Teaching Yourself to Learn

Holly and Cathy are like two peas in a pod, and, in fact, two is the amount of times Cathy has now appeared on the Podcast. Returning inspired, tenacious and more life in her than ever – Cathy shares the changes since appearing on the Podcast in October 2021. Cathy is now a five-time Amazon #1 best-selling author, coach and mentor whose career is dedicated to helping women tap into their own greatness. Listen as Holly and Cathy discuss:

·       The aliveness of opportunities, possibilities and hitting the tipping point when the positive world wins.

·       The stories we tell ourselves and limitations that can come alongside that. Plus, becoming an author in a book and how it helps clarify your own story, bring out your message and support your own direction.

·       Confidence is not about knowing that you know how to do something but knowing that you can figure it out.

·       The difference in retirement now and how little time we may have had after retirement compared to now.

Cathy is a real life example of how everyone has a story and if your trajectory is not serving you, changing to find what makes you happy and satisfied. When accepting that transformation stage, it’s painful and messy, yet necessary to come out the other side. To find out more about Cathy please visit her website and/or connect with her on LinkedIn.

To connect and find out more about Holly, apply to be a guest and share your story you can reach her at [email protected] and her website www.teachingyourselftolearn.com. We look forward to you tuning again next week.

There is something quite enduring and spectacular about one’s closest and most cherished friend. Holly is joined with one of her greatest friends, Jennifer Ryan, for a memorable and ‘inspire you to do better’ conversation. Even Holly is surprised that they haven’t joined together after so many episodes. Yet, it is worth the wait as Holly and Jennifer chat about:

• When life is happening thick and fast, allowing ourselves to stop and think - can I change it?

• Grief, loss and coping. Inspiring yourself and others to leave a legacy in place of guilt and placing rules on how we grieve.

• Life as a pot of boiling water. The difference between carrots and eggs.

• Taking action from a Podcast episode and receiving benefits far beyond what was imagined.

There were many references referred to in this episode. Including Holly’s Teaching Yourself to Learn Podcast episode 38 A Reason, a Season, a Lifetime, Widow To Widow: Thoughtful, Practical Ideas For Rebuilding Your Life by Genevieve Davis Ginsburg, The Coffee Bean: A Simple Lesson to Create Positive Change by Jon Gordon and Damon West, The Change Agent: How a Former College QB Sentenced to Life in Prison Transformed His World by Damon West and The Coffee Bean for Kids by Jon Gordon and Damon West.

We hope you enjoyed this conversation as much as we did and to connect and find out more about Holly you can reach her at www.teachingyourselftolearn.com. Here’s to transforming our third half of life through teaching ourselves to learn.

As many of us approach our third half of life we want to be able to say we have no regrets, we gave it our all. A big part of being able to embrace that philosophy is welcoming transitions and learning how to deal with difficult change. Today’s guest has done exactly that. A fellow Texan, Debbie Saviano retired from being a school principal and transitioned full force into the entrepreneurial world. Listen as Holly and Debbie discuss:

• Navigating the school system as a go getter and allowing differences to empower you.

• Hitting the ground running and educating yourself in areas which may seem foreign.

• How your age can be a huge asset, especially when challenging the status quo.

• Being aware of what’s going on in the world when making a transition and putting your efforts into learning so you can provide help for others.

Debbie is a burst of energy and teaches us to go for our dreams and enjoy the process. To find out more about Debbie please connect with her on LinkedIn and via her website debbiesaviano.com.

To connect and find out more about Holly you can reach her at www.teachingyourselftolearn.com and we look forward to you listening again next week.

There are so many fallacies we are fed about ageing and what that looks like for our third half of life. Holly is on a mission to combat myths such as letting ourselves wither away and sit around doing nothing. Today she talks about happiness and ageing and how important it is to embrace our relationships and inspires us to indulge and participate fully in our lives. Listen as she expands on:

• A Harvard Study started in 1938 which explores important aspects of happiness and longevity of life.

• Investing, listening and being present with people and building positive relationships which breed positivity and happiness.

• How change is inevitable.

• Small ways we can focus on happiness and striving to be happy every day.

The quotes and extracts referenced in this episode include Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn, The happiness curve:why life gets better after 50 and The Age of Miracles:Embracing the New Midlife by Marianne Williamson.

To connect and find out more about Holly, apply to be a guest and share your story you can reach her at [email protected] and her website www.teachingyourselftolearn.com. We look forward to you tuning again next week.

We’re back for Part 2 of an absolutely enjoyable and heartfelt conversation with Karen Hoffman. Karen continues where she left off last week with her Words That Matter cards which have now extended to include cards for adults, teens and children alike. Listen as Holly and Karen continue in chatter and natter about:

• Playing Go Fish with Values and the opportunities that await in doing so.
• Learning and listening from experiences and watching creativity and other gifts unfold.
• Keeping doors open to every experience.
• How often in our third half of life we can see an alignment with roles we have had previously and how they are now shining in the joy of this stage.

Karen has a wonderful gift to discover what is within by asking questions, defining and paying attention to what matters. References mentioned in this episode include The Space Between No Longer and Not Yet by Nancy Levin and When Someone Deeply Listens to You by John Fox. To find Karen’s Card Decks you can visit her website www.livingonpurpose.us and email her at [email protected].

To connect and find out more about Holly, apply to be a guest and share your story you can reach her at www.teachingyourselftolearn.com 

What happens when two Texans meet in conversation and nerd out on words that matter? A purposeful, motivational and insightful conversation! Karen Hoffman joins Holly on the Teaching Yourself to Learn Podcast today. When she turned 60 at the end of 2020, Karen left her professional position as an administrator of a nonprofit, and founded he business, Living on Purpose, in early 2021, after taking a few months of what she refers to as a sabbatical - a period of time to rewire, not retire—a time to learn, listen, read, discuss and create her next chapter of life. Listen as Holly and Karen chat about:

• Sabbatical and significant transformation. Changing our thinking about what a sabbatical means and looks like.
• Living on purpose and bringing attention to intention.
• Words that Matter and how her Mom contributed to her success (even if she wondered how on earth that would happen)
• Listening to the voice inside us that whispers all day long.

To find out more about Karen you can visit her website www.livingonpurpose.us and email her at [email protected]. The full version of the poems quoted in this episode are The Guest House by Rumi and The Voice by Shel Silverstein.

To connect and find out more about Holly, apply to be a guest and share your story you can reach her at [email protected].

In this solo episode, Holly talks about making adjustments in life and how adjustments are nothing more than change. She provides examples of how we do this on a daily basis for different outcomes. Listen as Holly offers tangible steps to make adjustments and two types of adjustments we encounter in life:

• the adjustments we make every day to learn to function in society 
• the adjustments we make to achieve something

Holly also talks a little bit about her New Author Intensive, which helps anyone wanting to share their story, leave a legacy, further their business, or share their knowledge but writing a book but doesn't know how to get started. 

You can find out more about the New Author Intensive or learn how to be a guest on her podcast at https://www.teachingyourselftolearn.com/.

Have you ever met someone so fierce, so beautiful and so empowering that they changed the whole trajectory of your life? That's exactly what happened to Holly when she met the guest today on the Teaching Yourself to Learn Podcast. Kim White is all things extra. She accepts and truly listens to all aspects of you, including the messy and ugly parts and is living proof of exactly what is possible when we allow ourselves to learn and join together in community. Listen as Holly and Kim chat about:

• Being audacious, extra and not scared to try.
• Entrepreneurship early in life, before even knowing what it meant, what it looked like and the many lessons learnt along the way (beware of the Kool-aid stand!)
• Slowing down to speed up. See what's important, get clear and own it.
• Creating a business that supports our lives, not the other way round.

This conversation is funny, kind, jovial and one that will leave a lasting impression on your heart. To find out more about Kim you can visit her website www.mysexybusiness.com.

To find out more about how you can share your story to become a published author as mentioned in this episode please visit www.teachingyourselftolearn.com/newauthorintensive.

To connect and find out more about Holly you can reach her at [email protected] and we look forward to you listening again next week.

Linda Bonney is usually found behind the scenes of the Teaching Yourself to Learn Podcast. Usually in the wee hours of the night, across the other side of the globe in a little island called Tasmania. If you have been following along, this is not her first appearance - yet in this formal instance she chats with Holly about:

• What transformation looks like, and how we often perform for others.
• The process, application and realities of Dream, Doubt and Do.
• Adaptation to change, the pendulum that we experience in transformation.
• Dreams and motivations moving forward in the third half of life.

This conversation is actually two friends catching up and the vibrancy and wonderful dynamic of that is infectious and a big part of why we do what we do. To find out more about Linda Bonney and to follow more of current projects such as Stories With a Sunday Roast and The Doyle Avenue Project please visit www.lindabonney.com.

To connect and find out more about Holly, apply to be a guest and share your story you can reach her at [email protected] and her website www.teachingyourselftolearn.com.

Rather than resolutions, Holly has chosen a word of the year and it’s really helped her to be more intentional about thoughts and actions. From experience, it can really help you to hone in on what you want more of in your life for both long and short term benefits. Holly explores her own experiences in this first solo episode for 2023 and chats about:

• The benefits of having a word to provide an anchor and encourage you to think both consciously and subconsciously about what you want more of and what you want less of in your life. 
• How Holly hopes to apply her word to every aspect of her life in 2023.
• Thinking about what to improve, do differently and what we want more of in our lives.

To connect and find out more about Holly, apply to be a guest and share your story you can reach her at [email protected] or via her website www.teachingyourselftolearn.com.

Until next week, have a think about your word and feel free to share.