LDS Missionary: Have you ever noticed that once your brain decides something is true, it suddenly seems to find evidence for it everywhere? Maybe you've decided your companion is annoying, you're not a good teacher, or your area is terrible, and before long, that's almost all you can see.

In this episode, I'm talking about the idea that what you focus on grows. We'll look at how your brain naturally filters information, how confirmation bias can keep strengthening what you already believe, and why being intentional about where you place your attention can change the way you experience your mission, your relationships, and even yourself. This isn't about pretending hard things aren't hard or forcing yourself to be positive. It's about noticing what you're repeatedly training your brain to find.

I'll also talk about the difference between feeling an emotion and feeding an emotion, why redirecting your focus doesn't mean avoiding your problems, and how being present with whatever is right in front of you can create more peace, connection, joy, and meaning. My hope is that you start noticing where your attention is going and remember that you get to be intentional about what you want to grow.

As always, if you found this episode helpful, I want to invite you to subscribe if you aren't already, share this episode with your friends and missionaries you know, and write a review. I know this work will help LDS missionaries around the world and it would mean so much to me if you did. Until next week my friends.

00:00 – Introduction

02:24 – Your Brain Is Always Looking for Something

03:12 – Your Brain Will Find Evidence for What You Believe

05:30 – Which Wolf Are You Feeding?

06:49 – What Are You Training Your Brain to Look For?

08:44 – Focusing on What Is Good

10:40 – Your Circumstances Don't Have to Change First

12:01 – Redirecting Your Focus

13:47 – Feeling an Emotion vs. Feeding an Emotion

16:40 – Focus Brings You Into the Present

18:32 – There Is No "Right" Way to Focus

21:45 – What Are You Feeding With Your Attention?

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5 Ways to Process Any Less-Than Happy Mission Memories Article: HERE

Get the Full Show Notes and Text/PDF Transcripts: HERE

Free PDF Download: Podcast Roadmap

Free PDF Download: Preparing Missionary Cheat Sheet

Free Training for Preparing Missionaries: Change Your Mission with this One Tool

RM Transition Free Video Series: 3 Tools to Help RMs in Their Transition Home

Free Guide: 5 Tips to Help Any Returning Missionary

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Hey LDS missionary: have you ever noticed that when a big emotion shows up, you tend to do one of two things? Maybe you push it down, minimize it, or tell yourself you shouldn't feel that way. Or maybe you swing the other direction and suddenly the emotion feels urgent, scary, or like evidence that something has gone wrong.

In this episode, I'm talking about what it looks like to put emotions in their proper place. We'll explore the difference between underpaying and overpaying attention to what you feel, why emotions can be useful information without always being perfectly accurate, and how a little calm curiosity can help you understand what's actually going on instead of immediately trying to fix, suppress, or obey the feeling.

I'll also walk you through five ways to work with emotion: normalize it, get curious, stop resisting yourself, remove the morality, and listen to what the emotion is trying to tell you. My hope is that you learn to let your emotions have a voice without giving them the final decision. You don't have to leave them on the side of the road, stuff them in the trunk, or let them drive. You can give them a seat in the car and still stay in the driver's seat.

As always, if you found this episode helpful, I want to invite you to subscribe if you aren't already, share this episode with your friends and missionaries you know, and write a review. I know this work will help LDS missionaries around the world and it would mean so much to me if you did. Until next week my friends.

00:00 – Introduction

02:38 – What Does It Mean to Put Emotions in Their Proper Place?

04:36 – When We Underpay Attention to Emotion

07:24 – When We Overpay Attention to Emotion

10:13 – Calm Curiosity Instead of Urgency

11:49 – Emotions Are Information

15:51 – Five Ways to Put Emotion in Its Proper Place

19:06 – Stop Resisting Yourself

21:02 – Your Feelings Are Not a Measure of Your Worth

23:20 – Give the Emotion a Voice, Not the Final Decision

27:03 – How This Builds Self-Trust and Resilience

30:20 – Give Emotions a Seat, But Keep Driving

Website | Instagram | Facebook

5 Ways to Process Any Less-Than Happy Mission Memories Article: HERE

Get the Full Show Notes and Text/PDF Transcripts: HERE

Free PDF Download: Podcast Roadmap

Free PDF Download: Preparing Missionary Cheat Sheet

Free Training for Preparing Missionaries: Change Your Mission with this One Tool

RM Transition Free Video Series: 3 Tools to Help RMs in Their Transition Home

Free Guide: 5 Tips to Help Any Returning Missionary

Schedule a Free Strategy Call: Click Here

As an LDS missionary, ave you ever had a picture in your head of how a transfer on your mission was supposed to go, only to have the actual experience look completely different? Maybe you expected a certain companion, a baptism, more confidence, better language skills, or a strong finish to your mission. And when reality doesn't match the version you imagined, it can be easy to feel disappointed, stressed, or like something has gone wrong.

In this episode, I'm talking about transfer expectations and the difference between having a hope or preference and turning that preference into a requirement for you to feel okay. We'll look at the expectations we put on our companions, mission leaders, areas, outcomes, and even ourselves, and how those expectations can quietly become a measuring stick we use against the mission we're actually having.

I also want to help you hold your expectations a little more loosely. You can want something without needing it to happen. You can accept the reality of your transfer without pretending you love everything about it. And you don't have to wait for the baptism, the next transfer, or the end of your mission to finally feel successful, satisfied, or at peace. Those feelings are available to you now. My hope is that you can spend a little less time comparing your mission to the one you imagined and a little more time actually living the one you have.

As always, if you found this episode helpful, I want to invite you to subscribe if you aren't already, share this episode with your friends and missionaries you know, and write a review. I know this work will help LDS missionaries around the world and it would mean so much to me if you did. Until next week my friends.

00:00 – Introduction

03:56 – The Transfer You Expected vs. the Transfer You're Having

05:31 – Is Reality Disappointing, or Is the Expectation?

06:50 – When Expectations Become a Measuring Stick

09:07 – Preference vs. Requirement

10:27 – The Unwritten Scripts We Give Other People

11:57 – Expectations You Put on Yourself

13:41 – Hold the Expectation Loosely

16:12 – Acceptance Doesn't Mean You Have to Like It

18:17 – The Feeling You Want Is Available Now

19:58 – It's Okay to Feel Trunky

21:05 – Live the Transfer You're Actually Having

Website | Instagram | Facebook

5 Ways to Process Any Less-Than Happy Mission Memories Article: HERE

Get the Full Show Notes and Text/PDF Transcripts: HERE

Free PDF Download: Podcast Roadmap

Free PDF Download: Preparing Missionary Cheat Sheet

Free Training for Preparing Missionaries: Change Your Mission with this One Tool

RM Transition Free Video Series: 3 Tools to Help RMs in Their Transition Home

Free Guide: 5 Tips to Help Any Returning Missionary

Schedule a Free Strategy Call: Click Here