Shows
Ready Living PodcastBibliotherapy Can Change Your LifeDrawing on years of prescribing ‘books as medicine’ to people around the world, bibliotherapist Ella Berthoud reveals how bibliotherapy can offer comfort, insight, and a way forward through life’s many challenges. Central to her work is an unwavering belief in fiction’s transformative power. When reading a book deeply, whether alone in a quiet room, nestled in a dedicated reading nook, or even when on the move, reading allows us to step into another world and emerge changed.Unlike nonfiction, which typically appeals to the conscious mind, fiction engages us at a deeper, subconscious level and...
2025-08-0446 min
Ready Living PodcastLiving Life on Your Own TermsAward-winning Australian travel writer and author Louise Southerden has spent over two decades venturing to some of the most awe-inspiring corners of the planet, from canoeing in Madagascar and kayaking in the Arctic and Antarctica, to hiking in Nepal, and expedition-cruising in the Galapagos and the Russian Far East. In this Ready Living Podcast episode, she speaks about her fear of becoming trapped in a life that didn’t suit her and how freedom was a non-negotiable necessity. She opens up about the profound impact her mother’s death had on her in her late twen...
2025-07-2333 min
Ready Living PodcastCreate a Gorgeous Natural Garden That’s Also Wildlife FriendlyWhat if our gardens could be more than simply beautiful? What if they could also serve as shared spaces and vital habitat for pollinators and other wildlife? In this Ready Living Podcast episode, nature writer and habitat consultant Nancy Lawson, author of the books “The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife” and “Wildscape: Trilling Chipmunks, Beckoning Blooms, Salty Butterflies, and other Sensory Wonders of Nature,” invites us reconsider what it means to care for nature. Rather than imposing human design over natural processes, she suggests letting native plants lead the way. This doesn’t just res...
2025-06-2442 min
Ready Living PodcastCreating a Better & More Inclusive InternetInformation and digital literacy are essential human rights crucial for building resilient societies, says internationally recognized digital transformation expert Dr. Danica Radovanović, author and editor of the book “Digital Literacy and Inclusion: Stories, Platforms, Communities” in this recent Ready Living Podcast episode.While nearly a third of the world still lives without internet connectivity and far more remain digitally excluded due to a lack of skills, resources, or support, she dismantles the myth that internet access alone equals inclusion. She argues that critical thinking, privacy awareness, and ethical participation are needed to effectively navigate a world...
2025-06-1647 min
Ready Living PodcastRecognizing and Recovering from Narcissistic AbuseNarcissists lack empathy, pathologically lie, and thrive on manipulating and controlling others. Their playbook includes gaslighting, withholding emotionally, triangulating, exerting financial control, and sowing chaos and confusion.In this Ready Living Podcast episode, narcissistic abuse recovery coach Lynn Catalano shares the red flags of narcissistic abuse, unpacks the stages of the narcissistic abuse cycle, and explains how victims can begin to reclaim their lives. She reveals the truth behind narcissists’ arrested development and how they quickly move from seemingly idolizing their victims to mistreating them. She offers concrete examples to help listeners identify toxic behaviors and...
2025-05-2033 min
Ready Living PodcastNavigating Career Transition with Confidence and ClarityWe’re biologically wired to seek predictability and control, so when life throws us curve balls like a career identity crisis, work burnout, or job loss, our confidence can waver. In this Ready Living Podcast episode, career transitions coach Emily Rothberg talks about navigating change, shifting mindsets, and finding clarity amid chaos, especially during uncertain and rapidly shifting times. She invites us to question the outdated labels we may be clinging to that no longer serve who we are or want to become. She explains that true alignment starts by asking “What do I want? What...
2025-05-1326 min
Ready Living PodcastThe Future of WorkHow do we humanize work in an era where technology, control, and efficiency often take precedence over purpose, people, and genuine connection? Rachel Happe challenges the very foundation of how we think about work, arguing that organizations need to move beyond viewing employees and customers as mere inputs into a financial machine and instead see them as the very source of meaning, energy, and long-term success.A leading voice in community-centric work cultures, she criticizes traditional organizational governance, calling them a mechanistic system built for control and not human flourishing. Our institutions, she argues, are designed like...
2025-05-0520 min
Ready Living PodcastThe Hidden Powers of Highly Sensitive PeopleHighly Sensitive Persons (HSPs) possess a unique neurological trait that enables them to move through life with extraordinary perception, recognizing subtle details, emotions, and connections that others might overlook. They’re exceptionally intuitive, creative, and empathetic. Yet high sensitivity isn’t a condition one acquires, it’s an innate trait affecting roughly 20% of the overall population. In this Ready Living Podcast episode, educator and international keynote speaker Esther Bergsma unpacks the science and psychology of high sensitivity and shares insights into what it truly means to be an HSP. She is the best-selling Dutch author of The Brain...
2025-04-0127 min
Ready Living PodcastCreating Financial Security Before, During, and After DivorceDivorce isn’t just emotionally difficult, it’s also one of the biggest financial changes people experience in their lives. Unfortunately it often has a devastating financial impact, especially on women and children. The repercussions of divorce extend far beyond the immediate separation, affecting overall economic well-being, retirement security, and long-term financial stability.In this Ready Living Podcast episode, Michelle Petrowski, a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) and Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA), breaks down the financial realities of divorce and how women can protect themselves before, during, and after.She shares practical insights into the prep...
2025-03-1839 min
Ready Living PodcastUnlocking the Power of Self DefenseHave you ever ignored your gut instinct because you didn’t want to “overreact”? Or risked your safety because you felt pressured to be agreeable… even though the situation made you uncomfortable? In this Ready Living Podcast episode, self-defense expert Nicole Snell teaches people how to prepare so they can move through the world with confidence and a fearless mindset. Nicole is an award-winning international speaker, TEDx Speaker, trainer, survivor, and self-defense expert specializing in gender-based violence prevention and empowerment. She is a Credentialed Victim Advocate and multidisciplinary educator who has trained every branch of the U.S. milit...
2025-03-1133 min
Ready Living PodcastThe Evolving Battle for Privacy in a Tech-Driven WorldIn this Ready Living Podcast episode, Daniel J. Solove, one of the world’s foremost experts in privacy law and the #1 most cited law professor in the law and technology field, talks about technology’s impact on privacy, how the law often fails to adequately protect privacy, and what needs to be done to safeguard our personal privacy freedoms.Dan challenges the traditional, narrow definitions of privacy and argues against what he calls “privacy essentialism”—the idea that privacy has clear, fixed boundaries. Instead, he proposes an approach that acknowledges the nuanced and evolving nature of privacy violations...
2025-01-2351 min
Ready Living PodcastThe Hidden Ways Public Health Shapes Our LivesWhat drives someone to pursue a Ph.D. in public health? For Kevin Cevasco, it all began with a story about a high schooler nearly dropping out to help pay his family’s rent during his mother’s medical treatment. In this Ready Living Podcast episode, Kevin recounts fascinating parallels from past outbreaks—like the Black Death in fourteenth century Europe and smallpox in the 1800s—to help us understand the various ways humans react to public health crises. He looks at why people cling to misinformation in the face of evidence, why prevention efforts sometime...
2024-12-2332 min
Ready Living PodcastAn Architect's Bold Vision to Celebrate Our Shared HumanityIn a world often fractured by division, renowned architect Eddie Jones, founder of award-winning firm Jones Studio, offers a bold, transformative perspective of the border and challenges us to view it as a bridge between cultures, economies, and human experiences. Through architecture and a profound belief in the power of design, he illustrates how thoughtful infrastructure can reshape not just landscapes, but perceptions and lives.Eddie’s vision for border architecture is rooted in the belief that design can transcend politics and foster shared humanity. His firm’s work on the Mariposa Land Port of Entry in Noga...
2024-12-0647 min
Ready Living PodcastCreating a Legacy of Love: Planning for Your Pet's FutureHave you ever wondered what would happen to your beloved companion animal if something happened to you? It’s a question many of us would rather avoid, but one we can’t afford to ignore. In today’s episode, we explore this often-overlooked topic with Professor Ashley R. Dobbs from the University of Richmond School of Law.Under American law, pets are treated as property, much like a chair or a laptop. This reality means that simply naming a friend or family member to take care of an animal companion in a will won’t be enough to ensur...
2024-11-1827 min
Ready Living PodcastCompassion is ContagiousWhat if we could create a world where compassion, resilience, health and justice form the foundation of society?Physician Hope Ferdowsian, author of Phoenix Zones: Where Strength Is Born and Resilience Lives, and co-founder and president of Phoenix Zones Initiative, shares insights from over two decades of work caring for individuals experiencing violence, displacement, and other hardships, while also working on policy approaches to addressing structural inequities and exploitation. Through the powerful stories of individuals she’s met – Ayanna, a young girl rescued from child marriage; Doc, a physician who sought asylum after suffering imprisonment and...
2024-10-2934 min
Ready Living PodcastWhat You Need To Know About Emergency Management, From Preparation to RecoveryHow do we truly prepare for disasters, and what does recovery look like when catastrophe strikes? In this episode, renowned disasterologist Samantha Montano, Ph.D., takes us into the world of emergency management, offering practical advice on what communities and individuals can do. She also outlines the steps someone impacted by events like Hurricanes Helene and Milton can take to receive state and federal support and help them navigate the recovery process. As the author of Disasterology: Dispatches from the Frontlines of the Climate Crisis, named one of the best books of 2021 by USA Today, a...
2024-10-2244 min
Ready Living PodcastFinding Love, One Dog at a TimeIn her moving and deeply insightful new book Abandoned: Chronicling the Journeys of Once-Forsaken Dogs, Katherine Carver followed nearly 60 dogs and their journeys from shelters to loving homes. She shares the emotional experience of photographing these dogs twice, first at the shelter or animal rescue and again a year later in their new homes. The initial sadness she witnessed in some dogs’ eyes contrasts sharply with the later joy felt by all those who found a second chance at life. Her beautiful portraits capture the dogs’ powerful transformations. She shares how her own life changed afte...
2024-10-1536 min
Ready Living PodcastReflections On The RoadOver the summers of 2022 and 2023, Alexander Verbeek embarked on the legendary Camino de Santiago, an ancient 500-mile pilgrimage traversing several European countries. In this Ready Living Podcast episode, he shares the allure of the Camino and the diverse people he met along the way, each walking for reasons uniquely personal to them. He also talks about one poignant tradition of stopping at Cruz de Ferro and leaving behind a stone symbolizing each pilgrim’s burdens. He reflects on how this ritual transforms a simple act into a powerful moment of release and contemplation. A former dipl...
2024-09-251h 07
Ready Living PodcastStanding Up To StigmaAfter a near-fatal battle with mental illness, Barbara Louise Brennan is grateful to be alive. Now 16 years well, she is a renowned change maker, stigma disruptor, and workplace mental health solutions expert. In this episode, she opens up about her early struggles, how she rebuilt her life, and the importance of breaking down the stigma around mental illness. “If I can come back…anybody can do it,” she says. She argues that we need to expand the discussion around mental health to include the broader context of people’s lives, not just the symptoms illness present...
2024-09-171h 05
Ready Living PodcastA Retired Detective's Mission to Stop Abusers Around the WorldAfter decades in law enforcement combating serious crime like narcotics, human trafficking and murder, retired senior detective Mark Randell continues fighting for justice, this time focusing on the link between animal abuse and human violence within relationships, families, and communities.This episode explores the deep connection between animal cruelty and other unlawful acts like domestic abuse and organized crime. It also delves into the profound bond between people and their companion animals, a bond that abusers often exploit as a means of coercive control, much like isolating victims from their family and friends and exerting financial dependence.
2024-09-1037 min
Ready Living PodcastRewilding the Human PsycheWhat if the key to a happier and more connected life lies in reclaiming the wild parts of ourselves that we've lost along the way? The answer may lie in rewilding the human psyche, which helps people bridge the gap between rational thought and sensory experience and rediscover aspects of their humanity that have been sidelined by modern life.This episode’s guest is award-winning psychologist Dr. Dana Klisanin, founder of ReWilding: Lab, whose passion for integrating ancient wisdom with modern science led her to create a holistic approach to wellness that reconnects individuals with nature and th...
2024-09-0432 min
Ready Living PodcastCreating a Climate-Friendly Future for Our ChildrenOn a scale of one to ten, Paull Young’s positivity is a self-described full-on ten. It’s been his greatest asset in driving meaningful change in sustainability and climate action, and in inspiring others to believe in the possibility of a better future. Paull is the Head of Sustainability at GitHub. Before this, he spent nine years at Meta, where he was the GTM & partnerships lead for the since-disbanded climate product team, including working as acting Product Manager for the Regeneration vertical. He also led the nonprofit partnership team as they raised the first $1B on Faceboo...
2024-08-2736 min
Ready Living PodcastA World Champion’s Advice on Embracing Imperfection & VulnerabilityWhen we strip away the facade of perfection and embrace a willingness to fail, we can discover our true strength. That’s what happened to Kate Strong when she set her sights on becoming a world champion, reclaiming her life in the process. Kate is a 3-time world record-holding static cyclist, an age-group World Champion in triathlon, an international keynote and TEDx speaker, and author of the new book Climate Cycle: Why a bike ride around Britain became a movement for change which recounts her epic 3,000-mile journey on a handmade bamboo bike.In this epis...
2024-08-2044 min
Ready Living PodcastHow to Make Anger Work For You, Not Against YouAnger is often seen as a destructive force, something to be feared and avoided. Yet, beneath its fiery exterior lies a powerful tool capable of driving change and even fostering creativity. Understanding and harnessing anger can unlock a new realm of possibilities, turning this misunderstood emotion into a source of strength and inspiration.This episode’s guest is Dr. Ryan Martin, also known as the 'Anger Professor.' He is a distinguished researcher and author who has dedicated his career to studying anger and other emotions. Regularly featured in the media, he is also a TEDx speaker an...
2024-08-1351 min
Ready Living PodcastUsing Trust Signals to Know Who to TrustTrust is the foundation on which relationships are built, communities are formed, and businesses thrive. It’s the invisible thread that weaves the fabric of society together and allows us to feel safe. However, trust isn’t something that happens by default; it’s earned through integrity and consistent actions, says this episode’s guest Scott Baradell.Scott is the Founder and CEO of Idea Grove, a PR and marketing boutique for B-to-B companies. He began his career as an award-winning journalist, then served as the chief communications officer for two billion-dollar companies and co-founded a ventur...
2024-08-1355 min
Ready Living PodcastLife-Changing Lessons on Well-Being and ServiceIn a world where pushing to the brink of burnout and beyond is often the norm in pursuit of success, what led a former policy and political advisor to shift course and embrace a life of health and well-being?It’s a question that challenges us to identify what truly brings meaning to our lives and invites us to consider how we might redirect our talents from a purely achievement-oriented focus towards a life that combines service of others with personal well-being.This episode’s guest is Laurie A. Watkins, a former policy and political advi...
2024-08-1346 min
Ready Living PodcastIntroducing the Ready Living Podcast!Welcome to the Ready Living Podcast, where host Andrea Weckerle leads you on a journey of personal and professional development through interviews with some of the leading minds of today. Each episode is designed to educate, inspire, and empower you, offering practical advice and information to help you create the life you want. From thought-provoking insights to actionable strategies, Andrea and her guests dive deep into topics that matter the most. Subscribe to the Ready Living Podcast and embark on a transformative experience that helps you live a life of intention.LISTEN & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST
2024-08-0201 min
FIR InterviewsFIR Interview: CiviliNation's Andrea Weckerle and Jolie O'DellAndrea Weckerle first appeared in an FIR Interview a decade ago after she had founded CiviliNation, a non-profit that is “taking a stand against online harassment, character assassination, misinformation, and violence.” That’s a tall order given the state of civil discourse these days. In this FIR Interview, Andrea is joined by CiviliNation’s new president, veteran technology journalist Jolie O’Dell. The conversation covers the organization’s approach to addressing the issues that underlie outrage culture, doxxing, and other behaviors that undermine the potential of online conversation.
FIR co-hosts Neville Hobson and Shel Holtz spoke with Jolie and An...
2021-03-1744 min
For Immediate Release PodcastAndrea Weckerle and Jolie O'Dell on CiviliNationSend comments to fircomments@gmail.com Attach up to a 3-minute audio comment. Or leave an audio comment from the FIR Podcast Network website. Join the FIR Community on Facebook.
2021-03-1744 min
The Business Power Hour with Deb KrierGuest: Andrea Weckerle, author of "Civility in the Digital Age: How Companies and People Can Triumph Over Haters, Trolls, Bullies and Other Jerks"
2015-08-311h 00MOMocrats MOMoChatPolitical discourse - or threatening rhetoric? MOMocrats Cynematic and Karoli talk to guest Andrea Weckerle of CiviliNation.org about dialing back the name-calling and combating cyberstalking and online threats.
2011-02-1600 min