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 iintendtobehappy.com, and let me help you find ways to increase your happiness—that’s my jam, and that’s what I do.
The Quote That Challenges
I saw a quote the other day from Seth Godin that really struck me:
“Better waves make better surfers. Are you on the right beach?”
At first glance, it seems simple, but like the ocean itself, it runs deep. This quote asks a question many of us might be too tired, distracted, or afraid to consider:
Are you challenging yourself in the right environment?
The Right Kind of Challenge
You might have talent, grit, and desire, but if the water around you is calm—if the waves never rise—how will you learn to surf? Growth requires resistance.
I recently spoke to someone nervous about coming to a retreat in Costa Rica. That nervousness told me she was ready for growth. Too often, we confuse safety with stability, staying where conditions are calm and mistaking peace for progress.
But the ocean doesn’t work that way—and neither do we.
Resilience in the Waves
To learn how to surf, you must step into the chaos. You’ll fall, paddle back, and stand again. Resilience isn’t built in the absence of resistance; it’s built in response to it.
If life feels too easy, familiar, or stagnant, maybe you’re not failing—you’re just on the wrong beach.
Choosing a New Beach
It takes courage to leave the shore.
Maybe it’s a job that no longer challenges you, a relationship where you’ve stopped growing, or a routine that keeps you busy but doesn’t make you feel alive.
Choosing a new beach means embracing uncertainty. It’s about being a beginner again, trading the shallow end for the deep end. If you want to awaken the version of yourself waiting inside, safety can’t be the goal. Awakening is.
The Right Kind of Hard
Life throws challenges our way, but not all hard things are created equal.
Some challenges shrink and deplete you. Others expand and open you, demanding more clarity, intention, and heart. The right kind of waves don’t break you—they reveal what you’re made of.
How to Know If You’re on the Right Beach
Ask yourself:
- Do I feel called to rise, even when it’s uncomfortable?
- Am I surrounded by people who challenge me with love and honesty?
- Do I feel a quiet excitement, a stretch, a nervousness that whispers, “This matters”?
- Am I moving toward my values, or just drifting with the current?
Sometimes you’re not stuck—you’re just in the wrong place.
The Invitation
Don’t just look at how you’re performing—look at where you are.
Look at what you’ve normalized. Ask yourself:
Are these the waves that will grow me?
You don’t have to change everything today, but maybe it’s time to pick up your board, walk a little further, and find a beach that brings out the best in you—not because it’s easy, but because it makes you feel alive.
I hope this has been helpful.
As always, be kind, take care, and go gently in the world.
