Pivot with Jenny Blake

🎉 Free Time: Lose the Busywork, Love Your Business launches on 3/22/22!  Give the gift of free time to yourself and others in the new year by participating in our Buy One, Get One, Give One bonus. Here's how it works: Buy One: Preorder the hardcover edition and submit proof of purchase at http://itsfreetime.com/bogogo Get One: Within one business day, you'll get early access to the audiobook and...

How do you "stand out when "everyone is peddling the same sh*t"? That's what Terri Trespicio and I are talking about today—a deep dive into how her early experiences with poetry writing, jewelry sales, magazine editing, and stand-up comedy gave her lifelong career skills and taught her what it really takes to stand out. More About Terri: Terri Trespicio is an award-winning writer, speaker, brand a...

"For generations, we’ve been taught there are two ways to succeed—either from talent or practice." My guest today, Ron Friedman, shares a powerful third path: reverse engineering. In this conversation you will learn how to unpack others' success to spark breakthrough ideas of your own, with an original twist. More About Ron: Ron Friedman is an award-winning social psychologist who specializes in h...

Are you tuned into radio station WRRY, playing your "downer mind's" favorite hits? If so, Jeffrey Davis is here to help you shift from worry into wonder. Today we're talking about his new book, Tracking Wonder: Reclaiming a Life of Meaning and Possibility in a World Obsessed with Productivity (Sounds True, November 2021). Ask yourself instead each morning: What am I devoted to? What am I curious a...

This is a special preview from my forthcoming book: Free Time: Lose the Busywork, Love Your Business (launches March 22, 2022). I talk in Pivot about pivoters being high net growth; Free Timers optimize for another central value: high net freedom, If you want to join the book launch team to get insider access and community leading up to the launch, sign-up at itsfreetime.com/join and you’ll be the...

Thank you for your patience as I've been in deep work hibernation mode behind the scenes! I launched my new podcast Free Time in March of this year, and I'm really excited to bring you a crossover episode, one of the early listener favorites with Cal Newport on his latest book, A World Without Email. I also *just* sent my next book to the printer, which I was honored to have Cal provide a cover bl...

What is the difference between uniqueness and Onlyness? Nilofer Merchant is here to help us figure out how the room changes when we walk in, how to turn feeling othered or overworked into opportunities to help ourselves and everyone around us shine. More About Nilofer: Nilofer Merchant is ranked by Thinkers50 as one of the world's leading business thinkers, and has personally launched more than 10...

With exhaustion and empathy fatigue encroaching upon so many of us, perhaps it's time to take a relationship audit: who are the takers in your life and work, and who are the energizers? Equally important, how are you showing up for others? In her new book, Listen Like You Mean it: Reclaiming the Lost Art of True Connection, and in this conversation, Ximena Vengoechea is helping us elevate our list...

What’s your sun, moon, and rising? That’s the shorthand for our inner blueprint, created the moment each of us took our first breath, based on where the planets were in the sky. In this conversation, we’re talking about her brand new book Cosmic Health: Unlock Your Healing Magic with Astrology, Positive Psychology, and Integrative Wellness. Jennifer Racioppi is a certified Duke Integrative Medicin...

Casper ter Kuile is helping to build a world of joyful belonging. He is the author of The Power of Ritual and the co-host of the award-winning podcast Harry Potter and the Sacred Text. Casper is a Ministry Innovation Fellow at Harvard Divinity School and the co-founder of startup Sacred Design Lab - a research and design consultancy working to create a culture of belonging and becoming. He also co...

Hi Friends! As I mentioned in the last solo episode, my team and I have been hard at work creating a brand new podcast that will run in parallel to Pivot! I'm thrilled to welcome you to Free Time — your home for Heart-Based Business. I'm sharing the inaugural episode here with you on Pivot, but be sure you go subscribe to that one too, if the subject matter interests you! Search for "Free Time wit...

Hi Friends! I’m back with another “staycation” solo episode on what I’ve been up to. It’s a quick take on systems to support seasons of retreat for creativity and rest, my favorite books of the year so far, and a peek into my forthcoming projects. Key questions: What are you ready to let go of? How can you say no to “good” to say yes to what’s next? For your new projects, ask: Who Not How? (Strate...

I’m thrilled to be back from holiday hiatus (and a deep work creation cave on my new book and podcast - more on that soon!) with an episode from someone who inspires me greatly in heart-based business: Sarah Santacroce. Sarah’s new book is called The Gentle Marketing Revolution: A Radical Business Approach to Get New Clients with Integrity and Kindness. I was honored to co-write the foreword with...

When discussing fraught, divisive, or high-stakes issues it's so easy to get defensive, triggered, and hurt—sometimes even doing irreparable damage to relationships we hold dear. Communications pro Bob Gower returns to Pivot to help us understand something crucial before we engage in our next argument: is this discourse or a debate? He outlines the difference between the two in his fantastic piece...

Pandemic-response expert Dr. MJC is back for our Sweet 16th (!) installment in the Pivoting Around a Pandemic series. We discuss updates on the Pfizer vaccine trial he’s participating in, fantasies about “when there’s a vaccine,” challenges to global rollout, our reaction to the election results, and the need for deep rest after all that we’ve collectively been through this year, and particularly...

"The marketing-industrial complex has been on a tear for a hundred years to make almost everyone feel inadequate, because it's the single best way to sell you something. If that game isn't giving you joy, don't play that game.” My next guest needs no introduction — though he deserves one nonetheless! Seth Godin is an inventor, thought-leader, contrarian, mentor, mensch, and an ongoing inspiration...

This is a quick reflection episode, recorded on-the-go on my iPhone while throwing the frisbee for Ryder in the park. Although it’s a bit noiser than usual, I hope you enjoy the New York City soundscape. So many of us were feeling incredibly hopeful and optimistic heading in to this new decade. In keeping with the theme of radical reimagining, my hope is that this episode helps you reflect not jus...

This episode kicks off with a listener “note of encouragement” from Andrei in LA on the spiritual awakening under way, and the off-and-on dopamine cycle we’re experiencing as we continue practicing trust, faith, and surrender. I read passages from one of my favorite authors, Tosha Silver (if you haven’t already read them, get your hands on Outrageous Openness, Change Me Prayers, and It’s Not Your...

When was the last time you felt like an imposter in your career? Last year? Yesterday? This morning? It’s so normal (and way more common than you’d realize!) that we cycle through Imposter Syndrome, especially when considering our next moves. Today I’m riffing on why I think we should ditch the word “syndrome” all together when it comes to this phenomenon, and how to give yourself permission to st...

Solo episode on a sanity-saving strategy for #2020 on the perks (and quirks!) of staycationing in the city you live in . . . especially when hotel rates are at record lows :) Pardon the mic noises — it’s a travel mic and therefore part of my #PerfectlyImperfect audio that gets the episode out at all. Key questions: What makes your soul sing? What is most important to your spirit? Remember, Radical...

“Your smile is your shield and your sword.” That’s just one of many wisdom gems from today’s guest and longtime Pivot advocate, Sensei Ando Mierzwa. He’s sharing many of the principles from his free self-defense basics course on turning intuition into action, the importance of projecting (and feeling!) confident, ignoring social niceties when it comes to making “bad guys” uncomfortable, and how to...

Pandemic-response expert Dr. MJC is back for our 15th (!) installment in the Pivoting Around a Pandemic series. In this “pandepic” two-hour round, we riff on: what we’ve been up to this summer, the five gnarly viruses we’re experiencing (COVID being only one), the horseshoe theory of political ideologies, discourse and censorship, tyranny and the fall of empires, vaccine trials, vitamin D, second-...

(Recorded July 2020) Thanks to Chris, we’ve got a new term for 2020: “Coronavating” — a portmanteau of coronavirus and innovating. Chris is an expert in employee appreciation, recognition, and workplace culture, and I think you’ll love this episode on how to build trust and teamwork even in virtual (and often chaotic) settings. He is the founder of Beyond Thank You, and author of 75+ Team Building...

What’s your job today? It might not be what you think . . . and you get to decide anew every day, especially for sanity and health preservation in #2020. In this solo episode, I’m riffing on perfectionism, streaks, and combinatorial questions to create possibility. Peloton—If you're in the US, Canada, or the UK, use referral code 7ED7VQ to receive $100 towards accessories at purchase. ❤️ Enjoying...

Peeking out from another plateau with my first solo episode since June 19’s 5 Reorienting Inquiries for Revolutionary Times. It’s been a rough ride on the #CoronaCoaster these last few months — even with so much to be thankful for. I’m grateful for our physical health (knock on wood), but mental health has been another story! This episode is a bit of a rambler; more for longtime listeners looking...