The Well-Tended Life

Episode 68: Living A Bold Life and Unleashing Your Potential with Leigh Burgess

Keri Wilt

Why Listen? In my journal practice, I write down what I call “heart taps”, which are the things that speak directly to my heart. Here are a few of the heart tap moments that I wrote down from this interview with LEIGH BURGESS:

****HEART TAPS FROM THIS EPISODE**** 

  • Confidence comes actually with each step you take as you figure it out. It's about showing up and putting forth your best effort. Anticipate some bumps along the road. You will grow through the discomfort and new experienced of stepping into your most BOLD life.
  • You can't help other people if you've got nothing left in the tank and you shouldn't push yourself to try. Prioritize your health and step away from the burn out cycle by putting your mental and physical health in the front seat.
  • Belief audit - Assess your beliefs... Are they helping us? Are they harming us? Are they holding us back?
  • Everyone has a mess of some sort. It's perfectly normal and it's totally okay to own the imperfections of your life's journey.


THE GUEST:
 Leigh Burgess is a thought leader, game-changer and powerhouse connector determined to ignite and support the bold journeys of others. After over twenty years in healthcare, she founded Bold Industries Group, a platform for uniting, inspiring and empowering women that brings together a unique global network via her Bold events, the Bold Leaders Collective membership, The Bold Lounge podcast and through her dynamic speaking, coaching, and consulting engagements. With a focus on the intersection of mindset, strategy and wellness, her Believe-Own-Learn-Design (B.O.L.D.) Framework is your map to the bold life. Leigh’s forthcoming book, Be Bold Today: Unleash Your Potential, Master Your Mindset, and Achieve Success, which is all about how to apply the framework to your own life, will be distributed by Simon & Schuster in November 2024.

Website: https://leighburgess.com/

Pre-Order Her Book, Be BOLD Today: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Be-BOLD-Today/Leigh-Burgess/9781685552435

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leighburgess23/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theleighaburgess

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@boldindustriesgroup

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Introduction with music-Keri Wilt, Host:
 Hey friends, welcome to the well-tended life podcast. What is a well intended life? Let me start by telling you what it is not.  A well intended life is not a set it and forget it life, nor is it a perfect life. It is though a life that is worked on every day in the sunshine and through the storms.

And the truth is what worked in our life gardens last year may not work in the next. Yeah. That's why here at the Tinted Life podcast, we're interviewing people who have grown and bloomed true in a variety of seasons, and who are willing to share their well tinted wisdom and bead whacking advice with us.

Listen in.
(Music fades, episode begins:)

 Keri: Hello everyone. And welcome to The Well-Tended life podcast. I'm your host. Keri Wilt, a speaker, writer, and heart cultivator who is on a mission to help you and me grow through any season.

As usual, today's episode is inspired by a quote from my great grandmother's famous book, The Secret Garden. This one says, "Mary hesitated about two minutes. And then boldly spoke the truth". And I can just imagine Mary here, like taking in a quick moment to like, summon up her inner strength before boldly speaking her truth.

But the thing I wonder about even this word bold is when you think of the word bold. For you at home, do you think of yourself, do you associate yourself with that word?  According to today's special guest, Leigh Burgess, being bold is owning your greatness and knowing you are the one to drive the changes needed to find the path and create the map for your dreams.

Y'all, I'm beyond excited to hear from you. Here about her bold framework, her bold journey. And as always, I can't wait to see what Welton and wisdom she has to share with us today. So welcome Lee.

Leigh: Thank you very much for having me excited to be here.

Keri: I am so excited. Lee and I have tried to do this several times and she has been so flexible with all of my crazy medical pushbacks.

And I'm just so thankful that we're going Getting to have this because when someone approached me about interviewing, I saw the word bold and I was like, yes, I am so excited about having this conversation because I don't think that women associate themselves with that word. I feel like sometimes that was like, that's a word for men, like men are bold.

Men are strong. Men are these things. And I feel like we need to embrace that word. And I love that you're on a mission. To do that. But before we get started, let's go back to the beginning and give everybody like a snippet of who you are in the world and maybe lead us into how you got to this mission and what you're doing today.

 Leigh: I am the CEO and founder of Bold Industries Group, a company I founded in the middle of the beginning of the pandemic, in the middle of 2020, I took a big swing of bold myself and quit my job, my corporate job without having any plan or any other job, and I just got to a point of complete burnout.

So I was in burnout mode probably for at least nine to 12 months and didn't recognize the signs, or I felt like I could figure it out or use things that I had done before that always helped me get out of the situation. And instead, I just kept going down. It just got to a point really from a health standpoint, ultimately, for me to say enough.

And I took that big swing of bold. Now, what's interesting about that. I've been in the corporate world for the majority of my career, incredible learnings, incredible organizations that I worked for. A lot of things I learned of how to lead or how to change or how to create change with organizations came from those experiences, but I think just overuse of anything at any point for me.

And I had gotten to that point just, just resulted in, that space. I was in what I didn't know was, what was next. And it was interesting about when I gave my notice, I started thinking about what would I do? What could I be? And I was 48 at that time.  I was this new feeling if I could be anything I wanted.

And it was this weird feeling  in my late forties to have that feeling that you have usually when you're 18 or 22, like going into college or coming out of college, you know, you can be anything you want to be. So I wanted to explore what was next and I needed. Something to help me figure that out and that's actually where the bold framework that I created came from that experience of me, just figuring out what's next myself.

And I think what was wonderful about the company that I created, which was founded really with a consulting model that was very different and innovative from most. So my consulting model is called a D 90. So the D is designed in the 90s, 90 days. So I go into organizations and work in strategic sprints versus.

A typical consulting model could be 12 months.  It's not always prioritized. Maybe the way that it, I think it could be. And also I don't think it's as agile as it could be at times in my experience. So a new model working with organizations. And then I started working with leaders of those organizations and coaching specifically the women leaders in these organizations around change, around the mindset, around strategy, and then ultimately also around their wellness.

So mindset, strategy, and wellness became a thing. Theme of what I was speaking with leaders around, because you need all 3 of those to be able to perform to be able to excel and to be able to take care of yourself. And those are some of the things I didn't do so well. So, like, kind of Learning from my mess in a way and being able to work with those organizations.

And then started, in year two, I created my own podcast, really wanting to amplify other people's bold journeys. And that's the bold lounge and really coming in and across the spectrum of people wanting to be able to share their story, but maybe not even knowing they were bold. Like you started off with introducing, the concept of a lot of women don't really align themselves with that word.

And then started creating events that I think ultimately, when I thought about, oh, what could I be? 1 of the things I thought about being was an interior designer or someone who put on events. I love to have parties. I love to have.

Place or space where people feel welcomed and like a hug and I wanted that space in place to be maybe through the framework. So created the bold retreat and the bold table and ultimately in year 4, which I'm about to celebrate the 4th anniversary in September created a membership. And so in there, those are the things that I set out.

And have accomplished, but  if you asked me, if I had that all planned in 2020, no, I just wanted to make what I made in the corporate world. I wanted to provide  my family, wanted to find joy in my work again. And I think that was really important because I had lost it and I wasn't even sure I would go back into any type of organizational anything, because I was so burnt out and ultimately it led me to writing the book.

Each step along the way has really.  It's been this phenomenal kind of right, left left just keep going, keep moving forward and things happen and things occur. Obviously, it takes action. But a lot of that I just talked about was something I probably never put down on a piece of paper or said, hey, I'm going to have all these things and do all these things.

But I think once you start aligning with your passion and your purpose, I feel like the universe starts providing the path and starts lighting it up for you. 

Keri: Oh my gosh, there's so much in there that I'm like, okay, I want to go back and talk about this. And I want to go back and dig in. Okay. First of all, let's go back to burnout because you said that you weren't even sure that you would have recognized that's what it was, but like looking back now can you describe some of the symptoms so that maybe somebody is sitting in a place where they're like, I just don't feel right. These are, whatever that maybe, they might be able to recognize it from you.

Leigh: Yeah. So ultimately, it's there's probably the typical list that you've heard of, but mine was particularly, from a health perspective, I wasn't sleeping. So, I wasn't sleeping well, maybe two hours a night.

So, in going back to remembering what time that was, so I was in healthcare, and it was during the pandemic. So, there was a lot going on in our world that I think exacerbated some of the symptoms. But, not having a plan and, you'd go to bed and have everything like all tidied up and then you'd wake up and it would go left because of just what was happening in the world.

So it was a very stressful time just as a base. And then I think, having a team. That was involved in the care of individuals. It was just another level of responsibility. So I felt this extreme responsibility for everything, which wasn't the right thing to do. Ultimately, I need to be responsible, but I have this mantle of responsibility, which means I was taking on responsibilities that weren't my own.

So that was definitely something that I did, which I think exacerbated my stress. And my resilience and my ability to sleep and those types of things. I wasn't moving. I was working, if you think about only sleeping 2 hours a day, I was easily working 17 to 18 hours a day, which I think again, worked up to this zone of.

Of ridiculous  practice of how I was working. I think I was short tempered, meaning I, I didn't have as much patience as I should for a lot of things. I don't mean like I was yelling or doing anything like that, but I had a low level of patience, especially for incompetence.  And which in general probably is me, but it was just at a level that, wasn't going to work.

And I think for me, it was a lot of.  Me wanting to control things, especially in that type of environment with the pandemic, and I just wasn't able to. So I was, frustrated from that. And so I was ignoring the signs of, working so long, not moving, you know, short,  I wasn't communicating a lot with my friends or my family, or, even though we were working from home off and on throughout that time period.

And I was in the same house as my family. I did not see them or talk to them or those types of things. And I think I went for a sense of 7 days. Where I didn't actually even leave the house means step out into the front yard. I was working so much. And so those are things that when you say them out loud, you're like, good grief.

How could you not  recognize that? But you have your head down. And I think. 1 of the things I did, which I think I pointed out to me by my own coach is that I was trying to use the same things that had worked in the past and I kept doing it over and over. And I also was like, I can figure this out. I'm super smart.

I'm a leader. I've done this for a long time. What is my problem? Let's get it in gear. And it just wasn't working. And I think it just got to a point, and I was in a meeting and it was a very stressful meeting and I came out of the meeting and my eye had burst from the stress in the meeting.

If everyone's ever had a burst vessel in their eye and literally it was at that moment, it was staring me in the face It something had to give something had to change and that really was what precipitated that event of me talking with my family and saying, I've got to, I've got to make a change and I know we don't have a plan, but I really feel like we will figure it out.

 t just has to be better than this. 

Keri: Oh my gosh. Okay. I love that. You point out that the tools you were using in the past weren't working anymore. And I think that is such a common thing that we find is that we keep going back to the same. We keep going back to the same tools, and even though they're not working and there are so many different tools for different seasons and being able to, it sounds like you hired a life coach.

Leigh: Yes. Yeah, I don't know. I don't even know what kind of coach they were like. It wasn't for me. I needed someone like. I believe in coaching. So, And I think different coaches at different points.  This person was this wonderful combination of an entrepreneur and also someone who understood mindset and wellness.

Entrepreneur-ish was her, you know, her tagline. And I think that was something that was so helpful for me because I needed someone who understood where I was and what I was trying to do and set out to be as much as they needed to understand that inside of, like my head and my mindset.

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I can't wait to see you there.

(Episode resumes)
Keri: I love it. I love it. I love it. I love it. I just think it's such a great point. The other thing I love is that and I think it's so funny because when you're in the middle of the mess, right in the middle of the chaos you don't realize that this is the mess that is going to take you into your purpose, right?

Like you said, basically I learned from my mess. And created this bold framework that you now teach, and you've written a book, and you have a podcast, and it's all based off of you figuring out and working with other people to figure out how to get you out of this burnout mess.

Leigh: And I think that's something that people I think you don't see that a lot on social media. You don't see the realness of the world. I think at times, there's many positives that can come out of it, but everyone has a mess of some sort.

Everyone has an experience that they've learned from that, was a failure didn't go as planned and I think what happens is people just don't talk about that as much as they talk about the successes, or, the 10-year overnight success that you see on, some of the social media outlets and such. But I think that. Is really important for people to hear that everyone's going through something or trying to figure something out in their life.

And if they say they're not, then they're most likely not being maybe honest with themselves or honest with you because I, it's important just for people to realize that no 1 has it all together. 24 hours, a day, 7 days a week.

Keri: No, even when they're doing the work, I

Leigh: Exactly.

Keri: I talk about, life and seasons and it's constantly blooming and growing and dying and blooming and growing in time.

There's all of these different ways to look at it but, but also. Also knowing that I think that we go through what we go through so that we can teach others how to do things differently to what did we learn? And the more we can share those things, the better. So for you listening at home, like, when you've gone through something, and if you learn something talk to your friends about it, tell your kids, I'm always talking to my kids of Oh my gosh, let me tell you what lesson I learned this week. Let me, tell me, let me tell you how I did things differently than I would have done before. Because that's how we lift everybody up at the same time.

Leigh: Yeah. And try not to one thing that I've done and I'm really working hard.

To level up is don't diminish your value because you made a mistake or because something didn't go as planned or didn't work out. I think that was something I was going through with the burnout is I felt like a failure, like I felt like I couldn't figure it out. What was my problem? I've worked with difficult people, or I've had challenges or different, work has been stressful before.

I was in it for 25 years almost. And what was my problem? I just put it all on me. And I think just for people to realize, don't. Watch how you talk to yourself and watch how you internalize challenges and for some reason, making it your fault or that you're not good enough because I think I did that for a very long time and I'm done with that. I'm over it. 

And even in the first four years of having my own company, like I've still done it often. And I have a vision board. And one of my, one of my statements on my vision board is think about what's gone, and not what's gone wrong or isn't enough, cause I don't think I spent enough time doing that.

And I think that was also a big part that led to the burnout, which I think people should realize burnout doesn't just happen once. Like you, if you're predisposed to it, most likely, if you suffered it, once you could do it again. And so just understanding and recognizing the signs and being aware of that and watching how you talk to yourself when you recognize that might be coming on again.

Keri: That's a really good statement. I know things like heat stroke, right? Like they say, you have heat stroke that you're more likely to have it again, but it never be with burnout.

Leigh: Yeah, for me I easily, I felt like last December, I was getting to that phase again. I hadn't gone outside for 5 days, and I was like, what the hell?

In the world, because I just had my head down. I had lost a six figure client unexpectedly right at the week of Christmas. And I was like, I got to figure this out. And it was just, I was like, Whoa, like I needed to check myself. And so I took two weeks off. And so it was, that was one thing I didn't do. I didn't take time.

I didn't have self care really wasn't. I don't mean going to the spa, which is fabulous though, but I, it was, I wasn't really taking care of myself from an emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual space. And that to me is self care. And it was just, again, focused on strategy and performance and success, of that.

So I had to check myself last December when it was coming on again and like things that what my recognizing that this time was that someone had said something that was extremely negative and judgmental. And it was about speaking and someone made some negative comment about me, which, their opinion really had no value.

Like it had no weight, but they said something very unkind and it just broke me for some reason. I was like, Oh, like, why am I so sensitive? What happened there? And not that I'm a, I'm a fairly sensitive person, but it was like, to a degree of like, why did that hurt?  And why did it, why did that affect me so much?

So, with I was my record recognition of whoa, like this isn't normal. So, I was proud of myself that I recognized it and then took some time away and then came back into 2024, shortly refreshed. And I think more focused on what I could do and again, creating a vision for myself for this year.

Keri: Love it. Recognizing the signs is so important, that awareness. So good.  Okay. So, can we talk strategy though? I know I- you have a new book coming out in November, right? Yes. Which is so exciting. First of all, congratulations. That is so much work and I know how much work that is. But I know it's your passion.

So, talk to us about the book and the strategies that are inside of it. Because bold isn't just, a four-letter word. It means something as well. So, can we talk about that?

Leigh: Yeah, so coming out of the burnout and, the statement I would make throughout my career was we are going to take some big swings of both.

So I would say that to my teams within the organizations. And what that meant is we're not sure how this is going to land or how it will work out, but we're going to learn along the way. And we're going to understand if it succeeds, what we'll do, or what we'll amplify. And we're going to understand if it doesn't what Our plan B or next path would be.

So, the kind of that's, I didn't go around saying I was bold, or hashtag bold this and, but now I can't get away from it. But I think for me, what I wanted to do was create a way for me to figure things out. So, the bold framework itself. So, it stands, it's an acronym. So, it stands for Believe, Own, Learn and Design.

So how do our beliefs, which is, Importantly, why it's the 1st, 1, because it's the foundation for everything that we do. Every action that we take is based on our beliefs, are they helping us? Are they harming us? Are they holding us back? And really doing that belief audit was really important for me during that time of recovery and figuring out the, what's next of what do I want to do?

And what are my beliefs about myself? And really getting into that audit of, are they helping hindering or holding me back? And then ownership. Yep. Which is all about owning your successes as much as your failures. What I did too much. I was owning the failures way more than I was owning any success, which I'll probably a lot of your listeners can relate to.

Certainly a lot of mine and the people that I work with.  They don't really think about everything that's gone right or things that they've done or things that, at one point in this year and in 2024, I said I think I need to do more. And a member of my team said, I don't think that's the answer, so it's not always more.

It may be less when you're owning something as well. So I think thinking about that, but really that is where we think about what we want to do with what, we own and thinking about. What you should be celebrating as much as working on, then you go into learning, which really is focused on a growth mindset, which I've had that the majority of my life, which is good.

But sometimes we can get in fixed mindset zone, and we need to think about, what, why am I in that? If we take, for example someone who maybe wants to change jobs. We even within their own organization, I don't mean quit or go to another 1, but what's holding you back from that?

And what's keeping you from wanting to, to maybe talk about it or have that conversation with your supervisor or explore opportunities. A lot of times fear comes into play fear is very natural. When it comes to what we've learned, and, I don't want to have to happen again.

I, I don't want to lose my job, those type of things and fear is meant to protect us. But I think when you hear it, or when it comes up, you have to think about, is this actually holding me back or keeping me in a space that I don't want to be in, I just can't do this for 10 more years or 5 more years.

And I think that's really important for people to use their learning to really design, which is the last part of the framework, really design their life. And design really came out of also this time when I was like, I could be anything I wanted. And one of the things I thought I wanted to be was an interior designer.

What's interesting is I took a course and I started looking into it. Cause I was just like on exploration phase. Like I was just like, I can do anything. So, let's learn. And I learned very quickly. I couldn't. Very, and, at that point in my life, get to the point where I could support my family and do the things I wanted to do, it would take a long time as an interior designer.

Like, how could I incorporate maybe the principles of design into the framework? So that looks at, harmony and balance and white space. And if you think about some of those things in the design, that's also part of our lives too. Do we have so much on the wall? Think of a wall, covered with picture frames that you can't really actually look at each of the pictures.

Cause it's just so overwhelming. Is there enough white space there for you to actually admire and be able to take in and be present with what is there? So, you take that analogy to our lives as well. And the other part of that, that I learned about myself too, was our human design. So, I had a reading and  then I actually, was like, wow, I'd love for my husband ever reading and to really just, and it's based on like where you're born and the time you were born and the date and it really is interesting just to learn about yourself and the things that you're really good at and the things where maybe one channel ends and maybe that's where the channel of someone on your team or maybe a loved one picks up.

And then design in the sense of it's yours, it's your blueprint, like it's your life. So it really should be personalized. So that's what the design phase looks like. And and you could go through it. Most people go through the whole framework to start off and then they may need to go back and revisit beliefs, or maybe they need check themselves on ownership.

So, it's not a one and done. And so, the book actually walks through the framework, every section of the framework with resources and activities. It explains yeah. Each of the phases in the parts of the framework in detail. And it also gets into the myths of being bold as well. So, it's one of my favorite chapters is, people think certain things around the word bold, like you said, like they hear bold, and they think, Oh, that's like Superman or that's, something that's, not human or it's so big or bold, like that. That's just not something that's risky, so really thinking about what are some of the myths? Which some of them are well, too late to be bold. Like I'm too late in my career to try this. And so, I'm going to stay safe and in this stable environment. And I think safe and stable, we've learned that working for someone else is not always safe and stable.

And that was something that I grew up thinking it was, but it's really, for me, you can have instability within an organization or as an entrepreneur.  And it's really how you use it or. What what you can do in your life to understand kind of your definition of stable. I think another myth is that, you're always confident, you're a hundred percent confident with every move you make and you're just not,  I laugh at that one.

It's hard for me not to smile when I talk about, because it's just, I think confidence comes actually with each step you take and you figure it out. Okay, I took that and like gulp. That didn't work out and I have certainly had things that did not work out in the last 4 years and I, just keep moving forward.

You just the right left of it all. And I think that's really important for people to understand. And so just, people understanding there are certain things that, just around being bold that, another 1, I'll just mention is you go it alone. You're the only 1 and that's not it either.

So you certainly will make. Okay. Decisions and things that are important and you have to make them. No one else can make them for you, but being bold doesn't mean it's a solo act. And I think that's just really important for people to realize. And the last myth I'll talk about is really that being bold means you're just a risky person that you look before leaping and you just don't even think about it.

And you may have those gut moments where you're like, I'm just going for it. But overall, majority of bold moves are very thoughtful. Build and thought through meaning you realize this could happen or that could happen. And sometimes we perseverate on what negative could happen versus what could happen.

And so, I think there's a statement about in action is a choice and so is inaction. So I think we don't usually think about what if I don't make this move? What does it look like? And how do I feel? And what will be the what's next? If I don't make this move? For me, I think I, I could have had a stroke at my job.

And I was like, like it was that stressful, that level. And obviously I was extremely unhealthy and had gained weight and all those things. And so it just, you really need to think about, if I don't make this move, what will it look like? And how will I feel? 

Keri: I love that reminder that it's, a choice either way,

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Keri: It's funny because I do associate the word bold with independent for some reason. I don't know why my brain would go there. A few years ago, I actually had bold was my word of the year. Oh, nice. I wish I would have had this framework because I chose it, knowing that I needed to step into my calling here at the Well-Tended life.

And I knew that at the end of the day, I had to I had to put on my big girl panties like, and I had to step boldly into it. I couldn't just tiptoe in. I needed to really like. Go for it. And for many years I would step in, and I would step out and I would step in, and I would, I think, would you, what do you call it?

The side to side decide? What did you call that?

Leigh: Yeah. Yeah. Like you were, you're, you were in, but you were out, like you weren't committed, do it. It, there was always a reason to come out of it. And we can always come up with.  I think our brains are meant to figure out a solution as to why we did something, and sometimes we just have to call ourselves.

I think bold can be quiet and loud. And I think that's the other myth around being bold as always loud and it's always on social media and it's just. Big thing. But a lot of my boldest moments have happened between my ears, meaning like I, it's a thought or it's a mindset shift or it's a consideration or a plan I'm making that no one knows about, like I always say, build in silence, build what you're doing.

No one needs to know. And I don't mean like your inner circle and people who give you good advice and who you call upon. But I just mean it doesn't need to be on social media and everybody doesn't need to know every move you're making. So I think bold can be very quiet and it sounds like you were doing some quiet, like almost doing a lot of quiet work, right?

Like I'm in, but I'm out, but maybe no one even knew it.

Keri: No. Yeah.  It's girl, you're, you are boldly changing the world with this book and with this thought process. It's so good. I cannot wait for, I can't wait to personally read it, but I can't wait for others to read it when, when someone does read it what's the one thing that I hope that you hope that they take away?

Leigh: I think they just, I hope they see possibility and that they realize that it is possible to change, or to be curious, or to try something new. And they just need to take the 1st step, which is the absolute hardest step to take. And. I think we overcomplicate that step sometimes and I think simplifying the first step really is the next step to possibility.

For example, let's just take something fun. Let's say someone has on their bucket list that they want to go to Italy, or they want to travel or go to multiple countries, but it's too expensive. They're not sure who would go with them. They're not really have no idea where to start. Maybe take a cooking class.

Start there it's something, take an Italian cooking class and learn more about the culture or pick up a book that was written by an Italian writer about their travels or, that's a bold step forward. And the other thing I think it will help people do. Is get it into a space of writing it down.

So, a lot of the processes in the book, help them put it on paper, pen to paper. So otherwise, things swirl in our head, and we don't actually take action. It's just something that's swirling or something that's when I, if I could, once I retire. I've lived a YOLO type of life because I lost my brother very early on.

I was six and he was 11. And so, I have always known that no one's life is guaranteed. And for me it's, and I don't mean being reckless or those types of things. I just mean that life is very precious. So, putting off your joy or putting off being aligned with your passion and purpose, there's just, don't do that.

So, I just want people to see possibility when they read the pages of the book and begin to create their plan. 

Keri: Love it. Love it. Love it.  Okay outside of the book you are gathering women.  A, I want to know how you're gathering women, because you're you can become a membership of this thing, and then you also have Rake Retreats, correct? And tables. Yes. Yes. Okay. That's what I meant. Tables. A, talk to me about why you started gathering women and why it's important to gather women.

Leigh: Yeah, so yeah, 2 years into my business. So, I think 1 thing that I've seen other entrepreneurs try or other people try when they're making their bold moves is to do it all at once and to try to do everything the first year to have this list of things they want to do.

And one thing I guess I was lucky as I didn't have this list. Things started to just evolve. So out of the consulting 2 years in, I wanted to create a place, and I had been coaching women where they could come together. and I wanted to be expeditious, and I wanted to feel special. And I wanted them just to show up.

All I had to do was get there. So, I created this all-inclusive retreat, which is called the bold retreat, which focuses on mindset, strategy and wellness. And we spend half a day together Each of them had a different theme. We're about to have our fifth, one, our 2 years bold retreat wise. And what we do at those events is actually we create the plan.

It could be your base of bold. It could be planning your year, and thinking about that and then we spend time. Throughout the following year or months after 6 months after the minimum of connecting and creating and coaching and champion and challenging one another to do what we said we were going to do, which is really important.

So it was this base of a community creation that happened with that very 1st bold retreat that led to the bold tables. So we've done 10 bold tables. 15 events and less than. Less than 2 years, because we just started doing them. The bold tables we've had throughout the country and they're 50 or less women coming together for 3 to 4 hours dinner, sit down very special environment, really leveled up. And I invite my friends, and they invite their friends just like a dinner party.

But it's a place and space where you have a deeper conversation. For me, I power up in smaller groups versus a huge, conference room with, cocktail tables in a prompt I'd like to sit down and really get to know you or talk to you. And plus, I'm introverted.

So, I actually power up in those smaller spaces. So, for me, it was just creating those moments and inviting authors or having book talks or, being able to connect. And so that also started to create community. And then what I noticed is that women were coming flying into my events from across the country.

So, if I held one in New York, they wasn't just people who lived in New York, half or more of the people actually were from other states, so they were flying in a day earlier, staying later and then spending the weekend together. So they would come to the dinner and again, deepening of the community.

And I was growing, what I was offering and things like that. And that's really how the membership came about was that they wanted a space and a place where all bold was under one roof and then being able to continue to get to know someone. So, there's a lot of great memberships out there.

Could be based on your title could be based on your experience or your industry. This one really is meant to just look at you as a human being in a 360-degree way. We have so many titles, mom, sister, chief, whatever you may have wife, girlfriend, best friend, we have lots of titles. And so, there's lots of things going on in each of those zones of our life.

So just wanting to understand that and be able to support one another. And that's really how the memberships come about, and it's focused on leadership of ourselves, leadership of others, and then how we continue to support our own bold moves and the bold moves of those around us.

Keri: I love it. I love it. I think I think there's such a need for this and that women, there's something that happens after you leave college.

Maybe you know, you like pair off, you couple off, and some women just never reconnect with other women again and. Create those deeper relationships. And so, I'm so thankful that you're giving people a place in a space to do that.

Leigh: Yeah. And creating a safe place to figure it out. Like you don't have to have this.

I'm perfect. And I'm, I'm a leader and this is what I do. And I'm, just a boss or whatever. Just be, you, your soft sides are just as much and important as your hard sides of you things you do and decisions you make and being tough and in certain type of moments.

But we all experience loss. We all experience confusion or uncertainty at times. And I think. We just don't talk about it, and I think this is a place that members can come and feel like it's a safe place to figure it out. And to also be able to be authentic and transparent about when things aren't going as we had hoped, or as we would want them to, we've had members lose jobs or lose jobs unexpectedly, especially in our environment now, people who have, change their marital status because of just, this is my life that I want to live now and, it's not aligned or had deep conversations with their friends about, what they need or what they expect or importantly, just understanding themselves a whole lot better.

I think we're.  As individuals, as human beings, I think we're figuring ourself out and this, as you said, becoming, this is a different season of our life and what I was doing in my forties, I'm not really thinking about in the same way in my fifties. And a lot of that comes about, I think for me of this is what I will.

And this is what I will not accept about myself and about others at this point in my life. And it's very defined for me now. 

Keri: So good. So good. So good. So good. Don't worry, everybody. We will put all of the links in this show notes so you can get to all of her bold offerings. Okay. So now that's the bold part.

Now I want to know a little bit more about you. One of. We talked about with seasons, and I always like to ask my guest about the life season that you're in. Or maybe just finished, or maybe you're heading into, because I believe knowing where you are in your season impacts, like what you say yes to and what you can handle, and what you maybe need to prune away and leave behind.

So, can you give guess maybe an idea of what life season looks like for you right now?

Leigh: Yeah, I think a lot of my life and I've even had this conversation just as recently as yesterday with my daughter, who's half my age. And I think just for me, I am really in a season of standing in my value and I am someone who has done for others.

So much of my life and I'm a very thoughtful, caring individual, but it's sometimes I get to a point where I don't even count myself in. I don't acknowledge, my value or my needs and I'm not saying I've been miserable or anything like that, but I think When I give away all my space and all my energy to everyone else, there's literally nothing left for me.

And I think that also added to my burnout. But I think now, when I say standing in my value, of my time of my worth of what I do personally and professionally, and you don't just like. Change that overnight. I think that's important for people to know. So even though I'm saying that it's a process and it's our intentional, reminding myself of why I'm doing, or when that feeling comes up Oh, if you feel like for me Oh that's selfish if I do that, or I should be thinking about someone else, but you can't help other people if you've got nothing left in the tank and we've heard this and I've heard it a million times, but I think I now realize that right after experience such shunted.

A negative impact, that I had from the burnout, but that negative impact has also led me to where I am today. So I think, someone may ask what would you change? Or would you go back and do X, Y, or Z? Probably the only thing that I would change in my life or want to change is my.

My brother, passing away, but even that in itself, I learned from, but that's the only thing I probably want to change. Because everything that you've been through leads you to where you are today. It's now, what are you going to do next? That's so important. So for me, is that lead 2. 0 standing in her value, feeling strong, standing up straight and really moving through her life at that level.

And. Just really hoping that, what she's doing is the right way, regardless I'll figure it out. And so just really walking that talk of boldness is really what I'm doing now. 

Keri: Love it. Love it. Love it. Okay. What about regular practices? Do you have any regular practices that might help us to live our best well-tended lives?

Leigh: Yeah, for me I think it's important visioning. So that's something that you've heard me talk a little bit about. So, I have a vision board. I'm extremely a visual person. So, I'll draw things to figure things out. And it's not always just reading words that help me. So, for me, that visioning is important, and I do it multiple times throughout the year.

I don't just do it once in December when everyone's making their vision board or picking their, Word for the year those types of things like for me It's really seeing it putting it on paper and then I do a quarterly check in on my plan because what I thought I was gonna do in the beginning of January, and I'm not just talking about your typical I'm gonna lose weight.

I'm gonna work out like, like I'm moving to the next level. I am going to be a ten-figure business. I am going to, keep going and doing what I'm doing. And be able to like, for my book, like things for my book tour and those are my vision board. So, it's interesting just to see I've seen my daughter's vision board and come to life this year.

Like I told her like my vision board needs to hang out with hers because. Things that are happening in her life really are like, there it is, and there it is, and there it is. And for me, that's an important practice that I have. And then also realizing that you can, review it and revise it.

So, it isn't just what I had in mind in January may not be the same in June. So maybe I need to now, that I've learned, using the L of the bold framework what would I change or what do I need to amp up, or maybe amp down? So I think, thinking about those things, but I think visioning is a practice that I have and re, looking at it every day and going, okay, where am I and what am I working towards and making sure I'm prioritizing my actions to those things that I want to accomplish.

Keri: It's huge. The prioritizing your actions for some things you want to accomplish. I think so many times people set these ideas of the things that they want to grow, but they missed that part. It's I gave up.

Leigh: Yeah. Yeah, it gets like after the 1st, I think, they say most resolutions end and it's like the 1st month it doesn't even make it January.

Yeah. I don't make resolutions. I make plans and I think. That's really part of also the bold plan. So I have something called the, bold year, bold me. So using the framework really to plan out your year. So what are your beliefs? What are you going to own? What do you hope to learn?

What have you learned from, as you go from for example, 24 into 25 what do you want to leave behind? There's some stuff probably has happened this year that you just want to I don't want to do that again. I don't want to make that mistake or step again. So I'm going to leave that behind, or I'm going to leave behind some drama.

I'm going to possibly leave behind relationships, or I'm going to leave behind my negative talk. About myself, like that is mine. I'm leaving that behind. And I already know that in July. So I think, from that perspective, and then what do you want to bring in and starting there is a nice place to think about what your vision is for the next level of you.

Keri:  love it. I love it. I love it. I love it.

WELL-TENDED LIFE JOURNAL AD BREAK
And now it's time for my favorite part of the interview because it's inspired by my life tending journal practice. But let me be clear, this is not your grandma's journal. It's more of a growth chart, reflection diary, planting reminder, observation deck, and research notebook all rolled into one.  And when used daily, this journal practice is a life guarding game changer, guaranteed to produce.

Big, beautiful, purpose filled blooms in any season. Now it's by far the most important tool in my own personal life gardening shed and I want to gift you a free journaling template today. So check out the link in the show notes or head over to TheWellTendedLife.com and download it and get started today.

(Episode resumes)

Keri: Okay. Last question is a part of my journaling practice. Every day I read reflect weed seed and water. And a part of my reflect portion is I look back on the day before and I noticed the joy, goodness, and growth. Cause it's always there. And also, the more you seek something, the more it comes right.

There's, and it's also based on a quote from the secret garden that says, Mary hadn't noticed it before, but she looked up and saw it. And I think so many times we're running too fast in our life to note down. Yeah. Yeah. Notice it. Tell me where are you spotting joy these days? 

Leigh: I think for me, I'm finding joy in the simple things.

Sure. Like getting, a big speaking gig or selling a lot of books. So I was like, those are joyful things, but I'm more so in the process of it, of what did I learn or who did I meet or who did I get to talk to? So some of the simpler things I think for me, or are things I'm finding joy in, which.

I'm not sure I always pay attention to those as much as I should. So trying to really intentionally recognize those. Awesome. Okay. So goodness is a little bit deeper. It's really something that you would write in a gratitude journal. What bits of goodness are you feeling grateful for right now? Today, I think I just had an incredible conversation with my daughter yesterday, just about, how we get to really understand ourselves and how that's an evolving process.

And, we had a pretty deep conversation yesterday, just about what she's learned about herself and I reminded me of how I may be modeling for others, especially her. And so it her wisdom amped up me standing up stronger and straighter. I think I'm very grateful for that conversation yesterday.

Keri: Love it. Okay. So the last one is growth, which is always the hardest one to spot because growth happens in tiny little shoots, except for okra. I think okra is the only thing that grows up overnight. But so where are you spotting growth or what kind of life lessons are you learning right now?

Leigh: Yeah, so kind of year 4 of my business is a very interesting phase of the business. So I had tremendous scaling that happened in year 1 and 2, which was unexpected. It was a crisis of abundance in a way, but very positive. But I think in year 4 is like the what's next. In being able for me to sit in it a bit and be patient as the what's next is happening.

And for me, growth comes with being patient, but also being confident at the same time that it is going to happen that next level is. Just right there, I'm on the doorstep, and I've had felt like that for several months. And for me I see it starting to take shape  with the book and with speaking and being able to reach more people and show them the power of the possibility when they take that bold step.

But. It is a bit of patience that I'm having to learn. And that's not a muscle that is very strong  for me. So that's where my growth is coming in the patients and also the self belief of when you're sitting and nothing's happening of it's going to happen. Just be patient. Just be patient.

Keri: I love that.

Lee, thank you so much for coming on and sharing today. Tell people where they can find you, follow you, listen to your podcast, buy your book, all the things.

Leigh: Sure. Yeah. So the best place to go is my website. So LeeBurgess.com, which I know you'll have in the episode notes, you can learn about the book.

You can learn about the retreats. The tables get on the bold bulletin. So you hear all the bold news that's coming out. I think the other place I'm on LinkedIn and started on Instagram in April. So more people follow me. That would be great. Growing the social there. And I have a lot of followers on LinkedIn also YouTube channel.

All that info is on the website though, and you can check it out. The book, wherever you buy books. Be bold today and it's all about unleashing your potential, mastering your mindset and achieving success your way. And you can buy that wherever you buy books and it's in presale now.

Keri: Oh my gosh. So excited for you.

Leigh:Thank you so much for having me.

Keri: So good. Thank you everyone. Who's been listening to the podcast. I sincerely hope that today's episode has inspired you to not only be bold, but to take your own big swing of bold in order to live out your best well-tended life. And until next time, y'all blessings and blooms.

Thank you, Lee. So good. So good. 

Leigh: Thank you very much.


(Outro)

Oh, my goodness, y'all. That was so good.  Don't forget to check the show notes for my favorite heart tap moments from this episode.  What is a heart tap? Well, whenever I read, listen to a podcast or watch a speaker, I'm always on the lookout for those like head bob, heart tap, and aha moments. You know what I'm talking about.

These are the things that cause your head to bob in agreement, your heart to make that tap when a much needed word of wisdom comes along or your soul to scream, aha.  That was the word I was looking for. So for each episode, I like to share a few of my heart taps in the show notes with you, but I'm curious, what are your heart tap moments from today's episode? 

Run on over and direct message me your favorite moments, questions, heart taps, and more over at Instagram or Facebook today.  And if you were inspired by this episode or maybe learn something new, make sure to share this show with a friend or post about it in your stories.  Finally, could you do one more favor for me today?

Will you take a minute and hop on over to Apple podcast and leave a kind and thoughtful review for the well -tended life podcast?  You see, this is how people find us. And every positive review helps to unlock the door for someone else to get in on the magic of life tending to. Thank you again for listening and being a part of this well-tended life community.

And until next time, y'all blessings and blooms.