mindset – Surprised By Joy

“Children are great imitators, so give them something great to imitate.” – unknown

On any given sunny day, it’s not a question of if we’ll hit something over the fence, it’s a question of which fence. In fact, six-year-old Mr. D hits baseballs over the fence so often, we call them “neighbors” instead of “homers” because they are our opportunity to visit our neighbors.

So it was no surprise that on one of the many warm and lingering light evenings last week, Mr. D and I were playing in the back yard and lost a stomp rocket over the fence. But it went into our neighbor’s yard that is not next door but lives on the street behind us. Those retrievals mean we have to either walk around the block to knock on the door…or try to retrieve it without leaving our yard by leaning over the fence to grab it if it hasn’t fallen too far.

On this occasion, we looked over the fence and saw the stomp rocket was stuck in a tree and almost in reach. So Mr. D tried to use a rake to get it. It fell lower.

Then we got out the duct tape, created a sticky end of a pole and tried to grab it. It was two inches too short.

By this point our yard was strewn with the ladder, rake and every other tool we’d considered for the project. I decided to attempt one last thing by using the extendible branch trimmer. I touched the rocket, it shifted, but I didn’t get it.

So I said to Mr. D, “We should just walk around and get it from their yard.”

He looked at me and said, “We can’t give up now!”

I had to chuckle. Serves me right for teaching my kids to try and to not give up. Then they parrot it back to me at all the important moments.

I gave it one more try and bingo, we got it.

I’m still laughing. And am taking it as confirmation that I chose the right name for my podcast, The Life of Try. 🙂

(featured photo is Mr. D during the retrieval process)

You can find me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wynneleon/ and Instagram @wynneleon

Please check out the The Life of Try podcast Where trying becomes the spark for personal growth, discovery, and re-invention!

“Do the difficult things when they are easy and do the great things when they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

What if “trying” doesn’t have to mean pushing harder?

I’ve been in a flow state often enough to know it exists but not so often to know how to reliably get there. Is it really possible to regularly create — to write, to connect with others, to co-author life in a way that doesn’t leave me sweaty and tired? My guest on this week’s podcast had some insight about finding flow. Even if it falls into the category of easier said than done, it’s the quietness of the approach that makes me think it’s possible

In this Life of Try episode, I talk with author and New York Insight Meditation Center co-founder Joseph Schmidt about The Torchbearer—a collection of short stories born from an unexpectedly effortless creative process. Together we explore the mindset shift from effort to openness: how letting go of the agenda can create space for insight, transformation, and a deeper, more alive way of meeting each moment.

Try smarter, not harder: why forcing outcomes can block creativity—and what changes when you partner with the process instead.
Mindset shift to “empty hands”: Joseph’s Zen chaplaincy training and the practice of entering a room (or a moment) without an agenda.
Personal growth through discovery: how his characters—and we as readers—find the next move by noticing what’s already here.
Feeling alive at the edge of the unknown: mindfulness as the place where consciousness meets what happens next.
Belonging as a practice: building a bond of belonging by showing up with curiosity, care, and presence.

If you’ve been working hard but feeling flat, this conversation is an invitation to loosen your grip, step back into the present, and discover a more natural flow—one where growth comes from attention, not strain. Listen in for a gentler (and often more powerful) way to create, connect, and keep beginning again.

Here’s great clip of Joseph describing the lesson he learned from a Zen monk about a powerful mindset shift:

This is a great episode if you’re craving a mindset reset, rebuilding your creative confidence, deepening a mindfulness practice, or simply want to feel more awake and engaged in your everyday life.

Here are some ways you can listen and watch this inspiring episode:

The podcast player embedded below
Click this link to watch in a browser: The Quiet Transformation That Changes Everything
Subscribe to The Life of Try on Spotify, Amazon Music, or Apple Podcasts
Subscribing to the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@thelifeoftry

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

51: Letting Go of Outcomes: The Mindset That Keeps You Moving – The Life of Try: Personal growth, one try at a time.

Expectations can inspire us to try—until they harden into a demand for a specific outcome. In this episode of The Life of Try, Wynne Leon explores how unmet expectations fuel disappointment, why that disappointment can keep us from taking healthy risks, and what it looks like to stay hopeful without clinging. From a childhood lesson about “pressing for the answer” to Alexander Fleming’s accidental discovery of penicillin, we’ll trace how openness, curiosity, and faith can turn apparent failures into forward motion. Along the way, we’ll draw from Brené Brown’s research on disappointment, Maya Shankar’s reframing of identity after loss, and spiritual wisdom about surrender and non‑attachment—so you can keep trying even when the path changes.In this episode, you’ll learn how to:Recognize when expectations are motivating you—and when they’re setting you up for disappointmentPractice openness and curiosity when a try doesn’t go as planned (and why that matters)Name and communicate your expectations to reduce “unspoken contracts”Reconnect with your deeper “why” when your “what” gets taken awayHold onto faith that trying will lead somewhere good—even if it’s not the destination you imagined.The Life of Try is a podcast about personal growth, one try at a time.What happens when trying becomes more important thangetting it right?The Life of Try is a personal growth and self‑help podcast about getting unstuck, navigating uncertainty, and choosing to try—even when it’s uncomfortable, inconvenient, or not your idea.Hosted by Wynne Leon, the show explores how real growth, reinvention, and discovery often begin not with confidence orclarity—but with a single attempt. Through thoughtful interviews, reflective conversations, and real‑world case studies, each episode examines what it looks like to keep going when doubt shows up, plans fall apart, or life forces achange you didn’t ask for.This podcast is for anyone who:Feels stuck or uncertain about what’s nextIs navigating change, burnout, or reinventionWants to live more intentionally without pretending growth is easyBelieves progress starts by trying—again and againThe Life of Try isn’t about hustle or perfection. It’s about learning as you go, surfacing what matters, and sharing what you discover along the way.If you’re ready to surf the uncertainty, outlast the doubts, and step into your own try‑cycle, you’re in the right place.Links for this episode:The Life of Try HomeLetting Go of Outcomes: The Mindset That Keeps You Moving transcriptSir Alexander Fleming – Biographical – NobelPrize.orgHow to Regulate Your Emotions and Mental Chatter When Bad Things Happen | Maya ShankarAtlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Connection by Brene BrownPenicillin Wasn't Alexander Fleming's First Major Discovery | Scientific American

Links for this episode:

The Transformation That Changes Everything transcript

The Torchbearer: and other Stories of Borderline Redemption by Joseph Schmidt on Amazon

Joseph Schmidt bio – New York Insight Meditation Center

(featured photo from Pexels)

Tag: mindset

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51: Letting Go of Outcomes: The Mindset That Keeps You Moving – The Life of Try: Personal growth, one try at a time.