I.N.S.P.I.R.E.

Episode description

How do you start the day as the person you want to be? In this "Navigate" episode, Drew Lawson and Steve Nadig unpack the SAVERS morning routine, plus the daily shutdown that bookends it. They cover what to do, what to avoid, and how to build a deluxe version and a 15-minute version that fits your real life. Steve also shares his personal anthem and commits to a 30-day experiment.

In this episode

• Why a morning routine matters for decision-making, presence, and leading from calm rather than a triggered state (0:02)
• The big don'ts: no news, email, or social media first thing (4:28)
• Deluxe vs. compact routines, and why you shouldn't "should" on yourself (6:32)
• Bookends: the daily shutdown ritual and "parking your stressors" (7:14)
• S: Silence and solitude, including prayer, gratitude, grace, stillness (10:57)
• A: Affirmation and anthem, with Steve reading his anthem (14:48)
• Praise and positivity: catching people doing something right, and Gottman's ratios (22:06)
• V: Visualization of encounters, courage, and values in action (24:03)
• E: Exercise and energy, including water, walking, delayed caffeine, and light exposure (27:20)
• R: Reading, including why reading aloud matters (31:20)
• S: Scribing, now officially "scribbling" (37:51)
• Non-negotiables and the permission to experiment (40:15)

Key takeaways

1. Start the day analog and unplugged. Save news and email for later.
2. Build two versions of your routine: a luxurious one and a roughly 15-minute minimum.
3. Exercise, silence and solitude, and avoiding the news are the non-negotiables. How you do them is flexible.
4. Bookend the day. A shutdown ritual helps you leave the day's stress behind.
5. Praise generously, for yourself and your team. Brains default to negativity.
6. Don't get overwhelmed. Experiment, have fun, and give yourself grace.

Try it this week

• Say a short anthem or affirmation out loud, ideally in a mirror
• Take a 5-minute walk in morning light with water before caffeine
• Write for one page, or just scribble, by hand
• Design your shutdown ritual: a clothing change, a song, a garage-door moment

Homework and 30-day challenges

• Steve: daily anthem and SAVERS for 30 days
• Drew: shorten his anthem and test a 10,000 lux morning light

Books and resources mentioned

• Soundtracks, John Acuff (the anthem structure)
• Protocols, Andrew Huberman (energy, caffeine timing, light)
• The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron (morning pages)
• The Relationship Cure, John Gottman
• Atomic Habits, James Clear (Steve's reference point)
• The SAVERS author: Hal Elrod's The Miracle Morning

I.N.S.P.I.R.E. Podcast — Season 2: Navigate, Episode 2 "The Daily Anthem"

Drew reunites with Steve Nadig to unpack the tools that keep us anchored in true self once the noise starts coming in. Steve opens with a WWII radar analogy: early radar was full of false signals you had to filter before you could see what was actually real — a perfect picture for the outer rings of false and unwanted identity that crowd out the true self at center.

From there, two practical tools:

• SAVERS morning routine — Stillness, Affirmation, Visualization, Exercise, Reading, Scribing — as a way to meet the day before email, news, or a scroll through Instagram gets there first.
• The Daily Anthem — a short personal declaration, read aloud in the mirror morning and night for 30 days (adapted from Jon Acuff's Soundtracks). Drew shares his own anthem and the research behind the practice: less self-doubt, sharper goal-setting, more follow-through.

They also touch on doom-scrolling as a trigger source, and how an AI tool loaded with your own values and purpose statement can help draft a first pass at your anthem.

Next time: naming the different "characters" we deploy — Coach Drew, Dad Drew, Swimmer Drew — and building your own Boardroom Council.

Drew and Steve discussed the concept of "Navigate" in their leadership podcast series, focusing on how leaders can lead from their true selves using their core values and identity as navigational tools. Steve shared personal examples of how he used values like "team comes before individual" to make decisions, including his retirement decision and turning down family plans for existing commitments. They explored practical navigation tools, with Steve highlighting PQ reps (progressive muscle relaxation) as a technique he used during meetings to stay centered, and Drew emphasized the importance of taking time for thinking and using analog methods like writing by hand on whiteboards. The conversation concluded with plans to explore more navigation tools and techniques in future episodes, followed by a discussion of the SPIRE framework (Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Relational, and Emotional) as the next phase of their series.

Episode Title:

Season 1 Finale: Identity — Landing the Plane

Episode Summary:

What if the way you've been defining yourself isn't actually true?

In the Season 1 finale, Drew and Steve bring the conversation full circle by landing on the most important piece of the INSPIRE framework: Identity. Too often, we build our sense of self on performance, success, failure, or the opinions of others—things that constantly shift. But what happens when those foundations crack?

This episode invites you to step into something more stable. Drew and Steve unpack what it means to have a grounded identity—one that isn't earned, compared, or taken away—and why that changes everything. When you know who you are at your core, decisions get clearer, pressure loosens its grip, and life begins to flow from a place of purpose rather than proof.

As they close out Season 1, they reflect on the journey so far and set the stage for what's ahead. Because understanding your identity is just the beginning—learning how to live from it is where real transformation happens.

If you've been chasing clarity, confidence, or direction, this episode helps you stop striving and start standing.

Season 1 ends here—but the real work is just getting started.

Season 1 Finale - Identity (I in INSPIRE)

Drew and Steve wrap up Season 1 by providing practical tools to consolidate all the identity work covered in previous episodes. After exploring unwanted identities, false identities, and true self through values discovery, this episode offers multiple metaphors and frameworks to keep your authentic leadership front and center.

Key Frameworks Discussed:

• Three Circles Diagram - A simple visual separating unwanted identities (middle ring), false identities (outer ring), and true self (center) that clients use daily for self-awareness checks

• The House of Me / Boardroom Metaphor - Creating a mental space where your true self leads from the "kitchen table" while other parts of you have their proper place in different "rooms"

• Captain & Crew - Your true self as the captain directing all other parts of your internal team with structure and consistency

• Constellation of Me - A visual mapping exercise showing the relationship between all your parts and where you position yourself among them

• Me Manual - A shareable document containing your DISC profile, strengths, values, and how you want to show up as a leader

Practical Takeaways:

• Create vulnerability and awareness in your leadership by naming when false identities show up
• Choose one metaphor/tool that resonates and make it visible (poster, band, desktop image)
• Before your next leadership moment, pause and ask: "Who's showing up in me right now?"
• Start small - practice with a few decisions before running every choice through your framework

Quote of the Episode: "What is a weed? A plant whose virtues or values have not been discovered."

Coming in Season 2: Navigate (N in INSPIRE) - Taking your identity work into practical application, including creating your leadership anthem, defining your brand, and crafting a purpose statement.

In this episode of INSPIRE, Drew Lawson and Steve Nadig continue their deep dive into identity and the True Self, focusing on the practical work of values clarification—not as an abstract exercise, but as a lived, daily practice.

Using a simple yet powerful metaphor of weeds and plants, Drew and Steve explore how many of us spend years trying to eliminate our "weeds" (saboteurs, false selves, unwanted identities) without ever discovering the unique plant we're meant to grow. The invitation is not self-improvement, but self-discovery.

Together, they walk through two core values exercises:

• Identifying values through energy, frustration, heroes, stories, and what moves us

• Distilling long lists of values into one to three core anchors that can actually guide daily decisions

Steve shares how values like altruism, good character, and agape love show up in leadership, sports, and relationships, while Drew reflects on his own core values of Inspire, Embrace, and Whimsy—and the tension that arises when values are deeply held but not fully expressed.

A key insight emerges:

Values are not goals to achieve; they are anchors to return to.

The conversation also explores:

• What it means when a value is high in importance but low in expression

• How grace matters more than guilt when we drift from our values

• Why judging others' values limits our own growth

• How rituals like value bands, reflection, and daily intention-setting help keep the True Self front and center

The episode closes with a look ahead to what's next in the INSPIRE journey: building the "House of Me," clarifying purpose, creating a personal anthem, and eventually integrating strengths and Sage powers—moving from insight to embodiment.

This episode is an invitation to pause, reflect, and ask a simple question:

What values do I want to return to—again and again—in the life I'm living right now?

In this heartfelt and reflective episode, Drew and Steve continue their exploration of living into our values—unpacking the next set of values exercises from Drew's Values Clarification series. Through candid stories, humor, and vulnerability, they dive into what our secret passions reveal about who we truly are, and how even our overdone values can get in the way of living authentically.

Steve shares his long-held love of singing and how music connects to his spiritual and inspirational values, while Drew opens up about rediscovering whimsy, curiosity, and playfulness—and how his inner "Hyper-Rational Spock" sometimes resists them. Together, they reflect on how aligning daily life with core values creates energy, joy, and meaning, and how imbalance can signal a saboteur at work.

Listeners are invited to try reflective prompts like:

• "If time and resources were unlimited, what would I long to do?"

• "Where might I be taking a value to the extreme?"

• "What activities have heart and meaning for me?"

They close with a fun "values interview" exercise: ask loved ones what magazine you'd be on the cover of, what your story would be, and what unique gift they see in you. It's an episode full of laughter, insight, and practical tools for rediscovering what makes you come alive.

Show Notes

In this episode of the INSPIRE Podcast, Drew Lawson and Steve Nadig continue their exploration of Identity and Not Identity by turning inward—to the heart of our True Self. After unpacking false and unwanted identities in earlier episodes, they now focus on the inner circle: clarifying the core values that define who we are and guide how we lead.

Drew introduces his decades-in-the-making Values Clarification Framework, a set of reflective exercises designed to surface the words and energies that bring us most alive. Together, Drew and Steve model the process in real time—sharing candid stories, honest self-reflections, and even a few laughs as they rediscover what matters most.

Steve shares how altruism has shaped his life and leadership, while Drew reveals his distilled values of inspiration, whimsy, and embrace—and how they serve as antidotes to his "hyper-rational" saboteur. Their dialogue highlights the tension between our protective patterns and our authentic energy, showing that the key to growth isn't perfection but awareness.

From Viktor Frankl to Brené Brown, from traffic metaphors to Japanese proverbs, the conversation is both practical and deeply human. As Drew reminds us, quoting Daniel Harkavy:

• Slowing down to speed up: Reflection fuels authentic action.

• Values as a lens: Clarity brings alignment to choices and relationships.

• Energy matters: Fear drains, love replenishes.

• Less is more: Focus on one to three guiding values.

• Authenticity over activity: True leadership flows from identity, not image.

What's one value that energizes you when you live it—and drains you when you ignore it?

• Daniel Harkavy — Becoming a Coaching Leader

• Brené Brown — Dare to Lead

• Viktor Frankl — Man's Search for Meaning

• Building Champions Values Clarification Tool

In this episode of the INSPIRE podcast, Drew Lawson turns to the innermost circle of identity: the True Self. Building on earlier conversations about False Selves and Unwanted Selves, this episode invites listeners to step beyond performance, approval, and shame, and discover the essence of who they are beneath the noise—the part of us that is whole, beloved, and anchored in God.

With wisdom from voices like Thomas Merton and Richard Rohr, Drew explores the difference between the False Self (driven by control and striving), the Unwanted Selves (voices of shame and sabotage), and the True Self (the light and gold within that cannot be tarnished). He highlights why this matters for leadership and life: authenticity sustains influence, resilience grows from identity not activity, and belovedness fuels courage, creativity, and connection.

The conversation then turns practical, offering first practices for uncovering and living from the True Self:

• Values Clarification and purpose statement creation.

• Anthem writing as a way to ground identity.

• Drawing from Positive Intelligence, the Sage Powers of empathy, curiosity, innovation, navigation, and action as expressions of the True Self—integrated with the MetaSkills Wheel of Intention.

• Using strengths frameworks (Gallup, Strengths Profile, LCP competencies) to celebrate gifts instead of obsessing over deficits.

• Learning self-compassion, befriending saboteurs, and embracing our common humanity.

Drew closes with a reflective invitation: "What is one moment you've felt most alive, most yourself? What was present in you?"

This episode is both a gentle uncovering and a bold calling—to live from the True Self and to lead with presence, peace, and purpose.

In this episode of INSPIRE: Life and Leadership Conversations That Go Deeper, Drew Lawson and Steve continue their exploration of identity by diving into the Unwanted Selves and Exiled Parts we often try to hide. Using Drew's three-circle bullseye framework, they name the difference between False Selves (who we pretend to be), Unwanted Selves(who we don't want to be), and the True Self (who we're created to be).

Drawing from Internal Family Systems (IFS) and Brené Brown's work on shame, Drew and Steve unpack how unwanted selves—the voices of shame and wounds from our formative years—often drive us into false identities. They explore the "Big Brother" metaphor, showing how protective identities like the Achiever, Pleaser, or Perfectionist try to keep us safe by covering up fears of being seen as stupid, incompetent, not enough, or lazy.

The conversation also highlights the psychology of the Wounded Child (the vulnerable, shamed parts of us) and the Adaptive Child (the protective strategies we learned to survive). These patterns, while once necessary, can keep us disconnected from joy, creativity, and love if left unexamined.

Through stories, metaphors, and reflection questions, this episode invites listeners to:

• Recognize the unwanted voices they carry.

• Understand the cost of exiling parts of themselves.

• Begin practicing compassion and integration—naming, noticing, and nurturing the exiled parts so the True Self can lead with wisdom and wholeness.

Far from being unworthy, these unwanted selves point us toward healing, self-compassion, and the journey from brokenness to belovedness.