10 : Living Intentionally in a World Full of Uncertainty with Valerie Poon

“Anytime we connect with others, if we're open to the possibility, we can find ways to benefit each other” - Valerie Poon

Welcome to the Mindful FIRE Podcast, where we explore living mindfully on the path to financial independence and beyond. I’m your host Adam Coelho and I’m glad you’re here. 

On this episode I’m joined by my friend Valerie Poon, who I met through a Grow with Google coaching session a few months back. Val and I connected about our shared interest in mindfulness and financial independence. 

After our conversation, I knew I had to bring her on the podcast to share her perspective on FIRE and mindful living as a young person. The concepts and practices surrounding mindfulness and financial independence are powerful at any age but starting early makes an incredible difference. I often think how powerful it would have been for me to have the knowledge and practices of FIRE and mindfulness early in my twenties. 

Val is currently a student in her last year at OCAD University where she studies design. On top of her studies she’s keeping herself busy with exploring social innovation, emotional intelligence, community building, sustainability and youth empowerment. 

In this episode Val and I dive deep into living intentionally amidst a world full of uncertainty. 

In this episode we explore: 

• The concept of uncertainty, including what the ocean has to teach us about it as a part of life.  
• That there is power in trusting in the uncertain nature of the world.
• What a 10 day silent meditation retreat taught me (Adam) about uncertainty and the constantly changing nature of experience
• How Val attempts to infuse her life with intentionality, from how she starts her day to how she approaches her time at university and with each person she interacts with
• My thoughts on living intentionally as a practice

🔥 Did you know that only 14% of reorgs are successful?

That means 86% of reorgs fail to achieve their goals. Shocking!

Honestly, after living through 11 reorgs in my last 10 years at Google it kind of makes sense.

I created the Ask What's Possible Workshop to help newly formed teams rebuild trust, create psychological safety, and align around a BIG shared vision in hours, not quarters.

🔥 Want to accelerate your speed-to-alignment?

Book a no-obligation fit call with me

🔥 What teams walk away with:

• Rebuilt trust and psychological safety
• A co-created, ambitious shared vision everyone is energized by
• Clear alignment between personal goals and team vision
• A short list of mini-experiments to generate momentum immediately

🔥 What makes this workshop different:

• Executive-level facilitation with a track record at CEO-level forums, including sessions with 27 Google VPs at Sundar's leadership conference
  • One VP shared: "Adam was masterful as he guided us through exercises to expand our perspective and ambition on our vision of what we could be and do."
• Neuroscience-backed, mindful conversation practices th...