Burnout Is a Growth Strategy That Eventually Fails with Maija Morton of Balanced by Maija
Maija Morton didn’t plan to become a mindset coach - a torn ACL and meniscus in Byron Bay literally knocked her into a new path. Now, she helps women (especially early-stage entrepreneurs) break self-sabotaging patterns like people pleasing, self-doubt, and burnout so they can build businesses - and lives - that actually feel aligned.
In this episode, Maija and Emily get real about what mindset coaching is (and what it is not), why “just be positive” can backfire, and how confidence is built through action plus reflection - not personality type. They also dig into the sneaky ways “I’m not good enough” shows up in your pricing, boundaries, decision-making, and even your sleep.
Highlights you’ll want to steal for your own life + business
Why “just think positive” can reinforce self-doubt (and shut down your emotions)
The real reason “I’m not good enough” shows up so loudly in women entrepreneurs
How low confidence quietly drives procrastination, people pleasing, and playing small online
The difference between being kind and needing external validation to feel worthy
How to start saying no without spiraling into guilt
The money mindset trap - and why pricing can feel like a self-worth test
A simple way to build confidence faster: do the scary thing, then reflect on the evidence
Why nervous system regulation matters if you want sustainable growth (not burnout)
The underrated confidence tool Maija swears by: EFT tapping
“Wellness girlie” culture - when healthy habits turn into pressure, perfectionism, and obsession
Maija’s morning rituals for aligned productivity (and fewer doom-scroll stress spikes)
A book + app recommendation for mindset and manifestation with a science-backed feel
Time-stamped topic guide
00:00 - Meet Maija Morton + the Byron Bay accident that changed everything
01:30 - What Maija does as a mindset coach + why community matters
03:10 - Mindset coaching vs toxic positivity - and why emotions can’t be bypassed
05:50 - Maija’s personal confidence journey (starting in childhood)
07:20 - Entrepreneurship as personal growth - boundaries, burnout, and worth
08:50 - Why “I’m not good enough” is so common for women (and where it starts)
10:50 - How self-doubt shows up in daily decisions, online visibility, and career moves
12:40 - Kind vs people pleasing - the line most women miss
14:40 - How to start saying no (without trying to overhaul your whole life overnight)
16:55 - Building a fully remote coaching business - the biggest leap
18:20 - Money mindset and pricing - uncoupling income from self-worth
20:10 - Starting a business before you “feel ready” - Maija’s unexpected leap
22:40 - Why coaches need coaches + how to find the right fit
27:10 - Does everyone need a mindset coach? Coaching vs therapy
30:10 - When entrepreneurs should get mindset support + what 3 vs 6 months can unlock
33:15 - Business coach vs mindset coach - how to choose
35:20 - Sleep, stress, and the mental load of building something from scratch
36:35 - Confidence myths - you’re not born with it (and you don’t need to be extroverted)
40:15 - Dream client: Grace Beverly + the hidden cost of “successful” habits
43:55 - Rapid fire: underrated confidence booster (EFT tapping)
46:10 - Bad self-help advice: the “Instagram wellness girlie” trap
49:00 - Morning rituals + not checking your phone first thing
51:15 - Resource recs: Rochelle Fox’s Magnetic + Mindspo app
52:35 - Maija’s free boundary-setting guide + where to find her
If you’ve been telling yourself you’ll post when you’re more confident, charge more when you’re more “qualified,” or set boundaries when it feels less uncomfortable - this conversation is your reminder: confidence is built, not found. And the work isn’t about becoming someone new - it’s about coming home to yourself, trusting your gut, and building a business that doesn’t cost you your health.
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Transcript
Emily Jean (00:00)
⁓ Okay, so, Maija Morton, welcome to Founders and Genes. I'm so excited to have you today. I think this is gonna be such a good chat. ⁓ For people who don't know you, why don't you give a little bit of a background about yourself?
Maija (00:19)
Thank you so much, Emily. Thank you for having me here. I'm also very excited for this chat today. And especially seeing as we're other sides of the world as well. I know it's like first thing in the morning here for me. It's evening there for you, but I love that we're doing this together. But yeah, I'm Meya. I'm a mindset coach for women and I predominantly help women to let go of self-sabotaging patterns like...
people pleasing and self-doubt and to really just build a life that feels aligned, feels good for them. And I've been in coaching for around a year and a half now but my background is in psychology so I had worked in psychology for a little while before accidentally falling into the coaching realm actually quite physically.
accidentally I was in Australia and I ruptured my ACL and my meniscus in my knee. So yeah, I was in Byron Bay and a wave knocked me out. And then it quite literally made me rethink my career and go down into the coaching path. So very grateful for that. But yeah, I predominantly work one to one with women over a long period of time to really help them rewire their mindset.
going back into childhood and figuring out where these beliefs like I'm not good enough that we all often experience at some stages in our life, where they come from and then create kind of new mindset shifts, habits, tools that help them to feel more empowered, take action and actually create a life that feels true on their terms. So I love.
I love my work that I do one to one with women and as well as that I also have an online community called Confidence Collective and we're just finishing our initial three months of the community and that's where I host mindset workshops, we have amazing guest expert sessions and the idea with that really was to create just this safe supportive space for women to show up authentically.
and rewire some of these beliefs but also build real connections and friendships without any of that comparison and competition that I think can be quite common amongst women as well. So yeah, that's been a beautiful space over the last three months.
Emily Jean (02:58)
I love all of that. Also, I didn't realize about the community. think that's great. I love that more people are getting into community building. I think it's like, is such a worthwhile investment for both businesses and on a personal level. So yeah, so I think I want to start with for a lot of people when they first hear mindset coaching, I think it kind of comes across as, sorry.
Geez, I think it kind of comes across as maybe you are just kind of there telling people to think more positive or be more positive. How do you actually explain what you do and how much of that is kind of toxic positivity, I guess?
Maija (03:48)
love this question and it's actually something that I got asked recently as well. I think the key difference really is, like you said, mentioned about toxic positivity there. Actually, when you're telling people to just be more positive, which is something I actually experienced a lot of my life from from a family member who, which actually led to me invalidating my own feelings and not feeling like I could express them properly. I think
with so many women especially, you are told to just be more positive, it reinforces that self doubt, those feelings that you have to stay small, you can't express yourself properly, it's not safe to express your emotions, or maybe that you're too much if you are overly emotional.
So actually by telling someone to be more positive, it really reinforces all these kind of self-sabotaging thoughts and patterns, which actually then hold you back. So the difference with mindset coaching is that we actually really lean into those feelings and try to understand where they're coming from and actually know that it is okay to feel any kind of emotion, but you need to be able to understand it and release it.
and let it go. Otherwise, actually the more we bottle those up and try and push them down with positivity, the more those feelings actually get stored in our body. And that's when they come out as like chronic illness or pain or fatigue or physical health problems. So coaching is about not just noticing those positive feelings, but also having the tools and habits to then release them, let them go.
your emotions in a positive way and help you navigate future instances when those feelings do come up again.
Emily Jean (05:51)
I guess I want to ask you, has there been a moment of your life where you had to do the work that you're now teaching your clients?
Maija (06:02)
Yeah, it's interesting because I wouldn't say one, I could pinpoint one particular moment that my whole life has been a journey of this work because when I was younger, I was so, so riddled with self-doubt as a child that it stopped me from starting hobbies, playing sports, it helped me, my school attendance was about 50 % because I had such bad
fear of just not being good enough and stuck with such comparison. So it started really early on and I think I gradually over time have worked through these things. But more interestingly actually, which I think a lot of people will relate to, a sort of a big pinpoint for me overcoming a lot of the issues I help women with was actually very early on starting my business because
I mean, you'll know starting a business is a whole personal growth lesson in itself. And I think that's when I started to have all these kind of new beliefs around my worth and how much I could charge clients. And actually, there's so much attached to like finances and how we view ourselves. And also productivity, how much pressure I was putting on myself to be productive and actually
then kind of reinforcing that unhealthy cycle of burnout, as well as managing your business and having to be good with managing time. think ⁓ knowing actually you really need to set boundaries and say no to the people or things that don't serve you. So although I was working on a lot of this before I started my business, I think actually when that first kind of six months.
all these things started coming to the surface. And that's why I predominantly like to help female entrepreneurs now to work with with people who are quite early on in their business, because I really think that overcoming these these challenges is what helps you to then actually grow your business in a way that is sustainable, whilst also looking after your health and still finding time for for joy and the things
that actually light you up and keep you balanced. Otherwise you end up focusing everything into your business and it doesn't become enjoyable, right? You start your business normally because it's something that fulfills your purpose and it's something that you want to do. But actually we need to balance all of these other things in order to do that.
Emily Jean (08:48)
Right. You mentioned there at the beginning, ⁓ that concept of like, I'm not good enough and that kind of reoccurring thought. I think that is a really, really common belief for young women, especially entrepreneurs. I guess I'm curious, and I you just mentioned too, with growing a business, like, why do you think that belief comes up so often? And why is that, like, I guess a reoccurring thought for a lot of us?
Maija (09:18)
Yeah, it's a great question. I think as women we are often conditioned by society to stay small and stay quiet and that really stops us in so many ways from being bold and showing up and actually
then reinforces these beliefs by keeping us small because we get scared of what the reaction might be if we do something different. And also family beliefs. So many kind of cultural family norms really just shape these beliefs that we have and we actually form them between the ages of zero to six. So when you don't really know even any, I hardly remember what.
was going on between zero and six but it could be as simple as a comment from a teacher at school or a child in your class and as a woman I think your young girls we're so we get so stuck with comparing ourselves to others in all shapes and forms whether it's academically or the way we look so from such a young age we are just
condition to compare ourselves and criticize ourselves and it really subconsciously shapes then how we show up later in life without us often realizing.
Emily Jean (10:49)
Right. I, I speaking of like how it shapes how we show up later in life. How do you think this belief does show up in our day to day decisions?
Maija (11:01)
I think it can show up in so many shapes and forms and even from the smallest decisions like deciding, I don't know, for me even something silly like we used to be deciding what takeaway to order. It's when you really just don't trust your gut, you don't trust your intuition and you can't make decisions easily. That's a sign that actually you're lacking that inner trust. could be...
really with the smallest things like which route to take to travel somewhere and you just are overwhelmed by this kind of brain fog and decision fatigue. But it also might be in, I see this a lot, people wanting to show up online but really holding themselves back or procrastinating because they are worried that Sandra from down the street will judge them or...
or like have something to say about what they post or they're worried that if they're vulnerable, then they won't be accepted or they'll be criticized. So I think showing up online is definitely a big one, but even just small decisions with business or with in your career with maybe asking for a pay rise or a promotion if you work in a corporate setting, actually just the more you kind of
hold yourself back, it's a sign that you're just being stuck with this belief, like, I'm not good enough or I'm not deserving or I'm not capable.
Emily Jean (12:43)
For people that do have those, I guess it's, you know, people pleasing tendencies in a way. ⁓ Can you speak a little bit on what you think the difference is between being kind and being a people pleaser?
Maija (13:00)
Yeah, this is a great question. And I'm coming from someone who has been, well, is now I'd say a recovering people pleaser, but I'm also a very kind and compassionate person. And I would always be there to support my friends, my family throughout my whole life. But actually the difference between people pleasing and being kind is when people pleasing is actually at the sacrifice of your own needs.
and you're doing it because you need that external validation from others to make you feel worthy. But actually the more you do it and then face rejection or, yeah, circumstances that you don't actually intend on getting from why you're doing that kind gesture, the more it only reinforces the belief that you actually need others' approval to feel worthy.
Whereas I think being kind is actually being kind to yourself first and making decisions or actions towards other people from a place of genuine compassion and love both for yourself and for others, for others. And I think that's where it's more of an energetic exchange versus when you are a people pleaser, you feel like you
have to do something towards other people and you're not always necessarily getting that reciprocated as well.
Emily Jean (14:38)
I'm curious, okay, sorry, I'm trying to think of how to phrase my question. I think for a lot of people, pleasers, it can be difficult for people to say no without feeling like a bad person, like you just touched on. How do people go about practicing that for...
Maija (14:43)
Thank
Emily Jean (15:04)
It's like their first time out in the wild. They're like, okay, I'm kind of done putting myself second. How do people make those first steps?
Maija (15:14)
Yeah, that's a great question because I think it can be very daunting to just suddenly think, okay, I'm gonna have to start saying no to everything that doesn't serve me when you're actually so conditioned to just say yes and put other people's needs above your own. But where I'd always start is just really getting in tune with your own needs. And I think journaling is always such a good way to just...
get all of your thoughts and feelings out, but asking yourself actually, what are my needs? And how does maybe saying yes to this situation actually sacrifice my own needs versus how if I say no, how does that make me feel? What does it fulfill? How is it in line with my future goals? So really just getting in touch with that first. I think the more that you understand actually that you are making a choice or
communicating a boundary based on your needs, it does make it easier. But secondly, I would say as well, just starting with something small. Like you don't have to say no to some big, big event or thing that you're really scared of. Just practice saying small to little things first. It could be, I don't know.
a request from a friend or a family member that you don't feel, it still feels a little bit uncomfortable, but it's not overwhelming. And just the more you practice these little things, the more it will feel easier to say no to the bigger things as well.
Emily Jean (16:58)
Yeah, I want to kind of redirect a little bit. I want to talk a little bit more about your journey in building your own business. And I'm kind of curious. know, I mean, I assume you've worked completely remotely right now running your own business, right? So how long has it taken for you to get there? And what would you say was kind of the biggest
Step getting from before to where you are now the biggest leap you had to make
Maija (17:36)
So I've been running my own business for about a year and a half now. And I would not say to anyone that has been easy and I'm sure no one believes that it is for the first year. I actually think the biggest step has really been working on my own mindset. And I would have liked to think that beforehand actually, I was already someone who was quite self-aware, but...
every new level I reach with my business, I have all these new limiting beliefs that I need to confront. So I think working with my own coach has just been so essential in this journey. So I've been working with my own mindset coach to really get deep on my limiting beliefs, even though sometimes I can identify them myself, it's hard to kind of rewire them on your own sometimes.
But the biggest obstacle for me actually was around money and I really didn't realise until probably eight months into my business how much I was tying my money to my self-worth and I had so many deep rooted childhood beliefs around money which were affecting how I charged, how I interacted with potential clients, all kinds of things that
actually I've really just had to work consciously every day through I do EFT tapping ⁓ and like journaling affirmations and that's really I've noticed such a huge shift since doing that and genuinely just like so much freer and able to actually
communicate how much I want to charge and things like this, which it seems like such a basic thing. But if you really don't believe that you're worthy, even though I saw the results I was getting with my clients, I still had this like deep rooted feeling that I wasn't worthy of charging that much. So that was a huge obstacle I had to overcome. And I know from speaking to quite a lot of friends and other
other young women who are in a similar space, that so many people also struggle with these same beliefs around money.
Emily Jean (20:09)
Before you started your own business, how long did it get you to get to a place where I guess you at least had the mindset to jump in kind of head first? I hear from lot of entrepreneurs how they're waiting and I think it has a lot to do with their mindset. Can you speak to that a little bit?
Maija (20:30)
I think I had a quite interesting journey because like I mentioned with my accident in Australia. So I was employed before I was working for the health service in the UK as an assistant psychologist, and I was applying to do a doctorate in clinical psychology and also for new assistant psychologist roles.
So was kind of in Australia whilst I was just having a bit of a career break whilst applying for my doctorate. And I then had my accident, decided to do my coaching certification just as something to keep me occupied and to focus on in a positive way whilst I was recovering from my surgery. So I had intended to go back into employment. I had
not really well, I didn't really know what I was doing. I didn't have any particular intention to start my own business. But I loved coach my coaching course so much and saw already the transformations people getting just so early on in my coaching that I just thought I want to do this full time. So I kind of fell into it in a very unexpected way and just went straight in. I thought I'm not going back.
to working a nine till five now. So I don't think I was kind of thinking about, okay, what will happen if, like, if this goes wrong, or I'm scared to take this step and start my own business, I think I just in the moment was like, right, I'm doing it. But my parents were also both business owners. And I think I'd always
wanted to have my own business when I was growing up anyway so I think it just came at the right opportunity where I felt like this feels super aligned now and I'm just gonna try as hard as I can and see how far I can get with it. So I don't know if that particularly answers your question.
Emily Jean (22:45)
It does, definitely does. You mentioned before that you have your own coach, ⁓ which I love because I think, you know, you hear like the chef doesn't taste their own, the cook doesn't taste their own food or something like that. ⁓ So, but I have always found that that's not true. And I love when people are able to kind of get fully aligned on their own, like therapists have their own therapists, you know. ⁓
for people who are new to coaching, how often do you meet with your coach? How did you meet them? ⁓ And yeah, any tips for people looking for a coach like you or somebody else?
Maija (23:30)
So I'm trying to think how I can answer this most concisely because I've had three different coaches. My first one was more of just a general life coach. Then I worked with more of a business, mentor and mindset coach together. And I think starting out in business, that was super helpful for strategy because I started and I had no idea what I was doing, what to post online.
Emily Jean (23:35)
Okay.
Mm-hmm.
Maija (23:58)
how to get clients, how to launch anything. So having someone to help you with clarity, strategy, accountability, meeting for fortnightly sessions, that's also how I work normally because a week just goes by so quickly and people do need time to kind of implement things and make changes in between the sessions. So I worked with that coach for nine months ⁓ and I also...
Emily Jean (24:01)
Mm-hmm.
Maija (24:28)
have worked with a specific mindset coach doing like quite deep rooted mindset work called timeline therapy and doing EFT tapping and various things like that as well, which was weekly. So I think everyone works kind of differently. But for me personally, yeah, I think just having someone there for.
regular accountability check-ins. I also, with my clients, they have unlimited support with me via a messaging app Monday to Friday, which is the biggest game changer because we have so many things that happen on a day-to-day basis that maybe bring up uncomfortable feelings or a mindset block that we don't really know how to overcome. So having someone there in your back pocket,
Monday to Friday to just overcome those obstacles together means that you're not procrastinating or holding yourself back from getting things done. You can kind of just overcome it in that moment. But I think the second part of your question was what advice would I give to someone who is looking for a coach? I'd say just like choose someone that you'd really connect with because it is a commitment to work with someone and
Emily Jean (25:46)
Mm-hmm.
Maija (25:56)
you have to feel safe, you have to feel supported, you have to feel like you are an energetic match for them with them and I think it's so hard because there are so many coaches out there and especially if you're in business and you're looking at these people on LinkedIn, these like LinkedIn gurus who are like make 10k a month or whatever it might be.
it can be so easy to get sucked into this messaging around sales, but actually this person might not be feel good for you energetically, which is what I've experienced when I've had calls with people before. So I think if you're looking for a coach, choose someone based on how much you can actually connect with them and relate to their story, because that's often where they will help you the most is actually
through ⁓ your shared experience, as well as obviously all the tools and kind of proven strategies that they can help you with. But actually I think having that human to human connection is what's most important.
Emily Jean (27:12)
Do you think that everyone needs a mindset coach?
Maija (27:19)
I'd say, I obviously might be biased, but I'd say everyone needs some kind of coach or support. It might not be a one-to-one coach. It might be, for example, just being a member of like a community where you do get that support.
Emily Jean (27:22)
Yeah.
Maija (27:40)
I always like to think this, are you happy in every single aspect of your life? And if the answer is no, there's always things. It doesn't mean that you need to change as a person. never think coaching is about that, especially not with me. It's not about changing who you are. It's about coming home to yourself and actually trusting yourself more deeply to make aligned decisions for your health.
for your career, for your relationships. And I think you can always have that extra support and guidance with that because even I don't see as a mindset coach, I don't see all my blind spots. I need someone often to actually mirror things back to me and help me see things. So I say everyone can really benefit from working with a coach.
Emily Jean (28:16)
Thank you.
Maija (28:36)
but you also have to be ready to face actually feeling a little bit uncomfortable because you will have these difficult things come up that might not feel nice and you actually have to confront and work through. You have to be committed to implement new habits and change your old ways that are maybe holding you back. And yeah, it's...
I'd say everyone can benefit from a coach, but it's not for everyone. I see a lot of people that are maybe too stuck in the past, which is where maybe I would say actually therapy is more suitable because sometimes you need to heal past trauma and understand it more deeply before you can think about moving forward. But
Emily Jean (29:31)
Mm-hmm.
Maija (29:32)
The reason why I choose coaching over my psychology career is because it is a lot more forward focused. And for those who are ready for change and want to grow in their career or find more fulfilling relationships or improve their health, we can still spend time understanding why you're not as satisfied right now and what has gone on in the past that's shaped who you are.
but we then spend more time thinking about, now how do we move past this?
Emily Jean (30:09)
For budding entrepreneurs listening to this, is there like a timeline that you're like, okay, once you're three months in, six months in, this is when you need a mindset coach. Also, follow up on that. I think some people might be listening to this thinking, okay, well, I know I really need a business coach and I know I really need a mindset coach. Can I have one in the same or do I need them to be separate or in?
which one should I have basically.
Maija (30:41)
mm-hmm yeah that's a great question I mean that's your to your first question timelines are always a tricky one because everyone's timeline is so different everyone's capacity of time that they can invest in something is so different as well like if you are starting up your business alongside working a job you might have less time to invest in it and we all take
different amounts of time to overcome our limiting beliefs and work through them and who knows life circumstances come up and they might make you take a few steps back. But in general, the work I do, so over three months I focus more on nervous system regulation and that's for the women who are just really stuck with the habits.
patterns of people pleasing to the point where they're starting to get burnt out or they are burnt out so we focus on actually working on those mindset shifts but also building tools and habits that help you regulate your nervous system, manage your stress responses, help you feel more calm and grounded so that you can kind of manage your day-to-day of business with more ease and flow and it feels
more safe and natural and you're not constantly on this like fight or flight go go go response where you're rushing through the day with coffee and adrenaline but then over six months is where we focus on implementing that as well as okay now what does it look like to be this next level version of you what are the habits mindset shifts that you need to have in place that this
I always like to think like the CEO of your life, like this CEO woman, who is she? And it's about really kind of tapping into this next level and continuously like building on these habits that help you to just keep leveling up whilst also doing so from a place of a regulated nervous system because we can't grow and build sustainably or be open to receiving.
if our body is in fight or flight.
So think that answers your first question. Your second question was, remind me of your second question.
Emily Jean (33:18)
Yeah, for people, budding entrepreneurs. are they, for people who are trying to figure out, I have, should I have a business coach or a mindset coach? Can they be the same thing? Does it have to be one or the other? ⁓ Yeah. Thoughts on that.
Maija (33:21)
Yes.
So I think there are quite a few, pardon me. Yeah, I think there are business and mindset coaches out there. I mean, I definitely, I worked with a business and mindset coach combined myself and there obviously are specific mindset coaches. There's so many different types of coaches you could probably find.
Emily Jean (33:41)
Sorry.
Maija (34:05)
niche for anything now but it just depends if you feel like you really need that strategy, that business strategy I'd say or whether you have already built that or feel confident with that and you just need help moving the needle forward because you feel like you are the one holding yourself back.
Emily Jean (34:07)
Right. Right.
Maija (34:33)
And we often are, we are always exactly what's standing in our own way, really, unfortunately. But it's just whether you feel like you already have the tools and clarity, or you still need that support and guidance early on in your business to actually know what your services are, your offers, your positioning, et cetera. Then I would say maybe work with more of a...
business, mentor and mindset coach. But if it is around things like building without burning out or showing up authentically online, I could list a million things, but yeah, then I would say more focused on mindset coaching or yeah, I say sometimes health and mindset coaching, do combine quite a lot of health.
Emily Jean (35:24)
ones.
Maija (35:32)
into my coaching because actually the number one thing that I see people come to me with is poor sleep which is really hard as a female entrepreneur, as an entrepreneur in general and coming from someone who last night could not sleep until 2am which is very unlike me but sometimes we are so consumed by our to-do lists and these things going round and round in our heads are actually often the first thing.
that I work with people on is helping them to understand and release these thoughts and build tools that help them with managing productivity, these thoughts that keeping them awake at night, but also building healthy habits and rituals to improve your sleep. Because when you then have more energy,
to invest in your business, but also to invest in yourself. It's so much easier to let go of all these niggling thoughts as well, but standing in the way.
Emily Jean (36:37)
Yeah. I am, I want to, I'm curious with your kind of background in psychology, and I know you mentioned before that idea of like the ideal woman, like the ideal CEO woman, like what's that kind of girl boss look like basically? Is there one thing that women tend to misunderstand about how confidence is built?
Maija (37:07)
I think such a common misconception is that we're born with or without confidence which is just really really inaccurate and something that I'm living proof of, my clients are living proof of. I genuinely had no confidence growing up. I was the shy one, the quiet one. I always stayed in the corner and I didn't speak up and I never would have
ever believed that I would be running my own business, being on podcasts, speaking at events. I've got an event this weekend actually in two days, my first in-person event so that'll be very exciting because I'm normally used to doing everything online. But I think previously even myself and maybe a lot of people think that confidence is actually just about like being extroverted.
being the loudest in the room and also built it which it is to a degree is built by doing the things that you're scared of on repeat this is very important for building confidence you do have to just have the courage to do things that you're scared of and then prove to yourself that you are capable but you actually really need to do the mind the daily or at least a couple times a week
mindset work alongside this because if you were just doing the thing but then not reflecting actually on how you felt during the process and how proud you are for overcoming it if we could just in this sorry someone's I think cleaning my window outside this is great timing there's a person on a big like rope outside my window
Emily Jean (39:00)
And don't worry.
Maija (39:03)
We need to be able to actually just really recognise how far we've come and recognise our strengths and what's helped us to build our confidence to overcome challenges because if we are just constantly in this doing mode and not actually taking a moment to pause and reflect we won't actually, we don't celebrate ourselves, we don't
we don't actually kind of.
Yeah, it doesn't. So we need this evidence that supports these, these new beliefs that we're forming that actually we are good at public speaking and we are capable to launch this new thing with our business. And we only have the evidence if we actually physically take the time to sit and reflect on it. Otherwise these, these thoughts will still keep holding us back. So yeah, to answer your question, think.
I can't remember what your question is now, sorry I'm getting so distracted by this man swinging on a rope outside my window.
Emily Jean (40:11)
more.
No, you're good. That sounds very distracting. No,
you did answer my question. I have another one for you. I'm curious if you could work with any woman in the world, famous or not, who would it be and why?
Maija (40:33)
Yeah, this is an interesting one. Do you know who, so she's from the UK, do you know who Grace Beverly is?
Emily Jean (40:42)
It sounds familiar. Wait, I'm gonna have to look her up. Let me see. Oh yes, yeah, I do actually. Yes, yes,
Maija (40:51)
Yeah.
So I think I would say Grace Beverly because she is a definition of girl boss. If you see her, she's also very much in the health and wellness space. So she's launched an active wear brand while she was studying at Oxford University, which is I think Oxford or Cambridge or one of the really like elite UK universities. ⁓ And she's now built
multiple brands on top of that. So she's got one around productivity planners, she's got like supplements, everything. But I listened to some of her podcasts, I've been following her journey pretty much the whole time. And I think she's dealt with so many also physical health problems like acne, breakouts, etc. Through all this.
constant hustling and pressure that she's put on herself. And I think I'm wondering if like recently she's worked with a coach she has, she's starting to release more about the importance of balance, et cetera. But I feel like she would just be such an interesting person to work with because she's achieved the success, but actually has she been like,
putting amounts of pressure on herself and hustling to kind of prove her worth, which is what I see a lot in order to get there. So yeah, I think she'd be really someone interesting just to like understand her mindset and actually the fact that she's in the health space, she's obviously super invested into her health and but often what we see
people that are like so invested into their health actually can become quite unhealthy because this is something that I've experienced as well so much pressure to constantly be healthy actually can end up being quite self-sacrificing and it's the reason the thinking about the reasoning behind that why are you actually trying to maybe look a certain way or exercise
twice a day, seven days a week, is it because it makes you feel good or is it because you are again tying your worth to external circumstances? So I'm not saying that is the situation at all, but from a lot of the experiences of myself and clients that I've worked with, sometimes these kind of habits which appear to look successful or healthy on the outside can actually
be driven from unconscious beliefs. So I'd love to work with her and understand a bit more about like where they where all of that comes from.
Emily Jean (43:53)
For sure,
for sure. I love that answer. I think that's a great answer. Grace, if you're listening to this, you have a future coach here ready for you. ⁓ So I don't wanna take up too much more of your time. So I wanted to do some rapid fires with you. ⁓ Okay, my first question is, what is the most underrated confidence booster for you?
Maija (43:59)
and
Hehehehe
For me, it has to be EFT tapping, which is something I've started recently. for people who don't, shall I explain what that is for people who don't know that? So basically you might have seen like you do the tapping on different meridian points and it's basically to help you release stuck emotions and trauma in your body. And yeah, you tap.
you say statements. you start always start with saying like the negative statements that are kind of like, I feel like I'm not good enough. And then you move through the different tapping points to then say kind of positive affirmations or statements. And for example, even before doing this podcast, I did one around being, being better, like being good at public speaking. Now I'm stumbling over my words. obviously,
But I have all different kinds of tappings to just help me maybe if I feel like I need to trust myself in making a decision or if I just feel like I want to show up as my best self or if I want to be good at public speaking I honestly feel like because it's a combination of affirmations and actually releasing that stuck energy whereas often if we just practice affirmations
Sometimes we don't even believe them. They don't actually work. yeah, combining affirmations with EFT. But if you haven't practiced affirmations and EFT seems a bit woo woo or weird to you right now, then just start with affirmations is what I would 100 % say and try and say them in the mirror as well.
Emily Jean (46:08)
Yeah, that's
great. I love that answer. ⁓ Is there one piece of bad self-help advice that you'd like to get rid of forever?
Maija (46:20)
Mm-hmm.
This is a very good question.
I wouldn't say one piece in, sorry, it's meant to be rapid fire questions, the second time I'm just going on a roundabout. But I think in general, the idea of this Instagram wellness girly is what I would not like to get rid of, but like to challenge people to think about because
Emily Jean (46:43)
No, no, no, you're good. You're good. Fire is never Rapid Fire.
Maija (47:07)
I'd like to say I'm a bit of a wellness girlie. I love drinking my matcha and going to pilates. But actually, I think we can get so wrapped up into this image that it can become almost quite unhealthy and obsessive as well to be like constantly like eating clean and eating healthy and doing exercise. And this is when
you can see people starting to actually maybe develop not necessarily eating disorders, but I have before from constantly having this high pressure on myself to like fit into this healthy stereotype that you end up neglecting your mind in the process and ignoring actually how you really feel. So
I just would always say to people make decisions based on a place of joy and self-love versus lack in what you don't have. So making nutritional choices or choices around exercise or healthy habits from a place of actually what makes you feel good and lights you up versus
they have that and I don't, they look a certain way and I don't so I have to do this habit in order to be like her. Does that make sense?
Emily Jean (48:41)
That's great. Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely. No, that's good. I like
that. I like that take that you took on that. Yeah. Okay. I have another one for you. What is, do you have like a morning ritual that you can't live without?
Maija (49:02)
I do have quite a few morning rituals. So I always get up and I do future scripting. So I basically write my day from the end of the day saying like, wow, all these amazing things have happened in my day. So I'm basically manifesting a positive day. And then I write down some affirmations or just things that I need to let go of moving into that day.
and then I walk normally, unless I'm like on my period, ⁓ going, exercise, go to the gym first thing and then come back and I always do EFT before I start my working day as well. I also do like have my greens powder and my my L-glutamine and things like that but from a mindset perspective, starting the day off with
positive energy, but also not going back to your first question, not trying to like if I am feeling those negative emotions for some reason, then also identifying that. Actually, most importantly, I would say not checking my phone for the first 30 to 60 minutes generally. Because as soon as we check our phone, it's we're bombarded with dopamine and stress. So yeah.
really trying to do that every morning has been a big game changer.
Emily Jean (50:37)
Yeah, yeah, not checking your phone is huge for me. That one's a big, big one. Very helpful. It's surprising how helpful it is. ⁓ My last question for you. Do you have a book or a resource or a course or anything like that for young entrepreneurs listening to this that you could recommend to them?
Maija (50:41)
Thank
me on it.
anything as intimate personally that I've created.
Emily Jean (51:06)
Yeah, either that you've created or that you have read in the past that you love. Like you're like, I love this business book or I love this self-help book, anything like that.
Maija (51:16)
So I'd say I'm sure I think what I've read most recently actually is a good place to start.
Emily Jean (51:25)
Mm-hmm.
Maija (51:31)
Okay, so I love, ⁓ she's Australian, actually. Now her name has gone. Rochelle Fox. Do you know Rochelle Fox? Okay, so Rochelle Fox has a book called Magnetic, which is really great and is about manifestation, but she also incorporates it, it has a scientific basis. But
Emily Jean (51:41)
okay, I haven't heard. No, I don't.
Maija (52:00)
She also has an app and a podcast called Mindspo and it's so great for like her podcasts are just so so helpful but also her app I use for like daily meditation exercises, there's affirmation that you can set affirmations, reminders on your phone, there's things to help you sleep.
It's super, super helpful. So yeah, just check out Rochelle Fox and all of her wealth of knowledge and tools is one thing that I would say. She's really great. And then personally, so I'm kind of going through a whole bit of a shake up with my offers and things at the moment. But I have recently ⁓ made, which a few people haven't found really helpful, just a super short free guide for setting boundaries. So
if anyone wants that then yeah please do let me know and I will send that over. But yeah that's a great place to start if you just like you know we spoke about earlier if you struggle with with saying no and it just gives you five simple steps to help you set boundaries more effectively and also some kind of points for you to reflect on so you can really get clear on
why maybe you're finding it difficult to those boundaries and why it's important for you to set them as well and just to make the whole process a lot more easier and driven from a pace of self trust and self love versus feeling like you are going to be rejected or worry about what people say if you say no to them. So it can be helpful for some mindset shifts as well as like practical tools and
tips for setting boundaries.
Emily Jean (53:59)
Perfect. Well, thank you so much. I think those can be very helpful. Where can people find you and where can they find all your things? Yeah. ⁓
Maija (54:12)
Yeah, thank you so much. So you can find me on LinkedIn, Mea Morton. You can also find me on Instagram, Balanced by Mea. And yeah, my DMs are always open. So please drop me a DM and I always love to have a chat. So yeah, look forward to connecting with you.
Emily Jean (54:32)
And obviously all of that will be linked in show notes. But, Meia, thank you so much for joining me. I think this has been a really, really good episode.
Maija (54:43)
Thank you. I've really loved this conversation and I feel like your questions have really got me to think as well and it's always nice to actually just really reflect back on my own experiences but also just in general for women I think how so many of us have these struggles but also can overcome them and yeah it's been so great talking with you today.
Emily Jean (55:09)
Well, thank you. think that's the perfect note to wrap up on.
