Getting Unstuck – Cultivating Curiosity

Guest JoAnne Duncan has had a varied career, from Alaskan fly-fishing guide to elementary teacher and principal, always focused on valuing the strengths of every student and staff member. Though she's stepped away from her career in public education, she continues to learn, grow, and inspire others. A lifelong learner, she finds joy and insight outdoors, exploring nature and discovering new ideas,...

Guest Elizabeth Weingarten is a journalist and applied behavioral scientist who works at the intersection of science and storytelling. A graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, she has worked on the editorial staffs of The Atlantic, Slate , and Qatar Today, and was Managing Editor of Behavioral Scientist . Her writing has appeared in publications including The Atlantic ,...

Hi, I'm Jeff Ikler, host of the Cultivating Curiosity podcast. This summer, I'm periodically releasing mini-episodes of "Cultivating Curiosity." In about 10 minutes, I'll dive deeper into a key point from a previously broadcast evergreen episode. The content in these mini-episodes is designed to be readily applicable to your life or work. This week's mini-episode comes from a May 2023 interview wi...

Hi, I'm Jeff Ikler, host of the Getting Unstuck - Cultivating Curiosity podcast. This summer, I'm periodically releasing mini-episodes that, in under 10 minutes, dive into an evergreen idea from a previously broadcast episode. The content in these mini episodes is designed to be readily applicable to your life or work. This week's episode was inspired by a conversation with educator Dr. Deb Gustaf...

Guest Rich Gassen has worked at UW-Madison for over 15 years as Production Manager and, more recently, as Director at Digital Publishing and Printing Services. He focuses on empowerment, autonomy, and process improvements with his team. His work mantra has always been "Show Up and Participate," which continues to guide him in his lifelong learning. He also leads a community of practice for supervi...

Hi, I'm Jeff Ikler, host of the Cultivating Curiosity podcast. It's summer, and our thoughts naturally turn to making the most of longer days and warmer weather. We're desperate to be outside. With that in mind, I'm periodically releasing mini episodes of "Cultivating Curiosity." In about 10 minutes, I'll dive deeper into a key point from a previously broadcast evergreen episode. The content in th...

Guest After 11 years at IBM, Brooke Erol left a "great job on paper" to pursue a more aligned, purpose-driven life. She founded Your Best Life Inc. to help professionals find meaning at work, and later Purposeful Business to support leaders in building people-centered organizations. She is the author of  More Than A Paycheck  and  Create a Life You Love , and speaks globally on leadership and purp...

Guest JoAnne Duncan has had a varied career, from Alaskan fly-fishing guide to elementary teacher and principal, always focused on valuing the strengths of every student and staff member. Though she's stepped away from her career in public education, she continues to learn, grow, and inspire others. A lifelong learner, she finds joy and insight outdoors, exploring nature, and discovering new ideas...

Guest Dr. J ames E. Young is Distinguished University Professor of English and Judaic Studies Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, where he has taught since 1988, and Founding Director of the Institute forHolocaust, Genocide, and Memory Studies at UMass Amherst. Professor Young is the author of Writing and Rewriting the Holocaust (Indiana University Press, 1988), The Texture of Me...

Guest Minnesota native  Aaron Hebeisen  grew up hunting, fishing, and recreating outdoors. His lifelong passion for wildlife led him to earn an Animal Ecology degree from Iowa State University. He has worked for the Minnesota Conservation Corps, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture on wildlife disease research, and is now the Field Operations Coordi...

Guest Ashley Jablow (Jab-lo, pronouns: she/her) is the founder of Wayfinders Collective and creator of Life Design School , a creative studio for people in career and life transition. A seasoned facilitator, speaker, coach, and design strategist, Ashley blends design thinking and innovation, emotional intelligence, and creative tools to spark clarity and action for teams and individuals navigating...

My guest Dr. Shileste Overton Morris serves as the Chief Programs Officer at the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit and the Director of the Center for Schools and Communities. The Center delivers national, state, local, and international services that build capacity in schools, districts, and organizations supporting children, youth, and families.  Dr. Overton Morris' expertise includes strateg...

Guests Dr. Carolyn Ernst is a planetary scientist at the  Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory  (APL), specializing in the surface evolution of planets, moons, and small bodies. She has contributed to missions across the solar system and has extensive experience in imaging systems. Dr. Ernst helped NASA impact both a comet and an asteroid, serving as instrument scientist for the DRACO imager a...

Guest Carol Tyler , known for her beautifully written and drawn autobiographical comics, is one of the most important and influential comics artists ever. In July 2026, she will be inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame at Comic-Con. Her books are: Soldier's Heart: The Campaign to Understand my WWII Veteran Father (2015), and Fab4 Mania: A Beatles Obsession and the Concert of a Lifetime (2018)...

Guest Amaroq Weiss is the Senior Wolf Advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity. A biologist and former attorney, she has worked on wolf recovery and conservation advocacy at the state and federal levels across the country for nearly 30 years. The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.8 million members and online activists dedic...

Guest Karen Berman, Ph. D., Chaired the Department of Theatre and Dance at Georgia College and previously taught for 15 years at Georgetown University. She is Dean Emerita, College of Fellows of the American Theatre; Past President of the Association for Theatre in Higher Education; Director of 150 Holocaust and other theatre productions; and winner of the Georgia Governor's Award for the Arts and...

Guest Bill Whiteside abandoned a 30-year career in software sales to devote his time to a story that he started researching to keep his mind engaged during his business travels. Intrigued by a little-known incident from early in Winston Churchill's first term as Britain's Prime Minister, this diversion evolved into an obsession as he dug into the story of a controversial and catastrophic clash bet...

Guest Tom Reed studied photography at Rutgers while studying Geography.  Ansel Adams, Edgar Payne, and the Hudson River School are major influencers. Zen sensibilities profoundly influence his compositions and writings, as he is a student of Japanese martial arts and aesthetics (chado).  His photographs and writing center on the experience of awe at the sight of a landscape. He hopes this leads to...

Guest Matthew Collins is a writer, speaker, and voice coach whose career spans British television, travel writing, prison education, and Shakespeare. A former BBC presenter, he now leads voice and public speaking workshops and teaches Shakespeare to students ranging from ex-prisoners to members of the Women's Institute. His approach is non-academic. He encourages students to explore Shakespearean...

Guest Paul Knowles has not followed a conventional path. Originally from Texas, he worked in Downtown Dallas as a financial advisor for the world's largest private wealth manager. He then served as marketing director for a highly successful Colorado regional bank and later for one of the nation's top real estate offices. However, it was after stepping away for a year and a half that Paul stumbled...

Guest Barbara Vokatis is a professor at the State University of New York an Oneonta, keynote speaker, award-winning author, and therapy dog partner. She is an author of books in dog therapy in educational settings ("Teachers and Therapy Dog Teams: Innovative Collaborations to Make a Difference for Children") and a children's book ("Carmel Goes to School") with the therapy dog theme. Her latest boo...

Guest Hurley Winkler is a writer and editor from Jacksonville, FL. Her newsletter, "Lonely Victories," is among the top Substack publications in the Literature category. She teaches creative writing at Flagler College.  Summary In this episode, I speak with writer and teacher Hurley Winkler about journaling, creative practice, and building a sustainable writing life. Hurley traces her path to writ...

Guest Heather Lende is the author of four books centered on her life in Haines, Alaska: If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name, Take Good Care of the Garden and the Dogs, Find the Good: Life Lessons from a Small-town Obituary Writer, and, most recently, Of Bears and Ballots, about her adventures in local politics. Heather served as Alaska Writer Laureate from 2021-2023, has an honorary Ph. D in Hum...

Guest Adam Bronstein grew up exploring the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York and knew from a young age that he wanted to work to protect wild places. He received a BS from SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry in Environmental Studies and Geographic Information Technologies. Adam first joined the Western Watershed Project staff in 2020. Outside his capacity at WWP, Adam hosts and...

Guest April Obersteller is a people-centered leader, operator, and founder of And Not Or, a community and leadership platform built around the belief that we don't have to choose. She has led customer and employee experience across iconic consumer brands, including YETI and woom, and now leads community and experience at Recess. April also hosts The AND Podcast, where she shares real conversations...