Who’s driving your life—your values or your fears? We explore how easily control slips to three quiet forces: other people’s expectations, money anxiety, and the stories your past keeps telling. With the holidays bringing more opinions, comparisons, and old memories, we dig into simple ways to pause, check the steering wheel, and choose actions that match who you are, not what the room wants. Instead of reliving old failures, we run fast post-mortems, extract patterns, and close the l...
The paycheck was solid, the calendar was packed, and yet the days felt hollow. Trading a high-paying career for a bagel shop wasn’t a tidy narrative arc; it was a messy, early-morning choice to live with purpose instead of drifting on autopilot. From fixing dishwashers to steaming milk just right, the work became real in a way that spreadsheets never were—more sweat, more nerves, and a surprising amount of joy. I dig into what it actually means to take a calculated risk. Not a movie-montage ...
A blazing sauna. An icy plunge. A mind that can’t sit still. Sound familiar? We start with a simple gym-side story that mirrors how we live: always craving the opposite of what we have, sprinting toward the next form of relief. From the bagel shop grind to the quick flip from heat to cold, it’s the same pattern — restless attention, fleeting satisfaction. Together, we unpack hedonic adaptation — the brain’s habit of resetting joy to baseline after any change. The same survival software that o...
What happens when fear threatens to derail not just one dream, but two? This candid exploration of entrepreneurship and creative passion reveals the delicate balancing act many of us face when pursuing multiple callings simultaneously. Running our bagel shop has become one of the most humbling experiences of my life. Some mornings, the place buzzes with energy, customers line up eagerly, and I can feel our brand taking root in the community. Then there are the slow days when doubt creeps in,...
Ever looked at something new and felt like you were staring at a page of indecipherable foreign characters? That feeling of overwhelm isn't failure—it's the natural first step toward mastery. After my computer crashed recently, I found myself facing a wall of unfamiliar interfaces and updated programs. What once felt intuitive now seemed foreign and frustrating. This experience perfectly mirrors the broader challenge we all face when beginning something new, whether it's launching a business...
Anchoring bias might be the hidden force keeping you stuck in patterns that no longer serve you. This week, I dive deep into this fascinating psychological concept that shapes how we make decisions, form relationships, and even view ourselves. Drawing from my current struggles as a new bagel shop owner facing a slow month, I explore how our minds become fixated on first impressions and initial information. When business was booming in those first weeks, that became my reference point—my anch...
Have you been quietly stepping back from your own life? The phenomenon of "quiet quitting" has evolved beyond workplace boundaries into something more pervasive and potentially harmful. I'm exploring what I call "Quiet Quitting 2.0" – the subtle ways we disengage not just from our jobs, but from friendships, hobbies, and personal growth while convincing ourselves it's just self-care. The world has thrown countless challenges our way – economic uncertainty, technological disruption, social up...
Ever feel like you're doing everything right but still not feeling better? You're reading the books, saying the affirmations, drinking water, going to therapy, and journaling—yet that frustrating hum of anxiety remains. If this sounds familiar, you're not alone, and more importantly, you're not broken. The truth about personal growth is that it rarely follows the straight, upward trajectory we're sold. Progress looks more like a messy scribble than a perfect arrow pointing forward. One good ...
Ever feel like you're trapped in a never-ending cycle of notifications, deadlines, and demands? You're not alone. The constant bombardment of information—from alarming headlines to social media feeds full of opinions—has somehow become our normal. But at what cost? Peace isn't just a nice-to-have luxury—it's the most valuable currency in your life. When we sacrifice our mental well-being to keep up with external expectations, we lose touch with ourselves. We say yes when we mean no. We overc...
Fear masquerades as our protector, but it's secretly our prison guard. In this powerful episode, I return after a brief hiatus to explore the fundamental truth that most of us misunderstand about fear – it doesn't actually stop death, it stops life. Having recently experienced my own business ebbs and flows at the bagel shop, I've faced those familiar waves of fear that wash over entrepreneurs during slow periods. This personal experience serves as the perfect backdrop to examine how fear op...
What does it truly cost to chase something with your name on it? After breaking my years-long streak of never missing a podcast episode, I'm back to share why I disappeared—I've been opening a bagel shop in England, despite having zero café experience (I was actually fired from my only restaurant job as a teenager). Those pre-dawn drives to the shop, when it's just me and the empty motorway, have become unexpected moments of clarity. We often hear "if it was easy, everyone would do it," but ...
Have you ever stopped to consider how many times you've faced seemingly insurmountable challenges—and conquered them anyway? This profound reality check forms the backbone of this week's discussion as I explore a life-changing quote from Vex King that landed in my inbox courtesy of my wife. The quote strikes at something we all experience: that peculiar amnesia about our own strength when facing new obstacles. "So you're telling me every time you thought you couldn't get through something di...
What does it really mean to be courageous? Contrary to popular belief, courage isn't about being fearless—it's about feeling the fear and moving forward anyway. Drawing from personal experience with panic disorder and anxiety, I explore how true courage emerges not when we feel brave, but when we choose action despite our trembling. Remember those childhood moments of tying towels around our necks as makeshift superhero capes? Real courage rarely feels like that confident, caped hero on a mo...
Standing at life's crossroads, which path do you choose? The familiar one that promises safety but limited growth, or the overgrown path that both scares and calls to you? This episode explores the profound wisdom behind Robert Frost's famous poem "The Road Less Traveled" and why choosing the path of uncertainty often leads to our greatest breakthroughs. When we step away from comfort and into challenge, we discover parts of ourselves that remain dormant on the well-worn path. The road less ...
Have you ever noticed how the thrill of a new purchase or experience fades so quickly? That's what I explore in this episode about the profound difference between pleasure and purpose in our lives. I share how Martin Seligman's PERMA model identifies meaning—serving something bigger than ourselves—as the most powerful driver of lasting satisfaction. Studies show that people who report lives filled with meaning often endure more stress and challenges, yet feel more fulfilled overall than thos...
Ever noticed how life seems to break us right when we least expect it? That's what happened to me this week—literally. After weeks of moving boxes, setting up our new shop, and pushing my body to its limits, I found myself flat on the floor with my back completely out. Physical agony has a way of forcing us to slow down and listen. Broken bones fascinate me. When properly set, they actually heal stronger at the breaking point. The body reinforces what was once weak, creating greater resilien...
What if your identity wasn't something fixed for life but a project you could reinvent every 90 days? Most of us don't resist change because we're lazy—we resist it because we're too loyal to versions of ourselves that no longer fit. We keep showing up as someone who has essentially already left the building. The 90-Day Identity Loop offers a personal transformation that helps you break free from outdated self-perceptions by giving yourself permission to evolve seasonally. Why 90 days? It's ...
Have you ever noticed how fear shows up right before you're about to do something significant? That nagging voice of doubt appears precisely when you're on the edge of growth—and that's exactly where I find myself today. Between moving house, setting up a new office, and launching a coffee and bagel shop (something completely outside my wheelhouse), I've been running on excitement, stress, adrenaline, and way too much coffee. The exhaustion is real, but so is the opportunity for growth. Desp...
Change isn't the dramatic overnight transformation we often see glorified—it's the quiet victory of showing up for yourself day after day. I'm unpacking this truth while sharing my current adventure of opening a coffee and bagel shop in England (something I know almost nothing about!) while simultaneously moving houses and juggling family life and coaching. When faced with overwhelming challenges—dealing with vendors, builders, licensing, councils, and the financial investment of a new busin...
The weight of uncertainty bears down on us all. Economic instability, political tensions, wars, and technological disruptions like AI reshape our world daily, leaving many feeling adrift and anxious. But amid this tumult lies a profound truth: while global events spiral beyond our control, our response to them remains firmly in our hands. This episode explores practical strategies for staying grounded when everything feels overwhelming. Rather than drowning in the "what ifs" that fuel our fe...