Normal Lies

Episode 88.   “… imagine  something comes so easily for me and I expect the person sitting next to me to be able to do what I do, their strengths are different than mine. They have other gifts that they bring to the table. So when we have those expectations, there can be some clashes and misunderstandings and  it's important for us to become familiar with the language of strengths and what to look for and how to appreciate people.”

Nermine Zakhary is a practitioner of strengths, helping others strategically apply them to accelerate their performance, energy, relationships, and results!

As a Certified People Acuity Coach™, Nermine coaches individuals and small groups. She also facilitates workshops to teach strengths strategies to clients so they can define their optimal zones -- and thrive there.

This positive approach allows people to own who they are and empowers them to purposefully make their unique and impactful contributions to our world.

Nermine shares:

•  “I realized in that moment that I had spent the bulk of my adult life trying to live up to someone else's expectations and never feeling like I was meeting them.  Or I was always comparing myself to other people and, well, “why can't I be like so and so?" or “why can't I do what she does?” and never feeling good enough. And for the first time, it was okay to just be me.”

• “Sometimes if we're waiting for someone to notice what our gifts are or the environment to give us an opportunity to contribute, when we're in this waiting place, we don't use them at all because no one has invited us to this space with them.”

• “We're quick to notice our deficits, we're quick to notice the areas we need to work on to be better, and not appreciate and enjoy what we do have and what we bring and know the value that we bring to situations and relationships.”

• “We tend to be in a deficit thinking society. When we’ve accomplished something, we celebrate it for all of 30 seconds. And then we're quick to see, “what did I do wrong?” “Where can I do better?”  Well, no, wait a second. this is a big accomplishment. We need to slow down and celebrate and take in what is it that worked well? What did we do to make this a successful project? How can we do more of that?”

Contact Nermine for more information and to set up a discovery call at [email protected].


Linda also makes an announcement about the future of this podcast. 

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

Episode 87.  “… I’ve been broke pretty much my entire adult life. but I've always had an abundance of food and that makes me feel rich.”

Jamie Truppi has a passion for connecting the mind-body-spirit with healing foods and plants from the earth.

Jamie’s life centers around food, people, nature, wellbeing, traveling, and cultivating meaningful experiences in this short, crazy life.

As a functional nutritionist with a master’s degree in science and nutrition and board certified as a Certified Nutrition Specialist, Jamie guides her clients to go from gut-brain-stress dis-ease to healing. 

More from Jamie:

• “… food is just one extension of the bigger picture of my values, but it is one that comes up constantly because, for example, when we choose a home to live in… we don't have to make it again for a while… When we choose to buy a car, we do that once and we don't have to think about it again for quite a few years, hopefully. However with food, we're making these choices five, six, seven, eight times a day… We are constantly making food choices and it can be really distressing for people who don't know what to choose.”

•  “I remember fearing when I was a vegan, I was like, “what if I decide I want meat someday, and here I am calling myself a vegan, and then everyone's gonna call me a hypocrite.  I'm gonna go down that road of judgment and criticism. So there's a lot of psychological distress around eating regardless of what the diet is.”

• “We just have to remember that it doesn't actually matter what other people think. What matters is what's right for us.”

• “… all of a sudden you start to expand your palate because you're like, “I wonder what that tastes like?” and this is food curiosity… and then we go back to psychological like, “oh gosh, I can't remove meat! I could never remove dairy. I don't know how I would function!” People have done harder things,  and if we get playful and think of it as an experiment through the lens of childlike eyes, it's “I wonder how would I feel without dairy for a week?”

For more information about Jamie and to purchase her book, Clean Food, Messy Life: A food lover’s conscious journey back to self, visit: JamieTruppiNutrition.com.

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

Episode 86. This episode is a compilation of Linda’s most recent guest's answers to her finale questions:

• What’s the best piece of advice you received when you were younger?
• A lie you wish you discovered sooner?
• What’s the thing that makes you, you?
• What is one change you’d like to see in the world & one action, even a baby step, that we can take right now so we can move toward that change? 

Hear from:

Luz Flores Lee, from episode 75,  How to Navigate Change and Thrive

Jill Nagle, from episode 76, Exposing Myths of White Supremacy

Prithvi Madhukar, from episode 77, How our Passion can Lead to Burnout

Melissa Davis, from episode 79, From Competition to Collaboration

Keltie Maguire, from episode 80, Question Your Choices and Discover Possibilities

Erin Halligan-Avery, from episode 81, Caring & Empathy: A New Path to Leadership & Success in Business
Avadhi Dhruv, from episode 82, Uncover Your Inner Guru

Click the links above to listen to their full episodes,  find out how to contact them and follow them on social media .

What about you? How would you respond?

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air as she did in this episode.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

Be sure to follow Linda on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Linked In.

Episode 85. “Collecting business cards isn’t networking. I tell people, getting someone's card or adding someone on LinkedIn and saying they're in your network, that's like swiping right on a dating app and saying, this person is now your significant other.”

From tracking criminals and terrorists on the dark web to creating marketplaces and new authentication systems, Mark Herschberg has spent his career launching and developing new ventures at startups and Fortune 500s and in academia, with over a dozen patents to his name. 

Mark helped start the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program, dubbed MIT’s “career success accelerator,”  is the author of The Career Toolkit: Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You as well as the creator of the Brain Bump app. 

This conversation runs the gamut, from networking to ethics to leadership:

• “… every time I meet someone, I think “Nice to meet you. What can I do to help?” Now, I'm not gonna show up and move your couch, but maybe there's other ways I can help you. And that is relationship building. You don't keep score with your friends, you don't keep score with your network.” 
• “Leadership is about stepping up and getting people to follow you, but the good news is you can practice and develop these skills long before you have that title…”
• “I always get the sense ‘ethics,’ it’s the redheaded stepchild. Ethics is, “Well, after we have everything else, our profitability, our leadership and everything else. . . if we have time… we'll get to ethics…”

For more information about Mark and to purchase his book, The Career Toolkit: Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You, visit: https://www.thecareertoolkitbook.com/

To learn more about his Brain Bump app, go to: https://brainbumpapp.com/

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail.

Episode 84. “I don't drink anymore. I haven't had a drink in almost three years, so why do I have to tell the world I'm an alcoholic? I'm a non-drinker, I'm not an alcoholic. I did have an issue with alcohol. I was drinking problematically. They call it Alcohol Use Disorder, but I addressed the problem and I fixed it.  I don't drink anymore so how can I continue to call myself powerless over alcohol and addicted to alcohol and I have alcoholism as a disease if I don't drink?”

Jennifer Salzman once considered herself a 'normal' drinker. But as her marriage ended in 2012, she increasingly used alcohol to cope. She tried many times to cut down but consistently ended up drinking more than she wanted to. After struggling with her own unhealthy relationship with alcohol for eight years, Jennifer knew she must make a change, but didn’t like the idea of AA and having to label herself an alcoholic.

Jennifer shares the story of her search for an alternative to AA, and how she found freedom from alcohol through the same science based, compassion led model she now uses in her one-on-one coaching and group coaching programs.

In this episode, Jennifer  talks about her work as a certified Alcohol Freedom Life Coach, helping her clients make alcohol small and irrelevant in their lives so they can create a life they don’t want to escape from.

You can reach Jennifer at AMightyRebel.com.

Jennifer mentions the University of Washington and the University of Florida  joint scientific study of the alcohol-free lifestyle and, unfortunately, registration is closed. However, Jennifer would love to speak with you so be sure to reach out to her.

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

Episode 83. “… those lies early on really informed a whole lifetime of shielding myself that really was unnecessary because we have unlimited capabilities that are never tapped if we just give every individual the opportunity to attempt them and strive, and see what they are capable of and take the limitations away from them.”

Judy Schwingel’s story includes seizures due to epilepsy as a child and later in grade school, a diagnosis of dyslexia and a visual perception disorder. 

Judy experienced many societal biases, stigmas, and negative medical opinions that believed she was incapable of learning or overcoming her disabilities. 

These experiences, challenges, and the heroes in her life instilled in her a strong will to overcome and do anything she chooses. “If I can Imagine it, it can be done”, became Judy’s mantra in life.

After many years working as a nurse, Judy felt drawn and Spiritually called to return to what she knows as her true God-given talents as a spiritual, nurturing, healing soul.

As a Faith-based Master Transformational Life Coach,  Judy focuses on working with people in life-changing transitions struggling with what direction to take. She helps them light their divine Spirit's Power, and cultivate confidence, toward finding life's purpose, so they can set a new course in life.

For more information about Judy and to contact her, visit: https://www.heartnsoulhlc.com 

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

Episode 82.  "... it's each individual person's duty in their life to fulfill on their purpose, and follow the path of their dharma and this is where the societal conditioning and all of those lies that we are set up with this notion of competition and all of this it totally takes us far away from what we're really supposed to be focusing on, our own true purpose, the path of dharma in life. And so this self discovery is the way that we discover and start living in alignment with our purpose and mission in life. Follow that path of dharma, which is the way to have abundance and fulfillment and freedom, true freedom in this life.” 
 
 Avadhi Dhruv is a spiritual business coach and an international bestselling author who helps heart-centered entrepreneurs reclaim the power in their businesses so they can create financial abundance and inner fulfillment, while making a positive impact in the world.

After having a successful corporate career in engineering and management, Avadhi still felt the urge to explore her higher purpose in life. In 2014, she decided to embark on an entrepreneurial journey to connect with her inner genius and uncover the best way in which she was meant to serve the world.

Avadhi founded the brand, Avadhi.guru™, with the intention of bringing a holistic approach to business.

Her clients have included budding entrepreneurs to leaders of multi‐million dollar international businesses who have successfully made transformational changes in their businesses and lives.

Avadhi believes that every human has entrepreneurial potential, and every entrepreneur has an Inner Genius that deserves to be expressed so that business owners can have an abundant and fulfilling life.

A taste of Avadhi’s  genius:

•  “… I realized that actually there's one thing there is no competition for, and that is being yourself, being your true self, the true authentic self. Because there's only one of you in the world, not only right now, but if you look at the entire history of the world and the future, there will never be another person with the unique experiences, background, skills, talents, everything that you are.”
• “A heart-centered entrepreneur, quite literally, is centered and connected with their heart and soul and passion and purpose in life. And their passion and purpose in life is what propels them to make a positive difference or a progressive impact in the world.”
• “We are all facing this problem of burnout and this book really goes into a lot of examples and actionable guidance to help people overcome that burnout and really connect with their true purpose so they can live a meaningful and rewarding life. At the end of this life feel like, “Yes, I lived it, I lived my life and I loved it fully.”
•  “I even have a whole post on social media that says it's not your job to make other people's dreams come true. It is your responsibility to make your life and your dreams come true because those dreams and desires were planted in your heart for a reason.”

For more information about Avadhi, visit: Avadhi.guru

For more information about Avadhi's book, visit: https://www.avadhi.guru/book.html

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

• “I would watch those who had positions that I thought I was aspiring to be in, and how they would act and I would think, okay, this is how you're supposed to behave or what is going to be required of you if you're going to be in this type of role. You have to be incredibly diplomatic sometimes, diplomatic at the expense of authenticity. And I thought, “Am I able to do that?” And it was very clear to me that I don't do that really well.”
•  “Announcing who I am or where I am before I get there, for me is a sign of respect that I care enough about this group of people that I'm letting you in on where I am right now so that we can do meaningful work together. And I fully embrace and love when people are able to do the same.”
•  “I love when people come as who they are, but we need to also acknowledge that coming as who you are, is either going to be for people or not for people. There’s a meme that goes around that it’s like “You're not everybody's cup of tea.” And I agree with that. I, myself am not everybody's cup of tea. And that's okay.”
• “I do think that some people would be like, “Okay, I can be myself when I'm with my best friends, but I can't be myself when I'm talking to my child's teacher.” And the reality is, you can be whomever you really are at the end of the day with both of those people, but your best friends and your child's teacher are gonna have two very different reactions to whomever you're giving to them. And you just have to understand that you can unapologetically be yourself, but know that there are consequences potentially, or repercussions, or just reactions that people may have, that they are also allowed to have, to who you are and who you're giving to the world.”

Learn about ConcernCenter at: ConcernCenter.com 

To contact Erin: [email protected]

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Episode 80. “… one of the great joys of my life is to really question how I'm living and the choices I'm making. Whether things need to be a certain way, whether I want them to be a certain way and, it's not just related to “do I want kids or not.” 

Keltie Maguire is a Clarity Coach who helps business owners and professionals get clear on what they want so they can feel confident knowing their life is the one they choose. 

When Linda saw a  post written by Keltie about something  rarely talked about, people/couples choosing to be child-free, she knew she had to have her as a guest.  

This is a conversation about choices:

• “It's this question of: do I need to have a single job or career over my lifetime? ...we know that shifted and changed a lot over the past two, three generations, but there's still, for a lot of people, this idea, I can't make a change, I call it holding yourself hostage to past choices or to your past self. Because past you decided something, you feel like you have to continue making that same choice or living by that same choice.”
• "I think really just encouraging people to be intentional and if you feel dissatisfied, or even if it's just this small niggling that maybe there's something else for you in life, maybe there's more possibility to be explored."
• “…  asking the question, What do I want? And then further to that, why do I want this? it's something that we so rarely take the time to ask ourselves, and it's a big one that I help my clients answer. What do I want? And it's one that, when I pose that to people, (they're) are like, "What do you mean what do I want? I've never even thought about that before.”

You can reach Keltie through her website: KeltieMaguire.com. 

Follow Keltie on Instagram,  Facebook or Linked In 

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

Episode 79. “… entrepreneurship can feel really lonely. And the reason that it feels really lonely is because I believe we isolate ourselves based on this competitive, usually adopted, mindset or collective behavior that we have around entrepreneurship. And the reality is that we are part of this amazing, brilliant ecosystem of entrepreneurs, and small businesses and not for profits, in a community. And together we create value for each other and we create value for the community. And the stronger we're connected into that ecosystem, the better we do.”
 Melissa Davis

Melissa Davis is a startup clarity coach & founder of Humanity inc. Her mission is to connect entrepreneurs, leaders, & changemakers, to each other and to the resources they need to create more impact in the world. She believes that when we come together on the shared value of collaboration instead of competition, it has a rapid & compounding effect not just individually, but for the whole community. 

In her conversation with Linda, she shares:

• “… when we can kind of let down that idea of "I have competitors" and "it's my job to do this alone"  because I'm an entrepreneur because I chose to take this path where I have to figure all this out on my own. ... I want entrepreneurs to know, if you have the vision, you have the capacity, and that doesn't mean you have to do it alone.”
• “Having the capacity doesn't mean that you have to have the capacity to do all the little things, you don’t and you won't, and you shouldn't. What it means is that if you have the vision as an entrepreneur, to contribute, to make this impact, to do this thing you see it solving a problem.”
• “… if we can have the broader understanding of what our role is in this bigger ecosystem, then we're better able to perform in it. We're better able to connect with the people around us really effectively and to solve the problem because that's really the goal of entrepreneurship is to solve a problem or an anticipated problem.”
• “… if I can plug in as an entrepreneur and I can see the opportunities to plug into the ecosystem, that means to partner and work with other entrepreneurs and small businesses and not for profits to see the opportunities for my puzzle piece to fit in there, to be guided on designing my business around the idea that I'm a puzzle piece instead of the whole puzzle, then I'll see one, that I'm more successful, and two, I'll just simply be naturally incentivized to do that because, I believe that we'll see more success, less failure rates as entrepreneurs and, happier entrepreneurs if we can do that.”

You can reach out to Melissa through her website HumanityInc.world or connect with Melissa on Linked In.

What came up for you as a result of this conversation?  Let Linda know by going to Normal-Lies.com and leave a review.  

Linda reads every one and every month, she chooses one review to read on air.  Who knows, she may choose yours!

If you have a question or a topic you'd like addressed on an upcoming episode, go to Normal-Lies.com and click the contact page to send Linda a message. Or, click on the microphone icon at the bottom right of the page to leave a voicemail. 

Be sure to follow Linda on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Linked In.