Productive Flourishing Podcast

Each of us wears a different mask every day, whether that mask is being a mother, a creative person, a brother or a manger. Knowing when we’re wearing the right one and which ones not to reveal, is key to our success and happiness. Dr. Atira Charles joins me today to jam about how the mask we wear relates to authenticity, vulnerability, productivity and stress. Ready? Let’s do this!   Key Takeaway...

Something we don’t talk about enough is that many entrepreneurs and small business owners realize being in that space isn’t necessarily right for them. Sometimes it’s about business models and market trends, and yet other times it has nothing to do with those external conditions. But given that being an entrepreneur or small business owner is a core way of understanding their place in the world, i...

Every one of us has our own unique set of challenges and negative beliefs that keep us from living life to the fullest. To thrive, we have to develop rituals, practices and methods that help us root out the negative thoughts and beliefs that are hurting our productivity, goals, health and relationships. Marc and Angel join me today to share the practices, tools and insights that helped them in the...

All too often, exercise and movement are put in a different bucket of activities than those that count towards being productive. Unfortunately, that’s backwards. Exercise is a foundation for success, so focusing on our health and fitness is one of the most productive things we can do. Mike Goncalves joins me today to talk about the relationship between creativity, confidence, priorities, and exerc...

Jasmine Burton, an inspirational 24-year-old running a startup in Africa, hopes to improve women’s health via redesign of water, sanitation and hygiene infrastructure - sparking the foundation of Wish for Wash. In this episode, you’ll learn how a variety of waste management gaps exist despite how far the western world has advanced the human experience. This creates an odd disparity between knowing...

Many modern men are caught in a strange space. For one, we can’t and don’t want to be like our fathers and grandfathers, but we also don’t want to be some shade of Homer Simpson. And yet, there’s not much space to talk about this in public either. Add in the fact that many of us, men and women alike, work in confined spaces indoors, and what you get is a ‘caged-in man’, both literally and metaphor...

If you’ve ever considered being a fine artist or have talked to an artist you know, you’ve probably heard or accepted some variate of ‘the gallery myth’, which is that the goal is to have your art featured in a gallery and then you’re set for life. Buyers will flock to you, critics will appreciate you, and you’ll get to continue to make the art you love. I like stories about unicorns too! Cory Huf...

Let’s face it, the legal, tax and financial aspects of our businesses and creative ventures are areas that many of us avoid. We’ve been conditioned to be afraid of them, in the case of financial and tax matters; and diving into the financial realm, naturally makes people feel uncomfortable. But avoiding them is like trying to build a third floor of your business without building its foundation. Ky...

Cynthia Morris joins me today to jam about creativity, talent and Capturing the Wow that comes up as we travel through our days. This is a particularly good episode to listen to if you’re at the beginning of your mastering journey with a creative form, whether that form is writing, painting, music, programming or blogging, or any other creative form. Also, if you just found yourself feeling paraly...

What does depression, strategy, financial intelligence and specialization, all have in common? They’re all related to choices. In the case of depression, sometimes feeling like you don’t have any. They’re also topics Tara Gentile and I jam about. Ready? Let’s do this!   Key Takeaways: [0:53] Charlie is delighted to have Tara on the show again. She also joined him on episode 27. [2:21] How did Tara...

We all know that death is a part of life, but it’s the part of life that we, as a society and individuals, often would rather not talk about. And yet, not talking about it isn’t making it go away; and in fact, makes death and dying so much harder for us to process. Kathy Kortes-Miller joins me today to talk about how to bring life into conversations about death. If you’re not a long time listener...

Angela is joining me today to jam about the emotional journey that happens as you’re growing and scaling your business. There are a lot of ups and downs, but a lot of times we’re not talking about the leaders or founders’ journey of grief, excitement, freedom, and fear that happens as they start letting go of more and more pieces of the business and start working on the business rather than in the...

Though we wear cloths every day – at least most of us do – many of us don’t think about the entrepreneurial and economic aspects related to the cloths we wear. Like many other business industries, the fashion industry is going through a massive disruption, making it a great time to be an entrepreneur and creative person within the fashion industry. That said, it’s also really tough. Shannon Whiteh...

Many of us get stuck in life, because for some reason or the other we’re resistant to change. Being resistant to change is like being resistant to gravity, we might be able to counter some the effects of it, but it’s always going to be there. There are some amazing gifts that come from embracing change, and Jenny Blake joins me to jam about the ways to embrace change rather than to resist it. Read...

Most people don’t put managing their money and being creative together. Especially since one seems to be what you have to do, whereas the other seems to be what you get to do. But managing your money is a creative process and whether you like it or not, it’s an emotional process too. Luna Jaffe joins me today to share how she has incorporated her work as an artist into her work as a guide for peop...

Part of being a Creative Giant is learning to be fully you, however you might show up. That’s a hard enough journey but it can feel even more daunting to learn to do that while in a romantic relationship with another Creative Giant. Dr. Laura Ciel and Bill Poett join me to talk about their work together and how they navigate a romantic partnership that’s also a business partnership. Ready? Let’s d...

Mentors often make the difference between us successfully finishing the stuff that matters and just thinking or dreaming about it. This is especially the case for young adults and new entrepreneurs, who often times get so much well meaning, but bad advice from other people who’ve never gone where the ‘would be mentee’ is trying to go. Jeff Hopeck joins me to jam about the value of mentors and some...

While we like the idea that we can simply think ourselves into certain beliefs and instincts, the truth of the matter is that our personality is partially determined by our evolutionary history. There might be some things lurking down there that we don’t want to address, but we can’t ignore them either. Professor Tod Kashdan joins me today to jam about, what he calls, the ‘basement of your persona...

Finishing creative work is challenging because sometimes you can’t just push through, as doing so will lead to creative burnout. And yet, you can’t give up when it gets hard or you’ll never really do the work that matters. Jennifer Louden joins me on this episode to share how her wearing away from creative burnout lead to a new body of work and what she has learned along the way about avoiding cre...

A common myth is that scaling a business means you have to compromise the core values, culture and human-friendly qualities that the business originally started with. In today’s episode, Laura Novak Meyer joins me to share what she learned in the process of scaling her business while keeping it true to its core. Laura is an entrepreneur who is one of only 3% of women business owners to grow their...

Coaching is a powerful way of being with people, because it unlocks human potential and transforms the way you relate to others. It is also really misunderstood, misrepresented, and when done right it is hard to do. Michael Bungay Stanier is an award winning coach and he joins me today to work through some powerful coaching questions you can use at work and at home. Make sure to listen in, for the...

You were probably in the goal setting mode for 2016 or maybe you just want to set the right goals. It turns out that making great goals is often a matter of asking the right questions. Jeffrey Davis and I think a particularly good question is, "what will you stand for, this year?" and that's what we're jamming about on this episode. This isn't about fighting against something but rather...

Branded a "Moxie Maven" by The White House Office of Public Engagement for her unique and effective approach to leadership development, through her 'Step Into Your Moxie' platform, Alexia has become the go-to expert for helping entrepreneurs, executives, online experts, and other thought leaders create, pitch, and perform their spotlight talks and design and execute transformational even...

It's the time of year where we're thinking about setting new goals and new resolutions. On this final episode of 2015, Angela and Charlie wanted to take the time to talk about some things to think about as you’re setting intentions and new plans for the New Year. They’re excited to jump into the show. Ready? Let's do this!   Key Takeaways [01:12] What is Angela looking forward to for next year? [0...

The stories we often hear and tell ourselves about entrepreneurs, are that successful entrepreneurs somehow had it in their blood or it was always what they wanted to be. The problem is that a lot of people who are now entrepreneurs never thought they'd be one or even have a hard time owning the title now. Graham Cochrane joins me to talk about his journey from freelancer to a successful entrepren...