E 13 - Guest: Lisa Murphy, Health Coach
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Beth: Welcome to the BDI Create Today podcast. Today we have a very special treat. We are going to be talking with someone that I adore and have come to call my friend Lisa Murphy and she is a healthy aging coach. Now this is someone that can talk to everyone. I don't know a single soul out there that isn't aging.
We all are aging, whether we're in our twenties or when, if we're in our eighties and the thing that's important is that we're doing it in a healthy manner. So Lisa is going to come in and talk to us today about how creativity. is really involved in how well we're aging and how we feel about aging, how that can affect our creativity.
So let's welcome Lisa and learn some things about how we can be healthy. Lisa, thank you so much for joining us today. I cannot wait to have this [00:01:00] conversation. Hi, Beth. Thank you so much for having me on the show. And you know what? I just, I just have to say, we're already having an argument. I think that aging is a beautiful thing.
It is. Oh, that's true. If we are not aging, there is something wrong. It is much better than the alternative. So let's talk about aging in a positive mindset. Let's put that straight. I, I, I redact what I just said because it's true. You guys, I am In my 60s, and I am happier now in my 60s than I was at any decade prior to that.
And I've been happy in a lot of places. So it, it is something that does get better. And Lisa's here to tell us how we can make that better in the season that we're in right now. Correct? Exactly. It's never, ever too early or too late. to think about aging healthily. Yes. So, Lisa talk to us a little bit about your [00:02:00] background.
How did you get where you are today? I, I think your background is fascinating. So share with us a little bit about who you have been, so you, how you got to where you are today. You know, I'm from Iowa. I'm an Iowa girl. I've driven a tractor. I've ridden in the back of a Ford pickup. You know I'm, I'm the granddaughter of farmers on both sides of my family.
You know, quilts and gardens and putting up preserves. That's my background. And I still feel very, very connected to those roots. However, I, I had a pretty adventuresome streak when I was a young adult. And well, first of all, I had like a kind of a side detour in business. My degree is actually in actuarial science and I had a whole nother life in corporate America.
And then I had this crazy cool period of my life where I was living overseas in the Middle East and traveling the world. And. [00:03:00] That's perhaps where I started really letting my creative juices flow. Also that was the period of my life that set the stage for my divorce. I was married, I was divorced, came back to the States and really thought my life.
Shirley was over in my forties. So that, that I think is when the creativity really started bubbling up within me because I knew I wanted something different from what I had left. And I think that that led me to where I am now. Awesome. Awesome. So tell us where you are now. What are you doing? I have owned my own business for 10 plus years now, and I am a healthy aging expert.
I work with all kinds of people. My youngest client is 18. My oldest is going to be 86 this year. And I have a healthy aging protocol that I call RAV. It's an acronym for remain relevant, active, and [00:04:00] vibrant while you age healthily and have more fun. And that's what I do. My programs are bespoke to help people.
Learn to age healthily in ways that are fun, sustainable, attainable, fun, and sustainable, right? Because if we can't attain it, it's pointless. If it's not fun, we won't keep doing it. That's right. We won't. So when you were filling out some information to me about your background and answering some questions I gave you about creativity.
One of the things you wrote down was something that I kind of want you just to go over about if you ask a woman what she worries about most. So I think a good majority of our audience are women. And if you're a man listening I think you're going to be able to take a look and plug this into your own life.
But tell us about. What do women mostly worry about? And then, then move that to what do [00:05:00] business people mostly worry about? I think this is going to be fascinating. Yeah. You know, , I'd be really curious to know, but I, as a woman I've always been very afraid of breast cancer. That seems like something that we're, fearful of rightfully.
So I, I, I've had some in my family, you know, my mother doesn't have breast cancer. Thank goodness. Yet. I wonder if our listeners know what the number one killer of not only women in the U. S., but the number one killer of all Americans is, and it's not cancer of any kind. It is heart disease, and the reason that I find this so compelling is because Many, many situations, incidences of heart disease are not only preventable, but they are reversible as well.
So I find that incredibly empowering. And some really interesting research from [00:06:00] business articles and business magazines and business papers show that leaders, corporate leaders are more concerned with the bottom line efficiencies in their business. And not stress, the stress that's in the workplace or the stress of their own health.
And again, I think we're fearing the wrong demon. You know, let's focus on what we can do. Let's use our creativity, our empowered personal power to deal with the things we can actually affect such as our cardiac health. For example, and I believe the rest will fall into place, especially in the workplace.
If we can focus on mental health and mental wellness, I believe business takes care of itself. Hmm. So interesting to hear that. And I think that a lot of people think, Oh, my cardio, I, that means I, I have to go [00:07:00] to the gym. I have to, I have to run, I have to lift weights, but that's not necessarily true. Is it?
Not unless you want to absolutely not what we do have to do to move to be healthy and to have good heart health and we can just. Combine cardiac health is heart health in general. That's blood pressure, stroke, heart attack, all that. We do have to move our body and that can look a million different ways.
Let's talk about how we can get creative with movement in our life. No, you never have to set foot in a gym. If you don't want to So what, what would some of that creativity be like? Some examples, like what do you do? And then I'll tell you some things I do. Oh, oh, fun. This is a show and tell. I love it.
Well, I actually like going to the gym, not for the cardio machines. Again, if you dig the cardio machines, go for it. I love to go to the gym because I love to lift weights. This is something that I've [00:08:00] gotten into in my 50s and we do know that strength training resistance training is extremely important not just for heart health but for brain health as well.
What I love about weight lifting is that it makes me feel really strong, both physically and mentally. So I love to do that. I love to be outside. If I can be outside digging in my garden, like my ancestors did, hiking. I live in North Carolina, hiking in the mountains, walking my dogs. That makes me so, so, so happy.
I also love yoga. Yeah. What about you? Okay. So In the summertime, my husband and I bike and we have a tandem bike, so it is so fun.
And I, what I love about the tandem bike is that we get to talk a lot and it moves from being me exercising to me being out with Tom. And one of the things Tom knows is that. I have to have a destination. [00:09:00]
I need to go somewhere where I get, a little ice cream treat, or we're having lunch
But it, it helps you have a halfway mark so that you've got something, no data. I love data so that we do that. And then also in the, in the wintertime, I have an indoor bike. And so when that happens,I watch television shows that I only watch when I bike. And that gives me something to look forward to,
And I do like to lift weights too. I, I have some people that I watch on YouTube that help me figure out what I should be doing and how, what I need to do as far as reps.
So those are some things I do. Yeah, that is so fun. I love it so much. And if you love data. I, I would love to share just a little, some, some numbers with you, if that's okay. Well, first of all, let me back up. You are, you are proving, well, we know that we can't multitask.
We know that's a myth. However, you are proving that maybe we can. So you're binge watching your TV [00:10:00] while you're getting your show, while you're getting your exercise in. I think that's not really multitasking. I think that's something different. I think that's very creative. The other thing. I love is that you and Tom are riding your bike together so you can connect.
We know that connection love is a very important part of cardiac health, heart health as well. And I don't know about you as a creative or as an artist, but a lot of times that can be a rather solitary pursuit, which I personally, I love being by myself. And I recognize the importance of connection. A lot of science points to connection and love, and it doesn't have to be romantic love.
It can be friendship or even a pet is, is also extremely important for your heart health. So one, I think that's really cool that you guys are doing that. The second, the numbers, the data, I, I mentioned I've reformed actuary. There are a lot of very reputable sources, the American Heart Association, the [00:11:00] NIA, the CDC, that give us some guidelines.
So, you know, if you're not currently moving, and I prefer to call it movement, not exercise as well, if you're not currently moving, don't freak out. Just start where you are and maybe start with a few minutes each day. You know, every other day, five minute walk around the block. But science gives us some guidelines that we want to work up to.
And it is 150 minutes of movement, moderate movement per week. So that comes out to about 20, 30 minutes a day, depending on if you're going to move your body five to seven days a week. Yeah. So I just think it's kind of fun to have those goals for me. I like, I like data too. And I also like to tick boxes, you know, Oh, yep.
I'm a big box ticker too. I have my apple watch that, you know, tells me how I'm doing with the goals I have set for myself in my watch. And I think that's really nice. So tell me if it's If we're looking to build up to 20 to 30 minutes a day, can we break that down into [00:12:00] like 10 minute intervals? Like, can we do 10 minutes in the morning and then 10 minutes again later in the day?
Or is it something you have to do as a collective whole or because you're not working up to a rhythm that you need to have? How does that work? Absolutely. You can break it up into different chunks. And I really like when I'm working with clients who work at a desk or at a computer, be it because they're.
in business or they're an artist and they're literally over a table all day or working with their arms and stuff taking a break. You know, two to three times a day and just getting up and having that five to 10 minutes that absolutely counts and that I think is also a creative way of multitasking because we know that breaks are really important for creativity.
And we also know that it's good to just stretch the body and move. So you're killing two birds with one stone, or maybe three, maybe three there as well. What you just said there I, I have to share a little story. I remember working on a [00:13:00] project here in my studio and I was so stuck on it. I just, I just felt like if I could just work a little harder, think on it a little longer, I would figure out what I needed to do.
And I finally got so frustrated that I just got up and I went upstairs and I did, I did an exercise. And during the exercise. The answer came to me. And I went back downstairs and plugged in my thought and it worked. So I really believe that for people who are type A and you're working so hard on something and you think,
I just need to think and focus and get this done. That giving yourself a break sometimes opens up some sort of pathway in your head And those, those solutions can come to you. And that's why I think we probably all think really creatively in the shower.
We all talk about that, right? Yeah. No, 100%. And I liken it to you can't fill [00:14:00] a glass. If a glass is already full and you're pouring more water in it, it's just going to spill out. And the same, of course, is true with our brains. And there are studies that prove this as well, particularly for creatives, that when we have these fallow or rest periods, That allows the space or the creativity to bubble up from within and it's got some place to go.
You know? Yes. Yes. So, so important. So now we know that
Moving is good, doing it solitarily, that's good. Being with someone in connection, another really good place to be. And so I, I think that that's good to know that we also don't need to just be like on the treadmill running. That it's probably even better for your head if you are outdoors or you are gardening.
I remember raking leaves one day with Tom and I just for fun set my Apple watch to exercise and was [00:15:00] shocked how many calories I burned in just like 20 minutes, a half an hour being outside raking. So it's doing something like that. Yeah. Really. Get creative. And I think the only thing is, again, if you find it fun, if you enjoy it, then you're going to want to do it and you'll look forward to doing it.
If it's something that you hate, who wants to do something that they hate? So it just, it just won't happen. So get creative, find something fun that you love. And do it. I also think that the fact that you said you like to lift weights and not because you and you, and maybe you do, but not necessarily because you enjoy lifting something off the floor and putting it back down, but you like the feeling that you have of being strong.
afterwards, right? So that's something to also think about is that some exercise is hard to do, but what you're working towards is the feeling that you [00:16:00] get when you see the results. Absolutely. The, the endorphins that you release or the new found bicep muscle that you find, and you're a hundred percent right.
For me, it is the strength, mental strength that I feel, the empowerment that I feel from lifting the weights and even just walking into. I'm full of dudes and a bunch of barbells. Like I had, that was a lot to overcome. I had to be really brave and it's given me so much confidence. And as a business owner who must be creative, I have to feel somewhat confident.
Now, believe me, I'm, I'm probably like the rest of us, the rest of everyone else in the world that I have plenty of moments where I don't feel a hundred percent sure of myself, but when I do things. Like lift those weights or get on my yoga mat that carries over into the rest of my life and it's like, okay, look, I feel pretty strong today.
So therefore I'm going to be willing to take a creative risk and offer a new [00:17:00] program or create some content that puts myself out there in a different way. So that being said tell. Tell me you're just someone who feels like, Oh, my days of having strong muscles is behind me. Is there a point where that is a fact or is that something that always can be built on?
Does that make sense? Oh, no. Yeah. A hundred percent. No, it's, you are never too young or too old to start thinking about aging healthily. And we can absolutely continue to increase muscle mass. And the, maybe the biggest takeaway from that whole question, which was a brilliant one is we don't want to lose muscle mass and we also don't want to lose bone.
And we know now that there are a lot of ways besides just popping a bunch of supplements. But we can continue to maintain our muscle mass and our bone mass and even build it later in life. And exercise, weight bearing exercise is one of the most [00:18:00] important ways that we can do both. And now thinking about that, like we are building muscle mass, we're doing good things for our body.
Let's talk a little bit about What movement does for our brain activity, because I, I'm pretty sure that you're going to give us this wonderful fact that moving helps us feel happier as we are doing it on a regular basis. Am I right? Or am I wrong? Well, I think, I think that's a great question that I would love to, to put out as a challenge.
I would love for everyone. So, after listening to this podcast and perhaps you after recording it, Beth, go out and move your body. Take a walk around the block, put on one of your favorite songs and jump around a little bit and see how you feel. Yeah. I, I, it'd be, if you're someone who has been, hasn't been moving a lot.
And you start adding that to your [00:19:00] routine. And maybe just one day is not going to be enough that you really need to put it in and give it a good test drive for a week. And then just find out if you're just feeling like you feel it's a little lighter. And sometimes that, you know, you're remembering where you put those keys.
A hundred percent. Right. And, you know, I am all about science and data too. I love it. And I also like to think about things like this in sort of a creative way. And I like to think about, of course, exercises, building bone strength. It's building muscle mass. It's building cardiovascular endurance. It's, it's good for our brains.
It's producing endorphins. Okay. As if that all weren't enough, I love thinking of. About movement as shifting my energy, like we all can feel stuck and stagnant sometimes. And that could be our prawn or our blood flow or however you want to look at it. But I just feel like when I move [00:20:00] my body, like I'm, I'm shifting energy and creating new openings and new pathways.
And that's what happens in the brain, right? New neural pathways. But it just seems like. An amazing way to express oneself and to be creative and I don't know, don't you just want to go like this sometimes and like shake it out? Absolutely. Well, and that being said, you know, you can just for your break, put on your favorite dance songs and dance like no one's looking because it's a really great way to burn a few of those calories and move around and get that heart rate up.
And you don't even know you're doing it. There's also a lot of YouTube tutorials out there of people who just dance and they will show you how to do that because I, I found a few and I can't, it's hard to keep up with all the goodness that they're doing, but I mean, you can get your move on, get your groove on.
Absolutely. Go back. Absolutely. Yeah. No one sees me in my, my exercise room upstairs. [00:21:00] So if you're thinking, Oh, I, I don't want to go to Zumba class because someone's going to look at me. Just turn on YouTube and dance in your bedroom.
So, okay. Now we've talked a little bit about movement and how this is gonna help us Creatively I want to Talk about
if we are starting to let ourselves think about allowing ourselves to age gracefully, that has a lot to do with allowing ourself to be confident about who we are right now today. Right? Did that make sense? What I said?
Yeah. Yeah. A hundred percent. I think it's. It's kind of like if you're going to go somewhere in your car and you're, you're going to use Google maps, you will, you'll put the destination in, but you also have to put where you are. Yes. Otherwise it doesn't know how to tell you how to get there. And I think [00:22:00] it doesn't matter where you are.
The most important thing is accepting, recognizing and honoring where we are now. And now this is true for anything, whether we're talking about our careers. Our art, our exercise, acknowledge and accept where you are now as perfect. You don't have to agree to want to be there forever. You don't have to endorse it.
It's basically being in the moment. Let's accept where we are, who we are right here, right now. And from that jumping off point, we can best figure out. How do we get where it is that we want to go with our physical health, our mental health, our careers, anything at all? Yeah, we're right where we are. I love that you brought up that whole like GPS idea that you're going to figure out where you are and then where you want to go.
And because I think using that same [00:23:00] analogy, We spend a lot of our time thinking about where we want to be and looking at someone else who is there and comparing ourselves to that particular person thinking, I'll never get there. But
The person that we're trying to compare ourself to, they started on that journey as well, But they started maybe . Five days, five years, you know, a long time before you started
so it's that where you're measuring from. Does that make sense?
I think, you know, the world that we live in today with social media and I, I love social media. I think it's fun. I think it's really creative. I think you and I met on social media. We did. But, but yeah, we have to be really careful what we're comparing and who we're comparing ourselves to because it all looks good from the curb.
Right. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. And you bring up something that's very, very important in any type of goal setting or transformation. And that [00:24:00] is measuring the small wins. So, you know, you've probably heard of smart goals. They have to be measurable and attainable. Like we want to acknowledge where we are. And then when we get to the first traffic light, let's just give ourselves a high five.
I made it this far. Right. And then Get to the next traffic light, so to speak, and, and measure those wins, count those wins. One of the tools that I love utilizing with my clients, I call it a brag book. And if we have a goal, be it with our health or with our business or our work, a lot of times it's easy to focus on.
How we're not there yet, or what we're not succeeding and what we're not achieving. Almost always, behind the scenes, there's a whole lot of little wins that are adding up. And if we start to recognize those little wins, literally write them down in a brag book or make an art [00:25:00] project out of them. I had a client one time who quilted and she made all these little individual blocks that she strung in the wall in her studio of her winds, just to remind her of all the things that she's doing right and doing well.
And what we focus on is what we will get more of. So the more we focus on those. Little wins wins, no matter how big or how small it's start to compound and we will be realizing even more wins. So yeah, keep a brag book, make an art project. Have yourself on the back. That's such a great idea. I've talked in past podcasts about gratitude and, you know, finding.
And that if you realize the thingsthat are filling you with goodness,that studies show, what you're focusing on is how you're feeling. And so for the end of the day, you've, had a to do list and the only thing you can focus on are the things you didn't get done and you're just bashing [00:26:00] yourself for what wasn't accomplished.
If you're looking at the things you did accomplish it will help you feel motivated to go at those things you weren't able to get done tomorrow.
Absolutely. Brag on your own wins, recognize your wins, count your blessings a hundred percent. And I love it that you brought up at the end of the day, because a good day starts the night before and what better way to set yourself up for a fantastic day than by.
Counting your blessings and taking note of all of your wins no matter how small. Yeah, they can be really tiny.
I remember there was a neighbor across the street that had this beautiful dining room in the middle of the week, you could see them eating dinner and they had candles lit. And I, it just, it made me stop and think.
It's Tuesday and they're having dinner with candles. Why not? Why not get out those good dishes and light some candles and and treat yourself to somethingthat's only for [00:27:00] big occasions. Like, what is a big occasion if it's not today?
if you save things only for a special occasion and you live your life and you always thought that special occasion was coming. Isn't that, isn't it a good thing just to get out something and, and so what if it gets chipped or broken? You were enjoying it. And, you know, that's what it was there for, not just to sit in your China cabinet.
So I think you can do that with so many things in your life to celebrate what you're doing and be thankful for what you have by allowing yourself to have those little splurges. Absolutely. And I liken the chips in the China to the character and, you know, expression marks that we all will get as we get older.
It's like, They're signs of a life well lived. Yeah. And then if you don't use it, who are you saving it for? And if you're saving it for, as an heirloom, wouldn't it be better to enjoy those [00:28:00] things with those people that will be getting it for an heirloom? So that when they get it, they will say, I remember having all, and it'll be memories that they'll have about those things.
I mean, just compounds, right? For sure. That's beautiful. I'm going to get my china out after this. Lights and candles. For my birthday my girls surprised me with high tea. And so they came over to the house. I love dishes. I love designing dishes. And so I have dishes in the house and So they came over before I got home from an engagement and they got out all my china and they had the teapot and the little cups and all the little saucers and plates and everything.
And we had scones and clotted cream and tea and all kinds of pastries. And we just enjoyed our time together.
And now those dishes, every time I see them, I remember high tea with my girls, That's beautiful. That's beautiful.
So healthy aging isn't just about moving.
It's [00:29:00] also about just feeling good in who you are today. Think so. it comes down to the present moment. And when I work. My clients in my programs, I have four pillars that I utilize and you mentioned food and hopefully we'll get to talk more about that at another time.
The second, my second pillar is mood. And that's what's going on between your ears. And that can be that stress management that we alluded to with some of the, the business studies where, you know, Business leaders are focused more on process on the bottom line and not really thinking about stress. I know a lot of people in the artistic world have a day job and their art is their passion or and or their side hustle that can create a lot of stress.
So yeah, I think that's really important. The third pillar is rest. We already talked about that a little bit. It does mean sleep, but it also means that downtime, those breaks, [00:30:00] allowing for that canvas to be blank so there's some place to What your beautiful ideas and, and the fourth, my fourth pillar is indeed movement, which we've talked about quite a bit, but yeah, healthy aging is this creative blend of all of these things.
And you don't have to be doing them all on any given day. But you can pull components of, of each, and it's probably going to depend on where you are in your life to our life cycles like this. And when you've got small children at home, you may not be sitting in meditation for, for 20 minutes every day, right?
So, so I think to answer to come back to your question. Yeah, I think just acknowledging and recognizing where you are in this present moment will allow you to. Identify, okay, what's really realistic and attainable and sustainable for me? And maybe it's going to look different today than it did before I had kids.
And maybe it's going to [00:31:00] look different today than it's going to in 20 years from now. Yeah, I know I've lived in the same house for 30 years, but I've been different people. in this house, depending on, you know, the age of my children and my responsibilities and how, how I ran my business.
And it, it just has to be kind of re imagined. To fit whatever is happening with the way I have to be running life at the moment with that season and the people that I need to either take care of or not take care of. To me, that is the ultimate creativity is how can we, whether you're a business owner, an entrepreneur, an artist a mom, how can we creatively build our own life, create our own life.
Now to get us what it is that we are desiring at this moment in time. And of course that changes, especially for us [00:32:00] entrepreneurs. Like we have to constantly be adapting and shifting and pivoting. Well, you don't have to, but if you want to achieve what it is that you want for yourself, you do. And that is definitely going to look different in different stages of your life.
And I think that was hard for me in, in my sort of. I don't know what I want to call it. My difficult time when I came home from living overseas and shortly thereafter, my now ex husband and I separated, I really didn't know what to do. I had been living one way for so long. And even though I had exposure to all these amazing things, traveling and exposed to different cultures and different societies, when that kind of got The rug ripped out from underneath my feet.
It took me a while to get my mojo back to sort of tune back into, okay, right. This is where I am now. What can I do? [00:33:00] You know? So sometimes I think it is challenging, but that's where courage comes before confidence. And I did not feel very confident then at all. And so I had to be courageous and put myself out there and take some risks.
I think what you just said there is probably going to be helpful for so many people that Healthy aging doesn't mean that you feel great inside yourself every single day, that you're going to have some times where life just throws you a punch and it takes you a while to get your breath back and that that's okay.
Yeah. Yeah. Again, let's just acknowledge and accept where it is that we are and love ourselves there and think of it as perfect to accepting the present moment because only from that grounded place can you decide. Where it is that you want to dive into or jump or jump to. Yeah, it's every, it's, it's not all unicorns and [00:34:00] rainbows and glitter.
And you know, there's that expression, it's all good. While I'm not a fan of that because I've been through several periods of my life and it didn't feel good at all. And that's okay too, right. Accepting, accepting where it is that we are so that we have a solid foundation to, to make a plan to get where it is that we want to go.
Yeah, because every day you can get up and get in your car and decide where you're going to go. Right. And every day, every, every day. And you can decide how far you're going to be able to go on and how much energy you've got in that tank to take you. And it's, it's that's something that you get to decide.
So that's, that's important to think about that.
the podcast talks. A lot about the fact that being creative is that everyone is creative and that creativity is something that you're doing because it's a time to be playful and a time to [00:35:00] reinvigorate yourself
I know a lot of people that listen to this podcast are creatives who are running a creative business, they have a creative side hustle, or they'd like to start a creative business. And then it's important to remember that creativity needs to spill out. Past your business regimen and that you still have to have a place where you can just go and play and let that creativity be part of your your pillars of health.
And I'm sure that when you're explaining your pillars of health to your clients, that creativity fits into almost all of those pillars in some fashion so that it's something that they can use and enjoy and build their life happily. Well, for sure. Like when I was talking about movement as a flow of energy, it's substitute creativity for that creative expression.
I believe that. And thank you for that, because I don't consider [00:36:00] myself an artist at all, and I've always felt very welcomed by you and your community because you do recognize that everyone is an artist, everyone is a creative, and I've learned to recognize that I just express my creativity in different ways, where some people use paints and canvases and all that, but I believe if we're not expressing our creativity in some form, whether it is painting or play or cooking, then we're, we're really stifling our authentic self.
And there's a lot of talk these days about authenticity, and I'm really glad for it. Because when we are operating from this true place, this place that makes us unique and expressing our creativity, that is when we are in the flow. That is when miracles start to happen. That's when we experience happiness and joy and abundance and prosperity.
If we're trying to be someone else or be [00:37:00] who we think someone else thinks we should be, or if we're trying to keep up with the proverbial Joneses on social media, we're not being ourselves. And to be ourselves, we have to let that creative expression, let it find its way out, you know, however, however that is for you.
Yeah, I, I love how you put that together. And it, it's, I'm going to say something and it's going to lead to something else that you need to know about Lisa. But so for my creatives that are, and for anyone who is like working in a job and for creatives who are doing their creative jobs, so much of being a professional creative is making art for someone.
else and maybe not necessarily for yourself. Some of us are graphic designers and we are just getting projects from clients and they're saying, I want these things. And so the work you're doing is creative for them, but maybe not a creative outlet for you.
[00:38:00] And definitely when you're working full time in any job, you know, you're doing something for someone else. It is hard to figure out ways that you can be creative that isn't maybe going to bump heads with something that someone needs you to accomplish.
So, creativity. on your own as a hobby, as a passion that can be anything. And if you're a creative, who's doing illustration or artwork or graphic design, maybe this extra creativity outlet is going to show up in other ways that doesn't necessarily deal with art. It could be music. It could be gardening.
It could be cooking. It could be doing some sewing that has nothing to do with the things you're doing in creatively in your business. And those are things that you just can't wait to get to. Your fingers feel a little bit itchy when you think about it. So something that I want everyone to know about with Lisa is that she has some really fun [00:39:00] things that you can do with her that could light up a creative passion.
So Lisa, tell us about the videos that you do and what, what you're doing that way. Because what I love about Lisa is that when you're listening to her today, She's got on her beautiful Lisa nurturing voice and oh my gosh, you just feel so taken care of when you listen to her. And I know that if you're one of her clients that you will be cared for like a tender seedling to grow into a giant tree.
She's got a super playful side that just also lights up. An area in her that I think a lot of people get so much from so tell us a little bit about that. Well, thank you. Thank you, Beth. I think it's a perfect example of what you just talked about. This is my graphic designer side and I'm, I'm presenting my professional image to you.
And then I have this ridiculously silly persona that I love to play with. [00:40:00] And I do videos called veg with Lisa. It's my online cooking show. And they are. It's Bed with Lisa Live! It's live. It's, it's purposefully zero production. It's like so organic and crazy silly fun where I spend 10 minutes or less.
I almost always make a recipe, but it's not just another pretty cooking show. There are some lessons hidden in there. I always try to sneak in. Okay. Here's why you should eat more beans or here's why you should eat five to 10 servings of vegetables every day. No, but it's a ton of fun. I love cooking, .
When I discovered before I met you, that cooking counted as creativity, I was like, yes. And I thought, okay, I make enough messes in the kitchen. That is absolutely creative. But yeah, I love Veg with Lisa Live is, is super fun. It's, I do it on Facebook Live and I'm the videos are on my YouTube [00:41:00] channel as well.
Yeah. So we're going to make sure everyone knows how to find you on YouTube because the thing is that you could be a creative who doesn't know this could be a creative passion to learn how to cook. And the thing is, secondly, is that you can have a creative passion that is cooking and at least it's going to show you how you can also do it and feel good about what you're eating.
Cause it's going to be. Speeding your, the health of your, your soul and your body and your mind at the same time. Absolutely. So so, so many good reasons why following Lisa would be a great thing. So Lisa, is there anything else that you would like to share with our podcast listeners today that would aid them with in the area that we're talking about today?
Anything else that you'd like to give them as advice? You know, when I think about my pillar of mood and that's not just like, Oh, I'm in a good mood today or whatever, it's, it's what's [00:42:00] going on in between your ears. How are you managing your stress? Are you, are you listening? Are you getting quiet? When I think about the times I've felt very stuck and maybe some of your creative listeners can.
I don't know if, if you ever get, you know, writer's block or artist block or you don't write. Like, I think that's for real. That's a thing. It's a thing. I think that's a thing. So I, I think one of managing stress and especially if people are working a day job and then they also are pursuing a side hustle of whatever kind we cannot create from a stressed place.
Yes. I think of it like those old fashioned fire hydrants, you know how they just sit there all day and then once every six months or whatever the firemen come, they, they, they do whatever it is they do and they wash those out. Have you ever seen that happen? It's like, so I think that it's so important for us [00:43:00] to be able to manage our stress in a healthy way.
So that there is a continual flow of creativity, because if we are stressed and stuck, we're just like those fire plugs that haven't been flushed. We, we cannot possibly create from a stressed place. So I think. Learning how to manage your stress and it, and note, I didn't say I can make you, I can make your stress go away.
Life is very stressful these days. And again, it's okay to admit that it's not all good. It's okay to go, wow, I'm really overwhelmed right now. And then what are we going to do about it? So developing some sort of self care. Stress management, I think, is especially important for everyone, particularly creatives.
Again, if we're thinking about this flow of energy within us, we want it to be able to get out. And if we're all clogged up with stress, It's impossible, yeah, what you were talking about is I, I [00:44:00] had a, I had a call with a student earlier today and she was telling me how she had burned herself out
And I had told her, you need some rest. You need to do some things just for yourself. And her, question to me was how do I let myself do that, right? Just how do you let yourself have those times or days to get back whatever stress has pulled out of you?
How does one start maybe to give themselves the permission to do something for themselves?
Well, again, courage comes before confidence, and so you may have a belief that you do not have time for this.
That's okay. That's fine. That's where you are. So then, we get brave, and we think about how can we find, how can you find one minute? Just like we talked about with movement, five minutes is great, if that's where you start. Two minutes is great. [00:45:00] Same with this. If you are a person who is burning the candle at both ends, your mind is going crazy and you're afraid, I'm going to say you got to sit on a cushion, close your eyes and meditate and ohm.
No, that would probably stress you out even more. So, if that's you, what can you do to just take A minute for, I call it peace and quiet. Isn't that so much less intimidating than meditation? Peace and quiet. Most people get up in the morning and maybe grab a coffee while you're waiting for the coffee to brew.
Can you just gaze out the window? Yeah. Perfect. That's it for you. Done. You can do something like that in the morning. You can do it in the middle of the day. If you're used to working around the clock, lunch at your desk. Can you take three minutes? away from the desk. One minute, five minutes, whatever it is, start where you are.
And same with in the [00:46:00] evening. Can you take a few minutes before the lights go out? And put your phone down. Ideally, I call it a power down hour. We're powering down all devices one hour before bedtime. But if that seems way too impossible for you, do five minutes. It's so important to recognize where you are and, and to go from there.
And then maybe the most obvious comment about this topic, which is so important and I hear it from so many people. If you're relating with this, it's, you're not alone. It's the old adage, if you do not put your own oxygen mask on first, we've all been either on the verge of burnout. It's, it's a lot more efficient to be proactive about it up front than to clean it up after we've broken our spirit.
That's so true. It's so true. And if you can just find that little time, that minute, then maybe you can do a minute for a week and then make two minutes. It's that ramping up. You would [00:47:00] do that with exercise too, you know, just start small. Don't overwhelm yourself.
But yes, it's, it is finding little things and then giving yourself the permission to do that. Making sure that you understand that you, you need to be our priority, Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And, and then that's where people like you and I, Beth come in, you know, I've got a coach, I've got a therapist.
I have a body worker, you know, it takes a village and we can't, we don't need to do it all on our own. And if there's some place where I feel that I'm stuck, I'm going to call in, I'm going to call in some help. I'm going to call in an expert, somebody who can help me. You know, that's what I need. Oh, I think it's so important that you just said that you have help because no one gets to the point where, okay, now I'm at the top of the mountain and I am perfect.
That doesn't happen, that you're just, it's always a work in progress.
And I think we all need to have a goal and [00:48:00] something to be motivated to work towards. Yeah. Purpose. We all need to, we all want a purpose to get out of bed.
Right. Yeah. So I think that everyone can see that Lisa. It's a fountain of sage advice for helping us to celebrate that we are aging. Exactly. Exactly. It's a good thing. It's a good thing. It's better than the alternative. It's better than the alternative. And that it doesn't really matter what age you are.
So get out there and find out what your creative passion is. And that might be lifting weights and it might be cooking and it might be learning procreate.
Find out what you want to dabble in and then just get busy doing something. That makes you happy every day. And that might be getting out the good China and lighting a candle with your takeout tonight for dinner. Yeah. I love it. I thought you have inspired me, Beth. That's absolutely what I'm going to do [00:49:00] tonight.
I can't wait. What? Sitting in there, you know. Collecting dust. No, we don't want to do that at all. No, you want to get it out and use it. Absolutely. So Lisa, I love talking to you so much. And I, I I'm hoping to have you back on the podcast again, so we can talk about another fascinating fact that you've got to share with us.
And, how we can use the ideas that you've got to help us find ways that we can really harness our creativity every day. Whether we're a professional artist, or we're running a side hustle, or we just like to sew in the evenings, we all want to know how we can keep our energy up so we can find time to take care of ourselves.
And that will just make us a happier and healthier and more contented creative. So that's the goal. Absolutely. I
want you to share with us now about where people can learn a little bit more about [00:50:00] what you're doing right now and how they can find you. Oh, thank you, Beth.
All my information is on my website at lisamurphyllc. com. And there will be a couple of ways people can reach out to me there. I would love for anyone who would just like to chat to schedule a complimentary call. The link to do that is on my website. I also have a lot of fun programs that you can check out.
There's a free recipe download in our email. And then I'm on the socials too. I'm on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn. I've got a YouTube channel pretty much all. Lisa Murphy, LLC. Great. We will definitely make sure that your website and any other important information is in the show notes.
So thank you so much, Lisa. You are so much fun to talk to. I've enjoyed. every single moment that we've had together today. And so everyone get out there. Remember, you want to get up and get moving. That's going to help your creativity [00:51:00] and it's going to help you figure out what you're going to create today.
Until we talk again next time, stay creative, my friend.
