On the 117th episode of the What is a Good Life? podcast, I’m delighted to welcome Jamie Bristow. Jamie is a writer and policy advisor known for his leadership within the emerging field of inner-led systems transformation. He has deepened the dialectic between ancient wisdom, modern science, politics and public policy through a string of influential reports and collaborations with intergovernmental organisations, government agencies and politicians around the world. He currently leads on public narrative and policy development for the Inner Development Goals, and from 2015 to 2023 played an instrumental role in the UK's All-Party Parliamentary Group on Mindfulness, acting as its clerk and serving as Director of the associated policy institute, The Mindfulness Initiative. Jamie is a Senior Fellow at Life Itself, Research Associate at the Climate Majority Project, Honorary Associate at Bangor University and a Fellow of Mind & Life. He has also taught on programmes connecting inner and outer transformation at the Universities of California and Oxford.

In this enlightening conversation, we explore the question of what we are truly practising—merging mindful practices with our livelihood, the significance of our informal practice, and moving towards greater wholesomeness in our lives.

It serves as a wonderful invitation to fully integrate our mindful inquiries with the way we live.

For more of Jamie's work, check out the following:
Website: jamiebristow.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-bristow-25020b9/

Life Guild: https://lifeguild.earth/

Contact me at [email protected] if you'd like to explore your own lines of self-inquiry through 1-on-1 coaching, take part in my 5-week Silent Conversation group courses, discuss experiences I create to stimulate greater trust, communication, and connection, amongst your leadership teams, or you simply want to get in touch.

- For the What is a Good Life? podcast's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@whatisagoodlife/videos
- My newsletter: https://www.whatisagood.life/
- My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-mccartney-14b0161b4/
- Exploring this question for yourself: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/your-personal-interview
- The Silent Conversations: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/the-silent-conversations

00:00 What are we practicing?

04:55 Realising we want to show up differently

07:48 A cause for hope - it just feels good

13:00 The merging of livelihood and inquiry

19:20 The significance of formal and informal practice

23:20 Showing up to life of intention

28:00 Mindfulness in public policy

31:00 Synchronicity and letting go

34:35 The balance between agency and unfolding

47:30 Bringing compassion to our reflections

50:30 Bringing more wholesomeness to the collective

59:00 What is a good life for Jamie?