Emotionally Uncomfortable

"What happens when you talk about the things that you want to do is people start to make connections for you. And this is exactly what happened and what has enhanced this year's experience."
In this episode, Heather explores what happens when we stop waiting for the perfect moment and start choosing courage instead. This isn't a travel highlight reel; it's a behind-the-scenes look at how Heather and her family prepared, decided, and executed the big life shift of snowbirding—without burning out their family or their bank account. 
She opens up about navigating her own (and her child's) resistance with compassion, holding space for discomfort without detracting from the learning opportunities, and recognizing how much freedom can come from facing your fears rather than avoiding them. If you secretly want more freedom but feel overwhelmed by the logistics, are a high-functioning mom who wonders if your current lifestyle is sustainable long-term, or you've thought about relocating, traveling, or changing your rhythm but get tripped up by fear, this episode is for you.
What to listen for:
✨ Heather's fear of winter and the decision to start snowbirding for her mental health
✨ The intentionality and preparation that go into bringing big goals to fruition
✨ Navigating the underlying stress that almost kept Heather from seeing this through
"What Mexico gave me was the courage to do emotionally uncomfortable things, the courage to test something, the courage to try. When you wait for things to be perfect, you're never going to live out your dream because it's about progress, not perfection."
✨ Using the "Wouldn't it be nice?" list to create a happier and healthier experience
✨ The power of being open to new possibilities and getting out of your comfort zone
✨ Working through your child's resistance to what you know is for their highest good
"As long as my commitment is to be of the highest service to his mental and emotional well-being without doing his own spiritual work for him, meaning not trying to take away his pain for his own aha moments, and I can sit with his emotional discomfort, this is going to be such a growth opportunity for him."
✨ Looking at your shadow side, fears, and anxiety to create more freedom
✨ Heather's realization that her kids are detoxing from North American culture
✨ The magic of type two fun and why it can only come from emotional discomfort
"Sometimes you have to realize that what appears to be paradise on people's Instagram feeds is growth opportunities. What you don't see is that person's willingness to take a risk, that person's courage to be emotionally uncomfortable, and to experience type two fun." 
✨ How getting uncomfortable can open you up to incredible, new experiences
✨ Understanding that you're in control of your and your children's lives, no one else
✨ Heather's top tips for working around the inevitable fear of uncertainty
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For those of you who are ready to stop feeling drained, overextended, and out of alignment… join me for a one-on-one Time & Energy Audit, a focused session designed to help high-achieving women uncover what's draining them, clarify what truly matters, and create a simple plan that fits their life.
We'll pinpoint your biggest time + energy leaks, identify the top areas to focus on for quick momentum, and map out exactly what to let go of so you can reclaim your energy, your time, and your joy.
Ready to make your time work for you without adding more to your plate?
Book a Time & Energy Audit: https://heatherchauvin.com/audit
Apply for the next Coaching Cohort: https://heatherchauvin.com/apply
Not ready for 1:1? Join the membership (cancel anytime):
https://heatherchauvin.com/membership

"At the end of the day, our brains are wired to crave peace and order, and our outer environments can mirror our inner environment, or vice versa."
In this episode, Heather sits down with Katy Wells to explore overconsumption and overcommitment, as well as the many forms of clutter that quietly erode our patience, focus, and presence. Many women find themselves struggling to concentrate or feeling constantly overwhelmed, which leads them to wonder, "What's wrong with me?" This conversation reveals that it's decision fatigue and unexamined accumulation pulling attention in too many directions at once, not a personal failing. Together, Heather and Katy unpack the deeper layers of clutter rooted in identity, loss aversion, and the guilt that keeps us holding on long past usefulness.
What to listen for:
✨ The three different types of clutter that lead to continued overwhelm
✨ One question to break free from identity clutter and the guilt that comes with it
✨ Why the endowment effect keeps us from releasing what no longer aligns
"Loss aversion is a real thing. I don't want to feel like I failed at getting healthier or that I'm using my money the wrong way. It's helpful to reframe that loss and say, 'You know what, I did what I could', or 'Here's five other ways I'm working on my health that are simpler and better for me that don't involve a Peloton', so I feel confident in letting go."
✨ Navigating the emotional discomfort that comes with releasing things
✨ The science behind the sudden urge to declutter when we've decided to change
✨ Why women struggle to change their behavior and opt out of consumerism
✨ How to create micro counterculture moments that support the life you want to live
"Cultural pressure, societal pressure, or 'this is just the way it is', can make us feel like, 'Well, I guess this is just what we're gonna do', because they play to the part of our brains that wants the best for our kids. It's so nuanced, and the guilt is real as a parent." 
✨ How to make decisions as a family unit around commitment clutter
✨ Ways you can give gifts without adding more clutter to other people's lives
✨ How to talk to your kids about shifting from material gifts to experiences
About Katy Wells:
Katy Wells, author of Making Home Your Happy Place, helps families break the cycle of clutter that keeps coming back—no matter how many times they've tried to get it under control. As the creator of Holistic Decluttering and host of The Maximized Minimalist podcast (5 million listens), Katy's been featured on NBC, Martha Stewart, and Real Simple for her approach that gets to the root of why we hold onto things we don't need. She teaches families how to let go of what's weighing them down so they can create an easy-to-manage home and finally stop feeling overwhelmed every time they walk through the door.
Connect with Katy:
Read Making Home Your Happy Place—A step-by-step guide to breaking the clutter cycle for good: (link available soon)

Listen to The Maximized Minimalist—Real talk and practical strategies for simplifying your home, mind, and life: https://plinkhq.com/i/1460805372 

Get once-a-week encouragement with behind-the-scenes strategies, actionable tips, and honest insights you won't find anywhere else: https://www.katyjoywells.com/simplify 

***
For those of you who are ready to stop feeling drained, overextended, and out of alignment… join me for a one-on-one Time & Energy Audit, a focused session designed to help high-achieving women uncover what's draining them, clarify what truly matters, and create a simple plan that fits their life.
We'll pinpoint your biggest time + energy leaks, identify the top areas to focus on for quick momentum, and map out exactly what to let go of so you can reclaim your energy, your time, and your joy.
Ready to make your time work for you without adding more to your plate?
Book a Time & Energy Audit: https://heatherchauvin.com/audit   
Apply for the next Coaching Cohort: https://heatherchauvin.com/apply   
Not ready for 1:1? Join the membership (cancel anytime): https://heatherchauvin.com/membership

"I put myself in situations where I didn't have a back door and couldn't run away from myself. The natural consequence was that I felt lighter, and I'm finishing the year more proud of myself than I've ever been, with more confidence."
In this episode, Heather guides you through her unique process for creating a personalized, focused plan for 2026 that brings real lightness into your life. But that doesn't mean bypassing internal struggles or heavy emotions, because you can't reclaim your time or create more peace without addressing your biggest energy leaks. If your goal is to feel lighter next year, while bringing on more responsibilities that move you forward, this conversation will guide you to work with the four essential energy types that support real growth, so you can release what no longer fits and move forward with more ease, clarity, and self-trust.
What to listen for:
✨ 80% of how you spend your day is hiding, and why you need a north star
✨ The four types of energy you need to understand how to manage for growth
✨ Understanding the type of dreamer you are and how to work with yourself
✨ Why the more responsibility you have, the lighter you should feel
"When you begin to embody this identity of 'the more responsibility I have, the lighter I should feel', your brain begins to find evidence of how that's possible. Because the way that you manage your time and energy is focused on how light you can feel."
✨ Shifting the belief systems that limit your ability to experience lightness
✨ Continuously and relentlessly facing the parts of yourself you avoid
✨ Living for others as a way to feel better, but with strong boundaries
"You have to face parts of yourself that you've never, ever, ever faced, especially with that identity. And to be lighter, you have to let go."
✨ Getting radically honest about what you're sacrificing by holding on to stories
✨ Auditing the tasks currently on your plate to uncover what you can release
✨ Holding the emotional discomfort of learning how to trust and receive
✨ Why women often use strategy and information to avoid integration
"You have one precious life, and if you're wasting time on a strategy that's not working, it's time to put it down. If you are wasting it on relationships or skills that aren't working, or you feel like you've outgrown a career, it's time to put them down."
✨ Using community support to enhance personal growth and accountability
✨ Understanding that fear can be a catalyst for growth if managed intentionally
✨ Creating a 'Wouldn't It Be Nice' list to help clarify your desires
*******
For those of you who are ready to stop feeling drained, overextended, and out of alignment… join me for a one-on-one Time & Energy Audit, a focused session designed to help high-achieving women uncover what's draining them, clarify what truly matters, and create a simple plan that fits their life.
We'll pinpoint your biggest time + energy leaks, identify the top areas to focus on for quick momentum, and map out exactly what to let go of so you can reclaim your energy, your time, and your joy.
Ready to make your time work for you without adding more to your plate?
Book a Time & Energy Audit: https://heatherchauvin.com/audit   
Not ready for 1:1? Join the membership (cancel anytime): https://heatherchauvin.com/membership

"Success is your child getting what they want out of life, including who they want to be and how they want to be."
College is rarely the right next step for our kids, yet parents are so bought into this outdated view of education and success. In this episode, Heather sits down with Degree Free founder, Hannah Maruyama, to unpack the best ways to support our teens in building skills that help them uncover their passion at the right time, rather than shoving them back onto the "education" conveyor belt that saddles them with freedom-stealing debt. This isn't about being anti-education; it's about being pro-reality, and Hannah brings the data, the strategy, and the cultural nuance to help parents support their kids with clarity, not fear.
What to listen for:
✨ Stepping into a leadership role as a parent, rather than controlling
✨ Understanding that college isn't actually the "traditional" path we think it is
✨ The moment Hannah realized that college wasn't teaching her anything
"Being strategic about what I needed from work, finding what I needed to learn, and then learning it in the most effective way possible for me at the time, within the budget that I had, I was able to get to my goal very quickly." 
✨ How COVID opened parents' eyes to where the education system fails kids
✨ Why academic book smarts aren't always relevant in the real, working world
✨ Navigating the "failure to launch" and why pushing them into college isn't the fix
"That space in between high school and college, where we feel like we have to funnel kids into something right then, is imaginary. It doesn't exist. The reason kids stall out at that time is that we've told them that the cutoff is coming so soon when it's not." 
✨ The fallacy of pushing kids into choosing their future profession at 18
✨ If GPA doesn't matter after high school, why are we killing our kids over it?
✨ Questions you need to ask as a parent to help guide your child's future
"You have these kids that are handcuffed, and they're 22 years old. They have no freedom. Their whole life trajectory has been laid out because they made this crucial, incorrect decision at 17 or 18 years old, all because no one asked them, 'What do you want your life to look like?'"
✨ Navigating your child's future while questioning your own in midlife
✨ Two questions you should never ask your kids if you want to support them
✨ The mindset shift that will help your kids stack skills and find their passion
About Hannah Maruyama:
Hannah Maruyama is the founder of Degree Free, which helps parents and their young adults create custom career roadmaps so they can launch their lives. 
From tech to trades, any job under the sun.
With her husband Ryan, she runs @degreefree on TikTok, which has over 500,000 followers and 150,000,000+ views, and the Degree Free Podcast (a top US Careers Podcast).
She also co-wrote The Degree Free Way: How to Help Your 16-20 Year Old Build the Life They Want, which has sold more than 16,000 copies nationwide.
Connect with Hannah:
Website: https://degreefree.com/ 

The Degree Free: https://degreefree.com/book 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DegreeFree  

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@degreefree 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/degreefree/ 

***
For those of you who are ready to stop feeling drained, overextended, and out of alignment… join me for a one-on-one Time & Energy Audit, a focused session designed to help high-achieving women uncover what's draining them, clarify what truly matters, and create a simple plan that fits their life.
We'll pinpoint your biggest time + energy leaks, identify the top areas to focus on for quick momentum, and map out exactly what to let go of so you can reclaim your energy, your time, and your joy.
Ready to make your time work for you without adding more to your plate?
Book a Time & Energy Audit: https://heatherchauvin.com/audit   
Apply for the next Coaching Cohort: https://heatherchauvin.com/apply   
Not ready for 1:1? Join the membership (cancel anytime): https://heatherchauvin.com/membership

"I'm a fan of quality versus quantity and reading one book all year, but mastering everything that you have learned in that book."
In this episode, Heather shares her top six books for growing as a parent, business owner, and person in 2026. But these aren't just any old books to add to your stack; they're the books she keeps on hand to read and reread because they're a wealth of knowledge and insight that can change your life, if you integrate their wisdom. The big takeaway from this episode that will transform your life if you follow it? That you don't need to read more. You need to commit to taking action around what you learn until you've mastered it.
What to listen for:
✨ Why Heather recommends reading only 10 books a year, no more
✨ The importance of quality vs. quantity when it comes to books
✨ Focus on integration over endless consumption
"So many people are addicted to information and personal development. They don't realize that part of the challenge of why they're not attracting or receiving what they want and desire in their lives is because they are blocking themselves from receiving."
✨ The art of learning how to receive and why most women can't
✨ Getting out of your head and into your heart, because we need both
✨ Why you should be changing your identity at least once a year
"If you're actually doing the work, even if it's just tiny, tiny, tiny habits, you're going to become a different person. Your identity is going to change. And when your identity changes, you need to change your habits."
✨ Essential conversations that parents need to have
✨ Addressing brain imbalances to help your children thrive
✨ Building rich relationships and embodying generosity as a value
Grab copies of these books now:
✨ Abundant Ever After by Cathy Heller
✨ Dying to Be a Good Mother by Heather Chauvin
✨ Atomic Habits by James Clear
✨ A Return to Love by Marianne Williamson
✨ Rich Relationships by Selena Soo
✨ Disconnected Kids by Dr. Robert Melillo
*******
For those of you who are ready to stop feeling drained, overextended, and out of alignment… join me for a one-on-one Time & Energy Audit, a focused session designed to help high-achieving women uncover what's draining them, clarify what truly matters, and create a simple plan that fits their life.
We'll pinpoint your biggest time + energy leaks, identify the top areas to focus on for quick momentum, and map out exactly what to let go of so you can reclaim your energy, your time, and your joy.
Ready to make your time work for you without adding more to your plate?
Book a Time & Energy Audit: https://heatherchauvin.com/audit  
Apply for the next Coaching Cohort: https://heatherchauvin.com/apply  
Not ready for 1:1? Join the membership (cancel anytime): https://heatherchauvin.com/membership