The #1 Way We Sabotage Our Lives & How To Stop Now

Marie Forleo:

Do you keep getting the feeling that you need to make a particular change? It’s you’re soul, just doing its best to just talk with you. I got to tell you, I didn’t want to hear it! Do you want to know what that topic was?

What if I told you that one of the biggest reasons that most people sabotage their lives isn't because they're not smart enough, or they're not working hard enough, or they don't have enough discipline or willpower or this quality or that quality? 

But instead, what if, it's because they're failing to use the one simple tool that some of the world's most happiest and successful people rely on every single day?

And what if that same exact tool, the moment you put it into practice, you’d immediately start improving things like your health, your relationships, you would expand your career, and overall you would start knowing and feeling on a very deep level that you are living into your highest and best purpose on this planet. Without question. 

Would you be interested?

Hey there. I'm Marie Forleo and welcome to another episode of the Marie Forleo podcast and MarieTV, the place to be to create a business and life you love. 

You know, if you're new to the show. Welcome. I'm so happy you're here today because in this episode, I'm going to introduce you to a tool that I want you to start using like immediately.

And I promise you, this does not going to take a ton of your time, right? It's 100% free. It's something you already have access to. And guess what? Most importantly, it works like magic. So what's the tool you might be asking? 

It's called your I.G.S. So, no, this is not some fancy navigation app or some fancy new AI bot. Right.

However, it will automatically point you in the right direction to expand and enrich every aspect of your life every time. 

So your I.G.S. is actually your Internal Guidance System. This is also known as your instincts, your intuition, those little gut hits that whether or not you listen to them, they’re always working to get you to where you're supposed to be, and they're coming from your higher self.

Now, here's the deal…

I bet money, like truly a big fat stack of cash that there is something that your I.G.S. is trying to tell you right now. In fact, I bet you it's probably been sending you signals for like weeks or months, or even years. You know, so often we get these messages right, We get these little nudges from our soul, but we don't want to hear them.

We just kind of stick our fingers in our ears and we go. La la la la la la la la la. Because oftentimes, the truth that our higher self wants us to know and act on is probably inconvenient. It's uncomfortable. It's something that we just don't want to deal with because it involves change. And change can feel really scary and really uncertain.

Or sometimes we don't hear the messages from our I.G.S. because we're habituated to listening to external authorities, right? Like our friends or our family or some kind of expert. And we do this so often that it actually becomes a habit, which means that we totally ignore the wisdom that comes from within. Or, most likely, here's probably the truth of what's going on.

We're so inundated with information, right? 

That's coming in through these things. We're just scrolling them all day long that we can't even detect. We don't even have an awareness that there's another source of wisdom that's trying desperately to support us that's coming from the inside. 

But make no mistake. So your I.G.S., it’s always there. It's always supporting you.

And I believe it's your soul doing its best to just talk with you. To guide you. To show you the things that you need to do in order to fulfill your highest potential to really help you have the most healthy, loving, joyful and abundant experience possible. 

So I want to tell you a little story about my I.G.S. So, a while ago, I was starting to get these inner nudges right from my higher self about a topic that I was not expecting to hear about.

You want to know what that topic was? 

Friggin coffee. 

Now, as you might know, I am a coffee lover. So in my opinion, it's called the nectar of the gods for a damn good reason. I mean, for years, like decades now, I have loved the ritual of my coffee. I love grinding the beans. I love putting it in my French press. I love using my mocha master. I love holding on to my little warm cup. 

It's the best! 

So when my internal guidance system starts sending me these messages like, Hey, Marie, I think you need to cut back a little bit. Or you know what? This love of coffee it's going a little bit overboard. Or, girl, it's 4 p.m.. You do not need any more of that stuff.
I got to tell you, I didn't want to hear it. 

I was like, Oh, hell no. You are not taking my love of coffee away from me. It's not happenin’. Now, even though I resisted listening to those messages honestly, they kept coming and soon it was getting hard to ignore. 

So then there was this one night when I was at this big dinner and there was about 30 high-achieving women there. There were CEOs and creatives, just awesome people. And the focus of the evening was around hormonal health and wellness and holistic self-mastery. I was really excited to be there. Basically, we were all discussing all the things that we can do to feel and perform at our best. And there was this incredible doctor there that night… doctor of Chinese medicine.

She was the guest speaker, and her name was Dr. Christina Burns, who also happens to be a B-schooler by the way. 

So she was fielding questions and folks wanted to hear about her perspective on coffee and specifically whether or not she recommended having coffee first thing in the morning. 

So, of course, my ears are perked up. I can't wait for this discussion.

And here's what she said. Dr. Burns said that having coffee first thing on an empty stomach is tantamount to like dumping acid in your stomach. She talked about how it can be really terrible if you have any digestive issues. 

Hello!

And it also wreaks havoc on your hormones and your mental health because when you've got no food in your little tummy, that means there's no buffer.

So I'm sitting there listening to this, and I'm like, Oh boy, because my habit for years has been to wake up. I got a tall glass of water and then you know what I do? I drink my damn coffee. 

And then she said that she said, For those of us who sometimes struggle with things like stress or anxiety or overwhelm.

Hello!

Coffee is basically like adding fuel to the fire. It can make us more impatient and anxious and frenetic and short fuzed and all those wonderful things that, of course, we all want to be. Not. You know what I mean.
So here's the kicker, though. So she said, quite frankly, if you feel like you need coffee, right? Then there's something off with your routine that actually needs to be addressed because you are using coffee as a crutch.

And I was like, boom, mic drop moment. 

That is me. That is me. That is more me. And that was honestly it. 

After weeks of all these internal nudges from my soul. And then, now, this little divine magic brought me into this room so I could be a part of this conversation. 

That was the moment I said to myself, I don't need to just dial down my coffee consumption. I need to kick this habit to the curb because my body is clearly screaming for a reset. 

And so I did it! I just stopped drinking my beloved coffee. And Josh was like, Who the hell are you? And then my best friend Kris, we have coffee so many times a week on our FaceTime meetings together. She was like, What happened?

But I knew my internal guidance system never steers me wrong. And so, what I did is I just stairstepped myself down, right? I went from a gazillion cups of coffee a day. I got down to some mate, then I went down to just one nice little cup of green tea in the morning. 

And I have to tell you, almost instantly, I started feeling better.

So before this, I was starting to struggle with these afternoon slumps that are totally gone. I was also struggling a little bit with my sleep. It wasn't as good as it used to be. Now I'm sleeping way better.

I find myself having so much better focus and so much better concentration and way better moods. And, of course, a lot more energy than before, which I didn't honestly think was going to happen.

And it was all kind of magical. 

Now, look, I want to be clear. Am I saying that I'm never going to have a damn cup of coffee again? No, I am not saying that. And by the way, I still think coffee is awesome. It's beautiful. I love it. Appreciate it. I'm just not drinking it at the moment because clearly my body is saying, no, this is not for you right now.

And let me be clear, I'm not telling you what to drink or what not to drink. 

But the whole point here is that my internal guidance system was leading me to the exact change that I needed to make in order to feel and be my best. And I promise you, your internal guidance system is doing the same for you right now, like in this very moment.

So I want to ask you and I want you to answer this – What messages or signals or internal nudges have you been receiving lately? 

Do you keep getting the feeling or the idea that you need to make a particular change or move in a new direction or just shift something in some area of your life so it might be about your health like it was for me?

Maybe it's about your career or relationship, or maybe you just keep getting nudges to start this new product or program. It might be about taking more time off in your life, right? 

Maybe it's about traveling to a certain place that you can't get it out of your head or finally starting that dream or starting that project that you can't stop thinking about.

So I want you to really ask yourself, what is it? What is that thing? Let me know in the comments below. 

I'm really curious because I want to encourage you to listen. 

And the reason I want to encourage you about that is because here's the truth that you need to know. When there is something in your heart that keeps coming up for you, something that you really want to see happen.

It's a message that you just keep getting over and over and over again. It's there because your internal guidance system is nudging you towards that change you're supposed to make. And when any of us hold back from listening to those internal messages… When we stay stuck in our ways, stuck in our habits when we play small. First of all, we're totally miserable.

But second, what we're really doing, we're wasting our precious time, our energy, and most importantly, the gifts we're on the planet to give. Now, if you're saying to me, but Marie, I don't think I have any ideas. I don't hear any kind of messages. I don't get any kind of signals. I promise you this. 

You do? Everyone has one.

You just may not be practiced at hearing and receiving those kind of signals yet. So if that's you, here are three things that you can start doing right now to begin getting those messages. 

So the first thing I want you to do is answer the question in the comments below or you can answer in your journal. What is that internal message?

What is that signal that you've been getting or hearing in your heart or seeing in your mind, or just feeling in your body again and again and again? You've either been ignoring it, or you've been too afraid to listen to it because it might require some courage and you to make some changes. 

Just pretend, right? 

Just pretend you know how to answer this question. Make it up, have fun. Just freewrite. Because I promise you, everyone has this internal source of wisdom within them. Most of us just aren't practiced at listening. 

Now, the next thing I want you to do, if you need to really tune in. Is go outside and take a walk, like at least a ten minute walk. Don't listen to a friggin podcast. Don't call your friend. Don't look at your damn phone. Just take a walk. 

Breathe and feel your body. 

And after about 5 minutes, you could say, you know, internal guidance system. I'm here and I'm listening. What's the one thing you want me to know that I might not have been paying attention to? 

And finally, the last one. I know it's super popular. I know you heard it a million times, but it is meditate. 

So meditation works and you don't need to do it for hours a day. You don't need to go to a mountaintop. You don't need to become a monk. 5 to 10 minutes is all you need. In fact, I've got a free downloadable ten-minute guided meditation over at marieforleo.com. 

So if you just Google up Marie Forleo free guided meditation, you'll get it. 

Bottom line is this, when an idea keeps tugging at you. Pay attention. That's your soul raising its hand, saying, I need you to look at this. Will you come look at this? Hey, it's time for you to look at this. 

Because if you do, it’ll set you free.

That is how your soul guides you to stay on your path and ultimately fulfill your highest purpose. 

And if you're anything like I was doing something out of habit that could be detrimental to your mental health, or your physical health, or emotional health, or even financial health. I guarantee you that you're getting signals right now from your internal guidance system.

The million-dollar question is, are you going to be wise enough and humble enough to listen? 

Until next time, stay on your game and keep going for your big dreams, because guess what? The world really does need that very special gift that only you have.

Oh my goodness! If you loved that episode, do me a big favor– hit that subscribe button now. Not only will it mean the world to me, but it’ll make sure that you never miss an episode, and more importantly, it’ll help us reach more amazing, incredible souls just like you. So hit that subscribe button, and I’ll see you soon.