When Your Journey Feels Like a Rut: New Choices for Finding a More Fulfilling Path
Are you sick of the daily pressures and searching for a sense of purpose and inner peace? Do you feel exhausted by the constant comparisons clouding your mind? Have you ever felt compelled to align your external achievements with deeper, more meaningful spiritual fulfillment? If you're nodding yes, you're not alone.
“I realized I needed to follow my heart, not just my head.” – Dani Reardon, (4:18).
Listen as Dani Reardon, a former bodybuilding champion turned spiritual mentor, joins Lauren Abrams in an inspiring and eye-opening conversation. Discover how Dani transformed her life from the relentless grind of bodybuilding to the serene practices of yoga, meditation, and self-discovery. She shares her struggles with body image, her "dark night of the soul," and how yoga and teaching children fulfill her.
“I really, really fell in love with yoga. It challenged my mind, it challenged my body and it was connecting me to the spirit again, to the universe. – Dani Reardon, (10:20).
In this insightful episode, you’ll uncover the powerful impact of pausing, listening to your intuition, and embracing the magic of the universe. Learn how Dani's unique approach, combining visualization, crystals, and affirmations, helps competitive athletes and children alike find their inner strength and peace.
“Everything is in balance in the universe, the more that we reach for the light, the dark is going to come up.” – Dani Reardon, (05:15).
Dani shares the magic of trusting the universe and following your inner guidance to discover true happiness and fulfillment.
You'll walk away with profound insights into spirituality, the importance of self-belief, and the transformative power of personal development. Dani's journey from public humiliation to personal resurgence demonstrates that no matter how dark the night is, a new dawn full of hope and purpose is always possible.
“Let go of the pressure, embrace your spiritual journey, and watch your life transform.” – Dani Reardon, (29:44).
Join us on this episode of 52 Weeks of Hope and start your journey towards a balanced, joyful, and spiritually connected life.
“When you start focusing on personal growth and spiritual connection, you create a life filled with integrity and joy.” – Dani Reardon, (23:32).
In this episode:
(00:59) Meet Champion Dani Reardon
(01:28) Your unique journey (you’re allowed to veer off of)
(04:04) The dark night of the soul
(06:24) That pivotal moment
(09:15) Yoga as a path to spiritual growth
(12:13) Launching your own path
(14:49) Working with kids
(16:03) Frequently asked questions
(16:51) A mantra on positivity and purpose
(17:32) Listening to your heart
(18:25) Differentiating ego from true inner guidance
(19:19) Yoga teacher training
(21:24) Struggling with identity
(22:03) A symbol of renewal
(25:02) Discovering true identity from within
(26:02) Your message of hope
Resources and Links
52 Weeks of Hope
If you want to start your Podcast
Podify - Website
About Dani Reardon
Dani Reardon is a former bodybuilding champion who is now an energy coach, podcast host, and CEO of Conscious Champion. She helps people connect their bodies and minds to improve their success in sports, competition, and everyday life.
Dani Reardon
Whether you're an athlete, a spiritual seeker, or somewhere in between, Dani Reardon's story offers hope, encouragement, and practical wisdom. Don't miss this opportunity to elevate your journey towards self-discovery and inner peace.
Key Takeaways
“I realized I needed to follow my heart, not just my head.” – Dani Reardon, (4:18).
“Trust in the universe and the process, and you'll see the magic unfold.” – Dani Reardon, (10:45).
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Lauren: [00:00:00] Are you a burnt-out overachiever buried in responsibilities? Do you miss laughing with your friends just laughing from the gut? Do you feel like life's passing you by? If you've been wishing for some kind of shift, you're in the right place. Welcome to 52 Weeks of Hope the show where we take you off the hamster wheel by ditching your to do list for the to don't list. This is where you get to learn how to make that lonely ache vanish. Learn self-compassion techniques and to give yourself grace. I'm Lauren Abrams and I want to help you feel that magic again. Since going through my own dark night of the soul so you can learn from my experience and the mentors and experts you meet along the way. And today we're talking to entrepreneur, teacher, and bringer of light, Dani Reardon. Are you struggling with body image issues? How about those pesky negative voices in your head? Dani knows all about those. She achieved greatness in those areas and learned you're not any of that. You're going to love hearing Dani empowering you to be your best self and let your true inner light shine. Listen right now as she's answering your confidence questions and giving you the lessons and help you need to live fulfilled and aligned with your highest calling. She's a CEO of Conscious Champion and the former successful, super successful bodybuilding champ. Welcome to 52 weeks of Hope Dani Reardon.
Dani: [00:01:20] Thank you so much for having me Lauren. What a wonderful intro. Wow I'm already lit up and ready to go. That was amazing. Thank you for that.
Lauren: [00:01:28] I have to say, you're my first bodybuilding champion I've ever talked to. So I know it was your life for years. I know nothing about that world. So it's just except for looking at pictures and all the muscles and all of that. I mean, and I just recorded an entire episode on confidence and self-confidence and acting like you're the shit and, you know, like, fake it til you make it. I mean, I did a whole seven different ways and affirmations and, and also just, you know, closing your eyes and taking the pause just different ways and walking through the fear and how none of it matters. Oh, I can. I didn't say that, but it's so true. Nobody's thinking about you. But I guess that doesn't count in the bodybuilding world. But it's just so interesting to me. But what did you get out of it? I guess since you're you're, like, a super big deal champion.
Dani: [00:02:29] Yeah, it was a couple different things. I think that I was really cool about bodybuilding because it turned me on to the spiritual world. I started to notice the synchronicities. I started to believe in myself, and understand manifesting. I watched Star Wars and The Secret. And so this whole world, through bodybuilding, got started to open up for me. And I was about ten years in and I was at the Olympia. So I had made it to like the Super Bowl of bodybuilding. And I don't know, I just looked around one day and I was like, I don't have the same fire that I used to for this competition. Didn't look the same. It didn't feel the same. I didn't want to eat meat all day long. So many things started to flip over for me. And I was like, man. And to do bodybuilding at that high level and to be kind of at the top echelon of the sport, you have to be so devoted to it. Your fire has got to be so hot, because that's what it takes to be at that level. Otherwise you're going to get beat. Was that the Olympia? I got second, I got fourth place, second place and then sixth place and that sixth place one. I looked around and I was like, I don't know if I really want to do this again and if I have the same fire. So it was many things. And I think that at that level, all of your energy has got to be in the game. And I wanted to explore yoga and spirituality, and I wanted to put my energy somewhere else that wasn't so superficially focused.
Lauren: [00:03:50] You know, that's interesting. Now, you said the secret Star Wars and you have to have been exposed to these things. It was that in that world or like, how did you even know of those?
Dani: [00:04:04] Yeah. So I actually went through a dark night of soul also.
Lauren: [00:04:08] Oh, okay. Let's talk about that. I love hearing about this.
Dani: [00:04:11] You know, I feel like I went through a couple of them like every couple years. I'm like, yeah, yeah, okay, good. That makes me feel better to know that we all do this like every couple of years. Bam!
Lauren: [00:04:20] I know people think, oh, wow. Really? You live like you've come from, like, my very dark, you know, being out on the street strung out and I'm like, yeah, but that's just one. Yeah. That is the catalyst of my life. And it's a good story, but it's not the end. I mean, that is the worst. Okay. That is. And I'm forever grateful I'm alive and I've made it out of that. But that's decades ago. And it's not like, you know, I float on the air and life's forever good after that. But it is. And I'm grateful for my life, don't get me wrong. But yeah, it's not the end.
Dani: [00:04:57] Yeah.
Lauren: [00:04:58] It's not like that. Oh and she got it. Clean and got an education and life and everything and never had a problem again. Yeah. Never question, you know. Why are we here? Yeah.
Dani: [00:05:09] And I think we talked a little bit about spirituality. Like that's where we're headed. That's what lights us up. I kind of feel like because [00:05:15]everything is in balance in the universe, the more that we reach for the light, the dark is going to come up. It has to. Everything's polarized. And so I feel like those who seek the light are also going to have to deal with dark time after dark time after dark time, as they go for the light. [14.4s] It's like that. That's what I believe.
Lauren: [00:05:31] Yeah, but I don't think they're ever as dark. Like, that was my darkest. And I've been through another, like my dark night. So that prompted this podcast definitely was the next dark. But they've never been as like they're never as dark. That's my experience of being on Earth probably twice as long as you. So that's just for whatever that's worth. I think it's twice as long.
Dani: [00:05:55] Yeah. And I agree with you. And maybe that speaks to, like, the evolution and how we go through the dark side, dark nights and we get through them a little bit better. So they still are dark but they're not as we're not in the throes like in the undertow of it as much because we're evolving. But yeah, so to speak, to the dark night of the soul. And this is kind of going to be in my Ted talk, too. So this is kind of what was the catalyst for me really jumping into spirituality and personal development. And Star Wars was just because I had never seen it. And I was 24 and I was like, I should probably watch it. And then it was like, The Dark Knight was I was going for the Olympia so I was trying to go to the Super Bowl of bodybuilding. I was 24 years old, graduated with a master's degree, just got fired from OrangeTheory Fitness. [00:06:38]I was doing things for love that were kind of betraying my soul, so I was kind of doing things sexually for love. [6.3s] I was afraid that if I didn't do these things, that I wouldn't have the love that I wanted from this person. And everything kind of came to a head. So I mentioned the graduate degree because I graduated and I didn't go into the PhD program to pursue bodybuilding. And so it was about nine months later, and I missed the Olympia by one point and had just been fired. Betraying my soul was at a party at this beautiful millionaire's house. I mean, it was gorgeous. We were all dressed in white and I had way too much to drink. And all of this, like anger and bitterness and resentment was just right under the surface. And at that party, my pop just popped. I mean, everything came out and I got arrested. I was in jail for three days. I have never been in jail, never been arrested. I mean, I was 24 years old, drank too much, like, come on, almost every 24 year old I know has done that. But I feel like the universe had bigger lessons for me than just a slap on the wrist. Go home, deal with your hangover. So because I was making a name for myself with bodybuilding, I was publicly humiliated. It was on the radio in the Huffington Post, and ended up in New York. Somehow my mugshot was everywhere. And so after that I was like, wow, things really have to change. Like, I need to set better boundaries. I need to do all of these things differently. So I started to look at personal development stuff on YouTube when I was home. You know, it was Oprah, Tony Robbins, Eckhart. Totally. So I started to listen, hang out with these people all day long because this is what felt good and right to me. Along that journey, I watched Star Wars and, you know, listening to these people on YouTube, I was learning about vibration and manifestation and Abraham Hicks and all. And then I started to watch Star Wars, and I was like, oh my goodness, the dark in the light. I was just in the darkness. Totally. And I understand the power of being a Jedi and resisting the darkness. And the force is real. The force is real. Later in the year, I watched The Secret and started to understand how to put that force to use, how to manifest and believe and work, and then made it to the Olympia. And so it was like a real journey of going from the darkness. And it was exactly one year that I had been arrested. So I got like September, you know, 20th or something like that. One year to the date, I was flying out to the biggest show in bodybuilding. So it was like a huge, big turnaround.
Lauren: [00:08:58] Yeah, that is great. That's a good answer for how you got introduced to everything. So when it wasn't fulfilling you anymore, you knew time to pivot. Which because that's what we do in life, we pivot. You got your yoga teacher training where you first just did yoga and you're like, I love this. I want to give it away. Like, how did that come about?
Dani: [00:09:15] Yeah. So the pivot happened and it was so scary because I was so wrapped up in bodybuilding. I didn't need it, people. So my nickname was Little Monster Star. People didn't even know me by Dani. They didn't even know my name. They just knew me by like my tagline and through Instagram and stuff.
Lauren: [00:09:31] And so they just called you by your moniker?
Dani: [00:09:38] Yeah,A little monster. It was like everywhere, you know, meeting people and doing all these things. But they would just, you know, hey little monster, they're like I didn't even know your name. And so I didn't even know how much my identity was fully in the bodybuilding world until I left. And I was just like this scared naked out in the world, who am I kind of person? And so the pivot happened when we moved to Colorado. And I found yoga. I was doing it a little bit just so I could stretch and move because of all the bodybuilding I was doing. I was so tightly wound. But when we moved to Colorado and across the street from us there was a yoga studio and I had a month free. Somehow my sister had like a month pass and I had no money to pay for a yoga membership. So this month free was like everything. That's when [00:10:20]I really, really fell in love with yoga. It challenged my mind, it challenged my body and it was connecting me to the spirit again, to the universe. And my biggest fear with leaving bodybuilding was that my connection to spirit would be gone, [11.4s] and I wouldn't see the numbers anymore, and I wouldn't know how to believe. I wouldn't know what to manifest. Because without the Olympia, what do you go for? And so I started practicing. I started to clean the studio. So I was able to practice. And I used to think too, when I was cleaning these toilets at the yoga studio, like, man, I wish people could see me now. Like number two in the world of bodybuilding here, cleaning locker rooms and the yoga. and I loved every single minute of it because it was my sanctuary, you know, as giving back to a studio that had breathed life back into me again and a path to living. And then I decided to get my teacher training certification. So happy I did.
Lauren: [00:11:08] Yeah. See, and this is how people are like, I don't know what I meant to do because everyone has their own unique ham. Everybody's here for a reason. You're all here for a reason. Everybody, what lights you up? What brings you joy? And you're talking about this right now. That's it, that's it. Your face, your entire being, all of your energy around you. It's while you're talking about it and like you say, thank you. I mean, it's just so obvious and I love that. And when I saw your Insta, I saw you with the kids. So I see you wanting to pass on so much knowledge to kids. And how did that come about?
Dani: [00:11:45] Yeah. Great question. So a little bit of a story here.
Lauren: [00:11:47] Yeah absolutely. Love that by the way. And you could see the same joy in you in these pictures with these kids. I know nothing's real on Insta, but hey it looks real to me. And I find that I think I'm discerning. So go ahead.
Dani: [00:12:04] So during the time when we moved to Colorado, I was like, what am I going to do with my life? Like, I need to make money and I do not want to be a group fitness instructor for the rest of my life. I wanted to get far away from personal training. I mean, I love it, but I'm not here to count reps. I'm not here to make people go to the gym. And I would be. I was training people, asking them about their life, like I was ruining their workout because I was curious what was going on.
Lauren: [00:12:25] Emotionally.
Dani: [00:12:27] And spiritually. So I started this business called Conscious Champion, which we mentioned in the intro. And originally it started out just for athletes, for bodybuilding athletes to develop a strong mindset and a spiritual connection, because that is one thing that I know for sure the bodybuilding industry is missing is how do we develop a strong mind where we're not comparing ourselves, where we're not judging ourselves, constantly beating ourselves up because of how big or lean or hard we are, like it does. It's so like, doesn't even matter. And for me, the reason why I believe I did so well, I mean, I'm five feet tall on stage. I was 115 pounds doing very well at a bodybuilding show. Like the stats don't really line up, but for me, I feel like it was, mental strength and spiritual development. So that's how Conscious Champions started, was me helping athletes learn that. And then it developed into I ran that course a couple times, 12 weeks. I had guest speakers from all over the industry posing coaches, prep coaches, hormone specialists, like all of these things that I wish I knew when I was competing. And then of course, the energy worker. So I weaved in a little bit of that pixie dust to everybody. Then it developed into the mastermind, which I just finished doing, and that was more into the spirit. So like the masculine feminine energies we went into inner Child, we went into like, who are we and why are we here? What do we want? So like the bigger, deeper questions. During that time, I had a client of mine who became a friend. That's kind of what happens when people work with me like it goes from that and we're just friends. And her daughter was ten, is ten and was struggling with dance. She was a competitive dancer, athlete, very, very good, very talented. But she's ten and starting to feel the pressure of wanting to do well and I'm comparing myself and having meltdowns before getting on stage and, you know, the ten year old things, but then add a heavy competitive feeling on to it. And I started talking with her. We started meditating and visualizing and doing crystals. She did really well this season. You know, we did affirmations, power poses backstage, and it was almost like it gave her like a big sister mentor type. And we talked about mind, body, spirit. Then I started to work with a couple of her friends that also work at the studio with her. And yeah, it's been such an unforeseen joy to work with these kids. And they all have matching chakra bracelets. They're like root chakra, sacral, solar plexus, just starting to learn where all this stuff is. And so now I'm launching my first kids course and we're going to learn about vibration and a little bit of karma and integrity and doing like these clean up crew exercises. So with the mastermind, I had everybody clean up the earth and even the adults. But the adults took the kids with them. And like, you know how the universe provides things when we least expect them.
Lauren: [00:15:10] Oh absolutely. The universe just shows up all you do is take an action step. And then I don't know how, but it always happens. [00:15:18]Take that action and the universe just follows .It has just [2.6s] everything lined up for you. Go ahead. What happened?
Dani: [00:15:23] And so like, people found bags. So right before they would start their walk, there was an empty trash bag waiting for them so they could fill it with trash. And some of the kids found like monopoly money. And how cool is it to be eight years old and find like $100 bills? Oh, like monopoly money, right? So it was just this cool thing and the kids were like, can we do this every weekend? So I feel like kids inherently like to do stuff like that. And so that's what just, you know, the kids just kept popping, popping, popping up for me. And so in about two weeks I'm going for it.
Lauren: [00:15:57] Yeah. Oh, that's so great. What's the most common question you're asked?
Dani: [00:16:03] By my clients or by?
Lauren: [00:16:05] In general, you tell people what you're doing.
Dani: [00:16:07] Usually it's about spirituality. Lately it's been about spirit. It used to be like, how do you get arms like that? And now it's like, how are you so happy all the time? And I love that.
Lauren: [00:16:20] What do you tell them?
Dani: [00:16:21] Because I trust and I love the wonder and magic of the universe. Yeah.
Lauren: [00:16:26] Do you tell them meditation and then?
Dani: [00:16:29] Yeah I tell them I mean I do meditate frequently but I think that's part of it. I think it's perspective. One of Albert Einstein, one of my favorite quotes by him is, do you believe you live in a friendly or a hostile universe? And I believe I live in a friendly universe. Even if hostile things happen to me. It's a lesson. It's here to teach me and help me grow and evolve. It's my school at that moment. And so I think it's a matter of perspective.
Lauren: [00:16:51] Definitely. I've been reminding myself, I hate that I have to put it in a, it's on a post-it. But a friend of ours who passed away months ago, she was whatever. But her thing was the future's friendly. Remind people that the. I always said the future's friendly. And I love that. Is that great? You know, I was like, yeah, the future is friendly. So yeah, I definitely love that too. So for somebody who's struggling, they know they're here for a purpose and they're just not taking that leap. What would you tell them that's so good? You took it. You did it. I mean, you were this famous bodybuilder and look how happy you are that you did it. What would you tell someone?
Dani: [00:17:33] I would say follow your heart instead of your head. And my biggest thing is to follow the good feeling. When I was bodybuilding, it didn't feel good anymore. What felt good to me is nature exploring with psychedelics, moving to Colorado. My sister was there. And so for me, those were the things that felt good to me and I didn't know where I was going to end up. I didn't even know yoga was going to be waiting for me there, but I followed the good feeling to leave and go for it. And even with Conscious Champion following the good like tip for me to be an online coach and even now to leave with the kids instead of working with adults, I would say follow the good feeling and the word purpose and even passion can feel very like judgmental or daunting almost, because there's like big stuff attached to it. But I would say like try on stuff like you're shopping, like you're trying on clothes because some things affected shirts will fit you perfectly, but you don't know if you don't try.
Lauren: [00:18:25] Yeah. I also what you said before about trust like that, how you're this happy is the trust. Trust and your intuition, your inner guidance, how do you listen to that? I saw you just close your eyes and took a moment before you answered the last question. I would think the pause seems to be one of your ways, is what I'm noticing.
Dani: [00:18:47] Yeah. I could get better at the pause because my energy is very excited and I can't wait to answer and talk. Yeah, so I think it is definitely pausing and listening, like feeling for where it's coming from. Is this coming from an ego spot where I think this is what people want to hear from me? Or is this coming from something that's true and like a lived felt wisdom experience that I've had and then also learning when I didn't listen to my intuition and I kind of got slapped around a little bit.
Lauren: [00:19:13] Yeah, I was listening to something. I don't remember when you said this. It might be from your very first podcast episode. You said you went through yoga teacher training. You were super lost, confused, in so much pain you didn't know who you were or what to do, and that yoga gave you a path to walk, which I thought was so beautiful and it reignited a light and a spiritual connection in you. And it's been two and a half years since you said that. And I thought that was really interesting. And so that's two and a half years ago. Are you still on that path and further in?
Dani: [00:19:46] Yeah, I was going to say all of that still rings true. I was like, did I say that today?
Lauren: [00:19:51] Because.
Dani: [00:19:52] That's still very, very true and real for me. And I teach yoga now a couple days a week over here. I live on Cape Cod and. I love it and I study it. Look, what I do in my free time is I study the Bhagavad Gita, which is the, you know, Hindu epic that they wrote for the Veda. Like I study Vedic stuff in my free time. So like, and I just got a tattoo. That's Sanskrit. I am obsessed. What yoga did for me is it also opened up a door to this ancient wisdom. And when I teach, not only do I get to geek out, I love the mantras. I listen to them in my car like when I'm not doing yoga. This is what I listen to normally. And so it's opened up a path for me. And when I'm teaching, it's almost like I'm orchestrating the energy. I talk about the difference between, you know, Hindu gods and goddesses like Hanuman is like a big deal for me right now. And so during that we'll have different poses, I tell different stories, we have different chants and different music that I listen to that I play. And so for me, it's also kept me really sharp. You know, it's kept me because I know how I show up leading online courses and in person. I'm a certain vibration. So how I show up to that class is what everybody's going to be experiencing, right? So it really helps me stay in, want to stay pure, as pure as I can. You know, I mess up here and there. I'm a human, right? We do different things, but it keeps me sharp.
Lauren: [00:21:15] Yeah. Now staying, staying focused and staying there is important. So what's the hardest challenge you have overcome and how did you do it?
Dani: [00:21:24] Identity. Identity has been a big challenge for me. So after I left bodybuilding, that was the first one where I was like, bam! Like, who are you without a little monster, without eating meat all day? Who is this person? And so then I got dreadlocks because I was like, I want to be earthy, crunchy, like bring it all. So I had these big, long blond dreads and I loved them and they were almost like a shield for me. They helped me go into that next phase of spirituality. They looked spiritual, they felt spiritual, and it helped me make that transition. And then another identity thing happened. I moved up here to Cape Cod over Covid, and my parents live up here and stuff like that. So my husband and I, we moved, stayed in one of their cottages, and we're just, you know, saving money, being close just in case shit went down. You know, my dreads were getting really itchy. I was sleeping on ropes, you know, they look really cool. And pictures like to live with them every single day. They're hot, they're heavy, they're itchy, the whole thing. And so I heard myself say one day I was like, why am I keeping these? Why do I have these dreadlocks on my head? And I heard myself say, because you won't look spiritual without them. And I was like, damn it, because my ego was big in that, but I don't know if I was ready to hear it until that moment. I think I knew that the whole time, but I don't. So the next day I went and shaved my head. So what you see now is I was totally buzzed Shinade Logan style. That was a tough one for me too, because, I mean, I'm a female, no hair, just shaved off everything I knew. Like all you know. And when you have dreadlocks, everything's in the dreads. You know, your bodybuilding journey all the years, all that. Everything is in the hair that's in your head. And so that's what people with dreads think about too. And so it felt very much like a clean slate. And I find that the biggest way to get to know who you are is to strip away everything that you think you are: the clothes, the job, the hair, the makeup, the identity that what you do for was huge.
Lauren: [00:23:25] That's huge. I think I could do everything except the hair. That's huge. I thought about having dreads. I mean, I thought about lots of things, but I had my mom take me to a barber when I was really little, and everyone thought I was a boy. And I know everything is gender neutral. I do discrimination law. I understand, I understand pronouns, like, I get all that, but that's me. I'm not talking about anybody else right now. I didn't like being called a little boy when I was a little girl. Yeah, when I go to the barber and I've big hair, I've always had big hair, but if it's long, I can manage it. I can stick it in a braid. I can do stuff with it. I just can't even imagine when it's short, I can't manage it. I can't imagine shaving my head. I used to wish that if I shaved my head, it would grow back thin and straight. Like, I mean, I just anyway, yeah.
Dani: [00:24:15] So that was a big one in the whole so.
Lauren: [00:24:17] That's huge I can't, I can't even like.
Dani: [00:24:20] And now I'm so happy that I did it and, and you know, when it started to grow back, I got like a cute pixie cut hair.
Lauren: [00:24:26] Yeah, so cute.
Dani: [00:24:28] And then I still kind of keep one side, like she or I have a little undercut. So it shaved a little bit, but my hair is actually big. Like I can curl it and it's a big poof, or I can straighten it and it calms down. But that was huge for me. And now I know who I am with or without hair. If I were to shave my hair tomorrow, I would feel totally good with it. I know spirituality doesn't have to look a certain way. [00:24:47]I know who I am without muscles, without dreadlocks, without living in Florida or Colorado. I know who I am now. So now identity is not something that I struggle with.It's something that I know. [12.5s]
Lauren: [00:25:01] Yeah. And on the inside, it's all on the inside. Yeah. Everything is an inside job. But it's just like the comparison and despair and all that stuff. I mean, everything you've said, I think I talked about in my confidence episode because I was taught the only thing I can compare myself to is where I've come from. I can not compare my insides to your outsides. Ever. I can only compare myself to where I've been. And that is it. There is no that. All that compare and despair stuff is like no, not allowed. I don't allow myself to do it. Yeah. It just doesn't work. Like. Yeah. Oh, I love that message. I think for girls, more so than anything. And, you know, again, I'm being gender just I'm using me like nothing meant here by that. But the hair I get is huge. I relate to that. And I think that's a big, powerful statement. Yeah, there's a huge journey there. Do you have a message of hope you want to give?
Dani: [00:26:00] A message of hope?
Lauren: [00:26:02] Yeah.
Dani: [00:26:03] For people out there who are maybe struggling with body image issues or even the voices in their head. You're not either of those things. You're not the body. You're not the mind. And I know because I've achieved greatness with both of those. And it still wasn't me. So it wasn't who I was. You know, who you are is so much more vast and so much more infinite and energetic and connected to everything wonderful. And so that's my message of hope is that fear is eternal and like we said, it's an inside job. And I think once we start identifying with that, the mind and the body start to follow suit and become a lot less enemy based and a lot more friendly.
Lauren: [00:26:46] Yeah. Now that's so good. And when you say you've achieved greatness and it didn't fix you to achieve those, I guess it was it. Until you get spiritually fed or take care of that inside peace that we feel okay. Balanced, whole however you want to put it. I was taught if it describes dinner it's not a feeling okay describes. Oh, that's so good. And by the way, I have all of Dani's links, of course, are going to be on the website every way you can reach her.And I just think that's so great. Is there any question I should have asked you that I didn't ask you, and that we're going to be done here and you'll be like, I can't believe Lauren didn't ask me that question. Is there anything else that I should have asked?
Dani: [00:27:36] No, I don't think so
Lauren: [00:27:37] Okay. I just want to make sure.
Dani: [00:27:38] Okay.
Lauren: [00:27:40] Okay, good. This was great. And we'll live stream so that if anybody has any questions, just go ahead and send them over to me. Thank you so much for being a guest today onW 52 Weeks of Hope.
Dani: [00:27:51] Thank you so much for having me Lauren. This was amazing. Thank you for pulling this out of me. It was great.
Lauren: [00:27:56] I hope you enjoyed this week's episode and take with you Dani's messages of freedom, thinking big and openness. Such great messages to take into your week ahead. Be sure to tune in next week for another empowering episode all about how to live authentically, abundantly and how to simply feel better. It's also about embracing the lessons and growth from your life's journey. You're going to love this one. It's full of practical advice you can use instantly. That's next week you don't want to miss that. If you haven't already, please subscribe, rate and review the podcast. If you don't know how to do that, you can go to the website at 52weeksofhope.com, there's a button to click and link to subscribe and review the podcast. It's really appreciated. Also, all the podcasts are on the website at 52weeksofhope.com, the show notes everything's on the website. You can find Dani's information and links and everything on there. I really appreciate you listening. I love that you're part of the community here at 52 Weeks of Hope. If there's something in particular that you'd like to hear or somebody you'd like to listen to or some topic in particular, just let me know. I hope you're enjoying the podcast. Share the love and talk to two of your friends. I'm Lauren Abrams. Thanks for listening.