🎙️ Podcast Episode 7: A Life That Feels Like Yours

“Redesigning Your Days with Intention, Simplicity, and Soul”


[INTRO MUSIC]

Welcome to Greenstead Life—where we gently reimagine what it means to live well. I’m so glad you’re here.

If the world feels noisy, if your calendar feels full, if your days feel more like something you have to survive than something you get to savour—today’s episode is for you.

This one’s not about gardens or solar power or prepping shelves. It’s about your everyday life.
How you move through it.
How it feels.
And whether it still feels like yours.

Because so often, the way we live has nothing to do with what we actually want.


🌿 A Life That Isn’t Yours Anymore

Let’s be honest—many of us are living on autopilot.

We say yes to things we don’t have space for.
We fill our time with tasks that don’t light us up.
We follow routines that once worked—but now leave us feeling drained, dull, or just off.

We’re productive. We’re busy. But are we fulfilled?

Are we living the kind of life we imagined?
Or just the kind that happened to us?

It’s okay if the answer is: I’m not sure.

Because awareness is the first step back to intention.


🌱 Why Simplicity Isn’t Boring—It’s Revolutionary

There’s a myth that simplicity means sacrifice. That it’s small. Bland. Passive.

But simplicity, when it’s intentional, is powerful.

It’s the act of curating your life.
It’s editing what doesn’t serve you.
It’s choosing quality over quantity. Meaning over noise.

And in a world that values speed, accumulation, and image—choosing a simpler path is quietly radical.

At Greenstead Life, simplicity doesn’t mean minimalism for its own sake.
It means freedom.
Freedom from overwhelm. From decision fatigue. From comparison. From debt. From clutter—physical and mental.

It’s about living a life that’s full of meaning, not just things.


✨ What Does a Life That Feels Like Yours Look Like?

This will look different for everyone—but here are a few signs you’re moving in the right direction:

– You have space to think and breathe
– Your surroundings feel calm, not chaotic
– You feel aligned with your time, energy, and values
– You’re present more often than not
– You look forward to the rhythm of your days
– You feel capable, not constantly depleted

You don’t have to move to the bush or start a new career to get there.
You just have to start shaping your life instead of chasing it.


🪞Where to Begin: Three Questions

Here are three powerful questions to sit with:

1. What do I want more of in my day—and what keeps getting in the way?
2. What is one thing I’ve been tolerating that no longer aligns?
3. If I designed my days from scratch, what would they feel like?

These questions don’t demand action—they invite reflection.
Because clarity comes before change.


🌤️ Living in Alignment Isn’t a Luxury—It’s a Necessity

You weren’t made to be switched on all the time.
You weren’t made to move through life at the pace of a smartphone or an algorithm.

You were made for rhythm. For rest. For creation. For connection.
And your life will keep reminding you of that—through burnout, fatigue, anxiety, frustration.

The message is always the same:
Come back to yourself. Come back to what matters.


🏡 A Greenstead Life Is a Designed Life

Greensteading isn’t just about off-grid cabins and gardens.
It’s about redesigning your whole life with intention.

That includes:

– How you wake up
– What surrounds you in your home
– What you say yes or no to
– How you spend your breaks
– Where your energy flows
– What you stop doing

Living intentionally means treating your life as a design project—not something to endure, but something to create.

And just like with gardens, design doesn’t happen all at once.
It’s iterative. Seasonal. It grows with you.


🐓 A Glimpse from the Greenstead

There’s a quiet joy that comes from walking outside in the morning to collect eggs. Not because it’s productive. Not because it’s novel. But because it’s yours.

The goats call out. The garden smells like basil and compost. The sun hits the windows just right. And the whole thing feels like something you co-created.

That feeling isn’t limited to our farm.
It can live in your mornings, your kitchens, your notebooks, your plans.

You don’t need land to live differently.
You just need clarity—and courage.


🧭 Building a Life That’s Actually Yours: Where to Start

Try one of these gentle shifts:

1. Reclaim 10 minutes of your day.
Make it phone-free. Unscheduled. Yours.

2. Declutter one corner.
Not just for tidiness—but to create space for a different energy.

3. Say no to something that drains you.
And notice how it feels to reclaim that space.

4. Build one small habit that nourishes.
Morning sunlight. A warm breakfast. A walk. A journal entry.

These are the bricks.
Little by little, they build a foundation for a life that reflects you.


💭 When It Feels Too Hard

It’s okay if this feels far away. If your life feels too full, too fast, too tangled.

Just remember: you don’t have to fix everything at once.
You don’t need a perfect plan. You just need to begin.

Your Greenstead life starts with noticing.

Noticing what feels good.
What drains you.
What wants to shift.

Then gently, slowly, moving in that direction.
Like sunlight turning the leaves toward something warmer.


🕊️ Final Thoughts

The most beautiful life you can live is one that reflects you.
Not what the world says you should be. Not what impresses others. Not what earns gold stars.

But what makes your heart beat slower. Your shoulders drop. Your mornings meaningful.

So ask yourself today—not “what should I be doing?”
But: what kind of life do I want to be living?

That’s where the redesign begins.

Thanks for sharing this moment with me. And if you’d like to experience a life of calm, simplicity, and seasonal rhythm in real time, you’re always welcome to book a stay with us at Greenstead. The garden’s waiting. The animals are curious. And the air out here carries a rhythm you won’t forget.

Until next time—

Grow food. Create beauty. Live freely.
This is Greenstead Life.

[OUTRO MUSIC]

About the Author:

Written by Gumnut Co

Mel Chamberlain is a qualified life coach, short-stay superhost, author and aspriring horticulturist with a deep love for seasonal living and edible garden design. She’s the founder of Gumnut Co and the creator of two off-grid Greensteads in Central Gippsland, where she also hosts guests at Banjos Cabin and Gumnut Cottage. Through her writing, Mel shares real, down-to-earth ways to slow down, grow your own, and reconnect with what matters — no matter where you live.

Mel Chamberlain

Mel Chamberlain

Founder of Greensteading

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