Today we’re talking all about joy. Really, this is a call to action. A love letter to your joy.

I believe so deeply in joy. It’s one of the core values of Wholehearted Coaching and it is so incredibly necessary for all of us. But, right now, I believe we’re struggling with joy because times are rough.

For the past couple weeks, I’ve been saying that phrase, and I know it’s true. It’s true in my life, it’s true with my clients. I’m hearing from so many people that things are incredibly challenging right now.

And, when times are challenging or difficult, it can be so easy to believe that joy is some sort of luxury that we don’t need to have until things get better.

Love, we need our joy now more than ever.

When it comes to my weekly podcast episodes, I love to share what inspires me to record and this topic on joy came from a recent experience I had on Instagram.

A lot of us have Instagram friends — people we don’t know in real life, but we talk to and share things with in the DMs. There is one woman I’ve recently become friends with who is wonderful, incredible, and Iranian like me. I found out that she was getting married. Now, you might know that I got married about a month ago and I was so incredibly excited for her!

But, about a week before her wedding, she shared this in her Instagram stories:

I am really struggling right now.

I'm struggling because I really want to be excited for my wedding, I want to be able to celebrate this weekend, but with everything that is going on back home in Iran, I just don't know how.

I just don't know if I can.

I saw her post and I got into her DMs so quickly because I had a couple things to say about joy. This interaction is what inspired this week’s Mindset Monday. I said to her:

Love, you have to understand that joy and celebration are so needed right now.

That joy is our resilience.

That celebration is our strength and it is through joy and celebration that we can sustain these difficult moments.

That we can sustain this fight.

In the hard moments, we forget the importance of joy and celebration. We know we have to do hard work and figure things out. But we just push forward forgetting about joy and celebration, thinking we don’t deserve them, that they aren’t important during hard times.

I especially understand this being Iranian right now and knowing what people back home are going through. A lot of us felt that guilt during the pandemic. That guilt that we aren’t supposed to feel joy because other people are going through such difficult times.

But love, we need our joy especially during the difficult moments. Our joy is what allows us to sustain, to become resilient, and somehow thrive.

Joy and celebration are what allow us to get to the finish line as our whole selves.

We all know what it’s like to get to the finish line bruised, battered, and exhausted. We’ve all done it. We know how to do things and figure things out the hard way. But, when we allow joy and celebration to be part of the process, we can get to the finish line whole and capable of doing the next hard thing.

As I am saying this, I want you to check in and see what is coming up for you.

Here are some prompts to help you dig a little deeper into those beliefs you have around joy and celebration:

• I deserve joy when…

• I deserve to celebrate when…

• Joy can be experienced…

• Celebration can happen…

If there’s one thing I want you to take away today, it’s this:

Joy is a necessity. It is so important during the hard times. It is essential during the hard times.

I want to leave you with one of my favorite poems by Mary Oliver:

If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don't hesitate. Give into it. Don't be afraid of its plenty. Joy is not made to be a crumb.

Love, if you find yourself in a moment of absolute joy and you want to celebrate something, do not hesitate. Give into it.

Be in your joy.

Did you know that each podcast episode comes with free guided journal prompts?

If you want to be in the know and get each Mindset Monday straight to your inbox complete with journal prompts to take you even further, get on my email list.

If you enjoyed this, you’ll also enjoy these posts & podcast episodes:

The 4 Pillars of Joy: During difficult times it can be really easy to put joy on the back burner, thinking it’s not important. Truth is, the more challenging times get, the more we need our joy. Listen to this episode to learn about Shirin 4 E’s of Joy. Learn about practical and doable ways to infuse more joy in your life no matter what is going on around you.

About your host, Shirin Eskandani