1,000 Espressos

The subject of our conversations this month is Joy. Joy is uniquely singular. C.S. Lewis saw a clear distinction between joy, pleasure, and happiness: (this is from Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life.) "I call it Joy, which is here a technical term and must be sharply distinguished both from Happiness and Pleasure. Joy (in my sense) has indeed one characteristic, and one only, in common with them; the fact that anyone who has experienced it will want it again... I doubt whether anyone who has tasted it would ever, if both were in his power, exchange it for all the pleasures in the world. But then Joy is never in our power and Pleasure often is." 

Our guest, teacher, writer, and compassionate activist, Julia Melloni, might disagree. She suggests that being present for other people is a way of giving and receiving joy. 

In our conversation, we discuss the relationship between self-worth, nurturing, gratitude, laughter, patience, and joy. 

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

Are you aware of your own creativity? Creativity is the act of turning new and imaginative ideas into reality. We start our wrap up our conversation on creativity with a few quotes:

“Creativity is characterized by the ability to perceive the world in new ways, to find hidden patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated phenomena, and to generate solutions. Creativity involves two processes: thinking, then producing. 

If you have ideas but don’t act on them, you are imaginative but not creative.” —Linda Naiman of Creativity at Work

“Creativity is our ability to tap into our ‘inner’ pool of resources – knowledge, insight, information, inspiration and all the fragments populating our minds – that we’ve accumulated over the years just by being present and alive and awake to the world and to combine them in extraordinary new ways.” —Maria Popova, Brainpickings

“Creativity is the process of bringing something new into being. Creativity requires passion and commitment. It brings to our awareness what was previously hidden and points to new life. The experience is one of heightened consciousness: ecstasy.” —Rollo May, The Courage to Create.

Our topic this month is creativity. Our guest, Rick Rose is a creativity powerhouse who is a writer and producer of special projects at Discover Mediaworks, an award-winning communications & media production company in Wisconsin.

Creativity is defined as the tendency to generate or recognize ideas, alternatives, or possibilities that may be useful in solving problems, communicating with others, and entertaining ourselves and others. Today we explore being open to the divine spark (Rick suggests that when we are not open to creativity, we spit in the face of our higher power), the human obligation to be creative (LJ tells us that we are put on this earth to use our talents), and how creativity plays into life and work every day—especially when hiring new talent. “When assembling a team, hire those who are smarter and more creative than you are.” 

Rick asks, “What is the commonality of creativity? Is all creativity story-based?”

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

The topic of our conversations in June is Creativity. Jane and LJ open it up with a definition— “Creativity encompasses the ability to discover new and original ideas, connections, and solutions to problems. It’s a part of our drive as humans—fostering resilience, sparking joy, and providing opportunities for self-actualization”— and an examination of creativity in our daily lives. Life requires regular acts of ingenuity, in other words, we as humans are creative every single day.

A recent article in Psychology Today suggests that “Creativity can be acquired and honed at any age or experience level… Innovation is not some divine gift; it’s actually the skilled application of knowledge in new and exciting ways. It requires changing up your normal routine, stepping outside of typical comfort zones, and paying attention to the present moment.”

This conversation explores ways to become more aware and thus amplify of your own creativity.

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

In this episode Jane and LJ wrap up a month of conversations about New Beginnings. They’ve had some great guests: Gerette Buglion talked about starting over after escaping a cult, Mark Boudreau gave us a Buddhist perspective on starting over every day, Markey Read described how the pandemic gave her more time to reflect on the new ways she wants to run her business and her life.

Starting over is part of the human experience. Letting go of who you are now in order to move forward is a vulnerable act, but when we approach a new beginning with courage and vulnerability, even if it is not a great success, the effort alone is worth it because this is where the essence of happiness resides, and new beginnings start. 

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

This month the topic of our conversations is New Beginnings. Starting over is an inevitable part of the human experience. Throughout our lives, we are called to start anew, sometimes in small ways, sometimes in big ways, sometimes by choice, and sometimes out of necessity. 

Sometimes starting over becomes necessary because of a crisis or maybe a pandemic. Other times we start over from a place of happy discovery. Sometimes we plan and strategize, and other times we take giant leaps of faith. 

In all cases: new beginnings are inevitable part of life. Their outcomes depend upon our mindset. 

Our guest, Markey Read, leadership development and professional development coach, finds the pandemic has given her the opportunity to find some unexpected new beginnings. “I find myself shifting away from what I thought I should be doing to what I want to be doing…The pandemic has given many of us time to reflect on what we want out of our businesses,” she says and predicts that “The time is ripe for people to claim the space that’s true for them.” 

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

The topic of our conversations this month is New Beginnings. Our guest Mark Boudreau co-owns Guide Construction Solutions, a small design-build construction company, with his son Liam. Mark is a certified passive house consultant who has been practicing Buddhism for 25 years. 

We explore the phrase 'The Fresh Start Effect' (terrifying to some) and discuss the role failure has in launching new beginnings. A new study referenced recently in Psychology Today suggests that Fresh Starts are most effective when a person experiences failure before the restart. For our guest, new beginnings are based on honesty, humility, and sometimes failure which he describes as the life’s pressure relief valve” on the path to success. “It’s a safety valve so that the system can balance,” he says.

The new beginnings we find between the swinging trapeze bars of life may be where we are most alive. According to Mark, “In that moment is the essence, the seed of happiness.” 

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

This month the topic on #1000Espressos is New Beginnings. As a cult survivor, our guest Gerette Buglion, cult awareness educator and author of An Everyday Cult (to be published May 23!) is intimately familiar with them. 

New beginnings imply change. Heraclitus famously said that “The Only Constant in Life Is Change.” But Neuroscience suggests that the human brain favors the familiar instead (even when cults are involved). Studies show that when we change the brain’s aversion to change through exposure to new situations, the more confident we become. 

Let us explore.

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

In this wrap up conversation on Growth, LJ interviews Jane on her awareness of her own growth. “What growth means to me is letting go of preconceived notions,” she says. The preconceived notion she must let go of is her dislike of psychological jargon such as the word 'growth mindset' which became popular about ten years ago after the publication of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by psychologist Carol Dweck of Stanford University. 

“Research links the growth mindset with many benefits, including: greater comfort with taking personal risks and striving for more stretching goals; higher motivation; enhanced brain development across wider ranges of tasks; lower stress, anxiety and depression; better work relationships; and higher performance levels.”

Perhaps the entrance of psychological jargon into the vernacular is a sign of cultural growth?

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.

The subject of our conversation is growth. Deliberate, thought-out growth enriches the soul, and yet things like a pandemic can cause people to grow in ways they have never foreseen. This conversation on growth with our guest Mary Catherine Jones of Voice Over Vermont raises many questions! 

Here are a few to whet your appetite:

-       Does Growth happen without a goal?

-       Does Growth happen without risk?

-       Is perfectionism hindering your own growth?

-       What is the shadow side of growth?

-       Is mastery at the other end of growth? 

Whether your drink is espresso, Cappuccino, latté, cortado, or even decaf, pour yourself a double shot and join us.