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Hey Reader,

"Start small", they say...

I think that often, when people say 'start small,' we don't really believe in the power of small changes. We don't think that by making a micro change, our lives will change or that it will make any difference.

That's why I want to prove to you that micro changes, when done consistently, can completely change who you are and what you do.

In my case, it all started with ketchup. Or, at the very least, my interest in wellness and nutrition started with ketchup.

Back when I was still in high school, I learned that ketchup was high in added sugar from high fructose corn syrup and corn syrup, and it was not recommended to consume it in large quantities. I remember thinking that the fact that something that I thought was only tomato sauce could be bad for you was crazy.

That was the first thing I remember, I stopped eating on a regular basis, and that made me think about the fact that just because something seems healthy or is a normal part of most people's diets, it doesn't necessarily mean it's healthy or nutritious.

So, when I talk about starting small, I mean it.

When I started becoming more conscious about my health and nutrition in general, it was not like I suddenly changed my whole diet or stopped eating junk food from one moment to another.

I literally started by wanting to stop eating ketchup for a month. I remember going to places like Subway or Burger King and just asking for my sandwich or burger without the ketchup. To be honest, this was not super hard to do, but it did feel weird at the beginning. I was not completely sure what outcome I wanted from this; I just knew I wanted to be healthier, and ketchup was an easy start towards eliminating things that weren't the "healthiest" option.

The funny thing that happened is that this little change quickly snowballed. Because it felt easy to do, the next month, I decided to stop drinking soda and to only drink water or natural juices with my meals. Though this was much harder to do than only eliminating ketchup from my life, after a couple of months, it started to feel natural to drink more water.

The case for micro changes

I tell you this story because focusing on eliminating or changing only one small thing at a time helped me make it a part of who I was. I stopped needing to think about it and consider my options as it started to become second-nature to do these things.

At some indefinite point in all the months and years of making micro changes, I became the person who asks for the dressing on the side, who drinks the water instead of the soda, who orders the veggies and the fruit instead of the french fries, who eats the salad and the protein first and then if I still feel like it eat the bread or the potatoes, who drinks the coffee without sugar.

I made it a part of my identity to be conscious about choosing nutritious, healthier options. And though this may have felt challenging when I first introduced any of these changes, now they just feel like a part of who I am. It's become the lifestyle I decided I want to live.

Things have changed since then. I have learned a lot more about nutrition, my interest in being healthier has also snowballed into other areas of my life like movement and working out, meditation and grounding, recovery practices, and many more, but when I really go back to the start, I can pin it down to all of it starting bacause of ketchup (or really, my commitment to stop eating ketchup).

So, whenever you want to make a change and it feels like it's too small, I want you to remind yourself of this often: Small things compound to big, incredible things when done consistently and when you keep up at it long enough to see the changes!

The right work setting for you

In recent years, I have spent a good chunk of my life in coffee houses.

In 2023, I started working a 100% remote job, and to be honest, I was unsure if I would like it. I worried that I would get tired or lonely by not having a place to go and by staying in my house all day.

The funny thing is that the opposite happened.

I started working in coffee houses, in Uber rides, in planes, in restaurants, in hotels, and anywhere really I could sit down. I started taking long 1-2 hour bike rides and taking my computer with me. I started changing in coffee houses' bathrooms after a session of working out or running to then get back to work.

I tell you this because often, we worry about the wrong things.

Before I started working remotely, I would have some friends say things like, "I would never be able to work completely from home," "That feels so lonely," or "What if you want to come into the office one day?"

I also heard other people say, "I would love to never have to go to an office ever again" or "I would love to work at home and be able to design my schedule however I want."

The truth is that there isn't a "perfect" situation or solution for anything.

• There are things that work better for you because of who you are and your preferences.
• There are things that work better for you because of the stage you are at in your life at that moment.
• There are things that work better for you because of the people and the environment that you are surrounded by.

So, ask yourself this:

And know that no matter what your work (and life) setting is at this moment, you are always the creator of your experience. Even when it feels like you can't choose how things go, you can always improve how things feel to you (an under-desk heater, a comfy sweater, good coffee or tea, a sunroom- they are all small things that can make anything better).

Also, if you are going to start working remotely, here are some of the things that I have noticed most people have that definitely help make your experience better:

• Tall water bottle filled with ice (you can easily refill it in most places).
• Headphones (make them noise-blocking if possible).
• Phone and computer charger (or a good external battery if you have it).
• Comfy shoes (sneakers and Converse are the preferred option of most people).
• An extra sweatshirt or long-sleeve.
• And patience... for those loud-speaking people you will encounter at any place.

p.s.: At one point, I quit a what on paper was a 'good job' because there were no windows or natural light in the building (true story). There's no good or bad way of doing anything, but there's always the right way for you.

Cultivating an "Abundance Mindset"

In recent years, people have taken to the task of talking about the importance of developing an abundance mindset, but even though abundance is a topic that has become a lot more mainstream, I still think it can often be confusing to know what exactly it means having an "abundance mindset".

This past week, I was listening to a podcast episode on this topic that made me consider that there are 4 core beliefs you need to have to cultivate an Abundance Mindset.

Here they are:

1. Believe that everything is always working out for your greater good: That even when things are painful, even when things that you were not expecting or prepared for happen, even when everything feels like it's going bad, start to believe that the things that happen are there to help you and make you grow.
2. Believe that there is more than enough for everyone: Notice the fact that just because someone else is winning doesn't mean that you are losing. Start embracing the idea that other people succeeding is actually a good thing because it shows you the way, it shows what is possible, and therefore, makes it more tangible and easier to make it a reality in your own life.
3. Believe that "if it’s not this, it will be something better": Often, we become so focused on our goals and dreams that we start thinking there's only one way of getting what we want. The happiness, the purpose, the fullfillment, the love, the wealth, the freedom you are looking for, they all exist. But the manner in which they may manifest and appear in our lives is oftentimes different from how we initially think they are going to look. Be open to the belief that all the no's, all the closed doors, all the rejections, all the 'failures' you encounter are just preparing for something better that is coming for you.
4. Believe that you are always deeply supported: By your family and friends, by the people who love you, by the Universe, God, or whatever source that is bigger than you and that you believe in. And above all, believe that you are always supported by yourself. Because you have the amazing ability to always be there for you. Trust that.

This belief makes your life better

While learning more about Kabbalah, I noticed that one of the main principles of their philosophy is this belief that every situation you encounter or that happens in your life is an opportunity for your growth because it allows you to choose how you want to approach it.

They make the case that this belief makes your life much more enjoyable because rather than trying to fight what is, rather than only focusing on accepting it, you know that everything that is coming into your life is coming for the main purpose of benefiting you.

This belief transforms the way we see those things that come into our lives, especially those things that we didn’t want happening.

A lot of the things that come into our lives can be painful, unfair, and not right on so many levels.

But in Kabbalah, they believe that we are not meant to suffer, or at the very least, we are not meant to stay in pain and suffering. They believe, instead, that we are given opportunities that help us to break away from the attachment to our ego-selves (that are always looking for the happiness, joy, peace, and fullfillment we desire, externally) and transcend into who we are at our core, intrinsically.

What I like about this philosophy is the opportunity to reframe the challenges you encounter in your life as the things that make you grow, step into the next version of you, and often up-level to the next stage of your life.

So many things that happen in your life can be extremely difficult and hard to deal with in the moment, but they can also be the most profound, transformative, beautiful, and necessary things to occur in your lifetime.

The truth is that life is going to change us, for better or for worse.

We are either going to change in a way that makes us happier, more at peace, and more fulfilled, or we are going to change in a way that makes us less happy, uneasy, and dissatisfied with life.

You have probably noticed that some people age and become better at dealing with life; they never lose that playfulness, that hope, and that joy for who they are and what they do. And some people age and become harder and upset with life.

The question then to ask ourselves is:

"How can I make sure that most of the changes that I’m going to go through in life make me better, happier, and more connected to life, instead of the opposite? What beliefs, what mindset, and what attitude do I need to bring to make that a reality?"

Even the hardest things can be moments that wake you up to what is really important in life.

The beautiful choice we have at any moment we experience something difficult is to decide:

• Who do I want to become?
• Who am I going to choose to become?
• What am I going to choose to learn from this experience?
• Where do I derive purpose and meaning from?

That’s the opportunity every single one of us has whenever we encounter a challenge: to use it to our advantage.

To ask ourselves:

Am I going to keep myself in a state of struggle and become a lesser version of myself? Or can I use this to become an even better, more fulfilled version of myself?

Because when you look for the gift, you allow yourself, and everyone around, to step into who they are meant to be.

On "Doing the Thing"

The only thing that is doing the thing is doing the thing

A short essay by StrangestLoop, on recognizing the difference between preparing (and often, procrastinating) to do the thing and actually doing the thing:

Source: Things That Aren’t Doing the Thing (via James Clear's newsletter).

Notice those moments when you are avoiding doing the thing by endlessly "preparing" for it. Be honest about what is really the psychological discomfort you are avoiding at that moment.

Usually, in these cases, you are just being motivated by the avoidance of discomfort. Become aware of it.

A quote on how we see the world

Your beliefs determine what you see in your reality and what you believe to be true.

Neuroscience shows that you need to believe in something before you can see it. Here are three science-backed reasons why that is:

1. We don't actually see the world with our eyes. Our eyes take in light signals, and then, those light signals travel through the brain where our thoughts, beliefs, memories, and emotions are all stored, before the images are even put together by our brain. This means we see things based on our beliefs and the way our brain is wired.
2. Over 99% of our reality is being filtered out at any given moment. The human body receives around 11 million bits of information per second; the human mind can only experience around 50 bits per second of information, so how does your brain decide what gets filtered in and what gets filtered out? Your beliefs. A perfect example of this is 'confirmation bias', which states that your brain will work to show you things in reality that confirm the beliefs you already have.
3. We accept the life and the love we think we deserve. If you don't believe that you deserve to achieve your dreams, your brain will hold you back from them. This often looks like procrastination, playing small, being passive or timid with your life, or self-sabotage.

I would argue that your beliefs are the single most determinant factor of what you see as possible (or not) for you.

p.s.: If you are ready to overcome your limiting beliefs and start creating more empowering ones that help you move forward and finally take action in your life, start by becoming really aware of your current beliefs with my Free Guide HERE.

Love creating your mind one day at a time? Forward this to a friend so they can get in on the action and sign up below. Subscribe to The Created Mind Thank you for reading and sharing, Jenny ​​​​

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