In this episode, Patrina discusses Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and one principle in particular, the idea of ‘beginning with the end in mind.” This involves creating a plan and working toward a future desired outcome. But rather than focusing on a new job, bigger house, or new relationship, our host encourages us to reflect on what we would like our future to feel like, and explore whether certain desires support us in feeling joy, rather than come from a place of lack, dissatisfaction, or unhappiness.

Patrina shares how her personal experience with endometriosis led her to reexamine her desire to be a mother and allowed her to lean in to joyful acceptance for her life exactly as it was. Returning to the theme of this week’s episode, Patrina explores Bronnie Ware’s Top Five Regrets of the Dying, how it relates to Covey’s principle, and what we can learn from the phenomenal clarity of vision that people gain at the end of their lives. 

Patrina discusses the importance of living authentically, building courage, and nurturing deep connections with loved ones through vulnerability and expressed feelings. She ends with the story of Lydia the fisherwoman and Amanda the investment banker as a reminder that being happy in the here and now is the only guaranteed way to live happily ever after - the ultimate desired outcome for all of us. Until next week, be joyfully you, full of joy, fully you.Episode Highlights:

• Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People- how it introduced empowering habits for a life well-lived and its groundbreaking emphasis on aligning personal values with universal, timeless principles
• Covey’s three levels of maturity: dependence, independence, and interdependence
• Energy Vampire – the chronic complainer who lives in victimhood where everything is someone else’s fault
• Begin with the end in mind
• Creating a plan and working toward that outcome
• Becoming clear about what you want your future to feel like and whether certain desires support us in feeling joy
• Patrina’s personal example of wanting to be a mother
• Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn and Mindfulness
• Bronnie Ware’s Top Five Regrets of the Dying
• Courage to live authentically and creating balance
• Importance of expressing your feelings and nurturing deep connections through vulnerability
• Story of fisherwoman, Lydia, and investment banker, Amanda, as an allegory for living fully without regret

Quotes:“Each of Covey’s 7 habits is associated with one the three maturity levels.”“In independence, our confidence is not easily shaken, and we are less likely to compromise on things that are truly important to us.”“When we mature from dependence to independence, we are pretty free from external influences and needing the constant support of an affirmation from others.”“Begin with the end in mind. In his book, Covey encourages us to imagine a future desired outcome so we can create a plan and work toward that outcome.”“I do like the concept of becoming clear about what you’d like your future to feel like.”“I believe healthy desire can actually fuel us to move through life with passion and enthusiasm… What I’m advocating here is taking the time to explore whether a desire that we have supports us in feeling better, that the desire comes from a belief in abundance, and a feeling of joy rather than from a place of lack, dissatisfaction, or unhappiness.”“It is from a place of joyful acceptance that we can move from one joyful place to the next.”“Wherever we look, we are looking out of the same pair of eyes. Whatever we do, it’s still the same body doing it.”“If we’re easily influenced by others, our lives can be all over the place as we jump through one hoop and then another.”“If the vast majority of our days are spent working, we should take some Me Time to reflect on our personal Why.”“Work for work’s sake can be draining, but work aligned with a purpose can energize us.”“Superficial exchanges result in superficial connections.”“Feelings have an energetic charge and need an outlet.”“In our hustle and bustle society where we’re often more focused on the pursuit of happiness rather than actually just being happy, we lose important social connections.”“It can absolutely be hard, breaking out of old habits. But it is absolutely not true that you can’t teach an old dog a new trick.”“We spend so much of our lives pursuing ‘Happily Ever After,” that we forget about being happy right now.”Links:Joyfully You Life homepageJoyfully You Life InstagramJoyfully You Life FacebookJoyfully You Life TwitterJoyfully You Life linktreeStephen Covey and “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” websiteBronnie Ware’s website