“Anytime we connect with others, if we're open to the possibility, we can find ways to benefit each other” - Valerie Poon
Welcome to the Mindful FIRE Podcast, where we explore living mindfully on the path to financial independence and beyond. I’m your host Adam Coelho and I’m glad you’re here.
On this episode I’m joined by my friend Valerie Poon, who I met through a Grow with Google coaching session a few months back. Val and I connected about our shared interest in mindfulness and financial independence.
After our conversation, I knew I had to bring her on the podcast to share her perspective on FIRE and mindful living as a young person. The concepts and practices surrounding mindfulness and financial independence are powerful at any age but starting early makes an incredible difference. I often think how powerful it would have been for me to have the knowledge and practices of FIRE and mindfulness early in my twenties.
Val is currently a student in her last year at OCAD University where she studies design. On top of her studies she’s keeping herself busy with exploring social innovation, emotional intelligence, community building, sustainability and youth empowerment.
In this episode Val and I dive deep into living intentionally amidst a world full of uncertainty.
In this episode we explore:
- The concept of uncertainty, including what the ocean has to teach us about it as a part of life.
- That there is power in trusting in the uncertain nature of the world.
- What a 10 day silent meditation retreat taught me (Adam) about uncertainty and the constantly changing nature of experience
- How Val attempts to infuse her life with intentionality, from how she starts her day to how she approaches her time at university and with each person she interacts with
- My thoughts on living intentionally as a practice of making the most of each moment and this one life I have to live.
- How Val sees being a student as a tremendous amount of opportunity to experiment, learn and grow and fail with a supportive safety net while being surrounded by other people who are there to learn as well.
- How Val is working on a design project to explore how we can make our relationship with technology more mindful.
- How Val approaches networking or rather “connecting with curiosity” and how she aims to add value to everyone she interacts with, especially mentors.
- How Val thinks about pursuing financial independence as a 23 year old student
- My (Adam) thoughts on pursuing financial independence mindfully
This episode was a great reminder to me of the simple ways we can all choose to be a bit more intentional to make the most of each moment and this one life we have to live. I learned so much from this conversation and I hope you do as well.
Full show notes at MindfulFIRE.org (https://bit.ly/3eLcDLa)
