This week I talk to the founders of The Authentic Girls Club about what it means to stop seeking happiness and start becoming a spreader of joy. One practice shines through as a tool we can all use to get out of our own heads and be more intentional about how we show up for those around us.  Listen to the end to hear all about The Authentic Girls Club and the amazing offer currently available - but be quick, doors close on Tuesday 30 April!  Links to access the offers:  Authentic Girls Club Membership: htheauthenticgirlsclub.com/membership May Retreat: hempoweredwomanretreats.com/empoweredwoman

It's my 49th birthday today and I was reflecting on the most useful skills I've learned - and still need to learn - in my efforts to live joyfully.

This week, I had to re-learn a lesson about not over-complicating things. If you are stuck and going in circles, this episode might offer a new perspective and some simple options to find a way forward. If you have questions or would like to comment, visit nataliebritt.substack.com - you can subscribe there too and receive episodes and show notes direct to your inbox.

In this episode, I share 8 ways to think like an Optimist.

Why haven't we evolved to be eternally optimistic if optimistic thinking is so much better? The answer, like all things in nature, is that nothing is inherently good or bad, and the trick is to learn balance and have the ability to make best use of these different ways of thinking, depending on the requirements of the situation. This week I explore the benefits of Pessimistic Thinking (and offer a recap of that means for those who missed the last two episodes). If you have a natural tendency towards pessimistic thinking, this episode may help you harness the power that comes with it and build greater resilience for the moments when you need to take big leaps into the unknown in your efforts to achieve your biggest goals. If you'd like the episode AND the show notes delivered directly to your inbox each week, subscribe for my weekly email at nataliebritt.substack.com 

Welcome to another episode of the Big Happy Life podcast where Natalie Britt, your hypnotherapist and host, takes you on an insightful journey of understanding and overcoming a "pessimistic explanatory style". Learn from her personal struggle with negative thought patterns and how she unmasked her pessimistic explanatory style, transforming it into a driving force for success. In this episode, Natalie shares her experiences as both a hypnotherapist and mindset coach, illuminating the often overlooked impact pessimism can have, even when encountering good events. She offers crucial insights into the markers of a pessimistic thought process and how it varies from an optimistic approach. This episode is particularly beneficial for those grappling with recurring negative thinking, depression, and self-doubt. Here, you will discover the profound impact your thoughts can have in fostering resilience and driving you towards long-term goals. Natalie invites listeners to reflect on their thought patterns and grasp their narratives for success, and finishes with a resounding message of belief in one’s ability to shape thought patterns that empower and promote success. Step into a journey that enables an optimistic outlook to elevate both personal and professional life. For more on this topic, visit Natalie's Substack page or find the shownotes for this episode at www.bighappylife.co.uk

Rubber cement is a type of adhesive. It's composed of rubber and is known for its ability to form flexible bonds before the bond becomes permanent. If you're feeling stuck in your efforts to achieve your health, wealth or business goals, this episode is for you.  I don't want to give away too much so you'll need to listen to find out more, but during the episode, I invite you to take an assessment before proceeding to listen to the rest of the show. Click here to access the official assessment at "Authentic Happiness" on the University of Pennsylvania website.  

"Joy is not something you quest for. It is something you allow. It is in your nature." - Tess Vergara My guest today is Tess Vergara, a Soul Powered Executive Coach who addresses the conflicts many executives face between mind and heart, soul and ego so they can be more productive, creative, abundant and successful.  In this episode, Tess helps explore the idea that fulfilment and joy require us to accept all parts of ourselves - including the parts we've been taught were "bad".  If you've every worried about being "selfish" or thought any part of you was "bad" or somehow "not good enough", this episode could help bring you greater acceptance and open you up to a life that feels more joyful and fulfilling. At the end of the episode, Tess also talks about the freebie she has on offer at the moment. You can find all the links you need to connect with Tess and download the freebie on the show notes page at bighappylife.co.uk   

I'm on a bit of a personal quest right now - exploring what it means to live life as an expression of joy rather than in the pursuit of happiness. In this episode, I talk to the wonderful Tanya Hackney, author of "Leaving the Safe Harbor: The risks and rewards of raising a family on a boat".  This is one of the deepest, most thought provoking conversations I've had on the podcast as Tanya and I explore life, death, God, the universe and, of course, what it means to live life as an expression of joy. Tanya's faith is a huge part of her ability to do this, and she shares that with us, along with many beautiful stories, experiences and lessons. I hope you'll enjoy this conversation and take as much from it as I did. Tanya's book is available from all good book shops and on Amazon as well. Show notes for the episode are available at bighappylife.co.uk

In this episode, I talk about 4 routes to wellness: 1. Neuroscience 2. Nutrition 3. Habits 4. Healing These form the four routes to wellness that I live by - the same four routes I teach. This is the final episode of the series before the podcast takes a break for the summer. Be sure to listen to the end if these 4 routes to wellness resonate with you as there's a fantastic offer available to those of you who want to delve in a bit further. Show notes available at bighappylife.co.uk

This week I revisit an old episode (25) - originally titled "Happiness and the Brain". Our understanding of both 'happiness' and 'the brain' is expanding all the time and cool new science is constantly emerging on both subjects. I've learned so much in the years since recording the original episode so this week I pull out the old episode, dusted it off and added a bit of polish in the form of new information and current tips and advice that could help you improve mood and reduce symptoms of mental ill health.   Show notes available at bighappylife.co.uk. Resources I mention during the episode: Dr Mindy Pelz book: Fast like a Girl Dr Mindy Pelz YouTube Video about Dopamine Fasting Big Happy Life Podcast Episode - Getting Gut Healthy with Hannah Richards

My journey to greater mental wellness required me to focus on 4 key areas. In this episode I share a brief overview of each one. They are: Neuroscience Nutrition Habits Healing   During the episode, I make reference to resources I've found helpful. These include - under the heading of Neuroscience - 2 books: "Change your Brain, Change your Life" by Dr Daniel Amen "You, Happier" by Dr Daniel Amen The above are affiliate links.   Under the heading of Nutrition: Hair Mineral Testing The above is NOT an affiliate link.

This week I had the pleasure of talking to Body Mind Intelligence Therapist, Raj Lehl. Raj works with multiple healing modalities to support individuals suffering with their physical and mental health. She is a Trustee of the Craniosacral Therapy Association and an academic tutor for the Centre for Homeopathic Education. She is also a single mum to two children. Raj and I came up with the title of this episode together because, as mums whose children's needs pushed us to our limits - beyond our limits really - we both experienced what it was like to have to grow beyond those limits and become the people we needed to be for our children to thrive (we're both still working on this growth and neither of us expects to ever be "done"). We've both seen miraculous shifts in our children that have correlated with the work we've done on ourselves and we've both experienced first hand how those shifts have changed the way we parent. In this episode we talk about some of our experiences and Raj explains her work. She also offers some brilliant tips for how anyone who is just starting out on their mind-body connection journey. After talking to her, I'm definitely keen to book a session! If you are too, here are her details: email: raj@rajlehl.com Website: www.rajlehl.com LinkedIn Resources mentioned on the podcast The body keeps the Score - by Bessel Van Der Kolk A huge range of books by Gabor Mate   Show notes available at bighappylife.co.uk  

Do you still have the same fridge you were using in the 80's or 90's? Probably not. You probably replaced it with something you liked more or something that worked better. We do this with products all the time but we don't tend to do it with emotions. Instead, we leave old emotional patterns in place for years, letting them wreak havoc long after they've served their usefulness. This week, I talk about one way our emotional patterns take hold and offer some ideas to help you get started if you have emotional patterns that are no longer serving you.  

If you're someone who judges yourself harshly and says things like, "I just don't have any willpower", or "I can't stick with anything for long enough to make it work" then this episode is for you. There's so much more to behaviour than meets the eye and it's easy to think we're at fault when can't stick with behaviours until they become habit. What few of us realise is that all of our habits developed in the context of our environments - so they're shaped by how we were raised, what we were taught, how we learned to fit in and belong, how we learned to manage our emotions...and a thousand other things. Not only that but our current environment changes how we feel about the behaviour in the moment of deciding whether or not to do it. When I'm working to help my clients change their behaviour in order to be happier, healthier and more productive, I teach them my B=SET behaviour change model to help them understand the many factors at play in driving their behavioural choices. I touch on the model briefly in this episode. B=SET It stands for Behaviour = State + Environment + Time State - How you're thinking and feeling in that moment Environment - Everything and everyone around you. Time - Your history with that behaviour and where you're focusing your attention (in the past, present or future) Much more on this model in later episodes! Environment This week I talk about how, if you want to live a healthier, happier life, you're almost definitely going to have to "swim against the tide" of your environment. This is exhausting and requires enormous willpower - which is a finite resource. The key to behaviour change, therefore, lies is your ability to either disconnect from your environmental influences or shape them in your favour.   For more on B=SET and more tips for a happier, healthier life, follow me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn Show notes available at bighappylife.co.uk    

What's more important for a successful business - a good strategy or a powerful mindset? My guest this week is Kirsty Kamarauskas, a mum, 7 Figure CEO, Success Mindset Coach & Law Of Attraction Mentor For Purpose Driven Entrepreneurs. Her work is about helping business owners achieve their biggest goals by releasing negative and limiting beliefs they may not even realise are holding them back and in this episode, she helps me answer that question. This episode forms part of this mini-series about the habits necessary to get your business to that first £100k milestone and focuses specifically on mindset as it relates to business success. This conversation was incredibly illuminating and helped me understand more about why I've struggled to connect with my intuition and why I've struggled in the past to consistently implement business strategies. Kirsty's depth of knowledge and experience make her a leader in this field and her insights are both inspiring and enormously practical. If you're ready to take your business to the next level, this episode holds nuggets that will help get you started. Connect with Kirsty on social media Facebook Instagram Show notes available at bighappylife.co.uk  

Perimenopause is getting a lot of press lately and more of us are getting to grips with what it means for our health, memory and overall experience of life when our hormones begin to decline. What few people understand, however, is that hormones exist in a sort of symphony - and that symphony is largely conducted by two hormones - insulin and cortisol. This episode focuses on one of those conductor hormones: insulin. I share my own experience of using a CGM and what it taught me and I share a little bit about why using a CGM just once for a 30 day period could give you life changing information about your own body and how it processes food. The monitor I used is the Dexcom G6. * This is a whistle-stop tour and there's a lot more to say on the topic but if you want a deeper dive, I'd enourage you to follow @glucosegoddess on Instagram and check out her two books: The Glucose Revolution *  and The Glucose Goddess Method * What you'll get in this episode is a little insight into the ways in which a CGM can help you make choices that suit YOUR body so you can lose weight, improve mood, increase energy and achieve a far greater sense of health and wellbeing than simply by following conventional diet advice. To comment or ask questions, visit the show notes at bighappylife.co.uk or email me directly at natalie@bighappylife.co.uk   *These are affiliate links.

So many of us pride ourselves on being almost super human. We're mums, business owners, partners, home makers, carers, friends and devoted family members. We show up when and where we're needed, we help out and keep going no matter how exhausted we get - but at what cost - and what can we do when we no longer have the energy to keep paying? This week I talk to Evelyn Pacitti, burnout resiliency coach and the founder of Measurable Wellness. In our conversation, Evelyn talks about her multiple experiences of burnout and shares the system she created to manage her energy and wellness more effectively so she continue to excel in her life and career without repeatedly burning out. Evelyn brings her engineering background to the world of wellness, making something notoriously intangible easier to measure - and therefore easier to manage. Her insights make it possible for all of us to consider the patterns in our lives and the ways in which we might use measures in our own lives to improve our mental, physical and emotional health while continuing to work towards our big goals. I hope you'll get as much from this conversation as I did! To connect with Evelyn: Email: evelyn@measurablewellness.com Linked-in: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evelyn-pacitti/ To watch Evelyn's Video explaining your daily energy tank and your reserve energy tank, visit the full show notes page at bighappylife.co.uk

This week I examine what it takes for us to make positive changes that take us outside our comfort zone? The episode is inspired by a conversation that takes place in the first few minutes of The Gavin Sisters Wellness Show (Episode: How to be your own therapist with Owen O'Kane).   “Would we be where we are if we hadn’t gone through such challenging times?” was the theme of the conversation and Sharon and Lauretta - aka The Gavin Sisters -  talked about how, in the absence of illness, relationship breakdowns and other devastating losses, they might never have become motivated enough to make the changes they made to their health, wellness, careers and lives. Immediately on hearing that conversation, I was inspired to join the discussion and recorded this episode.   Listening back now, as I write these notes, there’s so much more I wish I’d included but this is a start. Here's what to expect: I share a little of my own story of adversity and how, without it, I might have carried on as I was. I pose some powerful questions to help you think about what’s going on for you right now and what pain you’re tolerating in your life, either waiting for things to get better or waiting for them to get worse. To help bring this conundrum to life I tell “The Howling Dog” story – one of my favourite metaphors about the pain of making a change versus the pain of staying stuck. For those of you who identify with feeling stuck in patterns that feel stressful or unfulfilling despite you having a comfortable life, I offer some thoughts on how to start moving out of the pain and towards greater fulfilment.   We don’t have to wait for things to get worse before we start moving towards the life we truly desire.   If you’re done waiting and you’re ready to start moving forward, this episode may help spark your first actions, and if you'd like help figuring out those first steps, contact me or jump straight to booking a call.

We all want our children to have happiness, love and success but not many of us know how to create a life that allows us to truly experience joy and fulfilment. In this episode, I focus on 5 things we need to focus upon, learn or cultivate if we're to have lives that go beyond the mere achievement of goals and take us into the territory of happiness, joy, meaning and fulfilment. To contact me about working together, email natalie@bighappylife.co.uk or book a discovery call at https://bighappylife.co.uk/contact-me/ Full show notes available at https://bighappylife.co.uk/2023/05/12/live-the-life-you-tell-your-kids-is-possible/