Welcome back to the podcast where we ask the question, what makes you happy? My name is Jake Pearson, and today our guest is a mental fitness author who helps people get their goals without burning out through holistic fitness, making fun TikTok videos, and through Journaling, lori Lee from Greenville, South Carolina. How are you? 

I am fabulous, Jake. How are you doing? 

Doing incredible today. Thank you. And it's a pleasure to have you here to share all things that make you happy. Laurie, could you start with that? Tell me what makes you happy. 

Absolutely. So I'd start by separating what boosts my energy and what makes me happy. So when I was younger, I used to confuse the two. When I was younger, I was like, what makes me happy is going out, nightclubbing, EDM, music festivals, because I'm an extrovert, love all the things. But now it's definitely sharing my creations with people. So sharing my creations, whether it's the goal, getting journal, whether it's a holistic fitness workout, and sharing it with people in a meaningful way that I see them light up, I think ultimately we're here to build community and connect with one another. We're tribal beings. So anything I can do to help boost others actually deeply makes me happy. 

I love that someone walks up to you on the street, they're kind of struggling with their happiness, and you get talking in that conversation, what would your advice be to the person who is struggling to find happiness in their life and where should they start? 

My advice is really small. Incremental changes every single day. So it's asking them questions like, when's the last time you felt energized? What was the thing you were doing before you felt energized? How can you bring a little bit more of that into your life? Whether it's just 60 seconds of your day and I know what it's like to be depressed. It is so hard to get out of bed in the morning. So if somebody is just feeling really down in the dump, you've just got to find that one small thing they can do every single day so that builds over time. 

Yeah, it's really starting small. No big high end goals. Yeah, sure, that's good to have in the future, but what can you do right now that's the smallest almost barrier of entry for you to do that's going to give you that little bit of joy or energy to build upon and do the next thing. And I've seen this really great video of this ex. There was someone in the military and he said, start by making your bed every single day. Make your bed and then watch what that does for your energy, and it will set you up to do the next thing and the next thing. So start small. That's basically what you're saying, right? 

Yeah. You're saying that I probably should go make my bed now 630 at night? 

Well, if it's not made, why not? 

I love that I've heard of that as well. And it's true whether it's making your bed, whether it's like putting on your makeup, the one thing that you choose to do, and it is all about those small wins. And something as simple as making a bed is one of those small wins. 

If I make my bed, then cool, I'll clean up the floor, get rid of the dirty clothes in the basket, and then from there am I open the blind, and then I might just fill the dishwasher or clean the sink. And then all of a sudden, I'm in this. Really? I've had a few small wins, and I'm ready to tackle something potentially a little bit bigger and more meaningful. But if not, I've already done a couple of things that's improved my energy to do whatever I want for the rest of the day. So that's kind of the approach that I like to take. And I don't know if it's similar for you. 

Yeah, absolutely. Something else I'd add to that as well is micro habits. In general, there's another strategy that I found useful myself for cleaning. We've already established Lori hasn't made her bed yet. It's almost 07:00 p.m.. And I actually did this on Sunday. I put on some EDM because I knew that was going to boost my energy, and I was like, how much of my apartment can I get clean in 30 minutes? And I ended up cleaning for an hour and 30 minutes. But I've done this with clients as well. If you didn't make it to the gym and you've already skipped a day, then you need to set up another plan of attack. And I usually recommend just 5 minutes at home, 5 minutes of squats, 5 minutes of core. 

Don't commit to anything longer than that, but still stay in the habit at home if you couldn't make it to the gym. And that just keeps them in the habit, and they end up generally doing more because it's getting there that's hardest. 

I'm really resonating with what you're saying because it's something I've already applied to my life and it's helped me improve my energy and my happiness. So, Laurie, really appreciate your time sharing all things that make you happy. It's been an absolute pleasure to have you.