Hi, this is Monique Rhodes. Welcome to the In Your Right Mind Podcast, where we're learning how to be happier by working with our minds.
If you’d like to know more about what I teach, come to MoniqueRhodes.com and take the Happiness Quiz — it’s a great way to see how happy you are and to get started on your path to being even happier.
A Different Way to Look at the Future
Here’s something you may not have thought about before:
Have you ever considered that the quality of your future — the peace you’ll feel, the relationships you’ll enjoy, the way you’ll move through the world — might be determined not by some big dramatic event, but by how open or closed your mind is right now?
We tend to think of our future as something shaped by circumstance — by what happens to us.
The job we didn’t get.
The relationship that did or didn’t work out.
The opportunity that showed up — or didn’t.
But what if that’s not the whole story?
What if this moment is shaping everything?
The Seeds You’re Planting
We’re constantly planting seeds through every reaction, every choice — through every moment when we soften or harden, open or close.
And those seeds? They’re already growing, even if we haven’t noticed them yet.
We all know the feeling of a closed mind.
It’s when someone challenges your belief and you feel tension rise in your chest.
It’s when you hear an opinion you don’t like and your body tightens.
Or when you’re misunderstood, and your inner walls go up instantly.
A closed mind can feel like safety.
It can feel like control.
It can even feel like certainty — I already know.
But the truth is, a closed mind is a subtle kind of suffering.
Because when we close, we cut ourselves off — not just from others, but from learning, from connection, and from our own deeper wisdom.
Small Reactions, Big Consequences
Imagine this: you’re driving, someone cuts you off in traffic, and frustration rises.
You tell yourself a story: How dare they? People are so rude. What’s wrong with everyone today?
It feels small, harmless even — but in that moment, you’ve just planted something.
And if you don’t notice it, you’ll carry it with you.
You’ll water that seed of frustration, of separation, of defensiveness — and by dinner time, you might not remember the moment that started it all, but you’ll feel the residue of it.
We plant hundreds — maybe thousands — of these tiny seeds every day.
What Kind of Garden Are You Growing?
Here’s the thing about seeds: they don’t ask permission to grow.
They just do — when the conditions are right.
So if you’re not paying attention, you might be cultivating a garden of resentment, fear, or judgment — and then wonder why everything feels so heavy.
But what if you planted something different?
What if, in those small reactive moments, you paused and asked yourself:
Is this the garden I want to grow?
Is this how I want to feel tomorrow?
Is there another way to meet this moment — one that keeps my mind open and my heart soft?
That’s all it takes.
Not a dramatic transformation.
Just a small breath of awareness — a micro choice.
Micro Choices That Change Everything
Maybe that looks like catching yourself before interrupting someone.
Maybe it’s taking a breath before you react.
Maybe it’s choosing curiosity over judgment.
These tiny gestures might seem insignificant, but they’re not.
They’re the seeds of peace.
The seeds of resilience.
The seeds of a future where you feel freer in your own skin.
Every time you choose openness over rigidity, softness over defense, or curiosity over control — you shift your inner weather.
And that weather becomes your climate.
And that climate becomes your life.
The Practice of Staying Open
I know it’s not always easy.
Sometimes the mind wants to be closed.
It wants certainty. It wants control. It wants to protect you.
And sometimes, that’s okay — sometimes a boundary or a clear no is what’s needed.
But even then, the invitation isn’t to stay stuck in the closure.
It’s simply to know that you’re closing.
Even that awareness is a seed of clarity — a seed of freedom.
So you’re not striving for perfection.
You’re practicing presence.
What Are You Planting?
So here’s the question:
What are you planting right now?
When someone disagrees with you — how do you respond?
When something scares you — do you lean in or shut down?
When you feel uncertain — can you stay open long enough to see what else might be true?
Your mind is powerful.
It’s planting the future with every thought, every reaction, every moment of awareness or reactivity.
You are the gardener.
And the garden you walk through tomorrow will grow from the seeds you plant today.
Plant Something Kind
You don’t have to overhaul your life.
You just need to practice opening your mind in small, meaningful ways.
Catch yourself — not to shame yourself, but to guide yourself.
Peace isn’t waiting for you out there.
It’s waiting for you here, in how you meet this moment.
So plant something kind today.
Plant something wise.
Plant something open.
Because your future self is already living in the garden you’re growing right now — one breath at a time.
I hope this has been helpful.
If you’d like to go deeper, come join me in The Happiness Club.
We’re doing amazing work together — and you can try it for just $1 for your first month at MoniqueRhodes.com.
As always, be kind, take care, and go gently in the world.
