Tag: how to share

How to Share A Re-Imagined Sci-Fi Trilogy

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“The power of imagination makes us infinite.” – John Muir

Vicki Atkinson and I recently recorded a podcast conversation with someone with a remarkable resume. Wayne Runde is an author, physician and veteran US Navy Commander, Wayne Runde. How’s that for a combo?

Wayne tells us about his book, Shadow of the Deceiver, the third installment in The Genesis Trust series. It’s a re-imagining of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation Series. We hear about why he was called to start writing even with his busy schedule and a fascinating set of hobbies from gardening to developing software.

Vicki and I ask about the intersection of science, morality and humanity that is a cornerstone for his writing and stories. Wayne tells us where he finds inspirations for characters from his professional life and his personal interactions within his church community.

This is a great episode with an author that has done a fabulous job of reimagining this classic series. We know you’ll love it.

Here’s a clip of Wayne helping to connect the dots of how his disparate interests and hobbies come together:

Here are some ways you can listen and watch this interesting episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this episode:

Transcript for How to Share a Reimagined Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde

Wayne Runde’s website

Shadow of the Deceiver: The Genesis Trust, Book 3 on Amazon and Barnes & Noble

From the hosts:

Vicki’s book about resilience and love: Surviving Sue; Blog: https://victoriaponders.com/

My book about my beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith

(featured photo from Pexels)

How to Share Advocacy – Part 2

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“A very small degree of hope is sufficient to cause the birth of love.” – Stendhal

Recently Vicki and I got an email from author and advocate Sam Daley-Harris that was shocking. Sam reported good news about the budgeting process for global health. I think what was most shocking to me was that something in our government worked. I know that sounds cynical. But given the news these days, I thought it was all stand-offs and insults.

Sam noted in the email why it was successful, “They didn’t do it by protesting, though protests matter, nor by funding lawsuits, though lawsuits matter, or even through elections work, though elections matter. They did it through transformational advocacy, building relationships with elected officials who make decisions in their name and, in the process, building a little bit of backbone in Congress.“

Vicki and I talked with Sam Daley-Harris about transformational advocacy last July on the How to Share podcast. We scheduled another conversation with to follow up on this good news (see clip below). Sam gives us a great formula for overcoming cynicism and hopelessness and suggestions for how to get started.

Sam shares personal stories and insights on how individuals can reclaim their power and make a difference in their communities and the world. He also offers to be a guide to connect you to a group that matches your interest and values. Sam has spent 40 years as an advocate on things like global health, world hunger, climate change, and global poverty – filling out his sign-up sheet is like getting a free ride to exactly where you need to go.

We love talking with Sam because he shares how to be effective and counter the effects of fear, cynicism and loneliness. We know you’ll love this conversation!

Takeaways

  • Advocacy requires facing our own hopelessness to find purpose.
  • Transformational advocacy involves deeper engagement than transactional actions.
  • Building relationships with legislators can lead to meaningful change.
  • The state of democracy is influenced by citizen engagement and activism.
  • Progress and positive changes are not often featured in today’s news reporting.
  • Commitment to advocacy can lead to personal transformation.
  • Every individual has the power to make a difference.

Here’s a clip highlighting some of Sam’s good news and perspective on how we can make a difference:

Here are some ways you can listen and watch this incredible episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this episode:

Transcript for How to Share Advocacy Part 2

Sam’s Sign-up Sheet for resources on how to get started

Reclaiming Our Democracy website

Reclaiming Our Democracy: Every Citizen’s Guide to Transformational Advocacy, 2024 Edition on Amazon

From the hosts:

Vicki’s book about resilience and love: Surviving Sue; Blog: https://victoriaponders.com/

My book about my beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith

(featured photo from Pexels)

How to Share a Mission

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”There are only two lasting bequests we can give our children. One is roots, the other is wings.” – Hodding Carter

In the days when I watched tv (somewhere about a decade ago before I had kids and started going to bed early so I could wake up early enough to write in that hour before they wake up), I really enjoyed watching Dancing with the Stars. There is something fascinating about watching someone translate their skills from one arena to another. Like when a football player does a ballroom dance and it reveals something essential about what they bring no matter the format.

It reminds me of the guest I spoke with on the How to Share podcast this week. Anthony Dyer was special missions aviator for the US Air Force for 20 years. Now he’s written a gripping memoir, Moon Child: Roots and Wings of a USAF Combat Special Missions Aviator. In it you see his courage. First on the battlefield and then in his vulnerability in writing about it.

Anthony knows how to bring it. Here’s a short excerpt that gives a taste of his inspirational courage:

“In gambling, playing with house money means you’re ahead, taking risks with what you’ve already won. That’s exactly how I wanted to exist earthside: bold, fearless, and unburdened by the fear of losing. Life itself was the ultimate win, and I was determined to make the most of it. Living a ‘house money life’ means living with the mindset that you’re already ahead and willing to take the risks with what you’ve already achieved without fearing losing. It’s about embracing life’s uncertainties and challenges and making the most of every opportunity.” – Anthony Dyer, Moon Child: Roots and Wings of a USAF Combat Special Missions Aviator.

Anthony tells us how he went from a childhood in Appalachia to becoming a special missions aviator for the US Air Force. We talk about how his desire to make a difference in the world led to a 20-year-career in the military.

He reveals how he healed from the visible and invisible wounds of war, healing by picking up a pen instead of a bottle. He tells us how he met his wife and what their mission is now.

Anthony has so many incredible insights about how to live fully, heal, and integrate traumatic experiences. He tells us what motto is inspiring him today. This is a great episode with an insightful author who takes life by the horns. I know you’ll love it.

Takeaways

  • Anthony chose writing over alcohol to heal from trauma.
  • The importance of aviate, navigate, communicate in life.
  • Healing can come from vulnerability and sharing stories.
  • Family plays a crucial role in personal healing.
  • God can help you rebuild after trauma.
  • Scars are badges of honor, representing resilience.
  • Conversations with God can lead to personal growth.
  • Fatherhood is Anthony’s most important mission now.
  • Roots and wings symbolize balance in life.

Here’s a great clip of Anthony talking about how writing has helped heal the wounds of war:

Here are some ways you can watch or listen to all of this fascinating and inspiring episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this episode:

How to Share a Mission Transcript

Moon Child: Roots and Wings of a USAF Combat Special Missions Aviator on Barnes and Noble and Amazon

From the host:

My book about my beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith

(featured photo from Pexels)

Local Relationships: The Key to Thriving in an AI World

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“When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they can seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall. Think of it–always.” – Mahatma Gandhi

I was out walking Cooper last week when a neighbor stopped me and asked me what I thought about AI. She and her partner are retired therapists. They have a brilliant young son who works in high-tech so I think she was looking for reassurance more than she wanted information.

In my middle class neighborhood in Seattle, there’s a lot to worry about these days. The layoffs at Microsoft and Amazon have hit hard. They are posts in the grocery stores about eco-anxiety groups. The school district is worried about measles outbreaks. Folks are wondering if Seattle is on the short list for an ICE surge.

But amidst all this uncertainty, I witness concrete examples of people offering to help, creating systems to protect the vulnerable, coming together to make life easier, and celebrating the things when things go right.

As an engineer, I can think of many ways AI will change things but I am not a prognosticator. This moment with AI feels a lot like when the Internet was new to businesses. Everyone raced to get a public facing website up and use all the new HTML codes as they were released. Kinda like all the AI offerings and proliferation of bots we see now.

But as the 2001 Internet bubble burst attested, no one really knew how the Internet would be used. It has come to showcase some of the best and worst of humanity. I suspect AI will do the same.

As we carried our portable chairs away from the Seahawks parade last week, Miss O said to me, “I love our community.” I asked if she meant Seattle. “No, Seattle is good but I meant all the people we met at the parade.” In the three hours we spent waiting and waving, we formed bonds with others by sharing our space, snacks, and footballs.

So I told my neighbor that I think that AI doesn’t change the fact that our biggest impact is rooted locally and in the here and now like it was for us at the parade. We can find our inner peace, cultivate our faith in God and others, and keep showing up. I believe that it’s important to work to advocate for the environment, businesses and government we want. But what makes an immediate difference in our lives and in the lives of others is creating relationships, showing kindness, and doing the next right thing. And AI doesn’t change that.

P.S. One thing that keeps me hopeful is the amazing podcast conversations I’m lucky enough to have with people whose stories reflect their struggle – to survive, to understand, to thrive – all while sharing what they’ve learned. In tough times like these, episodes like these keep me believing that love will win.

(featured photo is a red heart that provides a beacon of hope in our neighborhood)

How to Share Perspective

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“Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable.” – Sydney Smith

I’ve told this story before but it still cracks me up. When my daughter was three-years- old, I asked her how many houses she could see when she looked out the ground floor window of our house, it was about three.

Then I took her up to the floor above and ask her how many she could see and it was about seven.

Finally we went out onto the little deck on our rooftop and I asked her how many she could see and it was more than she had numbers for. “Miss O” I said “this is the perspective that you get when you are older, you know that everything fits into a larger picture and you are able to see more of it.”

Miss O’s eyes got wide and she looked at me like I was a crazy lady. I admit, that lesson was a little before it’s time. But I love a good dose of perspective. It’s one of the reasons I enjoyed this latest How to Share podcast conversation with author and educator Andrea Simon about her wonderful book, Did You Live the Life You Wanted?

We talk about perspective, regret and the meaning of life. She tells us why she choose to write this story as a novel and how the course she taught about how to write about family plays into her writing.

There are so many fantastic female friendships and characters in this book that spans 50 years. Andrea talks about how she asked men and women if they lived the life they wanted and what she learned differs when women and men answer that question.

We talk about the meaning of life and how writing plays into that. Andrea’s incredible experience as an educator and facilitator shines through as we dig into the depth of life and how we share it.

This is a great episode full of perspective and wisdom with a thoughtful guest. I know you’ll love it.

Takeaways

  • The novel spans 50 years, highlighting female friendships.
  • Writing about family requires sensitivity and respect.
  • Men and women often have different perspectives on life choices.
  • Older women may feel they had fewer options in their careers.
  • Regret can lead to personal growth and new opportunities.
  • It’s important to pursue personal desires as we age.

Here’s Andrea’s fabulous elevator pitch for her novel Did You Have the Life You Wanted?:

Here are some ways you can watch or listen to all of this insightful and helpful episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this episode:

How to Share Perspective transcript

Andrea Simon’s website

Did You Have the Life You Wanted? on Barnes & Noble, and Amazon

From the host:

My book about my beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith

(featured photo from Pexels)

How to Share Music

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“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the wind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything.” – Plato

I’ve seen it on Hallmark cards, Instagram, Facebook, and journal covers. It’s the image of someone doing something gutsy like jumping over a chasm with the words, “Leap and the net will appear.”

I think I’ve found variations of this idea in every spiritual tradition and book of writing advice that I’ve studied. There is something powerful in setting your sights on something and THEN figuring how to make it happen.

Hearing someone else’s story about how they did this is pure inspirational gold. In this episode of the How to Share podcast, author and educator Nancy Shear tells her story of leaping. She was 15 years old when she first heard the Philadelphia Orchestra. She knew she had hear more but she didn’t have the price of the ticket. Through patience and pluck she figured out how to go in by the stage door – and that led to the amazing stories she tells in her book, I Knew a Man Who Knew Brahms.

Nancy and I talk about how sneaking in through the back door of the Philadelphia Orchestra opened so many fascinating doors in her life such landing the job as the assistant librarian to the Philadelphia Orchestra at age 17. We get to ride along with Nancy to meet all the incredible people she got to know including the wonderfully charismatic conductor Leopold Stokowski who starred in Disney’s Fantasia to the incredible cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.

Nancy lets us in on so many fantastic aspects of the workings of an orchestra and I reveal some of the ways her book changed how I listen to a performance. Her nerve, grit, and storytelling will leave you amazed and inspired. I know you’ll love this conversation with the delightful Nancy Shear.

Here are some favorite quotes:

  • “If you have no choice, then you make a life.”
  • “Money is not necessary; it led to my going backstage and meeting all these people.”
  • “Beauty still matters in this battered world.”
  • “What is to lose? You’re walking into a room of human beings.”
  • “Writing the book was where the courage really came in.”

And here’s Nancy telling the story of sneaking in to the Philadelphia Orchestra:

Here are some ways you can watch this fascinating and delightful episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this episode:

How To Share Music transcript

I Knew a Man Who Knew Brahms by Nancy Shear on Barnes & Noble, Amazon and Simon & Schuster

Nancy Shear’s website: https://nancyshear.com/

From the host:

My book about my beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith

(featured photo from Pexels)

(quote from Jennie Fitzkee – Edelweiss)

How to Share 1970’s Chicago

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“Nostalgia: because everything about the past is perfect, except how it led to the present.” – Homer Simpson

The Friday night tv lineup when I was growing up was The Love Boat and then when I was old enough to stay up to 11pm, Fantasy Island. I mention that because our How to Share podcast guest this week, Doug E. Jones, was a production assistant on The Love Boat. But also because for people who are near my age and grew up in America, The Love Boat often evokes a time and place memory for them like what their Friday night ritual was. Funny how some things just bring back such powerful memories.

Doug’s recently published fourth novel, Take Me Back to Chicago (Eckhartz Press) is like that too. It is rich with characters, music, and the feel of Chicago in 1974.

Doug gives Vicki Atkinson and me the elevator pitch for the book and we get a great sense of how he sets up the hero’s journey for his 26-year protagonist.

We talk about the differences and similarities between his novels and Doug tells us what was so compelling about 1974 and some of the popular characters of the time and place like Joe Pepitone.

Vicki and I wondered how writing novels differs from being a tv show writer and Doug gives us a peek into the writing room for the hit show Charmed where he worked as a production assistant and writer for all 178 episodes of the show. We highlight a few of his great lines from the book and it’s easy to see why Doug is a great writer for all formats.

This is a great episode where Doug not only shares the arc of his book journey but a sense of his personal one too. Take Me Back to Chicago is a great book and it makes for a rich episode. We know you’ll love it.

Takeaways

  • Doug E. Jones’s novel is set in 1974 Chicago, rich with cultural references.
  • The protagonist, Rick, faces a significant debt left by his father.
  • The book features strong female characters, including Rick’s daughter Elena.
  • Doug’s writing process involves integrating real Chicago characters and events.
  • The transition from TV writing to novel writing was liberating for Doug.
  • Music plays a crucial role in setting the tone of the story.
  • The character dynamics between Rick and his friend Javi add humor and depth.
  • Historical context is woven into the narrative, enhancing the story’s richness.
  • Doug’s personal experiences influence the characters and settings in his novels.
  • The book is described as a ‘beach read’—entertaining and engaging.

Here’s Doug with the elevator pitch for Take Me Back to Chicago

Here are some ways you can watch this interesting and fun episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this episode:

How to Share1970’s Chicago

Take Me Back to Chicago by Doug E. Jones on Eckhartz Press

Q&A with Take Me Back to Chicago author Doug E. Jones

From the Hosts:

Vicki’s book about resilience and love: Surviving Sue; Blog: https://victoriaponders.com/

My book about my beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith

(featured photo from Pexels)

How to Share Feedback

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“Some of the best advice I’ve been given: ‘Don’t take criticism from people you would never go to for advice.‘” – Morgan Freeman

My dad used the Oreo method when he delivered feedback. It was fitting because he loved Oreos. Perhaps that’s what made him so good at layering in the salty truth between delicious goodness.

He’d start with what was working, add in feedback about what could be better, and then finish it off with a compelling overall vision or motivation. It sounds straightforward when laid out as a formula but as anyone who’s eaten fake Oreos knows, it has to be authentic to work. And the recipient needs to at least be a little hungry for it.

Feedback is tricky, isn’t it? It’s often necessary for us to fuel personal and creative growth, especially with writing, and we sometimes don’t want to hear it. That’s why I love this How to Share podcast episode with Dr. Vicki Atkinson because she is such a pro at both giving and receiving feedback.

Vicki tells us about her project in the works, a novel that builds on her fascinating and intriguing family history. She has done the hard work to not only to write but also to seek out and incorporate feedback. She tells us what she learned from her doctoral dissertation about separating the ego from the work and how that is an essential part of being able to really take in someone else’s input.

We talk about asking the right questions when someone solicits our feedback and also being specific when we want input. And Vicki shows us what having a growth mindset looks like when it comes to incorporating comments.

Vicki walks us through the discernment necessary to pick out what is helpful when it comes to feedback and gives us permission to disregard what doesn’t fit.

This is a great conversation about this tricky subject and Vicki’s wisdom shines brightly through. I know you’ll love it.

Takeaways

  • Feedback is a tricky subject that requires discernment.
  • Separating ego from work is essential for growth.
  • Asking the right questions can lead to more useful feedback.
  • Timing and context matter when giving feedback.
  • Not all feedback is created equal; choose your sources wisely.
  • It’s important to let your work develop before seeking feedback.
  • You can choose which feedback to integrate into your work.

Here’s a great clip of how Vicki practices the art of letting go of the ego:

Here are some ways you can watch this inspiring and helpful episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this episode:

How to Share Feedback transcript

Vicki’s book about resilience and love: Surviving Sue; Blog: https://victoriaponders.com/

My book about my beloved father: Finding My Father’s Faith

(featured photo from Pexels)

How to Share the Next Generation

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“Things are always in transition. Nothing ever sums itself up the way we dream about.” – Pema Chodron

I had this quirky social anxiety when I started the fertility process to have my kids via in vitro fertilization (IVF). It seems so silly now. But at the time I kept thinking that because I was in the process of trying to have kids as a single parent that everyone would know that I was the one who wanted kids. Yep, that was going to be obvious. 🙂

It’s hard to say why that seemed important to me at the time – there is lot to unpack when it comes to family and gender expectations. And perhaps parents who get pregnant the traditional way have the same feeling of vulnerability. It’s hard to know because often family planning is done behind closed doors.

It’s one of the many reasons that I love Mari Sarkisian Wyatt’s book, Saving the Fourth Generation and our conversation on the How To Share podcast. She magically, with self-awareness and dark humor, puts words to the complexity of the IVF process and what it’s like to have goals and obsessions for which it’s worth suffering the ups and downs, grief and miracles.

Mari and I talk about the different types of goals we have as we go through life and her Armenian grandmother’s wisdom about what it takes to make them happen.

There’s so much legacy in Mari’s story because her quest is in many ways a response to the shattering trauma that came from both of her grandparents’ families being decimated in the Armenian massacre of 1915.

We talk about Mari’s way forward as the sole child of her generation to have kids. She tells us how she navigated both the price and process of IVF. Her story is heartbreaking, miraculous and completely gripping.

We talk about her advocacy for her autistic son and how writing about her IVF process, 20 years after the fact provided some healing and delight in the miracle of family.

Mari’s story involves a lawsuit so in accordance with the settlement she’s not on screen for this episode. Nonetheless, Mari is entrancing as she shares the power of her journey and the warmth of her voice.

I know you’ll love it.

Takeaways

  • This is the story of what women and their partners are willing to go through to have babies by IVF at the turn of the 21st century.
  • Mari’s quest quickly became an obsession and she notes obsessions can hurt the people you love.
  • Mari says if you just keep working toward your goal one step at a time, you might just succeed. Hopefully your family will forgive you.
  • Writing this book nearly 25 years after her IVF journey has been healing for Mari and her family.
  • The message is about resilience, personal growth, and the beauty of ordinary days.

Here’s a clip from Mari talking about her incredible book, Saving the Fourth Generation:

Here are some ways you can watch this amazing and thoughtful episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this post:

How to Share the Next Generation transcript

Saving the Fourth Generation from Delphinium Press and on Barnes & Noble and Amazon

(featured photo from Pexels)

How to Share Impactfully with Social Media Friends

Posted in howtoshareTagged , , , , , , 75 Comments

“A little consideration, a little thought to others, makes all the difference.” – Eeyore

About three weeks ago, I opened my laptop to start working and clicked on a Facebook message. A friend that I’d known from Miss O’s pre-school days had died. I burst into tears. It couldn’t be. She’s ten years younger than I am, her youngest child is only 11 years old. She loved being a mom more than anything and I couldn’t believe that she wouldn’t be there to see her beloved kids grow up.

And moreover, because I’d seen the posts where she’d had a car accident about nine months previous and then complications had kept coming up, I was bereft because I hadn’t done anything but post a couple of comments. She wasn’t someone I was particularly close to, but I had so much respect and adoration for her.

It hit me especially hard because I was also in the middle of reading Amy Weinland Daughter’s book, Dear Dana. Dear Dana, is a beautiful chronicle of a letter writing campaign – and a thoughtful reflection of how social media does and does not work for us when it comes to real relationships.

On the latest episode of the How to Share podcast, I was lucky enough to be able to talk with Amy about Dear Dana and the incredible insights she gleaned. Amy tells us how her project got started when she saw on Facebook that her friend from summer camp 30 years before had a son who was sick and needed prayers. Amy starting writing them letters.

She explains how this effort blossomed into a project to write each one of her 580 Facebook friends a letter. We talk about the level of effort involved in writing that many letters and how it was transformative for her.

Amy shares some of the research around the benefits of writing and we talk about the insights of what she learned about the benefits and limitations of social media in the process of her project. One of my favorite a-has is that we can use social as a jumping off points for real relationships because we lose the richness if there is no investment in relationships.

We talk about God-whispers and how listening to them can help us participate in making this world a better place. Amy’s perspective is so real and inspirational that I know it’ll leave you feeling motivated.

This is an incredible episode with a powerful story and loads of magic. I know you’ll love it.

Takeaways

  • The most changed participant in the writing process is often the writer themselves.
  • Writing doesn’t require formal skills or extensive practice.
  • A simple act of writing can have a significant emotional impact.
  • All you need is a postage stamp and a human heart to express yourself.
  • The power of writing has always been within us, waiting to be discovered.
  • Engaging in writing can lead to personal growth and transformation.
  • You don’t need to write hundreds of letters to make a difference.
  • The act of writing can break down barriers to communication.
  • Everyone has the potential to express themselves meaningfully.

Here’s an incredible clip from Amy reminding us that it’s never too late to care:

Here are some ways you can watch this amazing and inspiring episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study – The Life of Try

This episode features host Wynne Leon with a brand-new segment that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like. Our case study: professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling Taipei 101 this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.We’ll break down the real ingredients behind self-improvement, personal growth and big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals of re-invention we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.This is The Life of Try—the podcast where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.Links for this episode:Wynne's blog: https://wynneleon.comFree Solo: A National Geographic documentaryAlex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper
  1. The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  2. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  3. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2
  4. What Do You Know To Be True?
  5. How to Share a Return Home with Mario Cartaya

Links for this post:

How to Share Impactfully with Social Media Friends transcript

Dear Dana on Barnes & Noble and Amazon

Amy’s website

(featured photo from Pexels)