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Jump Start Your Joy

Inspired by the quote “Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day (Henri Nouwen),” this lively show looks at the inspiration, intention, and action that you can take to have for a positive mental outlook, even in hard times and improbable situations.
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Now displaying: Category: author
Oct 20, 2022

Andrea Scher has thrilled and inspired others for nearly twenty years through her award-winning blog Superhero Journal, her international workshops, her Creative Superheroes podcast, and her joyful e-courses. In this episode, we discuss Andrea’s new book, Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy Today, and how and she describes why this is the perfect time to tune into the small things that bring you joy.

Read the full show notes on my website. Click here.

In this episode, Andrea and I talk about:

  • Why Andrea was inspired to write her book to inspire others to add more wonder and magic to their lives
  • What a Wonder Seeker actually is and how wonder relates to joy
  • Becoming braver and more resilient as you pivot your attention towards wonder and joy
  • How Wonder Seekers create comfort by being open-hearted and cultivating a spirit of kindness and love 
  • Some of the exercises in Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy Today and why 144 is her personal favorite 
  • How Andrea sets intentions and the magic the practice can bring
  • How to move past the rigid routines of the last 18 months and embrace the magic and wonder your world has to offer
  • Andrea’s e-courses, retreats, and creative workshops, and how to find out more about her 
  • Three ways Andrea recommends to jump-start joy in your life, in the world, or other people’s lives?

Resources

Preorder Andrea Scher's book: Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake Up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy

Get your free gift from Andrea after purchasing Wonder Seeker here

Andrea Scher's Superhero Life

Andrea Scher on Instagram

Other books and resources we mention in this episode

The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Wisdom, and Love: Buddha's Brain by Rick Hanson

Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence by Rick Hanson

Camera Obscura in San Francisco

Oct 6, 2022

Signe Myers Hovem is a spiritual counselor, an energy worker, and the author of The Space in Between: An Empaths Field Guide. In this interview on Jump Start Your Joy podcast, we are talking about empaths and highly sensitive people (HSPs).

If you are a highly sensitive person, or if you have a sense that you may be an empath, then I think you're going to get a lot out of this conversation (which ties so closely to this season's theme of intentional comfort on the podcast). HSPs and empaths notice the energy around people and places and things, and this can be overwhelming to them. The Empath's Field Guide, and this conversation, offers a lot of insight on how to manage your energy, hold space, and work with your gifts.

In this episode, Signe Myers Hovem talk about:

  • What it means to be a functional empath.
  • The difference between empathy versus being an empath.
  • Exploring what it means to identify as a highly sensitive person.
  • The power of our words and what we choose to call things.
  • Minding your energy, and holding space without having your own energy drained.
  • How to set up strong boundaries with people, places, or things if you feel an energetic drain and decide if you want to get involved further.
  • How do we navigate through the space of being an empath or an HSP in everyday life?

Resources

Signe Myers Hovem's website

The Space in Between: An Empaths Field Guide by Signe Myers Hovem

Love the show, and what to show your support?

Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.

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Aug 18, 2022

I'm really excited to have author Renee Linnell back on JSYJ!. This is her second time on the podcast, and in this brand new conversation, we're talking about her book that came out on August 16, 2022, which is titled "Still on Fire: A Memoir."

Renee first came on the show when her first book, "The Burn Zone," came out.  This book was was all about how she found herself in a cult several years ago. Her new book is a delightful continuation of her amazing craft of storytelling. The themes that come through in her new book are all around  trusting your intuition, manifesting things in your life, and the idea that this life is a continuation of your soul's ongoing journey.

Of course, these are some of my very favorite themes and there's such joy and delight in this conversation with Renee.

Resources:

Renee Linnell's first interview on JSYJ

Renee Lineell's book: "Still on Fire: A Memoir"

Renee Linnell's book: "The Burn Zone"

 

Aug 12, 2022

Emma Loewe is the co-author of The Spirit Almanac, and she is the senior sustainability editor for mindbodygreen, and she has released the amazing book, Return to Nature: The New Science of How Nature Landscapes Restore Us. In it, she shares the different kinds of landscapes, how they effect your mental health, studies about why they improve your mental health, and things you can do to counter-act the effects of climate change on these landscapes. This discussion fits so well into this month’s theme of “finding home,” and I hope you love this conversation about the return to nature with Emma Loewe.

Read the full show notes on my website.

In this episode, Emma Loewe and I talk about:

  • How the idea of this book came about
  • A profound memory Emma has of a maple tree in her yard growing up, and why many of us have anchoring memories that revolve around nature.
  • My resonance with the landscapes of oceans and coasts and forests and trees.
  • What a forest bath is, and how to experience one
  • The fractals in trees, and why that is soothing to humans
  • How to handle grief and anxiety over climate change in an effective and non-overwhelming way

Resources

Emma Loewe’s book, “Return to Nature: The New Science of How Natural Landscapes Restore Us” on Bookshop.org

Emma Loewe’s website

Emma Loewe on Instagram

Love the show, and what to show your support?

Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.

Apr 19, 2022
In this interview, I am so honored to be joined by author Sonya Renee Taylor. Sonya is the author of the the New York Times Bestselling book, “The Body is Not an Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love.” She just recently released an updated version of that book, and the “Your Body is Not an Apology Workbook: Tools for Living Radical Self Love.” Sonya is joining me to talk all about radical self-love and joy. And, she shares that when we start to love ourselves, we can transform how we interact with others in the world.

Sonya Renee Taylor and I talked about:
– her early joys of creating radio shows with her friend
– slam poetry festivals, and how entering them fed her soul
– how “The Body is Not an Apology” got started
– how the Genesis story in the Judeo-Christian tradition relates to shame and body image
– how to tell if your joy is coming from an altruistic place, or if it may have residue on it
– embracing radical self love
– why radical self love is not easy work
– the indoctrination of all of us in a society where the hierarchy has a vested interest in keeping us from embracing self love
– giving from your overflow, and how that can help you steer clear of burnout
– that choosing to spread radical self love feeds itself, and creates room for more radical self-love

Resources

Sonya Renee Taylor’s Website
The Body is Not an Apology Website
Support The Body is Not an Apology by making a contribution
Sonya Renee Taylor on Unlocking Us with Brene Brown

Sign up to receive the Jump Start Your Joy newsletter

Follow Jump Start Your Joy on Apple Podcasts

Love the show, and what to show your support?

Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.

Apr 12, 2022

for mindbodygreen, and she has just released the amazing book, Return to Nature: The New Science of How Nature Landscapes Restore Us. In it, she shares the different kinds of landscapes, how they effect your mental health, studies about why they improve your mental health, and things you can do to counter-act the effects of climate change on these landscapes. This discussion fits so well into this month’s theme of “finding home,” and I hope you love this conversation about the return to nature with Emma Loewe.

Read the full show notes on my website.

In this episode, Emma Loewe and I talk about:

  • How the idea of this book came about
  • A profound memory Emma has of a maple tree in her yard growing up, and why many of us have anchoring memories that revolve around nature.
  • My resonance with the landscapes of oceans and coasts and forests and trees.
  • What a forest bath is, and how to experience one
  • The fractals in trees, and why that is soothing to humans
  • How to handle grief and anxiety over climate change in an effective and non-overwhelming way

Resources

Emma Loewe’s book, “Return to Nature: The New Science of How Natural Landscapes Restore Us” on Bookshop.org

Emma Loewe’s website

Emma Loewe on Instagram

Love the show, and what to show your support?

Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.

Feb 22, 2022
In this episode, I'm honored to be interviewing Lauren Artress. She is an author, Canon of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, founder of Veriditas, and a spiritual pioneer and a leading force in popularizing the Labyrinth in the US and around the world. I have been fascinated with Labyrinths for years, and this last December became a trained Labyrinth facilitator. I'm excited to have Lauren joining me to talk about her experience with the Labyrinth, The Labyrinth Movement, and how it offers parallels and insights into our lives.

In this episode, Lauren and I talk about:
- the labyrinth and what it is
- her journey in finding the labyrinth in Cathedral de Chartres, France
- the role of the labyrinth at Grace Cathedral, San Francisco - both now, and during the AIDS epidemic
- the Holy Fool and how it relates to the Labyrinth
- Hand labyrinths: how they work and how they came about
- The parallels and metaphors of our lives and the walk of the labyrinth

Resources
Lauren Artress' Website
Veriditas Website
World Labyrinth Locator

Interview with William J Peters on JSYJ

Watch Jump Start Your Joy interviews on YouTube

Love the show, and what to show your support?

Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.

Jan 19, 2022

In this episode of Jump Start Your Joy, I am interviewing William J. Peters. He is the founder of the Shared Crossing Project and the director of its research initiative. He is the author of the new book, "At Heaven's Door: What Shared Journeys to the Afterlife Teach about Dying Well and Living Better." Recognized as a global leader in the field of shared death studies, he has spent decades studying end of life experiences. He is a practicing grief and bereavement therapist, and he holds degrees from Harvard and UC Berkeley. In this interview, we are talking about understanding shared death experiences.

Read the show notes on my website.

In this episode, William J. Peters and I discuss

  • the definition of The Shared Death Experience
  • Near Death Experiences
  • An NDE (near death experience) that occured to William in his teenage years
  • His new book, "At Heaven's Door"
  • The research he has done on death, dying, and shared death experiences
  • My own personal story of a shared death experience
  • The work he does with the Shared Crossing Project
  • How understanding death, dying, and shared death experiences can allow more comfort in your life
  • The three ways he jump starts joy in his life: be kind to yourself, do what you love in life, helping other people

Resources

At Heaven's Door (the book) by William J. Peters

The Shared Crossing Project

Love the show, and what to show your support?

Buy me a cup of coffee, and I'll give you a shout out on the next episode.

Jan 4, 2022

Signe Myers Hovem is a spiritual counselor, an energy worker, and the author of The Space in Between: An Empaths Field Guide. In this interview on Jump Start Your Joy podcast, we are talking about empaths and highly sensitive people (HSPs).

If you are a highly sensitive person, or if you have a sense that you may be an empath, then I think you're going to get a lot out of this conversation (which ties so closely to this season's theme of intentional comfort on the podcast). HSPs and empaths notice the energy around people and places and things, and this can be overwhelming to them. The Empath's Field Guide, and this conversation, offers a lot of insight on how to manage your energy, hold space, and work with your gifts.

In this episode, Signe Myers Hovem talk about:

  • What it means to be a functional empath.
  • The difference between empathy versus being an empath.
  • Exploring what it means to identify as a highly sensitive person.
  • The power of our words and what we choose to call things.
  • Minding your energy, and holding space without having your own energy drained.
  • How to set up strong boundaries with people, places, or things if you feel an energetic drain and decide if you want to get involved further.
  • How do we navigate through the space of being an empath or an HSP in everyday life?

Resources

Signe Myers Hovem's website

The Space in Between: An Empaths Field Guide by Signe Myers Hovem

Sign up for the January 14, 2022 Podcaster meetup (online) and Ask Me Anything

Sign up for the January 21, 2022 Podcasting Quarterly Content Planning Session

Dec 29, 2021

I truly enjoyed getting to speak with Jonni, and felt myself sinking into the conversation in a deep way. One of the most inspirational parts of the discussion for me was when we walked through the Four Golden Insights, which are the pillars for the work Jonni does.

  1. Life is Sacred
  2. Love is our Nature – we serve, nature, and find connection
  3. Wisdom is our Power – Jonni talks about finding the intelligence of love, and reconciling the appearance of resistance and opposites.
  • We also talked about “embodied leadership power, which equals the ability to influence the environment around us.”
  • Wisdom can enliven and awaken the truth of who we are

4. Fulfillment is our Purpose – we find our purpose by fully understanding who we are

Resources

Jonni Pollard’s website

The Golden Sequence by Jonni Pollard on Amazon

 

Jonni Pollard and I talk about:

  • His earliest sparks of joy as a child – playing with other kids, playing games, and any kind of games where he could evolve and find excitement
  • Being a multipassionate, where he reflected that he felt that the many different things he enjoys in his life are all just different ways that his soul and purpose is revealing itself
  • The filters that we use from the outside looking in, and how it changes the way we see ourselves
  • The desire of creative beings to become expressive
  • Our conditioning as children and the pervasive ideology that we learn as young people
  • How adopting and conforming to social ideals causes immense suffering
  • The four golden insights that set the pillars for the Golden Sequence
  • What happens when energy does not flow naturally
  • The dissonance that fear creates
  • Why we need to connect to our purpose and our humanity
  • Jonni’s thoughts How to Jump Start Your Joy: wake up and connect to the world around you, meditate for success and to affirm your humanity, and to show your best connected self to whomever you first have contact with in the morning

 

Nov 16, 2021

Andrea Scher has thrilled and inspired others for nearly twenty years through her award-winning blog Superhero Journal, her international workshops, her Creative Superheroes podcast, and her joyful e-courses. In this episode, we discuss Andrea’s new book, Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy Today, and how and she describes why this is the perfect time to tune into the small things that bring you joy.

Read the full show notes on my website. Click here.

In this episode, Andrea and I talk about:

  • Why Andrea was inspired to write her book to inspire others to add more wonder and magic to their lives
  • What a Wonder Seeker actually is and how wonder relates to joy
  • Becoming braver and more resilient as you pivot your attention towards wonder and joy
  • How Wonder Seekers create comfort by being open-hearted and cultivating a spirit of kindness and love 
  • Some of the exercises in Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy Today and why 144 is her personal favorite 
  • How Andrea sets intentions and the magic the practice can bring
  • How to move past the rigid routines of the last 18 months and embrace the magic and wonder your world has to offer
  • Andrea’s e-courses, retreats, and creative workshops, and how to find out more about her 
  • Three ways Andrea recommends to jump-start joy in your life, in the world, or other people’s lives?

Resources

Preorder Andrea Scher's book: Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake Up Your Creativity and Find Your Joy

Get your free gift from Andrea after purchasing Wonder Seeker here

Andrea Scher's Superhero Life

Andrea Scher on Instagram

Other books and resources we mention in this episode

The Practical Neuroscience of Happiness, Wisdom, and Love: Buddha's Brain by Rick Hanson

Hardwiring Happiness: The New Brain Science of Contentment, Calm, and Confidence by Rick Hanson

Camera Obscura in San Francisco

Oct 27, 2021

Pamela Seelig began her yoga journey more than 25 years ago when an illness (Bell's Palsy) interrupted her Wall Street career. As part of her recovery from that diagnosis, she she began meditating and it brought her some amazing results. Not only did it speed up her recovery, but the impact of meditating at during that time in her life led to a lifelong pursuit of sharing yoga wisdom with others. In this interview, she joins me to talk about Stress Relief, Meditation and "Threads of Yoga," her new book.

What that means for you is whether or not you are currently practicing yoga, there will be something for you to glean from this conversation.

We talk about:

  • The importance of breath and breathing to calm down
  • Calming your nervous system.
  • Meditation and the various kinds of meditation that can help you deal with every day stress
  • Santosha, which means contentment or gratitude in Sanskrit
  • Breath practices to try right now, or anytime you need to re-center
  • Her new book

I feel like this weaves in so beautifully with the theme for season seven, which is all about intentional comfort and joy.

Resources

Threads of Yoga: Themes, Reflections, and Meditations to Weave Into Your Practice by Pamela Seelig (on Bookshop.org)

PamelaSeelig.com

Centering Prayer Meditation by Paula Jenkins on Insight Timer (free)

Jump Start Your Joy: Heart-Centered Ways to Find Joy in The Messy Middle

May 27, 2021

In this interview, I am so honored to be joined by author Sonya Renee Taylor. Sonya is the author of the the New York Times Bestselling book, “The Body is Not an Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love.” She just recently released an updated version of that book, and the “Your Body is Not an Apology Workbook: Tools for Living Radical Self Love.” Sonya is joining me to talk all about radical self-love and joy. And, she shares that when we start to love ourselves, we can transform how we interact with others in the world.

One of my favorite parts of our discussion sits at the heart of something that has bothered me about joy recently; the question of “how can I embrace joy if that joy possibly comes at the expense of someone else’s freedom, joy, or access to things?” In other words, where does my own privilege enable me to experience joy when others may not have that same access to it.

In talking about altruistic joy, Sonya and I talked about how this relates to her frame work of   “interest buying” or “detriment buying” – in other words, there are things that we do or things that we consume that are in the better interest of all people (altruistic) and there are things that we consume or do that are at the detriment of others. 

And here’s where it got really juicy. Sonya shared that she feels that true, altruistic joy is the kind of joy that has no residue. And, this is perhaps one of the most amazing reflections I’ve heard about joy in the 7 years I’ve been talking to guests about it. Here’s what she had to say about it:

“What it brings up for me is: joy doesn’t have a residue. There’s no residue on joy. It’s beautiful. If there’s a residue, that’s information for you. That’s information to say, “this might not actually be best interest. This might actually be detriment by it. There is something on it that is not about simply living into the most joyful, highest vibration of myself in the world. There is something that says, ‘I’m trying to clean up something. I’m trying to fix something. I’m trying to extract something externally because it’s coming from a place of lack or scarcity.'”

That’s what the residue piece is. And so I think if we can start noticing and getting present with the question of is there a residue after I do a thing? And then, how can I let that be an indicator of whether or not I’m actually in a joy practice. Am I in an interest / buying practice? Or am I in a detriment practice?”

Sonya Renee Taylor and I talked about:
– her early joys of creating radio shows with her friend
– slam poetry festivals, and how entering them fed her soul
– how “The Body is Not an Apology” got started
– how the Genesis story in the Judeo-Christian tradition relates to shame and body image
– how to tell if your joy is coming from an altruistic place, or if it may have residue on it
– embracing radical self love
– why radical self love is not easy work
– the indoctrination of all of us in a society where the hierarchy has a vested interest in keeping us from embracing self love
– giving from your overflow, and how that can help you steer clear of burnout
– that choosing to spread radical self love feeds itself, and creates room for more radical self-love

Resources

Sonya Renee Taylor’s Website
The Body is Not an Apology Website
Support The Body is Not an Apology by making a contribution
Sonya Renee Taylor on Unlocking Us with Brene Brown

Sign up to receive the Jump Start Your Joy newsletter

Follow Jump Start Your Joy on Apple Podcasts

Follow Jump Start Your Joy on Spotify

May 20, 2021

In this episode, I’m delighted to have Fred Waitzkin return for his second interview, this time to talk about his brand new book “Strange Love.” Fred is the author of “Searching for Bobby Fischer,” which is based on his experiences with his son Josh who was a chess prodigy at age 7. In this new interview, we talk about his latest book (Strange Love), his time during COVID in New York and Costa Rica, and what drew him to write a story based in Costa Rica, and his writing process.

What I love about this conversation is the way that Fred talks about his creative process. I find that creating a podcast weekly also takes a good deal of creativity, for my clients and for myself. It’s always interesting to me to learn how other creative people tap into creative flow. Fred uses real life to inspire the events of his book, and he talks about three key things as far as how he goes about writing.

In this conversation, Fred Waitzkin and I talk about:
– his new book, Strange Love, and how he crafted the characters
– his inspiration for writing, often taken from day to day life and people he knows
– Costa Rica and New York City during the COVID pandemic
– his creative process in writing
– how the pandemic has changed us as people
– the resurgence of interest in his book, Searching for Bobby Fischer, after the release of The Queen’s Gambit

Resources
Fred Waitzkin’s website
Strange Love by Fred Waitzkin
Searching for Bobby Fischer by Fred Waitzkin
Fred’s first interview on Jump Start Your Joy

Sign up to receive the Jump Start Your Joy newsletter

 

May 6, 2021

In this episode, I'm honored to be interviewing Lauren Artress. She is an author, Canon of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, founder of Veriditas, and a spiritual pioneer and a leading force in popularizing the Labyrinth in the US and around the world. I have been fascinated with Labyrinths for years, and this last December became a trained Labyrinth facilitator. I'm excited to have Lauren joining me to talk about her experience with the Labyrinth, The Labyrinth Movement, and how it offers parallels and insights into our lives.

In this episode, Lauren and I talk about:
- the labyrinth and what it is
- her journey in finding the labyrinth in Cathedral de Chartres, France
- the role of the labyrinth at Grace Cathedral, San Francisco - both now, and during the AIDS epidemic
- the Holy Fool and how it relates to the Labyrinth
- Hand labyrinths: how they work and how they came about
- The parallels and metaphors of our lives and the walk of the labyrinth

Resources
Lauren Artress' Website
Veriditas Website
World Labyrinth Locator

Sign up to receive the Jump Start Your Joy newsletter

Nov 19, 2020

The author of “You Were Not Born to Suffer,” Blake Bauer and Paula talk about the themes of initiation, struggle, and hardship as a path to knowing yourself and finding your purpose wove through the conversation and finding joy in the messy middle.

In this episode, Blake and I talk about:

  • Early joys of falling in love
  • His “initiation” into adulthood in high school, when he was arrested for a DUI and was deep into addiction and drug use.
  • How he found his way back to his own purpose and center after a rough time in his teen years
  • Getting curious about your interests, and giving yourself permission to follow them
  • What to do when you feel that your energy, blood, or emotions are stuck

Get all the show notes and a full transcript at the website.

Sign up for Newsletter on my website.

Nov 5, 2020

This week, Molly McGlynn Knoderer joins me on the podcast. Molly is the co-founder of Legacy Concierge Services in Northern California. She also recently published a chapter in her first book, “Awakening and Deepening to Truth.” She has deep experience as an entrepreneur, and has followed her own curiosity and passion in her career in elder services after graduating from UC Davis. In the last year, she also wrote about her own journey and truth and so many powerful things to say about the writing process, and how to overcome shame that was present in her life and in so many of our lives.

Get all the show notes and a full transcript at the website.

Sign up for "Three Joyful Things" Newsletter on my website.

In this episode we talk about:

  • Molly reflects on her work with elderly people and families who are looking for elder care for people they love.
  • The importance of being part of a team, even when you’re not on a “winning” team. 
  • Curiosity of trying things out, like when she shared what she wanted to do and then did an internship. 
  • Listening to other people’s stories and recognizing and learning from the history they share
  • Being very present in others lives to really hear them.
  • Sharing your story, even when it’s hard, and the freedom that it brings. 
  • The evolution and transformation that comes from sharing the fullness of your story. 
  • Understanding the legacy we want to create and the legacy elders in our life want to create.
Oct 22, 2020

In this episode of Jump Start Your Joy podcast, I’m delighted to be sharing an interview with Dr. Jeff Spiess. Author of the book, “Dying with Ease: A Compassionate Guide for Making Wiser End-of-Life Decisions,” Dr. Spiess was an oncologist, and later a hospice physician. He spent his medical career working with people were facing serious illness and death, and had a lot of experience in how to navigate both for all who are involved.

 

I’m honored to have Dr. Spiess on the show, and really excited to talk to him about how to find joy now, when we are alive. And, we talk about how to find joy even with the existential knowledge of knowing we are all headed toward death. What do we need to do now, to set ourselves up for more joy while we’re alive?

How do we help others who are facing death feel contentment and joy in their time here?

What’s it like to hold joy and the reality of our own mortality in the same moment?

Get all the show notes and a full transcript at the website.

Sign up for "Three Joyful Things" Newsletter on my website.

 

Sep 11, 2020

Oren Jay Sofer is a communication expert and mindfulness teacher at Spirit Rock in Woodacre, California. He recently wrote the book “Say What You Mean: A Nonviolent Approach to Communication,” and I’m delighted to have him as a guest on the podcast.

In this look back episode episode, Oren and I talk about:

-Mindful communication

-That language is an inherited phenomenon

-How to stop ruminating over anger when you are upset

-The work of Marshall Rosenberg around non-violent communication

-Active listening and how to build understanding in communication

-His thoughts on how to Jump Start Your Joy: find ways to be kind and generous, attune to beauty, connect to meaning and purpose, and play more

Read the full show notes on the website.

Sign up for "Three Joyful Things" Newsletter on my website.

Resources

Say What You Mean: A Nonviolent Approach to Mindful Communication by Oren Jay Sofer (on Amazon)

Oren Jay Sofer’s Website

Sign up for Oren’s class that starts October 17, 2019

Nonviolent Communication by Marshall Rosenberg

May 26, 2020

In this episode, I’m delighted to be joined by Dr. Ezzie Spencer, author of “Lunar Abundance” and the “Lunar Abundance Journal.” After first hearing her interview with Jess Lively in 2017, I was deeply inspired by her story. Ezzie started out as a lawyer in Australia, and also holds a Ph.D in emotional well being. Starting in childhood, Ezzie found herself drawn to the moon and its phases in cycles, and found herself returning to its magic and cycles as she looked for ways to cope with the stress of life as a lawyer.

In this episode, Dr. Ezzie Spencer and I talk about:
-Her early sparks of joy in watching the moon
-Working as a lawyer, and finding herself at the brink of burn out
-Returning to the inspiration of the moon and its cycles and phases
-How to take inspiration from the lunar phases and cycles as a way to pace our own lives
-Re.love, and her work with women who have experienced toxic relationships
-How to jump start your joy: set an intention to be joyful, meditation, asking what is the one thing you’re grateful for, right now?

Resources:
Lunar Abundance: Cultivating Joy, Peace, and Purpose Using the Phases of the Moon by Dr. Ezzie Spencer
Lunar Abundance Journal (on Amazon)
Re.Love program for recovering from toxic relationships by Dr. Ezzie Spencer
Dr. Ezzie Spencer on The Lively Show Episode 212

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May 19, 2020

Jennifer Louden is a coach, author, and all around delightful powerhouse of self care, and I’m delighted to have her on the show to talk about her upcoming book: Why Bother: Discover the Desire for What’s Next. Considered a pioneer in the self care movement, Jennifer wrote her first book, The Woman’s Comfort Book, in 2005. I really enjoyed talking to Jennifer, and it was an honor to have her on the show.

Jennifer Louden and I talk about:
-How masterminds and coaches can help shed light on things that you can’t see for yourself
-Why Bother: Discover the Desire for What’s Next
-Using what bothers you as an invitation to dig deeper and create transformation
-Rock bottom as a place to transform from
-Why we need to normalize that life has hard parts to it, and struggle
-Taking action is the key transforming
-Living a human scale life - one that honors your need for boundaries and care instead of being focused on hustle
-Why “faster” and “hacking” and “hustle” don’t equate to “better” and why we need to set kind goals for ourselves
-“Net joy” and how to keep it as a compass for your life
-Change and growth are not linear
-How Wonder can help you get your bother on
-Grit without compassion is just grind

Resources
Jennifer Louden’s website
The Life Organizer: A Woman’s Guide to a Mindful Year by Jennifer Louden on Amazon
Order Why Bother: Discover the Desire for What’s Next by Jennifer Louden on Amazon

Episode 247: Why it's time to embrace playing small

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Apr 7, 2020

Grief and grieving is a big part of what the society is going through right now with the COVID-19 pandemic. In this episode, I'm looking at the work of David Kessler and a past interview with Julia Samuel for thoughts on how you can name and process the emotions and grief you're feeling.

In this episode:

  • I share the article in Harvard Business Review where David Kessler names the discomfort we're feeling: grief. 
  • Her first love of swinging on her garden swing as a child Starting Child Bereavement UK, and her work as a patron
  • Her early influences, including the bereavement of her parents
  • Her love of personal connection, and how that led her from a role in publishing to becoming a grief and bereavement counselor
  • The roots and starting point for her book, Grief Works: Stories of Life, Death, and Surviving
  • Why people shut down and isolate when they grieve, and why they judge themselves on a right or wrong way of grieving
  • Why allowing yourself to feel the emotions of grief is important
  • How to feel the emotions of grief and loss without being overcome by it
  • The impacts of losing important figures like Princess Diana to society, and why so many people are deeply stirred by these tragic losses
  • How a country processes the loss of children in tragedies like school shootings, as it raises the questions of “the existential cruelty of life”
  • How Julia reacts to resistance, by continuing on her path
  • How to jump start your joy: by enjoying her grandchildren’s giggles, getting in touch with nature, and watching romantic comedies and The Amazing Miss Maizel

ResourcesJulia Samuel’s Website

Harvard Business Review : That Discomfort You're Feeling is Grief (an interview with David Kessler) 

David Kessler on Dr. Brene Brown's Podcast, Unlocking Us
Julia Samuel’s book, Grief Works: Stories of Life, Death, and Surviving on Amazon
If you are grieving: Julia’s 8 pillars of strength (a free download)
On Grief and Grieving: Finding the Meaning of Grief Through the Five Stages of Loss by Elizabeth Kubla-Ross
Waking the Tiger, by Peter Levine (a book on healing trauma)
The Marvelous Mrs Maisel on Amazon Prime

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Jan 21, 2020

In this episode, I’m delighted to be joined by Dr. Ezzie Spencer, author of “Lunar Abundance” and the “Lunar Abundance Journal.” After first hearing her interview with Jess Lively in 2017, I was deeply inspired by her story. Ezzie started out as a lawyer in Australia, and also holds a Ph.D in emotional well being. Starting in childhood, Ezzie found herself drawn to the moon and its phases in cycles, and found herself returning to its magic and cycles as she looked for ways to cope with the stress of life as a lawyer.

In this episode, Dr. Ezzie Spencer and I talk about:
-Her early sparks of joy in watching the moon
-Working as a lawyer, and finding herself at the brink of burn out
-Returning to the inspiration of the moon and its cycles and phases
-How to take inspiration from the lunar phases and cycles as a way to pace our own lives
-Re.love, and her work with women who have experienced toxic relationships
-How to jump start your joy: set an intention to be joyful, meditation, asking what is the one thing you’re grateful for, right now?

Resources:
Lunar Abundance: Cultivating Joy, Peace, and Purpose Using the Phases of the Moon by Dr. Ezzie Spencer
Lunar Abundance Journal (on Amazon)
Re.Love program for recovering from toxic relationships by Dr. Ezzie Spencer
Dr. Ezzie Spencer on The Lively Show Episode 212

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Nov 12, 2019

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Fred Waitzkin is the author best known for “Searching for Bobby Fischer,” the story about his son Josh, who was a chess prodigy at age six. It’s with great pleasure that I have Mr. Waitzkin on the show to talk about his new book, “Deep Water Blues.”

In this episode, Fred and I talk about:
-His writing process and how he approaches his craft
-Early influences in his life, including his father and fishing
-His new book, Deep Water Blues
-Tips on how to approach writing and how to craft a story
-How to jump start your joy: meet a friend for a great talk, fishing, and allowing your work to be transformative

Resources
Fred Waitzkin’s Website
Deep Water Blues by Fred Waitzkin (on Amazon)
The Night of the Gun by David Carr (on Amazon)
The Old Man and the Sea in Life Magazine

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Oct 29, 2019

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Kedma Ough is a business development and business funding expert. Having experienced homelessness and abuse in her life, she’s made it her mission to help under-represented entrepreneurs find a way to get their businesses funded. Her book, “Target Funding” is all about how to find unique options for small businesses. Being a multi-passionate, she has focused her own entrepreneurship on two things: helping women and people of color get funding for their small businesses, and niche-ing down to serve and advocate for differently abled individuals.

In this episode, Kedma and I talk about:

-          How get funding for your small business

-          Looking for superheroes in your life

-          How to build a niche business that will support your dreams and be a match for your interests and strengths

-          Owning who you are and bringing that into your business

-          How to Jump Start Your Joy: practice gratitude, serve others, helping kids

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