Emerging Women: Grace and Fire » Podcast

Dr. Tererai Trent is one of today’s most internationally recognized voices for quality education and women’s empowerment. Distinguished as Oprah Winfrey’s “All-Time Favorite Guest,” Dr. Trent is a scholar, humanitarian, motivational speaker, educator, author and the founder of Tererai Trent International, whose mission is to provide quality education in rural Africa. Rooted in humble beginnings, Tererai grew up in a cattle-herding family in rural Zimbabwe. Despite facing many obstacles, she never lost sight of her dreams for an education. She could not have imagined that her steadfast determination, hard work and belief in her dreams would eventually earn her multiple degrees and a prominent global platform with world leaders and international audiences where she leads the global charge in the fight for quality education and women’s rights. Her new picture book, The Girl Who Buried Her Dreams in a Can, is based on this incredible story of perseverance. When you buy her book, a portion of the proceeds will go toward building a cafeteria in Africa that feeds over 1,200 students who walk 5-6 miles every day to attend school.* In today’s episode, Tererai and I spoke about: Her life story and how she kept hope alive during immense difficulty The universal power of belief What she describes as: “The Great Hunger” that fuels her passion to achieve her dreams How she was able to step into her voice and the power of storytelling Her ULTIMATE dream   Here is my conversation “Dream Big” with the incredibly inspiring and powerful: Dr. Tererai Trent. *You can choose to buy two copies and gift one to girls in Tererai's Community and Afar! If you'd like to gift a book to Tererai's girls, please autograph the copy and send to C/O Dr. Trent PO Box 2206 Salinas, CA 93901. Thank you! Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!

A native of Belgian, fluent in nine languages, and a penetrating observer of the social and cultural patterns shaping our relationships, Esther is a practicing psychotherapist and organizational consultant to Fortune 500 companies. Her 2013 TED talk, “The Secret to Desire in a Long-Term Relationship,” attracted more than a million views in the first month after its release. Her second TED Talk, “Rethinking Infidelity: A talk for Anyone Who Has Ever Loved”, was equally well-received. Combined, her TED talks have received approx. 10 million views. In today’s episode, Esther and I spoke about: — Her definition of desire; the importance of owning desire and how to connect to our own desires — Women are socialized for connection and the associated vulnerability of the inability to connect to self — Experiencing freedom from perfection without the guilt — Imagination complementing reality in relationships — What women can hold onto for stability in the ever increasingly gender-fluid era. Here is my ‘juicy’ conversation The Fluidity of Desire with the insightful and practical: Esther Perel. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. Transcript Welcome, Esther! I’m so excited to have you here on the show! Esther Perel: Thank you! It’s a pleasure for me to be with you as well. CP: And every time you speak, I feel like a tender heart, because my mother, who has passed away, had a much thicker French accent than you have, and I’ve been listening to your audio book, Mating in Captivity, so I feel like you’ve been with me on my walks in the morning and listening to your content. It’s kind of taking me back a bit. EP: You know, we share, in utero, it’s probably the first sense that we develop. So we are starting out with a very intimate connection. And if you want, I can even make my French accent a little stronger, so that I can channel your mother. CP: [Laughs] She spoke like zis. EP: Oh, wow. CP: Oh, no, it was very thick. But I think that when you have an accent like that, and you’re talking about sensuality and sex and desire—I don’t know what your experience has been, but it seems like you might have carte blanche to say just about anything, right? EP: Well, you know, the French accent works in both directions, especially in the United States. Sometimes it comes with a kind of bias that says, “Oh, you must know something, the je ne sais quoi that French people have in the realm of the erotics.” But then, on the other side, the opposite way is to start with kind of a warning sentence that says, “No, no, I’m not French, I’m not morally depraved, it’s not like anything goes.” I think there’s an enormous amount of projections in this domain onto the French—onto the Latin people in general, it seems, certainly onto the French—some of which is going to be accurate and some of which is the fantasy of the person who expresses it, or the person that is being designated. CP: Of course. Well, I think we’re probably going to get into that a lot more [and] in a lot more depth, instead of just talking about the French accent in terms of projections, as we get into your content. So the first thing that I would love to lead with is, you speak a lot about desire. And it seems to me that—especially since our audience is primarily women, we address women, the modern woman, who’s moving it and shaking it in so many different ways—what I’m finding a lot is that women in relationships—and I don’t want to make a generalization with statistics and all that, but anecdotally, I find often women are in relationships where they’ve either lost the desire or the desire has shifted, or they don’t even have juice for desire after working a full day. I’m curious to see—this is such a cornerstone to relationships, and I would love to hear your take on, first of all, what do you mean by desire?

Deemed the modern face of Kundalini Yoga, Guru Jagat brings a fresh perspective to this ancient practice. She is the founder of RA MA Institute for Applied Yogic Science and Technology, a premier yoga school with locations in Venice CA, Boulder CO, and La Jolla CA offering classes, workshops and group cleanses. She launched RA MA TV, a new virtual media platform that makes Kundalini Yoga and yogic lifestyle accessible to people all over the world, as well as the indie yoga music label RA MA Records with a mission to trailblaze a new genre of music for mass consumption-in and out of the yoga space, on the dance floor, radio and beyond.  Guru Jagat was a featured presenter at the 2015 Emerging Women Live. In today’s episode, Guru Jagat and I spoke about: The story behind her name and what exactly she means by Kundalini Why her spiritual technology is so great for women and why Kundalini is Why she has brought business into Kundalini Practice How women are hardwired to make a difference in the world Waking up every day with a conscious decision of how you are going to live that day   Here is my conversation “The Technology of Aliveness” with the powerful and energetic: Guru Jagat. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. Transcript: OK, hello, and welcome, Guru Jagat! How are you? Guru Jagat: Doing really well, thank you for having me on the show today. CP: I’m so excited to do a deep dive into the mysteries and the practicalities of Kundalini yoga with you, and your whole spiritual—I guess when I say “dharma,” that’s probably the wrong lineage, right? GJ: No, dharma’s not specific to lineage. CP: Right? The Buddhists don’t own dharma, right? GJ: They don’t, they don’t. I use that word all the time. It means what you came here for and what you’re uncovering that you came here for. CP: So I know that you have been on tour quite a bit, and you’re expanding centers and you’re traveling with your work. You were just in Europe? Am I right? GJ: Yes, we were just touring Europe with RA MA TV and with some other Kundalini yoga—there’s a big Kundalini yoga festival that happens in France. We also took a huge group of people to all the mystical sites in a southern cave, which was a very powerful experience, like, life-changing. CP: Wow. That sounds great. Kundalini yoga and the south of France—that’s something I would definitely sign up for. GJ: Yes, not bad! CP: Not bad, right? Why don’t we start with—because some people are listening and they’re like, “What is Kundalini yoga?” And I even want to go back a little bit—and maybe you can figure out the right way to talk about this, but your name is Guru Jagat. That is your name. And I would love to hear the story around that, and I think when we first talked, when I met you, you had such a strong energy. You definitely feel like you carry the weight of that name, to me, just meeting you. I didn’t know what to expect. But maybe you can talk a little bit about the background and how you came to be doing what you’re doing, and where your name comes from. And we can start there. GJ: Sure. Kundalini yoga, at its essence, is a technology of sound. And I believe that we’re really at the very surface, scratching the surface, of what sound in this age of technology is going to open up for us—this age of space travel and the whole universe and our whole daily perspective, and also world perspective, expanding so rapidly. So Kundalini yoga at its basis has this sound technology, which you could call “mantra,” but really it’s just these codes, these sound codes. So Yogi Bhajan gave names that were destiny sound codes, we’ll call it. So when he gave me my name, I was really young, and everybody else was getting—it was one of those moments where everybody else was getting T...

Today my guest is Dr. Kelly McGonigal. Kelly is a health psychologist and award-winning lecturer at Stanford University. A leading expert on the mind-body relationship, her work integrates the latest findings of psychology, neuroscience and medicine with contemplative practices of mindfulness and compassion from the traditions of Buddhism and yoga. She is the author of The Upside of Stress: Why Stress Is Good For You, And How To Get Good At It, where she highlights new research indicating that stress can, in fact, make us stronger, smarter, and happier—if we learn how to embrace it. In today’s episode, Kelly and I spoke about: Her definition of stress and how it can actually be a benefit The research surrounding stress and the idea of transforming stress instead of reducing it Examples of how to transform the way we think about stress Embracing the ‘Flow State’ How our culture of fear of discomfort holds us back.   Here is my conversation “The Upside of Stress” with the intelligent and revolutionary: Kelly McGonigal. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. Transcript Well, hello and welcome, Kelly McGonigal! How are you? Kelly McGonigal: I’m doing great! Thanks for having me back. CP: Great. It’s always so fabulous to talk to you and to connect with you. I’m super excited to get into this new material. One of the things I thought we would just launch in with was, the last time we talked, you had launched the book The Willpower Instinct, and you were working on the psychology and the science behind internal change. And I’m curious to see, just in your own life, how this work on stress has evolved from your first book and what your journey has been. KM: Yes. So when I think about how all of the work that I’ve been doing—the willpower work, the stress work, and my work at the Stanford Center for Compassion, trying to help people cultivate greater compassion—I realize that everything I’ve been doing for the last 15 years or so has been about trying to help people accept inner experiences or life circumstances that they can’t really control. Whether that’s dealing with cravings in terms of addiction, difficult emotions like anxiety and anger or grief, or even how I got started, which was working with people with chronic pain, and finding a way to accept pain that you can’t fix or change or control. And the funny thing is that, because of my training in psychology and medicine, I’ve kept one thing outside of that circle of acceptance, and that was stress. Somehow stress remains that inner experience, that enemy, that really was toxic, that we really did need to reduce or avoid or manage. And it took me until, really, just a couple of years ago to realize that everything that I’ve been saying about the best way to deal with and transform other difficult inner experiences—like pain and anxiety and grief—the same applied to stress. It’s a big mistake to spend your energy trying to suppress or trying to avoid, just because you find that experience distressing. The same principles that I recommend for these other difficult inner experiences, of accepting and then transforming them, of using them as a catalyst for meaning or for connection with others, that same principle [applies] to stress. And it really took some of the science that was coming out in the last five years or so about stress mindsets to really confront me and realize that I had somehow created this enemy out of stress that was not serving people. We’re all stressed, and I think the idea that we could ever avoid it is probably fundamentally flawed. CP: What is stress? I mean, you reference difficult emotions, and then there’s the whole physiology behind it. I’m curious to see what you’re calling “stress.” Is it a physiology thing? Or is it— KM: Yes, it’s a tough question,

Welcome to Part 2 of our podcast with Dr. Neha Sangwan. Dr. Neha Sangwan, CEO and founder of Intuitive Intelligence, is an internal medicine physician, international speaker and corporate communication expert. In her new book, TalkRx, Dr. Neha Sangwan reveals practical yet profound communication tools that will strengthen your relationships, reduce your stress, improve your health, and save you time! Dr. Neha Sangwan was a featured presenter at the 2015 Emerging Women Live Conference. In today’s episode, Neha and I speak about: Desire: being able to articulate and get to the core of what we desire The importance of clarity and the positive expression of what we want How to change conversations with people who are not clear with their desires and the skills to do it Vocalizing what we value and acting in alignment with these values Neha’s 2-Step Decision Making Tool Rewriting History, the importance of being vulnerable and how “Truth is Always the Answer”   Here is Part 2 of my conversation “Talk Rx: A Prescription for Connection, Health and Happiness” with the honest and wonderful: Dr. Neha Sangwan. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. Transcript: Chantal Pierrat: OK, welcome back, Neha! Neha Sangwan: Oh, it’s so good to be here again. CP: Now, you are visiting your parents right now. What state are you in? NS: New York. CP: You’re in New York, OK. Are you on Long Island? NS: Oh no, I’m in Buffalo. I live right outside New York in Williamsburg, but my parents live in Buffalo. So the whole family’s out. CP: So this is a perfect opportunity to practice a little TalkRx. NS: [Laughs] Family is always the perfect opportunity to practice communication skills. CP: And you have—you said it’s your parents’ wedding anniversary? NS: Yes, their 50th. CP: OK, all right. Now’s the time. [Laughs] NS: That is so true. CP: Well, in our first part 1, we talked about your five-step process, which I think you call the i-Five? NS: Yes, the i-Five conversation. CP: The i-Five conversation. Maybe we should just quickly summarize the five parts, just for the listeners that might be coming in for the first time, even on part 2. And then we can dig into the part 2 of our podcast. NS: Sure. The whole premise of the i-Five is that it’s five steps to having not just conversations, but honest conversations. And I think that’s where people get a little stuck. So I’ve broken it down into five parts, and the first part is your body. Basically, how our senses help us pick up information from the external world while we are simultaneously getting information from our internal world, like our heart racing, [our] stomach turning, all of that stuff that also is giving us information. And sometimes those two things are not in sync, right? So I’m saying “yes” but my stomach’s dropping. So that’s the body section, which is, how do you take in data from the outside world and inside world and have it sync up, and when it doesn’t, what do you do? That data takes us to the second part of the i-Five conversation, which is your thoughts. So if I am in room and I’m talking to you, and my eyes tell me that you just get up and leave in the middle of a conversation, that’s data that I would pick up. I’ll make up a thought about it. I’ll decide that it means you’re not feeling well. I’ll decide that it means you don’t like me. I’ll decide all sorts of things. So the second step is around the thoughts we make up once we’ve observed the data from our body. And then, depending on which thought I believe—if I think that you’re not feeling well,

Today my guest is Jane Miller, CEO and founder of JaneKnows, a career advice website, has spent three decades in the corporate world. For the past 20 years, she's become the highest ranking woman in every company she's worked in including Pepsi Co, Heinz and others. Now, she's written a how-to for millennials wanting to make it to the top - Sleep Your Way to the Top (and Other Myths About Business Success). Her new book is the go-to guide for grads, pre-grads and new execs, showing where it's easy to get tripped up, who might trick us and how to make it past the pitfalls on our way to the corner office. In today’s episode, Jane and I speak about: Women in the corporate arena and what challenges they face Myths about business success, having confidence, and knowing what fills your cup How to deal with difficult people in the business world Jane’s Business Dark Night of the Soul and how she got through it The one thing women can do to increase personal power and influence in the world   We hope you enjoy “Sleep Your Way to the Top (and Other Myths About Business Success)” with the accomplished and inspirational: Jane Miller. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!

Today my guest is Dr. Neha Sangwan, CEO and founder of Intuitive Intelligence, internal medicine physician and corporate communication expert. She has written the new book TalkRx: Five Steps to Honest Conversations That Create Connection, Health, and Happiness, in which she reveals practical yet profound communication tools that will strengthen your relationships, reduce your stress, improve your health, and save you time! In today’s episode, Neha and I speak about: What she means by interpreting your body and then interpreting your thoughts The importance of Self-Awareness and how our thoughts teach us more about ourselves than anything else The 5 components of communication Anger as a limiting factor in difficult conversations and how to overcome it Slowing down to speed up: using awareness and understanding to resolve problems in communication quickly   Don't miss an episode: Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!

This is part 2 of the conversation with Liz on Creating Big Magic. Liz is the author of 2006’s runaway bestseller Eat, Pray, Love, which has sold more than ten million copies worldwide, as well as her most recent novel, The Signature of All Things. Her forthcoming book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear will hit bookstands in September 2015. In Big Magic Liz asks the reader to embrace curiosity and let go of needless suffering. She shows how to tackle what we most love, and how to face down what we most fear. She discusses the attitudes, approaches, and habits we need in order to live our most creative lives. Topics in this Episode: Originality vs. Authenticity - how we should stop striving to be original and embrace authenticity Complaining, and Gratitude as an antidote Giving yourself permission to be creative How Liz stays in touch with the divine   Looking for Part 1? Listen here. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!    

Today my guest is Elizabeth Gilbert.    This is part 1 (of 2) of my conversation with Elizabeth. Liz is the author of 2006’s runaway bestseller Eat, Pray, Love, which has sold more than ten million copies worldwide. Her forthcoming book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear will hit bookstands in September 2015. In Big Magic, Liz asks the reader to embrace curiosity and let go of needless suffering. She shows how to tackle what we most love, and how to face down what we most fear. She discusses the attitudes, approaches and habits we need in order to live our most creative lives. In today’s episode, Liz and I spoke about: How Fear can block creativity The Fear we ‘need’ and the Fear we don’t Being open to the "Yes," but finding wisdom in the “No” How inspiration promises us nothing Hard Labor vs Fairy Dust and the balance that she seeks in her life   I hope you enjoy part 1 of my conversation “Creating Big Magic” with the trailblazer of personal voice and creativity: Elizabeth Gilbert. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate Grace & Fire while you're there!

Today my guest is HeatherAsh Amara. HeatherAsh Amara is the founder of Toci — the Toltec Center of Creative Intent, which fosters local and global community that supports authenticity, awareness, and awakening. She is dedicated to inspiring depth, creativity, and joy by sharing the most potent tools from a variety of world traditions. She brings an openhearted, inclusive worldview to her writings and teachings, which are a rich blend of Toltec wisdom, European shamanism, Buddhism, and Native American ceremony. She is the author of Warrior Goddess Training, The Toltec Path of Transformation and co-author of No Mistakes: How You Can Change Adversity into Abundance. HeatherAsh Amara lives in Austin, Texas and travels extensively around the world, speaking and teaching workshops. In today’s episode, HeatherAsh and I spoke about: Her background and how she was attracted to Earth-based spirituality and her concept of the Warrior Goddess The Toltec Tradition and the 4 Agreements: Be Impeccable with your Word Don’t Take Anything Personally Don’t Make Assumptions Always Do Your Best Dealing with the Inner Critic Using the agreements to enrich creative and sexual energy The difference between Intuition and the Mental Habits of the Mind Here is my  conversation "Becoming a Warrior Goddess” with the Warrior Goddess herself: HeatherAsh Amara. As her gift to you, download two free chapters of the Warrior Goddess Training book. And when you buy her book, you'll receive HeatherAsh's 11-day online Warrior Goddess bootcamp for free. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!

Today my guest is Amanda Palmer. Amanda Palmer is a rock star, former street performer, and a crowdfunding pioneer, who knows all about asking. Performing as a living statue in a wedding dress, she wordlessly asked thousands of passersby for their dollars. After creating the world's most successful music Kickstarter campaign for her album with the Grand Theft Orchestra, she has written a book titled: The Art of Asking: How I learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help. In her new memoir she tells the story of an artist struggling with the new rules of exchange in the twenty-first century and inspires readers to rethink their own ideas about asking, giving, art and love. There are so many cool things about this woman – not least of which is her post-modern retro punk cabaret band called the Dresden Dolls. She is also married to Neil Gaiman, my favorite comic book illustrator and writer of all things. But perhaps what I love the most about Amanda Palmer is the fact that her nickname is Amanda Fucking Palmer – somehow it just feels right! In today’s episode, Amanda and I spoke about: The Art of Asking and how she learned this art A constant theme in her life: balancing vulnerability with control Dealing with the fear of rejection – and how to ask anyway Relationship based communication and the need to still ask for help The Art of Receiving as an integral part of the ask   Here is my conversation “The Art (and Power) of Asking” with the wildly inspirational: Amanda Fucking Palmer. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes.   Transcript Hi, welcome Amanda. How are you? Amanda Palmer: I’m wonderful, how are you? CP: I’m a little bit outside myself, because I feel like I’ve been stalking you a little bit. [Laughs] AP: [Laughs] CP: So I’m so excited. For the listeners who are tuning in here, this is my first time really talking to Amanda. I think we spoke for a half a minute prior to this, and I’ve been “reading” your book—I’m saying that in quotes here because I love to listen to books on audio— AP: Oh, great! CP: Yes, and I want to say that I’m promoting the audio version of The Art of Asking, because there’s so much in there that’s not in the book. I feel like I’ve really gotten to know you through it, and your voice. So I feel an intimacy. AP: Yes, it’s really nice, as a musician, to put out an audio book, because that’s my medium. That’s what I’m used to, and it’s really nice to add the music and the songs to weave within the story. They really belong there. CP: I love that you sang your intro. It was fabulous. AP: [Laughs] CP: [Laughs] It was so great! AP: Thank you. I’m glad you like it. CP: I just thought it was so unique, and you—just by way of full disclosure, I’m just going to get this out here now so we can get the stalking vibration out. I am also a huge fan—when I was in college, it was Love and Rockets and The Sandman. I mean, that was my deal. So [I’m a] huge fan of your husband, Neil Gaiman, and his work. And when I saw you coming forward on the fabulous TED talk, and I realized who you were, I was like, “Oh my God.” Can you be in love with a couple? AP: Totally! If your polyamorous. CP: Right? So I was in love with Neil, and now I’m in love with you, and the two of you together just makes so much groovy sense, it’s off the charts. I feel especially honored today. AP: Thank you. It makes me really happy when people love Neil’s work, because I love him. And the really lucky thing was I wasn’t a Neil Gaiman fan, and I think that might have been a deal breaker.

Barbara Stanny is a former journalist who became a financial expert and a leading authority on Women & Wealth. With her background in business and a Master’s Degree in Counseling Psychology, along with her extensive research and poignant experience with money, she has a unique perspective on women’s financial issues. The brains behind Overcoming Underearning and Sacred Success, Barbara is about pursuing your soul’s purpose, for your own bliss and the benefit of others, while being richly rewarded. Barbara Stanny’s new book: Sacred Success: A Course in Financial Miracles is a tutorial for taking charge of your life by taking charge of your finances, and not only growing your money but creating a deeper, richer, and more meaningful life. In today’s episode, Barbara and I spoke about: What she means by success and why many women fear their power Moving through the 3 levels of Financial Development: Survival, Stability, and Affluence The dangers of giving up our power Common patterns in women’s personal finances and how to create affluence Law of Attraction vs. Law of Congruency Modeling Greatness and pursuing your purpose The most important practice in her new book: Sacred Success.   Here is my conversation “Sacred Success: A Women’s Guide to Authentic Power & Affluence” with the great and powerful: Barbara Stanny. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!

Today my guest is Vicki Saunders. Vicki Saunders is a serial entrepreneur, passionate mentor and advisor to the next generation of change makers, and leading advocate for entrepreneurship as a way of creating positive transformation in the world. Vicki is founder of SheEO. SheEO supports women who leverage their talents, strengths and passion to create businesses that build new models, new mindsets and new solutions for a better world. She is also the author of the new book: Think Like a SheEO: Succeeding in the Age of Creators, Makers and Entrepreneurs where she  shows readers how to leverage their talents, strengths, and genuine interests to create businesses that make them happy and successful. In today’s episode, Vicki and I speak about: The current landscape for women entrepreneurs Her notion that ‘It doesn’t have to be hard’ and focusing on your strengths Meaning is the New Money: the rise of making a difference as more important than making money Actually having what you want and creating your own reality Crossing what she calls the Fear Threshold Her ‘big vision’ for women entrepreneurs   Here is my conversation “Think Like A SheEO” with the original SheEO: Vicki Saunders. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!

Today my guest is Susan Piver. Susan is a Buddhist teacher and the New York Times bestselling author of seven books, including The Hard Questions and the award-winning How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life. Her latest book is entitled The Wisdom of a Broken Heart. She teaches workshops and speaks all over the world on meditation, spirituality, communication, relationships, and creativity. In 2011, Susan launched the Open Heart Project, an online meditation community with nearly 12,000 members who practice together and explore ways to bring spiritual values such as kindness, genuineness, and fearlessness into everyday life. In today’s episode, Susan and I speak about: How fear has unfolded in her life and how you can be confident and fearful at the same time How synchronizing the mind and the body is the key to confidence Tapping into the power and the beauty of fear The careful balance of avoiding the “conceptual game plan” while still having action A story of Susan's own emergence and how to see yourself through the relationships you keep Here’s my conversation, “Leaning Into Fear and Falling Into Beauty,” with the wise and open-hearted Susan Piver. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. Transcript Chantal Pierrat: Hello, and welcome, Susan. Susan Piver: Thank you, I’m glad to be here. CP: Yes, I am too. I have lots of juicy questions for you that are relevant to my life, so I’m glad we’ve carved out the time. Let’s start with—well, we had such a great conversation the first time we met last month, and I just wanted to go in a million different directions. But today I want to talk about fear. You have a couple of books on fear, [including] Freedom from Fear, which I think is your most recent book, and then a book with a very interesting title, How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life: Opening Your Heart to Confidence, Intimacy, and Joy. And I know that one is more practical; Freedom from Fear is a seven-day meditation program. But I’m curious to see, just in your own life, how this topic unfolded for you, and how it came into this—and you also have some audio that you’ve done with Jen Louden. So how did this come through you, and what do you have to say about fear? SP: OK, well, I always feel like my biggest qualification is my own fear, because I just experience a lot of fear. I always have throughout my life and I still do. It’s something that each of us has to figure out a way to meet. And I was thinking of writing a book about meditation practice, and I wrote a proposal for that book. And in the proposal, there was a line that said something like, “Meditation is so awesome because it teaches you how to not be afraid of your own life.” And when the publisher saw that line, they said, “That’s the title.” So I said, “OK.” [Laughs] It was very easy to gear the content around the topic of fear because meditation—in particular, I suppose, in the style that I practice, the Shambhala Buddhist tradition—is seen as a gesture of warriorship. And one of the fruits of meditation practice is courage and wakefulness and curiosity and joy. So those were the things that I wanted to focus on, and in doing so, also had to focus on why these wonderful, wonderful qualities are so difficult for us to find and hold. CP: So right now, in The Atlantic—and I just picked this up so I haven’t read it—there’s an article, it’s on the cover, and they’re calling it “Closing the Confidence Gap,” just talking about even highly successful women are lacking in confidence in their jobs and in the work that they do, even though they’re seen and rewarded for their work and they’re outwardly recognized as being successful. I know for myself, building a business and feeling confident that I can create this platform that is Emerging Women, and yet the fear and the lack of confidence—it’s like you can...

Today my guest is Christina Rasmussen. Christina Rasmussen is a bestselling author, speaker and philanthropist on a crusade to change the way we live after loss. As the founder of Second Firsts and Life Starters both organizations to help people create a pathway back to life after loss, Christina has helped thousands of people rebuild, reclaim, and re-launch their lives using the power of the human mind. Her book of the same name — Second Firsts: Live, Laugh, and Love Again— is helpful not just for loss, but for all periods of transition in our lives. In today’s episode, Christina and I spoke about: The loss that she has experienced in her life and the new duality she learned about the grieving process The dangers of becoming comfortable in “The Waiting Room” after loss/transition and how to come out of it The difference between Transformational Lessons Learned Vs. Unwanted Mapping of brain patterns, and how to avoid the latter Can you experience transformation without grief or loss? Advice she has for those who are emerging out of challenging transitions Tune in and listen to “Second Firsts: A Path to Deep and Lasting Joy” with the joyful and strong: Christina Rasmussen. Subscribe to the Emerging Women podcast on iTunes. And please be sure to rate us while you're there!