School For Good Living Podcasts

I lived in Japan for a period and love the country, culture, and language. It is what drew me to read Héctor García’s book, Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life, co-authored with Francesc Miralles. In my conversation with Héctor, we discuss how the book takes some Japanese concepts and combines them with other Eastern thought, Western philosophy, and practical philosophy.  Perhaps this melding of ideas is why the book has sold so well. Its influence has been far-reaching and remarkable – translated into at least 58 world languages and is the most translated book to have originally been written in Spanish. As Héctor explains, the term “ikigai” roughly indicates one’s purpose in life (technically translating as “a reason for being”). To use Héctor’s own vivid explanation, it is what wakes you up with excitement in the morning. Héctor’s insightful exploration of this profound theme shapes not just the book bearing its name, but also Héctor’s other works. He is the author of The Book of Ichigo

My guest today joined the Stanford Design Division faculty in 1962. He was the youngest member of the university faculty and now decades later, he’s the oldest faculty member.  His name is Bernard (Bernie) Roth and he is the author of The Achievement Habit: Stop Wishing, Start Doing, and Take Command of Your Life. As one of the founders of Stanford’s d.school, he remains active in the d.school’s development and currently serves as the Academic Director.  Bernie’s primary intention as both an educator and a person, is to empower his students, family and friends to have fulfilling lives. He’s the kind of teacher we all want, and some are fortunate to have in their academic careers.  In 2003, Bernie joined a group of colleagues looking to bring more cross-disciplinary collaboration into education. This was the genesis of the d.school, and it represents the sense of well-roundedness and personal integration that Bernie exudes.  He is a person whose philosophy and commitments mark all he does, from the classroo

This week my guest is Jeff Speck, a city planner and urban designer who advocates internationally for more walkable cities. His book, Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America, One Step at a Time was written not just for designers, but to also convert generalists to his cause. Walkability doesn’t just impact city planning; it has huge effects on economics, health, and the environment. Jeff’s TEDtalks on the subject has been viewed over 4 million times. We built our cities to accommodate pedestrians for centuries and they worked well. Now we’re building our cities structured around the idea of everyone driving cars and they are significantly less efficient. Separating the work, home, and hobby aspects of our lives through city planning has created less livable, less equitable environments. Jeff shares the ways our government and laws have made walkability more difficult and how he and other city planners have been working to change those laws and add value to communities. This is a slow process, but Jeff

Dr. Antonio Zadra is the author of When Brains Dream: Exploring the Science and Mystery of Sleep alongside co-author Robert Strickgold, they detail a new theory on why we dream and call it the NEXTUP model. Antonio is a researcher who focuses on the scientific study of dreams, including everyday dreams, nightmares, lucid dreams, sleep terrors, and sleep walking. Together with his students and collaborators, Antonio has published over one hundred research articles and collected thousands of firsthand dream reports.  Antonio is committed to balance – balance between a sense of presence and an ability to plan for the future and balance between soaking all he can out of life’s moments without becoming too caught up in things either good or bad.  As a college student, a dream turned him to psychology, which led him to fulfill his ultimate aim of studying dreams and becoming, as he styles it, an oneironaut.  Through his many roles as a professor, author and speaker, Antonio has approached dreams with both scient

One of the questions I always ask guests is, “What does it mean to live a good life?”  For the first time, however, a guest has left me thinking about changing that question to, “What does it mean to die a good death?”  This guest is Eve Joseph, an award-winning poet, incredible storyteller, and the author of a book about death and dying (which also happens to be her memoir) entitled In the Slender Margin: The Intimate Strangeness of Death and Dying.  The book flows out of Eve’s lessons and insights from working with and serving people at the end of their lives as a hospice care provider and represents the two central themes of the conversation: death and writing.  Eve’s life has been marked by distinct seasons.  She fell in love with writing in fifth grade, but for about thirty years stopped writing.  In that intervening period, Eve got married, had children and became a social worker within the hospice care system of her native Canada.  Profound family events shaped her cessation from writing and later r

All people have passion and curiosity, but Matthew Gavin Frank is notable for pushing these to the point of obsession – a creative, productive, compelling obsession.  He is the author of Preparing the Ghost and Flight of the Diamond Smugglers, among other works, and is a creative writing professor in the MFA program at Northern Michigan University.  Matthew’s work has appeared widely in journals and magazines around the world.  His writing has a personal tone to it, and it reflects Matthew’s own navigation of such influences on his life as travel, food, and even personal grief.   Matthew Gavin Frank’s life has been filled with remarkable experiences.  He has lived in Alaska, worked as a sommelier and grape harvester in Italy, spent time on the orange farm in South Africa where his wife is from, lived out of a Coleman Cimmaron in New Mexico, and held dozens of different jobs.  He’s an accomplished cook and a travel addict, has learned through the past two decades how to live well in close relationship with

Stephan Aarstol is the author of the book Five-Hour Workday: Live Differently, Unlock Productivity, and Find Happiness, which gives advice on how to live life to the fullest by cultivating more efficiency in fewer work hours. Stephan’s ideas have been shared in Fast Company, Entrepreneur, Forbes, and he’s also presented at Harvard Business School. Stephan holds an MBA in New Venture Management, was a guest on the television series ‘Shark Tank’, won an investment from Mark Cuban, and is now founder and CEO of Tower Paddleboards and Tower Beach Club. In this podcast, Stephan shares the origins of the 8-hour workday and his experience shifting his own employees to practicing the 5-hour workday. He dives into how the experiment came to be, the percentage increase in productivity, the people who influenced Stephan’s career, and the importance of company culture. Listen as Stephan brings you along on his journey of how he shifted his views on life and work.    “Time is the new money.” –Stephan Aarstol

Marcus Whitney is the author of Amazon bestseller Create and Orchestrate: The Path to Claiming Your Creative Power from an Unlikely Entrepreneur.  Early in his professional career, Marcus was a college dropout waiting tables seven days a week, but he taught himself to code, became an entrepreneur, and eventually became a venture capitalist.  He is co-founder and partner at Jumpstart Health Investors and he more recently launched Jumpstart Nova.  His work has been covered by The Atlantic, Fast Company and TechCrunch. Marcus is also a co-founder and minority owner of the Nashville Soccer Club, Nashville’s MLS team, and the producer and host of The Creative Power Podcast.  I connected with Marcus through Nexus and I’m so glad I did! He joins me today to share openly about the challenges he has faced, overcome and to explain his inspiring life journey. Marcus talks about his experience becoming and being an entrepreneur and author; offers thoughts on how he thinks about the world, himself and the concept of st

Stephen Cope’s training, career, and beliefs have gone through a vast array of changes: he was a psychotherapist, pianist, and professional dancer. He was at different times a Protestant, a Presbyterian, a Quaker, and a Buddhist. When he took what he had planned to be a three-month sabbatical from his psychotherapy practice to immerse himself in yoga, he discovered that he wanted to stay. Less than a year later, he closed his psychotherapy practice to teach Yoga at Kripalu. For decades now, he has immersed himself in yoga and in teaching it to others through classes, conferences, and books as well. His most recent book is Deep Human Connection: Why We Need It More Than Anything Else. Today Stephen joins me to talk about his journey. He discusses the concept of Dharma, going into both how to recognize it and how to know when you have it. He talks about the importance of becoming fully awake and alive in this lifetime and notes that it often takes a leap of faith. He talks about the three “hunting grounds” t

Steven Kotler is a New York Times bestselling author and an award-winning journalist. He is the Executive Director of the Flow Research Collective, as well as the co-host of a podcast by the same name. He is one of the world’s leading experts on human performance and has appeared in over 100 publications. In addition, he has been nominated for two Pulitzer Prizes. In his latest book, The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer, which he calls “a practical playbook for impractical people,” he reveals the secret to his productivity: to lean into the challenge before you realize you’ve even done it. Today, Steven joins me to expand on this principle. He discusses how stopping to think about the prospect of completing a task is the greatest obstacle to doing it. He talks about how beginning is the hardest part. He discusses curiosity, passion, and purpose, noting that with these most tasks don’t take more than twenty seconds of grit: the grit it takes to start. He mentions the three most important aspects

Peter McGraw is a professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, but he’s also been a stand-up comedian, humorist, adventurer, game show host, and author. All this came about when he developed an itch to solve the age-old question: Why is comedy funny? He found the age-old answers problematic, and so embarked on a journey to discover the true answer that entailed traveling 91,000 miles, trying his hand at stand-up comedy, and hosting his own game show Funny or True. He’s written two books about the experience: The Humor Code, in which he and Joel Warner document the journey, and Shtick to Business, in which he presents the value of his findings in a business context. Today Peter joins me to talk about his journey and what he’s learned from it. He talks about the common denominator of all comedy, what makes a good comic, and the “benign violation” theory. He discusses the previously accepted theories of comedy and expands on his own. He presents comedy as a universal art form, notes its link to both confi

Max Frenzel is the Co-founder of Time Off, a platform to help people and companies deliberately practice time off so they can be their most successful and creative self. He is an AI researcher with Bespoke Inc, an AI Engagement Platform based in Tokyo providing multilingual solutions to hotels, airports and train stations. He earned a PhD in Quantum Information Theory from the Imperial College of London before becoming a Research Scientist with Japanese company Cogent Labs. Max has been involved with several start-ups focusing especially on the intersection of theoretical AI research and product design. As well as co-writing the international #1 Amazon Bestseller Time Off: A Practical Guide to Building Your Rest Ethic and Finding Success Without the Stress, he is also an active writer online and has been featured as Top Writer on medium.com in categories including Artificial Intelligence, Creativity, Writing, Productivity, and Leadership. Max also produces and performs his own electronic music under the name

Chris Bailey is the creator of the blog, A Life of Productivity, a platform he launched straight out of graduating from business school. He was on a mission to follow his passion and devour everything he could get his hands on the subject of productivity. By the time he finished his yearlong experiment, his work had been read over one million times by people from almost every country around the world. He’s written two books on productivity which have been published in 20 languages – Hyperfocus: How to Be More Productive in a World of Distraction, and The Productivity Project: Accomplishing More by Managing Your Time, Attention, and Energy. Chris Bailey has been featured in several media publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Harvard Business Review. In today’s episode Chris joins me to discuss the subject of productivity and the various ways we can savour and squander it. He explains why focusing on one task all day long could be the worst thing you can do for your prod

Captain Charles Moore is an oceanographer and captain of the research vessel Algalita. He is known for articles that recently brought attention to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch – an area of the Pacific Ocean strewn with floating plastic debris caught in a gyre. Charles is the founder of Algalita Marine Research Institute where he currently works, and the founder of Long Beach Organic, a non-profit organization operating eight organic community gardens within the city limits of Long Beach, California. Charles is also the co-author of Plastic Ocean, a book recounting his ominous findings in the ocean and unveiling the secret life and hidden properties of plastics; from milk jugs to polymer molecules small enough to penetrate human skin or be unknowingly inhaled. Charles joins me today to share the story of his journey from seafaring adventurer to oceanic environmentalist whistle blower. He describes the moment he first discovered the overwhelming sight of the garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean. He also exp

Brian C. Wilson is a Professor of American Religious History in the Department of Comparative Religion at Western Michigan University. He has a BSc in Medical Microbiology from Stanford University, an MA in Hispanic Studies from Monterey Institute of International Studies, and an MA and a PhD in Religious Studies with the University of California. Brian is also the award-winning author of Dr. John Harvey Kellogg and the Religion of Biologic Living. His most recent book is John E. Fetzer and the Quest for the New Age following the spiritual sojourn of a 20th Century Michigan business tycoon. Brian joins me today to discuss the path he has traveled, powered by a curiosity for the metaphysical questions in life and a desire to serve in a spiritual role. He shares his experience of joining the Peace Corps, where an initial posting to Honduras led him to spend several years traveling Central America and the Caribbean where he was introduced to a host of religious cultures. Brian discusses his links with the Fet

Donald Rattner is an Architect who helps individuals and organizations optimize creative performance by applying scientific research to the design of physical space. A widely published author, his third and most recent book My Creative Space: How to Design Your Home to Stimulate Ideas and Spark Innovation, has won three awards to date and was an Amazon #1 Bestseller. He has also written for numerous print and online channels including Work Design Magazine, Better Humans, and The Writer’s Cooperative. Donald’s work has been featured on CNN and in such publications as The New York Times, Houzz, and Architectural Digest. Donald also has an impressive teaching resume, having taught at the University of Illinois, New York University School of Real Estate Studies, Parsons School of Design, and the New York Academy of Art. Donald joins me today to discuss the origins of My Creative Space and who he felt the book was written for: the architects, design professionals, interior designers, and the people who are simp

Rebecca Henderson, FBA, is an economist and author of Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire. She is a professor at Harvard Business School, where she teaches Reimagine Capitalism, the most successful MBA elective course at HBS in the last five years. In addition to her authorship and work at Harvard, Rebecca also serves as Research Fellow at the National Bureau for Economic Research and as a sustainability advisor to the world’s largest companies. Rebecca is a leading authority in organizational and strategic change whose work focuses on purpose-driven capitalism and the role that businesses and individuals can play in making change happen. Rebecca joins me today to share her ideas on Reimagining Capitalism and contemplate how we can contribute as individuals to social, political, and economic change. She illustrates how the idea of shareholder value maximization is destructive to the environment and society and reveals the two foremost causes of the world’s enduring predicaments. She also describes ho

Darlene Green is the author of In Service to Love: A Dynamic Experience of Consciousness, Transformation, and Enlightenment, a series of three books written in 366 days. Darlene is an empath, healer, teacher, and scribe who dedicates her life to pursuing work and studies that delve deeper into experiencing the sacred and divine. Following a car accident in 2017, Darlene began a profound healing process that eventually led her to write In Service to Love, a work that contemplates what becomes possible when we live from our soul’s vision. Darlene joins me today to share her healing journey towards wholeness and what she has learned from overcoming trauma caused by the car accident she experienced. She illustrates humanity as divine beings and defines what it means to be a spiritual being living a human experience. She describes her spiritual life as a young girl and how she met the Council of Light. She also discusses how we can align with our divinity for creative inspiration and connect with our highest cr

Beth Kempton is the author of four books, including Wabi Sabi: Japanese Wisdom for a Perfectly Imperfect Life, an international bestseller that has been recommended by TIME Magazine and translated into 24 languages. A dedicated student of Japanese culture, language, and life, Beth earned an undergraduate and a master’s degree in Japanese studies and has extensively traveled and lived in the country. In addition to her writing, Beth is the founder of Do What You Love, through which she inspires people to live well and do what they love. Beth joins me today to share perspectives and ideas from Japan. She describes wabi-sabi as a mode of how we experience beauty in the world and how shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing, can deliver the healing potential of nature. She highlights strategies to become a more mindful gift-giver and how to get through the holiday season to have a fantastic new year. She also shares her insights on writing and illustrates the writer’s role as a conduit for manifesting ideas into a book

Barbara Waxman is a Life Stage Expert, coach, and author of The Middlescence Manifesto: Igniting the Passion of Midlife. As a Gerontologist-coach, Barbara founded the Odyssey Group Coaching, where she offers her unique coaching model, Entrepreneurship Turned Inward, to help people in their midlife develop professionally and personally. Barbara is a next-level thinker on a mission to advocate for a thriving midlife and to shift cultural norms around aging. Barbara joins me today to share her ideas about “middlescence” and shares powerful tools we can utilize to age well. She discusses finding your life purpose, differentiates between the little ‘p’ purpose from big ‘P’ Purpose, and illustrates how the former can lead to the latter. She shares her “Five to Thrive” quiz and enumerates the five essential elements everybody needs to live an exuberant and vibrant life. She also rethinks the narrative that midlife is a crisis and emphasizes how we all can find happiness and fulfillment throughout the years until