bestofourselves podcast

Worrying can fill up a day.  It has it's uses but mostly it keeps us from enjoying life.  Here are a few tips for freeing ourselves from our worrying mind.   Resources Stop Imagining the Worst blog Reducing Worry Blog    

It was a retreat I will never forget. It was a precious time of connection and growth.  It reminded me of a core truth, we are all "Walking around shining like the sun." Resources Grounded Presence Healing the Inner Divide

It's human to want to be in control, seek approval or try to look good.  We can get beyond these ego needs access a more grounded presence.  From this place we are more able to discern right action. Resources What Is OK To Be Podcast Finding Awe Working With Our Own Compost

Awe is an emotion we feel when we encounter something big, a mystery that we don't understand and evokes wonder.    Experiencing just 2 minutes a day has amazing health and collective benefits.  Finding awe is not hard, we just have to pay attention. Resources Overview of Awe The New Science of Awe interview Awe Walks  

Taking time for a solo retreat is precious. It is a time to reflect more deeply.  This time my challenge was to have a "should-free" retreat.  My inner critic didn't agree. Resources What is the Inner Critic Identifying the Inner Critic Working with the Inner Critic Listening to the Inner Voice  

It is so easy to live our life habitually.  Guided by the stories we tell ourselves, we do not always see our choices.  Here a few tips to helps up open up to more choices. Resources Moving From Complaints to Choice What Do You Really Want? Intentionality

We become the stories we tell ourselves.  Becoming clear on what your story has been is an essential part of freeing ourselves.  Using creative forms of reflection we see our story more clearly.   Resources Mything Awareness Changes Your Life

We value rational thinking. Logic.  Focus.  We tend to undervalue embodied wisdom, intuition, and interconnection.  McGilchrist connects this to losing contact with our right hemisphere. The part of our brain that is wired for comprehension. Resources Podcast - The Mindtrap of Rightness Iain McGilchrist TED talk The Divided Brain

At the Gottman Institute, they can observe couples for 15 minutes and 90% of the time predict whether the relationship will last.  Here are a few of their lessons. Resources Four Horseman - Gottman Institute Turning Towards - Gottman Institute  

Building our capacity to observe ourselves, builds our capacity to grow and change.  It can be uncomfortable to wake up to our the ways we limit ourselves.  And if you do, the quality of your life changes.   Resources Freeing Ourselves From Our Stories Podcast Tuning In Vs Changing the Channel Podcast Anthony DeMello

Wendy Palmer passed away on December 2, 2022.  There are many of us around the world whose lives were changed by her teachings.  In this episode, some of her lessons and how they have helped in day-to-day life are shared as a huge thank you to Wendy. Other Episodes Summarizing Lessons from Wendy Breathe Centering versus Reacting C reating Inclusive Energy with Wendy Palmer Exploring Forgiveness wi...

Resilience is a key to success, especially in times of change.  Reviewing the literature, Diane Coutu summarizes the themes in her Harvard Business Review article –  How Resilience Works? Resources Acceptance Podcast Simple Habits for Complex Times Jennifer Garvey Berger's applying Simple Habits for Complex Times

When we are committed to "it shouldn't be this way", we are stuck.  Learning to accept what shows up is not passive. It is starting with a solid foundation. Resources Acceptance Podcast Acceptance as a Path for Growth Podcast Play the Ball Where the Monkey Drops It

Irma Velasquez memoir, Fish Dreams, chronicles her journey of shifting from trying to cure her son's autism to loving him as he is.  She learned simple practices that changed everything for her.  Thanks to Irma and the Deep Living Lab for allowing me to share a portion of our interview. Resources Listen to the full interview with Irma Velasquez

Once we have a story about what is going on, we are not very opening to other ways of thinking.  It's human to make up stories. It is human to avoid the discomfort of disconfirming data. And it greatly limits our ability to grow and change. Resources It's Not Personal Podcast Avoidance Podcast  

Have you ever walked into a room and felt the tension?  Have you ever walked  into a home and felt welcoming energy?  In a 2014 interview with author and aikdo master Wendy Palmer, we explored how we can be responsible for the energy we carry into the room. Resources Full interview with Wendy Palmer in 2014

What does it take to forgive?  And what is the gift we give ourselves when we do.  A conversation with Wendy Palmer, author of Leadership Embodiment. Resources Full interview with Wendy Palmer in 2014

Wendy Palmer is the founder of Leadership Embodiment, a process that uses principles from the  non-violent Japanese martial art of Aikido  and  mindfulness to offer simple tools and practices to increase leadership capacity and respond to stress and pressure with greater confidence and integrity.  Excerpts and lessons from an interview with Wendy in 2014.   Resources Full 2014 Interview More on We...

Some lessons I need to learn over and over again. One persistent struggle is learning to listen to my intuition.  Most of the time the consequences of ignoring are small, sometimes they are not. Resources Old Patterns Identifying the Inner Critic  

Imagine your mother telling you, at an early age, you are not a label, you are being.  My One Small Step conversation partner agreed to share the lesson he learned from  his mother. Resources Reflection on the One Small Step Conversation Story Corps One Small Step Program

Who was MOST influential in your life?  It was a hard question.  After considering many lessons from my parents, family, friends and teachers, I choose Uncle Bob.  Reflecting on why,  was a valuable exercise. Resources Uncle Bob's Obituary One Small Step – the conversation that inspired this reflection

One Small Step is a iniative by StoryCorps.  The intention of this program is to strengthen communities, one conversation at a time.  In this episode, Marcia shares reflection on her time with another community member with different political leanings. Resources One Small Step at WTIP One Small Step Initiative Turning Off Our Alarm Systems Podcast Encounter with Others Podcast  

It is one thing to learn that outside judgment cannot touch you unless you already carry that judgment on the inside. That awareness is great but learning to release the inner judgment requires us to be brave enough to feel it and release it. Resources What is OK to Be? What is the Inner Critic? Identifying the Inner Critic Working with the Inner Critic

When I am defensive, my whole body is on alert?  How do I increase my ability to hear feedback or different opinions with openness and curiosity. Resources Building Capacity for Uncomfortable Conversations Podcast Harriet Lerner Interview with Brene Brown Part 1 Harriet Lerner Interview with Brene Brown Part 2

Conversations about race and other uncomfortable subjects require us to do our own work, to build capacity in ourselves to listen to learn. Resources The Mindtrap of Rightness Podcast Resmaa Menakem Interview