16. MOTHERHOOD: Playful, Successful, Impactful Moms--A Talk with Melissa Llarena

Do you know what YOUR "momscript" is? Are you simply following a script that has been handed down for generations? Or are you living your most authentic life, both at home and at work? If you're looking for a llittle help in this department, listen up!

In this episode of Lifeyness, host Sarah Clarke speaks with Melissa Llarena, author of the new book Fertile Imagination: A Guide for Stretching Every Mom’s Superpower for Maximum Impact.

Today we talk about how to be playful, imaginative, and successful, both in your career and in your family. Here are some key points:

• How Melissa worked to retain her pre-parent identity after having kids, playing a “mental game” to keep life feeling un-mom-like
• Melissa’s 3-step Imagination to Impact Method for rediscovering your sense of wonder and playfulness as a parent
• Ways moms can “wake up” their imagination again and rebuild trust in their creative side
• The power of play for bonding with your kids and unleashing the inner child in yourself
• Stretching your imagination to make a difference and share your vision with others
• Melissa’s outlook on learning from those outside the typical mom sphere to expand perspectives
• Overcoming “inherited motherhood scripts” that feel inauthentic to who you really are
• Embracing your quirks and giving yourself permission to explore weird ideas
• Finding fulfillment as a parent by nurturing your passions and gifts
• The influence moms can have on kids by pursuing their own creativity and purpose

Quotes:

“Your imagination does not like to be ignored, pushed down or said you're not cool.”

“There’s something to just finding that thing...that tickles you, whatever that means to you.”

“Why not give this a chance? What’s the worst that’s gonna happen? You’re gonna stub your toe ‘cause you were dancing like a wild person?”

"The more you [use your imagination], the better a mom you are."

Mentioned in this episode:

• Fertile Imagination by Melissa Llarena
• Unimaginable Wellness podcast
• The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron

Connect with Melissa:

Website: www.fertileideas.com

Instagram: @melissallarena

More about today's guest:

An online entrepreneur since 2011, Melissa Llarena launched her business in parallel to becoming a mom the first time around. One set of identical twins later, Melissa brings a decade of experience working for Fortune top-50 brands and over another decade as a solopreneur. She holds a psychology degree from New York University and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and a Transformational Coaching Academy certificate based on Tony Robbins’s principles and Landmark Education insights. She’s becoming a meditation practitioner, enrolled in The Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program with Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield. Her perspective has also been influenced by having lived for three years in Sydney, Australia, as an ex-pat family, and prior to motherhood, she worked and lived in NYC, London, and Paris. You can read her story “Imagine A Better Way” (Woodhall Press, 2023) in the anthology Fast Fallen Women. Melissa currently lives in Austin, Texas. 

Visit www.fertileideas.comfor resources (including a free book chapter) and speaking opportunities.   

 

 

Music Credit: William Claeson, "Song for a New Beginning"