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The Hoffman Podcast

The Hoffman Podcast
Author: Hoffman Institute Foundation
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© 2025 Hoffman Institute Foundation
Description
Love’s everyday radius is an inspiring collection of conversations with graduates of the Hoffman Process and those impacted by their ripple of change. Our aim is to highlight how the Process enhances reciprocity, gratitude, and responsibility toward the whole. The Hoffman Process is about more than individuals healing themselves. When you change yourself from within, your actions change and you become an integral part of the healing of the world through your own “everyday radius.”
Podcast Hosts: Drew Horning and Sadie Hannah | Sound Engineer: Walt Hubis | Executive Producer: Julie Daley | Podcast Music: Radius of Spirit by Walt Hubis.
The Hoffman Quadrinity Process®, founded by Bob Hoffman in 1967 is a week-long residential and personal growth retreat that helps participants identify negative behaviors, moods, and ways of thinking that developed unconsciously and were conditioned in childhood. The Hoffman Process will help you become conscious of and disconnected from negative patterns of thought and behaviors on an emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual level in order to make significant positive changes in your life. You will learn to remove habitual ways of thinking and behaving, align with your authentic self, and respond to situations in your life from a place of conscious choice.
The Hoffman Institute Foundation is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to transformative adult education, spiritual growth, and the personal dimensions of leadership. We serve a diverse population from all walks of life, including business professionals, stay-at-home parents, therapists, students, tradespeople, and those seeking clarity in all aspects of their lives.
Podcast Hosts: Drew Horning and Sadie Hannah | Sound Engineer: Walt Hubis | Executive Producer: Julie Daley | Podcast Music: Radius of Spirit by Walt Hubis.
The Hoffman Quadrinity Process®, founded by Bob Hoffman in 1967 is a week-long residential and personal growth retreat that helps participants identify negative behaviors, moods, and ways of thinking that developed unconsciously and were conditioned in childhood. The Hoffman Process will help you become conscious of and disconnected from negative patterns of thought and behaviors on an emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual level in order to make significant positive changes in your life. You will learn to remove habitual ways of thinking and behaving, align with your authentic self, and respond to situations in your life from a place of conscious choice.
The Hoffman Institute Foundation is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to transformative adult education, spiritual growth, and the personal dimensions of leadership. We serve a diverse population from all walks of life, including business professionals, stay-at-home parents, therapists, students, tradespeople, and those seeking clarity in all aspects of their lives.
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“The goal is freedom. The goal is your own happiness. The goal is joy, and it’s hard to have as much joy and lightness as you can if you’re holding onto old resentments.”
Simbi Hall, Storyteller, Screenwriter, Director, and Producer, sits down with Hoffman Podcast host Sadie Hannah to share her life journey of healing.
While Simbi completed the Process in 2022, her journey of self-reflection began at the age of seven, when she had her own subscription to Psychology Today. From a young age, she tried to analyze things in her head and figure things out. Somewhere within her, she felt there was something she needed to address.
For Simbi, one of the main transformations at the Process was the shift in her relationship with her father. Raised by her mom, her nana (technically her step-great-grandmother), and a dog “who helped raise” her, her father was absent. Simbi felt abandoned by him. She could count on her hands the number of times she’s seen him in her life. As Simbi says, you idealize what you don’t have. She grew to resent him and what she could never have. It’s been “the homework of her life” to attempt to resolve the pain of her childhood. Her birthday is always right around Father’s Day. Each year, this has been a big trigger for Simbi. This past year, just a few years after doing the Process, Simbi had a very different birthday experience. She discovered that she had let go of her deep resentment toward her father.
Listen in as Simbi shares wisdom learned from doing the homework of a lifetime. Be sure to listen for Simbi’s mic-drop moment at the end.
More about Simbi Hall:
Simbiat Hall is an award-winning Nigerian-American filmmaker who divides her time between LA and NYC.
Born in Chicago and raised in Virginia, Simbi graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a double major in film and dramatic writing. She is also a graduate of AFI’s “Directing Workshop for Women” and the Bill Cosby-sponsored “Guy Hanks/Marvin Miller Screenwriting Fellowship at USC.
Simbi is well-known for Long Story Short (2004), Bring It! Vegas Dreams and Disney Parks’ Magical Christmas Celebration (2016).
Follow Simbi on Instagram at @simbihall.
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As mentioned in this episode:
Daily Buddhist Practice
Buddha-nature
Buddha-nature in Hoffman terms: The Spiritual Self, or the Light that’s within you. This is the foundation from which growth can evolve.
The Divine Mother
Positive Legacy:
While much of the work of the Hoffman Process involves disconnecting from negative parental patterns, we also receive a positive legacy from our parents. This is also addressed during the 7-day retreat.
Black woman tropes/stereotypes –
What is Transference?
A couple of great quotes from Simbi:
“If you’re open and seeking, you can get guidance from a stop sign.”
“If you don’t do the work, life adds Miracle-Gro to the belief systems.”
Shirin Oreizy, engineer and coach, found herself hindered by a pattern of perfectionism as she embarked on a career transition. She'd known about the Hoffman Process for five years, but she didn't think she needed it. When she saw the effects of this pattern of perfectionism and how it was blocking her from creating her dream and vision, she knew it was time.
Concurrently, over these five years, Shirin and her husband had been on a long, painful IVF journey. At the time of her Process, Shirin was beginning to recover from the trauma of this journey and the grief of loss from four miscarriages. She was in the process of accepting that she and her husband would never be parents.
Namaki
During her Process, everyone knew Shirin as Namaki, which was her childhood name. Since no one in her Process knew her given name, her classmates and teachers called her Namaki. As her week at the Process unfolded, Shirin found that rekindling her relationship with Namaki was the path back to her true self and self-love. As she tells Drew:
"I think what I really love about Hoffman specifically was that there's this imprint. There's this somatic, felt, body-sense imprint of love in me. That it will never go away; and you know, the patterns come ... and I forget myself, but I have access to come back to this deep imprint of self-love."
At the Process, Shirin worked with Namaki's moments when she felt deeply unsafe. Through this, Shirin was able to experience a "falling back into trust with my place in the world." She realized there's a larger arc to her life story than she had been holding onto through control.
Content Warning: Before you begin, please know that this conversation contains descriptions of "reproductive trauma, loss, and grief." Please use your discretion.
More about Shirin Oreizy:
My journey began as an engineer at Nvidia, where I learned the art of solving complex problems. Later, I founded and led a behavior design agency, partnering with both scrappy startups and Fortune 500 giants for two decades. Along the way, I became fascinated by how people truly transform. How real change happens within both teams and individuals.
Today, I focus on coaching and speaking because I know how pivotal life’s transitions can be. My work draws on a lifelong passion for understanding what drives us as humans, shaped by years of hands-on experience with leaders, teams, and individuals. I weave together insights from a range of disciplines:
Personality Profiling: Enneagram & Big Five (self-understanding and connection)
Hoffman Process (healing old patterns, renewing a sense of “enough”)
Neuroscience (building resilience and hope)
Positive Psychology (cultivating optimism and curiosity)
Behavioral Science (creating sustainable habits and agency)
Conscious Leadership Group (leading with awareness and presence)
Outside of coaching, I’ve shared my work on human behavior with audiences at TechCrunch Disrupt (Audience Choice Award), as a guest lecturer at NYU, Columbia, and Stanford, and as a keynote speaker at major industry events.
I live in San Francisco with my husband—also a Hoffman grad—and our dog, Pickles, a Hoffman grad in spirit (he’s mastered the art of welcoming love, especially when treats are involved). We love exploring stunning landscapes around the world that challenge us physically and mentally. Since Hoffman, we’ve launched a passion project, Life of Adventure and Change, where we’re mapping out a decade of travel adventures to share with friends. Our goal is to build a community of conscious travelers who inspire each other to embrace new adventures and experiences.
Learn more about Shirin at her personal website.
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As mentioned in this episode:
Conscious Leadership Group
• Diana Chapman, Co-Founder
• Listen to Diana Chapman on The Hoffman Podcast: Experiencing More Heaven on Earth
The Enneagram
Welcome to the podcast, Dr. Kash Trivedi, gastroenterologist, father, and Hoffman Process grad.
Kash arrived for his week at the Hoffman Process at age 50. What brought him to Hoffman was the experience of "a deep state of constant disconnectedness and anxiety." Kash didn't really like himself. He felt disconnected from his inner child, and nothing he did seemed to touch the pain of that.
In conversation with Sadie, Kash explores his Process experiences that led to a profound healing of his relationship with his inner child. As a father to a young son, Kash's work with his inner child led to a transformation of his relationship with his own son.
Kash came to the Process for personal healing, but since graduating, he has found that much of what he learned has now flowed into his professional work. As a gastroenterologist, Kash can make the connection between holding our emotions in and a physical manifestation of that. When we heal our ability to feel, our mental health, and physical health can begin to heal.
We hope you enjoy this conversation with Kash and Sadie. Thank you for listening to The Hoffman Podcast.
More about Dr. Kash Trivedi:
Dr. Kash Trivedi is a gastroenterologist in private practice. His interest is in the intricate relationship between the gut and the brain—how that connection contributes not only to physical symptoms but also to overall well-being. Kash completed his medical degree at the University of California, San Diego. He went on to do his fellowship training at the University of California, Irvine. With over a decade of experience in clinical medicine, he often sees how stress, trauma, and emotional health may influence gastrointestinal disease.
Outside of medicine, Dr. Trivedi has long been drawn to personal growth and self-inquiry, an interest that began in his teenage years. In January 2025, he completed the Hoffman Process, which he describes as the most transformational experience of his life. Kash lives in Southern California with his wife of over 20 years and their 10-year-old son. He continues to explore how emotional and psychological insight can enrich both his personal life and professional practice.
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As mentioned in this episode:
Different kinds of therapy:
• Somatic Therapy
• CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)
• EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing)
Trauma or Stress Responses:
• Flight, Fight, Freeze, or Fawn
Vipassana Meditation Retreats
Jo Mattoon, Hoffman teacher and coach
Listen to Jo on the Hoffman Podcast - "I Am the Driver of My Life"
Shaman/Shamanism
Welcome to Season 11 of The Hoffman Podcast. We begin our new season with Suleika Jaouad, an extraordinary writer, artist, and author - and deeply soulful human. Suleika is not a graduate of the Hoffman Process, but many in her circle have attended, and her work deeply reflects its spirit.
Suleika Jaouad :: Photo by Nadia Albano
Suleika speaks and writes about creative alchemy. Her recent bestselling memoir is The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life.
An alchemical life is one where we learn to take the more challenging lead weights (events and experiences) of our lives and work with them. We alchemize them into something new, as the alchemists of old called them, the gold.
Suleika has been doing exactly this since she was diagnosed with leukemia at 22. She spent the next year of her life shuttling between her childhood bedroom and chemo rooms instead of embarking on a traditional adult life. As she worked with what she was facing and brought it closer to her, her relationship with it and with herself transformed, alchemized.
As Suleika shares in this conversation with Drew, "that's maybe our collective, forever work, what we do when things fall apart. For me, reconceiving of survival as a creative act of taking those moments where things fall apart and re-fastening them into something has been my way of finding my way."
We hope you enjoy this soulful, inspiring conversation with Suleika and Drew. It's a beautiful beginning to our new season.
More about Suleika Jaouad:
Suleika Jaouad is a writer, artist, and author of the New York Times bestselling memoirs The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life and Between Two Kingdoms, which has been translated into over twenty languages. She writes the #1 Literature newsletter on Substack, the Isolation Journals, home to a creative community of over 230,000 readers from around the world.
A three-time cancer survivor, she launched her career from her hospital bed at age 22 with the New York Times column and Emmy Award-winning video series “Life, Interrupted.” Her essays and reporting have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Guardian, and Vogue, among others. A sought-after speaker, her TED Talk, “What Almost Dying Taught Me About Living,” has more than five million views.
Along with husband Jon Batiste, Jaouad is the subject of the Oscar-nominated and Grammy Award-winning documentary American Symphony, produced by the Obamas—a portrait of two artists during a year of extreme highs and lows. When her leukemia returned in 2022 and treatment complications temporarily compromised her vision, she turned to painting to transcribe her fever dreams and medication-induced hallucinations. This vibrant, visceral record of grief and desire has since expanded to include large-scale watercolors, exhibited in The Alchemy of Blood, a joint show with Jaouad’s mother, the artist Anne Francey, at ArtYard. Most recently, she was commissioned to paint a grand piano for the 2024 Super Bowl in New Orleans, now on display at the New Orleans Museum of Art.
She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and trio of rescue dogs.
Find out more about Suleika at suleikajaouad.com. Follow Suleika on Instagram and the Isolation Journals Newsletter on Substack.
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As mentioned in this episode:
Matt Heineman, Director of American Symphony and Hoffman grad.
Jon Batiste
• Winner of 7 Grammy Awards
• Bandleader and musical director on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert from 2015 to 2022.
Eudora Welty quote:
"I don’t think we often see life resolving itself, not in any sort of perfect way, but I like the fiction writer’s feeling of being able to confront an experience and resolve it as art, however imperfectly and briefly—to give it a form and try to embody it—to hold it and express it in a story’s terms." Eudora Welty
Terry Tempest Williams
We're thrilled to host Diana Chapman for our final episode of Season 10. A highly sought-after and trusted advisor, in her own words, Diana is an environmentalist at heart.
Diana came to the Hoffman Process in July 2024 with one desire. She'd already done a lot of personal growth work. She'd even sent many people to Hoffman. But it wasn't until this one desire became clear to her that she decided to go through the Process. Diana realized just how much creative energy she was spending each day on judging her body. Although she'd already made peace with her parents, Diana knew her judgment came from her parents' patterns. She wondered if the Hoffman Process could help, and it did.
Diana shares that she often uses light-heartedness to work with her patterns. While that has worked well for her for some time, in the end, Diana has found that heartbreak is often necessary to transform some patterns. She shares that she's found liberation in a broken heart.
In the work Diana does with teams and individuals, she leads them to work with the intelligence of the body and heart. She speaks of the sensuality of the body and how she wants to experience more heaven on earth, and guides others to experience this, too.
We hope you enjoy this episode with Diana and Drew. Thank you for tuning in to season 10 of Love's Everyday Radius. We'll be back in August for season 11.
More about Diana Chapman:
Diana is a highly sought-after and trusted advisor, celebrated for her ability to deliver swift, impactful results while driving sustainable change. She has guided over a thousand CEOs and hundreds of executive teams. Renowned clients—from Genentech to Asana—praise her unique blend of clarity, compassion, boldness, and playfulness. As a facilitator for the Young Presidents Organization (YPO), Diana works with forums and chapters worldwide.
Diana is a co-founder of The Conscious Leadership Group and co-author of the widely acclaimed book The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership. She’s helped ignite a movement redefining what leadership looks like when it’s rooted in awareness, integrity, and deep presence. Be on the lookout for Diana’s new book, No Drama Teams, in 2027.
She teaches at Stanford and with the Kauffman Fellows, and has been a featured speaker on stages such as TEDx, Wisdom 2.0, and Conscious Company Media. When she’s not guiding top leaders, Diana’s living the good life on her ranch in Aptos, California.
Find out more about Diana here and follow her on LinkedIn.
As mentioned in this episode:
Tim Ferriss' podcast with Diana Chapman
Gay and Katie Hendrix
• The Hendrix Institute
Byron Katie and the Four Liberating Questions
The Drama Triangle by Karpman
The Enneagram:
• Type 8, The Challenger
• Type 1, The Reformer
Ken Wilber
Meet today's guest, Helen Valleau, beloved Hoffman teacher and coach. Helen completed the Hoffman Process in March 1992 and began teaching the Process in November 1995. Now, three decades later, Helen sits down with Drew for a beautiful conversation about how the Process changed both her and the trajectory of her life.
Growing up in Edmonton, Alberta, Helen's childhood was very different from the other kids she knew. Her parents were corporate bush pilots who flew in the Arctic. Helen's mother loved to fly, daring to dream and follow her passion. She was the first woman inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame and was a recipient of the Amelia Earhart award. When Helen was 13, her mother was diagnosed with cancer and started on a long healing journey. Eventually, Helen lost her mother when Helen was nearing her 20th birthday. She shares what an incredible experience it was to witness her mother's fierce determination and strength, but also how hard it was to miss out on a softer, warmer experience of her mother.
Her mother's imprinting left her with a lot of pain and confusion, as well as the determination to emulate her mother. But as we know from doing the Process, that doesn't work. When Helen came to the Process at 32, she was "ready to lay it all out and be done with it." She knew she was messing up her life because of her patterns. At the Process, Helen realized she had "this Essence of eternal love and grace and wisdom and peace within her." She knew, beyond a doubt, that the trajectory of her life had changed.
Helen is a light-filled force of nature full of inspiration, positivity, and profound wisdom. We hope you enjoy this rich, vibrant, and tender conversation with Helen and Drew.
More about Helen Valleau:
As a certified HeartMath facilitator and long-standing Supervising Teacher with the Hoffman Institute, Helen helps others shed old stories, heal emotional wounds, and awaken to a more vibrant, heart-aligned life. Her inspirational books, A Year of Possibilities and 100 Minutes of Inspiration, offer daily nourishment for the soul—reminders that every stage of life holds the potential for joy, creativity, and reinvention. Her forthcoming work, Inner Power Aging, promises to deepen this journey, guiding readers to discover the strength, freedom, and fulfillment that come with embracing age as a sacred evolution.
Rooted in Toronto, Helen shares her voice through writing, teaching, and social media—inviting others to walk boldly into each new chapter with passion, purpose, and self-love. Her work is a call to live fully, love deeply, and age elegantly—from the inside out.
Follow Helen on Instagram.
As mentioned in this episode:
Edmonton, Alberta
Corporate Pilots/Bush Pilots
Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame
Tim Laurence, Hoffman UK founder and teacher
• Listen to Tim on the Hoffman Podcast
Emerson Theological Institute
Quantum Physics
Hoffman Expression Work
Hoffman Process - Compassion
Homeopathy
Science of Mind, or Religious Science
• New Thought
• Center for Spiritual Living
Affirmative Prayer
HeartMath Training
Beloved Hoffman teacher and coach, Corey Campbell, had no thought of becoming a Hoffman teacher when he arrived for his week at the Process. Rather, he came because he was exhausted and didn't know why. He hoped to find something that would help him change his approach to life.
Often, people believe that if they have good parents and/or a happy childhood, there is nothing to be gained from looking at their parents' or caregivers' behaviors. But Corey's story is a beautiful example of that not being true. When he came, Corey was sure most of the patterns he needed to release didn't come from his mother. It turns out that the exhaustion he was experiencing from serving others could be directly traced to his mother's patterns. Often, even 'good' behavior is driven by unconscious needs not being met. What matters is what's driving the behavior. When driven by patterns, we will attempt to meet that need in a way that doesn't work.
At the Process, Corey saw through the patterns and opened to deep Presence. Lying in the cold creek water, staring up at the sunlight through the trees, he had a moment of realization. Corey realized that he is enough just as he is. This pure clarity has changed his approach to life. He now understands that loving and caring for his wife and son, Cayden, is enough. If he does other things in his life, great. But he no longer lets his patterns convince him he needs to be more because he is enough. (Listen in to hear why Corey was lying in the cold water!)
We hope you enjoy this insightful and loving conversation with Corey and Sadie.
Content warning: This conversation references grief and loss.
More about Corey Campbell:
Corey Campbell is a Hoffman Process Teacher & Coach. He is also the CEO and Founder of Akamai Training & Consulting, where he serves as a nationally recognized executive coach and leadership consultant. Through Akamai, Corey builds high-performance cultures rooted in mindset, emotional intelligence, and authentic leadership. His coaching and training programs challenge people to be open, real, and courageous. They learn to embrace the tough conversations that foster genuine trust, alignment, and unity.
Corey brings a personalized, insight-driven approach to every engagement. He is a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach and a certified practitioner of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI®), the iEQ9 Integrative Enneagram, and Tracom’s Social Styles & Versatility. He has over 20 years of experience transforming people and teams across hospitality, healthcare, finance, and government.
Corey resides in Honolulu with his wife, Cherise, their son Cayden, and their dog, Scooby. He enjoys being outdoors, hiking, traveling, and reading. Corey has a special affinity for Japanese culture after spending three years teaching English there after college. He wakes up every day fueled by his purpose: to help others live a more energized, engaged, and inspired life.
“I came to Hoffman totally burnt out on life – exhausted from trying to make everyone else around me happy while feeling empty inside and trying to mask it. During my Process, I realized how deeply set and unconscious my childhood patterns were around playing the role of helper and, ultimately, people pleaser. The Process allowed me to get in touch with my authentic self, for perhaps the first time ever, and to start to love myself simply for who I am, not for what I do. It’s a gift that keeps on giving. Teaching Hoffman now is an honor to walk alongside others as they discover or reconnect to their own light and sense of self-love.”
Social Media:
Follow Corey on Instagram and LinkedIn.
As mentioned in this episode:
Bubba Gump Shrimp Company
Jon Kabat-Zinn - Wherever You Go, There You Are
White Sulphur Springs in St. Helena, CA
• The Hoffman Process was held at Whilte Sulphur Springs for two decades. In September 2020, the retreat site burned in the Glass Fire.
Hoffman Process Terminology
Ade and Claudette Faison have worked in the field of human development for more than 50 years and 40 years, respectively. Together, that's more than 90 combined years working to support others in transformation and lives of possibility. It's no surprise, then, that they both came to do the Hoffman Process along the way.
Yet, it's all still fresh in their minds. They remember specific instances from their Process. Claudette shares her experience at the Process when she was having a conversation - a quad talk - with her intellect and Spiritual Self. She was asking her Spiritual Self, "Are you Buddha, are you God?" And then she began to laugh and laugh. She says it was like finally solving a mystery.
For Ade, he remembers coming home having just completed the Process. He walked into a party that Claudette was hosting for her friends. Usually, Ade would hold back, waiting for an opening to join a party like that. But fresh out of the Process, he jumped right into the mix without hesitation. He had changed at the Process, and it was noticeable to everyone.
Through Unlocking Futures, Ade and Claudette's company, they work with people on the margins of life. The work they do supports people in unlocking a better future for themselves, their families, and their communities. In the past, Ade and Claudette, and Unlocking Futures, partnered with the Hoffman Institute to create an advanced course called "The Quantum Leap Process." Drew taught alongside Ade in one of these courses.
Listen in as Ade and Claudette share powerful stories of the work they do to unlock futures for many. We hope you enjoy this lively conversation with Ade, Claudette, and Drew.
More about Ade:
For more than half a century, Ade has functioned as a highly skilled facilitator in Human Development. His work extends globally, including the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, Mexico, Europe, and South America. He works with youth from 8 years old to senior adults. In the first 25 years, he became a featured performer and leader of transformational workshops at the National Black Theatre in Harlem. This was followed by 35 years at Youth At Risk, Inc., aka Unlocking Futures, Inc.
Ade earned a bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from Howard University, a Certificate of Completion from the Institute for Not-For-Profit Management from Columbia University‘s Graduate Business School, a Master of Arts from Teachers College, Columbia University, and membership in Kappa Delta Pi, the International Honor Society in Education.
Ade's non-traditional studies began with Dr. Barbara Ann Teer, founder of the National Black Theatre. He credits his competence to participation with Landmark Education, Practices in Siddha Yoga and Vipassana Meditation, Courses in Ontological Design, the Hoffman Quadrinity Process, courses from the Hoffman Institute, and 21 years of global travel with Circles of Light Ministries. Ade acknowledges his 42-year marriage with Claudette C. Faison as the continuing catalyst that ignites his vision, work ethic, and stand for excellence and equanimity.
More about Claudette:
Hailing from St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, Claudette Anita C’Faison is a master at delivering transformational and spiritual programs. With a mission to bring healing to generational trauma and poverty, she leaves people empowered to create and be accountable for their reality and the lives they have made for themselves.
For more than 40 years, Claudette has made a difference for over 15,000 marginalized families and children on every continent except Antarctica. In partnerships with family court, juvenile and adult justice programs, she creates and produces programs for inmates, returning citizens, and children of incarcerated parents. Claudette has been doing this work alongside her husband for 41 years.
Claudette has been educated both traditionally and non-traditionally. She completed the traditional path in the seminary.
Diana C. Toman is a global legal and strategy consultant. She's also a heart-driven badass - the mantra she coined during her week at the Hoffman Process.
For much of Diana's career, she hid her softness and kindness, fearing she'd be seen as weak. She would hide her generous heart at work, fearing she would be seen as soft in her role at work. But because she is generous and caring, she would continue to act on her generosity outside of work as long as the recipients kept it quiet.
Misalignment causes tension and takes its toll. This is why Diana came to the Process. During her week there, Diana was able to claim her softness and marry it with her badass business acumen. What a powerful combination!
The Process, though, brought more healing into Diana's life. Her husband has done the Process, and together they've completed the Hoffman Couples Retreat. Through this work and using the tools regularly, they've come through a rough time, and out the other side of a rough time, they are closer and better able to navigate the life challenges they face together.
We hope you enjoy this powerful episode with Diana and Sadie.
More about Diana C. Toman:
Diana Toman is a seasoned global legal and strategy consultant, founder of Toman Advisory Group, LLC, and a former Fortune 500 Chief Legal Officer. As a trusted advisor to boards of directors, C-suite executives, and functional teams, Diana guides clients through a myriad of global business, legal, and governance issues while also leading their organic and acquisitive growth. She is an influential, solutions-oriented leader who actively partners with clients to achieve their corporate objectives and reduce risks. Leveraging years of experience building high-achieving teams and inspiring the best in people through a foundation of integrity, trust, communication, and purpose, Diana serves as an executive coach to accomplished leaders and board of directors.
Married and a mother of two, Diana is a Hoffman graduate and resides in Overland Park, Kansas. She is deeply committed to community service and has served on various boards of directors. She volunteers with numerous nonprofit organizations focused on education, human needs, and art. A commitment to empowering individuals and organizations, while balancing strategic insights with a dedication to ethical leadership, guides Diana’s professional and volunteer work. While at the Hoffman Process, Diana coined the mantra, "Heart Driven Badass." At the Process, she aligned her heart and intellect. That balance has been instrumental in her personal growth journey.
Follow Diana on LinkedIn and Instagram.
As mentioned in this episode:
Dr. Michelle Robin
• Listen to Dr. Robin on the Hoffman Podcast - A Vision of Well-Being
Hoffman Couples Retreat
Lee Klinger Lesser is our guest today. A graduate of the Hoffman Process, Lee has led Sensory Awareness somatic workshops worldwide for many decades. She teaches workshops to diverse groups, including veterans and wildland firefighters.
Lee led and co-founded a non-profit organization to work with military veterans: Veteran’s PATH. While she no longer leads this organization, Lee still works with Veterans, many of whom have graduated from the Hoffman Process.
As a Hoffman grad, Lee is familiar with the "Left Road, Right Road" tool, a choice point that occurs many times each day of our lives. Lee speaks to how crucial presence is in choosing the steps of our lives and the direction our lives take. The question she often holds is, What does this moment ask of me? In each moment, we can ask ourselves this powerful question. It's a way to slow down and realize that everything that exists is here and only here. Each moment asks us to stop and sense our next step, or in Hoffman terms, whether or not we will go down the Left Road or Right Road.
The capacity Lee has to express the power of an embodied life in words is extraordinary. Listen in as she offers an articulated path to conscious choice in each moment of our lives. She says, "If we keep offering what we can offer, and we have confidence in our own possibility to have impact and our capacity to respond, then we're not going to have regret. We may not be able to change things, maybe we're not going to be able to change what we want, but the way we're living and what we offer is coming from our own love and our own vitality and our own ability to respond."
We hope you enjoy this deep and rich conversation with Lee and Drew.
Content warning: This episode references suicide. If you or someone you know is considering suicide, you can call the US National Suicide Prevention Program at 800-273-8255 (or simply 988), or message the crisis text hotline at 741741.
More about Lee Klinger Lesser:
Lee studied Sensory Awareness for 33 years in the United States with Charlotte Selver, the founder of this practice. Through Return to Our Senses, she's been leading workshops since 1976, in English and Spanish. Lee sees over and over again the gift that this practice brings into the lives of so many people and into our world, which is in such great need of people living with awareness, resilience, and presence. She has reached into communities facing significant challenges to offer the resource and refuge of this practice.
Lee led and co-founded a non-profit organization to work with military veterans: Veteran’s PATH —Peace, Acceptance, Transformation, Honor. She led this work for 12 years, stepping away from a formal role in the organization in Fall 2019. Under new leadership, the organization dissolved in 2023. Lee still facilitates programs for veterans and honors this work as some of the most meaningful and life-changing work she has had the privilege to do. She witnessed veterans open to devastating experiences, face, and transform pain into new possibilities. Lee continues to be inspired by the profound commitment to service and the loving dedication to community that she experienced in her work with veterans.
Lee's work and the Climate Crisis:
Over the past six years, Lee has been helping to develop programs for Wildland firefighters on the front lines of the Climate Crisis. These firefighters are seeking support to meet the overwhelming challenges they are facing.
Whether we realize it or not, we are all on the frontlines of the Climate Crisis. This has led Lee to develop programs to integrate the practice of Sensory Awareness with responding to the Climate Crisis. She is dedicated to bringing forward the core lesson she has learned from her years of practice: “There is no place to run, there is no escape from being with what is.” This is especially poignant and true as we realize that this Earth is the only home we have. We cannot run from what is happening.
Jake Reisch, a 2024 Hoffman Process graduate, is passionate about building impactful companies from the ground up. He's also an authentic speaker and storyteller, as you'll hear in this conversation with Jake and Sadie. At the heart of Jake's story is authenticity, courage, and a willingness to stay present to himself.
At the start, Sadie asks Jake to share his bio - a seemingly quick and easy task. In Jake's case, though, he has realized that his bio and how he shares about himself and his life have radically changed since his time at the Hoffman Process.
It was after completing the Process that things started to click for Jake. He found he could witness his patterns in real-time and consciously make different choices in his daily life. At one point, as he shares, he found himself publicly speaking about his experience in childhood. He told his audience about his mistakes when he was young and his successes as an adult, building very successful startups. Both were, and are, true. Jake then told his audience that in his successes, he'd been "leaning into the gifts that he was given that he just didn't know how to use when he was younger." Jake was able to share publicly all of himself and his history. He's found that sharing hard things with others permits them to share their hard things, too. That's how deep relationships become possible.
One more thing about today's episode: as mentioned, Sadie Hannah, Hoffman teacher and coach, hosts this conversation with Jake. Sadie is our newest Hoffman Podcast host. She and Drew will share the role of host moving forward. Congratulations, Sadie!
Thank you, Jake, for telling us your whole story. We hope you enjoy this authentic and intimate conversation with Jake and Sadie.
More about Jake Reisch:
Jake is a Forbes 30 Under 30 startup founder with a passion for building impactful companies from the ground up. He is currently the Executive Director at the Center for Internet and Technology Addiction while actively coaching and investing in high-potential, impact-oriented startup CEOs. He completed the Hoffman Process in March 2024. Jake currently lives in Panama City, Panama, with his wife Isabella and small dog Barry.
Follow Jake on Instagram and LinkedIn.
As mentioned in this episode:
ADHD - Attention-deficit/hyperactivity Disorder
Cornell University - Office of Entrepreneurship at Cornell
Neurodivergent/Neurodiversity
AeroFarms - Aeroponics
EverSound
Post-exit Founders Group on LinkedIn
Today's guest, our 200th guest on the Hoffman Podcast, is Brad Keywell. As you'll soon hear, Brad is expansively curious and always moving toward more aliveness. An entrepreneur, investor, professor, author, artist, philanthropist, and Hoffman graduate, he shares his personal experience of the Process with us. In addition, Brad reflects upon the Hoffman Process through his lens of entrepreneurship and his essentially curious nature.
Brad sees life as two forks in the road: one of curiosity (fully alive) and the other of stagnation (not yet dead). While he says these are extremes, Brad suggests it is important to know which fork we find ourselves on and then consciously consider if we're happy where we are.
For Brad, this choice is to live the path of being fully alive. He suggests that the Process is a tool to help us grow in greater aliveness, curiosity, and vulnerability. We can consciously choose to continue to move forward into a life of greater aliveness and expansive curiosity.
Join us in celebrating Brad and his journey to and through the Hoffman Process. We are grateful for this conversation with Brad and Drew. We hope you enjoy exploring the nature of change, curiosity, and a life of more aliveness.
More about Brad Keywell:
Brad is an American entrepreneur, investor, professor, author, artist, and philanthropist. He has founded or co-founded nine technology companies (three of which have gone public on NASDAQ), an early-stage VC firm, a global ideas platform, an immersive museum, and several nonprofit organizations. Brad was named the overall 2019 EY World Entrepreneur of the Year. This is the highest global honor (selected from 44 country winners in the global EY Entrepreneur of the Year program). He was also awarded the 2018 overall EY Entrepreneur of the Year in the United States.
He is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Uptake Technologies. Uptake is an Industrial AI software company that delivers insights that increase productivity and reliability for industrial operators in twenty-one countries. In addition, Uptake, a Technology Pioneer of the World Economic Forum, was Forbes Startup of the Year in 2015. In addition, Uptake is a three-time CNBC Disruptor, a three-time Forbes Cloud 100 member, and was ranked third on the Forbes AI 50 list.
Brad signed The Giving Pledge in 2015. By doing so, he committed to giving the majority of his wealth to charitable causes. He is the chairman of Future Founders, a nonprofit that provides entrepreneurship education to students in underserved communities throughout Chicagoland.
Follow Brad on LinkedIn and X(Twitter).
As mentioned in this episode:
Bob Hoffman:
Bob Hoffman, founder of the Hoffman Process, had an innate and highly gifted ability to listen to deeper truths and wisdom. Read more...
University of Michigan Ross Commencement 2022 Speaker: Brad Keywell
• Bo Schembechler, Football Coach, University of Michigan
Today, we've brought together our Hoffman pre-Process Panel. Hoffman teachers Jason, Marc, Regina, and our host, Drew, share personal and professional insights into how the time leading up to the Hoffman Process solidly prepares you for your week at the Process.
Regina offers wisdom on the pattern of perfection and how it doesn't serve you when you come to the Process. Allowing ourselves to be messy in the container of the Process supports the deeper transformation that's possible during the week. Regina calls us to trust the Process, saying, "The moment you commit, it's the opportunity to lean into the edge of Spirit..."
Marc talks about the power of choice. Oftentimes, students come to work on something happening in the present. But the work of the Process is to heal the pain of your past, which in turn affects things happening now, because the healing is within you. As Marc shares, at the Process, "You are stepping into your own childhood pain." He goes on to say, "You are choosing that. That is a choice, whether there's resistance, whether you're scared...but you're choosing that on some very, very big level."
A compassionate moment comes when Jason shares about the pre-work each student must complete. He mentions how hard it can be to complete the work because often students feel the pain as it is laid out on the page. Jason shares that the "homework is not who you are. It’s a story of what happened to you. And the more information you can get into that, the more connections you can make in that exploration of what happened to you and who you had to become, the greater your awareness will be stepping into the work at your Process." In other words, the homework can lay a powerful foundation for your Process week.
And, of course, Regina, Marc, and Jason share more insights, suggestions, and wisdom to help support you as you prepare for your week at the Process. We hope you enjoy this conversation about how your pre-Process time is integral to supporting your transformational week at the Process.
Our Pre-Process Panel
Regina Louise:
Regina Louise holds a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies from California Institute of Integral Studies. In addition, she holds a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and Writing for the Performative Arts from the University of California, Riverside.
Regina has canvassed the U.S. extensively as a national spokesperson and child advocate, and is excited to be a Hoffman teacher! Read more about Regina here.
Listen to Regina share her story on The Hoffman Podcast.
Marc Kaplan:
Marc’s life purpose is to support people in finding and using their authentic voice. In addition to teaching the Hoffman process, Marc is an esteemed music educator, producer, conductor, and coach. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music and Political Science from The George Washington University.
“The Hoffman methodology is the foundation of my spiritual practice. It helped me discover that I have choices, enabling me to step into my dignity and live my life from a place of love.”
When Marc first did the Process in 2011, he envisioned being a father, and now he is one. He lives in Westchester County, NY with his wife and two daughters.
Listen to Marc, along with Dan Siegel, on the Hoffman Podcast.
Jason Beegle:
Jason holds a BA in Psychology from John F. Kennedy University and an MA in Religion from the University of Hawaii. As a certified NLP coach and intuitive healer, he brings a warm, heart-centered presence to the work of transformation.
Jason first experienced the Hoffman Process in 2017. It was a profound turning point that deepened his connection to spirit, purpose, and inner freedom. He is devoted to helping others reconnect with their true selves through compassion, presence, and spiritual insight. “Teaching the Process fills me with hope. It’s a sacred privilege to witness people return to themselves with love, truth, and tenderness.”
Retired trial judge, Rusty Duke, came to the Hoffman Process on the advice of his wise, eleven-year-old granddaughter. Her father, Rusty's son, had returned home happier after his time in California.
While swinging on a porch swing together, Rusty and his granddaughter were talking. She said she thought that Rusty, her grandfather, was happy, but Rusty would return from California even happier, just like her dad had. Rusty listened to her wise counsel. Just two days later, he registered for the Process.
The prominent theme running through Rusty's story is happiness. He was a happy child. He has a good life. And, Rusty did, indeed, return home even happier.
One of the most important realizations students have during the Process is that we are not our patterns. Before coming to the Process, Rusty didn't know he had patterns. Realizing that we have patterns and that we aren't those patterns can open the door to a deeper discovery of life and who we are. In Rusty's words, Hoffman "brings a reality to life. It helps you to stop and listen and consider where you are, who you are, and what you are."
During his week at the Process, Rusty crossed the 'bridge' into a newfound sense of self-love, shepherded by the love he felt from his Process-mates. He'd never really heard anyone talk about self-love before. Rusty left California and returned home, leaving behind the negative voices in his head that can keep self-love at bay.
We hope you enjoy this heartwarming conversation with Judge Rusty Duke and Drew.
More about Rusty Duke:
Rusty Duke is a retired trial judge, married 52 years, with three children and nine grandchildren. He lives in Greenville, North Carolina, and is 'Of Counsel' at a local law firm.
Duke enjoys visiting with his children and grandchildren and traveling with his family and friends. He enjoys being involved in community activities and service. Rusty enjoys speaking to various local civic groups and caring for a local camp. He recently published his first book, “Call Your Next Case: My Stories.”
As mentioned in this episode:
Blackbeard the Pirate
Edward Teach (or Thatch), better known as Blackbeard (c. 1680 – 22 November 1718)
Blackbird's buried treasure chest
Blackbeard House in Beaufort, NC, circa 1700
The Algonquian Peoples
Hoffman tools mentioned:
The Quadrinity
Spiritual Self, the body, the intellect, and the emotional self.
Patterns:
Patterns are typically negative, compulsive, automatic, and emotionally charged. They can be direct copies of parental behaviors, rebellions against them, or reactions to them. Read more about patterns here.
Recylcing
Transforming negative patterns into positive alternatives requires following the Cycle of Transformation. The tool used to transform patterns is recycling.
The Hoffman App
Your journey to discover your authentic self does not end after completing a Hoffman course. Rather, it is just the beginning. The Hoffman App is here to support you as you continue this journey, today and far into the future. The app is full of guidance, practices, and visualizations to inspire and help you achieve your personal goals. We like to think of this app as “Hoffman in your pocket.” It’s available at the App Store.
Entrepreneur and business owner, Carol Frank, came to the Hoffman Process for one clear reason: she wanted to find a life partner. In her early fifties and never married, Carol had just ended a year-long relationship. The beautiful thing was that Carol was ready. She knew that if she wanted a lasting partnership, she had to make a change. Carol shared this with a friend who happened to be a Hoffman graduate. Although this friend had mentioned Hoffman prior, it wasn't until this moment that Carol said, Yes, to the lasting change that would happen for her at the Hoffman Process.
Within a week of this conversation, Carol had signed up. Within two weeks, she was in the classroom at White Sulphur Springs. This was in 2011. One year later, Carol ran into someone she had dated prior. This time, though, was different. They decided to have another date. After a bit, he said to her, "You are different. What's changed?" It was her week at the Hoffman Process. In the years since, Carol and her partner married, and he attended the Hoffman Process.
Carol's transformation, during her Process and in the months and years after, has been profound. She healed deep family patterns. Carol came to understand why her parents were the way they were and found peace and forgiveness for them. She shares some beautiful moments with her mother directly following her Process. Carol's mother died just a short time later. These moments were a precious gift.
Hoffman's tagline is, "When you're serious about change." And we mean it. People must truly be ready for the deep change that can happen in their lives. Carol was ready, and life was ready and waiting for her on the other side of her transformative week. We hope you enjoy this heart-warming conversation with Carol and Drew.
More about Carol Frank:
Carol is passionate about business, animals, and the intersection of the two. After starting her career as a CPA, she founded and operated three pet companies– a retail pet store, a wholesale distribution company, and a pet product manufacturing company. Carol then leveraged her experience in both finance and entrepreneurship to start BirdsEye Advisory Group. This M&A Advisory firm helps pet company founders and entrepreneurs when they are ready to sell their business. She has a BBA in accounting from The University of Texas at Austin and an MBA from Southern Methodist University.
Over the years, Carol has served in leadership roles within the pet industry. She's also served on the board of over a dozen nonprofit and business organizations, including the Dallas Zoo, the Denver Zoo Leadership Council, and Greenwood Wildlife Rehabilitation. Carol is a Trustee for The University of Colorado Foundation. She is also a member of the Colorado Chapter of the International Women’s Forum. Her biggest passion is animals. Carol shares her life with her Eclectus parrot, Peri, and Daphne, a sweet, energetic Whoodle. She loves skiing, biking, and birding.
Follow Carol on LinkedIn.
As mentioned in this episode:
White Sulphur Springs:
The Hoffman Institute's past retreat site was lost in the Glass fire, which started in the early morning hours of September 27, 2020.
Hoffman Refresher Course
Raz Ingrasci, Hoffman teacher and Coach
Listen to Raz on The Hoffman Podcast:
Husband, Father, Son
Hoffman and the Enneagram with Raz and Ward Ashman
Spiritual Lineage & the Hoffman Process with Raz and Marissa Ingrasci
Hoffman Couples Retreat
Our post-Process panel, Kevin, Steve, and Zeina, gathers together with Drew to share both personal and professional insights into why your days after the Hoffman Process are so important to the journey that lies ahead. As Hoffman teacher and coach, Zeina Mobassaleh, says about leaving the Process, "You're not done, you've just begun."
Why is this time immediately post-Process so important? Listen in as our delightful post-Process panel of teachers shines a light on the gifts that lie ahead over the days, weeks, and after completing the Hoffman Process.
Kevin offers insights into the Hoffman tools and practices. As he says, "We get good at what we practice." Hoffman Practices are offered through the Hoffman App and daily on Instagram, where you can practice with the Hoffman community.
Steve underscores the importance of the weekend after the Process. He explains that a large part of the Process is becoming Spirit embodied. Steve shares that we can "settle in and allow the work just completed to percolate down and in where the Spirit meets the bones" during the integration weekend.
Zeina generously shares a beautiful quote that her Hoffman Process teacher told her upon graduation about the sun and clouds, and how to flow with our internal weather. Zeina reminds us that during our Process week, we've come to see the sun. Clouds will come again, but the tools and practices that can clear the clouds away.
You can return to this conversation to refresh your memories of your Process and reset your daily Hoffman practices. We hope you enjoy this conversation and use it to stay grounded in your Hoffman transformation.
Our Post-Process Panel
Kevin Eyres:
"I am passionate about supporting people on their healing journey, facing what is blocking them, finding their full range of emotions, and embodying self-love. My Process showed me how to face my shame, self-doubt, and destructive patterns from a fundamentally different perspective – self-compassion.”
Kevin Eyres holds a B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Texas at San Antonio. He is a seasoned technology executive and a YPO member since 2002. Kevin is also an executive coach and speaker. Kevin, his wife, and daughter live in Los Altos Hills, California.
Listen to Kevin on The Hoffman Podcast
Steve Granville:
“I so enjoy witnessing the changes in students as they move through the Process. It is such an honor and privilege.” When Steve did his Process, he discovered, “A profound sense of who I really am. I finally understood that I was not my patterns and that by simply being honest about what was true for me, I could cultivate the intimacy with myself and others that I always wanted.”
Steve Granville holds a Master’s degree in International Management. He is a Restorative Justice facilitator and trainer, and executive leadership consultant in clinical healthcare. He loves helping people grow into their potential. Steve lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and two kids. They love playing together outside, especially in fresh powder.
Zeina Mobassaleh:
Zenia Mobassaleh holds a B.A. from Brown University, a J.D. from Columbia University, and diplomas from Sciences Po and the Sorbonne in Paris. She is a certified Parenting Coach, and has written the book, Your Children Are Not Your Children: 100 Mindful Baby Steps to a More Joyful Home.
The Hoffman Process was a gift in Zeina’s life, putting her on the path to responding rather than reacting in life, and to leading with love and living with joy. It is a gift that she feels lucky to be able to share with others as she supports them on their own paths and journeys to healing.
As mentioned in this episode:
The Hoffman App
Your journey to discover your authentic self does not end after the completion of a Hoffman course. Rather, it is just the beginning. The Hoffman App is here to support you as you continue this journey, today and far into the future.
Patrick Belisle, Director of Philanthropy at the Hoffman Institute Foundation, is our guest today. A self-described practical mystic, Patrick embarked upon a spiritual journey that took him around the world and the country. In 2022, he participated in what he calls the pinnacle of his spiritual journey, the Hoffman Process.
In this conversation with Drew, Patrick shares his unique perspective on money as “financial energy.” He explains how philanthropic giving is a win-win; a way to fulfill both parties' goals and dreams.
Patrick's approach to money will inspire you to craft your own financial story. We hope you enjoy this conversation with Patrick and Drew.
More about Patrick Belisle:
Patrick Belisle is a self-described "practical mystic" who studied theology with Benedictine monks at his college in Minnesota, meditated with Buddhist monks in Thailand, and had a powerful spiritual awakening at the Osho Commune in Pune, India. He and his wife Jane, also a Hoffman graduate, traveled around the world for a year, and around North America for another three years, in search of the meaning of life. They live happily and authentically in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Over the years, Patrick has worn many hats: He is a longtime student and teacher of famous psychic Edgar Cayce’s readings. Patrick had a 15-year tenure as a Director at Edgar Cayce's Association for Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) in Virginia Beach, VA. He's also worked for Dr. Ian Stevenson’s Division of Perceptual Studies at the University of Virginia for many years. UVADOPS.org applies rigorous scientific research to Near-Death Experiences (NDEs), children who seem to remember past lives, psychic phenomena, and other consciousness-related topics. Patrick has practiced hypnotherapy for many years. He has worked with young people in many capacities, facilitated various relationship workshops, and officiated over 60 weddings, baby blessings, and celebrations of life.
Patrick currently serves as Director of Philanthropy at the Hoffman Institute Foundation. He helps raise over $2 million annually for student scholarships and teacher training. Beginning in 2025, Patrick and Hoffman’s Board has set a goal to raise $25 million to purchase and renovate Hoffman’s new Santa Sabina campus in San Rafael, CA. Santa Sabina will open in 2026. His unique perspective on money as “financial energy” will inspire you to think of your financial energy in a whole new way; how it comes to you, how you use it, and how it all works.
As mentioned in this episode:
Ways to Donate to Hoffman
Catholic Benedictine monks
Eastern Philosophy
Mysticism
Breathwork
David Brooks
• How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen
• The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life
The Post-Process Weekend Integration:
Participants often feel very different after completing their Process, almost like a new self inhabiting a new life. It is important to orient and synthesize everything you have experienced and learned. We strongly recommend taking the weekend to complete this quiet integration.
Raz Ingrasci & Liza Ingrasci, Founders of the Hoffman Institute Foundation
• Listen to Raz on the Hoffman Podcast
Hoffman Scholarships
Hoffman tools mentioned
The Hoffman App
Join Hoffman's Instagram Daily Quad Checks at 8:00 am PT
Hoffman 1-Day Graduate Refreshers in the US and Canada
The Hand-on-Heart Practice
Left Road/Right Road - Making a Choice
Negative Love Patterns
• Pattern tools: Pre-Cycling, Vicious Cycle, Recycling
Nita Gage, Hoffman teacher and Director of Faculty, worked closely with Dr. Lipsenthal, M.D., for several years before his death. He was an internationally recognized leader, teacher, and author in integrative medicine and physician wellness. And he loved the Hoffman Process.
The vision, care, and understanding that Dr. Lipsenthal brought to the world of medicine and medical doctors has changed how doctors care for themselves. Through his own time in the medical profession, Dr. Lipsenthal observed that the health, morale, and work satisfaction of many physicians were often worse than that of their patients. He found a way to support physicians in improving these areas of their lives. Like both Dr. Lipsenthal and Nita, many physicians they worked with eventually came to do the Hoffman Process, which gave them additional tools to change their lives for the better.
Listen in as Nita shares her experience of working with Lee, the physician, and Lee the man. We hope you enjoy this conversation with Nita and Drew.
More about Lee Lipsenthal, M.D.:
Lee Lipsenthal, MD
Lee Lipsenthal, M.D., was an internationally recognized leader, teacher, and author in integrative medicine and physician wellness. He was the medical director with Dean Ornish of the Preventative Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California, for ten years, and has also served as president of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine and on the American Medical Association's Physician Wellness Committee. Through his years in the medical profession, Dr. Lipsenthal observed that the health, morale, and work satisfaction of many physicians were often worse than that of their patients.
Inspired by his personal and professional experience, he developed the "Finding Balance in a Medical Life" program, which has been adapted by major medical groups and is being delivered at medical schools and residency programs nationwide. Lee was a 2006 graduate of the Hoffman Process. He died in September 2011. His wife, Kathy, also a physician, and his two children live in California.
Lee Lipsenthal authored, Enjoy Every Sandwich: Living Each Day as If It Were Your Last.
More about Nita Gage:
From 1970 to 1980, Nita trained in psychoanalysis with R.D. Laing in London. Upon returning to the United States, she pursued graduate degrees in clinical psychology and a doctorate in shamanic psychology.
Nita has been leading transformational healing retreats for over 25 years and the last 10 years recently with the Hoffman Institute. She is now the Director of Faculty for Hoffman Institute. Before Hoffman, she founded the Healer Within Retreats, with Lee Lipsenthal, MD, offering physician wellness retreats. She also served clinical and executive positions in hospitals and treatment centers over the 50 years of her career.
Listen to Nita on The Hoffman Podcast - A Courageous Ripple
Nita has authored two books: Soul Whispering: The Art of Awakening Shamanic Consciousness and Women in Storage: How to Reimagine Your Life.
As mentioned in this episode:
Dean Ornish
Ornish.com
ACEs - Adverse Childhood Experiences
Sausalito, CA
Moloka'i, Hawaii
• Hui Ho'olana Retreat Center
Buddhist Fundamental Teachings
Co-Dependency
Work addiction
Chronic Illness/Disease
IONS - Institute of Noetic Sciences, Established by Hoffman Graduate, Astronaut, Dr. Edgar Mitchell.
"I realized that the story of ourselves as told by science—our cosmology, our religion—was incomplete and likely flawed. I recognized that the Newtonian idea of separate, independent, discrete things in the universe wasn’t a fully accurate description. What was needed was a new story of who we are and what we are capable of becoming." Dr. Edgar Mitchell
HeartMath
Recycling - Hoffman tool
Self-Compassion
• Kristen Neff and self-compassion on the Hoffman Podcast - Goodwill & Intention, the Magic Ingredients
• Chris Germer and self-compassion on the Hoffma...
Miranda Barnhart Domenico, a mom of two, came to the Hoffman Process wanting to heal from a recent, painful breakup. Even before arriving at the retreat site, Miranda realized that she was coming for so much more.
With two difficult relationships behind her, Miranda discovered that blaming her ex-partners wasn't helping. Instead, she found that by looking back to her childhood she could heal what was driving the difficulties in her relationships.
As she joyfully recounts, Miranda was reunited with her young self at the Process. Her story gives us deep insight into the nature of negative patterns and the Negative Love Syndrome. Miranda can now talk about her painful childhood story without being nearly as triggered.
From the time she was young, Miranda had lived her life disconnected from both her emotional self and her Spiritual Self. Learning about the Quadrinity reconnected Miranda back to her Spirit and her emotions. Now, one of the most important things she wants to impart to her daughters is the understanding that feeling, and talking about, their emotions is vital to healthy relating.
We hope you enjoy this powerful Love's Everyday Raidus conversation with Miranda and Drew.
More about Miranda Barnhart Domenico:
Miranda Barnhart Domenico, a mom of two, moved to Colorado, on her own, directly after high school, balancing college and work while building a tech career. She embraced travel, outdoor adventures, and her career until building a family shifted her focus in her 30s. Though Miranda stepped back from some of the outdoor pursuits she loved, her dedication to being an athlete, an exceptional mom, and a driven professional never wavered. She hadn't realized that she wasn't doing any of those three things wholly as she had fallen prey to trying to master all three without emotion and a deeper purpose.
It wasn't until Miranda's divorce and other personal challenges led her to the Hoffman Process in 2019, that she rediscovered her authentic self. Now, she leads with vulnerability, inspiring others through connection. Once ultra-independent, Miranda channels that strength into leadership, mentoring at work, coaching young athletes, and finding purpose in empowering others. Her mission is clear: to show up authentically and create spaces where others feel inspired to do the same.
Follow Miranda on Instagram and LinkedIn.
As mentioned in this episode:
The Quadrinity - Symbol of the Process
Quad checks for grads and non-grads alike daily on Instagram at 6:00 pm PT
White Sulphur Springs, Hoffman's old retreat site
Bashing day:
Bashing is one form of Expression done in the Process. to help students somatically release the negative patterns. To let go of our patterns, we must exercise our free will – choose to step out of a pattern and take action using our Voice, Body, and Intention. Expression is not necessarily about anger – it’s about “claiming” your life. It’s about taking a stand. Sometimes that includes anger, but it can also be about joy, love, commitment, and empowerment. Read more...
Growth Mindset
• Developing a Growth Mindset by Carol Dweck, Stanford Professor
Recycling - Hoffman transformation tool
Brené Brown - Shame Resilience
Sarah Hernholm, the Founder and President of Whatever It Takes (WIT), is our guest today. Through WIT, Sarah supports teens and young adults in using their voices, launching businesses, and creating sustainable impact in their communities.
Feeling "sick and tired of being sick and tired," Sarah came to our retreat site in Connecticut to attend the Process. During the Process, students face the pain of the past and learn to take responsibility for their lives. It's challenging work. As a writer, podcast host, and three-time TEDx speaker, Sarah is used to speaking honestly and eloquently. While at the Process, she voiced her feelings of wanting to leave. In response, her coach, Drew, suggested she take it one session at a time. Sarah was able to do that and stayed. She's glad she did.
Sarah beautifully expresses that she found it "really overwhelming to take on the history of being yourself and of what that has been." This is what the Process is about. It is where you learn to face yourself, your past, and your behaviors. And it's where you discover deep compassion and forgiveness for yourself and others.
We're grateful to her for sharing her experience and insights from her week at the Process. We hope you enjoy this engaging, enlightening conversation with Sarah and Drew.
More about Sarah Hernholm:
Sarah Hernholm is the Founder and President of Whatever It Takes (WIT). She hosts both the DO WIT podcast and the Just Start podcast. Sarah focuses on creating platforms for teens and young adults to use their voices, launch businesses, and create sustainable impact in their communities.
Sarah champions young entrepreneurs committed to innovation and doing “whatever it takes to make the world a better place.” She’s a three-time TEDx speaker, a contributor to FORBES, a Today Show blogger, editor of WIT Magazine, a WSB speaker, and, one of these days, she will finally finish her book “The 11 Tips for Doing WIT.”
Follow Sarah (Miss WIT), Doing Wit, and the WIT Podcast.
As mentioned in this episode:
Hoffman Retreat Site Connecticut - Guest House
• Donate to Guest House
Hoffman Tools
Gratitude -
• "Focus on the Give, not the Get"
• Gratitude Sandwich - Always focus on something good first, then on what needs improvement, and then close with something good.
Hoffman Tool - A Practice of Appreciation and Gratitude
Awareness Hell -
In awareness hell, we use the intellect to create awareness so the body and Spirit lag behind. In awareness hell, we know we are aware of our patterns and the things we do we wish we didn’t do, but we are still unable to change. We understand but feel stuck in this place of hell even though our awareness keeps expanding. To get out of awareness hell, our work to grow and transform must include three additional steps for change. These three steps are Expression, Compassion, and New Ways of Being. All four make up the Cycle of Transformation.
Tweener -
A child who is between the stages of childhood and adolescence. The term "tween" comes from this "in-between" stage
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