In this special crossover episode, we launch The Way Between Podcast from within The Living Conversation.

Adam introduces The Way Between as a more flexible, long-form space to explore East–West philosophy in a story-driven way: how thinkers like Socrates, Confucius, Laozi, and Hui Neng emerged, how their ideas shaped cultures, and how their influence still reaches our lives today.

From there, Adam, Anthony, and guest Dr. Nick Egan dive into:

• Socrates’ image of the wise sea captain and why philosophy is the “art of navigation” in life
• How Adam’s Philosophy 101 class planted the seed that led him to change his major and devote his life to this work
• The Tibetan Buddhist framework of view, path, and result—and how “view” quietly shapes everything we do
• Dr. Yi Wu’s integral life philosophy and his triangle of reality, practice, and theory
• Zen stories of Hui Neng and how a single exchange between teacher and student can become the most important moment in the universe
• Nick’s experience of a Zen Roshi responding, “This is Nirvana,” and how that answer cracked ordinary thinking
• Tibetan pointing-out instructions on the nature of mind, and why we may glimpse it many times without recognizing it
• How our “story” about reality locks us into patterns—and how Socratic questions can loosen that story
• Adam’s time teaching freshman philosophy, planting the first seeds of “examining your life” in students who may not even know what philosophy is yet
• Jung’s sense of the hero’s journey and the challenge to actually cultivate the soul in ordinary life

Along the way, they explore Zen, Tibetan Buddhism, Confucianism, and Western philosophy as different ways of pointing toward the same question:

How should I live?

And they return again and again to the idea that philosophy is not just a subject—but a daily practice of view, conversation, and self-cultivation.

Connect with our guest:

• Dr. Nick Egan – nickeganphd.com
• Shift Leadership Group – shiftleadership.group

Connect with the hosts:

• Adam Dietz – “The Way Between” on Substack (search: The Way Between Substack)
• Email Adam: [email protected]
• Anthony Wright – theonaut.com

If this conversation resonates, you can follow The Way Between Podcast on your favorite podcast app and keep listening to The Living Conversation on 'Attunement' on KWMR and wherever you get your podcasts.