Whole Again: Mindfulness and Resilience Through Kintsugi Wisdom

A microdose meditation to start the week. If you find yourself "arguing with reality," then this practice is for you. You can now download my Pause Breathe Reflect App with Microdose EQ for FREE on Apple’s App Store or Google Play. Discover how to spend less time on your phone and more time on things that bring you joy. Also, find the support you need to navigate today’s uncertainty with more calm...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Hawkeye State to connect with Randy McNeely, aka Captain Kindman. Randy’s mission to grow love through kindness comes from a very personal place. As a teenager, he hit a moment so dark he didn’t want to go on. Friends and their parents stepped in with love and helped him find his way through. He calls them kindness heroes, and h...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I head to The Hoosier State and connect with Julie Krazt. In 2000, Julie cast her very first vote alongside her mom. They picked different people, then went out to eat. No big deal. Twenty-six years later, she wonders if that moment is even possible anymore. Today she has mixed feelings about America and what she calls the myth of meritocracy....

It's time for another Friday Growth Mindset Tip. This episode packs two tips into one word: Sorry. In 2026, to celebrate My Last Bad Day, I'm sharing tips I've learned over the last twenty-five years to help you step into the person you're becoming and build a meaningful life. You can now download my Pause Breathe Reflect App with Microdose EQ for FREE on Apple’s App Store or Google Play. Discover...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Cornhusker State and connect with Sofia Gibson. For her, America means community. Wherever you go, someone knows someone. Still, she sees many people stuck in their ways. Her ask is simple: set your stubbornness aside and listen. You don’t have to change your mind. Just widen the view. To learn more about Gravel Worlds, head to...

What if the best way to prevent sexual assault starts long before anyone walks into a fraternity house? Since the news broke about The Cornell 7 and Jane Doe, many have weighed in on how to make things right. Some want Cornell's President to resign; others suggest banning frats or making them co-ed. These might work, but they are also downstream solutions. What I haven't heard people talk about is...

In the episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Equality State to connect with John Ramer. We start here: What happens when you put a beagle in a room full of politicians? John Roemer knows. He’s the executive director of Kindness Ranch Animal Sanctuary, a home for animals retired from laboratory research. For years, John and his beagle, Uno, have traveled to Capitol Hill to advocat...

Having trouble focusing? Here's a simple microdose meditation to help you start again. You can also find it in the free Pause Breathe Reflect app, available on Apple's App Store or Google Play. You can now download my Pause Breathe Reflect App with Microdose EQ for FREE on Apple’s App Store or Google Play. Discover how to spend less time on your phone and more time on things that bring you joy. Al...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Gem State to connect with Randy'L Teton. We talk about a range of topics, including how well we know the history of the land beneath your feet. Randy’L Teton does. She’s a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and the model for the Sacagawea golden dollar coin. She asks us to slow down long enough to honor the land. Learn whose...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The North Star State to connect with Jaime Pellengrene. What would change if we led with our hearts a little more? Jamie is a holistic wellness coach who specializes in Ayurveda and mindfulness, teaches meditation, and leads retreats worldwide. Jamie sees America as a melting pot full of freedom we often take for granted. She also s...

When was the last time you closed a social media app feeling better than when you opened it? In Tip #40 of 25 Lessons in 25 Years, Michael moves up a tip he had been saving for December. The night before recording, he saw The Social Reckoning , Aaron Sorkin’s new film about Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen. Michael is honest about loving to hate social media. He needed it to build his coachin...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Wolverine State and meet Rich Sheridan, whose mission is to bring joy to work. He believes we can. In his mid-30s, Rich had everything on paper. Raises, promotions, praise. Inside, he wasn’t happy, and he was ready to quit tech and open a canoe camp in the Boundary Waters. Instead, he chose a different path, built around two sim...

What does it take to finally stop waiting and start living? Rebecca asks a version of that question near the end of the Ted Lasso season four finale. Here's the final episode in my Ted Lasso Season 4 series, and it captures what is beautiful about life. It's its messiness. We spend so much energy chasing hacks, shortcuts, and frictionless tech, yet we still wonder why we aren’t happier. As I share...

Early in the series, I asked people what kind of birthday cake they would serve for America's 250th. So I thought it would be fitting to connect with Grace Pak, who, with help from Capitol Hill, baked America's 250th birthday cake. Something happened in those offices. The politics fell away, and people were just people. Her prescription for a divided country is simple: get in a room together, get...

Start your day with a Pause Breathe Reflect Mircodose Mediation to support your mindfulness and resilience. This one is about milkshakes and stress, which, in the right amounts, I'm a fan of both. You can now download my Pause Breathe Reflect App with Microdose EQ for FREE on Apple’s App Store or Google Play. Discover how to spend less time on your phone and more time on things that bring you joy....

Please help me co-create the future of Whole Again by completing our community survey. You start here. In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Gem State and connect with a fellow cyclist who likes to get dirty, Heidi Dohse. She calls herself a professional heart patient, endurance athlete, and digital health innovator. Heidi believes America is still the land of the f...

Please help me co-create the future of Whole Again by completing our community survey. You start here. Why celebrate episode 502 instead of 500? Because 502 is two more than 500. And because most podcasts never make it this far. When I started podcasting back in 2019 under the show's old name, The Kintsugi Podcast, I had no idea if I'd ever reach 500 episodes. Honestly, I had no idea what I was do...

Please help me co-create the future of Whole Again by completing our community survey. You start here. In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I stay in The Garden State and connect with Anita Rivers. She's a lifelong educator and the heart behind Fairleigh Dickinson University's 250 Acts of Kindness movement. For Anita, America is about honoring the people who laid its foundation, s...

Please help me co-create the future of Whole Again by completing our community survey. You start here. We like to think life arrives in tidy chapters. A season of struggle, then a season of joy. A season of grief, then a season of happiness. But life doesn't work that way. Life be lifing. I know this firsthand. Only a few days before my near-death cycling accident, I was riding one of the highest...

For the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I stay right here in The Garden State and connect with Dr. Beatrice Anduze-Faris. What if some of the weight you're carrying was never yours to begin with? Beatrice was born in Canada, raised in Paris, and became a US citizen in 2011. After more than 20 years as an MD and pharma executive, she's now a life transformation Sherpa. She's also a f...

Here's a microdose meditation to help you boost your mood as you start the week. Will you help me co-create the future of Whole Again by taking a minute to fill out our community survey? Start here . Discover how to scroll less and live more by taking my Free Smartphone Wellness Audit by clicking phone. Did you know that stickers are wonderful visual cues to help you create healthy habits? You can...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Buckeye State to connect with Dr. Mike Roizen and we talk about this question. What would you do with 25 more good years? Dr. Mike Roizen believes this is possible for most of us. For him, America means freedom of opportunity and his vision for us starts with health. He led a wellness program that cut the Cleveland Clinic's empl...

How tightly are you gripping the handlebars right now? I explore why so many of us are clenching against a world of accelerating uncertainty, why that grip leaves us exhausted and feeling every bump in the road, and how easing up lets us absorb setbacks without losing momentum. You don't give up control. You let balance do its job. My invitation for you this week? Notice when you start to tense up...

In the latest episode of A Perfectly Imperfect Union, I travel to The Sunshine State and connect with Robert Mixon. He served 33 years as a soldier, became a corporate executive, and now runs Level 5 Associates, a leadership company, from Melbourne, Florida, where his wife, Ruthie, declared their 20th move would be their last. We talk about his service, the value of waiting two seconds, and what h...

What happens when the concern fades, and all that's left is silence? Alice knows. And in episode eight of Ted Lasso season four, she finally says it out loud. I know it too. Apple titled this one "Follow the Anger." Michael has a better name for it: The Road Back. It's the stage of the hero's journey (or in Alice's case, the she-ro's journey) where our hero believes she's found her way home, only...