“There’s deep interdependence that is a biological reality…When we cultivate healthy habits of mind, it actually changes our brain and our bodies. So, when we show up with another person and we’re kind, it’s not only affecting our biology. It’s going to affect the biology of the person with whom we’re interacting.”  Dr.Richard J. Davidson studies human flourishing as the Founder of the Center for Healthy Minds and Healthy Minds Innovations as well as a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. His team illuminates that well-being doesn’t need to be left up to chance. It’s a skill we can cultivate, for ourselves and each other.   In this episode snippet, we’re exploring two practices to do so. First, an exercise to strengthen our compassion muscle; Followed by a morning ritual to set an intention for each of our daily interactions.  Who is one person you’d like to grow closer to? How might these practices deepen your connection? 

Growing up, Kathryn Schulz and her sister’s favorite nights were the ones their dad narrated his own stories about the adventures of Yana and Egbert from Rotterdam; A town he chose because he knew it'd make them laugh. The intentionality behind Isaac’s stories are representative of the abundance of love he aspired to share with his daughters — The love Kathryn now shares with her own. This is where Kathryn’s memoir, Lost & Found, begins and ends. In chronicling her experience losing her father and simultaneously falling in love with her wife, she illustrates our capacity to find beauty in life’s duality. “It is helpful to remember that beauty exists and beauty persists; And, that we can choose to side with it, champion it, and protect it." Kathryn shares her journey grieving her father, from experiencing grief as a thousand tiny heartbreaks to acknowledging that acceptance and longing aren’t mutually exclusive. Then, beginning in the midst of his illness, her relationship showcases love’s capacity to enrich the totality of our lives. Lost & Found is an invitation of healing and hope. Perhaps most importantly in the recognition that while love and loss are often marked by beginnings and endings, it’s savoring the middle that truly matters.

“If we really used good intentions behind everything we did, we would make the world a better place. But, that world can't be a better place and we can't have completely good intentions if we don't know who we are.” Shantell Martin invites us to embark on this journey. Acclaimed visual artist, philosopher, and facilitator, Shantell’s art utilizes questions to inspire self-discovery and the freedom to grow individually and together. We explore how having a pure intention enables our art to come through us like a dance and the journey of trusting yourself as an artist. A deep believer in the process, Shantell illuminates how embracing it expands time and engages us in a circle of reciprocity where we’re inspiring each other’s art. Image Credit: Vitra

Having worked with admired leaders and well-established organizations for 33+ years, one thing I’ve learned {about individual & organizational excellence} is that there’s a fundamental difference between what it takes to be a good company and what it takes to be a great company. And, an even greater disparity between what it takes to be a great company and one considered amongst the world’s best. The latter prioritize people and design the type of workplace environments where greatness can flourish, meaning can be multiplied, and the powerful forces that cause human beings to retreat to the comfortable and conventional can be eliminated.  Daniel Coyle has built a magnificent career thinking about, writing and contributing to many high-performing organizations; including Google, Microsoft, the Navy SEALS, and MLB's Cleveland Guardians. His two bestselling books - The Culture Code and The Talent Code - have had great influence on how I approach talent evaluation and culture design; particularly when it comes to team building. Our latest conversation will highlight the key insights from Dan's latest book - The Culture Playbook:  60 Highly Effective Actions To Help Your Group Succeed - and will go behind the scenes with the leaders of the San Antonio Spurs, The Cleveland Guardians, The Navy SEALS, and Pixar to understand how their leadership embodies the culture that powers their respective organizations.  

“If you are going to live a full life after loss, you have to find your way back to joy,” writes Marisa Renee Lee. In Grief Is Love, she unveils love as the compass to get there. Marisa shares insight on navigating our healing journeys, from giving ourselves permission to grieve to naming our feelings and creating a healing circle of family and friends. Her definition of grief — as “the repeated experience of learning to live in the midst of a significant loss” — helps us cultivate the acceptance and grace we need to find our center in a new reality. Living with grief since the heartbreaking loss of her mother continues to teach Marisa that “love never dies.” She illuminates how we can stay connected to our loved ones by embodying their values and rebuilding their pillar of love in our lives. Image Credit: David Needleman

“What the Earth wants and what our bodies and our spirits want is to be connected, in this case reconnected, to where we all come from.”  In this episode snippet, Edible Gardens LA Founder Lauri Kranz illuminates our path back to nature and the lessons it offers us.  How might you find your center in nature this week? What might you let go of when you do?  Editor’s Note: This conversation was recorded via phone in 2019 meaning that the audio isn’t as clear as usual. Lauri’s wisdom is so resonant. I didn’t want that to keep us from sharing. Thank you for listening! 

“My calling is to heal; That is my truth.” When Dr.Michele Harper was growing up, two experiences seeded her mission to be a healer — A night in the ER with her brother and a divine voice she heard as a child. It was these awakenings that inspired her to become an ER physician, a journey she captures in her bestselling memoir, The Beauty in Breaking. In our conversation, she shares the lessons on compassion, forgiveness, and strength she’s learned through the healing of her patients and herself. Each is illuminated by the embodiment of unconditional love and the invitation to expand it.

Do you ever feel your body pulling you in the right direction? This inner compass is the facet of Bob Roth’s teachings on Transcendental Meditation that I was most curious about…How does TM help us access it? “It’s the nature of life, given the opportunity, to grow,”  he says. “With the body, you set up the conditions, it will heal itself. But, it’s all about setting up the conditions.” Bob illuminates how tapping into this innermost part of ourselves amplifies everything from our creativity to our capacity to fulfill our purpose and love unconditionally. Each flourishes from discerning the conditions that enable us to embody our truth and allowing the rest to unfold. Bob has taught thousands of people TM, and through his leadership as CEO of the David Lynch Foundation, facilitated the teaching of over a million students, veterans with PTSD, and survivors of domestic violence. As one of the most sought out teachers, his belief that we all need the ability to heal ourselves expands beyond our individual experience. It’s essential to our collective vitality.

Few understand the depth of individual and organizational excellence as Marcus Buckingham - For 3+ decades, his work has had a singular focus to explore the hidden dimensions of greatness; and in this episode - he rejoins Moe to demonstrate why "love" is the essence of high performance - both personally and professionally.

“Beauty is a core moral value. It’s an essential piece of how we stay resilient and find joy, even with all the difficulties of life.”  In this episode snippet, On Being’s Krista Tippett shares how her conversation partners, from poets to physicists, unveil beauty’s vitality.