About Progress

Founder of Monk Manual, Steve Lawson believes the best way to start the new year is to throw away the prescriptions and to focus more on getting intentional. How can you do that? Well, there’s actual practical ways to get clear about what YOU want and what YOU need. And Steve delivers just that.  Steve's advice will leave you with what you can do TODAY to create the best year possible in 2022. You’ll go from feeling overwhelmed by another 365 days, to being empowered to take on a new year in ways that are in alignment.  Listen in to hear how to use Steve’s tips for a great new year—a year that’s all about you! Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'PROGRESS' for 10% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Right now, a Progressor named Kate feels STUCK because she needs to make a difficult decision that will affect her career, her family, and herself. This episode is a recorded coaching call as I guide Kate to get clarity on how she wants to move forward.   Decisions are never easy to make!  Listen to learn how YOU can get more clarity on some choices you have in front of you, and to hear my biggest truth about decision-making. (Hint: it’s not about the actual decision . . . ) Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'PROGRESS' for 10% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, I sit down with my husband, Brad, to answer your most pressing questions. It was fun to turn the tables and have Brad asking the questions on topics all about the podcast and our recent move. You'll hear each of our takes on what the past five years has looked like as we celebrate this monumental anniversary. We are so appreciative of this community, so thank you for showing up each week and keeping this podcast possible. To celebrate YOU I am giving away $500, so make sure you don't miss out on that and hope you love the episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recently, I was told I was setting a standard that “normal” women couldn’t achieve.  As a “normal” woman, YOU are allowed to want more. (Period!) No matter what season of life you’re in right now, you’re allowed to have dreams, goals, and ambitions.  Listen in to learn more on why this matters and how you (yes, you!) can reach for more in ways that matter to you.   Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'PROGRESS' for 10% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Repressing emotion creates physical, emotional, and spiritual consequences in your life. I’m sure you are dealing with those, just like me! This week, I talked with Jill Freestone about tools you can use to feel your emotions. She explained that there are so many tools to work on personal growth, but you can only move forward when you learn to process your emotions.  Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'PROGRESS' for 10% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When you feel resistance arise, don’t fall into the trap of blaming or shaming yourself. I want to help you focus on what you can do to make hard things easier.  Here is the main tip I want you to memorize: Lower the hurdles! Join me in learning how + how this tool can apply to real-life scenarios of how you can lower the hurdles in your life, including: gift giving, exercising, attending events, achieving goals, and more! Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'PROGRESS' for 10% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We live in a world that rewards “busy.” It feels good to be productive.  But, how can you know if it’s time to take a step back? How can you fill your time instead? Patrice Washington—a recovering over-achiever—learned how to do this from a deliberate choice she made this year: she decided to slow down.  Do you want less of the “busy” and more of the “right stuff” in your life? Tune in to learn how you can change your busy calendar into a life filled with more purpose! Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'PROGRESS' for 10% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, I am sharing a coaching session I had with a Progressor named Kelly.  As a busy mom with ADHD and children across a wide spectrum of ages (and needs!), Kelly found that her desire to connect more with her children was competing with her needs to support them through systems, to-do’s, and routines.  From this call with Kelly, you’ll learn how to weed out the shoulds, get centered in on your wants, and create next steps to deprioritize what doesn’t matter so that you can better cultivate the relationships you want. Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'ABOUTPROGRESS' for 15% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With a recent move to our new home, my morning routine has been completely out-of-sync. For me, it’s been a whirlwind of backpacks, school lunches, and KIDS all while trying (read: forgetting) to take care of my own needs. In this episode, I want to give you my recipe to makeover (or create!) your morning routine. Note: this isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” kind of recipe. My four tips will help you to create a unique routine that will support BOTH your time constraints and your needs. Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'ABOUTPROGRESS' for 15% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Jennifer Finlayson-Fife and Dr. Julie Hanks (two of our top-favorite guests!) are joining forces to share what a partnership model looks like, why it’s essential to having deeply successful marriages and families, and HOW couples can move past the obstacles getting in the way of being equally valued.   This won’t be a light-hearted episode for you to listen to.  But it will be a life-changing one. It’s time for MORE in your marriage! If you’re ready for that, listen in to learn how. Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'ABOUTPROGRESS' for 15% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Would you like to stop overreacting? Would you like to stop living your life on autopilot? Do you ever react without thinking? Do you feel like your schedule is spinning out of control? When we are so reactive, we feel out of control and out of character. Instead of reacting, I want you to learn my two ways to lengthen the gap. You can take control of your own needs, and use my practical tool, “The Deep Breath.” Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast Sponsor - 'ABOUTPROGRESS' for 15% off Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Note: this episode has been updated. On this week’s episode, Rachel Nielson shares how she felt spread so thin in motherhood that she became lost. Thanks to her romanticized view of motherhood, Rachel was chasing alllll of the shoulds instead of making room for HERSELF as a mom. If you need a place to start, listen in to hear Rachels’ tips, including her amazing “scripts” of what to say when you remove a to-do from your life. Want to be a more fulfilled mom? You can! Join us in simplifying away the shoulds and make more room for YOU in motherhood. Full Show Notes + Transcript Podcast U FINAL SALE - code 'ABOUTPROGRESS' Podcast Sponsor - code 'ABOUTPROGRESS' Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do you feel when you think of your daily schedule? Are you overwhelmed by all you need to accomplish? This doesn’t have to be you! You can learn to better prioritize AND increase your productivity, too, with my #1 tip: DEPRIORITIZE!  Deprioritizing will help you make the trade-offs of what matters less, for what matters most.  Full Blog Post + Transcript Upcoming Challenge Podcast Sponsor - code 'ABOUTPROGRESS' Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever been held hostage by your own standards of what it means to be a good _____ (fill in the blank)? Sara Carruth shares her experiences of dealing with major self-doubt, and how her ability to gradually remove the “should” boxes keeping her trapped started with a simple mantra: “Keep growing!” Full Blog Post + Transcript Upcoming Challenge Podcast Sponsor - code 'ABOUTPROGRESS' Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

September feels like a new beginning with changes in weather and schedules. It’s a time to set new goals, but sometimes life doesn’t go according to plan. In this episode, I breakdown why motivation is unreliable and how we can beat the “motivation blues.” Full Blog Post + Transcript Upcoming Challenge Podcast Sponsor - code 'ABOUTPROGRESS' Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever had a martyr moment? Thoughts, like "Nobody ever seems to care about me." And "Nothing ever seems to work out for me." We've all had martyr moments, me included. Today, I'm going to talk about how we fall into martyrdom and what we can do to make those moments stay as moments instead of them becoming full on mindsets. Full Blog Post + Transcript Upcoming Challenge Podcast Sponsor - code 'ABOUTPROGRESS' Finding Me Course Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why is it so hard to change in the ways we want? How is it so easy to get stuck making progress?   Well, it’s because you’re trying to grow through self-help extremes that are designed for perfect robots. But, you’re a real woman living a real life!   TRUTH: You don’t have to be special to transform your life.   About Progress is a podcast and community alllllll about progress made practical.    Here, host Monica Packer will help you embrace the “Progress Model” by building small wins over time; the kind of wins that create dramatic, lasting change.    The fulfillment and growth you’re looking for is possible for you! Listen in to learn how to do something and grow in ways that stick. ***   Find more show notes and archives here: https://aboutprogress.com/latest-episodes/   Follow Monica on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/aboutprogress/   Thank you for listening! If you like what you hear, please subscribe and follow! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes, you take months to create a well-thought-out plan, but that plan gets thrown out in a matter of days. That's what has happened to me. Here's why I am saying "Goodbye" to the podcast, but just for a time. - If you want to be in-the-know about what I'm up to and to preview the changes that are coming, sign up for the Go Getter Newsletter and make sure you follow me on Instagram HERE!   SHOW NOTES Leave a rating and review for the podcast! Foundational course, “Finding Me.” Free and easy Belonging Guide Get on the waitlist for the Strive Hive, my monthly membership group Lend your voice and experience + be featured on the show HERE Join Monica on Facebook and Instagram Songs Credit: DRIVE by Dj Nicolai Heidlas @nicolai-heidlas Music provided by FREE MUSIC FOR VLOGS AND VIDEOS bit.ly/freemusicforvlogs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Whether you asked for it or not, at some point or another you will find yourself in a season of change. Women in this community who have been through that have expressed feeling overwhelmed and unsure of navigating their new paths. Sometimes this applies even when you have chosen your season of change. Here we are focused on personal fulfillment, feeling whole, and like yourself amidst the ebbs and flows of your life. Tune in for this interview with a fellow progressor who is well versed in this scenario and shares powerful ways to create fulfillment in seasons of change.   Aubrey Baldwin is a mother and Air Force wife living abroad in England, so she is no stranger to frequent moves that take her far from family and familiarity. She shares her personal story of how she realized that a simple routine, gratitude, and connection could create fulfillment even in seasons of change. Life is never static, and while the transitions can be out of our control, we can find peace and alignment when we learn how to pri

The great sculptor Michelangelo shared that he could see a block of marble and envision the angel inside it before he even started carving his masterpiece. Do you want to create a better _______? (Fill in the blank: habit, life, routine, goal!) Then take a leaf out of the artists' book and start with casting a VISION.   This is something I teach in my Progress Program, and today I'll give you a nutshell version of how to cast a vision before you create for yourself, specifically with a habit, a life (it's broad for a reason:), and with a goal. That last one is totally supported with a little outtake from my recent episode with Rhonda Farr. She walks me through a short exercise where she helps me cast a vision for a future goal and how I want to FEEL within that goal.  Totally different? Yes. Totally cool and effective? Yes.   Listen in to this growth spurt then go DO SOMETHING and cast a vision for an area in your life that you want to improve, too.   Show Notes: Sign up for "Finding Me" HERE List