Shows / About Progress
About Progress
All the self-help extremes out there seem designed for perfect robots. But what if progress doesn’t require perfection? Welcome to your gentle self-development hub: About Progress, a podcast and community devoted to progress made practical. Join host and coach, Monica Packer, and her special guests to get the hug AND kick in the pants you need to do something and grow in ways that stick.
Episodes
About ProgressAP 084: Getting Past the Comparison Trap
Do you know that using social media directly correlates with higher rates of depression and anxiety? I believe the root of why this is the case is COMPARISON…
About ProgressAP 083: Overcoming Fears that Get in the Way of Your Progress || with Crystalee Beck of The Mama Ladder
"You already have within you what you need." What's holding you back from going after a goal, business, or piece of self-improvement? I bet you a million…
About ProgressAP 082: Creating Light For Those In Darkness || with Amber Runyon of Eleventh Candle Co.
“People need three things to thrive: safe place, safe people, and safe purpose. We always forget that purpose piece” On a humanitarian trip to Ethiopia, Amber…
About ProgressAP 081: How Self-Improvement Starts with Self-LOVE || with Andi Veenker
“The second you start doing something, you change your state.” Andi Veenker is a fitness wizard and self-help fanatic. But here's the best thing about her--she…
About ProgressAP 080: JOY || How You Can Cultivate Joy Regardless of Your Circumstances
"Joy [is] a spiritual way of engaging with the world that's connected to practicing gratitude." ~Brene Brown If you've been working on happiness, get ready to…
About ProgressAP 079: Discovering Our Worth Through Music || with Paul Cardall, Kenz Hall, and Charley Jenkins
"We need to create something for someone else that they might not be able to create themselves." ~Charley Jenkins Surely, we can all agree that music has…
About ProgressAP 078: Managing our Thoughts to Find more Joy in Parenthood || with Lisa Andersen of Thriving Motherhood
"We can flip our thinking about our kids. They don't make us feel any certain way. It's us. We have that control." You want to know a magical trick for…
About ProgressAP 077: Overcoming the Complexities of our Childhoods || with Rachel Nielson
“Think of your own child being that scared and how you would comfort them. Treat yourself with similar grace.” Rachel Nielson didn't realize how much her…
About ProgressAP 076: Are You Happy?
Let me ask you this: are you happy? Why is it that most of us would have a really hard time answering that question? Well, I have a lot of theories. People too…
About ProgressAP 075: How to Find Real Strength in Vulnerability || with Preston Pugmire
“Weakness is pretending that you’re not feeling emotions, [and thereby] denying yourself of that humanity.” If you haven't heard of Preston Pugmire, get…
About ProgressAP 074: Dina Alexander || Arming Kids Against Pornography
"We have to continually have those conversations because it normalizes the idea of talking about tough topics." Dina Alexander returned to the podcast to teach…
About ProgressAP 073: E's Birth Story || with Laura Dugovic
As a follow-up to my interview with childbirth educator Laura Dugovic, here is the birth story of my sweet baby born on February 5th. (I share his name briefly…
About ProgressAP 072: Mikael Monson || Taking a Leap of Faith
"I have learned that anything that I thought of myself, that I saw of myself, is not nearly the capacity that I truly am." Mikael Monson NEVER planned on…
About ProgressAP 071: Nesha Woodhouse || Developing Our Gifts to Improve Ourselves and Bless Others
"I don't think that 'acceptance' is an excuse to diminish yourself or to not hold yourself accountable to your best work . . . We should develop and expand and…
About ProgressAP 070: Dina Alexander || Inspiring Positive Body Image for Kids in a Social Media Age
“If we get so caught up in how we look, how our friends look, if we look good enough, we are missing the richness of life.” Dina Alexander is back to teach us…
About ProgressAP 069: Mallory Wahlstrom Wright || Finding Your Unique Light
“I’m getting my self-esteem from looking in . . . I have worth in my trying.” Although Mallory Wahlstrom Wright was an accomplished musician, dancer, and…
About ProgressAP 068: How to Birth Like a Rockstar, with Laura Dugovic ||
“My only approach is to love and strengthen all women, no matter what kind of birth they want to have.” Laura Dugovic had prepared for a meditative birth with…
About ProgressAP 067: Mandie Sherman || Staying Strong Through Terminal Illness
"It doesn't get easier, but it gets lighter. It gets lighter because we get stronger . . . Your strength is going to help somebody else when they are weak."…
About ProgressAP 066: How to Revolutionize Your Goals by Defining Your WHY || with Tiffany Webster
"When we attach anything to our goals--our happiness, worth, value, success--our goals are no longer out becoming . . .[they're] just about needing to achieve…
About ProgressAP 065: Dina Taylor || Persevering Your Own Way
"If you set aside other people's expectations, set aside the need for permission and live your most authentic self, life is a lot more freeing and you're…
About ProgressAP 064: Dina Alexander || How to Empower Kids to Use Technology for Good
“Just like you and I lived at the mall or lived at the football game on Friday night, a lot of our kids are living on social media . . . I want my kids to make…
About ProgressAP 063: Each of Us Is Extraordinary, All of Us Are Ordinary || With Guests: Melinda Peterson and Brittney Hanks
This podcast is in response to an email I received from a listener who was frustrated that all my guests on the show are too "extraordinary." While thoughts…
About ProgressAP 061: Tiffany Webster || Discovering Greater Strength by Embracing the Broken
“It is that moment of complete 100% surrender that we step into that power we never had before.” Tiffany Webster knows a thing or two about surrender. As a…
About ProgressAP 061: Tamarynn Bennett ||Racing Toward What Matters Most
"Comparison is evil . . . Any time you look at someone else's strengths that might be your weaknesses, you'll always come up short." 10 years ago, Tamarynn…
About ProgressAP 060: State of the Podcast Address
We celebrated our year anniversary of the podcast a few weeks ago! To commemorate this time, I have a short, unedited, rambling State of the Podcast episode…
About ProgressAP 059: Lisa Funk || Developing Our Creativity, and Using it as a Tool to Fight Depression
"I meet a ton of people who say, ‘Oh I can’t do that, I'm not creative . . .' Maybe they will never find that painting or drawing fulfills them, but they ARE…
About ProgressAP 058: Dr. Jennifer Finlayson-Fife || "Get Over Yourself:" When Perfectionism Undermines Your Development, Relationships, and Peace of Mind
"Those that are most able to deal with their flaws, are most willing to be seen as human . . . That’s real moral courage, and that’s the kind of courage that…
About ProgressAP 057: Julie Taylor || Battling Addiction From a Place of Love, Not Hatred
"With each thing I tried, every time it failed . . . I failed deeper and the problem got bigger. It got to the point where I no longer felt any control over…
About ProgressAP 056: Reachel Bagley, of Cardigan Empire || Moving Beyond the Superficial
"I have worth and it isn’t always looking to the external to try to find validation, because that’s an endless competition that you’re never going to win. It…
About ProgressAP 055: Greg Karelitz || Spreading Positive Vibes
"By choosing your habits and staying with them, you are scientifically engraining them in your body . . . setting you on a pace that will help you achieve what…
About ProgressAP 054: Danielle Stepp || Learning the Precious Value of Time
"You don’t really appreciate time unless you’re looking at a diagnosis like cancer. . . You don’t appreciate the time that you have until you know that there…
About ProgressAP 053: Paul Cardall || Rising From a Broken Heart
“I think the reason we all suffer is because it makes us stronger—it’s a strength, it’s a gift in a way . . . I could not write the music that I write had I…
About ProgressAP 052: Heather Jenson ||Achieving Big Goals in Small Ways
“I’m not a professional athlete. I don’t do this to win money and races. I do this to enhance my life and it brings me joy, along with my family . . . As long…
About ProgressAP 051: Ganel-Lyn Condie || Strengthening through Surrendering
“Some of the most challenging, heart-wrenching times of my life have in some ways become the greatest blessings . . . They were the pathways to learning.” The…
About ProgressAP 050: Special Q&A Episode || Navel-Gazing At Its Finest
We've made it to 50 podcast episodes. Woohoo!! I am so thrilled about this, and grateful for those of you who have been with me from the beginning and just as…
About ProgressAP 049: Janssen Bradshaw || Propelling Yourself to Greater Opportunities
"Fear is not a good reason to not do something. What is the worst that could happen? . . . If I can live with that worst case scenario, then I’m going to do it…
About ProgressAP 048: Food, How to Use It, Not Abuse It || Part TWO
Surprise! I have a bonus episode for you this week, and it's Part Two of my series on Food: How to Use it, Not Abuse it. Cultivating a healthy relationship…
About ProgressAP 047: Ralphie Jacobs || Rediscovering Hope in Parenting through the Growth Mindset
"What it means “to grow” is to practice something—one thing really deliberately—and do it over and over again. And then when you make a mistake, you look back…
About ProgressAP 046: Elyse Beard and Ashley Aikele ||Being Your Own Kind Of Brave
“Bravery is being scared, it’s being afraid; but doing it anyway . . . It’s OK to be afraid of something, but own those feelings and rise above.” You think if…
About ProgressAB 045: Nicole Kalkowski || Fighting for Children with Special Needs
“You have unique experiences with each one of your children. I think that working to cultivate happiness in your home, even though you could be going through…
About ProgressAB 044: Briana Johnson || Illuminating the Possibilities for Growth
“It’s so easy to let the fear take over and have your vision crumble, because you want it to work so much and you need it to work so much . . . [But] you need…
About ProgressAP 043: Food, How to Use It, Not Abuse It || Part One
“The way that we relate to food is a manifestation of the way we are showing up or engaging in our life.” Ain’t that the truth, friends? This bit of wisdom…
About ProgressAP 042: Lizzy Jensen || Finding Your Mission in Life, Through Life's Twists and Turns
“I think if you continue to ask and seek . . . and then act on those things you’re feeling, life gets better and better. I think that’s how it’s supposed to be…
About ProgressAP 041: Christopher Clark || Creating a Happy Life, In Spite of Incurable Disease
“I do think you have to choose happiness, because it’s YOUR life. You are in control of your own personal happiness. I could lay in bed sick and angry, or I…
About ProgressAP 040: Emily Nelson || Empowering Yourself to Become the Best Version of You
“Come and give your all. Don’t say, ‘I want to look this way or I want to be this way,’ but, ‘I want to become the best version of myself.’” Emily Nelson is…
About ProgressAP 039: Dr. Jennifer Finlayson-Fife || Approval Seeking vs. True Goodness, How to Do Things for the Right Reasons
"Many of us resist developing ourselves into our own unique expressions of Godliness, of humanity, because we fear the exposure, and the risk, and the…
About ProgressAP 038: Fitness; How to Use It, Not Abuse It
We all know the amazing benefits of exercise: mental acuity, emotional release, increased strength, more consistent metabolism, confidence, and on and on. But…
About ProgressAP 037: Camille Andros || Starting Small, Achieving Big
"The preparation will meet your opportunity, and that is when you can have success. So, you need to work really hard and be ready for when you get that chance…
About ProgressAP 036: Jeni Awerkamp || Valuing Who You Are First, Not What You Do
“It starts with who you are. Then what you do comes so naturally, and so beautifully, that that is respected because you were who you are first.” There is a…
About ProgressAP 035: Cara Baldwin || Embracing a New Life After Divorce
“It’s too easy to give in to the thought that ‘Well, this terrible thing happened to me . . .’ But at the end of the day, you write your own story . . . Your…
About ProgressAP 034: Sometimes, You Don't Make the Cut
"Success is not final, failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts." ~Winston Churchill We have all been there: you bust your behind trying…
About ProgressAP 033: Mark Lukach || Navigating Crisis as a Family
“We didn’t recognize each other, or ourselves. How do you reconcile this? How do you go and redefine how we work together if who we are has taken some pretty…
About ProgressAP 032: Seth Adam Smith || Sharing a Light in the Wilderness
“Depression loves darkness . . . the only way to fight depression is to bring it into the light.” I'm sure you read that article "Marriage Isn't For You" that…
About ProgressAP 031: Lauren Agostinelli-Gessel || Looking For Blessings Despite Chronic Illness
"God didn’t take it away, but I have felt so many times that he has sent living angels to help me through, time and time again." Lauren Agostinelli-Gessel has…
About ProgressAP 030: Andy Proctor || Choosing More Happiness
"There are things you can do to rewire your brain. It’s not going to be fun, it’s not going to be easy. But can you choose to do them? Yes. And will they make…
About ProgressAP 029: Fake It 'Til You Make It
"If you bring forth what is within you, what is within you will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will…
About ProgressAP 028: Celeste Davis || Owning Our Struggles
"Something I’ve really internalized is that it’s never to late to create the kind of life that you want, or to uncreate the life you’re not cool with . . …
About ProgressAP 027: Jessica Dahlquist || Shifting Thinking towards Greater Fulfillment
“Realizing that I am in control of the life I want to live, really allowed me to be the happiest I can be because I’m doing the things that I truly LOVE in…
About ProgressAP 026: Kayti Oldham || Finding Joy in the Real "You"
Kayti Oldham is your best gal who always manages to bring the fun, willingly shares all her makeup knowledge, and makes you feel like a million bucks. But…
About ProgressAP 025: Technology || How to Use it, Not Abuse it
How do you want your loved ones to remember you? Your face illuminated by the light of a screen? Of course not. None of us do. But we are ALL guilty of letting…