🧠 Weekly Mind Sweep No. 167 | Manage Your Mind | Hope
March 2025
Week 165: Curated Conversation: Hope
Week 166: Mind Your Business: Hope
*Week 167: Manage Your Mind: Hope
Week 168: What’s On My Mind: Hope
Let’s sweep the brain…
🎬 Rather watch or listen instead of read? Now you can!
In the MindSweep this week:
Curated Conversation with curated GIF’s & puns (for your entertainment).
Jamie’s Second Brain Corner: Links to references. Need a map? I’ve got you!
What’s I’m Reading - The Frozen River - Maine 1789
Collaborations with Terri Hamilton (Thursday) & Shannon Giordano and the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce
My face 💜 and a link to schedule your free consultation.
The Brain’s Hope Circuit: It’s More Than Just a Feeling
As creative entrepreneurs, we often pour our hearts into new products, services, and offers only to face rejection or unmet expectations. It’s disheartening when something we love doesn’t hit the mark, leading to feelings of failure or questioning whether our dream is worth pursuing.
For creative, neurodivergent entrepreneurs, the highs of creativity are electrifying—but the lows? They hit hard. One moment, we’re buzzing with ideas; the next, a setback sends us spiraling into doubt.
“Maybe I’m not cut out for this. Maybe running my own business is never going to work.”
Hopelessness feels heavy, but here’s the truth: Hope is not just wishful thinking—it’s science. A biological process in your brain that fuels resilience, motivation, and problem-solving. And the best part?
You can train your brain to cultivate hope, even in your lowest moments.
Let’s sweep the brain…
🎬 Rather watch or listen instead of read? Now you can!
When you anticipate something good, your brain releases dopamine—the “motivation molecule”—giving you the energy to take action and stay hopeful. The more dopamine you have, the more optimistic you’ll be about the future.
But dopamine doesn’t work alone. Serotonin stabilizes your mood, while norepinephrine (/nôrepəˈnefr(ə)n/) sharpens your focus and determination. When you feel hopeless, your body releases cortisol, the stress hormone, which can cloud your judgment and make it harder to problem-solve. Hope, however, lowers cortisol levels, helping your brain access more mental space for creative solutions.
Hope is not just a nice idea—it’s a biochemical process that energizes and stabilizes you when you need it most.
So how do we rewire your brain for Hope? By shifting the story.
Our brains are pattern-making machines. Each time you think or act, a network of neurons fires, forming pathways that become stronger the more you use them. Hopeless thinking often becomes a default pathway, like a well-worn trail.
The more you think “I’ll fail,” the stronger that belief becomes.
But the brain is plastic—it can form new pathways. Neuroplasticity means you can rewire your brain for hope. By consciously choosing hopeful thoughts, you start building a new neural network that helps you focus on solutions rather than setbacks.
The more you think, “I have gifts that my people need,” the stronger THAT belief becomes.
Hope isn’t passive—it’s not about sitting back and wishing things would improve. Hope is an active process, a mental habit that can be built.
The good news?
You don’t have to wait to feel hopeful to start acting hopeful.
Your brain constantly reinforces pathways, so how you think about setbacks matters. If you tell yourself, “I’ll never get this right,” your brain strengthens that belief. But if you shift the narrative—even slightly—you activate a new pathway, one that sees possibilities instead of dead ends.
So how do you train your brain for hope instead of despair?
By rewriting the story and taking small, forward-moving actions.
Let’s dive into two hope tools that will help you do exactly that.
Hope Tool #1: Cognitive Reframing
The stories we tell ourselves shape our reality. Reframing means changing the story you tell yourself. Instead of, “This offer didn’t sell. I’m not good at this,” try:
“This one product didn’t sell this time. That doesn’t mean it never will.”
“I can tweak my messaging and try again.”
“This is feedback, not failure.”
When you reframe, you engage your prefrontal cortex, the rational, problem-solving part of your brain, instead of letting the fear-driven emotional brain take over.
Here’s how to practice it:
Catch the thought: “I’m having a hopeless thought right now.”
Challenge it: “Is this 100% true? What’s another way to see this?”
Reframe it: Find a version of the story that leaves room for action and growth.
Repeat and reinforce: Write it down. Say it aloud. Train your brain to default to hope, not despair.
Hope Through Action: Small Wins, Big Impact
While mindset is powerful, hope also comes from doing. When you feel stuck, action is the best antidote. But not just any action—small, manageable steps that create momentum.
This is called behavioral activation. Instead of waiting to feel hopeful, you start moving, and the positive feelings catch up. Why?
Because every completed task gives your brain a dopamine boost, reinforcing the cycle of motivation.
(Oh, hi, my beautiful list with pending check marks, I’m coming for you!)
Hope Tool #2: Take Small, Hopeful Actions
Feeling paralyzed by doubt? Shrink the task.
Instead of “Write my whole pitch,” start with one sentence.
Instead of “Overhaul my marketing,” commit to five minutes of MindSweeping. (aka brainstorming)
If that feels too hard, do something adjacent—tidy your workspace, go for a short walk, or make a cup of tea. Small wins create momentum.
Big goals can feel overwhelming, but tiny wins create momentum. Every completed task—even the smallest one—gives your brain a dopamine boost, reinforcing motivation.
Try this next time you feel stuck:
Move your body – Stretch, take a walk, shake up your energy.
Complete a micro-task – Answer one email, tweak one post, or sketch one idea.
Take a pleasure break, set a timer and listen to music, read, or do something enjoyable.
Connect with someone – A quick supportive chat can reignite hope.
Each tiny step signals to your brain: Progress is possible. Keep going.
Hope as a Habit—Not Just a Feeling
By practicing reframing and taking small actions, you can train your brain to default to hope.
Over time, you’ll see challenges not as failures but as opportunities to learn and grow. With each step, you strengthen your brain’s hope circuit, building resilience to support you through even the most challenging moments in your entrepreneurial journey.
The challenges do not disappear, but your response to them will change.
For creative, neurodivergent entrepreneurs like you, hope isn’t something you wait for—it’s something you build. Every time you reframe a setback or take a small step forward, you strengthen the neural pathways of hope.
And with time, hope stops being a flicker—it becomes a guiding light.
That flicker of hope? It’s your brain’s way of telling you: “You can change this. You can find a way.”
The next time you feel like giving up, remember:
Your brain is built for resilience.
Hope is a skill you can train.
And every small action is proof that better things are possible.
Now, go build the future you can feel proud of.
My questions for you this week :
When you think back to a recent setback in your business, what is the initial story you told yourself about it? How might you reframe it now using a cognitive reframing tool?
If our brains are constantly reinforcing pathways, what’s one belief about yourself or your business that you’d like to rewire to a more helpful one?
Reply and share with me!
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Jamie’s Second Brain Corner:
[1] https://greenhillsla.com/the-science-of-hope/
[2] https://www.ttncoaching.com/blog/adhd-brains-love-entrepreneurship
[3] https://bigthink.com/neuropsych/scientists-find-out-how-hope-protects-the-brain/
[4] https://news.asu.edu/20210615-solutions-science-hope-more-wishful-thinking
[X] Did someone say MindSweep MAP?! Learn more about my Personalized MindSweep Mapping Process.
MONDAY: 8 am - Curated Conversation - Zoom
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What I’m reading
The Frozen River
Author: Ariel Lawhon
Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death.
As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community.
Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own.
Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie.
Clever, layered, and subversive, Ariel Lawhon’s newest offering introduces an unsung heroine who refused to accept anything less than justice at a time when women were considered best seen and not heard.
The Frozen River is a thrilling, tense, and tender story about a remarkable woman who left an unparalleled legacy yet remains nearly forgotten to this day.
Find it where you browse
for books.
Collaborations!
Join us Friday, April 4th, at the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce for this two-hour interactive business community experience.
We'll discuss ways to cultivate business through Sales, Marketing, and Communication methods that support relationship building, showing up authentically, and connecting deeper with colleagues and the people you serve.
9-11 am - Open discussion, community support, brainstorming ideas
Join me in meeting business owners in our community. You'll leave with new tools to help you make connections and build your business!
Free; Registration is required: REGISTRATION.
Mindful Connections
Connecting like-hearted entrepreneurs to build relationships, offering support, understanding their passions, and sharing their names in rooms of opportunity.
Join us Thursdays, 12-1 pm EST.
12:00 - Take 5—a guided meditation with Terri Hamilton of Positively Terri to ground your week with peace and focus.
12:05-1 pm Round-table Share
Who you are
The gifts you bring to the world
Who you serve
The answer to a Curated question to spark conversation.
If you found this on the web, sign up to join us!
In other news…
Feeling #FOMO about Curated Conversations? Join us!
