Sources of Inspiration for Moments of Change

The only constant in life is change – and I’m here to help you navigate that change, how to make intentional changes for a happier and fuller life, and how to grow the resilience that will support you along the way.

We all know that change is not easy, so this week I wanted to share where I’ve been going lately for inspiration.

🎤 PODCASTS

WorkLife and Rethinking with Adam Grant

I like Adam Grant. He’s an organizational psychologist who, as he says, likes to think about making work suck less. He’s smart and incredibly knowledgeable, and the more I listen to him, I get the feeling that he’s an introvert who by nature would prefer to stay out of the spotlight, but for the sake of his work, he does it. (I can relate.) Here are two of his podcast episodes that I often go back to, and refer to my clients.

How free solo climber Alex Honnold faces fear – Hannold is best known for free solo climbing El Capitan, as portrayed in This interview goes deeper into the mindset that allows him to take risks like these. Here’s a question I get a lot: Should I quit my job without another one lined up? And here’s how I respond now: It’s all about risk management. How much risk is there and how much are you ready to take on? Listen to this interview for 100% inspiration (and get practical tips) for how to be a bit more daring in your own life.

The real reason you procrastinate - Wonder why you procrastinate? Did you know that Margaret Atwood uses an alter ego to get herself to write her award-winning, globally recognized books?

The Moth

You’ll often find me listening to The Moth in the evening and the kids are finally in bed and I need a little cheering up while taking care of all the mom-admin left over in the day (picking up school backpacks, putting away clothes, you get the idea). The Moth is all about the richness of human experience. The true, personal stories that people tell on The Moth have some of everything, the funniest moments in life, the saddest, the scariest, the bravest and everything in between.

New Music Friday from NPR

Friday’s at our house have recently become nacho night. So while I’m chopping up tomatoes and cilantro for fresh pico de gallo, I’m also disconnecting from all the efforts of the week with something totally different: Music. In my 20s, I spent a lot of time hanging with music nerds and musicians (without ever feeling like I was one myself), and this show still lets me escape into their marvelous world. Music writers and reviewers share their favorite releases of the week in all genres.

🎶 SONGS AND ALBUMS

I Can Change, by Mindchatter - This can be our theme song, and it’s very danceable too.

Future Strings in E, by Seckou Keita - This song by Senegalese kora player Seckou Keita is everything needed at once: beauty, grounding and hope.

Volcano, by Jungle - a dance album that kicks off right with chaotic “Us Against the World.”

📱 APP

Ten Percent Happier

I wrote about Dan Harris’ book by the same name several years ago, but only recently – when I wanted to renew my meditation practice – I downloaded the app and learning platform he’s developed since. It’s really good. The mini-lessons before each meditation really deepen the experience, and I appreciate the variety and quality of teachers. Right now I’m learning to “stress better” with Sebene Selassie.

📰 NEWSLETTERS

3-2-1 Thursday

James Clear is the author of Atomic Habits, one of my favorite books on how to change your habits, and I also rarely miss an issue of his 3-2-1 Thursday newsletter. He always has an interesting thought, question or quote to contemplate.

5 Ally Actions

If one area of change you’re working on is how to make the world more inclusive and equitable, you'll definitely want to check out Karen Catlin’s weekly newsletter. She gives 5 excellent ideas each week for how to be a better ally in your workplace. For example, this issue offered some great ideas on what questions to ask someone in a job interview to assess a candidate’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

📚 BOOKS

Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away, by Annie Duke

“Contrary to popular belief, winners quit a lot. That’s how they win,” writes Annie Duke in Quit. Duke was a professional poker player and in this book she takes what she learned about quitting at the poker table and explores the research about why it’s so hard for us to quit. What she finds is that most of us quit too late, and that there are a lot of human biases pushing us to do that. If you’re curious how to overcome those in-grained responses and finally free yourself of the things you’d love to quit, this book is an excellent place to start.

Fox and I: An Uncommon Friendship, by Catherine Raven

I was skeptical I would stick with this book when I picked it up: A woman, who lived alone in a remote valley in Montana, wrote a memoir of her friendship with a fox. I read it a year ago and I still think about it all the time. I think it’s because I suspect that some of the greatest ills of our times are due to our estrangement from the natural world, including other animals. This memoir is a beautiful illustration of what we might be missing.

I have to say, just writing this list has given me a lift! There is so much good stuff in here. I hope you find some inspiration here too for whatever change you’re navigating right now. 😃