Beginning The Walk
Manage episode 335553325 series 3371631
What takes us away from that feeling of being at home within oneself?
In our very first show, I share the moment six years ago that kicked off this journey. It was a year of loss, burnout, struggle, trying to hold it together. It was a year that led me to question a great deal about myself, my life, and my purpose. It was painful. It was stressful.
And it was magic...
For our inaugural episode, I'm joined by two marvelous human beings, Michael Smith of the Empath Connection and Alexis Pokorny Kahlow of Open Deltas, who’ve faced intense spiritual and emotional journeys of their own.
They share their inflection points as well as help us explore those moments that take us away from that feeling of being home in ourselves – and the moments that bring us back again.
I’m excited for you to join me On This Walk.
In This Episode
- (01:56) The genesis of On This Walk
- (11:00) What Michael needed to say no to and walk away from to find his path
- (11:58) Alexis’ career was going places while she had to find authenticity on the weekends
- (13:37) Alexis’ journey to inner peace
- (19:29) Our emotions advocate for us to choose the light
- (22:56) The importance of taking space
- (25:12) Seeking belonging by conforming, and the dissatisfaction that followed
- (28:39) Michael’s mindfulness technique to connect with himself and his soul
- (36:34) “You can’t push the river.”
- (42:54) The value of feeling and embracing our emotions
- (47:05) Being ready to start the journey
- (49:24) “Remember to call on your soul for help.”
- (50:29) Alexis’ guidance to “tweak, don’t freak”
Notable Quotes
- “For me, realizing that I spent all those years, especially in a sales role, that's all about accomplishment, right? And the numbers and metrics show if I am good or not good. But I think that just that simple question that was asked, ‘are you happy?’ – it made me realize that home is inside me. It's not outside. It's not the thing that I build. It's the thing that actually fills that structure. And that's the part that we need to care and feed for. And if we keep listening to that, we stay home, you know, it never feels like work.” – Alexis (17:33)
- “I felt dead inside. I felt miserable. I was depressed, suicidal. Like this wasn't happening for me. I actually got my rage, came in the form of screaming at my department chair and basically getting myself fired because of it. And, and I was like, thank you, soul, for doing that. Thank you, soul, for allowing me to express my unhappiness in that way, because it directly led me to the work that I'm doing now.” – Michael (20:28)
Our Guests
Doctoral-trained therapist and healing practitioner Michael Smith is the founder of Empath Connection. As a leader in mind-body holistic healing for nearly two decades, Michael has personally coached thousands of individuals to make stronger connections between mind, body, and spirit.
Alexis Pokorny Kahlow is a performance-based mindfulness expert, author and CEO of Open Deltas. Before launching her own company, Alexis spent over a decade as a top-performing corporate sales leader at Cisco, where she first introduced mindfulness to her own team. She is the author of a book called “Out of the Grind and Into the Flow” and currently works with Fortune 500 companies to provide corporate mindfulness training.
Resources & Links
On This Walk
52 episodes