Podcasts about shoulders

What if you could get 30 years of coaching experience condensed into one training tip per body part? This week, Joe takes on a unique challenge from a listener: Give the single BEST piece of training advice for every major muscle group - Chest, Back, Traps, Shoulders, Triceps, Biceps, Quads, Hamstrings, Glutes, Calves and Abs - in just 2-3 minutes per category. No overthinking. No research papers. No scripts. Just raw, experience-based coaching wisdom from three decades of training everyone from NFL athletes and WWE Superstars to busy parents and everyday lifters. The result is a fast-paced, highly practical episode packed with muscle-building and longevity-focused advice that can immediately improve the way you train. Whether you're looking to build muscle, stay pain-free, or simply train smarter, this episode is loaded with actionable takeaways you can put to use today! *For a full list of Show Notes & Timestamps visit www.IndustrialStrengthShow.com. IMPORTANT LINKS DeFranco's Nutritional Supplements

Get Dr. Vonda's insights Want to understand what's happening in your body — and what to do next? Each week, Dr. Vonda shares science-backed guidance on strength, bone health, muscle, and longevity — the same way she speaks to her patients. Clear. Practical. No noise. Join the newsletter: https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=YqJKtR&g=Ww3gx3& Your feet take 5,000 steps every single day, and most of us don't think about them until something goes wrong. In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Timothy Miller, DPM, FACFAS, to talk about the one body part that literally holds everything else up. We cover everything from plantar fasciitis and Achilles tendonitis to bunions, big toe arthritis, and fallen arches, and what you can do right now to stay strong, mobile, and pain-free for decades to come. This is the conversation I wish every one of my patients had before they ended up in my office.   What we explore:   - How foot dysfunction travels up the kinetic chain and causes hip, shoulder, and neck pain. - Why perimenopause triggers arch collapse and shoe size changes. - What a biomechanical evaluation is and why every woman over 40 should get one. - Why barefoot shoes are not for everyone and how to know if you are ready. - How estrogen loss accelerates Achilles tendon damage and raises rupture risk. - Why bunion splints do not fix the underlying problem and what actually works. - How foot hygiene is a serious longevity strategy, especially with pre-diabetes.   About Dr. Timothy Miller: Timothy J. Miller, DPM, FACFAS, is a fellowship-trained foot and ankle surgeon specializing in lower extremity reconstruction, deformity correction, trauma, limb salvage, and advanced ankle surgery. He is board certified by the American Board of Foot and Ankle Surgery in Foot Surgery and Reconstructive Rearfoot/Ankle Surgery.   Connect with Dr. Timothy Miller: Website: www.sunshineankleandfoot.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sunshineanklefootexperts/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothy-miller-dpm-facfas- 4ab18359/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sunshineanklefoot/   Timestamps 00:00 Intro 01:46 Gait Exam: How Your Walk Predicts Pain 04:19 How Feet Affect Your Hips, Shoulders, and Neck 06:30 The Case for a Preventive Foot Visit 09:26 Perimenopause, Relaxin, and Arch Collapse 12:06 Orthotics, Shoes, and Foot Strengthening 14:41 The Truth About Barefoot Shoes 21:00 Achilles Tendon: Estrogen, Damage, and Rupture Risk 27:10 Active Rest vs. Sedentary Rest 31:26 Flat Feet: Causes, Tests, and Treatment 36:36 Big Toe Arthritis and Bunions 43:39 Rapid Fire: Best Habits and Aging with Power Start your Unbreakable journey Most women are never given a clear plan for how to stay strong as they age. The Unbreakable Lifestyle is where that changes. This is the home of Dr. Vonda's method — built from 20+ years of clinical work and designed for real life. Inside: - Unbreakable Assessment — know exactly where you stand - Training plans — build muscle, protect bone, improve performance - AI Dr. Vonda — get answers and guidance anytime - Community — women committed to staying strong and engaged - Exclusive education — what actually works, all in one place This is not another program. This is how you build strength — with direction. Join the Unbreakable Lifestyle: https://www.theunbreakablelifestyle.com/ Build stronger bones Bone loss starts earlier than you think — and speeds up in midlife. Dr. Vonda's Unbreakable Bone Health formula supports bone density, strength, and long-term skeletal health with clinically researched ingredients. Foundational. Not optional. Shop now: https://shop.drvondawright.com/   Read the book Unbreakable: A Woman's Guide to Aging with Power A clear, science-backed roadmap to building strength, supporting your body, and taking control of how you age. Get your copy: https://www.theunbreakablelifestyle.com/unbreakable-book    About Dr. Vonda Wright Dr. Vonda Wright is an orthopedic sports surgeon and leading expert in women's health and longevity. For over 20 years, she has helped women build muscle, strengthen bone, and extend their health span — with science, not guesswork. Her mission is simple: help women age with power.   Connect with Dr. Vonda Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drvondawright Substack: https://drvondawright.substack.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drvondawright LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vonda-wright-md-ms-2803374 Website: http://www.drvondawright.com  

by Caleb Wheatley. Caleb takes us through the Church as the body. "Diversity is intentional", "Comparison kills calling", "Every part of the body" and "Isolation weakens the body". Key Scriptures: Romans 12.1-8, 1 Corinthians 12.13, Ephesians 4.15-16

Feeling stiff, cranky, or fatigued? Let's make it better. Thanks for listening...here's how to learn more. If you're near Santa Rosa, CA come on over to 1617 Terrace Way. Beginners are welcome in every class...and experienced flow junkies will feel right at home, too! Got questions? Want to chat about yoga? Email us! info@threedogyoga.com Want more? Join our live-stream classes held in real time on Zoom.  Drop-in passes and memberships are available for every body. Please visit www.threedogyoga.com to learn more.

Longtime listener, first time caller – today on Burlingame & Park, the boys sit down with watch industry insider, podcaster, collector, and Worn & Wound Media Director Kat Shoulders to talk Watches & Wonders hangovers and update her very first story on W&W (from back in 2022) with a fresh three-watch collection. As always, you can reach the boys for questions and comments at podcast@topperjewelers.com. Thanks for your support, and thanks for listening!Follow everyone on Instagram: • Russ: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@russcaplan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠• Rob: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@robcaplan_topper⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠• Zach: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@zachxryj⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠• Kat: @katshouldersWrist checks and other watch mentions on this week's episode: - Rob: Omega Seamaster Diver 300m- Russ: Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Automatique 45mm Titanium- Zach: Panerai Submersible Marina Militare- Kat: IWC Pilots UTC SpitfireOur three-watch collections for $5k: - Zach: Oris ProPilot Date Green, Jacques Bianchi Poulpro Titanium, Seiko Prospex Sea GMT 42mm HBC001- Russ: Seiko 5 Field GMT, Oris Artelier Complication, DOXA Sub 600T Professional- Rob: G-Shock Full Metal 5000 Series MIP 'Rainbow,' Jacques Bianchi Night Diver, Seiko Prospex Alpinist SPB507- Kat: Oris Star, Serica 5330 Diver, Seiko Prospex Alpinist SPB503Oh, and by the way...- Zach: Stream The Dark Wizard on HBO Max- Russ: Watch The Rescue documentary by Jimmy Chin- Rob: Darth Maul Shadow Lord on Disney+- Kat: Pictures by Jeff Bridges (shot on Widelux)

Why was the Ark carried on shoulders rather than transported by wagon? This week, we explore the Rambam's surprising answer—and what it reveals about leadership, honor, and the responsibilities that cannot be delegated.

We're going to finally discuss how maybe, just maybe, Anaheim Electronics is profiting off of people suffering and an endless cycle of war and violence, maybe. It's Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn (2010)! Mechs discussed: Unicorn Gundam / Banshee Gundam Tons more, check the Webzome! All images: on our website. Content warnings for this episode: Trauma and trauma responses, physical and mental abuse, child soldiers, gore and explicit death, and mass casualty events. On the Shoulders of Giants is hosted by Alice (she/her), Brian (he/they), and Niko (she/her). We have an obligation-free tip jar on Ko-Fi. You can find Erin on Bluesky and on their website. Join OSG's Discord here. We stream on Twitch! You can find us on Bluesky @osgpod, YouTube @osg_pod, and Tumblr @osg-pod as well. Visit our website at osgpod.com and send questions/feedback to questions@osgpod.com. The intro theme for the One Year Pod is “Romantic Legends” by PartyFactor. Other royalty-free sound effects also sourced from Pixabay. Other royalty-free sound effects also sourced from Pixabay. Other CC music used includes Hope for Tomorrow by Tokyo Music Walker, Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0. If you've read this far, please consider leaving us a 5-star review on your podcatcher of choice. It really means a lot!

Derek Moore is joined by Mike Snyder and Shane Skinner to discuss markets and the economy including Ryan Cohen's awkward CNBC interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin where he was pressed on the math behind the financing in GameStop's bid for EBAY. Plus, Micron again reaches an all-time high and still is trading at forward multiples below many other stocks. Later, is this year shaping up to be 1995 or something else? Finally, whether oil prices are reaching a pivot point looking at some technical analysis.   Ryan Cohen CNBC interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin and Becky Quick GameStop trying to buy EBAY Does GameStop have the funding to do this purchase? Secondary offerings and dilution to shareholders Micron new all-time high Crude Oil WTI West Texas Intermediate Head and Shoulders Pattern Bearish technical patterns and reliability Comparing spaghetti chart of stock market annual paths 1995 vs 2026 stock chart Midterm election year stock market typical returns     Mentioned in this Episode     Derek Moore's book Broken Pie Chart https://amzn.to/3S8ADNT   Jay Pestrichelli's book Buy and Hedge https://amzn.to/3jQYgMt   Derek's book on public speaking Effortless Public Speaking https://amzn.to/3hL1Mag   Contact Derek derek.moore@zegainvestments.com

This episode is designed to nurture caregivers through the frequencies of safety, love, and biological attunement. It supports nervous system regulation, emotional warmth, and the deep calm that can only be found when the body finally feels safe enough to release.The Frequencies528 Hz and 285 Hz create a nurturing harmonic environment long associated with cellular healing and a felt sense of safety, supporting the maternal nervous system during periods of heightened biological demand. 40 Hz gamma activates cognitive clarity and neural coherence for the caregiver whose mind has been stretched thin. 10 Hz alpha invites the brain into its relaxed, receptive wave state, the threshold of restoration.The Architecture of the SoundBinaural delivery. Triads built on C, E, and G, the harmonizing chord that opens the root, solar plexus, and throat, restoring the caregiver's foundation, inner power, and expressive voice. Gamma waves above 20 Hz for clarity. Alpha waves between 7 and 13 Hz for rest.The InstrumentsCrystal singing bowls for cellular tone and clarity. Human voice for the ancient, maternal resonance that the body recognizes as love.Why Sound Restores the CaregiverCaregiving holds the nervous system in chronic vigilance. Shoulders up. Breath shallow. Heart working overtime. Sound therapy meets the body where words cannot reach. Research in polyvagal theory, brainwave entrainment, and heart rate variability confirms that sustained exposure to coherent frequencies downregulates the stress response, slows respiration, and returns the body to its natural healing rhythm.Your body remembers how to rest. These frequencies simply remind it.Recommended any time the demands of caregiving have depleted your sense of inner peace.Best experienced with headphones in a quiet space.Send us Fan MailSupport the show

This episode is designed to nurture caregivers through the frequencies of safety, love, and biological attunement. It supports nervous system regulation, emotional warmth, and the deep calm that can only be found when the body finally feels safe enough to release.The Frequencies528 Hz and 285 Hz create a nurturing harmonic environment long associated with cellular healing and a felt sense of safety, supporting the maternal nervous system during periods of heightened biological demand. 40 Hz gamma activates cognitive clarity and neural coherence for the caregiver whose mind has been stretched thin. 10 Hz alpha invites the brain into its relaxed, receptive wave state, the threshold of restoration.The Architecture of the SoundBinaural delivery. Triads built on C, E, and G, the harmonizing chord that opens the root, solar plexus, and throat, restoring the caregiver's foundation, inner power, and expressive voice. Gamma waves above 20 Hz for clarity. Alpha waves between 7 and 13 Hz for rest.The InstrumentsCrystal singing bowls for cellular tone and clarity. Human voice for the ancient, maternal resonance that the body recognizes as love.Why Sound Restores the CaregiverCaregiving holds the nervous system in chronic vigilance. Shoulders up. Breath shallow. Heart working overtime. Sound therapy meets the body where words cannot reach. Research in polyvagal theory, brainwave entrainment, and heart rate variability confirms that sustained exposure to coherent frequencies downregulates the stress response, slows respiration, and returns the body to its natural healing rhythm.Your body remembers how to rest. These frequencies simply remind it.Recommended any time the demands of caregiving have depleted your sense of inner peace.Best experienced with headphones in a quiet space.Send us Fan MailSupport the show

Pre-Order new book, The Price of Becoming www.LearningLeader.com/Becoming This is brought to you by Insight Global. If you need to hire one person, hire a team of people, or transform your business through Talent or Technical Services, Insight Global's team of 30,000 people around the world has the hustle and grit to deliver My Guest: Dr. Nicole LePera is the creator of The Holistic Psychologist, a platform with over 12 million followers, and the author of three New York Times bestselling books, including her newest, Reparenting the Inner Child. Key Learnings: Nicole was good at everything, so struggling meant failure. Her family's message was clear: success in life meant financial security through academics or athletics. The implicit message: you're worthy when you're bringing home A's, when you're winning the softball game. She quickly learned to identify things she wasn't immediately good at and just not pursue them. She filtered life, staying on the path of comfort. Your childhood adaptations don't leave. Nicole calls it the inner child. It doesn't matter how old you are or how far beyond your childhood you think you've gotten. It impacts you in reactions, in identities, in your way of being. What was once your best attempt at safety, security, or connection still drives behavior today. Not all adaptations are problems. Many continue to benefit us. The question isn't whether the adaptation is good or bad. The question is: are you choosing it, or is it choosing you? Nicole's drive for achievement created opportunities. It led to massive impact. But she still has the overachiever who wants to blow past her limits and say yes when she's exhausted but means no.   The Holistic Psychologist started in 2018, and Nicole had no idea it would explode. She was living in Philadelphia, operating within a private practice model. Within the first year, people from around the world were resonating, joining, and interested in working with her in this new way. But at the beginning, even learning how to speak on camera was such a big challenge. Her partner would say, "Say what you said to me earlier," and Nicole's mind would go blank. Just putting a camera in front of her was near debilitating. Boundaries are about knowing who and when to take feedback from. Sometimes the feedback from a loved one, while uncomfortable, is helpful to hear. Other times, it's a helpful boundary where you're not opening yourself up to the opinion of someone who has a different vantage point or is speaking from their own projection. That's allowed Nicole to create safety in herself, confidence in herself, which translates to flow. Several years in, Nicole's dad sat front row at her book event, crying with pride. In the beginning, her dad and mom would ask, "Why do you have to use us as the example? Why do you have to share about our family?" Nicole would explain: " This is the only experience I can speak from, and our family's experience is so common. To see her dad, who came from a family largely shut down emotionally, crying in understanding and pride, was overwhelming and validating for why she does this work. At 13, Nicole was getting straight A's but unraveling on the inside. She was socially shy, struggled to order food at restaurants, and had very few friends. Then she discovered alcohol and pot made her feel comfortable. That anxiety she lived with suddenly felt freer. She would stumble through the living room at night, her parents already in bed, then wake up at 6:00 AM the next day, pitch a softball tournament, win it, and seemingly be fine. Her parents had no idea. She was very good at suppressing her emotions and coping. By contrast, on the surface, it seemed like she was doing well. They were a family who didn't really talk about emotions, so they had no indication. The drive itself isn't the problem. It's the energy that inspires action. Nicole's dad worked into the night to support the family. Her mom would say, "why not 100?" when Nicole brought home a 96. That translated into drive and ambition. That's not a problem. For a lot of us, it's the energy that inspires action and translates into impact. It can become a problem when we have no limits to our working, where we exhaust ourselves and burn out, where we don't feel worthy in moments of inaction or rest. The marker of a healthy relationship with drive is flexibility. When you're forced to stop because you're sick, exhausted, emotionally overwhelmed, or someone else needs you, can you be flexible enough to do that without feeling terrible about yourself? The ability to choose to say, "Okay, contextually speaking, I need to pause," and still feel okay about yourself, that's the marker.   Hold space for both: acknowledging harm and taking agency. Other people have contributed to our discomfort. Maybe parents didn't meet our needs. If we don't acknowledge that, we suppress. But we also can't stay stuck in anger and resentment. A true boundary isn't demanding that someone else be different. That's still giving away your agency. A true boundary is saying: you've hurt me, and I'm gonna take responsibility that I'm allowing it. I'm gonna show up differently now to limit the impact of what you're doing. Talking about trauma can keep it alive in your body. Trauma doesn't live in logic and understanding. It lives in your body. It lives in habits and reactions. Your mind is so powerful that you can think something and feel as if you're living it in that moment. If you're going week after week talking about all the things that are hurting you, you're continuing to keep that alive in your body. Holistic psychology bridges the gap between mind and body. Traditional psychology focused solely on the mind. The CBT model says if we think differently, we produce different feelings, then different actions. But Nicole was missing the body. Our nervous system, our earliest environments, neurobiologically created patterns wired into us. Science now shows we maintain the ability to change throughout our lives. Drop into your body. Where is your attention right now? Are you feeling your muscles, your heels impacting the earth, where you're sitting? Or are you so lost in thought you're disconnected? Jaw clenched? Fists clenched? Shoulders up to your ears? Holding your breath? Breathing short and quick from your chest? These are markers that your body is under stress right now. Once you have that information, make small shifts. Slow and deepen your breath. Elongate your exhale just a little longer than your inhale. If your movements are quick, slow them down. If you're holding tension, release it. Now you're regulating your body so you can show up differently. Meditation is just awareness. It's not sitting cross-legged trying to make your mind quiet. Life can be a meditative experience. Thoughts are helpful. They're where we create things, have insights. The goal isn't a blank, quiet mind. The goal is awareness. Nicole calls it her spaceship. Her protective habit for so long has been to dissociate, to disconnect. She pursued clinical psychology where she can live in her mind. When what she's feeling in her body is too uncomfortable, the quickest path out is to distract herself with someone else, with the next achievement. This work has made Nicole's relationships more real. More authentic. More grounded in vulnerability, messiness, emotion as opposed to curated versions of who she thinks she needs to be. What she's most familiar with is dealing with all her feelings alone. The Harvard study found one thing leads to a happy life: love. Ryan referenced the longitudinal Harvard study that has gone on for 90 years studying what leads to a happy life. At the end of the day, it's love. The ones who live the happiest, longest, most fruitful lives are surrounded by people they love and who love them.  What a gift it is to be loved for all of yourself, not just the perfect parts. When you can show someone all of yourself, your messiness, the things you hid and kept secret, and still be loved. The overachiever gets to show more parts of herself, and people don't abandon her. They stay. That's the love most of us are striving for. We are all a bunch of messy humans trying to figure it out as we go. Nicole's champagne moment a year from now: presence and beingness. Whatever is happening or not happening in her life, she's celebrating the celebration of that moment. Being alive. Feeling the gratitude, the joy. Not focusing on what was produced to give her the opportunity to celebrate, but being present to the life around her. The taste of the champagne, the humans surrounding her in that moment.  Reflection Questions Which childhood adaptations are still driving your behavior today? Are you choosing them, or are they choosing you? When was the last time you actually dropped into your body and checked: am I tense? Am I holding my breath? Am I stressed? Who in your life sees all of you, not just the polished version, and loves you anyway? More Learning #547: Dr. Michael Gervais - Stop Worrying About What People Think of You #140: Dr. Carol Dweck - The Power of a Growth Mindset #229: Dr. Henry Cloud - Be So Good They Can't Ignore You Podcast Chapters 00:00 Book Announcement  01:08 Show Intro and Guest Setup  02:36 Good at Everything: The Hidden Cost  06:47 When Therapy Stopped Working  09:32 How The Holistic Psychologist Started on Instagram  11:20 Purpose, Fame, and Setting Boundaries  15:06 How Her Family Reacted to the Spotlight  19:21 At 13: Straight A's and Self-Medicating  22:12 What Her Parents Missed  23:48 Drive vs. Worthiness: Where It Becomes a Problem  29:20 Why Flexibility Beats Rigidity  31:03 Agency vs. Blame in Therapy  31:57 When Therapy Becomes an Excuse  33:47 What a Real Boundary Actually Is  35:44 The "Bad Therapy" Debate  38:50 What Holistic Psychology Actually Means  41:35 Daily Body Practices, Not Retreats  44:06 How to Drop Into Your Body  46:38 Meditation Is Just Awareness  49:36 Why Vulnerability Makes Relationships Real  52:07 The Harvard Study: Love Is Everything  55:36 The Champagne Question: Being Present  57:33 EOPC  

What does it mean to truly invest in the next generation? In this powerful message, Jacob unpacks what it looks like to have strong, available, and faithful shoulders for the young people around you — using a simple but unforgettable moment of lifting his son up to a basketball hoop as the entry point.Drawing from 1 Timothy 4:12, Mark 10, and Matthew 11, this sermon explores three types of shoulders the next generation needs from us: strong shoulders that call them up, faith shoulders that make room for them to encounter Jesus, and shoulders yoked to Jesus that are healed and formed through intimacy with God.You'll be challenged to reflect on the condition of your own heart — whether life's circumstances have made it old, hardened, or guarded — and invited to receive rest and renewal from Jesus before you pour into others.Whether you're a parent, teacher, coach, pastor, or mentor, this message is for anyone who wants to leave a legacy that goes beyond what they accumulate and extends to who they lift up.Big Idea: True legacy is not what you leave behind — it's who you lift up.0:00 - Introduction: Basketball, Kids & Lifting Them Up 1:55 - The Bigger Picture: Standing on Someone Else's Shoulders 2:38 - Big Idea: True Legacy Is Who You Lift Up3:54 - Biblical Examples of Passing the Torch 4:40 - Strong Shoulders: Call the Next Generation Up 5:03 - Paul's Letter to Timothy (1 Timothy 4:12) 6:39 - Correction With Calling vs. Correction That Crushes 7:02 - Practical Challenge: Speak Life Over Someone Younger 8:18 - Faith Shoulders: Make Room for the Next Generation 8:36 - Jesus and the Children (Mark 10) 10:19 - The Kingdom of God Belongs to Such as These 10:37 - Has Life Made Your Heart Old? 11:25 - Young at Heart: A Story From the Bahamas 13:43 - Wonder, Trust & the Childlike Kingdom of God 14:36 - Receiving From the Father vs. Achieving for the Father 16:26 - LVC Kids: Discipling, Not Babysitting 17:22 - Honoring Teachers: Your Influence Changes Legacies 18:23 - Youth Ministry & Creating Belonging for Teenagers19:41 - Strong Shoulders Must Be Yoked to Jesus 20:03 - Your Shoulders Are Only as Strong as Your Intimacy With God 20:52 - For Those Who Never Had Shoulders to Stand On 21:45 - Jesus Invites the Weary to Come (Matthew 11) 24:05 - Jesus Wants to Work In You, Not Just Through You 25:33 - Why Daily Time With God Matters 28:17 - Whatever Is Forming You Will Flow Through You 29:19 - We Pass Down What We Carry 30:12 - Jesus Wants to Be Part of Your Life, Not Just Use It 30:44 - Let Jesus Heal Your Shoulders 31:27 - Altar Call: Bringing Your Tired, Wounded Shoulders to Jesus 32:07 - Come to Simon (Coming to Jesus First) 32:43 - Closing PrayerSupport the showMade a decision to follow Jesus? We want to know about it! Fill out our connect card here: https://local.churchcenter.com/people/forms/115766Thank you for your generosity. For information on how to give, visit https://localvineyard.church/give.

Peter Fagg, historian, author, and tour guide specializing in the British history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, returns to the podcast to share more of his research on the early missionary efforts in the United Kingdom, specifically the development of the Church in Preston, Lancashire.I wanted to speak with Peter to dive deep into the fascinating, and often harrowing, history of the first LDS mission to England in 1837. We explore the social conditions of industrial Preston and how a small group of missionaries managed to establish what has become the oldest continuous branch of the Church in the world.Some highlights from this episode include:The "Gruesome" Reality of 1830s Preston: A look at the harsh industrial landscape the first missionaries encountered, defined by cotton mills, child labour, and a staggering 55% infant mortality rate."Truth Will Prevail": The origin story of the famous mission motto, which was adopted on the missionaries' very first day in Preston after they saw a gold-lettered political banner during a rowdy election.The "Tee -Total" Forerunners: A discussion of Joseph Livesey and the seven men who signed the famous Teetotal pledge in 1832 at the Preston Cockpit. This local movement against alcohol served as a providential forerunner to the missionaries introducing the Word of Wisdom in that same Cockpit five years later.The Vauxhall Chapel Conflict: How the early success of the missionaries led to a dramatic falling out with Reverend James Fielding, as he watched his own congregation leave to join the restored gospel.A Message of Hope for Parents: Why the missionaries' teachings on the sanctity of childhood and the rejection of infant baptism resonated so deeply in a city plagued by death and poverty.Orson Hyde's Prophecy and the "Vauxhall Brick": The story behind a symbolic prophecy regarding the stones of the Vauxhall Chapel and how a piece of that history is physically built into the Manchester Stake Center today.The World's Oldest Branch: A discussion on the survival of the Preston branch and its legacy as the longest continuously operating unit in Church history.Peter's Latest book titled:Standing on the Shoulders of Giants: Book 1: LDS Preston can be found here:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GWHJ2RJ3Follow For All The Saints on social media for updates and inspiring content:www.instagram.com/forallthesaintspodhttps://www.facebook.com/forallthesaintspod/For All The Saints episodes are released every Monday on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and more:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVDUQg_qZIU&list=UULFFf7vzrJ2LNWmp1Kl-c6K9Qhttps://open.spotify.com/show/3j64txm9qbGVVZOM48P4HS?si=bb31d048e05141f2https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/for-all-the-saints/id1703815271If you have feedback or any suggestions for topics or guests, connect with Ben & Sean via hello@forallthesaints.org or DM on InstagramConversations to Refresh Your Faith.For All The Saints podcast was established in 2023 by Ben Hancock to express his passion and desire for more dialogue around faith, religious belief, and believers' perspectives on the topics of our day. Tune into For All The Saints every Monday on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more.Follow For All The Saints on social media for daily inspiration.

First Class Funk is a weird one in the best way.This strain had that yin and yang thing going on hard. Body felt heavy, relaxed, and calm, while the head stayed clear, present, and ready to talk. Not sleepy. Not foggy. Just balanced in a way that really stood out.And the flavor makes total sense when you look at what usually shows up in this strain. First Class Funk commonly leans on limonene, caryophyllene, and pinene, so you get that funky, peppery, earthy, slightly bright punch right up front. That GMO and Jet Fuel Gelato background definitely shows up here too.  What we liked most was how present it felt. Shoulders dropped, body chilled out, but the mind didn't shut off. It felt grounded without getting dull. Bigger hits came in a little hot on the throat, but once it settled, it was super nice.This feels like a great strain for a walk, the gym, hanging out, or just taking the edge off without getting flattened.If you want something that relaxes the body without turning your brain off, First Class Funk is worth checking out.Keep the Mic on.Fuel the movement. Keep the conversation going.We keep a running list of tools and brands we personally enjoy and actually use.Find everything in one place here:

Well, pilots. We're returning to the Land of Near Constant Cockpit Pisschat and, well, I'd never thought I'd say this, but I'm glad to be here with all of you. It's Coquette Dragoon (2023), let's launch into it! Mechs discussed: Coquette Strawberry Honey Bee All images: on our website. Content warnings for this episode: Indirect mention of sexual assault, suicide, gun violence, accidental death, apocalypse, physical and emotional abuse, and good ole imperialism. On the Shoulders of Giants is hosted by Alice (she/her), Brian (he/they), and Niko (she/her). We have an obligation-free tip jar on Ko-Fi. Join OSG's Discord here. We stream on Twitch! You can find us on Bluesky @osgpod, YouTube @osg_pod, and Tumblr @osg-pod as well. Visit our website at osgpod.com and send questions/feedback to questions@osgpod.com. Our intro song is “She Loves Your Fusion” by PartyFactor. Other royalty-free sound effects also sourced from Pixabay. Other CC music used includes Hope for Tomorrow by Tokyo Music Walker, Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0. If you've read this far, please consider leaving us a 5-star review on your podcatcher of choice. It really means a lot!

Adam Greentree is an Australian bowhunter, photographer and outdoorsman. He has appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience multiple times and hosts his own podcast, A Bowhunter's Life. Adam has hunted all over the world, and I have had the privilege of spending time with him on the mountains and I'm grateful to call him a friend. In this episode, Adam talks about closing a construction business he ran for 30 years, getting his blood work done for the first time and feeling better at 45 than he did in his twenties, going through one of the hardest personal periods of his life and coming out stronger for it, what it was like growing up with an abusive father and spending time on the streets at 13, and why he thinks the fear of dying with regrets is the best motivator he knows. Plus the musk ox hunt 600 miles from the North Pole in minus 75 degree wind chill.  This episode unpacks alot of Adams personal life while we cover some epic adventures and personal growth factors along the way. one for the books. Appreciate you all, W. VIDEO | PHOTO | FILM | MARKETING You're end-to-end Digital Solution Work with us…   www.flowstateproductions.com.au   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wadekelly_/ https://www.instagram.com/flowstate_productions/   THE FLOW STATE COLLECTIVE PODCAST from FLOW STATE PRODUCTIONS Pty. Ltd.

Nick and Jonathan breakdown the Cleveland Cavaliers' performance as their playoff series reaches a critical 2-2 tie. They debate whether Donovan Mitchell is being held to superstar standards and examine the lack of offensive production from Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley. 01:00 - Cavaliers Playoff Series Status 03:15 - Evaluating Donovan Mitchell Leadership 10:49 - Fan Reactions And Coaching

Sunday April 26th, 2026

Read my new book, The Price of Becoming. www.LearningLeader.com/Becoming The Learning Leader Show with Ryan Hawk This is brought to you by Insight Global. If you need to hire one person, hire a team of people, or transform your business through Talent or Technical Services, Insight Global's team of 30,000 people around the world has the hustle and grit to deliver. My guest: David Epstein is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Range and The Sports Gene. A former investigative reporter at ProPublica and senior writer at Sports Illustrated. His new book is called Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better. Notes   Be part of "Mindful Monday" -- Text Hawk to 66866 Key Learnings The easier move is to let it go. David found a factual error in Ryan's new/my new book. David was supposed to read it and write a blurb on it - but went further and challenged a factual error. The kind move, what great leaders actually do, is being willing to point things out, even if it could cause a little friction.  There is such a thing as too much autonomy. After Range became mega viral, David optimized for autonomy. He individualized his whole life. He no longer was writing about what others assigned him. A year later, he realized there is a thing as too much autonomy. He missed the structure of a work day, the deadlines, the annoyances of working with other people's schedules. This total freedom ended up feeling terrible. "The great thing about being committed by your own choice is that you can stop wondering how to live and start living."  This quote by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi hit David when he was on a dating app for book topics, just swiping and swiping. That day he said, "I'm really interested in constraints. I need some myself. I'm writing a book proposal on this." Two weeks later he was 10 times more interested because he decided to dive into it. Cal Newport says "system shutting down" at the end of his workday. It seems silly, but when you have all that freedom, you need something to close the workday so you can recover and be ready for the next day. Your brain is made for preventing you from having to think whenever possible. Cognitive scientist Daniel Willingham says thinking is energetically costly. So when your calendar is too open, all you'll do is what's convenient. Your brain will be lazy. The path of least resistance. The mere urgency effect: when schedule and structure is too open, people do things that seem urgent even if they're unimportant. When you're too unstructured, you end up doing huge volumes of low value stuff just to have checked off doing something. What David's workday looks like now:  Batching work: people at work check their email on average 77 times a day. The way people are usually doing that is they're toggling all the time between email and something else. When you do that, it lowers your productivity and massively increases your stress. David doesn't start his day with his inbox. He'll check it at the end of the workday because emails can take him away from the most important work at the beginning of the day.  Stress + Rest = Growth. The workday ends when David's son gets home. When writing, you have to program in rest, just like you would if you were an athlete in training.  Daniel Kahneman said writing "Thinking Fast and Slow" was the worst few years of his life. David had lunch with Kahneman and praised the book. Kahneman said, "Never again." He said it was so isolating. He was used to working with a partner or multiple partners and colleagues. He felt so isolated that he said he'd never write a book again, or if he did, he would write it with somebody else. And that's what he did. And David could empathize with that.  David made a one-page architectural outline for how "Inside the Box" would look. If it's not on that page, it is not in the book. He wrote as small as possible to try to defeat his own system. The book's 20% shorter than his other two. He thinks it's much tighter writing. He was so much more efficient that he doesn't feel nearly as burned out. After a mega hit book, two things matter: (1) A lot is out of your control, and (2) Identify as a craftsman. David's colleague at Sports Illustrated told him, "If a book about genetics and vampires comes out the same day, you're screwed, and there's nothing you can do about it." He was right. But David very strongly identifies as a writer now, as a craftsman. He's taken fiction writing courses just to learn about craft. With Inside the Box, he did a structural experiment that he found so engaging because he was focused on the craft itself, not just the commercial outcome. "Docendo discimus" - by teaching, we learn. This is a quote from Seneca. If people think they're going to have to teach certain material, they organize it more coherently in their own mind. They start pulling out main ideas and attaching different ideas together. Teaching it is even better, but just making someone think they're going to have to teach it makes them learn in a much more coherent way. Narrative values: the recurring themes that give coherence to a life. David went back and looked at his life and identified: curiosity, open-mindedness, diligence, and resilience. Now that he's started telling his story in that way, it shows up everywhere. But going forward, he also wanted some things in his story that he didn't have. So he identified forgiveness in particular because that has not been a strong suit for him. Ben Helfgott: the only living Olympian to have survived a concentration camp. Almost everybody in his family was killed in the Holocaust. He just preached forgiveness all the time. When David saw what Ben did, these petty grudges he's holding are nothing. You're just poisoning yourself when you hold these grudges. So David decided he wanted forgiveness to become one of his narrative values.  Herbert Simon won the highest award in computer science, psychology, and the Nobel Prize in economics. His quote serves as the epigraph of the book: "It is a myth, widely believed but not less mythical for that, that people are most creative when they're most free." Simon coined the term "satisficing." It's a combination of satisfy and suffice. It means having good enough decision rules. He contrasted that with maximizing. From a mountain of psychological research, it is almost always bad to be a maximizer. Maximizers are less happy with their decisions, less happy with their lives, more prone to regret. There's not much evidence they actually make better decisions most of the time. Simon was a proactive satisficer. He said you need three sets of clothing: one on your back, one in the wash, and the next one ready to wear. He simplified all the decisions in his life so he could save cognitive bandwidth for the really important ones. He famously said, "The perfect is the enemy of the good." Choose when to choose. Choose when to save and when to use your cognitive bandwidth.  Good enough doesn't mean you have low standards. It means you're saving your bandwidth for the most important things. "How you do anything is how you do everything" is completely wrong. This is one of David's least favorite quotes. It's wrong. Herbert Simon did the same mundane thing, the same breakfast every day, the same socks, so he could crush it in his work. He wasn't doing everything the way he was doing his work. The Fredkins Paradox: We spend the most energy on the least important decisions because we agonize when the options are really similar. General Magic: They invented the smartphone in 1990. The iPhone would not exist without them. They had infinite degrees of freedom. They could do anything. When the device came out, it didn't solve a clear customer problem. It had a 200-page manual. They sold 3,000 units in the first six months. Meanwhile, people inside General Magic who bit off much smaller chunks had success. One low-level engineer started Auction Web. His bosses said no, too small. He left and changed the name to eBay. Another created Graffiti. He said "I'm going to solve a clear customer problem. Busy professionals want contacts and calendars on the go." He did just a calendar, contacts, and a memo pad. That was the Palm Pilot. By doing way less. By doing something, not everything. Tony Fadell (the "podfather"): "If you don't have constraints, make up constraints."  Bill Gurley said, "We have a saying in venture: more startups die of indigestion than starvation." When Tony co-founded Nest, he made his team work inside a literal box. He made them prototype the box before they had the product. If it didn't fit in that box, it was not a priority. Reflection Questions What area of your life has too much freedom right now? Where could you add a constraint (a deadline, a ritual, a boundary) that would actually make you more productive or creative? If you had to pick three narrative values that run through your life story, what would they be? Are they the ones you want, or do you need to add an aspirational value like David did with forgiveness? What's one decision you're maximizing (trying to find the perfect choice) when you should be satisficing (good enough and move on)? How much time and energy would you free up if you applied Herbert Simon's approach? More Learning #310 - David Epstein: Why Generalists Will Rule the World #582 - Cal Newport: Obsess Over Quality #660 - James Clear: The 4 Laws to Behavioral Change Podcast Chapters00:00 The Price of Becoming - Ryan's New Book 01:15 Meet David Epstein 02:39 The Fact Checker: What Great Leaders Do 04:27 Dedication Easter Eggs 05:50 The Problem With Too Much Autonomy 10:47 Why You Actually Need Constraints 12:29 Batching Work: The 77 Email Checks Problem 17:20 Lunch with Kahneman: Thinking Fast and Slow Was Miserable  22:18 What To Do After A Viral Book 27:07 Docendo Discimus: By Teaching, We Learn  29:13 Why Leaders Should Regularly Teach 31:09 Desirable Difficulties 31:56 Narrative Values: The Themes That Define Your Life 34:31 Adding Forgiveness As an Aspirational Value 36:13 Chips on Shoulders vs. Proving People Right 39:10 Herbert Simon: The Man Who Won Everything 40:20 Satisficing Over Maximizing 42:40 Choosing When To Choose 44:29 Good Enough Doesn't Mean Low Standards 46:13 Why "How You Do Anything" is Completely Wrong 47:25 General Magic: Do Something, Not Everything 52:49 One Year From Now: What Are You Celebrating? 54:54 EOPC

“Every time decisions were made, I thought what I would've done differently?  I knew the other path was a bit of a risk — what would I do if I was on the other side?”Sweta Mehra is the National Australia Bank's (NAB) Executive General Manager of Personal Everyday Banking. Before joining NAB in 2025, Sweta spent nearly eight years at ANZ Bank—six years as Chief Marketing Officer across 34 global markets, followed by two years as Managing Director of Everyday Banking, where she held full P&L responsibility. During her tenure as CMO, ANZ doubled its digital sales in four years. Prior to entering financial services, Sweta built a 17-year career at Procter & Gamble in Singapore, where she held senior roles across strategy, brand management, and P&L leadership for global brands including Pantene, Tide, and Head & Shoulders. She also led P&G's Consumer & Market Knowledge function across Asia. Sweta has been recognised on Campaign Asia's Asia-Pacific Power List and featured in Australia's CMO50 for three consecutive years. You'll enjoy this inspiring conversation about the power of being very clear about who you are, and a guiding framework for navigating uncertainty and career change. This conversation is hosted by P&G Alum Sudha Ranganathan, who's spent over 19 years in diverse Marketing leadership roles at companies like P&G, PayPal, and LinkedIn where she's honed her passion for customer-centric marketing and talent development.

The role your head plays in correct posture and form. What happens when your head moves away from your work and why your body will always follow where your eyes are looking. Timestamps 00:45 The importance of your head Normally a neutral head and neutral spine is desirable in rowing and sculling. Your head should be square above your spine and shoulders. If you drop your chin down it collapses your chest and affects the curve of your back. Moving your head from side to side changes the alignment of your eyes. Your head weighs about 15lbs (7-8kg). 03:00 Head leaning if you move your head it tends to cause the finish to wash out. When you pull the handle to the finish your rib height changes and gives an inaccurate perception of where your finish height should be. In sweep it's common to see people leaning away from their rigger - away from the work. This lean affects the balance of the boat. If you lean your head it also blocks your torso rotation and affects how your shoulders line up and you lose length at the catch because you can't move around the arc successfully. 05:45 Eyes Lead - body follows First, know when you are upright. Where your eyes are looking (leading) your body will follow. Walk in a crowded street and turn your eyes to look sideways and you will tend to walk in that direction. Try it! Use your eyes as a way to get your body to do something. In sweep we want a rotation - if you look out to your side of the boat and look over the shoulder of the person in front of you. As you eyes go out your shoulders will tend to follow which helps guide the torso rotation. Shoulders stay parallel to your oar handle. If you use a stroke coach mounted at your feet you look down and will find that this rounds your shoulders and changes your posture. Crews using strain gauges have the display mounted on the rigger so the athlete turns their head out in that direction to compensate. At the finish your eyes need to be level - have a horizon to look at. Imagine you have a laser pointing out of the back of your head - imagine this staying parallel to the water - if you drop or lift your chin the laser line moves. Keep your head moving in line with your spine is the goal. Try putting your eyes into 'soft focus' almost blurring your vision into a single point on the back of the person in front of you. Let that point be your reference and gives you awareness of movement in your peripheral vision too. This helped me to stay in time with stroke to check the distance between my eyes and her back didn't change when she moved or when she swung her body. 13:00 Coaching your head has impact in many parts of the rowing stroke - use it to guide yourself.

Hello to you listening in Greeley, Colorado! Coming to you from Whidbey Island Washington, this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Wednesdays on Whidbey and your host, Diane Wyzga. I believe that our November to May Rain Festival is nearly over. Here in the Pacific Northwest we welcome clear skies, sunshine, warm weather, less winter burden, and maybe even dropping our shoulders from the habitual “fight or flight” response to the world that continues spinning on an axis of uncertain madness.  Habit. It's like that story about a team of pack animals struggling their way up a mountainside. The last pony in line was wearing a saddle but the horse just ahead of him was burdened with boxes and bags and baskets. The pony said: Good grief, what a heavy load you're carrying! The horse turned it's head and asked: What load? Like that horse we get used to carrying so much we don't even realize it. Practical Tip: Right now, in this moment stop, take a few deeps breaths, gently ease your shoulders away from your ears and smile to them; thank them for what they've been carrying for you and tell them that in the future you will take care to burden them less. Then wait for a moment while they smile back at you.    You're always welcome: "Come for the stories - Stay for the magic!" Speaking of magic, I hope you'll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together. AND!  Stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website during reconstruction, check out the Communication Services, email me [info@quartermoonstoryarts.net] to arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as Quarter Moon Story Arts on Substack. Stories From Women Who Walk Production Team Podcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story Arts Music: Mer's Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron Music ALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved.  If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source.

PAVING THE WAY HOME:   YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@pavingthewayhome85 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/paving-the-way-home-podcast/id1517252693 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0sywWGWjqXFSErvxOcNeEt?si=jjRM2DjsQvGUJppEQqFS_g   HOLY FAMILY MISSION: If you wish to support the work that Holy Family Mission does, you will find details on how to do so here - https://www.holyfamilymission.ie/supportus   Visit https://www.holyfamilymission.ie/ to learn more about Holy Family Mission.

From an alternate universe the cassette recordings of "Within the Wires" written by Jeffrey Cranor and Janina Matthewson. Our double-feature with Season 1:, Cassette #1: Stress, Shoulders and Cassette #2: Anxiety, Stomach. It's Audio Drama time! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are you searching for a moment of true calm in your busy day? This guided meditation helps you tap into your innate ability to relax deeply and find peace within yourself. Through gentle visualization and breathing techniques, you'll learn to quiet mental chatter and settle into a state of profound

KD has the most pressure of anyone in the playoffs starting Saturday.. TRUE or FALSE, Rockets fans?!

-Arrighetti STRONG Start Last Night in the Astros WIN! + Astros HR Hat Feels -Is this Tatsuya Imai Situation for Astros a BIGGER Problem than Realized..? -The ONE Area of Play these Texans MUST Improve Next Football Season..! -This Year's NFL Draft Now Just 1 WEEK AWAY Y'all! -The PRESSURE on the Shoulders of Kevin Durant Ahead of these NBA Playoffs-

-The PRESSURE on the Shoulders of Kevin Durant Ahead of these NBA Playoffs- -Is this Tatsuya Imai Situation for Astros a BIGGER Problem than Realized..? -"Back When Usher Wore a U-Chain!"

Our episode this time we're discussing the inevitable geometry between two men in high powered machines, Top Gun- sorry, I mean Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory (1991). Let's launch into it! Mechs discussed: Gundam Units 01, 02, and Dendrobium Val Walo Neue Ziel Many Others All images: on our website. Content warnings for this episode: Warfare, ecological warfare, blood and gore, use of weapons of mass destruction. On the Shoulders of Giants is hosted by Alice (she/her), Brian (he/they), and Niko (she/her). We have an obligation-free tip jar on Ko-Fi. Catch Cars Don't Fly at the one dollar tier starting May 2026! Join OSG's Discord here. We stream on Twitch! You can find us on Bluesky @osgpod, YouTube @osg_pod, and Tumblr @osg-pod as well. Visit our website at osgpod.com and send questions/feedback to questions@osgpod.com. The intro theme for the One Year Pod is “Romantic Legends” by PartyFactor. Other royalty-free sound effects also sourced from Pixabay. If you've read this far, please consider leaving us a 5-star review on your podcatcher of choice. It really means a lot!

Our CEO Alice Lastname assigned us homework this week, and that homework was to sit and watch Kenny Loggins' masterpiece, Top Gun, to situate us properly for the launch into 0083 Stardust Memory. Pop in the collectible Blu-Ray we're sure you have, and watch along with us! Mechs discussed: Debatable. All images: on our website. Content warnings for this episode: Accidental death, militarism, American exceptionalism, and heteronormativity. On the Shoulders of Giants is hosted by Alice (she/her), Brian (he/they), and Niko (she/her). We have an obligation-free tip jar on Ko-Fi. Join OSG's Discord here. We stream on Twitch! You can find us on Bluesky @osgpod, YouTube @osg_pod, and Tumblr @osg-pod as well. Visit our website at osgpod.com and send questions/feedback to questions@osgpod.com. Our theme is “She Loves Your Fusion” by PartyFactor. Other royalty-free sound effects also sourced from Pixabay. If you've read this far, please consider leaving us a 5-star review on your podcatcher of choice. It really means a lot!

On the Shoulders of Giants is introducing a new limited-run monthly subscription podcast on the Fast and the Furious franchise: CARS DON'T FLY. Hosted by Brian, Alice, and Iris Jay, we're getting into the nitty gritty on NOS, muscle shirts, Corona, and FAMILY (the straight kind). Peel out with us starting May 2026! On the Shoulders of Giants is hosted by Alice (she/her), Brian (he/they), and Niko (she/her). We have an obligation-free tip jar on Ko-Fi. Cars Don't Fly is hosted by Brian (he/they), Alice (she/her), and Iris Jay (she/xey). Join OSG's Discord here. We stream on Twitch! You can find us on Bluesky @osgpod, YouTube @osg_pod, and Tumblr @osg-pod as well. Visit our website at osgpod.com and send questions/feedback to questions@osgpod.com. Our theme is “Hard Drift Phonk” by Artissizm. Other royalty-free sound effects sourced from Pixabay and Youtube. OSG tries extremely hard to source royalty free audio that is NOT AI generated, which is an increasingly difficult task. If you've read this far, please consider leaving us a 5-star review on your podcatcher of choice. It really means a lot!

There's a Tina-shaped elephant in the room, but otherwise a perfect movie about growing stronger. Beware Boats Film List FIND US ON LETTERBOXD SHOP THE SHOW: TEE PUBLIC FOLLOW THE SHOW: INSTAGRAM EMAIL THE SHOW: abreathoffreshmovie@gmail.com  

Ripping off the listeners of 25% of their abuse, covering space-fakeness, Iran negotiating, Central American gift shops, and of course, whiskey.open.spotify.com/show/3LUIIaiw95X2sAbRJDK3oByoutube.com/@abusehourt.me/THEABUSEHOURbuymeacoffee.com/COFFEELONG

10 Min Nervous System Reset | Full Body Scan MeditationIf you've been running on adrenaline all week, it's time for a tactical override. In this episode of Calming Anxiety, we move beyond simple relaxation to physically signal to your brain that the threats are over. Join Martin, a clinical hypnotherapist, for a guided 10-minute nervous system reset designed to transition your body from a state of "fight or flight" into deep, restorative peace.This full body scan mindfulness meditation uses progressive muscle relaxation and deep breathing exercises to help you unwind, release negative thoughts, and regain clarity of thought. Whether you are struggling with panic attacks, chronic stress, or just need a daily moment of meditation, this session provides a safe space to find balance for mind, body, and soul.Episode Chapters:00:00 – Intro: The Tactical Override for Adrenaline 00:51 – Setting the Space & Breath Awareness 01:45 – The Art of the Release: Tuning into the Out-Breath 02:51 – Visualizing the Aura of Calm 03:18 – Beginning the Scan: Feet, Ankles, and Calves 04:04 – Controlled Tension: Engaging the Thighs and Hips 05:51 – Upper Body Release: Spine, Shoulders, and Arms 06:45 – Facial Relaxation: Easing the Brow and Jaw 07:34 – Powerful Affirmations for Control 08:30 – 3 Daily Caring Tips for Anxiety 09:37 – Closing: Staying Kind to Your Soul Affirmations for Inner StabilityRepeat these internally to align your subconscious mind with a state of safety:"My body is calm, my mind is steady, I am back in control." 3 Daily Caring Tips for a Happier LifeCarry this stillness into your world with these three practical grounding techniques:The Cold Water Hack: Splash your face with cold water during a spike of panic to manually reset your heart rate.Unplug the Noise: Dedicate 20 minutes today to zero notifications and total digital silence.Physical Grounding: Walk barefoot on grass or a cold floor for two minutes to feel the earth beneath you.Join the Fold of KindnessIf this session helped you find your center today, please consider subscribing and hitting the notification bell.The world can be a loud, stressful place, and your support helps us reach more people who need a moment of peace. It would mean a lot if you shared this episode on your social media—together, we can bring more people into a community built on kindness and calm.For those looking to dive deeper, explore the Calming Anxiety Circuit Breaker Course at for specialized tracks to combat anxious thinking.Take care, smile often, and to your soul be kind.

SummaryIn this inspiring interview, Benjamin Lee shares his journey of faith, overcoming health challenges, and the importance of mentorship, evangelism, and unity within the church. Discover practical advice for young Christians and insights on handling adversity with faith.Chapters00:00 Introduction and Background02:53 Journey to Preaching06:13 The Importance of Mentorship08:47 Developing Humility and Relationships11:57 The 'I Can Do' Brand and Personal Challenges21:08 Navigating Difficult Times as Christians27:59 Faith and Fitness Connection30:41 The Importance of Health and Fitness33:06 Stepping Out of Comfort Zones in Evangelism41:29 Welcoming Visitors in the Church45:16 Understanding Christian Life Coaching47:58 Avoiding Division in the Church53:11 Final Thoughts and AdviceBuy my books and read my blogs: https://benjaminlee.blogListen to all of my podcasts: https://icandopodcast.comSubscribe to my Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/@icandopodcast?si=fYWcRvZIgzCosruh

Roman can't be built as a leader in one season

What if your past isn't just remembered—but physically carried with you every day?In Episode 285, Mike and Mark dive into The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk, a transformative exploration of how trauma shapes the brain, body, and our perception of the world.This episode challenges the idea that trauma is “just a story” and instead reveals how deeply it influences our reactions, relationships, and sense of self. From understanding your personal “map of the world” to learning how to release stored stress through movement, imagination, and even body positioning—this conversation is both eye-opening and practical.If you've ever felt stuck in patterns you can't explain, or sensed that something from the past is still holding you back, this episode offers a powerful framework for awareness, healing, and forward momentum.Now more than ever, understanding how to process and release what we carry is essential—not just for growth, but for living fully.Key ThemesTrauma as perception, not just memoryThe “map of the world” shaped by past experiencesHow trauma physically alters the brain and bodyEmotional pain as a full-body experienceGetting “stuck” in patterns of thought and behaviorHealing through movement, imagination, and creativityThe power of body language and posture in emotional statesAwareness and choice as tools for transformationConcepts & BreakthroughsOne of the most profound ideas in this episode is that trauma is not simply an event—it is the way the brain adapts to that event. As Bessel explains, our minds construct a “map of the world” based on past experiences, and that map determines how we interpret everything that follows. Two people can experience the same situation and walk away with completely different realities.This becomes especially important when trauma is unresolved. It doesn't stay in the past—it shows up in present reactions, often disproportionate to the situation. As discussed in the episode, someone may react strongly not because of what's happening now, but because of what happened years ago.Another key breakthrough is the understanding that trauma lives in the body. Feelings like anxiety, dread, or stress are not abstract—they manifest physically: tight shoulders, shallow breathing, or a clenched gut. As highlighted in the transcript, “heartbreak” and “gut-wrenching” are not just metaphors—they are literal bodily experiences .Healing, therefore, cannot be purely intellectual. It must involve the body. Movement, breathwork, and physical awareness become essential tools for releasing stored trauma. Even posture plays a role—standing upright, opening the chest, and adopting a “position of joy” can directly influence emotional state.Perhaps the most liberating idea explored is the concept of breaking out of the “trauma trap.” Through imagination, creativity, and even theatrical expression, we can step into new roles and identities. This creates distance from old patterns and opens the door to new ways of being.Habits, Tools & Mental Models1. The “Map of the World” CheckRegularly question your interpretation of events. Ask: Is this reality, or my past shaping my perception?2. Trauma Detox PracticeJust like physical detox, emotional detox requires intentional effort—through journaling, movement, or conversation.3. Body Awareness ScansNotice where stress lives in your body. Shoulders, neck, and gut are common signals of unresolved tension.4. Intercept the Thought LoopWhen revisiting past pain, consciously interrupt the pattern. Redirect attention before it spirals.Become a Member of the Moonshots Podcast:https://www.patreon.com/Moonshots

Zander Krause and John McMullen break down the Eagles offseason with 17 days until the NFL Draft. Jalen Carter's shoulder issues are raising real concerns — he ranked 115th of 130 in run defense last season and couldn't lift weights. Plus: why WR mocks are shifting to the Eagles, AJ Brown trade implications, and the full offseason roster recap.Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Rubicon - James Lewis Jr. father of Lance Jay comes on the show at Oakwood University Alumni

La Liga is back! Join Román de Arquer (@Aeroslavee) and Harry Gillies as they review the latest round of fixtures from Spain's top flight. Is the title race over? As Real Madrid lost in Mallorca, and Barcelona snatched a 2-1 win away at Atleti, the Catalan giants now have a seven point lead over Los Blancos. We discuss if the two Madrid clubs will now turn all of their attention to the Champions League, something Simeone seemed to suggest against Barça, leaving Julián Alvarez and Ademola Lookman on the bench. The league winner might be a certainty, but the race for the European places is gets more exciting with every week. We discuss the parallels between Real Betis and Celta, as both clubs are fighting for the same goals. Celta deployed some beautiful football away in Valencia, showing once again the fearless play style of Claudio Giráldez. Real Sociedad and Getafe have also greatly impressed and are well in the hunt to qualify for Europe. As for the bottom of the table, we discuss the stark reality for Sevilla fans that the seven-time Europa League winners get relegated, with Mallorca and Alavés putting in better performances in the fight against the drop. We also spare a thought for Real Oviedo, where it might be a case of too little too late for the Asturian side. And as always, thanks for listening and subscribing! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this heartfelt and powerful conversation, I sit down with Sandra Bargman to explore what it truly means to live with ferocious compassion—a practice of honoring our truth without abandoning kindness. Together, we dive into the lifelong journey of recognizing where we've been hiding behind masks, how suppressed anger can actually guide us back to ourselves, and why people-pleasing often disconnects us from our inner truth. Sandra shares her own deeply personal stories and insights, inviting us to embrace both our softness and our strength, and to stand firmly in who we are—even when it feels uncomfortable. This episode is a beautiful reminder that coming home to yourself begins with awareness, courage, and the willingness to choose authenticity over approval.About Sandra BergmanSANDRA BARGMAN has been described as a walking Venn Diagram. She is a 35+ year professional actor, singer, voice artist, (AEA/SAG/AFTRA), Broadway Nationals, Off-B-way, Regional, Summer Stock), a seminary trained and ordained Inter-spiritual minister, award winning ritual designer and spiritual counselor, and a Voice, Storytelling and Presence Teacher - the overlapping center of these concurrent paths being the ancient Greek maxim “Know Thyself”.She is a contributing author to the #1 best-selling book, On the Shoulders of Mighty Women by Lesley Michaels, with her chapter, Anger and the Reluctant Leader. She is a contributing author to LOVE NOTES to the Soul 2.0: Stories of Compassion and Healing with her chapter, FEROCIOUS COMPASSION.Her solo show, The Edge of Everyday, performed in the renowned cabaret rooms of NYC, received rave reviews + garnered a Broadway World award nomination. The live CD recording can be found on Amazon and CD Baby.She is the host of the podcast, The Edge of Everyday, based on her solo show of the same name, streaming on all your favorite podcast platforms. Connect with Sandra BergmanEmail: revsandrabargman@gmail.comhttp://www.TheBIGApproach.comhttp://www.ThePlumTH2.comhttps://www.facebook.com/sandra.bargman/https://www.instagram.com/sandrabargman/?hl=enhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/sandrabargman/About Anita AdamsI'm Anita Adams, your host and the founder of Joyful Journey, an organization devoted to teaching The Wisdom Way—a practice that helps individuals reconnect with their authentic selves and create lives filled with meaning, well-being, and joy. In addition to hosting the Joyful Journey Podcast, I lead transformative retreats and workshops, and offer both group and one-on-one coaching. I'm also the bestselling author of Whispers of the Soul: A Guide to Clarity, Confidence, and Joy.If you have any questions, please reach. My contact information and ways to connect with me are below. And please subscribe for updates and consider leaving a review to help others discover this podcast. Thank you!Offerings by Anita: Coaching Services: https://www.joyfuljourney.ca/coaching Retreats: https://www.joyfuljourney.ca/retreats 30-Day Nature Challenge: https://www.joyfuljourney.ca/nature-challenge Whispers of the Soul: https://mybook.to/Whispersofthesoul Weekly newsletter: https://joyfulinspiredliving.myflodesk.com/joinConnect with Anita: Email - anita@joyfuljourney.caWebsite - https://www.joyfuljourney.ca/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/joyful_journey_with_anita/Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/anitaadamsyvr/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anita.adams.904/Book a Discovery Call: https://calendly.com/anitaadams

Our episode this time is OSG's PILOT DUMMY episode we recorded as a test before we knew how to podcast on 0080: War in the Pocket. Enjoy our fraught, naïve, babyfaced discussion of pointless tragedy and eating McDonald's off the forest floor. Mechs discussed: Kampfer Gundam ALEX GM Sniper II All images: on our website. Content warnings for this episode: Nuclear weaponry, gun violence, political tragedy. On the Shoulders of Giants is hosted by Alice (she/her), Brian (he/they), and Niko (she/her). We have an obligation-free tip jar on Ko-Fi. Join OSG's Discord here. We stream on Twitch! You can find us on Bluesky @osgpod, YouTube @osg_pod, and Tumblr @osg-pod as well. Visit our website at osgpod.com and send questions/feedback to questions@osgpod.com.

Want boulder shoulders, sleeve-filling arms, and a head-turning backside? In this episode, Sal, Adam, and Justin break down exactly how to build the aesthetic physique you're chasing, especially the muscles that matter most for women and bikini competitors. First, a reality check: "sculpting" is really just building muscle. Fat loss reveals the shape, but the shape has to be built first. Most women get this wrong by chasing sweat, soreness, and burn as signs that training is working. They're not. Consistent strength gains over time? That's the signal. The guys break down why programming beats exercise selection every time. How you order movements, structure sets and reps, manage volume, and cycle intensity is what actually drives your results.   Use code MUSCLEMOMMY50 before April 1st to get Get MAPS Muscle Mommy for 50% Off (Use code MUSCLEMOMMY50 before April 1st): https://www.mindpumpmedia.com/maps-muscle-mommy?htrafficsource=spotify-organic&hcategory=posttype&el=2825 Rho Nutrition: rhonutrition.com/discount/mindpump Use the code "Mind Pump" to get 20% off! Timestamps: Mind Pump Fit Tip: Why "sculpting" is really just building muscle — and how fat loss reveals the shape you've already built. (1:17) The real reason most people don't get results: chasing burn, soreness, and sweat instead of this. (3:20) Why your program — not your exercises — is the actual driver of physique change. (3:20) Build first, then cut: the order of operations most people get backwards. (5:49) Consistent strength gains are the #1 signal your body is actually changing. (8:14) Always do compound lifts before isolation work — here's why order matters more than people think. (9:26) How to reallocate volume toward your target muscle (delts before chest, etc.) for faster results. (12:49) Why you need to train both heavy AND in the pump rep range — and how to alternate between them. (15:26) The two non-negotiables that make or break your results: protein (~1g per lb of body weight) and sleep. (16:57) Best exercises for delts (overhead press, rear-delt fly), arms (curl-grip pulldowns, curls, close-grip bench, overhead tricep extensions), and glutes (squats, hip thrusts). (20:33) MAPS Muscle Mommy program is 50% off — built specifically for this kind of training. (23:20)  

Lisa Nichols shares a powerful, emotional story about visiting Oprah with her grandmother — and the life-changing lesson that came with it. Through a simple act of humility, she's reminded that success isn't just personal — it's built on sacrifice, legacy, and responsibility. This story will shift how you see gratitude, service, and your place in the world.Want Ad-Free Episodes? Join QOD Club and hear zero ads inside our Circle community. Plus, book clubs, mentorship calls, weekly business trainings, and new likeminded friends. Get started for only $9.Source: The Art of Storytelling: How to Move Your Audience and Leave Them Hungry for MoreHosted by Sean CroxtonFollow me on InstagramSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If you want to know how to think on your feet, you need to understand something most advice on this topic gets wrong: Thinking on your feet is not a talent. It's a trained response. And the training required goes far deeper than memorizing a few “power phrases” or practicing small talk at networking events. Real mental agility, by which I mean the kind that serves you in a boardroom, on a stage, in a heated conversation, and even in physical danger, is something you earn. And to earn it requires systematic preparation across multiple domains. I know this because I've spent decades training for exactly these moments. As a university professor, I've lectured in multiple languages to rooms of students who didn't always want to be there. And to get my PhD, I had to sit for a dissertation defense in a room where some of the examiners delighted in throwing hardball questions. As a performing musician, I've improvised solos on stages where the set list changed mid-show. While performing card magic, I've recovered from botched tricks in front of audiences who were actively trying to catch me out. And as a martial arts practitioner, I've used my training to escape three real-world physical confrontations without throwing a single punch. Then there was my TEDx Talk where I had to make real time adjustments when the audience failed to even smile at my scripted laugh lines, but chuckled substantially during parts I had not planned to be funny. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqtDy68-gkY How to Think on Your Feet: The Complete Training System for Mental Agility Under Pressure What I've learned across all of these experiences is that every domain of “thinking on your feet” shares one foundational requirement. It's not intelligence. It's not quick wit. It's often not even confidence. Rather, the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that thinking quickly and responding in the best possible way comes down to the systematic reduction of ego. That might sound philosophical, but it's intensely practical. And it will become the thread that connects everything in this guide. From how to recall information instantly in a conversation to how to physically escape a threatening situation without freezing. Here's what we'll cover today: Part 1: Why “Thinking on Your Feet” Is a Trained Skill, Not a Personality Trait Part 2: The Ego Problem (Why Your Self-Image Is Your Biggest Obstacle) Part 3: Mental Recall Under Pressure (How to Access What You Know When It Matters) Part 4: Verbal Agility (How to Sound Smart, Pivot, and Recover in Conversation) Part 5: Performance Under Pressure (Lessons from Music, Magic, and the Stage) Part 6: Physical Composure (How to React When Your Safety Is at Stake) Part 7: Daily Training Exercises for Mental Agility Part 8: Loading Your Mind (Why What You Memorize Determines How Well You Think) Part 9: The Paradox of Mental Silence Let’s dive in with why most people struggle with the skill of spontaneously responding in optimal ways in the first place. Why “Thinking On Your Feet” Is a Trained Skill, Not a Personality Trait As Freud pointed out, civilization is not our natural state. In Das Unbehagen in der Kultur, which is usually translated as Civilization and Its Discontents, he argues that much of our inner tension comes from how our social training represses our instincts. “Discontents” is not really a great translation for the title of this book. “Unbehagen” means something more like “unease” or “discomfort.” And since languages and skills are something we learn, we literally have to undergo a process of discomfort to learn most things. That's not a political statement. It's a neurological one. Your brain's implicit memory system, the part that handles automatic behaviors, gut reactions, and how you repeat social patterns on autopilot, was shaped by millennia of environments that looked nothing like a conference room or a dinner party. It was shaped by physical survival, tribal dynamics, and the need to read danger before it arrives. This means that when you're put on the spot in a modern context, your brain defaults to patterns it learned through observation, not through deliberate training. And those patterns were modelled on the people around you growing up. Especially in contexts like: Being asked a question you weren't expecting Getting challenged during a meeting Having someone force you to improvise a presentation at school or work In such situations, you might find yourself freezing under pressure and not realizing that you’re actually repeating how you saw a parent go cold when you were young. Or you might find yourself getting defensive in arguments the way a sibling did, or going blank during presentations based on someone else’s blip you observed. When you repeat this behavior yourself, it’s not a character flaw. That's implicit memory doing exactly what it was designed to do: replicate observed behavior. And if you’re reading this and don’t have problems thinking on your feet, chances are that you were a lucky observer of someone who could when you were young. Combatting Implicit Memory’s Hold with Reconsolidation The problem is that your default patterns are not optimized for the situations modern life throws at you. They're survival patterns, not performance patterns. Since you’ve learned to react like those you’ve observed instead of how you’d prefer to act as a fully realized being in this world, what can you do? Fortunately, quite a bit. Neuroscientists call the mechanism behind how you can shift the hold of implicit memory on your behavior memory reconsolidation. Here’s how memory reconsolidation works in brief: Every time you recall a memory, it temporarily destabilizes. Researchers call this destabilization a “labile state.” And while the memory is transitioning, the memory can be modified before your brain stores it again. This includes modifying behavioral patterns, not just facts. So when you clam up after being put on the spot and then reflect on what happened, that freezing response is briefly open to revision. This process was first demonstrated in landmark research by Karim Nader and Joseph LeDoux at NYU, which you can read about in Memory Reconsolidation. As part of their investigation, Nader and LeDoux demonstrated that even deeply encoded fear memories could be altered during reconsolidation. Unlocking Transformation Bruce Ecker and colleagues later applied this principle therapeutically. I recommend their discussion in Unlocking the Emotional Brain: Memory Reconsolidation and the Psychotherapy of Transformational Change. As you’ll read, they discovered how long-held emotional patterns can be rewritten. Not through willpower, but through a specific process of activating the old pattern, introducing a contradictory experience, and allowing the brain to re-encode. Monica Khosla explores a parallel idea in The First and Last Belief. This fascinating book is written by someone who experiences non-dual states similar to those I shared in The Victorious Mind: How to Master Memory, Meditation and Mental Well-Being. Khosla discusses how our earliest family-formed beliefs become the templates for how we respond under pressure as adults. Her work in family therapy suggests that these templates aren’t permanent fixtures. Rather, they’re “reconsolidatable,” provided you understand how they were formed and deliberately create new experiences that contradict them. This is precisely what the training in the guide you’re reading now is designed to do. Every exercise, every practice, every discipline I’ll share works by activating your default pattern (the freeze, the defensive reaction, the blank stare) and replacing it with a trained alternative in the moment it’s most labile. The Catch But there’s a catch. There’s always a catch, isn’t there? The pattern that most resists reconsolidation is your self-image. It’s also your self-image that most aggressively defends itself against change. People literally argue for hours with therapists that they cannot change. I know because I made this argument myself for years in front of my own therapists. This is precisely why thinking on your feet requires training. You cannot simply decide to be quicker, calmer, or more articulate under pressure. You have to deliberately replace your default patterns with trained responses. And use deliberate practice to ensure those responses become the new default. The training looks different depending on the context: In conversation and debate, it means learning frameworks for organizing thoughts rapidly and practicing with real people. In professional settings, it means memorizing key information so thoroughly that recall becomes effortless, freeing your mind to think rather than search. On stage or in front of an audience, it means thousands of hours of performance practice that builds a reservoir of recoveries and pivots you can draw on automatically. In physical danger, it means martial arts or self-defense training that bypasses conscious thought entirely and produces trained physical reactions. Each of these contexts has its own training methods. But they all share the same underlying principle: the trained response must be so deeply encoded that it fires before your conscious mind has time to interfere. The single biggest source of that interference? Your ego. But never fear. As big of a problem as the ego can be, you’re going to learn how to solve and resolve it. Part 2: The Ego Problem (Why Your Self-Image Is Your Biggest Obstacle) Here's the uncomfortable truth that almost no “how to think on your feet” article will tell you: The reason most people freeze, fumble, or fail under pressure is not that they lack information or intelligence. It's that they're managing their self-image at the same time as they're trying to perform. They experience serious cognitive drain as a result. Why? Well, when you're in a meeting and someone asks you a question you don't know the answer to, your mind doesn't just process the question. If your ego is not well-managed, your mind simultaneously processes: “What will they think of me if I don't know? Will I look incompetent? How do I maintain my status?” That parallel processing consumes the very cognitive resources you need for actual thinking. The Additional Cognitive Drain of Fantasizing Your Own Wit The psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan made an observation that I've found profoundly useful in this context. He once pointed out that our fantasies are almost always better than the reality. For example, when we fantasize about being the quick-witted person everyone admires, we're constructing an idealized self-image that the real moment can never live up to. At least not all the time. You’ve probably heard the phrase “the gods have clay feet.” Well, spend enough time with accomplished performers, and you’ll start to see why. No one always has: the perfect response the devastating comeback the elegant pivot But we fantasize that some people do. And then when we don't perform like our fantasy, we experience not just the failure of the moment, but also a painful collapse of our self-image. That's why a stumble in a presentation can feel catastrophic even when the audience barely notices. The ego is experiencing a much larger injury than the situation warrants. How to Reduce Ego Before It Costs You There’s no quick fix for the ego. And ego reduction exercises so you can respond with greater self-satisfaction in the moment require: Practice in advance Consistent application in a variety of situations And in a variety of ways until responding off the top of your head from a clear mind becomes your default orientation. Then you maintain the practices that get you the spontaneous mastery you want over time. Here is a powerful place to start. Practice Stoic Premeditation The Stoics called it premeditatio malorum or negative visualization. Basically, you deliberately imagine everything that could go wrong related to the situations that regularly require your response. If you regularly visualize yourself going blank in a meeting, stumbling through a presentation, or being publicly corrected, the actual event loses its power to destabilize you. You've already experienced the worst in your imagination. The real version is almost always milder. It’s the flipside of the point from Lacan we discussed above. You’ve now made the reality much better than the fantasy. Modify the Classic Stoic Exercise You can modify premeditatio malorum in two key ways. I suggest you experiment with both techniques I’m about to describe. One: Transform Old Memories of a Disastrous Performance First, you can excavate through your memory to find situations you recall where things have already been bad for you. Then, you can “cleanse” those memories by placing them in a “Happy Memory Palace.” The scientific basis for this process comes from research showing promise in therapy for trauma, such as this study of memory reconsolidation specific to declarative memory. And there is the now classic Tim Dalgleish-headed research on using Memory Palaces or the method of loci for successfully reducing depression. For more on this kind of research, the following livestream replay gives you an exact exercise and more about the memory science behind the positive outcomes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vs9UHz4pVuM In terms of how I’ve used this approach personally, I sometimes wince at one particular memory from when I sang a song during show-and-tell one morning when I was in grade two. I don’t know why I used to feel embarrassed when the memory would arise as an adult, but I could feel the sting in my cheeks. And later when I first started sharing the Sanskrit phrases I’ve memorized, that little flush of shame would arise again. So to forgive that kid whatever my memory was holding against him for his squeaky little voice, I turned the classroom into a Memory Palace and used it to memorize a delightful poem. From the point that I finished learning the poem (you can learn the process from this poetry memorization guide), I can think of that episode without that old embarrassment reviving any of its sting. And I’ve used this approach to transform other lingering memories I don’t like as well, something I’ll share more in-depth in a forthcoming book. Releasing old negative memories that involve shame makes me feel more spontaneous. And I’m confident you’ll enjoy a similar benefit too. Two: Memorize Stoic Quotes Memorizing poetry is one thing, but it takes time. You can commit quotes to memory a lot faster. I share one of my favorite quotes from Seneca in this YouTube short, one that took only a few minutes to memorize, even though it’s in Latin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISvX0-CfRkk I found this quote in Kevin Vost’s Memorize the Stoics! Although it’s not on my list of best Memory Palace Books, it provides a great look at memory training through a Stoic lens. And Vost is right: The value of having ancient wisdom on tap cannot be exaggerated. Not just for correcting your ego. You’ll also find that you have more things to say when pressed to speak on the spot. Things that have stood the test of time. Meditate Specifically for Ego Reduction Eckhart Tolle, author of The Power of Now, often says in his talks that if you are empty of thought, you don’t have to worry about what to say next during a conversation. You’ll spontaneously produce the best possible reply. I often wondered how it was possible to empty my mind of thoughts until I encountered Gary Weber’s Happiness Beyond Thought and Evolving Beyond Thought amongst other works. Although Weber’s full program requires a fair amount of time, it’s worth it for the mental space and spontaneity you’ll enjoy. Two Other Tactics for Detaching From Your Ego for Greater Spontaneity While you’re experimenting with Stoicism, here are two other tactics to explore. They’re both counterintuitive, but powerful. Embrace ignorance as a position of strength Saying “I don't know, but I'll find out” is not a failure. It's a demonstration of intellectual honesty that most people find more impressive than an imaginary answer. If your ego tells you that not knowing something is a form of weakness, push back. Admitting when you don’t know something and then doing some research and following up, builds trust at the same time as it builds your knowledge base. Detach from Needing Any Particular Outcome Your job in any high-pressure moment is not to be brilliant. It's to be present and responsive. Almost as if there is no “you” longing to be perceived in any particular way. Or desiring things to play out for or against you. When you stop trying to produce the perfect response and instead focus on actually hearing the question, understanding the situation, and responding honestly, the quality of your thinking improves dramatically. And it happens largely because you've freed up the cognitive resources consumed by your egotistical needs. You’ll also enjoy your perception of the present moment much more. Part 3: Mental Recall Under Pressure (How to Access What You Know When It Matters) One of the most common experiences of “not thinking on your feet” is this: You know the information, but you can't access it in the moment. You know your mind possesses the answer. But the pressure of the situation has locked the door. There's a neurological explanation for this. Researcher Amy Arnsten has documented how stress signalling pathways in the prefrontal cortex effectively shut down under acute stress. As we know from studies in anxiety-induced memory loss, during stress, the amygdala takes prominence over the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for working memory, reasoning, and flexible thinking. As a result, your brain redirects resources toward fight-or-flight responses that are useful for physical survival but terrible for articulate speech. This is a major reason why you can know something perfectly in a calm environment and go completely blank when asked about it in front of an audience or in a heated discussion. The information hasn't disappeared. Your brain has simply redirected resources away from the systems that retrieve it. The Alphabet Retrieval Technique When I suddenly can't recall something (a name, a fact, a point I wanted to make), I have a technique that works more often than I'd expect: I mentally run through the alphabet from A to Z. It doesn’t always bring back the information. But the technique works often enough to make it a reliable first move, hitting the correct first letter while scanning through the alphabet triggers the retrieval. When it works, it’s because the first letter acts as a cue that unlocks the rest of the word or thought. It’s also the basis of how associative memory operates. As Dr. Gary Small has explained, your brain stores information in networks that somewhat resemble neighborhoods. And the first letter of a word is often enough of a “key” to unlock the door on a full node of information. It's the same principle behind why a song's opening notes can bring back the entire melody. Or how just a word or two of a lyric can bring back an entire verse. The “Let It Go” Retrieval Technique If scanning the alphabet doesn't work, the next best strategy is counterintuitive: Stop trying. In other words, deliberately release any attempt to search your mind for the content. Instead, move on to the next point, the next topic, the next question. Often, within 5–10 minutes, the information you were grasping for will come racing back to mind. This form of recall happens because your subconscious continues processing the retrieval request even after your conscious mind has moved on. Releasing the conscious effort actually accelerates the process, because you've removed the stress that was blocking retrieval in the first place. The Anti-Digital Amnesia Discipline You Need In order to ensure your memory gets stronger over time, you need to break the habit of immediately reaching for your phone or a search engine when you fail to recall something. Every time you outsource mental retrieval to a computer, you weaken the neural pathways that perform recall. You're training your brain that it doesn't need to do the work — and over time, it stops trying. This is the phenomenon I've written about as digital amnesia, and it's one of the most insidious threats to mental agility in the modern world. Preloading: The Real Solution to In-the-Moment Recall Both alphabetical retrieval and simply letting go are recovery strategies. They're useful when recall fails. But the real solution to thinking on your feet is to ensure that recall rarely fails in the first place. This is where a variety of memory training techniques enter the picture. Not as gimmicks, but as the foundational infrastructure for mental agility. The Memory Palace Technique Using Memory Palaces provides a core means of preloading information into your mind. Because this technique allows you to encode very large amounts of information, retrieval under pressure becomes qualitatively different from trying to recall something you passively read or heard. You literally own that information, forwards and backwards. It works because the spatial structure of the Memory Palace gives your brain a retrieval path that works even when the prefrontal cortex is under stress, because spatial memory is processed partly by the hippocampus. This is a different system than the one stress shuts down. In practical terms: If you've memorized the key points of a presentation using a Memory Palace, you don't need to “remember” them under pressure. You just mentally walk to the next room. The information is there, waiting. But it’s not merely attached to a place you know as well as your own home. It has also entered long-term memory. To learn this approach, check out The Memory Palace Technique: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide. Memory Wheels and the Art of Combination Retrieving facts, quotes, even entire passages under pressure is one thing. But what about those moments when you need to synthesize information on the spot? Such as when someone poses a complex question and the right answer isn’t a single piece of information but a combination of ideas you need to assemble in real time? This is where most people’s recall fails them entirely. They might remember one relevant point, but they can’t pull together the three or four ideas needed to construct a substantive response on the spot. I use a technique for this that dates back to the 13th-century philosopher Ramon Llull, later refined by the Renaissance memory master Giordano Bruno. It’s called ars combinatoria or the art of combination. It works by pre-organizing your knowledge onto mental structures called memory wheels so that you can rotate through ideas rapidly and recombine them in novel ways during live situations. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Opmb-mU-KPI Here’s the simplest version of how it works in practice: Imagine a circle in your mind with the letters A through Z arranged around it. For each letter, you’ve pre-assigned a thinker, a framework, or a principle you know well. A might be Aristotle. B might be a breathing technique. C might be a core value you hold. M might be Marcus Aurelius. S might be the Stoic concept of premeditatio malorum. When a difficult question hits you in conversation, instead of grasping for one perfect answer, you mentally spin the wheel. Instead of searching randomly for something to say, you approach the task of coming up with something to say by scanning an organized inventory of your best thinking. Because you’ve pre-loaded and spatially arranged all of it, your mind can traverse what you’ve already learned quickly. Memory Wheel Example One of my favorite Memory Wheels is populated with philosophers (one for each letter of the alphabet). When I’m confronted with a complex topic, I rotate through and consider what Aristotle would say and then move on through as many philosophers as I like, all the way to Zizek for Z. I know this technique sounds elaborate and it requires having read the best philosophy books, but once you have a Memory Wheel built and practiced, the rotation takes seconds. Here’s a rapid fire discussion with a few more examples from one of my YouTube shorts from the road in Brisbane: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/29nOib2ZS_4 Please don’t overlook this technique. It produces responses that are genuinely multi-perspectival, not just whatever my default opinion happens to be. The deeper history of this technique and detailed instructions for building your own memory wheels are covered in my full guide to Ramon Llull’s memory wheel method. But the principle you can apply immediately upon developing your own memory wheels is this: If you pre-organize your knowledge into a spatial structure rather than leaving it scattered across your memory, you gain the ability to not just recall individual facts under pressure but to combine and recombine ideas on the fly. That is the difference between someone who can answer a question and someone who can think through a problem in real time. It’s not speed without purpose. It’s architecture with a sense of direction based on the shoulders of giants. Part 4: Verbal Agility (How to Sound Smart, Pivot, and Recover in Conversation) Verbal agility isn't about having a quick tongue. It's about having a calm mind with a deep well of material to draw from. The people who seem effortlessly articulate in conversation are rarely making it up on the spot. They're drawing on vast reserves of pre-loaded knowledge, practiced frameworks, and rehearsed transitions. What looks like spontaneous brilliance is actually the visible tip of an enormous iceberg of preparation. Frameworks for Organizing Your Thoughts Rapidly When someone throws a topic at you and you need to respond coherently, having a mental framework prevents the rambling that makes people sound unprepared. Here are several that work, provided you practice using them before they’re required in real-life situations: The PREP Framework PREP stands for: Point Reason Example Point It’s a very powerful formula to practice during debates as well as in conversation. When using PREP, you state your position, give one reason, illustrate with one example, then restate your position. This takes 30–60 seconds and helps keep your replies structured without sounding rehearsed. The WRAP Technique I learned this one from Chip and Dan Heath's Decisive. WRAP stands for: Widen your options Reality-test your assumptions Attain distance before deciding Prepare to fail I placed WRAP on a memory wheel and demonstrate how to run through it mentally in this ars combinatoria video tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cYDmaBXvJg What to Do When You're Stumped Even with the frameworks we just discussed or tactics like running through the alphabet, you will experience situations where you simply don't have a response. Here are more strategies you can try. Pause Peacefully Although falling silent can feel painful when you first start practicing it, rest assured that it barely registers to the person listening. And in many cases, a two or three-second pause before responding signals thoughtfulness, not ignorance. Most people rush to fill silence because their ego can't tolerate appearing slow. But a measured pause followed by a substantive response is always more impressive than a rushed response followed by backtracking. Seek Clarification There’s nothing wrong with asking people: “Can you say more about what you mean by that?” or “Are you asking about X or Y specifically?” Such questions will not stall the conversation. It's genuine intellectual engagement, and it often reveals avenues for further conversation that would not be revealed any other way. Use the Truth You might not know this, but many people find it refreshing when someone admits that something is outside of their area. Nir Eyal did that on my podcast a few years ago and I’ve never forgotten his willingness to “stay in his lane,” as he put it. The best part? Nobody penalizes honest uncertainty and a request to move on if you really don’t have a settled opinion on some matter or any expertise. Practice Physical Awareness Sometimes when we’re stumped, our body tenses up. Shoulders rise, the jaw clenches and breathing shallows. This physical tension feeds back into your mental state and makes mental freezing worse. But deliberately dropping your shoulders and taking one slow breath can help break the cycle. More on this kind of physical solution is coming up in Part 6. Practice Steelmanning One of the most powerful exercises for verbal agility is practicing steelmanning. Related to the principle of charity in rhetoric, steelmanning is the practice of arguing for positions with which you disagree. But not half-heartedly. No, you make the argument in the strongest possible terms. One simple way to practice steelmanning involves getting a friend to throw topics at you randomly. Your job is not to argue your own position, but to construct the best possible argument for the opposite side. This practice accomplishes three things simultaneously: It forces you to think through ideas from perspectives you wouldn't naturally adopt, which builds cognitive flexibility. It trains you to separate your ego from your position, because you're explicitly not defending your own views. It prepares you for actual debates, because you've already rehearsed the strongest version of your opponent's argument. For more tips that will help you in this department, check out my guide to preparing for debates. The Improv Principle If you take one thing from this section and act on it, let it be this: Take an improvisation class. Why? Improv comedy training provides you with the single most transferable skill for verbal agility in any context. The core principle of improv is quite easy. You simply answer everything with either “yes, and…” or “no, but…” This simple structure teaches you to accept whatever is thrown at you and build on it rather than blocking or deflecting. This is the exact skill you need in meetings, conversations, presentations, and debates. Improv also provides the one thing you can't get from reading articles: Real-time practice under social pressure while receiving immediate feedback. No amount of theory replaces the experience of standing in front of a group with nothing planned and having to produce something. It’s been a long time since I took an improv class, or any class. But you really only need one round to create a permanent transformation. Part 5: Performance Under Pressure (Lessons from Music, Magic, and the Stage) If you've never performed music, theatre, magic, public speaking, or any other form of real-time presentation, you may not realize how much of “thinking on your feet” is simply having enough trained material that you can recover from anything. The principle applies far beyond the stage. But the stage is where the principle is most visible, so let me share what I've learned from three performance disciplines. Music: Improvisation Is Built on Structure & Self-Awareness When I studied music, I learned something that most non-musicians find surprising: improvisational soloing requires more preparation than playing a written piece. A written piece has every note specified. You practice it, you perform it, you're done. An improvised solo, on the other hand, requires you to internalize the underlying structure so thoroughly that you can navigate it in real time without conscious planning. You need to know the modes, the chord changes, the rhythmic patterns, the phrasing conventions. And you need to know them so well that they're available to your fingers before your conscious mind has time to think about which note comes next. I know this from decades of musical experience. But my life in music almost never happened at all. In grade five, I failed a recorder test. It was given as a prerequisite for joining band class in grade six. The reason, though I didn’t have the language for it at the time, was a condition then called image-deficit disorder, now known as aphantasia. I couldn’t visualize what my teachers were asking me to see on the recorder or the sheet music. And the boring mnemonic sentences they gave us for remembering the notes made no sense to me. The school’s verdict in the face of my supposed failure? No band class. My dad changed that. He rolled up to the school on his Harley Davidson and had a conversation with the administration that I wasn’t privy to. Whatever he said, it worked. I was in. So long as I played the trombone instead of my dream bass guitar. They thought trombone would be easiest for me with its one simple slide. The Art of Coping By Copying But getting into band class didn’t mean I could play. In fact, for the entire first year, I sat beside another trombonist who picked up every note like it was nothing. I survived by watching his slide positions and copying them. I wasn’t reading music. I was reading him. The next year, in grade seven, the teacher gave us separate parts, and my copying lifeline was over. I remember sitting alone in a room with that trombone, sweat rolling down my face, sheet music on the stand turning my brain into wet sawdust. It felt like staring at an explosive I didn’t know how to defuse. But something shifted as my juvenile brain worked to solve the problem. Once I was forced to actually engage with the notation instead of mimicking someone else, I started seeing patterns. The theory behind the notes began to click. My teacher noticed the transformation quickly, both in performance and on my written tests. Later that year, she encouraged me to enter a sight-reading competition. Even though I didn’t win, I remember the thrill of performing music I’d never seen before. And because my teacher saw how deeply I’d started engaging with music, she helped me secure a spot at the local summer school of music before high school. That summer changed my trajectory. I studied with a celebrated trombonist from Canadian Brass. My skills went up substantially, and after a solo I played during the final concert, I was asked to audition for the Kamloops Rube Band. I turned that invitation down and finally retired the trombone for a bass and joined a heavy metal band instead. Over the years that followed, I played in multiple bands, learned increasingly complex music, and eventually realized a lifelong dream: going on tour with an established band. Memory expert Anthony Metivier performing at a concert in Germany. The Lesson That Changed How I Perform And it was during that tour, playing with a sophisticated band called The Outside, that I received perhaps the most important lesson about thinking on your feet that music ever gave me. After a show, our drummer Tito told me I’d missed a few notes. I braced for a critical lecture, but he said something I’ve never forgotten. It was an important tip that has everything to do with the practice of thinking on your feet: “The real problem isn’t missing the notes. It’s looking like you made a mistake. If you look like you made a mistake, it is a mistake.” From that moment on, I trained myself to improvise how I looked just as much as how I sounded. A missed note played with confidence reads as a creative choice. A perfect note played with visible anxiety reads as a near-miss. The audience often doesn’t hear your mistakes, but they do see your reaction to them. This principle extends far beyond music. It shows up in meetings, presentations and conversations. Your stumbles themselves are almost never what people remember. They remember whether or not you flinched. And to tie this all back to the beginning, flinching is an ego response. It’s the visible evidence of caring more about how you appear than about what you’re communicating. Tito didn’t know he was teaching me about ego reduction back during that tour in 2013. But that’s exactly what his lesson was. Card Magic: Multiple Outs and Recovery In card magic, which is especially useful in memorized deck magic, there's a concept called “multiple outs.” I think about it constantly in non-magic contexts. A multiple out is a tactic you might never use, but always have something prepared so that no matter what the spectator does, you conclude the trick successfully. In other words, no matter which card they choose, which pile they point to, which decision they make, you have a prepared path to a successful conclusion. The spectator thinks they're making free choices. In reality, every choice leads to the same place, or to one of several equally impressive endings. This is exactly how preparation works for thinking on your feet. If you've prepared thoroughly for a meeting, you don't just have one argument. You have multiple arguments, multiple examples, multiple pivot points. If someone challenges your position, you have an “out.” If someone asks an unexpected question, you have another “out.” The more preparation you've done, the more outs you have. Magician in Trouble There's also a sub-genre in magic called “magician in trouble” where the performer intentionally appears to make a mistake, building tension before a surprising recovery. What the audience doesn't realize is that the “mistake” was planned and the recovery was rehearsed. But it only works because the performer has done thousands of hours of practice behind the scenes. If you’re having trouble acting spontaneously, learning a few magic tricks is one of the best things you can do. The more tricks you know, the more you can make mistakes and recover. If one trick goes wrong, you transition to another. If a spectator does something unexpected, you have a different trick that accommodates their choice. The depth of your repertoire is directly proportional to your ability to handle anything. Translate this to your professional life: The more tools, frameworks, examples, and stories you have memorized, the more “tricks” you can draw from when a conversation or presentation goes sideways. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvtYjdriSpM Two Levels of TEDx Improvisation Where Preparation Met Reality Minutes before I was due on stage for my TEDx Talk, a long-time fan showed up without a ticket. From what I gathered, he’d traveled to attend the event in Melbourne. And I could tell he was genuinely excited. But he didn’t have a ticket. And when the venue staff told him he couldn’t come in, due to fire capacity rules, we were both frustrated. Anyone with two eyes could see that the room wasn’t actually full. But there was no time to argue the bureaucracy. I was about to deliver the most important presentation of my career, after all. This is exactly the kind of moment that derails people. Not the talk itself, but the things that happen right before you hit the stage. I’m talking about the unexpected disruptions that flood your system with cortisol at the worst possible time. My ego wanted to fight for this person’s entry. It wanted to make a scene about the absurdity of empty seats and fire codes. It wanted to be the hero who fixes things. Instead, thinking on my feet, I suggested we meet for dinner after the talk. He understood. We shook hands. And then I had approximately four minutes to completely reset my mental state before walking on stage. Here’s what I did, standing backstage where nobody could see: I placed my hands behind my back and began Kirtan Kriya. This is a four-syllable meditation (Sa, Ta, Na, Ma) combined with a sequential mudra where your fingers tap. Gary Weber teaches it in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehvokeZnXMM By using the technique with both hands behind my back so no one would see, I simultaneously slowed my breathing and brought myself back to center. Between breath cycles, I also ran a quick body scan from my feet to my scalp, deliberately releasing tension wherever I found it. Jaw, shoulders, hands, the major muscle groups. By the time they called my name, I was calm. Not confident in the way people usually mean. I wasn’t puffed up or “psyched” to give my speech. Just calm in the way that comes from having emptied the bowl. The fan situation was gone from my mind. The ego’s need to intervene was gone. What remained was a mind with nothing in it except a memorized talk and the willingness to deliver it to whoever was in that room. What To Do When the Room Doesn’t Follow Your Script Shortly after my talk began, the room did something I hadn’t planned for. A scripted joke that had worked perfectly to create laughter during the dress rehearsal the day before landed in silence. Not awkward silence. Just… nothing. The audience looked at me with interest but no laughter. A few minutes later, during a section I hadn’t intended to be funny at all, they laughed. Genuinely. A speaker working from notes would have been buried in their script at that moment, unable to read the room because their eyes were on the page. But my entire talk was encoded in Memory Palaces using the technique I teach in my guide, How to Memorize a Speech. I didn’t need to look at any notes. I could look at everyone and connect with them directly. So I did and leaned into their laughter. I let it breathe. I adjusted my pacing to ride the energy they were giving me rather than forcing the energy I’d planned. Going with the flow, I made an unscripted joke and it landed. And when the moment passed, I stepped to the next station in my Memory Palace and continued on with the talk. What the Audience Saw vs. What Actually Happened The audience experienced this as spontaneity. They saw a speaker who was loose, present, reading the room. What actually happened was decades of training expressing itself through a four-second decision. The musical performance training that taught me to keep playing through mistakes without flinching. The card magic training that taught me to have multiple outs when a planned effect doesn’t land. The teaching experience that taught me to read a room full of people who may not be responding the way I expected. And underneath all of it, my ego-reduction efforts shone through, including the willingness to let go of the talk I’d planned and deliver the talk the audience needed. After the event, several people told me how natural and relaxed I seemed. One person said it felt like I was just talking to them, not giving a speech. That’s the highest compliment a speaker can receive. And it was entirely the product of preparation. But nothing about that talk was spontaneous other than the joke I made up on the fly. Otherwise, every word of that talk was memorized verbatim. The audience saw someone thinking on their feet. What they were actually seeing was someone falling back on their training. That, and they witnessed someone with enough training to fall back on. That is the difference. And it’s available to anyone willing to put in the work before the moment arrives. Part 6: Physical Composure (How to React When Your Safety Is at Stake) There are situations where “thinking on your feet” has nothing to do with being articulate or quick-witted. Quite the opposite. There are many moments in life when thinking itself is the problem, especially during situations where what you need is a trained physical response that fires before your conscious mind has time to interfere. I've been in three of these situations. Each time, it was my years-long Systema training that kept me safe. In case you don’t know it, Systema is a martial art focused on breathing, relaxation, and fluid movement under stress. To be clear, it didn’t help me fight. It helped me because it stopped fights from erupting in the first place. Let me explain. Incident One: The Attempted Mugging While writing my dissertation, I was living in Washington Heights, a district north of Harlem in New York City. I was walking south, down to the 170s from the corner of 187th and Cabrini, where I’d stopped to use a bank machine. On my way out, a man stood in front of me with something resembling a gun in his pocket. Exactly as it happens in the movies, he gestured in quick spurts of energy so that my eyes dropped and looked at his pocket. “Give me your wallet and all your money,” he demanded. My Systema training kicked in. Instead of having my shoulders shoot up with anxious tension — the default I’d seen in almost every new student Emmanuel Manolakakis worked with, including me during my first lessons — my mind automatically followed the training I’d received. Without willing it, my shoulders dropped and my mind and body synced with my breath. In a way that still completely bewilders me, a smile came across my face. I don’t know what I looked like, but my expression unnerved the mugger. It created the stress in him that should have been in my body. After what seemed like an eternity, the mugger said, “Wipe that smile off your face or I’ll shoot you.” At this point, my smile grew wider and I started to laugh. An instant later, it felt right to move. I took one step forward into his space and angled to the left with the second and third steps. I didn’t break his gaze and watched as his eyes and entire head tracked me as I moved past him. Then, still operating completely on autopilot, I started to run and found myself in a cleaning supplies store filled with mops and buckets. No confrontation. No escalation. No ego. Just a trained body responding faster than a thinking mind would have. My Systema training, from breath coordination to deep muscle relaxation and long hours of practice with dropping into calm during situations of simulated threat, delivered exactly what it was designed for: bypassing the conscious mind that would have frozen me and let the body handle the situation. Incident Two: The Dark Path in Toronto Some time later, walking in Toronto, I approached a path at the end of a high school field. It was too late to be taking this popular shortcut, but there I was during a night that was far darker than I would have liked. There was just one street lamp hanging over that path, and its bulb was barely working. Before I stepped onto the path, I put a dime on my thumb. I didn’t think about why. There was no conscious strategy at work. My body simply did what training had taught it to do: prepare for the possibility of contact without committing to a plan. Sure enough, someone stepped into my path. I flicked the dime. The coin caught his gaze and seized his attention, producing a few seconds of involuntary visual tracking. This is the same reflex that makes every human eye follow sudden movement. Thanks to the distraction created by the spinning dime, I moved past him easily and paced off into the distance before his focus returned. The entire encounter lasted maybe three seconds. There was no conversation, no confrontation, no mental calculation. Just a trained response that created a tiny window of distraction and an immediate exit through it. I still think about the fact that I put the dime on my thumb before anything happened. It wasn’t a decision so much as it was a product of procedural memory — the same memory system that helps a musician’s fingers find the right fret before their conscious mind has named the note. Systema trains you to read environments the way musicians read chord changes. Not by analyzing, but by responding to patterns your body has trained to respond to inside the dojo. Incident Three: Outside the Post Office The third incident was the strangest. Outside a post office, someone with a grievance I didn’t fully understand began yelling at me aggressively. His body language was escalating and the situation felt like it could turn physical. My response was immediate: I raised my hands into a prayer gesture. With my palms together and fingers standing straight up, I found myself saying “thank you” over and over. I wasn’t being clever. I wasn’t trying to defuse the situation with wit. The gesture came from training, and it served two purposes simultaneously that I was only partially aware of in the moment. First, it put my hands in a position to quickly block any incoming strike. The prayer position is a natural guard because your hands are high, elbows close and forearms ready to redirect. I mean, it’s not going to make you bulletproof, but it’s just as disarming as the smile I delivered back during the mugging I survived in New York. Second, my response psychologically short-circuited the man’s aggression. Being thanked while you’re on the offensive is so dissonant that the brain doesn’t know how to process it. This person’s rhythm broke. His volume dropped. The escalation stalled because the script he was running had been interrupted by a response that didn’t fit. He didn’t thank me back. But at least he stopped. And I walked away unscathed. The Common Thread: No Ego, No Thinking, Just the Fruits of Training In all three incidents, the pattern is identical: Because the ego was out of the way, I wasn't trying to prove anything or “win” the encounters. There was also no conscious thinking. The responses were physical, automatic, and executed faster than mental deliberation would have allowed. Plus, there was relaxation under threat. The counterintuitive act of relaxing when threatened, which Systema specifically trains, prevented the freeze response that ego and fear typically produce. Finally, the strategy in each case was oriented toward getting away, not engaging. For anyone who wants to develop this dimension of thinking on their feet, I strongly recommend studying a martial art that emphasizes relaxation, awareness, and movement rather than aggression and force. Finding Your Own Physical Practice If personal experiences make you want to sign up for Systema, I’d encourage it. But I’d also encourage any martial art that emphasizes awareness, breathing, and relaxation over aggression and force. The point is not to become a fighter. The point is to develop a body that responds to threat with trained composure rather than untrained panic. Beyond martial arts, I practice Qigong daily and have for years. It’s not a combat discipline, but it trains the same foundational skills experienced in a gentler format: Breath coordination Bodily awareness Relaxation under tension For someone who has no interest in martial training, Qigong offers many of the same benefits for composure and physical presence without ever throwing or receiving a strike. Whatever physical practice you choose, I’d offer one caution: Don’t romanticize these practices or turn them into a glamorous fantasy. Remember the lesson from Lacan and the Stoic lessons that make sure reality is better than fantasy if and when real situations of trouble land. The three incidents I described above weren’t action sequences. They were awkward, brief, and slightly absurd. I didn’t defeat anyone. I smiled, flicked a coin, and said thank you. The training didn’t make me dangerous. It made me calm enough to exit each situation without a scratch. And that brings me to what I consider the most important physical skill of all, one that doesn’t require any formal training: situational awareness. Train for Situational Awareness In each of the three incidents, there was a moment before contact where my body registered something my conscious mind hadn’t articulated yet. In Washington Heights, I noticed the man’s posture before he spoke. In Toronto, something made me put a dime on my thumb before I entered the dark path. Outside the post office, I registered the escalation in body language before any words were exchanged. To train for greater situational awareness, walk with your phone in your pocket instead of your hand. Move around the world with your ears empty instead of listening to music or podcasts. When you enter a room, notice the exits. When you’re in an unfamiliar environment, pay attention to who is around you and how they’re moving. These aren’t paranoid habits. They’re the same environmental reading skills your ancestors used every day. Modern life has simply given us the luxury of ignoring them. There is almost no better way to think on your feet than the thinking that steers you clear of sticky situations in the first place. When it comes to physical confrontation, the best-trained response is the one you never have to use. Part 7: Daily Training Exercises for Mental Agility Everything discussed so far requires ongoing practice. Here are the specific daily exercises I use and recommend, organized from quick (2 minutes) to involved (30+ minutes). Breathing Techniques (2–5 minutes) Before any high-pressure situation, be it a presentation, a meeting or a difficult conversation, controlled breathing is the fastest way to shift your nervous system from sympathetic (fight-or-flight) to parasympathetic (calm and focused). The simplest technique: Breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 4 counts, breathe out for 6 counts. The extended exhale activates the vagus nerve and physically slows your heart rate. Do this for 2 minutes and you'll enter any situation calmer and more mentally available. For more advanced breathing techniques, check out this video tutorial I made for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeO06_uZZcg   Progressive Muscle Relaxation (5–10 minutes) Systematically tensing and releasing muscle groups, from your feet to your face, trains your body to release the physical tension that accumulates under stress. Over time, you develop the ability to detect and release tension in real time — during a conversation, during a presentation, during a confrontation. This is the body scan component that I used before my TEDx Talk, and it's a core element of Systema training as well. The ability to scan your body for tension and deliberately release it is a physical skill that directly supports mental agility. Steelmanning Practice (15–20 minutes) Get a partner. Have them throw random topics at you. Your job: argue the strongest possible case for the position you naturally oppose. Switch roles. Do this twice a week and within a month you'll notice a dramatic improvement in your ability to think through problems from multiple angles under time pressure. Now, you might think about going to Chat-GPT or some other LLM. You can certainly give this a try. However, beware of context-dependent memory and state-dependence issues. If you only train in digital environments with a bot, you will likely find that you perform fine when sparring with a computer, but flounder with a human. As this study found, training in certain environments creates less cognitive fatigue than others. So if you come to develop certain beliefs about the difficulty of discussing things based on experiences with chatbots, you will probably not like the energy-drain you encounter when dealing with humans. Remember: we tend to fight the way we train, so practice all rhetorical argumentation in a variety of environments, never just one. Random Topic Riffing (10–15 minutes) Have someone give you a topic and speak about it for 2 minutes without stopping. What you say doesn't need to be brilliant, but work at speaking continuously. The exercise trains your brain to keep producing output even when it doesn't feel ready, which is exactly the skill you need when put on the spot. Increase difficulty by having the topic-giver interrupt you with new topics mid-stream. This trains your ability to pivot and shift directions without losing composure. Memory Palace Practice (15–30 minutes) Every time you encode information using a Memory Palace, you're doing more than memorizing. You're building the retrieval infrastructure that makes recall under pressure possible. Regular Memory Palace practice is the single most important investment you can make in your ability to access information when you need it. The more you memorize, the more you should seek to incorporate memorized material into your steelmanning and random riffing practice routines. Alphabet Drills and Multiple Mentality (5–15 minutes) One of the most unusual training systems I’ve encountered comes from Harry Kahne, a performer from the 1920s who could write with both hands simultaneously while reciting poetry from memory. He called his approach “Multiple Mentality” because it’s the deliberate practice of running several mental operations at once. His exercises sound deceptively simple. The foundational one: write out the alphabet backwards from memory. Not from Z-A printed on a card. From memory, cold. Most people find reciting the alphabet backwards surprisingly difficult the first time. But once you can do it? That’s when the real training begins. Kahne then asks you to pair the alphabet’s extreme ends mentally: A-Z, B-Y, C-X, working inward. Then start from the center and pair outward in reverse. These are pure concentration drills because they force your brain to hold a structure in working memory while performing various forms of recall. I go deeper into the full Multiple Mentality system and all of Kahne’s exercises in my detailed review of his course, including the parts I think are brilliant and the parts where I respectfully disagree with him. Part 8: Prepping Your Mind (Why What You Memorize Determines How Well You Think) Most of us know that the quality of your thinking is directly proportional to the quality of what you've committed to memory. A mind loaded with poetry, philosophy, scientific principles, historical examples, memorable quotes, and well-understood frameworks will produce richer, more nuanced, more creative responses under pressure than a mind that relies on whatever it happens to recall from last week's reading. This is not about showing off. It's about having raw material that makes you mentally dexterous. And gives you information you can use in an instant. What to Memorize for Maximum Mental Agility As you’ve seen, I strongly recommend memorizing quotes and poems. Because memorized poetry gives you access to compressed wisdom, beautiful language, and emotional resonance that you can draw on in conversation, writing, and thinking. Likewise, you can learn how to remember a story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM4TxD6ez1Y When you've memorized a poem or story, you own the content in a way that reading on its own never provides. The lines and structures become part of your mental vocabulary. I've memorized dozens of poems and passages of verse, and they surface constantly in conversation, in my writing, in my thinking about problems that have nothing to do with literature. Memorize Speeches for Mental Dexterity Likewise, you can seek out speeches from people like Churchill, Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. and Marcus Aurelius. The words of leaders who were themselves masters of thinking on their feet make for excellent training material. When you've memorized their words, you internalize their patterns of thought. You don't just quote them. You begin to think in the structures they used. Learn to Tell Jokes Like improv, humor provides you with one of the ultimate forms of thinking on your feet. And telling jokes is far more learnable than people assume. To get started, commit a few jokes to memory and study their structure. You’ll soon notice that a good joke is a tiny argument: The setup establishes expectations The twist violates the expectations The punchline resolves the violation in a surprising or ironic way This simple structure is not so different from the PREP framework we discussed above. Practice Parroting and Accent Imitation Imitating a famous actor might sound like a party trick, but it's actually a profound exercise in sharing another person’s perspective and behavioral patterns. To imitate someone convincingly, you have to at least try and understand how they think, how they move and how they use language. As a result, the understanding you develop translates directly to the ability to read and respond to different people in different contexts. I’m not particularly good with foreign accents or imitating people. But merely by putting time into practicing a few people, I’ve learned a lot and become more spontaneous on my feet. Reflective Thinking Practice Memorization alone isn't enough. The material you memorize needs to be processed through reflective thinking. This is the practice of deliberately considering what you've learned, connecting it to other things you know, and forming your own positions. I do a lot of my reflective thinking through journaling, through conversation with carefully chosen friends, and through a practice I've maintained for years: regularly re-reading books I've already read, looking for things I missed the first time. All of these practices transform static knowledge into dynamic intellectual resources you’ll draw upon with great ease when you find yourself put on the spot. Part 9: The Paradox of Mental Silence We've covered a great deal of ground today: ego reduction, memory techniques, verbal frameworks, performance training, martial arts, daily exercises, and the art of loading your mind with quality material. And now I want to end with something that sounds like a contradiction but is, in fact, the deepest truth about thinking on your feet: The goal is not to think faster. Rather, it’s to create the conditions where you don't need to think at all. I know this sounds paradoxical. How can “thinking on your feet” require not thinking? It’s because the highest level of performance in any domain doesn’t just look like effortlessness. It actually is, if only in the present moment. I’m talking about the musician who plays a transcendent solo. That performer isn't thinking about which notes to play. Nor does the martial artist who evades a strike sit there thinking about which direction to move. And the speaker who delivers a perfect response to an unexpected question isn't thinking about what to say. They’re drawing upon deep preparation. In each case, the performer has trained so deeply that the right response emerges from a place beneath conscious thought. The preparation started long ago. Practice has quieted your fantasies, both positive and negative. And what remains is a mind so well-prepared that it can be still during the demands and in that stillness, the right response simply appears. This outcome is common in the world of mindfulness and meditation, where practitioners describe the experience of being “full by being empty.” In order to receive the moment as it actually is (not as your ego wants it to be, nor as your anxiety fears things might go wrong), you just have to empty your mind of the noise that normally fills it. Your Next Step If this article has shown you anything, I hope it's this: thinking on your feet is not a gift. It's the product of deliberate, ongoing training across multiple domains — mental, verbal, physical, and philosophical. The foundation of all of it is memory. Not “good memory” as a vague trait, but trained memory — the ability to encode, store, and retrieve information on demand, under pressure, in any context. If you want to start building that foundation, I've created a free course that teaches you the core Memory Palace technique in four video lessons. It's the same starting point my Masterclass students use, and it will give you your first experience of what trained recall feels like. For even deeper training that includes the Memory Wheel technique, ars combinatoria, advanced Memory Palace strategies, and the Recall Rehearsal patterns that make long-term retention predictable, my Magnetic Memory Method Masterclass takes you through the complete learning system. And if you want to explore the meditation, breathing, and muscle relaxation routines I've combined with memory training for maximum mental composure, I go into all of that in The Victorious Mind. So what do you say? Are you ready to stop worrying about what you’ll say next and start training so deeply that the right response arrives on its own? Remember: the secret every performer, martial artist, and memory expert discovers is ultimately the same. You don’t rise to the level of the mome

DWSC eps now drop every Wednesday and every other Friday, so that's at least SIX drops every, single month!Don't forget you can get ad free and early access to episodes, video recordings, invitations to live zoom recordings, shout outs and a whole lot more, head to www.patreon.com/drunkwomensolvingcrimeHannah and Taylor are on tour during the spring and summer of 2026...Each show is a double record, so that's TWO crimes to solve, TWO fantastic guests and TWO chances to win a set of DWSC coasters!For all info, dates and tickets have a look here Drunk Women Solving Crime - The UK's hit true crime comedy podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Preview for later today. Gene Marks explains that despite administration claims, the rising costs of tariffs currently fall directly onto the shoulders of American consumers and frustrated small businesses.1910