Podcasts about not how

This rewind is a conversation with my dear friend Nicole Vignola, a neuroscientist, keynote speaker, and author who reaches millions with practical, science-backed tools for mental well-being.We dive into the neuroscience of habit formation, why the brain can't fully tell the difference between something real and something vividly imagined, and what it actually takes to interrupt a pattern instead of just white-knuckling through it.In this Roxy Rewind:Why neuroplasticity depends on attention and emotional charge happening togetherThe 1995 study showing imagined practice can shape the brain like real practiceWhy repetition builds identity, whether the pattern serves you or notHow to interject a new pattern instead of trying to erase the old oneWhy sleep is the most underrated tool for consolidating changeThis episode was originally aired on 01/24/2023.⭐️YOUR SUPPORT MATTERS: Please: Subscribe + leave 5⭐️Star rating +review HEREEnjoy! xRxFIND ME ON:️INSTAGRAMSUBSTACKYOUTUBEXTHREADS

During August, the Motherkind team and I try to practise what we preach by slowing down, taking some time off and making the juggle just a little easier over the summer holidays.So, throughout the month, we're bringing you some of our most listened-to episodes of the year so far.What if becoming a mother didn't make you less ambitious, less capable or less valuable at work, but actually gave you skills that could make you better at your job?This week, we're revisiting one of our most listened-to Motherkind episodes of the year, and it's a conversation I think every working mother needs to hear.I'm joined by Vanessa Kingori, who became the first woman in British Vogue's history to become Publishing Director and found herself navigating pregnancy and new motherhood while leading one of the most powerful media brands in the world.Vanessa shares the extraordinary pressure she felt when she became pregnant in such a senior position, including being told that her pregnancy was exactly why businesses were reluctant to put women into these roles. Rather than hiding it, Vanessa did the opposite: she became deliberately visible and set out to make things easier for the women who would come after her.We talk about why working mothers so often feel they're failing at both work and home, even when they're actually performing brilliantly. Vanessa explains why motherhood can make women better at time management, decision-making, prioritisation and leadership — and why businesses that underestimate mothers are missing some of their greatest talent.We also get practical about the juggle: asking for help, having honest conversations with your partner about the division of labour, building your village and surrounding yourself with people who support the life you're trying to create.And Vanessa shares a powerful reminder for any mother questioning her career, ambition or identity: you don't have to choose one version of yourself. You can be ambitious and deeply present. A leader and a mother. Career-driven and family-focused. As Vanessa puts it, she's a better mother because she works — and a better business leader because she's a mother.This is a conversation about working motherhood, career confidence, ambition, mum guilt and redefining what success looks like after children.

Our dear friends invited us to an event this weekend in LA… they are partnering with Gary Brecka to build Ultimate Longevity Centers which will bring treatments and testing that just hasn't been easily accessible before now. I believe the way we look at aging is outdated and I'm going to share the biggest take aways I got from his on stage message and chatting with him one on one. We are talking about very practical starting points and Gary Brecka's actual morning health routine. Stop waiting until something is wrong to start taking care of your body. We have been taught this idea that getting older automatically means getting weaker, having less energy, gaining weight, losing muscle, sleeping worse, becoming more anxious, needing more medications and eventually developing all of the diseases that "run in our family." Gary challenges a lot of that thinking. His message is essentially… What if we became obsessed with keeping our bodies functioning incredibly well for as long as possible? What if instead of asking, "How do I treat disease once I have it?" we asked, "How do I create a body that is incredibly difficult for disease to thrive in?" And then there's the longevity piece that completely fascinates me. Gary believes we're entering a period where medicine, AI, biological data and longevity research are going to advance so rapidly that lifespan could look radically different in the future. Maybe 120. Maybe beyond. We don't know. But what we do know is that we need to keep ourselves healthy enough NOW to benefit from whatever becomes possible later. So today's episode is about doing the things that give you the strongest, healthiest, most capable body possible. I've been listening to Gary Brecka talk about health, longevity, anxiety, genetics, sleep, sunlight, oxygen, muscle, bloodwork and what he believes is coming next in longevity science. THE BIG IDEA: YOUR HEALTH IS BUILT EVERY DAY One of my biggest takeaways from Gary is that health isn't something we deal with when there's a problem. It's something we're building every single day. Your sleep last night matters. What you do when you wake up matters. Whether you move your body matters. Whether you maintain muscle matters. Your metabolic health matters. Your stress matters. Your relationships matter. Your nutrition matters. Your environment matters. And individually, none of these things feels life-changing. But repeated for years and decades… they become your life. Gary describes his routine as simple, portable and repeatable. I LOVE that. Because the best health routine isn't the $100,000 biohacking setup. It's the one you'll actually do every day. HABIT #1: HYDRATE BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING ELSE Gary starts his morning with water and minerals. One version of his routine is a large glass of room-temperature water with mineral salt and sometimes lemon. His current routine also frequently includes mineral salt, hydrogen water and essential amino acids. Wake up and hydrate. You've just spent roughly eight hours without drinking anything. Don't make coffee your first liquid of the day. Put water next to your bathroom sink. Put it next to your coffee machine. Make it automatic. Gary likes mineral salt because sodium and other minerals participate in fluid balance and normal nerve and muscle function. HABIT #2: GET OUTSIDE FIRST THING Gary says to get outside within the first part of your morning and get natural outdoor light into your eyes. His routine generally calls for about 10 minutes outside. Morning light helps tell your brain: It's daytime. Start the clock. Light is one of the strongest environmental signals for the circadian system. Properly timed morning light can shift circadian timing earlier and increase daytime alertness. And I love thinking of sleep this way: Your good night's sleep starts in the morning. We tend to think sleep health starts when we crawl into bed. But your body has been receiving signals all day telling it when to be awake and when to prepare for sleep. HABIT #3: BREATHE ON PURPOSE Gary talks about oxygen constantly. His personal morning practice has included three rounds of deep breathing followed by breath holds. And this connects to another thing we've been talking about: Anxiety. I love the idea that when you feel anxious, you shouldn't immediately decide: "I'm an anxious person." Anxiety is a state your nervous system is experiencing. Sometimes your thoughts are driving your physiology. And sometimes your physiology can amplify anxious thoughts. Either way, changing the physical state can sometimes help change the mental state. Research on structured breathwork has found modest improvements in stress and anxiety, although it isn't a cure-all and the quality of studies varies. HABIT #4: GIVE YOUR BRAIN SILENCE Gary often combines his morning breathing with quiet, gratitude and reflection. He has described sitting quietly for around 10 minutes, looking toward the horizon or closing his eyes and thinking about gratitude. (PodScripts (https://podscripts.co/podcasts/the-ultimate-human-with-gary-brecka/246-gary-brecka-answers-googles-most-searched-questions-on-his-diet-wellness-and-lifestyle?utm_source=chatgpt.com)) Think about how different this is from what most of us do. Eyes open. Phone. Email. Instagram. News. Text messages. Stress. Other people's priorities. And we wonder why we feel overstimulated. TRY THIS: Before consuming everybody else's thoughts… Have some of your own. What am I grateful for? What matters today? Who needs me today? How do I want to feel today? What is actually important? PRACTICAL VERSION: Five minutes. That's it. No phone. No podcast. No input. Just quiet. HABIT #5: USE CONTROLLED DISCOMFORT Cold exposure is another major Brecka habit. If he has access to a cold plunge, he uses it. When traveling, he has said a cold shower works too. But I think there is a bigger lesson here than whether everybody needs to buy a cold plunge. Stop designing your entire life around comfort. Human beings are unbelievably adaptable. Exercise is stress. Heat is stress. Cold is stress. Fasting is stress. Challenging your brain is stress. The key is appropriate amounts of stress followed by recovery. HABIT #6: MOVE EARLY Gary includes movement in his morning routine. But here's what I love: It doesn't need to be a full workout. Walk. Stretch. Squat. Lift. Do yoga. Go outside. Movement tells your body: We're alive. We're using this machine today. And then keep moving after the morning is over. One exceptionally practical habit is walking after meals. Instead of finishing dinner and immediately sitting on the couch… WALK FOR 10 MINUTES. Moving skeletal muscle after eating can help the body handle glucose. You don't need workout clothes. You don't need a gym. You don't even need to sweat. Walk around your neighborhood. Walk your dog. Walk while you're on a phone call. ONE OF THE EASIEST HEALTH RULES: Eat → walk. HABIT #7: BUILD MUSCLE LIKE YOUR FUTURE DEPENDS ON IT This is where I think longevity conversations get really practical. MUSCLE IS NOT JUST ABOUT LOOKING GOOD. Maintaining muscle becomes increasingly important as we age. Resistance training is one of the most powerful non-drug strategies available for preserving and building skeletal muscle. Losing muscle eventually affects: strength balance mobility independence your ability to recover from illness your ability to do normal life You're not building your 2026 body. You're building your 2056 body. HABIT #8: PRIORITIZE PROTEIN AND REAL FOOD- avoid processed foods Gary emphasizes protein and essential amino acids because preserving lean tissue is a major part of his longevity philosophy. The research strongly supports resistance training for preserving muscle, while evidence regarding how much additional benefit comes from protein supplementation specifically is more mixed. HABIT #9: PROTECT YOUR METABOLIC HEALTH I think this deserves WAY more attention. We obsess over weight. Gary talks much more about metabolic health. There is a difference. Weight is one number. Metabolic health includes things like: blood glucose insulin sensitivity blood pressure blood lipids waist circumference fitness body composition Instead of only asking: "How much do I weigh?" Ask: "How well is my body functioning?" Someone can lose weight while losing muscle. Someone can be thin and still have poor metabolic health. PRACTICAL HABITS: Strength train. Walk. Walk after meals. Eat mostly whole foods. Get enough sleep. Maintain healthy body composition. Reduce constant snacking if it isn't serving you. Know your basic health numbers. THE GOAL ISN'T SKINNY. The goal is metabolically capable. HABIT #10: TEST… DON'T JUST GUESS This might be one of my favorite parts of Brecka's philosophy. Stop guessing about everything. If you're exhausted all the time… investigate. If you're unusually anxious… investigate. If your sleep has suddenly changed… investigate. If your energy has disappeared… investigate. If your hormones feel completely different… investigate. If you feel awful despite doing "everything right"… investigate. Don't immediately decide: "I'm getting old." "This runs in my family." "I'm just an anxious person." "My metabolism sucks." "This is just how I am." ASK BETTER QUESTIONS. Could something modifiable be contributing? sleep nutrient deficiencies thyroid function iron status medications hormones metabolic health stress alcohol caffeine environment psychological health This does NOT mean ordering every exotic test on the internet. It means becoming curious about your own biology. HABIT #11: DON'T TURN ANXIETY INTO YOUR IDENTITY This is worth repeating because I think this is such an important mental shift. Instead of: "I AM anxious." Try: "I'm experiencing anxiety." Those are very different statements. One is an identity. One is a temporary condition worth investigating. Gary's message leans heavily toward investigating biology. He talks about things like methylation pathways and MTHFR. There are legitimate genetic influences on anxiety. But anxiety is complex. Research suggests anxiety disorders arise through a combination of genetic vulnerability and environmental influences, not one single "anxiety gene." (PubMed (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15699295/?utm_source=chatgpt.com)) So I would approach it from ALL DIRECTIONS: Calm the body. Investigate the biology. Work on the thoughts. Breathwork. Sleep. Exercise. Less overstimulation. Healthy relationships. Therapy when needed. Medical evaluation when something feels physiologically off. Nutrition. Less caffeine when appropriate. Time outdoors. Don't choose between: "It's psychological." or "It's biological." It can be both. HABIT #12: GENETICS ARE INFORMATION… NOT ALWAYS DESTINY This is another Gary Brecka concept that I think is incredibly empowering when we phrase it accurately. People say: "Diabetes runs in my family." "Anxiety runs in my family." "Heart disease runs in my family." "Autoimmune disease runs in my family." And we can start thinking: Well… I guess that's coming for me too. But genetics often represent susceptibility rather than certainty. Your genes can increase risk. Your environment can increase or decrease risk. Your behaviors matter. Your metabolic health matters. Your exposures matter. Your entire biological environment matters. So instead of thinking: "My family gets this disease." Think: "I may have inherited a vulnerability. What parts of that vulnerability can I modify?" THAT is empowering. Important distinction: Some diseases absolutely are caused by inherited genetic mutations. So we should not say: "Genetic diseases aren't real." They absolutely are. The better message is: Genes can load the gun. They don't always pull the trigger. And with many complex chronic diseases, what ultimately happens involves an interaction between genetics and environment. HABIT #13: STOP THINKING OF SLEEP AS LOST PRODUCTIVITY Sleep is when your body gets to repair. And Brecka's evening routine reflects this. He emphasizes regular sleep, reducing stimulation late at night and setting up the next morning by protecting the night before. My favorite way to think about sleep: Tomorrow starts tonight. Stop trying to squeeze another hour out of your day if it destroys tomorrow. Decide when you're going to bed BEFORE you're tired. Dim things down. Get off your phone. Stop working. Let the nervous system receive a signal that the day is ending. Pick a bedtime and protect it the same way you'd protect an important meeting. NOW LET'S TALK ABOUT LIVING TO 120 The speed of advancement is changing. AI can analyze enormous amounts of biological data. Diagnostics are improving. Scientists are studying the actual biology of aging rather than treating aging purely as an unavoidable decline. Researchers are investigating cellular senescence, epigenetics, regenerative medicine and other mechanisms associated with biological aging. Gary believes these developments could eventually change human lifespan dramatically. And his argument is essentially: Stay alive and stay healthy long enough to benefit from what's coming. That hit me HARD. Because imagine being 75 in the future… But instead of arriving at 75: metabolically sick weak frail sedentary cognitively struggling carrying multiple preventable chronic illnesses You arrive: strong metabolically healthy active engaged cognitively sharp sleeping well maintaining muscle surrounded by people you love THAT is the bridge. Not: "How do I live forever today?" But: "How healthy can I be when tomorrow's medicine arrives?" DON'T JUST CHASE LIFESPAN. CHASE HEALTHSPAN. I don't want to simply exist until I'm 120. I want to LIVE. I want to: travel walk everywhere lift my suitcase play with grandchildren hike swim think clearly learn new things have great conversations have energy be independent laugh have purpose wake up excited THAT is longevity. Not adding years at the end where you can't live. Adding life to the years. WHAT SHOULD WE ACTUALLY DO RIGHT NOW? If you took this entire episode and boiled it down into a daily longevity checklist… MORNING Hydrate. Get outside. Get natural morning light. Breathe intentionally. Spend a few minutes in quiet. Think about gratitude. Move your body. Use cold exposure if you enjoy it and it's appropriate for you. Don't immediately flood your brain with stress. DURING THE DAY Eat nutrient-dense real food. Prioritize protein. Strength train consistently. Walk. Walk after meals. Stay metabolically healthy. Maintain muscle. Build meaningful relationships. Have purpose. Keep learning. Get outside. NIGHT Stop eating mindlessly late into the evening. Reduce stimulation. Get off the phone. Give yourself a predictable bedtime. Sleep. THROUGHOUT YOUR LIFE Know your numbers. Do appropriate preventive screening. Investigate symptoms rather than ignoring them. Don't automatically assume something is "just aging." Don't automatically assume family history means destiny. Continue learning as science changes. Protect your muscle. Protect your metabolism. Protect your brain. Protect your relationships. Protect your sleep. THE SIMPLEST VERSION OF EVERYTHING GARY BRECKA IS SAYING 1. Get sunlight. 2. Breathe. 3. Hydrate. 4. Move. 5. Build muscle. 6. Eat real nutrient-dense food. 7. Protect your metabolism. 8. Sleep like it matters. 9. Challenge your body sometimes. 10. Investigate problems instead of simply accepting them. 11. Don't confuse genetic risk with guaranteed destiny. 12. Don't turn anxiety into your identity. 13. Build relationships and a life that gives you purpose. 14. Stay unbelievably healthy while longevity science continues advancing. And maybe most importantly… DON'T WAIT UNTIL YOU'RE SICK TO BECOME INTERESTED IN YOUR HEALTH. I learned that every single thing that gives me the best chance of being healthy at 120 also gives me a better life at 45. Getting sunlight tomorrow morning makes tomorrow better. Sleeping tonight makes tomorrow better. Building muscle makes this decade better. Eating well makes today better. Getting outside makes today better. Putting my phone down makes today better. Managing anxiety makes today better. Having people I love around me makes today better. So this isn't really an episode about trying to cheat death. It's about refusing to sleepwalk through your health. Your body is the vehicle that carries you through every single experience you're hoping to have. Every trip. Every adventure. Every business idea. Every dinner. Every workout. Every moment with your kids. Every future grandkid. Everything. So take ridiculously good care of it. And instead of looking at aging and thinking… "Well, I guess everything starts going downhill from here…" What if we thought completely differently? What if our goal was: I want to be stronger next year. Healthier next year. More metabolically healthy next year. More informed next year. More capable next year. And then do it again. And again. And again. For decades. Let's make the goal to be fully alive for as much of it as humanly possible. That's the health lesson I'm taking from Gary Brecka. Don't wait for the future of longevity medicine. Build the kind of body today that's ready for it.

A $15,000 wedding does not automatically make you more money than a $6,000 wedding.In fact, it is completely possible to book a large event, work yourself into the ground, and walk away with almost nothing if you are not paying attention to where your profit is leaking.In this episode, Jeni breaks down the anatomy of a profitable wedding from the initial inquiry all the way through final cleanup.She starts with one of the most important questions: is this wedding actually a good financial fit in the first place?A beautiful vision means nothing if the budget does not support it. A large invoice can quickly become unprofitable when the venue is difficult, teardown is complicated, travel is extensive, the timeline requires an oversized team, or the scope of work is far beyond what was actually priced.Jeni also explains why pricing needs to come from reality—not hope.Your client is not only paying for flowers. They are paying for your expertise, design, logistics, team, problem solving, sourcing, transportation, setup, teardown, admin time, overhead, and your ability to make the event happen when things inevitably go sideways.From there, Jeni walks through some of the biggest profit leaks in floral businesses, including overbuying, overly complicated recipes, labor creep, poor prep, freelancer inefficiency, excessive tweaking, underestimated logistics, and unpaid owner labor.She also shares how strategic design can improve both profitability and visual impact. Profitable design is not about making things cheap. It is about using creativity, mechanics, styling, repurposing, rentals, negative space, candles, linens, and focal moments intentionally.Jeni also dives into the real cost of repurposing, the profit potential of rentals, delivery and setup fees, teardown, hidden supply costs, and all the hours of work that happen before wedding week even begins.Finally, she explains why every florist should complete a post-wedding profitability review and ask whether the wedding was actually worth doing.Because profitability is not only about money.It is also about whether the stress, energy, and time required were worth what the business received in return.In this episode, Jeni talks about:Why not every dollar of revenue is equally profitableHow to determine whether a client's vision and budget are actually alignedWhy difficult venues and unrealistic timelines should affect pricingHow florists accidentally work for free on large eventsWhy pricing needs to include far more than flower costsThe real value of your expertise and problem-solving abilityHow overbuying turns profit into compostWhy complicated recipes can increase both product and labor costsHow labor creep silently destroys marginsWhy your own labor is never freeUsing an effective hourly rate to evaluate how you spend your timeHow strategic design can create more visual impact with less wasteWhen repurposing actually saves money—and when it does notHow rentals can become a profitable revenue streamWhy delivery and setup should never be an afterthoughtWhy teardown needs to be priced separatelyThe small supply costs that quietly add up across a wedding seasonWhy pre-wedding admin and design time must be accounted forHow to compare estimated costs with actual costsWhy post-wedding profitability reviews help you improve every eventThe five-part profitability frameworkPriceDid you charge enough for everything required?PurchaseDid you buy strategically and stay within your recipe and budget?ProduceDid you and your team work efficiently?PerformDid delivery, setup, logistics, and teardown stay within expectations?PostmortemDid you review what actually happened so the next wedding becomes more profitable?Questions to ask after every weddingWas this wedding worth doing?Would I book another wedding like this?Would I work at this venue again?What was the most profitable part?Where did my margin disappear?What should I charge differently next time?What process needs to change?Did I actually enjoy doing it?Was the stress commensurate with the money?Key takeawayA big invoice does not guarantee a profitable wedding.Profit is protected through dozens of decisions before, during, and after the event.Know your numbers. Protect your labor. Buy strategically. Price logistics correctly. Review what actually happened.Then get 1% better on the next one.Mentioned in this episodeThe Floral CEO Mastermindhttp://floralceo.com/mastermind

In this episode Andrea Samadi explores Phase 3 of the Brain's Operating System—movement, learning, and cognition—focusing on the recovery and adaptation side of the "movement loop." She revisits Dr. Kristen Holmes' insights on measuring strain, sleep, and recovery to show how movement provides the stimulus while recovery enables lasting adaptation and greater capacity. The episode offers practical steps: identify your stimulus, track recovery, find your weakest link, and use feedback to train smarter—not just harder—so measurement becomes a tool for meaningful change. IN EPISODE 405, WE WILL COVER: ✔ Why recovery is not the absence of work—it is where adaptation occurs → How recovery allows the brain and body to absorb stress and build greater capacity. ✔ Where Dr. Kristen Holmes fits into the Movement Loop → Movement creates the stimulus; recovery determines how effectively we adapt. ✔ Why measuring your data matters → What gets measured can be adjusted, repeated, and improved. ✔ How to identify your personal recovery patterns → Using sleep, HRV, resting heart rate, strain, stress, and daily behaviors to uncover what helps—or limits—your performance. ✔ Why your recovery formula is uniquely yours → The habits that improve one person's readiness may not produce the same results for someone else. ✔ How recovery helps create more predictable performance → When you understand your patterns, you can make better daily decisions instead of leaving your results to chance. ✔ How repeated behaviors become adaptation → Measure → Adjust → Repeat → Recover → Adapt → Build Capacity. ✔ Where the larger journey is taking us → A preview of The Journey of the Mind Workbook and its five-step process: Understand → Reflect → Apply → Measure → Become ✔ What comes next in the Movement Loop → A Bonus Episode applying recovery science to real-world data, followed by Dr. John Medina on how an activated brain turns experience into attention, learning, and lasting change. EP 405 — From Recovery to Adaptation: Revisiting Dr. Kristen Holmes in Phase 3 WELCOME BACK Welcome back to the Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast, where we bridge neuroscience, social and emotional learning, and human performance so we can create measurable improvements in our well-being, achievement, leadership, productivity, and results. I'm Andrea Samadi, and if you've been following along through Season 16, you'll know that we've been building what I call The Brain's Operating System for Human Performance—a neuroscience-based framework designed to help us understand how the different systems of the brain and body work together to influence how we learn, adapt, connect, lead, and perform. Our roadmap has five phases: Phase 1 — Regulation & Safety Where we built the foundation by asking: Is the nervous system regulated enough to learn and grow? Phase 2 — Neurochemistry & Motivation Where we explored the systems that drive us to act, persist, and pursue meaningful goals. And now, we are here—Phase 3: Movement, Learning & Cognition. This is where movement becomes the catalyst for learning, adaptation, and performance. The central idea of Phase 3 is that the brain does not change through information alone. It changes through experience. Through movement. Through challenge. Through recovery. And through the repeated process of adapting to what we ask our brain and body to do. I called the framework we are building in this phase: The Movement Loop: Movement (the stimulus) → Brain Activation (the brain responds) → Attention (the brain becomes engaged and ready to learn) → Learning (new information and experience begin changing neural pathways) → Recovery (the brain consolidates and restores) → Adaptation (the brain and body adjust to the repeated challenge) → Performance (the adaptation shows up in what we can do) → Greater Capacity (we become capable of more) Movement is the stimulus. Brain activation is the response. Attention opens the door to learning. Learning creates change. Recovery helps that change stick. Adaptation builds the system. Performance reveals the result. Greater capacity is what we gain. And then we repeat the cycle. In our last episode, EP 404, we revisited the groundbreaking work of Dr. John Ratey, who helped us understand the front end of this loop. Dr. Ratey showed us that: Movement changes the brain. Exercise activates the brain. It supports attention. It prepares us for learning. And it creates the biological conditions that allow the brain to change. But that leaves us with an important question. What happens after we create the stimulus? Because movement alone isn't enough. Training alone isn't enough. And more strain does not automatically equal more improvement. At some point, the brain and body have to recover from what we've asked them to do And that's where today's episode begins with the back end of the movement loop. WHERE THIS JOURNEY IS GOING Before we move into today's episode, I want to zoom out for a moment and share where I believe this entire journey is taking us. Because as we've been building The Brain's Operating System for Human Performance—making sense of the interviews we've gathered over the past seven years and organizing them into five phases we can all understand and apply—I realized we are doing something much bigger than simply reviewing past episodes. I had to stop for a moment and look at what we've built so far. And that's when something became clear: We are mapping a journey. We aren't finished yet—we are only in Phase 3—but as we continue into Phases 4 and 5, I think you'll begin to see the bigger picture. This is about more than learning how the brain works or connecting social and emotional learning skills to our daily lives. It's about asking: What will we actually do with everything we've learned once we've traveled through all five phases? That's what led me to what I'm calling The Journey of the Mind. We could just as easily call it The Journey of the Brain because we now understand how deeply connected the mind and brain are.[i] But for me, Journey of the Mind has a much older meaning. That phrase takes me all the way back to the late 1990s, when I had the opportunity to watch an unpublished video program with that title, created by my mentor, Bob Proctor. I had no idea where that experience would lead me. But it planted a seed. It encouraged me to stop looking outside of myself for every answer... and to begin looking inward. To become curious about my thoughts. My beliefs. My habits. My potential. And ultimately, the relationship between what happens inside of us and the results we create outside of us. That idea influenced my early writing and eventually became part of the path that led me here. And now, all these years later, I can see that the podcast has evolved into its own Journey of the Mind. Only now, we have neuroscience to help us understand what is happening along the way. We have hundreds of experts. Years of research. Stories. Experiments. Data. And our own lived experience. The five phases give us a way to bring all of that together. We began with Regulation and Safety, because before we can grow, the nervous system needs a stable foundation. Then we moved into Neurochemistry and Motivation, where we explored what drives our behavior. Now, in Phase 3, we are looking at Movement, Learning and Cognition—how experience changes the brain and how recovery and adaptation help us build greater capacity. Next, we'll move into Connection, Emotion and Social Intelligence, because none of us develops in isolation. And finally, we'll reach Integration, Meaning and Human Performance, where these systems begin to come together. And when we reach the end of Phase 5, I want to bring the entire journey into something practical. THE JOURNEY OF THE MIND WORKBOOK I'm currently developing a companion workbook for these five phases. The Journey of the Mind Workbook will help us take what we've learned and apply it to our own lives through a simple process: Understand. Reflect. Apply. Measure. Become. Understand the science. Reflect on our own patterns. Apply what we are learning. Measure what changes. And then ask the bigger question: Who are we becoming? Because the goal isn't simply to know more about neuroscience. It's to use what we know. To identify our gaps. Recognize what is working. Build a clearer understanding of how we learn, recover, connect, perform, and grow. And become more intentional about the future we are creating. The workbook is still taking shape, but it's coming. And my hope is that when we reach the end of these five phases, we won't just have more information. We'll have a map. A clearer understanding of our brain. A deeper understanding of ourselves. A way to measure our growth. And a framework for becoming who we are capable of being. Now, let's return to where we are today... Phase 3: Movement, Learning and Cognition. Before we go further, I want to give you a quick roadmap for today's episode. We're going to explore Kristen Holmes' work through 15 short parts, each one helping us move step-by-step through the recovery and adaptation side of the Movement Loop. (The left side of the loop). We'll begin by clarifying the difference between readiness and adaptation. Then we'll look at the stimulus–recovery–adaptation cycle, revisit Kristen's original idea that what gets measured gets improved, and connect that to what I've learned from tracking my own data over the past five years. From there, we'll explore the difference between training harder and training smarter, why movement is information, why the goal is not maximum strain, and how these same principles apply to learning and performance far beyond exercise. We'll also return to one of my favorite ideas from Kristen's original interview: Your competitive advantage is often built in your downtime. And finally, we'll bring everything back to the Movement Loop and ask the question that really matters: Is what I'm doing building more strain—or building greater capacity? So think of these 10 parts as a guided walk through the second half of the loop... from recovery... to adaptation... to performance... and ultimately to greater capacity. PART 1 — WHY ARE WE RETURNING TO DR. KRISTEN HOLMES? When we first interviewed Dr. Kristen Holmes in 2021 for EP 134[ii], she was Vice President of Performance Science at WHOOP. At the time, I had recently turned 50. I purchased WHOOP because I wanted to improve what I knew was my weakest link: sleep. And in that original conversation, Dr. Holmes introduced ideas that I've now carried with me for more than five years. One of them was this: “What gets measured gets improved.” Another was the idea that what we do in our downtime may actually give us our greatest competitive advantage. At the time, I understood this at one level. Sleep matters. Recovery matters. Strain matters. Your habits outside of the workout matter. But after five years of looking at my own data, I understand her message differently. And I think this is one of the most important things about revisiting experts over time. We hear something at one stage of our development... and then years later, we hear the same idea again with an entirely different level of understanding. We revisited this same 2021 interview earlier in this season during Phase 1: Regulation & Safety on EP 390.[iii] So why are we covering this topic again? Because I realized that Dr. Holmes' work sits at a critical intersection inside our Brain's Operating System. In Phase 1, her work helped us understand regulation and readiness. Her message was: Can your system handle what you are asking it to do today? But in Phase 3, the question changes. Now we're asking: Is what I'm doing today actually helping my system adapt? That's very different. In Phase 1, recovery helped us understand whether the system was ready. In Phase 3, recovery helps us understand whether the system is changing. And that's why we're returning to Dr. Kristen Holmes. Not to repeat what we learned. But to take it one level deeper. Just a note here: while I've been using WHOOP to measure my movement, sleep, strain, and recovery, WHOOP is only one tool. There are many other ways to track these patterns—from other wearable devices and apps to simple measures like sleep duration, resting heart rate, exercise intensity, energy levels, and how recovered you feel. The important point isn't the device you use. It's learning to pay attention to your own patterns and using that feedback to make better decisions. PART 2 — READINESS VS. ADAPTATION Now let's return to the Movement Loop we opened this episode with: Movement → Brain Activation → Attention → Learning → Recovery → Adaptation → Performance → Greater Capacity In our last episode, Dr. John Ratey helped us understand the front end of this loop—how movement activates the brain, supports attention, and creates the conditions for learning. Today, Dr. Kristen Holmes helps us move into the recovery and adaptation side of the loop—what happens after we create the stimulus. This is where we ask a different kind of question. In Phase 1, we looked at Kristen's work through the lens of readiness: What is my capacity today? How much strain can I tolerate? How well did I sleep? What does my HRV tell me? How recovered am I? Do I have the capacity to push? Or would backing off today serve me better? That was the Phase 1 question: Am I ready? But now, in Phase 3, we move one step further around the loop. Now we are asking: Am I adapting? Is the movement I'm doing helping me become stronger? More resilient? More efficient? Better able to recover? More capable than I was before? That is the shift from readiness to adaptation. And this is where Dr. Kristen Holmes' work becomes essential to Phase 3. Because movement may provide the stimulus... but recovery is what gives the brain and body the opportunity to respond to that stimulus, adapt, and ultimately build greater capacity. Or would backing off today serve me better? That was our Phase 1 lens. And it was foundational. Because if the nervous system is depleted, overstressed, or under-recovered, everything downstream is affected. But Phase 3 takes us another step forward. Now we are not only asking: Am I ready? We are asking: Am I adapting? ADAPTATION asks: What is changing because of what I repeatedly do? Am I becoming stronger? More resilient? More efficient? Better able to tolerate stress? Better able to recover? More capable than I was before? And this is where I think recovery is frequently misunderstood. Recovery isn't simply what happens when we stop working. Recovery is not the opposite of performance. Recovery is part of the process that creates future performance. That distinction changes everything. Because the goal is not simply to recover enough to get through today. The goal is to recover in a way that allows the brain and body to become better prepared for tomorrow. So I want to give you one sentence to keep in mind throughout this entire episode: Movement provides the stimulus. Recovery allows the adaptation. That's where Kristen Holmes' work enters Phase 3. Dr. Ratey helped us understand why movement activates the brain and creates the stimulus for change. Dr. Holmes helps us to understand what has to happen afterward if that stimulus is going to become something useful. Something the body can integrate. Something the brain can learn from. Something that eventually becomes greater capacity. PART 3 — THE STIMULUS–RECOVERY–ADAPTATION CYCLE Think about exercise for a moment. When you challenge your body, you create stress. That's not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, some level of challenge is exactly what we need. It's called hormesis, right? The challenge is the signal. It tells the system: Something is being asked of me. But the signal alone isn't what we are looking for. What matters is what your body does afterward. You place a demand on the system. Then the body needs time and resources to respond to that demand. We can think of it very simply: STIMULUS → RECOVERY → ADAPTATION → GREATER CAPACITY The stimulus is the challenge. Recovery is the response period. Adaptation is the change. And greater capacity is the result. The purpose of training isn't simply to create more strain. (Which is what I did for years). The purpose is to create a strain that your system can successfully recover from and adapt to. And that idea changed the way I began looking at my own movement. For years, I thought: Harder must be better. Longer must be better. More must be better. If I could hike for three hours, that had to be better than walking for one. If I could push harder, I assumed I would get better results. If I felt exhausted after a workout, I often assumed that meant I had accomplished more. But the data started showing me something different. Sometimes more strain simply created... more strain. And if I wasn't sleeping enough...(because I was repeating the same thing without enough rest) if I wasn't recovering... if I was stacking high strain on top of stress... then I wasn't necessarily building greater capacity. I could actually be interrupting the very adaptation I was trying to create. This is why one of the most important questions in Phase 3 becomes: How much challenge can my system absorb, recover from, and adapt to? Not: How much can I force myself to do? And this takes us directly back to the lesson Kristen Holmes gave us five years ago. Because if we want to know whether the stimulus we're creating is actually working... we need feedback. We need to see the patterns. We need to understand the relationship between what we do and how our system responds. Which brings us to Part 4: PART 4 — WHAT GETS MEASURED GETS IMPROVED In our Phase 1 episode with Dr. Holmes, I shared something that has become very important to me over the past five years. Once you begin measuring your sleep, your recovery, your strain, and your habits... you stop guessing. And when you stop guessing, patterns begin to emerge. For me, some of those patterns took years to understand. I began seeing that: Too much strain + not enough sleep = poor recovery. Over and over again. I knew intuitively that I was pushing too hard. But knowing something and changing behavior are two very different things. The data eventually forced me to look at the pattern honestly. There were times when I was training hard... waking early... cutting sleep short... and then wondering why my recovery didn't improve. I was giving my system a stimulus. But I wasn't giving it enough opportunity to adapt. That distinction matters. Because the goal is not simply: How much can I do? The better question is: How much can I do, recover from, and adapt to? That is a completely different way of approaching human performance. PART 5 — MY UNDERSTANDING OF RECOVERY HAS CHANGED When I first bought WHOOP in 2021, my weakest link was sleep. I knew I needed to improve it. And I did. Not perfectly. But significantly. What I find interesting now is that as one weakness improves, another one becomes easier to see. That's the value of measurement. Your weakest link can change. In 2021, mine was sleep. Today, I can see other areas much more clearly. Strength training is one. Balancing different kinds of movement is another. And this is where I began looking beyond total exercise time. Instead, I started asking: How much time am I spending in lower intensity movement? How much time am I spending at higher intensity? What happens to my recovery when I increase strain? How much sleep do I need after harder training? How quickly do I recover? What habits seem to help me recover faster? What habits tank my recovery? That's a completely different mindset than: Did I work hard today? PART 6 — TRAIN HARDER VS. TRAIN SMARTER One of the biggest lessons I pulled from Kristen Holmes' work was the difference between training harder and training smarter. In our Phase 1 review, I shared one example that really challenged my assumptions. I went on a walk along the canal near my house. Nothing extreme. I was walking my dogs and wearing a weighted vest. And during this much more moderate activity, I was able to reach Zones 4 and 5 for short periods. That surprised me, because those higher-intensity zones could sometimes be difficult for me to reach even during much longer hikes. I noticed the same thing when I started comparing different trails here in Arizona. When I first moved to AZ, Camelback Mountain—especially the Echo Canyon Trail—was my go-to hike. I used to hike it after work and again on the weekends. It was short, steep, and intense—about a 2.5-mile round trip on Echo Canyon, with the Cholla side a bit longer. So when I later moved to another part of the Valley and started hiking Telegraph Pass at South Mountain, I initially thought: This isn't going to give me the same workout. Telegraph Pass felt less intense. It didn't have that same steep, all-out challenge I was used to on Camelback. But once I started measuring my hikes, or learning new trails that were longer, I saw something I didn't expect. The longer, lower-intensity hikes were sometimes producing more overall strain than the shorter, harder hikes. That honestly shocked me. Because I had always assumed that if something felt harder, it must be giving me better results. But the data showed me that wasn't always true. A longer period of sustained effort—even at a lower intensity—could place a greater total load on my system than a shorter burst of very difficult exercise. And that taught me something important: How hard something feels in the moment is not always the same thing as the total load it places on your body. That was one of the moments when measurement changed the way I thought about exercise. I stopped asking only: How hard did that feel? And started asking: How did my body actually respond? And this is where data becomes useful. Not because the number knows everything. But because the number can reveal something we might otherwise miss. It can become feedback. And feedback helps us learn. PART 7 — MOVEMENT IS INFORMATION Movement is not just calories burned. I hardly ever think about calories anymore. There was a time when I could tell you almost exactly how much effort it took to burn off certain foods. But I think about movement very differently today. Movement is not punishment for what we ate. Movement is not simply exercise. Movement is information. Every time we move, we send signals to the brain and body about the demands being placed on the system. How much strength do I need? How much endurance? How much balance, coordination, speed, or cardiovascular capacity? And when we repeatedly expose ourselves to manageable challenge, the system begins to learn from those signals. It responds. It adjusts. And, with adequate recovery, it adapts. So movement isn't just something we do to burn energy. Movement is one of the ways we teach the brain and body what we want them to become capable of doing.   PART 8 — THE GOAL IS NOT MAXIMUM STRAIN This brings me to what may be the biggest takeaway from today's episode. The goal is not maximum strain. The goal is the right amount of strain for your current capacity. Because too little challenge may not create enough stimulus. But too much challenge without adequate recovery can work against the very adaptation we're trying to create. And this is where Kristen Holmes' message about strain and recovery becomes so powerful. In Phase 1, we used recovery to ask: Should I push today? In Phase 3, we can use recovery to ask: Is my current training producing the adaptation I want? That is a much bigger question. And it applies far beyond exercise. PART 9 — THE SAME PRINCIPLE APPLIES TO LEARNING Think about learning. We don't learn best by forcing information into the brain endlessly without rest. We need exposure. Attention. Practice. Then space. Sleep. Recovery. Integration. And then we return to the material again. Spaced Repetition. The brain changes through repeated cycles of challenge and recovery. So while we're talking today about Kristen Holmes, recovery, movement, and strain... the same architecture appears in learning. It appears in work. It appears in leadership. It appears in stress management. It appears almost anywhere humans are trying to grow. Challenge alone doesn't guarantee growth. Challenge + recovery + repetition creates the conditions for adaptation. PART 10 — YOUR COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IS STILL BUILT IN YOUR DOWNTIME One of my favorite ideas from my original conversation with Kristen was something we revisited in Phase 1. Listen to Dr. Holmes' CLIP here. She talked about the importance of what we do in our downtime. That what happens outside of the performance itself may give us our competitive advantage. Five years later, I think I finally understand how deep that idea goes. Your workout may last an hour. Your hike may last two hours. Your presentation may last 45 minutes. Your game may last an afternoon. But adaptation is happening across the rest of the day. What are you doing with the other hours? Are you sleeping? Hydrating? Fueling? Managing stress? Allowing the nervous system to come back down? Giving the body what it needs to repair? That downtime isn't empty time. It's part of the training. PART 11 — RECOVERY IS AN ACTIVE PROCESS This is another mindset shift that helped me. I used to think of recovery as: Doing nothing. Resting. Taking a day off. But recovery can actually be very intentional. For me, over the past several years, that has included things like: prioritizing sleep hydration meditation breathing spending time outside lower-intensity movement infrared sauna red light therapy And again, the point isn't that everyone should copy my routine. The important question is: What actually helps your system recover? That takes us back to one of the central ideas of our recent Bonus Episodes. PART 12 — FIND YOUR GAP In Bonus Episode 2[iv], we introduced the idea of finding your gap. Instead of copying someone else's recipe for high performance, identify the variable that is currently limiting you. Maybe your gap is sleep. Maybe it's hydration. Maybe it's high stress. Maybe it's too much intensity. Maybe it's not enough movement. Maybe it's inconsistent recovery habits. Maybe it's strength. The point is that your gap is personal. And it can change. This is one of the most useful things measurement can give us. It can show us: Where is the breakdown in my loop? Let's return to the Movement Loop. Movement → Brain Activation → Attention → Learning → Recovery → Adaptation → Performance → Greater Capacity Where is your gap? Are you not moving enough? Are you moving but not recovering? Are you recovering but not challenging yourself enough to create adaptation? Are you pushing constantly without allowing your system to consolidate the gains? If you can locate your gap, you know where to begin. PART 13 — THE MOVEMENT LOOP THROUGH DR. KRISTEN HOLMES Let's walk through the entire loop now through the lens of Dr. Ratey and Dr. Holmes' work. MOVEMENT We create a stimulus. We challenge the brain and body. BRAIN ACTIVATION Movement changes our physiological and neurological state. This is where Dr. Ratey's work helps us understand why movement prepares the brain. ATTENTION An activated brain is better positioned to engage. LEARNING The brain receives information and experience. But learning isn't finished simply because we experienced something. RECOVERY Now the system needs space. This is where Kristen Holmes enters the loop. How well did we sleep? How much stress are we carrying? What was our total strain? How prepared is the system to absorb what we've done? ADAPTATION This is where the system changes. Over time, repeated cycles of challenge and recovery create new capacity. PERFORMANCE We begin to see the result. We move differently. Think differently. Learn more efficiently. Handle greater demands. Recover faster. GREATER CAPACITY And this is what makes the loop a loop. Because now tomorrow's starting point may be different from yesterday's. The system has adapted. So we can begin again. The WHOOP wearable device may have started with elite athletes, but optimizing performance isn't only for elite athletes. Any of us can measure our patterns, learn from the feedback, and use that information to build greater capacity. PART 14 — THIS CHANGES HOW I THINK ABOUT PERFORMANCE For most of my life, I thought performance was primarily about effort. Work harder. Try harder. Push harder. And effort still matters. But effort without adaptation can become a dead end. What I'm learning through this phase is that performance is much more dynamic. You need the stimulus. You need the challenge. You need the work. But you also need recovery. Because recovery is what allows the system to absorb the work. And that leads me to an important sentence I want us to remember: The goal isn't to prove how much stress you can tolerate. The goal is to become capable of more over time. That's adaptation. PART 15 — FIVE YEARS LATER, DR. HOLMES'  MESSAGE MEANS SOMETHING DIFFERENT When we first interviewed Kristen Holmes in 2021, the idea that what gets measured gets improved resonated with me immediately. That idea is partly why I bought a wearable device in the first place. I wanted data. I wanted answers. I wanted to improve sleep. But five years later, I think the lesson is bigger than measurement. Measurement itself isn't the goal. The goal is feedback. And feedback only becomes useful when we do something with it. Measure. Write it down somewhere. Observe what's happening month to month and year to year. Adjust. Recover. Adapt. Repeat. Measurement closes the learning/performance loop. That's why Dr. Holmes' work was worth revisiting here in Phase 3. Not simply because she studies recovery. But because measurement gives us information about whether the behaviors we repeat are actually creating the changes we want. PRACTICAL APPLICATION — HOW TO USE THIS THIS WEEK So let's make this practical. You do not need WHOOP. You do not need a wearable. You don't need complicated equipment. You simply need to start paying attention. Identify your current stimulus. What are you asking your body and brain to adapt to right now? Maybe it's: exercise strength training a new learning goal a demanding work schedule stress adapting to intensive heat in your new sauna Know what you're asking the system to do. Identify your recovery. Ask: How am I sleeping? How am I managing stress? Am I giving myself enough downtime? How do I feel the day after harder efforts? What patterns do I notice? Watch the relationship between effort and recovery. Does more effort always give you better results? Or is there a point where more becomes counterproductive? Find your gap. What is your weakest link right now? Don't try to fix everything. Start there. Look for evidence of adaptation. Ask yourself: Am I becoming more capable? Can I handle something today that used to be difficult? Am I recovering faster? Am I stronger? More focused? More resilient? If the answer is yes, your loop is working. REVIEW AND CONCLUSION To review and conclude this week's episode 405,  let's bring this episode together. We brought Dr. Kristen Holmes back into our roadmap intentionally. In Phase 1: Regulation and Safety, Dr. Holmes helped us understand recovery as readiness. Sleep. HRV. Strain. Stress. Recovery. The question was: Is the system prepared for today? Today, in Phase 3: Movement, Learning and Cognition, we've looked at those same ideas through a different lens. Now the question is: Is the system adapting for tomorrow? That's the progression. Dr. John Ratey helped us understand that movement provides the brain with a powerful stimulus. Kristen Holmes helps us understand that the story doesn't end with the stimulus. We need recovery. Because: Movement provides the stimulus. Recovery allows the adaptation. Adaptation improves performance. Performance builds greater capacity. And then the loop begins again. ONE QUESTION TO TAKE WITH YOU Before you move on with your day, I want you to ask yourself one question: Am I creating more strain…or am I creating more capacity? They are not the same thing. You can push harder without improving. You can work longer without adapting. You can accumulate strain without building capacity. The goal is not simply to do more. The goal is to create a system where you can become more. FINAL TAKEAWAY And this brings us right back to Kristen Holmes's message from 2021: What gets measured gets improved. But today, I would add something to it: What gets measured can be adjusted. What gets adjusted can be repeated (in this new way) And what gets repeated—paired with the right amount of recovery—can become adaptation. That is how capacity grows. And that is where Kristen Holmes fits into Phase 3—not simply as an expert on recovery, but as a critical part of the science of change. And this idea—turning what we measure into meaningful change—is also shaping the larger vision for this podcast. At the start of this episode, we mentioned I'm developing a companion workbook called Journey of the Mind—a practical guide designed to help us move beyond simply listening to these ideas and begin applying them in our own lives. The workbook will guide us through five steps to apply what we have covered on this podcast. Understand. Reflect. Apply. Measure. Become More. With each episode we've covered. And this workbook began with an unexpected spark of inspiration. So, I want to offer one quiet acknowledgment: To the person who quietly helped illuminate this path for me—thank you. Sometimes, the people who influence the direction of our lives may never fully realize what their presence helped awaken. My vision from that the spark of inspiration I received will travel through this work and reach you listening—inspiring you to move forward on your own path and create a life that is more intentional, meaningful, and fulfilling than the one you knew before. Because inspiration doesn't end with the person who first awakens it. It moves through us. And when we act on it, one spark can grow into something that serves many others—far beyond what either person could have created individually. We'll explore the transformative power of human connection more deeply in Phase 4. Then, in Phase 5, we'll examine how connection, meaning, and contribution can become something that continues growing beyond us. But until then, we'll continue building this journey—one insight, one application, and one measurable change at a time. COMING NEXT Before we move on to Dr. John Medina and the next part of the Movement Loop, we'll cover our next Bonus Episode and show you what adaptation can actually look like in real life. In Bonus EP 3, I'm going to take you inside one of the clearest changes I've seen in my own data over the past several years: my resting heart rate. We'll look at where it started, how it changed, what may have contributed to that change, and why resting heart rate can become a useful window into how the body is adapting over time. Because this is really what Phase 3 is about. Not simply moving more. Not simply collecting data. But asking: Is what I'm doing actually changing my capacity? Then, for EP 406 we'll return to the research of Dr. John Medina and explore the next critical link in the Movement Loop: Attention. Because movement can activate the brain—but activation alone doesn't guarantee learning. The brain must first notice what matters. It must direct its attention. Hold that attention long enough to encode new information. And return to that information if it is going to become something we can remember and use. Dr. Ratey helped us understand how movement prepares the brain. Dr. Kristen Holmes helped us understand how recovery allows the brain and body to adapt. And Dr. Medina will help us understand what happens between those two points: How does an activated brain turn experience into learning? Because movement may open the door— but attention determines what enters and stays behind that door. And we'll reinforce one of the central ideas of this journey: What we repeatedly do shapes who we become. The question is: Are those repeated actions expanding our capacity and moving us toward our highest level of performance—or quietly holding us back? That's where we'll turn next as we continue building the Movement Loop. I'll see you next time. EP 405 — KEY TAKEAWAYS ✔ Why Kristen Holmes belongs in both Phase 1 and Phase 3 ✔ The difference between recovery for readiness and recovery for adaptation ✔ Why movement alone does not create improvement ✔ The relationship between stimulus → recovery → adaptation → greater capacity ✔ Why the goal is not maximum strain, but the right dose of strain ✔ How recovery completes the Movement Loop ✔ Why your weakest link can change as you improve ✔ How measurement provides feedback for better decisions ✔ Why downtime is part of the performance process ✔ The difference between accumulating strain and building capacity THE MOVEMENT LOOP Movement → Brain Activation → Attention → Learning → Recovery → Adaptation → Performance → Greater Capacity → Repeat Remember: Movement provides the stimulus. Recovery allows the adaptation. The goal isn't maximum strain. The goal is greater capacity. RESOURCES: Watch the full interview from 2021 here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOgivjYhhW8 CLIP 1 Dr. Kristen Holmes https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Lg7FiWJKZc4 Phase 1: Regulation & Safety The Foundation Core Question: Is the nervous system safe enough to learn? Everything begins with regulation. Before we can focus, learn, lead, or perform, the brain first asks one fundamental question: Am I safe? Throughout Phase 1, our guests showed us that regulation isn't simply about reducing stress—it's about creating the biological conditions that allow the brain to learn, adapt, and thrive. Together we explored: Baland Jalal – how sleep, curiosity, imagination, and creativity prepare the brain for learning. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/hypnagogic-genius-capture-your-best-ideas-at-the-edge-of-sleep/ Dr. Bruce Perry – why regulation, rhythm, and relationships form the foundation of every healthy nervous system.  https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/safety-first-why-a-regulated-brain-is-the-key-to-learning/ Dr. Sui Wong – how lifestyle medicine and autonomic balance build lifelong brain resilience. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/your-eyes-the-brain-s-early-warning-system/ Rohan Dixit – how heart rate variability gives us real-time feedback on our ability to regulate stress. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/breathe-to-reset-how-hrv-tech-reveals-hidden-stress/ Dr. Kristen Holmes – how recovery metrics reveal our physiological readiness to perform. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/kristen-holmes-from-whoopcom-on-unlocking-a-better-you-measuring-sleep-recovery-and-strain/ Dr. Antonio Zadra – how sleep and dreaming consolidate memories, regulate emotions, and generate insight. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/when-brains-dream-how-sleep-integrates-emotion-insight-and-creativity/ Together these conversations taught us that sleep and stress regulation aren't optional—they're the operating system that allows every higher brain function to work. Phase 2: Motivation & Neurochemistry The Direction Core Question: What moves us into action? Once the brain feels safe, it becomes ready to pursue goals. In Phase 2, we explored the internal chemistry that transforms intention into action. Our experts helped us understand that sustainable motivation isn't about willpower—it's about aligning our beliefs, thoughts, attention, energy, and movement. Together we discovered: Bob Proctor — our beliefs determine the direction of our lives. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/belief-first-the-neuroscience-of-motivation/ Dr. Carolyn Leaf — our thinking literally changes our brain chemistry. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/thoughts-as-biology-how-your-mind-shapes-neurochemistry/ Dr. John Medina — attention determines what the brain encodes and remembers. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/theory-of-mind-the-missing-link-between-attention-reward-and-motivation Dr. Anna Lembke- Dopamine, Motivation and Why the Brain Repeats Behavior https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/dopamine-nation-the-pleasure%e2%80%93pain-balance-that-drives-motivation/ Dr. Friederike Fabritius — managing our energy allows high performance to become sustainable. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/fun-fear-focus-closing-the-motivation-loop/ Dr. Chuck Hillman & Paul Zientarski — movement activates the brain, preparing it to learn. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/move-to-learn-how-movement-activates-the-brain-and-fuels-motivation/ By the end of Phase 2, we introduced what became The Motivation Loop, showing how beliefs influence thoughts, thoughts influence actions, actions create results, and results reinforce future beliefs. Phase 3: Movement, Learning & Human Performance The Transformation Core Question: How does movement change the brain—and how does recovery transform that change into performance? Now we're taking the next step. Phase 3 builds on everything we've learned so far. If Phase 1 created a regulated nervous system... If Phase 2 created motivation and direction... Phase 3 explains how the brain and body actually become stronger. Together we've explored this process through conversations with: Dr. Chuck Hillman & Paul Zientarski — why movement activates the brain before learning. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/movement-first-how-a-20%e2%80%91minute-walk-lights-up-the-brain/ Dr. John Ratey — how exercise builds a healthier, younger brain. https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/movement-matters-how-every-move-rewires-the-brain/ Dr. Kristen Holmes — why recovery determines adaptation and readiness. Dr. John Medina — how attention transforms movement into lasting learning. Jason Whitrock — how metabolism and cellular energy fuel long-term performance. WHERE WE ARE GOING NEXT Phase 4 — Connection, Emotion & Social Intelligence The Human System Core Question: How do we thrive with other people? The brain didn't evolve in isolation—it evolved through relationships. In Phase 4, we'll explore emotional intelligence, empathy, communication, trust, leadership, and psychological safety to understand how our relationships shape learning, well-being, and performance. Phase 5 — Integration & Human Performance The Complete System Core Question: How do all the systems work together? In our final phase, we'll bring everything together—regulation, motivation, movement, emotion, relationships, learning, and recovery—into one integrated framework. We'll discover how these systems work together to create measurable improvements in our well-being, achievement, leadership, productivity, and results. REFERENCES: [i] A Neurologist Looks at Mind and Brain, published October 1, 2003, by Phirose Hansotia.   [ii] Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 134 with Dr. Kristen Holmes “Unlocking a Better You: Measuring Sleep, Recovery and Strain.”  https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/kristen-holmes-from-whoopcom-on-unlocking-a-better-you-measuring-sleep-recovery-and-strain/   [iii] Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast EPISODE 390 https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/what-gets-measured-gets-improved-sleep-recovery-peak-performance/   [iv]Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning Podcast BONUS EP 2 https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/find-the-gap-how-recovery-unlocks-predictable-performance                      

REVELATION EP 8- The Seven Trumpets and a Map of Time The book of Revelation is, in many ways, a summary of the unfolding work of God in redemption and redemptive judgment. It begins with the seven letters to the churches, moves into the opening of the seven seals, and then into the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. In the first four seals we see the release of forces that have shaped the world we know—conquest, war, economic scarcity and inflation, famine, disease and death. These events describe the progression of human history toward the final period of God's dealings with the earth. We have already experienced many of these things in measure, including global pandemics, giving us a foretaste of what Revelation describes as ultimately coming upon the earth. But then we arrive at something extraordinary: the seventh seal contains the seven trumpets, and the seventh trumpet ultimately contains the seven bowls or vials of judgment. Revelation gives us a series of summaries within summaries. Seven speaks of completion and fullness. What we are seeing is not merely a sequence of catastrophes, but the completion of a divine process that brings God's purposes for humanity to their appointed goal. “Receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.” —1 Peter 1:9 The final movements of Revelation therefore concern not simply judgment upon the earth, but the completion of God's redemptive work in His people as Christ brings history toward His return. This brings us into the final three-and-a-half-year period that repeatedly appears throughout prophetic Scripture—a period culminating in the second coming of Christ. THE SEVENTH SEAL, THE CENSER AND THE DAY OF ATONEMENT Revelation 8 begins with one of the most remarkable moments in the book: “When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.” —Revelation 8:1 It is the only explicit period of silence described in heaven in Revelation. After the worship, thunder, voices and activity surrounding the throne, suddenly everything becomes still. It is as though heaven pauses before the next great movement of God's purpose. John sees seven angels standing before God, and seven trumpets are given to them. Before those trumpets sound, however, another angel appears with a golden censer. He is given incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne. The censer is then filled with fire from the altar and thrown to the earth, producing thunder, lightning and an earthquake. This gives us an important principle: the prayers of God's people are not disconnected from the purposes of God in the earth. Heaven receives the prayers of the saints, and those prayers become part of the unfolding divine purpose. The golden censer is particularly significant because of its connection with the Day of Atonement. In the Old Testament, the High Priest entered the Most Holy Place once a year carrying incense and blood into the presence of God. Leviticus 16 describes him taking burning coals and incense behind the inner curtain, creating a cloud over the mercy seat, and then sprinkling blood before it. “Into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood…” —Hebrews 9:7 The imagery of Revelation 8 therefore takes us directly into the symbolism of the Day of Atonement. The seventh seal opens a prophetic picture of cleansing, sanctification and preparation, and connects Revelation with the prophetic pattern of Israel's feasts. THE FEASTS — A MAP OF REDEMPTIVE TIME The Church has historically experienced the great movements represented by Passover and Pentecost, but we have not yet experienced the prophetic fullness represented by the Day of Atonement and Tabernacles. Passover speaks of deliverance. The blood was placed upon the doorway, marking out a people delivered from judgment and slavery. Christ is our Passover; His blood establishes the boundary of salvation and justification. Pentecost speaks of covenant relationship and the giving of the Spirit. What was external becomes internal. God's covenant is written into His people, and believers learn to walk by the Spirit in conscious obedience to God. The Day of Atonement speaks of deeper cleansing, transformation and sanctification. Before Israel entered Tabernacles came Atonement, so prophetically it becomes the preparation for the fullness of God's dwelling. Tabernacles represents the fullness of God dwelling among His people. So the movement is: Passover → Pentecost → Atonement → Tabernacles. The story is moving toward the completion of God's dwelling with humanity. The final feast season begins with the Feast of Trumpets: “In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, you shall have a Sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets…” —Leviticus 23:24 These initial trumpets are not the judgment trumpets of Revelation 8–11. They are prophetic trumpets announcing that something is about to happen. They call God's people to attention and announce a season of preparation. Ten days later comes the Day of Atonement, followed by the Feast of Tabernacles: Trumpets → Preparation → Atonement → Tabernacles. This gives us a prophetic picture of the preparation of the Bride of Christ. THE BRIDE, THE BLOOD AND TRANSFORMATION Paul writes: “That He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word… that she should be holy and without blemish.” —Ephesians 5:26–27 This is not simply about becoming better Christians. Paul describes a deeper work of transformation in the Bride. The Church is being prepared for union with Christ. “This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.” —Ephesians 5:32 The Day of Atonement gives us a prophetic picture of this deeper cleansing. On that day, the High Priest entered the Most Holy Place with blood: “Then he must take some of the blood of the bull… and sprinkle it seven times…” —Leviticus 16:14 Seven speaks of completion. At Passover, the blood was placed at the doorway. At Pentecost, covenant relationship was established with God's people. At the Day of Atonement, the blood enters the Most Holy Place. Doorway → People → Presence Deliverance → Covenant → Transformation The Day of Atonement therefore points toward the fullest application of Christ's redemptive work in His people—not another sacrifice, but a deeper manifestation of the power of the one sacrifice already accomplished by Christ. The goal is maturity—the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. The Day of Atonement was also called a Sabbath of Sabbaths—Shabbat Shabbaton. Israel was commanded to “afflict” or humble their souls, but Isaiah 58 reveals that God was never interested in religious suffering for its own sake. The people were fasting while still oppressing others, fighting, quarrelling and maintaining bondage. “Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?” The ultimate fast is therefore not simply abstaining from food. It is becoming free. It is allowing God to break the internal bondage that prevents us from loving God and others freely. God is not trying to crush the soul. He is trying to heal it. THE TRUMPETS AND THE WITNESSES Numbers 10 says: “Make two trumpets of silver; of a whole piece you will make them.” Silver is associated with redemption and atonement. There are two trumpets, yet they are made from one piece of silver. This gives us a picture of Christ and His people—the one new man created in Christ. The trumpet represents the prophetic voice of God. God speaks to His people, and He also speaks through His people. This imagery provides a fitting parallel with the two witnesses of Revelation 11, who prophesy for 1,260 days. Their ministry belongs to this final prophetic period and corresponds to the ministry of Moses and Elijah. Their witness becomes part of God's final testimony before the culmination of the age. SABBATH REST The Day of Atonement also opens another major biblical theme: rest. The Sabbath was never merely about stopping work one day each week. Israel was commanded to allow the land to rest every seventh year. Leviticus 25 describes six years of cultivation followed by a seventh year in which the land was not cultivated in the ordinary way. The people had to trust God. They had to stop striving to produce and believe that God could sustain them. But Israel failed to fully enter this dimension of Sabbath rest. 2 Chronicles 36 says Israel went into Babylonian captivity: “Until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths… to fulfil seventy years.” The seventy years correspond to seventy unobserved Sabbath years—a period traditionally calculated against 490 years: 490 ÷ 7 = 70. Hebrews takes this principle beyond agriculture and national history: “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God… He who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.” This is the spiritual reality behind Sabbath. The issue is not merely whether we stop working. The issue is whether we have learned to trust God. Rest is faith. Rest is the cessation of self-powered striving. Rest is learning to live from the faith of Christ and the flow of grace. Sometimes the very thing we call spiritual activity becomes a substitute for spiritual rest. We can become so busy trying to manage ourselves, fix ourselves, control ourselves and prove ourselves that we never become still enough to allow God to transform us. FROM PASSOVER TO TABERNACLES The journey from Passover to Tabernacles can be understood as the journey of a building becoming a home. At Passover, the people come through the doorway. At Pentecost, they learn covenant relationship and Spirit-led living. At the Day of Atonement, they are brought into the deepest place of cleansing. At Tabernacles comes the fullness of God's dwelling. The Church is therefore not simply being rescued. We are being prepared for habitation. Salvation → Maturity | Forgiveness → Transformation | External religion → Internal reality | Striving → Rest | Knowing about God → Becoming a dwelling place for God The Sabbath also points beyond itself. In Revelation, the return of Christ is followed by the thousand-year reign described in Revelation 20. The final three-and-a-half-year period culminates in Christ's return, and the Millennium becomes a prophetic expression of the greater Sabbath rest of God's kingdom. Six days → Seventh-day Sabbath | Six years → Seventh-year Sabbath | Redemptive history → Millennial Sabbath The Sabbath becomes a picture of the ultimate cessation of rebellion, striving and self-rule under the reign of Christ. A MAP OF TIME When we step back and look at Revelation 8, we begin to see something much larger than a series of judgments. We see a map of time. The seals bring us through the broad progression of history. The seventh seal opens the trumpets. The trumpets move us into the final prophetic period. The golden censer takes us into the imagery of the Most Holy Place and the Day of Atonement. Atonement points toward the cleansing and preparation of the Bride. The Bride is washed by the Word and brought toward maturity. Beyond that lies Tabernacles—the dwelling of God with His people—and finally the return of Christ and the Millennial Sabbath. Seals → Trumpets → Atonement → Bride → Tabernacles → Christ's Return → Millennial Rest Underneath the entire progression is one great purpose: God is bringing His creation back into His rest. THE BUILDING BECOMES A HOME This may be the most important application for us personally. We can spend our lives building—reputations, theological knowledge, religious activity and systems designed to make ourselves feel safe. But God's ultimate purpose is not merely to build a structure. He wants a dwelling place. The journey from Passover to Tabernacles is the story of a building finally becoming a home. We are still under construction. The Word is washing us. The Spirit is working within us. The blood of Christ has already accomplished the foundation of our redemption. But God is bringing us into a deeper experience of what Christ has already purchased. Perhaps the question is not simply “How much am I doing for God?” but “How much am I resting in God?” Not “How hard am I trying to change myself?” but “Am I allowing God to transform me?” Not “How much religious activity can I sustain?” but “Can I become still enough to hear His voice?” Sometimes our greatest obstacle to entering God's rest is the very activity we believe is helping us get there. There comes a time when the noise must stop, the striving must stop, the self-protection must stop, and the endless attempts to manage everything must stop. In the silence of the inner sanctuary we discover that grace does not merely forgive us; it transforms us. The blood does not merely bring us through the doorway; it brings us into the presence. The Word does not merely inform us; it washes us. The Spirit does not merely empower our activity; He teaches us to rest. The Bride is not ultimately prepared by striving harder. She is prepared by allowing Christ to do His work within her. The seventh seal begins with silence. That is fitting. After all the noise of the seals, wars, judgments, trumpets and shaking of the earth, heaven becomes silent. When the noise finally stops, we discover that God has been working all along. The building becomes a home. The Bride becomes ready. The people of God enter His rest. The journey that began at the doorway of Passover finds its fullness in the dwelling of Tabernacles and its great Sabbath rest. And ultimately, Jesus reigns.  

If you've ever finished a workout feeling more depleted than energized, or spent so long trying to find the "right" way to exercise with PMOS (PCOS) that you never actually got moving, this episode is for you.Exercise is confusing in the PMOS space. Is cardio bad for your cortisol? Should you be cycle syncing? Is HIIT off the table? The advice online is everywhere, making it hard to know what to trust, or if it's even worth the stress.In this episode, we're cutting through the noise and bringing some evidence-informed nuance back to the conversation. We cover:Why exercise feels so hard to stick to with PMOSHow your cortisol levels change after exercise What changes across your menstrual cycle, and whether you should cycle sync or notHow cardio, strength training and restorative movement all support your hormones, in different ways5 pre-workout snacks that keep you fuelled, energized and set up your hormones to actually recoverThis isn't about finding the "perfect" workout. It's about building a sustainable relationship with movement, one that's backed by fuel and a little more self-trust.Our PMOS Recovery Program opens this Fall. Go from guessing every action to finally understanding how to improve your hormones, without the extremes. Three months of coaching and community to learn everything you need to know to manage PMOS feel like yourself again.Join the Waitlist ReferencesFueling for sports nutrition eating for activity. (2023, January). https://www.albertahealthservices.ca/assets/info/nutrition/if-nfs-eating-for-activity.pdf Hill, E. E., Zack, E., Battaglini, C., Viru, M., Viru, A., & Hackney, A. C. (2008). Exercise and circulating cortisol levels: The intensity threshold effect. Journal of Endocrinological Investigation, 31(7), 587–591. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf03345606 International evidence-based guideline for the assessment and management of polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (formerly PCOS) 2023. (2026, May). https://www.monash.edu/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/3379521/Evidence-Based-Guidelines-2023.pdf Jurczewska, J., Ostrowska, J., Chełchowska, M., Panczyk, M., Rudnicka, E., Kucharski, M., Smolarczyk, R., & Szostak-Węgierek, D. (2023). Physical activity, rather than diet, is linked to lower insulin resistance in PCOS women—a case-control study. Nutrients, 15(9), 2111. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15092111 Kerksick, C.M., Arent, S., Schoenfeld, B.J. et al. International society of sports nutrition position stand: nutrient timing. J Int Soc Sports Nutr 14, 33 (2017). https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.torontomu.ca/10.1186/s12970-017-0189-4 Mohammadi, S., Monazzami, A., & alavimilani, S. (2023). Effects of eight-week high-intensity interval training on some metabolic, hormonal and cardiovascular indices in women with PCOS: A randomized controlled trail. BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13102-023-00653-z Sabag, A., Patten, R. K., Moreno-Asso, A., Colombo, G. E., Dafauce Bouzo, X., Moran, L. J., Harrison, C., Kazemi, M., Mousa, A., Tay, C. T., Hirschberg, A. L., Redman, L. M., & Teede, H. J. (2024). Exercise in the management of polycystic ovary syndrome: A position statement from exercise and Sports Science Australia. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 27(10), 668–677. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2024.05.015 

What if the thing standing between good results and a thriving team is just one letter?This week I'm joined by Tracey Ezard — author, facilitator, and creator of Ferocious Warmth — who I met on faculty at a Women in Leadership course in Prato, Italy. Tracey has spent two decades studying what separates great teams from ones that just get by, working across health, education and hospitality. We talk about: The "drop one letter" shift — why "I'd like to challenge our thinking" lands completely differently to "your thinking," and the neuroscience of why it lowers defensiveness instead of raising itThe Two Rs: why chasing results without relationship skills caps your outcomes, and what changes when you build bothWhy "doctor" already means "leader" — whether you feel ready for that title or notHow multidisciplinary case conferences either open people up or shut them down, and the small, specific things senior clinicians do that make the differenceEarly warning signs of leadership burnout, and why energy management matters as much as time managementLeadership as your "second profession" — and how much time you're actually investing in itTracey's non-negotiable self-care practice (hint: it involves stairs) Tracey's story is a brilliant reminder that leadership skill isn't separate from clinical skill — it's part of the job description, whether or not it was ever taught. Resources:Connect with Tracey: LinkedIn (Tracey Ezard) and https://www.traceyezard.com/Grab a copy of Ferocious Warmth: https://www.traceyezard.com/books/ferocious-warmth/ As always, if this episode lands, share it with a colleague who needs to hear it — and I'll catch you next week.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Boll & Branch spent 12 years doing the unfashionable thing: perfecting the product first and figuring out distribution second. Chief Commercial Officer Katia Unlu joins Phillip and Brian on today's episode to discuss Boll & Branch's store expansion strategy, an AI-generated damage claim that went viral, and the case for stimulation over substitution.  That's Not How the Waffle Blanket Tears Key takeaways: Brands of the DTC era that failed were distracted by over-indexing on one hero product and not focusing on customer experiences that drive retention and brand love.  Boll & Branch opens stores where their customers and ICP already live. A human CX team caught an AI-generated image in a fraudulent damage claim thanks to the team's sharp knowledge of the brand's fabric and tear patterns. This is human expertise and technological advancement meeting in the middle. Boll & Branch's AI tools aim to stimulate the customer relationship rather than flatten it. The 2027 playbook is boring, but it works. Focusing on the fundamentals is key. [00:23:12] "People might buy something they enjoy, but they will actually defend what they love." – Brian Lange [00:29:45] "There's no shortcut for what real-life consumer insights can give you when you just go and talk to people in stores." – Katia Unlu [00:43:50] "We very much don't want to substitute. We don't have an AI bot on our website that you can even ask questions to." – Katia Unlu Associated Links: Boll & Branch Scott Tannen's LinkedIn post on AI-generated return fraud at Boll & Branch  Read our in-store retail space analyses: Field Notes on Future Commerce More on human vs. agent: Episode 447: The Agent Has Left the Building Explore our Word of Mouth Index Check out Future Commerce on YouTube Check out Future Commerce Plus for exclusive content and save on merch and print Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Culture doesn't maintain itself.Every organization naturally drifts toward disorder unless someone intentionally restores alignment. In this solo episode, Jay Doran explores one of leadership's greatest responsibilities: not creating culture once, but continually regulating, renewing, and protecting it as organizations grow and evolve. Drawing connections between business, family systems, organizational governance, and even nations, Jay argues that leaders are constantly transmitting signals through their behavior. Employees aren't simply listening to what leaders say—they're interpreting what leaders consistently value, reward, tolerate, and ignore. Those signals ultimately determine whether culture compounds or decays over time. In this episode, you'll discover:Why leaders regulate culture whether they realize it or notHow behaviors communicate values more powerfully than mission statementsWhy organizations naturally drift toward cultural decay without intentional leadershipThe connection between trust, information flow, and organizational healthHow acquisitions, succession planning, and rapid growth challenge company cultureWhy successful founders often struggle to preserve the values that created their successThe importance of balancing creation and consumption as organizations matureHow leaders unknowingly send signals that either strengthen or weaken accountabilityWhy culture must continually be renewed—not simply protectedThroughout the conversation, Jay examines how great organizations preserve their identity while adapting to changing generations, new technologies, and increasing complexity. He reflects on why the strongest cultures aren't static—they evolve without abandoning the principles that made them successful in the first place. This episode serves as a reminder that leadership isn't measured by titles or authority. It's measured by the environment leaders create and the example they consistently model.Because culture doesn't decay overnight.It drifts one signal, one behavior, and one neglected conversation at a time. 

New Jersey judges are now hearing from children directly in custody matters, and parents whose exes have spent years working on those children are alarmed. Nilaja Ford's counter is that the children were already in the middle of it. The revision changes who gets to hear them.Nilaja Ford co-founded Ford Brown Law with her partner Donnett Brown. Both were prosecutors for the state of New Jersey, and both specialize in domestic violence alongside family law. Nilaja handled domestic violence contempt matters on the prosecution side before moving into an exclusively matrimonial, custody, and domestic violence practice, and she has been conducting child interviews since before the statute was revised to formalize them. She and her partner also run a free legal-services clinic at a women's resource center in Newark. Everything she describes here is New Jersey practice, though she notes much of it tracks other states moving the same way.The conversation opens on hearsay, because it is where parents lose ground without understanding why. A letter from a therapist, a teacher, or a supportive friend generally cannot stand on its own at a hearing; the person who wrote it has to be available to be questioned. Nilaja walks through the exceptions she leans on, particularly business records like school attendance, and why expert reports come with the expectation that the expert can be asked how they reached their conclusions.She then explains what the revision, nicknamed children in charge, actually does. New Jersey's best-interest standard and its 14 factors are unchanged. What is clarified is the mechanism: a recorded interview with the judge, under a protective order rather than something a parent can post, with questions submitted by both sides. Age affects how much weight a child's preference carries, not whether they are heard. And the question she puts on her own list is not who do you want to live with, it is what the ideal arrangement would look like, in specifics, because the specifics are what reveal what is really going on.Nilaja and Lisa then work through the situations BTGO's clients live in. A parent asking for sole custody, and her first question, which is always why. Reporting abuse, and why the investigating body has to be the state agency rather than you. Cayden's Law, and what these changes are trying to prevent. A teenager who has already aligned with one parent, and Nilaja's uncomfortable point that acts and omissions count, that timing counts, and that a case arriving late arrives with a history already built. She also covers legal decision-making, stonewalling, and the 24-hour clause she has had written into orders so one parent cannot run out the clock on the other.As always, this is strategic education, not legal or mental-health advice for your specific situation.

I recently asked AI to generate an Ideal Client Profile based on my background and expertise. It nailed it — exact buyer, situational triggers, positioning, psychological buying motivators. Perfectly articulated. And completely useless.Because here's the thing: your ICP isn't a research assignment. It's not an archetype, a demographic, or words on paper. Your real ideal client profile is proven through SALES — and it only reveals itself through real conversations with real people.In this training I break down, step by step, how to discover who you actually work with by getting off your computer and into real conversations.You'll learn:What an Ideal Client Profile is NOT How to name the general categories you serve and back them with concrete examplesHow to make tailored invitations — discovery offers for consultants, sample sessions for coaches, and posting about REAL problems onlineWhy this approach leads to faster sales, deeper relationships, and a steady stream of referralsStop guessing at hypothetical buyers. Start connecting with real ones.→ PLUS: Join me LIVE on July 23 at 1pm ET for The Independence Equation, a live training where I cover where to find buyers, what to offer them, and how to close the deal. Save your spot: chrisdonohoecoaching.com/independence Royalty Free Music from Tunetank.comTrack: Urban Legend by Musical Bakery⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://tunetank.com/track/3362-urban-legend/

This one is a throwback and the lessons still land hard.Michael Jones Sr is a master technician out of Charlotte, North Carolina, with a couple of decades in the automotive world before he gave it all up to go twist wrenches on motorcycles.He spent about ten years across nearly ten different powersports and motorcycle dealerships, and he came on the show to talk about something a lot of people in this industry feel but do not say out loud: the passion has slipped, and it is costing dealers money.In this conversation with, Michael makes the case that passion and professionalism are not soft ideas. They are directly tied to how profitable a service department is, how loyal customers become, and how a dealership stands out when everyone is pushing the same metal.What we cover:Why passion starts in the employee parking lot and how to spot a disconnectThe gun store comparison: why every employee there knows their product and why motorcycle shops often do notHow employee burnout and social media scrolling quietly drain the profitability of a service departmentThe parts-guy-at-the-bench workflow that saves the mechanic time and makes the shop more moneyWhy the 10-year-and-older rule is a mindset, not a fact, and what dealers miss by turning that work awayPulling back the curtain: why engaging service customers in how things work builds loyalty and repeat businessWhy so many younger customers have never been around machines and how dealers can bring them inMichael's own story as a customer and the service manager who always tells him what is nextWhy texting a customer the owner's manual PDF beats hoping they read the paper copyThe professionalism gap that separates a confident dealership from one that gets caught flat-footedThe Chrome Mafia story: how one independent shop built a riding culture that a four-brand, 30-year dealership could not matchWhy getting 30 to 40% of your staff riding changes everythingWatch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

The wellness CPG space was just rocked by a massive headline: Prenetics announced that its supplement brand, IM8 Health (co-founded with David Beckham), secured a staggering $1 billion non-dilutive growth financing commitment from venture capital titan General Catalyst. But behind the gaudy headlines lies a complex financial mechanism that could either change wellness CPG forever. In this video, I'm breaking down the reality of General Catalyst's Customer Value Fund, unpacking the mechanics of cohort financing, and exposing the silent operational risks known as "Growth Trap Over-Optimization."Is Prenetics executing a brilliant sprint to a Big CPG acquisition, or are they walking into another corporate strategy nightmare? Let's look past the spreadsheet illusion.Additionally, I'll cover key topics like:Prenetics' strategic detour and divestiture of Europa Sports ProductsHow General Catalyst's CVF funds up to 70% of digital marketing spend without equity dilutionWhy software scales effortlessly but physical consumer packaged goods do notHow global CPG giants like Unilever or Nestlé unroll internet-famous brands and fix "cost problems"

– Are the Cardinals in position to take on a salary dump at the deadline? Plus, Are the Blues in a better position to take a bad contract on this offseason?– Believe it or Not– How would Cardinals winning 3 of next 4 change the way we feel about the first half of the season?– BK & Ferrario RewindSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

– Michael McGreevy is a game changer for this rotation.– Jordan Walker is officially in the HR Derby and Alex isn't happy.– Is Leo Carlsson's contract going to be for the NHL what Christian Kirk's deal was in the NFL?– Questions and Answers– ESPN has their best match & dream match for the Cardinals at the deadline.– Mizzou is trying to make up 4 years of bad scheduling in 4 months.– NFL Quick Hitters– Junk Drawer– Are the Cardinals in position to take on a salary dump at the deadline? Plus, Are the Blues in a better position to take a bad contract on this offseason?– Believe it or Not– How would Cardinals winning 3 of next 4 change the way we feel about the first half of the season?– BK & Ferrario RewindSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If your spiritual life feels more like a discipline than a joy — and your body feels more like used car than a temple — this podcast episode is for you. Most of us are really familiar with trying to be good, well behaved, and nice as the goal of our gifts and our practices. But what if we could liberate our relationships, intimacy, pleasure, and power instead?In this episode, grace re-introduces the show and explores the liberatory path of erotic devotion.Because when our wounds, fears, and secret desires emerge, they're not coming up so we can judge ourselves and feel bad forever. They're coming up so we can burn more brightly and become free.You can only be a true leader and lover from the path of erotic devotion. Tune in to embark on your journey of surrender, empowerment and ecstasy.we discuss —What the erotic is + is notHow to connect with sensuality + intimacyWhy destiny requires desireWays to get out of transaction mode and why that mattersThe paradox of power and surrenderWhy devotion is not about victimhood or obedienceIf you enjoyed the episode, check out —The Transformative Power of Desire & Devotion w— grace allerdice x Erin Kelleyerotic devotion for modern mysticsSend us a message!

One of the greatest obstacles to spiritual freedom isn't what happened to you—it's what you refuse to release.In this message, “Where Are You With… Forgiveness? // How Good Are You at Forgiving?”, we explore why forgiveness is one of the clearest marks of spiritual maturity and one of the most powerful acts of obedience in the Christian life.Unforgiveness doesn't just affect your relationships—it opens the door to bitterness, blinds your heart, and keeps you from experiencing the freedom God desires for you.In this sermon, you'll hear about:Why forgiveness is essential for every follower of JesusWhat forgiveness is—and what it is notHow unforgiveness gives the enemy an opportunity to work in our livesWhy forgiveness is a daily choice, not just a one-time decisionHow to forgive fast, fully, frequently, and freelyThrough passages from Matthew 18, Hebrews 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4, Colossians 2, and more, this message reveals that forgiveness isn't about approving what happened or pretending the hurt didn't exist—it's about releasing the offender and trusting God with justice.Because you never look more like Jesus than when you forgive the way He forgave you.The more deeply you understand the forgiveness you've received from Christ, the more freely you'll extend that same forgiveness to others.The question isn't whether you've been hurt.The question is:Where are you with forgiveness?

Send us Fan MailLev Gonick is the CIO at Arizona State University, one of the largest and fastest-growing universities in the United States, with over 200,000 students across campuses in Phoenix, Los Angeles, Washington, and 35 partner institutions around the world. He won an ORBIE Award in 2023 as a top large Enterprise CIO, was named a Top 50 Educational Technology Influencer by EdScoop in 2022, and holds a PhD in International Political Economy from York University.Before joining ASU, he was one of the rare CIOs who came from the classroom, having spent the first decade of his career as a teacher and researcher before pioneering online learning in the 1990s, long before it became an industry. In this episode, Lev draws on more than 40 years at the intersection of technology and education to make the case that AI is not the disruptor of higher education, it is the accelerant, and that the institutions treating it that way are already building what everyone else is still debating.In this conversation, we discuss:Why AI is not the disruptor of higher education, and what has actually been driving the disruption for decadesHow ASU went from survival mode during the 2009 financial crisis to building the largest online learning operation in the country, and why the same instinct is now driving its AI strategyWhat ASU's data from 200,000 students using AI daily actually reveals about which skills will endure and which ones will notHow the role of university faculty is fundamentally changing in the AI era, and why the hardest question has nothing to do with cheatingWhat the "Agentic self" means for creatives, and how a unique course taught by Will.i.am is helping students protect and amplify their creative futures.How the traditional responsibilities of the Chief Information Officer are expanding beyond basic operations to actively shaping institutional strategy and innovation. Explore this conversation:00:00 Intro and AI Fun Fact: Blue Books vs AI Rethinking Academic Integrity04:25 Introducing Lev Gonick, CIO at Arizona State University05:17 From Classroom Teacher to Academic Disruptor at ASU08:16 ASU Principled Innovation and the Design Build Approach to AI13:23 Co-Creating with Industry: AWS Zoom and the GSV Summit at ASU17:35 Soft Skills Are Smart Skills: Rethinking AI Literacy in Higher Ed23:25 Rethinking Assessment: What Faculty Must Adapt to in the AI Era27:01 Why a College Degree Still Matters in the Age of AI30:37 From YouTube to ASU: Meeting Learners Where They Are34:22 Disrupt or Be Disrupted: ASU Mission to Reach 300000 Students35:57 From Operator to Strategist: The New Playbook for the Modern CIO40:26 Connect with Lev Gonick and Arizona State University RESOURCESSubscribe to the AI & The Future of Work NewsletterConnect with Lev on LinkedInAI fun fact article: Blue Books Are Making a Campus Comeback via Axios, by Josephine WalkerOn what most entrepreneurs get wrong when pitching to VCs.

Un grand merci à Loop Capital, la référence mondiale de l'Infinite Banking Concept, de soutenir ce podcast. Découvrez comment reprendre le contrôle absolu de votre capital et bâtir votre souveraineté financière sur : https://loop-capital.co/Martin Beauval a 25 ans. À 19 ans, il était caissier chez Auchan.Aujourd'hui, il supervise un groupe d'activités qui génère entre 250 000 et 400 000€ par mois.Le point de départ : un crédit étudiant utilisé pour acheter 16 places de parking. Depuis ce pari initial, tout s'est enchaîné — 37 propriétés Airbnb en conciergerie en France, 70+ propriétés au Maroc opérées à distance, un SaaS d'automatisation, une agence de contenu, etc.Ce qui rend cet épisode différent, c'est pas le chiffre. C'est la méthode.Martin a compris très tôt que le vrai levier, c'est les gens — pas les heures. Inspiré par la philosophie du "Who, Not How", il a construit un système où chaque nouveau projet repose sur la bonne personne au bon endroit.Dans cet épisode de Débrouillard, il raconte tout — les erreurs, les raccourcis, et ce qu'il ferait différemment depuis zéro.▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Nonprofit leaders spend a lot of time selling to one kind of funder or decisionmaker or another just about every day of the week. We spend a lot of time selling, but we don't necessarily talk about it as sales. And I think that's a bit of a mistake. And here's the thing. When you get into nonprofit leadership, people don't tell you you're going to be a salesperson. They don't tell you that's going to be a big part of the job. Part of what I want to do today is to first of all call out the actual sales work that we are all doing. And then to address what tends to get in the way of a successful sale. What I've noticed again and again is that there are certain aspects of sales that can be especially problematic and challenging for Nonprofit leaders. We start getting tripped up and finding ourselves in situations with decisionmakers where we are either not getting the sale, or maybe we're getting the sale, but we're not getting the deal we want. They're not investing at the level that we really need them to, and we're settling for something less. Today I'm uncovering the most common hazards that get in the way of a successful sale.  And to go with them, I'm sharing the four essential sales skills that will let you conquer those hazards.  In this episode, we share: The biggest hazards that can trip you up and tank your sales conversationsThe four essential sales skills that will let you conquer those hazardsHow to make huge asks without fearHow our money stories are driving our sales conversations, whether we realize it or notHow to wire in the money stories that will cause sales successWhat to do (and what NOT to do) when a decisionmaker reacts negatively to your price  Help spread the word! If you found value in this episode, I'd be grateful if you would leave a review on iTunes or wherever you listen. Your reviews help other nonprofit leaders find the podcast.  Thanks!!

Through faith, meditation, and surrender to the divine, RamDev explores the art of resting in presence—embracing all of life, light and dark alike.This time on Healing at the Edge, RamDev chats about:Recognizing that presence is always there, whether the mind is calm or notHow having faith in presence will actually quiet the mindA short guided meditationSeeing God in everything rather than trying to figure everything outTaking inspiration from Rumi and resting in the heart-caveFinding the space to be with what we feel, rather than wondering why we are feeling it Giving up our identity and story and being in presence itself Searching for an embodied sense of self which unites with The OneAccepting both the dark and the lightThe poem Lovedogs by RumiLiving without resistance to the divine unfolding of reality About RamDev Dale Borglum:RamDev Dale Borglum founded and directed the Hanuman Foundation Dying Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the first residential facility in the United States to support conscious dying. He has been the Executive Director of the Living/Dying Project in Santa Fe and since 1986 in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is the co-author with Ram Dass, Daniel Goleman and Dwarka Bonner of Journey of Awakening: A Meditator's Guidebook, Bantam Books and has taught meditation since 1974.RamDev offers lectures and workshops on meditation, healing, spiritual support for those with life-threatening illness, and caregiving as spiritual practice. He has a doctorate degree from Stanford University. RamDev's passion is the healing of our individual and collective fear of death so that we may be free.Learn more about RamDev's work via the Living/Dying Project and follow him on Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok.“We in the West tend to think of presence or God as something positive, pleasant, and enjoyable, and yet, it's all presence. There is nothing that isn't.” –RamDevSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the way you feel about your body has nothing to do with your body - and everything to do with what you learned before you were old enough to question it?Most of us can't pinpoint one moment we started hating our bodies, but understanding where it came from is one of the most powerful things you can do - for yourself, and for the little ones watching you.In this episode, I'll share:Why body image issues start earlier than you think (we're talking as young as age 3) and how they get passed down through families without anyone meaning any harmHow a mother's own body comments - not even directed at her kids - directly shape her child's relationship with their body and foodA confronting exercise to help you see your self-talk for what it really is, and why it's never okayWhy healing yourself is one of the most powerful things you can do for the next generation - whether you have kids or notHow to gentle parent yourself: the one practical shift you can make this week to start speaking to yourself differentlyWant to dive deeper into this? Book a free, no-strings-attached coaching session here.✋

You probably know about the gut-brain axis already, but this episode brings an expert to share the next layer of knowledge on how your mind controls your digestion. This week I'm speaking to Helen Brooks, clinical hypnotherapist about gut directed hypnotherapy. We cover:What is gut directed hypnotherapy and what is it notHow does it help in IBS?What you can do at home to calm the gut-brain connectionAbout HelenHelen Brooks is a clinical hypnotherapist and the founder of The Tummy Whisperer, specialising in an evidence-based mind-body approach for IBS and disorders of gut-brain interaction.Using a unique framework that combines gut-directed hypnotherapy, nervous system regulation and mind-body work, Helen helps people reduce symptoms, rebuild trust in their body, and stop organising life around their gut.Her work focuses on supporting the systems that drive, amplify and maintain IBS symptoms, helping clients live better even when they've "tried everything."Helen works with clients internationally through her online programmes and virtual clinic.Helen's website: https://www.thetummywhisperer.co.ukFree audio download - https://calm-gut-audio.thetummywhisperer.co.uk If you'd like support putting the brakes on urgency and calming the gut-brain connection, explore the Gut-Brain Reset here: https://gut-brain-reset.lovable.apphttps://www.thetummywhisperer.co.uk/ About meBuy my book - Inside Knowledge for people with IBS & SIBO (find it on Amazon)Get free weekly IBS & SIBO emails - https://mailchi.mp/goodnessme-nutrition.com/h6acndd1bsWork with me3 month Gut Reset - https://www.goodnessme-nutrition.com/consultations/Ready for your gut reset?

How can introverts build meaningful connections in a world that often values constant interaction and small talk? In this episode of The Quiet And Strong Podcast, host David Hall welcomes Mark Marrott, business builder, keynote speaker, and host of the Knee to Knee podcast, for an inspiring conversation about thriving as an introvert while forming deep, authentic relationships.Listeners will discover:The powerful impact of genuine connection on well-being and resilienceStrategies for introverts to create and maintain deeper relationships—at work and in life—without pretending to be someone they're notHow to embrace your introverted nature and use it to your advantage in public speaking, sales, and leadershipPractical tips for moving beyond surface-level small talk and making conversations more meaningfulWhy recognizing your own needs, preparing in your own style, and taking simple actions—like sending a thoughtful message—can foster rewarding relationshipsWhether you're an introvert seeking tools for better connection or someone who wants to understand and support the introverts in your life, this episode will empower you with insights and encouragement. Learn how to use your quiet strengths, build relationships that matter, and be strong.Episode Link: QuietandStrong.com/277Mark Marrott has literally had to rebuild from the ground up. A 40-foot fall and years in a wheelchair reshaped how he leads and connects—turning big ideas like empathy, faith, and grit into everyday practices instead of just nice words. As a business builder, keynote speaker, and host of the KneeToKnee podcast, he sits down with executives, athletes, first responders, and everyday heroes to explore how real human connection drives resilience, belonging, and performance. He's an introvert who's spent a career in outward-facing roles, and he cares deeply about helping quieter leaders build authentic connections on their own terms—without pretending to be someone they're not.Connect with Mark: Website | Podcast---Books mentioned in this episode: The Will to Win by Kurt Brinkman The Levity Effect by Scott Christopher The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey (specifically referenced Habit 5: "Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood") Send us Fan MailSupport the show- - -Contact the Host of the Quiet and Strong Podcast:David HallAuthor, Speaker, Educator, Podcasterquietandstrong.comGobio.link/quietandstrongdavid [at] quietandstrong.comNOTE: This post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no extra cost to you.Take the FREE Personality Assessment: Typefinder Personality AssessmentFollow David on your favorite social platform:Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Youtube Get David's book:Minding Your Time: Time Management, Productivity, and Success, Especially for IntrovertsGet Quiet & Strong Merchandise

How can HR leaders learn to sell without selling?Why should every HR leader think of themselves as a salesperson?My guest on this episode is Brendan McAdams, B2B Sales Coach & Consultant and author of ‘Sales Craft'During our conversation Brendan and I discuss the following: Why every HR leader is already in sales, whether they call it that or notHow sales is really the work of helping someone make a better decision that is right for themWhy status quo is often the strongest competitor to any HR initiative, and what to do about it.How surfacing objections out loud ("killing the deal") builds trust and accelerates real buy-inWhy "if we do this, who loses?" is one of the most useful questions an HR leader can askConnecting with Brendan: Connect with Brendan on LinkedInLearn more about Brendan's company KiineticsDownload Brendan's Stakeholder Meeting Prep Worksheet Episode Sponsor: Next-Gen HR Accelerator - Learn more about this best-in-class leadership development program for next-gen HR leadersHR Leader's Blueprint - 18 pages of real-world advice from 100+ HR thought leaders. Simple, actionable, and proven strategies to advance your career.Succession Planning Playbook: In this focused 1-page resource, I cut through the noise to give you the vital elements that define what “great” succession planning looks like.

Send us Fan MailWhat does it really take to build a multi-generational business from a garage startup to an 8-figure revenue company?In this fireside chat, we sit down with David and Nathan McWhorter—founders and operators of a steel construction company that scaled from a one-man welding shop in 1992 to a 75-person operation today.This isn't theory. This is 20+ years of execution, mistakes, reinvestment, and strategic growth—broken down into real lessons you can apply immediately.In this episode, we cover:The exact mindset shift required to go from operator → ownerWhy reinvesting in equipment and people beats lifestyle spending early onHow discipline (and military background) shaped long-term successThe power of “Who, Not How” in scaling a businessHiring the right people vs. just hiring fastBuilding a resilient company in a cyclical, capital-intensive industryStrategic moves that helped them compete with much larger playersLessons on family business dynamics, leadership, and earning respectThe biggest early mistake that holds most founders back from scalingYou'll also hear how they:Built internal capabilities (including offshore operations) to increase marginsLeveraged automation to stay competitiveNavigated downturns and industry volatilityCreated a culture that supports long-term growthBottom line:This is a masterclass in patience, discipline, and smart scaling—not hype.If you're building a business, investing in one, or leading a family enterprise, this conversation will give you practical insights you won't hear anywhere else.Want more insights like this?Subscribe for interviews with decamillionaires, billionaires, and top investors sharing real strategies on scaling, deal-making, and capital raising.#Entrepreneurship #FamilyBusiness #ScalingUp #Manufacturing #PrivateEquity #BusinessGrowth #Leadershiphttps://familyoffices.com/

In this powerful and healing episode, Keana explores what legalism looks like in the church, how it distorts our view of God, and how to break free from fear‑based faith. If you've ever felt like you had to earn God's love, perform perfectly, or follow endless rules to be accepted, this conversation will help you breathe again.Keana gently unpacks the emotional and spiritual impact of legalism, explains why so many believers struggle with shame and anxiety around God, and offers a path back to a relationship rooted in love, grace, and freedom. This episode builds on last week's message “Religion Cannot Save You, But God's Love Can” and continues the journey of rediscovering God's heart beyond religious pressure.You'll also receive five healing exercises to help you unlearn harmful beliefs, reconnect with God's love, and rebuild your identity on truth instead of performance.What You'll Learn in This EpisodeWhat legalism actually is and what it is notHow legalism shows up in church culture and teachingThe emotional and spiritual wounds legalism createsWhy legalism replaces relationship with rulesHow to separate God's character from harmful religious expectationsPractical steps to break free from fear‑based faithFive healing exercises to help you reconnect with God's loveFive Healing Exercises Included“God Is Love” Reframing PracticeInner Child Compassion PrayerScripture Detox ExerciseNervous System Reset for Spiritual TriggersIdentity Rebuilding Journal PromptsReflection QuestionsWhat beliefs about God were shaped by fear instead of loveWhere have I confused religious performance with spiritual connectionWhat parts of my faith feel heavy, pressured, or shame‑basedWhat does spiritual freedom look like for me nowWhat is one legalistic belief I'm ready to releaseFinal EncouragementLegalism may have shaped your view of God, but it does not define who God is. God is not the author of fear. He is the source of freedom. You don't have to earn His love. You just have to receive it.

What if the thing you're holding onto… is the very thing holding you back? In this deeply moving message, Pastor Ken Senchal shares Daphne's story—a powerful example of choosing forgiveness when it feels impossible. This isn't just a message about forgiveness. It's a message about freedom. You'll discover: Why forgiveness is a decision—not a feeling What forgiveness is (and what it is NOT) How unforgiveness silently traps your heart How to begin releasing pain—one decision at a time Scripture reminds us in Colossians 3:13 to forgive as we've been forgiven. But how do we actually live that out when the pain is real? This message walks you through it—with honesty, truth, and hope.

Send us Fan Mail Study Abroad Stress? Use Handwriting to Build Focus, Confidence & Calm Studying abroad looks exciting from the outside… But what happens when the excitement fades—and reality begins?Loneliness. Stress. Financial pressure. Confidence issues. And the silent question many students don't say out loud: 

Today, I'm exploring the power of identity and how it shapes us, anchors us, and sometimes quietly begins to confine us. Even the identities that are good and meaningful can become cages when we cling to them too tightly or start to outgrow the version of ourselves they were built around.In this episode, I unpack how to recognize when an identity is supporting you versus trapping you, the questions worth asking when everything starts to feel different, and the very real grief that can come with letting an old version of yourself go.Podcast Episode Highlights:Everything feels differentMy huge identity shifts over timeIdentities can be good AND bad (aka in the grey)Identities can become cages BECAUSE they are goodQuestions to ask yourself to see if your identity is helping you or notHow to know when your identity is trapping youThe grief connected to losing your identityFinal thoughts on releasing identitiesResources Mentioned in This Podcast Episode:Learn more about Meal Craft here: https://mealcraftmethod.com/--> Use the code PODCAST for a $15 off discount on Meal CraftEarlier podcast episode I mentioned today: Season 18: Episode 6: The Magic of Not BelongingOTHER HELPFUL RESOURCES FOR YOUR HOMESTEAD:Sign up for weekly musings from my homestead: https://jillwinger.substack.com/Get my free homesteading tutorials & recipes here: www.theprairiehomestead.comJill on Instagram: @jill.wingerJill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomesteadApply to be a guest on the Old-Fashioned on Purpose podcast: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/podcast-guest-applicationDid you enjoy listening to this episode? Please drop a comment below or leave a review to let us know. This can help other folks learn about this podcast and we also really appreciate the feedback! 

Here is a number that should bother you. Only 38 out of 100 powersports dealers replied to an online digital lead in a recent study. That means the customer who just spent weeks researching, comparing, dreaming, and finally hit submit on your website is probably getting nothing back from you.This episode is from the NPDA Partner Series webinar, hosted by Mark Sheffield of the National Powersports Dealer Association. I joined Chris Yeloushan from Rollick for a front-to-back breakdown of what actually happens when a customer clicks on your inventory, submits a lead, and waits to hear from someone.Spoiler: most of the time, they wait forever. And then they buy from the first dealer who shows up.This is one of the most practical, numbers-driven conversations I have had on digital lead handling, follow-up strategy, and what separates dealers who are winning online from the ones who are still flying blind.What we cover:Who the modern powersports buyer actually is and what they have already done before they ever submit a leadThe five Google Micro Moments that map the customer buying journey before they contact your dealershipWhy 60 to 80% of buyers do not purchase the exact unit they originally inquired about and what that means for your follow-upThe Pied Piper ILE 2026 data: half of all powersports leads go unanswered and the industry average ILE score is 44 out of 100A dealer with 100 leads and a great process will outsell a dealer with 500 leads and no process every timeThe five-step Day One response playbook from the birth of the leadWhy you only need to be bad to be better than most of your competitionWhat call-to-action buttons actually convert best on a VDP page (and which one is broken on almost every dealer website right now)Why showing room floor photos outperform both factory images and photo booth shots for lead generationThe 36% increase in close rate that Rollick saw from dealers using automated email nurture versus those that did notHow to shop your own dealership with a fake Gmail and what you will find when you doWhy the fifth, sixth, and seventh follow-up email can outperform the first autoresponderPricing transparency and the out-the-door price debate with data from thousands of Dealer Spike websitesNPDA membership and what 400-plus member dealers are getting for $395 a yearWatch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit?si=xGw636a89UUDAK20⁠Connect with Chris Yeloushan (Rollick): ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-yeloushan-b078b55/⁠Connect with Mark Sheffield (NPDA): ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/markjsheffield/⁠Learn more about the NPDA: ⁠https://www.npda.org⁠Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry⁠Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

No one expects to get in an accident. But when you do, and when injuries are involved, navigating the insurance system and legal landscape can feel overwhelming. Melissa Joy, CFP® sits down with Megan Burns, founder of Mirador Law and personal injury trial lawyer, to pull back the curtain on what actually happens after an accident and how to protect yourself before one ever occurs.Megan brings both professional expertise and personal experience to this conversation, having been seriously injured in a bike accident in her early twenties. From understanding your auto insurance coverage to knowing when you need a lawyer and when you do not, this episode gives listeners a practical, honest roadmap for one of the most financially and emotionally complex situations a person can face.What You'll LearnWhy your insurance policy is a financial hedge and how to treat it like oneThe difference between fault states and no fault states and what that means for your coverageWhy uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is one of the most important protections you can haveHow Michigan's 2020 no fault law changes affect what you are actually covered forWhy disability insurance may be as important or more important than life insuranceWhen you absolutely need a personal injury attorney and when you do notHow to find a quality personal injury lawyer and the red flags to avoidWhy hiring a trial lawyer specifically makes a significant difference in outcomesWhat to expect from the legal process after signing with an attorneyHow umbrella liability insurance works and why it matters for protecting your assetsConnect with Megan: Website: www.miradorlaw.comThe previous presentation by PEARL PLANNING was intended for general information purposes only.  No portion of the presentation serves as the receipt of, or as a substitute for, personalized investment advice from PEARL PLANNING or any other investment professional of your choosing. Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and it should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy, or any non-investment related or planning services, discussion or content, will be profitable, be suitable for your portfolio or individual situation, or prove successful. Neither PEARL PLANNING's investment adviser registration status, nor any amount of prior experience or success, should be construed that a certain level of results or satisfaction will be achieved if PEARL PLANNING is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services. PEARL PLANNING is neither a law firm nor accounting firm, and no portion of its services should be construed as legal or accounting advice. No portion of the video content should be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that he/she will experience a certain level of results if PEARL PLANNING is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services. A copy of PEARL PLANNING's current written disclosure Brochure discussing our advisory services and fees is available upon request or at https...

Welcome, gorgeous souls, to Episode 427 of Aligned Abundance! ✨This week, I'm joined by intuitive teacher and author MaryAnn DiMarco for a powerful conversation on manifestation, spirit guides and what it really means to trust yourself without giving your power away.In this episode, we explore the relationship between intuition, spiritual guidance and aligned manifestation - and why true abundance isn't about outsourcing your decisions, but deepening your self-trust. MaryAnn shares honest, refreshing insights into what spirit guides are (and what they're not), how to work with them in an empowering way, and how to stay rooted in your own discernment in a world that often encourages dependency on external signs.Here's what you'll discover in this week's episode:What spirit guides are and just as importantly, what they're notHow to build a relationship with your guides without losing your sense of selfThe key difference between intuition, fear, and overthinkingWhat spiritual bypassing really looks like (and how to catch it with compassion)When we shift from seeking constant guidance to cultivating self-trust, manifestation becomes less about chasing and more about recognising what's already aligned. This episode is a reminder that you are deeply supported - but you are also the source of your own power ✨Don't forget to share your biggest takeaways with me on Instagram @iamemmamumfordVisit MaryAnn's website: https://maryanndimarco.com/-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Explore More Ways to Manifest Your Dream Life...

In this episode, I discuss with fellow physiotherapist Carina SiracusaExplanation of our body's bowel and bladder function At what level Parkinson's, Multiple Sclerosis and Stroke affect these systemsMedication considerations and side effectsHow is the pelvic floor related and how it is NOTHow we can help as physiotherapists How patients can advocate for themselvesDr. Carina Siracusa has been a practicing physical therapist since she graduated from Ohio University with her doctorate in physical therapy in 2005. She has practiced in the areas of pediatric, neurologic, oncologic, and pelvic floor physical therapy in her tenure as a physical therapist. She currently works in the neurologic rehab department at OhioHealth in Columbus, Ohio, seeing patients of all ages and abilities with pelvic floor dysfunction. She also serves as the oncology rehabilitation coordinator and the wheelchair clinic coordinator in this hospital system. She has been teaching for the Academy of Pelvic Health Physical Therapy since 2010 in the pelvic health series. She has also taught as adjunct clinical faculty at several universities. She has given multiple presentations all over the world on the topics of neurologic and pediatric pelvic health. She also teaches several two-day courses on the subjects of pediatric and neurologic pelvic health.Instagram: @carinadptMentoring available through Carina: @SynapsePTMentoringTHANK YOU TO THIS EPISODE SPONSORSRC Health:  Use the link below for a discount at checkout!https://srchealth.com/?ref=PELVICFLOORPROJECTThanks for joining me! Here is where you can find out how to work with me:  www.pelvicfloorprojectspace.com/mel@pelvicfloorprojectspace.comSupport the show

In this episode of Memoirs of an LDS Servant Teacher Podcast, we explore a powerful reframe of repentance—not as punishment, but as a daily process of alignment, growth, and renewal. Rather than viewing repentance as something negative, this episode teaches how it becomes a life-giving rhythm—a way to stay in harmony with God and move forward with clarity and confidence.In this episode, you'll learn:Why repentance is not a rebuke, but an invitation to growHow to use a simple process (reflect, discover, plan) to realign dailyWhat it means to be “in tune” spiritually—and how to recognize when you're notHow to handle criticism, pressure, or judgment from others without losing confidenceWhy knowledge alone does not determine spiritual strengthHow to trust your personal growth timeline without comparing yourself to othersThis episode also addresses the pressure many feel from others to change faster, think differently, or conform—and how to stay grounded in your identity and development process.These teachings are rooted in gospel-centered principles and are designed to help individuals strengthen their relationships, develop self-mastery, and grow through consistent, intentional effort.This podcast is created by individuals who strive to live by the principles taught in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and apply them in practical, life-changing ways.

In this episode of Mormonism Live, we walk through the full evolution of the Word of Wisdom—from its origin in 1833 to how it functions today as a requirement for temple worthiness. We start in Kirtland, where the School of the Prophets was filled with tobacco smoke, chewing, and spitting—and where Emma Smith's frustration becomes part of the story behind the revelation. From there, we zoom out and examine the broader 19th-century health movements already shaping ideas about diet, stimulants, and self-control. Figures like Sylvester Graham and the growing temperance movement weren't fringe—they were mainstream. And their fingerprints are all over the Word of Wisdom. We then track how the revelation was originally given “not by commandment,” how early leaders—including Joseph Smith and Wilford Woodruff—continued to drink alcohol, and how enforcement slowly tightened over time. What began as counsel eventually became a defining boundary marker of Mormon worthiness. Along the way, we tackle the contradictions and gray areas:Why coffee and tea are prohibited while caffeine is notHow “mild drinks of barley” disappeared from the conversationThe shifting stance on medical marijuanaCultural gray zones like kavaAnd how modern application often depends more on tradition than a consistent principle By the end, the question isn't just what the Word of Wisdom says—but how it became what it is today. Donate to Mormonism Live: https://donorbox.org/mormonism-live Get Bill Reel's book “The Logical Deconstruction of Mormonism”: https://www.amazon.com/Logical-Deconstruction-Mormonism-One-Book/dp/B0GQQ4CJ2S

[On this episode: Jack Hoey III (Substack), Chip Judd (Website), Roy Jacques, Joey Svendsen]Joey's Church Family joins for this episode to discuss beliefs, the supernatural, the bible, proof of God, and what many see as the slipperly slope of deconstruction. Jack, Chip and Roy listened beforehand to an episode released in January called, "That's Not How the Bible Works, God Isn't Love, Casual Christians & Pan-Handling" and respond with personal reflections about that conversation and about Joey's faith in general.  E-mail Joey here.Support Joey's work by Being a Patron / (Venmo)PWNA Theme Song by Stoy Prioleau (aka: Riggy Roc): Apple MusicClosing song by Derek Minor and other music by Mechanical River. 

Send us Fan MailIn this episode, Frazier and Michael break down one of the biggest silent killers in production: overcomplicated CRMs and bloated pipelines.15 stages. Endless automations. “What if” scenarios everywhere.It feels productive. It's not.This conversation cuts through the noise and shows you how to simplify your pipeline, clean up your CRM, and actually use your system the way it was meant to be used—to close more loans.Because here's the truth: Complex systems don't scale.What You'll Learn Why most loan officer pipelines are completely overbuilt  The real purpose of pipeline stages (and what they are NOT)  How to identify bottlenecks in your sales process instantly  Why “edge cases” should NOT become pipeline stages  The difference between leads vs. real opportunities  How poor pipeline hygiene is quietly killing your production Real Talk Quotes “Complexity is the enemy of execution.”  “You built your system based on your feelings, not your data.”  “If you're not willing to follow up, get it out of your pipeline.”  “This isn't a high score game. More leads in your pipeline isn't better.”  “Most of those ‘opportunities' were never deals to begin with.” Tactical Takeaways✅ Keep your pipeline to 5–8 stages max ✅ Build stages around actual drop-off points, not “what if” scenarios ✅ Use tags and custom fields, not extra stages, for edge cases ✅ Every opportunity should have a real follow-up scheduled ✅ If you wouldn't follow up with them… remove them from the pipeline ✅ Clean pipeline = clear decisions = more closingsThe Big IdeaYour CRM should give you clarity. If it gives you confusion, it's broken.The goal is to build a system you actually use.Because the best pipeline is the one that helps you take action.Why This Episode MattersLoan officers everywhere are wasting time managing systems instead of generating revenue.They're tweaking workflows…Building automations…Adding stages…And closing fewer deals.This episode flips that.It shows you how to simplify your process, eliminate noise, and focus on what actually drives results: conversations, follow-up, and execution.The MLO Project is EMPOWERED by: Empower LO

In this episode, Gail Root breaks down one of the most important shifts in lead generation: seeing your business from your customer's perspective. Using simple, relatable examples, Gail shows how every business has a process that moves someone from awareness to trust to purchase — and why so many women entrepreneurs lose leads by asking people to jump too far, too fast.You'll learn how to build a simple trust ladder that helps your right-fit audience feel safe, seen, and ready to take the next step with you.In this episode, you'll hear:Why every business already has a lead generation system — whether it's intentional or notHow to view your marketing from your customer's perspective instead of your ownWhat a trust ladder is and why most people buy only after climbing itExamples of the right “next step” invites that build trust over timeThe biggest mistake entrepreneurs make: asking leads to take too big of a leapWhy follow-up after a live event or workshop is often where the real decision happensCall to ActionReady to strengthen your own lead generation journey? Visit GailRoot.com to check out upcoming events and join the Kingdom Business Women Facebook Group for faith-led growth and simple systems that help you build with clarity and trust.

In this episode Slappin' Glass welcomes back one of Europe's most thoughtful and dynamic coaching voices, Andrea Trinchieri. Coach Trinchieri returns for a wide-ranging conversation on defensive identity, in-game coaching, leadership evolution, and the modern coach–player relationship.With most teams deep into the season, the discussion begins around identity — and whether it's ever truly fixed. Coach Trinchieri frames the basketball season as evolution, requiring adaptability, clarity of core values, and defensive systems that can toggle aggression without overhauling structure. From simplifying coverage to managing player psychology, this episode dives into the balance between tactical precision and human connection.Throughout the conversation, Coach Trinchieri shares his philosophy on:Why simplicity — not complexity — often produces the best defensive resultsHow to “upgrade” or “downgrade” a base coverage without disrupting rotationsThe psychological reality that players find rhythm through offense before committing defensivelyThe importance of situational awareness in managing substitutions and early-game momentumLayered rebounding principles and how to incentivize “no man's land” effort playsWhen and why to implement tagging concepts on the offensive glassThe evolving coach–player dynamic in an era shaped by NIL and social mediaThe episode also features a compelling round of Start, Sub, or Sit, where Coach Trinchieri breaks down what he prioritizes at the start of games, which statistical margins matter most (rebounding, free throws, turnovers), and how in-game evaluation must remain fluid and situational.At its core, this episode centers on a driving question:How can coaches evolve tactically while strengthening the relationships that ultimately define success?For coaches seeking insight into defensive structure, in-game management, leadership philosophy, and sustainable team identity, this conversation delivers a masterclass in both strategy and humanity.What You'll LearnHow to build a defensive identity that can toggle aggression without sacrificing clarityWhy offensive involvement fuels defensive commitmentA framework for balancing scouting preparation with non-negotiable core valuesHow to address early-game energy issues without overreactingA layered approach to rebounding: one-on-one battles, neutral rebounds, and effort incentivesWhen tagging principles are most effective — and when they are notHow defining roles creates hierarchy, chemistry, and clarityWhy long-term coaching success should be measured by player evolution, not public opinionThis Episode is Sponsored By:NABC Convention Join coaches from across the country April 2–6 in Indianapolis for five days of X's & O's clinics, educational sessions, networking, and championship-week access. Slappin' Glass will be hosting a classroom-style film session breaking down the game's best global trends. Register at nabc.com/convention.Hudl — FastDraw, FastScout & FastRecruit The tools coaches trust are now fully integrated into Hudl's complete basketball ecosystem — moving seamlessly from play diagrams to film to player tracking. Learn more at hudl.com/slappinglass.For more coaching resources, breakdowns, and the free weekly newsletter, visit slappinglass.com.To join coaches and championship winning staffs from the NBA to High School from over 60 different countries taking advantage of an SG Plus membership, visit HERE!

Send us a text letting us know your thoughts on today's episodeIf you've been listening through this bonus mini series and quietly wondering whether one-on-one podcast support might be your next step, this episode is for you. Not to convince you. Not to push you. But to give you clarity. In this final bonus episode, I'm walking you through exactly what it looks like to work with me one-on-one for podcast strategy and production support so you can decide what kind of help (if any) actually makes sense for you and your season of life.We talk about why podcasting can feel so heavy when you're trying to do all the roles at once, the difference between strategic support and full strategy + production support, and what clients usually notice first when they stop carrying their podcast alone. Spoiler: it's not instant growth or downloads—it's relief. If you're craving clarity, containment, and a podcast that actually supports your business instead of draining it, this episode will help you name what you've been carrying and explore what support could look like moving forward. In this episode, we cover:Why most podcasters don't struggle because of consistency or motivationThe real reason podcasting feels overwhelming for so many momsWhat one-on-one podcast strategy support includesWhat it looks like to combine strategy and production supportThe first thing clients notice when they bring on podcast supportWhat working with me one-on-one is notHow to know if support makes sense for you in this seasonNext steps: If you're feeling curious about what working together could look like, the next step is simple: apply for one-on-one podcast support. The application isn't a commitment—it's just a conversation to see where you're at, what you need, and whether I'm the right fit to support you.Learn more about 1:1 podcast support Whether you decide to apply or not, I hope this series reminded you that you don't have to struggle your way through podcasting alone.Need support with your podcast?Book your free Podcast Profit Plan call today! Next Steps: Enjoyed this episode? Let me know over on Instagram and share your favorite takeaway on your Instagram Stories.Ready to hand off your podcast production or experience more podcast growth? Visit our website to learn more about our podcast launch, podcast management and podcast growth services. Book your free Podcast Profit Plan Discovery Call here.Don't forget to hit subscribe/follow so you get notified every time a new episode drops!

Almost every nonfiction author says it at some point:“I want to be a New York Times bestselling author.”It sounds ambitious. It sounds impressive. It sounds like the gold medal of publishing.But in this episode of Your Path to Book Publishing, the conversation goes deeper than the badge.Because bestseller status isn't a trophy. It's a tool.And tools only matter if they serve the right purpose.This episode explores what bestseller status can actually change — and what it doesn't automatically fix. It breaks down the difference between major lists like the New York Times and USA Today, category-based Amazon rankings, and what those signals truly mean in the marketplace.More importantly, it reframes the core question nonfiction authors should be asking:Not “How do I hit a list?” But “What is bestseller status supposed to unlock for me?”Listeners will discover:Why bestseller status functions as a credibility signalWhat it can realistically influence (speaking, positioning, authority)What it does not guarantee (business clarity, revenue systems, long-term sales)Why some bestselling authors still struggle after launchThe strategic question every coach, consultant, and thought leader should answer before pursuing a listIf you're considering a bestseller strategy — or simply wondering whether it's worth it — this episode offers a clear, strategic perspective rooted in long-term thinking.Learn more about Your Path to Book Publishing by visiting Juxtabook.com and discover if traditional publishing, self-publishing, or hybrid publishing is right for you. Liked this episode? Share it and tag us on Instagram @juxtabookpress Connect with the Host on LinkedIn: @ZachKristensenLove the show? Leave a review and let us know!CONNECT WITH US: Website | Instagram | Facebook

For many high-capacity humans, authority has always felt conditional.Granted when you perform well.Withheld when certainty slips.Reviewed through hierarchy, feedback, and approval.In this Sunday episode of The Recalibration, we turn toward what I call Vertical Alignment. This isn't a new stage or a productivity practice. It's an orientation. A resting place for identity beyond effort, striving, or evaluation.This episode flows from my personal faith in Jesus, because for me, real alignment doesn't happen apart from the One who authored identity itself. Vertical Alignment asks a different question than the rest of the week. Not “How do I lead better?” but “Who am I becoming in relationship with God?”We explore what happens when competence reaches its edge. When certainty thins. When the next step isn't visible. For driven, responsible people, these gaps often feel threatening. Like something to fix quickly. But what if the gap isn't a failure? What if it's where authority stops being proven and starts being received?Drawing from 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NLT), we sit with the truth that grace doesn't replace responsibility. It re-sources it. Authority doesn't flow from having it all together. It flows from being held when you don't.This is not mindset work.It's not spiritual performance.And it's not about becoming passive.Identity-Level Recalibration (ILR) begins at the root, not the behavior. When identity is secured vertically, it no longer needs to be defended horizontally. The nervous system rests. Striving softens. Leadership begins to flow from overflow instead of effort.Today's episode is for those who feel capable, faithful, and quietly tired of carrying authority like a task. It's an invitation to let it rest somewhere deeper.Today's Micro Recalibration:When uncertainty appears today, ask quietly:“What if this gap isn't a problem, but a place God meets me?”No forcing belief. No fixing. Just openness.Explore Identity-Level Recalibration → Schedule a conversation with Julie to see if The Recalibration is a fit for you → Learn about The Recalibration Cohort→ Join the next Friday Recalibration Live experience → Take your listening deeper! Subscribe to The Weekly Recalibration Companion to receive reflections and extensions to each week's podcast episodes. → Follow Julie Holly on LinkedIn for more recalibration insights → Download the Misalignment Audit → Subscribe to the weekly newsletter → Books to read (Tidy categories on Amazon- I've read/listened to each recommended title.) → One link to all things...

What you'll learn in this episode:Why bad reviews aren't as damaging as you thinkThe golden rule: perception is reality—valid or notHow to respond without being defensiveThe PRO framework (Problem, Result, Offer) for impactful reviewsWhy stacking good reviews matters more than fearing bad ones  

Kelly joins me for January's Real Time Reading episode where we discuss our current, past, and upcoming reads. Kelly's Selections: Last:  Upward Bound by Woody Brown  That's Not How it Happened by Craig Thomas  Now: Love by the Book by Jessica George  Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke  Next: Villa Coco by Andrew Sean Greer  The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke  DNFs: The Survivor by Andrew Reid Book Mail highlights: The One Day You Were My Husband by Rosie Walsh  A Fortune of Sand by Ruta Sepetys  Cindy's Selections: Last:  Whistler by Ann Patchett Before I Forget by Tory Henwood Hoen Now: The Paris Match by Kate Clayborn The Shock of the Light by Lori Inglis Hall  Next: Dolly All the Time by Annabel Monaghan  Liberty Island by Virginia Hume  Didn't Work/DNFs: One & Only by Maureen Goo The Bookbinder's Secret by A.D. Bell  Book Mail highlights: The Burning Side by Sarah Damoff   Kutchinsky's Egg by Serena Kutchinsky Looking for some great winter reads? Check out my printable 17-page Winter Reading Guide ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for a tip of your choice or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠for a set price here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ via credit card with over 40 new titles vetted by me that will provide great entertainment this winter and spring - a number of books you will not see on other guides. I also include mystery series recommendations, backlist picks, and fiction and nonfiction pairings. Connect with Kelly Hooker on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Sign up for my literary salon here. Purchase Kelly and my Shelf Ceremony ⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠. We discuss tons more great read from 2025. Thanks so much to those of you who have donated to the show. Donate to the podcast ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠on Venmo⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Want to know which new titles are publishing in January - May of 2026? Check out our fifth ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Literary Lookbook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠which contains a comprehensive but not exhaustive list all in one place so you can plan ahead, and we color-code by genre in this one!  Looking for something new to read? Here is my monthly ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Buzz Reads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ column with five new recommendations each month. Connect with me on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stories run us, until we can see them. In this episode, Kristina and Anna unpack how “the subconscious” is less a black box and more an ecology of repeating narratives. They move from storytelling tropes (plot armor, fish-out-of-water) into a bigger claim. Our inner villains are story structures, and healing is stewardship, not erasure. Along the way, they explore ancestral threads, family patterning, and a practical way to step out of the script mid-scene.Key TopicsWhy common storytelling tropes feel manipulative once you can “see the scaffolding”Plot armor, fish-out-of-water, and how character arcs predict what “can” happen in a storyThe idea that the subconscious is knowable, because it's made of stories, not mysteryA working hypothesis: the nine Inner Villains are nine recurring story structures in human lifeStewardship vs elimination. You don't delete the story, you change how it plays outAncestral patterning, embodiment, and what it means to carry a lineage thread without becoming itHow relationship dynamics can become “setups” that keep a villain role alive (the trash-day example)Sankhara, craving, aversion. As story addiction, not just “bad habits”Choosing an arc intentionally. Using attention as the lever for behavioral changeA simple exercise: identify what chapter you're in, then choose a different next pageNotable Moments and Quotes (short excerpts)“The subconscious is not unknowable.”“We are taught we are just the tree, not the root system.”“Trauma is not the beginning of something. It's the middle of something.”“You're not that character anymore.”“I'm sick of choosing the same page.”Practical Takeaways1) Name the script while you're in itWhen you hear yourself saying lines you've said a hundred times, pause and label it: “Oh, this is that story.”2) Swap “fixing” for “stewarding”Ask: “What would the easier version of this lesson look like?” Not “How do I eliminate this forever?”3) Find the setupIf a conflict repeats like clockwork, assume there's a hidden payoff. Example: being the savior, being righteous, being indispensable.4) Use attention as your control leverBehavior is mostly automatic. Attention is the steering wheel. Practice moving attention on purpose.5) Try the chapter exercise“This is the chapter where I'm angry.”“This is the chapter where I make a plan.”“This is the chapter where the protagonist stops performing the old role.”Suggested Listener Reflection PromptsWhat story do I keep reenacting because it gives me an identity?Where do I get to be the savior, the martyr, or the judge?What would it look like to let consequences happen without drama?If I'm not trying to “win” this scene, what choice becomes available?Which arc am I unintentionally feeding with my attention right now?MentionedDelaney Rowe (comedian, Instagram) for character trope satireGame of Thrones as an example of subverting plot armorFallout as fish-out-of-water worldbuildingThe Pitt (HBO) as fish-out-of-water workplace introductionMurder at the End of the World (Brit Marling) as a female-led “sleuth” archetypeRichard Powers, The Overstory and the root network metaphorAboriginal Australian songlines and ancestral story-carryingAinslie MacLeod (past-life framing and “you're not in that story anymore”)Drama Triangle vs Empowerment Triangle (reframing roles and choice)Listener HomeworkPick one recurring conflict this week.Name the story.Identify your role.Choose one small inversion. A different tone, a different action, or no action at all.Notice what becomes possible when you refuse the old script.Call to ActionIf this episode hit you, send Kristina and Anna a note with:The story you're realizing you live inside, andThe one choice you want to practice to steward it differently.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this episode, Chuck Thuss sits down with Anthony Dyer for an honest, deeply human conversation about military service, accumulated trauma, identity loss, addiction, and the long road to healing. Anthony shares his 21-year career in the United States Air Force, including high-risk missions, elite rescue operations, and the emotional weight that followed him home long after the uniform came off. From the quiet moments that haunt servicemen and women to the stigma around asking for help, Anthony opens up about how suppressed trauma and alcohol nearly cost him everything. What followed was a turning point shaped by accountability, faith, community, and the courage to finally take a knee and heal. This episode is a reminder that healing is not weakness, identity can be rebuilt, and no matter how dark the night gets, you are never out of the fight. Guest Bio Anthony Dyer is a retired United States Air Force veteran with 21 years of service, including elite roles in combat search and rescue, special operations, and aerial gunship missions. A recipient of the Air Force's Jolly Green Rescue Mission of the Year, Anthony experienced firsthand the cumulative trauma that often follows long military careers. Today, he is a mental health advocate, author of Moonchild, and a voice for veterans navigating trauma, addiction recovery, identity loss, and life after service. You'll hear About The hidden emotional cost of elite military missions and long-term service Why trauma compounds when it is suppressed instead of addressed How alcohol became a coping mechanism and the ultimatum that changed everything Losing identity after military retirement and rebuilding purpose Why community, vulnerability, and telling your story can save lives   Chapters 00:00 Welcome and Episode Introduction 02:00 Anthony's Path Into the United States Air Force 04:30 Life-Changing Missions and Learning "Service Before Self" 07:20 The Trauma Civilians Rarely See 10:00 Suppression, Stigma, and Masking Mental Health Struggles 12:40 Alcohol, Identity Loss, and Hitting a Breaking Point 15:20 The Ultimatum That Forced a Choice 17:10 Transitioning Out of the Military and Losing Purpose 19:30 Why Veterans Feel Isolated After Service 21:50 Writing Moonchild and Facing the Accountability Mirror 24:20 Healing Through Storytelling and Community 26:20 Life Today: Fatherhood, Recovery, and Perspective 28:10 Anthony's Message to Veterans Who Are Struggling 30:00 Chuck's Reflections and Episode Closing Chuck's Challenge This week, ask someone a deeper question. Not "How are you doing?" but "How are you really feeling?" Listen without trying to fix anything. Presence, curiosity, and care can make all the difference.   Connect with Anthony Dyer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marco_brolo21/ X: https://x.com/anthonyp_dyer Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Moon-Child-61574988895222/   Connect with Chuck Check out the website: https://www.thecompassionateconnection.com/ Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuck-thuss-a9aa044/ Follow on Instagram: @warriorsunmasked Join the Warriors Unmasked community by subscribing to the show. Together, we're breaking stigmas and shining a light on mental health, one story at a time.

Many school leaders ask for consistency.What they're really asking is:What holds when I'm tired?In this episode of the Schools of Excellence podcast, Chanie explores why leadership often breaks down on ordinary days — not in moments of crisis — and why motivation, systems, and training alone can't carry culture, standards, or accountability.This conversation introduces one of the most important leadership distinctions:Systems create structure.Standards create clarity.Only rhythms create safety.You'll hear:Why leadership that depends on energy and motivation is unsustainableWhat rhythms are — and what they are notHow predictable patterns shape behavior more than policies or explanationsWhy teams follow what happens consistently, not what's writtenHow rhythms reduce over-functioning and restore shared ownershipWhy leaders often resist rhythms — and where real relief actually livesIf things only work when you're watching, reminding, or rescuing, this episode will help you understand why and what's missing.

Pivoting to Substack, balancing creativity with strategy, and building a brand with Phoebe Lapine. ----- Welcome to episode 553 of The Food Blogger Pro Podcast! This week on the podcast, Bjork interviews Phoebe Lapin from Feed Me Phoebe.  Reclaiming Your Audience and Moving Beyond Google with Phoebe Lapine In this episode, Phoebe joins us to talk about her evolution from the early days of blogging to the current landscape, opening up about why the constant SEO headaches finally pushed her to pivot toward Substack. She shares exactly how she's reclaiming her connection with her readers and why shifting your focus from "content creator" back to "writer" might be the best move for your brand right now. But this conversation isn't just about switching platforms; it's a masterclass in creative longevity. Phoebe gets real about the systems that keep her from burning out, including the game-changing decision to hire an SEO team so she could get back to doing what she loves. We also dive into why picking a niche that genuinely excites you is the only real secret to sticking around for the long haul. Whether you're looking to shake up your workflow or just need permission to step off the algorithm hamster wheel, this episode is a must-listen. Three episode takeaways: The Pivot from SEO to Substack: Phoebe gets real about how the "golden age" of blogging has changed. She explains why SEO headaches and the push for multimedia content led her to embrace Substack as a platform to actually connect with her audience. Creativity vs. Strategy: Phoebe shares how she balances being a "writer first" with the business side of things, including why hiring an SEO team was a total game-changer for her success. The Secret to Longevity: If you want to stick around, you have to care. Phoebe emphasizes that choosing a niche that genuinely excites you is the only way to keep your engagement high and your burnout low over the long haul. Resources: Feed Me Phoebe Check out Phoebe's latest cookbook, Carbivore! SIBO Made Simple by Phoebe Lapine The SIBO Made Simple podcast Phoebe's Substack: Munch Menus Foodie Digital Who, Not How by Dan Sullivan Follow Phoebe on Instagram Join the Food Blogger Pro Podcast Facebook Group Thank you to our sponsors! This episode is sponsored by Clariti and Grocers List. Learn more about our sponsors at foodbloggerpro.com/sponsors. Interested in working with us too? Learn more about our sponsorship opportunities and how to get started here. If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for interviews, be sure to email them to podcast@foodbloggerpro.com. Learn more about joining the Food Blogger Pro community at foodbloggerpro.com/membership.