72: This Daily Practice Changed My Life and My Business

Nov 26, 2018

I begin every day of my life doing this habit. I've been doing it for years... I believe it's the single greatest reason I've achieved the success that I have. In this episode of the RISE podcast I'm sharing the first chapter of the Start Today Journal. I believe in this process so much I want to give away the details for free... after all, I didn't have a fancy journal to do it in, I wrote it down on any piece of paper I could find. So feel free to use this in your own notebook OR check out https://bit.ly/2QoDuDa for the real deal!

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hey guys it's Rachel Hollis and I'm here with my friend Trent Shelton what's up Rachel how you doing I'm living the dream man will you tell listeners why we were hanging out together right now we're hanging out because we're launching my new podcast straight up and I'm super excited so rad if you guys are not already familiar with Trent he has millions and millions of fans all around the globe who come to him for a very unique style of coaching yeah very unique for sure

straight to the point is realize I can put it straight from the heart and breaking through those negative mindsets breaking through of what's holding you back in when you start rehabbing people's lives Yang for love that so if you guys want to hear more you're already listening on a podcast platform go subscribe to straight up with Trent Shelton that's right let's go let's get it

one of the coolest things that I get to see as part of my job is the manifestation of the product or products that I dreamed up and created and figured out how to do like so many of you as a business owner you get these ideas in your head and it is incredible to get to watch them come to fruition and I started dreaming about one of our most

popular products the start today Journal I started dreaming about this a couple of years ago I had been doing this daily practice based on several different people I had heard about several different things and I kind of put them together into one daily practice which was every single day I wrote down the dreams I had for my life but I wrote them as if they had already happened there's something really powerful about claiming a goal as if it's already done

and I wrote down every day and it was how I set my intentions and then I would post about it on social and so many people are like what are you doing what is that where do I get that journal and I was like guys it's not a journal it's just a notebook I'm just writing down the same thing every single day but what I think is interesting as business owners or creators is often times in fact most of the time your audience will tell you what it wants from you and I kept pushing it

because I was like you guys this is not a big deal but it was and people kept asking for it and I finally just thought what if I turn this into a product and I started to dream and plan and I literally taped pictures to the wall of my office of what I dreamed that my journal would look like and the intention behind it and I wanted the covers to be really pretty and I wanted it to be something that you could do once a quarter and then as you completed each Journal you'd have a stack of this evidence of how intentional

while you were about your life and we figured it out and I mean you know sometimes we messed up on the shipping and sometimes we messed up on the interior but we failed our way to where we are today which is the started a journal in the hands of hundreds of thousands of people it's so incredible such a blessing for me to be able to go on Instagram and see hashtag start today journal and see people all

over the world using this practice as a way to aim in the direction of their dreams so if you are not familiar and you want to check it out you can go over to the Hollis co.com forward slash shop and find out all about my favorite practice turned my favorite product and if you're not in the market to buy remember that episode 72 of this podcast gives you the exact step-by-step so that you can do it

whatever notebook you have laying around for free you don't have to buy a product but you should be doing this daily practice it will literally literally change your life

okay for years and years and years I started every single day the same way I would get out a spiral bound notebook or a Post-It or the notes on my phone and I would write the dreams that I had for my life they were big grandiose impossible things I would write them down and the key was I would write them as if they had already happened

I was obsessed with this process it was how I in set my intention every single day and I loved it so much I turned it into a product you've probably heard me talking about the start today Journal because I love it so much but here's the deal I did this every single day without a fancy Journal I wrote it down anywhere that I could and I want you as a listener to be able to do that because I believe so much in this process

and the power of calling your shot the power of naming your dreams and claiming your dreams and so with that in mind I'm going to read you the opening chapter of the start today Journal I'm going to read you the exact how to now all you have to do is find the will to show up and do this every single day of your life I'm going to give you the content for free because I

believe in the power of setting up your goals and if you can't afford a journal well don't let that stop you start this practice right now if you hear the practice and you think it's really rad well dang you should head over to the Jalisco website and get yourself a started a journal but until then let me tell you about how it works

welcome to the rise podcast I'm Rachel Hollis and I built a multimillion-dollar media company with a high school diploma and a Google search bar each week we'll be sharing tangible direct advice or inspiring interviews with the same intention these are the tools to change your life

hey friend welcome to the first page of your start today Journal if we're not already BFFs then please allow me to introduce myself my name is Rachel Hollis I write books and produce life-changing personal growth conferences and speak on stages all over the world I also have four children it's important to follow the professional accomplishments with the personal reality

if you ask me what single thing has contributed most to my success over the last decade it's the ability to focus and be intentional even in the midst of the chaos of school drop-offs and teething babies this journal is a personal process I've used to keep my dreams and goals top of mind and in Focus it's literally how I started today and every day for the last several years I think

it's a major contributing factor for why I've achieved the success I have an online community of millions becoming a number one New York Times bestselling author building a multi-million dollar company and brand with only a high school diploma under my belt and more impressive than all of them a thriving marriage and for kids who are mostly kind well-adjusted members of society

truthfully I never imagined I'd have my own journal with a snazzy name but over the last several years any time I showed a glimpse of my morning routine on social media thousands of people would respond with questions why do you Journal how do you know what to write down where did you get that notebook can you teach me how to do this process so like with most everything we've created as a company this idea came from a direct ask

Mar online family and even though we had no idea how we'd pull it off also a Hallmark of our business I did know how helpful daily intentional Focus could be

there is so much power and setting your intentions every day there is so much power in focusing on the outcome you're after instead of The To Do List you have in your mind this practice was born out of frustration I was tired of starting and stopping my goals over and over again I wanted a habit that would help me see them through to completion in the past whenever I set out to change my life for the better like a

New Year or right before a big birthday I tended to get really fired up and tried to improve everything at once have you ever done that January would roll around and I'd be like okay I'm starting a diet and writing the Next Great American novel and working on my marriage and I'm finally going to get the dog to stop pulling on the leash and the thing is for a few days I'd kill it but then life would happen and one ball would drop and then another

her and suddenly I was right back where I started only now I was beyond discouraged I speak about this process in my book girl stop apologizing and I highly recommend that as a companion for this journal if you want to go into more detail on goal setting and how to take actionable steps but the impetus for this daily practice in my life was that I couldn't understand how I could start out so strong and determined only to watch my

I've fizzle and fade in no time flat the worst part was that whenever I failed to achieve my goals or gave up again I would mentally berate myself for not being able to achieve big things it's only now that I understand that it wasn't that my goals were too big it's that there were too many of them there were too many priorities too many things to keep track of I

I got overwhelmed easily and couldn't keep up with it at all which robbed me of whatever motivation I had started with when everything is important nothing is important so I narrowed my focus I went all-in super hard on one thing and the results were exponential I found success both personally and professionally when I learned to focus and

Focus requires choosing one goal it's hard for many people to commit to only one area of attention when they're passionate about growth they think they've got to do it all and be at all to see massive change what they don't realize is that achieving a goal is like water coming into a harbor when The Tide Rises in the harbor all the boats rise this amazing thing happens when you start to grow

oh in one area of your life other areas improve right along with it if you drop a handful of Pebbles into a lake you'll move the water around a bit if you drop a boulder into a lake meaning if you put all your energy into one area the impact is incredible the Ripple effects of that choice spread out in all directions

look rise podcast is all about this idea of how do we level up what are the tools and tactics that helped us become a better version of ourselves and I think that one of the greatest Tools in my life has been therapy I am deeply passionate about how important it is to be able to talk to someone who isn't a part of your regularly scheduled programming I love getting to talk to a counselor because

are not they don't know my family they don't know my husband they don't know so they don't have any Allegiance or any preconceived notions and having that our to work through what's going on in my life has been sacred for me it's how I learned to deal with anxiety it's what I did to manage postpartum depression it's how I navigated the loss of my brother it's a huge huge huge deal and if you have been thinking about going to therapy for the first time or maybe getting back into

to therapy because you're walking through a difficult season I want to make sure that you know about better help better help is an online resource that matches you with a counselor and it can be a counselor for whatever it is you're struggling with depression or family conflicts anger relationships maybe you're not sleeping maybe you're dealing with trauma or self-esteem there is someone that can help you they have three thousands us licensed therapists across all 50 states

available worldwide you can go onto their website and take a quick questionnaire to be matched with a counselor who deals with exactly the thing you're struggling with you can talk to your counselor through four different communication modes text chat phone or video whatever you prefer and you can start communicating with someone in under 24 hours guys if you need help stop waiting stop putting it off start

looking into what's going to help you get better and if you want to find out more go to better help.com / rise because rise podcast listeners get 10% off their first month with the discount code our ISE that's better help.com rise

for clarity sake I'd like to mention that it's very possible to grow in multiple areas of your life once you've achieved success in one area and established it as a habit for instance I am able to maintain my health and fitness regimen while pursuing a new goal because health and fitness are habits in my life now but if I had tried to conquer them simultaneously or attempted to take them on while starting my company

hey let's say I wouldn't have been successful the question then becomes how do you decide how do you pick the right thing to focus on next well if you're me you narrow it down using a process I used to call 10/10 one like most things in life I figure out something that works for me and when pressed to explain it I write it out and give it a Snappy title see my entire publishing career

10 years 10 dreams one goal who do you want to be in 10 years what are the 10 dreams that would make that Vision a reality for you which one of those dreams are you going to turn into a goal and focus on next for clarity sake let me explain the difference between a dream and a goal a dream is an idea that you have a dream is something you think about or obsess over a dream is something you

about coming true you might have a dream to get into shape it becomes a goal when you sign up for a half marathon and join a running club and start racking up the miles a goal is when you stop hoping for your dreams and actually start working toward them a goal is a dream with its work boots on here's how the process works start with you ten years from now

have you ever thought about what the best version of you is like many of us imagine great things happening but very few people spend the time to imagine in Vivid detail what their best self would be like if you aren't one of my conferences I take you through a full visualization exercise and ask you to close your eyes and dream about the best version of you for today's purposes you've got to keep reading so

eyes open and maybe try and meditate on this later

imagine that a decade of time has gone by and you are living your best possible ideal for yourself and your life dream big don't put any restriction on it don't overthink it just allow yourself to Envision the most magnificent possible future version of yourself a decade in the future what is the very best version of you doing what does she look like how does he go about his

day how does she speak to the people she loves how was she loved in return what kind of clothes do you wear what kind of car do you drive are you a great cook do you love to read do you love to run get as specific as you possibly can where do you go on vacation what's your favorite restaurant to eat at now that you have a life that's different what kind of food do you consume what does it feel like to go throughout your day

they are you optimistic are you encouraging to others after a decade of working on yourself and growing as a person how much joy is there in your life who is in your life what's your week like how do you treat people how do they treat you let your dreams run absolutely wild are you happy are you energetic are you driven do you feel ambitious what's your relationship like with your family members do you own a home

what is it look like do you have kids do you have a family are you married what's the best of the best now go bigger what's a bigger version of the best version of you living every day in the best state that you know how to be what do you do for work what is the highest value that your future self holds is it family is it loyalty is it growth

be as specific as you can be see it like a movie in your mind now without a second of judgment or overthinking it I want you to write down everything that you just thought of as fast as you can I don't want you to forget any of it I want that future version of you to be seared inside your mind the best version of me is when I'm at my very best I don't hold back this is not the time to think it through

or tell yourself to slow down this is not the time for realistic this is the time to think as big as you can possibly go you've got two pages to fill up with words and sentences and even pictures and doodles that will help you visualize your future get to work

that future version of you sounds awesome and I want to take a moment to acknowledge you for writing all those hopes and ideas down very few people have the courage to ever put their desires into substance and I'm proud of you for calling your shot hopefully this exercise helped you paint a clear picture in your mind of a lot of different awesome things your future self can take part in personally I like to do this once or twice a year and create a vision board

fifth grade when you glow a bunch of magazine clippings to poster paper so I've got a visual to go along with my mental imagery

that is the first step that's you in 10 years now here's where you narrow it down 10 dreams turn your 10 years into 10 dreams the 10 dreams are the things that if they came true they would make your vision a reality so if you saw a future that was completely financially free maybe your dreams would be things like making a six-figure salary getting

fleetly out of debt Etc but maybe your future dream self is also healthy and happy and energetic add becoming a marathon runner and a vegetarian to the mix the important thing again is to be specific the list of Dreams is how that Future Vision manifests for you often when we do this we come up with more than 10 but it's essential to narrow it down Focus matters remember

choose 10 dreams that if they were to come true would make your future self real now here's the key to the start today Journal use the prompts as a daily practice to write down those 10 dreams but you have to write them as if they've already happened

I do this every day of my life because I want the repetition to instill in my head and my heart where my focus should be I write them down as if they've already happened because I read once that your subconscious focuses on what you give it so if you tell yourself and your subconscious I'm going to make a million dollars you don't end up focusing on the goal but on the words going to

it's just another to-do list for your brain you didn't give it Direction you didn't ask your mind to help you figure out how you only told it that you were going to do something which is an especially powerful no matter how big a goal you set for yourself after all you create to do lists all the time what makes this something your brain should take notice of what if instead you told yourself I have a million dollars in the bank

specific that's an outcome that's a direction to head going to is something in the future have is present tense which means your subconscious starts focusing on how to make that real right now

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some items on my list or things I want to achieve other items are things I can accomplish every day I am an exceptional wife that one is on my list I write it down every day as a reminder of who I am and who I want to be when I imagine my future best self she's still drunk in love with my husband Dave in the future he's still my best friend and we still can't keep our hands off each other only now we look so much fresher

because all of our kids are older and we don't have to change diapers or wake up with a teething baby

I'm careful with the words I write down to I don't use the word good I don't use the word great I use the word exceptional when I write that sentence about being an exceptional wife every day I have to ask myself what I did today that made me exceptional it's a simple prompt to move me into action

it reminds me to text my husband and tell him how hot he looked in those pants or how much I love him or how much I appreciate what a good dad he is that wouldn't happen if I didn't have the prompt reminding me who I want to be another item on my list I am a New York Times bestseller I wrote this for years and years I wrote it with my first book and my third and my fifth and each time I was discouraged when I didn't make the

list but then I had pages and pages of me reminding myself where I was going

it worked as the inertia I needed to stand back up and try again and again it wasn't until my sixth book and over a decade of dreaming about it that I finally made that dream a reality and even though it took years every single day I reminded myself where I was headed take a moment to brainstorm dreams all kinds of dreams look at your vision of who you want to be 10 years from now and

down all of the things that would be true if that was your reality you don't need to narrow it down to ten things just yet just brainstorm and fill up the pages with possibilities now that you have a bunch of ideas narrow it down to the 10 that matter most the 10 dreams that are most effective to get you where you want to go don't worry about getting these perfect my dreams have remained the same but the way I wrote them down has changed as I've learned in more

detail what I want and how to pursue it for now just decide on the 10 dreams you're going to commit to at the start of this journey these should be the kind of dreams that light your heart on fire just to write them down and also make you a little nervous these are the kind of things that have other people saw your list they'd be like that girl has lost her mind who does she think she is but guess what these aren't dreams for the naysayers these aren't dreams for

anyone else these are the things you want for your life and nobody else gets an opinion here not even that snarky voice in the back of your mind that likes to remind you to slow down and be cautious and play a small tell that voice to shut it let your heart decide which 10 dreams are best not your brain Now list them on the next page

one goal the next step is narrowing your focus down to one goal 1010 110 years becomes 10 dreams becomes one goal your dream is your ideal it becomes a goal when you actively begin to pursue it the 10 dreams even though there may be more focused than you've ever been are still too broad we've got to narrow it down to one thing

so I want you to ask yourself right now what is one goal one thing you can do that will get you closer to the 10 years from now version of yourself the fastest what is the one goal out of the 10 you just finished identifying that you can work on this quarter to achieve a goal you need to make sure you have Clarity on two things one what are the specifics and

whoo how will you measure your progress I want to lose weight is not specific do you want to lose two pounds or hundred pounds that's specific I want a body fat percentage of 24% I want to save $5,000 those are specific goals that you can measure against I want to do better at my finances that's garbage you're already setting yourself up for failure or you're setting up to give yourself credit

edit for work without making measurable progress paying cash for my latte instead of using a credit card could be considered doing better on my finances but where is it getting you if your goal was specific something along the lines of I want to save $5,000 well you wouldn't have a latte at all your goal also needs to be measurable you have to be able to judge whether you're making progress or getting closer to where you

out to be a lot of people also say that a goal has to have a time limit but I don't like that because I feel like it sets you up for failure if you tell yourself you've got to be in shape by the end of February and then you get to mid-February and you haven't done it you beat yourself up the intention here is that working on your ideal self is a lifelong process to becoming who you were meant to be lifelong processes don't have time limit all that matters is

is that you have consistency we're not looking for Perfection we're looking for a habit and that's why this journal is a practice for every day so every day you're going to start your day using the journal prompts to remind you of who you want to be I like to take 5 to 10 minutes each day to meditate or pray on the things I'm grateful for taking a few minutes to mentally list out my blessings gets me into a great head space

from a place of gratitude we see so much possibility in front of us so get grateful and then use the prompts to set your intention write down ten dreams everyday as if they've already happened and finish with one big incredible goal that will get you there fastest now that you know where your truly headed you can build your action plan and to do list about the results that you want and the direction that you're headed well guys

that is the intro chapter and how to forth the start today Journal if it sounds like something you would love we sure would appreciate it if you head over to the Hollis co.com and you can shop for your own version if it sounds like something you love but don't have the funds for yet don't worry I have totally been there you can absolutely do this on any loose piece of paper you have laying around the house remember I wrote it down anywhere that I could for years and years and

the dream still came true they weren't in a fancy well covered Journal but it got the job done Our intention here is always always to create tools that help you change your life this is sincerely from the bottom of my heart one of the greatest tools that I have at my disposal which is why I decided to read it in a podcast and give it away to you for free I hope that you will take this practice

incorporate it into your own life I cannot wait to hear about the awesome dreams and goals that you are working on in the coming year hey y'all we should hang out on more than just this podcast which means that the next time you're on Instagram or Facebook or YouTube be sure and type Rachel Hollis into the search bar and check out all the fun things we

have going on on your favorite platform

okay guys if you have been seeing all of this footage on social you saw our conferences this summer you saw people's hearts getting lit on fire then you saw the one that we just did in November and everyone's jumping up and down and learning lessons and hearing from great speakers if you have been looking for a sign that you need this for yourself in the New Year this is your sign this is your sign rise Women's Conference is coming to Florida in January and we

specifically picked January because we cannot be the only people who like to dream big and plan out our life and create a roadmap for the new year at the beginning of a new year and if you had to do it in a place it might as well be a place that has nice temperatures near an ocean where there's a breeze and the fire of Rachel Hollis exactly if you want to find out more information if you're like I don't even know what you're talking about I've never seen your conference dude we have a documentary right now on Amazon and if you're a Prime member you could

watch it for free so you could Vibe out the conference and see if it's for you and if you're thinking it's for you and you really want to make the commitment to start the new year strong I want you to head over to the Hollis co.com forward slash events and check out rise Women's Conference the best idea for your squad this January in Florida let's go can you say that like you mean it let's go one more time let's

go I don't know why you're you sound weird my voice is a little hoarse today I've been yelled at rise business I see so a you're still tired from a conference that ended days ago if that doesn't make you want to buy a ticket I don't know what will