The Mindful CEO

By Aaron Hendon and Chris Angell

For socially conscious business owners who have a legacy beyond the transaction and want to grow their business mindfully.... more

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FAQs about The Mindful CEO:

How many episodes does The Mindful CEO have?

The podcast currently has 145 episodes available.

The Mindful CEO episodes:

June 23, 2026Speaking, Storytelling, and the Courage to Be Seen with Marta Spirk
Show Notes Summary
What if the most powerful business strategy isn't a funnel, a framework, or a better pitch, but a story? In this conversation with speaking strategist Marta Spirk, Chris and Aaron explore the deeper purpose of storytelling, speaking, visibility, and authentic leadership. Together they unpack why your personal journey matters more than polished messaging, how mindfulness changes the way we communicate, and why the stories we're afraid to share are often the ones that create the deepest connection. This episode is a thoughtful exploration of influence, identity, and the human desire to be understood in a world obsessed with performance.
Learn more about Marta Spirk
→ https://www.martaspirk.com
Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World
→ https://thegratefulbreath.com
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less
→ https://www.therealtorsedge.com
Find Aaron’s course on Stan.store here:
→ https://www.stan.store/realtorsedge

Episode Outline
1. Aaron's Unexpected Transformation
Mindfulness, health, and sustainable change
Why some forms of growth feel surprisingly effortless
2. Meet Marta Spirk
Her journey into speaking strategy
Helping entrepreneurs find and share meaningful stories
3. Start With the End in Mind
The importance of a core offer
What happens after someone hears you speak?
4. Storytelling Beyond Marketing
Why stories create trust
The difference between teaching and connecting
5. Visibility and Authentic Leadership
Sharing the parts of yourself you'd rather hide
Why vulnerability creates resonance
6. Mindfulness, Sales, and Corporate Culture
Can mindfulness be taught without leadership buy-in?
The tension between productivity and transformation
7. Speaking as Service
Moving from persuasion to contribution
Helping people see themselves in your story
8. The Story Only You Can Tell
Owning your lived experience
Why authenticity is more powerful than expertise alone
...more
41min
June 16, 2026Calling It Forward
Show Notes Summary
What does it actually take to bring something meaningful into the world? In this conversation, Chris and Aaron explore the invisible forces behind finishing books, launching ideas, building businesses, and pursuing work that matters. They unpack the role of attention, vision, feedback, relationships, and future possibility in creating momentum without falling into hustle culture. Along the way, they challenge the myth that aligned action always feels easy and offer a more grounded perspective on growth: meaningful work often asks something of us, but when it's connected to a compelling future, effort becomes purpose rather than grind.
Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World
→ https://thegratefulbreath.com
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less
→ https://www.therealtorsedge.com
Find Aaron’s course on Stan.store here:
→ https://www.stan.store/realtorsedge

Episode Outline
1. The TED Talk and the Attention Crisis
Aaron shares his TED Talk proposal
Why phones aren't the real problem
Attention as a trainable skill
2. Bringing Something Into the World
Writing books, creating talks, building businesses
The challenge of holding attention over time
Why meaningful projects require intentional focus
3. When Purpose Turns Into Grind
The tension between aligned action and difficult action
Why meaningful work isn't always effortless
Cleaning the cat box still counts
4. The Power of Future Pull
Vision as a source of energy
Creating a future worth moving toward
Why goals alone often aren't enough
5. Relationships Over Transactions
The long game of connection
Communities, conversations, and opportunity
How business grows through authentic relationships
6. Creating Conditions for Momentum
Environment matters
Surrounding yourself with people moving in a similar direction
Removing friction from growth
7. Feedback Without Defensiveness
Learning to value feedback over ego
Growth through awareness
Becoming more committed to improvement than comfort
8. Calling It Forward
The role of leadership in creating possibility
Letting go of limitations that no longer serve
Choosing action in service of a bigger future
...more
29min
June 07, 2026 A Zen Mind | Interview with Jo Rose
In a Mindful CEO live event, Aaron interviews Jo Rose, founder and host of the Spotify Zen meditation podcast “A Zen Mind Guided Meditations” and CEO of Ascension Global Enterprise, a wellness media company focused on guided meditation, nervous system regulation, and neuroscience education.
Jo shares how meditation helped her recover from PNES and severe night terrors during college, how she created five meditations in 2020, and how she revived the project in May 2023 while working in New York, growing from about 40,000 listeners to nearly 25 million with 1.2 million downloads per month.
They discuss “McMindfulness,” arguing mindfulness is a way of being rather than a corporate productivity tool, and emphasize attention agency, presence in daily activities, and asking “why” to interrupt automatic habits like doomscrolling.
...more
50min
June 02, 2026 Aligned Action from Your “Encodings”
Show Notes
Most business advice starts with what you should do. This conversation starts somewhere different. Chris and Aaron explore the idea of "encodings," the natural abilities, interests, and patterns that seem to come preloaded into each of us. Drawing on insights from Jim Collins and their own entrepreneurial journeys, they unpack why so many leaders burn themselves out trying to follow someone else's playbook. The deeper question isn't whether action matters. It does. The question is whether your actions are aligned with how you're actually wired. If you've ever felt successful on paper but disconnected from the work itself, this episode offers a different lens for creating momentum, fulfillment, and results.
Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World
→ https://thegratefulbreath.com
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less
→ https://www.therealtorsedge.com
Find Aaron’s course on Stan.store here:
→ https://www.stan.store/realtorsedge
Episode Outline
1. The Manifesting vs. Action Debate
Why action still matters, and why the real conversation lives somewhere deeper.
2. Jim Collins and the Idea of Encodings
The difference between learned competence and natural wiring.
3. The Trap of Borrowed Playbooks
How professionals adopt industry norms without considering their own strengths.
4. Looking Back Instead of Looking Forward
Why clues to your calling are usually found in your history, not your imagination.
5. Forced Action vs. Aligned Action
The energy difference between doing what works and doing what fits.
6. Aaron's Pattern of Reinvention
The relationship between passion, longevity, and sustainable effort.
7. Designing a Business Around Your Wiring
What happens when you build around your natural gifts instead of your weaknesses.
8. The Infinite Game of Meaningful Work
Why fulfillment often comes from expressing who you already are.

...more
43min
May 26, 2026 The Hidden Advantage of Curiosity
Show Notes Summary
What if curiosity is more than a personality trait? What if it’s one of the most practical business advantages a leader can cultivate? In this episode, Chris and Aaron explore the relationship between curiosity, growth, identity, health, leadership, and meaningful work. The conversation moves far beyond productivity hacks and into the deeper question many founders quietly wrestle with: how do you keep growing without becoming numb, rigid, or disconnected from yourself? Through stories, humor, frustration, and reflection, they unpack how curiosity creates movement where shame, certainty, and burnout tend to create stagnation. This is a conversation for thoughtful business owners who want sustainable growth without losing their humanity in the process.

Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World
→ https://thegratefulbreath.com
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less
→ https://www.therealtorsedge.com
Find Aaron’s course on Stan.store here:
→ https://www.stan.store/realtorsedge

Episode Outline
1. The Health Journey Opener
Chris and Aaron joke about weight loss, discipline, and the emotional tension around personal change.
2. Why Results Alone Eventually Stop Motivating Us
The conversation explores why external goals often lose emotional pull over time.
3. Curiosity as an Infinite Game
Aaron and Chris unpack curiosity as a sustainable fuel source for growth and transformation.
4. The Trap of Hustle Culture Certainty
How rigid identity, overconfidence, and performative productivity disconnect leaders from real learning.
5. Curiosity Creates Psychological Flexibility
The hosts discuss how curiosity softens defensiveness and opens space for evolution.
6. Building Businesses Around Exploration
A deeper conversation about creating businesses, communities, and cultures that reward discovery instead of exhaustion.
7. Future Pull vs Shame Push
The distinction between being pulled toward possibility versus pushed by fear, guilt, or inadequacy.
8. Leadership Through Openness
Why the best leaders often ask better questions instead of pretending to already have all the answers.
...more
39min
May 19, 2026Ace Your Day with Shawn Kunkler
Show Notes Summary
What happens when successful people realize the game they’ve been playing is exhausting them? In this conversation, Chris Angell, Aaron Hendon, and Shawn Kunkler explore the tension between achievement and presence, especially inside industries obsessed with production, image, and constant striving. They unpack what mindful leadership actually looks like in the real world, why so many professionals feel disconnected despite outward success, and how authentic conversations can create a different way of working and living. This episode is less about tactics and more about reclaiming humanity in a culture that rewards performance over connection.
Learn more about Shawn Kunkler and Ace Your Day:
homewardassociates.com
shawnkunkler.com
fifteenminutemomentum.com
Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World
→ https://thegratefulbreath.com
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less
→ https://www.therealtorsedge.com
Find Aaron’s course on Stan.store here:
→ https://www.stan.store/realtorsedge
Episode Outline
Opening reflections on mindfulness and “one moment at a time”
Why The Mindful CEO started as a reaction to hustle culture
Shawn Kunkler’s journey and the origins of Realtor180
The emotional cost of production first business culture
Real estate, identity, ego, and the pressure to perform
What authentic leadership and human connection actually require
Creating meaningful conversations instead of transactional networking
Redefining success through presence, purpose, and alignment
...more
42min
May 12, 2026I don't want to work that hard (and other confessions)
Show Notes Summary
What happens when the goals you’ve been chasing stop feeling meaningful? In this candid conversation, Chris and Aaron unpack the tension many thoughtful entrepreneurs feel between wanting growth and refusing to sacrifice themselves to hustle culture. They explore why traditional motivation eventually breaks down, how shallow goals quietly drain energy, and what it looks like to build a future that genuinely pulls you forward. This episode is less about productivity and more about the deeper question underneath it all: what kind of life is actually worth organizing yourself around?

Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World
→ https://thegratefulbreath.com
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less
→ https://www.therealtorsedge.com
Find Aaron’s course on Stan.store here:
→ https://www.stan.store/realtorsedge
Episode Outline
Confessions, vulnerability, and why transparency matters
The hidden exhaustion underneath self improvement culture
Why external goals stop motivating thoughtful people
The difference between pressure and future pull
Business purpose versus personal purpose
The problem with shallow definitions of success
Aligned action versus alpha grind culture
Creating an infinite game worth becoming for
...more
39min
May 05, 20269D Transformational Breathwork with Tabatha DeBruyn
SHOW NOTES SUMMARY
What happens when the strategies stop working… and the real work begins? In this episode, we sit down with Tabatha DeBruyn to explore transformational breathwork as a doorway into the emotional and energetic layers most leaders avoid. This isn’t about productivity hacks or mindset tricks. It’s about what’s underneath the drive, the pressure, and the constant doing. We talk about control, surrender, stored emotion, and why the next level of leadership may require feeling more, not pushing harder.
Learn more about Tabatha at: https://www.tabatha.online
Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World → https://thegratefulbreath.com/
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less → https://www.therealtorsedge.com/
EPISODE OUTLINE
Why High Performers Hit a Ceiling
The moment when strategy stops being the answer
What Breathwork Actually Is (And Isn’t)
Moving beyond the woo or skepticism into lived experience
Stored Emotion in the Body
How unprocessed experiences shape behavior and leadership
Control vs Surrender in Business
The tension leaders feel but rarely name
What Happens in a Breathwork Session
The real mechanics and emotional range people experience
Leadership After Emotional Release
How clarity, decisions, and relationships shift
The Future of Conscious Leadership
Why this kind of work is becoming less optional
...more
36min
April 28, 2026Quantum Success with Russell Nohelty
SHOW NOTES SUMMARY
What if success isn’t about pushing harder, but about aligning deeper? In this conversation with Russell Nohelty, the guys explore what it means to build a business that actually feels good to live inside of. This isn’t theory. It’s the messy, real-world tension between making money and making meaning. They unpack creativity, identity, and the quiet realization that most people are chasing outcomes that don’t actually satisfy them. If you’ve ever felt successful on paper but off-center in your life, this conversation will land.
Learn more about Russell at: https://www.hapitalist.com/
Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World → https://thegratefulbreath.com/
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less → https://www.therealtorsedge.com/

EPISODE OUTLINE
Meeting Russell and the Hapitalist
Why traditional success models stop working
The trap of building a business you don’t want to live in
Creativity as a path, not just a product
Making money without abandoning yourself
Letting go of external validation as the scoreboard
Redefining success on your own terms
...more
52min
April 21, 2026 Imposter Syndrome with Chris Miller
Show Notes Summary
Most leaders assume imposter syndrome is just insecurity. In this conversation, Chris Miller breaks down why it’s often a deeper pattern tied to identity, success, stress, and survival. We explore how capable people become trapped in overworking, second guessing, and chasing proof they’re enough. If you’ve built something meaningful but still feel like you’re one mistake away from being exposed, this episode offers a smarter path forward, one rooted in awareness, resilience, and real confidence.
Learn more about Chris Miller
→ https://www.theleadershipmovement.net
Learn more about How to Live a Grateful Life in a Fucked Up World
→ https://thegratefulbreath.com
Learn more about From Hustle to Flow: Sell more by stressing less
→ https://www.therealtorsedge.com
Find Aaron’s course on Stan.store here:
→ https://www.stan.store/realtorsedge
Episode Outline
1. Opening Banter and 136 Episodes In
Chris and Aaron reflect on consistency, staying in the game, and what it means to keep showing up.
2. Meet Chris Miller
Chris shares his unconventional rise into leadership, executive roles, and learning through experience instead of traditional paths.
3. The Cost of Success Without Self Trust
How high achievers compensate with long hours, pressure, and proving energy.
4. What Imposter Syndrome Really Is
Why it’s more than self doubt, and how identity distortion fuels it.
5. Why Capable People Struggle Most
The surprising link between competence and feeling like you don’t belong.
6. Rebuilding Confidence Through Evidence
How to interrupt false stories and reconnect with what’s actually true.
7. Failure, Recovery, and Trying Again
Why resilience matters more than certainty.
8. Final Thoughts and Where to Find Chris
Chris shares details about his upcoming book Impostor and podcast.
...more
42min

FAQs about The Mindful CEO:

How many episodes does The Mindful CEO have?

The podcast currently has 145 episodes available.