e040 – The Part-Time Jungle Podcast:The Path to Connection with Avril Ewing

Avril Ewing is an ordained wedding officiant and celebrant who specializes in creating romantic and heartfelt wedding ceremonies for couples who are ready to take that next step in their lives together. She also coaches couples as they plan their weddings and coaches officiants who want to grow their business and crush their yearly goals! At the start of 2020, Avril started the year with a record number of bookings. In March, things all came crashing down. She watched her industry and business get wiped out and felt the devastating loss. At the same time, she was steering her 12-year-old son through all of the uncertainty, online school, missing his Grade 6 graduation, school trips, and friends. However, a simple shift in mindset from panic to calm created a roadmap that Avril used to guide both her family and her business to success.  In this episode: * Human Connection. Spending time with those with whom we allow ourselves to be close is vital to our many personal journeys. A Fantastic Book. Loving What Is by Byron Katie brings a new and positive perspective to the table about doing “The Work” to see how our troubling thoughts are often based on misunderstanding. The Right Path. If you are happy doing what you’re doing, nobody can tell you that you aren’t successful. Comparison Culture. Social media’s toxic side and something that should not be engaged with.   Connect with Avril: * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Avril_Ewing_Officiant/ * Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AvrilEwingOfficiant * Website: https://avrilewingofficiant.com   Connect with Tiana and The Part-Time Jungle: * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/parttimejungle/ * Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/parttimejungle/ * Website: https://theparttimejungle.com   *Thank you to Emily Mc., my amazing professional student intern, who wrote the show notes for this episode! If you prefer to listen, check out Episode 40 of The Part-Time Jungle Podcast. ADAPT, ADAPT, ADAPT Avril is an ordained wedding officiant, and things were looking good during March of 2020--Avril got a record number of bookings for that month--so when the pandemic hit in March of 2020, her dreams came to a screeching halt. Through this, Avril also had to navigate her son through the difficulties that came with online school and missing out on that personal connection that is so vital to the development of teens and pre-teens.  GO WITH THE FLOW One of the biggest pieces of advice that Avril has to offer is to go with the flow, she explains that this is how her family has gotten through these difficult and uncertain times. Avril also speaks about the stress that she felt after her business vanished before her eyes. She also works from home, so it was difficult to separate her work stress from her home life, especially when her husband moved into her office. Avril speaks about how her son was able to survive a record five months in quarantine without becoming bored. She also notes that her husband was not easily bored, either.   KEEPING IT POSITIVE Avril talks about how pretending like nothing was wrong helped her, personally, get through the first lockdown. She adapted to her new daily life and figured that she should make the best out of it by keeping a positive attitude...