For brands, for commercial photography, for building the kind of visual identity that makes people trust and buy.

But somewhere along the way, I forgot to use it for myself.

This is the first of our joy experiment episodes dedicated to colour, and it is a bit of a confession. Because even as a colour psychology expert, I got so caught up in life lifing, that I stopped consistently putting colour to work as an intentional joy practice on the day-to-day... Something I purposefully set out to rectify this year.

In this episode I walk you through how that is changing: from the rainbow placemats pulled out of a cupboard, to the home renovation I have been putting off for five years, to getting my own colours done properly and discovering I am a Seaside even though my entire personality is Fireside. And the moment I realized doing in-person colour analysis for others, in Lancashire, is one of the most joyful things I have added back into my work.

What we cover:

— Why colour is one of the most underused joy tools we have (even though it is free and accessible right now)

— The specific ways I am using colour for joy this year

— The fear that stops most of us being brave with colour in our homes, and what I think it is really about

— What happened when a colour expert finally got her own colours done

— Why I started offering in-person colour consultations in Lancashire

— What colour harmony actually feels like when you find it for yourself

If you want to find your own colour and personality type, take the quiz: https://go.jnicholesmith.com/quiz

And if you want to go deeper with your personal colours, including the AI tool I built to help you bridge what looks good on you with what you actually love, that is inside the Joy First Substack at https://joyfirstworld.substack.com/ - Available to founding members.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, I'm sharing what I've been learning as I move deeper into my own 'Joy First experiments', and why the most surprising discoveries have had almost nothing to do with that big 'jump up and down' version of joy.

Today we're talking about the science behind visual progress loops and how your mundane chores can genuinely light up your brain. We revisit the 10 Joy Codes and look at how a single ordinary activity can stack multiple codes at once. And I want to challenge the version of joy that most of us have been sold: the everything-is-amazing version that, if we're honest, isn't most of life.

Sometimes joy is just medicine. Sometimes it's the thing that keeps you going, not the thing that goes in your feed.

Key moments:

• The neuroscience of why my most hated chore has become a major joy ritual for me because it feels so good

• Why I started doubling down on when anxiety was at its peak

• How the Joy Codes show up inside the smallest, most mundane activities

• Why this season of the podcast is shifting toward real-time joy experiments, in the messy middle, with all the imperfections intact

The Joy Codes Episode: https://joyfirstworld.com/blogs/joy-first-podcast/finding-your-joy-codes

Take the Joy First Audit: https://joyfirstworld.substack.com/t/joy-first-audit

Discover your Colour type: https://go.jnicholesmith.com/quiz

The best glitter pens: https://calmoverchaos.co.uk/products/constellation-glitter-pens

Arm Knitting in Lancashire: https://chunkyarmknit.com/

Painting Workshops UK: https://www.brushandtipple.co.uk/

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the finale episode of the Joy First Audit series: where we've been exploring the 6 categories of the Joy First audit, and today we're onto Category 6: Purpose. Meaning, growth, impact, & legacy.

The thread that holds everything else together.

In this episode I share my own pattern of "what now, what next" moments (which, as it turns out, have arrived almost like clockwork every four years) and explore why these moments aren't a sign you've lost your way. They're often a sign you've outgrown the version of yourself that built the thing you've already built.

In this episode:

• Why the "what now" moment is almost always an important milestone
• The Harvard Study finding that proves the power of purpose for living long, healthy life
• What dog ownership and ikigai have in common (and what it tells us about how even the small stuff counts)
• Why most entrepreneurs start with fear-fuelled drive and eventually have to reckon with something else entirely
• The pain or pleasure question that unlocks more Whyfinding® sessions than any other

Whether you scored 15/15 or felt every question land in a tender place, this episode is an invitation to start noticing what you're already chasing when it comes to being in service, and finding meaning in your life, business and storytelling.

Get access to the audit on our substack: https://substack.com/@joyfirstworld

Unlock the full AI-guided version with a paid subscription.

Learn more about Whyfinding® sessions: https://go.joyfirstworld.com/branding

Access the Whyfinding® co-pilot with Citrus: https://go.joyfirstworld.com/citrus

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.