Still Curious

What does it mean to think deeply and live freely in an age of distraction? Philosopher Jon Burmeister reflects on his journey from analytical rigour to embodied integration, exploring whole-person education, the history of ideas, and reclaiming attention in a fragmented world.

Conversation Themes

• Whole-person education as liberation: How liberal arts education fosters curiosity, creativity, and self-knowledge while encouraging openness to change and growth.
• Deep thinking and the attention economy: Why reclaiming focus isn’t just about resisting distractions, but about preserving our capacity to care about what truly matters.
• Ideas as living histories: Viewing philosophy as a dynamic, evolving tradition and understanding our role in shaping and inheriting the collective intellectual journey.
• Flourishing through integration: How Jon balances analytical thinking with embodied practices like yoga, meditation, and breathwork to harmonise the mind, body, and emotions, inspired by Aristotle’s vision of flourishing.
• Reimagining technology’s role: Jon’s intentional approach to living in the digital age, from setting boundaries to fostering deeper attention and presence in a world designed to fragment focus.

About the Guest
Jon Burmeister is Associate Professor Of Philosophy at the University of Mount Saint Vincent. His research interests are in philosophy of technology, philosophy of computing, philosophy of mind, and German Idealism. View Jon's academic profile and publications.

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s4e5-jon-burmeister

Recorded 4 April 2024

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Kendra Fee-McNulty, founder of Raveloe+Co, leads an empathy-driven marketing consultancy that helps mission-driven organisations find their voice and share their stories authentically. We discuss effective storytelling and how to balance creativity and commerce without compromising your values.

Conversation Themes

• Kendra’s personal journey, including her experience as an adopted child and how it influenced her need to belong and excel, shaping her communication skills and career choices.
• Empathy as a Superpower: The ability to empathise deeply with others by understanding their thoughts, fears, and barriers.
• Misunderstanding and Connection: How misunderstandings arise from the gap between intention and perception, and how they can lead to disconnection but also offer opportunities for deeper connection and understanding.
• Building Scaffolding: The necessity for people, especially those who are curious and caring, to build personal scaffolding to thrive in environments not always conducive to authenticity and growth.
• Authentic Communication: The importance of authentic communication for mission-driven organisations to effectively share their stories and connect with their communities.

Links and Resources

• Raveloe+Co website
• The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek
• Spotlight syndrome
• Pygmalion effect

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s4e4-kendra-fee-mcnulty

Recorded 7 March 2024

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Brittany is a silversmith, non-traditional educator, and the creative force behind Full Desert Weirdo. Together we rethink the edges of normalcy, illuminating how our quirkiest traits not only shape an ever-changing personal identity but also hold the potential to remake the world around us.

Conversation Themes

• The Value of Outliers
• Social Norms and Conformity
• Autism and Neurodivergence
• Personal Identity and Reclamation
• Mutability and Change

Links and Resources

• Full Desert Weirdo website
• Applied Behaviour Analysis and Ivar Lovaas

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s4e3-brittany-cole-houston

Recorded 25 January 2024

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Christopher hosts and produces the internationally-awarded "Life as A.." podcast, helping people find professional career ideas and business pathways by exploring jobs from around the world. We discuss the interplay between career and identity and the pursuit of purpose-driven work.

Christopher's story in brief

• Christopher didn’t have a Plan A. He was a high-achiever who had the grades, but not the roadmap for his future.
• Studying sociology without a clear direction, he simultaneously worked in Canadian Customs and Immigration, where he gained an early appreciation for how our jobs can shape who we are and how we see the world.
• His quest for clarity led him to Japan to teach English, a temporary plan that turned into 20-plus-year adventure including teaching, consulting, and co-founding a marketing company in Tokyo.
• It wasn’t just a career shift; it was a life transformation. Christopher realised his professional purpose was deeply tied to entrepreneurship, creativity, and a desire for variety and novelty in his work.
• Christopher’s podcast, "Life as A..," is his way of shining a light on the myriad of career paths out there. It's about giving people a real taste of the options they have, helping them find their own spark in the professional world.

Conversation Themes

• Navigating career uncertainty
• Curiosity, exploration, and enthusiasm as career catalysts
• The interplay of career and identity
• What it means to find purpose and fulfilment

Links and Resources

• Life As A.. Podcast
• Ikigai

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s4e2-christopher-schoenwald

Recorded 23 October 2023

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Lawrence Yeo is a writer, illustrator, storyteller, and the creator of 'More To That', an illustrated long form blog that delves deeper into the things that make us who we are. We discuss the role of confidence, gratitude, uncertainty and many other practicalities of pursuing a creative life.

Lawrence's story in brief

• Lawrence grew up feeling abundant despite growing up poor, and always had a strong sense of curiosity and abundance.
• He pursued a career in finance but knew it wasn't his true passion, so he quit his job to pursue music but eventually became disillusioned with the industry's demands for external validation.
• He transitioned to writing blog posts on Medium, developing a unique writing style that combines philosophical and metaphorical writing with hand-drawn illustrations and graphs.
• He found that his writing reached more people than his music did, and he realised that his inner compass was about how creating art moved him forward as a person.
• Lawrence started his blog, More To That, without a specific strategy or intention to start a business, and it has since grown into a platform offering courses, consulting, and direct support.

Conversation Themes

• Money, creativity, fulfilment, and the idea of 'enough'
• Mindset, framing, and following your inner compass while embracing uncertainty
• The power of storytelling in navigating the nuances of the human condition

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s4e1-lawrence-yeo

Recorded 16 September 2023

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

If you could gift someone a life-changing learning experience, what would it be and why? We discuss the combined wisdom of 27 of my podcast guests and what it means for how we approach the practice of education.

Where, when, and how do moments of truly life-changing learning actually happen?

What do they look like?

When have you had a learning experience that actually changed your life?

If you think back through all the classes you’ve taken, the certificates you’ve earned, the books you’ve read, the films you’ve seen, the things you’ve tried, the places you’ve been, the people you’ve looked up to… what stands out most to you as a truly life-changing learning experience?

On my podcast, Still Curious, I talk to people who have somehow managed to keep their curiosity intact well into adulthood, despite the best efforts of the world around them. One question I ask everyone who comes on the show is: "if you could gift someone a life-changing learning experience, what would it be and why?"

I’ve been doing this for a little while now, and it’s always my favourite part of the show because I never have any idea what to expect, and the things that each person comes out with are often surprising, moving and profound.

When you put them all together, the overall effect is even more striking, and revealing.

So today I’d like to share the combined wisdom of 27 of my podcast guests with you, and reflect on what it all means.

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including transcript, links and resources: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s3e9-27-gifts-of-life-changing-learning

Recorded 27 November 2023

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Amanda is a liriodendress, a human embodiment of the tulip poplar tree. We discuss her journey of reconnecting with nature, listening to the wisdom of plants, and exploring alternative ways of knowing in her pursuit of heart-centred living.

Episode Summary

• Raised in a conservative Baptist church, Amanda always felt the divinity in the world but questioned the disconnect between the teachings of the church and her own experiences.
• After experiencing miscarriages and feeling unheard by medical professionals and her preacher husband, Amanda found healing and strength through acupuncture and connecting with plants, which led to a disruptive divorce and ex-communication from her church community.
• Amanda explored alternative ways of knowing and being, including herbalism, and discovered the transformative power of listening and dissolving the distinction between human and non-human.
• Through her work as an author, podcast host, and artist, Amanda shares her heart-centred offerings and messages to help others remember their connection to the divine and the interconnectedness of all living beings.

Key Themes

• Challenging the systems and structures that don't resonate with our hearts
• The transformative power of listening and the importance of being heard
• Reconnecting with nature and dissolving the distinction between human and non-human

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s3e8-amanda-nicole

Recorded 29 August 2023

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Trudi is an experiential designer, facilitator, and creative who specialises in play. We discuss how purposeful play fosters connection, innovation, and psychological safety in life and the workplace.

Key Topics

• The importance of a playful mindset and its benefits in the workplace, including fostering connection, innovation, and psychological safety
• Trudi's squiggly career journey and why she has had 48 jobs, from performing on London’s West End, to working in a bikey bar, and how her diverse experiences have shaped her approach to creativity and communication
• Trudi's experience using play in high-stakes situations, such as working with incarcerated women and seriously ill children, and how play can be a tool for healing and transformation
• How it can be difficult and confusing to explain what you do when you don't fit into a predefined box, and why Trudi finds that identifying as a grokkist helps her make sense of herself.

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s3e7-trudi-boatwright

Recorded 13 June 2023

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Lalith Gunaratne is a parent, entrepreneur, and educator on mindful leadership. We discuss Lalith’s mindfulness journey, his experience starting a solar energy business, and how his approach to equity, diversity, and inclusion training is informed by mindfulness and personal integrity.

Key Topics

• Lalith's mindfulness journey and the benefits of being present and letting go of attachment
• Challenges faced by Lalith as an ethical entrepreneur in the renewable energy sector and his transition to training and facilitation around equity, diversity, and inclusion
• Creating a safe space for conversations through nonviolent communication and mindfulness practices
• The importance of personal and professional integrity, learning, and taking responsibility for oneself in creating a harmonious and understanding world

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s3e6-lalith-gunaratne

Recorded 7 February 2023

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon

Dr Colleen Kelley is a chemist and the creator and founder of Kids’ Chemical Solutions, a comic-book based chemistry curriculum that aims to transform chemistry education through imagination and play. We discuss Colleen's mission to make chemistry more accessible and enjoyable for everyone.

Key Topics

• How Colleen is making chemistry more accessible and enjoyable for everyone, regardless of perceived math abilities, and the importance of trust and curiosity in unlocking imagination and real learning
• Why fear is the number one barrier to learning chemistry, and the importance of understanding chemistry to preserve our world
• How Kids' Chemical Solutions connects chemical concepts to everyday life and allows students to solve mysteries using chemistry
• How being a grokkist following her joy with no plan led to Colleen’s squiggly career path and her creation of Kids' Chemical Solutions

Full Show Notes
Visit the Grokkist podcast hub for a full digest of this episode including highlights and links to stuff we discussed: https://grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast/s3e5-colleen-kelly/

Recorded 2 March 2023

Website: grokk.ist/stillcuriouspodcast | Email: [email protected] | Socials: @grokkist
Music: Kleptotonic Swing by Tri-Tachyon