Each week, Kristen Manieri interviews best-selling authors about their take on how to live a conscious connected, and intentional life. The goal of each episode of 60 Mindful Minutes is to inspire listeners to ask the questions: could I be living more consciously? Could I be creating more meaningful connections in my life? Could I be living more fully? Could I know and understand myself more deeply? Listen in each week as Kristen and her thought-provoking guests answer these questions and many more.
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EP300: Be A Lifelong Learner: 60 Mindful Minutes Finale
Season 7 · Episode 300
Friday, May 3, 2024 • Duration 12:32
This is my last episode of the 60 Mindful Minutes podcast. I’m tremendously proud of what I’ve created and so honored that you’ve listened, some of you since the very beginning. Learning has been our shared journey. Whether through books, conversations, or unique experiences, we've grown together. And while this chapter may be closing, the process of learning never truly ends. So in this episode, let’s dive deep into how we can keep the spirit of curiosity alive as lifelong learners.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
Becky Blades is the author of Start More Than You Can Finish: A Creative Permission Slip to Unleash Your Best Ideas. She built and sold the award-winning communications firm, Blades and Associates, which served diverse organizations in industries from health care to aviation, from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies. Before that, Becky launched creative marketing departments in other growing companies. She enjoys a portfolio creative career of writing and making art. She writes on topics from innovation and creativity to personal growth, and creates visual art by herself and in collaboration with others. See her art here, and see her writing here. Becky has worked in live theater, and has created special events and creative gatherings, including a sold-out comedy show. Learn more at beckyblades.com.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
EP290: Your Own Hero’s Journey with Ben Katt
Season 7 · Episode 290
Wednesday, February 21, 2024 • Duration 48:02
Imagine you’ve come to a point in your life that feels like a fork in the road; one direction things stay the same, and in the other, you change things dramatically. For Ben Katt, this “second half” of life can feel like the archetypal hero’s journey, one of leaving what’s comfortable, falling down on the journey toward something new, and then rising. In this episode, Ben shares insights from his book, The Way Home: Discovering the Hero's Journey to Wholeness at Midlife, and how he answered his own call to adventure.
Guest Bio
Ben Katt is a meditation teacher, spiritual coach, and writer. As a perpetual student of wisdom traditions, Ben is an expert at adapting ancient personal development practices for modern contexts in order to help people wake up to their fullest lives. He is a certified advanced meditation teacher, holds a Master of Divinity degree, and was an ordained minister for over a decade. Previously, he led The On Being Project’s work in supporting religious and spiritual leaders. He lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with his family. Learn more at https://www.benjaminkatt.com/.
EP200: Investing in Platonic Love with Marisa G. Franco
Season 6 · Episode 200
Tuesday, September 20, 2022 • Duration 53:22
How do we make and keep friends in an era of distraction, burnout, and chaos, especially in a society that often prizes romantic love at the expense of other relationships? This is the question Dr. Marisa G. Franco explores in her new book, Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make--and Keep—Friends.
Using insights from attachment theory and the latest scientific research on friendship, Marisa shows us that making new friends, and deepening longstanding relationships, is not only possible but essential. This week you’ll learn specific, research-based ways to improve the quantity and quality of your platonic connections.
Guest Bio
Dr. Marisa G. Franco holds a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Maryland and works as a professor there currently. She writes for Psychology Today and she has been a featured psychologist in The New York Times, NPR, and Good Morning America. Dr. Franco delivers talks about connection and belonging all over the country to private companies, universities, and non-profit organizations.
EP199: What Would You Like to Be Acknowledged For?
Season 6 · Episode 199
Thursday, September 15, 2022 • Duration 05:26
Most people—even our own family and closest friends—have no idea what we have on our plate, how hard we’re trying, or what we’re accomplishing and creating. What if we got used to asking each other this question: What would you like to be acknowledged for? I’ll tell you from my own experience, an entirely different sort of exchange ensues.
Host Bio
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
Your ability to flex your thoughts, feelings, and actions can transform your life, bolster your resilience, and foster your zest for living. Elaine Fox, PhD, psychologist and researcher, studies the science of neurological flexibility. In her new book, Switch Craft: The Hidden Power of Mental Agility, Elaine explores how we can expand and improve our mental agility, and why it is so critical to become as mentally agile as we can.
Guest Bio
Elaine Fox, PhD is a psychologist and author and became Head of the School of Psychology at the University of Adelaide, Australia in 2022. Originally from Dublin, her academic career has been primarily in the UK, most recently as Professor of Psychology and Affective Neuroscience at the University of Oxford. She is a leading scholar on the science of resilience and wellbeing and her work was awarded with a prestigious European Research Council Advanced Investigator fellowship from 2013-2019 to set up a large study in Oxford investigating why some people are emotionally vulnerable (to anxiety, depression, & addictions) while others are resilient. She is an engaging writer and speaker with a passion for the science behind how our mind works. Her first book RAINY BRAIN SUNNY BRAIN describes the fascinating science and stories behind why some of us are optimistic and resilient while others take a more pessimistic slant on things. Translated into more than 20 languages, it is a bestseller in several countries.
EP197: Move Your Body, Change Your Mind with Erica Hornthal
Season 6 · Episode 197
Thursday, September 8, 2022 • Duration 47:23
“If you want to show up in this life, you’ve got to begin by showing up in your body,” writes Erica Hornthal in her new book Body Aware. Erica believes it’s time to redefine what movement is and how it plays a role in our lives. As a licensed clinical professional counselor and board-certified dance/movement therapist, she helps people harness the power of movement and see that the way they might currently live in their body is not the only way. Awareness is the key to change and movement is the catalyst for awareness.
Guest Bio
Erica Hornthal is a licensed clinical professional counselor, board-certified dance/movement therapist, and the CEO and founder of Chicago Dance Therapy. Since graduating with her MA in Dance/Movement Therapy and Counseling from Columbia College Chicago, Erica has worked with thousands of patients aged 3-107. Known as “The Therapist Who Moves You,” Hornthal is changing the way people see movement with regard to mental health.
Gratitude, as I’ve come to see it, is a skill that requires nurturing. The more you’re present to what you’re thankful for, the happier you’ll become. This week I offer two practices for strengthening your gratitude muscle.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
COACHING
I have two coaching spots opening up this fall. If you’ve ever considered coaching, or if you’re feelings stuck or you’re about to make a big transition, reach out to me and we can talk about how I can help you navigate what’s ahead with more confidence and clarity. You can reach me at Kristen@kristenmanieri.com.
Full Transcript
There’s a framed quote in my house that says, “The best things in life aren’t things.” It reminds me to notice what really matters in my life—love, relationships, and laughter, for example. When I bring my sense of awareness to these values, I’m filled with a sense of abundance.
EP195: How to Fall Madly in Love with Your Life
Season 6 · Episode 195
Thursday, September 1, 2022 • Duration 07:04
Are you madly in love with your life? Do you want to be? Being madly in love with your life will mean something different to everyone, of course, but I’ve discovered that there are a few common threads and universal through lines that can help us think about it for ourselves. And I wanted to share them with you this week.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
Full Transcript
I was recently sitting across the table from a new friend when she asked me what exactly I do as a coach. “I help people fall madly in love with their lives,” I said. I had never described my work this way, and I was surprised when she welled-up. She was not, I came to discover, madly in love with her life, but she wanted to be.
Falling madly in love with our lives requires first and foremost proclaiming that our lives are of great consequence. This applies to everyone, not just “important people” doing important things. We all start with the same anthem: we matter. This precedes anything we accomplish or produce with our lives. It merely just sits as a basic truth of our existence. We were born therefore we matter. And as someone who matters we each deserve a life we can fall madly in life with.
EP194: How to be a Wild and Free Family with Ainsley Arment
Season 6 · Episode 194
Wednesday, August 31, 2022 • Duration 50:48
Ainsley Arment wants families to be wild and free. While that's going to look different for each of us, being wild and free means that we’re each creating the life we want with intention. As the author of The Wild and Free Family: Forging Your Own Path to a Life Full of Wonder, Adventure, and Connection and the founder and leader of the Wild + Free organization, Ainsley thinks a lot about what it means to build a meaningful and fulfilling life together with our kids. In her book and in this week’s discussion, she explores topics of family culture, pursuing a shared vision together, and making space for childhood wonder to flourish.
Guest Bio
Ainsley Arment is the founder and leader of Wild + Free and co-host of the weekly Wild + Free Podcast. As she leads this movement of raising her kids and homeschooling in a new way, she thinks deeply about making the most out of life and ensuring that her children have a fertile seedbed for their own uniqueness and creativity. She and her husband Ben are raising their five kids, Wyatt, Dylan, Cody, Annie, and Millie, in Virginia Beach.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
While having nice things and not wanting for anything may seem like a valid aspiration, the truth is that true contentment comes from finding happiness in this moment and being grateful for what it offers. Gratitude, as I’ve come to see it, is a skill that requires nurturing. The more you’re present to what you’re thankful for, the happier you’ll become.
It’s been said that the key to happiness is not about getting what you want but wanting what you already have. Researchers at the University of California, Davis, the University of Miami, and the University of Pennsylvania have all explored the link between happiness and gratitude and found that the more intentional people are about counting our blessings, the more blessed we feel.
The trouble is, the brain isn’t wired to see the positive in the same way that it’s wired to fixate on the negative. The brain has a negativity bias, born from a necessity to stay alert to potential threats. It scans the world for what’s wrong because doing so helps us stay safe and avoid suffering, both physically and emotionally.
But when you’re intentional about seeing what’s going right, and you cultivate the habits of being present to what’s good, you begin to bolster your positivity bias. In other words, the more you look for what’s positive in your life, the more you see it.
Increasing your awareness of what you’re grateful for is a formula for a rich life. Gratitude helps you deeply savor your moments on good days, but it also gives you something to hold on to on bad days. In times of struggle, or when you’re faced with unexpected adversity, solace comes from the ability to see what is going right, even when there are things that going wrong. This boosts your resilience and help you weather tough moments with more grace.
If you’d like to start cultivate gratitude, I’ve got two practices to share with you:
Say Good Night with Gratitude
One of the best things you can do before you fall asleep at night is increase your sense of calm and ease. Ruminating on troubles and allowing the mind to fixate on worries will only make it more difficult to fall and stay asleep. But when you cultivate a gratitude practice at bedtime, you point the mind toward positive thoughts, calm the nervous system, and gently guide yourself to rest.
Once you’ve climbed into bed and are ready for sleep, take the last few minutes before closing your eyes to think of three to five things you are grateful for. Reflect on your day and the interactions you had. Think of your meals, the weather, your home, and your surroundings.
Listing things you’re grateful for gives the mind a positive project to engage in, especially if you deliberately amplify your positive emotions along the way. Rather than relating to the list as something to get done, engage in the process as something to be slowly savored.
Close your eyes, feel your feelings, use your senses. The more vibrant you can make your gratitude practice, the more deeply it will sink in. Let the feelings of gratitude enhance your sense of calm and peace as you drift off to sleep. The reward for this habit is falling asleep with a sense of peace and calm.
Use Your ABCs
Sometimes it can be hard to think of things to be grateful for. The reason is not a lack of gratefulness, but rather that the creativity to generate ideas isn’t readily accessible. Making a gratitude list can be like brainstorming, and depending on how much you already have on your mind, it can feel challenging.
When I feel creatively stuck or in a bad mood and I want a practice to help me shift, I use the ABC gratitude practice. I learned this practice from Gratefulness.org (https://gratefulness.org/), an organization that supports grateful living by offering lovely practices anyone can use.
The ABC practice is simple: use the alphabet to help you think of things to be thankful for. Going through each letter, begin to create a list of what you appreciate in the current moment. For example, today I am grateful my (A) aunt is feeling better after her surgery, for (B) bananas being such a great snack, and for the (C) crepe myrtle trees that are beautifully blooming in my neighborhood. As you can imagine, it becomes kind of a game you can play with yourself and others.
This ABC gratitude practice is a perfect companion when you’re stuck in line or waiting for an appointment. You might also practice it on your gratitude walk or as a nighttime ritual with your partner or kids. Stack this practice with your device-free dinner routine or as part of your evening commute. By yourself or with others, you’ll find it’s a fun way to shift into a more thankful state of mind. This habit rewards you with a feeling of fun and levity, especially when you do it with others.
As I said before, if you want to feel like your life is rich, you’re going to want to cultivate gratitude. But remember, it’s a muscle we develop. The more you practice—and by that I mean deliberately integrating gratitude practices and rituals—the stronger your gratitude muscle will become.
And that’s your weekly nugget for this week.
Being madly in love with your life will mean something different to everyone, of course, as individuals’ life experiences are unique to them. But I’ve discovered that there are a few common threads, some universal through lines, that can help us think about it for ourselves.
And I wanted to share them with you today.
People who are madly in love with their lives…
Live their lives by design
Life is like a bonsai tree, a precious living work of art that can be shaped and cultivated with precision. People who are madly in love with their lives have carefully shaped and cultivated their decisions and behaviors so that they align precisely with what matters to them. They are intentional and deliberate.
Manage their mindset
Life doesn’t always go as planned, people disappoint us, sometimes it rains when we really wanted it to be sunny. People who are madly in love with their lives know the difference between making things happen in the world and believing that the world should be exactly as they want it. They’re extraordinarily realistic about what they can control (which is very little) and the things they can’t control (which is mostly everything).
Consciously work to be positive
People who are madly in love with their lives deliberately work against their negativity bias. They do it by focusing on what’s good on purpose. They consciously cultivate positive memories, and form healthy, helpful perspectives on negative ones.
Live in the present moment
Developing the capacity to fully inhabit the present moment—to notice life exquisitely unfolding in real time—allows us to appreciate and relish every ordinary experience life grants us. People who are madly in love with their lives turn off autopilot and instead develop their ability to be here now.
Have clarified their values and priorities
People who are madly in love with their lives know what they say “yes” to and what they say “no” to. They are rarely overwhelmed or overcommitted because they have devoted the necessary time to discover and articulate their values and priorities, and have aligned their inner and outer resources effectively and realistically.
Connect deeply with others
We are not islands. We are gardens. People who are madly in love with their lives show up for others and deliberately invest in the relationships that form the tapestry of their lives. They are interconnected. They know that it’s through our community, not our accomplishments, that we gain our sense of belonging and meaning.
Are always learning and growing
People who are madly in love with their lives deliberately create opportunities to evolve beyond their current capabilities. Without growth, we become stagnant. Without challenge, we become bored and listless. When we’re not stretched, we shrink. They live by a philosophy of “not yet” instead of “I can’t.”
Make their lives feel good
People who are madly in love with their lives have no qualms integrating juicy joys into their day. Maybe that’s a few morning stretches, a perfect cup of tea, a sumptuous bath, or a quiet walk in the woods. Regardless of the activity, there is a sense of feeling rightly entitled to having a life that feels good.
Do good work in the world
Whatever their vocation, people who are madly in love with their lives can connect the dots between the work that they do each day and the way it contributes to the world around them. They know that money is just one way to measure success. In fact, they’ve learned that success is more accurately measured by the positive difference they make and the way their work makes them and others feel.
They clean up their messes
People who are madly in love with their lives have tidied up. On the outside, they’ve done the work to resolve soured relationships and clean up past mistakes. They’re not perfect—sometimes they say the wrong thing or let someone down—but they’re quick to make amends and begin again. On the inside, they’ve done the work to forgive themselves and others, choosing to grow from past mistakes and to unburden themselves from resentments.
We get just one life. My new friend recognized this as we talked about falling in love with our lives. And she was enthralled by the idea that she could steer her life toward that aim. She resolved to do so, and I am happy to say that she’s well on her way.
You get just one shot in this body, with these people around you, in these circumstances. And if you’re not careful, this one life might end up pretty ordinary and inconsequential. The choice is yours. Are you ready to fall madly in love with your life?
Kristen Manieri is a coach who works with teams to increase both productivity and wellbeing. She also helps individuals navigate transition with clarity and confidence. Her areas of focus are: stress reduction, energy management, mindset, resilience, habit formation, rest rituals, and self-care. As the host of the weekly 60 Mindful Minutes podcast, an Apple top 100 social science podcast, Kristen has interviewed over 200 authors about what it means to live a more conscious, connected, intentional and joyful life. Learn more at kristenmanieri.com/work-with-me.
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