Most of us don’t think about death.

Not really.

We think about promotions.College tuition.Quarterly numbers.The next vacation.The next deal.

But we don’t think about how it ends.

In this episode, Lon sits down with Dr. Josh Russell, an ER physician who moved into palliative care, and the conversation goes exactly where most people avoid going.

Death.

Not in a morbid way.In a clarifying way.

Josh has lived on both sides of medicine.In the ER, he fought to save lives.In palliative care, he helps people finish them.

And somewhere between those two callings, he realized something we all quietly know: If you don’t prepare for how you want to die, the system will decide for you.

This is not a conversation about fear.It’s about agency.

It’s about the difference between being kept alive… and living on purpose.

It’s about what happens when the default setting of medicine collides with the reality that everything that begins ends.

And it’s about why the conversations we avoid — with our spouses, our kids, our doctors — are often the most loving conversations we’ll ever have.

IN THIS EPISODE

->Why the “Denial of Death” is the default human setting

->What actually happens if you do nothing to prepare for the end of your life

->The quiet violence of aggressive medical intervention

->Why palliative care is not about giving up — but about choosing well

->The difference between hope and honesty

->What most families wish they had talked about sooner

->Why stopping “the insanity” can be the most compassionate act of all

THE REAL QUESTION

If something happens tomorrow… Would the people you love know what you want?

Or would they be forced to guess?

And if you’re honest — are you living today in a way that would let you finish well?

Because here’s the uncomfortable truth:

We prepare more carefully for retirement than we do for death. And one of those is guaranteed.

WHAT JOSH MAKES CLEAR

Death is not the enemy.

Avoidance is.

The goal is not to control the ending.The goal is to face it honestly enough that the time before it matters more.

When you stop pretending you’re immortal, something changes.

You start caring less about being right.Less about ego.Less about status.

You start caring more about people.About presence.About unfinished conversations.

About legacy.

WHAT’S NEXT?

You don’t need a terminal diagnosis to start thinking clearly.

Have the conversation. Write the directive. Tell the people you love what matters. And then live like it matters.

If this conversation stirred something in you — good. That’s the point.

You can find Dr. Josh Russell at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-russell-md/ thefocusedexam.com

And if you’re ready to stop drifting and start living intentionally, join us inside the Normal 40 community.  You can find everything related to Normal 40 here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

There are moments that rearrange your priorities without asking permission.

They don’t feel profound when they arrive.

They feel urgent.

Final.

Unavoidable.

For Dave Sanderson, that moment came on January 15, 2009, when the words “Brace for impact” cut through the cabin of US Airways Flight 1549.

What followed was the Miracle on the Hudson. What came after was something far harder to navigate.

In this episode, Lon sits down with Dave for a deep, unhurried conversation that goes far beyond the crash itself. This is not a disaster story. It’s a story about identity, responsibility, regret, and the quiet decisions that shape the rest of your life long after the headlines fade.

Dave takes us back to second grade, to small-town values, to injuries that ended dreams, to mentors who saw something in him before he saw it in himself. He shares how a life built on achievement, travel, and significance slowly pulled him away from what mattered most—and how a single moment forced him to confront the cost of that drift.

The crash didn’t just threaten his life. It stripped away every illusion about what was important.

What followed was a choice:

Would this be something that happened to him…or something he would use for others?

Dave chose service.

And nothing has been the same since.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

-->Every life has a “brace for impact” moment. Most just aren’t as visible.

-->Success can quietly pull you away from the people you’re doing it for.

-->You don’t get to choose what happens to you, but you always choose the response.

-->Your story becomes powerful when you stop protecting it and start sharing it.

-->What you’ve learned isn’t meant to die with you; pass it on.

WHAT’S NEXT

If this episode stayed with you longer than you expected, that’s not an accident.

You may not be in a plane that’s going down—but you might be ignoring the voice in your head that’s been warning you something needs to change.

You don’t have to wait for catastrophe to choose differently.

Learn more about Dave’s work, books, and speaking here:  https://davesandersonspeaks.com

And as always, you can find everything related to Normal 40 here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Your life doesn’t change all at once.It changes the moment you decide what matters.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

Most of us think we’re high performers because we get things done.

We solve problems. We chase answers. We check the boxes.

But what if the thing holding you back isn’t the hard stuff?What if it’s the easy stuff you keep avoiding?

In this episode, Adam and Lon kick off 2026 with a candid, unfiltered conversation about avoidance, self-sabotage, and the surprising anxiety that shows up when you’re avoiding what should be the most energizing part of your life.

Lon shares a personal realization he hasn’t talked about publicly before: how avoiding the easy things, not the hard ones, created anxiety and capped his growth, even while everything looked “successful” on the outside. And why finally naming that pattern changed everything.

This conversation isn’t about productivity.It’s about self-work.The kind you can’t delegate.The kind that’s embarrassing to admit.The kind that unlocks what’s next.

IN THIS EPISODE:

--Why avoiding the easy things is often more dangerous than avoiding the hard ones

--The two types of avoidance and how to tell which one is costing you

--How self-awareness without acceptance becomes self-sabotage

--Why elite performers struggle to ask for help even when they need it most

--The four-step path: awareness → acknowledgment → acceptance → permission

--How avoidance quietly becomes the ceiling on your life and work

--How Lon now measures progress not by success, but by anxiety reductionKEY TAKEAWAYS:

->Avoidance is a limiter. Wherever you avoid, that’s your ceiling.

->If something is giving you anxiety, it’s asking to be addressed, not ignored.

->Self-work is internal work. Lists won’t fix what you’re avoiding.

->You don’t get to be two people. The strength and the struggle come together.

->Asking for help isn’t weakness - it’s leadership.

WHAT’S NEXT:

If this episode stirred something in you, that’s not an accident.

You’re probably avoiding something you already know you need to face.A conversation.A decision.A truth about yourself.

You don’t have to do it alone.

If you want to go deeper:

1. Join the Insider — a community built on “never alone”

2. Book a free Ramble

3. Read The Trade

4. Subscribe to The Inevitable

You can find it all here:  https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Follow Adam Eaton here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-eaton-21646a4/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

Most people don’t avoid change because they’re afraid of action.They avoid it because they’re afraid of the questions.

The ones that surface late at night.The ones you don’t ask at work.The ones you don’t bring home.The ones that quietly shape your future whether you acknowledge them or not.

This week’s episode of the Normal 40 Podcast is different by design.

It’s a live Q&A recorded inside The Speakeasy — a private, unlisted LinkedIn community where high performers show up to ask the questions they can’t safely ask anywhere else.

What emerged wasn’t advice.It wasn’t a plan.It was a pattern.

Every question landed in one of four buckets we all face eventually:1. Purpose.2. Risk.3. Relationships.4. Legacy.

Questions like:

* “I like my job… but I know I’m capable of more. Now what?”

* “How do I speak up when honesty feels professionally dangerous?”

* “I’m successful on paper. Why doesn’t it feel like my best work?”

* “How do I finish well?”

This episode isn’t about quitting your job.It’s about finding your voice before you need to.

We talk about why most “risk” is really just uncertainty, how clarity actually forms (hint: not through thinking harder), and why community is a must-have if you want your next chapter to work.

If you feel like you’re standing at a line you can see, and feel, but haven’t crossed yet, this conversation will land.

🎧 Listen to Episode #80:The Questions That Change Everything: Purpose, Risk, Relationships, and Legacy[Podcast link]

And if you want access to the room where these conversations happen live:

👉 Join The Speakeasy here: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/12553961/

Your life can look very different in a year.But only if you start.

—Lon

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

The first time Keith Pochick joined this podcast, he had just walked away from medicine and into a classroom full of eighth graders. His story hit home because it was raw; a man in mid-leap, hoping he wasn’t crazy for wanting a simpler, more joyful, more human life.

Two years later, Keith sits down with Lon to talk about what life actually feels like on the other side of his trade. And what he describes is something most high achievers haven’t felt in years: ease, presence, and the spark he now calls the soul tickle — that unmistakable, physical sensation of doing work that touches your life at the deepest level.

Keith also shares the story behind his new book, Tickled Soul, and why he felt compelled,  almost obligated, to write it. What started as a legacy gift for his children became something much bigger: a declaration of what he believes, who he is, and how he hopes others will rediscover the parts of themselves they’ve forgotten.

This episode is an honest look at what it means to start over, stay the course, and finally feel like yourself again.

What to Expect

-Why Keith walked away from medicine and why he hasn’t looked back

-What it really feels like on the other side of a big life trade

-How burnout quietly rewrites your identity

-What middle school students taught him that medical training never could

-The spiritual experience behind Tickled Soul—and the legacy it creates

-The unexpected freedom of being fully present again

Key Takeaways:

-->The Trade only looks reckless to people who’ve ignored their own restlessness.

-->Money can’t buy meaning, but presence can.

-->You don’t have to be burned out to want something better.

-->Legacy is what people will remember when your voice is no longer in the room.

-->If you want to live differently, you have to slow down long enough to feel what’s missing.

📘 About the Book: Tickled Soul

In his debut book, Keith shares a thoughtful memoir about what happens when the life you built no longer feels like the life you’re meant to keep. What begins as a quiet “what if” becomes a full‑scale reinvention—from seasoned ER physician to middle‑school science teacher.

Through stories of faith, purpose, motivation, and meaning, Keith explores the beliefs and inner philosophy that made such a radical midlife transition not only possible, but necessary.

It’s a wake‑up call for anyone sitting in the status quo, wondering if there’s more to life than the role they’ve been playing.

Order the book directly from the publisher here:

Tickled Soul (hardcover)

Tickled Soul (softcover)

What’s Next?

If you’re feeling the restlessness Keith once felt,  that quiet knowing that your current life isn’t your forever life,  this episode is your invitation to stop ignoring it.  

If this episode speaks to you, this is an invitation to join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Learn more about Keith Pochick here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kpochick/ 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

Most people go into medicine to help people.But somewhere along the way, the system swallows that dream.

Long hours. Broken processes. Pressure to perform, not to care.

But not Chris Cannell.

Chris is a PA, endurance athlete, husband, father of three, and president of a national nonprofit in legal medicine. But more than that, he’s a man who kept chasing the spark that started it all: a sister’s cancer diagnosis, a team on the field, and a deep belief that medicine could still feel human.

In this episode, Chris joins Lon for a conversation about reinvention, restlessness, and building something better for patients, providers, and the families caught in between.

Together, they talk about what happens when you hit the ceiling of your success, when your ambition gets mislabeled as discontent, and how the right partner, the right mission, and the right moment can give you permission to lead from your gift.

This isn’t just a conversation about medicine.It’s about meaning.It’s about movement.And it’s about creating the future you’ve been quietly craving.

What to Expect:

--How a childhood cancer diagnosis shaped Chris’s calling

--What football, medicine, and leadership taught him about purpose

--The role his wife Stacy played in giving him permission to change

--What most high-performers get wrong about reinvention

--Why he’s creating a new model for healthcare through community

--What it really means to be great at something—and why most people won’t say it out loud

Key Takeaways:

-> Restlessness isn’t a flaw, it’s a clue.

-->Permission doesn’t mean control.

-->If you want to build something that lasts, build it with people who care.

-->You don’t have to know how it ends. You just have to know what matters now.

-->Your best work is still in front of you, if you’re willing to believe it.

About Chris Cannell

Dr. Chris Cannell is a doctoral-trained Physician Associate with 22+ years of clinical experience in emergency medicine, orthopedics, critical care, and internal medicine. But what makes Chris stand out isn’t just his credentials, it’s his mission.

He’s a nationally recognized voice on healthcare quality, patient safety, and medical risk, and a powerful advocate for restoring purpose and humanity to the people who deliver care.

Chris has led clinical teams, shaped national policy conversations, and built bridges between medicine, law, and education. He serves as the President of PAs in Legal Medicine, sits on multiple boards, teaches across leading PA programs, and works as a respected consultant in medical-legal risk, healthcare innovation, and clinician leadership.

But beyond the titles, Chris is a builder of people. A connector. A father. A runner. A relentless advocate for the providers who’ve given everything to healthcare and are ready to build something better.

Dr. Chris has an upcoming masterclass training as a medical legal, educational, and healthcare consultant. More details here: https://www.theapcconsultant.com/healthcare-disruptors

You can connect with Chris here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-apc-consultant/

What's NextIf you’ve ever wanted to try something different—but talked yourself out of it—this is your sign to explore the path you haven’t yet taken.

If this episode speaks to you, this is an invitation to join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

Most people meet their doctor in an exam room. I met mine at the edge of a breaking point she didn’t even know she’d been carrying for years.

Dr. Jill Kruse grew up wanting to save lives for one simple reason: she didn’t want to lose her mother. She entered medicine the way so many elite performers do — head down, high achieving, fueled by good intentions and impossible standards. She pushed. She excelled. She endured.

And then life stopped asking politely.

Call every other night. A newborn and a toddler at home. A tiny rural town held together by two doctors, two PAs, and a pager that never slept.She kept giving.The job kept taking.And one day, her husband said the quiet part out loud:

“You’re killing yourself slowly.”

That’s the moment every physician fears.That’s the moment every high performer recognizes.And that’s the moment this conversation turns from résumé to truth.

This episode is about what happens when the life you fought to build becomes the life that’s quietly breaking you. It’s about the courage to walk away from a calling without abandoning the purpose underneath it. It’s about burnout, identity, the stigma of asking for help, and the freedom that shows up when you finally decide the cost of staying is higher than the cost of change.

But more than anything, it’s about this:

The heart feeds itself first — and you need to start doing the same.

Dr. Kruse’s story isn’t about quitting medicine.It’s about choosing herself.And it’s a roadmap for any elite performer who has forgotten that they’re allowed to do the same.

IN THIS EPISODE:

--What really pushes a physician to the edge (it’s not what you think)

--The truth about burnout inside medicine — the part nobody talks about

--Why high achievers wait too long to ask for help

--What happens when you realize a career won’t love you back

--How to reclaim identity without burning your life down

--The power of coaching when counseling feels risky

--The heart-first lesson every elite performer needs to hear

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

->Burnout isn’t failure. It’s the body calling for honesty.

->You can love your work and still decide it’s costing you too much.

->Courage isn’t leaving. Courage is telling the truth.

->The life you want won’t appear while you’re drowning in the life you’ve outgrown.

->You deserve the same care you give everyone else.

WHAT’S NEXT?

If Jill’s story hits close to home (if you’re hiding the same exhaustion behind the same smile), this is your invitation to stop doing this alone.

Join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Learn more about Dr. Jill Kruse here: http://www.flight-time-medical.com/

https://www.prairiedoc.org/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

What if the version of you you're trying to fix… isn’t broken?

What if the problem isn’t your motivation, your discipline, or your job…But the story you’ve been telling yourself to survive it?

In this episode, Lon sits down with Dr. Fredric Mau, a board-certified hypnotherapist and licensed mental health counselor who left a corporate career and stepped into one of the most unexpected and effective roles in human transformation.

Together, they explore the difference between talking about change and actually experiencing it.

They talk about emotion vs. cognition, trauma vs. strategy, and what it really means to engage the quiet part of your brain that’s been holding on to the weight, the fear, and the shame for far too long.

If you’ve ever said, “I know what to do, I just can’t seem to do it..." this episode is for you.

In This Episode:

--What hypnotherapy actually is (and isn’t)

--Why your problem isn’t laziness but limbic

--The emotional truth behind avoidance, drinking, overeating, and stagnation

--How trauma and stress get stored in the body

--Why most people stay stuck in old roles for too long

--What changes when you stop telling the same story and start feeling something new

Key Takeaways:

->You’re not stuck because you’re weak. You’re stuck because you’re human.

->Hypnotherapy isn’t about control. It’s about letting go.

->Most people don’t need more insight. They need a new pattern.

->Your limbic system has been solving problems long before your resume did.

->Change doesn’t feel like a decision. It feels like relief.What’s Next?

If you’ve ever wanted to try something different, but talked yourself out of it, this is your sign to explore the path you haven’t yet taken.

If this episode speaks to you, this is an invitation to join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Learn more about Dr. Frederic Mau here: https://watermarkcolumbia.com/ 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

We spend decades chasing success—with our heads down and our priorities out of balance. Until one day… you look in the mirror, or see a photo of yourself, and something doesn’t match. Your body starts telling the truth your mind has been trying to outrun.

You’re tired more than you used to be.You sleep but you’re not rested.You’re not proud of how you look, and if you’re honest, you’re not proud of how you feel either.

In this episode, Lon sits down with men’s health coach Luke DePron, founder of The Fit Men Project, for a raw conversation about what it looks like to take your power back, physically, mentally, and emotionally.

They talk about the high-achieving men who show up late to the game, burned out, bloated, and frustrated, and how simple, sustainable habits (not extremes) are the secret to reclaiming energy, confidence, and control.

In This Episode:

->What high-performers get wrong about fitness, health, and sustainable change

->Why starting slow might be the fastest way to change your life

->The real reason men drink after work (and how to break the cycle)

->Why success often comes with weight gain and how to reverse it

->Why most people overshoot and burn out—and what to do instead

->Why walking is the most underrated exercise you’re not doing

->How to think about nutrition like a strategy, not a punishment

->The truth behind crash diets, keto, and 75 Hard and why most guys quit

Key Takeaways:

--Health isn’t about perfection. It’s about ownership.

--You don’t need a complete overhaul. You need a new rhythm.

--Don’t wait for a diagnosis, a photo, or a scare to wake you up.

--The most powerful thing you can do today is start.

What’s Next?

If you’re tired of feeling sluggish, frustrated, or disappointed in the mirror this is your sign to do something about it. 

If this episode speaks to you, this is an invitation to join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Follow Luke DePron here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fitmenproject/ 

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com

Most of us do exactly what we were told to do: we work hard, climb the ladder, check the boxes, and live the life we set out to build. From the outside, it looks like success. But inside, many of us wrestle with the same silent question: “Is this it?”

In this conversation with Justin on Grody and Unprofessional, I go back to the beginning of my story—the moment I realized I had everything I thought I wanted, yet felt empty inside. We talk about:

Why I call myself a dude from the internet and why people trust me with the things they’ve never said out loud to anyone else.

The four-year arc from “Is this it?” to “My work here is done”—and how I finally had the courage to make The Trade.

The guilt and shame that comes from “having so much but feeling so little”—and why you’re not broken if you feel this way.

The 753 Rambles I’ve had with people at the edge of change, and the patterns that show up in every one of those conversations.

What leaders really want: not more money, but freedom, purpose, and a voice that sounds like their own.

Why “never lose your art” might be the most important advice you’ll ever hear.

This isn’t theory—it’s real life. And if you’ve ever looked around and wondered if you were meant for more, this episode will help you see that you’re not crazy, you’re not alone, and you’re one decision away from a radically different life.

Let’s be up to something.

🔁 What’s Next?

If this episode speaks to you, this is an invitation to join the growing Normal 40 community to connect with like-minded individuals. Whether through a free Ramble, Lon's Insider group, or his bestselling book 'The Trade,' this episode is your call to action to start designing your next chapter.

Find it all right here: https://linktr.ee/lon.stroschein

Connect with Justin McMenamy here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-mcmenamy-59a6087a/

Find the Grody & Unprofessional podcast here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/grody-unprofessional/id1761211065

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit normal40.substack.com