Good Life Project || Inspiration | Motivation | Happiness | Meaning | Success

When Marine sniper Jake Wood arrived home in the States after two brutal tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, he wasn't leaving war behind him. Ten years after returning home, Jake's unit lost more men to suicide than to enemy hands overseas. He watched in horror as his best friend and fellow Marine, Clay Hunt, plunged into depression upon returning, stripped of his purpose, community, and sense of identity. Despite Jake's attempts to intervene, Clay died by suicide, alone.Reeling, Jake remembered how only one thing had given Clay a measure of hope: joining him in Haiti on a ragtag mission to save lives immediately following the 2010 earthquake. His military training had rendered him unusually effective in high-stakes situations. He wondered if there was a way to help communities in crisis, often in the wake of natural disasters, while providing a new mission to veterans? With that, he built on the early missions to co-found the now-iconic Team Rubicon, a disaster relief organization with over 140,000 volunteers th

At 73, Denise Kaufman is the ultimate renaissance woman, an active member of the ‘60s Bay Area psychedelic rock scene who’s seen and done it all - and continues to do it all. The longtime singer and bassist is a member of Ace of Cups, the pioneering all-female psychedelic rock band that opened for Jimi Hendrix, The Band, Janis Joplin, and more, and that shared the stage with the likes of the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. She continues to play and record new music with the recently reunited group, which has been praised by Rolling Stone, Billboard, CBS This Morning, NPR All Things Considered, The Guardian, and has recorded new songs with Bob Weir, Jackson Browne, David Freiberg, and more. A deeply spiritual person who has been exploring energy flow and community connectedness for over half a century, Denise also is a trained yoga teacher who has taught Madonna, Quincy Jones, and more. She splits her time between Venice Beach where she practices and records with the Ace of Cups (https://amzn.to/2OO

Miles Chamley-Watson is on a mission to take fencing mainstream. A British-born, 6-foot-four Black man, covered in tattoos with bleached blond hair, he breaks pretty much every generations-old assumption and mold about what the staid, traditionally-conservative and often elitist sport is about. Miles actually struggled a lot as a young kid, especially with focus, attention and school, until one day a teacher introduced him to fencing. That moment changed everything. He was obsessed and it gave him a physicalized way to learn and develop intense focus that soon became the driving force in his life. Miles wanted to be the best in the world and win the Olympics. And indeed, already a world champion and an Olympic medalist, he’s well on his way. Miles also decided to redefine the public perception of the sport, to make it more modern, alive, high-profile and appealing to a younger generation, especially those often excluded from the pursuit. And he’s on a mission to reimagine the financial side of this sport

Born in New York City to a Tunisian father and a Swiss mother, Suleika Jaouad attended The Juilliard School's pre-college program for the double bass, and earned her BA with highest honors from Princeton University and an MFA in writing and literature from Bennington College. Leaving music behind, she thought she’d a war correspondent, but her plans were cut short when, at age 22, she was diagnosed with leukemia that led to a brutal 4-year stint in and out of the hospital, with multiple rounds of chemo, and a bone marrow transplant. She began writing her New York Times column and Emmy-award winning video-series “Life, Interrupted” from her hospital room at Sloan-Kettering, and has written reported features, essays and commentary for New York Times Magazine, Vogue and NPR, among other publications. Suleika served on Barack Obama's Presidential Cancer Panel, the national advisory board of the Bone Marrow and Cancer Foundation, and the Brooklyn Public Library’s Arts & Letters Committee. She is also the

Born in the short-lived West African country of Biafra, Louis Chude-Sokei and his mom fled the country during the war that would take the life of his father, a figure of such great reverence in the country that it would create a set of expectations about who Louis was and should be that would follow him well into his adult life. Landing first in Jamaica, where his mother was from, then eventually making their way through DC, to LA, he spent his life, as the line from the Bowie song, Space Oddity, goes, “floating in a most peculiar way.” That song, in fact, has been a bit of a lifelong obsession for Louis, along with Bowie and his music and, in fact, it’s the name of his moving new memoir, Floating in a Most Peculiar Way (https://amzn.to/36NqRZh), his evolving exploration of everything from identity and race to science fiction and music. Louis is now Professor of English at Boston University where he directs the African American Studies Program. He is also the author of influential and award-winning

My guest, today, Renee Jain, started into her career as a tech entrepreneur who secretly suffered with her own sometimes dizzying and even paralyzing anxiety. One day, a panic attack led her to step back and re-examine her life, seek help and begin to acquire the skills and understanding to live with more ease. It was transformative. But, along the way, something she never expected began to happen, she began wondering why every child doesn’t learn those same skills early in life, so they can live with more ease and joy. Solving that problem became her driving cause. Renee earned her Master’s degree in Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, and founded her own ed-tech company, GoZen!, to help a new generation of kids, parents and therapists. She is recognized as a pioneer in marrying technology and child psychology in a unique approach that nurtures the hearts and minds of kids. Through her writing, product invention, masterclasses, and children’s advocacy, she works to build the emotion

What would it take to make you rethink a deeply held point of view or belief? That’s one of Adam Grant’s recent fascinations. Adam is an organizational psychologist and TED speaker who helps people find meaning and motivation at work. He has been Wharton’s top-rated professor for 7 straight years. As an organizational psychologist, he is a leading expert on how we can find motivation and meaning, and live more generous and creative lives. He has been recognized as one of the world’s 10 most influential management thinkers and Fortune’s 40 under 40.Adam is also one of TED's most popular speakers, his books have sold millions of copies, his talks have been viewed more than 25 million times, and his podcast WorkLife with Adam Grant has topped the charts. His pioneering research has inspired people to rethink fundamental assumptions about motivation, generosity, and creativity. And he is a former Junior Olympic springboard diver. Adam’s new book, Think Again, is a fascinating deep dive into how to come to form a

Ellen Harper has been around the folk music scene her whole life. Her mother, Dorothy Chase performed and taught banjo and guitar at Hecht House in the 1950s in Boston with Bess Lomax Hawes and her dad, Charles Chase repaired any and all instruments that came his way. Ellen learned to play, perform and teach guitar and other folk instruments at her mother’s knee and eventually, the family moved west to Claremont, California where they create the iconic Folk Music Center that became a hub for all the biggest names in folk, from Dylan to Joan Baez, Pete Seeger and so many other lesser-known, yet equally important players. Ellen’s kids grew up in that same place, surrounded by those same people and, in fact, one son Ben Harper, caught the music bug and has since become an acclaimed singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist in his own right. In 2000 Ellen participated in Ben’s documentary Pleasure and Pain filmed by iconic rock photographer, Danny Clinch, whose also been a guest on the podcast. That led to

My guest today, Tara Brach, has been one of my teachers for years, though she never knew it. Back in the early days of podcasting, I stumbled upon her weekly dharma talks or Buddhist teachings and meditations that she’d offer at her Insight Meditation Center in DC, record, then air as podcasts, and the blend of her gentle presence, her deep wisdom that was clearly not just studied, but also lived, her humility, real-world sensibility, and humor drew me in. Tara’s teachings blend Western psychology, she’s also a clinical psychologist, along wtih Eastern spiritual practices, mindful attention to our inner life, and a full, compassionate engagement with our world. The result is a distinctive voice in Western Buddhism, one that offers a wise and caring approach to freeing ourselves and society from suffering.She is kindness and insight embodied, and I’ve learned so much from both her offerings and also the way she seems to move through life over the years. Which is why I was so excited to be able to spend some ti

I first learned about today’s guest, Jason Naylor, through his art, which at that point, started appearing on walls and buildings all over New York City, and now is featured all over the world and on products, shows, in fashion and beyond. Jason is originally from Salt Lake City, Utah, where he grew up in a Mormon community and eventually felt called to step away and define his own path. After getting his BFA in graphic design from Brigham Young, he moved to New York City where he began his career in MAC Cosmetics’ Creative Department as a designer, but the whole time, he was creating his own work and starting to paint these hyper-vivid murals on walls around the city, often featuring inspirational words and quotes on the side. His style just kind of exploded with energy and kindness and playfulness. As his work caught on, leading to more and bigger commissions and collaborations with companies like Coach, Sephora, and Pepsi, he left his full-time gig and went all-in on his own art, now running his own b

For generations, when it came to your brain, we pretty much assumed that once you reach adulthood, it pretty much is what it is. That meant you couldn’t get smarter or faster or wittier or optimize it to perform at a higher level and, on the other side, if you suffered an injury, there was very little you could do to help your brain recover or even rewire itself to function at a higher level again. Turns out, much of that was wrong, and my guest today, Dr. Ryan D’Arcy, is an acclaimed neuroscientist and entrepreneur who is at the leading edge of this awakening. The co-founder, President, and Chief Scientific Officer of HealthTech Connex a brain health technology company, he also holds Professorship appointments at Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia, where he serves as a BC Leadership Chair in neuroimaging and neurotechnology. He has published more than 260 academic works, and led major scientific advances include the discovery of white matter activation in functional MRI, the

Question, when was the last time you made a really good new friend, as a grown-up? Like the kind that actually knows you, not just online, but the real you? Turns out, it’s not actually so easy to create those kinds of friendships. But it is critically important to our ability to live good lives, especially during challenging times.My guest today, Kat Vellos, is here to help, She earns her living as a UX designer, which means Kat figures out how to make experiences as easy and organic as humanly possible to step into. She’s applied her unique genius to everything from giant apps, platforms and technology like Slack and Pandora on a mass-scale, to local, face-to-face gatherings, community-building, and most recently to examining and tackling the quest to form deep friendships as a design problem. She goes deep into her journey of discovery in her wonderful book, We Should Get Together: The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships, which I loved and learned so much from.Kat has been featured in Forbes and FastC

What if your work could make you come alive? What if it could fill you with meaning, purpose, and excitement like you're fully accessing and expressing all parts of yourself and stepping into your fullest potential? Like you're doing the thing you're here to do. We call this state being "sparked." The first step isn't about big, painful or disruptive change. It's about knowing yourself better, discovering your unique imprint for work that makes you come alive - your Sparketype®In today's episode, we're taking you deep into the world of the Sparketypes and exploring how to discover yours, then tap it to reimagine and redesign the way you contribute to the world, whether it's the thing you get paid for, the thing you do because you're called to it, the thing you do on the side or some blend, on a quest to get as close as you can, or at least a lot closer than you are now, to this feeling of aliveness.Have you discovered your Sparketype yet? Take the Sparketype Assessment™ now. IT’S FREE (https://www.goodlifepro

When I think about Peter Frampton, I’m immediately transported back to my teens when Peter’s musical juggernaut of a live-album, Frampton Comes Alive, took the world and my life by storm with anthemic songs like Do You Feel Like We Do, Show Me the Way, Lines On My Face and Baby, I Love Your Way. I cannot think about those songs without also hearing what became his signature voice-box sound vibrating through my body.Known in his earlier years for his fierce talent as a guitarist and musician, co-founder one of the first rock-supergroups, Humble Pie, and a collaborator with everyone from George Harrison, David Bowie, and Jerry Lee Lewis, to then Stones bassist, Bill Wyman, and Ringo Starr, that album changed everything. Frampton Comes Alive became a global phenomenon and bestselling live album for decades. Following on the heels of the album came an equally iconic, shirtless cover of Rolling Stone, shot by Francesco Scavulo and accompanied by a feature story written by a then-young Cameron Crowe, Peters as

Success is not just about knowing what to do. It's about doing it. Information, plans and goals, alone, will not get you where you want to go. Nor will willpower. Success at anything truly meaningful is about something bigger. Today’s show is going to be very different. Instead of deep-dive conversations with guests, it’s just going to be Jonathan, going deep into how to find success accomplishing big, meaningful things. There’ll be a ton of myth-busting and you'll learn something called Success Scaffolding™, a unique approach to making big things happen, especially things you’ve tried and failed at many times before. We’ve shared Success Scaffolding before, but over the years, we keep refining it and making it better and better. So, you’ll want to give this episode a listen with fresh ears even if you've listened to past episodes about it, because there are a bunch of new insights, changes and additions. You may also want to open your "notes" app to take notes. Or, if you'd like a detailed, one-pag

Over the history of this show, we’ve been incredibly blessed to not only have hundreds of guests in the physical and now virtual studio for conversation but also live performances from a wide variety of acclaimed artists, many of whom are icons in their chosen form of creation and expression. The performances have ranged from unaccompanied to fully sound-designed spoken word, to a capella or instrument-accompanied live music. Many of these performances represented moments of emotion and awakening, connection. It’s been a kind of magical ingredient for me, as a lover of spoken word and music, to be able to share these with you over the years. So we decided to do something a little different as a sort of offering to you as we bring this year to a close. We culled through years of tape and pulled together today’s live performance super-cut for you, sharing a lineup of 11 artists, spread out over nearly 7 years of performances in the studio. Some, short and sweet, others longer-form and profound. All will ma

There’s something about the sound of Mark Nepo’s voice that just puts me at ease. He’s been immersed in a path of spiritual inquiry for more than forty years, taught all over the world, authored more than twenty books, including the #1 New York Times bestseller The Book of Awakening, More Together Than Alone and others. His books have been translated into more than twenty languages and in 2014, Mark traveled the country with Oprah Winfrey on her sold-out The Life You Want Tour and has appeared several times on her Super Soul Sunday program.The last time I sat down with Mark, we caught up on life, then dove into his decades-long inquiry around how we are wired to live in community, what happens when the bonds that connect us fail and how to rediscover community at a time when we seem more divided than ever. This conversation was actually recorded before the year we’ve all just been through, but it is more relevant and more needed than ever before. You can find Mark Nepo at:Website : https://marknepo.

We’re on a quest to help you live a more meaningful, connected and vital life. Every week we share inspirational, intimate and disarmingly-unfiltered conversations about living a fully-engaged, fiercely-connected and purpose-drenched life. We’ve been on a quest to find “embodied teachers,” then co-create in-depth, unscripted, often deeply-moving and fiercely wise conversations. From world-shakers like Brené Brown, Matthew McConaughey, Austin Channing Brown, Elizabeth Gilbert, Bishop Michael Curry, Secretary Julián Castro, Dr. Yusef Salaam, Seth Godin and Gretchen Rubin to everyday guests, every story matters. We also love to create practical and powerful tools, programs, and trainings designed to help people live more engaged, connected, and vital lives. Listen to the podcast, then visit Goodlifeproject.com to learn more. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Christen Brandt and Tammy Tibbetts are on a mission to unlock the potential of girls and women, especially in parts of the world where they’re often excluded from education and, in turn, much of life and the opportunity to help shape their communities and lives in a meaningful way.Both Christen and Tammy grew up in households where they were loved and supported, taught to believe in themselves and the power of education and become strong advocates. They were the first in their families to go to college, and both landed in the fashion magazine world in New York after graduating, where they started building careers and rising up in the industry. But an increasing awakening to inequity led them into a collaboration that would start as a viral video to raise awareness and eventually lead them out of the world of magazines and to co-found a foundation to help women and girls globally become educated, called She’s the First. Along the way, they’ve reimagined the foundation model, becoming leading voices in a n

I’ve been fascinated with alternative approaches to healing and medicine for my entire adult life. Especially when so many millions of us are walking around with pain and inflammation that doesn’t seem to fair well with a more Western approach. But, at the same time, I’ll also admit, I’m equally skeptical of a lot of solutions, practices, and claims. Which is why I’ve been deeply curious, for many years, about Ayurveda - a healing methodology that has been practiced, refined and sustained for some 5,000 years, and I was so excited to sit down with my friend, Avanti Kumar Singh, a traditionally-trained physician who experienced firsthand the limitations of Western medicine and decided to leave behind a career in emergency medicine to begin a 20-year journey to study, research and experience traditional healing systems from a wide range of cultures that landed her back in Ayurveda and reconnected her with a sense of calling. A central tenet of Ayurveda is the notion that each of us has the innate ability t