Expert business consultant, venture capitalist and my good mate James Brummer-Taylor joins the podcast for the first episode of 2023.

It's that time of year when a lot of us are thinking about making change in our lives.

We often do it at this time of year. And research shows us that usually those changes don't tend to stick around longer than a couple of weeks.

James and I have a conversation about getting strategic about the changes we want to make, so that

1- they stick, and

2 - they positively impact our lives in a meaningful way

BUT we do have a fantastic past episode for you fro back in 2018. It's with the author of "Atomic Habits", James Clear.

James's work has had a big influence on how I shape my behaviour, and with the work I do with my clients.

It's a great refresher coming into the new year and thinking about change.

Change is hard, so once you've figured out the changes you'd like to make, here are some idea to help make them stick.

Our conversation centres on the concept of expansive wellness. How we can adopt health practices that are not only good for ourselves but good for our communities, the environments we live in, and the world at large. And they're not as hard to do as you might think.

We talk through Brad's journey to this point, how he has expanded his view of health and wellbeing and get stuck into some strategies you can use today.

We talk in depth about

• What resilience is - not just the "ability to bounce back"
• The adaptability of the human brain and all our human systems
• Partying at university
• Keg-stand bravery and how to avoid it
• Dealing with insecurity
• Cultivating sustainable meaning
• The stigma of mental health
• A universal precautions approach to mental health
• Moving from a what-if life to a what-is life
• And of course getting uncomfortable

Richard takes perverse joy in doing the things he doesn't like, watching his reactions in real time, and synthesising that information into practical learnings for others.

Today we talk about

- The importance of doing things you don't like

- Why you shouldn't rely on positive emotions

- How to embrace the dark side of challenge

- Goal attainment

- Running through war zones

- Getting saved from falling off cliffs

- Having a shot gun placed in his mouth in the Outback

- Running a marathon a day for 5 months

- Moving from reactive to proactive to adaptive 

Kane is a dude from the 'Naki just trying to inspire others to be better. He is open and real, and has conversations about lots of important stuff that most of us keep hidden. His ability to do this comes firstly from his lived experience of pain and trauma, as well as the self-awareness he has developed and the skillset he has learnt to process and grow from these experiences.

He is a bloody good dude, and we go to some heavy places today. Talking about pain and motivation, the reasons we need problems to solve, taking the power away from negative thoughts, the importance of acceptance, developing emotional literacy, and navigating discomfort.

It's a convo that is a bit rough in places, and a bit raw in others. If it triggers anything then please reach out to Kane or myself or someone you trust.

• FarmFit Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/FarmFitNZ/

• FarmFit Instagram | @farmfit_nz

• FarmFit Online Shop (where you can buy Kane’s book & other merchandise)  | https://farmfitnzshop.com

Our conversation explores the complexities of life, of performance, leadership, identity and personal growth with the lens of sportplaced over the top.

We chat through

- Experimentation and refining processes

- Watching for gaps that you can leverage or develop your skillset

- The power of eliminating options

- The joy of improving when you're a beginner

- The value of having multiple areas of focus

- The challenges of missing Olympic selection

- Creating an internal pivot

- Reciprocally providing value in relationships

- The value of diverse backgrounds and experience in creating innovative solutions

- Understanding when to let go

- Creating a ripple effect of impact 

- and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

This episode is brought to you by www.healthmentors.nz

Improving performance through health and wellbeing

This episode is the audio version of the book plus occasional off script commentary around part of the topic

This episode is proudly brought to you be www.healthmentors.nz

They way we work is evolving and at times it's butting up against a lot of the social constructs we've previously held tight about what work is.

Belinda Morgan, flexible work expert and author of "Solving the part time puzzle" joins the podcast to help us make sense of this change and how it benefits us as individuals, as well as organisations.

Bel brings her expertise to the conversation and I bring some of my experiences working part time, and spending time as full time Dad for 11 months, plus the unconscious biases I had to face in that journey.

This is a conversation about understanding ourselves, and our superpowers and wading through the internal messiness as we do it.

We chat through

- Watching and understanding people

- Watching and understanding ourselves

- The power of people who think differently

- Embracing your quirks and differences

- Questioning "best practice"

- Callum's experience with his ADHD

- Working super hard to be "average" at certain tasks

- Dealing with our internal chaos

- Putting on a face to the rest of the world

- Including diversity in the workplace

- Starting with stupid so we can get to better

- Getting comfortable with looking like a Dick

In this special episode I'm joined by James Brummer-Taylor. International business consultant, Venture Capitalist, entreprenuer, and best man at my wedding.

James has spent over a decade inside a multitude of companies helping them to perform better across all aspects of their business. He has seen the themes that drive high performance, and also the things that don't work so well.

More recently James has left his decade long comfort zone in operational and strategic consulting to take on the new challenges of being a venture capitalist and entrepreneur

Today we talk through

• What makes a high performer
• Helpful mindset shifts
• Becoming a business athlete
• The power of practice and repetition
• James' 5 tips for improving your personal performance
• How James looks after his health to support his performance
• And how we can build our capacity to take on challenges

This episode is proudly brought to you by https://www.healthmentors.nz/ 

Reach out to Chris with questions or topics chris@healthmentors.nz 

Luke and a couple of his mates have set up The Lighthouse Project Charitable Trust which aims to raise money for local legends doing their bit to improve men's mental health here in New Zealand.

Earlier this year, Luke and his mates road tripped 6000km around New Zealand in 12 days stopping at 24 prominent Kiwi lighthouses along the way, and catching up with local legends striving to improve wellbeing in their communities.

In this episode we talk through

• Luke's journey with his mental health
• The ins and outs of 4 dudes in a campervan for 12 days on a tight schedule
• Some of the awesome people working to improve the health of Kiwis
• Opening up the conversation around mental health with your mates
• Role modelling honesty in how we are actually doing
• What the Lighthouse Project is striving for
• Challenges of fatherhood
• Some ways that we like to look after ourselves

Connect with the Lightlhouse Project https://www.facebook.com/The-Lighthouse-Project-104248205242011

This episode is proudly brought to you by https://www.healthmentors.nz/ 

Reach out to Chris with questions or topics chris@healthmentors.nz 

Our conversation was recorded back in early 2020 as Covid was ramping up for an event si organised called "Transcending the Crisis"

Our conversation is all about pressure, it's effect on us, and how we can respond.

We talk through

- How we can become overloaded by pressure without even noticing

- The relationship between pressure and performance

- The importance of self-awareness and some practical tips

- Lots of exercise analogies

- Some practical ideas to reduce pressure

- Choosing the right direction to move in

- Putting knowledge into action

This episode is proudly brought to you by https://www.healthmentors.nz/ 

Reach out to Chris with questions or topics chris@healthmentors.nz 

Chase Hughes is a leading behavior expert in the United States and the #1 bestselling author of two books on tactical behavior skills. He is the author of the worldwide #1 bestselling book on advanced persuasion, influence and behavior profiling.
​
Chase teaches elite groups, government agencies and police in behavior science skills including behavior profiling, nonverbal analysis, deception detection, interrogation, and advanced behavioral investigation.

This episode was orginally recorded in 2020, and hasn't seen the light of day until now.

We talk through

- Leading our own behaviour

- The power of persuasion

- Looking after our future self

- Cognitive disonance and how we can get rid of it

- Why we should work on our weaknesses

Connect with Chase

https://www.chasehughes.com/

This episode was proudly brought to you by Health Mentors

https://www.healthmentors.nz/

Get in touch with Chris

chris@healthmentors.nz 

This conversation was originally recorded in 2020 at the kick off of Covid, so contextually we're having this dicussion with all that was going on at the time, AND the points David discusses with us are as valuable today as they were then.

We talk about

- How we define success for ourselves, and the impact it has on how we live our lives

- Hitting pause to take time to reflect

- Simplifying the complexity of our lives

- Intentionally placing our focus

- Doing an information audit on the information we are exposing ourselves to

"Uncomfortable is OK" is brought to you by Health Mentors - helping change makers dial in their health, and improve their performance in the middle of a chaotic world www.healthmentors.nz

Email Chris - chris@healthmentors.nz 

Apologies for the abrupt finish. Hopefully this episode helps to clear some of that up for those of you who are still listening.

Today Chris will talk through

- What was going on two years ago

- What's been happening since

- Why Uncomfotable is OK is back

- What it's going to look like going forward

Email Chris with questions or discussion topics for the show

chris@healthmentors.nz

Check out the health mentors website

www.healthmentors.nz 

We catch up with what Tommie has been up to in the last few years and his exciting new project "I'm in"

We chat through the challenges he is facing, what scares him the most, why he is doing it, and what is the hope that keeps him going.

This one has been on the cards for a while and very happy to get it finally up and going. JP's broadcasting and podcasting skillset comes through at times when he turns the tables and starts asking me questions

Show notes:

• A formative experience
• Getting out of the discomforts
• A new routine to follow
• Coming across the difficulties
• Last and next Uncomfortable situations
• Strategies to approach uncomfortable situations
• Challenge this week

If you want to up your leadership skill levels to better lead your team through adversity then this is the show for you.

Subscribe on

Apple https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/leading-through-challenge/id1508020586?fbclid=iwar0zhxwo0vbs4iqwn7j6sw92gnrphkeu8jcmkkdwvp1e8sa2uu8sfklsk7w
Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/0raefZiVW0iJz2niG4otsq
Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-797YMIQ-Gg9_Q0ftc3QA?view_as=subscriber

We have a great chat today about what strategic discomfort gives Ollie. How he chooses uncomfortable activities. How he shifts perspective. The duality of life, and much more.

Show notes:

• A formative experience
• The moment of realization that, there is something wrong
• An interesting way of looking at perceptions
• How to stop judging people and arguing
• Identifying things that are positive for him but uncomfortable
• Strategy to approach uncomfortable situations
• Challenge this week

He leads Spark's thriving workplace mental health community and is working to inspire other Kiwi organizations to take a fresh look at how they do mental health at work.

We chat through mental health, how your workplace plays its part, Grant's path towards passionate advocacy, the duality of discomfort and challenge, and of course getting uncomfortable.

We recorded this prior to lockdown, but the messages are ones that we all need to hear at the moment.

She’s also a sort after public speaker with a clear message is - if busy is the new stupid, then mindful is the new smart!
Kerene wants to get the message out: that mindfulness isn’t just limited to meditating but includes a set of robust well-researched practices, which when implemented, powerfully impact people’s lives and positively change workplace culture.

Her new book ‘Crazy Busy’ targets people suffering from the relentless pace of modern life - people who struggle to switch off and are looking for effective strategies to help to reconnect with what really matters - their lives, their work and the people close to them.

We chat mindfulness, wearing a busy badge of honor, the different paths we walk down. slowing down, focusing, and of course, dealing with discomfort.

Show notes:

• Nursing experiences (9.30)
• The motivation (11.30)
• The tipping point and mindfulness (14.50)
• The start of meditating and benefits (20.00)
• Writing her book (31.40)
• How to stay with good things (39.00)
• Strategy to approach uncomfortable situations (44.00)

This conversation covers challenges, self-awareness, and identity, human potential, mindfulness, training to ask for help, and of course, getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Make sure to support Jase in the next phase of his project

https://www.pledgeme.co.nz/projects/6479-m3-mindfulness-for-children-ltd-early-childhood-videos

Show notes:

• The concept
• The differences between kids
• The mindset and the challenges
• Lessons he has learned
• Challange this week

We chat about starting something hard, being mindful, following your curiosity, keeping going when things get tough, and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

She returns to the Uncomfortable is OK podcast to talk about mental toughness, and to tell us about the toughest challenge she has faced so far.

Links:
lisatamati.com

These two dudes push the boundaries regularly and consistently get uncomfortable. Today we explore the idea of what it looks like when we decide to take the uncomfortable path and what we didn't realise we were missing out on until we did.

Show notes:

• Values to her heart (3.36)
• Self-awareness to herself (10.20)
• When did the curiosity strike (14.28)
• Areas to approach first (21.00)
• Identifying the important habits (31.10)
• Challenge this week (46.00)

Coming soon Gareth is going to be flipping a Tyre by himself for 60 hours. He is doing this to raise awareness of the 60 men who lose their lives to suicide every hour globally.

It's a frank conversation about the challenge, going to dark places, human potential, mental wellbeing, and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Make sure to follow along with Gareth

BUT failure is inevitable. It happens to everyone at some point even if we're actively avoiding trying things because we're scared to fail.

This conversation turns the tables. It's a recording from the Augmented learning podcast where Carl Condliffe interviews me on how we can get better at failing.

Show notes:

• The idea (4.00)
• The purpose of doing it (7.00)
• What really drove them to the way (12.15)
• The influences of social media (21.05)
• Things they learned through the process (23.10)
• Worldwide Health awareness (28.00)
• Big challenges they are facing (31.00)
• Challenge this week (36.00)

Our conversation covers many bases and Joe tells us heaps of stories but the main theme is around identity. Firstly understanding your own identity, and secondly having the courage to allow your identity to shine through.

Link
www.motivatejoe.com

Show notes:

• A big experience (3.00)
• Being interested in GUYS and the feeling (4.20)
• The start of shifting to the way he is now (11.50)
• The relationship with FAITH and how it has changed things (20.00)
• Strategy to approach UNCOMFORTABLE situations (27.50)

Specifically, we discuss
+ Getting Started
+ Navigating change
+ Defining purpose and values
+ Choosing to live by purpose and values even when it is uncomfortable
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Hit me up if you are interested in defining a challenge for yourself in 2020 chris@chrisdesmond.nz


Show notes:

• Why he didn’t succeed the first time (9.10)
• Challenges he has faced in the last 30 years running a business (13.05)
• How did he evolve (18.30)
• The process of Identifying people (26.00)
• Strategies to approach UNCOMFORTABLE situations (33.15)
• Challenge this week (37.10)

We chat through a raft of topics including; failure, learning, starting a business, purpose, prioritization, working hard, and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links
Twitter https://twitter.com/NZPEteacher
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AugmentedLearningNZ/

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Today our conversation centers around understanding privilege, our own, others, and why we need to be aware of it in our lives. We talk about awareness of privilege in leadership and how to remain in integrity.

Obviously we also talk about the challenge and getting UNCOMFORTABLE

chris@chrisdesmond.nz

Today we talk through defining ourselves, how others define us, and how we go about redefining ourselves. We dive into playing the long game, why it is important and some practical aspects of how to navigate the discomfort of doing it. And of course, we talk about getting UNCOMFORTABLE.

https://www.roguescholar.com.au/

Use the hashtag #dailydiscomfort and tag me in your post
LinkedIn  || Instagram || Facebook || Twitter 

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com
chris@chrisdesmond.nz

We talk about the seed of an idea, turning it into a business, and taking it all the way through to selling. Obviously there is a heap of challenges rolled up in that.

We also manage to chat about, mindset, health, balance, confidence and getting uncomfortable.

Show notes:

• Business things at University
• Non-negotiable exercise and other things 
• The launch of her online business 
• The hardest process and how she tackled them
• Uncomfortable things 

Once you understand and accept this you usually do better at getting through it.

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Leave a review at
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/uncomfortable-is-ok-podcast/id1113456079

Conceptualizing the important things in my life as buckets that I'm pouring my resources into is a process that I'm finding helpful. Here is how I'm thinking about it at the moment.

chris@chrisdesmond.nz

Today we chat through.
+ Michael's solo paddle across the Cook Strait
+ Mental Health and Wellbeing
+ Ego
+ The transition from boyhood to manhood
+ The Hero's journey
+ Empathetic problem solving
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Show Notes:

• The point of the direction he is moving now (3.10)
• His working areas (11.13)
• The mindset shifting (14.50)
• Tackling with the depressions (20.20)
• Last and next UNCOMFORTABLE things (33.50)
• Challenge for listeners (37.00)

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Link
https://www.roguescholar.com.au

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Links:
http://uncomfortableisok.libsyn.com/uiok-117-atomic-habits

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

• The formative experience of moving in (3.00)
• Where the concept came from (12.30)
• The hard part (21.20)
• Hardest things at the moment (31.40)
• How to train your mind (35.00)
• Strategy to approach Uncomfortable situations (49.50)

Links:
https://www.gillianbrookes.co.nz/

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

One of the most popular guests to have appeared on the show. Soulaima is the proud co- founder of Womenreignite

She shows people around the world that even a school drop-out, a homeless child, and an unwanted immigrant can get to the “top”.

She has had many struggles, and as a result, has written and co-written more than 14 books on all the mistakes, failures and obstacles she has had throughout her life. She was born in Morocco, grew up in Denmark. Her pain transformed into her path in 2007 when she was fired while pregnant.

Today is a conversation about
+ self-awareness
+ values
+ having difficult conversations
+ the arsehole syndrome
+ getting passed all those excuses
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Twitter:
Learn how to live with No More Excuses with @SoulaimaGourani

Links
Website https://soulaima.com/
Women Reignite https://womenreignite.com/home
ebook http://womenreignite.com/takecontrol

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

We go deep today on;
+ mindset
+ understanding who you are
+ operating based on your values
+ stripping back the layers for success
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Show notes:

• When did people come into the picture (9.30)
• Constant comparison with other people (13.30)
• Strategy to stepping into the steps of life (20.20)
• Shifting her mindset (24.30)
• Not being able to play for her country (31.00)
• Challenge this week (38.44)

She is a reformed corporate lawyer and is obsessed with the power of sport as a catalyst for change and the way the stories we tell ourselves, and in particular, the Imposter Complex, causes us to diminish our abilities and downplay our achievements.

Today is a deep dive into a mindset in sport and in life and Jen really gets us to confront the uncomfortable.

http://www.spartachicks.com/

Show notes:

• Experience from an early age (2.10)
• The other version of Jen (9.00)
• Maybe I don’t want to be a lawyer anymore (18.48)
• What’s she doing at the moment (23.22)
• Thoughts about the discrepancy between male & female (25.50)
• Fear in different stager (30.28)
• About her podcast (38.41)
• Last and next Uncomfortable things (41.25)
• Challenge this week (48.00)

https://thegoodregistry.com/

Book a complimentary coaching call with Chris, email uncomfortableisok@gmail.com

To book a complimentary call with Chris email uncomfortableisok@gmail.com

To book a call with me email uncomfortableisok@gmail.com

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Grant Verhoeven helps us unravel it. He loves seeing people take the next step in their career. He equips people to understand and unlock their unique strengths to ensure that the next step is the right one.

Links
https://www.sparked.co.nz/

Show notes:

• The vision (6.00)
• Switching from marketing (10.00)
• The why (13.00)
• Why people seek him (20.00)
• Challenge this week (32.20)

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

He is the host of the Shek Check podcast which normalizes how we think, feel and behave. Erez has raw conversations about their lived experiences and expertise with mental health and wellness. It's all so we can check ourselves before we wreck ourselves. YO!

Erez opens up to me about his lived experience with Mental Wellbeing and some of the tumultuous experiences he has had on the road to where he is today.

Links:
website || Twitter || Instagram || Facebook || Youtube 

Show notes:

• Formative experience from a young age (3.50)
• Seeing himself as a person at an early age (9.40)
• The point of changing the trajectory (18.00)
• The process of starting (24.16)
• Developing empathy and acceptance for himself (31.00)
• Last and Next Uncomfortable things (43.44)
• Challenge this week (49.50)

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Mike is a MAN coach who is all about supporting everyday men who are wanting more in life to get their shit together and build a dope life.

Today we talk about
+ Modern masculinity
+ Self-awareness
+ Limiting beliefs
+ Questioning yourself
+ Building a better life
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links
http://mikecampbell.com.au/

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

This chat kicks off from where we left things a month ago (so make sure you go back and listen to that one too).

Brady is a former Marine sniper with deployments in Afghanistan and Iraq. He is a current professional bull rider.

Today we talk
+ Coming out of a hole
+ Building community
+ Trusting the process
+ Navigating the discomfort of the process
+ and of course, getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:
Instagram  || Twitter 

Sam is the co-owner of Tall Poppy Real Estate, a Kiwi owned Real Estate company. I thought that we were going to end up talking about the discomfort about sales and business, and we did to some degree.

BUT then the conversation took a turn into self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and mindset, and it got really interesting. This stuff that Sam was talking about not only makes you better in business but also better at life.

Links:
Facebook || LinkedIn || Instagram 

Show notes:
- Big formative experiences (4.00)
- What made him so excited (9.00)
- Being a personal coach (14.32)
- Favorite moment (22.30)
- Last and next UNCOMFORTABLE things (36.00)
- Strategy to approach uncomfortable situations (40.10)

If you're interested in the book I'm writing "Get out of my comfort zone" then head over to www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Today we talk;
+ Pain and suffering
+ Courage
+ Commitment
+ Preparation
+ Patience
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links
https://www.facebook.com/Kiwi.Decamanusa/

Show notes:

- Her adventure racing experiences (7.30)
- The idea of Ironman (12.40)
- How she kept going in through 700+ laps(26.00)
- 5 magic words to focus on (37.00)
- About her run (45.00)
- It was her goal (55.30)

Sign up to keep up to date with the "Get out of my comfort zone" book
www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

To work with Chris email uncomfortableisok@gmail.com

There is a lot to unpack from this conversation and I wouldn't be able to do it justice to try and describe it here. Suffice to say that at times it is heavy, at the time it's confronting, at times it's spiritual, at times it is philosophical, and at times it is humorous.

Brady is a young man who has faced a lot of adversity. Listen with an open mind, and if you need help or just to talk then reach out to us, we're here.

Links:
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/t0tanka/
Twitter https://twitter.com/t0tanka

Register your interest for the "Get out of my Comfort Zone" book
www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

He is black belt and professor of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, he has seen a massive improvement in the emotional and physical health of his students after incorporating mindfulness and meditation into his lessons.

Having had great success working with local prisoners, Vanderson has been assisting them in developing simple techniques to trigger awareness and to better manage upsetting feelings.

As an instructor, Vanderson believes that a healthy tree needs strong roots. We should consider our minds to be the root of our wellbeing.

Today we talk through
+ Shifting Countries
+ The importance of communication
+ Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
+ Mindfulness
+ Incorporating chaos into organisation
+ Incorporating organisation into chaos
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Vanderson website || Combat room BJJ website 

Show notes:

• Why did he decide to move to Sao polo (6.00)
• Why New-Zealand (16.00)
• How did he get through the troubles (24.00)
• What is Brazilian Jiu jitsu (29.00)
• When and how he started training mindfulness (42.00)
• Peoples response to mindfulness and challenges (1.04.40)
• “Learn to control your emotions” (1.10.46)
• Challenge for listeners this week (1.20.40)

Before, he was an ordinary person doing less than ordinary things. He woke up one day after a big night with his mates and it was like a switch had been flicked in his head. He wanted to do extraordinary things in my life. So he did.

Show notes:

• High School wasn’t a good time for him (6.30)
• Changing his life in New-Zealand (12.20)
• Developing self-confidence and believe (15.00)
• Why and how he chooses the things he does (29.00)
• Last and Next Uncomfortable things and why (33.00)
• Challenge this week (39.00)

Website

Instagram

Facebook

www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Links
https://beyondsocialconditioning.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/colin-dingelstad/

Show notes:

• Mindsets at his young age (5.00)
• What took him into the coaching arena (7.30)
• List of things he wants to achieve and why (15.00)
• Reason of changing sleep patterns (25.00)
• Last and next Uncomfortable things for him (28.00)
• Possibilities for the way of thinking (31.00)
• Strategy to approach to Uncomfortable situations (33.50)
• Challenge this week (37.30)

Interested in the "Get Out of My Comfort Zone" Book?
Keep up to date with it's progress at www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Today we're chatting about his new book "Change Makers: Make your mark with more impact and less drama"

Digby is a Thought Leader in this area so if you're in any way involved in or thinking about change so you can have more impact then this is the episode for you.

Links:
Book  || 5 Questions 

Show notes:

• Why a book now? (3.07)
• Who and what is a change maker (8.00)
• Easy way to begin journal practice (20.00)
• The power of travel (25.00)
• The discomfort around change (30.00)
• Finding peoples (39.00)
• Thoughts about IMPACTS (49.00)
• Challenge this week (58.00)

This starts with understanding our own emotional landscape.

In essence, it's a conversation about self-awareness, with some brutally honest parts and some hilarious parts. It's pretty Kiwi in its language so if you need a translation then hit us up.

Website http://www.geniusyou.co.nz/

Sign up to get notified about the "Get out of my Comfort Zone" Book
www.getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Her latest epic adventure was Trekking/Nordic skiing across Greenland for 29 days pulling a sled heavier than her. We chat through the adventure, but also talk about;
+ The importance of seeking out adventure
+ Resilience
+ Mindset
+ Teamwork
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:
Documentary || Inspiring Explorers || Hollie Woodhouse

Today we talk through her adventure, covering off topics about
+ mental health
+ swimming as a metaphor for life
+ looking after yourself
+ dealing with disappointment
+ self-awareness
+ getting through the hard stuff
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Show notes:

• Challenges she had growing up her mental health (5.00)
• Questions she asked herself (7.40)
• Her big challenge preparations and motivations (13.10)
• Her team supports (27.10)
• Changes that she feels now (30.00)
• Last and next Uncomfortable situation for her (32.00)
• Strategies to approach Uncomfortable situations (36.30)
• Challenge this week (39.50)

His passion is encouraging and inspiring everyone to take control & increase their mental health (or mental fitness as we talk about today).
We talk through
+ Happiness
+ Mental fitness
+ Love
+ Ego
+ Changing who you are
+ and getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:
www.jimihunt.com

Show notes:

• About lasting happiness(8.00)
• Getting deep into happiness (12.00)
• Dealing with things we don’t want to do (20.14)
• Continuum of Happiness (26.30)
• Mental training (37.30)
• Meaning of love (40.10)
• Last and Next Uncomfortable things (52.20)
• Challenge this week (57.10)

Show notes:

• The upcoming workshop (5.50)
• Coming up with UNCOMFORTABLE is OK (14.00)
• Difference between Good pain & Bad pain (26.00)
• Being creative and finding the change (38.00)
• Something for the Audiences (53.15)

Website: https://www.manuncivilized.com/

Grab our FREE "How to build your resilience muscles" workbook at www.uncomfortableisok.com

Download the 4 steps to building resilience muscles
www.uncomfortableisok.com

Book an intro coaching call with Chris
https://calendly.com/uncomfortableisok/introcall

Chase Hughes is a leading behavior expert in the United States and the #1 bestselling author of two books on tactical behavior skills. He is the author of the worldwide #1 bestselling book on advanced persuasion, influence and behavior profiling, The Ellipsis Manual.

Chase teaches elite groups, government agencies, and police in behavior science skills including behavior profiling, nonverbal analysis, deception detection, interrogation, and advanced behavioral investigation. His Tactical Behavior Science course is a critical, life-saving course designed for law enforcement, and his Human Tradecraft course is specifically designed for intelligence operations personnel who depend heavily on serious human behavior skills.

He developed the groundbreaking, world-first interrogation behavior analysis tool and the T.F.C.A. cycle that revolutionized law enforcement training in the U.S. He is also the creator of the Pre-Violence Indicators Index, designed to alert personnel to pre-attack behaviors and save lives.

Show notes:

• Developing psychological tactics (4.00)
• 5 different areas of self-development (9.44)
• Tracking progress (20.09)
• Social coherence (21.21)
• Military life vs. Civil life (29.00)
• Workshops and courses he runs (32.24)
• Uncomfortable things he is going to do (37.10)
• Strategies to approach Uncomfortable situations (38.00)
• Challenge this week (40.50)

 Links:

Linkedin || Facebook || Blog

Ryan is the host of the Stag Roar podcast, an optometrist, and is all about helping people to try and live a better life.

Today we chat about
+ The role of the nervous system in discomfort
+ How he looks after himself
+ Concussion
+ Journaling
+ Moving a young family to another country
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Show notes:

• Visions on urbanization (6.00)
• The big experience (9.03)
• Let’s get back to school (17.15)
• Concussion experiences (24.30)
• The mindfulness training (37.50)
• About his podcast (47.08)
• Last UNCOMFORTABLE thing he did (54.36)
• Next UNCOMFORTABLE thing he is going to do (55.20)
• Strategies to approach UNCOMFORTABLE situations (56.26)
• Challenge this week (58.38)
  
  
  

Links:

Instagram || Instagram || Twitter || Snapchat @stagryan

Facebook || Blog 

The best way to become more resilient is to strategically get out of your comfort zone on a regular basis. Over the next few weeks, I'll help you to build your resilience

The conversation asks us to dig a little deeper than we usually would in order to understand what is going on behind the scenes (of ourselves). BUT rather than just asking us to do it Yisroel provides us with practical ways for us to do it and for us to support others to do it.

website: www.ympicker.com

Show notes:

• Lessons from being bullied (3.00)
• Figuring out what’s bothering us (5.10)
• Leaving NY and moving to Israel (15.24)
• Social learning theory (18.40)
• The concept of Punnett square (27.30)
• Breaking through emotions and thinking more rationally (33.25)
• Validating concerns (38.00)
• Last UNCOMFORTABLE thing he did (40.25)
• Challenge to work on in 2019 (41.10)

I tell myself this when I find myself struggling to start something I know is going to be good for me. Find out why.

Join me in Wellington on the 26th of January to get out of your comfort zone

www.surmountcourse.com

But despite outward appearances Estie is also a shockingly risk averse person, so the story around how she got started with Strand Consulting is an interesting one, not the least because the powers that be told her that she couldn’t do it.

Today our conversation covers

• Family
• Business
• Risk
• Crushed dreams - and then what to do about them
• Adversity
• What is marketing and why we need to do it
• And of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE
  

 Show notes:

• Her non-profit side projects (10.25)
• How her dreams got shredded (12.44)
• Her most favorite quote (16.25)
• Mindsets between side projects and full-time gig (22.00)
• Things that helped her to keep the faith on her sunshine (24.20)
• Importance of marketing (30.00)
• A really important framework (34.10)
• Last UNCOMFORTABLE thing she did (38.35)
• Next UNCOMFORTABLE thing for her (40.50)
• Strategy she uses to approach UNCOMFORTABLE situations (42.10)
• Challenge to leave with us this week (45.20)
  
  

Links:

Website || Facebook || Stand consulting Instagram || Estie Rand Instagram || LinkedIn || Business Breakthrough podcast

Surmount workshop

Show notes:

• A little bit about himself and board sailing (3.10)
• His big fears at that time (6.30)
• Experiences from his first Olympic and the simple plan (12.20)
• How did he feel after the Olympics were over (21.00)
• Some sad stories in the Olympics (23.40)
• The interesting thing with failure (25.50)
• The very dangerous question (33.55)
• The optimal spot for Ego (36.45)
• Challenge for the listener this week (40.14)

Link:
Surmount Course 

Today we talk through
+ growing up on the outside
+ letting go of trying too hard
+ working in the army
+ Deep Purple and running
+ privilege and the responsibility that comes along with it
+ sharing conversations
+ writing books
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Show notes:

• He was sick as a kid (3.40)
• Physical and sports activities (8.00)
• About his Army life (11.30)
• How his experiences helped him to move forward (18.14)
• How he got into running as an adult (23.08)
• Thought about not doing it anymore (29.00)
• How did he get into podcasting (31.08)
• Last Uncomfortable thing he did (36.06)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for him (37.05)
• Strategies to approach uncomfortable situations (39.10)
• Challenge for listeners this week (42.20)

Today’s conversation is really about perspective, the way we look at our lives, our actions and the self-imposed rules that we live by.

Andy Instagram

It wasn’t an easy road to where she is today. There was a lot of trial and error along the way, but in the end, she can say that I am living my perfect day. She get to spend time with my family, She gets “ME” time, exercises 5-6 days a week, mentor others, and grows her business. Her time is flexible, and she is in charge of how her day is run.

Today we talk through

+ Growing up in Russia

+ Moving to New Zealand

+ Identifying opportunity

+ Taking opportunity

+ Creating community

+ Living the perfect day

+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:
Anastasia Two Brain || Anastasia WOF Crossfit || WOF Instagram || WOF Facebook 

Show Notes:

• New Zealand life without knowing English (5.20)
• Her business model and the uncomfortable feeling (10.50)
• The view of Opportunities to her (12.40)
• Businesses she owned previously and own now (15.30)
• Values she is trying to cultivate with the people (18.00)
• The concept of a perfect day (24.00)
• Last Uncomfortable thing for her(31.50)
• Next Uncomfortable thing she is going to do (32.50)
• Her strategies to approach Uncomfortable situations (34.10)
• Challenge for listeners this week (36.45)

Today we chat through wide range of topics, some of it pretty heavy. If you need to talk at all after this episode then reach out to either Sunniva or myself.

• Growing up in a large family
• Freedom
• Creating businesses
• Self development
• Money mindset
• Healing after trauma
• And of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE
  
  

Show notes:
- What she went through at the age of 15 (4.32)
- A proud owner of own house at only 19 (7.40)
- A practice she got into and things she achieved (8.30)
- Intuition vs. Mind (9.50)
- Not following her intuition and regretting it later (14.20)
- When she decided to start her own business (18.30)
- Something she never spoke to anyone before (22.00)
- She had trust issues for a while (25.20)
- Her new business (27.50)
- Shifting the Money mindset (29.20)
- Last Uncomfortable thing she did (34.00)
- Next Uncomfortable thing for her and why (35.45)
- Strategy to approach Uncomfortable situations (37.20)
- Challenge for listeners this week (39.00)

Links

Website || Facebook || Instagram || Pinterest || Twitter || Youtube 

Here are some thoughts on it.

Apologies for the background noise I recorded it on my phone.

Sign up for the Uncomfortable Community to be notified when it goes live

Today we talk through some pretty heavy stuff along the lines of finding his way in life, losing loved ones, finding purpose, self-compassion, teaching kids mindfulness, and getting uncomfortable.

Links:

Instagram || Facebook || Mindfulness for Children

M3 Facebook || M3 Instagram

Power Living NZ/ Awhi Yoga Facebook || Power Living NZ/ Awhi Yoga Instagram


Show Notes:

• All about himself (9.40)
• What driven him (13.00)
• Answers to his questions (16.20)
• What was his thinking that time (19.00)
• Challenges he faced through the process (28.30)
• Importance of the event (35.40)
• Last & Next Uncomfortable things for him (45.40)
• Strategy to approach Uncomfortable situations (47.00)
• The sweetest challenge for listeners this week (49.40)

He dabbles in comedy, martial arts tricking, super hippy spiritual vegan stuff and cryptocurrency. Hopefully, we can take you on a good journey because that’s what life is all about eh.

Today we talk through;

• Acting
• Worst roles
• Self Doubt
• Understanding yourself better by documenting your life
• Breaking out of societies boxes
• Opening up
• Getting it #offmychest
• And of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Show Notes:

• China is really crazy (3.50)
• How did he get into acting (8.40)
• The worst role he has ever done (12.20)
• Is it the character or just him? (14.20)
• What he found about himself (17.10)
• The apple metaphor (27.10)
• The direction struggles he is facing in recent days (35.40)
• Last Uncomfortable thing he did (41.10)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for him (42.40)
• Strategy to approach uncomfortable situations (44.10)
• Challenge for listeners this week (48.00)

Links:

Facebook - Instagram - Youtube 

patreon.com/mainmantiantan

Chris brings a "big picture" perspective unmatched by anyone else in the industry. After thousands of hours spent one-on-one with business owners, hundreds of blog posts and more interviews than he can recall, Chris shares his best lessons learned from the trenches and peaks of mentoring hundreds of business owners worldwide.

Today we talk through:

• Making Mistakes
• Getting into business
• Growing businesses
• Writing books
• Not taking it personally
• And of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:

https://twobrain.com/

https://twobrainbusiness.com/

Show Notes:

• What lead him to physical training (7.15)
• How the training changed himself (8.50)
• What was the path from there (10.50)
• The best-selling fitness book of all-time (14.20)
• What makes a good Mentor (19.30)
• Search out for good mentor (21.10)
• Leaning into discomfort (23.50)
• Last Uncomfortable thing he did (30.54)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for him (31.45)
• The best strategy of him to approach the Uncomfortable situation (32.30)
• Challenge for listeners this week (35.12)

Designed through a collaboration of health professionals and technologists the Limber Studio is a beautiful, fast-moving, sustainably made and flexible sit-stand-kneel workstation that creates a space efficient office geared for collaboration

Our conversation traverses movement, health, self-awareness, and business.

Show Notes:

• The concept of his work (3.30)
• All about the disk (8.10)
• Most rich movement environment (11.10)
• Mortality prediction (13.40)
• It’s not a quick process (18.30)
• Responses from people (20.00)
• Seeding expectations (23.30)
• He is a meditate fan (28.30)
• Last Uncomfortable thing he did (31.50)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for him (32.40)
• Strategies he uses (33.30)
• Challenge for listeners this week (36.10)

James is fascinated with habits and human potential. The central question he is trying to answer through his work is, “How can we live better?”

In order to answer that question, he uncovers the latest scientific research and explains it in a way that you can easily understand and actually use. As he shares these science-based ideas for living a better life, he likes to showcase the habits and rituals of athletes, artists, and entrepreneurs. By analyzing the stories of top performers from many different fields and understanding proven scientific principles, we can start to tease out the common characteristics that make these people the best at what they do.

His specific focus is on self-improvement tips based on proven scientific research.

• What is a habit?
• How long does it take to build a habit?
• What is the science behind creating a habit.
• How habits help us get out of our comfort zone
• Some habits that he needs to work on.
• And of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:

Atomic habits book || Website || Facebook || Instagram || Twitter 

Show notes:

• The role his Family played for him (5.50)
• Job/Carrier challenges after school or college (9.20)
• Optimizing environment to create positive habits (12.50)
• Breaking a bad habit (17.30)
• The process of Designing new habits for success (25.00)
• The power of developing good habits in the long run (27.00)
• About his book published recently (33.00)
• Last Uncomfortable thing he did (36.00)
• Next Uncomfortable thing he is going to do (37.10)
• The strategy he followed to approach Uncomfortable situations (41.00)
• Challenge for this week (44.10)

He has been in the health and fitness industry for 15 years. Carl has been actively involved in corporate health, has run health retreats, is a quoted health professional in Good Health magazine, has presented health and fitness seminars around New Zealand and internationally. He is a co-founder of Wellington’s fully integrated gym HealthFit Collective.

Today we discuss

• Developing self-identity
• Bodybuilding fails
• Learning
• Health
• Epigenetics
• Business
• Podcasting
• And of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:
BestMe || BestMe_Facebook || BestMe_Twitter|| BestMe_Instagram

HealthFit_Collective || HealthFit_Facebook || Healthfit_Instagram || HealthFit_Twitter

Show Notes:

• Challenges gave by his lecturer that time(8.10)
• He played Cricket so well! (12.10)
• When he realized the time for a change (14.40)
• His bodybuilding story (16.10)
• Why he get into Public Speaking (21.10)
• Attitude to discomfort (23.10)
• His purpose or vision (25.40)
• Recalling the Uncomfortable situations he faced for his kids (31.10)
• How to structure the reflection of time (36.00)
• About Epigenetics, his recent activities in here (43.10)
• The focus of his Program (51.10)
• Increase to the awareness of decision making (53.10)
• Last Uncomfortable thing for him (54.40)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for him (56.10)
• Strategies to approach Uncomfortable situations (57.50)
• Challenge for listeners this week (59.50)

Erin is an exciting young woman who regularly takes on new opportunities along with the discomfort and uncertainty that go along with them. She shares her perspectives on these in our chat.

Some of the topics we cover are;

• Being a parent in business
• Getting uncomfortable geographically
• Where I can improve my style
• How less can be more
• Evaluating opportunity
• And of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:

Website || Facebook || Instagram || Pinterest

Show-notes:

• About herself and her first move (6.00)
• Her motivations for each step (10.20)
• How her experiences reshaped her into the person now she is (14.50)
• Questions she asks herself (22.30)
• Challenges she faced getting this going (24.10)
• Strategies to create the balance (33.30)
• Last Uncomfortable thing she did (38.00)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for her (39.30)
• Strategies to face Uncomfortable situations (40.30)
• Challenge for listeners this week (43.40)

Her vision with 'Jen Y Insights' is to support a generation of millennials and people in periods of transition to flourish, thrive and become more mindful as individuals and in their workplaces.

In today’s conversation we chat through;

• Death, and its impact on how we live our lives
• Mindfulness
• Her Eat, Pray, Love story
• Youth Leadership
• Overcoming challenges
• Creating positive change
• Finding your own way

Links:

Jen Young  || Facebook  || Instagram || Twitter || LinkedIn

Show Notes:

• All about Jen (7.10)
• About her brother (12.40)
• Reframing things at the moment (17.30)
• Experiments that she didn’t like (22.40)
• Leadership development that fascinated her (24.15)
• What is a positive change (26.30)
• Her activities after returning to New Zealand (35.20)
• Facing her fears (39.00)
• Last Uncomfortable thing she did (44.00)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for her (44.50)
• How she approaches Uncomfortable situations (46.00)
• Challenge for listeners this week (49.00)

www.surmountcourse.com

Through a series of events (most of them unfortunate), Mel started to claim her life back and change her direction.

Today she has transformed her body, but more importantly her life and her mind. She is healthy, happy (most of the time), owns a fitness studio and is a personal trainer, and acts as a mentor to young girls teaching them to love what their bodies can do, rather than what they look like.

Mel and I chat through this transformation here, some of the practical aspects of her change, what she hopes to achieve, and what she still struggles with.

Links:

Barbell Mel || Instagram || Health Hub Studio ||Instagram

Show notes:

• Positive impacts of her Parents being separated (4.30)
• Strategy to help her out at the moment (7.30)
• Where that strategy took her (9.40)
• Her turning around point (12.20)
• Her first step to change what she was doing (16.00)
• Things that she had to do (19.20)
• When she started to like doing work (22.40)
• The story of Health Hub (27.10)
• How she feels of her work (30.00)
• Last Uncomfortable thing she did (37.00)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for her (40.00)
• How she approaches to Uncomfortable situations (41.00)
• Challenge for listeners this week (45.50)

Check out the Wellington-based workshop at www.surmountcourse.com to learn how to break out of your comfort zone and become able to take on any challenge

At that point in time Doug had somewhat of an awakening, he realised he had a bigger purpose in life. That we all do. And he was set on finding his. So he left advertising and became a yoga teacher. And rather than seeking external validation like before, he sought to understand himself, his fellow human beings and how to create a life of purpose and meaning.

Today we chat through his story, including finding purpose, coaches and mentors, and community.

Links:

YandX || Dougit || Facebook || Instagram

Show notes:

• Selling Hamburgers and being happy (4.40)
• What excites him right now (9.20)
• How to choose the right one to pursue in life (11.50)
• People don’t have a meaningful existence (14.20)
• Being around with people who aren’t aware of themselves and socially (16.50)
• How he reflects on things (19.50)
• Asking the right question at the right moment (22.50)
• How he finds someone helpful him (25.20)
• Last UNCOMFORTABLE thing he did (37.00)
• Next UNCOMFORTABLE thing he is going to do (38.20)
• Strategies to approach Uncomfortable situations (39.22)
• Challenge for the listener this week (45.30)

Joel breaks down a scarcity mindset when it comes to our sense of self and how we approach challenges and opportunities. We talk about why it occurs and how to shift from s scarcity sense of self to an abundant sense of self.

Make sure to join Joel for his Life By Design workshop.

Links:

Joel || Facebook || Instagram || Youtube

Show Notes:          

• What is Scarcity Mindset (2.55)
• Why develop this mindset (3.35)
• Where does it lead us (4.25)
• Switching from one mindset to another (6.35)
• Being Success with it (7.45)
• Cultivating an Abundant mindset (12.25)
• Challenge for this week (13.25)

When a car accident left Australian native Ky Furneaux with limited mobility at age 19, she took what could have been a debilitating setback and turned it into a true Hollywood story. Ky’s doctor told her she would never be able to play sports or do the majority of the outdoor activities she enjoyed. But Ky was determined to prove him wrong.

After regaining her strength and her athletic ability, she took a job as an outdoor team leader with an adventure company. Her work with climbing, rappelling, high ropes, sailing, kayaking, canoeing, and hiking led her to consider a career in stunt work.

Extensive fight training in Vancouver, Canada helped her land some notable jobs, including X-Men 3, Hancock, Elektra, Agents of Shield and The Avengers. For her work in Thor as Jaimie Alexander’s stunt double, Ky was awarded the Taurus Stunt Award (the Oscars of the stunt industry) in 2012 for Best Female Stunt Performer in the world.During her extensive career Ky has doubled major stars such as Jennifer Garner, Anne Hathaway, and Sharon Stone.

Ky then returned to her survival roots producing and co-hosting Hike for Survival, an epic 100-mile trek spanning the Sierra Nevadas. Ky and her co-host carried only a pocket knife as they crossed the mountains. Other projects featuring Ky include The World Out There and MTV’s Made, in which Ky coached a teenager who wanted to learn outdoor survival skills. Ky has also been featured on the Discovery Channel’s hit show “Naked and Afraid,” which has been called “the Everest of survival shows.”

In March 2014, Ky’s first book debuted. Published by Penguin Australia, “Girl’s Own Survival Guide” is a fun read for women to help them be proactive in any situation, from a broken stiletto to foraging for food in the wilderness. The U.S. titled “The Superwoman’s Survival Guide,” was released in April 2014.

Links: 

Website || Facebook || Instagram || Youtube || Twitter


Show Notes:

• Her story in Australia (3.25)
• How she broke her back (3.30)
• What Doctors said (7.10)
• How she utilized her pain (13.30)
• How did she start her carrier (15.54)
• Worked 16 years in the stunt industry (19.14)
• She won the biggest award in the Stunt industry (25.30)
• Advise she gave to herself (29.00)
• Survivals or stunt? (35.10)
• How did she keep herself mentally tough (38.00)
• Survival stuff she is doing at the moment (40.30)
• Thoughts about a strong female role model (42.00)
• Last Uncomfortable thing she did (45.40)
• Next Uncomfortable thing for her (48.00)
• Strategies for approaching Uncomfortable situations (49.25)
• Challenge for listeners this week (52.00)

Coming in the first weekend of October is the first Surmount workshop in Wellington - Learn to get unstuck, step out of your comfort zone and take on a big challenge without stressing yourself out.

The key to leading a meaningful life is to continually rise to the uncomfortable challenges - learn how to do it here. Message Chris to show your interest

They share New Zealand tech, social media, startup people's stories.

There are many tech podcasts out there but most come with an American or English accent and both Mike and Raj know that New Zealand has tech stars Kiwi voices that can inspire, educate, entertain and intrigue and we have set out to record and share them all.

They have a casual chat over the guest's favorite beverage or via some technical wizardry such as Skype or a Google Hangout and talk about how they do what they do. They aren't investigative journalists, they don't focus on products or businesses (although it's hard not to talk about them if they are the passions in someone's life) and they certainly don't expect to hit the front page ... in fact, they only have one prepared question.

They know that everyone has gold in their story with each and every show bringing moments of jaw-dropping amazement before we end by asking how the guests they can be contacted which are usually via Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, or even in person - they want our listeners to reach out and carry on their own conversation

Links:

Facebook || Twitter || Instagram|| Website || Youtube ||

Show notes:

• Was it interesting to go to new places or a challenge? (5.10)
• Everybody is different (6.04)
• Raj went to film school. (10.15)
• How did they come up with their podcast (13.15)
• What they talk about (15.30)
• New Zealand is a country of startups (16.00)
• Very few tech people thing they noticed (19.00)
• How are they wrestling with the ideas (22.20)
• Last UNCOMFORTABLE thing they did (28.20)
• Next UNCOMFORTABLE thing they going to do (29.50)
• Challenge for this week (35.00)

He consistently delivers high-quality content. Whether that is helping Kiwi guys be better Dad’s through “Rad Dads” or through his latest podcast “Please Blow My Mind”.

Will and I discuss;

+ The need to have deep conversations

+ Connection and Community

+ Asking questions of ourselves

+ What we would say to aliens if they came to Earth

+ and of course GETTING UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:

https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/please-blow-my-mind-podcast-studio

iTunes || Facebook  || Youtube

Show Notes :

• The biggest thing in history (9.14)
• When people ask what his goals are (10.16)
• What is DIFFERENT (12.13)
• Why another Podcast (14.30)
• New Zealand is a Funny place (19.20)
• Understanding why we believe and what we do (27.00)
• The truest version of ourselves (28.00)
• We live in an extremely comfortable period of history (31.00)
• Stop going online and getting grumpy with people (34.57)
• How many are cool school kids still cool? (37.00)
• We are lucky to live in New Zealand (40.00)
• Why we are here and what our role is? (43.20)
• Chicken Nugget, world’s most popular food (50.30)
• Food was something that was a luxury (51.00)
• Last UNCOMFORTABLE thing he did (52.12)
• Challenge for next week (58.40)

We also talk through how we know that an idea has been successful, and if we should keep pursuing it.

Nick is the founder of Go Well Consulting and believes that New Zealand should be leading the world in sustainable living and sustainable business practices. He is one of the co-founders of the “Bags Not” movement aimed at eradicating single-use plastic bags from New Zealand.

Today we talk through;

+ Why Plastic is a problem

+ Why we need to do something about it

+ How to start to use less plastic

+How to change behavior

+ If Nick thinks we can do it

+ and of course, getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:

Go Well

Bags Not

Facebook

Instagam

Show Notes:

• We have the opportunity to make the biggest change in Human History (8.50)
• We are destroying our planet (9.20)
• We are making our planet warmer and warmer (10.20)
• Why people should use reusable bag rather than Plastic (11.40)
• A Simple Solution (12.50)
• The simple point that everybody should Remember (14.56)
• Learn about recycling (16.20)
• The economics around recycling (17.35)
• What is BPA (16.44)
• What would he have said to his Children (20.50)
• One of the real challenge for people (21.10)
• Plastic link to weight retention (23.50)
• How to do things in a different way (27.30)
• Using 1.6 billion plastic bags in New Zealand (28.32)
• System changes that can happen (30.20)
• What he believes (34.20)
• How to change the habit (36.46)
• He stopped using plastic 7-8 years ago (38.30)
• Last Uncomfortable thing he did (40.28)
• Next Uncomfortable thing he is going to do (43.20)
• His Upcoming Podcast Title (45.43)
• Strategies to approach in Uncomfortable situations ( 46.10)

Today we chat through

+ Relationships

+ Self-awareness

+ Using experiences and emotions for self-analysis

+ Losing loved ones

+Responsibility

+ Opening up and sharing

+ Failure

+And of course, GETTING UNCOMFORTABLE

Links:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/Beaniie24

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/dallas_tehuna/

Show notes

• He was born in Wellington (4.18)
• Studied in a very strict Catholic school in Sydney (6.52)
• A lot of pressure on him at early age (7.44)
• He was bullied for being the new Australian kid (8.36)
• He felt like series of FAILS one after the other for 2-3 years (10.50)
• Why he felt that? (11.06)
• Youth Work as his first career pursuit (12.54)
• What triggered him (14.25)
• What is self-awareness to him (20.30)
• Self-awareness or Negative self-talk (23.12)
• A good self-awareness experience (24.40)
• You can’t always focus on what you did wrong (27.55)
• Why most relationships end? (28.52)
• Observation he made and applied for himself (31.56)
• Stepping into the hardest UNCOMFORTABLE position (33.32)
• He felt the father role with 10x harder scenario (34.40)
• How did he get through that situation (35.48)
• He took drugs and shut himself off from everyone (36.50)
• The feeling of losing people 24x7 (38.04)
• How did he comeback (39.15)
• Most of 2016 (40.55)
• Books he followed at the dark stages he went through (45.30)
• Gratitude shifted everything for him (50.40)
• The last UNCOMFORTABLE thing he did (53.30)
• Next UNCOMFORTABLE thing for him and why? (55.20)
• Strategies to approach UNCOMFORTABLE situations (56.23)
• Challenge for listeners this week from him (58.57)

Chris is proud to have been asked to be an ambassador for an awesome Wellington business, Float Well. Check them out at http://www.floatwell.co.nz/ and use the promo code "CHRIS" for 15% off a casual float.

Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GtownJess

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jedouglas73/

Website: https://www.jessicadouglas.com/

Show notes:
 

• She won 1000 kilometers race (3.22)
• Thoughts about failure (8.48)
• Did she start to doubt whether she should keep going or stop (11.04)
• What She asked to her heart and mind (14.50)
• In 2016 she retired on 24hours Solo Mountain Bike Racing (16.10)
• She always avoided sports as a child (17.50)
• 1987, the year she was diagnosed with Cancer (18.50)
• How she fought against Cancer (19.40)
• The strategies she learned from her Husband (22.00)
• She became a Personal Trainer (23.52)
• At the age of 32, she started the process of mountain biking (24.30)
• 1% improvement a week (26.15)
• What she learned from the race she lost recently (41.10)
• How to get good at suffering (42.43)
• Last Uncomfortable thing she did (45.05)
• What she learned from her decisions (46.20)
• Next Uncomfortable thing to do (47.40)
• Her approach to Uncomfortable situations (50.50)
• Challenge for listeners (55.30)

Over the past couple of year, Sam has been of no fixed abode as he travels around New Zealand in his trusty Van, Haz the Hiace. He is adventuring and discovering everyday Kiwi’s view of being a man, as well as finding out what I do for the well-being of themselves, their families, and communities.

Links:

https://toughtalk.nz/

https://www.facebook.com/Mindfulness-in-NZ-391816014524384/

http://instagram.com/toughtalknz

Show notes:

• Traveling Wellington in a Van for over a year (1.30)
• Lack of identity around Auckland (2.50)
• Unable to be himself (3.20)
• Getting more used to being UNCOMFORTABLE (3.50)
• Exploring his creativity in IT back in 90’s (5.24)
• Creative writing assignment in High school (6.00)
• He needed more support but it wasn’t there (6.27)
• Social Ideas stops boys exploring their creativity (8.30)
• It would be better if could be just the way we are (9.6)
• He did papers in Psychology (10.10)
• Panic Attack in Law exam (10.27)
• Why Clinical Psychology (11.26)
• A terrible experience (13.00)
• Why he wanted to teach people (16.30)
• Overcoming anxiety and fears (18.10)
• It gets hard when you stuck in the comfort zone (21.15)
• Tough talk about the idea (22.05)
• One of the most toughest thing he did (23.24)
• Different emotions are experienced in different parts in your body (29.04)
• Women solving problems (30.22)
• Big things he learned about himself (32.50)
• Being on the road could be really challenging (36.22)
• Last Uncomfortable thing he did (38.46)
• Next Uncomfortable thing he will be doing (40.17)
• Strategies to approach in Uncomfortable situations (41.44)
• Challenge for listeners this week (44.41)

Traver admits that he had it all, the wife, the job (owned a gym), the dog, the life, until all of a sudden it went away. He admits it was not an easy experience to go through, but it was a crucible, it was the most transformative period of his life. He could have continued on the conventional path, or he could follow the path of outlandish adventure. Traver decided on the latter and set about preparing his “year to live” project. You can hear all about that in the podcast episode.

I’ve put so much time and energy into following mainstream society that if I pull out now I might have to admit that all that time and energy might have been a waste

Traver came to this crossroads at this point in his life and made the uncomfortable decision to go against the norm. At times we get convinced to not explore something that we are curious about because it’s outside what we think society expects of us. This doesn’t have to be something completely outside the norm, like starting a podcast or going on a yearlong adventure. It can also be making a career change or other significant change in our day to day life. We perceive that if we change direction now, then all the time and energy we have put into a pursuit or career will have been wasted. This isn’t the case, that time and energy you have put in has got you to the point you are at today, it’s got you to the point where you are ready to make a change. It’s taught you valuable lessons, and likely valuable skills. It’s hard to challenge the story of what we think society expects from us — but is it harder to continue on with something that no longer fulfills us?

Sit and be present and be so thankful for the time you do have

Volunteering in a hospice showed Traver the impermanence of life, how death is a natural part of life, but one we push to the peripheries because it’s uncomfortable to think and talk about. I’m guilty of often worrying about the future, or ruminating on the past in a way that I occasionally miss opportunities in the present. We also live in a time where there have never been more distractions for our attention, we’re losing the skills of sitting and being present. This hit home to Traver when he just needed to sit with another human being the day before this man passed away. This simple act of sitting and being there for someone else with no distractions was incredibly powerful.

No matter what happens to you, at the end of the day if you wake up the next day, you’ll be one day stronger

Everyday life continues to happen. Some of it we plan, some of it we don’t. Some of it we think is good, some of it not so good. Regardless of our perception of what happens we’ve seen more, we’ve done more, and we can take the opportunity to learn more. The lessons that we take from what happens today, can make us stronger in dealing with the challenges that we face tomorrow.

There is an archetypal pattern around discomfort, that pattern exists if you do it now, or if you do it two years from now. But the difference is if you do it right now then you get to let it go

This may have been my favourite quote from the episode. Performing challenging tasks is inherently uncomfortable. It could be asking a difficult question, apologising to someone that you need to say sorry to, or having that awkward conversation. The act of doing these things is inherently uncomfortable, but so is the planning and anticipation of them. That feeling of discomfort is hard to overcome, sometimes it’s easier to try and push it off to one side. We’re never able to push it fully away, to bury it deep enough that it won’t resurface. We keep having flashes of discomfort if we fail to address what needs to be addressed. It’s hard making that call or having that conversation, but once we do it feels like a weight has been lifted from us, we can let go of what we’ve been holding onto and move forward rather than continuing to experience the ongoing discomfort.

Listen to the full episode here.

It's a chat about why it's vital to get outside our comfort zones so we can build the strength to go after the magic, and to also build the strength to deal with the tough stuff.

The new course "Surmount" is coming soon which will take you from defining your comfort zone and identifying a challenge through to completing it at the end. And best of all it'll teach you how to navigate the uncomfortable on the journey. Get in touch with me if you want to get on board when it comes out uncomfortableisok@gmail.com

Your regular interview based programming will resume soon

Just wanted to let you know that the interview based "Uncomfortable is OK" podcast is going to go on hold for the next couple of weeks. I've had a bit of stuff that has taken up all my time. The interview based show will be back in a few weeks.

If you want to help out in the mean time you could send me a bit of audio.

Answer me the questions "what was the last uncomfortable thing you did, and how did you get through it?" and then answer "what is the next uncomfortable thing you are going to do, and why is that uncomfortable for you?"

Record your answers to those and send them to me via email to uncomfortableisok@gmail.com

If you do that I'll create one (or many) episodes based on your audio.

Cheers guys and I look forward to having some interesting conversations with you all again soon.

Thankfully one day I managed the courage to reach out to ask if she’d be interested in coming on the show. The reply I received back the next day was awesome “Ha! I’m pretty used to being uncomfortable! I could catch up early next week if you’d like?” We caught up down at Creative HQ in Wellington and sat down to find out a bit more about each other over a cup of peppermint tea before the meeting room we were going to chat in freed up. I don’t know what I’d felt so uncomfortable about as we discussed favourite podcasts, why we liked them and why we didn’t, as well as what we were going to try at “Wellington on a Plate”.

When we got stuck into the podcast conversation we talked a bit about Anna’s background, her accent belies the fact she is from Dunedin. Then we got into the origin story of PledgeMe, it’s an interesting story and you can listen to it here. But as you know it’s the uncomfortable stuff around it that I find interesting. Anna discussed heaps of great ideas, but these ones are popping up for me at the moment with where I am at.

“That felt like the validation point where we could really start telling people about it”

There came a time in the development of PledgeMe that Anna and her co-founder were convinced that this was something that could really work. The idea was validated in their minds and they could really start to push it. It’s a tipping point that I’m sure a lot of us face when we come up with an interesting idea. I know it was when I started up podcasting. I had all sorts of thoughts going through my head; Who is going to want to talk with me on the show? Who is going to want to listen to me? Do I have the technical skills to pull this off? Do I have enough interesting things to talk about to pull this off?

The easiest things to measure were, if I could get people to come and have a conversation with me, and how many people were downloading the episodes. For some reason I set myself the target of getting 10 people to speak with me before putting out any episodes. I figured that if I could convince 10 people that I might be interesting to chat with, then I could probably go on convincing people. Looking back, I’ve put out over 70 episodes to date and have spoken with over 60 guests. I’d also set myself the target of trying to get 50 downloads for each episode, I have no idea why I chose that as my validation number (although I do have a big family, so maybe I thought that if I had that many at least someone that wasn’t related to me was probably listening). The first few episodes hit that number quickly and all of the others have surpassed it, some by quite a significant amount.

Hitting these validation targets is important as it helps with our confidence levels and keeps us engaged and the momentum going on our ideas. The challenging thing is where this validation target lies? Set it too close and it may be an idea that you keep pushing towards that you should let go. Set it too far away and if you don’t hit it early then you might find yourself getting disheartened and drifting away from a great idea. I don’t have any earthshattering advice about this, instead focus on a target that is a decent challenge for you to hit, but still well below where you want to end up

“There is healthy stress which makes you think differently and push harder”

We talk about stress often, and I don’t know about you but for me the word often brings up negative connotations. The concept of stress is often frame in a way that it is bad to experience. This isn’t always the case as having some stress is often a good thing when we are working towards something.

Think about a deadline of something you have been working on, this deadline creates a sense of stress around time for us. Being in this state of stress will often increase my effectiveness and my creativity. It forces me to focus my energy and concentration on the topic at hand, getting the job done. Having this pressure on me often forces me to come up with slightly different ways of doing things to the way that I would normally just plod through a task, sometimes this new way increases my efficiency or output in the future. If I didn’t have this stress on myself then I find my concentration wandering off and getting distracted with a whole lot of sparkly things. As a bit of a test I’ve set myself a time deadline to write this post by to see if I can train my focus by putting myself under some stress. It seems to be working so far. I’m perceiving this stress as a beneficial stress for me. I know it’s not damaging and I can use it for my advantage to get something productive done.

The problem is when I don’t manage my stress levels well. This healthy stress that use to my advantage, called Eustress, can turn into distress. The stress is the same in this instance, I have a deadline coming up. However my response to it differs. I perceive the stress as negative, that it is problematic to me. When I do this I find myself getting flustered, my ability to perform drops away and I get distracted easily. My ability to manage my stress levels depends on a lot of things, what I’ve been eating, how well I’ve slept, what else is going on in my life, if I’ve moved my body recently. But the largest influence on how I manage is my perception of the stress as either positive or negative. If I can ship my perspective so that this stress is a positive thing for me, then I can harness it to improve my performance.

It’s not good to be under stress all the time, even if it is the healthy kind. It’s important to have time when not stressed to relax, but also to reflect and take away learnings about how I handled the situation and what I might do differently next time. Each time I am under stress it’s an opportunity to train myself to get better at dealing with it.

“We should be having robust conversations about everything, diversity of perspective is so important”

BOOM! Not so long ago it was thought everything that was known was all that there was. How things have changed, the earth is no longer flat, the sun does not revolve around the earth, and women are capable of making at least as informed choice about who to vote for as men are.

I used to be very guilty of adhering to just one perspective. In my early to mid-twenties I was stuck in a very fixed mindset and thought that the way I was doing things was the way I was supposed to be doing things. It didn’t serve me well, and I ended up being a pretty boring, unhealthy person, some may even argue a bit of a dickhead! Over the years since then, my perspective has gradually changed. It’s changed through conversations, whether this being through having robust discussions with people, or listening to differing viewpoints.

This is the way the world has changed over time, through having these discussions. The things I mentioned before have all been proven, but when the concept was first floated they hadn’t been and it was only though robust conversation that the world was convinced.

Now I try my best to jump into robust discussion about topics. I may not always change my perspective as a result of having these discussions, but at least I’m at a point now where I recognise the importance of taking the time to listen and engage.

Listen to the full episode here.

PledgeMe

Anna Twitter

Host: Chris Desmond

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Support the show on Patreon

A few of the topics we talk about this week are;
+ Searching for mentors with the traits you want to develop
+ Why you should be hardworking
+ Building relationships
+ Asking 'What should it look like?"
+ Social media, the negative and positive impacts
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Kathy is a massive proponent of pushing outside your comfort zone which she emphasises throughout the podcast;

“It’s about doing something that hasn’t been done, doing something that is going to stretch you beyond your wildest dreams, and somehow getting to the other end of it, and having this amazing potentially life changing experience”

“You have to push outside your comfort zone, you don’t find anything extraordinary inside it.”

“The learning you get from being outside your comfort zone is 200 times what you would get sitting in your comfy chair reading a book”

“Your stretch comes, you grow as a person, and you learn more when you’re pushing outside the zone. There is no swap for that”

You can listen to her episode for this and for her description of what it was like to row the Atlantic, because I want to focus on her ABD to Victory. This is a process that Kathy has developed over time and with her rowing. She uses this with the clients she works with in her leadership coaching, as well as consistently applying it in her personal endeavors.

A is for Acumen

The question is, what do I need to make myself successful in this? This means knowing your subject, for Kathy this time round it meant understanding what was involved in rowing across the ocean. Figuring out what equipment was needed, how to stay safe on the ocean, how to work well and resolve conflict with the rest of the crew while on the boat for 67 days, and how to raise the money to fund the venture, and a myriad of other things.

Acumen isn’t just knowledge of the subject you’re going to be working on. More importantly it’s knowledge about yourself. Do you know your strengths, do you know your weaknesses, do you know how you impact on others, and do you know what is probably possible? All of us have strong points and weak points. We don’t always understand these in ourselves, especially if we’re doing things in areas we aren’t familiar with. We also operate within environments and systems such as work, family, and community. These environments and systems influence us and we in turn influence them. Sometimes these influences restrict us, they shape our beliefs and the stories that we tell ourselves about what we are capable of. These beliefs can limit what we will attempt or how high we will aim, they aren’t based on our potential, they’re based on the stories we are told by others and more importantly by ourselves. Understanding ourselves, as well as our limiting beliefs is vital in allowing us to strategically approach big goals through identifying potential barriers and breaking down the large goal into manageable chunks.

When Kathy decided to row the Atlantic, she didn’t have the knowledge, money, or skills to do it. However the crucial factor was that she believed in her potential to do so. She figured that she could learn what she needed to know about rowing across the ocean through research and conversations with people who had done it. She believed she could get fit enough to complete the task through training and practice of ocean rowing. She thought her team could raise enough money to do it through inspiring others to believe in them. It turns out her beliefs were all correct and Kathy and the rest of the team became the first all-female crew to row the Atlantic.

B is for Bravery

Boldness is required for and great undertaking, acknowledging that it’s going to be uncomfortable at times, and being OK with that.

Often we hold ourselves back through fear. The fear of becoming uncomfortable, whether that is looking stupid, losing pride or status, being different, upsetting others, making mistakes, or many more things. This slows down our learning processes because we are scared to attempt things, and it’s through the attempt and the failures that we figure out what we need to succeed.

Being brave isn’t an absence of these fears, it’s about working your way through them. Obstacles are going to come up in our way, early identification is key, it then gives us time to think our way around them. Sometimes we have to take a big breath and just go for it.

Rowing the Atlantic is a pretty scary task and there were plenty of hairy moments that needed bravery to get through. Preparing for the task required bravery as well. Kathy needed to be brave to stand up to people who didn’t think her crew could do it. She needed to be brave to approach potential sponsors. She needed to be brave to get a crew together. Bravery came in many situations for Kathy right from coming up with the idea.

D is for Discipline

This is about getting up in the morning, putting on your shoes and going out, even if it’s raining. It’s about driving yourself and getting things done. Almost always, the key to success is consistently getting out there and doing the work, slowly getting better and slowly getting further along.

The motivation to keep yourself disciplined can wax and wane through any endeavour depending on a variety of variables. This can be through external circumstances, how well you’re looking after yourself, or sometimes even which way the wind is blowing. It’s easy to stay motivated during these good times, much harder when things aren’t going to plan. One way to keep the discipline up when the going gets tough, which I think is especially useful in the initial stages, is to imagine what it will be like when you reach your goal and the feeling you will have. Make sure you don’t imagine for too long and you actually get out there and get going. Another tactic that works well once you’ve got going is to celebrate your successes along the way. You may not have achieved your final goal but you’ve likely been ticking things off along the way and learning new skills, these are things enjoy.

To learn more about the ABD to Victory and how to apply it, go over and visit Kathy Tracey and Thinking Spaces.

You can listen to the whole episode here.

Get your free download of the 5 Strategies used by experts to get out of your comfort zone at getoutofmycomfortzone.com

Guest: Kathy Tracey

kathytracey.com

Thinking Spaces

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Host: Chris Desmond

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Music: Jeremy Desmond music

As the founder of the PRIMAL PLAY methodology, he makes activity fun, effective and engaging while getting individuals healthier, fitter and stronger in the process. He specialises in working with children from 4 to 94 - fitness for those who hate to exercise - as well as for those who love it but relish a new challenge.

Some of the topics we talk about today are;
+ Why play is a serious proposition
+ Physical Literacy
+ Improving function day to day
+ Why it's always uncomfortable to start
+ How to make it attractive to begin
+ Respecting the individual
+ Stripping things back to simplify them
+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Guest: Darryl Edwards

The Fitness Explorer

Primal Play

Animal Moves Book

Host Chris Desmond

UIOK Facebook

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Music: Jeremy Desmond

Support the show on Patreon

Clive grew up on safari in East Africa as his parents filmed wild animals during the 1950’s. In New Zealand and Australia, he joined a group of young mavericks who would become the pioneers of today’s extreme sports. Clive studied for 6 years under pioneering physicist and disciple of Ernest Rutherford, Professor Bruce Liley graduating with Masters degree in physics and electronic engineering. Clive worked for 30 years as an international expert in hi-tech innovation and energy projects from Silicon Valley to the Middle East. From the first digital climate monitoring system to nation-wide control systems for power generation, many were “world-firsts”, requiring deep mastery of physics and hardware/software. From inside the silicon chip to total systems design.

Living a double life between extreme sports madmen and the entrepreneurial hi-tech world, Clive filmed the journey from experimental beginnings, building his own filming technology on the side to get a closer perspective of action sports, the innovative spirit and the unique beauty of extreme New Zealand, Australia and the world.

Discovering how to play without rules

When Clive moved to New Zealand when he was young he admits he found it difficult to fit into the Kiwi way of life of school and sports. He reverted back to what he knew, which was exploring the wilderness and with his group of mates. It was here that they taught themselves how to play, rather than learning how to play through sport or within the rules of society. Learning how to play and explore in this manner stood Clive in good stead later in life. It forced him to develop his problem solving skills and allowed his thought processes and perspectives to develop in a way that wasn’t constrained by an arbitrary set of rules. This has helped him live an exploratory, adventurous life that is quite different to how the majority of society lives today. “What it gave me psychologically was this belief that you can invent anything. Just because everyone does it that way doesn’t mean that you need to. As long as you know the ground rules principles you can rethink the pathway and go out there on your own.”

Creating a powerful story

Growing up Clive remembers seeing a John Wayne film being shot in Africa. He was very impressed with the equipment that was being used but felt the actual filming and process itself was quite boring. It wasn’t until he moved to New Zealand that he saw the film and was astounded that the process that had appeared so boring to him had been transformed into something so impressive and dangerous on the big screen. He began to understand how the power of story could capture the audience and create a feeling and a reality that was an amplified version of what was going on.

Creating a different path for his life

“I’m going to come from this angle and carve out this path” It was from his love of adventure and exploration coupled with his passion for filming and science that drew Clive to documenting the adventures of him and his friends as they pioneered some of the adventure sports in New Zealand. They explored the limits, explored the wilderness, and explored themselves. Whether that was putting a camera on the front of a surfboard and showing people what a tube looked like from the inside, or strapping one to a hanglider and soaring above glaciers. No one was doing this at the time but Clive was able to couple many of his curiosities together and create a completely different path to do things.

Where we are going wrong — and how to start changing it

“A lot of people are being told to live like battery-hens” Over the years Clive has seen society change, people have moved to the city, freedom of speech has changed, and kids are now wrapped in cotton wool to name but a few. People have become less connected to their communities, and as a result their sense of worth and identity of belonging to a culture has gone. People have become lonelier, and have reduced sense of wellbeing and happiness. We’ve allowed societal norms to come in and tell us how to live and it hasn’t done us any favours. You develop cabin fever — if you can’t get out you don’t perform well, but you also have something building up inside you than makes you feel like you want to explode. Clive’s advice is we need to get excited about life. We need to get out and explore things we are curious about, we need to get back out and adventure in nature. It’s so hard to change the way we think and operate if we are constantly immersed in the noise of society. “Innovation isn’t just technological. Innovation about looking at life and saying, what can it possibly be? And going out and believing that you can find a way to do it.”

Listen to the full episode here.

Guest: Dave Hanley

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Tomorrow

Host Chris Desmond

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Music: Jeremy Desmond

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Things have started to get a little bit comfortable, which isn't the point. This short burst will let you guys know what is next and how I'm continuing to get uncomfortable.

Guest: Digby Scott

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Host Chris Desmond

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Music: Jeremy Desmond

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All up I reckon I’ve spent close to 40 hours listening to Will have conversations without ever having met him, or had a chat with him myself. It’s a strange dynamic talking with someone that you think you know, but you don’t. Thankfully Will had listened to a few of my podcast episodes so hopefully he was having similar slightly odd feelings. More thankfully Will in real life was exactly like he is on the podcast so it was easy to get into some great conversation quickly with no need for too much preamble.

Will is a content creator who has done some pretty deep self-analysis over the past few years. He told me in our chat that “very rarely do we stop and analyse who we are”, which he was guilty of as well. It took him a while to realise that he had tricked himself into playing the game of getting up, going to work and thinking that was all that mattered. Once he’d had that realisation, the self-analysis deepened. He tells me that he had had enough of living life on autopilot, that as he started to look deeper at himself and his life he found his eyes opening wider. He started looking at what he enjoyed doing, what got him into the flow state, and now he spends his time and energy trying to do those things and trying to get paid for them.

“I was only able to adapt my thinking base off the experiences I was going through. But those experiences I went through were only through me searching for those areas I could offer more value.”

Our thought patterns are intricately intertwined with our experiences and our actions. They all feed in to one another. This quote from Will really resonated with me as I’m having a similar journey. Will’s thought processes shaped his actions which then influenced the experiences that he had, these experiences then fed back into his thought processes, either reinforcing them, or allowing him to alter them in line with the experience.

This is something that is inherent in our nature as humans (at least in my thought processes, actions, and experience). Our thoughts influence our actions, which lead us to experiences, which then alter our thinking. It’s a cycle that we aren’t going to change, and it’s a cycle that we don’t want to change. It allows us to evolve as people and as societies. The problem occurs when we get stuck in a cycle for too long without change, we stick with what we are doing because it seems like what we’ve always done, and what we’ve been told we should always do. Our thought patterns have been reinforced to keep us taking the same actions, which lead to the same experiences, which reinforce our thoughts. I’ve been there before and I didn’t like it. However it’s only with hindsight that I realise that I was stuck in this loop, and that I really didn’t like it. At the time it felt normal to me, much like what I do now feels normal to me (but I enjoy it a whole lot more).

Even though we can’t change the cycle, we can alter the course of where it takes us. Some people radically alter it through an action or experience that they have. This has such a profound effect on their thought patterns that what they think and experience changes quickly, at times instantaneously.

For most people though, myself included, these alterations or evolutions occur much more gradually. It slowly dawned on me that I was stuck in this unhappy, unhealthy cycle, but to start with I couldn’t do anything about it. My actions and experiences were the same, which kept my thought processes the same. Habits are powerfully hard to break sometimes as well. Thankfully I managed to keep up the slightly uncomfortable questions about who I was and what I enjoyed. This slight shift in the questions I was asking myself shifted my thinking slightly. From this I was able to take a slightly different action from the one I took last time. This led me to a slightly different experience that then fed back into my slightly altered thought patterns. It’s a process that slowly shifted things to the point where I was able to change my thought patterns enough to allow me to take bigger different actions which have led to some pretty awesome different experiences. I quit my job, I travelled overseas, I bought a house (with my wife and the bank), and I got married. These experiences aren’t for everyone, but I’ve enjoyed them. It hasn’t always been easy and fun along the way, but trying to direct the thoughts and actions and experiences where I want them to go has always been rewarding. I’ve gone off in directions that I later figured out weren’t where I wanted to go, I’m sure this will happen to me again but it’s all part of the evolution process.

The more I’ve trained to alter things slightly whether it be a thought, action, or experience, the better I’ve got at it. I don’t know where it will take me, but I’m enjoying finding out much more than I was when I was stuck in my comfort zone doing the same things over and over.

“Even if it’s all for nothing, it’s still pretty awesome that it could all be for something”

Listen to the full episode here.

Brandon and I chat through some really interesting stuff today including;

+ Learning to love the struggle

+ Unleashing creative capacity

+ How good it is just to get on and do things

+ Why opening up to people and being honest with them is vital

+ Brandon shares some deep stuff about his background and how that has helped shape how he interacts with the world

+ Why hard is good

+ and of course getting UNCOMFORTABLE

Guest: Brandon Te Moananui

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Guest: Pat Armitstead

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