Intentional Happiness with Julie Leonard

Have you ever said, “I just want to be happy.”? I think we all have in one way or another. That’s why episode 41 of The Positively Living Podcast is about intentionally achieving happiness!

In this episode of The Positively Living Podcast, Julie Leonard and I are sharing what happiness truly means to us and the choices we have to welcome it into our lives.

This episode is more than a dictionary discussion, it’s an encouraging and enlightening look at what happiness truly means to us and the choices we have to welcome it into our lives. If you’re ready to create a life of balance, resilience, calm, and joy, this episode is for you.

Once again I am so blessed with this podcast to connect with people from across the globe that are doing incredible things. Today’s guest is another example and what she shares resonates so much with me and my quest for positivity within the real the world we’re all struggling to navigate.

If you want to be more productive, simplify your life, reduce stress, and feel encouraged as you develop new habits and tackle projects, then I personally invite you to join the Positively Living Membership Community. For a Netflix-level investment of $11/mo (or $120/yr) you’ll receive access to exclusive content like live guest Q&As, group coaching, and custom workshops.

Today I welcome Julie Leonard to the Positively Living Podcast. Julie is a Scotland native currently living in Germany. As a certified life coach and self-titled “Happiness Evangelist” she is passionate about sharing her knowledge, skills and tools with women and supporting them as they make positive changes in themselves and in their lives. Her 30+ year career has been focused on empowering women to reach their full potential. She studied psychology and worked in mental health before making the natural move into coaching.

Julie’s personal story of transformation from being shy and anxious with low self esteem to becoming the confident woman, Life Coach, speaker, and author she is today will inspire you. Her book INTENTIONAL HAPPINESS: The Life-Changing Guide To Being Happy and Staying Happy is a step by step guide for your journey to happiness.

You are going to love Julie’s calm yet enthusiastic demeanor and her dulcet Scottish tones. I’m a sucker for really great accents and she’s definitely got one! She makes happiness accessible and speaks from a well-researched perspective. She connects positive psychology research with practical tips and freely shares her own triumphs and trip ups.

Our conversation flows around a ton of topics, many of which have been covered in this podcast, but the overarching theme is balance. As we wrap up the conversation, we talk about the steps you can take today to embrace the happy in your life, but my favorite part was learning more about her story and digging into what we need to know first: what makes us UNhappy in our lives. So much of what she and I share connects to themes prior podcast conversations. When Julie shares her experiences growing up not being allowed to express her feelings with her family, it calls to mind my conversation with Katie Rossler on episode 14 on grief. When she talks about how the “little” things in our lives that can often build and block us without us even realizing it because they weren’t “big things”, it echoes what Mallory Jackson shared about the many levels and effects trauma in episode 28. I so appreciate that Julie acknowledges the challenges we face in life and, much like my advice on gratitude, she assures you that seeking happiness is not about ignoring the struggles, but rather about finding balance. This is what Valerie Friedlander and I discuss in Episode 8 on Toxic Positivity. The overlap likely continues to many other episodes as well, but those were the most striking and the ones I would recommend you listen to as a complement to today’s episode.

My conversation with Julie was a wonderful reminder of so many things…that it’s truly possible to find happiness, that joy and fun are a critical part of our wellbeing, and in the most self-serving manner that my constant focus on decluttering is right on the mark (yes, you know we talked decluttering). The reminder that was most profound, though, was something I say constantly but I want you to truly embrace: it’s all connected. What do I mean by all? I mean our personal and professional experiences, our inner and outer environments, our grief, and our passion…I mean all of it. When we realize this and we figure out how it’s a game-changer for creating the lives we want.

Thank you for listening! Be sure to tune in to all the episodes to receive tons of practical tips to create space for what really matters in your life

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