Success Rooted

Gemma Nastasi and Dr. Robert Wilson

Cultivating success from within. Each month, Success Rooted explores one ingredient of success: mindset, discipline, purpose, resilience, and how self-care is the foundation underneath it all. Practical, grounded conversations for anyone building a fuller life. Hosted by Gemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNC, health and wellness coach and published author, and Dr. Robert Wilson, entrepreneur, author, and life and wellness coach.

Episodes

  1. 1h ago

    Change Happens. Transition Is a Choice.

    A promotion. A move. A wedding. Even the changes we want mean letting go of something, and that can be scary. Change is what happens to us, and it can happen in a day. Transition is the inner work of letting go and growing into what's next. In this episode, Dr. Robert Wilson and I talk about mindset and transition, and what happens inside of us when life changes. We talk about: - Why change and transition aren't the same thing, and why every transition starts with an ending - A fixed mindset and a growth mindset: is life happening to me, or for me? - The word I chose for my year, "open," and what surprised me when I tried it - Seeing a situation from three points of view: yours, someone else's and a neutral observer's - The in-between, when the old chapter is over and the new one hasn't started - Robert's move from New Jersey to North Carolina, and asking "what do I get a chance to do?" - Saying goodbye to what doesn't work anymore, and giving yourself time to heal - Giving yourself room to grow, and grace - Why it's not an ending, it's a beginning, and how to get curious without judging yourself - The office I rented right before the doctor who was sending me clients moved away, and the plan that got me through - Leaning on a support system you can trust Your exercise for this week: Think about one change you're in right now, big or small, whether you chose it or not. Write down three things: what is ending, what you need to let go of, and one small step you can take toward your new beginning. From the research: Author Bruce Feiler collected 225 life stories from people in all 50 states. He found that our lives get disrupted about every 12 to 18 months, and that three to five times in our lives we go through a major change he calls a lifequake (Feiler, Life Is in the Transitions, 2020). Next time: to-do lists. Your hosts Gemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNC Dr. Robert Wilson Follow @successrootedpodcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Success starts at the root.

  2. Oct 27

    The Power of Gratitude: Are You Overlooking What’s Good?

    A perfect day at work. A promotion. Then, on the way home, you get pulled over for a taillight that's out. Which part of the day do you talk about when you walk in the door? The negative has a stronger impact on us, and it makes it easy to overlook what's good. In this episode, Dr. Robert Wilson and I talk about the power of gratitude and how to practice it on purpose, even when life is hard. We talk about: - Why we focus on what's missing, and how many positives it takes to cancel out one negative in a relationship - How gratitude helps when you feel stuck or discouraged: the brain strengthens the pathways you use most - Gratitude versus thinking positively, and why they go hand in hand - Why gratitude is intentional, and how Robert's daily gratitude journal became a habit - The hard time when I wrote down a hundred things I was grateful for, and the gratitude worksheet I use with my clients - How your gratitude affects the people around you - When you're in a hard place: one thing you're grateful for, past, present or future, and three lists that help you see what you want - Being grateful without dismissing what you're going through, and remembering what you've already come through - Practice your gratitude, make it your attitude: living a gratitude life all year long, the topic of my talk at the Lodge at Woodloch the Friday after Thanksgiving Your exercise for this week: For five nights, write down three things you're grateful for that happened that day, different ones each night, and how you contributed to them happening. Then write down three things you'd like to see happen in the future, and what that would look like. From the research: In a study of 293 adults in counseling, the ones who wrote gratitude letters reported better mental health four and twelve weeks later than the other groups. Brain scans about three months later showed more activity in the medial prefrontal cortex when the letter writers felt grateful, a sign that practicing gratitude may train the brain to be more sensitive to it (Wong et al., 2018; Kini et al., 2016). Next time: mindset. Your hosts Gemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNC Dr. Robert Wilson Follow @successrootedpodcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Success starts at the root.

  3. Oct 27

    Do You Make Your Own Luck?

    A lucky horseshoe. A four-leaf clover. A rabbit’s foot. Is luck random, or can our choices influence our opportunities? All I can tell you is this: I feel lucky, and I don’t think luck is random. In this episode, Dr. Robert Wilson and I ask whether we make our own luck, and what lucky people do differently. We talk about: What psychologist Richard Wiseman found when he studied people who called themselves lucky or unluckyAre you expecting good fortune or bad fortune?Why “I have the worst luck in the world” keeps you in a fixed mindset, and a simple experiment to open it upMindset versus mind shift: expecting things to work in your favorTrusting your gut, and the little voice that tells me to take an umbrella or go down a different streetCultivating your intuition with journaling, meditation, a quiet nature walk, prayer and faithWhen adversity happens: the meaning we attach to it, and how our upbringing shapes what we expectCan you become luckier by changing your behavior? Robert’s story of the leadership role he first said no toHow a fender bender in my driveway turned into new clients for my coaching businessYour challenge for this week: Do one thing outside your normal routine. Start a conversation, explore a possibility, or take a small step toward something you’ve considered. From the research: Psychologist Richard Wiseman spent about ten years studying 400 people who called themselves lucky or unlucky. He found that lucky people generate their own good fortune in four ways: they notice chance opportunities and act on them, listen to their intuition, expect good things to happen, and turn bad luck into good (Wiseman, 2003). Next time: the power of gratitude. Are you overlooking what’s good? Your hostsGemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNCDr. Robert Wilson Follow @successrootedpodcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Success starts at the root.

  4. Oct 27

    What Would You Do If There Were No Fear?

    Procrastination. Excuses. Perfectionism. Self-doubt. Fear doesn’t always look like fear, and it is so often what keeps us stuck. Last time, we talked about the magic moment, that moment when change happens whether you want it to or not. In this episode, Dr. Robert Wilson and I continue the magic moment and focus on fear: how to recognize it when it shows up, and how to move through it. We talk about: Why awareness comes first: noticing what fear is showing up in your life right nowClearing your mind with meditation and prayer, talking to someone who won’t judge you, and still following your gutJournaling, and the class at the Lodge at Woodloch that turned me from a skeptic into a believerWhy success is about the journey, not the destination, and why Robert never pictured himself journalingA common misconception about meditation: the goal isn’t to stop thinking, it’s awarenessWhat I tell anyone who asks what I would do in their situation: “I don’t live with the consequences.”Rebuilding your life in stages after a relationship ends or your children leave homeCourage: not waiting until the fear is gone, but taking a step anyway. As Robert says, “This happened, but it doesn’t define me.”Two coaching questions that help you see past the fear and take back your power Your question for this week: Think of a decision you’ve been putting off. If there were no fear, what would that decision be? Next time: do you make your own luck? Your hostsGemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNCDr. Robert Wilson Follow @successrootedpodcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Success starts at the root.

  5. Oct 20

    The Magic Moment: Turning Change into Opportunity

    A new job, or leaving one. A relationship that starts or ends. A loss. A new stage of life, like when your children leave home. I call it the magic moment, when change is coming and there’s no way to avoid it. And sometimes it doesn’t feel so magical. Last time, we touched on the magic moment. In this episode, Dr. Robert Wilson and I talk about what creates it and how to deal with it. We talk about: Why the magic moment so often brings fear and uncertainty, and why there is hope in itHow losing a job can send you in a direction you would never have taken if you had stayed comfortableMindset, and the lens we see life throughMy A plan and B plan: picture staying where you are, then picture the worst case if the change doesn’t work out, and decide whether you can live with itPausing to reflect before you move, and giving yourself time to catch your breath when change blindsides youForce versus flow, and letting go of what you’ve outgrownTaking a chance on an opportunity so you don’t say years later, “I should have done this”The question I ask clients: what would reaching up look like?Your question for this week: What is one thing you can do, in a situation where fear is present, to shift it and turn an adversity into an opportunity that works in your favor? From the research: When economist Steven Levitt, co-author of Freakonomics, had people facing a major life decision flip a coin, the ones who made the change reported being happier than the ones who stayed where they were. Sometimes we’re too cautious when it comes to big life decisions (Levitt, 2021). Next time: we continue the magic moment and focus on fear, because fear is so often what keeps us stuck. Your hosts: Gemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNCDr. Robert WilsonFollow @successrootedpodcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Success starts at the root.

  6. Oct 9

    Feeling Stuck? You Can't Believe Everything You Think

    You worked hard. You did everything right. And it still didn’t happen. In this episode, Dr. Robert Wilson and I talk about why so many people feel stuck, and why it so often comes back to self-esteem. We talk about: Why being passed over hits your motivation and your self-esteem at the same timeWhy your value and worth are not your job, your position or your titleThe inner critic versus the inner cheerleader, and how to start looking inwardRobert’s gratitude and celebration journal, and why giving yourself credit feels hard at firstThe talk where I was sure the audience didn’t like it, and what their standing ovation taught me: you can’t believe everything you thinkWhere negative self-talk comes from, and better questions to ask yourselfPicturing the result you want, then working backwards to the steps that get you thereLetting go of labels you have outgrownYour question for this week: What’s one thing you keep telling yourself that isn’t true anymore? Write it down. Next to it, write one thing you’ve done that proves it wrong. From the research: Picturing the steps works better than picturing only the result. In a UCLA study, students who pictured themselves studying for an exam started earlier, studied more and scored higher than students who only pictured getting a good grade (Pham and Taylor, 1999). Next time: how to get unstuck, with intention, commitment and motivation. Hosted by Gemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNC, and Dr. Robert L. Wilson Jr., CPLC, CWC Follow @successrootedpodcast on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. Success starts at the root.

About

Cultivating success from within. Each month, Success Rooted explores one ingredient of success: mindset, discipline, purpose, resilience, and how self-care is the foundation underneath it all. Practical, grounded conversations for anyone building a fuller life. Hosted by Gemma Nastasi, PCC, NBC-HWC, CAPP, CHNC, health and wellness coach and published author, and Dr. Robert Wilson, entrepreneur, author, and life and wellness coach.