E20: The Humanity of Self-Love

We all have multiple identifiers - maybe it’s your profession, a hobby, a belief, or your relationship to others - that make up who we are. These identifiers are just part of what makes us wonderfully human. And self-loving self-care shows up in every one of these arenas. Join me as I talk with Michael Joseph - a therapist, musician, and athlete - as we talk about self-love on many levels, the importance of paying attention to energy, and how emotions can propel us forward into a life with greater self-love. Why paying attention to energy is necessary How to use emotions as fuel How to experiment with your life Links Mentioned Crossfit Ayurveda and Doshas Zone of Genius Zone of Excellence Show Highlights 2:52    Easeful Living Practice - Hydrate 6:38    Introducing Michael Joseph 9:39    Self-love from a therapist’s, athlete’s, and artist’s perspective 14:31  Anti-personal growth weeks 18:30  Anxiety, depression, and dosha imbalance 20:08  Paying attention to energy 24:04  Zone of Genius and Zone of Excellence 26:32  Capacity to control our attention 28:12  “Dangerous” self-care 31:00  Capacity to pause and reflect 35:02  Tools of self-love 41:15  Using emotions as fuel 44:12  Experimenting with your life Favorite Quotes “Who you are as a person matters.” - Michael Joseph “Nothing’s wrong with you. You’re bringing tools of your humanity to a situation. You just have to learn how to use them.” - Michael Joseph “Anxiety moves us. Anxiety moves the world. If we didn’t feel anxious about things, we wouldn’t propel ourselves forward.” - Michael Joseph “If you’re energy is low and you’re going on sleep deprivation, you’re not loving yourself.” - Michael Joseph “If you’re meditating and you fall asleep, or you’re in savasana and you fall asleep, you probably needed it.” - Andrea Catherine “Maybe we serve ourselves best - maybe we love ourselves best - when we’re tapping into those things that really feel nourishing and exciting and help us feel connected to who we are.” - Andrea Catherine “Learning how to disappoint people gracefully is kind of a hallmark of mental health.” - Michael Joseph “One thing that’s wonderful about being human is that we can stand down some of our instincts.” - Michael Joseph “We have permission to pause until we’re ready.” - Andrea Catherine “It’s OK to say to ourselves and to the world, ‘let me think about that.’” - Michael Joseph “Self-love also means standing inside uncertainty.” - Michael Joseph “Self-love is knowing how to use our emotions as fuel.” - Michael Joseph “You’ve tried everything? Do the opposite.” - Andrea Catherine “The opposite of fear is curiosity.” - Michael Joseph Meet Michael Michael Joseph is a therapist, musician, rock climber, basketball player.  He’s spent the last 30+ years of his life exploring in his own life and with his clients the nature of love, life, emotional suffering and emotional joy.  He feels privileged to be in a profession where he has the opportunity learn something everyday about life in conversation with the people who come to him.