Get answers to your questions about marriage, parenting and family life from experts and parents of 7 children!

Rachel Denning (00:01.326)
Hey, my friends. Whoa. We are living in crazy times. Who would have ever thought this would even be possible? Isn't this, this is crazy. Like it's so impressive. Somebody told me this a month ago or a few weeks ago or years ago that, that something would happen. They would shut down global travel and.

stores and schools and churches and like countries and close their borders completely. I would have been like, no way. Come on. We live in this, this time and era. That's not going to happen. And here it is. We are living in the midst of like unprecedented history. You guys, this is crazy because the world has changed so much.

And we're such a global community and the world's so small now. And this, the way things spread, this is, it's unreal. And every day getting more intense and more country closures and the numbers are spiking. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. And so we're living in

in unique times, my friends, and that calls for unique perspectives and unique behaviors. And because of the intensity, we need to level up. And that's what we're going to talk about today. But whoa, what a time in history and who knows what's coming. And so I want to, I want to just kind of help, you know, get thinking through this, that we definitely do not want to go into panic mode.

We want to go into preparation mode and what we're going to talk about that we're going to dive into all that stuff, right? But we want to have this framework around what's possible here. And there, therefore sure will be a significant economic impact. Right. And especially for people who are hourly wage earners and in certain jobs and things where they're just going to have to close their doors. Right.

Rachel Denning (02:26.669)
and those people are gonna be impacted a lot and we wanna step up and help. But let's dive in. So here's how I wanna start with a story. Rachael and I the other day, for our date, we usually go out to a restaurant for our dates and maybe to a movie or something every once in a while, but we were like, nah, we're not going to a public place. We're really gonna just kinda settle in. And here's why, my friends, some of you, I guess some of you still listening to this have not done the research yet.

And maybe you're still where I was even just a few days ago. I was like, come on. People are overreacting a bit here. It's a little, come on, don't let fear and panic control your thinking. But then I did my homework. Rachel and I did our study and our homework. And this is, you know, we went to try to the best sources we could find, you know, the medical experts and the scientists, these brilliant people who understand this stuff.

and we heard it straight from them, read their reports, saw the graphs, and it's pretty serious. It's a big deal. Not that we're afraid of our own illness or death, right? Because as far as I have read, children, teenagers, they're surviving, right? They're having minimal.

Symptoms same with same with people are healthy right good healthy condition very minimal symptoms So the concern isn't that we would catch it. That's not my concern If my family got it. All right, we'll be all right. We'll just get over it, right? We're healthy and strong the concern is how rapidly this thing spreads and Then when it grabs hold of people who are in poor health or who are elderly?

then it's taking their lives at much higher rates. The mortality rate for the elderly and those who are struggling with like especially respiratory problems or immune system problems, that's a lot of people and we love those people and we don't want them to be affected or harmed or to go through this. And we definitely don't want it to get to a level where our medical system is just overtaxed because it can't help enough people and they have to start doing triage.

Rachel Denning (04:52.589)
Like we don't want to get there. And so the big concern is let's be super respectful and loving and kind of thoughtful and considerate to others as this thing might spread like crazy. And that's the thought we're kind of thinking of. But so instead of going out to a restaurant, Rach and I decided to drive around Georgia. And we went up, we went north and just wanted to drive around through the countryside.

And whoa, man, we were not expecting the cultural experience. Woo, it was something else. We ended up driving for miles and miles, kind of through backwoodsie, Georgia. And we were on, and Rachel and you guys, we've been, so I've been in 45 countries and I have purposely sought out some of the poorest areas on earth and walked.

through those pathways and roads and been in those homes and with those wonderful people. And so I've seen some pretty rough living conditions. It was fascinating that within, you know, not too far of a distance from where we live, and I would guess from where you live, there are people living in deplorable conditions. Super sad.

We saw trailers, hundreds of them. These old trailers looked like they, the trailer looked like it was dead back in the 70s and they're still living in it. And it's, it's such a tragedy. I just remember thinking, if these good people only knew that they could get out of this. If they only understood that they have a choice.

There's something they can do about this and that in life we often get what we tolerate if we're aware of it, right? Sometimes we're not even aware of it, but they get what they tolerate. And it's like, if you raised your level of tolerance, it would change things. You have a choice here to respond. The problem is that most people, including us, you and me, we aren't always aware of our level of...

Rachel Denning (07:16.301)
victimism is what I call it, right? And getting out of victimville. I've done other podcasts about that. We're not always aware of that. And if we don't know, and we aren't aware of that situation, that scenario, that unique circumstance, then we just think, well, this is the way things are. And there isn't really anything I can do about it. And that's my message for you and me today, that we have a choice. We get to choose our response to what's happening.

Right now we may not choose the circumstances and like they are closing down countries that I want to go visit and they just shut those things down. In fact, today, a couple more countries closed their borders. In fact, canceled grounded all of their airplanes in and out. Nothing. If you're in that country, you're staying put. And if you had plans to go, you're not going, they're not letting you in. And it's happening more and more.

So we wouldn't choose the circumstances, but we always, always have a choice in how we respond. And this is my message. Like this, this COVID -19 craziness, it's affecting all of us, but that is where we have the choice. There's this moment, this space where we get to choose.

what we'll think, what we'll say, what we'll feel, what we'll do. We get to choose the example we're gonna set for our children, for our friends, for those we lead. Like we have so much we can and must control.

We can control our thoughts, our words, our actions, our kindness, our optimism, our outlook, our hope, our hustle. It's all within our power. We have way more power than we think we do. And sometimes, you know, we think, well, no, no, no, I don't play the victim. I'm, I'm rolling along. I'm leading my life. And then something like this happens and we're like, all is lost. I can't do anything. Right. And we kind of throw this dark cloud blanket over all these things we, we still can do saying, we can't do anything.

Rachel Denning (09:40.429)
And it's interesting, it's like, well yeah, there's out of respect, there should be some social distancing. We should just keep a little space here so we're not sharing possible illness in between people, but the outdoors are not closed, my friends. People are like isolating themselves at their house and they're like, I can't leave or do anything. And yeah, they've shut down like social things, but.

to get outside and walk and play and hike and ride your bike and talk to your neighbor from a distance. In fact, it would be wise, I think, that we go local and we actually talk to our neighbors and make sure they're doing okay. And maybe, you know, maybe go knock on the door and then step back a little bit and say, hey, just want to make sure everyone's all right. And...

This is the point where we where the tolerance comes in, right? Where we establish clear lines for ourselves of what we will do and what we will not do and what we will tolerate and what we will not tolerate. And mostly from ourselves, right? In our own homes, our own lives, where we set up these clear lines of like, you know what? I'm going to be calm in the chaos. That's something that we have control over. That's something we tolerate, like.

We won't tolerate. You can even say to yourself, self, I won't tolerate crazy thinking. I won't, I won't tolerate this fearful panic. It's unacceptable. Right? Cause we can choose to prepare instead of panic. We can choose to be calm in the chaos. And so even if everything else is chaotic and other people are hyping it up, you and I, we can choose.

be steady.

Rachel Denning (11:36.973)
and be a source of strength and comfort to those around us who really need it.

Right. And you and I, we can, and again, this is why I'm doing this podcast today. Again, those people I would drove, I'm like, if they only knew, and I wanted to shout it to the whole world. If we only know, if we remember that we have way more power than we think, we can use this time as such an unbelievable opportunity to grow closer together as families. You know, all those things we,

told ourselves we couldn't get to because we didn't have the time, now we have the time. Right? What about the projects we could do together? The songs we could learn and sing together and the talks, the conversations, the connections. We can get in shape. We can learn languages. We can learn instruments. We can do some pretty epic stuff. And that's that piece that I think sometimes

We just go, we're victims here. I'm just going to sit at home and be miserable. We're all have each other by the throat and hopefully survive this. And I'm like, no, no, no, no. We don't tolerate that. We raise our level of tolerance. We're not going to just survive. We're going to thrive. We're going to strive. And we're going to triumph because that's what heroes do.

and we can each be the hero in our own story. And guess what? In every epic story, every hero has to face challenges and difficulties and things that test his or her limits.

Rachel Denning (13:30.957)
And so how will you choose to respond? Will you be abundant?

or scarce. Are you willing to share your toilet paper? Are you willing to share your toilet paper? I mean, there's good people that don't have enough toilet paper because of hoarders. Right? my goodness. Are you willing to share your money? If you've been blessed with enough money, I promise there's going to be some people who are hurting.

financially because of what's happening. Are you willing to share your food? There might be some people that can't get enough food.

Are you willing to share your confidence, your optimism, your hope, your love? Are you willing to just turn up that love knob, the compassion, the consideration, the thoughtfulness? Are we willing to band together, find creative ways to serve each other and help each other still? We can do this safely. Or are we gonna be scarce and...

and kind of pull back and shrink in and be fearful and almost, it's the fight or flight, right? We can get back where we're fearful and tense, ready to fight. Or we can be abundant and peaceful and kind and thoughtful and considerate. That's another one. We can be thoughtful instead of fearful. Instead of allowing our minds to just run wild with fears.

Rachel Denning (15:15.725)
putting our imagination to use for the wrong things.

and we can be supportive and not selfish. And we can actually be certain in times of uncertainty.

how about that one? Huh? We can be certain in times of uncertainty. Well, what in the world can we be certain about, right? How in the world can we be supportive and thoughtful and abundant and prepared and certain and calm with all this craziness around? Well, I want to give a reminder here for you, especially, and then set it up for your family. You guys, we have to be taking care of our wellness, like our, our holistic wellness or

We got to take care of our bodies and our minds and our souls. Like make that a gigantic priority that no matter what happens. And I know schedules are thrown off. Routines are thrown off. Patterns are thrown off. All your plans are thrown off. All the things for a lot of you, all the things you've been doing is all thrown off. So some of you used to go into work. Now you're working from home or you're not working. Kids used to go to school. Now the kids are at home, right? All these plans you had done sports done.

concerts, gatherings, dances, done all this stuff, all these plans, the things that used to keep you busy and occupied or have all been removed. So for a lot of you and a lot of good people, like their whole lives have been thrown upside down. All the things they did on a regular basis are now undone. And that seems chaotic and crazy. And so what happens is again, we play the victim, right?

Rachel Denning (16:56.141)
And this is where my, I just want to shout this. So please share this, share this episode, share this message. Like get it out there like, Hey, no, no, no, you're not a victim. You still have tons of choice, but, but we have to know that we have to know that somebody has to say, Hey, no, you're not a victim here. You still choose. Otherwise we just kind of slip into it and go, well, yeah, I was going to work and my kids are going to school, but now work and school is done. So we just sit it here and like, we're going crazy.

And then we say, Hey, well, no, but you still have a lot of things you can do. We all stop and go, yeah. yeah. I can still have solid routines and rituals. I can still get up or I make sure I get to bed on time. That's a gigantic one. I'm sure a lot of people are not doing, I gotta have healthy habits or we will go crazy. I promise. Like families will end up the battlegrounds and the

The mental, emotional strain and stress and turmoil and frustration and tension is going to be off the charts unless we have these good habits and routines. So I can get to bed on time. I can sleep well. I can get up early. I can read books. I can pray, meditate, spend some time in sacred works. I can memorize, study languages, practice music. I can get great exercise.

make sure you are eating well, feeding your family well. When we're in clothes like this and we're not, most of us aren't getting enough movement, enough getting out. I mean, you got to get out and get vitamin D from the sunshine, my friends, and move your bodies and feed them well. Like the last thing we want to do, which is ironic when you go in the stores right now, like the things that are cleared out are like the really unhealthy food. So people have locked themselves down. So they're not getting any vitamin D. They're not getting any movement or getting outside.

They're not having enough social interaction and they're eating tons of junk food and watching tons of TV and screen time. That is a recipe for disaster. My friends. Wow. There will be some consequences for that. There'll be some fallout. It's going to, it'll affect us. It can't not. I know it's a double negative, but it like, it can't not, there's going to be consequences of that. So we have to move our bodies. We have to feed our bodies. Good stuff.

Rachel Denning (19:15.757)
We have to do those things. I every single day should find you listening to this podcast way to go. Woohoo. And reading great books. I have a whole recommended book list. If you need some books, I got hundreds of fantastic books that I could recommend right now. Read some great books, watch some videos, buy some courses. What a great time to work on your mastery, work on your skillset. Tomorrow morning we're doing,

Another live training for the freedom income mastermind you want to do start a side hustle sharp side business You've thought about doing maybe you already have one you want to grow it Maybe you this is the time to really focus in on parenting grab our parenting course Or maybe this is the time to really dedicate some effort and focus on your marriage grab our marriage course Like or maybe this is time to start coaching like legit. Maybe this is the time you're like, you know, I've been I'm busy here busy I don't know about this now. It's time to level up

to use this pause, this break, this pattern interrupter that we weren't expecting, that threw off our schedules and our plans. This is the time now level up. This isn't where we sit back and suck our thumbs. This isn't where we hide in our security blankets and we throw pity parties because the NBA and the PGA is canceled. This is where we double down. This is where we say, you know what? It's time to renew myself, to remake myself.

It's time to bring out more of the best self that's in me that I've been kinda, you know, maybe too busy to get to, too distracted to get to. The worst thing I wanna do is go home and sedate ourselves with entertainment. And so we just sit back in this slumpy survival mode when we could be capitalizing on the time to level up.

our knowledge and our skills and level up our entire lives. Man, I love that idea. Let's use this time to be better. So when we come out on the other side of this, whether it takes weeks or months, when we come out on the other side of this, we're better. We're sharper. We're in fantastic shape. We have more knowledge, more skills. We got our edge back.

Rachel Denning (21:41.901)
we can go back to work. Or I mean, a lot of you are still working, you're gonna keep working every day and that's fantastic. But you can get better at it. You can refine yourself.

You can create yourself. Man, I love this stuff. This is a fantastic opportunity. We have the opportunity, the power, the privilege, the responsibility to choose how we respond, right? The response ability. Isn't that beautiful? We have the ability to respond and choose how to respond. And that's what leaders do.

So let's take this, let's look at it as an opportunity for ourselves, for our families, for the people we can influence and let's level up. love this every day. This training, right? More training. Because again, I'm going to keep saying this, you guys, we are not going to rise to the level of our expectations here. We're going to fall level of training. So let's raise the level of training. Get in, make this happen. Train for greatness. Love you guys. Reach upward.