The iROSE Podcast: Empowerment Through Creativity

5 Creative Practices That Make a Difference

At the beginning of a new year—or any season of transition—it’s common to feel pressure to “get it right” with creative or wellness practices, only to watch them fade under the weight of rigidity, isolation, or overcommitment. In this episode, host Jodi Rose Gonzales explores five foundational elements that help creative practices endure.
Drawing from yoga philosophy, neuroscience, and over two decades of clinical and creative work, this episode offers a realistic framework for building practices that support your energy, relationships, and real-life responsibilities—without relying on willpower or perfection.
Key Takeaways:
Repetition with Variation Builds SustainabilityConsistency matters, but flexibility keeps practice alive. Sustainable routines allow room for changing circumstances without shame.
Rhythm Works Better Than Rigid SchedulesPractices held in weekly or seasonal rhythms are more resilient than fixed, all-or-nothing routines.
Witnessing Strengthens CommitmentBeing seen—by yourself or others—deepens insight and reinforces the value of showing up.
Companionship Reduces BurnoutCreative and contemplative practices are easier to sustain when you’re not walking the path alone.
Integration Prevents OverwhelmPractices that meet multiple needs at once create coherence, saving time and energy while supporting the whole person.
The episode closes with a guided art prompt designed to help you visualize and clarify what a nourishing, sustainable creative practice looks and feels like for you.
Connect With Us:
We’d love to see what surfaced for you through this week’s art prompt or reflection. Share your images or insights inside the iROSE Society, or connect with us on Instagram @JodiRose.Studio.
Resources & Links:
Join the iROSE Society: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/societyGuided Meditation on Insight Timer: https://insighttimer.com/jodiroseLearn more about Jodi’s work: https://www.jodirosestudio.com

The Archetype Alternative: A Gentle Creative Practice to Start Your Year

At the threshold of a new year, the pressure to “figure everything out” can feel heavy and unrealistic. Instead of creating resolutions, plans, or vision boards, host Jodi Rose Gonzales offers a spacious alternative: inviting one image—one archetype, quality, or energy—to walk with you into 2026. Using Sankalpa (yogic intention) and creative embodiment, we explore a gentler, clearer, more intuitive form of year-making. 
Key Takeaways
Sankalpa, Not ResolutionsResolutions come from pressure and “not enough.” Sankalpa arises from wholeness and alignment. 
Archetypes as Guides, Not GoalsArchetypes offer energy, direction, and pattern—not a to-do list. 
One Image as a TouchstoneCreating a visual representation becomes a reminder, a compass, and a way of reconnecting to what truly matters. 
Art Prompt
Identify the archetype calling you forward in 2026—then create a visual expression of it. Use any materials, and let intuition lead. This becomes your touchstone for the year ahead. 
Resources & Links
Archetypes Resource (free): jodirosestudio.com/archetypes
Join the iROSE Society: jodirosestudio.com/society

The Art of Looking Back: A 3-Step Creative Ritual for Year-End

As the year winds down, it’s easy to look back through a hazy lens—forgetting what unfolded, comparing yourself to others, or feeling discouraged by what didn’t happen. In this episode, host Jodi Rose Gonzales introduces a powerful contemplative approach using  Gains Mindset, yoga philosophy, and a creative practice to help you see what actually happened in 2025—not the imagined version or the ideal you didn’t reach, but the real arc of growth, learning, and resilience.
Key Takeaways:
Measure Backward, Not Against OthersMultiple timeframes reveal the meaningful shifts you might otherwise overlook.
Let Creativity Help You RememberTurning your insights into imagery helps you feel the truth of your growth.
Look with Kindness and CuriositySelf-study means honoring what unfolded—without comparison, perfectionism, or shame.
Connect With Us:
We’d love to see your completed art prompts or hear the insights that came up through your gains inventory. Tag @JodiRose.Studio or share inside the iROSE Society.
Resources & Links:
Free Gains Mindset Journal: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/gains
Join the iROSE Society: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/society
References
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.
Sullivan, D., & Hardy, B. (2023). 10x is easier than 2x: How world-class entrepreneurs achieve more by doing less. Hay House.

From Grip to Grace - What 52 Weeks Taught Me About Letting Go

In this milestone 52nd episode, host Jodi Rose Gonzales reflects on a transformative year of showing up weekly to the creative practice of podcasting. Drawing on yoga philosophy, personal transformation, and the powerful imagery of the gripped hand versus the open hand, this episode marks a threshold - both for Jodi and for the iROSE community moving into 2026.
Key Takeaways:
The Shift from Proving to Serving 
Claiming Your Truth Requires Examining What Holds You Back
The Inner Critic Can Be Passive-Aggressive 
Creating from Love Changes the Quality of Everything 
We’d love to hear your reflections or stories of transformation. Share your thoughts with us @JodiRose.Studio on IG or Facebook or tag us on social media using #TheiROSEPodcast.
Art Prompt:
Create an image of “gripping”, perhaps a gripped hand. Grip your own hand, and notice the experience. Then, create an image of “ungripping” after sitting with the experience of your ungripped hand. Consider, what are you gripping onto in your own life? How is life better served if you ungripped? Write a few sentences in response to your artwork; notice if you feel called to create a third image as a result of this process. 
Resources & Links
iROSE Society: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/society

The Art of Receiving - Opening to What Wants to Fill You (Part 2 of 2)

Brief Introduction:
In part two of a series on giving and receiving, host Jodi Rose Gonzales explores why receiving is often so much harder than giving, and why learning to receive might be one of the most generous things you can do. Drawing on yoga philosophy, personal reflection on the vulnerability of receiving, and powerful imagery, this episode invites you to practice the inhale: allowing yourself to be filled, held, and nourished by life rather than just powering through it.
Key Takeaways:
Receiving Requires Vulnerability—and That's Why It's Hard
Learning to Receive Is Generous Toward the Giver
What You Block When You Can't Receive
Art Journal Prompt:
Create an image of your vessel—what you're here to receive. Write a word or phrase inside it naming what you're ready to receive.
Journal prompts:
I have been blocking this because...
If I let this in, I would feel...
One small way I can practice receiving this week is...
References:
Aparigraha (non-grasping) from yoga philosophy's yamas
Episode 49: Hope in Community—the empty ornament story
Research on the giving-receiving cycle and relational wellbeing

The Art of Giving - Sharing Your Light with the World (Part 1 of 2)

In this episode, host Jodi Rose Gonzales explores the art of authentic giving: not the obligatory, transactional kind that depletes us during the holiday season, but the giving that comes from knowing your particular gift and choosing to share it intentionally. Drawing on neuroscience research about generosity, wisdom drawn from Jodi’s Girl in the Woods body of artwork, and the community HOPE installation taking shape in her studio, this episode invites you to name your gift and discover how sharing it fills you up rather than draining you. This is part one of a two-part series on giving and receiving.
Three Key Takeaways:
You Were Born with a Gift—and It May Not Be What You Think
Authentic Giving Fills You Up; Obligatory Giving Depletes You
Your Generosity Creates Ripples You'll Never See
Art Journal Prompt:
First, settle and ask yourself: What is my gift? Not what I think I should give, but what naturally flows from me when I'm most myself? Then, create a visual representation of your gift—the thing you're here to offer the world.
Journal prompts:
This gift wants to be shared by...
When I give this gift freely, I feel...
One way I can offer this gift more intentionally this week is...
References:
Neuroscience research on generosity and the mesolimbic reward pathway
Girl in the Woods Parables, Parable 1: The Songbird's teaching on gifts
Research on the ripple effects of prosocial behavio

Hope in Community: The Creative Power of Shared Light (Part 3 of 3)

In this final episode of the Winter Orchids trilogy, we explore Hope as a collective and contagious force. Building on previous episodes about Faith and Grace, host Jodi Rose Gonzales examines how hope multiplies when shared—like one candle lighting another without diminishing its own flame.
Key themes:
The difference between interior hope (personal resilience) and collective hope (what we build together)
The neuroscience of emotional contagion and why hope spreads
The architecture of hope in community: spaces, rituals, and stories
Practical ways to become a 'keeper of the flame'
We’d love to hear your reflections or stories of transformation. Share your thoughts with us @JodiRose.Studio on IG or Facebook or tag us on social media using #TheiROSEPodcast.
Resources & Links
iROSE Society: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/society
Explore the Winter Orchids Art Collection: https://jodirosestudio.square.site/product/winter-orchids-collection-hope-faith-grace-set-of-three-prints-/LCZDQLQGUFNMLX7WESRRWG3R?cp=true&sa=false&sbp=false&q=false&category_id=VY3O2NG4MYGDGMHWUTLJSCXZ
References:
Fredrickson, B. L. (2001). The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. American Psychologist, 56(3), 218–226.
Hirsh, J. B., Mar, R. A., & Peterson, J. B. (2012). Psychological entropy: A framework for understanding uncertainty-related anxiety. Psychological Review, 119(2), 304–320.
Lopez, S. J. (2013). Making hope happen: Create the future you want for yourself and others. Atria Books.
Lopez, S. J., & Snyder, C. R. (Eds.). (2009). Oxford handbook of positive psychology (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.
Neff, K. (2011). Self-compassion: The proven power of being kind to yourself. William Morrow.

Grace in Motion — The Creative Practice of Embracing the “And” (Part 2 of 3)

In the second episode of The Winter Orchids series, Jodi Rose Gonzales explores grace as the art of holding both — softness and strength, boundaries and compassion, gratitude and grief. Drawing on her artwork Grace, adorned with jeweled armor and delicate fern fronds, Jodi invites you to consider how creative practice teaches us to embrace the AND instead of living in either/or. This episode offers a timely reflection for the holiday season and closes with a powerful art-based mindfulness practice to help you move with both courage and tenderness.
Key Takeaways
Embracing the ANDOur culture often demands we choose: strong or soft, grateful or grieving, generous or boundaried. Grace invites integration. You can say no AND remain kind, protect your energy AND stay connected.
Gratitude as ReciprocityTrue gratitude flows both ways: giving AND receiving. Grace-filled gratitude honors what we conserve as much as what we contribute — thanking ourselves for the boundaries that preserve our ability to give wholeheartedly.
The Neuroscience of Grace and IntegrationHolding paradoxes engages the brain’s integration networks, cultivating emotional flexibility. Creative processes like artmaking help the nervous system practice coexistence — where protection and openness can live side by side.
We’d love to hear your reflections or stories of transformation. Share your thoughts with us  @JodiRose.Studio on IG or Facebook or tag us on social media using #TheiROSEPodcast.
Resources & Links
iROSE Society: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/society
Explore the Winter Orchids Art Collection: https://jodirosestudio.square.site/product/winter-orchids-collection-hope-faith-grace-set-of-three-prints-/LCZDQLQGUFNMLX7WESRRWG3R?cp=true&sa=false&sbp=false&q=false&category_id=VY3O2NG4MYGDGMHWUTLJSCXZ

Faith in the Making — The Creative Work of Becoming (Part 1 of 3)

In the opening episode of a three-part Winter Orchids series, Jodi Rose Gonzales invites you into the tender terrain of faith as a creative practice. Through story, neuroscience, and art-based mindfulness, Jodi explores how uncertainty becomes the very soil where resilience and radiance take root.
Key Takeaways
Faith as Active Engagement. Faith isn’t waiting for clarity; it’s staying present in the creative process when everything looks messy. Each brushstroke, collage piece, or journal line becomes an act of trust in emergence.
The Muddled Middle. Every project—and every season of becoming—passes through a dark, confusing midpoint. Learning to hold steady in this space strengthens what psychologists call tolerance for ambiguity, a key marker of resilience.
The Neuroscience of Not-KnowingUncertainty activates the amygdala’s threat response, which is why “not knowing” feels physically uncomfortable. Yet creative practice rewires the brain toward calm adaptability, teaching the body that mystery is survivable.
We’d love to hear your reflections or stories of transformation. Share your thoughts with us  @JodiRose.Studio on IG or Facebook or tag us on social media using #TheiROSEPodcast.
Resources & Links
iROSE Society: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/society
Explore the Winter Orchids Art Collection: https://jodirosestudio.square.site/product/winter-orchids-collection-hope-faith-grace-set-of-three-prints-/LCZDQLQGUFNMLX7WESRRWG3R?cp=true&sa=false&sbp=false&q=false&category_id=VY3O2NG4MYGDGMHWUTLJSCXZ

How to Declutter Your Creative Space and Mind: Creative Molting 2.0

Discover how the ancient yogic practice of saucha transforms creative molting from a physical decluttering process into a full-system reset. Host Jodi Rose Gonzales shares her personal journey of practicing intentional clearing across every layer of her creative life—from yoga mat to closet to canvas—and reveals what happened when outer order created inner peace.
Key Takeaways
Saucha as "That and Nothing Else": Saucha isn't about sterile minimalism—it's conscious curation. This first niyama (personal observance) in yoga philosophy guides us to ask: What am I holding onto that no longer serves? What needs to be cleared away so something essential can be seen?
The Four Layers of Molting: Creative molting is an embodied practice that moves through distinct layers—physical (the tangible stuff), mental (the stories and decisions), emotional (the feelings attached to what we release), and energetic (the full-system shift when external order aligns with internal truth).
From Embodied Awareness to Integration: Starting with movement practice teaches your body what clarity feels like before you tackle physical clearing. This embodied knowledge then translates directly to the work of conscious curation, creating a complete cycle that ends with creative expression.
The Neuroscience of Creative Discernment: Each conscious choice to release something you've outgrown strengthens your ability to make decisions and trust your creative instincts. You can't think your way to this clarity—you have to practice your way there through your whole system.
3-Part Creative Prompt
Part One: 10-15 minutes of gentle movement to notice where you're holding unnecessary tension
Part Two: Choose one small area (drawer, shelf, studio section) and practice conscious curation using the question "that and nothing else?"
Part Three: Create a visual response to: "What does clarity feel like in my body, mind, and space?" Then journal with your non-dominant hand:
What I released today was...
What I discovered underneath was...
Clarity feels like...
To clear the clutter is to...
Resources
Revisit Episode 31 on Creative Molting: https://www.jodirosestudio.com/blog/31
Join the iROSE Society: jodirosestudio.com/society