The Motivation Mindset with Risa Williams

So many of us are feeling stressed out and burnt out these days, but what can we do to start to feel better again? Risa Williams talks to Megan Caldwell, host of The Rockstar Mom Summit, about the importance of fun, play, and joy, and how we can find more of these things in everyday life. They discuss: -Finding out what's fun for you right now as this version of you -Using flexibility and cur...

In this special episode, Risa Williams is joined by Erica Curtis and Darrin Kagele to talk about ways to make the upcoming season feel Festive, Not Frantic! So often, the stretch between October and December can feel stressful and chaotic to experience, when most of us are trying to find the fun of being with family and loved ones instead. So, what can we do to navigate it in an easier way? They d...

How do perfectionism tendencies tend to affect our close relationships? How does our own critical self-talk sometimes accidentally spill out onto other people around us? Risa Williams talks to Stephanie Van Schaick about how we can start to notice where we're getting stuck in perfectionistic tendencies in our relationships and how we can develop more cognitive flexibility instead. They discus...

What’s a sustainable pace that you can maintain for any given project? Risa Williams and guest co-host, Stevon Lewis, talk about finding your own unique pace and accepting your own way of making progress on things. How can we figure out what pace and style works best for us? And how can we better support ourselves during all the phases of progress we go through? They discuss: Factoring in the “unp...

When you make an everyday mistake, do you tend to beat yourself up unnecessarily and for too long afterwards? Do you tend to view yourself overly harshly if you don't do something "perfectly" or "the right way"? Risa Williams talks to therapist Stephanie Van Schaick about "making mistakes" and some simple mindset shifts to ease us out of harsh perfectionistic thi...

How can people use dating apps in a more mindful and intentional way? Risa Williams talks with DBT expert Dr. Marcus Rodriguez about how Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and mindfulness skills can help you approach dating apps with greater self-awareness, confidence, and intention. Instead of getting swept up in the emotional highs and lows of swiping, learn how to stay connected to how you want...

We often want to do big and impressive things - but do we ever stop to think about what the cost will be of actually accomplishing those things? Or even all the things we may have to give up or overcome in order to attain them? Risa Williams talks to frequent guest co-host, Stevon Lewis, about the idea of "the cost of good" and how we sometimes form unrealistic expectations about achievi...

Do you find yourself rushing through self-care activities only to feel just as stressed afterward? Why do so many of us struggle to slow down and truly reconnect with ourselves? In this episode, Risa Williams talks with Dr. Lea Didion about simple, everyday self-care practices that can help us become more mindful, present, and intentional throughout the week.  Together, they explore: - Practical w...

Are summer plans throwing you into a frenzy of rushing around to too many things and places? Summer often gets us fired up to do a lot; however, sometimes in all the planning, we're not taking our real energy and capacity into consideration at all. Risa Williams talks to fellow therapists, Darrin Kagele and Erica Curtis, about ways we can get more mindful about slowing down for the summer so...

Do you often feel like you're holding up a bunch of spinning plates in the air and if you step back for a second, they will all crash down? Do you feel like you need to hold a million bits of information in your head to the point of weekly exhaustion and burnout? Risa Williams talks to author, Lori Oberbroeckling, about the "invisible mental load" that parents carry and how it can o...

How can we teach kids and teens everyday life skills in ways that actually stick? In this episode, Risa Williams talks with life skills expert Katie Kimball about a simple three-step approach to help kids and teens build confidence, responsibility, and independence through completing everyday tasks and projects at home. They discuss: -Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation tools -Collaborating as a te...

Do you have that one cluttered desk drawer that's always driving you crazy? Or that old can opener that just doesn't work any more but you keep trying to use it anyway? What if we told you that these tiny little daily frustrations may be holding you back from experiencing little bursts of delight and joy each day? Risa Williams is joined once again by book author and Ted Talk speaker, Jo...

With the constant onslaught of fear-inducing news coming at us each day, how can we keep ourselves emotioanlly regulated and calm enough to do what we need to do? Risa Williams is joined again by CBT expert, psychologist, podcast host, and book author, Dr. Scott Waltman, to discuss how to notice when our doomscrolling tendencies might be derailing us from being present in our daily lives. They dis...

In this special episode, Risa Williams invites participants from the Tiny Wins Workshop to join her in a conversation about how tracking their small daily wins over four weeks led to meaningful, lasting change. Featured guests include author and educator Ezra Werb, author and tutor Judy O’Kelley, and her daughter, Kelsey O’Kelley. We discused: -How noticing and tracking tiny wins helps you recogni...

Have you ever found yourself stuck in a rut, unable to motivate yourself to take the next step forward? Risa Williams talks with ADHD-ish host Diann Wingert about navigating ADHD inertia and finding the energy to start tasks.  They also discuss:  -Diann's START-STOP-SHIFT method that provides an easy method for figuring out where you need to go next - How to recognize when you’ve done enough...

Do you ever feel like your work is never quite “good enough,” so you keep pushing yourself until you’re completely burned out? Do perfectionistic tendencies sometimes make it hard to relax or try new things without worrying about mistakes? If so, this episode is for you. Risa Williams sits down with mental health counselor and DBT specialist Stephanie Van Schaick to talk about perfectionism and ho...

How can we learn to better navigate and manage the fears that arise in everyday life? Risa Williams speaks with fear expert, biopsychologist, TED Talk speaker, and author Dr. Mary Poffenroth about how to recognize fear as it begins to surface and how to use neuroscience based tools to calm ourselves more effectively in the moment. They discuss: -Learning The R.A.I.N. Method for developing an aware...

Where do couples tend to get stuck and bogged down in their daily communication with each other? How do we fall into the trap of criticizing and nagging when we actually just want to create positive change and grow together? Risa Williams talks to DBT expert, Dr. Marcus Rodriguez, on validation and communication skills people can use when they're in long term relationships. They discuss: -How...

Do you tend to fall into the role of "rescuer" in your relationships? Or are you the one who tends to need the rescuing? Risa Williams talks to Dr. Scott Waltman about the ideas of "rescuing" and "people pleasing" and how we can get stuck playing roles that we might want to change in relationships. They discuss: -How people can fall into the roles of "rescuer&quo...

In this special episode of The Motivation Mindset, Risa shares a tiny sample of her new online workshop, The Tiny Wins Workshop , which is live today!  What if making progress didn’t have to feel SO stressful and overwhelming? What if you counted every tiny win from now on and actually allowed yourself to  feel proud of each one? Risa explains how to: - Notice your tiny daily wins (even on hard da...

Happy 2026, everyone! If you're listening to this episode, you made it to the new year, and that's a wonderful thing! Risa Williams talks to fellow therapists, Erica Curtis and Darrin Kagele about new tools they're going to try in the new year ahead. They discuss: -How the words we're using with ourselves are so important to become mindful of -Darrin shares a few phrases he tel...

When someone's behavior or emotional state is bothering us, how do we take a pause and validate what they are feeling without judgement? This can be tricky to do! Dr. Marcus Rodriguez, founder of the Youth and Family Institute and an expert in teaching validation, talks to Risa Williams about some practical ways to practice validating the emotional experience of others. They discuss: -What va...

Every so often, Risa Williams runs into someone on the show who has a tool that is very aligned with one of her own! This was the case in this episode, Holiday Time Tools, in which Risa Williams shares her tool, The Time Wardrobe, and Jenny Layton shares her tool, The Time Pantry, both with many similarities on how to visualize your time in an easier and more tangible way. They discuss: -How to vi...

Are you starting to feel the holiday overwhelm kick in this week? Are seasonal things feeling a little too busy, too rushed, too chaotic, and too exhausting to manage? Then, this episode is for you! Dr. Michelle Chung and Risa Williams discuss the concept of "Holiday Mindfulness," which includes intentionally slowing down for the holidays so that we can feel more joy and connection in th...

The holiday season can often feel really stressful, even though we often feel like we should be feeling more gratitude at this time of year. So how do we slow down enough to notice the small things that are actually going right...especially when life feels busy, chaotic, or overwhelming? Author and podcaster Lori Oberbroeckling joins Risa Williams to talk about simple, actionable ways to build gra...