Carlos Mendiola

Gretchen Rubin: Habits, Tendencies and How to Be Yourself

In this episode of Art of Authenticity I had a thoughtful conversation with Gretchen Rubin, the author of The Happiness Project and other NYT bestselling books.Gretchen Rubin is the author of several books, including the blockbuster New York Times bestsellers, Better Than Before, The Happiness Project and Happier at Home. She has an enormous readership, both in print and online, and her books have sold more than two million copies worldwide, in more than thirty languages.She also has a top podcast called Happier with Gretchen Rubin. It is a podcast where she discusses good habits and happiness with her sister Elizabeth Craft.I had so much fun on this podcast because Gretchen came in and laid out some incredible habits. Such as, how to structure you day or how to stay organized. I do think there are a couple of things to do that are simple and easy, but as far as wake up in the morning at five AM, going for a jog, and then meditate, I just don’t ever feel like there is a one size fits all answer.Gretchen comes in and she just crushes this point. Essentially, the answer is that you have got to do it in a way that works for you and let go of this prescriptive model that there is a one size fits all way of setting up habits in your life. Most of us are failing because we are not being honest about what works for us. We don't know how we operate, so we don't know how to make the changes we desire. Gretchen lays this out and I’m telling you, really worth tuning in.

Thanks for Listening

Again, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already!

Show Notes

  • How Gretchen went from being a supreme court justice to becoming a writer. [4:11]

  • The importance of wanting to “talk shop” and following your passion. [5:19]

  • What inspired Gretchen’s first book, Power, Money, Fame, Sex: The users guide. [6:25]

  • Why Gretchen decide that she would rather fail as a writer than be successful as a lawyer. [8:10]

  • How The Happiness Project started out as just a person project for Gretchen in her own life. [10:13]

  • Why incorporating social media and branding is unique to each style of writer. [13:25]

  • What it means to shine a light on the ideas of others and how it can benefit you as an authority in the space. [14:58]

  • Why habit formation has no one-size-fits-all guide, and no one way is right or wrong. [18:25]

  • How to better implement habits and change your lifestyle by identifying the root problem. [26:04]

  • Gretchen shares in detail the tendencies she describes in her new book, The Four Tendencies. [29:06]

  • Learn why it is important not to get in other people’s way, but instead help them find what works best for them. [37:34]

  • Why identifying who we envy can help us to learn more about who we are ourselves. [46:06]

  • Hear Gretchen’s view on whether or not you can be happy when you live an inauthentic life. [48:46]

More About Gretchen

Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

Join Me In A One Week Cleanse

Today, I have a little call to action. I am wondering if all of you will join me in a one week cleanse. We’ve talked about the five steps of what it takes to get to a more authentic life, we’ve talked about authenticity, talked to 60, 70 people on what authenticity means, we’ve heard all of these great stories.But what’s in the way of exactly what is holding you back? What is keeping you from taking that next step? What is most difficult for you? What is the biggest obstacle?It could be the inner critic. It could be fear of failure. The impostor voices in your head are just loud and giving you a hard time. It could just be an overwhelming sense of frustration and irritation and anger is just driving you crazy. Resentments. A need to be right or wrong.This is why I'm suggesting a one week cleanse.Thanks for ListeningAgain, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast on iTunes if you haven't already!Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

Beth Richie: Gender, Violence and the Criminal System

In this episode of Art of Authenticity I had a thoughtful conversation with Dr. Beth Richie, the Director of the Institute of Research on Race and Public Policy.Welcome to this week’s episode of the Art of Authenticity. Today is a really special day for me because I have one of my dear friends, Dr. Beth Richie, joining us. She is the Director of the Institute of Research on Race and Public Policy and a professor of African American study’s criminology, sociology, gender and women studies and criminal law and justice at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She’s also a senior advisor for the NFL on gender violence.Beth is somebody who, if you met her, you would love her as much as I do. She’s just this warm, amazing, charismatic human being. Plus, she's just brilliant. She is also somebody who has been an activist for her entire career and shares with us stories from early days in New York where she was one of the original six women who started the idea of women shelters, how that experience shaped her career and her focus in trying to bridge the gap between the women who were under privileged, experiencing domestic violence, and domestic violence as a whole for privileged white culture.Beth has been instrumental in moving this conversation forward but she is also honest, candid, open, and shares with us many ways in which she feels the system is still struggling today, as most of us are aware, with the movements like Black Lives Matter. Tune in, listen to this show. She’s just got so much insight and I feel like every point she made, I could have dove into for an hour. She’s got such depth of experience and knowledge, so I hope you enjoy today’s show.

Thanks for Listening

Again, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already!

Show Notes

  • Why Beth landed in the field of teaching and writing about African American studies, women and violence, and the criminal system. [3:34]

  • Understand the gap that Beth discovered between women in the white communities and the experiences of the African American communities [8:38]

  • Hear how the disparity of what protection and safety looks like if you’re from one neighborhood to another is still profoundly unchanged. [12:57]

  • Why women who were underprivileged end up being criminalized for not reaching out to services that will not work for them in the first place. [14:37]

  • Learn why in fact we’ve got a country that is organized around the criminalization of things where people actually in fact need help. [19:17]

  • Hear the story of when Beth was uninvited to her own cause. [23:31]

  • Discover Beth’s view on prisons and their value, or lack their of, in society. [36:00]

  • Understand what an authentic life means to Beth and her daily practices. [40:29]

More About Beth

Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

What Authenticity is NOT

After the 5-part series I did earlier this year, I was thinking, “What is it that I really want to talk about next?” and it hit me. I’ve talked to over 65 people about what authenticity means to them right? At the end of every podcast, I ask them this question, what does an authentic life mean to them? If you've listened, you know there is definitely a pattern. People say similar things.But I've never asked them about what authenticity is not. What isn’t it? Everybody’s talking about what it is, what their definition of it is. What it looks like in life, what it looks like over a career or over decades, how it changes? How you could get more in touch with it...but what is it NOT?Thanks for ListeningAgain, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast on iTunes if you haven't already!Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

Jeff Brown: Read To Lead

In this episode of Art of Authenticity I had a thoughtful conversation with Jeff Brown, the host of the popular podcast, Read to Lead.Jeff Brown a podcaster, mentor and speaker. His goal: to help you bridge the gap between intentionality and implementation.He spent 26-years in radio. He even co-hosted an award-winning and nationally syndicated morning show from 2002 to 2008.Since January 2014, He has leveraged his radio background to coach numerous podcasters, helping dozens create, launch, grow and monetize their shows. People like Brendan Hufford, Liz Covart, Harry Duran, Darrell Darnell, Ben Castleberry and Nicole Welch have all been his clients. I’ve even been blessed with the opportunity to consult with the US government and several multi-million dollar companies the last few years.

Jeff was also a consultant, and he talks to people about how to create a podcast. He helped me early on and he is just a really great guy. Jeff has recently launched a new

Read to Lead group membership

where they read books and they meet to talk about the books and set goals to actually implement all the advice that the books suggest, to see the results in their own lives.

Thanks for Listening

Again, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already!

Show Notes

  • Hear Jeff’s story of how he crash landed into his first radio job. [3:46]

  • How Jeff transitioned from the radio industry into the podcasting world. [3:46]

  • Why Jeff was fired from all of his radio jobs, except for one. [5:13]

  • Find out what Jeff learned in the radio industry and how he applied that in the podcasting world. [8:09]

  • What it means to connect to the audience, and Jeff’s golden rule. [9:56]

  • Discover why Jeff chose the topic of “Read to Lead” for his podcast. [11:54]

  • Why Jeff believes in vetting new guests that come on the podcast is key in staying authentic. [17:12]

  • Find out which are Jeff’s favorite books from all the many authors that have come his show. [21:00]

  • How Jeff defines an authentic life and why he believes you have to start with yourself. [23:28]

  • Jeff shares his tips and practical applications to ensure that you do not make inauthentic decisions. [27]

More About Jeff

Jeff Brown: http://readtoleadpodcast.com/ Jeff Brown on Twitter — https://twitter.com/thejeffbrownRead to Lead University — readtoleaduniversity.com.Productivity Planner — https://www.amazon.com/Productivity-Planner-Daily-Non-Dated/dp/0991846222

Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

Why Living Your Truth Takes Daily Practice

Welcome to this week’s episode of the Art of Authenticity. This is part five of a five-part series. If you’re still with me, thank you for sticking it out through to the end. I hope you like it. Send me a note, [email protected]. Let me know your thoughts.Hopefully this was helpful, inspirational, and everything that I intended it to be. Because these steps are what have freed me from my path to my truth, and hopefully it has helped you along your way. As always, you can also reach out if you’re interested in getting private coaching to help you in your journey towards finding a life that you feel is meant for you.So here we are, day five, Practice Your Truth. We went through awareness, taking responsibility, making choices, and taking action from your truth. Why is step five, practicing your truth, so important?Thanks for ListeningAgain, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast on iTunes if you haven't already!Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

Tony Wrighton: Travel, Zen, and Productivity

Today on the podcast we have Tony Wrighton joining us. Tony is the host of the popular podcast, Zestology: Live with energy, vitality, and motivation. On his podcast, he interviews a wide range of experts in the field of health and personal development. Obviously we have a lot in common given that the Art of Authenticity is all about how to live life with meaning and his passion is talking about energy, vitality, and motivation.Tony is a personal development author and presenter. He has published three books in 12 different languages and is one of the country's foremost experts on Neuro-Linguistic Programming, and if that wasn’t enough, Tony is also a popular presenter on Sky Sports in the UK, hosing several different sports including football, golf, basketball, hockey, and many more.In today’s chat with Tony, he shared with me an incredible trip he took, where he went to three or four different countries. On this trip he stopped in at a place called 40 Years Zen, where he had the opportunity to attach probes to his mind and engage in meditation done on a scientific level. This gives you the benefits in a ramped up, incredible way inside a very short window. It sounds amazing and is really expensive, but Tony shares with us his experience and all the updates of his life.We dive into a lot of secret tips on vitality and energy, why Tony keeps a tracking log of all the things he does, how to increase energy and feel better, and how he manages to get a significant amount of work done in a day. There are a lot of incredible suggest of wisdom in this episode, so I hope you enjoy it! Be sure to also check out my interview and feature on Tony’s podcast, Zestology.Thanks for ListeningAgain, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already!Show Notes:

  • Why Tony took a whole month off to travel, where he went, and what he experienced. [3:25]

  • Discover more about the 40 Years of Zen Program in Seattle, and the benefits of it. [4:46]

  • Find out about the shift Tony was able to make meditating with neurofeedback electrodes and how it lead him to a deeper sense of authenticity. [7:42]

  • The benefits Tony realized from finding a deeper sense of authenticity awareness of self. [12:03]

  • Why Tony felt angry and overstimulated after leaving 40 Years of Zen and visiting Tokyo. [17:23]

  • What Tony is doing with his podcast and his vision for the next year to come. [23:34]

  • How Tony has used tracking to test new ideas and practices as he implements them in his life. [26:17]

  • Why “doing less” is one of Tony’s top goals for 2017. [31:49]

Links:

Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

How to Live Your Truth

https://soundcloud.com/artofauthenticity/how-to-live-your-truthToday, we are on step number four of our five-part series to living an authentic life. We have been doing a series of how to make a life, how to build a life that is meant for you. Every life is different. We’re not trying to build lives that are for our friends, our neighbors, some collective group of people. We want to build a life that is meaningful and purposeful for ourselves, but how do you do that? We have gone through awareness.We have talked about taking radical responsibility. Last time we talked about making choices and how to ditch the victim mindset, get rid of blame. Today we’re going to talk about the actual action of taking action from your truth, your truth.Thanks for ListeningAgain, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast on iTunes if you haven't already!Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

Joshua Spodek: Becoming The Person Others Follow

In this episode of Art of Authenticity I had a thoughtful conversation with Joshua Spodek, an astrophysicist, entrepreneur, leader, and author of the book Leadership Step by Step: Become the Person Others Follow.

Today, we have our very first repeat guest. We have Joshua Spodek joining us. He is a professor at NYU and a columnist for Inc, he holds – are you ready — five Ivy League degrees. If you’re having a complex at the moment, join me, because I am as well.He has a PHD in Astrophysics, and an MBA from Columbia, where he studied under a Nobel Laureate, he has done a lot of different things with his life, and at the moment, he is working on helping people in leadership, an executive coach for Columbia’s business school, and he’s just worked really hard on this idea of how to teach people how to lead.He believes very strongly that leading happens from experiencing it yourself. He’s written a book, Leadership Step by Step: Become the Person Others Follow. It’s all about creating positive change, but how to do it, specifically, with actual guidance step-by-step, with exercises that he has used in his teachings and he is sharing with you.I am confident that Joshua has a ton to offer. Go check out his book, you can buy it right now on Amazon. If you’re looking to find out more about Joshua, you can find him at joshuaspodek.com, and I know that I haven’t had anybody on twice before, but I thought his book and his approach is particularly cool, and I thought you guys might be interested. So enjoy the show!

Thanks for Listening

Again, thank you so much for your support! Please

subscribe to the podcast

if you haven’t already!

Show Notes

  • Why Joshua used a publisher for “Leadership Step by Step: Become the Person Others Follow” [3:28]

  • Why Joshua chose to write a book about leadership step by step [4:56]

  • Leadership Bias: Are you naturally a leader? Can you learn to be a leader? [7:26]

  • Coaching people can be beneficial in business and personal relationships [9:41]

  • How to motivate someone when you do not have authority over them [12:12]

  • Why might employees not want to open up to people in management [14:14]

  • How to handle working with a difficult boss [19:22]

  • Joshua’s opinion on what makes a good teacher when teaching leadership [23:25]

  • Joshua’s experience and advice on marketing [24:45]

  • Overcoming our internal critiques of ourselves [28:53]

  • Where is the book be available on Amazon and Joshua’s contact information [35:24]

Links

Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola

How to Make Choices That Matter

Welcome to this week’s episode of the Art of Authenticity. This is the third part of a five-part series that we’ve been working on over here. I hope that you’re still tuning in. It’s all about how to make decisions to build a life that you love. We talked about the idea of awareness and how to think about awareness in a redefined way.If you haven’t checked out that episode, you can go back and listen. Without awareness, we cannot even start the process.Then we talked about taking radical responsibility. You have to get rid of the blame, completely. No matter has happened in your life that gotten you to this moment, this moment is completely all about you and what you decide to do with it.Thanks for ListeningAgain, thank you so much for your support! Please subscribe to the podcast on iTunes if you haven't already!Episode Resources

by Carlos Mendiola