Shows
The Breakout – Unleashing Personal GrowthEp10: Stefan Ravalli reCHARGEDDo you sometimes have an inner critic? Are you practicing loving kindness to yourself? Do you need to nourish your attention? Maybe you forget about your own needs? Our special guest, Stefan Ravalli, talks about the power of meditation, how it changed his life and how he learned to treat himself with compassion. Not only did meditation change Stefan’s life, but also he now teaches meditation to help others. Take a listen to Stefan as he provides amazing advice how to treat attention as a precious metal and how to take a few minutes daily to trea...2020-12-1634 min
Serve ConsciousGuided Practice: Mindful Drop-InThis is a strategy and quick practice to consistently drop into greater self-awareness throughout the day - have more calm, focus and authority over your emotions throughout the day. This is basically the essentials of mindfulness packed into 10 minutes or so. And like all mindful practices can be done quickly, compressed to a few minute check-in. For example:1) How am I breathing?2) How am I feeling? (scan body, name some emotions)3) What are my thoughts doing?4) What else is worth noticing?5) What do I need right now?Go Deeper Into...2020-12-1012 minServe ConsciousHow to Embrace the Power and Possibility of Service Recovery | Ep. 89This episode is for leaders and aspiring rockstars at the organizational levels of service in addition to restaurant and hospitality domains. It's based on an article I wrote for Joel Bailey's Society of Service.Why are beautifully-recovered service experiences often considered the best ones? Because service isn’t technical, it’s emotional. Any service-oriented business is in the market of emotions. And customer journeys that dip and recover offer the most memorable emotional arc. Emotionally-charged reviews and stories to friends are more likely to follow from such a scenario.Customer loyalty is more likely to emer...2020-11-3022 minServe ConsciousPractice: Emergency Lifeline | Self-CompassionThis is a "don't leave home without it" practice. This is a special one because it's not meant to be done in a safe, quiet place. It's a self-compassion practice, which are meant to help you meet your moments of greatest struggle.Yeah, service is painful and emotionally challenging. And in case you're saying "Yeah...and so is, like, all of life", that's exactly why you need to always have this in your back pocket.Customers can be cruel. Even if they weren't we make mistakes that invite us to lash ourselves. What i...2020-11-2312 minServe ConsciousPractice: Pre-Service Care ActivationThis episode is a response to requests for some more guided practices. Knowing that we all have limited time and space in our lives for these things, I wanted to provide you with what is basically my favorite practice for building the service mindset. It's also one of the 3 most important meditation practices I have in my life.Just follow the audio instructions - and then go about your day.You'll need a quiet place to practice - or just anywhere that's safe to close your eyes.Do this regularly and life and work will start...2020-11-1614 minServe ConsciousSelfishness...And Other Surprising Mindful Service Skills | Ep. 86What's your favorite style of self-sacrifice? The martyr?The fixer?The soloist?The co-dependent?All of these archetypes promise us problems. And though they have honorable aspects to them (which we will talk about connecting to), they ultimately compromise our service game. This episode hopes to disrupt the myth that good service somehow needs to involve a constant outward flow of our energy into "helping" others.Draw boundaries around when you need to serve others and when you need to serve yourself. Service is not about quantity, it's about quality (and...2020-10-2635 minServe ConsciousTrue Service Emerges From a Culture of Intra-Service | feat. Neal Woodson | Ep. 85"Be kind, for everyone is fighting a battle you know nothing about."-Ian McLarenThis is a very important discussion for both individual service professionals looking to bring more mindfulness and inspiration to their work and for leaders that want to elevate their team's culture and effectiveness. The organizational space needs more people like Neal Woodson (but human beings with missions like his are rare indeed). He's a coach and consummate service fire-lighter. He's the author of The Uncomplicated Coach and is a powerful resource for service-based companies that want to take their service...2020-10-191h 08Serve ConsciousBe A Steward of Well-Being | Ep. 84This is sort of a follow-up to a recent episode about navigating the challenging emotions you experience in the service dynamic. The service exchange is ultimately about facilitating positive emotions in the people we serve. This episode looks at the skills we need and challenges we face in trying to elevate the experience of others.Other Discussion Points:Think you love "making people happy"? Well, that good intention isn't always what you think it is. Learn the more mindful, skillful approach to bringing out the best in others.The art (and supreme challenge!) of...2020-10-1236 minServe ConsciousBeat Burnout & Reconnect With Your Service Purpose | feat. Dushan Zaric | Ep. 83Sneaking in a quick and always spirit-elevating conversation with my friend Dushan Zaric. He's running a live course starting October 26th, 2020 @ 3pm EST. The topics around service life he plans to cover were something I really wanted to get deeper into and draw everyone's attention to. They include:Reconnecting with what hospitality really is (from the individual to the collective culture).Working with burnout (kind of a service speciality, isn't it?). What it truly is and how it works may surprise you.Service in the COVID reality (we didn't get as deep into this topic, but every tool...2020-10-051h 02Serve ConsciousService Life is An Emotional Economy - Learn The Game! | Ep. 82Emotions. We all have them and, strangely, rarely want to admit their influence. When we re-acquaint ourselves with our emotional lives, then we gain untold mastery over the challenges of work and service. We also gain mastery over our service game - after all, service is an absolute economy of emotional exchange.Firstly, admit you have them all the time and that they determine basically all your decisions and behaviors. This might be unappealing since we can probably trace emotions back to every problem we've faced in our lives. But they are also a powerful ally and...2020-09-2736 minServe ConsciousHow Hospitable Are You Being To Yourself? | Ep. 81How can you get the most out of your meditation and mindfulness practice? Is it just about technique or can you look at your whole relationship to your program - and you life...I reveal news about my upcoming free live course that will give you the tools to master your practice (whether you're a beginner or a veteran).Discussed in the episode...The important questions you need to ask yourself to know if you're on the right track. We also discuss why "all practices are designed to fail" and how...2020-09-1728 minServe Conscious"Fulfillment" is a Mental Program - Install It Into Your Service Life! | Ep.80“I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy.” ― TagoreBuilding on the the previous week's episode on meaning and purpose (but also standing alone), this episode is about - no big deal - fulfillment. Big topic, but what if fulfillment wasn't some huge "ultimate aspiration", but a natural emotional state that we can tap into at any time - all we need is the right tools. Discussed inside:Why do high achievers (let's say wealthy...2020-09-1540 minServe ConsciousFind Meaning & Purpose In Life As A Laborer | Ep. 79Happy labor day!So, I don't know where I get off speaking about today's struggles in the same conversation as surviving the holocaust, American slavery and working conditions during the early industrial era. But its survivors (and casualties) have brought us some important lessons on resilience, dignity and self-understanding as working people. I like extreme examples to illustrate the finer points of my rather un-extreme and comfortable modern life. And to challenge me to have gratitude and authority over the privileged life I've been given.**Slight correction: I said on the episode that...2020-09-0733 minServe ConsciousMaster The Essential Service Tool: Attention | Ep.78This is a core discussion on mindfulness and service. The straight essentials to implement mindfulness into your service life and watch it transform. Learn practices for building the power of our attention - after all, good service is proportionate to the amount of attention we can give it. And the same is with mindfulness! Whoa! It's as though mindfulness and service go hand-in-hand (oh wait, that's what inspire this whole Serve Conscious project).Items of interest:Service demands that we meet the moment on its own terms rather than pushing against it with our...2020-08-3138 minServe ConsciousHow Your Most Valuable Service Tool Could Be Absence From Serving | Ep. 77I get back into discussing lockdown life and how to truly take advantage of this time in isolation.Items of interest in this episode:If you want to next level how you do something, then you need to change your thinking patterns on it. And to do that, you need to do something that gets you thinking/perceiving differently. More lessons I gained from more of my crises. This particular one involved me getting tired of enabling my clientele's tendency to hide from themselves (via poison, AKA: alcohol), which led to my departure from t...2020-08-2635 minServe ConsciousService Life Can Be A Source of Shame...So Befriend It | Ep. 76In this episode you'll learn about how common it can be to experience shame in the service experience and techniques that determine whether it will be a great ally or a terrible enemy.What do you picture when I say the word "shame"? Perhaps it's that cartoonish display of someone shrinking into a corner, mousy and red-faced. Maybe there's a wagging finger from an authority, bullying us into being embarrassed about something. Shame is so much more than that. Inside:How shame is a universal human experience that gets especially agitated in...2020-08-1732 minServe ConsciousMake Mindfulness Stick To Your Service Culture | feat. Andy Lee | Ep. 75Andy's the best. Speaking to him always gives me a sense of his tremendous understanding of the inner struggles we experience in work life. And a very encouraging assurance that we have the power to gather ourselves, live comfortably in our skin and face the challenges of the day. Andy founded and ran the legendary mindfulness program at Aetna Health and now works independently to help organizations weave mindfulness into its culture. He brings wisdom, humanity and - thanks to his background as an organizational psychologist - a unique level of academic rigor to his mission.2020-07-1355 minServe ConsciousReal Service is a Revolution of Daily Life (Racial Sensitivity Series III) | Ep. 74Racial justice indeed requires broad social change. However, it's not just a matter of big impactful systemic shifts. And it's also on us to refine how we interact on a day-to-day basis. It is important to know the power of little interactions throughout the day and the endless opportunities that a service environment provides to have them - especially the opportunities to refine how we communicate and behave.Go Deeper Into The Mindful Service Movement:Explore The Book ToC w/ Live Content LinksJoin the Facebook Community & Bring Us Your Service Struggles...2020-07-0638 minServe ConsciousHow Love Really Works in Service (Racial Sensitivity Series II) | Ep. 73I continue to fumble through the racial justice and its relevance to mindful service. And yeah, that's right, I'm dropping the L-bomb this episode. Are you uncomfortable? Great, well, this is supposed to be a time of uncomfortable conversations. And if you approach these conversations mindfully, it means you're willing to inquire within as to why they feel so uncomfortable. So now that I'm bringing up love, take a minute and explore why that word makes you squirm a little.Because this is the word that is the antidote to the disease of racism the world over...2020-06-2727 minServe ConsciousServe With Racial Sensitivity | Ep. 72If you feel like you don't know how to be of value to the present social unrest and demand for racial justice (or even approach it at all), then don't worry, you're not alone. But, if you've been serving mindfully then in some ways you've been preparing your mindset for this. You have a chance to really action these principles in a way that counts - to participate in the healing of people that have suffered in ways that you cannot know.Everything you've been trying to do more effectively along your mindful service journey - listening...2020-06-1525 minServe ConsciousReal Service Skills | Also: New Course Announcement | Ep. 71With service, there are technical skills you can learn...and then there are skills that make actually competent at interfacing with other human beings. It is extraordinary how much any education of these skills is absent from the usual professional training, parenting, or any level of schooling (including the highest levels of academia). They're skills I had to learn from the trials and tribulations of endlessly bumping into walls of frustration and bewilderment. I totally understand. These skills are deep, sometimes esoteric concepts that you would normally find in Eastern wisdom systems like Buddhism and Yoga. I...2020-05-2728 minServe ConsciousBringing Humanity Back To Large-Scale Service Pt. 2 | feat. Joel Bailey | Service With New Purpose Series | Ep. 70Part two of my discussion with service design visionary Joel Bailey. This episode be listened on it's own, but I highly recommend first checking out part one here. It was amazing and massively educating to speak with such a kindred spirit who is working with large companies, institutions and public services and proving that you can bring humanity and consciousness back to service in a way that is scalable. Our chat hinges off of his article What COVID19 Tells Us About Service, but expands into a sweeping discussion covering so many dimensions of how service-in-general needs be...2020-05-1946 minServe ConsciousBringing Humanity Back To Large-Scale Service Pt. 1 | feat. Joel Bailey | Service With New Purpose Series | Ep. 69Welcome another chapter of the Service With New Purpose Series! So excited to share part one of my discussion with service design visionary Joel Bailey. The discussion was lengthy and rich, so I'm delivering it as a two-course meal for easier digestion (listen to part 2 here). It was amazing and massively educating to speak with such a kindred spirit who is working with large companies, institutions and public services and proving that you can bring humanity and consciousness back to service in a way that is scalable. Our chat hinges off of his article What C...2020-05-1335 minServe ConsciousConnecting & Empowering Communities: From Local to Microscopic | Service With New Purpose Pt. 3 | feat. Tico Aran & Susan Cartiglia | Ep. 68Although we’re in a time where we might be tempted to view microorganisms as the enemy, Susan & Tico will always be the closest friends and collaborators with the microbial world. Discover how they're living their motto of compassion, culture and community in more ways than one:Conscious business owners like Susan & Tico tend to realize when all the success in the world doesn’t compare to the fulfillment offered by life’s simplest interactions. Hear about how the Coronavirus opened up surprising opportunities to successfully do what they’ve always wanted to do with their Kombucha and fermente...2020-05-0654 minServe ConsciousHospitality for Our Heroes | Service With New Purpose Pt. 2 | feat. Albert Bitton | Ep. 67Welcome to part 2 of the podcasts' Service With New Purpose Series! Basically, I'm now dedicating most of the podcast to speaking with brilliant and visionary service-oriented minds that are now living and working in a whole new world of service. Whether people work in a dormant service industry (i.e. bars/restaurants, hotels), an active one (online stuff, essential services, etc.) or are simply living a service-oriented life, they are facing tremendous challenges that are offering potentially valuable insights for the rest of us. Many have been kind enough to speak with me and give...2020-04-2945 minServe ConsciousThe Best Thing You Can Do For The World Right Now? Transform Yourself | Service With New Purpose Pt. 1 | feat. Dushan Zaric | Ep. 66Welcome to the Service With New Purpose series! Basically, I'm now dedicating most of the podcast to speaking with brilliant and visionary service-oriented minds that are now living and working in a whole new world of service. Whether people work in a dormant service industry (i.e. bars/restaurants, hotels), an active one (online stuff, essential services, etc.) or are simply living a service-oriented life, they are facing tremendous challenges that are offering potentially valuable insights for the rest of us. Many have been kind enough to speak with me and give me the opportunity to ask...2020-04-2252 minServe ConsciousThe Importance of Embracing The Rude, Distracted Masses | Ep. 65This episode centers around a 2007 social experiment performed by Washington Post magazine. Basically, Jacob Bell (one of the world's greatest violinists) played a stirring piece of music on a $3 million violin in the middle of a busy metro stations and only 7 people stopped to listen during the 43-minute performance. I discuss what's at play here and how it reveals an important ingredient that is so often missing from people's practice of mindfulness - and service.This One Discusses:The importance of becoming more compassionate for people as you become more present and aware...2020-04-1530 minServe ConsciousBe The Kind-rona Virus: Learn The Power You Have To Make an Impact as a Service Person | Ep. 64Consider All This:We think the service role as lowly, but this is simply cultural conditioning that we need to break. Learn how to see through your false thinking that you don't have value to offer the world and see the power to have a radiating impact on everyone you encounter.Coronavirus has reminded us how amazing of a vessel the human body is for transmitting contagions - so infect people with your kindness through service! (Either the wrong ...or the best imagery).Experience growth and joy through the doing of...2020-04-0934 minServe ConsciousHow Mindful Service is a Universal Skill (Serving Even When There's No One Around To Serve Pt. 2) | Ep. 63Every skill is translatable. Everything is practice for the next level you wish to take your life to. In moments of crisis (i.e. now), don't worry, you've been training for it your whole life - through every opportunity you've taken to pay attention, be compassionate, understand things better, and choose to de-escalate rather than react.This episode wants you to understand...How mindfulness really works.Our biggest tools for handling challenges.Why we struggle and the tools we need to avoid the default response.Challenges can cause two highly ineffective responses: reactivity and...2020-04-0535 min
The DTPHD PodcastWhy Judging Isn’t Always Bad w/ Stefan Ravalli | DTPHD Podcast Episode 29Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life.
Join our private Facebook group here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/
NOTE: The audio quality for this podcast is better on the audio-only platforms, such as Spreaker, Soundcloud, iTunes, etc. See the links below.
*****
Get free access to Stefan and David's new mantra meditation course here:
https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/
*****
For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love...2020-03-2736 min
The DTPHD Podcast by David Tian, Ph.D.Why Judging Isn’t Always Bad w/ Stefan Ravalli | DTPHD Podcast 29***** Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life. Join our private Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/ ***** Get free access to Stefan and David’s new mantra meditation course here: https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/ ***** For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love lives. His presentations - whether keynotes, seminars, or worksh...2020-03-2736 min
The DTPHD Podcast by David Tian, Ph.D.Gratitude Drives Out Fear (w/ Stefan Ravalli) | DTPHD Podcast 28***** Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life. Join our private Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/ ***** Get free access to Stefan and David’s new mantra meditation course here: https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/ ***** For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love lives. His presentations - whether keynotes, seminars, or worksh...2020-03-2547 min
The DTPHD PodcastGratitude Drives Out Fear (w/ Stefan Ravalli) | DTPHD Ep. 28Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life.
Join our private Facebook group here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/
NOTE: The audio quality for this podcast is better on the audio-only platforms, such as Spreaker, Soundcloud, iTunes, etc. See the links below.
*****
Get free access to Stefan and David's new mantra meditation course here:
https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/
*****
For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love...2020-03-2547 minServe ConsciousServing Even When There's No One Around To Serve Pt. 1 - Service Essentials | Ep. 62Well, that escalated quickly. Suddenly I'm at home all day because, like most hospitality professionals, I'm not entirely employed anymore. In this episode, I discuss how times like this are powerful opportunities to explore what really matters in our lives. And to understand the essence of how it is we wish to serve in this life. It doesn't matter what it is you're doing, it matters how you're doing it and the person you're practicing as while doing it.Recommended Pairings: Lifestyle, Pre-Service & In-Service Practices To Maximize Your Well-Being & Capability (Service Skills You're...2020-03-2424 min
Serve ConsciousLifestyle, Pre-Service & In-Service Practices To Maximize Your Well-Being & Capability (Service Skills You're Never Taught Pt. 6) | Ep. 61What's the most important factor determining the success and satisfaction you get from serving? You. Service is dependent on your state of mind. And that's dependent on your general health and well-being. So the way you live your life gets taken into every service exchange.Recommended Pairings: Meditation: The Most Powerful Tool For Upgrading the Way We ServeYour ability to serve is determined by how you wake up, eat, think, breath, move and do almost anything in your life. Doing these things mindfully, intently and in a way that serves you transforms...2020-02-2434 min
The DTPHD Podcast by David Tian, Ph.D.The Practice of Practice: Mindful Training for Success & Happiness w/ Stefan Ravalli | DTPHD Podcast 27***** Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life. Join our private Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/ ***** Get free access to Stefan and David’s new mantra meditation course here: https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/ ***** For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love lives. His presentations - whether keynotes, seminars, or worksh...2020-02-2135 min
The DTPHD PodcastThe Practice of Practice: Mindful Training for Success & Happiness w/ Stefan Ravalli | DTPHD Ep. 27Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life.
Join our private Facebook group here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/
NOTE: The audio quality for this podcast is better on the audio-only platforms, such as Spreaker, Soundcloud, iTunes, etc. See the links below.
*****
Get free access to Stefan and David's new mantra meditation course here:
https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/
*****
For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love...2020-02-2135 min
Serve ConsciousService Ninja Moves For Dealing With "Difficult People" (Service Skills You're Never Taught Pt. 5) | Ep. 60Notice the quotation marks around “difficult people”? Honestly, there is no such thing as an objectively difficult person. There is only the soup of emotional reactions you have to particular types of people that aren’t your favorite flavor. Obviously, you should keep yourself physically safe, but in most situations, people are only as harmful to the extent that you tell yourself they are compromising you. As Gandhi would say, "No one hurts me unless I let them."Recommended Pairings: Learn How To Navigate People’s NeedsThis episode discusses strategies for managing situatio...2020-02-1829 min
The DTPHD Podcast by David Tian, Ph.D.How to Grow Out of Your Comfort Zone Naturally (w/ Stefan Ravalli) | DTPHD Podcast 25***** Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life. Join our private Facebook group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/ ***** Get free access to Stefan and David’s new mantra meditation course here: https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/ ***** For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love lives. His presentations - whether keynotes, seminars, or worksh...2020-01-3131 min
The DTPHD PodcastHow to Grow Out of Your Comfort Zone Naturally (w/ Stefan Ravalli) | DTPHD Podcast 25Join David Tian on the “DTPHD Podcast” as we explore deep questions of meaning, success, truth, love, and the good life.
Join our private Facebook group here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/dtphdpodcast/
NOTE: The audio quality for this podcast is better on the audio-only platforms, such as Spreaker, Soundcloud, iTunes, etc. See the links below.
*****
Get free access to Stefan and David's new mantra meditation course here:
https://www.tenshinmindfulness.com/
*****
For over a decade, David Tian, Ph.D., has helped hundreds of thousands of people from over 87 countries find happiness, success, and fulfillment in their social, professional, and love...2020-01-3131 min
Serve ConsciousObservation Skills: They're Truly Being Mastered When They're Used On Yourself (Service Skills You're Never Taught Pt. 4) | Ep. 59True service comes from the inside out. This means that, although being able to observe your environment, the people in it, and what's needed of you in each moment, the key subject of your observation needs to be yourself. In this episode you'll learn how this can be done in tandem with the basic awareness of the outside world that's required to do your job and, y'know, function as a human being.The fourth installment of a powerful new series about practical service skills with endless applications to every aspect of life. They are often overlooked because...2020-01-2829 min
Serve ConsciousGratitude: What Truly Inspires Service (and Happiness) | Ep. 58Learn gratitude practices to start your day and also apply to challenging situations. They will transform how you experience life.Recommended Pairings: the Serve Conscious podcast episode on Mastery. All of this is true:Gratitude is at least as important as meditation, mindfulness or any practice you're doing to become a happy, thriving human being. It is a shortcut to enjoying life, fast-tracking your improvement and doing what you do more effectively.Truly serving well depends on how much you are happy to do it. This is a function...2020-01-1734 min
Serve ConsciousPower Everything with Positive Intention and Watch Your Service Life Transform (Service Skills You're Never Taught Pt. 3) | Ep. 57Service (and all activities in life) is not so much about what you’re doing, but the intention behind it. And that intention can be positive without feeling artificial, strained or anything but authentic. I’ve found putting positive intention behind the simplest of activities (especially with anything I’m doing for others) can totally transform my relationships, joy of life, and general effectiveness doing anything. And it’s all an internal practice. All done covertly, with no need to project any sort of demeanor or convince anyone of your positive intentions.Recommended pairings: my incredib...2020-01-1125 min
Serve ConsciousSay What You Mean...And Speak To Our Shared Dignity - Mindfully Communicating w/ Oren Jay Sofer | Ep. 56Happy 2020! The podcast is starting off the year with a very special interview on the transformative power of mindful communication. Truly listening, understanding, and speaking to what's really needed can make the humblest of interactions feel truly alive. And my discussion with Oren Jay Sofer, the subject's most definitive voice, was bursting with such aliveness at every moment. So many insights. So much value.Oren Jay Sofer is also a very dynamic social servant. With a focus on teaching meditation and communication throughout the world, Oren is a member of the Spirit Rock Teachers Council. He is...2020-01-021h 04
Serve ConsciousCompassion Should Be Served At All Occasions (Service Skills You're Never Taught Pt. 2) | Ep. 55An episode themed for the holidays! (Though any talk of service is relevant to this time of year...and any "holiday spirit" of service is relevant to every day of the year).The second episode of a powerful new series about practical service skills with endless applications to every aspect of life. They are often overlooked because they work on deeper levels than the surface technical skills than the modern service industry seems tends to over-prioritize. But learning these skills means learning true skillfulness (in the Eastern sense of acquiring wisdom, maturity and effectiveness) and transforming your...2019-12-2428 min
Serve ConsciousTrue Hospitality Means The Employees Get Just As Much Care As The Clientele - Interview w/ John DeBary | Ep. 54Hospitality expert and social servant John deBary discusses his extraordinary and (unfortunately) unique not-for-profit The Restaurant Worker's Community Organization. (Unfortunate because there should be organizations like this everywhere). This is a very important interview where we discuss less about developing your own mindful savviness and more about developing awareness about the greater structural issues of the hospitality industry. All of this true:Equal opportunity and quality of life are such bigger issues in the restaurant industry than you think they are. Workers don't know their rights and employees don't even know what rights they are unw...2019-12-161h 05
Serve ConsciousLearn How To Navigate People's Needs (Service Skills You're Never Taught Pt. 1) | Ep. 53The first episode of a powerful new series about practical service skills with endless applications to every aspect of life. They are often overlooked because they work on deeper levels than the surface technical skills than the modern service industry seems tends to over-prioritize. But learning these skills means learning true skillfulness (in the Eastern sense of acquiring wisdom, maturity and effectiveness) and transforming your service into one of power and possibility.All of this is true:Needs are unfairly stigmatized in this culture. Learning how to recognize and attend to them will...2019-12-0737 min
Serve ConsciousServing Mindfully = Understanding How Free You Are | Ep. 52All of this is true:Freedom is not what you think it is. Break the conditioning you have around "being obligated" to do anything and watch your life improve. You're always free and yet you're never in control of anything (except yourself). Learn to navigate this reality and you will serve to your highest potential.Own your decisions and experience more empowerment, gratitude, and opportunity. Use meditation and mindfulness to understand what truly matters to you and your own agency to claim the life you want, consequences be damned. Then you wi...2019-11-2229 min
Serve ConsciousFinal Installment: The Unexpectedly Inspiring Hard Truths of Service - You Don't Deserve Better | Ep. 51Conclusion of the series designed to help you develop strength, grit and self-sufficiency by making peace with realities that you may not readily acknowledge. They seem grim on the surface, but are troves of wisdom that will help you be mindful, empowered service professionals. This one is about shedding entitlement.All of this is true: Self-worth is not a function of how much you think you deserve. Shed this old conditioning, hack feelings of non-acceptance and take your service game to the next level. Entitlement is not grand, pompous and puffed up, but can b...2019-11-1627 minServe ConsciousThe Beginner's Mind: Serving With True Wisdom By Forgetting Everything (You Think) You Know | Ep. 50It's the podcast's 50th episode anniversary so I am discussing principles to take your service mindset to the next level - and it involves a starting from an open, unbiased perspective. The Zen principle of "The Beginner's Mind" involves a sort of "wise innocence" that allows maximum readiness, learning and growth from any given moment without abandoning all the knowledge and skill you've developed over the years. All of this is possible:Bring presence and enthusiasm to situations that others would find boring, repetitious or overly familiar. Recognize how each moment is unique a...2019-11-0726 min
Serve ConsciousAll Service Is Empowering...If You're Humble I Ep. 49Understand what power truly is and how service is the perfect place to cultivate it. However, really tapping into its transformative power requires more humility than we are usually willing.All of this is true:Power is not what you think it is. We misunderstand power as something you have over others (dominance, manipulation, influence), when it is something you cultivate within and export in service of others.Service is a means of cultivating inner power and testing how far you have truly come.Learn about the relationship between humility, discomfort an...2019-10-3030 min
Serve ConsciousThe Unexpectedly Inspiring Hard Truths of Service Pt. 7 - Nothing Will Go Your Way | Ep. 48The series continues. Develop strength, grit and self-sufficiency by making peace with realities that we normally avoid. They seem grim on the surface, but are troves of wisdom that help us be mindful empowered service professionals. This one is about gratitude and adaptability. All of this is true: If everything went you’re way you’d get bored and learn nothing (about yourself and life). Connect to the part of you that craves and embraces uncertainty and stands at the ready for life to inevitably deliver the challenges that you most need (especially if you don't immed...2019-10-1724 min
Serve ConsciousThe Unexpectedly Inspiring Hard Truths of Service Pt. 6 - Everything is Your Fault | Ep. 47The series continues. Realities we avoid acknowledging that can provide us with strength, grit and self-sufficiency. They seem grim on the surface, but are troves of wisdom that help us be mindful empowered service professionals. This one is about personal responsibility.All of this is true: The “personal” aspect of personal responsibility needs to be emphasized here. You aren’t responsible for the experiences of others…and yet you will find that you get infinitely better results by being considerate of them. You don’t need to feel deficient just because someone responded negatively to so...2019-10-1033 min
Serve ConsciousThe Unexpectedly Inspiring Hard Truths of Service Pt. 5 - You're Never Right | Ep. 46The series continues. Realities we avoid acknowledging that can provide us with strength, grit and self-sufficiency. They seem grim on the surface, but are troves of wisdom that help us be mindful empowered service professionals. Making a drama out of our differences and the need to be the one that's right is one of the greatest obstacles to being of service. I discuss how to understand and hack righteousness. And to know when it’s working is subtle and insidious ways. All of this is true: The desire to feel connected...2019-10-0326 min
Serve ConsciousKelsey Mathes Interview Recap: Key Points Plugged Into Mindful Service | Ep. 45My reflection on the fascinating discussion with Kelsey Mathes in the most recent interview episode "Ego-Driven Fear, Self-Transformation, Empowered Work…and Other Barroom Chat." A short episode providing summaries, key takeaways and impactful ideas.Key Points:How to deal with periods where we realize that we're over-committed to aspect of our lives that are no longer serving us. We over-dramatize our lives to give them meaning, but this absorbs your energy and identity into your circumstances. Plug into who you really are through meditation and mindfulness, and break your need to define yourself by your circumstances. This i...2019-09-2624 min
Serve ConsciousEgo-Driven Fear, Self-Transformation, Empowered Work...and Other Barroom Chat - Interview w/ Kelsey Mathes | Ep. 44Kelsey Mathes is a transformational coach and meditation teacher who also happens to be forged in the fires of a long hospitality career. She now works with people to help them start businesses and side hustles - especially when they are held back by job and life obligations that are no longer serving them. She incorporates her training as a meditation teacher with Ziva meditation and holistic health consultant to give her clients the tools to shift their lives by shifting themselves from the inside. She was kind enough to talk about her recent foray back into a service-oriented job...2019-09-191h 07
Serve ConsciousThe Unexpectedly Inspiring Hard Truths of Service Pt. 4 - You're Gonna Die | Ep. 43All of this is true:1. I'm experimenting with shorter episode times (for solo stuff). Let me know how you like this format.2. The Japanese slogan of tea ceremony "Ichi-go Ichi-e" essentially means the threat of constant assassination can make you more mindful, grateful, and of service.3. Gratitude is empowering in ways that you can't imagine.4. Truly living requires an "ownership reversal" means taking ownership of what's not5. Gratitude requires the strength of a warrior because it involves breaking all conditioning around behaviors that you don't like.6. You can convert all of people's r...2019-09-1325 min
Serve ConsciousThe Unexpectedly Inspiring Hard Truths of Service Pt. 3 - People Will Disappoint You | Ep. 42All of this is true:1. I'm experimenting with shorter episode times (for solo stuff). Let me know how you like this format.2. People don't suck, you just expect them to be different than they are. 3. You can have expectations, priorities, preferences, goals, etc., and still be nimble enough to respond to reality dealing you a different hand...in fact this is the key to truly thriving. I discuss how to develop a non-attached relationship to your expectations of the people you serve o you can have more success and less frustration. 4. You don't need a hi...2019-09-1026 min
Serve ConsciousWu De Interview Recap: Plugged Into Mindful Service Life | Ep. 41My reflections on my fascinating discussion with Wu De in the previous episode: Walk The Line Between Freedom & Discipline – Interview w/ Zen Tea Monk Wu De. I'll now be doing follow up episodes that summarize some of the points made in the interview and connect them do the challenges and opportunities of service life.Key Points:How Cha Dao (sitting with and serving tea mindfully) has completely transformed my ability to serve, live and do everything.Taking practice beyond the mat/cushion: the power and importance of being mindful in everything we do.How a practices lik...2019-09-0420 min
Serve ConsciousWalk The Line Between Freedom & Discipline - Interview w/ Zen Tea Monk Wu De | Ep. 40All of this is true:Wu De provides a fascinating introduction to the lost art of Cha Dao (The Way of Tea), a practice that both inspired me to be a better hospitality professional and a better meditation teacher.Sitting with tea (real tea) in attentive silence for a few minutes every day will absolutely transform your life.As "civilized" humans we have lost connection (or more: "sense of connection") to nature and the innate wisdom it provides us with. Sitting with tea mindfully can re-connect us to our natural intuitive b...2019-09-021h 32
Serve ConsciousThe Unexpectedly Inspiring Hard Truths of Service Pt. 2: No One is Going to Save You & Pleasure Doesn't Last | Ep. 39Part two of the five-part series on becoming mentally and emotionally self-sufficient. Serve with the warrior spirit by reconciling and learning to navigate the hard truth that....3) No one is going to save you.4) Pleasure doesn't last.This episode gives you the tools to:::Know how to engage with important and influential people such that you stand out from the status-seekers.::Create relationships that have integrity and allow you to be of value to others.::Create your own opportunities for growth and success that are better than anything someone you're hoping...2019-08-2639 min