Notes for An Awesome Life with John Spence

Send us Fan Mail What does a balanced life actually look like and is it even real? This week on Notes for an Awesome Life with John Spence , Josh and John dig into the idea of balance beyond the usual “work-life” cliché. FThey examine a practical framework for living well, exploring what it really means to take care of all the parts of your life. Using the “Dimensions of Wellness” as a guide, the...

Send us Fan Mail Sometimes the most important things to change are the ones you can’t see yet. In this episode of Notes for an Awesome Life, John Spence and Josh Wilson  dive into one of the hardest challenges in personal growth: recognizing the patterns, habits, and assumptions that quietly shape our decisions without us noticing. They explore why self-reflection is so rare, why repeating the sam...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Notes for an Awesome Life , global top 100 business thinker John Spence joins host Josh Wilson to unpack one of the biggest obstacles to a fully awesome life: resistance . From staring at a blank page to hitting the snooze button, resistance shows up as fear, distraction, and procrastination. John shares lessons inspired by Steven Pressfield and his book The War...

Send us Fan Mail Ever notice how overthinking feels like responsible prep while quietly draining your energy and time? We go straight at that tension with John Spence, exploring how deep thinking tips into rumination, how to spot the shift in real time, and how to break the loop with simple tools you can use anywhere.   If you’re ready to trade anxiety for action and build momentum one present mom...

Send us Fan Mail In this special listener driven episode of Notes for an Awesome Life with John Spence, John and Josh open the mailbag and tackle real questions from the audience. The discussion moves from the hidden dangers of “helpfully” putting butter away to deeper territory: mental flexibility, blind spots, wisdom, curiosity, work-life balance, honesty versus kindness, and what it really mean...

Send us Fan Mail What if the biggest thing holding you back isn’t your circumstances, but the story you keep telling yourself? In this episode of Notes for an Awesome Life , John Spence and host Josh Wilson explore how personal narratives shape identity, behavior, relationships, and growth. From childhood conditioning and self-talk to reinvention, boundaries, and the courage to change, this conver...

Send us Fan Mail The Importance of Human Connection - Busyness, anxiety, and introversion are real, but they don’t change a foundational truth of being human: we are wired for connection. John and Josh dig into what happens when we ignore that need and why loneliness has become one of the defining challenges of modern life. Blending research, lived experience, and small daily practices, this conve...

Send us Fan Mail Failure sits at the center of every meaningful life change, yet most of us meet it with fear, shame, and avoidance. In this conversation with John Spence, we explore how to turn losses into leverage by focusing on what we can control and what we can learn.  John grounds the talk in his own rock‑bottom college experience and the arc that followed: disciplined learning, better habit...

Send us Fan Mail In this week’s episode of Notes for an Awesome Life with John Spence, John and Josh break down what effective goal setting really looks like. John shares how to use SMART goals without overcomplicating them, how checklists create reliable progress, why imposter syndrome shows up even for high performers, and how a simple “two letter” exercise can radically increase your motivation...

Send us Fan Mail What if the most powerful change you could make is only a breath wide? We dig into the “gap” between stimulus and response, the tiny pause where you can trade impulse for intention, and show how gratitude and presence turn that pause into a lifelong advantage. John Spence shares how he went from breaking things in anger to asking himself one question: what would the ideal version...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Notes for an Awesome Life with John Spence , Josh and John dive into one of the foundations of a truly “awesome” life: self awareness. John explains why emotional intelligence, especially self awareness and self regulation, is the starting point for better relationships  and better mental health. John shares practical habits like daily reflection, values-based s...

Send us Fan Mail John and Josh explore how our areas of daily focus shape our future and how small, deliberate choices can compound into a massive change of course towards a life of success and joy. John shares personal stories, practical tools, and a two-list homework exercise to align your time, relationships, and self-talk with your values. Email us: awesomelifenotes@gmail.com Learn more about...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 5 - Envisioning Your Ideal Life  What does your ideal life actually look like and how do you get there? John and Josh unpack a practical visioning process, talk about why “hope is not a strategy,” and then talk about maintaining boundaries, how to say no without guilt, all in the service of much needed self-care. Email us: awesomelifenotes@gmail.com Learn more about John:...

Send us Fan Mail What is your mission, your reason for bounding out of the bed in the morning? John and Josh look at the importance of setting a direction for your life that aligns with you values and abilities.  We explore purpose as a living, practical force, something you can define, test, and build into your day. Email us: awesomelifenotes@gmail.com Learn more about John: JohnSpence.com Famili...

Send us Fan Mail John and Josh explore why clear personal values make hard decisions simple and how to align daily behavior with what matters. John shares the pitfalls of borrowed values, how safety and fear and recognizing what you can control play a roll in getting started, and an exercise to define, score, and live your core beliefs. Email us: awesomelifenotes@gmail.com Learn more about John: J...

Send us Fan Mail What if “success” isn’t rich, famous, powerful but values lived daily and relationships that last? In this episode, John and Josh talk about defining a successful life, résumé vs. eulogy virtues, the importance of relationships and a deceptively simple definition of success: when your values and your actions match.  Email us: awesomelifenotes@gmail.com Learn more about John: JohnS...

Send us Fan Mail About this episode: John Spence is one of the world’s top thought leaders but he almost wasn’t. Before the accolades, before lecturing at MIT and Stanford, before helping people and businesses around the world…he failed out of college with a 1.6 GPA, was cut off from his family, and found himself sitting on a Gainesville curb realizing that no one else was coming to save him. That...