This might just break your brain a little.
I don’t wait until I’ve earned joy. I front-load it.
Before I sit down to do the work that’s calling to me, I do something that lights me up first. A walk. A great cup of coffee. A dance party. A short meditation. Read a little. Something that makes me feel alive, connected to myself, and joyful. And then I go do the work and you know what happens? The work is better every time, and it’s a hell of a lot more freaking fun to do because I’ve already put myself in a joyful position. My brain is primed and ready to discover and experience more joy. Suddenly, the mundane tasks seem easier and more fun.
This isn’t laziness dressed up in self-care clothing; it’s strategy. It’s also neuroscience, and it works!
Here’s what we’ve gotten wrong about productivity forever.
We’ve been chasing output. How much did you do today? How many things got checked off the list? How many hours did you log? But here’s what I’ve learned after two decades of coaching high-performing women and queer folks through wildly demanding lives: output isn’t the point. Effectiveness is the point. And you can’t be effective from depletion.
You can be busy from depletion. You can grind from depletion. You can produce a mountain of work from depletion that lands with a thud because you weren’t actually present for any of it. Depletion-mode output is often just noise — volume without resonance.
Joy-state output is where the real work lives.
When I’m rooted in joy, I think more clearly. I make better decisions. I’m more creative, more connected, more magnetic in every room I walk into. I show up to conversations with actual presence instead of just a body and a to-do list. My best ideas — the ones that actually moved the needle in my business and my life — didn’t come from pushing harder. They came from leading with joy.
One of the ways I’ve built this into my life is through anchored experiences. I host the Chicago emPower Breakfast every month — great food, an iconic location, brilliant speakers, hands-on learning, and a room absolutely buzzing with the most beautiful energy. I look forward to it every single month. And it doesn’t just feel good — it sets me up. If you’re in the Chicagoland area, come join us! You’ll be glad you did. I leave that event every month feeling lit up from the inside, and the momentum carries. I hear this from our regulars too: it’s become the thing they build the month around. Not because it’s an obligation, but because it refuels them.
That’s not a coincidence. That’s intentional joy architecture.
And yes, sometimes I reward myself before the work is done. Not as avoidance, but as activation. Because when joy comes first, the work doesn’t feel like a burden I’m dragging myself toward. It feels like something I actually want to do.
The shift I’m inviting you into isn’t about working less. It’s about working from somewhere that makes everything you do more effective, more alive, and more like you.
What if productivity wasn’t something you squeezed out of yourself? What if it was something that flowed from you — because you’d taken care of the source?
Ready to make this a practice?
Join me for Joy Reclaimed.
It’s a 21-day activation that helps you rebuild your relationship with joy from the inside out — using subliminal audio, EFT tapping, and self-guided hypnosis designed to work at the subconscious level, where real change actually happens. We have a private community, daily support, and a live 70-minute kick-off workshop on May 4th at 11am CT to set the whole container.
Your daily commitment is 15-20 minutes for 21 days. It’s as simple as that. By gifting yourself this brief amount of time for 21 days straight, you’ll reprogram yourself to lead with embodied joy, to seek it and discover it in unexpected places, and to thrive with more ease.
Because the most productive thing you can do is stop running on fumes and start running on joy.
Joy Reclaimed is $97. Annual Substack subscribers get in free (and an annual subscription is only $60. That’s simple math folks).
The Glimmer Toolkit
(because showing up for yourself can start right now)
Somatic Drop-In: Before your next work session, pause. Place one hand on your heart. Take a full breath in and let it go slowly. Ask your body: what would feel genuinely joyful right now? It doesn’t have to be big. It doesn’t have to take long. It just has to be real. Do that thing first. Notice what shifts when you lead with joy instead of obligation.
Journal Prompt: Where in your work life are you running on empty and calling it discipline? What would it look like — concretely, practically — to bring one joyful touchpoint into your day before the work begins? What becomes possible when you’re fueled instead of depleted?
Try This Today: Before you open your laptop or your to-do list, do one thing that genuinely lights you up. Take a walk. Call a friend you love. Make something delicious. Give yourself ten minutes of real joy — not earned joy, not deserved joy, just joy — and then bring that energy into your work. Do it every day for a week and report back.
Joy as a Catalyst, Not a Reward
More joy more success: Create your reality with joy embodiment, abundance mindset, and holistic success—no burnout required. Check this out. More Joy, More Success: Building a Life You Can’t Wait to Wake Up To
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