The Best Podcast

I was stuck in the middle seat of coach on an airplane for over 6 hours yesterday. For many, this sounds like a nightmare. It is an experience they desperately seek to avoid. For me, it was quite alright, and in this episode I share why. I hope you find some value in it and consider what I share as something to try for yourself! As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take care.

Today’s podcast is a reading of my latest Substack piece, which you can see at mbest.substack.com/p/28 . It’s a reflection on what 28 laps around the sun has brought me, starting with some context for how this journey began, moving to what life was like for me in the early days, and what I have learned as I look back. I hope you enjoy it and find it valuable. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please tak...

Today’s podcast is a reflection on a note I observed in my latest quarterly review. My sense of humor has evolved and changed over the years, ebbing and flowing in unique ways since my childhood. It has pivoted, shrunk, and now expanded, which I am grateful for. I share how it has evolved and how my time in Brazil expanded it for the better in this episode. I hope you find it interesting to listen...

Today’s podcast expands upon my last episode, but in quite a different direction. I spend some time talking through the value of planting seeds in our subconscious and how we can do that effectively to allow our brains to make progress on problems we’re trying to solve in the background. I hope you find it to be a valuable resource! Thanks for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take car...

Today’s podcast is an exploration of a very small but significant situation I found myself in this morning. Simply put, I was offered a price and wanted to negotiate. It’s seeming a very basic situation, but it’s often in the most basic of situations that there is a lot to reflect on and consider if you look hard enough, so I share some of my reflections here in this episode. Thanks for listening....

Today’s podcast is a reflection on a recent conversation with colleagues of mine at work. We talked about some new ideas and movements in education, which sparked a dialogue where I noticed some things that I wanted to share here. I hope you find my perspective thoughtful and useful. Thanks for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take care.

Today’s podcast is a reflection on the bigger picture of physical exercise. I went for a nice 7 mile run today, and it sparked a meaningful discussion later in the day about why I invest so much into my fitness. I hope what I share here may inspire you to do the same. Thanks for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take care.

Today’s podcast is a short reflection on the last week of my life. It brought quality time with such a dear friend, along with a lot of focus on a key transition I am going through with my wife. Life is moving, but it doesn’t have to roll over you! I share a bit about my learnings that connect to that message here, which I hope you enjoy and find valuable. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take c...

Today’s podcast is a reading of my latest Substack post, which you can see here: mbest.substack.com/p/quarter-two-review-2025 . It’s my 18th quarterly review to date, which is once again filled with useful lessons and points to ponder. I hope you find it valuable and perhaps feel inspired to start engaging in a similar process of reflection yourself. Thanks for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ a...

Despite how hard it is to see with our eyes on a day to day basis, our friendships play an immense role in our health and longevity. We must take care of them with the same, if not greater, intensity as we do our personal health and hygiene. Our social health is fundamental to a great life. I hope that what I share here inspires you to reflect and pay more attention to this. As always, Much Love ❤...

How easy it is to overlook all the little decisions we make in a day. Our choices our powerful, and those choices appear to us as tiny forks in the road throughout our days, which end up becoming our lives. I share how my day was today and a number of forks in the road that I face that make a difference, which I hope get you thinking and reflecting on how you manage your forks in the road. Thanks...

Despite wanting to talk about other things today, my mind didn’t allow that to happen. I reflect on that very thing in this episode, talking through how that happens and how consumed by what appears in our consciousness we become, as little of a choice as we may have in what appears there. We are truly so so fascinating. I hope this episode is insightful and valuable to you in some way. Thanks for...

Getting overwhelmed is such a common human experience. We feel the anxiety that overcomes us when the tasks of life add up and begin to shake us. But what do we do? How do we face this situation? I share my answer to these questions here, which I hope you find useful. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take care.

Today’s podcast is a meditation on how I’ve been over the last week with my family on vacation. It’s such a curveball from how life has been over the last few months, which has its upsides and downsides. Importantly, it has given me an opportunity to see myself in a way that I haven’t been used to given how relatively new this situation is for me. I share what I’ve noticed here, which I hope is th...

Today’s podcast is a deeper reflection on a recent conversation I had with a friend about some challenges she faces in her workplace. The title may seem like such a simple question, but once we really grapple with it, we see how impactful it can be. This drove me to elaborate more on it, sharing the details of what I mean by this question and how it applies in life, which I hope you find interesti...

Today’s podcast is a reflection on what goes beyond the words I share here. So much of what I say is about action. Getting the sleep and doing so consistently. Eating well. Hydrating well. Showing up to get the workouts in. Reflecting daily in a journal. Meditating consistently. These are all viral behaviors for me, and they offer a glimpse into the key way of being that comes from what I share, a...

I’ve now been back in my hometown for just shy of two weeks. I’ve enjoyed this period where I’ve temporarily shifted my priorities, which has taught me a lot about myself. I take some time to talk through that a bit here, sharing my observations of myself over this transition. Thanks so much for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take care.

These past few weeks have called for my attention and presence. Between work travel, preparing to move halfway across the world, making that move, and then spending time with family and friends from my hometown, so much has been happening in a point of meaningful transition. Instead of digging into my phone, I’ve decided to be in these moments and invest into them without distraction. I share more...

Today’s podcast is my last one recorded in Brazil for a while. It’s a recording of my latest Substack post, which you can find at www.mbest.substack.com/p/growth . I share about the week I just spent in Cuiabá, Mato Grosso working on a project with the state’s department of education and the world bank. It was such a cool experience, so I spent some time to reflect on it and share it with you here...

Today’s podcast is a reminder of a fundamental human process. We are all heroes in a way, which I hope you come to understand through this episode. I explain the process of the hero’s journey and the ways it applies at large and small scales, which I had the pleasure of sharing with some educators this past week. I hope you see the value in what I share here as they did. As always, Much Love ❤️ an...

Today’s podcast is long overdue, but here I am! I’m sharing today a bit of what I’ve been focused on over the last few weeks. I’ve found myself in the midst of quite a great professional opportunity that has brought me a lot of satisfaction and positive reflection. I talk more about it in this episode to give some more context, which I hope you enjoy and find interesting. Thanks for listening. As...

Today’s podcast is a reflection on last night’s goodbye party with some great friends here in Rio. I wanted to take some time to reflect on the great relationships my wife and I have built here and what they mean to us as we take a new step in our adventure together. I hope you enjoy it and find some meaningful insights in what I share. Thanks for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take...

It’s a busy time in my life. Between work, an upcoming consulting project, and an international move on the near horizon, there are lots of plates to balance. I’m embracing it, striving to elevate my focus and testing my ability to stay centered. I share a bit about that here, which I hope you find valuable. Thanks for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take care.

Today’s podcast is a reading of my latest Substack post, which you can find at mbest.substack.com/p/how-to-read . I share my views on literacy education and the ways in which it sets us up to not continue learning, right at the point when it’s most interesting and useful. I hope you find it an insightful and encouraging piece. Thanks for listening. As always, Much Love ❤️ and please take care.

In today’s podcast, I spend some time exploring my past experiences with religion. It has frequently been a point of frustration and disagreement between me and others, even my family, since I turned away from Catholicism as a teenager. As I’ve grown, my relationship with and thinking about religion has evolved, leading me to a new understanding, which I share here in this episode. I hope you find...