#35 - Designing Your New Work Life | Dave Evans

#35 - Designing Your New Work Life | Dave Evans

Welcome to “The Elements of Being” podcast, where I dissect and explore the minds and habits of psychologists, filmmakers, writers, and industry icons. Essentially, we examine the mental and emotional narratives and processes that steer the social stream of consciousness….Truly a chance to geek out over the psychology behind human behavior. Each episode is a glimpse into the trends and patterns of human behavior and the underlying influences that navigate us into different directions. Whether we primarily focus on nutrition or the unconscious, guests share insights, thought-provoking lessons, the nuances of creativity, and the elements of being….us.

Today, I'd like to introduce you to Dave Evans, the Codirector of the Stanford Life Design Lab and a co-founder of Electronic Arts, one of the world's largest interactive entertainment companies. He also led the design of Apple's first mouse and laser printer and has a BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford.

Recently, Dave and his colleague, Bill Burnett, coauthored the #1 New York Times bestseller Designing Your New Work Life....and it served as the foundation of our conversation. It's a job-changing, outlook-changing, life-changing book that shows us how to transform our new uncharted work lives and create a meaningful dream job. With new insights on making our way through disruption- large and small, personal or global-the book helps us navigate during these times of fear and anxiety about the unknown and through our post-COVID work lives and beyond.

Specifically, we discuss their Disruption Design with a focus on curiosity, reframing, radical collaboration, awareness, bias to action, and storytelling. We also learn how to make possibilities available even when our lives have been disrupted, examine the tools to enjoy the moment, and begin to prototype our future.

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To learn more about Dave Evans and his new book, visit https://designingyour.life.

The Elements of Being Podcast with Michael Moody featuring Dave Evans

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In this episode, we specifically discussed:

-How to redesign our professional lives with unknown disruptions in mind when we've already invested in a specific path.
-How to break the chain of working endlessly without satisfaction and "doing whatever it takes" modeled by our parents and society.
-How to approach the dilemma of serving life of purpose for less pay or settling for a higher wage at a less satisfying job.
-Design thinking and the benefit of applying this mode of thinking to our professional lives.
-The importance of curiosity in our professional lives.
-Prototyping new positions and experiences while serving a current position.
-How we can reframe our current position to change our work experience or career trajectory.
-A distinction between reframing and renaming our work experiences.
-The benefits of radical collaboration.
-The foundation of great storytelling.
-The best exit strategies.

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Listen to all episodes on Apple, Spotify, Overcast, Castbox, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform!

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#34 - The Lens of a Positive Psychologist During a Crisis | Dr. Itai Ivtzan

#34 - The Lens of a Positive Psychologist During a Crisis | Dr. Itai Ivtzan

Welcome to “The Elements of Being” podcast, where I dissect and explore the minds and habits of psychologists, filmmakers, writers, and industry icons. Essentially, we examine the mental and emotional narratives and processes that steer the social stream of consciousness….Truly a chance to geek out over the psychology behind human behavior. Each episode is a glimpse into the trends and patterns of human behavior and the underlying influences that navigate us into different directions. Whether we primarily focus on nutrition or the unconscious, guests share insights, thought-provoking lessons, the nuances of creativity, and the elements of being….us.

Today, I’d like to introduce you to Dr. Itai Ivtzan, a positive psychologist, a Professor at Naropa University, and the School of Positive Transformation Director. Over the past 20 years, he has run seminars, lectures, workshops, and retreats in the USA, UK, and worldwide at various educational institutions and private events. In addition, Dr. Itzvan is a regular keynote speaker at conferences and has published five books and more than 50 journal papers and book chapters. His main areas of research and teaching are positive psychology, mindfulness, and spirituality.

Accordingly, Dr. Itzvan has invested much time in studying mindfulness academically, writing books about it, teaching it, and training mindfulness teachers. As part of his work, he established the School of Positive Transformation, offering practical well-being courses for practitioners, teaching them how to transform themselves and their clients and students.

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To learn more about Dr. Itai Ivtzan, visit https://schoolofpositivetransformation.com.

The Elements of Being Podcast with Michael Moody featuring Dr. Itai Ivtzan

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In our interview, we examine the lens of a positive psychologist during a period of crisis. Dr. Ivtzan shared his personal struggles during the onset of the pandemic, and we discussed how to practice empathy when in conflict with family and friends and compassion for loved ones who hurt us. We also dive into the meaning we assign to such disruptions like the recent pandemic and destructive wildfires in Colorado, as well as the role of meditation and mindfulness in our well-being.

In this episode, we specifically discussed:

-The lens of a positive psychologist during a crisis.
-Making sense of crisis.
-Sitting with ourselves when our physical states are threatened.
-The dialogue regarding collective trauma in the positive psychology community.
-Feeling compassion for others when we've been hurt by even those who love us.
-Practicing empathy when experiencing fiery divisions between family, friends, and people we don't know.
-The role of mindfulness in building resiliency.
-The reasons why solitude is vital to our mindfulness.

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Listen to all episodes on Apple, Spotify, Overcast, Castbox, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform!

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#33 - Systematically Building a Regenerative Future | Brenna Simmons-St. Onge`

#33 - Systematically Building a Regenerative Future | Brenna Simmons-St. Onge

Welcome to “The Elements of Being” podcast, where I dissect and explore the minds and habits of psychologists, filmmakers, writers, and industry icons. Essentially, we examine the mental and emotional narratives and processes that steer the social stream of consciousness….Truly a chance to geek out over the psychology behind human behavior. Each episode is a glimpse into the trends and patterns of human behavior and the underlying influences that navigate us into different directions. Whether we primarily focus on nutrition or the unconscious, guests share insights, thought-provoking lessons, the nuances of creativity, and the elements of being….us.

Today, I’d like to introduce you to Brenna Simmons-St. Onge, the Executive Director of The Alliance Center. She is a pragmatic visionary with over 15 years of leadership experience, including a decade in corporate social responsibility. During the pandemic, Brenna launched the Regenerative Recovery Coalition-a coalition with over 335 members working together to build Colorado towards a regenerative future. Through large public-private partnerships, Brenna is leading the Coalition to create equitable social structures that will foster shared prosperity on a healthy planet. As a dynamic change agent, Brenna leads with a nonprofit heart and a business mind leveraging holistic approaches to implement and scale solutions to some of the largest issues humanity faces.

In our interview, we break down the concept of a regenerative future and the individual and social efforts required for systems-level change, as well as the gap between idealism and pragmatism. We also examine how to secure the attention of policymakers and corporations and how they should rethink and measure success and growth within a capitalist system.

The Elements of Being Podcast with Michael Moody featuring Brenna Simmons-St. Onge

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In this episode, we specifically discussed:

-How to personally balance living in our modern capitalist system while recognizing the significant challenges upon us.
-Transition from a corporate career to a values-driven professional path.
-The definition of the concept "regenerative future."
-How the Alliance Center has drawn the attention of governors and other politicians in Colorado.
-How Brenna and the Alliance Center choose the most appropriate focuses at a given time for driving systems-level change with regenerative business in mind.
-How we can bridge the gap between idealism and pragmatism.
-What's required in the "regenerative future" message to secure the attention of policymakers and corporations.
-How corporations and smaller businesses should rethink and measure success and growth within a capitalist system.

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To learn more about Brenna Simmons-St. Onge, visit https://www.thealliancecenter.org/.

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Listen to all episodes on Apple, Spotify, Overcast, Castbox, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform!

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#32 - Growing a New Future of Farming and Food Equity | Dr. Damien Thompson

#32 - Growing a New Future of Farming and Food Equity | Dr. Damien Thompson

Welcome to “The Elements of Being” podcast, where I dissect and explore the minds and habits of psychologists, filmmakers, writers, and industry icons. Essentially, we examine the mental and emotional narratives and processes that steer the social stream of consciousness….Truly a chance to geek out over the psychology behind human behavior. Each episode is a glimpse into the trends and patterns of human behavior and the underlying influences that navigate us into different directions. Whether we primarily focus on nutrition or the unconscious, guests share insights, thought-provoking lessons, the nuances of creativity, and the elements of being….us.

Today, I’d like to introduce you to Dr. Damien Thompson, the co-founder of the organization, Frontline Farming, and director of the Center for Food Justice and Healthy Communities.

In addition to his training in anthropology, Dr. Thompson holds a certification in Permaculture Design and a 200-hour Yoga Alliance Teaching Certification. His interests center on the building of community food systems, small-scale urban food production, developing community, and cultural practices related to food and medicine, teaching and learning in education and permaculture. Dr. Thompson has a keen interest in how communities can utilize traditional and modern information and practices to build food systems that uplift marginalized and oppressed peoples, restore ecosystems, build biodiversity, support cultural diversity as well as provide individuals and families with the highest level of access to the means to support their own health (and we talk quite a bit about these topics today). I should mention that Dr. Thompson is also a mayor-appointed member of the Sustainable Food Council for the City of Denver, and a co-chair for the city’s Good Food Purchasing policy group. No doubt, he plays a significant role in the necessary trend of regenerative agriculture and our future connection to food.

The Elements of Being Podcast with Michael Moody featuring Dr. Damien Thompson

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In our interview, we bridge his education in anthropology to his farming practice and social work as the co-founder of Frontline Farming. Specifically, we geek out on the fundamentals of farming and the benefits of permaculture and a regenerative agriculture focus. We further dissected the social challenges surrounding food security, justice, and sovereignty as well as the equitable changes needed in our food system.

In this episode, we specifically discuss:

-Frontline Farming's mission.
-Advantages and disadvantages of regenerative agriculture practices with a focus on no-tilling/conservation tilling, water conservation, terracing, and cover crops.
-Inequality in our present food systems and the need for changes in food security, food justice, and food sovereignty.
-The connection between big data, food systems, and racial equity.
-The importance and repercussions of the language we use in our discussion about food systems and the policy that supports them.

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To learn more about Dr. Thompson, visit https://www.frontlinefarming.org/.

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Listen to all episodes on Apple, Spotify, Overcast, Castbox, Stitcher, or on your favorite podcast platform!

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Bridal Bootcamp Exercise Program: Legs/Upper Body/Core (30-40 Minutes)

BRIDAL BOOTCAMP EXERCISE PROGRAM: LEGS/SHOULDERS/CORE (30-40 MINUTES)

Time to be your own personal trainer in LoHi! You still need to exercise outside of your personal training sessions, right??? Perform the exercises in this order. Note the descriptions next to each exercise (e.g., position of the bench or cables) and perform 16 reps for every exercise. Also, perform 16 reps on each arm if you’re performing a single arm exercise. Try to maintain a 140-160 HR (although it’ll fluctuate depending on the exercise). Don’t forget to answer the questions in the “Assessment Section” after your workout. Let’s get you ready for your wedding ceremony in Denver, Colorado!

SUPERSET 1

1st: Prisoner squat
2nd: Pushup with feet on medicine balls (failure)
3rd: Side plank

60-second sprint/30-second break

4th: Squat jumps with a medicine ball at your chest
5th: Pullups/pullup assist machine
6th: Plank with alternating plate lift (extend your arm forward and lift the plate before switching)

60-second jump rope/30-second break

7th: Split squat jump with a medicine ball at your chest
8th: Burpee pushups off of the bench (hands on the edge of a bench instead of the floor to start)
9th: Medicine ball toss at the wall while rotating

60-second Stairmaster/30- second break

10th: Alternating single leg squat with dumbbell hammer
11th: Pushups with your feet elevated on a bench
12th: Mountain climbers with a twist (30 seconds)

60-second break

Push yourself to new levels with a personal trainer in LoHi! / Photo: The Lazy Artist Gallery

SUPERSET 2

1st: Walking lunge with dumbbell press overhead
2nd: Pullup/pullup assist machine
3rd: Cable chopper with a step (alternating sides)

60-second sprint/30-second break

4th: Alternating step-up with medicine ball toss and catch
5th: Pushup with alternating dumbbell lift (see picture)
6th: Alternating toe-touch crunch

60-second Stairmaster/30-second break

7th: Alternating backward lunge with cable row
8th: Squat with the shoulder press while rotating
9th: Alternating leg lift while planking

60-second jump rope/30-second break

10th: Step-up from kneeling position with a medicine ball extension
11th: Pullup/pullup assist machine
12th: Bicycle crunch

Naptime!

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Assessment Section

No fitness or personal training program is perfect. Let’s reflect and adapt! Answer the following questions:

• How would you adapt this training program?

• Which back and chest exercises would you swap out?

• How could you make this fitness program more challenging?

• How would you change the order of the exercises?

• Would you include more breaks in between the sets?

• Would you include an even ratio of back and chest exercises instead?

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