The Weekend University Making the best psychology lecturers available to the general public.

Jonathan Fields is an award winning author, entrepreneur, webby-nominated producer, and host of one of the world’s top podcasts - the Good Life Project.

He has been featured in outlets including: The New York Times, CNN, The Guardian, and FastCompany.

His most recent book: “Sparked” provides a simple framework for helping individuals to discover the work that makes them come most fully alive, and it is the focus of this conversation.

You’ll learn:

— Jonathan’s philosophy of “Maximum Sustainable Generosity” and how this helps him to avoid burnout

— The 10 “Sparketypes” and how Jonathan’s assessment can provide deep insights into the work that you find most meaningful and energising

— The relationship between your primary sparketype, shadow sparketype, and anti-sparketype

— Why thinking small and an experimental mindset are vital if you want to make a meaningful impact in the world.

And more.

You can learn more about Jonathan’s innovative work at jonathanfields.com and take the assessment at https://sparketype.com.

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Jonathan Fields—the Good Life Guy—delivers insights that spark purpose, possibility, and potential. On a decades-long quest to discover what makes people come fully alive, Jonathan is an award-winning author, Webby-nominated producer, business innovator, and host of one of the world’s top podcasts, Good Life Project. The Wall Street Journal named Good Life Project one of the top self-development podcasts, and Apple featured it on-stage during its legendary annual product event. Jonathan is featured widely in the media, including The New York Times, FastCompany, Entrepreneur, Forbes, Inc., Entrepreneur, CNN, The Guardian, O Magazine, SELF, Allure, Outside, Elle, Vogue, Fitness and thousands of other outlets.

In addition to writing award-winning and bestselling books like SPARKED: Discover Your Unique Imprint for Work that Makes Us Come Alive, How to Live a Good Life and Uncertainty: Turning Fear and Doubt Into Fuel For Brilliance, Jonathan has founded several companies with a focus on maximizing human potential. The most recent is Spark Endeavors, where he is the chief architect and driving force behind the world’s first purpose, engagement, and flow archetypes–the Sparketypes®. This powerful tool has been tapped by over 600,000 individuals and organizations, generating more than 30-million data-points and a rapidly growing body of stories, use-cases, applications, and insight-based solutions to help transform how we work, lead and live. On the live or virtual stage, Jonathan captivates with eye-opening ideas, stories, and science. He draws not just from his own experience, but also the wisdom of the many global visionaries he’s interviewed, along with insights from the vast data-set generated by the Sparketype Assessment. It all adds up to a rare ability to take audiences on a joyful journey of discovery. Jonathan’s unique insights and solutions inspire people to put what they learn into action.

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Interview Links:

— Jonathan’s website - https://www.jonathanfields.com

— Jonathan’s books - https://amzn.to/3wdZQOd

Dr Dwight Turner is a psychotherapist, Senior Lecturer and Researcher at Brighton University, and the author of “Intersections of Privilege and Otherness in Counselling and Psychotherapy”. He is one of the world’s leading experts on how privilege, otherness, and intersectionality impact therapeutic practice, and in this conversation we discuss:

— What is intersectionality and why it’s vital for therapists to become aware of

— The concept of otherness, how we often “other” ourselves to fit in socially, and the damaging effect this has on the human psyche

— How dream work can provide illuminating insights for identifying aspects of ourselves we may have othered

— How most of us have some of privilege, why it’s not inherently a bad thing when used in the service of others, and also the situations in which it becomes toxic

And more.

You can learn more about Dr Turner’s work by going to: dwightturnercounselling.co.uk and follow him on Twitter @Dturner300.

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Dr Dwight Turner is a psychotherapist, Senior Lecturer and Researcher at the School of Applied Social Science at Brighton University. Dr Turner casts an intersectional lens on privilege, supremacy, otherness and social justice. He was invited to deliver the keynote presentation at the BACP’s ‘Working with Diversity’ Conference in 2019.

His blog post – “Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos” addressed the anguish and the action that has risen from the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, and has been widely read by UK and US therapists. Dr Turner’s book: ‘Intersections of Privilege and Otherness in Counselling and Psychotherapy:’ was published by Routledge in 2021. You can keep up to date with his work and latest blog posts at: https://dwightturnercounselling.co.uk and follow him on Twitter @Dturner300.

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Interview Links:

— Dr Turner’s website: https://www.dwightturnercounselling.co.uk

— Dr Turner’s book: https://amzn.to/3APOMqj

3 Books Dr Turner Recommends Every Therapist Should Read:

— Queering Psychotherapy - Jane Czyzselska: https://amzn.to/3UZJFeG

— Black Identities White Therapies - Colin Lago and Divine Charura: https://amzn.to/3V64GUY

Joshua Wenner and Philip Folsom are the founders of K4 - a men’s leadership community which equips men with psychological tools and resources to become their best selves and create a better life for their families and their communities.

Their members include entrepreneurs, combat veterans, leading mental health professionals, first responders, doctors, lawyers, artists and musicians, and everything in between.

In this conversation, we explore some of the core ideas and philosophy that K4 is built upon, including:

— The 4 Masculine Archetypes: King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, and how to fully embody these to thrive in the modern world

— Why it’s possible for men to aim to be both good and powerful — and why it’s important to realise this isn’t an either/or choice

— Shadow work and how to integrate wounded parts from your past

You can learn more about their work and community at https://www.k4men.com.

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Joshua Wenner is an entrepreneur, veteran, filmmaker, and emotional resilience expert. He has spent the last 20 years growing companies and maximizing human potential—while affecting the lives of over 500,000 humans. He is the founder of Emotional Resilience Training (ERT) & co-founder of the K4 School of Menswork & Valor Warrior Resiliency Programs.

Joshua’s coaching, curriculum, and frameworks are being used to help high achievers, successful entrepreneurs, first responders, men, veterans, and those who deal with high stress and trauma. He teaches emotional resilience tools to help people navigate challenging situations and achieve meaningful results. Before his current work, Joshua had a successful $20M exit as a founding team with Business Rockstars. He has been an advisor to multiple entrepreneurial ventures, has provided high-level 1:1 and group coaching, and was on an elite team of five of the top speakers to train Fortune 100 companies while working for Tony Robbins.

In his 1:1 and group coaching, Joshua uses a wide range of technologies to get results for his clients. Some of these include NLP, timeline therapy, gestalt, compassionate inquiry, IFS, hypnosis, inner child work, breathwork, somatic therapy, attachment theory, needs/boundaries work, transformational chairwork, and more. Joshua is currently in post-production of his film The Gift of Grief, a personal story of how he turned the pain of his brother’s loss into meaning & purpose including interviews with the world’s top experts in the fields of grief & trauma. The film is expected to be released Jan 2023.

Philip Folsom is an anthropologist, culture development expert, veteran, and CEO of Wolf Tribe. He is also the Co-founder of Valor Resiliency Programs, a critically acclaimed PTSD prevention program for warriors and Co-Founder of K4 a leadership and resiliency community for men. Philip is known for his unique Tribe workshop that focuses on the primary culture components of building healthy and high performing teams. His work regularly includes innovative adventure programming such as vision quests, caving, high ropes challenge courses, Zen archery, and workshops with real horses and wolves.

Philip’s reputation in the team development world is legendary. His in-person events and seminars have dramatically improved the lives of over 500,000 people. His current clients include Microsoft, Apple, Snapchat, Fox Pictures, and Space X. Philip has sat on numerous boards including Red Bull’s High Performance Department. His work is regularly featured on television and podcasts. Philip works regularly with groups from USC and is a regular contributor to Marshall School of Business, including the Masters of Business for Veterans program. He lives with his wife, daughter, and black lab in Venice, CA.

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Interview Links:

— Joshua’s website - https://joshuawenner.com/

— Philip’s profile - https://philip-folsom-1n4o.squarespace.com/programs

AJ Jacobs is a New York Times bestselling author, journalist, editor at Esquire Magazine, and maybe one of the most interesting people on the planet today.

His books include: “A Year of Living Biblically”' which documents his attempt to follow every single rule from the Bible as literally as possible, including stoning adulterers, not shaving his beard, and only wearing white; “The Know it All”, which is about reading the Encyclopedia from start to finish; as well as: “My Life as an Experiment”; “The Puzzler”, and “Drop Dead Healthy”.

In this conversation, we explore:

— What AJ learned from 2 months of radical honesty

— The value of boldness and the time AJ accused Oprah Winfrey of farting on set

— The puzzler mindset and the importance of replacing motivated reasoning with curiosity

— AJ’s thoughts on what it takes to write a good book.

And more.

You can learn more about AJ’s work and books by going to: https://ajjacobs.com. His latest book is: The Year of Living Constitutionally and it’s released in May of this year.

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A.J. Jacobs, acclaimed author, journalist, and lecturer, known for his humorous yet insightful writing style, has penned four New York Times bestsellers melding memoir, science, and self-help. He serves as editor at large at Esquire, a commentator on NPR, and a columnist for Mental Floss. Jacobs is renowned for his unique experiments, from reading the Encyclopedia Britannica to living by the Bible's rules, chronicled in his bestselling books. His latest work explores the global family tree's impact on society. A sought-after speaker, Jacobs has appeared on major media outlets and delivered TED talks. He resides in New York City with his family.

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Interview Links:

— AJ’s website - https://ajjacobs.com

— AJ's books - https://amzn.to/49Kf7oC

Dr Bruce Lipton is an internationally recognised biologist, author, and pioneer in the new science of epigenetics. He is most well known for the idea that beliefs influence gene expression and that biology is not determined by DNA. Dr Lipton is the author of three books, including: The Honeymoon Effect, The Biology of Belief, and Spontaneous Evolution.

In this conversation, we explore:

— The science of epigenetics and how our environment (both internal and external) - influence how our genes are expressed

— Dr Lipton’s views on consciousness and the current state of humanity

— How our subconscious beliefs are programmed before the age of 7 and how this causes self sabotage and internal conflict later in life

— Practical things you can do to reprogram your subconscious to experience more flourishing

And more.

You can learn more about Dr Lipton’s work at www.brucelipton.com.

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Dr Bruce H. Lipton, PhD, is an internationally-recognized leader in bridging science and spirit who is best known for the idea that genes are influenced by belief and DNA does not control biology. A stem cell biologist, bestselling author of The Biology of Belief, and recipient of the 2009 Goi Peace Award, he has been a guest speaker on hundreds of TV and radio shows as well as keynote presenter for national and international conferences.

Dr. Lipton began his scientific career as a cell biologist, receiving his PhD degree from the University of Virginia at Charlottesville before joining the Department of Anatomy at the University of Wisconsin’s School of Medicine in 1973. Dr. Lipton has taken his award-winning medical school lectures to the public and is currently a sought-after keynote speaker and workshop presenter.

In 1982, Dr. Lipton began examining the principles of quantum physics and how they might be integrated into his understanding of the cell’s information-processing systems. His breakthrough studies on the cell membrane showed that the outer layer of the cell is an organic homolog of a computer chip, the cell’s equivalent of a brain. His research at Stanford University’s School of Medicine between 1987 and 1992 revealed that the environment, operating through the membrane, controls the behavior and physiology of the cell, turning genes on and off.

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Interview Links:

— Dr Lipton’s website - https://www.brucelipton.com/about/

— Dr Lipton’s books - https://www.brucelipton.com/books/

Dr. Parker Palmer is an American writer, educator, and activist who focuses on issues in education, community, leadership, spirituality and social change.

He is the Founder of the nonprofit: The Centre for Courage and Renewal and the author of 10 popular books, including: A Hidden Wholeness, The Courage to Teach, an Undivided Life, and Let Your Life Speak, which this interview focuses on.

Expect to learn:

— The primary cause of burnout in modern society

— The extent to which each of us arrive here with a nature and the importance of living in harmony with it

— How to navigate the delicate balance between solitude and community life

— Parker’s thoughts on the purpose of human existence.

And more.

This was a hugely impactful conversation for me, and I think Parker might be one of the wisest individuals I’ve come into contact with. Hope you enjoy this one.

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Dr. Parker J. Palmer, born on February 28, 1939, in Chicago, Illinois, is a highly respected American author, educator, and activist. He has dedicated his life to exploring the integration of personal growth, education, spirituality, and social change. Parker's journey includes obtaining degrees in Sociology, teaching roles, and experiences in community organizing and adult education.

His most notable contributions revolve around the concept of "The Courage to Teach," which emphasizes the importance of merging personal identity with professional practice in education. Palmer's books such as "The Courage to Teach," "The Hidden Wholeness," and "Let Your Life Speak" delve into themes of authenticity, community, and spirituality in daily life and work.

Palmer's work extends beyond education, focusing on promoting dialogue, understanding differences, and advocating for social justice and compassionate leadership. His teachings emphasize deep listening, empathy, and creating spaces for genuine reflection and connection. Through his writings, teachings, and activism, Parker J. Palmer continues to inspire educators, leaders, and individuals striving for integrity and purpose in navigating today's complex world.

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Interview Links:

— Dr Palmer’s website - https://couragerenewal.org/parker-j-palmer/

— Dr Palmer’s books - https://amzn.to/49WVR7X