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What if one unexpected phone call could change a student's confidence, strengthen a family's relationships, and even transform the way you see people?

During her first years of teaching, Carrie started making positive phone calls home—not because students had earned perfect grades, but because they had shown kindness, leadership, perseverance, or character. What she never expected was the lasting impact those simple conversations would have. Years later, parents were still saving her voicemails, and one unforgettable phone call to a student named Brock became a reminder that encouragement has the power to shape lives.

In this episode, Carrie shares why she's convinced we don't have a shortage of good people—we have a shortage of people who intentionally notice the good.

Project You Reflection: Who in your life has quietly done something beautiful...and have you ever told them?

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Sometimes the moments we'll treasure most aren't the big milestones—they're the ordinary moments we almost miss.

In this episode, Carrie shares stories from a family trip to Mackinac Island with her husband and their three grown sons. From bike rides and bear jokes to rocking chairs, rainbows, and a simple candle, she reflects on how joy often shows up in the smallest moments when we're paying attention.

If you've ever found yourself longing for the "good old days," this episode is a gentle reminder that today's ordinary moments may become tomorrow's most cherished memories.

Can I leave you with one question?

What is happening in your life right now that someday you'll wish you could step back into for just five minutes?

Take a deep breath...look around...and notice it before it becomes a memory.

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Have you ever noticed yourself becoming a little less patient… a little more guarded… or a little quicker to assume the worst?

It usually doesn’t happen all at once.

In this episode of Project You 2.2, Carrie Helmer explores the idea of the slow drift—the subtle ways our experiences, conversations, and environments shape who we become over time.

We don’t wake up one day and decide to become cynical. More often, it happens quietly. Disappointments, frustrations, and difficult seasons can slowly change our tone, our expectations, and the way we see the world.

Carrie explores the important difference between awareness and cynicism. Awareness allows us to see reality clearly while staying open. Cynicism convinces us that disappointment is inevitable and that people or situations will always let us down.

Through personal reflection, stories from her 31 years as a teacher, and observations about teenagers and belonging, Carrie looks at how easily we absorb the energy around us—and how we can begin speaking, reacting, and thinking in ways that don’t fully reflect who we want to become.

This episode’s “ping moment” invitation:

• Notice how certain conversations leave you feeling.
• Pay attention to the stories you repeat.
• Ask yourself: “Who am I becoming based on what I’m around?”

Because becoming the person you want to be doesn’t happen through one big decision.

It happens through thousands of small, intentional shifts.

Project You 2.2 is about becoming more aware, more intentional, and more aligned with the person you’re becoming—one small shift at a time.

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