In this episode, we have a lot to cover. First, I'll read an article from The Mddl that talks about the ongoing struggle between consistency and self-acceptance.

Next, we'll be giving advice to a listener who's feeling overwhelmed this summer. We understand how tough it can be to balance the desire to enjoy the season with the need to take care of responsibilities. They’ve got FOMO and I have ideas on how to battle it.

And of course, we'll be ending the episode with my Lacey Loves product of the week: the Beis travel bag. This stylish and practical bag is perfect for anyone who's always on the go. It has plenty of room for all your essentials, and it's made from high-quality materials that will last for years to come.

Time Stamps

00:00 Intro

00:53 Reading From The Mddl

04:28 Advice From TheMddl

09:43 Lacey Loves

Reading From The Mddl

Lacey Loves

Beis Weekend Bag

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Mentioned in this episode:

My Happy Curves

Enjoy 15% off your first purchase at myhappycurves.com/lacey15 or using the Promo Code Lacey15

My Happy Curves

Welcome, I'm just sharing the middle, every covering perfectionist.

Over achievers and anyone in the middle of a struggle come together to

learn, to embrace the messy middles.

Of life.

I'm Lacey, your friend in the middle of the guide who's claim to fame in this week

is getting her kids playroom toy room.

It's really like a half room.

It's fine.

All set up.

And actually organized.

It was a perfect no, but it is much more functional this week is a mini episode.

We're going to be doing mini episodes every other week now.

And alternating with more traditional interviews.

We're going to start with a reading from the middle.

Jump into some advice from the middle about FOMO.

And summer, and then get into Lacey loves.

Let's dive in.

And now I'm reading from the middle.

The struggle between consistency and self-acceptance.

There are two truths that I'm currently struggling with.

They're not necessarily mutually exclusive, but the

way that I see them, they are.

The middle is all about figuring out a whole.

About how to hold more truths at once finding the gray

area and getting cozy there.

So here we are friend.

With the question, how can I be consistent and reliable?

While also accepting and honoring my own energy.

Let's break it down.

Consistency and reliability.

This weekend.

I told my husband, I was scared to do almost anything outside of our house.

And the scope of my little slice of life that I've curated.

I've always valued, being a consistent and reliable person.

When I say I will do something or be somewhere I get it done,

or I get myself there on time.

Thank you very much.

I want to be that for people.

I want to be that for myself.

On top of that, most, the most common advice when it comes to building a

business specifically in podcasting.

Writing and social media is consistency.

And if you are consistent and continue to produce, people will

be able to find you and you'll be laying the foundation of growth.

Consistency will not guarantee growth, but it is a necessary

foundation for it to happen.

I do not want to make a commitment and let someone down.

I don't want to set myself up for failure.

When it comes to this project that I am building.

Accepting myself where I am.

I'm sure you are tired of hearing it by now, but in case you did not know.

I am chronically ill.

With what I still do not know, but I am happily taking a little break.

For making it my mission to have a title to call it.

For now, I'm just trying to manage where I am and find happiness here.

And finding that happiness.

I need to accept that my symptoms are unpredictable.

I need to accept that.

for some reason, my fatigue seems to be increasing again.

Finding happiness also means figuring out my priorities.

This has meant putting more of my energy.

Behind my home tasks and family instead of the middle.

I think the loss of a full-time job was such a shock to my system.

That I poured as much as I could into that bucket.

I'm proud of what I've created.

But I also recognize that I I need focus to be better allocated.

Energy and inspiration are not consistent resources for me.

I work the best and happiest when I'm able to do it.

When they're naturally, they're not, when I'm pushing hard to have something.

The clash.

Being consistent and reliable seems diametrically opposed to accepting myself.

Success in one seems to be failure in both.

And this probably is not completely true.

Okay.

Yeah, I know.

It's not true.

I get it.

It's fine.

Here's the thing.

I do not think this is interesting for you.

I also think, this is super serious.

Where is my joy?

As I write this, I realized that it probably means a bit of

a change in the editorial and posting schedule of the middle.

from Lacey in the future, it does.

That's what I did.

Back to the reading.

That's probably a great idea because you're going to be

getting the same amount for me.

Here's the thing.

I feel like I'm letting us both down.

But at the end of the day, I have to be okay with it.

And now for a little advice from the middle.

Today's letter reads.

I'm writing you because I'm feeling overwhelmed this summer.

Ever.

I look, I see people having sign going on trips and doing exciting things.

I feel like I have to keep up with them and make the most of my

summer, but I'm struggling to do so.

I have a full-time job, a family to take care of and other responsibilities

that make it hard for fun activities.

I know that it's important to take a break and not overwork myself.

But it's hard to shake off the feeling that I'm missing out on something.

How can I overcome this FOMO and find a balance?

Between enjoying my summer.

And taking care of my responsibilities.

Thanks for your advice.

Dear listener.

FOMO is so hard.

Because it's sneaky.

Right?

You.

You think you have overcome it and then you see someone doing something

and you're like, oh no, That fear of missing out is really tapping in.

And I.

As usual, my advice comes down to what do you want?

And w what do you actually want?

in the blog this week, I wrote this.

This, piece about.

The joy of not being cool.

And I talk about how early on, Late high school, early college.

I realized I don't want to go out a lot.

I don't enjoy it.

I don't need to go out every weekend, going out sometimes

is great, but going out.

Is a lot for me.

Now as an adult.

And more like reflective.

I realize I have a lot of sensory things.

Like I'm very sensitive to sound.

So going somewhere noisy and loud is difficult for me.

That was my realization.

And then it took some time, but I realized that I was okay.

With doing what I want because my happiness was more important than this.

Made up way of being cool and going places.

So I would suggest that you take a moment.

And really get into your own mind of what you want.

what do you want?

Because you say here everywhere.

I look, I see people doing these things.

Is that what you want?

And maybe it is, maybe it's seeing people having fun going on trips.

And if that's the case.

You need to look at these other priorities, like your

full-time job, a family to take care of and think about how.

All of these things can happen at once.

So maybe your job.

you can ask about summer hours.

I know some places do that.

Or, maybe you work from home for a day where you're able to do laundry

while you're taking breaks from work.

And then that frees up your time later.

I think often.

And we've talked about this on here, when we think about our lives and that,

that time to go have fun and do things.

We see it as this very finite small amount of time and that we can't.

Touch the other parts of our life like, oh, I have no control over my job.

I have no control over.

My kids and all that stuff.

And.

there's a lot of truth to that.

what I just said about asking your work for potential time off or all

of those things that comes with a very specific type of job, And so

that maybe that isn't possible.

But asking a family member for help to watch the kids

so that you can do something.

is more doable.

So I would encourage you to seek other ways.

To maybe lower all of those other things as well.

And my hope.

Who knows if it's true.

is that between figuring out what you actually want and then managing

those priorities that are outside.

Of this desire.

You can find some of that.

The other thing I'll say is everywhere I look.

If you don't want to see it, stop looking.

If it's not important to you.

If you don't want.

to see these things don't look, heck I picked up my knitting and

crocheting and it has helped my me stop mindlessly scrolling through things.

So much, and it has been so helpful for me and my mental health.

Cause they needed that thing to do with my hands.

And now I do, and I care less about what's on social media.

Now I still go and I look in that kind of stuff.

But that's the other thing is everywhere you look, if you looking's the

problem, and only you can answer that.

Stop looking.

Where you can.

that's my advice.

For FOMO and balance.

It's not easy and you're never going to be perfectly balanced.

You're never going to go do everything.

All of those things are unattainable goals.

Think about your attainable goals and get yourself there, friend.

Thanks for writing in.

And I hope that you have this summer, you dreamed of.

Welcome to Lacy Lavis for this week.

I'm trying out a new way of doing this.

That includes me recording myself.

Video wise.

To also potentially upload.

We'll see how.

Brave I am to do that.

But if this is in here, then that means that I did it.

And you can find this on YouTube from the middle channel.

But.

I wanted to take an opportunity to just explain a little bit about

my current change and editorial schedule, as you heard earlier.

I was, I've been really struggling with this idea of showing up consistently.

But having energy and honoring myself and it's been a hard.

With no shaman, the home game, come in to you later this month.

You're still going to get the same amount of Lacey.

It's just going to be.

Once a week from the middle and then once a week from no shame in the home game.

That's all.

also I've got some trips and vacations coming up.

So this gives me a little bit more wiggle room.

To be able to.

Take a break.

If not, I may be inspired to do more.

We'll see.

There's gonna be lots of family time and I'm bringing my microphone, not like my

really good microphone, but a portable line that maybe you'll get some more.

family episode soon, if that's something you liked.

This week, my product, my Lacy love product is my bays.

Travel bag.

I'm going to go get it.

Hold on.

All right.

I freaking love this thing, and I know it's more than I would spend on a bag.

But it's got so many great things and I love some of the features.

And I'm no shame Mitchell giving you, but let me show you the things that I do love

one this bottom area for separate things.

And then too, especially with kids when I'm looking for something,

the fact that this opens.

And like stays.

Open.

To be able to look.

Huge.

It's huge.

The moral of the story is.

It is a really great.

Bag to be able to grab and go.

Somewhere.

For us, we're going to go on a family vacation this summer, and this will just

be one of the bags, but this will probably hold like the things that I need to be

able to access while we're in the car.

While we're driving where we're going, because it is so easy to access things.

And like I said, when you open the top of the fact that it

stays open, so you can see.

What's in there is huge for me, because I feel like I'm

constantly looking for something.

when it's not.

So I do have a link to that in the show notes for you to check

out, it's through Nordstrom, the one that the link that I have.

but I do highly recommend that bag.

I also have their like sport Fanny pack that I do, like.

As well, I'm sorry.

Belt bag.

I got to use the right terms, Lacey.

That's the product that I love.

This week, like I said, I did do a lot of work in our home and that has been great.

Even though my energy has been lower previously.

I've had some of my best days lately and it's been so great.

cause it's.

It is summer and it is.

A time that you want to be able to go and do things.

Even though I don't like doing things is I already said.

So next week, we've got a great interview with Jenner Hermans, who is

an author that you'll get to hear from.

Thanks for joining me in the middle today.

As usual I had fun and I hope you liked it too.