We’re super excited to be introducing some fresh new formats to the mix here on the SPARKED podcast. Our new Hot Takes segments, which we just launched last week, tackle hot topics in conversation with expert guides from the SPARKED Braintrust. And, today, we’re sharing a fun new episode format we’re calling SPARKED Stories, where we spotlight the experience of one person and explore how they’ve built a living and life that honors, celebrates, and centers the parts of themselves that truly make them and their work come alive. That sparks what they do, and who they are.

And today, we’re going to start with a spotlight on the story of someone our listeners have come to know and appreciate, but you likely didn’t know about the stories and experiences that got him where he is. I’m talking about SPARKED Braintrust member, Charlie Gilkey. Now you may know Charlie's work. He runs a company called Productive Flourishing, which is all about helping people get things out of their heads and figuring out how to actually take the actions to produce the things that they so deeply want to make real in the world as a maker myself. His work has resonated so profoundly with me, which is why he’s a part of the SPARKED Braintrust.

But, Charlie also has a really powerful background. He came out of the military where the decisions that he was making, the systems and processes that he was building, the advising and mentoring and coaching, and leading that he was doing very often had extraordinary stakes. Life and death stakes. If he chose wrong, lives were at risk in a part of the world that was very far from where he grew up. He's since written a fantastic book called Start Finishing, which is all about his methodology. 

As we sat down to dive into Charlie’s Sparked Story, I wanted to understand what were his deep impulses for the things that he's done and what have been the through lines. And, of course, along the way, he shares his Sparketype profile and we dive into how that has informed the different types of work he’s said yes and no to, the way that he has stepped into them, and what he's learned along the way about how he makes decisions that better aligned with that. 

SPARKED STORY GUEST: Charlie Gilkey | Website

Charlie is a strategic advisor and executive coach, founder of the Productive Flourishing consultancy, and author of the multi-award-winning book, Start Finishing.

YOUR HOST: Jonathan Fields

Jonathan is a dad, husband, award-winning author, multi-time founder, executive producer and host of the Good Life Project podcast, and co-host of SPARKED, too! He’s also the creator of an unusual tool that’s helped more than 650,000 people discover what kind of work makes them come alive - the Sparketype® Assessment, and author of the bestselling book, SPARKED.

So what is your Sparketype? Turns out, we all have a unique imprint for work that makes us come alive, this is your Sparketype. When you discover yours, everything, your entire work-life- and even parts of your personal life and relationships - begins to make sense. Until you know yours, you’re kind of fumbling in the dark. 

How to submit your question for the SPARKED Braintrust: Wisdom-seeker submissions

More on Sparketypes at: Discover You Sparketype | The Book | The Workshop | The Website

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