The Courage to Live a Big Life

English artist David Hockney once said he wasn't greedy for money, but "greedy for an exciting life." In this episode, we trace the arc of a memory of my dad: a former Air Force captain turned Asian art shopkeeper who let a film reorient his entire life. Set against the misty peaks of Highlands, North Carolina, his idea to turn an empty gym into a haven for lovers of Asian art reveals an inspiring...

What happens when the business and life we built to give us freedom become our personal prison? In this episode, I sit at a vibrant tapas bar in Asheville, NC, to deconstruct a high-stakes emergency session with a brilliant founder who has hit a wall. On paper, he is winning; in his mind, he is skidding out of control. We unmask the "witch" driving this relentless pressure—the cultural rules, the...

What if the biggest obstacle to your growth isn't a lack of resources, opportunity, or strategy? What if it's a lack of trust in yourself? In this episode of The Courage to Live a BIG Life, we explore the hidden force that shapes every meaningful decision in entrepreneurship, leadership, and creativity: self-trust. Too often, we look outside ourselves for validation. We chase new strategies, trend...

Newsflash: We are so much more than our circumstances.  Last week on The Courage to Live a Big Life, I started our two-part series on deconstructing the systems in our lives that hold us captive: fear, outside forces, and internal struggles that feel like they've got us hooked and refuse to let us go. Listen to that episode now, if you haven't already. Next, join me on Episode 107 as we dive into...

In the middle of a studio purge of art supplies and collage papers, I discovered an old magazine and sat down with it. What I found inside stopped me in my whirlwind of organization.  The image of a blue marlin, eight feet in the air, twisting against circle hooks and line, fighting with everything it had to free itself. I recognized an earlier version of myself in that image. The drag path. The t...

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of blogs, videos, and podcasts dedicated to overcoming burnout that are full of hacks, fads, and systems that promise solutions to being cut off from our creativity and best thinking. While well-meaning, these systems oftentimes become the very cage that keeps us feeling limited.  In this episode, I share how watching a movie influenced my perspective on creat...

There is a courage-robbing exhaustion that comes from working in too many directions at once. The accumulated weight of unfinished things, borrowed ambitions, and attention that never quite lands anywhere long enough to matter erodes our willingness and ability to take bold action. In this episode, we'll explore the hidden cost of fractured attention—the way a scattered mind circles endlessly arou...

Most of us are waiting for certainty before we move. A clear vision. A ten-year plan. One perfect answer that finally makes everything make sense. But in this episode, we return to a childhood game as a map for something far more meaningful: how we find our way back to ourselves when the path forward feels invisible. This is a penetrating conversation about the intelligence of contrast. About how...

This episode is your invitation into beauty, creative freedom, and transformation. From September 9 through 13, join the Wild Beasts Retreat in Collioure, France, the birthplace of Fauvism, where fearless artists abandoned convention in favor of bold color and instinctive expression. Imagine Mediterranean light pouring through balcony doors, sea air filling your lungs, luxurious surroundings, unfo...

My new client, Lisa, texted from the runway, "The trip was great, but I can't keep trying to escape my life." She had just returned from a beautiful vacation. She'd reveled in expansive days, with no obligations, enjoying time that finally felt like hers.  And the deadness had followed her home anyway. This episode dives into that particular kind of ache: the life that looks intact from the outsid...

John Mayer once said that if he taught a songwriting class, he'd tell students that they're on their own with the magic part.  Most productivity culture won't admit this: you can show up, build structure, sharpen every tool you own, and still have no guarantee the extraordinary will arrive. This episode explores the gap between the work we can control and the spark we cannot. If you've been doing...

Restlessness visits all of us. The pull toward something larger, yet we are held in place by a strange sensation. In this episode, I sit across from a client on the edge of a bold creative move, wrestling with the fear that desire itself might be reckless. What unfolds is an intimate look at the invisible force that keeps so many visionary people stalled: waiting for permission.  I'll guide you th...

Restlessness visits all of us. The pull toward something larger, yet we are held in place by a strange sensation. In this episode, I sit across from a client on the edge of a bold creative move, wrestling with the fear that desire itself might be reckless. What unfolds is an intimate look at the invisible force that keeps so many visionary people stalled: waiting for permission.  I'll guide you th...

When I stepped into a world-renowned hammam in Marrakesh, I expected a day of indulgent relaxation. But as layers of stress (and skin) were vigorously scrubbed away, something unexpected began to surface.  I invite you to explore the surprising alchemy that occurs when we leave our creative comfort zones far behind. Discover how immersing yourself in the unfamiliar can be the key to awakening your...

On a perfectly moody afternoon in Paris, I found myself in an art class at Maison de Balzac, ready to learn from a renowned artist. But as the class began, my plan to follow instructions and "get it right" quickly dissolved amidst a language barrier.  With my teacher speaking only fragments of English and my own French comprehension spotty at best, I was forced to let go of my usual reliance on ve...

In part two of this soul-stirring series, I dive deeper into the heart of navigating the unknown and offer a powerful recipe for tapping into your intuition to create your best work and life. Drawing from my own experiences, I share the transformative power of letting go of control and embracing the unexpected twists and turns of the creative journey. I explore the common pitfalls of believing we...

In the face of life's great unknowns, how do we find the courage to trust our intuition and navigate uncharted territory?  In part one of this two-part series, I share a pivotal moment from the beginning of my parenting journey that forever changed my relationship with uncertainty and decision-making.  Explore the profound importance of embracing the process of learning as you go and building your...

Your financial decisions have less to do with strategy and everything to do with what you believe you deserve. In this episode, I'm sharing insights from a recent conversation I had with author Marcia Dawood—a discussion that cracked open some of the most important questions around money, identity, and what it means to build wealth on your own terms. If you've ever felt that familiar tension betwe...

The very system you're trying to change might be the thing keeping you from making real change. This is a game-changing episode rooted in a story I've never stopped thinking about—one that began on a rain-streaked plane window leaving London in 1992 and ended with thousands of lives transformed.  Over three decades of building, creating, and leading, I've discovered that the most meaningful work a...

The most powerful business strategy you'll ever develop has nothing to do with the next framework, forecast, or opinion delivered to you with boisterous confidence. In this episode, I'm diving deep into the one guidance system most of us have been trained to override—our intuition. Not the mystical, woo-woo version we've been conditioned to dismiss, but the real, embodied intelligence that lives i...

After decades of exploring the intersection of courage and creativity, I've discovered something that contradicts everything we've been taught about making ourselves more "lovable." In this episode, I share the exact moment in a college bar bathroom line that changed how I understood the relationship between intelligence and intimacy—and why bringing your full self to love might be the bravest cre...

Most creators don't realize they're paying the wrong price for their success. The invoice shows up later—in your sleep patterns, in the subtle ways you start editing yourself before anyone asks, in promises you keep breaking to yourself while keeping everyone else happy. After years of watching visionary leaders and entrepreneurs build empires that slowly hollow them out, I've learned this: the pr...

The moment you're ready to quit is usually the exact moment your best work is about to emerge. In this episode, I share what happened when my client, Jim, walked into our meeting ready to abandon his book project, convinced he was talentless and destined to fail. What I told him—and the story I shared about Steven Spielberg's 159 harrowing days filming the movie, Jaws, changed everything. If you'v...

What makes truly great work? Profound attention. In this episode, I delve into how our most impactful creations stem from a deep, intimate connection: with both your creative process and the people you ultimately serve. We'll explore what it means to stay with a project, listening intently to its subtle signals, and treating your creativity like a living partner. From there, we'll uncover how this...

What if the secret to building something extraordinary wasn't waiting for it to feel easy, but learning to stay with the discomfort? If you've ever felt paralyzed by self-doubt, overwhelmed by the magnitude of your vision, or frustrated by the slow pace of progress, this episode will cut through the mental clutter and uncover what truly moves the needle. I'll guide you through a transformative thr...