Kemi Nekvapil, executive coach and author of POWER: A Woman’s Guide to Living and Leaving without Apology, shares how women are shifting the landscape when it comes to leadership and power. Allowing for an abundance of power enables us to promote and support each other, rather than hold power over each other and compete.   “I'm not afraid of your power,” says Nekvapil. “If I have power, I will happily stand alongside you, support you, and elevate your power in the same way that you will elevate my power, because we're both standing in who we truly are in the world.” Katty Kay, journalist and coauthor of THE POWER CODE: More Joy. Less Ego. Maximum Impact for Women (and Everyone), further explores the history and meaning of power.  “Most of the studies of power and what power is, what it means, who has it, and how it should be wielded, have been drawn up by men over the centuries,” says Kay. “Understandably, they were the ones that had power.”  

Welcome to the Midweek Reset from Life Examined, where host Jonathan Bastian takes a small pause for a new perspective. This week, educator and meditation specialist Sharon Salzberg shares an instruction from the Tibetan Buddhist tradition on finding a Middle Path and maintaining a healthy emotional life. 

Long-distance walker, writer, and author Raynor Winn describes her 1000 mile walk from Scotland to the South West of England. With tents, backpacks, and minimal supplies, their plan was to walk the 230-mile Cape Wrath Trail — some of the toughest terrain in Britain. But after they completed that trek, they kept on walking.  Winn talks about her passion for walking, how she feels “intrinsically enmeshed with the natural world,” and why she finds walking incredible distances to be transformative. Walking, Winn explains, had been the only thing that helped Moth, whose symptoms from a Parkinson’s-like disease had become increasingly dire.   “When we walked on the coast path, it had just been about a walk,” she says. “It had been about walking because we had nowhere to be, but we discovered this change in his health and we'd sort of hung onto that over the years after, because we’ve tried to keep walking as much as possible. “

Jonathan Bastian talks with Annie Duke, corporate speaker, former poker player, and author of “Quit: The Power Of Knowing When To Walk Away” about how poker informed her decision making. Duke sees quitting a vital skill and shares some of her tools and strategies. Whether you're an athlete, partner, or employee, Duke provides a better understanding when to quit and when to show grit. “There's no doubt that my previous life as a professional poker player, which went from 1994 to 2012, definitely informs my thinking about the importance of quitting as a skill. Because when to fold and when not to fold and being really good at that decision, is probably the single biggest thing that separates great poker players from amateurs.” Delve deeper into life, philosophy, and what makes us human by joining the Life Examined discussion group on Facebook.

Jonathan Bastian talks with economist Russ Roberts, author of “Wild Problems: A Guide to the Decisions That Define Us,” about a variety of approaches to tackling some of life’s big decisions, and how those decisions play a part in who we are and will become. Later, Susannah Furr, entrepreneur and co-author of  “The Upside of Uncertainty: A Guide to Finding Possibility in the Unknown,” shares her life story on starting a new business and offers tips on how to move forward and deal with fear and regret.  Delve deeper into life, philosophy, and what makes us human by joining the Life Examined discussion group on Facebook.

Psychologist George Bonanno, author of “The End of Trauma: How the New Science of Resilience Is Changing How We Think About PTSD,” explores the history, science, and nature of trauma. He says that contrary to popular opinion, trauma plays a significant role in building human resilience and that people are overwhelmingly resilient to adversity. Trauma or traumatic events, Bonanno says, have “become an easy and convenient excuse as to why we can’t function.”

Ross Gay, poet, essayist, and author of Inciting Joy, shares how losing his father impacted not only his writing, but more or less everything else that he now does. Witnessing his own sorrow, Gay says, was both terrifying and a revelation: “If you can't be close to your sorrow, then you're gonna miss your life.

Brad Stulberg writes and teaches about mental health and well-being, and is author of several books, most recently Master Of Change: How To Excel When Everything Is Changing — Including You. Stulberg dives into the science and some of the ancient wisdom behind change. The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus, who wrote about the nature of reality and its relationship to change, famously said, “no man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” “There's one tragedy that none of us can avoid, which is that the things that we love are going to change,” says Stulberg. “And yet, in spite of it, we can still trudge forward with a hopeful attitude because this is the life that we have, these are the cards that were dealt, and it serves us no good to despair.” 

Ryan Holiday and Katy Milkman discuss the history and power of self-discipline, exploring its significance in stoic philosophy and effective leadership. They highlight the importance of having a clear purpose and provide practical tips for staying disciplined in daily life. They also delve into the science of habits, discussing how they are formed and strategies for changing them.

Amir Levine, associate professor of psychiatry at Columbia University, discusses attachment theory and its impact on relationships. He explains the origins of attachment theory and how it can carry through into adulthood. The podcast explores the different attachment styles (secure, anxious, and avoidant) and their influence on closeness and fear of losing availability in relationships. It also delves into the benefits of secure attachment and the dynamics between avoidant and anxious attachment styles.