True Calling Project | Finding Purpose and Meaning In Life and Career
80 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 7 years ago - ★★★★★ - 24 ratingsJohn Harrison is a professional psychotherapist and coach. He brings his insight and experience from his former career as a military officer, 9-5 office worker, and his current career as a therapist and coach, in interviews with professionals, psychology experts, and those living their higher potential. Each week you’ll get discussion, stories, and insights on finding your “why”, how to optimize your life and business, and the mental and emotional challenges that can keep you stuck. He and his guests explore the practical and spiritual aspects of engaging in a satisfying career and a meaningful life.
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Episodes
True Take 006: Am I Too Old to Start Something New?
April 12, 2017 02:40 - 2 minutes - 3.66 MBIs it too late to start a new venture or career at this stage of my life? When is a good time? Is there a perfect time? When allowing ourselves to imagine something new, our minds tend to tell us the reasons we can't. One of the most common blocks we can run into is age and perceived timing. However, there really is no perfect time to do anything. There is just time.
Ep. 23 - Beth Luwandi: Presenting a TED Talk with Confidence
April 10, 2017 13:00 - 39 minutes - 43.6 MBBeth Luwandi is a psychotherapist, master communicator, host of the Midlife Love Bytes! podcast, and recent TEDx speaker. We discuss the process of creating and delivering a TED Talk, and the message she wants to share with the world. The theme of TEDxGustavusAdolphusCollege was “Life On Purpose.” As a speaker, she was tasked with condensing the science and experiences of her talk into 12-15 minutes, which was later condensed further to 10 minutes, and memorizing the presentation (and, of ...
True Take 005: Am I Making the Right Decision?
April 06, 2017 15:18 - 2 minutes - 4.05 MBWhy is it so hard to make a decision sometimes? Am I making the "right" decision? How will I know if I am? Making decisions, even seemingly simple ones, can be difficult. The hard part isn't the decision, it's letting go of the need for certainty and answers that's hard. Letting go of judging our situation. Choosing the best option. Having faith that we'll get the answer or results we need. The only thing for certain is that if we don't make a decision and act, nothing will happen at...
True Take 004: The Problem With Labels
April 05, 2017 18:42 - 2 minutes - 3.76 MBWhen we attach a label to ourselves we limit ourselves. Commonly overheard in conversation. "Are you an introvert or an extrovert?" or "What do you do?", we are frequently asked. "Well, I'm a this doing that." What happens to our sense of self when we aren't being defined or categorized? More importantly, what types of unnecessary limitations are we putting on ourselves when we label and ourselves and put ourselves into a box?
True Take 003: It's All a Grind
April 04, 2017 15:52 - 2 minutes - 3.92 MBWhen it comes down to it, much of what sustains long lasting change is simple routine. Simple, boring, routine. It's what separates us from dedication to the process and from going off to our impulsive directions. It's a grind. But can we love the grind?
Ep. 22 - Domenic Nappa: The Power of Yoga
April 03, 2017 13:00 - 38 minutes - 40.5 MBToday’s guest, Domenic Nappa, shares the unique path that brought him from blue collar worker to yoga instructor, and how yoga benefits our physical, mental, and emotional health. We also discuss why our society is kinda screwed up, and what you can do to rise above the noise. Domenic grew up scoffing at yoga, and he had a lot of misconceptions. He worked hard, went to the gym, drank beer, and ate steaks. Yoga looked like feminine stretching and he didn’t see a place for the practice in hi...
True Take 002: Why I Love Getting Older
April 01, 2017 18:31 - 3 minutes - 5.32 MBGetting older doesn't have to mean losing what we used to have. If anything, getting older can bring us an invaluable sense of awareness of who we really are. My kids, my marriage, my job, my physical changes, are all things that remind me that I can't compensate like I used to when I was younger. Age has called me out! Embracing the truths, seeing the weaknesses and shortcomings for what they are. Growth points.
True Take 001: Momentum Beats Motivation
April 01, 2017 17:58 - 1 minute - 2.57 MBStop waiting to get motivated to make a change. Motivation is fleeting. Act. The more you do something new without needing to be motivated, the more momentum that will build. Momentum trumps motivation. Motivation is as fleeting as a sugar rush. It's temporary. Stop looking for it to save you. Act. Think and feel later.
Ep. 21 - Kat Love: Finding Your Purpose
March 27, 2017 13:00 - 26 minutes - 32.1 MBKat Love is a website designer and strategist dedicated to helping psychotherapists get more clients (she designed my beautiful website!). We discuss struggling to find your purpose, how she ultimately discovered a calling, and how empathy influences her web design. “I was struggling to figure out what I really wanted and who I really am for a long time. Some of the figuring out of what you want to do and what you’re passionate about is only going to happen through experience.” Kat choos...
Ep. 20 - Rachel Desrochers: It’s All About Gratitude
March 20, 2017 13:00 - 32 minutes - 35.4 MBToday we’re talking to Rachel Desrochers, the Chief Gratitude Officer at Grateful Grahams. She has a powerful story about how gratitude saved her life and inspired her business, and her attitude is absolutely infectious. “I started Grateful Grahams because gratitude saved my life.” Rachel started Grateful Grahams in 2010 with a few goals: creating her dream job, spreading the message of gratitude, and working with small batches to ensure a great product each time. She also wanted to crea...
Ep. 19 - Lessons in Risk Taking
March 13, 2017 13:00 - 37 minutes - 52.7 MBWe’ve been on this journey together for a few weeks now. I am discovering a lot about what drives people, and I love having the opportunity to share those stories with all of you. Today I want to share my story. I thought I knew what I wanted to do when I was very young, but I spent a long time searching before I found fulfillment. Before I could find it, I had to take a risk and step into the unknown. My first private practice was a side gig in a dirt cheap shared office. I didn’t...
Ep. 18 - How We Can Stop Pursuing the “Thing”
March 06, 2017 14:00 - 21 minutes - 37.5 MBHow often are we in search of things? Happiness, meaning, the perfect job, the perfect relationship… we are constantly searching for the things that we think we should have, have a hard time attaining, and have a hard time sustaining. But trying to get “the thing” is an illusion. In this episode, I break down a few things that we can think about to help reshape our mindset… Expectations. We think that there is a right or wrong way to be, and there isn’t. Right or wrong is a flawed pa...
Ep. 17 - Mark Zinno: Giving Back
February 27, 2017 14:00 - 46 minutes - 42.8 MBMark Zinno, sports talk radio host and Army veteran, recently launched the Hazard Ground podcast. America knows a select few war stories, usually because they are featured in movies. Mark wants to tell all the stories that weren’t made into movies; the stories that people don’t know. Mark is fortunate. He deployed twice and returned twice, mostly unharmed… but his comrades in arms weren’t all as fortunate. The podcast is his way of giving back. “I want to tell soldiers’ stories. P...
Ep. 16 - Matt Pascarella: Turning Interests Into Career Options
February 20, 2017 14:00 - 40 minutes - 36.8 MBYou don’t have to follow a specific path in life. You definitely don’t have to follow a path that makes you unhappy. Matt Pascarella is working on second career goals, podcasting and mountain guiding. These are his goals for a simple reason: they make him happy. He believes the world will be a better place if we focus less on what we should and shouldn’t do, and focus more on what makes us and the people in our life happy. Matt’s new podcast, Hazard Ground, features veterans sharing i...
Ep. 15 - How to De-polarize Your Thinking and Act
February 13, 2017 14:00 - 31 minutes - 29.1 MBLet your mind work for you – have it be your ally and don’t let it keep you small. Our thoughts affect how we navigate everything in lives: our jobs, our relationships, our mood, and how we see the world. When we think in black and white terms, or our thinking is polarized, we limit ourselves. When we prejudge things, we can lie to ourselves. When we think we know something, we feel safe, important and informed. We’re naturally afraid of change so our mind draws on past experiences to...
Ep. 14 - Jerry Howard: Prioritizing Faith, Family and Finance
February 06, 2017 14:00 - 33 minutes - 30.8 MBToday’s guest, Jerry Howard, went on a long journey to find his true calling. He dropped out of undergraduate classes, worked in a call center, enlisted in the marines after 9/11, went back to business school, obtained a MBA with a specialization in marketing, left the marines, sold health insurance, was a stay-at-home dad, participated in a corporate leadership training program… and that’s not even everything! Now Jerry serves as the executive director and healthcare administrator for o...
Ep. 13 - Traci Ruble: The Power of Listening to One Another
January 30, 2017 14:00 - 33 minutes - 30.9 MBTraci Ruble, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, is the co-creator of Sidewalk Talk. Sidewalk Talk fights stigma around therapy and mental health by bringing listening to the streets. The idea is simple: A volunteer sets two chairs out on the sidewalk. They listen to anyone who wants to talk. “I’m not in my therapist role when I’m out there listening. I show up as a human and I try to not think about all the different theoretical orientations and I don’t meet people with the idea...
Ep. 12 - Lt. Col. Phil Forbes: “The Suffer Lab” - Growing Through Challenge
January 23, 2017 14:00 - 34 minutes - 31.5 MBToday, we’re exploring The Suffer Lab with Lt. Col. Phil Forbes. “You’re going to suffer to grow. Things aren’t always comfortable.” In episode 2, I talked to Phil about leadership. Phil has been affiliated with Special Operations for the majority of his career and has supported numerous contingencies worldwide. He has commanded at the detachment, squadron, and group level in garrison and in combat and has been awarded the Bronze Star on two occasions. He presently works in the Pentagon ...
Ep. 11 - Mercedes Samudio: Don’t Wait To Become An Expert
January 16, 2017 14:00 - 29 minutes - 27.4 MBMercedes Samudio, LCSW runs a practice and brand called The Parenting Skill. Over time, Mercedes realized she wanted to coach and empower her parents – she didn’t necessarily want to do therapy with them. Parents really need to learn how to connect with their child and still be a full human, while making sure that their children are safe, growing and developing. She helps parents learn their own unique skills. An important tool for Mercedes is empathy. She understands that each person ...
Ep. 10 - 7 Positive Mindset Shifts for a New Year
January 09, 2017 14:00 - 29 minutes - 27 MBEither we’re asleep or we’re awake. Either we’re consciously aware of something or we’re not. But we don’t become awake from reading books or having conversations. We wake up when we experience things, and we experience things differently based on our mindset. Mindset Shift #1 – Don’t Get Wrapped Up in the Things You Can’t Control. I don’t necessarily think politics is the problem, I just don’t think it’s the solution. Other individuals will not solve your problems or improve your...
Ep. 9 - Ernesto Segismundo: Breaking Through The Upper Limit Problem
January 02, 2017 14:00 - 33 minutes - 30.9 MBErnesto Segismundo, M.S., is a marriage and family therapist who mastered marketing skills to help him grow his private practice. He trains other therapists to do the same by promoting their practice through social media and video marketing at www.FYLMIT.com. Ernesto emphasizes how our origins and perception affect how we define what is possible and what is a success. When we achieve what we believe to be possible based on our origin, then we run into an upper limit problem. This upper l...
Ep. 8 - Lanie Smith: Art Therapy, Ecopsychology & Curing Chronic Burnout
December 26, 2016 14:00 - 28 minutes - 26.4 MBLanie Smith is the owner and founder of Integrative Art Therapy and Registered Art Therapist. She is on a mission to reduce the chronic burnout that is common for so many women, parents, helpers, and healers using the power of art, nature, and the creative process. You don’t have to be artistic or have any art experience to benefit from art therapy. Lanie didn’t discover art until she was 18-years-old. Everyone has a creative side, some of us just lose touch with that part of ourselves as ...
Ep. 7 - Dr. Lily Zehner: Inspiring Intimacy in All Relationships
December 19, 2016 14:00 - 25 minutes - 23.5 MBDr. Lily Zehner, MFT-C, specializes in sex, intimacy and relationships. In this episode, we explore the journey that led her to developing her unique set of skills. “I often tell people that I have thick skin and a tender heart. It takes a tender heart to really work with the people I’m working with and to really understand what is going on and what is felt and what is needed, but thick skin because there is so much shame and so much judgement.” In the household that Lily grew up, sex wa...
Ep. 6 - Fiachra O'Sullivan: Helping Couples Help Themselves with Empathi.com
December 12, 2016 14:00 - 35 minutes - 32.5 MBFiachra O'Sullivan is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with a practice in in San Francisco. Couple’s counseling is tough – a lot of therapists shy away from it – but Fiachra loves it. Fiachra is also launching Empathi.com, a free tool for couples to learn about who they are, and who they are together, from an attachment perspective. Couples will receive daily reminders or prompts that will help them continue to tend to their love and relationships. “Love matters, and because it m...
Ep. 5 – Nicole Gordon: Merging Your Career and Interests with The Cooking Therapist
December 05, 2016 14:00 - 32 minutes - 29.9 MBWelcome back to the True Calling Project. Today’s guest is Nicole Gordon, licensed marriage and family therapist, and she has a very unique way to approach couples and family work. Nicole sees clients in both a private practice and in their homes. She practices experiential therapy that uses cooking as a tool. It’s basically a platform to help clients understand themselves in situ and relate their emotions or thoughts to what has come up in traditional talk therapy. “By going through the...
Ep. 4 - Jane Zarse: Redemption, Purpose, and The Book That Followed
November 28, 2016 12:00 - 26 minutes - 24.1 MBToday’s guest, Jane Zarse, is the author of Love and Compassion Is My Religion: A Beginner's Book into Spirituality. The book is a guide to finding your spiritual self – no matter how much you've lost yourself. It's a guide on how to find your way back. “Spirituality saved me, so I felt compelled to pass that on.” Jane fought bulimia and drank to excess after graduating from Boston University, then worked first as an actress and later as a high-volume trader at Chicago's Options Exchange...
Ep. 3 - Don't Quit Your Job... Yet
November 21, 2016 11:00 - 19 minutes - 17.8 MBShould you quit your job? Over the past few years, I have seen a lot of discussions and advertisements online encouraging people to leave their job, take risk, step into the unknown and really go for it. I want to offer another perspective. I did quit my job about two years ago, and it did open up new opportunities in my life that I would not have had otherwise – however, in hindsight, there are a few things I would have done differently. Eckhart Tolle suggests that there are three ways ...
Ep. 2 - Lt. Col. Phil Forbes: On Personal Growth Through Leadership
November 14, 2016 11:00 - 37 minutes - 34 MBWelcome to the True Calling Project. I’m your host John Harrison, professional psychotherapist and coach, and today I’m talking to a long-time friend, Lt. Col. Phil Forbes. Phil has been affiliated with Special Operations for the majority of his career and has supported numerous contingencies worldwide. He has commanded at the detachment, squadron, and group level in garrison and in combat and has been awarded the Bronze Star on two occasions. He presently works in the Pentagon for a three-...
Ep. 1 - Melvin Varghese: Journey Of A Successful Podcaster
November 04, 2016 15:43 - 33 minutes - 30.6 MBI’m your host John Harrison, professional psychotherapist and coach, and I’m getting the project started by talking to someone who has been a big inspiration to me. Melvin Varghese is a therapist and Founder of the podcast and blog Selling the Couch, which helps aspiring and current mental health private practitioners to become better business owners. “If you want to get to a certain place, one of the best time and financial investments you can make is to invest in people that have alr...
Ep. 0 - Welcome To the True Calling Project Podcast
November 04, 2016 15:42 - 4 minutes - 3.95 MBWelcome to the first episode of True Calling Project, a podcast dedicated to exploring the purpose and meaning in our lives and chosen professions, how we can achieve satisfaction and fulfilment, and live our life to our fullest potential. Do we all have a True Calling? I’m your host John Harrison, professional psychotherapist and coach.