It’s no secret that many of us feel pushed to the limit, rushed, overwhelmed, and perennially behind. We keep our heads down, focused on an endless to-do list without a moment to breathe. How can we break out of this vicious cycle of short-term thinking and create the kind of interesting, meaningful lives we all seek? Dori Clark, Duke University professor and author of The Long Game, wants to help us reorient ourselves towards big picture thinking that will help us make small changes today that will have enormous impact on our future success. Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/13

Now that season 1 is wrapped, we're bringing you a special mini-episode to tide you over while we work on season 2. The tables are turned as Bob Baxley and Meredith Black interview their co-host Aarron Walter to uncover his origin story and why the themes of Reconsidering are important to his personal journey. Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/12

Now that season 1 is wrapped, we're bringing you a special mini-episode to tide you over while we work on season 2. The tables are turned as Bob Baxley and Aarron Walter interview their co-host Meredith Black to uncover her origin story and why the themes of Reconsidering are important to her personal journey. Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/11

Now that season 1 is wrapped, we're bringing you a special mini-episode to tide you over while we work on season 2. The tables are turned as Meredith Black and Aarron Walter interview their co-host Bob Baxley to uncover his origin story and why the themes of Reconsidering are important to his personal journey. Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/10

Shanti Brien received a phone call from her husband that changed everything. Authorities started a criminal investigation into her own husband’s company and he needed a lawyer to defend him. As a criminal defense attorney, Shanti knew how to navigate these situations but not when it was her own husband facing jail time that could tear her family apart. In this episode, Shanti shares how this moment of crisis and reflection helped her rethink her career as an attorney and inspired her to start a non-profit called Fogbreak Justice and write a book called Almost Innocent. Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/9

On this episode, Katherine May discusses the power of rest and retreat during difficult times, embracing 'wintering' for personal growth. Topics include work addiction, illness, guilt, and transforming through hardships. She explores self-care, resilience, and embracing discomfort to build inner strength, along with reflections on past ambition and present realities. The importance of prioritizing rest, self-regulation, and finding fulfillment through stillness is also highlighted.

Hustle culture keeps us grinding, busy, overcommitted, rushed, and subsequently ungrounded. It’s a phenomenon Brad Stulberg calls “heroic individualism” and it’s something he knows all too well from his own life and his performance coaching work with people doing their best to reach their peak. Brad wants to shake us out of the hustle mindset and help us find a more grounded, sustainable existence. His book The Practice of Groundedness provides the framework. In our conversation with Brad he shows us how to neutralize negative talk, be present in the moment, and recognize that how we spend our time day to day is ultimately how we spend our life. Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/7

We all have those moments of uncertainty where we don’t know if we should stay put at our careers or jump ship. And sometimes we don’t have a choice and are forced to jump. It can lead to an existential crisis. Who am I now? Do I have anything left to offer? What’s next? These are all questions pop up in our conversation with our guest, Maria Giudice, who has navigated career change many times with grace. Maria Giudice is a design executive who has had quite the career in Silicon Valley. She had her own design firm Hot Studio for over 15 years, sold it to Facebook and then went on to lead global design teams at Facebook and Autodesk. After all that time working with executives and championing design, she started to reconsider what her next career chapter was going to look like. Her journey is relatable and honest and full of twists and as you’ll find out towards the end of the discussion, also a surprising turn.Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/6

Listening. It’s a skill that is hard to perfect in a world filled with distractions. But cultivating a satisfying life filled with rich relationships, growth, and connection requires this foundational skill. Getting good at listening to others can also help you tune into your own inner dialogue and emotional state.In this episode, Ximena Vengeochea, author of “Listen like you mean it” explains the art of listening and why it makes us better thought partners at work and at home, provide us with some tips for cultivating the listening mindset, and shares how we can become more empathetic listeners. We also talk about how listening can change the way we build lasting relationships—handy for many of us after a pandemic has stunted our social skills.Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/5

For many of us, time slips by mysteriously. It’s gobbled up by email, social media infinity pools, and the flotsum and jetsum of life. At the end of the day we’re left wondering, “uh, what did I do today?”John Zertasky, co-author of Make Time, wants us to be more aware of and intentional about how we spend our most precious resource—our time. John spent years working at Google and GV, the venture capital arm of Google. With that sort of background you might think John’s perspective on time management slants towards productivity and optimizing output, but you’d be wrong.Years in the tech industry grind where attention is fragmented and speed is fetishized have given John clarity that a laser focus on what’s important is the path to satisfaction and balance.John’s perspective will help you reflect on what’s most important in your life so you can allocate your time accordingly and find highlights every day.Show notes and transcript: https://reconsidering.org/episodes/4