In Episode 251: When Change Is the Right Move, I'm diving into a powerful and nuanced conversation about personal growth, missionary mindset, emotional resilience, and how to know when it's time to shift your thinking—or actually change your environment. So often, we hear simple advice like "just change your thoughts" or "just stay busy," but real transformation isn't always that straightforward. In this episode, I walk through the deeper patterns that shape how we think, feel, and show up—especially for preparing missionaries, currently serving missionaries, returned missionaries, and missionary moms navigating transitions, anxiety, discouragement, or identity shifts.

I share a simple but powerful process for creating real change: awareness, education, and removing judgment. When you understand your thought patterns, why your brain is trying to protect you, and learn to offer yourself compassion instead of self-criticism, your beliefs begin to soften naturally. From there, change becomes possible—not forced. This is where emotional well-being, self-awareness, and confidence start to grow from the inside out, giving you tools to navigate the mission, post-mission life, relationships, and personal development with more clarity and agency.

But here's where it gets even more interesting: sometimes growth doesn't come from changing your thoughts—it comes from changing your environment. In Episode 251: When Change Is the Right Move, I explain how to discern whether you're avoiding discomfort or intentionally interrupting a pattern to create new awareness, perspective, and forward movement. Whether you're questioning a relationship, struggling on your mission, or feeling stuck in your current situation, this episode will help you recognize that you are not powerless—you have the ability to choose your next step with confidence and intention.

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 Intro
03:35 Why tools matter more than advice on the mission
05:46 The problem with "just change your thoughts"
09:44 Why deep patterns and beliefs are hard to shift
13:02 The 3-step process: awareness, education, removing judgment
16:16 How compassion helps patterns begin to shift
20:06 When changing your environment can create growth
23:24 How to know if you're avoiding or intentionally changing
27:20 Example: when feelings signal it's time to make a change
31:53 Final thoughts and invitation to choose your next step

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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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In Episode 250: The View From Here, I'm reflecting on turning 50, reaching 250 podcast episodes, and what I've learned about the patterns of life through years of coaching missionaries, returned missionaries, and missionary moms. This episode is deeply personal as I share stories from my life—moments of faith, growth, heartbreak, uncertainty, and purpose—and how they've revealed a powerful truth: life doesn't move in a straight line. Instead, it unfolds in cycles of beginning, growing, unraveling, realigning, and becoming something new.

Throughout this episode, I explore how this pattern shows up everywhere—on your mission, after your mission, and in everyday life. When things feel like they're falling apart, it's easy to believe something has gone wrong. But what if you're just in the "unraveling" phase? I talk about how these moments are actually where deeper faith, clarity, confidence, and transformation begin. Whether you're navigating discouragement, self-doubt, identity shifts, or emotional challenges, this episode will help you see that nothing has gone wrong—you're right on track in your growth.

In Episode 250: The View From Here, I invite you to zoom out and trust the pattern of your life, just like the message of Easter teaches us—there is always renewal after unraveling. You are not behind, you are not broken, and you are not doing it wrong. You are becoming.

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 Intro
00:56 Birthday week, 250 episodes, and why this feels meaningful
02:29 The life pattern Jennie keeps seeing
04:29 Life doesn't move in a straight line
07:24 Choosing belief for yourself
10:11 Growth, control, and learning to let go
13:12 When life unravels: Lydia's surgery story
19:59 Unraveling leads to deeper faith and realignment
20:25 Discovering the work with missionaries
26:51 Why missionaries think something is wrong with them
29:33 Easter, renewal, and the cycle beginning again
30:47 Recording episode one and seeing the pattern now
31:58 Final thoughts: you are becoming

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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

Schedule a Free Strategy Call: Click Here

Here on The LDS Mission Podcast, Episode 249 - You Can't Go Back to Your Comfort Zone, we talk about why the "comfort zone" your brain wants to return to doesn't actually exist—and what to do instead. Whether you're a preparing missionary, currently serving, a returned missionary, or a missionary mama, it's so normal to find yourself thinking, "I just want things to feel like they used to." But the truth is, life only moves forward, and the version of you (and your circumstances) from the past have already changed. In this episode, I break down why your brain craves familiarity, how it attaches feelings like safety, belonging, and happiness to people and places, and why that can keep you feeling stuck.

We talk about how those feelings were never actually created by a person, place, or situation—but by your thoughts—and what that means for your ability to create those feelings again moving forward. I share powerful mindset shifts to help you navigate discomfort, identity shifts, breakups, and mission challenges, and how to stop trying to "go back" and instead step into growth. You'll also learn practical tools like giving discomfort a purpose, anchoring confidence in your capability (not outcomes), and untangling your emotions from external circumstances.

Most importantly, I teach you how to become your own comfort zone—so you can feel steady, confident, and grounded no matter where you are or what's happening around you. This is one of the most empowering skills you can develop on your mission and in your post-mission life. If you've been wishing things could go back to how they were, this episode will help you see why that's not the goal—and how moving forward with trust in yourself is where your real power lies. Here on The LDS Mission Podcast, Episode 249 - You Can't Go Back to Your Comfort Zone, we learn how to stop looking backward and start becoming the kind of person who can feel at home anywhere.

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.

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

In Episode 248 – The Truth About "Finding Joy in the Work", I share a powerful mindset shift for missionaries, returned missionaries, preparing missionaries, and missionary moms who feel discouraged when they're "not finding joy in the work." In this episode of the LDS Mission Podcast, I break down why the phrase finding joy can actually be misleading and why joy isn't something you discover out on your mission or in your circumstances—it's something you create internally. We talk about agency, mindset, emotional resilience, and how the way you think about your mission, your purpose, and the people you serve directly influences the joy you experience.

I also explore the difference between joy, happiness, motivation, and commitment, and why missionary work (and life in general) often requires courage, discipline, determination, and faith—even when it doesn't feel exciting. Drawing on scriptures, teachings from President Nelson, and real-life missionary experiences, I explain how joy is actually the fullness of the human experience, including both the stretching moments and the rewarding ones. I also share three practical tools to help missionaries create more joy right now: evaluating novelty versus consistency, checking your level of rest, and taking ownership of how you choose to show up.

If you've ever wondered why the mission feels harder than expected, why motivation comes and goes, or how to actually experience more peace and joy while serving, this episode will give you powerful perspective and tools to help you move forward with confidence. Episode 248 – The Truth About Finding Joy in the Work reminds us that joy isn't something waiting to be discovered—it's something you can intentionally create through your focus, your thoughts, and your relationship with God.

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.

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

Here on The LDS Mission Podcast, Episode 247 – Stop Fighting Yourself, I'm sharing a powerful mindset shift for missionaries, returned missionaries, and missionary moms who feel like they're constantly battling their own thoughts, emotions, or motivation. So many of us have been taught that growth requires fighting ourselves—battling the natural man, conquering weakness, or pushing through fear with sheer force. But in this episode, I challenge that idea and explain why internal war with yourself actually slows growth instead of creating it. When missionaries shame themselves for normal human emotions like anxiety, sadness, fear, or exhaustion, they often end up feeling divided, discouraged, and exhausted instead of empowered. I talk about how our lower brain is wired for survival—seeking pleasure, avoiding pain, and conserving energy—and why compassion toward that part of ourselves is actually the key to emotional resilience and personal growth.

In this episode we explore the difference between intentional growth and internal aggression, and why beating yourself up isn't the same thing as discipline. I explain how fighting your thoughts and emotions often makes them louder, drains your energy, and splits you into "good" and "bad" versions of yourself. Instead of living in a constant tug-of-war with your lower brain, I teach how to drop the rope and bring your higher brain and lower brain into harmony. Through self-compassion, awareness, and intentional self-leadership, missionaries can move out of the boxing ring with themselves and begin creating peace, confidence, and emotional strength. When you stop shaming yourself for normal human experiences and instead lead yourself with kindness, you actually accelerate growth and create the mission experience—and life—you truly want.

You are not meant to live at war with yourself. You are meant to become whole. By learning to approach your thoughts, fears, anxiety, and emotions with compassion instead of hostility, you create the internal peace that allows real progress to happen. If you've ever felt frustrated with yourself, overwhelmed by your thoughts, or stuck in a cycle of self-criticism, this episode will help you step out of the tug-of-war and move forward with clarity and self-trust. Episode 247 – Stop Fighting Yourself reminds us that growth doesn't come from conquering ourselves, but from learning to lead ourselves with compassion and harmony.

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.

Underneath Summary on Libsyn and Website -

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

Here on The LDS Mission Podcast, Episode 246 – Reclaiming Purpose, we talk about what to do when you feel like you've lost your purpose on the mission, after the mission, or even as a missionary mama. If you're currently serving and struggling with anxiety, rejection, comparison, or discouragement, or if you're a returned missionary feeling directionless and wondering what's next, this episode is for you. I share why purpose is not something assigned externally through a calling, leadership role, or title—but something you intentionally create. When life feels hard, when you're on the "struggle bus," or when your lower caveman brain tells you something has gone wrong, you are not broken. Highs and lows are part of the plan.

In this episode, we explore how to reclaim purpose by shifting from "this is happening to me" to "this is happening for me." I teach how to reframe rejection, conflict with companions, anxiety, post-mission transition struggles, and unmet expectations into resilience, growth, compassion, and future leadership capacity. We talk about consecrating our afflictions for our gain (2 Nephi 2:2), giving meaning to difficult experiences, and choosing empowering purpose instead of victim energy. Through stories like David and Goliath, Romans 8:28, and real coaching examples, I show you how your struggles can become preparation—not proof that you're failing.

You may not control what happens on your mission or after it, but you do get to choose the meaning you assign to it. Ask yourself: What is happening? What purpose am I currently giving it? What purpose would I like to give it instead? When you intentionally reclaim your purpose, even anxiety, rejection, loneliness, or transition seasons can become fuel for growth, momentum, and becoming more like Christ—because that is the ultimate work and glory. Episode 246 – Reclaiming Purpose reminds you that purpose isn't discovered… it's created.

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.

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

Here on The LDS Mission Podcast, Episode 245 – A Leadership Framework, we explore what Christlike leadership really looks like on the mission and in everyday life. In this episode, I share a simple but powerful framework that has been on my mind ever since a stake leadership training: identity before instruction, worth before correction, and belonging before belief. Whether you're a district leader, sister training leader, zone leader, trainer, missionary companion, returned missionary, or missionary mama, this leadership mindset will change the way you approach growth, correction, testimony building, and influence.

We talk about how our "lower brain" reacts when we lead with instruction, correction, or pressure to believe before someone feels secure in their identity as a child of God. I break down how identity stabilizes a person, worth secures the heart, and belonging calms the brain so that real transformation can happen. Using examples from missionary life—training a greenie, working through obedience struggles, supporting homesick missionaries, helping RMs navigate awkward transitions—I show how this order creates emotional safety, deeper testimony, and lasting growth.

If you want to lead like Jesus Christ—with love, calm confidence, compassion, and clarity—this episode will give you a practical leadership framework you can apply immediately in your companionship, district, ward, or home. Episode 245 – A Leadership Framework will help you anchor identity, restore worth, create belonging, and lead in a way that truly transforms hearts.

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.

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

Here on The LDS Mission Podcast, Episode 244 – Creating Clarity, we talk about what to do when you feel stuck, confused, directionless, or unsure about your next step on the mission, in college, or in life. I share in real time what it looked like for me to create clarity while recording this very episode, and why clarity rarely comes before movement. Whether you're deciding if you should serve a mission, navigating a hard transfer, choosing a major, or wondering what's next after you come home, this episode explores faith, agency, uncertainty, growth, discomfort, and how to trust God while stepping into the unknown.

We dive into the powerful analogy of stepping into the forest before you can find the clearing, and why your lower brain's discomfort is not a red flag—but often a sign you're on the verge of expansion. I talk about how clarity comes through momentum, why discomfort doesn't disqualify you, how to stop letting "I don't know" shut you down, and how Joseph Smith's First Vision models movement before revelation. We also explore the difference between advice and tools, internal preparation through Mission Prep Plus, and how practicing faith one step at a time builds confidence, peace, and direction.

If you've been waiting for certainty before taking action, this episode will remind you that you only need the next step. Discomfort isn't proof you're on the wrong path—it may be proof you're growing. Join me here on The LDS Mission Podcast, Episode 244 – Creating Clarity, as we learn how movement creates the clarity we've been searching for.

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.

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