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

Have you ever thought about leaving everything behind and traveling the world? Of cashing out your savings to hit the road and create lifelong memories and new experiences?This may sound like an impossible dream to most, but our guest today did just that. Alastair Humphreys was poised to accept his dream job when he made the decision to spend the next four years of his life biking 46,000 miles around the world.Alastair lived for four years traveling on just under $10,000 without taking any other jobs or earning any other money. Sounds impossible, doesn’t it? That was just the beginning of an incredible life of adventures.Alastair has become a documentary filmmaker, author, speaker, and blogger while continuing to pursue his passion for adventuring. Today, he shares why he continues to go on these adventures and what he gains from them. Alastair’s extraordinary experiences are some that I know many of you may envy and wish to emulate, and he shares the steps you can take to start your incredible journey.In Thi

Today’s guest, Chris Daze Ellis, is a born-and-bred New York artist with a fascinating origin story. Although he began his prolific painting career in the gritty New York subways of the mid-70s, Daze is one of the few artists from that initial group to have successfully transitioned from the underground to the studio, then the galleries and […]The post Chris “Daze” Ellis: From Street Artist to Museum Collections appeared first on Good LifeProject. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How did an Australian woman who wanted to be the next Olivia Newton-John become the voice of SIRI and the confident giver of directions in than 400 million GPS and smart-enabled devices?Also known as “GPS Girl,” today’s guest, Karen Jacobsen, never saw her device-enabled voice-future coming. It happened entirely under a shroud of secrecy, when Karen took a job that required spending days cloistered in a studio, reading tons of phrases, but never being told why. It wasn’t until a friend called years later and said “you’re on our GPS” that she finally learned what’d happened!Behind her golden voice, though, is a much bigger story. At heart, Karen is a songwriter and singer. Her dream was always to become the next Olivia Newton-John in the United States. To take the pop music world by storm.That dream has since led to a career not just as the voice of SIRI and GPS devices, but in music, including gigs singing the national anthem in front of massive stadiums on TV, having songs featured on hit shows, an

This week on The Good Life Project, our guest is social psychologist and professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Kurt Gray. Kurt studies mind perception and morality. In his research, Kurt is trying to answer questions about the true nature of human beings, from good and evil to why we attribute human-like qualities […]The post The Mind Club: Who Is In, Who Is Out and Why It Matters appeared first on Good LifeProject. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How do you go from studying psychology and religion to founding the world’s largest outdoor renegade craft fair, with outposts in nine cities. This week on Good Life Project, my guest is Susie Daly, the founder of Renegade Craft Fair. Susie’s journey was anything but planned. Through a series of exciting turns, she went from being a crafter herself […]The post How One Woman Built a Renegade Craft Movement. appeared first on Good LifeProject. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ever wonder why the exact same touch by one person will give you the creeps, but by another will make you yearn for more?On this episode of The Good Life, I am excited to bring you David Linden, a Johns Hopkins Neuroscientist and New York Times best-selling author of Touch: The Science of Hand, Heart, and Mind.The research that David has been conducting on the effects of touch on the human mind is a powerful reminder of the role touch plays in nearly every aspect of human development. Everything from love to intelligence, sex to attachment, orgasm or itch and beyond... basically, anything we touch or get touched by profoundly influences our personality, perception of people and the world.Whether touch is given or withheld at any age can shape the entirety of our beings. Our neurology, psychology and our ability to live functional, good lives is dependent on touch.If you have ever wondered why touch is so important to the development of infants, or why we find touch so vital to our own mental well-being,

+++Come to Camp GLP: The Ultimate blend of learning and play! +++ Today, on Good Life Project, I have two very special guests joining me. Linda and Charlie Bloom have been together for the better part of 50 years and have been working together for over 30. This husband and wife team of therapists have […]The post When Life Partners Become Business Partners: Linda & Charlie Bloom appeared first on Good LifeProject. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Imagine having just about everything you wanted – a great job, making a lot of money, being able to get as much “stuff” as you want – and then, ending up miserable. That’s the plight of today’s guests, Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, also known as The Minimalists.What started as an awakening to a different way of life, built around value, rather than accumulation, has now grow into a blog with millions of readers at TheMinimalists.com, a popular Minimalism, book a top-rated podcast and now a fantastic new documentary called Minimalism.This week’s conversation goes deep into Ryan and Joshua’s journey, both personally and as friends, into the exploration of what Minimalism really is and is not and how it can change not only your life, but life as we know it.In This Episode, You'll Learn:Why minimalism is not actually about giving everything up.Ryan and Joshua’s 5th-grade “fat kid bond” that launched their 20+ year-long friendship.How Ryan came up with the "$50,000 Equation" t

This time on The Good Life Project, I am joined by Jadah Sellner and Jeffrey Davis for a roundtable style discussion of a few of the burning issues and questions that have been on our minds...and maybe yours, too. This discussion was incredibly fun and full of so much information, I couldn't wait to share it with all of you.Jadah is the cofounder of Simple Green Smoothies and JadahSellner.com. She has developed her groundbreaking life strategy, Love Over Metrics, with the help of her dream-tribe that supports her vision for the future of the world. Jadah’s passion is to help everyone to start and grow their own tribe in order to inspire action that will change the world.Jeffrey Davis is a poet, author, teacher, brand-strategist, founder of Tracking Wonder and author of Coat Thief and The Journey from the Center to the Page: Yoga Philosophies and Practices As Muse for Authentic Writing. His work has been published in Psychology Today, The Creativity Post and many more publications around the world.We dive into

This week, our in-depth conversation features David Nihill. Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, David, like so man of us, had a deep fear of public speaking. But, he found himself having to face this head on, when he reluctantly agreed to host a benefit comedy show he had suggested for a friend, Arash Bayatmakou, who had suffered a severe spinal cord injury (Comedy for a Spinal Cause). He quickly realized the best speakers were also often the funniest. Not because of the one-liners they threw into the audience, but because they knew how to tell a story in a way that made people laugh.In at attempt to learn the craft and also face his crippling fear of public speaking, he spent a year traveling the country pretending to be an accomplished comedian and talking his way onto as many comedy show stages and festivals as possible. Along the way, he not only overcame his fear of speaking, he began to deconstruct the best story-driven comedy and figured out a methodology he could not only bring to the stage himse

Have you ever wondered what your life would be like if you had chosen another path? Would you have been more successful in your craft? A better writer, artist, musician? Would you have made a bigger impact in the world?My guest today, Jesse Browner, has by all rights been extremely successful. He has a great marriage and family, living in the middle of Manhattan. He is a successful author whose books have been published by some of the biggest houses in New York City and he has a lucrative full-time job.However, as Jesse approached his 50s, he started wondering, "What if?"Jesse spent his 20s in what was known as the heartbeat of Bohemia in New York City (if you have ever seen the movie or the musical Rent, then you know exactly the place I am describing). As he looked back at this time, he realized that although no one he knew was extremely successful or rich, they were all living and breathing their craft.From this reflection came the question, "Is there an untapped wealth of talent just buried within me?"Jes

"Love and Justice are not two. Without inner change, there can be no outer change. Without collective change, no change matters." – Reverend angel Kyodo williams+++Today's guest on the podcast is author, maverick spiritual teacher, master trainer and founder of Center for Transformative Change, Reverend angel Kyodo williams. She has been bridging the worlds of personal transformation and justice since the publication of her critically-acclaimed book, Being Black: Zen and the Art of Living with Fearlessness and Grace, which was hailed as “an act of love” by Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker and “a classic” by Buddhist teacher Jack Kornfield. Her new book, Radical Dharma, explores racial injustice as a barrier to collective awakening.Ordained as a Zen priest, Rev. angel is a Sensei, the second black woman recognized as a teacher in her lineage. She is a social visionary that applies wisdom teachin

This week, my special guest is Karan Bajaj. Karan is a #1 bestselling Indian novelist with a full-time corporate job and a rather unique approach to life, fulfillment, and personal happiness. His novels have sold more than 200,000 copies worldwide and both are being turned into major films.One thing that really jumped out at me about Karan and got me excited about having him on the show is his ability to write captivating novels with an underlying lesson while working a full-time job AND taking an entire year off every four years.Join us on this episode to hear about Karan’s childhood, growing up in the foothills of the Himalayan mountains in northern India, how his Indian upbringing and culture have influenced his decisions along the way, and the incredible story of his journey from small mountain town boy to bestselling author.In This Episode, You'll Learn:How the official divorce rate for arranged marriages is 1%, and why Karan says this can be misleading.What it’s like to be a child in India trying t

This week on The Good Life Project, we welcome Sharon Salzberg, a renowned meditation and lovingkindness teacher and founder of Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts. She travels the world teaching people how to become aware and cultivate lovingkindness in their lives.Sharon also recently partnered with Dan Harris to bring her latest venture to life, 10% Happier, an exciting new app that builds on Dan’s book, 10% Happier.Today, Sharon and I dive into her inspiring path to peace and love and her journey to help others achieve the same. A journey that involved a pilgrimage to India, where she's meet not only her teacher, but a small group of students who, along with her, would eventually rise up to become some of the world's greatest teachers.In This Episode, You'll Learn:How Sharon's difficult childhood set in motion a deeper quest.Why Sharon went to India, what she hoped to find, and the surprises that awaited.How Sharon ended up in the town of Buddha's birth with a small group of

This week, my special guest is Dr. Shefali Tsabary. If her name sounds familiar, you may have seen one of her appearances as the resident parenting expert on Oprah.Dr. Shefali is the author of multiple books, including her latest, The Awakened Family. She is a clinical psychologist with an incredibly unique East-meets-West approach to helping adults become who they need to be through a relationship with children.I knew that I needed to have Dr. Shefali on the show to share her incredible insight on the anxiety that many families experience. This anxiety can be present not only between parents and children but also between adults.As we talk today, Dr. Shefali shares her own personal journey, from growing up in Mumbai in a strongly patriarchal society to finally striking out on her own and heading to San Diego and then New York. Her growth is an inspirational story of what you can achieve with supportive parents, a dream and the drive to succeed.Listen in to learn to determine how to help people

What if you had to live your life in the spotlight. With thousands of people watching not just your every move, but the things you said, the way you looked, the state of your body and life?And, what if earning your living depended on it?That's the place today's guest, Petra Kolber, found herself in. A renowned teacher, speaker, athlete and spokesperson in the fitness industry for decades, she lived nearly every waking minute in the public's eye.It was an extraordinary experience, but it also came with a cost. An obsession with perfection, setting the bar at a level that was persistently emotionally and physically unattainable. And, that led to an inner life that was a very different place than her outer life. Her awakening to this led to a heroine's journey that's left her in a very different place, one of renewal, positivity and a willingness to forgive her own humanity.Moving into a new season in her life, Petra remains "exposed," but now she's speaking directly to the issue, and to the near-maniacal and de

What if success was less about mastery and more about sight?Simple truth: Most of us don’t see what is right in front of us.Instead, we see mental models and imprints of what things “should” look like or what we’ve been told to see. And, we miss what's actually happening, along with all the critical details.As entrepreneurs or professionals, it’s extremely difficult to become extraordinary at anything, to serve on the deepest level or build businesses, careers and lives that are tapped into their potential until we first understand how to see what’s in front of us.Today’s guest, Amy Herman, can help. A former lawyer with a dual education in art, she saw how a pervasive inability to both see truth and details and then share them in a clear way was limiting the work of so many people. So, she developed The Art of Perception, a program to teach (non-artist) professionals strengthen their perception skills using classic works of art in a museum setting.The impact has been astonishing. She now works with everyone

How do you go from being a wine newbie to a sommelier at Thomas Keller’s famed French Laundry?That was the journey that our today’s guest, André Mack, took. And that was just the beginning. From there, André became the head sommelier at Per Se, Thomas Keller’s restaurant in New York, before becoming a winemaker and creating his own, provocative wine brand, Mouton Noir.In this episode of the Good Life Project, André shares his incredible journey and his love affair with learning, entrepreneurship, wine and design, as well as the deep insights he’s gained along the way. We talk about his consuming obsession with becoming extraordinary and how it moved him to become an award-winning sommelier, winemaker, designer & author. You won’t want to miss this inspiring episode!In This Episode You’ll Learn:André’s experience growing up as a prototypical military kid and how it opened up his world.Why André and his wife decided to homeschool their kids.The reason why he left the finance world for the service indus

Today's guest is Eileen Flannigan, the Founder and Managing Director of Girls on Fire Leaders, a non-profit that provides young girls in developing nations with personal and community leadership skills through immersive travel, experiential self-learning, authentic self-expression, and global connectivity.Eileen was a successful digital marketing strategist for large tech startups in Silicon Valley. But after two decades in this field, she began listening to the voice inside her that called her to make a bigger contribution to the world.When she turned forty, Eileen went to India and gave herself two guidelines: she would go alone, and she would follow her heart completely. For nearly two months, she hung out with street kids and young girls in brothels. Her time there set her life on a transformational course that blossomed into Girls on Fire Leaders, which now empowers adolescent girls all around the world.Don’t miss this inspiring and insightful look into the life and mind of an entrepreneur who left her f

Today's guest is obsessed with wonder. In fact, it's his vocation.Jeffery Davis is the founder of Tracking Wonder, where he explores how to reconnect with wonder and also help people tell their their stories through books, businesses and beyond.As a kid, he became concerned about paying attention to life and ensuring that he'd never lose his imagination. That led him to become a poet, a teacher, an author and then...everything fell apart.He realized he'd been living entirely "from the neck up," largely disembodied and disconnected from his heart. That awakening launched a years-long quest to rediscover a deeper, more soulful driver. It brought him back to wonder as a driving force in his life and eventually as his career.He has taught his signature approaches to creativity, writing, and branding at numerous universities, conferences, and centers around the world. An author, speaker, and online columnist for Psychology Today, he is in dogged pursuit of what helps creatives thrive amidst constant challenge