Mantra with Jemma Sbeg - I Embrace Growth and Change

Episode Date: January 13, 2025

This week's mantra is I Embrace Growth and Change. Leaning into the discomfort of change is one of the most challenging—and transformative—things we can do. In this episode of Mantra, we unpack what it really means to embrace uncertainty and turn it into an opportunity for personal growth. Change is rarely easy—it often challenges our instincts to stay safe and settled—but it’s through these moments of upheaval that we discover new possibilities for ourselves. Whether it’s a career shift, a relationship evolution, or even just a mindset reset, this Mantra will inspire you to embrace the growth waiting on the other side of change. For ad-free listening and early access to episodes, subscribe to OpenMind+ on Apple Podcasts. For more from OpenMind, follow us on Instagram @openmindstudios. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is Open Mind. Welcome to a brand new week. Here is your mantra. I embrace growth and change. I'm your host, Gemma Spegg, and I'm here to guide you towards a more centered and fulfilling life. Each week I'll share personal stories and insights that are focused on a specific mantra, plus journal prompts and a weekly challenge for all of us to help put it into action. Think of mantra as your mental reset button, a way to stay centered as you juggle work, school, family, and whatever else life throws at you.

Each mantra is a simple, powerful phrase you can repeat to focus your thoughts and bring a bit of calm into your day. It's a small tool with a big impact, clearing your mind, lifting your mood and rooting you in the present. If you've listened to my other show, The Psychology of Your 20s, you'll know that I'm all about those little nuggets of insight that make a big impact. So whether you're looking for some extra inspiration or you're trying to ground yourself amidst the chaos, you have come to the right place. At Open Mind, we value your support. Share your thoughts on social media and remember to rate, review and follow Mantra to help others discover the show. For more exclusive content, monthly bonus episodes, early access and ad-free listening,

join our Open Mind Plus community on Apple Podcasts. This week, I'll catch you up on what's been going on in my life, and then we'll dive into today's mantra. I embrace growth and change. Whether you're facing a big shift or you're just looking to level up your day-to-day, this mantra is all about helping you grow. Stick around, and we'll be right back after this short pause. Welcome back. We're going to get into this week's mantra in just a minute, but before we do, I want to fill you in on what's been going on with me lately and how this mantra

has been showing up in my life. I have been contemplating some pretty major life shifts as of late, the kind that I think really makes you pause and wonder what's next, and not necessarily know what the right answer is. The biggest question on my mind is whether it's time to pack up and move, maybe not just to a new city, but possibly a whole new country. I feel like we all reach a point like this, a crossroads where we feel comfortable, settled even with where we are. We're very keen to put down roots, but there's this pull towards something that's bigger, something more exciting. And yes, as well as something that might feel kind of scary. For me, that pool has been Europe. I know it might sound a little bit strange. Australia is

beautiful. It's the lucky country. I love it here. It's so serene and calm, but sometimes it feels like there's not enough happening. And as I continue to grow as a person, I'm feeling ready for a big change, ready to meet new people, ready to dive into new cultures, maybe like experience life from a fresh perspective. It's that classic push and pull. Part of me is rooted here and another part feels drawn to something that might challenge me in ways that my life currently doesn't. I can feel myself moving towards a new life chapter and my old life isn't feeling as

fulfilling as it once did. But I'm kind of stuck in this waiting room. I'll talk about this a little bit more later on in this episode, and I'm definitely going to keep you up to date on how these feelings progress in the coming months but I wanted to give you a little insight as to why I chose this mantra today. So look this week's guiding phrase is definitely not for the faint of heart. Anyone who has ever encountered change even the smallest kind knows that often everything in us cries out for things to stay the same. It is a very human instinct to be safe in what is comfortable.

But this mantra forces us to confront a truth that our lives are always evolving, whether we're ready for them to do so or not. Growth doesn't feel as intimidating as change in my mind. We're constantly moving through new experiences, some good, some bad, others just neutral, but each one helps shape who we are and who we're becoming. That is growth. Change, on the other hand, feels more unsettling in comparison to growth because it doesn't carry the same component of positive natural progress that we usually associate with growth periods. Especially in our 20s and our 30s, the idea of change can be really overwhelming because we've spent so much time trying to get

things to a stable point. But here's the thing, growth and change, they aren't just inevitable. They're also essential. They're often what pushes us towards becoming our best selves. They move us closer to the lives that we are meant to live, that we deserve to live. At its core, this phrase encourages us to go with life's flow, to choose to lean into change rather than resisting it, knowing that something ultimately quite positive, if not just different, can come from that experience. Embracing growth also means stepping beyond the comfort zone, trying new things and learning along the way. There is nothing more human in my mind than making mistakes, especially when those mistakes expand our understanding of who we are. This phrase is really here to remind us that uncomfortable moments

aren't obstacles, they're opportunities. And that's the key word here, opportunities. In my experience and from what I'm seeing right now it honestly feels like everything around us is really evolving at lightning speed every day we are presented with new trends new ideas new technologies there's always some new big idea to wrap our minds around and it can present as something that's going to challenge us. That constant evolution is going to perhaps make our lives feel unstable. An example of this that I was thinking about the other day was the invention and spread of AI technology and how many of us feel uncomfortable with it.

There's fear of what that's going to do to our jobs, our way of interacting with one another and our way of interacting with the world. That is an example of change that feels rapidly quite uncomfortable. And it's definitely a big picture example. But when you think about it on a more micro scale in terms of your own life, Something may be changing in your family, with your relationships, in your career, even your living situation maybe. Whether it's a breakup or you're moving in with someone, there's a new friendship or a broken one, life keeps presenting opportunities to grow that are hidden in these moments, even when they are challenging. I guess what I'm trying to say is that embracing growth and change is key. We need to stay flexible and resilient and my

favorite word here is resilience because when we are resilient we understand that no matter what is coming into our life that feels unexpected we can kind of see it in two ways. We can see it as something that is going to threaten us or we can see it as an opportunity instead of holding on to what is familiar just because it feels safe. I think about this especially in terms of relationships. Maybe it's with an ex, a friend, a former colleague, someone that you're just not as close to anymore who maybe doesn't make you feel great about yourself. You can hold on to that

good but not great relationship because it's always been convenient, because it's been something that you've known for a really long time and because your brain has made you feel safe and secure and comfortable in that emotional environment. But you could also move beyond that relationship. You could realize that you deserve great and that there is going to be some pain, some temporary discomfort. But these new experiences and the opportunities that you get from making space for someone new is worth so much more. And I think this mindset changes the way that we deal with life, being able to pivot, be resilient, be flexible

when things shift, it doesn't just make you stronger mentally, emotionally, socially, it also makes you happier as well. So let's talk about what all this means for us. And let's start with the emotional discomfort of change. One way that we can really adopt this mantra is by thinking about our best, most ideal self, the person we want to be in the long term, someone who perhaps has their dream life, has moved to a place of abundance, who is more authentic, who is more confident. Really imagine that person for a moment. Imagine that person that you're going to be in five years, in 10 years. What are they doing? What does their day look like? What are they wearing? What are the obstacles that

they're now facing that they can handle even better because of what you're going through now. Is that person going to be realized without change? Probably not. Is that person going to come into existence without growth? No, definitely not. Because if that person was already to exist, you wouldn't be thinking about these things because it would already be in place. When adopting this week's mantra, I embrace growth and change. I want you to really think about how it's going to take you from where you are now into your future self. Just remember this, this is all about seeing change for what it is. It is not an enemy. It is actually something that helps us become the best version of ourselves. Coming up, let's get personal. I'm going to get real about how this mantra plays out in my life. The ups, the downs, how I've navigated through it. So stay tuned after this brief pause.

Now that we've looked at the meaning behind today's mantra, I think it's time to get vulnerable with you guys and share some of my own insights and reflections about this phrase. You know, growth and change, they aren't just abstract ideas. In reality, they're often messy, they're difficult and uncertain, it's very easy to talk about them as if they are simple and straightforward. But we both know it goes beyond that. As much as I preach about the beauty of growth, I have definitely struggled with embracing the unknown myself. At the top of this episode, I talked about my thoughts around moving and this very unexpected urge to step out of my comfort zone and to rebuild my life in a new place, rebuild relationships, rebuild community, rebuild where I go for coffee.

It's about all the small things as much as it is about the big things. But here's the question that has always resonated with me and that has always put me on a path towards growth. What is the cost of staying the same? As some of you may know, I'm not originally from Sydney, which is where I live now. And moving here definitely taught me this lesson firsthand. I remember the first few months of living here, I'd go back to my old college university town far too frequently, like once, twice, three times a month, because I didn't want to say goodbye to that old life. It was incredibly comfortable and known, it was what was safe to me, but slowly I started to realize that there was no way I was ever going to feel as comfortable in my new city, in my new life, if I kept clinging on to the past. I had two feet inside two totally different worlds, and I wasn't able to enjoy either

of them fully. When I was able to take a step back, I realized that I was just doing it because I was scared. It was from a place of fear, And that is the opposite of growth. If we really think about it, the antithesis of growth is fear. It is the thing that wants you to stay the same. It is the thing that wants you to stay comfortable. It's what keeps you stuck in a life that may no longer be good for you just because it's what's known. That was definitely my experience. So when I reflect back on that time and how much courage it did take to fully immerse myself in my new life,

in my new city, I also realized that it was me who did that. I made that choice. It was me. No one else could have endured that change on my behalf. And right now, all these years later, I'm still reaping the benefits of that growth period. But it feels as though right now I'm ready for another one. I'm ready for another period of exploration and adventure, probably a little bit of uncertainty as well. But I know now from my past experiences that every single time I have taken a risk, it has elevated my life. It's not always about big life altering moments either though, is it? Sometimes it is just about the small daily steps. I found that things like journaling and setting intentions every morning really help when it comes to big decisions later

on. They're these small ways to remind us every day to be open to growth, to make it part of our blueprint, part of our personality, part of who we are. We are someone who embraces growth and change. To me, embracing change has also meant getting more comfortable with a level of uncertainty and I used to be someone who very much needed to be in control of every single little thing that was going on in my life down to the tiniest details but slowly I began to really release the obligation that I was placing on myself to be in control and start letting other people who I also trust to make choices on my behalf carry some of that. And with time, I also became more comfortable with the idea that I didn't have to always be in charge. If control is your sticking

point, try releasing it in small ways, like letting others take control of decisions, letting others choose the restaurant, even if it's not the restaurant you want to go to. Letting others choose where you're going to go for date night, even if it might not be your dream date. Letting them choose the travel plans. Often we think of change, we jump to the worst case scenario, we catastrophize every single little thing that could go wrong. And if we go back to that technology example, it's a great way of putting this. We might think this new technology, this new way of doing things, it's been introduced and now I'm going to lose my job. I'm going to be destitute. That's the end of me. That's the end of

my life. Our brain likes to go to the worst case scenario because by contemplating the worst case scenario, we feel like we're in control of the outcome. And so we feel the safest. That's where we feel like we can almost anticipate everything that could go wrong. And by anticipating it, by overthinking it, maybe we might be more prepared. Those situations though that we are imagining, I'm going to tell you right now, they're probably not going to happen. Think back to every previous situation where you have excessively contemplated the worst case scenario. You've probably contemplated more than one worst case scenario. The irony of that is its own can of worms. Have any of them ever occurred? Truly, really think about it.

Have any of those times ever actually happened to you? When you're facing change and your mind is automatically catastrophizing, take some time to journal about it. And above all else, trust your intuition and trust your past self in these situations. Because those previous times where you've catastrophized and things have not gone wrong, they are really good teaching moments. Embracing change is about stepping into your potential without letting fear dictate your actions so this week when change presents itself trust that it's guiding you towards the person that you're meant to become one of the biggest lessons that I've learned from my life is that growth rarely happens when we're safe my mom used to say growth happens when you're

uncomfortable and she was absolutely right. It happens when we're pushed outside of our comfort zones. It's uncomfortable, sometimes really uncomfortable, but it's kind of like a shedding. And maybe this is a little too cliche, but think about the transition when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly. That doesn't look like a particularly nice experience it's chaotic it's messy but the outcome is absolutely gorgeous that's where we find color strength beauty it's those moments and their outcomes that show us just how adaptable and strong we can be and don't just take it from me i want to share a quote that

echoes this week's mantra in hopes that it speaks to you too. Stay afraid but do it anyway. What's important is the action. You don't have to wait to be confident, just do it and eventually the confidence will follow. And I love the philosophy of doing it anyways and the confidence will follow because when you think about your own life have you ever been fully 100% confident going into anything if you were to wait for that to happen if you were to wait until you were completely utterly prepared you would never do anything because you never feel that way no matter what is happening in your life no matter resources you have, there's always going to be something that could go wrong, something that you're not sure about.

And so choosing to wait until you're 100% confident means choosing to never act. But you convince yourself that there will come a perfect time. There will be some future date where you can do something, only to eventually realize that is never going to happen. Now let's pause for a moment to truly reflect on this mantra. In just a second, you'll hear a custom music track created to give you space to absorb today's insights and to consider how you might bring this mantra into your week and maybe even beyond. And if this practice isn't your style, if it doesn't resonate

with you, feel free to just skip ahead 30 seconds. For those of you who do want a moment of reflection, use this time as your own. As the music plays, keep our mantra in mind. I embrace growth and change. Let it guide your thoughts as the music plays, just giving yourself a moment to reflect and connect with what it means for you. beautiful life can be so hectic sometimes and taking even a moment to reflect like that is really quite grounding up, we're going to talk about how to put these insights into real action and bring this mantra to life. I'll share some journal prompts and our weekly social media challenge. Stick around for more after this quick

break. Welcome back. Each week on Mantra, I like to share journal prompts to help you dive deeper into the theme. These questions are designed to spark reflection and to help you explore what growth and change means in your life right now. And if you don't have a journal handy, that is totally okay. Just feel free to come back to this later or to think about them as I speak to these questions. First, how could I stay curious instead of freaking out next time something like this happens? What could I learn from situations that are out of my control? How can I make sure to look for the opportunities within the challenges. Like I said, you can either journal on these or you can just think about your answers on the spot. Next, sometimes growth is really about letting go.

What is weighing me down or causing me distress that I cannot release? What alarm bells are going off in my brain? What stress am I carrying? Take a minute to write about what you may need to release so that you can step into the next version of yourself. You know, this isn't something I can tell you. I really don't know, but you know, and I think you can sense it. And lastly, our final prompt, think about your relationships for a second. Relationships are where we tend to resist change the most because it feels safe to stay with who and what we know. So ask yourself, are there places where I'm sacrificing my needs just because it feels comfortable? Have I been avoiding tough conversations or ignoring boundaries that

I've set for a reason? Okay, I've given you a lot to think about, but there is more in store. Every week, I'm going to give you a challenge that features our mantra. It's really taking this whole thing to another level so that you can put what we talk about into tangible, actionable steps for yourself. I also want to do some check-ins so that we can hold ourselves accountable. You can reach out to me at Mantra Open Mind to let me know how the challenge is going. And next week, we'll do a recap on how things went. I might even share a few personal stories with your permission, of course, to just encourage us to participate in the challenge in

the future. And this is a two-way street. So I will, of course, make sure to let you know how things are going for me too. Every morning this week, as soon as you wake up, I want you to take a few seconds to repeat today's mantra out loud. I embrace growth and change. It's a small thing and it's meant to be a small thing because it's doable. But please trust me, it will help reinforce this mantra in your life and set the tone for your week. Okay, so let's end today's chat with a few final thoughts about this week's mantra. It's very easy to get swept up in the rush of change and growth, but taking a few seconds

to appreciate what is already here brings so much balance. Think of one thing in your life right now that you are grateful for, even in the midst of all the change. Maybe it's a person, a place, just a small comforting part of your routine. Hold on to that feeling of appreciation and let it ground you as you step into the week ahead. Now, I just want to remind you, growth and change feel really scary and that probably means that you are doing the right thing. When we choose the road that is comfortable, convenient, easy, safe, it never actually allows us to test ourselves, to stretch ourselves, to see what we're capable of and it means that we might get to a point in the

future where we have a lot of regret about what we could have made for ourselves, the life we could have had if we had taken the risks, if we had seen growth and change as an opportunity. So thinking about this future version of yourself, I really want you to pause and consider what is the cost of not embracing change, as we said before, and what is the benefit of choosing some momentary discomfort, some momentary uncertainty for a much better, bigger, joyful outcome? So every day this week and beyond, give yourself the chance to embrace change because you are much more capable than you know. Thank you for joining Mantra, an exclusive Open Mind original powered by Pave Studios.

At Open Mind, we value your support. Share your thoughts on social media and remember to rate, review and follow Mantra to help others discover the show. For ad-free listening and early access to Mantra with me, Gemma Spegg, we invite you to subscribe to Open Mind Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'll share another insightful and introspective mantra with you next Monday. Until then, keep showing up for yourself and your journey. I'm Gemma Spegg. See you next week. Mantra is hosted by me, Gemma Spegg, see you next week. Mantra is hosted by me, Gemma Spegg, and is an Open Mind original powered by Pave Studios.

This episode was brought to life by the Mantra team, Max Cutler, Kristen Acevedo, Ron Shapiro, Stacey Warrinker, Sarah Carroll, and Paul Liebeskind. Thank you for listening.