63: Self Love Through Self Compassion

Are you struggling on your spiritual path? It's not a sign you're failing. Those challenges are actually proof of being truly human. We often mistake the journey for a race, but embracing the human experience is the real progress. Our minds create labels for experiences – 'good' or 'bad'. But what if these are just perspectives? Embracing all of life's moments, without judgment, unlocks a deeper understanding.Understanding that feelings are uncontrollable is one thing; accepting them without judgment is another. Explore the internal conflict of self-criticism towards unwanted emotions.Join me for a conversation about spiritual setbacks with coach Jean Young. Jean is a Certified Transformative Coach through Supercoach Academy and an apprentice of world-renowned coach Michael Neill. She is also a Certified Mastery Method Coach through the Institute of Coaching Mastery™.She graduated with honors from the University of California, Berkeley, and spent over 20 years working in Corporate Finance and Human Resources for Fortune 500 companies. Despite professional success, she felt burnt out and unfulfilled. This led her on a search for something more, where she discovered a deeper understanding of the human experience and our innate capacity for wisdom, peace, and well-being.As a coach and speaker, Jean is passionate about helping others realize that happiness, resilience, and peace of mind are not things to chase- they are already within us. She supports individuals to live beyond fear and self-doubt and to live with greater freedom and joy, no matter what life brings.

Is your compass for truth calibrated? If you believe you're not good enough, your truth-teller might be leading you astray. Let's fix that.A deeply formative event can lead to profound conclusions about ourselves.Sometimes, we internalize beliefs like 'I'm not wanted' or 'I'm not good enough.' These beliefs, shaped by our experiences, can transform how we view every interaction.Recognizing the origin of these conclusions is the first step toward reframing them and fostering healthier self-perceptions.If you've internalized the message of not being good enough, how has that shaped your life? It often leads to a lifelong struggle against that very belief, constantly fighting against a deeply ingrained feeling.In this episode, I coach Kristin on how to discover Essential Truth. This Truth gives her freedom from lifelong doubt and pain. Want to explore this idea more? I created a blog post that dives deeper into the subject: https://www.richliferealization.com/2026/05/10/how-kristin-found-freedom-from-lies/

Empaths often feel drained because they neglect self-love and their internal environment. Discover how compassion, a powerful tool for self-love, actually energizes you.When you practice compassion, you're not drawn into the other person's drama, allowing you to connect with their deeper needs. This is a profound clue for self-love, enabling us to step back from our own unserving narratives and truly address what's going on inside.Your mind operates like a machine, often giving you what it *thinks* you want based on your attention. But when does negative self-talk ever serve you? The answer is never. It's crucial to understand how your thoughts are calibrated. Learn this and more over a conversation I have with Self Love Coach Scott Grusky.Scott is a life coach and Three Principles practitioner, based half-time in SLC and half-time in LA. He holds a B.A. from UCSB and M.A. from Harvard, but it's the training he received from George and Linda Pransky that forever changed his life. You can learn more about me at FreedSoul.comTogether, Scott and I are creating a group coaching experience called The Beginners Guide to Self Love. For more information, email [email protected] or [email protected]. You can also visit https://freedsoul.com/courses/the-self-love-expedition/

It's easy to fall head over heels for someone else, thinking of all the little things that will make them smile. That joy is immense. Why is it so difficult to turn that same excitement towards ourselves and embrace self-love? Self-love isn't selfish, it makes you more available for others. The more you practice it, the more you can show up for others. Many see self-love as indulgence, like baking cookies or taking a bath. But true self-love is a deeper state of being with yourself, a powerful and transformative space accessible to everyone.Join me for a conversation with Coach Scott Grusky as we explore the topic of self love. Scott is a life coach and Three Principles practitioner, based half-time in SLC and half-time in LA. He holds a B.A. from UCSB and M.A. from Harvard, but it's the training he received from George and Linda Pransky that forever changed his life. You can learn more about me at FreedSoul.comTogether, Scott and I are creating a group coaching experience called The Beginners Guide to Self Love. For more information, email [email protected] or [email protected].

That constant feeling of never being good enough, never worthy enough, becomes a quiet violence against ourselves. It's a never-ending cycle of discontent that can lead to painful habits and addictions as we try to escape it.When we claim ownership of our problems, it fuels them. True freedom comes from realizing that not everything needs to be ours. Notice the ownership piece when things feel off or cause pain.We often believe that an ego 'self' keeps us on track, but where is this self when we mess up? It's rarely present in the moment of error, only appearing afterward to critique our actions. This disconnect reveals inconsistencies in our self-narrative.Join me for a conversation about mistaken identity with Change Coach Amanda Jones. We discuss mental freedom through a release of ownership. Let go of who you think you are to discover a deeper energy. Amanda Jones is a change coach, author and podcast host with 10 years of experience helping people discover freedom from habits, depression, anxiety and suffering. Working with clients both privately and within Dr Amy Johnson's Little School of Big Change community, Amanda has guided many into waking up out of conditioned beliefs and old structures of being that are no longer relevant. After recovering from a 25 year eating disorder and the resulting depression, her insight into the deeper dimensions of being is shared with love and gentle guidance. Her book Uncovery can be found worldwide on Amazon.  Her podcast with fellow coach Alex Linares titled The Wonder Land can be found on all podcast audio platforms. Reach Amanda at uncoveryspace.com.Feeling pressure? It's life's way of asking you to expand. Stop pretending and lean into the vastness of who you are. There's nothing wrong with you, ever. True growth comes from accepting the present.

Want to create? You have the ability to create more abundance, business, relationships, and more. What blocks you? If you are like me, you get in your own way.I blocked myself from the energy of creation with deep insecurity and fears. Presence helped me unblock my creative spirit.Hear what Coach Barb Patterson has to say about it:“Let the mind do what the mind’s going to do.”“Not more presence to the story, but just more willingness to live in the full range of the human experience, then what happens is we naturally create more . . .I started creating more traction than I ever had through determination and push.”Learn to create from presence with a conversation I have with guest Barb Patterson. Barbara Patterson is a globally recognized coach, consultant, and founder of Innerverse Academy. She brings more than three decades of experience to her work at the intersection of human potential, transformation, business, and applied impact. Known for blending deep inner work with practical, real-world outcomes, she supports entrepreneurs, leaders, and teams in accessing insight, creativity, and new possibilities. Barb also mentors and trains practitioners, consultants, and guides to deepen their mastery and create powerful, sustained change within individuals, teams, and organizations.“If I didn’t try to overcome it or control it, what would life offer me?”“Can I get more present to the felt experience of what’s moving through me?”You can find her at barbarapatterson.com and email her directly at [email protected]

“Coddiwomple:” to live in wonder, embrace the unknown and trust Life while waking up to the complete freedom available to us all.Kristy Halvorsen gives this definition to describe a way of living. Explore this unique term for more authenticity, truth, and connection.Learn to live a “hands off the wheel life.” “I get to live in this feeling of complete freedom, and it’s strange because I don’t feel like I’m calling the shots.”“We’re all living in the unknown.”“I really do get that I have no clue what’s going to happen.”Watch the Releasing Mental Tension Podcast to go along for a ride. Kristy and I discuss letting go, opening to love, and exploring life with curiosity. If “normal” is a way of being, Kristy is not this. She is the Author of Perfect Unfolding, an inspiring adventure memoir about her journey of letting go to discover love, meaning, and acceptance. Back in 2017, she sold her stuff and hit the road. She migrates with the seasons while living off-grid in her Airstream trailer. Work and fun have intermingled. A common thread is helping people realize their true nature and live their dreams without sacrificing happiness along the way.Find her at kristyh.com and learn more about her book at perfectunfolding.com. The book is available January 31st.

Could silence be your best friend?I used to keep my mind and body busy to avoid moments of silence. I was uncomfortable being with myself. Constant busyness, distraction, and restlessness left me exhausted at the end of the day.We can be afraid of slowing down. We run from ourselves. In order to avoid feelings, we disassociate and check out. But what if we’ve got it all wrong? Is peace found in the opposite direction, through exploring silence?If you are restless, discover the way of silence with my guest Dr. Amy Johnson. You can become more present, connected, and creative.Amy Johnson, PhD is a psychologist, coach, author, and speaker who shares a groundbreaking new approach that helps people find lasting freedom from unwanted habits, anxiety, and self-doubt via insight rather than willpower. She is the author of Being Human, The Little Book of Big Change: The No-Willpower Approach to Breaking Any Habit, and Just a Thought: A No-Willpower Approach to End Self-Doubt and Make Peace with Your Mind. In 2017 she opened The Little School of Big Change, an online school that has helped thousands of people find freedom from anxiety and habits and live a more peaceful life.Her most recent course, Resting in Restlessness, explores silence in a way that Adyashanti calls “True Meditation.” Discover what feeling your way through life could do for you. Find inner freedom.I highly recommend her monthly community. Find more details here: https://dramyjohnson.com/about-dr-amy/

Do you like to journal?What if writing could be your guide toward spiritual evolution?Your journal practice could help you clarify your thinking, drop limiting beliefs, and connect more deeply to yourself.  You just have to do it in this way . . . My guest, Maria Iliffe-Wood, and I discuss writing from clarity.  This conversation is for writers who want to improve their writing.  It is for those who want to write more with fewer inner blocks.  Listen if you want to write from your soul. Learn to write with a higher intention.  Discover how you can approach the page in an open and curious way.Writing can be your best friend.Maria Iliffe-Wood is a British author whose daily writing practice has been foremost in her life for many years. Writing, for her, is more than craft—it is a way of making sense of the world, a source of resilience through dark times, and a means of connecting with others on the deepest of human levels.She is the author of four books and a contributor to three anthologies.Maria is the founder of IW Press, a partnership publishing company established in 2020, and teaches Jack Grapes Method Writing alongside Jules Swales. She has supported and published multiple books, guiding writers from dream to finished manuscript. One writer described the process as “finding their wings.”Maria believes that stories, whether poetry, memoir, or fiction, have the power to heal, inspire, and connect us. Through the work she does with IW Press, she champions the voices of those who feel called to write, ensuring their stories find their way into the world.She leads multiple writing workshops coming up in the new year.  Find our more at https://www.julesswales.com/class/entry-level-class/She will also be doing the Writing from Mind class again in 2026. I will be there. Please join us!  Maria’s website: iliffe-wood.co.ukHer books: Coaching Presence, The Daily Yarns, A Caged Mind, This One Life

What is joy made of? If you understand the anatomy of joy, you can be in touch with it more of the time.  Joy is not something you create.  Joy is within you, an innate resource that you can tune into. Joy is not about escaping suffering and challenges.  It is a quieting of the mind and “being with it.” Presence brings us into alignment to our joyful center. “Joy lives in the heart.”If you want more joy in your life, listen to a conversation I had with Qigong Master Teacher, Vicki Dello Joio. Her name means victory of joy. For more than 45 years, her brand of brilliance has empowered wellness-motivated and spiritually-inclined seekers and speakers to infuse body-mind-spirit practices into their very cells so they can tap into their birthright of joy — use it as a fuel not just a goal — for a lifetime.“We have all kinds of feelings and emotions, and they all belong. Joy is the seed and essence of all of it.”Join us for a Qigong movement practice to cultivate more joy at the 22:00 minute mark. FInd Vicki at yourpowerpresence.com or https://www.vickidellojoio.com/My name is Rich Life and this is the Releasing Mental Tension Podcast.  Become a part of a transformative conversation that helps you to relax into presence.  The conversations I have in this space are based around the 3 Principles understanding of Sydney Banks, and enlightened Scottish mystic.  The 3 Principles of Mind, Consciousness, and Thought help us understand the nature of our experience. Those who explore this understanding find that their lives transform.  Listen for a richer experience of life. Please help me reach more people with the message that the core of who you are is peace, love, and connection.  Comment, like, and subscribe. Visit my blog at richliferealization.com