SHOW NOTES

In this episode of 'Becoming No Ordinary Woman', Joanna explores the concept of 'golden handcuffs'—the invisible constraints that come with success, which can lead to feelings of entrapment and unfulfilment. She shares her personal journey of breaking free from these constraints and offers practical strategies for women who feel stuck in their careers or identities. The conversation emphasises the importance of self-discovery, redefining one's identity, and taking actionable steps towards liberation and fulfilment.

Takeaways

• Golden handcuffs are a prison we create for ourselves.
• Fulfilment is the key difference in feeling trapped.
• It's not about being trapped in something terrible, but attached to something admirable.
• Identity shifts are always uncomfortable but necessary for growth.
• You don't break golden handcuffs in one dramatic leap; it takes stages.
• Clarity reduces the psychological weight of fear.
• Start living as the woman you're becoming now.
• Each small act rewires your capacity for risk.
• Golden handcuffs tighten when decisions are vague or delayed.

Strategy - How to break golden handcuffs

Step 1: Separate Reality from Fear

Grab a piece of paper and write two columns:

Column 1: What is objectively true if I leave?
Column 2: What am I imagining might happen?

Most women realise that clarity reduces psychological weight.

Step 2: Identify – think about What You’re Actually Attached To

Ask yourself:

Is it the money? Or the meaning you attach to the money?

Is it the title? Or who you get to be because of the title?

Name the attachment precisely. You can’t release what you haven’t defined

Step 3: Rebuild Identity Before You Resign

This is critical. If you wait until you leave to decide who you are your nervous system will panic.

Instead Start living as the woman you’re becoming now.

Step 4: Increase Your Tolerance for Discomfort

Expansion and evolution require discomfort.

If you are going to live you dream beyond the handcuffs you have to:

• Start saying no to what no longer serves who you are becoming
• Setting new standards and boundaries for yourself
• Making small courageous decisions, one step at a time. They compound!
• Investing in yourself
• Let people misunderstand you – people will fall away because they liked the old you and that is ok.

Step 5: Create a Decision Timeline

Golden handcuffs tighten when decisions are vague or keep getting put off and delayed.

Set a date. Not to leap. To decide.

SOUL Journal prompts

• If no one was watching, what would you choose?
• If all the status, the salary and the success was to disappear overnight, what would you be choosing next?
• Who are you protecting by staying?
• What part of you feels unseen in your current life?
• If you stay five more years, how does that feel in your body?
• Are you loyal to your comfort…or loyal to your potential?

UNIVERSAL GUIDANCE — The Devil

The Devil in tarot isn’t about evil.

It’s about attachment.

It’s about the illusion of bondage.

In the traditional imagery of The Devil tarot card, the chains around the figures are loose.

They can step away.

But they don’t.

Because the cage feels familiar.

Because the attachment feels comfortable.

Because freedom feels uncertain.

This card asks:

Where are you giving your power away to something that isn’t actually holding you?

Golden handcuffs are rarely locked from the outside.

They’re agreements.

And agreements can be renegotiated.

The Devil is not a warning.

It’s an invitation.

To reclaim your authority.

🙌🏼 Loved this episode?

If this resonated with you, I would be so grateful if you could:
✨ Follow or subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode
✨ Rate and review — it helps more women find this space
✨ Share this episode with a friend who’s on the edge of something extraordinary

🌐 Connect with Me

Let’s keep this conversation going!

📸 Instagram: @becomingnoordinarywoman
🌍 Website: www.joannapetrierout.com
💌 Email: support@joannapetrierout.com

Summary

In this episode, Joanna reflects on the impact of limiting narratives imposed by others throughout her life. She shares personal stories of overcoming expectations, particularly regarding her health, education, and personal life. Joanna emphasises the importance of self-discovery and breaking free from societal norms, especially as women age. She provides practical steps for listeners to identify and dismantle these limiting beliefs, encouraging them to trust themselves and pursue their true desires.

Takeaways

• It's important to recognise when others' narratives shape your life.
• Self-trust is built through listening inward instead of outward.
• You can redefine what your life looks like at any age.
• Identifying borrowed voices can help you reclaim your narrative.
• Desire can feel blurry; simplify by asking what you want more or less of.
• Taking small self-trust actions can dismantle limiting beliefs.
• You are not behind or late; you're at a crossroads.
• Your life will expand as you release limiting stories.
• Courage and a decision are key to personal growth.

Strategy

1) Spot the Borrowed Voice

2) Track Your ‘Should’ Hotspots

3) Separate Fear From Truth

4) Re-centre on Desire With One Clean Question

5) Make One Self-Trust Move This Week

SOUL – Journal prompts

Whose voice do I hear when I imagine changing my life?
What story did someone else write for me that I never consciously questioned?
What version of me did I become to stay safe, approved of, or accepted?

What is it costing me to keep listening?

UNIVERSAL GUIDANCE – Two of Cups

This card is often associated with partnership, harmony, and mutual choice.

But today, I want you to see it as something deeper.

The Two of Cups is about inner union.

It’s the moment you stop abandoning yourself.
The moment you choose alignment over approval.
The moment you meet yourself honestly — and say, I choose you.

This card asks:
Can you trust yourself enough to walk forward without external validation?
Can you honour your truth, even if it disrupts the life you’ve carefully built?

This isn’t about burning everything down.

It’s about coming back into right relationship with yourself.

And when you do — everything else begins to rearrange.

Are you to experience The Shift?

The Shift is a 90-minute private mentoring session where we slow everything down, get radically honest, and create clarity around what needs to change — so you can move forward with intention rather than momentum.

It’s for the woman who knows she can’t walk the same path this year and doesn’t want to wait until December to realise that nothing changed.

You can find out more information and book your session HERE

🙌🏼 Loved this episode?

If this resonated with you, I would be so grateful if you could:
✨ Follow or subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode
✨ Rate and review — it helps more women find this space
✨ Share this episode with a friend who’s on the edge of something extraordinary

🌐 Connect with Me

Let’s keep this conversation going!

📸 Instagram: @becomingnoordinarywoman
🌍 Website: www.joannapetrierout.com
💌 Email: support@joannapetrierout.com