Guru Please

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How to Build a Fulfilling Career with Alessandra Wall

Guru Please

09/04/20 • 58 min

Feeling stuck, overwhelmed, stressed, unfulfilled, and wanting more in your career? It’s time to speak up and step up to your true value. Get the tools you need to get clear on your why and learn about how Alessandra faced similar challenges in her journey.

Alessandra is a speaker, psychologist, & coach. She helps women gain confidence, overcome stress, and achieve success in life, and she helps companies build better teams, better solutions, and a better bottom line.

Quotes to remember:

“Instead of what do I want, we make decisions based on what other people are going after.”

“None of us can control the circumstances that we live in, but we sure as heck can control what we do with those circumstances.”

“There are some things where you just have to be willing to be kind of mediocre because they don’t matter.”

Takeaways:

There is a myth that at 20 years old you will know what you’ll be doing at 40
Quarter- and mid-life crises occur because we made career decisions in our 20s and then made decisions reactively from there
What other people want (job advancement, career path) isn’t automatically right for us
The hardest part about change isn’t the awareness or goal-setting; it is the courage to take a risk and do it without guarantees
We often do not take the time to be still and introspect
Many of us get stuck when we cannot realize our ideal vision
Look at your why rather than your what when you feel stuck
Perfectionism is a coping mechanism to manage a fear of rejection or abandonment
Take baby steps to assert yourself and speak up

What you’ll learn:

How Alessandra fell out of love with a job that she loved to the point of coming to work singing
The steps she took to find what actually fulfilled her
Questions to ask yourself if you feel stuck, confused, lost, or wanting more
How Alessandra learned how to meditate (hint: not with a teacher)
What her mission is--her why
Three strategies to face your perfectionism
Why women struggle with speaking up

Mentioned on the podcast:

Link:

Find a Job You Love with Kyle Elliott

Guru Please

07/20/20 • 44 min

Feeling stuck or like you're lost in an overcrowded job market? Not sure if your career is the right one for you? Or maybe you want to make a big move in your career or life. Career coach Kyle Elliott can help you with all this and more.

Kyle is a career coach whose mission is to help people find jobs they love. He specializes in helping high tech executives and professionals in Silicon Valley, and he believes that every single human is truly fabulous.

Quotes to remember:

“See what comes up when you take a pause and sit with yourself.”

“That’s the key; you have to be willing to ask.”

“People are afraid of success just as much if not more as they are of failure.”

Takeaways:

There are common themes and patterns in what you do that can help you make career decisions
Why do you work? What comes up when you do nothing?
Write down what you’ve learned from COVID so that you can preserve those benefits
The root of career issues and salary negotiation tend to be around confidence
Take the risks and reach out to people by stepping out of your comfort zone
You don’t have to go through this alone
When you are authentically you, you will push away the people dissimilar to you and attract people in your tribe

What you’ll learn:

What makes Kyle fabulous
How to stand out in a crowded job market (hint: you have something that no one else has)
Tips for switching careers
Tips for how to have more fun if you’re a workaholic
Questions to ask yourself when you’re dissatisfied or wanting more with your job
The mistakes to avoid when you’re looking for a new job
How to deal with your impostor syndrome
What drives Kyle to help people find jobs they love
How he made the leap from writing resumes as a side hustle to career coaching full-time

Links:

A Mentalist’s Thoughts on Motivation and the Mind with Jonathan Pritchard

Guru Please

06/22/20 • 51 min

Jonathan is a mentalist, speaker, consultant, and author of [think] Like A Mind Reader. His personal philosophy is that the better we understand psychology and why people do what they do, the more effective we can be at making the world a better place.

Quotes to remember:

“The life you’re living right now is the consequence of the years you’ve spent making decisions.”

“Most people aren’t aware of how they’re doubting themselves and... of the narratives they’re using to disempower their ability to achieve and create.”

“Your mind is the only thing that causes things in the universe.”

Takeaways:

You are living out what your beliefs are at all times, whatever they may be
You can determine what people’s value structure is based on what they create in their life
Communication is context
It’s amazing that magic even exists and all people can experience an illusion that is not reality
Motivation is an effect, not a cause

What you’ll learn:

What mentalism is, and the relationship between the magician and the audience
About the subconscious mental processes that guide us to certain beliefs
The difference between meaning and reality
How Jonathan learned magic, and the connection between magic and communication
How he coaches high performers under high pressure situations
Why motivation doesn’t make for a good strategy to achieve an outcome

Mentioned on the podcast:

Links:

Redesigning Your Space to Feel Better with Elisa Garcia

Guru Please

03/12/21 • 31 min

It’s surprising how much influence our physical environments have on our physical and mental health and our habits. Learn about how you can tweak what you have in your home to optimize your wellbeing.

Elisa is an interior designer and founder of Zen Spaces, a California-based interior design-build firm. She synergizes psychology, neuroscience, aging, health, fitness, and mindfulness into the design of spaces that people thrive in.

Quotes to remember:

“I want to help people feel more alive. And for me, that means having more freedom.”

“I don’t think people realize how much their environment affects them.”

Takeaways:

Research is me-search
We spend >90% of our time indoors
Hints of nature in a space, from color to sounds, will affect our physiology and reduce stress hormones
Living indoors is fairly new and unnatural for humankind
Design your spaces according to the function of the space and how you want to feel during those activities
It’s important to have your own space/retreat/sanctuary where you can be with yourself
Aim for 1 plant per 100 square feet of space

What you’ll learn:

How to optimize your living space for wellness, better sleep, and physical health
About Elisa’s custom sprinter RVs to bring your lifestyle back to nature
Getting work-life balance while working from home
How to create a meditation room in your home, using the space you have
The most common mistake when designing a home space
Quick tweaks you can do in your living spaces to improve your wellness
How the layout of our home or office affects our habits

Mentioned on the podcast:

Links:

Youtube

The Cycle of Fear, Adversity, and Paralysis with Gerry Valentine

Guru Please

04/09/21 • 55 min

Learn the skills to empower yourself in the face of difficulty and adversity. Shift your paradigms around fear and become adaptable in a world that is always changing.

Gerry is an executive coach, public speaker, and the author of The Thriving Mindset–Tools for Empowerment in a Disruptive World. He inspires people to build resilience, and to understand that adversity can become a source of opportunity.

Quotes to remember:

“No matter how tough things got... it did not compare to what I had come from.”

“Adversity causes some people to break, and other people to break records.”

“There is nothing wrong with being afraid. It’s what you do when you’re afraid that matters.”

“You have to leap. You will fall. You will struggle. And if you have the power of persistence you will evolve.”

Takeaways:

Disruption and opportunity come together
Adversity is a natural part of life, and the normal response to adversity is fear
The problem with fear is getting stuck in paralysis, which creates further adversity
A leader without fear doesn’t exist
Clarity comes from knowing what is most important to you and how you seek to add value to the world
It is possible to become a victim of your own success
Ask yourself: What might I not know?
The world will constantly change in ways we cannot predict
The claim that you are an expert and have nothing more to learn is actually a fear response
We can’t go backwards and put the genie back in the bottle in terms of technology
There will inevitably be struggle after you take a courageous leap out of your box

What you’ll learn:

The bio behind Gerry’s bio of the tough situation in which he grew up
The skill of the thriving mindset and how to cultivate it
How Kodak went bankrupt despite their having invented the digital camera
How to rethink what education is, because one set of skills will no longer carry us forty years into the future
What intellectual capital is, why you should cultivate more of it, and how
An example of Gerry responding to his fear around releasing his book

Mentioned on the podcast:

Links:

Let’s be friends on Instagram!

Justice and Self-Worth with Pip Rae

Guru Please

04/30/21 • 41 min

How does a former police officer define justice? Why is there a gender difference in rates of suicide? How do you have compassion for perpetrators of crimes, and how does your own self-care tie into all of it? Get a social justice writer’s take on self-care, worth, and justice in this episode.

Pip is a social justice writer, podcast producer, radio presenter, and personal brand strategist with a background in criminal investigations and advocacy. She began writing 15 years ago as she journaled her way through PTSD and anxiety. In 2017 she created the radio show, The Hour to Empower, and the accompanying podcast, Elements of Empowerment.

Quotes to remember:

“Women’s empowerment is all about saying yes and knowing when to say no.”

“Justice is often an apology.”

“We shouldn’t have to justify or excuse ourselves in order to get what we want.”

Takeaways:

Justice looks different for everybody
Trauma that isn’t dealt with manifests into frustration and anger
Most perpetrators have been victims
The conversations we have with ourselves are where empowerment begins
Men who consider suicide often would rather kill themselves than hurt their family members
Suicide comes from intergenerational trauma and patterns of behavior
Justice is not a system or in a courtroom ruled by a middle-aged white man
The only people who benefit from the legal system are the people who work in it
The legal system repeatedly subjects you to your trauma
Boys need to learn how depersonalize rejection so that they don’t turn to violence
You teach others how you want to be treated

What you’ll learn:

Social justice and trauma from a former police officer’s perspective
How men’s mental health plays into women’s safety
On the gender gap in suicide (men complete suicide more frequently than women), and what we can do about it
How self-care ties into justice and mental health, and how to build self-worth
On parenting children and developing confident young people
What self-care looks like for someone working in justice

Mentioned on the podcast:

Fear in Relationships

Guru Please

05/18/21 • 20 min

Relationships can bring out the best in us... and all of our fears as well. This episode is for anyone with anxieties and fears around relationships.

Quotes to remember:

“A relationship is not the answer to your problems in any way. It’s a mirror to show you more of who you are.”

“Within fear is an opportunity to discover just how powerful you are.”

“It is not the absence of fear that defines a successful relationship; it’s the ability to move through that fear, to look at it and face it and move past it.”

Takeaways:

We will all feel fear in a relationship, and it’s not a sign that the relationship isn’t right
Everyone has fears and a relationship will bring them to the surface
Fear has a million faces and shows itself in myriad ways
Fear is our mind’s response to being vulnerable
It’s important to recognize fear and air it out rather than avoid it
Love is the antithesis of fear; it is being open to anything that could happen
There will never be a time when we have defeated all of our fears and no longer feel fear
In a loving relationship, each individual is a willing participant in looking at themselves and who they are
Why be in a relationship if it’s resonating with the energy of worry and doubt the entire time, a fear of it ending?
Rejection is not painful--self-rejection is
There is no such thing as a perfect relationship without fears
Being in relationship is one of the toughest things to do, period

What you’ll learn:

Why we feel afraid in relationships
A characterization of fear
How to acknowledge fear and move through it in a relationship
Tactics to jolt yourself out of the fear
The purpose of relationship

Mentioned on the podcast:

Self-Love episode

THIS WEEK’S CHALLENGE: Identify a lesson in a past or present relationship, and what it taught you about yourself. Feel gratitude for this lesson.

Send me a message about the show!

The Music and Art of Life with Dmitry Badiarov

Guru Please

02/26/21 • 50 min

A heartwarming journey through the life of an artist. Learn about the musicality hidden in daily life and the places where mathematics and art come together. Here are the extraordinary tales of an instrument designer who has followed his calling against all odds.

Dmitry is a professional designer of concert-grade violins, as well as a musician, mentor, and entrepreneur. Dmitry started playing violin at the age of 8, becoming a member of La Petite Bande, a Belgian ensemble famous for playing baroque music, and selling out concerts as a solo performer. As a child in Soviet Russia, he couldn’t afford to buy an instrument which could properly showcase his talent. Frustrated by the sounds produced by the basic violin he had, he decided to rebuild his instrument to improve his own performance at the age of 11. He had a successful career as a master violin-maker.

But in January 2013, Dmitry had a massive stroke, which almost killed him and left him paralysed down his left side. Doctors told him he would have to relearn how to walk and then broke the devastating news that he was unlikely to ever play the violin again. Now at 51, Dmitry offers online training for instrument makers, teaching them how to create pieces which stand out from the crowd and tell a story.

Quotes to remember:

“When you walk along the streets of ancient European cities, you will see literally a symphony in tone.”

“When a musician can really fulfill their musical dreams, I would say it’s priceless.”

“It completely makes no sense doing exactly what everyone else is doing... It is time to do things differently in this art.”

Takeaways:

Ancient masters understood sound, space, and instrument-making better than modern people
People will discourage you when you try something different
In Pythagoreanism, people believed that there are musical underpinnings to the world and universal systems
Sounds are different proportions that create harmonics
Older instruments don’t necessarily sound better than new instruments, due to advancements in craft and construction
Have full faith in your true calling and go for it no matter what

What you’ll learn:

How Dmitry got into violin-making at the age of 11
What inspired him to study the art of violin making beyond the level of most instrument makers
Why he quit violin making, and how he returned to it
Why the violin is shaped the way it is
How Dmitry cracked the code of the ancient masters and designs custom instruments
How he recreated the violoncello da spalla, an instrument that is essentially extinct

Mentioned on the podcast:

Links:

Youtube

Being Happier with Rob Carpenter

Guru Please

05/14/21 • 59 min

Learn the secrets of happiness--this elusive thing that we all want. If you’ve been feeling unfulfilled, lost, confused, stuck, or out of control, this conversation is for you.

Dr. Rob is a transformational author and filmmaker who advises athletes, celebrities, business leaders, and everyday people on how to live their best lives. He is the host of The Dr. Rob Show and the author of The 48 Laws of Happiness: Secrets Revealed For Becoming The Happiest You.

Quotes to remember:

“One of the most difficult things for people to do is to both literally and metaphorically look in the mirror.”

“Become the person that you want everybody to believe that you are.”

“Whatever your mind magnifies becomes real.”

“When we learn to slow down our lives to the speed of enjoyment is when we learn how to become content.”

Takeaways:

There are health benefits to forgiving others
Sometimes we have an “aha” moment; other times it is a process
It is useful to look to the people who are 2 or 5 years ahead of you in how you want to be, for more guidance and strategy
Experience is not the best teacher--reflected experience is
When we let go of judgment of our experiences, they become data points
People can live without a lot of things but people cannot live without hope
The chase for achievement to make us happy is neverending
We often don’t fulfill our calling because we don’t give ourselves permission
Whatever you want to find... you find
Accepting yourself unconditionally is not based on your circumstances
The difference between positive and negative people is what they focus on
Morning is your time to feel in control of the day

What you’ll learn:

About Dr. Rob’s near-death experience and how it helped him develop into who he is today
How to use your past experiences, good or bad, to further your own growth
What our identity is based upon
Questions to ask yourself in order to manifest your potential and your greatest self
How Dr. Rob gained his wisdom and how you can too
An example of living with gratitude versus ingratitude
About his meditation practice that grounds him every day
What he has learned from being a filmmaker and director
A simple way to focus on what matters
What Destination Disease is

Mentioned on the podcast:

Links: