221. How to Lose Half of Your Guilt

44m
Glennon, Abby, and Amanda help us shed guilt through a freeing reframe inspired by a conversation with Dr. Becky Kennedy.

Listen to learn: How to know what is true guilt and what is just the uncomfortable ickiness of defying expectations; how to hold boundaries in order to live shamelessly within our own values; and how to maintain empathy by staying with our own emotions instead of internalizing the emotions of others.

Also, we need your help inventing a word for the “not guilt” feeling!

Get Dr. Becky Kennedy's "Good Inside Guilt Guide," to find out if what you're feeling is truly "guilt" or something else, here: https://forms.gle/Aad1g5LSBNFZoXaN6.

Check out our past conversations with Dr. Becky Kennedy, and the Dr. Brené Brown episodes we talk about today:
Ep 170 The Most Radical Way to Heal: Internal Family Systems with Dr. Becky Kennedy;
Ep 169 Why We Love the Way We Love: Attachment Styles with Dr. Becky Kennedy;
Ep 131 How to Raise Untamed Kids with Dr. Becky Kennedy;
Ep 130 Breaking Cycles and Reparenting Yourself with Dr. Becky Kennedy;
Ep 88 Brené Brown & Barrett Guillen: Sisters Double Date;
Ep 83 Brené Brown: What to Say to Get What You Need;
Ep 49 Dr. Brené Brown: On Holding Boundaries & Facing Our Fears; and
Ep 48 Dr. Brené Brown: How to Know Ourselves & Be Known By Our People.

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

Listen and follow along

Transcript

I think that I know more than anyone on this entire planet that having the right therapist to talk to can make a life-changing difference.

That's why I think Alma is so cool.

Alma connects you with real therapists who understand your unique experience.

You can use their directory to search for someone who specializes in the areas that matter most to you, whether that's anxiety, relationships, or anything else.

And what stands out to me about Alma is that 97% of people seeing a therapist through Alma say their therapist made them feel seen and heard.

You know I love that.

That level of connection isn't something you can get from scrolling through online advice or following social media.

It's about finding someone who truly understands your journey and is dedicated to helping you make progress.

Better with people, better with Alma.

Visit hello alma.com/slash hardthings to get started and schedule a free consultation today.

That's hello A L M A dot com slash hardthings.

It's the beginning of a new school year and also the classroom sniffles and sneezes that go along with it.

From home to school and back, stock up with Kleenex Ultra Soft Tissues.

Start the school year off the right way by preparing for the messes that come with it.

You don't want to be caught without a tissue on hand to help.

Kleenex Ultra Soft tissues are soft and absorbent to stand up against runny noses, to keep you and your family clean and comforted as the school year starts.

This back to school season, make sure to get the classroom essential that teachers and students can rely on.

For whatever happens next, grab Kleenex.

Hello, welcome to We Can Do Hard Things.

We

love you.

Yes, we do.

Thanks for coming back.

Can you believe they keep coming back?

I can now.

It's just like, I don't know.

It feels like a morning meeting every single day.

So nice.

All that adulting we have to do out there.

And it's so nice to have a place where we can come and talk about humaning.

So many tricky things happening all the time.

There are so many tricky things happening all the time.

And that is correct.

Without overpromising, what I'm telling you today is that we are going to change your life.

No, for real, because what we're going to do today is talk about how to reframe guilt and what is guilt and what is not guilt and how we have been discussing how to free ourselves of 75% of what we consider guilt in our lives that is not at all guilt and is actually good shit.

So let's get into this reframing because because I think it could take a lot of weight off your shoulders.

So I'm going to try to describe it in my own way, even though I did not generate these ideas.

I heard these ideas from Dr.

Becky.

Does Dr.

Becky have a last name?

Kennedy.

Oh, Dr.

Becky Kennedy.

I didn't know if she was like...

Beyonce or Adele, you know?

Well, she's getting there.

Yeah, she's getting there.

Okay.

Dr.

Becky Kennedy, you know how much we love Dr.

Becky.

She's the good inside person.

Good inside, good inside.

Yeah.

She presents as a parenting expert, but she's a Trojan horse.

Okay.

You go in there thinking you're going to get some tips about your parenting and then she just messes you all up and then she fixes you.

Okay.

So that's right.

Because everyone thinks there's something terribly wrong with their kids.

No one thinks there's something terribly wrong with themselves.

Exactly.

It's like when I was like, I feel like my eyes are two different sizes in my pictures.

And then I realized, no, my eyes are just two different sizes.

It's like, I feel like there's something wrong with my parenting.

And then you realize, oh, no, no, no, no, there's something molecularly wrong with me.

And I need to rearrange myself and then my kids will be fine.

Okay.

Dr.

Becky was talking about this concept.

Now I need

help explaining this because, sister, you were there.

You were not there, babe.

So you will be able to.

tell me if this is making sense.

Okay.

And I'm actually going to run this by Dr.

Becky before

I release it so that she can fix it if it needs to be.

All right.

Guilt.

Let us talk about guilt for a second because

the idea is that we are overusing the term and diagnosis of guilt when we feel guilty.

So Dr.

Becky said that guilt

is what happens inside of us when we do something outside of our values.

So for example, I'm going to actually just use a parenting example right now to describe this, but like, let's say, so one time when one of my kids was little, they told me something

in slight confidence, and I shared it with a friend.

And then the friend said something in front of the kids that made it obvious that I had told

my friend.

I know, very bad.

Busted.

And so, not bad, just bust it.

Just bust it.

So, but I'm still good inside.

So, yes.

So, in that moment, I felt guilt

because I had done something outside of my

values because I value the trust that I have with my kid.

I value confidence.

I value privacy.

I

did not honor that.

I felt guilty.

Correct use of guilt.

Now,

we actually call a million other things guilt that are what Dr.

Becky calls not guilt.

Okay, so for example, we call mom guilt guilt.

Mom guilt is this idea that, okay, now here's a different scenario.

I

am going out to dinner with a friend

and my kid is like, don't leave me, don't leave me.

You're the worst, don't leave me.

I'm crying, crying.

And then I say, I see you're upset, but I'm going to go meet with my friend.

And then I go to dinner.

And then I sit there and I say to my friend, I'm having so much mom guilt right now because I left my kid.

That is not guilt because that is not acting outside of my values.

I value my child seeing that I have friendships, that I have social connections, that I have a life outside of this home, that they can handle their business if I leave for an hour, that they have resilience, that I'm going to come back, that they can trust the people we love, leave and come back.

Everything I'm doing right now is inside of my values.

So what I'm feeling when I'm sitting at dinner is something.

It's something.

It feels uncomfortable, but it is not guilt.

So here's the difference to me.

Dr.

Becky called it guilt and not guilt.

Guilt is what I feel when I have acted outside of my values.

What I think not guilt is,

is the discomfort I feel when I have acted outside of cultural pressure or values.

So for example, if I work outside the home

and

I go to an event or something where all the moms there do not work outside the home

or work inside the home.

And

they have more knowledge.

I'm maybe speaking from experience here.

They have more knowledge about what is going on at school and what is going on between children.

And I feel something inside me.

Yeah.

I feel something inside of me.

The lazy response to that, or what I have been taught to feel, is that that is mom guilt.

No, it's not because working actually for me outside the home is not

against my values.

Working inside the home is not against my values either.

I've done both.

But

at this moment, I value the fact that my kids are seeing me do the work that I do in the world.

And not just in reference to your kids, because you're saying you value your kids seeing you go out to dinner, you value your kids seeing you work.

You actually just value going out to dinner with your friends and you value actually working.

Right.

That's so it doesn't.

I mean, ancillarily, is that a word?

Ancillarily?

It also is helpful for your kids to see it.

But I think it's good to claim.

That's good.

If only for me, I value it.

Yeah.

I value this.

Good.

I value this.

I value working.

I value going out.

So I'm not doing anything against my own values.

That's even better.

So I think it's helpful for all of us to think about when we feel guilty, it's something that we have done outside of our values that we need to maybe apologize for, maybe make right.

But there is this whole other discomfort that we feel when we are acting outside of what the culture has told us to do.

So I feel icky and sad because I have absorbed these messages from the culture that I'm supposed to have no life outside of

the children.

Or what's another example that has nothing to do with it?

I have an example.

Okay, great.

Because yours are from the like family perspective of kids and stuff.

I think what's interesting is that you hear so often

about it in terms of boundaries.

So it doesn't necessarily have to be cultural

expectations.

I think it can be anyone's expectations.

For example, if you are always doing more than you should at work, if you are always saying yes when you mean no to your parents, if you are always taking on the extra volunteer position in your community, and then you start to adjust that,

those expectations of all those people around you are going to be troubled.

And you will feel that and you will think it is guilt because you're quote unquote letting people down.

But if your value in setting a boundary is I'm valuing my time, I'm valuing my rest.

I am a person who values rest.

I am a person who values doing things I want to do and not doing things begrudgingly I don't want to do.

Yes.

Then you are actually acting within your values, maybe for the first time.

Yes.

And there's going to be tolmit there that you think is guilt.

And when you think something's guilt, you think that there's something you need to do to fix it.

So you undo that boundary.

Exactly.

And what I think we need to shore up is that there are some guilt.

that we feel and guilt is when we've acted outside of our values.

That needs to be fixed or repaired.

But we need to be able to identify this other discomfort that is just, I have held a value of my own.

Yes.

Guilt is: I've betrayed a value of my own.

The other one is, I've withheld a boundary of my own, and that is making forces outside of me uncomfortable.

So, for example, I am a workaholic who has decided I am actually going to rest,

and I have a feeling inside of me when I say no to that thing.

And I need to not fix it, but

create resilience for this discomfort, which is this feeling inside of me means I am

being loyal to my value as opposed to betraying my value.

But we are labeling both as guilt.

Whether you are working remotely or in office, many of us require collaborating with team members on projects, tasks, and outcomes.

Monday.com is one of our sponsors and a platform that our team at Treat Media has actually used to coordinate our workflow.

It is a platform that helps you from planning to execution, thinks ahead to deadlines, assign owners and actions, and allows you to see progress as a team.

It actually helps us get some work done.

There is a lot of AI out there, but not a lot actually moves the needle.

Monday.com's sidekick is different.

It can actually build workflows, spot risks, update the team.

You just say what you need, and you can consider it done.

Sidekick in Monday.com saves so much time.

Using our Sidekick integration, help to update deadlines, brief teammates, reassign tasks, and it even helps us spot risks before they actually become problems.

Stop managing the busy work.

Let Monday Sidekick handle it so you can focus on the real work.

Try Monday Sidekick, AI, you'll love to use on Monday.com.

so essentially we're saying okay you make a decision that isn't in line with your values and you feel bad about it

that is that is a form of guilt that is in the right alignment with the definition that we're trying to talk about and then here on the other side you have made a decision that is in line with your values

but not in line with out their values people out there the culture the family, and whatever.

And yes, we are experiencing emotions, but that emotion is different.

It's just discomfort in staying true to your value, but while maybe going in opposition to the values of other people and the outside world.

Yes.

So there's three options for every decision.

One,

it's in line with my values and in line with everybody else's values.

I feel comfortable and happy.

Option two: I have made a decision that is outside of my values.

I feel guilty.

Number three, I've made a decision that is aligned with my values, but not necessarily aligned with somebody else's expectations of me.

I feel something.

It is not guilt.

What is that?

It is the ickiness that comes when I have stayed true to myself, but abandoned someone else's expectations.

God, why does that feel like that?

And that we need to build resilience for.

Yeah.

And I would just add a fourth category,

which is why I think expectations

is good language for this.

It's like someone else's expectations because

I think there's a fourth category where you can be operating within your own values, consistent with your values, and also be operating inconsistent with your expectations of yourself.

So for example, and that might be the hardest place to be.

So in your workaholism thing,

it's like, or in your,

I am a person who hustles and gets shit done.

Maybe I am going to make a decision to let something be

a solid B effort because I have a value to do X this weekend.

And so I'm making that decision in line with my values, but it is not in line with my expectations of myself, which is to make sure I always am doing A plus stuff.

And that is the hardest thing because it's very tricky to determine what is an expectation of yourself that needs to be adjusted as opposed to a value of yourself that needs to be upheld.

Yes.

Damn.

Very good.

Okay.

Uh-huh.

Okay.

Okay.

I get it.

And

one reason to do this also is because when we decide

what it is, the importance for me of knowing whether if this is guilt or not guilt, is if if this is the feeling that I'm abandoning my own values or the feeling that I'm abandoning other values.

Other expectations.

Other expectations.

Or yeah, is that that determines our posture next.

Okay.

So I'm going to go back to the mom example and then we can move into a different one.

But if I am working or I am meeting a friend and I don't figure out which one that is, if I settle on, oh, this is guilt.

My posture is, I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

You know, I come home.

I'm, oh, baby.

The guilt that we show

when we misidentify as guilt is that we in our body, in our voices, in our energy are apologizing.

And that signals to the other person.

that we've done something wrong, which then they understand

this is wrong.

For example, if if it's the work thing and I'm like, no, I actually am ending at five.

I'm done.

I'm going to go home and I'm going to rest.

And because that's in line with my values, or it's in line with an aspirational value, right?

Like,

it's aspirational.

One day I'm going to believe this shit.

So I'm faking it.

I'm going to do it until I believe it.

Right.

And that's a lot of times what we're doing.

Yeah.

It's the story of my entire existence.

Right.

But I would argue that an aspirational value is our value, or we wouldn't be longing for it.

right?

It's just something we haven't lived into yet.

But if I identify that feeling that I have afterwards as guilt, then I'm apologetic in my,

oh, I know, but tomorrow I'm going to work later, or, you know, I'm so sorry.

I'll do, I'll do more work over the weekend.

And that signals to everyone else that what she's doing is not okay.

And then I'm complicit with the whole thing.

That continues the pattern that I'm trying to break, as opposed to somebody seeing me say, I'm actually going to be done at five and that's all

and they're like wow we can do that yeah then that is changing

the values i think that that's so so important the way that we respond to it even in our bodies right it can either defeat the whole purpose of what we're trying to go yes and and be in value of or it can then project

even more of the same stuff that we're trying to get away from.

Yes.

And just as important as it is to model that, I think it's equally important in our posture towards ourselves because then you're like, I am full of tolit.

This wasn't correct.

I am continuing to try to figure out what parts of this are right and what parts of it are wrong, as opposed to just

having solidity in that.

So when you come home being like, you're sad and that's okay.

Like, I was gone and you're sad and that's okay.

And that's, that's right for you.

And I had so much.

And what's right for me is that I just went and did that.

Yeah.

So we're meeting on this grassy plain where you are right and I am right.

It's lovely to meet you here.

What makes it so excruciating is like we're really

trying to act out these deep, like breaking these deep-seated conditionings.

Yes.

And it's like, it's torture because it's like you've done this thing your whole life, you've believed this thing, or you've been taught this thing unknowingly.

And to go kind of against that grain and to walk in your own integrity and in your own value, sometimes it is in opposition to what you've been conditioned to believe to be true.

Exactly, that's what all these things are.

Yep.

I'll be honest, Instacart has become one of those things that I really rely on way more than I ever expected.

Life is busy.

Between all the work and family and just trying to keep up with the day-to-day, getting to the store isn't always realistic.

With delivery through Instacart, I can shop my favorite stores right from my phone.

Whether I'm out of coffee, which happens all the time, or need to restock on snacks or forgot that one freaking dinner ingredient happens to all of us, it's all just a few taps away.

And sometimes it shows up in under 30 minutes, which still blows my mind.

Instacart brings convenience, quality, and ease right to your door.

So you can focus on what matters most.

Download the Instacart app and use code HardThingsPod20 to get $20 off your first order of $80 or more.

That's code HardThingsPod20 to get $20 off your first order of $80 or more.

Offers valid for a limited time, excludes restaurants, additional terms apply.

And now I have another thing that Dr.

Becky said that is going to help this.

How do you do this shit?

How do you do this?

Okay.

So

Dr.

Becky said

that she wanted us to imagine a tennis game.

Is it a match?

A tennis

situation.

The tennis.

The tennis.

Okay, so think about a tennis field.

Match.

It's a court.

okay think about a tennis court yeah one person's on one side the other person's on the other side okay

so

you are making a decision let's go to the example of i'm gonna stop work at five o'clock or she used the example of i'm not gonna go to my brother's cookout on sunday because my family is tired we need some family time Let's just stick with hers because I think we're closer to get to the essence of what she wants to know.

Let's stick with hers because that worked when she said.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Right.

Okay.

so

we call our brother and we say

i'm actually not gonna host a barbecue on sunday because my family needs some rest and we're just gonna have some family time that is us

hitting the ball over the net we have done our part we have clearly and kindly stated what we're gonna do that is not the hard part because the hardest part of boundaries is not setting setting the boundary.

The hardest part of boundaries is holding the boundary.

It's not saying the thing, it's what happens next.

Because what happens next is, all right, the ball is now in the brother's court.

The brother or anybody to whom you deliver

a boundary, a boundary to, has every right to have feelings about it.

They're going to have feelings.

That's what people have.

That brother might hit the ball back to you or try to to hit the ball back to you with some sort of like, but

whoa, but I hosted you last weekend.

I hosted you last weekend or, but we miss you.

We love you.

Or why are you so selfish?

It could be, it could be a lot of things.

I'm really looking forward to this.

Right.

For those of us who are extremely sensitive to other people's emotions, it could be a turn of an eyeball.

It could be like

a smile that goes different.

It could be.

It could be a text back that says, Kay, period.

Oh, God.

Oh, God.

Then you just have to burn your phone.

It doesn't have to be a, you're so selfish.

Like, for me, all it has to be that somebody else does is a raised eyebrow.

Now, here's what we do.

What we do is we internalize into our bodies the other person's reaction.

We have delivered the boundary.

We have the peace inside of us.

We

are okay.

Then the other person has whatever their reaction is or whatever our perception of their reaction is and what we do is we embody it we bring it into our body we were fine a second ago and now it's like invasion of the body snatchers and for anyone who is like me you can understand what i'm saying it sounds weird but it's like no you're not yourself anymore you are now internalizing the imagined feelings of the other person okay

now

The really interesting part of this is the reason we have to avoid this, that we have to not let our bodies be invaded,

is because we're making that shit up.

We can't embody someone else's feelings.

So now we're not even seeing the other person because we have an imagined experience of the other person in our body.

So now we're not having our own experience and we're not seeing the other experience.

We're just completely invaded.

Just assuming, you know.

We're assuming.

Yep.

Right.

Now, in case it's getting weird, I want to explain that I saw this happen

a couple of days ago, okay, outside of myself, because usually I'm the one getting invaded.

So I want to say, pause for a second.

Okay.

Because it is both in the, I'm assuming, I know how you feel, and also

in the case of

not having to guess, you could have a really thoughtful, great relationship where the brother says, I'm actually really hurt.

My family was really looking forward to doing this.

I didn't feel like doing this last week and I did it.

Like it really hurts me.

And so there can be a very clear, you don't have to assume or fill in any gaps situation.

And yet the same still applies.

So I just want to make sure that like,

yeah, the theory we're talking about now works with both the assuming what other person is thinking and when you have a very clear read on even if the person has sensitively and thoughtfully given you explanation of how they feel as a result of your boundary.

Exactly.

And either way, you just kind of want to die inside because you're.

Well, you want to fix it.

You want to make it better.

What you have just created, the mess that you have just created,

you hit your ball over, they hit it back, and you're like, okay, got the ball now.

I'll take care of it.

Yeah.

And you're not even there yet.

You're just like a mess of the other person's feelings.

You are trying to experience it.

Okay.

Here's what happened.

So I'm at our little local grocery store recently, and there's

a woman who's a cashier who works there quite often.

And I just adore her for some reason.

She's like,

I don't know.

She's an old lady who calls me honey.

So it's done for me.

I'm just in love with her.

That's all it takes, people.

That's all it takes.

Stop trying so hard.

You just have to call people honey and you're all good.

If you're an older woman,

anyone else, then I, you're dead to me.

Yeah, no, no, no.

Clearly, yes.

Right.

So

She is checking people out.

Now, I will say about my friend, she's not the fastest checker outer.

Okay.

Not the fastest.

Look at you so evolved.

You're liking even slow checker outers these days.

God, this therapy is working.

Well, I mean, it's one of those places where there's only ever like four people in line.

Okay.

So it's not.

So there's this person in line who's right in front of me.

And my beloved cashier is doing her checking and she is not going super fast.

And this person in front of me is so pissed about it.

And I don't even think that this person was saying any words, but it was just like they were, their body was so obviously annoyed and like shifting feet and rolling eyes and doing all of these things that was so obvious.

Cause once again, this is a small place.

There's only four people in line.

So I am behind this person.

My, I'm my body is gone.

I'm invasioned of the body snatchers, but I'm half internalizing this person's angst.

Mostly I'm internalizing how I think the cashier is feeling about this person's discomfort.

So I am livid.

I am hurt.

I am upset.

I am everybody in the room.

I am hating this person in front of me.

Okay.

Just homicidal, this person in front of me who is hurting the feelings of my favorite cashier who calls me honey.

By the time this person in front of me gets to the cash register, I'm sweating.

I am in hatred.

My cashier friend has made no changes,

has not reacted in any way to this human being.

It is as if she has not noticed,

which is impossible not to notice.

Everyone has noticed.

The person gets to the front, and my cashier friend looks at the person with complete serenity and says, Oh, are you in a hurry, honey?

With no judgment just are you in a hurry honey

and the person in front of me takes a second and says

yeah my dog's at homesick

and then the cashier friend said okay

and finished doing their things

and then checked out now

I have experienced the equivalent of a marathon.

I am tired.

I need a nap.

Now you're so worried about this person's dog.

You're questioning every moral judgment you've ever made about everyone.

That's right.

Because a dog comes in.

Okay.

Now here's what I want to say about that whole entire experience.

It made me think of

our friend Dr.

Brene Brown.

We will list all of these episodes, the Dr.

Becky episodes, Dr.

Brene Brown's episode.

A study.

that Dr.

Brene Brown did where she and her team canvassed all these people.

She cares about facts.

So she doesn't just say how she feels.

Okay.

She's one of those weird ones.

She's one of those weird ones.

She has like charts and she's a scientist.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Like I always say, Brene is just a shame researcher.

And so am I.

But my field is the whole world in my life.

I just do things, feel shame, and then study myself.

She

wanted to find out what people who were the most most compassionate had in common.

The most compassionate people,

what is the one thing that they most had in common?

And they had a lot of hypotheses, such as maybe they all have a spiritual practice, maybe they all meditate, maybe they all have good parents, maybe they have what, you know, who knows?

Do you know what the number one thing that all of the most compassionate people had in common?

What?

They call people honey?

They had the strongest and most consistent boundaries oh

the strongest and most consistent boundaries why is that oh

because my cashier friend when she is not letting her body be snatched by another person She can actually

see that other person.

The other person is still an other to her.

So she can empathize with them.

She can empathize with them.

If we go back to our friend who's telling their brother,

I really am not going to do the barbecue.

And the brother says, that makes me so sad.

We hosted, we did the thing.

And then I don't take it all in.

I'm still looking at my brother thinking,

my brother's really sad.

My brother really loves me.

We have this situation where I need this time on Sunday and I'm going to take it and I'm going to keep it.

And

my brother's sad and loves me and my family and wants to make this work.

So I say to my brother, that's beautiful.

And I love you too.

When are we going to see each other again?

Yeah.

There's no problem that needs to be fixed.

Yeah.

She used the example that you could actually, when you don't take the ball back, like, so how it plays out when you take the ball back is you take the ball back and from your brother and then you say, okay, oh, never mind.

You're right.

You're right.

You're right.

You're right.

I feel what you feel.

And I am now going to schlep my family out to your place and we're going to do the barbecue.

And the way that works is you've just trampled your own boundary.

So you're pissed and resentful because you have actually acted contrary to your value, which knew that you needed family time.

So when you put the like glass wall on the tennis court and when the brother hits it, it stays with him, then you can see him and you can actually be like, you know what?

I understand your frustration.

I honestly would be pissed too.

If you made plans with me, I was relying on them and then you backed out of it.

I'd be sad and frustrated and annoyed too.

And I totally had that.

So you actually are able to connect in the way where you can see them with their feeling

instead of taking their feeling into you.

And then you can't see yourself or them.

Yeah, that's same with the kid thing.

If you come home and you're like, you're sad, so I'm sad.

But if you're keeping, no, I'm acting within my value and you're sad, and now we're two people that are having two different feelings together.

And where do we go from there?

So our dogs, Honey and Hattie, are sweet, spoiled, and insanely picky when it comes to food.

We've tried all kinds of brands over the years.

Some would get a sniff and then completely ignored.

Others, maybe once and never again.

But Ollie, it's a total game changer.

Ollie delivers clean, fresh meals made with human-grade ingredients.

No fillers, no preservatives, just real food.

And the flavors, things like fresh beef with sweet potatoes or fresh turkey with blueberries, I've caught myself thinking, this dog eats better than I do.

Dogs deserve the best, and that means fresh, healthy food.

Head to ollie.com/slash hardthings.

Tell them all about your dog, and use code hardthings to get 60% off your welcome kit when you subscribe today.

Plus, they offer a happiness guarantee on the first box.

So, if you're not completely satisfied, you'll get your money back.

That's ollie.com/slash/hardthings, and enter code hardthings to get 60% off your first box.

So, can I just bring back to the tennis court analogy a little bit?

So, the ball goes over to the brother.

Brother's going to have his feelings.

He's going to try to hit that ball back to you.

And

we are supposed to then acknowledge, okay, he's going to have his feelings, but almost put this like

invisible cloak around us that those feelings are real, but they are not going to enter our bodies.

Right.

They need to stay with him.

Got it.

His feelings stay with him.

So, what she's saying is either push the ball back and not in an aggressive way, but just like, oh,

this was getting confused, but that ball belongs to you.

And I'm going to give it back to its rightful owner.

Right.

And you're not saying that.

No, you're not saying it, but in your mind,

you're like, I'm going to analyze this ball coming back to me.

Is this guilt or is this not guilt?

First, I analyze, have I acted consistent with my values?

Okay.

My value is to know that when I need rest, know when my family needs family time, know we need a quiet weekend.

Okay.

Yes.

So check.

So since I've acted in accordance with my values, I know this is

not guilt that I'm feeling.

It's not guilt.

So that means that the ball that's coming back to me actually belongs on the other side of the net.

And so I'm going to gently push it back.

And now that it's where it belongs,

I can say, God, it sucks to have that ball.

And I'm sorry that like you're feeling that way.

And I'd be feeling that way too.

And what should we do next?

Also, I've still made the right decision for my family.

Cool, yeah, it has to do with embodiment.

Yeah, I think it has to do with embodiment, like

learning to embody your own feelings,

not take on other people's stuff.

And remembering that for all of my love bugs out there who are afraid that that's not kind,

what I'm saying to you is

that

that is what makes people kind

is the ability to keep your own feelings and see other people's feelings for their feelings so that you can see them and truly empathize with them.

Because we can't empathize when we are not containing ourselves and seeing other people.

I have a question that is probably like the varsity level question of this that we didn't get to when Dr.

Becky was teaching us this.

But

how do I know that it's consistent with my values?

Because if I'm doing the self-analysis on that particular scenario that she outlined, where I'm like, okay, I had committed to go to this barbecue, my brother's hosting.

I

now know that I definitely don't want to go.

If I'm doing that self-analysis, there are three sets of values that I could be thinking about.

I have a value

to be committed to showing up for my family and integrating my family with meaningful time together.

I have a value to keep my commitments that I make to people and be trustworthy.

My word is reliable.

I have a value to honor what I know my family needs.

And in this moment, we need rest and time together.

My question is, how the hell do I know?

Because something that is in line with value number three

is necessarily not in line with value number two and arguably value number one in that situation.

So I think that's the hardest part.

Agreed.

Yeah.

How do you do that?

I think to me, I think about it from like a priority level.

Like, yes, we have a lot of values, things that we really care about, but every circumstance,

certain values rise a little bit higher in priority than others.

And to me, that's that's kind of how I weigh some decisions.

And that's just like kind of instinctive.

And then, of course, it's like communicating with the people around you, your family, figuring out what the values of this specific situation will rise to the top or fall a little.

Yeah, because it is true that these are nuanced decisions.

So you can have values that are, that feel clashing.

Like, you know, the other day, I was like, do you want to do this thing for work?

And it's like, well, I value building our business.

I value connection.

I value value these things.

I also value saying no and resting and not doing things.

So in those situations, I really do think, okay, what makes me feel clenchy and what makes me feel expansive?

What makes me feel warm?

What makes me feel cold?

That sounds so woo-woo and cheesy, but that is truly how.

And also I always think this.

Do I want to do this thing today or tomorrow?

I am constantly making plans for some future version of myself because I think that person's going to be different than the person I am right now.

Like I'm constantly like, sure, I'll want to do that.

Since it's a month from now, I'll be a different person by then.

I have never really wanted to.

I've never woken up and been like, yes, I can't wait.

No, you're inviting me to a party.

Do I want to go to that tonight?

If I don't want to go to that tonight, I am not going to want to do that in 30 tonights, right?

I think the one way to think about it that I just thought of is that resentment is my superpower.

And by that, I mean it's the opposite of that, that

trying to

be a hero and quote unquote do the right thing

for and to others when your most honest self knows that doing that quote unquote right thing will actually introduce your own resentment

towards the person and in the relationship,

then it's bullshit that you're doing the right thing.

Yes.

Picture yourself getting ready to go do that thing.

Do you feel bitter and resentful?

Then don't go because you're doing nobody any favors.

Right.

So I think that's a good, at least if for people like me, when you're caught between,

am I acting consistent with value system one, two, or three?

It's like, am I introducing

resentment in me towards someone I love or respect

or as part of the ecosystem of our relationship.

And if the answer is yes,

and you think you're doing that to do the right thing, you're actually not.

You're doing the lazy ass thing, which is what I do, which is like, okay, well, then I don't have to be confused about whether I'm making the right decision.

So I'll just do it, but I'll just be pissy and resentful internally.

And that will no doubt affect this relationship.

Exactly.

I want there to be a word

for

the not guilt.

Like, what is the word for the thing we feel inside of us when we are

betraying

an expectation or a cultural value or someone else's feelings?

So we feel icky.

I was just going to say it's ick.

It's icky, but it needs to like be more specific than that.

Should we say like it's the good guilt?

I don't know if we should keep guilt.

I don't think it's guilt.

I don't think the, yeah, good guilt is like the vibe.

Yeah.

But what is the word?

If any pod squad, I've been thinking about this and I can't come up with it, which is making me,

you know, that I like a word.

I like a word.

So inconsistent with your values to not have a word.

Yes.

Yes.

So if you think of what that word is or you have any ideas about this, let me know because I think we need to help each other build that resilience.

So if you can think of a word for us, let us know, call us, email us.

And also, we want to hear your thoughts and ideas about this, right?

This is a big deal.

Women in guilt.

Oh my goodness.

We need a huge cultural reframe on all of this.

So thanks for hanging in there with us.

Dial in 747-200-5307.

We will see you next time, love bugs.

Bye.

See ya.

If this podcast means something to you, it would mean so much to us if you'd be willing to take 30 seconds to do each or all of these three things.

First, can you please follow or subscribe to We Can Do Hard Things?

Following the pod helps you because you'll never miss an episode and it helps us because you'll never miss an episode.

To do this, just go to the We Can Do Hard Things show page on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Odyssey, or wherever you listen to podcasts, and then just tap the plus sign in the upper right-hand corner or click on follow.

This is the most important thing for the pod.

While you're there, if you'd be willing to give us a five-star rating and review and share an episode you loved with a friend, we would be so grateful.

We appreciate you very much.

We Can Do Hard Things is produced in partnership with Cadence 13 Studios.