How do you resist the addictive pull of phone notifications to be present to the people around you? How do you shift from distraction to connection?

How do you find the courage to be yourself when your judgmental inner voice tells you that you have to be perfect?

How do you make peace with your past mistakes and enjoy your life here and now?

You Need to Read Video Interview series

Welcome to the second edition of our new video interview series, You Need to Read. Today, we’re discussing these powerful questions with author and speaker Rachel Macy Stafford!

Rachel is the New York Times bestselling author of Hands Free Mama, Hands Free Life, and most recently, Only Love Today. She is a certified special education teacher and she blogs at Hands Free Mama, writing about letting go to grasp what really matters.

Press play below to watch the interview, or watch From Distraction to Connection on Youtube.

From Distraction to Connection

In this interview, Rachel and I covered …

  • How to begin a “hands free” journey from distraction to connection
  • Taking small, manageable steps toward the life you want
  • The power of designating protected, distraction-free times and spaces
  • How to reframe mistakes and appreciate the lessons they have to teach
  • The magic that happens when you stop saying “Hurry up”
  • One way to shut down your inner critic and shift to positive self-talk
  • The key to getting past insecurity and fear so you can share your work

From distraction to connection

Sound Bytes from Rachel’s Interview:

“I was very tied to my phone, to my to-do list, I was very set on being a perfectionist. Everything had to be done 110% …. [But] if I had been looking at my phone the way I used to – anytime it buzzed – I wouldn’t have had that special moment with [my daughter].”

“What does this mean, the fact that my child is afraid of my reaction to her innocent mistake? And so I thought, ‘Something is really wrong here. This is not who I want to be. This is not how I want to be remembered.’

So I began to pray about the situation, because I thought, ‘I have become very critical of her.’ And through prayer time I realized, I spoke to myself that way … I was criticizing myself all the time and saying, ‘No, that’s not good enough,’ and it was spilling out onto [my daughter.]”

“Only Love Today … there are no other options. It’s only love. It is not about perfection. It is not about meeting a certain standard or a certain goal, or looking like this person or comparing yourself to that person. ‘Only love, Rachel,’ that’s what God was trying to tell me.”

“If you look at things through a lens of love, you are going to have answers that you wouldn’t have if you looked through a lens of perfection, or society’s standards, or someone else’s opinion.”

“I try to use my mistakes as stepping stones to the person I want to become.”

Only Love Today

Win a free copy of Rachel’s new book, Only Love Today! Here’s how to enter:

Step 1: Subscribe to A Wish Come Clear’s email list. (If you’re already subscribed, move on to step 2!)

Step 2: Leave a comment on this post. (Social media shares are always appreciated, but not required.)

I’ll select the winner randomly on Wednesday, March 29th at noon Central Time. Good luck to all!

Update: The giveaway is now closed; congratulations to Lori and Carla, the winners of our random drawing!

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