Back to School Encore: Equanimity & The Calm In the Storm with Mindful Parent Michelle Gale

In the midst of what feels like a whirlwind in my home and family life, it's a pleasure for me to share this encore episode with mindfulness educator, corporate trainer, podcast host and author of “Mindful Parenting in a Messy World,” Michelle Gale.

I have a 7-year-old birthday party coming up for my little guy, Jacob on Saturday, my parents have just arrived from Los Angeles, we're still integrating our brand new puppy into our home, and things are just feeling, like - a lot. This is true for so many of us at this time of year as we're helping our kids settle into their new school schedule and environment, tackling homework, and all the things.

I remembered that I had this conversation with Michael Gale on the podcast this time last year when we were in a similar flurry and knew I could really benefit from listening again. I always like to share the goodness...and thought this encore episode might help light your way too  this fall season! 

A few other announcements:

**Stay tuned for a brand new episode with my dear friend, new mother, and incredible philanthropist Pia Infante next week.

**And would love for you to join us in the Mother's Quest Facebook group where I'll be making announcements about a Spark Your E.P.I.C. Year workshop in early October to help us reflect on the chapter behind us and set intentions for the new school year. www.mothersquest.com/community to join 

Until then, I hope that you enjoy this conversation with Micheal Gale, either for the first time or listening to it again as an encore! And that you find some equanimity and calm in the storm this fall season. 

Much appreciation, P.S. Know someone who would love this conversation? Click forward now to pay this forward to a friend who may be interested.

Ep 51: Equanimity & The Calm In the Storm with Mindful Parent Michelle Gale

This conversation, rooted in how to bring more equanimity to our lives–finding our center of calm in the storm–came to me just when I needed it most, during a start to my fall season marked by big school transitions for my children, travel away from home, and supporting my family after my father’s bypass heart surgery. 

In the midst of all of that, it was such a gift to have this time with Michelle, whose journey brought her from working in technology startups like Twitter to a deep dive in mindfulness training. Michelle draws on that training today as an advisor to organizations like Wisdom 2.0, in trainings with corporations like Disney and Google, for summits and workshops for parents that she organizes, and as a parent with her own two boys at home. 

An awareness of our impact in the day to day, through being a mindful parent, is something that Michelle embodies in her own parenting, in the appreciation she describes for her own mother, a single parent who adopted Michelle at the age of four months old, and in the ways that she makes mindfulness relatable and accessible to those she teaches. 

I learned so much from Michelle in the time we spent together, about answering our own calls for life-long learning, about slowing down, raising our awareness and making the implicit explicit, of the importance of bringing compassion, especially during times of transition, and how to draw on our experience as mothers as a source of learning and transformation.  

When we began, I asked Michelle to lead us through a Three Breath Practice which I heard her share about on Deborah Reber’s TILT Parenting Podcast. The practice became the bookends for this episode, the opening that allowed us each to make intentions for our time together, and the challenge that Michelle invites us to integrate into our lives. 

As you listen to this episode, I invite you to slow down by taking your own three breaths with us, tap into Michelle’s intention for finding “equanimity,” your center in the midst of chaos, and open yourself to Michelle’s wisdom. If you do, I’m certain you’ll find more of your calm in the storm and connect more fully to your own mindful parenting in a messy world.

In This Episode We Talk About:

• The Three Breath Practice and how I’ve begun using it to help me make better decisions about how to use my time.

• The concept of “equanimity” and the importance of creating awareness and space for our discomfort so that we can come back to our center.

• Michelle’s appreciation for  “Attachment Theory” through the lens of her own experience being adopted at the age of four months. Also the realization that she doesn’t have a newborn photo and how that drove her inquiry about who was mothering her before she was adopted.

• Michelle’s journey to mindfulness and how she roots her practice in the day to day experience of mothering, especially in the challenging moments, like when our children can’t fall asleep alone or when they struggle with homework.

• Michelle’s ritual before sitting down to do creative work that she has introduced to her children as well before they do homework.

• Michelle’s passion for changing the landscape of how corporations think about supporting parents and the E.P.I.C. snapshot moment that happened for Michelle during a training at Macy’s.

• How her experience in circle and community enabled Michelle to call more of that connection into her life and more about the tools she uses to “call in”.

• How Michelle is bringing her mindfulness practices to her health, especially as she navigates the transition to menopause and the hormonal swings and changes that come with it.

Resources and Topics Mentioned:

• Tilt Parenting Podcast: Michelle Gale on the Power of Mindful Parenting in a Messy World
• The Sweet Spot: How to Accomplish More by Doing Less by Christine Carter
• Jonathan Field’s Good Life Project Community where Michelle and I first connected
• Wisdom 2.0

This Week’s Challenge:

Michelle encourages us to find a place in our life where we can consciously use the 3 Breaths Practice that she modeled in the episode. The practice includes:

1. Focusing on your breath coming in and out
2. Letting your body relax; and,
3. Asking yourself, what’s really important and what really matters? 

By noticing an area of our lives that needs more consciousness (like reaching for our phone for distraction for instance) and using this practice, we can invite more intentionality, awareness, connection, and equanimity into our lives.

Learn More About Michelle:

Michelle Gale is the podcast host and author of the book “Mindful Parenting in a Messy World”,  a mindfulness teacher, executive coach and a corporate trainer. She works in corporations, schools and communities teaching and speaking to fellow parents about mindful parenting.  

Michelle’s Website

Facebook

Twitter

Michelle’s Mindful Parenting Resource List

Announcements: Spark Your E.P.I.C. Year

Anyone else feel like they need a reset to their year? 

Earlier this year, we declared February the new January and facilitated a Mother’s Quest Workshop/Virtual Milestone Hike experience to help us all start again.

Using photos from my favorite local hike, I took a small group on a virtual journey to:

• Reflect on our last chapter (as we ascend) 
• Decide what we want to release (using an image of a big bad bonfire!) and what we want to carry forward
• Then, set intentions along the E.P.I.C. guideposts for our new chapter. 

If you decide you want to reset and begin again, we will be doing another round of the Spark Your E.P.I.C. Year Workshop this October.

Join the Community

Mother’s Quest Q & A with Ashia Ray

We've set aside October 3rd from noon to 1 pm for a Mother’s Quest Q & A with Ashia. To register to join us, follow the link here or join us in the Mother’s Quest Facebook Group to find announcements. Click mothersquest.com/comunity to join. To participate in the call, we invite you to join Raising Luminaries as a patron at a level that calls to you. 

Want More Reflection in Your Life? Book A Discovery Call

Some key themes that emerge from all my conversations, is the power of reflection and the power of being seen. These are elements that I bring, not only to every podcast interview, but to my one-one-one coaching and Mother’s Quest Circle facilitation. If you’re seeking more space for pause and reflection in your life, I encourage you to reach out to me for a discovery call to learn how we might work together.  Visit mothersquest.as.me/discoverysession to schedule a time to talk. Click here to book a discovery call 

Acknowledgments:

A big THANK YOU to our “patrons” for helping to bring these conversations to myself and other mothers through financial and/or in-kind support: Kate Amoo-Gottfried Nicole Lee Olivia Parr-Rud "Vince" of the While Black Podcast Sara Brannin-Mooser Lindsay Pera Julie Castro Abrams Alexia Vernon Brooke Markevicius Democracy Clothing Michael Skolnik Helgi Maki Kari Azuma Tamara Sobomehin Katie Krimitsos Carrie Caulfield Arick Rachel Rosen Chandra Brooks Jen Simon Monisha Vasa Celia Ward-Wallace Vanessa Couto Desiree Adaway Rachel Steinman Katie Hanus Denise Barreto  Sage B. Hobbs  Samantha Nolan-Smith Jody Smith Emily Cretella Collette Flanagan Titilayo Tinubu Ali  Carly Magnus Hurt Lizzy Russinko  Suzanne Brown Mara Berns Langer Mallory Schlabach  Katharine Earhart Jessica Kupferman Jen Jenkins Dohner Genese Harris Tonya Rineer Liane Louie-Badua Cristin Downs  Erin Kendall  Niko Osoteo  Erik Newton  Claire Fry Divya Silbermann Rachel Winter Caren and Debbie Lieberman Cameron Miranda Fran and David Lieberman Debbie and Alan Goore The Sustainable Living Podcast

Support the Podcast

If you’d like to make a contribution to Mother’s Quest to support Season Three of the Podcast and/or help provide coaching scholarships for mothers, follow this link to make a contribution. If you would like to “dedicate” an upcoming episode to a special mother in your life, email me at [email protected]

Mother's Quest is a podcast for moms who are ready to live a truly E.P.I.C. life.

Join in for intimate conversations with a diverse group of inspiring mothers as they share how they are living an E.P.I.C. life, Engaging mindfully with their children (E), Passionately and Purposefully making a difference beyond their family (P), Investing in themselves (I), and Connecting to a strong support network (C).

Join our community of mothers to light the way and sustain you on your quest at https://www.facebook.com/groups/mothersquest/