My MichaelaRenee.com blog was originally started in 2007, back before "blog" was the name for it, I posted very plain text on a weekly basis to a very unfancy website. But that ejournal (as I called it) went viral and went on to become a three-time award winning memoir titled Teetering on Disaster (2009).
In 2011, I took a nice long hiatus from sharing in this way, likely a combination of blog-out exhaustion and the fact that the market was becoming saturated with blogs. I often wondered how different would my life be if I’d kept running with it, kept up the social media motivation and the hype.
But I took a different journey, I went silent on social media, married my amazing husband, had a beautiful son, and became a licensed marriage and family therapist, published another book and started my private practice. During those years I was able to be fully present as a mom and wife. Today I have a beautiful family, with an incredibly bright child who I was present with for every moment of his young years. Something I will always cherish.
In April, 2017 after my ridiculously long social media break, I set out on a journey to share with others. Insert hashtag #beyou here. In September 2017 @yoga_girl started a 30-day yoga challenge, and that seemed like the perfect way to insert myself wholeheartedly back into the world of transparency on social media.
Each day I challenged myself to be vulnerable and open to the social media community, something I had not done since Teetering on Disaster published in 2009. But yoga has a way of digging into the depths of our being and pushing us to explore what we find. I wasn't sure WHAT I was supposed to be doing, but I knew WHY. Check out this guided meditation on the Power of Why.
Then I had a mind blowing realization...it wasn't ANY ONE THING, but EVERY ONE THING that lead me to where I am now...every single screw up I've ever made, every dead-end road I have ever traversed down...every wrong turn I took...led me to this moment.
It's not just about all the random muddy roads I found myself knee-deep in, staring at a perfectly paved road behind, or just too far ahead to get to. Or even about the lessons that I learned only in complete hindsight. It's about the fact that everything has helped me in some way through something.
Slowly all of the muddy roads I had traversed down, all the messes I'd made, and the muck I'd gotten stuck in became Be You Find Happy, how to find happiness in spite of life's setbacks, encouraging you to live a courageous life of authenticity and speak your truth with grace. When I first started using #beyou in early 2016 there were 5 posts, now there are hundreds of thousands...so...I guess people are looking for ways to be themselves and BE HAPPY.
Be You Find Happy became a revolution and now the podcast has been host to international celebrity guests (and some of the BEST of the podcast transcripts can be found here on the blog) and even blossomed into Empowered, a Motivational Journal For Women.
Empowered, a motivational journal for women is a thought-provoking journal with prompts that encourage and empower the reader to dig deep and cultivate positive change. It is full of motivational and inspirational quotes that I personally have found empowerment with. It's beautifully designed with plenty of pages to write. Each of these prompts is a creation from my heart with the purpose of not only healing but expanding.
I also dreamed of someday having global wings to inspire others, and this has been the most exciting time.
PROMPT
What is screwed up for you and not going well right now?
What's one good take-away from this experience?
What could the positive impact of this be in 5 years?
If you are along for the journey, join me on instagram for inspirational photos! If you feel so inspired, use hashtag #beyoufindhappy (so I can find you), I will keep on the lookout for your posts and we can collaborate!
Thanks for being you, and thanks for being here.