In this episode of the Practically Deliberate with Abby Davisson podcast, featuring executive coach and leadership expert Michael Urtuzuástegui Melcher, you'll learn:

* How building relationships is a form of wealth;

* The type of relationships we most underestimate; and

* Two approaches to help strengthen your relationships.

My conversation with Michael was inspired by his terrific book, Your Invisible Network: How to Create, Maintain, and Leverage the Relationships That Will Transform Your Career.

If you, too, have been feeling overwhelmed by things (including but not limited to: gift guides; the state of the world/our democracy; your to do list), then this one is for you.

I interviewed globally recognized home organizing expert and bestselling author, Shira Gill. It’s another 2-for-1 podcast/newsletter (like the one I did with Nir Eyal), so read on for insights and/or download the 30-minute episode to consume at your leisure.

In this 30 minute episode, you’ll learn:

- How a daily practice begun in Covid lockdown led Shira to publish three books

- A simple framework that can help you feel less overwhelmed in all areas of life

- What Shira has to add to the (already quite extensive) habit literature

The framework is part of Shira Gill’s new book, LifeStyled, which comes out December 3. Like everything Shira touches, it’s immensely helpful and aesthetically pleasing.

In this first episode of the Practically Deliberate with Abby Davisson Podcast, you’ll learn how bestselling author Nir Eyal and his family decided to move from New York to Singapore, including:

* How some decisions can be constraining while others can be freeing

* Why the consequences of decisions often turn out to be different than anticipated

* What Nir and his family did to de-risk an initially impulsive decision

This edition is part of my series about how people make big decisions. If you missed the first post in the series, you can check out How I Decided to Leave My Dream Job.

This episode isn't sponsored, but I'll mention that I’m speaking at Responsive Conference, a ground-breaking event at the intersection of organization design, experimentation, and company culture on September 18-19 in Oakland, California.

This is NOT your typical industry event — it’s a unique, highly interactive 2-day experience that promises to help you discover new ideas and how to implement them.

I’ll be in conversation with Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, author of the fabulous book Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less (which I’ve written about previously here). Among other topics, we’ll cover rest, creativity, decision-making and entrepreneurship. Alex not only has many insights to share, he also has a wickedly dry wit (the best kind, IMHO), so our session won’t be boring!

Ticket prices increase on August 15th, so get your tickets now. Yes, they’re pricey, but you can use my special discount code “friendofabby“ to get 10% off. Please let me know if you’re joining — I’d love to see you there!