Podcasts about heroes journey

Peter (@CrooniesCorner) shares his experience hitting rock bottom, the awakening that allowed him to take action, and how doing hard things over instant gratification has shaped the last year of his life. In this episode, we talk about morning routine/intuition/aim, ego vs. soul's calling, service and surrender, and facing the fear of putting yourself out there. Follow Peter on his social media pages for golf tips and insight: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CrooniesCorner Instagram: @croonie18 Thanks for watching/listening! www.insidethemindseye.com

Losing Confidence After Stroke: Why It Happens and How to Get It Back Jaemin Frazer has spent nearly two decades and around 16,000 coaching hours on a single question: what is actually going on when a capable person stops trusting themselves? He founded The Insecurity Project to work on it directly. He is not a stroke survivor – and that turns out to be the reason this conversation is useful, because he arrives without any assumptions about what stroke recovery is supposed to look like. What he does have is a precise account of what happens to a person when their ordered world collapses, which is, more or less, the definition of a stroke. “I Just Want to Be Who I Was” Almost every survivor says some version of this. Six weeks out, six years out – the sentence barely changes. Jaemin’s response is to ask what is actually being requested. His answer: not the past. Certainty. They’re looking for certainty. They’re looking for comfort. They’re looking for safety. They’re looking through rose coloured glasses in many ways, because no one’s life was perfect before anything. That last part is the uncomfortable bit. The life you want back had its own problems. What memory offers is not a better life but a known one – and the nervous system will take known over good almost every time. Certainty Is the Real Request Humans need certainty the way they need food and shelter. We don’t function in chaos. But we also can’t get certainty from the outside world, because the outside world doesn’t have any to give. It never did. The stroke didn’t remove your certainty; it removed your ability to keep believing in it. Which leaves one option. As Jaemin puts it: The most resourceful form of certainty is to embrace uncertainty and back yourself. That distinction – external certainty versus internal certainty – is the whole conversation. When your sense of safety lives outside you, you have to control your circumstances to feel all right, and after a stroke your circumstances are largely uncontrollable. When it lives inside you, circumstances can do what they like. This is the same territory covered in stroke recovery mindset (https://recoveryafterstroke.com/stroke-recovery-mindset/), approached from a completely different angle. Self-Doubt Is Useful. Insecurity Is Not. Jaemin draws a hard line between the two, and it’s worth holding onto. Self-doubt is accurate information about a skill gap. If you can’t yet climb the stairs unaided, self-doubt is what stops you attempting it alone. It says nothing about your worth. It’s wisdom. Insecurity is different. Insecurity is the belief that a failure would expose something defective about you. Jaemin argues that most people misdefine it – it isn’t fear of judgement, failure, or rejection. It’s one level deeper: No one’s actually afraid of being rejected. They’re afraid of: if I put my best foot forward and it’s not enough, and then people don’t accept me – what does that confirm about my own inadequacy? The threat isn’t out there. It’s a verdict you’ve already passed on yourself, waiting for the world to co-sign it. What Insecurity Costs Your Recovery This is where it stops being philosophy. Jaemin frames insecurity as a resource problem. Proving yourself, defending yourself, covering and compensating – all of it consumes energy. When life is going well there’s enough spare capacity that you never notice the drain. After a stroke, there is no spare capacity. A stroke puts you into survival mode, and now you’ve got no resources to survive, because all your best resources are directed elsewhere to make sure no one sees your inadequacy. Survivors already know that fatigue after stroke is not ordinary tiredness. An injured brain rewiring itself is metabolically expensive. Every unit of energy spent managing how you appear to other people is a unit unavailable for healing. Attending to the emotional side of recovery isn’t separate from the physical work – it’s what frees up the capacity to do it. That connection runs through emotional recovery after stroke (https://recoveryafterstroke.com/emotional-recovery-after-stroke-dr-bradley-nelson/) as well. Why Your Friends Push Back Many survivors have to change how they live – what they eat, what they drink, where they go, who they spend time with. And many report losing friends over it. Jaemin’s framing here is bracing. Resistance from the people around you isn’t a malfunction. In any story worth telling, the character who transforms does so by overcoming obstacles, and those obstacles almost always arrive in the form of other people. Remove the resistance and nothing in the hero is enlarged. So when someone says you’ve changed and doesn’t mean it kindly, they are – without intending to – handing you the exact thing you need to become someone who no longer requires their approval. Grief and Insecurity Are Not the Same Thing This distinction matters, and conflating them causes real harm. Losing the use of a limb is a genuine loss. Grief is the appropriate response, and it deserves acknowledgement rather than management. The damage begins when the loss becomes a statement about your worth. I can’t run, therefore I’m not a runner, therefore who am I? That is no longer grief – that’s insecurity wearing grief’s clothes, and it needs a different response entirely. Survivors working through that identity question will recognise it in craniotomy stroke recovery and identity reset (https://recoveryafterstroke.com/craniotomy-stroke-recovery-identity-reset/), and it sits close to the ground covered in anxiety after stroke (https://recoveryafterstroke.com/anxiety-after-stroke/). That’s Not the Tragedy. That’s the Setup. The line Jaemin returns to twice in the episode is this: being lost and confused doesn’t disqualify you from a meaningful life. It’s what qualifies you to begin one. Nobody reaches adulthood with an accurate picture of who they are. Everyone arrives confused. The confusion isn’t damage to be repaired before you can start – it’s the starting position. This reframes the disorientation of early recovery as the opening move rather than evidence that something has gone permanently wrong. The same reframe underpins post-traumatic growth in stroke recovery (https://recoveryafterstroke.com/post-traumatic-growth-stroke-recovery/). And Jaemin is firm that this is solvable – not managed, not coped with. Solvable. Because the inadequacy you’ve been protecting everyone from isn’t real. It’s a conclusion you drew as a child and have been gathering evidence for ever since. There is no monster under the bed. Only the idea of one. Where to Start Start by being precise. When you catch yourself saying I lost my confidence, ask what you actually mean. Confidence at what? In front of whom? What exactly are you afraid would be revealed? Abstract language hides the levers. Precise language shows you where they are. Closing Links If this episode is useful to you, Bill’s book The Unexpected Way That A Stroke Became The Best Thing That Happened covers ten tools for recovery and personal transformation – you can find it at https://recoveryafterstroke.com/book. If you would like one-on-one support with your own recovery, you can apply at https://recoveryafterstroke.com/momentum. If this show has helped you, you can support it at https://patreon.com/recoveryafterstroke. Footer Disclaimer This blog is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please consult your doctor before making any changes to your health or recovery plan. Losing Confidence After Stroke – Jaemin Frazer (Interview) You don’t need your old life back. You need to trust yourself again – and Jaemin Frazer explains exactly why that feels impossible after stroke. Highlights: 00:00 Introduction – Losing Confidence After Stroke 08:54 Embracing Uncertainty and Personal Resourcefulness 20:43 The Role of Self-Doubt and Insecurity 38:26 Transformational Journeys: Overcoming Obstacles 46:14 The Hero’s Journey and Storytelling 52:07 Understanding Bullies and Personal Growth 59:21 The Role of Parents in Identity Formation 01:11:17 The Cost of Insecurity in Recovery 01:20:55 Finding Purpose Beyond Insecurity Transcript: Introduction – Losing Confidence After Stroke Jaemin (00:00) A stroke puts you into survival mode, and now you’ve got no resources to survive because all your best resources are directed elsewhere So then it costs you everything. It costs you your future. It costs you your ability to heal, to make sense of this, to come out the other side and reinvent or do whatever you need to be present for yourself. It’s a slow descent into madness really, if all your best resources are proving and defending, covering and compensating, then you stop being human, you stop being alive, you stop being present, you become hypervigilant around what others are thinking, and your world keeps getting smaller. Bill Gasiamis (00:35) Welcome back to Recovery After Stroke. I’m Bill Gasciamas. Before anything else, thank you to everyone supporting the show on Patreon, becoming a YouTube member, and to everyone supporting it in all other ways. Sharing episodes, leaving reviews, sending them to someone who needs them, buying the book. This show has reached over a million and a half downloads because of people doing exactly that. And I don’t take it for granted. If you’ve ever caught yourself saying, I just want to be who I was, this episode is going to sit with you for a while. My guest today is Jaemin Fraser. Jaemin is a coach, the founder of the Insecurity Project, a TEDx speaker, and as of this year, a novelist. He spent nearly two decades, around 16,000 coaching hours, on one problem. What happens to a person when they stop trusting themselves and what it costs them? Jaemin has not had a stroke. I want to be upfront about that because it’s the reason this conversation goes where it does. He came to it without any assumptions about what recovery is meant to look like. And what he brought instead is a very precise account of what happens to anyone whose ordered world falls apart overnight. We get into why wanting your odd life back is really a request for certainty. The difference between self-doubt, which is useful, and insecurity, which isn’t, why insecurity draws down the exact energy your brain needs to heal. What’s really going on when friends push back on your habits and why being lost and confused isn’t the tragedy, it’s the setup. Three quick things before we start, my book, The Unexpected Way That a Stroke Became the Best Thing That Happened, covers ten tools for recovery and personal transformation. It’s available at recoveryafterstroke.com/book. If you’d like one-on-one support with your own recovery, I walk I work with a small number of stroke survivors at a time. Structure, accountability, and genuine guidance from someone who’s been through it, you can apply at recoveryafterstroke.com/momentum. And if this show has helped you and you want to help me get to a thousand episodes, you can support it either as a YouTube member or by going to patreon.com/recoveryafterstroke. I want to make sure that No strike survivor. has to ever go through what I went through when I first started my recovery, and that was not having any information about how to proceed after I got sent home from hospital. Now it’s time for the interview. Bill Gasiamis (03:14) Jaemin Fraser, welcome to the podcast. Jaemin (03:15) Thanks for having me, Bill. Bill Gasiamis (03:17) Absolute pleasure, mate. I wanted to ask, actually I want to start with the person listening. They’re anywhere from six weeks to twenty years post stroke, right? and what they say is they want to be back to their old life. In your experience, when someone says, I just want to be who I was, what are they actually asking for? Jaemin (03:39) Hmm, well, I think they’re looking for certainty. They’re looking for comfort. They’re looking for safety. Yeah, they’re looking through rose colored glasses in many ways because no one’s life was perfect before anything. So the fantasy of if I could go back to where I was, it deletes a whole bunch of stuff around the reality of where you were in the first place. But I think that the desire is it’s certainty, safety, peace, comfort. That’s what a person is driven to find some way or other. Bill Gasiamis (04:16) W what do you think it is about certainty? A and what does that even mean? Like I There was, you know, before my experience with stroke, there wasn’t anything that was certain. Is it an illusion? Is certainty an illusion? Because I definitely don’t feel certain about anything going forward either. but kind of not in a bad way. Like I don’t have a bad relationship with the lack of certainty. It’s just. It i it’s just not real. Like I feel like it might be an illusion. Jaemin (04:53) Well, I love Anthony Robbins take on this. I think his six core needs model is his finest contribution to the personal development space and his earliest versions of this, because I think if you were to do a search, Tony Robbins six core needs, what you’re going to get today is an idea that there’s a hierarchy of needs. So you could do a test to work out which needs are most important for you based on your personality type. That’s not how we first introduced them. And I am convinced it’s not actually how it works. So just a quick summary. He says, doesn’t matter what age, what sex, what culture, what stage of life, because you’re human, just as important as food, shelter, clothing is the need for certainty. Firstly, we are creatures who do not survive in chaos. We need some sense of control, order. We thrive in the familiar. We need a sense of what’s happening next. So we organize ourselves and we find certainty. We cannot survive without it. Interestingly though, we also need uncertainty. these six needs operate in paradox. Piers, are you familiar with the six core needs? Bill Gasiamis (06:07) I’m not actually. Jaemin (06:08) and variety is the first two and they operate in paradox pairs. So certainty pulls you one way, but we also need variety. If you have 100 % certainty, you’re completely bored and Bill Gasiamis (06:18) Uh-huh. Jaemin (06:19) you would ruin things. You’d mess it up so that there would be something to do. So we need uncertainty, surprise, spontaneity, adventure. But if you have 100 Bill Gasiamis (06:30) You’d mess it up i is is is messing it up because you need uncertainty, is that that sounds like like self sabotage. Jaemin (06:41) Well, it is if it’s unresourceful. is if you haven’t, I mean, the aim of the game is to find high quality internal resource, ways to meet these needs. If you don’t find that, then unconsciously, you’ll still find a way to meet these needs and it will be through sabotage, dysfunction, know. So certainty and variety are the first two. The second two are significance and love. So all humans need a sense of significance, need to know, I matter? Am I more than just a name and number? Do I have value? Is there any point to me? Now that’s a journey away from the tribe because we’re also relational beings. So we don’t survive in isolation. We need love, belonging, connection, warmth, touch. So if you have 100 % love and connection, you lose your separateness. And if you have 100 % significance, then you’re completely lonely and isolated. But we do need both. Embracing Uncertainty and Personal Resourcefulness So certainty, variety, significance, love, and then the final two are contribution and growth. So humans do feel the need to make a difference, add value, give back, leave a legacy, solve problems. So contribution is about adding value to others. And then growth is adding value to yourselves, to ourselves. Every living thing grows, you either grow or die. So this is the need that drives us to do more, to have more, to see more, to expand our experience. one way shape or another. it’s a strange thing to need certainty back to certainty. It’s a strange thing to need certainty for survival in an uncertain world because you then can’t help but cling to things that aren’t really certain and try and control them. Cling to a job you don’t like, cling to a memory that feels familiar, cling to a relationship that’s dysfunctional. cling to stuff that you know, because it makes you feel certain and makes you feel safe. There’s a predictability around it. What you’re describing is not that you’ve done away with the need for certainty. It’s that you have a certainty in your ability to handle the real world. So you don’t need to cling to things being a certain way. You don’t need to force things to be back the way they were. You’re like, that’s ridiculous. Here I am now and I’m certain. that I am a resourceful person, a creative person, a good person, a clever person, I’ll work it out. The real world will happen to me. I’ll wake up, I’ll open my eyes and I’ll handle it. That’s what I’m certain about. So the most resourceful form of certainty is to embrace uncertainty and back yourself. Bill Gasiamis (09:26) To be certain about uncertainty. Jaemin (09:28) There be certain uncertainty. That is the only certainty. It’s, you there’s you think, what is certain? well, the sun’s going to come up tomorrow. For some people, it’s not. Some people, this will be the last sunrise they ever see. No one’s expecting that, but it happens. So we’re not entitled to any more time, any more opportunity. That’s not certain. It’s not guaranteed. So yeah, the only certainty is it’s all uncertain. So then you must find certainty within, and that will require you to examine your own. your your capability, your own resourcefulness and to grow up and mature in your own sense of who you really are. Bill Gasiamis (10:06) Yeah. I have this saying that I picked up from somewhere. Some dude in the Middle East, like I think in the 40s or 50s, said this thing. I forget his name. I I always wanted to remember his name so I can give him credit, but it goes like exp expect the best, prepare for the worst. And it kind of feels like that’s how I handled my uncertainty when, you know, the doctor turns up day one. Of a bleed in the brain diagnosis and says, gives you the most vague version of the diagnosis and said to me, there’s a shadow on your brain. It could be a cancer, it could be a sea it could be a tumor that’s benign, it could be a bleed in the brain. Like, any questions? And I was like, Well. Jaemin (10:57) There’s a few. Bill Gasiamis (11:01) I don’t know, at eleven PM on a Friday night. Maybe not. Let’s talk in the morning. but it’s like And then after that came a lot of uncertainty. We didn’t know what a family life was gonna be like. We didn’t like know what my work life was gonna be like. We didn’t know whether I’d be around. We didn’t know any of the things that I kind of knew the day before, which I took for granted that I knew, which was only that w without knowing that there’s something wrong in my head and that potentially I’m unwell, I knew that. Tomorrow was going to be pretty much the same as yesterday. And there’s going to be some movement in a couple of similar directions, maybe a few odd ones and different ones. And I suppose that expect the best prepare for the worst was me embracing uncertainty, the certainty of uncertainty. Does that saying kind of capture that spirit? Jaemin (12:03) It certainly does. However, the challenge is no surprise. I’m going to talk about insecurity being a challenge because then it comes back to them. But then what do you believe about yourself? You know, do you feel like you’re actually up for the challenge? Do you have the resourcefulness? What is the story you tell around your own capacity, your capability, your intelligence, your value? Because to fear inadequacy then undermines your confidence in your own ability to handle the real world. And therefore you must then cling to external certainty and long for things to go back the way they were so that you can be safe. Because you don’t trust yourself to be up for the challenge. Bill Gasiamis (12:50) Yeah. It’s a real interesting conundrum because before I was unwell I didn’t contemplate life, me and how I interact with life or the possibility of nail life. I didn’t I didn’t contemplate that whole relationship and then you’re thrust in it and it seems like people that I’ve interviewed at least the four hundred odd stroke survivors that I’ve interviewed have not got the resources backfilled in preparation for when that day comes, and then you feel inadequate, insecure, perhaps, whatever the word is, that you can even handle this. I’ve never met anyone who said, I know, I was 100% certain that I was going to handle this diagnosis from my doctors. Can you prepare for the worst? Like that whole going back to that statement again, that saying, is there a way that we can even prepare for the worst when we don’t even know what the worst is? Is it even is it sounds like it might be might be a futile pursuit? Jaemin (14:07) Whoa. I I think you and I here today are doing that exact thing, you know, with internal resourcefulness. We don’t know what tomorrow is bringing. So in some ways we are certain in our capacity to, you know, hope for the best, prepare for the worst. So that’s not futile. I don’t consider that futile at all. And I think that is the only job is to resource yourself for the real world, is to grow up, is to become mature. The way that I think about that is self-sufficiency. You when you’re young, you’re growing through stages of development and really learning self-sufficiency. Can you feed yourself? Can you dress yourself? Can you learn yourself? Can you drive a car? Can you earn money? And they’re all the things, physical, financial, self-sufficiency, but people are… seem, you know, it’s see when it comes to emotional, intellectual, psychological self sufficiencies, like what is that? How does that even work? And so they come into their adult world, being able to earn money, being able to drive a car, out, address themselves, you know, wipe their own ass. Great. But when it comes to validating their own existence, when it comes to sourcing their own certainty, when it comes to deeply loving and accepting themselves, when it comes to being the one that approves of themselves, that sees themselves. you know, adults are typically ill prepared for that, you know, stroke Bill Gasiamis (15:38) Mm-hmm. Jaemin (15:38) or no stroke. And so, you know, you know, we’re talking about when a stroke happens, but people have all kinds of catastrophes they’re not prepared for, you know, and things are fine because their ordered world is safe and predictable. And then next day it’s not. And they look inside and they’ve never developed the resources, the internal resources of adulthood that helps them stand solid when the world is falling around apart. about them. you know, primarily that is the work of the insecurity project. It’s these conversations around existential angst, which people don’t prepare for because their world’s ordered. But when your world falls apart, then you really see how unprepared you are to handle difficulty and the worst case scenario if you have not examined your own sense of who you are. Bill Gasiamis (16:29) Mm-hmm. The world being ordered, it can be ordered in a dysfunctional way as well, right? Jaemin (16:39) Well, that’s, yes, that’s exactly what happens because we need certainty. I love thinking about these six core needs as a vacuum. In our atmosphere, a vacuum is always filled. So someone says to me, I don’t need that much certainty. You know, I’m more of a risk taker, I’m adventurous, or they might, someone else might be the opposite. I need so much certainty, I’m very risk averse. you know, someone looks at one of my clients recently looked at me and says, you’re a free spirit. You’re adventurous. It’s different. It’s different from me. You know, I’m very analytical. I’m risk averse. I’m safety conscious. But if you zoom out and have a look at both of us, I need just as much certainty as that person. Exactly. I can’t survive without certainty. I can’t survive without order. It’s just that I’ve found a high quality, internal adult way to order my world so that I have internal safety. which then frees me to go into the world and experience uncertainty and play. Whereas this other person has not found an internal way to create order. So they’re clinging to all the dysfunctional external forms of order. Hate their Bill Gasiamis (17:47) Wow. Jaemin (17:47) job, relationships falling apart, don’t like their relationship with money, know, problems here, difficulties there, but it’s familiar. So I better cling to it because I know it. There you go, there’s some certainty for you. Bill Gasiamis (18:03) I love what you said, like that internal sense of certainty Jaemin (18:06) Hmm Bill Gasiamis (18:07) seems to be the biggest l skill lacking in many, many people. If you have internal sense of certainty, then you don’t have to control the outside world. You put the dishwasher plate in the wrong direction. You know, when we loaded the dishwasher, y this might be revealing. you park the car in the wrong bay, or you know, all these little things that people kind of cling to to make their world feel right if they see it like that. If everyone just did the task the way that they needed to do it, then I wouldn’t have a problem, right? But if you have internal certainty and you can be more flexible, I think Tony Robbins talks about being having multiple ways to be to be. being more flexible, then you realize that there are infinite number of ways that things can be loaded into a dishwasher, for example, even though there are certainly some ways that won’t be able to wash the dishes effectively, perhaps, but there are many ways, and the other person’s ways not necessarily the wrong way or the odd way or or the incorrect way, right? Jaemin (19:30) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (19:31) I think I resonate with that immediately, that internal sense of certainty. And then the external world becomes easier to navigate. Is that is that Jaemin (19:44) Well, does because then play becomes possible and you don’t need things to be anything other than they are, know, good, bad or indifferent. You have an experience that looks terrible. Well, are you sure it’s terrible? Or could there be learning? Could there be a gift? Could there be an opportunity? Might you meet someone? Might your life change in an unexpected way? Like who’s to say a bad experience is actually a bad experience if you’re free to encounter it as it is. The Role of Self-Doubt and Insecurity That’s what becomes possible if you have internal safety and that you do back yourself to handle that. And I think it’s an abstract concept for most people because they’ve never faced their fear of their deep inadequacy. And so it’s always undermined. They would love to take internal certainty, but their conviction, if they’re really honest, and it’s hard to be honest, because this stuff gets pretty well suppressed. Their honest fear is that there is a problem with them. There is an inadequacy. They are not up to the challenge. So if they rely on themselves, they will be found lacking and wanting. So therefore they must look outside themselves. That’s their only option. Bill Gasiamis (20:53) Got it. You’ve worked with high performers for hundreds and maybe thousands of hours, right? if one of them walked into you into a meeting with you and said, I had a stroke and I lost my confidence, what what’s the first thing you ask them? Jaemin (21:15) What do you mean? That would be the first thing that I asked them. I understand a little about a stroke. think I would understand enough about that part of the sentence, but I’m more curious around the second part of the sentence. I love Jordan Peterson’s thinking in so many ways. And he says, listen, be precise in your speech because things that go unnamed become monsters that consume you. So that would be where I would start. What do you mean I lost this happened and that made me do this? Are you sure? That’s how it actually worked. What do you mean? Let’s have a look. Let’s have a look. So that’s my whole world is someone comes to me with a level of abstraction. They use language that’s abstract. And when you use abstract language, you cannot see any of the levers that can be pulled. And so you end up feeling hopeless and overwhelmed. When you be precise, when you have a look, you actually begin to see the mechanics, the structures that are actually influencing your experience. And when you see them precisely, the levers become apparent, like, I could actually adjust that. I could turn this, I could change this. Therefore now I’m back in control of my own experience of my reality. So yeah, that’s where I say, what do you mean? What are you talking about exactly? Bill Gasiamis (22:37) I love that. It’s it reminds me of when I hear the word the one of the most common words I hear in my interview, stroke recovery, stroke conversations. And I I’m specifically talking about stroke because that’s my niche, right? That’s my audience, that’s the podcast. But I know this is a situation kind of that I experience also broadly outside of my stroke podcast world. my children, others that I come across is I hear the word depression and anxiety. And it’s an umbrella word that people place on so many experiences and nobody ever even really knows if if I challenge if I have the permission and and I’m in a room with the right person to challenge them and ask them, well, do you do you know what the definition of depression is? And do you know what the definition of anxiety is? Nobody can really give you that. And they’ve taken a word and they apply it to an experience that may have been completely separate from the intended definition of a word like depression and anxiety. And I I kind of feel like that’s what you’re saying. Like somebody says, I’m I’m depressed, like, okay, like, why? How? How do you know that? Jaemin (24:00) It’s exactly anxiety is a great story because I go, well, hang on. How did you, how are you anxious? And anxiety requires a backstory to survive. So I’m curious, you know, are you anxious tying your shoes? No. how do you do not anxiety? Well, I don’t know. No one cares. I can’t fail. I’ve done it a million times. there you go. That’s interesting. So the, the areas that you are not anxious about, there’s no possibility of being found inadequate. Curious. So the areas you are anxious, you’re only anxious because there’s something about the activity you’re involved in, which you feel threatened, personally threatened that someone might see your flaw. So let’s not worry about the anxiety, it’s downstream. Tell me about this perceived flaw. Tell me about this thing that you think is wrong with you. Are you sure that’s even there? The great humor of my work in the same as what you’re saying, know, insecurity. Talking about fear, my first question to people, what are you afraid of? And no one knows. People are experiencing fear. They can tell you that much. So what you’re running and hiding, but what are you running and hiding from? yeah, it’s just this, you know, I just feel so, like, okay, interesting. So you’re running and hiding. What about if we go and have a look at what it is you’re running and hiding from? You might be surprised. In fact, You will be surprised. promise you it’s not what you think it is. And you’ve just been running and hiding for so long. You’ve just become convinced that there’s a thing here that you ought to keep running and hiding from. I’m not so sure. Bill Gasiamis (25:41) Yeah. That what are you afraid of? That’s a very interesting question. Again, you know, I find myself in the hot seat here. And every time I ventured down something new, it was interesting now ’cause I’m reflecting like how often insecurity came up. You know, the first few episodes of the podcast were, my God, people are going to judge it, they’re gonna say it’s no good, you don’t know how to interview, all that kind of stuff. And the the best thing to do was just put it out there. And if somebody did say that was handle it. And if somebody didn’t say that, well then there was nothing to handle. So just do it anyway. And I remember then also with my book, I’m not an author. I did I’m not a scholar. I’ve never done any of that stuff. But I wrote my first book, The Unexpected Way That a Stroke Became the Best Thing That Happened. It’s a pretty loaded title. And I knew it was gonna ruffle some feathers. But I put it out there and the very first comment that I got from the very first post that I made was a negative one. And what I realized was that pattern was similar in that when I started the podcast, I had the exact same concern that it might happen and it did. People did give me negative feedback. But then it seems to me now now that I’ve learnt a few times, you know, what happens when you put yourself out there for the first time when you tell the world this is what I’ve created, you know, I’m sharing my creation is part of the journey has to be something that’s gonna test your insecurity. It might not be a negative comment or so but it but it might be like bad sales or it might be nobody listens or whatever. So it sounds like insecurity is necessary in some cases to kind of overcome, to tackle it, to overcome it, so that you can be better at tackling it and overcoming it and achieve more things. Do you know what I’m saying? Did I explain that correctly? Jaemin (27:54) Yeah, I think I understand. I don’t think I agree with you though. Bill Gasiamis (27:58) Okay. Jaemin (27:59) So here’s how I’d think about it. I’d separate self-doubt and insecurity into slightly different categories. Bill Gasiamis (28:07) Okay, so you picked up self doubt there. Jaemin (28:10) So, so self doubts are really important quality of wisdom. So for instance, I’ve got a mate who races super bikes, you know, say he got injured this weekend and he says, Jaemin, you know, there’s still four rounds left. Can you sub in for me and race my super bike next week? And I’m like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Now I’ve never raced a super bike before. I do have a motorbike license, but you know, if I didn’t have severe self doubt, I’d be delusional. I’d be a crazy person and I would be, you know, dangerous to myself and the world. So self doubt doesn’t, doesn’t tell me I’m a bad person. It just highlights the limit of the things I’m good at. So, so the real function of self doubt to me is more what you’re describing. It’s, it’s the limit says, you’re not actually very good at this. Now that doesn’t say anything about your essence, your value and your worth. Would you like to be good at this? And I go. Actually, no, great. Well, then don’t do it. Don’t do it because it’ll go bad. I’m like, Yeah, I’d actually like to be good at it. excellent. Well, you have a massive skill gap. So go take however long to learn the skills and fill the skills so that you can come back with genuine confidence with earn confidence so that you could compete in this arena and do well. That’s that’s a wisdom conversation. Now insecurity is this personal piece. It’s like, I’m gonna put myself out there. people are gonna judge, laugh, critique, and then they’ll see who I really am. They will see my flaws, my flaws, my inadequacies will now be exposed to the world. Now it’s personal. And so to me, the definition of insecurity is really important here because people think insecurity is somehow related to the fear of what others think about them, the fear of being judged, the fear of failing, the fear of being rejected. Bill Gasiamis (30:04) Hmm. Right. Jaemin (30:05) Really imprecise. That’s not that’s not insecure at all. It’s just one or two levels deeper than that. You know, say for instance, the fear of failure, which is a typical one. And no one’s actually afraid of failing. They’re afraid of the personal implications of failure. I if I try my best at something, and then it doesn’t work. Huh? What have I just revealed to the world about me the problem with me? Same as rejection. No one’s actually afraid of being rejected. They’re afraid of, if I put my best foot forward and it’s not enough, and then people don’t accept me, huh, what does that reveal? What does that prove? What does that confirm about my own inadequacy? So then insecure. Bill Gasiamis (30:47) about what I about what I think are my inadequacies. Because it’s not about the other Jaemin (30:50) Exactly, that’s insecurity. Insecurity is… Bill Gasiamis (30:53) person’s thinking, it’s me, what I think, and then they’re confirming my inadequacy that I’ve Jaemin (30:56) confirming it. That’s it. That’s it. Bill Gasiamis (30:58) generated and created, which is not even real. Jaemin (31:01) That’s exactly right. That’s the thing, which is hilarious. But when you see that now the levers become apparent, because if the fear is out there, then you got to control the world constantly and obsess about it. But if the fear is here and you created it, then the levers are very apparent. You could then go examine this perceived inadequacy, trace it back to when you first described it and examine it at its roots. Like you could go on a structural engineering quest back into the the substance of your own sense of you, the language you’ve used to describe yourself and check it, check it for integrity, check it for gaps, check it for misunderstandings. Like that’s the fun of what I get to do. It’s take what appears to be abstract, mysterious, messy, unknowable and treat it like a structural engineer just by examining the structure of language. Bill Gasiamis (31:57) People don’t do that much, do they? Jaemin (31:59) No, no, no. And people are insecure about being insecure. So like when I launched the insecurity project, my business coach said, that’s the worst thing I’ve ever heard. Like you’ve picked the most difficult, scary topic and put it at the front. No one’s going to be putting their hands up saying, Jay, when I’m insecure, can you help me? Like it’s existential angst. It’s the human condition. We want to be good. We’re just afraid that we’re not. So we run and we hide and we cover and compensate. So yeah, it’s a hard topic to face and yet the great joke is there’s no actual reason for it to be hard other than the confirmation bias we’ve given ourselves buying into our own bullshit, confirming our own fiction, exasperating our own misunderstanding. So there is no monster under the bed. It’s just the idea of a monster that terrifies us. Bill Gasiamis (32:55) we influenced in that way by external sources or is that a a human a human thing like that that we are kind of pre-programmed to do just because of that whole safety issue because you know safety comes in in a variety of different things. You know, you have to be safe from people entering your home, you know, back in the day and harming you and your family and taking your belongings. If you’re in a war torn area, you have to be safe from, you know, the invaders and that kind of stuff. But also this discussion that we’re having seems to me, as you keep going into those little beautiful deep places, it seems to me that Again, it’s about us creating like many barriers of safety around us and thinking that that’s the perhaps not even thinking like in just instinctively creating this kind of like multi layered safe structure that we can’t be harmed in. Jaemin (34:06) brilliant way of describing it. And that is the instinct. We are hardwired for safety. You cannot like this idea, more courage, less fear, feel the fear and do it anyway. It’s such a nonsense as though you could turn off your need for safety. Bill Gasiamis (34:20) Mm-hmm. Jaemin (34:21) It’s chemical, it’s biological, it’s psychological, it’s unconscious. And that as the child, the child starts in a very carefree, non-transactional experience of being themselves. I’m just here, not. doing the dishes and not mowing the lawn and not contributing to my ecosystem in any way, shape or form. And yet I’m being rewarded, loved, nurtured, cared for, praised, fed. Hmm, turns out it’s fine to be me. I can be relaxed and at ease being me, me as I am without performing, without achieving, without contributing is enough. Great. And then, then you, you know, you get somewhere past two, you know, somewhere around that the game breaks down. And all of a sudden you’re expected to participate, to perform, to conform, to behave. And no child’s prepared for that. No one’s ready for that. Such a surprise. And so the first time the child gets surprised, embarrassed, disappointed, upset, scolded, it’s such a confusing experience, but all the alarm, those safety warning lights are going off through their whole being. There’s a danger you didn’t know about. You. must pay attention and here’s the thing the danger is in you the danger is you’re not who you need to be to survive in this world so don’t be you ever again like be other than you be better than you be different than you do not ever show up present and unguarded ever again or it will turn to shit so yes it’s safe so then you build this safe world this safe persona these safe structures these familiar places where people think you’re good, think you’re smart, think you’re strong. Also, they never see the thing that you don’t want them to see, which would be the ultimate danger and then you die. Yeah, it’s entirely about a biological, chemical, psychological need for safety that is unavoidable. Bill Gasiamis (36:21) Hmm. It what came up in my mind while you were chatting about that is often stroke survivors need to make some radical changes in their life, the way they go about their nutrition, who they hang out with, the stuff they listen to and read, the whole the whole thing. Like, know, it’s sometimes it’s a line in the sand moment and everything changes, and you’ve got to change everything I did. And One of the challenges that stroke survivors have, well, I’ll talk about me. I had the challenge of, well, I needed to stop smoking and I needed to stop drinking. But all my extended family and friends were smokers and drinkers. And stroke survivors often comment about how they lose friends after a stroke. And we’re I and I’ve kind of tried to unravel that a few times and understand what it is that makes it difficult for people to evolve and and adapt and grow and stop the behaviors that perhaps led to a stroke, you know, so that they don’t have another one. And family and friends often do that. They kind of intervene in a way which says, Well, what do you mean we can’t have a drink when we go out? Like that’s we always go and have a drink. And then that person has has to explain themselves, perhaps, or conform again, just to be part of the group. The question is, are we also dealing with the insecurities of our family and friends when we find a way to overcome our own insecurities, perhaps, about something, and then we start to change and evolve and move forward? Are they are those people feeling like Transformational Journeys: Overcoming Obstacles They’re left behind. Th sometimes the sometimes the sentences that people hear when they try and stop smoking or drinking in a particular situation are you’ve changed. You know, like it’s a bad thing. But it’s not said in a positive way. People experience it on both sides of the coin in a negative way. The person who’s saying to their friend who’s had a stroke, who’s trying to not have another one, is saying, You’ve changed and I don’t like the way you’ve changed. And the person changing is hearing I’m changing and now people are having a bad experience because I’m changing. Like What’s all that about with that other person in our life? Jaemin (38:59) Such a great question. Can I, genuine question, can I take five minutes to answer that question? Bill Gasiamis (39:07) You can, absolutely. Jaemin (39:09) because I think this opens up a possibility for a window into a whole different experience of life if you’re willing to go down this thought experiment. Bill Gasiamis (39:23) I am. Let me switch my header off. It’s getting too hot in here. Jaemin (39:31) So I’ve just finished writing my first novel. It’s a five year project. I thought it was impossible. And then it out it wasn’t. It turns out I learned a lot about myself and the process of writing. And it’s been a thoroughly delightful experience. But great storytelling, great fiction writing typically follows some kind of hero’s journey trajectory. You’ve got a small, weak, lost, strange hero who for whatever reason says yes to a cold wood venture and embarks on a journey of self-discovery and eventually has to go do the thing that only they can do along the way they meet a wisdom character. You know, there’s a Gandalf, there’s a Yoda, there’s a Dumbledore, Mr. Miyagi, but eventually the hero’s got to go face the biggest fear and do the thing that’s impossible. And when they do, they come out the other side transformed and then they return home with that transformation and their whole world benefits. So, so it is the process of transformation. It’s the process of potential. It’s the process of destiny. It’s the process of seeing a person fulfilled in their experience of themselves. So a writer is bringing you in, in along for that journey. Now, if the writer transforms the hero magically or supernaturally, it’s a horrible story. You know, if the writer goes, you know, here’s the weak person. They went to sleep and they woke up the next day transformed. Who knows what happened. It was just, you’re like, really? What’s the point of that story? Like, that’s a horrible story. If the transformation happens in a way that’s supernatural or magic, it’s false. The transformation happens through overcoming of obstacles. The weakling becomes strong by overcoming resistance. And the resistance is almost always through the form of characters. So the writer says, stage, write the bully and to stage, write the villain, the parent, the trickster, the joker, the judge, the king, like, and so the hero doesn’t know the story is being written about them. And so experiences all these characters very personally and wishes the characters would go away. But the audience kind of sees the gift in the character, sees the opportunity. You know, when the audience sees a bully harassing a victim, what the audience is rooting for is that the victim would rise up and punch the bully in the nose. And something transformational happens if that victim ever does, you know, they actually then receive the bully’s gift. All along the bully had this gift of personal power delivered in the form of oppression. And because the victim had to find such deep strength that they didn’t even know existed to rise up and finally say this ends here, they’ll never be the victim again. And so in that way they’re transformed. So you could make a case to go, thanks, bully for being a good bully because you made my life so hard. I didn’t think it was possible to overcome you. Thank you. It’s not personal. So a writer then is not going to write an empathetic bully, you know, a very emotionally intelligent, compassionate, they’re going to write a thug. They’re going to write a dullard. They’re going to write someone who’s big and does not change. And even though the, the hero wants to bully the change. If the bully changes, if the bully goes to a spiritual retreat and comes home and change man and then apologizes and makes it up to the victim, it’s kind of nice, but the audience is going, but the victim didn’t have to become stronger in any way. So they’re still just as strong and the next bully is coming and they’re no better prepared. So all that to say, love, I love treating our own lives like this hero’s journey story. I love gamifying the experience. I love going. You know, this insecurity, a lot of people think if only I had a different experience at childhood, then I wouldn’t be so insecure now. If only there weren’t so many difficult people blocking my path, then it would be easier for me. Like, what, do you mean? Like that’s, that’s not the tragedy. That’s the setup. That’s how the game begins. Like that’s how the tensions created so that you have a gift of being able to overcome. So these people exist for you. And yes, they’re in your way. Great. Yes, they’re making it hard. Perfect. But we only play hard games. Like if you’re, you’re playing footy and it’s, you know, last year’s premieres versus the under 10s girls side and you win, you, that’s a very embarrassing experience. Like you don’t eat. That’s a horrible thing. You, know, this year’s premieres, you know, sorry, last year’s premieres versus the team that’s got undefeated this year and you win that game. You know, that’s, that’s a meaningful experience. and yeah, I love this idea that everyone comes into their twenties and thirties lost and confused. And most people are really upset about that. Wishing that their experience up till then had been different and feeling disqualified from a meaningful life because of what’s happened, because of who said this and who’s done that. But if you just zoom out and say it like a hero’s journey or a beautiful game, then then you realize, no, no, no, being lost and confused, oppressed, you know, that doesn’t disqualify you. That’s what qualifies you to go play. Now you can begin, now you can begin this journey of self-discovery to go all the way back to the beginning and see who you’ve always been all along. So it’s a very different way of thinking about life, but I’m constantly confronted with people who treat the stuff that’s happened to them as wounds. And the best you could ever hope for is that eventually you could bring healing to yourself and it become a visible scar that doesn’t really afflict you. Whereas this says, yeah, what if those things, what if life doesn’t happen to you? It happens for you. And the real gift is your own opportunity to rediscover who you’ve always been by overcoming obstacles and especially in the form of people and especially in the form of insecure people. who of course are going to make your journey difficult. Of course, you know, not everyone’s cheering you on. Eventually the heroes got to go alone. Eventually they’ve got to. If they don’t go alone, then they can’t do the thing that only they can do. The Hero’s Journey and Storytelling Bill Gasiamis (46:01) Yeah. Man, that was well well worth the f the the time that you allocated to answer it because it’s such an important part of recovery after anything. and In fact, I learnt about the Heroes Journey after my brain surgery. So we’re talking about I don’t know. I think I got out of hospital for after brain surgery in late 2014. And I think it was around 2017 I did a particular course that I was in. It was a behavioral modeling course and it was about modeling a behavior that we thought was one worth other people learning and repeating. And the The person who was running the course, awesome friend of mine and mentor and teacher, a gentleman called Marvin Oka, he spoke about the hero’s journey as part of this course to teach us about like how to tell a story. And I hadn’t grasped the concept very well. but because of that course, my first book was able to become a reality. It took four years for me to. make that happen. And I released it in twenty twenty twenty three, somewhere there. And since then I’ve done a bit of a deep dive into the hero’s journey and understanding how to take people through a story. And my next book is structured that way. There’s a moment where life is quote unquote normal and then there’s an event and then there’s everything, you know, there’s been a spanner thrown in the works and everything is not like it used to be. And now there is this post-traumatic growth experience that you can go on. And if you know you’re going on it, it’s easier to go on it. But some people are not aware that they might be going on this journey. They’re just programmed from a previous way of doing life that these things are all terrible and bad and they’re not good. And there’s no growth and there’s no learning and there’s no opportunity. But there but there is, but we just framed it. in our past way of thinking and that’s not applicable now, even though we’re still trying to apply it, apply it, apply it. And what you said about the the bully, I remember at school, if if I was a victim, bullies used to seek me out like like a mosquito knows who to go and sting, right? Jaemin (48:40) Yeah Bill Gasiamis (48:42) But then the first bully I punched in the nose was was it. That was the key to unlocking the whole how other people perceived me in those types of situations. And then none of the bullies turned up to have a go because they weren’t gonna get or or perhaps they saw that my response was going to affect their insecurities about themselves. Right. and realistically when I was going through stroke, stopping smoking, stopping drinking, stopping attending the particular venues where smoking and drinking happened so that I can avoid smoking and drinking. It meant that certain people couldn’t associate with me anymore. And It’s not that they were bullies, but when I learnt how to manage that situation once, the others that now I that I now interact with don’t require us to interact in a way that includes smoking and drinking in a particular venue. We can have just as meaningful interactions without the smoking and drinking, without being in that venue, just being in a different location. Doing a different thing. And and there’s no n and and no one feels bad about that interaction. I don’t feel about bad about it because I’m not partaking in something that the other person wants me to partake in. And the other person’s not feeling bad because they’re partaking in something that I’m not partaking in. And we’re there for the same reason. We’re there for the catch up. We’re not there for the smoking and the drinking. Jaemin (50:26) Yeah, and that’s often the way when you break through an archetypal character, a bully is a great example. It’s not uncommon that there becomes a level of respect, a mutual respect post that violence or post the standing up for yourself. And it’s not unheard of that bullies and victims become friends and respect each other. And so there Bill Gasiamis (50:50) Mm. Jaemin (50:50) must become a line in the sandwich like, whatever it costs me, If I, you know, the smoking drinking example, if you never talked to me ever again, if you cannot, then that will be okay. But I cannot go here ever again. And I won’t and you cannot make me and I won’t be made. And so there it is. Great. That your audience is watching that cheering. Yes, transformed. Never be victim again. And then on the other side of that, it’s often surprising what happens in those relationships. And it’s not uncommon for mutual respect, even though It’s not guaranteed and you have to be willing to let go of it completely. Because yeah, the hero’s got to go alone. Bill Gasiamis (51:33) we we’re talking about it like, you know, you know, we’re kinda having a a t a philosophical conversation, an intellectual conversation. We’re doing all of this stuff. And I remember being literally on the football pitch fighting with a kid, and then once we’d thrown the punches and everyone had done what they had to do in that moment, it was are we are we done? All good? And and it was. We were done. And we were all good. And it was instinctive. Like I wasn’t even ten years old or eleven years old or something. And yeah, then we got along forever. Understanding Bullies and Personal Growth Jaemin (52:08) A quicker side, but on the very same thread, if you keep thinking about characters like archetypes, do you know the hardest, but the most exciting, the most wonderful and the most, the biggest opportunity that the person in your life or the people in your life to treat as characters, not the bullies, any idea what makes the top of my list in terms of the characters with the biggest opportunity for growth. Bill Gasiamis (52:39) Just I’m kinda drawn to say family, my family, but Jaemin (52:42) family and parents make the top of the list. And I think Bill Gasiamis (52:46) Yeah, right. Jaemin (52:47) Sigmund Freud’s greatest contribution was that the nest is the hardest challenge for the human to break free from the nest is number one. And all this function ultimately comes from the nest, the familial relationships, exerting unconscious pressures from the parent of the child and the child with the parent outliving their usefulness. And so But in the same way, like no victim when they’re being bullied wants to see it like an archer, like wants to say it like a gift. They want to be rescued or they want the bully to change. It’s impossible to face a bully. Same with the parents. It’s like, don’t understand. This is my dad. You don’t understand. Like it’s just, you know, blood is thicker than water. You got to be there for family. Like it’s just how it’s Bill Gasiamis (53:30) Mm. Jaemin (53:30) always been. The way my parents make me feel like no one wants that tension. and would hope that the tension just goes away. But if you see it like a great story, it provides the greatest opportunity for your own sovereignty. You know, the bully’s gift is personal power. The parent’s gift is sovereignty. Because when you were born into their world, it’s like you’re born into a kingdom, king and queen on the throne, and it’s their arbitrary rules. In this world, this is how we do it. You don’t like it, bugger off down the street. But here, you know, do this, don’t do that. Why, dad? Don’t ask why, just do what I say. So the parental relationship, parents are right even when they’re wrong. And that’s a really important distinction for the nature of those relationships. And so you are a subject inside a kingdom, their rules, their map of the world, their right, even when they’re wrong. And it’s incredibly hard to break free from that to create your own map of the world and Bill Gasiamis (54:29) Mm. Jaemin (54:29) for you to be the king. But if you see it like a setup and a game, well then, Freud says, you must live as though your father is dead. You must depose the king. So Bill Gasiamis (54:42) Mm. Jaemin (54:42) if the king gets off the throne, if the king bows down to you, if the king goes, you your map of the world now is better than my map of the world, your way of thinking is better than my way of thinking, then there’s no challenge, there’s no resistance to overcome. So my favorite way of describing the role of the parents then is actually, It’s not to love and support and empower. They might do all that, but their central function in the hero’s journey is to confuse you about who you really are. Bill Gasiamis (55:12) Wow. Jaemin (55:13) so that the game can begin. Like everyone comes into their 20s lost and confused and the primary confuses our parents because they impose their map of the world. They have their own sense of who you are and what you ought to do. And it doesn’t suit a single person to be born into the family they’re born into. And yet here you are having to adapt and fit in to a pre-existing ecosystem with rules, values, culture, and then you’re given that name. So it’s like, You are this, this is who you are. It’s like, no, it’s just a bit of Bill Gasiamis (55:46) Wow. Jaemin (55:47) language like Jaemin Fra- I’m not Jaemin Fraser. What do you mean? Like, I was born into a family and those words were put on me. That’s not who I am. And so the confusion of growing up thinking that’s exactly who I am, this is the limit of my experience of life. And I cling to this as my whole certainty. is so wonderful because it’s the ultimate resistance to break out of, to examine the structure of that, to examine the confusion and really go back and reparent yourself and really be the one who actually knows who you’ve always been and to nurture that into the real world and then to become sovereign. And you know you’re sovereign when you become the one who’s right, even when they’re wrong. So you’ve got friends and family saying, what do you mean? It’s not. You need to be able to have a smoke. got to be able to drink. That’s what everyone does. Not in my kingdom, we don’t. In my kingdom, Bill Gasiamis (56:39) Mm. Jaemin (56:39) we don’t smoke and we don’t drink. You’re an idiot. That’s stupid. Well, I’m the king and this is my sovereignty. And if you want to come play in my world, this is how it works. And so, so many people are faced with those challenges. Then they keep pulling back from the edge because of their relational cost, hoping, wishing the world would go easier on them. But if you see it like a story in a game, it’s like, it’s a setup. It’s all a setup. So you could be the one who unconfuses yourself by having to overcome the relational resistance in your world and discover who you’ve always been. Bill Gasiamis (57:15) And we know it innately because we’ve all had that dad, mom, whomever, like I did what I had to do when I was in your house. Now this is my house. Now they this is how it applies. If you don’t Jaemin (57:26) Yeah. Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (57:27) like it, you don’t like it. Like I’ve actually thrown my dad out of my house in my twenties, when we moved out because my wife and I got married and we had kids and whatever, and they’d come over and visit to see the grandkid. You know, my dad would do the whole over helicopter grandparenting, you know. You know, the kids cold or the kids this and the kids that, you know, we lived this with this kid twenty four hours a day, seven days a week for five, six years, you know, like we knew its needs, you know, my my son’s needs. And my dad just wouldn’t have it that we what we were saying wasn’t that we were saying was correct or was okay or was fine or whatever, you know, we were it was everythi

Send us comments, suggestions and ideas here! In this week's episode we conclude our three part journey through the seventeen stages of the heroes journey as laid out by Joseph Campbell in his seminal work “Hero with a Thousand Faces.” In the free section of the show we discuss THE ULTIMATE BOON which we explore in its various manifestations including the traditional narcotic coded drink of the gods and heroes; soma. We also discuss the reluctance to return from the journey (looking at you Odysseus), the magick shapeshifting flight and the occasional need (plot twist) for the hero to be rescued from without. In the extended show we Cross the Threshold and explore what exactly that means, if it's even possible to describe it; which is the next, difficult step which gives way to the journey coming full circle, the work accomplished and freedom rings once more. Thank you and enjoy the show.In this week's episode we discuss:The Ultimate BoonSigns of MasterySurviving the ReturnSomaThe Refusal To ReturnThe Magic FlightShokoshimbutsu MummiesMagickal TransformationIn the extended episode available at http://www.patreon.com/TheWholeRabbit we discuss:Crossing the Return ThresholdThe Inconsistency Between the Two WorldsRip Van WinkleMaster of the Two WorldsThe BagavadghitaReconciliation With the Universal WillThis episode was written by Luke Madrid in collaboration with Tim Hacker who wrote the skeleton of the schizo's journey for each seventeen stages with commentaries. Additional commentaries by Mari Sama and Heka Astra.Where to find The Whole Rabbit:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0AnJZhmPzaby04afmEWOAVYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@thewholerabbit936Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_whole_rabbitTwitter: https://twitter.com/1WholeRabbitOrder Stickers: https://www.stickermule.com/thewholerabbitOther Merchandise: https://thewholerabbit.myspreadshop.com/Music By Spirit Travel Plaza:https://open.spotify.com/artist/30dW3WB1sYofnow7y3V0YoSources:Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. 3rd ed., New World Library, 2008.https://ia601406.us.archive.org/30/items/Birdsfrogsandmirrors/JosephCampbell%20-%20The%20Hero%20With%20a%20Thousand%20Faces%20Commemorative%20Edition.pdfSupport the show

Send us comments, suggestions and ideas here! In this week's episode we embark on part 2 of our journey to slap each and every single one of the Hero's 1,000 faces as laid out in Joseph Campbell's titular work that outlines the seventeen phases of the Heroes Journey. We begin the free show by discussing the best phase of the heroes journey, the encounter with the Goddess of the Universe before moving onto the phase where she becomes a deadly temptress which is nothing compared to integrating the Oedipal demon of the Dark Father and his subsequent redemption something something where did my foreskin go? In the extended show we discuss the tenth stage, "Apotheosis" and that takes the entire rest of the episode because, frankly, somebody has to geek out about this stuff! Thank you and enjoy the show :)In this the free side of this episode we discuss:Meeting with the Goddess The Daughter of FortitudeThe Universal MotherWoman as TemptressNo Fap / Female Reversion Death SticksAtonement With the FatherCircumcision Drinking Blood RitualsInitiation into ManhoodIn the extended show available at www.patreon.com/TheWholeRabbit we discuss:The BodhisattvaChrist and The FatherAndrogenic DeitiesPerils of ApotheosisBloodborne / Dark Souls This episode was written by Luke Madrid with inspiration / collaboration with Tim Hacker. Additional commentary by Heka Astra and Mari Sama.Where to find The Whole Rabbit:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0AnJZhmPzaby04afmEWOAVInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_whole_rabbitTwitter: https://twitter.com/1WholeRabbitOrder Stickers: https://www.stickermule.com/thewholerabbitOther Merchandise: https://thewholerabbit.myspreadshop.com/Music By Spirit Travel Plaza:https://open.spotify.com/artist/30dW3WB1sYofnow7y3V0YoSources:Hero With a Thousand Faces, Joseph CampbellSupport the show

Send us comments, suggestions and ideas here! In this week's episode we take the first step on the journey through The Hero of a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell and discuss, with nerd-like passion, the nuance surrounding each specific stage of the hero's journey as explained in the text. For a podcast that geeks out about symbolism; it doesn't get much more bread and butter than this. In the free side of the show we make it through the first four stages of the heroes journey: The Mundane World, The Call to Adventure, Refusal of the Call and Supernatural Aid; touching upon the variety (or lack thereof) you can expect in each stage while using mythology both modern and classic as guide posts along the way. In the extended show we discuss Crossing the Threshold, the tremendous ordeal of being swallowed within the Belly of the Whale and the laundry list of trials each hero faces on their path to either Mordor or tax season. Thank you and enjoy the show.DISCLAIMER:I think we need to clear up some confusion. First of all, I'm very tired. Secondly, I'm very tired. Thirdly, the book we're studying, Hero with a Thousand Faces is by Joseph Campbell but is BASED upon Carl Jung's ideas of the collective unconscious, the archetypes and the path to individuation by interaction with. When you're manically alternating between exhaustion and manic excitement it's easy to get the Cs and Js confused ok?? That being said, Jung is quoted numerous times throughout the text. At this point just assume we've mixed up the names a number of times during  this specific recording. My apologies. I'll sleep when I'm dead. In this week's show we discuss:-The World of the NPC: The Office, the Shire and Tatooine -The Call to Adventure: Neo, Barbie and Danny from the Shining-Refusal of the Call: King Minos, Cypher and Luke Skywalker-Supernatural Aid: Morphes, Beatrice of Dante's Inferno, Weird Barbie-Magickal Black-Man Tropes In the extended show available at www.patreon.com/TheWholeRabbit we go further down the heroes rabbit hole (gross) and discuss:-Crossing the Threshold: Walking Through the Mirror, Entering the Temple, Vagina Dentata-The Belly of the Whale: Being Pilled, The Trash Compactor, Jonah-The Road of Trials: John Wick, Hercules, Pan's Labrynth and Alice in Wonderland. This episode was written by Luke Madrid in collaboration with Tim Hacker who wrote the skeleton of the schizo's journey for each seventeen stages with commentaries. Additional commentaries by Mari Sama and Heka Astra.Where to find The Whole Rabbit:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0AnJZhmPzaby04afmEWOAVInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_whole_rabbitTwitter: https://twitter.com/1WholeRabbitOrder Stickers: https://www.stickermule.com/thewholerabbitOther Merchandise: https://thewholerabbit.myspreadshop.com/Music By Spirit Travel Plaza:https://open.spotify.com/artist/30dW3WB1sYofnow7y3V0YoSources:Campbell, Joseph. The Hero with a Thousand Faces. 3rd ed., New World Library, 2008.https://ia601406.us.archive.org/30/items/Birdsfrogsandmirrors/JosephCampbell%20-%20The%20Hero%20With%20a%20Thousand%20Faces%20Commemorative%20Edition.pdfSupport the show

Thank you to our sponsor World Anvil! Check out World Anvil to use their Worldbuilding, Writing, and Game Master tools for free! If you like what you see, use code "RAMBLE" at checkout for 51% off a yearly subscription! https://www.worldanvil.com/?c=2ToRamble⭐️ Exclusive Book Club! Join/Support on Patreon

What happens when early trauma, adoption, religion, and abusive relationships collide with a spiritual awakening that cannot be ignored?In this deeply human and unfiltered Part 1 conversation, Trina shares her life story — not as a spiritual teacher, but as someone who lived through profound loss, shame, and identity confusion, and slowly awakened from the inside out.We talk about growing up adopted and feeling “different,” the painful decision to give a child up for adoption, and the long road toward forgiveness and reconnection with her birth mother. Trina opens up about religious conditioning, the dark night of the soul, and how chasing external success and approval led her further away from herself.As the conversation unfolds, we explore her kundalini awakening — not as an abstract spiritual concept, but as a lived, embodied experience. She describes physical symptoms, intuitive abilities opening naturally, and learning to listen to the body as a source of truth.This episode is not about perfection, enlightenment, or having answers.It's about remembering who you are, redefining abundance as peace, and learning to love yourself after years of survival.This episode is for you if you:Feel there is more to life than what you were taughtHave experienced adoption, trauma, or deep identity shiftsAre going through a spiritual awakening or dark night of the soulAre redefining success, faith, and what abundance truly meansPart 1 lays the foundation — the story, the wounds, and the awakening.Part 2 continues deeper into integration, embodiment, and living from truth.Listen on:Spotify · Apple Podcasts · Amazon Music · YouTubeConnect with the show:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@oschirachInstagram: www.instagram.com/oschirachChapters00:00 Welcome & The Intention Behind This Conversation05:52 Growing Up Adopted & Feeling Different11:44 Giving a Child Up for Adoption21:42 Trauma, Shame & Survival Patterns39:06 Religion, Faith & Spiritual Conditioning52:40 Losing Faith & The Dark Night of the Soul01:05:20 Abuse, Identity Loss & Chasing External Success01:17:30 Kundalini Awakening & Physical Spiritual Symptoms01:42:10 Spiritual Gifts, Intuition & Embodied Awakening01:55:30 Redefining Abundance, Purpose & Self-Love

Hello everyone!!We continue with the First Law Standalone novels, now going into Heroes and Red Country!We talk about how these characters continue to be engagin, how the materiality of war and conflict continues, and how change, propelled by capital, can be such a dangerous thing the world over, fantasy world it might be.Enjoy!If you can and are interested in early episodes and our bonus content, soon to be plenty more, check out our Patreon!https://www.patreon.com/leftpage Also! If you're not there already, feel free to join our Discord!https://discord.gg/J2wgG3yrPNIntro Music: Ultralounge · Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Outro Music: Don't Leave! · El-Funoun Palestinian Popular Dance Troupe. From the Album: Zareef ℗ 2006 El-Funoun Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joseph Campbell, the visionary author behind The Heroes Journey, once wrote:"People say that what we're all seeking is a meaning for life. I don't think that's what we're really seeking. I think that what we're seeking is an experience of being alive."Today's guest, leadership coach, organizational consultant, and wellbeing expert, Vivien Tai in many ways has picked up where Joseph Campbell left off. Her pioneering research for her Master's Thesis in Positive Psychology Explored a provocative question:What if the real measure of a good life — or a great workplace — isn't how much we achieve, but how

"Live the journey as faithfully as you can"  

In this episode Ruben reviews Predator: Badlands. First recapping briefly the series and then getting into how this is a fun film about finding yourself.

Chandler Stroud joins us to delve into the profound subject of healing, illuminating the transformative journey toward holistic well-being. Stroud articulates her personal experiences, revealing the often-hidden struggles that accompany outward success, such as anxiety and the quest for self-worth. Through her Healing Heroes podcast, she emphasizes the importance of reconnecting with one's inner self, fostering a sense of presence, and nurturing the mind, body, and spirit. This conversation underscores the necessity of community and shared experiences in the healing process, as well as the empowerment that arises when women support one another on their respective journeys. We invite you to reflect upon your own path and consider how healing not only enhances individual lives but also radiates positively into the broader community..The dialogue between Tamala Shaw and Chandler Stroud unfolds as a profound exploration of healing, particularly through the lens of women's experiences in contemporary society. Stroud recounts her personal journey, marked by anxiety and a relentless pursuit of validation stemming from childhood traumas. This candid reflection serves as a reminder that many individuals, despite external successes, grapple with internal struggles that often go unacknowledged. The conversation highlights the importance of addressing these emotional challenges, asserting that true healing requires a commitment to introspection and self-discovery, beyond mere accomplishments.Moreover, the episode delves into the societal pressures that hinder genuine presence and connection, particularly in an age dominated by technology and constant multitasking. Shaw and Stroud emphasize the necessity of fostering emotional awareness and resilience, advocating for a return to authenticity in relationships. The dialogue resonates with listeners who may feel overwhelmed by the demands of modern life, prompting reflections on the significance of nurturing one's mental health amidst external distractions. The speakers' insights into the healing process serve as a clarion call for individuals to prioritize their emotional well-being, recognizing that healing is not only a personal journey but also a communal endeavor.In the latter part of the episode, Stroud introduces the Healing Heroes Happiness Academy, a community initiative designed to provide support for women embarking on their healing journeys. This initiative embodies the essence of shared experiences, fostering a sense of belonging among participants. Stroud's vision underscores the power of community in facilitating personal growth and healing, encouraging women to connect with one another as they navigate their paths. The episode concludes with an uplifting message, inspiring listeners to engage in their healing processes, thereby initiating transformative changes not only in their own lives but also within their families and communities.Links referenced in this episode:codependentme.orgcodependentme@outlook.com

Sunday edition   The Book of Revelation

High Noon vs James Bond: Generative Future vs Self-Actualization: Hero's Journey Isn't about You https://youtu.be/PXpB6e-PBPc?si=ywbQ2c66xWwuZzqv Revelation 17 through 19   Midwestuary Conference August 22-24 in Chicago https://www.midwestuary.com/ Vanderklips channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX0jIcadtoxELSwehCh5QTg Bridges of Meaning Discord Link: https://discord.gg/cAjXpprB https://www.meetup.com/sacramento-estuary/ My Substack https://paulvanderklay.substack.com/ Estuary Hub Link  https://www.estuaryhub.com/ If you want to schedule a one-on-one conversation check here. https://calendly.com/paulvanderklay/one2one For the audio podcast mirror on Podbean http://paulvanderklay.podbean.com/ To listen to this on ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/paul-vanderklays-podcast/id1394314333  If you need the RSS feed for your podcast player https://paulvanderklay.podbean.com/feed/  All Amazon links here are part of the Amazon Affiliate Program. Amazon pays a small commission at no additional cost to you if you buy through one of the product links here.  https://paypal.me/paulvanderklay Also on Odysee: https://odysee.com/@paulvanderklay https://www.patreon.com/paulvanderklay Paul's Church Content at Living Stones Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh7bdktIALZ9Nq41oVCvW-A To support Paul's work by supporting his church give here. https://tithe.ly/give?c=2160640 https://www.livingstonescrc.com/give

Heroes Journey: Overcoming Mental Struggles | Special Episode | Hinesights Podcast | S12E156 | Erik Sebusch

Gwen Laster is a violinist, composer, and teacher. Her ensemble is The New Muse 4Tet and they have just released an album Keeper of the Flame which explores The Heroes Journey from the point of view of African Americans.  The … More ... The post Gwen Laster – “Keepers of the Flame” appeared first on Paradigms Podcast.

Everyone faces off with their challenges in the same cycle called The Heroes Journey. Was this helpful? If so then you need to check out the 7 Fundamentals Of Self Improvement which features short summaries of the most popular and impactful episodes from the past.Takes only 5 minutes to read through them today but it'll help you avoid years of making things so much harder than they need to be. Plus, I bet you'll be surprised to learn what they are...

"Storytelling heals the brain." "No struggle, no story." "Life happens in moments."   Episode summary | In this episode of Return on Generosity, host Shannon Cassidy speaks with Scott Mann, a former Green Beret and founder of Rooftop Leadership. They discuss the importance of generosity in leadership, the power of storytelling, and how to build trust in low-trust environments. Scott shares his journey from military service to becoming a playwright and advocate for veterans, emphasizing the healing power of personal stories. The conversation also touches on the creation of his play 'Last Out: Elegy of a Green Beret' and the work of his nonprofit, Task Force Pineapple, which focuses on supporting veterans and their families.   R.O.G. Takeaway Tips | Generosity is key to personal and professional growth. Building trust requires understanding both yourself and others. Storytelling is a powerful tool for healing and connection. Leaders must manage emotional temperatures in conversations. Personal stories can resonate universally and foster connection. Advocacy for veterans is crucial in the current political climate. Preparing for future threats requires awareness and action. Engaging in storytelling can help individuals process their experiences.   Chapters |  00:00 Introduction to Scott Mann and His Journey 03:31 The Role of Green Berets in Building Trust 06:23 Navigating Low Trust Environments 09:26 Practical Steps for Building Trust 12:31 The Power of Storytelling in Healing 15:29 The Journey of Creating 'Last Out' 18:32 Impact of Storytelling on Audiences 21:25 The Generosity of Scars and Vulnerability 29:47 The Power of Personal Storytelling 33:37 The Hero's Journey and Its Impact 40:02 Task Force Pineapple: A New Mission 42:27 Engaging with the Community 47:19 Living a Life of Long Breaths 50:00 Introduction to Generosity and Growth 50:10 The Impact of Giving on Personal Development   Guest Bio | Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Scott Mann is a former U.S. Army Green Beret with combat tours all over the world including Colombia, Iraq, and multiple tours in Afghanistan. He is a warrior storyteller and the President and founder of Rooftop Leadership, a leadership consulting and training company in Tampa, Florida where he shares the rapport-building skills he learned in Special Forces to help today's leaders make better human connections when stakes are high and trust is low. Scott helps organizations gain a better understanding of their internal culture while exposing the potential for conflict that exists when trust has deteriorated. In the same way he empowered local tribes in Iraq and Afghanistan to make transformative decisions using very few resources, Scott teaches corporate leaders and their teams the relationship-building techniques that drove so many of his successful combat operations. Scott is the NYT Best-selling Author of Operation Pineapple Express and #1 International Best-Selling Author of Game Changers, Going Local to Defeat Violent Extremists. He has spoken on three TEDx stages and is also a playwright and actor in his recent play brought to film about the Afghan War and the unforeseen cost of war on our Veterans called “Last Out: Elegy of a Green Beret,” which is available on Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, AppleTV, and VUDU. Scott is the founder of Task Force Pineapple and the 501c3 Operation Pineapple Express Relief where he actively advocates in Congress and on national media outlets for the safe passage and resettlement of our abandoned Afghan Allies. He is also the founder of the 501c3, The Heroes Journey, where he is dedicated to helping veterans and military families find their voice and tell their story as they transition out of military service in order to bridge the civilian-military divide. Scott has appeared on numerous TV, Radio, and Podcast media platforms to include CNN, Fox, all the major networks and syndicated radio and has been published by the Epoch Times and Daily Wire. Scott's greatest accomplishments are his 26-year marriage and his three grown sons . Resources: The Generosity of Scars | Scott Mann | TEDxSantaBarbara Task Force Pineapple  Last Out Play Schedule Amazon Prime: Last Out | Elegy of a Green Beret Romy Camargo's Story on Scott Mann's Podcast  Free N.D.I. Network Diversity Index  Free Generosity Quiz  Credits: Scott Mann, Host Shannon Cassidy, Bridge Between, Inc. Coming Next: Please join us next week, Episode 226, Special Guest, Sheena Yap Chan. 

In this episode of Fintech Chatter, Dexter Cousins chats to Nathan Walsh and Michael Starkey, Co-Founders of Athena Home Loans.Making their long awaited return to the show, Nathan and Michael discuss their journey over the past four years, and the insane challenges they've had to navigate as interest rates rose rapidly and funding markets dried up. According to Wikipedia Athena was the patron goddess of heroic endeavor; she was believed to have aided the heroes Perseus, Heracles, Bellerophon, and Jason. She may have also aided Michael and Nathan over this last few years!We ask Nathan and Michael the tough questions like how do you compete with banks, balance innovation with regulatory requirements, navigating the rapid interest rate rises since 2022, and the importance of partnerships. Nathan and Michael also share their secrets to building a resilient team and maintaining a strong company culture as they aim for the next stage of growth and innovation in the home loan sector.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Athena Home Loans03:38 Founding Story and Vision05:48 Tech Fin vs Fin Tech: Athena's Position07:32 Navigating Regulation and Innovation11:48 Challenges of Distribution in a Fragmented Market13:34 Impact of Interest Rate Rises on Fintech19:45 Lessons from Big Banks23:23 Partnerships and Growth Opportunities29:29 Cultural Alignment in Partnerships33:47 The Journey of Co-Founders37:59 Hiring The Right People40:51 Navigating Growth and Change45:09 Reflections on Past Experiences48:40 Future Aspirations and GrowthSend us a textSubscribe Newsletter: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/fintech-leaders-7092732051488980992/Connect on Linkedin: https://bit.ly/3DsCJBp

Lieutenant (SEAL) Rob Sarver graduated from the US Naval Academy in 2004. He initially served as a surface warfare officer and ultimately as a Navy SEAL assigned to SEAL Team 3, completing seven deployments during his service. He completed three tours in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and two tours in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Rob's awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with a combat "V" device and oak leaf cluster, the Combat Action Ribbon with a gold star device, and various additional personal and unit accolades. Since his departure from the military in 2013, Rob has held various leadership and executive roles and earned an Executive MBA from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business. Currently, Rob is the Co-Founder of Servius Group and serves as the Co-CEO and Co-Founder of The Heroes Journey, LLC. Alex Gendzier is a partner at Seyfarth Shaw LLP, where he is involved in veterans affairs. Although Alex has no personal military experience, he feels a connection to them through his own journey of overcoming the odds, experiencing painful losses and making life-changing transitions and the five years of research and interviews that went into this Field Manual. His sense of his own successes and failures, as well as his desire to make a contribution to our service members and their families, led him to collaborate with Rob Sarver.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Veteran On the Move, Joe sits down with Rob Server, a former Navy SEAL with 9 years of service, and Alex Gendzier, a veteran advocate and business leader, to discuss their book, "Warrior to Civilian: The Field Manual for the Hero's Journey." They delve into the often-hidden challenges of military transition, from losing a sense of purpose and community to navigating new career paths. Rob's journey from Surface Warfare Officer to SEAL, followed by a successful transition to Goldman Sachs, provides a powerful example. Alex, drawing from his experience mentoring veterans, emphasizes the need for a comprehensive resource that addresses the emotional and practical aspects of this life-changing period. They explore how ancient wisdom and practical advice can guide veterans and their families through this new chapter, stressing the importance of communication and embracing the transition. Episode Resources:  Warrior to Civilian: The Field Manual for the Hero's Journey    About Our Guest    Lieutenant (SEAL) Rob Sarver graduated from the US Naval Academy in 2004. He initially served as a surface warfare officer and ultimately as a Navy SEAL assigned to SEAL Team 3, completing seven deployments during his service. He completed three tours in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and two tours in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. Rob's awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with a combat "V" device and oak leaf cluster, the Combat Action Ribbon with a gold star device, and various additional personal and unit accolades. Since his departure from the military in 2013, Rob has held various leadership and executive roles and earned an Executive MBA from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business. Currently, Rob is the Co-Founder of Servius Group and serves as the Co-CEO and Co-Founder of The Heroes Journey, LLC. Alex Gendzier is a partner at Seyfarth Shaw LLP, where he is involved in veterans affairs. Although Alex has no personal military experience, he feels a connection to them through his own journey of overcoming the odds, experiencing painful losses and making life-changing transitions and the five years of research and interviews that went into this Field Manual. His sense of his own successes and failures, as well as his desire to make a contribution to our service members and their families, led him to collaborate with Rob Sarver About Our Sponsors Navy Federal Credit Union   Navy Federal Credit Union has made it their mission to help people in the military community. Navy Federal Credit Union is open to all branches of the military, Veterans and their families. They have lots of flexible savings and investing options to help their members reach their financial goals. Don't miss out. The sooner you start building your finances with savings and investing options, the better off they could be in the long run.  At Navy Federal, our members are the mission.      Join the conversation on Facebook! Check out Veteran on the Move on Facebook to connect with our guests and other listeners. A place where you can network with other like-minded veterans who are transitioning to entrepreneurship and get updates on people, programs and resources to help you in YOUR transition to entrepreneurship.   Want to be our next guest? Send us an email at interview@veteranonthemove.com.  Did you love this episode? Leave us a 5-star rating and review!  Download Joe Crane's Top 7 Paths to Freedom or get it on your mobile device. Text VETERAN to 38470. Veteran On the Move podcast has published 500 episodes. Our listeners have the opportunity to hear in-depth interviews conducted by host Joe Crane. The podcast features people, programs, and resources to assist veterans in their transition to entrepreneurship.  As a result, Veteran On the Move has over 7,000,000 verified downloads through Stitcher Radio, SoundCloud, iTunes and RSS Feed Syndication making it one of...

Kegan Smurf Gill is a Naval Aviator, F18 Super Hornet Pilot, Author, Speaker, and one of the most solid humans you'll ever meet! I am proud to call him friend! Kegan's story is the epitome of The Heroes Journey. From the fastest ejection in Naval history from his F18 at 695 mph just before it crashed in to the Atlantic Ocean to surviving nearly 2 hours in frigid waters, to the ensuing journey just to be able to walk and fly again, to his misdiagnosis of PTSD by the VA when in reality he had a TBI that sent him deeper and deepr in to psychosis.  Kegan was able to fight through this and regain his health and well being. He has written a book on his journey to not only tell the his story, but help others who face the vast issues with VA and who are struggling as he was!  His story, his openness, and his resilience are the stuff of legends in my opinion and Kegan is above all, inspiring!  You can find Kegan's new book, Phoenix Revival, The Aftermath of Naval Aviations's Fastest Ejection on Amazon. You can find the show sponsor, Absolute Security and Lock here http://www.absolutesecurityandlock.com  

Rob Sarver is a former Navy SEAL. Assigned to SEAL Team 3, he completed seven deployments during his service. Rob's awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with a combat "V" device and oak leaf cluster and the Combat Action Ribbon with a gold star device. Rob is the Co-Founder of Servius Group and serves as the Co-CEO and Co-Founder of The Heroes Journey. Alex Gendzier is a partner at a top law firm, where he is involved in veteran's affairs. At his prior firm, he acted as a senior advisor to the VALOR Group, which provides pro bono legal services to veterans and their families, and where he lead his law firms' efforts to assist Afghan allies and friends.Warrior to Civilian: The Field Manual for the Hero's Journey, by Rob Sarver & Alex Gendzier----------If you liked this episode, consider sharing it with someone you think might like it too.Email: michael@wherewegonext.comInstagram: @wwgnpodcast

The team tries to descend the mountain. The way down proves treacherous. Did anyone see where runt went?

The Brothers discuss the very popular book by Paulo Coelho. A beautiful parable for our modern times. We talk about how one can find their own personal legend and still have a family.  We discuss the popularity of this book and much more. Enjoy.Two ordinary brothers discussing extraordinary ideas... and some random shit.Email- thebrothersrandomv@gmail.com

Founder & President of Rooftop Leadership & The Heroes Journey, Scott Mann, explains the top foreign priorities for the incoming Trump administration and tells us about his new book.

Join us for our latest message --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/thetabletx/support

IN EPISODE 203: From the battlefield to the boardroom, trust is built one relationship at a time. In Episode 203, Lt. Col. Scott Mann shares trust-building strategies he learned from twenty years serving as a Green Beret. He offers tips for operating in high-stakes, low-trust environments, why it pays to "see the pictures" in someone else's head, and how to use storytelling as a way to build connection. ABOUT SCOTT MANN: Lt. Col. Scott Mann is a retired Green Beret who served in Army and Special Operations around the world for more than twenty years. Today he is the CEO of Rooftop Leadership and the founder of a 501c(3), The Heroes Journey, committed to helping veterans tell their stories in transition. Scott has appeared on Fox News, CNN and other major outlets and is the bestselling author of Nobody is Coming to Save You.

Send us a Text Message.Join Drake and Marie as they discuss how to use the hero's journey.  Writer's room (50% off for lifetime membership): https://writersroom.mn.co/plans/338439?bundle_token=196fd3965307a65eee0d1bf2bc6fa5a6&utm_source=manualMembership for Just In Time Worlds: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxvBH0EkwuHsQ9ryHHQNi2Q/joinGive us feedback at releasingyourinnerdragon(at)gmail(dot)comDiscord: https://discord.gg/vMrmBsF5fhMagicfall: http://magicfallnovel.com/Drake's Contact Details:Starving Writer Studio: https://www.starvingwriterstudio.com/Drake-U: https://class.drakeu.com/  - Use RYID25 for 25% off!Writer's Room: https://writersroom.mn.co/Marie's contact details:Books: https://mariemullany.com/workJust In Time Worlds: https://www.youtube.com/c/JustInTimeWorlds?sub_confirmation=1

We all want to understand the meaning of life, and so do our mythical heroes. They often go on adventures to strange worlds, fight dark forces, and come back with new knowledge. The hero's journey explains this adventure by breaking it into stages. It shows how a hero faces and overcomes challenges to learn and grow. Does this remind you of your own alcohol-free journey? In this episode of The Sober Edge Podcast, I share my take on an AF hero's journey. The 12 steps outlined in the graphic are easy to adapt to our own journey to alcohol-freedom. Just like the heroes of mythology or your favorite Star Wars character, you are called to the adventure of a lifetime! Full Show Notes HERE Ready for your own AF Adventure?  Join The SELF Experience waitlist for women who are alcohol-free and looking for more Join REFRESH, a program for women who are struggling to become  or stay alcohol-free

You can find our social media pages on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/JayNbaypodcast/Twitter: @JayNBaypodcastInstagram: jayandbayneighborgamers

Get ready to be inspired as SMA Tilley sits down with LTC (R) Scott Mann, former Green Beret and founder of The Heroes Journey, on Your Next Mission® Video Podcast. In this compelling episode, LTC Mann shares his expertise on leadership and the importance of storytelling. Additionally, he provides an exclusive glimpse into his upcoming book, No One Is Coming to Save You. Don't miss this fascinating conversation between two experts in their fields.

Retired Green Beret Scott Mann shares battle-tested strategies for motivating people in low-trust, high-stakes environments. — YOU'LL LEARN — 1) Why storytelling is super powerful 2) The key shift that makes stories memorable3) How to regulate emotions (both yours and others)Subscribe or visit AwesomeAtYourJob.com/ep979 for clickable versions of the links below. — ABOUT SCOTT — Lt. Col. Scott Mann is a retired Green Beret with over twenty-two years of Army and Special Operations experience around the world, and a New York Times bestselling author. He has deployed to Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He is the CEO of Rooftop Leadership and the founder of a 501c3, The Heroes Journey, committed to helping veterans tell their stories in transition. Scott regularly speaks to and trains corporate leaders, law enforcement, and special operations forces on best practices for going local, storytelling, and making better human connections. Scott has frequent appearances on Fox News, CNN, and other national platforms as a thought leader on building organizational relationships, restoring trust in our communities, and a range of national security issues. He is also an actor and playwright who has written a play about the war called Last Out—Elegy of a Green Beret on Amazon Prime. Scott lives in Florida with his wife Monty where they are deepening their skills on empty nesting.• Book: Nobody Is Coming to Save You: A Green Beret's Guide to Getting Big Sh*t Done • Website: ScottMann.com — RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THE SHOW — • Book: Getting More: How You Can Negotiate to Succeed in Work and Life by Stuart Diamond • Book: Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz • Previous episode: 311: Communication Secrets from FBI Kidnapping Negotiator Chris Voss • Book: The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield • Book: The World Until Yesterday: What Can We Learn from Traditional Societies? by Jared Diamond • Play: “Last Out: Elegy of a Green Beret”See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Please welcome Retired Lieutenant Colonel Scott Mann.  As a Green Beret, Scott designed and led the local village stability operations program in Afghanistan. After leaving the military, he began to focus on using his experience with the struggle of transitioning from a fast-paced and high-risk lifestyle to build a healthy transition to the civilian world of work and family. As a result, he launched "Heroes Journey" to help servicemembers, first responders, and their families cope with post-crisis trauma through storytelling. Scott also wrote and featured in the play and film "Last Man Out," which portrays the impacts of war on our Veterans and their families Additionally, after Kabul fell to the Taliban, Scott and others launched Task Force Pineapple Express to help Afghan partners leave the country.  Lastly, Scott has made three appearances on TEDx to discuss his work with veterans and first responders and is announcing his new book, "No One is Coming to Save You," which will be released in October.  This discussion is split into two separate episodes.  The first one is to discuss Scott's work prior to the book "No One is Coming to Save You," which airs in October. The Second episode releases in September and is a discussion and the book. ---- One CA is a product of the civil affairs association  and brings in people who are current or former military, diplomats, development officers, and field agents to discuss their experiences on the ground with a partner nation's people and leadership. We aim to inspire anyone interested in working in the "last three feet" of U.S. foreign relations.  To contact the show, email us at CApodcasting@gmail.com  or look us up on the Civil Affairs Association website at www civilaffairsassoc.org ---- Special thanks to Ahimsaz for the sample of “Shahamat." Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wmoH-fHhwQ ----Credits---- Host: Jack Gaines

Broadcasting LIVE from Reliance One, the fellas had a very Special Guest on the show, Lt. Col Scott Mann! Scott is a retired Lieutenant Colonel with almost 23 years of active-duty service. He spent nearly 18 years in Army Special Forces (Green Berets) with tours throughout Central and South America, along with three combat tours in Afghanistan.  He is the founder of Task Force Pineapple, which has enabled the evacuation of 1,000 Afghan Allies during the August 2021 NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan. He wrote the book, Operation Pineapple Express, which became a New York Times Best Seller, and chronicled the courage of at-risk Afghans risking everything for freedom and the volunteer efforts of veterans and other volunteers who supported them.  Scott also authored the #1 International Best Seller, Game Changers, Going Local to Defeat Violent Extremists, a comprehensive work that spells out the Afghanistan community engagement methodology to law enforcement and special operations forces.  Scott's newest book, Nobody Is Coming To Save You, it is on pre-order on Amazon and will be released on October 1st!  The Foreward / “Blurb+” is written by Mike Rowe and it is outstanding! Scott is a small business owner of Rooftop Leadership, leadership coach, and professional storyteller. His non-profit, the Heroes Journey, conducts storytelling workshops for veterans, military family members, and Afghan Veterans to help them find their voice and tell their story in military transition. Scott is also a playwright and actor who wrote and performs, with a military veteran cast, the awardwinning play, Last Out - Elegy of a Green Beret, a theatrical rendition of the Afghan War and the journey from moral injury to moral recovery.  Scott also founded Operation Pineapple Express Relief, a non-profit 501C3 that provides episodic financial relief to Afghan Allies who are in duress within safe passage and resettlement.  He has made regular appearances on CNN, Fox News, CBS, NBC, and other major networks. regarding the Afghanistan Withdrawal, Global Terrorism, and Veterans' mental health and moral injury issues The Best Way to Follow Lt. Col Scott Mann:  www.scottmann.com TedTalk:  The Generosity of Scars (Scott asked that we include this in our show notes) Last Out Preview:  Last Out Preview and Interview with Gary Sinise:  Facebook: Scott Mann, https://www.facebook.com/ScottMannAuthor Instagram: scottmannauthor, https://www.instagram.com/scottmannauthor LinkedIn: Scott Mann, www.linkedin.com/in/davidscottmann Twitter: @RooftopLeader, https://twitter.com/RooftopLeader Love,   CT, Rich … and Phil!!!   (me) (Rich) (Phil)  

Heroes Journey Podcast: Kayla Perez Pt. 1

Talk about overcoming ADVERSITY! You may know him as one of the top real estate leaders in our industry, but Dan Grieb barely made it through a tumultuous childhood filled with abuse and unimaginable pain. And yet, today his light shines so brightly and he is committed to helping so many others find their way as well. Lots of powerful lessons in this one so grab your notepad. The rest of your life begins TODAY, so let's GO!

In today's episode, Bryan talks about Trust and Truth.If you want to support the show you can sign up to our patreonhttps://www.patreon.com/PrinciplesofMusicPodcastYou'll get Episodes in Video FormEarly Episode AccessExclusive Transcriptions and Other Bonus ContentAccess to Patron only Live Events00:00  What today's talk is about and Schopenhauer00:07 It's about trusting yourself00:10 Honesty with the musician's call00:17 How to start developing trust00:25 Understanding the Will - the dasein00:32 You've seriously got nothing to lose00:38 Put your will on it00:42 Being honest in cover bands01:07 Truth01:15  It's the Heroes Journey!

Imagine taking the worst tragedy a parent can live through and using that story to inspire others and help them through their pain?That's exactly what my next guest's life work is now all about after her son was killed while serving in Afghanistan. Join us as we discuss the profound impact this experience had on her family and how she has transformed others' lives through the power of storytelling. Holly is the Gold Star Ambassador/Liaison to Families of the Fallen and a Storytelling Coach for The Heroes Journey. She is a Gold Star Mom whose 23-year-old son, SrA Daniel J Johnson, was KIA on Oct. 5, 2010, in Kandahar Province, Dand District, Afghanistan. Her son Danny was an EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) Technician in the United States Air Force. His traumatic and tragic death sent her on a spiritual journey of growth with grief as her companion. She has discovered that grief is not something harmful to avoid, that drags us down.Instead, Holly looks at grief as a gift that assists us in mourning our loved ones and can teach us and give us spiritual gifts. Some surprising gifts grief has given Holly are greater purpose and meaning, unshakable peace and faith, more profound appreciation, and increased joy for what remains in her life.Holly is a wife, a mom of seven, and a granny of eight. Professionally, she worked as a Registered Nurse and a Social Worker in the mental health field for over 20 years. As a Social Worker, Holly primarily worked as a Forensic Specialist for those who were found not guilty because of mental disease or defect. She also Supervised Drug Court for Women in Dane County WI, and in her last professional position, Holly was the Director of a Homeless Shelter for Women in Madison, WIHolly's son's courage, patriotism, integrity, and passion inspire her every day to be a person worthy of all that he sacrificed for the country he loved enough to die for. Daniel is her inspiration and her hero.Last Man Out Play - https://lastoutplay.com/Storytelling workshops - https://theheroesjourney.org/Visit my website: https://thehello.llc/THERESACARPENTERRead my writings on my blog: https://www.theresatapestries.com/Listen to other episodes on my podcast: https://storiesofservice.buzzsprout.comWatch episodes of my podcast:https://www.youtube.com/c/TheresaCarpenter76

Unsure about how to build long-term client relationships and referral sources to new clients? Here's what you need to know. Picture this: All your hard work getting clients has paid off. Not only did you land the work but now this client is working with you time and time again. And even better, they are so excited about working with you that they cannot help but refer you to others! Sound like a pipedream? It's not! Today I have on show Bill Lee. Bill is the founder of the Center of Customer Engagement, which is a consulting firm dedicated to helping businesses of all sizes – including Apple and Suburu - grow through customer focus and engagement. And he is a consulting and coaching entrepreneur who has applied these same principles to grow his own successful business. In this episode, you'll hear: [0:02:23]: How Bill discovered the through line of his passion for customer-centric organizations among his varied career experiences in law, business, construction, manufacturing, government, and the market need in tech [0:05:59]: Why the companies that succeed over time are dedicated to improving customers' lives (not just making money) [0:09:38]: Why pushing your own agenda actually kills sales and any hope of building a long-term client relationship [0:35:15]: How Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey framework can help you improve your marketing and client results [0:42:46]: What is the net promoter score and how to use it to identify the best referral sources So, before you stress yourself out wondering how you're going to get new consulting or coaching clients, listen to this episode with Bill. You'll discover how you can make the most of your CURRENT client engagements and use your success stories to effortlessly meet your next clients. Need help dialing into your ideal client and uncovering the unique value you create for them? Check out my Brand Messaging & Positioning VIP Experience at https://www.betsyjordyn.com/messaging-positioning About My Guest: Bill Lee is the founder of the Center for Customer Engagement, which is a consulting firm dedicated to helping businesses grow through customer focus and engagement. He's the author of a bunch of books and he's worked with world-class companies like Apple and Subaru and so many more and he's a fan of Campbell's Heroes Journey. You can learn more about Bill at https://centerforcustomerengagement.com/ About Me: The Enough Already podcast is hosted by Betsy Jordyn. I'm an ex-Disney consultant turned business mentor and brand messaging strategist who helps consulting and coaching business owners clarify their brand messaging and positioning, create a website presence that positions them as sought-after experts, land clients with ease and integrity, and take their place as thought leaders and influencers in their niche. Go to www.betsyjordyn.com to learn more about how I empower consultants and coaches to monetize their best-at-strengths and authentic passions to make a bigger difference in the world. Links: Show notes and transcript at https://www.betsyjordyn.com/podcasts/enough-already/episodes/2148523091 Discover your Consulting or Coaching Superpower by taking my free quiz at https://www.betsyjordyn.com/superpower-quiz Get your Custom Business Development Resource library by taking my free quiz at https://www.betsyjordyn.com/resource-library-quiz Swipe my Disney Secrets to Leadership, Consulting & Performance Excellence at https://www.betsyjordyn.com/disney Sign up for a VIP Brand Building & Messaging Experience at https://www.betsyjordyn.com/servicesConnect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/betsy-jordyn/ Related Podcast Episodes: How to Conduct a Market Scan and Find Your Niche (Ep50) 5 Things You Need to Know About Your Ideal Client (Ep39) Why You Need an Ideal Client Archetype (Ep38) Why People Don't “Get It” When You Talk & Write About What You Do (Ep37)

Kanye West, Madonna, Sam Smith and Harry Styles, these megastars of pop music are household names, their music pulses through stereos and headphones across the world. But do these modern icons represent something deeper?Winston speaks with Jonathan Pageau, expert in ancient symbolism, one of the most influential men in Christian Orthodoxy and one of “The Three Orthodoxmen Of The Apocalypse” according to Rod Dreher. Jonathan explains the deep archetypes belying pop music and rock n' roll over the last 100 years.From Johnny Cash's Heroes Journey to the androgynous Prince, Bowie and Bjork. It turns out there are deep archetypal characters belying the lights and the makeup. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nathanael Chawkin: The Inner Heroes Journey to Exponential Impact Nathanael Chawkin is a master coach and spiritual guide. After growing up in a meditation community and living in a dojo for two years as a martial artist, Nathanael became an executive coach to midmarket CEOs and their teams. He now offers exponential coaching programs to legacy-minded leaders. Welcome to the Conscious Millionaire Show for entrepreneurs, who want to achieve high sales and positively impact humanity! Join host, JV Crum III, as he goes inside the minds of conscious guests such as Millionaire Entrepreneurs and World-Class Business Experts. Like this Podcast? Get every episode delivered to you free!  Subscribe in iTunes Download Your Free Money-Making Gift Now... "Born to Make Millions" Hypnotic Audio - Click Here Now! Please help spread the word. Subscribing and leaving a review helps others find our podcast. Thanks so much! Inc Magazine "Top 13 Business Podcasts." Conscious Millionaire Network has over 3,800 episodes that have been heard by over 100 million in 190 countries.

Nathanael Chawkin: The Inner Heroes Journey to Exponential Impact Nathanael Chawkin is a master coach and spiritual guide. After growing up in a meditation community and living in a dojo for two years as a martial artist, Nathanael became an executive coach to midmarket CEOs and their teams. He now offers exponential coaching programs to legacy-minded leaders. Welcome to the Conscious Millionaire Show for entrepreneurs, who want to achieve high sales and positively impact humanity! Join host, JV Crum III, as he goes inside the minds of conscious guests such as Millionaire Entrepreneurs and World-Class Business Experts. Like this Podcast? Get every episode delivered to you free!  Subscribe in iTunes Download Your Free Money-Making Gift Now... "Born to Make Millions" Hypnotic Audio - Click Here Now! Please help spread the word. Subscribing and leaving a review helps others find our podcast. Thanks so much! Inc Magazine "Top 13 Business Podcasts." Conscious Millionaire Network has over 3,800 episodes that have been heard by over 100 million in 190 countries.

Nathanael Chawkin: The Inner Heroes Journey to Exponential Impact Nathanael Chawkin is a master coach and spiritual guide. After growing up in a meditation community and living in a dojo for two years as a martial artist, Nathanael became an executive coach to midmarket CEOs and their teams. He now offers exponential coaching programs to legacy-minded leaders. Welcome to the Conscious Millionaire Limitless Performer Show for service and tech entrepreneurs who want to create limitless wealth, make a limitless impact, and enjoy a limitless life. Heard on the Conscious Millionaire Network by millions in 190 countries. Join host, JV Crum III, as he unlocks the human potential secrets of how to evolve your consciousness to create limitless results with today's featured guest. Like this Podcast? Get every episode delivered to you free! Subscribe in iTunes. Please help spread the word. Subscribing and leaving a review helps others find our podcast. Thanks so much! Download Your Free Money-Making Gift Now... "Born to Make Millions" Hypnotic Audio - Click Here! Inc Magazine called our Conscious Millionaire Show one of the "Top 13 Business Podcasts". Conscious Millionaire Network has 3,800+ episodes and has been heard by over 100 million in 190 countries.

This week on the Team Never Quit Podcast, Marcus and Melanie delve into the dynamic world of education and entrepreneurship with special guests, Jeff and Laura Sandefer of Acton Academy. Jeff, a seasoned entrepreneur and esteemed Socratic Guide, has a remarkable dual life, having founded multiple successful businesses and earned accolades as an outstanding teacher at the University of Texas. Laura, co-founder of Acton Academy and an author, takes us on her Hero's Journey in education, chronicled in her book "Courage to Grow." Acton Academy's learner-driven model has spread across the globe with over 130 locations, emphasizing real-world projects, apprenticeships, and Socratic discussions. The school's foundation lies in the Hero's Journey, a narrative pattern guiding children through adventures, victories, and transformations. Laura passionately discusses Acton Academy's commitment to inspiring children to find their callings, employing adaptive game-based programs and online tools like Khan Academy to teach core skills. Laura and Jeff share their passion for giving children hands-on entrepreneurial experience through Acton Academy's Children's Business Fairs. These fairs provide children with opportunities to be entrepreneurs, fostering confidence, imparting valuable lessons, and preparing them for success in a rapidly changing world.  Join us on this insightful journey with Jeff and Laura Sandefer as they discuss Acton Academy's innovative approach to education, combining entrepreneurship, the Hero's Journey, and hands-on experiences to inspire and equip the next generation of independent thinkers and lifelong learners. Website – https://www.actonacademy.org/ Sponsors: - aeropress.com/TNQ - Uncommongoods.com/TNQ In this episode you will hear: • The best teacher in the best school in Austin TX just told us not to send our children to traditional school because they'd be chained to a desk and lectured to all day. (7:17) • I'm not homeschooling. That wasn't in my blood at all. (7:33) • One of the narratives of the experience is The Heroes Journey. (9:25) • An ordinary person hears a call, sets out on an adventure, wrestles monsters, has mentors and guides, seeking a treasure all the way. And they may or may not get the treasure, but they return home a changed person, ready to share their new ideas and character with the world around them. Then, they set out on a new adventure again. (9:38) • Every time they get knocked down – they may not win, but they'll get back up. (10:13) • What a hero's journey does is distinguish hero vs victim. Any child at an Acton Academy starts claiming the identity of the hero. That's not someone who wins all the time; its someone who gets back up after they fall down. (10:23) • The hero takes responsibility and starts problem-solving, whereas a victim outs the blame on somebody else. (10:59) • They learn ways to work through problems with gritty decision-making (11:28) • The 3 big monsters starting at age 6: We start wresting with Victim-hood, Resistance, and Distraction. (12:18) • Sometimes your big brother needs to pick you up and say “get back in the fight.” (16:11) • IQ is so overrated - because its perseverance, grit, and getting along with people. That's what really matters. (19:30) • People who are there because they want to be there, they choose to be there, and they're on a mission for their life (21:08) • No adult on campus is ever allowed to answer a question. (25:43) • Things get chaotic – Part of the model is letting things fall into chaos, and let order arise as the young people figure out how to solve the problem. (26:41) • What's the best thing about Acton Academy? They'll say freedom. (27:11) • We believe every single child is a genius, who deserves to find a calling and change the world. (42:15) • The cave you fear to enter is where your treasure lies. (44:37)

Episode 232 welcomes Matt LaFleur who shares his journey as a rare disease patient with Friedreich's ataxia (FA). Matt talks about how he transitioned from viewing himself as a victim of FA to seeing himself as a hero in his own story. He describes the impact of the diagnosis as an "inciting event" and highlights how the hero's journey is not just a linear path but a cyclical one. Matt emphasizes the importance of taking responsibility and finding little victories along the way, despite the ongoing presence of FA. The discussion touches on various aspects of life with a rare disease, relationships, and personal growth. Matt also shares his experience of presenting at the FA Symposium and how he and his co-presenters used mythical characters to relate their topics to the hero's journey concept. The episode offers a unique perspective on finding inspiration and resilience in the face of adversity. Links & Resources Register Today: Friedreich's ataxia News Virtual Event, Nov 1 Read: Matt's Column Watch: FARA FA Symposium Recordings     This episode brought to you in part by Reata Pharmaceuticals. Reata Pharmaceuticals is the company that makes SKYCLARYS™ (omaveloxolone) 50 mg capsules. Our mission is to develop innovative therapies that change patients' lives for the better. For more information about SKYCLARYS, visit: Skyclarys.com ©2023 Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc. All rights reserved. SKYCLARYS, REATA, and their logos are trademarks of Reata Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

This episode of the MAPS podcast takes us through the deeply moving and inspirational story of Justin Lapree, a veteran who nearly lost everything and then came through the otherside to help lead the charge on providing sacred medicinal care to our veterans and first responders. No single population has moved the needle in helping the world to understand how psychedelics can be used effective than our veterans. Justin's story will move you in ways that are both inspirational and frustrating when you learn how under served the veteran population really is.  Justin Lapree served in the Marine Corps from 2001 to 2005. His second deployment to Iraq in 2004 left him at the bottom of a dark abyss upon his return home, and the Middle East took something from him, that he wouldn't come to understand for years to come.  During his five years as an Austin Firefighter, he would witness a magnitude of traumatic events where lives were lost; mass shootings, the Austin serial bomber, consistent overdoses, and fatality collisions. While he had come so far since his failed suicide attempt in 2018, he noticed the darkness once more creeping in because of his job environment. In February 2022, he resigned from the Fire Department knowing he'd found a higher purpose and wanted to serve in another way. Thus, Heroic Path to Light was born. His vision was to create a non-profit that served the Veteran, First Responder and Gold/White star communities in hopes that their suffering could end by building community and utilizing sacred entheogenic ceremonies.  "As the Founder and President of Heroic Path to Light, I'm still on my journey, but want to meet you where you are, because I have seen firsthand that healing happens in community and together, we can get through anything."

In this episode, Benji talks to Breene Murphy, the Vice President of Strategy and Marketing at Carbon Collective. Discussed in this episode:The use of time, stakes, challenges, and rewards in marketingHow to invite your ICP into a storyRemoving friction in the buying process