Erika Jon : THE SECRET TO GETTING UNSTUCK | The Tyler Wagner Show #1114

Hi everyone, welcome back to the Authors Unite show. We are here with another episode. Today we have Erica John. Um, is an— Erica John is an entrepreneur, executive coach, speaker, and author of a bestselling book entitled The Secret to Getting Unstuck: A Guide to Forming 5 Habits That Will Transform Your Life and Make You Unrecognizable. Erica established her own premier coaching business, Erica John, often referred to as the People Whisperer. Erica has helped so many leaders rise to the top. Offering personalized elite coaching, she'll work with the clients to crush their specific and departmental goals, overcome obstacles, and create a custom plan to sustain success through business, career, motivational, mindfulness, and life coaching techniques. Erica, welcome to the show.

Thank you, Colin. Thank you, So much for that.

Yeah, no, absolutely. It's a pleasure to have you on. Something that I like to start with every podcast is I like to kind of start with— I like to bring it back. So I like to go way back to like maybe when you were younger and kind of just like ask you, did you kind of ever imagine or like was it ever part of your plan when you were younger to kind of be doing what you're doing now?

That is such a great question. And yes, the answer is yes. I can remember being in the 5th or 6th grade knowing that I wanted to be a psychiatrist. I said, I'm going to be a psychiatrist. And someone said, oh, you got to go to medical school. And that's like 8 more years of, of being in school. And I said, oh, well, I'll be a psychologist. And fast forward to now, I'm a life coach, which is similar, not exactly the same, but I think the intention of helping people to get unstuck, to live their best life— I, I did 5th grade, 6th grade, had the vision that I would be doing what I'm doing today.

That's amazing. That's awesome. I, we do a lot of, you know, obviously we do a lot of podcasts and I would say a majority of people actually will, will say that they actually didn't expect or really have the vision for what they were doing today. It just kind of, kind of happened. So that's very cool. It's that it's been a goal of yours and you and you and you've made it happen. So congratulations on that.

Thank you. Now, back then, I did not think about being an author. I think that, that came many, many years later, uh, that I wanted to write a book. And, and my dear sweet husband reminded me, you've been saying this for years, when are you finally gonna do it?

Yeah, well, writing a book, um, as, as you know, it's a, it's a, it's a, it's a tough process, and a lot of people You know, I think everyone has a story in them. Everyone has a book in them, but it's about taking the time to put it together. And it's a lot more difficult than what I think people imagine. So since you mentioned the book, I'd love— let's start with the book, actually. So like, as far as the process goes, what was the process like for you? And like putting the whole book together, like just how was that whole process and how did, um, how did things pan out?

Yes, you are correct, it is a lot. It is very challenging. Um, and you said something very interesting, you think most people have books in them. And one of the things that I said for a long time is I believe there's a trilogy in me. So there's at least one trilogy And I've just recently published a couple additional books to accompany this book, which I'm happy to talk about later on in this, uh, in this broadcast. Um, as far as the process for writing The Secret to Getting Unstuck: A Guide to Forming 5 Habits That Will Transform Your Life and Make You Unrecognizable— I always say if I wrote another book, I'll have a shorter title because that title is about I like it.

No, it's good.

Um, but you know, it— I, I just needed a roadmap, uh, because for so many years, and, and I dare to count how many years I procrastinated on taking the steps, because what stopped me was I don't know what to do, I don't know where to go, I don't know how to do— where do you even start? And so once I was able to find a roadmap for what to do, how to— what step to take, take next, um, I just followed the steps. And it comes pretty easy to me to, to develop content. So when I started thinking about the outline of the book, what did I want it to say, you know, what was my messaging? And I guess even if you dial it back what's going to sell, you know, what's going to make people go, oh my God, I love this, this title, I need to read this book. Um, so it was a matter of what is the content, what do we call it, what are people needing that I have experienced and can talk about and, and be passionate about it. So starting out with doing a bit of research on titles that grab people's attention, that sell, writing an extensive book outline, getting an editor, finding artwork for the covers, which I'm in love with my cover. I think they're stunning. And I've made some mistakes along the way, and that cost me that I had to go back and fix. But it was just sheer determination to make it happen because I didn't want to go one more year without having accomplished my goal, without having met the potential that I knew was inside of me. So no matter what happened, no matter what challenge, in my mind, this was happening. As Kevin— I'm a fan of Kevin Hart. And he has a quote in one of his comedy shows, "It's about to go down." Yeah. And this was going down. I didn't care what I had to do or how long it took me. And I think that just having that sheer determination will make you resourceful, resourceful enough to figure out what you need to do, what the next steps are, and then also give you that push to get it done.

Yeah, no, absolutely. I'm, uh, I'm in 100% agreement, uh, with you. I think, uh, from what you said, I'm taking that maybe, um, your, your number one piece of advice for people who are interested in writing a book would be to, um, do exactly that, that pure determination to, to want to get it done and to just sit down and you, and you have to do it. Um, so From what you said, my next question would be like, as far as the process goes, is there anything you would change about the process? And especially since you're considering maybe a trilogy, like, is there anything you would do differently?

No, no, I, I, because every time I've done it, I've learned something new, something different. And, and what I try to do is just enjoy the journey. There have been times where I tried to force myself to take action or to do certain things and met it with resistance. So just giving myself the grace to say, take a break, slow down, slow down, but not stop. Right? At the end of the day, we're going to keep going. So I just go with the flow and enjoy the journey and all that it teaches me along the way. So is there anything I would change? I can't say that there is.

Interesting. Interesting. I am. Yeah, it's your first book, right?

Yes.

Okay. Very interesting. So a lot of the authors that I'd say we speak with on the podcast, a lot of them, from what you told me, I mean, I think you put the book together and your process was was very well put together. I'll say probably better than most, just from what I've heard. And I'll say, you know, a lot of the authors we speak with, there's always something that they would change about the process that would have maybe made it easier or something like that. But I like the fact that you're sticking to your guns and the process went well. So that's awesome to hear.

I won't say I was excited to do all of it, but if this is the journey, if this is the process, Let's go, let's make it happen. And I believe that life is happening for us and not to us. So every challenge was an opportunity for me to grow, to be better, stronger, wiser. So, yeah, I wouldn't waste time wishing something was different.

Okay, I like that. It's a good answer. So my next question about the book would be, What has the book done for, done for you, um, now that it's— everything's put together? What, what has, uh, come from the book? Maybe, maybe, uh, towards your business? Like, what, what have, uh, has the book brought to you? And, and let's say the business is one of the points.

Yes. Well, getting, uh, writing this book has given me exposure to a lot of platforms such as yours, and I get to have this amazing conversation with you, which is just simply delightful. So thank you. As far as the business, as far as my business, I actually— let me backtrack, because what it, I believe, has done is brought me closer to my family, you know, because they're all proud of me, excited for me. I get emails or congratulations I believe my husband and my son are extremely proud of me. And so that, that feels really good from a personal perspective. I have gotten quite a bit of feedback about the book that it has been so impactful with what to do to handle habits, you know, getting rid of negative beliefs. Forgiveness. And these are all things, topics that we talk about in the book. And, and what I'm finding too is that people really struggle with the forgiveness piece.

Yeah.

So out of everything that I talk about in the book, forgiveness seems to be the most challenging thing. And so I'm really interested in, in cracking and digging a bit deeper in, into that to help people. Because I tell people, forgiveness is not about the other person. And I think we want to hold on to that baggage. And that's a part of what keeps us stuck. Hence, the secret to getting unstuck, right? Letting go of the baggage from the forgiveness piece. And so what I say is forgiveness is not for the other person. It really is for you. To let go of that baggage, to unblock those things that keep you stuck. So as far as the business, it has helped connect me with so many more people. I'm passionate about making a difference in people's lives. So getting to connect with even young ladies, I just, I love it. It's been an amazing journey thus far and I'm excited to see what it brings next.

Yeah, that's incredible. I am. From what you said, as far as the forgiveness part goes, would you be— are you more referring to like forgiveness of someone else or forgiveness to yourself?

I talk about both in the book.

Okay.

And sometimes, yes, people do things that harm us or hurt us and we never forget and we hold on to it. So we talk about the impact that holding on to that forgiveness does and how I walk you through a very powerful process for how to, to forgive and let go. But then I don't think we talk enough about self-forgiveness. Sometimes we beat ourselves up for how long it took us to move on, or we beat ourselves up, or we hold resentment towards ourselves for things that we've done in the past, and, and it just serves no purpose.

Yeah.

And so we talk about how to let those things go. Absolutely.

So is, uh, is forgiveness one of the 5 habits?

It is one of the 5 habits. So, and I'll just give you an outline, a high-level outline of the book with the habits. Um, so Because the book is called A Guide to Forming Five Habits, I talk about habits, the mechanics of habits, how they work, how we get stuck in them. Because if we are operating in— let me think. You know how they say it's hard to break a habit? And that's because there's so much momentum that it can keep you stuck. It's hard to break that habit. So I help to understand or explain how habits keep you stuck, how habits are formed, how to release those habits. And here's something very, very important. You can't just get rid of a habit. You have to replace it with something else. So we talk about all of that so that you can get a good foundation, a good understanding about how to form the 5 habits that I'm going to talk about in the rest of the book. And then the first habit is identifying and obliterating negative beliefs. So there's this quote that says, we will never act out of alignment with our beliefs. So if you believe, I have a problem, I can't be consistent, well, that's a solid belief. And so anything you try to do consistently, whether it's work out, eat right, start a business, you're not going to be consistent. You'll start, but you'll fall off, right? And because you're stuck under that belief. So, and here's the crazy part. Sometimes we have these negative beliefs and we don't even realize we have them. We don't realize that they're not really true because they feel true because you've lived it. For so long. So the book helps you to identify what the beliefs are, those negative beliefs, and then how to obliterate them. Don't you love that word? Just obliterate them.

Strong word.

Strong word. And so then the next habit is then forgiveness. So we've gotten rid of these negative beliefs, this negative baggage. Now what are we holding on to that we need to let go? From a forgiveness perspective. Because if you can imagine— I'm visual— if you can imagine holding all this baggage of negative beliefs that are keeping you confined, and then all the baggage from holding on to forgiveness, you can see how you can stay stuck in this habitual way of being. So once we can obliterate and let go of all of those things, the next habit is visualization. And gratitude. And I created a word in the book called gratization. Thank you. Gratization is visualization and gratitude combined. So now that I've let go of all of this baggage, where do I want to go? What's my vision for my life? And being grateful for that vision. Gratitude really attracts positivity into your life. And I don't think we can have too much positivity, right? And I found when I was doing my gratitude exercises, I'm happy, I'm grateful for my health, I'm grateful for my family. Yes, I'm grateful for those things. But what really ramped me up and got me excited was when I would be grateful for those things that haven't happened yet, like writing my book, like getting to talk to people about it, being on stage. Doing speeches and getting speaking engagements and possibly even being on TV, those things. So when you mix gratitude with visualization, it just makes it that much more powerful. And you could probably even tell the tone of my voice kind of elevated as I started talking about those things. So very, very powerful. And so now that you've gotten rid of the baggage, you have a great vision of where you want to go. The next habit is new identity. Who am I? Because I can't keep being who I was when I was stuck in unforgiveness and in negativity, right? So now I need to create a new identity of myself, how I will show up in this vision. So who am I? What is my physiology? What am I doing with my body? Am I slumped over? Am I sitting tall? What am I focusing on? What language am I using with myself? Creating that new identity. And then we need a plan of action. So the last one is a plan of action and then execute. So I'll walk you through a plan for how to now bring this vision to reality and how to take action. And then there's a bonus habit, and that is meditation.

Okay. Meditation. So how— I wanted to touch on meditation a little bit. So I'm glad that you brought that up. Meditation. And I'll use like my own personal experience. It's been something hard, personally, for me to, I guess, keep consistent with. And so like, as far as meditation goes, like, what, what are some meditation like tips, maybe techniques that you would recommend to someone maybe just getting into meditation and how useful is meditation to someone? And, you know, how does it benefit maybe not just like, I guess, all aspects of their life, their business, and maybe their, their personal life and things like that. I know that was like 3 questions on top of one. Go back if you just want to pinpoint on one. And then I—

sure, meditation is so powerful and there's so much research on meditation and the impact that it has on you, on your physiology, on your health, mentally, emotionally. I couldn't dare go into all of the science and research behind it. But I do get that it's hard to stick to sometimes. Like, there was a time when I was working on my morning routine and I wanted to meditate, I want to work out and do my affirmations and do my water pick routine, all these things. And then I wouldn't stick to it. And I said, okay, let's just dial it all the way back. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. So I took out everything else and just focused on meditation for 15 minutes, whether it was a guided meditation, whether I was just sitting in silence, um, it just depends. But the goal was just to meditate and be consistent in it. And after I did it for a while, I noticed that I was looking forward to it. And then I added other things onto it. So if you struggle with really focusing, uh, then I recommend a guided meditation. And there's so many out there, and I now have one that will be released on, uh, on or by March 15th, and it's called The Secret to Getting Unstuck, um, a guide to— oh goodness, I'm mixing it up. The Secret to Getting Unstuck Meditation: A Guide to Relaxation, Clarity, and Freedom. And this one is really great because it aligns with the book. And so it walks you through all of the 5 habits that I talk about in the book. So helping you to identify those negative beliefs and obliterate them, helping you with that forgiveness. And creating a vision. And one of the, one of the reasons why I created the meditation was because I feel like we can read a book and get things intellectually, but it's not until you apply them, the, the practice of it, that you really see an impact. So the meditation guides you through those steps that's in the book. I also created a beautiful journal that if you get the journal, then you can capture all of your notes. And the journal coincides with the meditation that coincides with the original book. So very, very excited about those things. So if you're having a hard time sticking to meditation, then you want to check out the Secret to Getting Unstuck meditation. I think if you look forward to it and you seeing and feeling the breakthroughs, you're going to be more likely to want to do it. Whereas when you're meditating, you don't always feel the effects, but it's working. But with this meditation, you walk away feeling 10 pounds lighter.

Yeah, I was— I'm going to definitely check it out. I will. I'm always open to different meditations, as— because I don't know if it's just because I haven't found one. Or I've never, or I haven't been as open-minded as I should be. So it's something that I'm very interested in. So I will definitely be checking it out.

Well, check it out. Let me know what you think. I'm excited to hear from you.

Yeah, yeah, no, definitely. So this, this next question is kind of a personal question. And it might even be a little bit of a touchy question for people, I don't want to say you, but maybe other life coaches out there. My question to you would be, and I'm asking you this because from like the notes I have in front of me from the book and just kind of what I've, the information I've gathered, you know, I believe you to be like, when you write a book, you have to be a master of the craft, right? Because to put a book together, you you really have to know what you're talking about. It's a lot to put down on paper, and the book makes you a master of that craft. So that's why I'm asking you, what would you say, like, qualifies as a life coach? Like, how does someone determine they are a life coach? Because I feel— and again, this is like a personal question— just because I feel like I've met some life coaches who weren't as established as you are, right? And it just to me felt like maybe they were just putting that label on there. So I, so I feel like I feel comfortable asking you this question just because of who you are and what you've accomplished. So is it— do you have any input on like what kind of establishes someone as a life coach? Like what are the checkmarks they need to check off?

Yes, and thank you for your level of comfort with asking me that question. I am happy to dissect that with you. When you ask that question, it made me think about when I was interviewing for a job. My profession is human resources, and I was walking away from that. I thought I was getting away from HR, and I was interviewing for a life coach opportunity for an organization where I would be responsible for coaching the executives and all of the employees. So it was an incredible opportunity. And when they interviewed me, or when they went through the interview process, I think they took the top 2 candidates and they did a real-life scenario. Where I had to coach a leader on how to coach their employee and deal with a particular situation. Interesting. Okay. And, and so on the spot, there are people on the— it was a Zoom call, so there are other people on the call watching me coach this leader. And I got the job. And when I got the job, they told me, hands down, we could tell who the real coach was. And, and so it just made me think about, you know, coaching kind of was one of those things that had a slow start, and then all of a sudden it was booming. And you could take a coaching course over 3 days or 24 hours or over a weekend, and then boom, you're a coach. Um, and So when I think about my coaching journey, I actually have two coaching certifications. The first one was through the Ford Institute and JFK University, and that was a year-long program. So there was a lot of work and effort that was put into it. I can only speak for myself as far as coaching goes. As I said before, back in the 6th grade, I wanted to be a psychiatrist, right? So I think it's always been in me, and I feel like my ability to coach people, to help people, is a gift. But I made it a skill because I work on it every single day, educating myself, learning, developing. So I don't know that a coaching certification over a day or 3 days will make you a coach. I think it's something that you really have to be passionate about, and you absolutely have to do the work on yourself before you can really help coach someone else. I remember being a member of Toastmasters, and my very first speech that I did, It was called, uh, I'm a Junkie with Superpowers. Okay, I love that. I, I wish I could find that speech, um, but the, the speech— what the junkie part, just so no one gets the wrong impression, is I, I was a junkie for motivational, inspirational, uh, religious spiritual, just content that fed my mind. Because at an early age, I had a question, and that is, why are some people successful and others aren't? You know, so this junkie, I was on this journey, this quest to, to learn and find out what does it take, um, to be successful? What does it take to, to, to feel powerful, to be confident? Uh, and I would go to the, to to the library before Audible. Yeah. And I would have stacks of tapes and, and, and books and programs and going to different workshops, what have you. And then the superpower, um, was being able to then take what I learned and help and coach other people to live their best life. So Hopefully that answers your question.

And you actually answered, uh, one of my next questions, um, which was going to be someone who's a, uh, an inspiring life coach or who, who wants to get into, um, you know, what you do and, and, and, um, you know, along those lines, like what would be their first steps? And I think you kind of— I think you touched on it, um, very well. I think you actually answered the question. But if you want to give maybe just like to speak directly to those people, because I know we have some people who listen to this podcast who are definitely interested in becoming a life coach, or maybe they are already a life coach. So maybe just like one piece of advice, because like I said, you touched on a lot there and I think it did answer most of the question, but just like one piece of advice you would maybe put out there for them uh, just to say, you know, to speak to them directly.

Yes, I, I would say if, if someone is interested in becoming a life coach, to find a credible, uh, resource. There's so many out there, and I would imagine some are more, uh, credible than others. I would get with the, the most credible resource, and there's actually an association for certified coaches. To me, that's going to be your— that would be a great place to start with actually getting that designation. And even through that process, there's going to be a lot of training, a lot of working on yourself, a lot of practicing. And then also do your work on yourself and then maybe find people and practice coaching because the way you get good at anything, even for you meditating, Colin, is repetition. Yeah, repetition is the second law of learning. So getting that practice in. So here are 3 things: getting a reputable source for your accreditation and doing the work on yourself consistently. And then repetition and practicing coaching anywhere you can with anybody in a conversation. There's nothing— it's like getting a high. Talk about being a junkie. It's like getting a high if I'm having a conversation with someone or a coaching session and they get a breakthrough. It's like getting a hit of something amazing. Those would be my 3 things that I recommend. Just off, off the bat.

I love that. I love that. That, um, that's great advice. And, um, something I like to touch on as well is just entrepreneurship, uh, in general, because we have a lot of, uh, listeners who, um, you know, they're inspiring entrepreneurs. They, they want to start their own business, their own company. Um, but, you know, I feel like one, entrepreneurship isn't for everybody. You have to— it really, it's really something you have to, you have to kind of dive deep into. Like, is this something that you can do and you truly can stick through it? So like, as far as entrepreneurship goes, what would you say, like, how does someone figure out if they— if entrepreneurship is for them? And secondly, just like, like, where would— like, you kind of pinpointed on, um, becoming a life coach, but just being an entrepreneur in general, like, maybe where, where would, like, the— an entrepreneur start?

You know, in, in your question, it made me think of something to tack on to your previous question, which would, would also apply to, to this question, and that is I believe everyone needs a coach. All coaches, even coaches need a coach, right? So that is applicable to this question also. If you're trying to be an entrepreneur, get a coach to help coach you. And coaches can see things from the outside looking in that you can't see because you're in the game, right? The best coaches are those people who can observe your performance from the sidelines because you can't see what they see. So that's a great way to identify if you want to be an entrepreneur in business. And I heard this somewhere that you have your person who is the talent. So I would like, for instance, be the talent, right? So 3 key positions: the talent, the, the manager, leader, someone who takes care of the day-to-day, and, and someone who has that entrepreneurial spirit. And all of those are required to have a successful business. We typically will tend to have 2 of those, you know, as a primary. A primary and a secondary. So if— and let's talk about like a dentist, for instance. There's a dentist who is amazing at what they do as far as the teeth, and you know, it's like art. They give you beautiful, healthy teeth, healthy gums, and they say, I want a business practice. And they go out and they start this business. Well, they got to do payroll, they have taxes, they have P&L statements, And they go, I didn't want to do all this. I just wanted to do tea. Well, if that is the case, so you want to check in with yourself to see where do I fall in this? Because when you have that entrepreneurial spirit, you will take those risks and you will take those challenges and you may even fail, but then you're back at it doing it again. And I really believe it depends. I would say depending on the nature of the business that you're pursuing, you're going to need that entrepreneurial spirit. And if you don't have it and it's required for your success, then you may want to get a partner, someone who has that, right, uh, who has that skill. Otherwise, you'll beat yourself up like that, that dentist was could potentially beat himself up because he's not keeping up with all of these things. No, it's just not your strength. So you really want to play to your strength and identify what do I bring to the table and what else is needed and how do I get that.

Yeah, no, that's great advice. I, um, I, um, something that kind of came to, uh, my mind there was just like You know, we've had our company for a little over 15 years and it's just crazy, the ups and downs that come with it. But I absolutely agree with you as far as like a coach goes. And that coach could be like, I know, for example, Tyler, my older brother Tyler, like he's always had— I wouldn't necessarily say a coach, but at least a mentor, someone who's been around doing something similar to what he wanted to do, and he's kind of followed a similar path to them. So having someone who can kind of lay things out for you and, and, you know, be that motivation or maybe just like guide you, I absolutely agree with you, is a great thing to one, start out with when you're first starting in entrepreneurship. And two, to honestly probably keep around because you do deal with those ups and downs. So it's like obviously as time goes on, you get better and better at dealing with those ups and those downs. But it's just, it's a, it's a, it's a difficult path. And I don't think people are prepared for what entrepreneurship is all about until they actually get into it. So I absolutely agree with you 100%. I do have a, uh, I have another question for you about, um, being a coach. So like, have you ever experienced, um, uh, what's the best way to like, uh, put this? So like, has there ever been someone— I don't want to say uncoachable because I don't think anybody's uncoachable— but have you ever like, uh, and you don't have to get into specifics of names or like, you know, too in detail, uh, that would give away the, the client or whoever it may be, but like Have you ever experienced— what was your hardest coaching experience that you've had?

Yes. Gosh, I will go with the first thing that popped in my mind. And I wanted to say something too. When you said keep a coach and have a coach and keep them, it's so important because there's always that next level, right? And when I read something or heard it somewhere that Oprah has like 3 or 4 coaches.

Wow, I didn't know that.

I didn't know that either. And I thought, okay, this makes sense. Let me re-up on my coaching sessions, right? Because if she has gotten to where she is and she has coaches, we never get to a point like— I don't know if you're familiar with Housewives of Atlanta. Nene Leakes. You've seen it. There's an interesting— years ago, she would say, I have arrived. And when you look at someone like Oprah and you think she has arrived, she's there, she doesn't need help. Yes, you do, because there's always that next level. So I just wanted to throw that in there. But back to your question about the toughest client. And I want to say there are people who are not coachable or they're not in a coachable state.

Okay.

State of mind. Right. Because you really have to be willing if you really want it to have an impact. And sometimes I can say things, or even if someone's not coachable or ask them a question that makes them go, it kind of jars them a little bit. But if they're determined to not receive, then I don't know how much of an impact you're going to have. And so, as I said before, my career has been in human resources, and I can remember this one lady who was just a terror to the entire department, just extremely difficult to work with, very negative, very pessimistic, and it was just off-putting. And so I was trying to coach her and calling out some— she would say things and I would challenge it gently to just think about it in a different way. Is that really true? What about this? Did you consider this? And she was starting to open up, and then it was like, oh, I'm opening up. Let me pull it back in. And so I called her out on her bad behavior, her lack of performance, and she didn't like it. She didn't like it. And so she left there and she started talking to other people on the team. And this is what she told someone, that Erica girl, she ain't all that. She don't know what she's talking about.

That's not good.

And she, you know, to this day, she's still there. She's still doing the bare minimum. And that's where leadership has to come in and, you know, manage it from a disciplinary process. But I really tried. I poured into her. I gave her some great insights. But she was just determined to not receive and stay where she was. And she couldn't see it. She couldn't see it, wouldn't see it, didn't want to see it. Somewhere up in there.

Yeah.

The impact that she was having. And if she would just let go, she wouldn't stay stuck and she would be happier. She had a permanent scowl on her face, right? She couldn't smile. And it's sad. It's very unfortunate. And we just don't have to live that way. Yeah, my heart, my heart went out to her. So she was probably one of the most challenging or not coachable people that I've worked with.

Interesting. Yeah, I've, I've always wanted to ask that question. It's just like, I don't know, I feel like I wouldn't know if someone would ever come across someone that was uncoachable. So it's just like, like, like in my mind, I'm like, you have to eventually when you work with so many people, it's just like, it's, it's kind of inevitable. But yeah, you bring up a good point. It's really not. It's really not the coach, it's the person, they have to be open to it, just like we were talking about with meditation, being open to meditation and letting it in and just forgiving yourself and starting with yourself, working on yourself first. So That's awesome. I appreciate you sharing that. Something else. Let's touch on— well, let's touch on these potentially upcoming books. These other books, I'd love to hear more about them and kind of where you're at with them if you've, you know, thought about just kind of where your thoughts are with upcoming books.

Okay, so there is The Secret to Getting Unstuck, Declarations of Truth, affirmations that will transform your life and make you unrecognizable. This book is out now on Kindle, um, and Amazon. It should be out at the end of March on Audible. I'm an Audible girl. Okay, I prefer, I prefer to read by listening. Yeah. And I'm really trying to start a revolution.

I love it.

As I should. Is that what you said?

Yeah.

Yes. Thank you for that support. I'm calling it Declarations of Truth because I want to really get past affirmations. And affirmations are great, but sometimes when we say our affirmations, I, I am wealthy. I am great. Um, you know, there, there's no meaning behind it, no substance. And, and really, to, to really experience something or attract it into your life, it really needs to connect on an emotional level. So when you declare your truth and, and you're aligning with this is my truth, this is my a matter of fact, then it just takes that affirmation to a whole nother level. And, and each affirmation, uh, the declarations of truth are all— I think every chapter aligns with the original book, The Secret to Getting Unstuck: A Guide to Forming 5 Habits That Would Transform Your Life and Make You Unrecognizable. So those 5 habits that we talked about There are declarations of truth for everyone, and each statement will start out with, I am, I feel, I understand, I know, I believe. And it just takes you deeper into aligning and feeling it just on a whole nother level. This is my truth. So I'm very excited about that. I wrote it just to be an Audible book, but I thought I'm going to print it just in case someone may want to read those affirmations. Everyone's different. Um, super excited about that. And even in the, the journal, um, The Secret to Getting Unstuck Journal: A Guide to Transformation Through Journaling, there's a section in there as you're doing your journaling along with the meditation that you can identify your declaration of truth. There's a whole section in the journal on every page for that. So I'm super excited about it. So I recommend reading the first book, um, The Secret to Getting Unstuck. Get that meditation and that journal. The journal is out and ready and available now on Amazon. The meditation, again, won't be out until March 15th. But if you get those two things and read the book first, and then get the meditation and the journal and get the declarations of truth, you single-handedly can change your life.

Absolutely. No, absolutely. I, I think this is, this is probably because that's one of the things I like to ask at the end is where can people kind of grab a copy of the book and where can they they, uh, where is it listed? Um, so you kind of pointed on that, but, um, to finish up here, I'd like to ask, you know, is there any like final statements or any points that you'd like to maybe expand on, or maybe we didn't hit on that you think would be valuable to, um, you know, our listeners here? And, um, also, where can they get, uh, connected with you? Um, where can they reach out? Where's kind of the best platform, um, to, uh, to see everything you have going on.

So my email address is erika@erika-john.com, and that's E-R-I-K-A, John is J-O-N. My website is www.erika-john.com, so you can reach me at either one of those places. I just created an Instagram page. I'm very, very early in that process. So if there's anyone who is really good at social media, call me.

I'm sure we got someone listening.

And it is Erica John Get Unstuck. Or ericajohn_getunstuck on Instagram. And then I just want to say, I know you're new to this, Colin, but you are absolutely a gem. You've done an incredible job. Thank you so much. And I would like to gift your first 5 clients or listeners with 3 free coaching 3 free Get Unstuck coaching sessions and a signed autograph, personally autographed book from me, if they'll just email me or reach out, the first 5.

All right, that's awesome. That's awesome. I'm sure they'll love to hear that. They don't hear that often. So that's awesome. We, we appreciate that. And, you know, besides that, they've, you know, they've they've made it this far. I can tell you they've learned a lot from this podcast. I know I have. It's been a lot of great knowledge and great conversation. And I appreciate what you said about me. I really do enjoy doing these. Obviously, Tyler has a couple more behind his belt, but I'm getting used to it. And you were a great guest to have on. So I really appreciated chatting with you.

It was my pleasure. And you tell Tyler I said you killed it.

All right, I will. I appreciate it, Erica. Thank you.

Have an amazing evening.

You too.