6d ago

#48 Getting closer to yourself and not taking it so seriously

Gracie Brown - Gestalt therapist, musician and artist known as Kalakari - joins me for her first ever podcast. We talk about what it means to get closer to yourself: the parts you perform, the parts you protect and what starts to shift when you stop treating all of it like something to fix. We get into calling yourself pathetic and what's actually underneath that - the strange kind of safety in staying small and what it costs to keep proving your own worst story about yourself right. We talk about the difference between managing your life and actually enjoying it and what it might mean if the opposite of anxiety isn't calm, but joy. Grace opens up about carrying a "professional" version of herself separately from the real one for years and what it's taken to let that gap close. In this episode: What it's like stepping into your first ever podcast conversation, nerves and all.Why calling yourself pathetic can actually feel safer than the alternative.The difference between managing your life and actually enjoying it.Being an artist and a therapist without needing to pick one.What years of group therapy training taught her about being seen.Learning to loosen up on yourself instead of tightening the grip.If you've ever taken yourself way too seriously and wondered what would happen if you just... didn't, this one's for you. Find Gracie (Kalakari): Insta Kalakari Insta (music, writing) Substack Spotify Connect with Rick: Instagram Website

Jul 29

#47: A practical way to understand yourself instead of fixing yourself

If you've ever caught yourself wondering why you keep repeating the same patterns, why you shut down emotionally when things get hard or why you keep self-sabotaging even when you know better, this episode is for you. Rick explores the difference between fixing or shaming yourself and actually understanding yourself and why that distinction changes everything about how we relate to our own repeating patterns. Using his own tendency to withdraw and go quiet under pressure as a live example, he walks through five questions that help make sense of the behaviours that feel stuck or automatic, without needing to force change or beat yourself up in the process. The five questions covered in this episode: What's the benefit? What do you get from doing this thing, even if it doesn't look like a benefit on the surface?What's the cost? What does this pattern actually cost you, including the quieter internal cost of how it makes you feel about yourself?Where did it come from? What's the origin or the ongoing story that keeps this pattern alive?What's the fear underneath it? What are you actually trying to avoid by doing this?What's the superpower? What skill or strength has this pattern given you, even as it's caused you trouble?This one's for anyone who feels stuck even though life looks fine on paper, who overthinks everything, or who's tired of trying to white-knuckle their way into being a different person. It's a conversation about getting to know yourself gently, without the pressure of having to arrive anywhere. Connect with Rick: ⁠https://www.rickwatson.com.au⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/rickwatson_/⁠ Substack: ⁠https://therickwatson.substack.com/

Jul 22

#46: Grief, love, and what I've learned about emotional honesty (a six month update)

It's been months since I recorded an episode. Jo's dad got sick, then really sick, then he passed. Somewhere in the middle of all that, I lost the desire to sit down and talk into a mic. This episode is me picking it back up, unscripted, on a day it finally felt good to do it. I talk about what it looked like to let ourselves feel everything during that time instead of managing it - the grief, but also what showed up on the other side of it: gratitude, love and eventually a proposal. I get into the difference between accepting an emotion and actually welcoming it and why that difference matters in a practical sense. I also talk about emotional avoidance... what it actually looks like day to day (drinking, YouTube rabbit holes, staying busy for no reason) and why we're all so good at not catching ourselves doing it. I also explore that overthinking is often just under feeling. that automatic pattern of trying to figure something out instead of letting yourself feel it. If you've ever wondered why you overthink everything, why you shut down emotionally, or why you keep trying to manage a feeling instead of actually feeling it... this one's for you. I also mention a free connection quiz on my site if you want a starting point to see where your emotional avoidance is at. Enjoy and feel free to leave a comment or ask any questions as you listen. Connect with Rick: https://www.rickwatson.com.au Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rickwatson_/ Substack: https://therickwatson.substack.com/

Apr 27

#45: Why is slowing down so hard?

Most of us know we need to slow down, we feel it and yet something keeps us moving anyway. This episode is an honest look at what's actually behind that. Not a list of tips or a lecture about self care. Just bite-sized conversation about why staying busy can feel so much safer than stopping and what might be quietly sitting underneath it. Rick shares a story from a client who came in burnt out and overwhelmed and another from his own weekend where he caught himself doing the same thing. What came up in both wasn't about workload, it was about fear and about what we've learned to do with it. If you've ever felt guilty for resting or found it hard to just be without doing anything, this one is worth a listen. In this episode, we explore... The stories behind the busynessThe potential fear underneathThe feeling being avoidedA different way of looking at itSome questions worth sitting withA practical experiment to exploreThis is new format of bite-sized podcasts that explores one simple questions in each episode. If this one landed for you, share it with someone who might need to hear it and follow along to make sure you don't miss future episodes like this one. To explore working with Rick: https://www.rickwatson.com.au/explore To hang out on socials: https://www.instagram.com/rickwatson_/

Apr 7

#44: Why being human is your most important skill right now

In a world shaped by social media addiction, rapidly advancing AI and growing economic uncertainty, staying genuinely connected to yourself has never been harder (or more important). In this solo episode, Rick gets honest about the forces pulling us away from our own humanness: the addictive design of short-form content and infinite scroll, the rise of AI tools and the way uncertainty and anxiety turn up the volume on our oldest emotional patterns. He also gets personal - sharing how building a social media presence this year made him confront his own role in the distraction economy, and why he's asking big questions about the future of human connection, therapy, and meaningful work in the age of AI. This isn't a doomsday episode. It's a nudge toward self-awareness and a reminder that emotional intelligence and knowing yourself might be the most important personal growth work you can do right now. What I cover in this episode: Why the current moment — AI, social media addiction, financial pressure, and uncertainty anxiety — is making genuine self-connection and human connection harder than ever.The distraction economy and how short-form content and infinite scroll are designed to keep you scrolling and disconnected from yourself.Rick's honest admission: how building a social media presence this year made him complicit in the very thing he's critiquing.AI vs human wisdom: why getting an answer from ChatGPT or Claude isn't the same as developing your own emotional intelligence and critical thinking.Why uncertainty doesn't create new patterns - it just turns up the intensity of your existing relational and behavioural patterns.The self-awareness practice that gives you back a sense of control when everything else feels uncertain.A simple mindfulness experiment to try this week"In a world full of uncertainty, I can have some certainty around how I show up — and that's why being human is the most important skill you can have right now." Try this after listening:Over the next few days, just notice...when do you reach for your phone? When do you outsource a question to AI instead of sitting with it? No judgment, just awareness. That's your starting point. Connect with Rick Instagram

Feb 16

#43: Escaping the "not enough" trap with Jack Chivers

Most of us don’t realise how much of our life is built around one quiet belief: “I’m not enough.” In this conversation with Jack Chivers, we unpack the performer pattern - the part of us that learned to earn love, approval and belonging through being impressive, capable or strong. For a while, that strategy works. It builds careers, it builds reputations and it even builds identity. But over time it can also lead to burnout, resentment and relationships built on unsustainable foundations. We explore: Why performing can feel safer than being How burnout can be a signal not a weakness The link between anger in the body and unspoken pressure The core belief sitting underneath many of our patterns And what changes when we replace self-attack with “that makes sense” This isn’t about becoming a better version of yourself. It’s about noticing the ways you learned to survive… and gently stepping out of the trap of proving your worth. If you’ve ever felt like your value depends on how well you perform, this one’s for you. Jack's website and instagram Rick website and instagram

Feb 2

#42: Humans need humans, not optimisation with Katia Erokhina

What if being human isn’t something to fix, refine or optimise? In this conversation, Rick sits down with Gestalt psychotherapist Katia Erokhina for a real-time, unscripted exploration of what actually helps us change and what quietly gets in the way. Together, they talk about withdrawal and conflict, shame and self-criticism, the stories we tell ourselves and how often those stories pull us away from what’s actually alive in the moment. They explore why insight alone doesn’t always create change and why corrective experiences almost always involve another human. This episode isn’t about tools or hacks. It’s about contact, tenderness and learning to stay with ourselves (and each other) when things get messy. In this episode, we explore: Why optimisation culture misses something essential about being human The difference between story and lived experience Withdrawal, conflict and the protection underneath our patterns Shame, comparison and “shaming the shame” Why awareness doesn’t always lead to change on its own The role of relationship and support in real transformation Letting go of being “better” and staying with what’s tender If you’re tired of turning your inner world into a self-improvement project, this conversation is an invitation to slow down and remember: humans need humans. Find Katia:Website: https://relationalhome.com Instagram: @relational_home Find Rick:Website: https://www.rickwatson.com.au⁠ Instagram: @rickwatson_

Jan 27

#41: Are you willing to be uncertain in 2026?

In this solo episode of Humaning, Rick kicks off 2026 with an honest check-in after a technology-free camping break. He reflects on the tension between control and uncertainty, why our repeating patterns make so much sense and how real change often begins with acceptance rather than self-rejection. Drawing on personal experience, client work and men’s circle reflections, Rick explores what happens when we loosen the grip on certainty and take small, imperfect steps in a new direction. This episode is an invitation to experiment, gather data and be a little more willing to be uncertain this year— just to see what unfolds. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rickwatson_/ Website: https://www.rickwatson.com.au/

Humaning with Rick Watson

#48 Getting closer to yourself and not taking it so seriously

#47: A practical way to understand yourself instead of fixing yourself

#46: Grief, love, and what I've learned about emotional honesty (a six month update)

#45: Why is slowing down so hard?

#44: Why being human is your most important skill right now

#43: Escaping the "not enough" trap with Jack Chivers

#42: Humans need humans, not optimisation with Katia Erokhina

#41: Are you willing to be uncertain in 2026?

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Humaning with Rick Watson

Episodes

#48 Getting closer to yourself and not taking it so seriously

#47: A practical way to understand yourself instead of fixing yourself

#46: Grief, love, and what I've learned about emotional honesty (a six month update)

#45: Why is slowing down so hard?

#44: Why being human is your most important skill right now

#43: Escaping the "not enough" trap with Jack Chivers

#42: Humans need humans, not optimisation with Katia Erokhina

#41: Are you willing to be uncertain in 2026?

About

Information