The Intentional Advantage

Intentional thoughts can easily be forgotten in the hecticness of our days. Because of this, it's often important that we find a way to remind ourselves to be intentional with our time and focus. How? I'll let my husband, John, be the example for this one. I'm sharing a quick story of the small Jade Dragon he brought home with him from a Chinese market years ago and how you can find your own perso...

Mentally and physically investing in yourself means decreased overwhelm and increased productivity and overall happiness. When others push their priorities onto us, though, we're not focusing on what matters most. Today, I'm sharing the 5 simple steps you can take to start intentionally investing in you, the importance of being mindful and how meditation will have a big, positive impact on your da...

Tough times are often just parts of life... it's not something we can plan for. Recently, a friend asked me a question that brought up a time in my life when I simply couldn't plan for what I really wanted with my family. Listen and learn why it's important not to stress too much about the plan so we can keep moving forward - one step in front of the other.

We often have this idea of the path we're meant to be on, but sometimes our hopes and dreams get off track and plans are derailed. Today's episode is focused on how you can deal with hardships and negative situations, and I'll share with you exactly how to turn it all around. Learn the the 5 ways you can begin to move forward if you're feeling like everything is going wrong... Sometimes it's all a...

Have you ever stopped dead in your tracks when you realize you've been prioritizing certain tasks and events all wrong? I have… and today I'm sharing a quick story with you that involves my love for baking, a family tradition and creating unnecessary (and even unrealistic!) expectations for ourselves.

When you prioritize yourself, your time and the tasks that are important to you, you are investing in your future self. Today, I'm talking sharing how to prioritize the right things which will allow you to spend more time on what matters most. Through practicing self-compassion and defining what success means to you, you'll be able to reflect on mistakes and begin to take action to cultivate chang...

Why is it that one negative remark or comment can tear us down? How should we deal with these people who want to knock us down, and what can we do instead of questioning ourselves? I want to share my recent experience with you on this, and remind you why it's so important for us to invest in our future selves right now.

In Part 2 of our interview, Marshawn Evans Daniels shares the struggles and stories of investing in our future selves. We discuss the 5 Success Mountains - the areas of our lives we choose to identify with so much, that we may often lose ourselves in them. We're digging deep in this episode on the importance of showing up for ourselves, and living 'bigger so we can live bolder.' What's In This Epi...

After talking to my guest, Marshawn, earlier this week, I wanted to point out something powerful she said. "We have two voices we hear in our heads - little me and future me." If you've ever felt those voices pulling you in different directions, making you wonder if you're worth the investment and opportunity in front of you, today's episode will help.

Today, I'm so excited to be talking with reinvention strategist, Marshawn Evans Daniels. Marshawn is a life coach, author and speaker whose goal is to empower women to find their true purpose, even when they don't think they deserve it. She's sharing her own personal struggles of shame, embarrassment and finding her true calling in her new book, Believe Bigger. After listening to Part 1 of our int...

Earlier this week, we talked about being protective of your time, and I want to expand on that with P arkinson's Law. This is the idea that work expands to fill the time you've allotted for completion. If you give yourself a week to complete a two hour task…  psychologically, you'll be sure it fills up that week. In reality, it's stress and tension that fills up our time, so I'll share a mental tr...

Time is best spent on the things that are important to you and your goals. Today, I'm discussing the importance of protecting your time and how you can track where you spend yours. After today's episode, you'll have the tips and tools needed to go from multitasking and feeling distracted to monotasking, understanding your peak productivity blocks and owning your time. What's In This Episode: Activ...

In this week's mini episode, I want to share a story about the person in my life who always embodied his core values - my Grandpa. He taught me that you don't have to shout what you believe from the rooftops when you live your life exemplifying it. After listening to this story, a great question for us to ask is, "Am I living a life where my priorities and values are clear, or do I get caught up i...

Your core values are an important part of investing in yourself as it helps you define the actions and behaviors you want to hold central to your life. In today's episode  I'll give you my easy 3-step process in getting to the heart of your values in your personal life and in your work. I'll walk you through how you can define, modify and use your core values on a daily basis. After today's episod...

Do you use the word 'busy' as an excuse for not going after your goals or as badge of pride in your daily life? It's important to intentionally reflect on your 'busy' life and schedule in a whitespace retreat. In today's mini episode, I'll share how I plan mine, and how you can enjoy a quick whitespace retreat right now, allowing you to feel a bit more recharged (and ready to plan a full-length on...

Knowing your personality type can help you to understand yourself better and improve how you interact with others. Today, I'm focusing on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and how that introspective questionnaire will help you to set goals, eliminate procrastination, grow your creativity and work more effectively. I'll share my own personality type and how it's helped me to appreciate others,...

We've been talking all about investing in you this season, so in this week's mini episode, I'm sharing my simple truths with you. These are little, personal things I've noticed about myself throughout my life that I wanted to be mindful of and write down. Over time, I've found that they center me and remind me of who I am at my core. I hope after listening today, you'll be inspired to start a note...

Learn how your actions today will affect your future self in today's Ask Tonya Q&A episode. I'm answering listener's questions about how to stop your patterns of procrastination and analysis paralysis so that your ideas and goals are in reach. We'll focus on intentionally taking action and working with our families to create routines now and maintaining harmony going forward. What's In This Episod...

Earlier this week in episode 055, I discussed following our breadcrumbs to find our true passions. So today, I'm sharing my story of how my breadcrumbs led me to "accidentally" become an entrepreneur. Sometimes it takes a surprising conversation with a friend about your past experiences to recognize the pattern that's been in front of you all along. Listen to my story, and then I encourage you to...

We all have stories that we tell ourselves about our life that leads us into patterns of behavior and beliefs. The key here is which patterns or cycles you feed. Today's episode is focused around understanding your breadcrumbs so you can breakthrough and discover your passions. I know it's not as easy as that, so I'll share the best ways you can start getting motivated, along with tips on using yo...

We all have things in our lives that make us feel comfortable… sometimes too comfortable. When we don't get out of our comfort zone we begin to stop pushing ourselves to live our best lives. In this week's mini episode, I'm going to share a quick story about how we all get used to the things in our world that are "okay." And, while it's good to be comfortable, we want to make sure that's it's not...

This season is all about investing in yourself, and that includes making sure you're not stuck in the comfort zone. I'll share signs to look for so you'll know if you're getting too comfortable, why we let ourselves feel stuck, and solutions to each of the issues you may be experiencing. After listening, you'll have the tips and advice to be more prepared and inspired to take the plunge out of you...

What would you say to the future you? I have a little exercise to go along with episode 053 from earlier this week where we talked about becoming your future self and defining what that means. This activity will set in motion plans, good habits, and small wins in order for you to become who you want to be a year from now and beyond.

My goal for season 5 is for you to invest in YOU. Today's episode is focused on why it's so important to devote our time and energy on actively working towards bettering ourselves for the future. I'll share how our brain perceives ourselves differently in the present versus the future and give you advice on how you can take real steps to implement change through small actions that lead to who you...

Recently, I saw Dr. Christine Darden, a woman who began her 40-year career as a NASA engineer in the 1960s, speak at a Woman Up event. Dr. Darden broke through barriers one afternoon when she decided to take a risk and speak up… even if it felt uncomfortable and scary. By asking her superior a single question, she propelled herself forward to where she wanted to be. See what lessons we can learn f...