At Sea with Justin McRoberts – Details, episodes &amp; analysis

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

Rethinking Sabbath Rest and the Misuse of Deconstruction

Season 11 · Episode 175

vendredi 20 septembre 2024 • Duration 15:41

Episode Notes:

Introduction:

Justin reflects on the shift in the podcast's format, now focusing on direct listener questions related to life, faith, creativity, and leadership.

Sabbath-Keeping:

Question: How do you build a Sabbath day?
Justin shares his personal history of practicing Sabbath, noting that it's a flexible and evolving practice rather than a rigid set of tasks.
He emphasizes the importance of regularly setting aside time for rest and reflection, allowing the Sabbath to become an opportunity to connect with God and assess one's soul.
He encourages listeners to work with a coach or spiritual director to reflect on what worked and didn't during their Sabbath practice.

Deconstruction Misuse:

Question: Thoughts on deconstruction and its current cultural use?
Justin critiques the modern misuse of the word "deconstruction," explaining its philosophical roots in Jacques Derrida's work.
He challenges the idea that deconstruction is simply changing one's mind or evolving beliefs, arguing instead that it represents a deeper shift in worldview where meaning is questioned.
Justin also warns against disparaging one's past self or experiences during personal growth, calling for more grace in navigating maturity.
He closes by explaining that true deconstruction is a posture and a way of interpreting the world, not a phase to be completed.

Closing Remarks:

Justin encourages listeners to submit more questions via Instagram and teases future faith, creativity, and leadership topics.
He thanks his Patreon supporters and invites others to join the team.

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

Sacred Strides Chapter 12 - I'm Not Running to Win

Season 10 · Episode 166

jeudi 4 avril 2024 • Duration 32:54

In this episode, Justin McRoberts and Dan Portnoy discuss Chapter 12 of the book 'Sacred Strides' titled 'I'm Not Running to Win.' They explore the importance of recognizing the dangers of exhaustion in ministry and the need for self-care. They highlight the impact of urgency and importance on mental health and the importance of prioritizing health and wellbeing. The conversation concludes with a prayer emphasizing the need to never sacrifice one's health on the altar of productivity.

Takeaways

Recognize the dangers of exhaustion in ministry and the impact it can have on mental health.
Prioritize self-care and wellbeing to be able to offer the best of yourself in important work.
Do not let urgency and importance dictate your life's patterns; practice saying no and setting boundaries.
Remember that important work should not be antithetical to being healthy; take care of yourself and trust that the rest is in God's hands.

Chapters

00:0 0 Introduction

02:46 Chapter 12: I'm Not Running to Win

06:18 The Urgency of Important Work

09:10 Recognizing the Importance of Self-Care

13:26 The Dangers of Exhaustion in Ministry

23:32 The Impact of Exhaustion on Mental Health

27:45 The Choice Between Important Work and Soul

31:17 Prayer: May I Never Sacrifice My Health

32:43 Conclusion

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

Ben Higgins

Season 6 · Episode 76

jeudi 5 août 2021 • Duration 38:30

I actually never watched the Batchelor. And that’s not a thing I say with pride or any sense of superiority. I honestly just don’t watch a lot of TV and haven’t since I was about 12, when shows like “The A-Team” and “Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom” took up space on the probably 20 networks available. So, when I connected with Ben Higgins on Twitter, I didn’t exactly know why a few of my online friends freaked out a bit. See, while I came to find out Ben was a “celebrity” in the most “celebrity” of ways, having done reality TV like The Bachelor, I found a man who wasn’t resting on the random success that such a thing offers; I found in him someone who was looking at where he was, the influence he had on hand and asking the question “What can I make with this?”

I loved talking with Ben (on his show and then on mine).

I think you’ll enjoy it, too.

Check it out.

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

Simone Biles, Athletics and Whole Health

Season 6 · Episode 75

jeudi 29 juillet 2021 • Duration 04:59

Stephen Pressfield calls it “Resistance.”

A number of religious traditions call it “sin.”

But regardless of the name folks apply to it, it seems to me that we generally share, cross-culturally and throughout history, a sense and a lament that things don’t work out perfectly; that things fall apart and that plans don’t always go in order.

In that light, part of what that means in my personal history is that planning for success means planning for (or at the very least be prepared for) things not going well.

Now before you hear me preaching an “it is what it is” message, counter to the heart of my most recent book effort, I promise you that’s not what I’m saying. Instead, I’d suggest that the anticipation of obstacles and missteps sets me up to see those moments differently; that even my missteps and failed attempts can be elements of my creative process.

What do I do with the moment things go … wrong?

This week, gymnastics legend Simone Biles pulled out of events in the Olympics, setting off a series of reflections and discussions (including this one) about mental health, sports ethics, performance patterns, rising to the challenge, and public responsibility.

There are moments when the best of us, in us or about isn’t available for our “greatest opportunities.” Things don’t always work optimally in optimal situations.

In my reading, it’s not what Simone Biles was up against (internally and externally), it’s what she did with that moment, both professionally and publicly, that makes this the moment it is. She chose her health over performance and then told the world. And in so doing, I’d suggest that she moved the goal post regarding what “greatness” can look like for a Legendary athlete.

In 2020, the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine published a short study about the detection, treatment, and prevention of mental health issues in competitive athletes. Along with more recognizable factors like “perfectionism,” the study delves into what is known as “Athlete Identity,” which is the degree to which someone views themselves within the athletic role and looks to others for confirmation of that role.

In short, an unhealthy dependence of an individual on their success in that one area of life comes at the cost of overall health. And we hear that put really simply by athletes like Simone Biles when she says, just hours after pulling herself from competition on the global stage, “There's more to life than athletics.”

Or why, in response to Simone Biles's story, we hear Michael Phelps, a legend in his own right and time, say “We’re human beings. Nobody is perfect. It’s okay not to be okay.”

See,.. what if it’s harder to be a whole and healthy human being than it is to be great at any particular thing? What if Simone Biles actually took a step towards whole human goodness by removing herself from the metrics that confirm her greatness as an “Athlete?”

In 2009, David Bazan released one of my favorite songs, entitled “Hard To Be.” A somewhat tongue-in-cheek examination of the Biblical notion of sin, David walks through some of the odder explanations and justifications for the fact that life is hard; that things fall apart, and that people get hurt.

Then, he daftly returns, in the chorus to the very simple, fundamental truth that

It’s hard to be

Hard to be

A decent human being.

Yes, it is.

And let that make us fans of one another. That, just as we pause the celebrate Simone Biles’s remarkable and unparalleled talent, we’d pause to cheer on our neighbors and roommates as they pursue wholeness and health and the full life God desires for beloved ones around us. As hard as it might be to achieve the things that make one an Olympic champion in a season of life, it just might be harder to live healthily, well, and wholly over the course of a lifetime.

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

KJ Ramsey

Season 6 · Episode 74

jeudi 22 juillet 2021 • Duration 55:03

I was setting up to interview an upcoming guest when she told me “I’m sorry I’ll have to be pretty strict with the hour and leave right away. I’m seeing my therapist right after this.”

“Absolutely,” I told her. “We’ll probably talk for 45 min.”
“Great. I’m really looking forward to this session with her.”

Now, it’s not just of note that this guest was looking forward to her therapy session; but also of note that this guest is a Spiritual Director.

Therapy is not for “weak” people.

Therapy is for people

Who wants to live into their strengths.

Therapy is not for “broken” people

Therapy is for people who want to want to live healed and whole.

Therapy is not for “sick” people

Therapy is for people who value their health.

Part of what I think you’ll hear in my conversation with KJ Ramsey is that posture towards therapy and what is now often called “self-care.” The practice and belief that confessing and facing my shortcomings is an expression of health and strength.

Check it out.

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

You Are The Gift

Season 6 · Episode 73

jeudi 15 juillet 2021 • Duration 06:25

Toward the end of the introduction of my most recent book, It Is What You Make Of It, is a kind of admonition; a clarion call, as it were.

“There is a virtual army of contentious voices around you screaming that life “ is what it is,“ and particularly in places, you feel stuck.

Your work-life quote is what it is.“

Your social life “is what it is.“

Your physical health “is what it is“

I’m saying all that is garbage. Your life is not just a set of steel circumstances that “or what they are“ without any hope of change or improvement or transformation. I don’t know exactly where that voice is coming from in your particular life, but I want to help you locate it and shut it up forever.”

It’s actually a somewhat poorly kept secret that I’m not always very interested in the specific accomplishments or achievements of those I get to work with as a coach. In other words, while I certainly do find a lot of the projects my clients introduce me to interesting, it’s pretty much never the book or the album or the business startup or jewelry line I’m emotionally invested in. Instead, I am regularly and often deeply moved by the person doing the work; who they are, and who they are be becoming.

You are the gift you are offering the world.

The service or the artifact you’re working at or dreaming up is how you’re passing yourself on.

Which is why one of the most important chapters for me to have written in that book (the one I read from a few moments ago) highlights a rather unsavory event from my vocational history. I won’t recount the entire story here; I think it’s worth reading in the book.

But for the purposes of this episode, here it goes, in short:

I was working with a designer/art director on what would be my first book project. It was a massive project because we’d thrown in visual art, a second edition of the book, documentary video, and music…

So… having bitten off WAY more than I could chew in the time I gave us as a two-person team, I was stressed.

We’d passed our first self-imposed deadline and then another and then I realized how badly I needed to get the thing turned in to be available for the tour dates I’d booked.

in my stress, I blew up at one of the customer service agents who was employed by the printing service we’d hired to make the book.

We’d had a few errors come back when we submitted the files and I … kinda .. lost it.

I don’t remember exactly what I said at the moment, but it was pretty insulting and the young man on the phone took it personally. And then… he quietly and very effectively retaliated by digitally corrupting the upload process so that, over the next several weeks, it became impossible for my project to be approved and completed.

Eventually, my partner took over the conversation with the printer and we got the thing done.

And.. honestly, I’ve always been decently happy with that project; it’s not great.

But

The most important aspect of that entire process was that I realized I didn’t like who I became while making it. And that being someone I liked; someone respected by partners and workmates and readers and listeners (… someone who respects and honors partners and workmates and readers and listeners) was not only more valuable and more desirable, it’s more enjoyable.

I am the gift I am giving in and through my work.

It’s not the service or the artifact I’m working at or dreaming up; it’s me, through what I’m making.

Which is why, along with 4:30 am wake-ups to ensure I put my most focused work hours in when my head is clearest, I do the work of ensuring I can be clear at all.

I see a therapist and have for many, many years.

I work with a spiritual director.

I get exercise and get sleep

I’ll find myself a session or two with a new coaching client, hearing the hesitation and confusion on their end while I ask them about how often they’re getting outside and what time they’re getting to sleep. I stopped asking about the project and started tying the value of even doing the project to their health and wholeness because that’s what I think it’s all about to begin with.

You are the gift you are giving the world.

Which leads me to this: in the same way that books don’t write themselves and melodies don’t just fall into place; in the same way that Justice doesn’t just roll down and Peace doesn’t just get a chance… you and I do not simply become. You and I don’t just get healthy. Just like your idea needs time and curation and attention from you, you and I need the help of those outside us in order to be shaped and grow; sometimes even just to heal and get right.

I don’t recommend therapy because I think you’re broken.

I don’t recommend spiritual direction because I think you’re lost.

I don’t coach because I think you’re incapable.

I think you might be just fine without any of that.
I really do.

But I don’t do what I do, whether it’s this podcast or the book “It Is What You Make Of It” because I want you and I to be fine. I want you and I to be way better than that; and that takes deep, hard, inner-work… often work you and I don’t have the training or expertise to executer much less the altitude on our own lives to do effectively.

So, while you’re working on your passion project and your legacy, who’s working on you?

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

https://monicadicristina.com

Monica DiCristina

Season 6 · Episode 72

jeudi 1 juillet 2021 • Duration 52:29

You know that friend who gets to the gym 7 days every week. I think we all have that friend (if we’re not that friend).

I don’t think I’ve ever heard a friend like that called “weak” for working out regularly. Quite the opposite.

Sometimes that friend gets called “obsessive” or something like that (often by people who aren’t taking their physical health as seriously)

But.. even, in that case, they’re overdoing a good thing; nobody is suggesting that the desire to hit the gym is, in and of itself a sign and practice of weakness.

So, why isn’t that the case with therapy? Why is it that, even now, after all, we know about brain chemistry, the control mechanisms in human psychology, and the well-funded attempts by markets, political systems, and corporations to manipulate human thought and emotion.. that the dominant pushback folks have about going to therapy.. is about being, or appearing “weak?”

I don’t really know the answer to that in full

What I know is that some of the language used to critique psychotherapy and the need for it emanates from Western Religion.

Which is part of what makes Monica DiChristina’s work so interesting and important.

I really enjoyed my conversation with her and I think you will, too.

Check it out.

Links for Monica DiChristina:

Links for Justin :

Order the new book - It Is What You Make It

Hearts and Minds

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Episode Sponsored by BetterHelp

Check them out - http://betterhelp.com/atsea

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

The Work of Art

Season 6 · Episode 71

jeudi 24 juin 2021 • Duration 05:09

I remember sitting on the edge of a hotel bed, sorting through line after line of a ledger to figure out if the tour manager had missed paying me, two weeks prior, the $55 per night I was promised.

At that point, Frank Tate, who owned the label I was on and whose band was headlining the tour AND who I’d struck the $55/night deal, pulled some cash out of his wallet at said “Okay. Here’s $55. Let’s get back to work now.”

As we left the hotel room, I sidled up to Frank, thinking he’d taken my side against the faulty memory of our tour manager. “Thanks for your help in there.”

But he hadn’t taken my side.

At least not the way I wanted him to.

“I gave you the money because I didn’t care. You shouldn’t, either. You should be thankful you get to do this.”

It felt like a jab at the time.

It wasn’t.

It was the push I needed.

I was the weakest part of that tour. Easily.
But not even that was Frank’s point.

Frank was wanting me to love the work more than I loved the results of the work.
He knew I’d be around longer if I did.

If you’ve read “It Is What You Make Of It,” you’ll know there are even more stories about Frank Tate’s influence on the way I see my life and work and the relationship between.

Years later, my experience and reflection on the love of work resulted in an analogy I used in my 2nd book, which I called Title Pending.

The book was a kind of precursor to "It Is What You Make Of It”

In that book, I recall a memory about, my son in which we went hiking. We left the place we lived and drove about 15 miles across the way to Mount Diablo. On the drive over, my son was really excited to get to the mountain. But as we got closer to the mountain, the houses in front of the mountain blocked his view. Once we were there on the trail and hiking up the mountain, you couldn’t see the mountain at all. My son got confused and “Where did the mountain go?”

I said “buddy, we’re on the mountain. This is the mountain” and he didn’t believe me. “This is the mountain. We’re on it.” But what Asa didn’t know (and was learning) is that, once you’re on the mountain, it doesn’t look like a mountain anymore; It looks like 400 feet of dirt. And if I don’t apply my energy and the best of my efforts in that 400 feet and then the next 400 feet and then the next 400 feet, I don’t get to the top of the mountain, which is what I intended to do. From a distance, the mountain is beautiful and majestic and I want to be there. But then once I’m there, I lose that majestic vision and I just have the 400 feet of dirt; I just have the work.

So, with books, it doesn’t look like 175 - 200 pages of printed text, it looks like 4 AM wake-ups and long slogs on the keyboard with a blank page in front of me. In music, it looks like a bad song after a bad song with lyrics that don’t pair and a melody that just doesn’t seem to make sense (until finally, it does). In a relationship, it looks like arguments and therapy and other friends helping out.

The work of life is the thing I need to fall in love with in order to love the life I’m living.

And one of the great gifts artists can offer the world is to stick around long enough to become disillusioned with “success” the way they were chasing it, fall in love with the process. Talk about their process. Share their process so that, when we’re in the midst of our own slog or in the midst of our own work, we look around our own lives and are not just inspired by the success and by the beauty and by the accomplishment of that artist, we are challenged and informed by the way they got there.

That’s one of the things that makes it art.

Links For Justin:

Order In The Low - NEW Book with Scott Erickson
Coaching with Justin
Order In Rest - New Book of Poems

NEW Single - Let Go

NEW Music - Sliver of Hope

NEW Music - The Dood and The Bird

The Book - It Is What You Make it

https://www.christopherw.com

Christopher Williams

Season 6 · Episode 70

jeudi 17 juin 2021 • Duration 01:07:55

In his Legendary book “The War of Art” Steven Pressfield writes:

“The professional arms himself with patience, not only to give the stars time to align in his career but to keep himself from flaming out in each individual work. He knows that any job, whether it’s a novel or a kitchen remodel, takes twice as long as he thinks and costs twice as much. . . [he] steels himself at the start of a project, reminding himself it is the Iditarod, not the sixty-yard dash. He conserves his energy. He prepares his mind for the long haul.”

I’ve personally met very few artists who embody and practice that attitude quite as well or as consistently as Christopher Williams.

Like the Professional in Pressfield’s book, Chris does the work of being an artist.

Little to no flash (though there’s definitely some pizazz on display when he’s playing that hand drum)
No complaining (though he can clearly articulate the difficulty of life as a full-time artist)

Little to nothing extra:

Just the songs, which, 14 projects later, are better than they’ve ever been.

This is my conversation with singer, songwriter, and percussionist, Christopher Williams

Links for Christopher Williams

Links for Justin :