Mindful Moments with David Larbi
David Larbi shares personal reflections on life, offering entertainment, clarity, peace, or companionship. Each episode is also available on YouTube for those who prefer to watch. The podcast is hosted on Acast.
Episodes
Episode 60: 'How Do You Get Out of a Rut?' Answering Your Questions!
Episode 60, our 6th Q&A episode! Thank you so much for all the kindness, community and feedback during these last ten episodes. It is my great joy to share my thoughts and experiences with you, and for you to share yours with me. I will be taking a short break from now but we’ll be back before you know it. Take care of yourselves, thank you for listening and thank you for being here! Hosted on
Episode 59: Encourage Where You Can
To encourage and to be encouraged is a wonderful thing. It’s in the word itself - to hear positive affirmations from external voices engenders courage within us and helps us to keep pursuing the things that we need strength to pursue. Whenever I can, I give encouraging words when I have them. Better in someone else’s ears than in my head! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information
Episode 58: You're Not Faking It, You're Making It!
All I have to do to be the version of myself I want to be, is pretend that I am and act like I am until I am. Logistically it’s simple but emotionally, it’s anything but. To act like the best versions of ourselves when we don’t feel like we are, brings feelings of inadequacy to the surface. We are more than adequate, and must act as such until evidence proves us correct. Fake it so you make it! Ho
Episode 57: Don't Take It To Heart if You're Bad At The Start!
When we start something that we’re not yet good at, it’s easy to become demoralised at a time where, really, we should be giving ourselves the most leeway and having the most fun! It’s inevitable that we aren’t the finished product when we first start something new. Without our efforts now, as we are, we never will be. The value of starting is worth a thousand intentions not acted on. Enjoy the sm
Episode 56: Sitting in Stillness
After our busiest moments and biggest achievements, there is an inevitable calming of the waters. Sometimes this calm can feel too quiet, too still, to the point of making us overthink or feel spurred to action just to fill the space. The periods of stillness where we feel not much is happening are often more valuable than we realise as they are happening. In stillness there is rest, time to proce
Episode 55: Say Something Nice to Yourself! Out Loud!
It’s important to have a good balance between pushing ourselves and encouraging ourselves. I have found myself wanting in the latter, so recently I have been making it a conscious practice to express positive things about myself aloud at the end of each day, just to remind myself of all I’m doing for my present and future selves. Life is hard enough - it’s important we know how to speak kindly to
Episode 54: To Find Perspective, Zoom In or Zoom Out
Sometimes when I have one too many difficult days in a row (or just one difficult day full stop!), my circumstances seem all-encompassing - that is when I need to zoom out and see that in the bigger picture, this moment is temporary. Sometimes I have so much to do in the grand scheme of things that I feel stuck, frozen - that is when I need to zoom in to the moment at hand and see that all I ever
Episode 53: Doing Our Best is the Best We Can Do
The difficult thing about doing our best, other than how demanding it can be, is navigating how different our ‘best’ can look at any given time. To be able to look at ourselves, see our efforts and know we’ve given everything we can to the things we know are important, is no small feat. To do so consistently is something to be extremely proud of - I hope you are. Even if we fall short sometimes, i
Episode 52: If You're Going To Do It, Do It Properly
When I was young I was always told, ‘if you’re going to do something, do it properly’. A phrase which once felt burdensome, is now a huge liberator in my life. Not only does it remind me to choose my responsibilities with care, it helps me to always give my best even when it feels difficult to do so, because the effort I put into things is always important - even more so when I don’t feel like it.
Sleepcast: Falling Asleep in the Back of the Car
Fall asleep to the description of falling asleep in the back of a car, with accompanying gentle ambient sounds. I hope this brings you peace and calm. (Story begins at 05:15) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 51: Be Strict With Yourself, Not Hard On Yourself
There are times in life when we need to push ourselves to do the things we want to do or become the things we want to be. How do we do this, navigate the inevitable discomfort, in a way that’s still kind and healthy for ourselves? For me, the distinction is in being strict with myself rather than being hard on myself - pushing myself in moments to overcome momentary discomfort in service of a grea
Episode 50: Q&A of the (Half) Century!
Episode 50! Half a century of episodes! Thank you for every second of the time you’ve spent here with me. Thank you for your encouragement, support, understanding and feedback at every stage of this creative journey. I love making these episodes and will keep doing so as long as they are wanted. Happy listening, and here’s to 50 episodes of Mindful Moments!Reading List: https://www.instagram.com/p
Episode 49: You Don't Have To "Have It All", All At Once
Life isn’t perfect - a fact I accept in theory. In practise, however, I’m quick to be hard on myself when I feel like I’m not meeting my own standards in every area of my life all at once. What’s most important during times like this, is understanding that I can’t always apply 100% to everything at the same time. It’s okay to simply stay within touching distance of my ideal level so when I have ca
Episode 48: Gradual Change is the Kind that Stays
Change is not easy - to make, or to maintain. Knowing this, it’s important that we make changes with patience and care for ourselves. Doing so means we will gain all the benefits of that change, with the reassurance that we have are well equipped to make those changes stick! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 47: Feeling Better Takes Practice - Keep Practising
When we enter a space of feeling better after a long time of feeling down, it can take effort to stay there - an effort that can feel unfamiliar and difficult, especially if we’ve grown used to feeling down. In the same way as any new skill, practicing the things that make us feel better is something that takes time and effort. Give yourself time and patience, but don’t stop in your efforts to fee
Episode 46: There Are Always Choices & There Is Always Hope
Sometimes, when doing the things I have to do, I feel like I have no choice. Feeling that way makes me feel resentful and powerless, so I try to remind myself that though I may not like my options sometimes, I always have some kind of choice. If I’m not happy in a situation and feel like the options I have aren’t good ones, all I can do is make the choices that I feel will give me better options a
Episode 45: What It's Like to Write a Book
I have written my first book! I wasn’t able to talk about it during the process of writing, so this episode has been a long time coming. From writing the proposal to finishing the book itself, I wanted to share the whole journey with you. My book is called ‘Frequently Happy’ and you can find it wherever you buy your books - you could even type ‘David Larbi Frequently Happy’ into any search engine
Episode 44: Though You May Struggle, You Are Strong
I’ve been struggling a little bit recently. Nothing dramatic, no cause for concern, just one of those periods where everything feels a bit much and I feel myself coming up frustratingly short in areas I’ve worked hard at being better in. It’s important during times like these to remember that the lessons I’ve learnt and strength I’ve built hasn’t gone anywhere - I just need to be good to myself un
Episode 43: Start Thinking of Obstacles as Dominoes
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 42: Give Your Ideas a Chance to Become Real
Sometimes it can be easier to sit in the safety blanket of a perfect idea and let the intrinsic pleasure of imagination keep us warm. It takes work and courage to bring ideas to life in their fullness, but that’s an effort worth making. Ideas become even richer when we bring them to life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 41: Sometimes We Need to Help People, Help Us
Welcome back! I took an unscheduled and unexpected break from the podcast for health reasons, but I feel rested, recovered and very, very happy to be back with you. During the past few months I’ve really had to rely on my support network and rely on some of the things I find most challenging - vocalising my needs and asking for help. This year has been a lesson in letting myself rely on people and
Episode 40: 'How Do You Deal with Criticism?' Answering Your Questions!
Another Q&A Episode, as is tradition every tenth episode! As ever, I chose the questions that I feel best positioned to answer according to life right now - I hope my answers are well-received and of value. As ever, thank you for being here and thank you for listening. Here’s to the next ten episodes! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 39: Make It Real, Then Deal
When it comes to tackling tasks I know will likely bring discomfort, I can find it difficult to get out of my head and into gear. Sometimes, though, that’s all that’s left to do. We can only think so much before doing, and sometimes difficulty is far greater in the hypothesis than in reality. It’s up to me to act, then deal with any difficulties as they arise rather than letting hypothetical diffi
Episode 38: Responding Differently to Familiar Difficulties
When encountering familiar difficulties which we’ve overcome before, it can feel frustrating that we’re finding the same things difficult once more. It causes me to question my own growth and progress. Some things, however, are simply difficult in nature. To struggle with the same things does not mean we haven’t grown, it’s simply indicative of life’s changing nature. We can find the same things d
Episode 37: Some Good Things Come To An End
Sometimes, good things come to an end. Things being fleeting can make them precious; good things don’t have to last forever for them to have the impact they need to. They still resonate into the future, and are always worth experiencing even if they don’t last as long as we hoped. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 36: Working Hard and Working Smart
I’ve been making a conscious effort to occupy my time wisely. If I’m not careful, I give in to my need to constantly feel as though I’m actively working hard and doing something all the time - in other words, sometimes I busy myself needlessly. Being more intentional about my time is much better for my health, and something I am doing my best not to compromise on. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pr
Episode 35: It's Okay to Think About Quitting
When things are difficult, I think about quitting. It’s a logical thought process, and one I no longer take any shame in. To understand and explore my desire to quit is to give my feelings credibility and make a decision I can truly stand behind, and continuing when I know I could have given up is when I see how strong I can be. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 34. Can't Be Bothered, Might As Well!
The thought, “I can’t be bothered to do this” happens at the time when I could, in fact, conveniently do this - I just don’t feel like it. Getting over that feeling and deciding more often to think “might as well” and do it, is something I never regret. It’s not the biggest deal in the world, but the more I decide “might as well”, the better my life is in the small ways that add up. Hosted on Acas
Episode 33: Building Consistency
I’ve been working for a long time, years, on being consistent in many areas of my life. I’m in a place now where I can see progress even as I look to improve, which feels really nice. Building consistency isn’t easy but the principles are simple, and it’s something we can all do! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 32: Forgiving Ourselves for Our Mistakes
When I mess up, I find it hard to forgive myself and let go. The problem with this is it that I then miss the opportunity to be present, understand my actions, move forward and heal. Forgiving myself is a practice I am working hard on. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 31: Separating Achievement and Self-Worth
If I’m not careful, I find it all too easy to equate my self-worth to how productive I’m being and what I’m achieving at the present time. Building better self-esteem comes from understanding that I have value no matter what I’m currently achieving, and productivity and achievement are useful but should not be my only validation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 30: 'Do You Have Any Major Regrets?' Answering Your Questions!
Welcome to another Q&A Episode! I meant to answer 20 and realised I accidentally fell one short - let’s say I owe you one! 30 episodes is quite a few, and I only grow to love this more the more I do it, so thank you so very much for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 29: Wishing Time Away
I often find myself wishing time away over small inconveniences and the type of general difficulty that comes as a part of life. It stops me being present and appreciative, and it’s something I want to work on doing far less of! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 28: Overcoming Self-Sabotage
‘Self-sabotage: behaviour or thoughts, especially of an involuntary or unconscious nature, that are harmful to one’s own interests or development.’Self-sabotage, as the name suggests, is deeply personal and everyone has their individual reasons for engaging in it. I’m very much a work in progress, but I’ve really become much better at understanding the root causes and thought processes that have l
Episode 27: Running Your Own Race
January is underway, and I’m feeling different to how I was this time last year. I’m in a rest period, which feels strange at a time when it seems as though everybody is hitting the ground running and building momentum. It’s hard not to feel like I’m missing out on something or doing something wrong, but this is an excellent opportunity for me to act on one of my principles: what’s good for someon
Episode 26: A New Year & Our Resolutions
Happy New Year! It feels wonderful to be back after my short break, in perfect timing to welcome in a new year. Today we’re talking about resolutions and the way I enter a new calendar year. A year is a long time and though we can’t know what to expect, there are wonderful moments ahead that we can’t even begin to anticipate. Here’s to 2024! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informat
Episode 25. Being Present
In the last episode of 2023, before I take some time off, I’m thinking about being more present. It was something I tried to work on throughout this year, but it’s still very much a journey! Thank you for all your time this year - I can’t wait to see you again in January. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 24: It's Okay for Plans to Change
I love to plan. I love it when plans go to plan. I struggle when I have to change my plans, for many reasons - I feel like I’m giving up, like I’m “failing”, like I’m letting myself down in some way. Being flexible and knowing when a plan isn’t working anymore isn’t failure, it’s pragmatism. Resetting and redirecting our steps can feel like a setback, but often it’s the most necessary recalibratio
Episode 23: Leading with Love, Acting with Passion
Following last week’s episode, a listener drew a really interesting comparison between something I said in Episode 22 about the differences between motivation and discipline. They said that these differences sound similar to the differences between love and passion, and asked me to expand on those thoughts. It felt right to do so this week. Love and passion work marvellously in tandem but are very
Episode 22. Make the Most of Motivation!
We talk a lot, correctly, about how discipline is better to rely on than motivation. That doesn’t mean that motivation isn’t extremely valuable. In fact, in these past weeks I’ve been making the most of the moments where I feel motivated to help me get through difficult times. Motivation is a wonderful thing when we use it well! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 21: Jealousy Is Okay, Acting On It Isn't
Jealousy is one of the most complex emotions to feel. It often exists in direct conflict with other emotions, brings us guilt and shame and gets in the way of our own gratitude and progress. It’s often easier to pretend we don’t feel it than confront it, for these reasons and many more. However, feeling jealous is not a moral failing - it’s all about how we process it and act despite feeling it. W
Episode 20: Answering Twenty Questions!
Twenty questions for twenty episodes! To celebrate this mini-milestone I’m answering 20 questions, asked by listeners. Thank you for being here, and here’s to many more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 19: Was 75 Hard Worth It?
When I last spoke about completing the 75 Hard, I had just finished it under a week prior. Now that over three months have passed since then, I feel I can talk more about the lasting effects of completing the challenge, positive and negative. The short answer to the episode title is a resounding ‘yes’, but I definitely have a more measured perspective on how and why now that some time has passed.
Episode 18: A Londoner in LA!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 17: Checking On Our Friends
We have so many ways to connect with people. I feel like I’m always seeing people, being seen, talking to people, being talked to - yet I can so easily feel like I haven’t been checking on people, or like people haven’t been checking on me. I’m trying to be mindful of this and show up for my people in ways that are truly felt and really matter to the people I love. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/p
Episode 16: Your Mental Health Matters.
This episode comes out on October 9th, which is the day before World Mental Health Day. On a visit to Meta (Instagram), I was given the opportunity to use their studios to record and film, and I thought there was no better time and place to talk about mental health: my own, our progress, my and our collective responsibility to those around us and the things I continue to learn about myself every d
Episode 15: Adult Life is OVERWHELMING!
Life is a lot! In adult life, there is always a task. Always. How to cope with always feeling like you should be doing something else, like you should be doing more? Realism and acceptance - I’m trying. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 14: Feeling Insecure
Everyone feels insecure at some time about something. I felt a real wave of insecurity last week about something I’m never usually insecure about anymore. This was really uncomfortable to think about and to record, but it felt right to interrogate that feeling and talk about it rather than pretend it didn’t happen. I’m glad I chose to. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 13: Things I've Learned As a Full-Time Content Creator
It’s been exactly two years since content creation became my full-time job. I’ve learned a lot in that time, about this industry and about myself, so it felt appropriate to reflect about how I feel about my work, two years into a job I love. These are quite unpolished and personal reflections, but I hope they’re hopeful and interesting nonetheless. Have a wonderful week. Hosted on Acast. See acast
Episode 12: Dealing with Anger
Anger, in my experience, is one of the most overwhelming emotions. It startles and scares me sometimes how much anger can distort, but its force isn’t always a negative presence either. I wouldn’t describe myself as an angry person but I do work a lot on how I deal with and process my anger when it arises. It’s one of many journeys that I continue on. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mor
Episode 11: Giving People Grace
Giving people grace is something I'm really trying to do more of. My problem in the past has been giving too much grace and failing to protect myself in the process but I know there's a way to balance the two. Ultimately, I wouldn't be who I am were it not for the grace given to me by the people around me, and I always want to give my fellow human being a chance. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pri
Episode 10: Answering Ten Big Questions!
Ten questions for ten episodes! To celebrate the mini-milestone of reaching episode 10, I’ve chosen ten questions from listeners to answer in today’s episode - I think I picked well, I hope you do too!NB: In the answer to question 8, I say I lived in Paris when I was 22 and graduated when I was 24 - I actually lived in Paris when I was 20 and graduated when I was 22, the pandemic years ruined my m
Episode 9: What Helps Me Sleep At Night
For something we have to do, sleep can be really hard to come by. I decided I wanted to fix my sleeping habits years ago; it’s taken a very long time to feel like I’ve become a good sleeper but wow, is it worth it when I have a good night. This year I’ve been on a crusade, a mission to clock up as many 8-hour nights as possible! I still find It difficult sometimes but a bad nights’ sleep is the ex
Episode 8: Changing My Relationship With Discipline
This episode is for my hard-working people who never feel like they’re working hard enough. I struggle to feel as though I’m as disciplined as I am, because I always feel that there’s more I could be doing. Working on understanding what discipline is, applying my own definition of the idea to my life and seeing discipline as a tool rather than a punishment have been essential to me becoming a more
Episode 7: Trying To Be More Positive
Recently, I've been asked a lot of questions about my positive nature. Truthfully, I don't think I have a lot of the answers myself. I know I'm a lot ore positive than I used to be, I know it's something I've consciously worked towards and it's probably a combination of many things that have worked and helped me progress. This isn't the last time I'll talk about this, I feel I only scratched the s
Episode 6: Reading - Why I Love It & How I Do It
I love reading. I LOVE reading! I lost that love a few years ago, but I'm finally back in the habit of reading and enjoying it as much as I used to. These are the reasons why, and what helped me recapture the love for one of my favourite habits. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 5: 75 Hard - What It Is, Why I Did It & How I Feel After
I just completed the 75 Hard - and I kept it a secret the whole time. As you can imagine, two and a half months have given me a LOT to say. Stick around to hear it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 4: Note to Self - Talk To Me Nice!
How we talk to ourselves and the things we speak over ourselves is so very important. Life is hard enough without being my own enemy! I'm trying to make sure I always talk to myself as I would a friend, because me & myself are going to be together for life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 3: Contentment Over Happiness
I have a lot of time to think right now, and I'm wondering if it's too much. Working through emotions is a lot. but it's honest work. It doesn't always make me happy, but it does leave me content - and sometimes, that's more important. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 2: Patience Is Hard Work!
Patience is a virtue but this is one area where I struggle to be virtuous. Waiting for my time is its own specific kind of hard work and though I'm struggling to improve, improve I slowly and surely am. I guess I just need to be patient. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode 1: Welcome
A short introduction to me, and explanation to how all this started. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
