Untangle Muse Meditation Studio

Todays guest is Ozan Varol. Ozan is a native of Turkey and moved to the US to study astrophysics when he was 17. He started out as a rocket scientist and later became a law professor. In our interview, he reflects on how there were so many moments where on paper everything looked great, but intuitively there was something deep down in his gut that felt very wrong. He couldn’t rationally explain the feeling…but he knew he needed to make some changes in his life. And he did. His mission now is to help others reimagine the conventional wisdom that led them to decisions that govern their lives…but no longer need to. I like when he says “is your safety net really a straight jacket?”

His book is called Awaken your Genius. Escape Conformity, Ignite Creativity and Become Extraordinary. Genius, to him, means being who you were meant to be; not what others expect. Unlock your originality and unleash your unique talents to discover your true nature. I think you’ll find his perspectives super interesting, and a great reminder of what it takes to be truly who we’re meant to be.

This episode has some great insights on how to stop conforming to what others expect, how to discover who we truly are, how to stop feeling like you’re sleepwalking through life, how to get unstuck and ignite creativity.

Welcome to another meditation edition of Untangle.I’m excited to introduce you to Shawn Moore. Shawn is a meditation and yoga teacher, and loves to create spaces for stillness and self-inquiry to help leaders and all of us… align our strengths, intention, and impact. Today’s meditation lives in the Optimal Brain States Collection on the Muse app. Shawn leads all of the community initiatives at Muse and is passionate about bringing people together to connect, learn and be inspired by one another. Today’s meditation is about the gifts of a growth vs. fixed mindset. He invites us to leave lot’s of room for reflection here. My favorite part? He asks us to ponder this question. How do you react when working outside your comfort zone? Head over to choosemuse.com to check out his meditations on the Muse app. Use Untangle15 for your discount code.

Todays guest is Rob Schwartz. You may not know him, but you’ve likely heard of his dad, Morrie.
Bestseller, “Tuesdays with Morrie,” sold over 18 million copies after it was released in 1997. While Morrie, a beloved dad and professor at Brandeis University, was dying of ALS, Mitch Albom, one of his students, sat down to interview him every Tuesday for 12 weeks. This became a treasure trove of his philosophy as his health declined. It was very early in our understanding of ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Several years after “Tuesdays with Morrie," and the death of his father, Rob, found an almost finished manuscript in his dad’s desk drawer. He decided to edit this book as a tribute to his dad. Now, “The Wisdom of Morrie," recently released, is a new look at Morries’ life wisdom and lessons. I was happy to be reminded of the spirit and light that filled his life, despite that he was dying.
A reminder from Morrie:
“Dying is only one thing to be upset about; living an unhappy life is something else.”

Show Notes:
Morrie is known for his positive attitude and growth mindset before and after he was diagnosed with ALS. He was an extremely curious, compassionate and intelligent man.

He always had this intense empathy for everybody, and was open to different worldviews. He was aware of others’ difficulties and their pain. Once you're open to somebody else's worldview and perspective, he said, you're going to see things in a different light.

The Wisdom of Morrie is really about lessons on how to live your best life and how to live with the tension or paradox of joy and sorrow.

His attitude was…”I’m gonna live the best that I can in the time that I have left. And that means I have to put bitterness, anger and disappointment aside and concentrate on what gives me joy and life and pushes me forward.”

Morrie wrote a bit about ageism. He has a term called age casting, which is to make assumptions about older people just because they’re old. He also includes many practical tips on how to live more creatively and joyously as you age.

Very simply put, what gives your life meaning, Morrie would say, is your relationship with other people.

Morrie viewed aging as completely natural; Not something to be angry or despairing about, but something to understand as a natural process of life, and that you should appreciate what is strong and good about it, as opposed to trying to pick out, oh, my body isn't as strong as it used to be.

There will always be the tension of opposites in our lives. This idea of balancing out hope and despair.

In this book, Morrie was attempting to remove the stumbling blocks that prevent people from being happy and fulfilled.

He believed that laughter was incredibly important and wondered why elderly people often forget to incorporate more humor in their lives. Don’t let it slip away, he reminds us.

Rob’s most important lesson from his dad? Pay attention to your relationships and continue to strengthen them always.

Resources: The Wisdom of Morrie. Available at all booksellers.

Enjoy this lovely meditation, by Kate Johnson, in honor of World Meditation Week.

Guest interviewer > Ariel Garten! Do you want to wake up feeling great, and be productive through the rest of the day? Make the most of your day by optimizing your mornings. Charming British brother and sister therapists, Toby and Kate Oliver, give dozens of practical, science-backed techniques to try at the start of the day, to improve your morning and the whole day. Whether you’re a morning person or a night owl, this episode will help you transform your life, one morning at a time.

Today's guest is Dr. Greg Wells a Physiologist, Scientist, Author, and renowned health and high-performance expert. He has dedicated his career to studying the science of human limits and developing practical strategies to help individuals and organizations perform at their best, even under the most challenging circumstances. He’s even worked with Olympic athletes. But his most important work is with those of us who simply want to optimize health every single day. His guidance in this interview relates to protecting and optimizing our Mitochondria, which affects every aspect of our lives. It’s a really interesting way to look at how we can have some agency over our mental and physical health so we can live our best lives. Note: Use discount code UNTANGLE15 at choosemuse.com to order your Muse Headband.

Show notes:
We get our energy from mitochondria. These are tiny structures inside our cells that break down the foods that we eat to create energy. They're in our muscles, our brains, they're all over the place. We need our mitochondria to live our best, healthiest lives.

Our mitochondria are damaged by stress, but they're really responsive to lifestyle activities so there's infinite potential for them to get better.

We produce 2 billion new mitochondria every single day. These enable us to think, move, be creative, play music, build relationships…almost everything that is fundamental to life.

As little as three minutes of exercise a day can stimulate the production of new and better mitochondria that make us able to have more energy to navigate our lives.

When we do things like meditation, our mitochondria become stronger. He is a big Muse user and loves it.

Mitochondria are also a common pathway to different diseases like cancer, heart disease, and neurodegenerative diseases. When they aren’t working properly, they can even be responsible for depression, so even our mental health depends upon healthy, high-functioning mitochondria.

Also important to creating a joyful and meaningful life are social connections, people, pursuits, and purpose. A strong focus in these areas can have a profound impact on longevity.

Flow plus meaning is the best predictor of “Magic Moments.”

Resources: Drgregwells.com