Assume Positive Intent

Be honest. Do you usually “assume positive intent” in your human interactions? With people in traffic? With strangers out in the world?  With your coworkers?  With your partner? Is your […]

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Today’s Tough Love

Announcements

Puzzles

Change

Retreat and Rise

Healing

They got me good

Emotions

Exploring Authenticity

the courage to rise   blog

Sparkle on!

"Life’s too short not to sparkle...”

It sure as hell is. Oh, I should tell you now: I have the vocabulary of a well-educated sailor. So if you're offended by the occasional colorful word...well, there's a big wide internet out there - choose your own adventure.

"Life's too short not to sparkle." It's also too short not to live authentically. “Authentic” is a word that gets thrown around a lot in personal development and, sadly, I’ve seen too many people who have used “authenticity” as a blanket excuse for bad behavior.

Being “authentic” and being “yourself” does NOT give you license to be:
* an unbridled asshole
* an emotional blackmailer
* an irresponsible steward of this planet and the human experience
* one of those unspeakable demons who will open a can of tuna on an airplane (WHY)

Nope, sorry. Self-responsibility still 100% applies.

Authenticity means you own who YOU are from a healthy and aligned place- not who you think you should be for others to be loved or accepted (hint: you aren’t the only human struggling with “never feeling good enough”). When you give yourself permission to be “you”, when you deeply know your own worth, when you consistently make choices in alignment with your highest good, when you understand how to be both compassionate and set strong boundaries when necessary - THAT is living authentically.

This blog is about the journey of embodying self-worth and stepping into a life that is authentically YOU.


What is “Today’s Tough Love”? Today’s Tough Love is my daily Reel series where I tell you what you NEED to hear on your journey…not always what you WANT to […]

Today’s Tough Love

Announcements

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I love working puzzles. I always have. As a kid, I would dump multiple puzzles together in the middle of the floor and mix them up to make it more […]

Puzzles

Change

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There was a time in my life when I deeply longed to hit the pause button. I knew exactly what I was looking for, what my soul needed at that […]

Retreat and Rise

Healing

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Tonight, my dear brother, friend, and talented master of all things visual, Andrew Reed, surprised me with a collection of personal video messages from my retreat attendees. Ugly. Cried. Y’all. […]

They got me good

Emotions

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I retreat a lot. In fact, I’ve retreated three times in the last two months… I keep waiting for people to ask when I’m going to stop retreating and start […]

Retreating!

Sisterhood

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Today, October 5th, I hit Level 43, y’all!! I’ve collected soooooo many experience points to reach this level. Last night, at a lovely birthday dinner, the waiter kindly and jokingly […]

Level 43

Personal Power

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Today is the day!!! Purchase Dare to Express on Amazon for only $.99 I am so honored to have been a part of this powerful collaboration, Dare to Express: A […]

Dare to Express on Amazon

Announcements

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Ladies, this one is for you: Raise your hand if you’ve been personally victimized by Regina George. Whether you get the movie reference or not, I’ll bet this sparkly pen […]

The Sister Wound

Healing

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The Universe always has my back.  And I’ve fought it on that fact *plenty*, believe me. I used to demand to know the “HOW” and the “WHEN”. Spoiler alert: that’s […]

The Universe Has You

Beliefs

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Hold on to your butts, I’m about to ruin sunflowers for you. Just kidding…I’m not ruining them, they’re still awesome. Sunflowers are bright and beautiful. An entire field of them […]

Clear Your Toxicity

Awareness

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I don’t know about you, but I used to let *everything* get to me.  Not just the big things that happen in life. Of COURSE those are going to impact […]

What’s on your keychain?

Acceptance

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No healer No teacher No therapist No coach Can be fully responsible for your healing. They can be: Your guide Your mirror Your safe place Your tough love Your wake […]

Take Responsibility

Tools

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I was thrilled to be invited to be a guest on The Matt Sodnicar Podcast! We discuss divorce recovery, why “rah rah” coaching culture isn’t helpful, and I share more […]

Not the cringey kind

Announcements

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“And now for something completely different…” When I was invited on The Brandon Peters Show to discuss Buffy the Vampire Slayer, well…that was an easy “Hell YES!”. This movie, and […]

Buffy the…wait what?

Announcements

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“So…you want to be dead?” “Wh….what?” “Your goals. You’re aspiring to be dead?” “I…umm…what?” I could sense my new client questioning whether she’d made a grievous error in signing on […]

Who Gets to Drive?

Emotions

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I can’t say I’ve thought a lot about bamboo in my life. (I mean, have you?) But I have thought a lot about success, and how some people achieve it […]

Are You Bamboo?

Patience

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It was a Monday morning. I opened my eyes, stretched, did a quick gratitude practice, and set my intention for the day. Then I got up to let my puppy […]

Morning Thoughts

Self Talk

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Ah, the New Year! A new calendar year gives us the feeling of a fresh start.  The feeling of pure possibility, like a blank notebook or the pristine radiance of […]

Use Your Power

Change

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So many themes have surfaced this year that are directly connected to my favorite topics. Boundaries are one of them. I’m going to use an example I’ve seen come up […]

Boundaries

Boundaries

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Y’all, I’m BACK!!  I’ve been on sabbatical for…well, who’s counting…but it’s been for good reason! Everything has seasons and these last eight months have been a “winter” season for me […]

Acknowledgement

Emotions

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I took this picture of my sweet puppy snuggling up to me, with his little floofy head nuzzled into my chest because my heart was so full of love for […]

Feel the Feels

Emotions

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The principles I write and speak about have never been more applicable than they are right now. The balance of feeling and processing your emotions in a healthy way while […]

Stop the Shaming

Emotions

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“Hey everyone! Stop moping. Yes, I know your sporting events, social gatherings and concerts have been cancelled for a few weeks. The world has NOT ended, commerce is still happening, […]

Positivity Bypassing

Emotions

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Certainty. It’s a human need. Certainty we can be safe, loved, sheltered. But what happens when everything suddenly becomes UNCERTAIN? When that which made a modicum of sense yesterday…makes none […]

Finding Certainty

Self-Love

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Listen to me. You are NOT broken. …even if you FEEL broken. You’re just healing. You are whole within yourself. You’re just learning to remember it. If you’re going through […]

You Are NOT Broken

Heartbreak

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Call them resolutions, call them intentions. Call them pancakes for all I care. But set them and set them the right way. Set yourself up for success. Drop this notion […]

Set Empowering Intentions

Change

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Ah, the holidays! All is merry and bright. Or…maybe it isn’t for you this year. And that’s okay too.  Because let’s be honest – some years, it isn’t. Some years […]

Holiday what?

Self-Love

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Our collective societal impatience is largely a product of the microwave and the age of the credit card, through which we’ve developed a borderline unreasonable ability to be instantly gratified. […]

Plant the Seed

Patience

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We’re going to get a little exercise today.  Those of you who have ever felt a deep need to be “perfect” or categorized yourself as a “perfectionist”, please stand up? […]

Perfect *IS* Bullshit

Perfection

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Thanksgiving. The giving of thanks. grat*i*tude (noun): the quality of being thankful Your reaction to this word may fall into one of several buckets: “Gratitude. Yes. That’s a practice I […]

Why Gratitude Isn’t Bullshit

Personal Power

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THE BOOK IS OFFICIALLY AVAILABLE ON AMAZON!! It has always been a dream of mine to be a published author …and it happened! Holding this book in my hands is surreal […]

Book Released on Amazon

Announcements

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Writing has always been my preferred medium. I wrote in a previous post how much I love words, how they light me up and provide the outlet for my particular brand […]

Courage to Rise PODCAST

Announcements

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One year ago, my blog went live! 🎉🎂🎈 Here’s the secret: I bought this domain name two years before it went live. For two years, I had a blank home […]

The F*ck It Point

Value

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Ah, the “green-eyed monster” … We’ve all experienced it…that twinge of jealousy, those pangs of envy…this is especially prevalent in the age of social media. Jealousy is an emotion, and […]

Jealousy

Tools

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There’s a misconception that it comes easily, success. That a painter paints a masterpiece each time. That a writer sits down and pens a flawless manuscript. That an entrepreneur builds […]

The Fight

Personal Power

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I see you. Yes, you. Still standing. Working, rebuilding, healing. Surviving. Not yet thriving. It’s heavy, I know. I’ve been there. Getting knocked down, rising again each time. Whether it […]

Secret

Patience

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I love words. I am deeply, profoundly, desperately in love with words. Words are my medium for creative expression. Reading them. Writing them. Studying about them (my latest geek out […]

Language

Tools

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One of the most well-intended yet detrimental things we say to each other, and to ourselves, is “Don’t feel that way” followed by an equally well-intended “chin up” soliloquy. “Don’t […]

Don’t Feel

Pain

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A very personal post, following a beautiful spiritual retreat in Kythnos, Greece… For the past year, I’ve been on an intense journey of deep inner healing – healing and evolving […]

Sisterhood

Sisterhood

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I received this message from a dear client who, like so many of us, has a “Black Belt” and our work is around healing the core of her worthiness. The […]

Mistakes

Worth

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“Joy” is a word that’s been coming up strongly for me lately. I’ve been meditating on the concept of joy, and how to embody it more deeply. Because joy feels […]

Joy

Tools

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Each of us has unique talents, gifts, strengths, and abilities. One of the hardest things in this world can be staying true to their expression, to who we authentically are.  […]

Worth

Worth

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“Knowing how to be solitary is central to the art of living. When we can be alone, we can be with others without using them as a means of escape.”— […]

Alone

Worth

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Fear. Fear is a mother f*cker. Fear keeps us small. Fear keeps us stuck. Fear keeps us from our dreams. When you peel back the layers, drop the smokescreens, ditch […]

Fear

Personal Power

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How many of you have flown on an airplane, even once in your life? Once is enough to know the mandatory safety announcement (that you completely ignore, but whatevs) tells […]

Put Your Mask on First

Worth

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Living an authentic life is an ongoing process for all of us, and has many elements. Here’s one I want to discuss today: Making choices in alignment with your highest […]

Own Your Choices

Healing

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“When we are upset, it’s easy to blame others. The true cause of our feelings, however, is within us. For example, imagine yourself as a glass of water. Now, imagine […]

Stop Blaming the Spoon

Healing

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I posted a video on this topic on my Instagram (@jwreyallday) a few weeks ago about an encounter I had while walking my dog. Today I was prompted by a […]

Hurt People

Healing

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I hear it all the time. I can’t. “I can’t get healthy” “I can’t get over it” “I can’t get a handle on my finances” “I can’t breakthrough this block” […]

Make a Soul Decision

Healing

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Ha. Y’all thought I meant a different “S” word, didn’t you? Nope, I mean “shoulding” yourself. I’ll bet you a coffee you “should” on yourself about the same percentage of […]

Stop “Shoulding” on Yourself

Should

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As many of you know, I had to say a very hard goodbye to my furry best friend, Killian, recently. I am tearing up even typing these words. We grieve […]

Honor Your Grief

Healing

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I felt it. Bubbling up from deep inside, in spite of my desire to hold it together. Dropping my almost-18-year old kitty off for more diagnostic testing, the sweet vet […]

I’m NOT sorry

Grief

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I spent the week leading up to Christmas in Panama. 2018 has been “a year” in the Life of Jen, leaving me “soul-tired”. Time by the ocean in a beautiful location […]

Permission

Worth

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For the last few years, I’ve picked a word for each year. A word that embodies a concept I’m working on, or resonates deeply with that point in my life’s […]

Awareness

Change

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Perfect. Perfection. Perfectionist. Lean in, folks. Get close. Truth bomb, ready to explode. PERFECT. IS. BULLSHIT. Perfect isn’t a THING. You are not, and never will be, “perfect”…unless you’re a […]

Perfect Is Bullshit

Worth

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“We are stardust….We are billion year old carbon” – Woodstock, CSNY I took a little writing break, my friends. Because: seasons. We’re coming on winter in the U.S. Well, actually, in […]

Seasons

Healing

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“It wasn’t serving my life anymore.” That’s my answer to the questions I get.  It’s the most honest answer, the simple and complete answer: “It wasn’t serving my life anymore.” […]

Pain & Pleasure #3

Tools

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*actual photo of my very first surf lesson in 2014…riding real waves that time, not emotional ones* I wrote recently about the importance of facing our pain so we can […]

Riding the Waves

Pain

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“Listen, nine women can’t make a baby in a month” – C. Ray Meadows My grandfather said this to me many years ago when I was in a typical fit […]

Heal, Already!

Patience

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“We change. We have to. Or we spend the rest of our lives fighting the same battles.” That line from Star Trek Beyond always gives me chills…and not just because […]

Star Trek & Starting Points

Personal Power

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Someone left my life recently—someone I loved deeply. It was abrupt, painful, and (the three-year-old in me keeps using this word) “unfair.” Meanwhile, the Universe throws another handful of popcorn […]

Scar Tissue

Pinned

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I used to have a black belt in kicking my own ass.  (Tip: not the cardio workout you’d hope) I was an expert in beating myself up. A World Champion, […]

Of Bears and Black Belts

Worth

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Acceptance of what IS.  This is the first step in any journey, and most notably in our personal growth toward creating a life of true fulfillment. When we deny our […]

Where are you really?

Personal Power

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Eleven years ago today, I threw myself out of a perfectly good airplane. Why? To prove I could face my fears and (hopefully) not die. To literally “take the leap” […]

Fear & Free Falls

Fear

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Title alone kind of makes you squirm, huh? I wanted to write the third post in my series on “Pain and Pleasure and Motivation and all the things”. It’s coming. […]

Sit with the Squirm

Worth

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**Let me preface this (because who doesn’t love a post that starts with a disclaimer) by saying all my client sessions are completely confidential. All identifying details are always removed. […]

Pain & Pleasure #2

Tools

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No, this isn’t the JW take on 50 shades. Go scrub that dirty mind! Actually, don’t, it’s an admirable quality in a person. Stay dirty, friends.  Pain and Pleasure is […]

Pain & Pleasure #1

Choice

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I’m a collector of memes. I’m guessing you are too (God Bless the Internet). Unless you’re just looking at the cat videos and in that case, Sylvester the Talking Cat […]

From the Inside Out

Worth

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Another phrase that has become cliche. And yet the reason a phrase becomes “cliche” is that the series of words strung together to create a powerful phrase started because people […]

“Know Your Worth”

Worth

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