171: Mark Nepo, Poet & Bestselling Author, Reflects on His Experiences of Falling Down and Getting Up and His New Book of the Same Title

Every day, we are offered opportunities to choose between surviving and thriving. When faced with adversity, we can choose to give up or we can choose to enlarge our sense of things when pain and fear make us feel small. Sometimes, all it takes is a shift in perspective.

Today’s guest is Mark Nepo, a beloved poet, master teacher, and New York Times bestselling author who has been called one of the “most spiritually influential” people alive today. In his most recent book, Falling Down and Getting Up: Discovering Your Inner Resilience and Strength, Mark invites readers to view adversity from a different viewpoint and navigate the challenges of life by transforming them into opportunities for deepening and renewal.

In this episode, Mark shares his experience of coming face-to-face with his mortality when he was diagnosed with cancer, the perspective it gave him on life, and how it led him to become a “student of all paths.” We take a deep dive into the shifting meaning of success, what it means to find your God-given element, and how to follow the truth that’s in your heart. 

We also touch on how Mark retrieves his poems and books rather than authoring them, views pain, grief, and fear as teachers, and more. Filled with humble insights and wise words, Mark’s new book (and this conversation about it) will encourage and inspire people from all walks of life. So, tune in and join us today!

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Uploaded on Aug 25, 2025