE: Bridget and I talk about the gift of space, whether it's mental, emotional or physical, and why "this next part" at the end of the pandemic, is an important time for you to claim what you need to make a gentle and self-compassionate transition.
Please let me know what you think of the episode and let's connect over on Instagram @medium.lady!
Other things mentioned in this episode:
The Afrominimalist's Guide to Living with Less by Christine Platt
The Body is Not and Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
Music is Climb by The Ghost in the Piano, used with creative commons license.

Medium Lady Talks about Growth Mindset

Hello, hi! Today's episode is all about growth mindset - with medium effort. On Instagram I set monthly goals that I call my monthly "experiment". I design goals to fall within four categories: read, play, try and think. The last few months I've been "think"ing about growth mindset. This episode is a summary of those thoughts.
NAME YOUR STRENGTHS: The first way to grow, with medium effort, is to take a bit of time, up front to list your strengths with as much detail as possible.
APPLY YOUR STRENGTHS IN A NEW WAY: I talk about a few of my own strengths applied to examples. Growth happens when you use your strength to try something new or to level up your existing strengths. Take a risk, do something awkward, get uncomfortable, but lean into what you're already good at before testing new waters for the sake of growing.
REST: None of us are built to grow 100% of the time, in fact often rest can lead to growth or be the cause of growth. I'll commit to thinking more about this, and am the first to admit I don't have it all figured out!
I touch on a few resources within this episode:
1. The Four Tendencies quiz by Gretchen Rubin 
2. Now, Discover your Strengths by Don Cliffton
3. Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski
4. The Enneagram - online test option available here
 
If you're interested in connecting, or learning more about my monthly experiments,  I can be found on Instagram @medium.lady.
Music is Climb by The Ghost in the Piano, used with creative commons licensing.

Medium Lady Talks about Nail Polish

Hello, hi! Today's episode is all about nail polish... can you really pull of a full episode on nail polish? Well I love nail polish so much I'm willing to try.
In this episode I talk about:
LOW EFFORT nail polish - decided you want polish but can't handle any maintenance? I'll give you my recommendation for the "best set it and forget it" options
HIGH EFFORT nail polish - were you a bride in the 2000s like I was? Then this manicure/polish combo is going to sound very familiar to you...
MEDIUM EFFORT nail polish - I'll give my favourite type of nail polish, favourite colours and why. Plus I'll make a very sound recommendation for a specific budget friendly drugstore brand, I know you're going to want to try it.
PLUS a pretty great wife/husband nail polish YouTube account and the IG nail polish craze that has everyone under the influence (including me!)
If you want more thoughts on this episode, or musings about the many ways to love nail polish, please connect with me on Instagram @medium.lady
Music is Climb by The Ghost in the Machine - it is used with creative commons licence and I am grateful for their sharing it for use on my podcast.

Medium Lady Talks about Books Spring 2021

Hello, hi! It's time for a book review round up! I was so excited to record this podcast that I kept reading "one more book" so I would have enough to share with you.... however this episode now contains 14 books for review! Settle in, you're sure to find something to welcome into your reading life! If you want to see more of my discussion about books I plan to read please join me on Instagram @medium.lady!
When it comes to books this spring I read 7 Fiction, 3 Personal Development and 4 Non-fiction!
I'll rank these 14 books from my least favourite to my most favourite and I do that in three categories:
PROBABLY PASS: Ever read a book, then shared with someone "nah, you could skip it"? These are my bottom three books. They're all either books that didn't deliver on their promises, or books that left me wanting more, either from the story, the writing or the perspective.
KNOW YOURSELF: All books are not written for all people. I'm going to reach for more books that suit me, the better I know myself! The books in this category make up the necessary middle of the pack, they weren't bad, but I'm not going to recommend them to everyone, unless you identify with a particular element or feature of the book. 
MEDIUM LADY MUST READS: These are books I liked the most, and also are books that I feel will appeal to the broadest group of readers. These books not only suit me and my reading style but I feel like they have something to offer another reader!  
Books discussed in today's episode include: (in no particular order):
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna
Maybe You Should Talk To Someone by Lori Gottlieb
Skin Care by Caroline Hirons
Professional Troublemaker by Luvvie Ajayi-Jones
Kingdom of Ash and Tower at Dawn by Sarah J Maas
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Vander Kolk
The Skin We're In by Desmond Cole
Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski
Delicious by Ruth Reichl
How to Break Up with your Phone by Catherine Price
The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
Noopiming by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
 
Music is Climb from The Ghost in the Machine and I am grateful for its availability for use on this podcast through creative commons licensing. 

Medium Lady Talks about Lowering the Bar with guest Emily Gibson

Hello, hi! I'm thrilled to introduce you to my BFF Emily, who joins me for today's episode on Lowering the bar. Emily and I break down our thoughts on lowering the bar in a few specific ways:
WHAT IT USED TO MEAN: Pre pannini "lowering the bar" meant something a little different than it does to us today, and it means different things for Emily than it means for Erin.
LOWERING THE BAR AS SELF_COMPASSION: Erin and Emily discuss lowering the bar as a mental health strategy when they experience depression or anxiety. And lowering the bar as a way to take a step back from what induces overwhelm to re-orient to what is really helping our wellbeing
HOW WE'RE LOWING THE BAR TODAY: In an effort to be a bit more practical, Erin and Emily discuss two areas of their respective lives where they are actively choosing to lower the bar. 
I hope this episode helps you sort out ways to proactively lower the bar in your own life as a way to experience more grace and less criticism. As always I would love to connect with you on Instagram, I can be found @medium.lady
Music is Climb by The Ghost in the Piano, it is used with creative commons license, and my thanks for it availability for use on my podcast.

Medium Lady Talks about Parenting on a Bad Day

Hello, hi! Have you ever had a bad day as a parent? Are you in the middle of a bad day right now? Today's episode covers some of my own reflections and process for dealing with a bad day. It doesn't fix anything, and doesn't even turn the day around, but it helps you get to the end with a bit more self-compassion and grace.
KNOW YOURSELF: Think about your bucket, what's going to take things from it? What's going to fill it even a tiny bit? What is going to trigger you today, what is going to give you a small moment of peace? Consider all possibilities. 
KNOW YOUR KIDS: Where are your kids on an emotional scale of 1 to meltdown? What might they need to fill their buckets? Where are they going to need the guidance of you, the grownup?
LOWER THE BAR: Imagine your day as a play on a stage. Think of the costumes, props and actors. Find a way to make the scene a bit easier. For me this is usually hot dogs for dinner...
SELF-COMPASSION BURSTS: Repeat after me "It's a bad day, and I'm doing ok." Now partner those words with something active and physical.
NOTICE RELIEF: Partner walk in the door? Baby down for a nap? Coffee hot? Notice with a brief pause. You got a wee bit of relief in your bad day. 
BAD DAYS END: Don't forget this. One bad day doesn't mean it's going to be a bad week or bad month. But if you're stuck in one of those know I hear you, and I've had them too. 
YOu're doing a good job. If you want to talk more about this episode please connect with me over on Instagram @medium.lady. I can't wait to talk to you soon.
Music is Climb by The Ghost in the Piano. It is used with creative commons license.

Medium Lady Talks about How to Connect to Your Intuition

Hello, hi! This episode is a partner to Episode 6 where I introduce my thoughts and ideas about intuition. Today I'll talk about my thoughts on three ways to connect to your intuition
HIGH EFFORT: high effort ways to connect with intuition require repeated habits, a willingness to fail and try again, and often lots of time and patience
LOW EFFORT: low effort ways to connect with intuition are brief and engage our senses to help us distance ourselves from the "hyper reactive" state that means there's too much going on for us to listen to intuition.
MEDIUM EFFORT: this is a practice of journalling. Journalling requires a bit of a prompt or a subject to think about, and can be a very rewarding way of listening to your own voice, and revisiting your voice through the passage of time.
For more of my thoughts on this and so many other topics, please connect with me over on Instagram, @medium.lady!
Music is Climb by The Ghost In the Piano it is used with permission under creative common license.
 

Medium Lady Talks about Intuition

Welcome to today's episode, all about INTUITION! I share my experience with becoming Zombie Erin at the end of 2020 and what it taught me about myself and about intuition. I also share that intuition became my "word of the year" for 2020, (despite the pitfalls of resolutions) and what I'm figuring out so far. 
In addition to this I'll talk about:
- what it means to get space so your intuition can be heard and felt
- how to step away from the demanding control panel of life
- INSTINCT vs INTUITION and which camp I'm in!
 
If you have thoughts on getting to know your intuition better, I'd love to connect with you over on instagram you can find me @medium.lady!
Music for this episode is Climb by The Ghost in the Piano, it is used with creative commons license.