
100 episodes

School of Purpose Bradley Wright PhD
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- Education
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5.0 • 58 Ratings
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In-depth exploration into purpose in life. What is purpose? How does it change lives? How do we find more of it? Interviews include researchers who study it, practitioners who guide people to it, and people who have experienced it. New episode every Wednesday morning.
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#100. Is Purpose a Mission Statement or an Action? Psychologist and Author Todd Kashdan
How we understand purpose in life affects what we do to obtain it. How can we gain a more robust understanding of what purpose is?
Todd Kashdan is a professor of psychology at George Mason University where he studies purpose and other facets of well-being. He's currently working on an article that reconceptualizes the concept of purpose. In this episode, he shares how we can think about purpose more accurately.
In this episode, you'll learn about:
Purpose as articulated understanding vs. behaviorRecognizing other people's purposeHow we spend our time, money, and energy point to what's purposeful to usDoes acting purposefully require making other people's lives better?Excavating our strengthsTodd's links
WebsiteBooksInstagram***
Want to connect? Email me at bradleywrightphd@gmail.com or connect on my LinkedIn page.
Want to start your own podcast? This podcast is edited and produced (and music too) by Josh Gilbert. Contact him at joshgilbertmedia@gmail.com. He specializes in working with early podcasters. -
#99. Fully Living Your Dream Life: 14-Year Sailing Family Jamie and Behan Gifford
What would your life look like if you devoted everything to following your dreams?
The Giffords did just that. In 2002, they realized they wanted something different than the typical American life of house and job. They created a six-year plan to live sailing about the world with their three children. Since 2008, they have done just that. As a family, they go where their sails take them.
In this episode, you'll learn about:
Converting "someday" plans to "now" plansMaking long-term plans for purposeCreating a map of dreamsHow friends and family can negatively react to our dreamsLearning how to adapt to change
Gifford's Links:
Sailing Totem Website
Instagram
Voyaging with Kids Book
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Want to connect? Email me at bradleywrightphd@gmail.com or connect on my LinkedIn page.
Want to start your own podcast? This podcast is edited and produced (and music too) by Josh Gilbert. Contact him at joshgilbertmedia@gmail.com. He specializes in working with early podcasters. -
#98. The Four Pillars of Purpose: YouMap Creator Kristin Sherry
Purpose is idiosyncratic. Everyone has their own view on what matters most in their life. However, is it possible to create a single system that many people can use to find purpose?
Kristin Sherry has spent years helping people find purpose. In that time, she's asked countless questions about what people find fulfilling in work. From her investigation, she has identified four essential aspects of career fit. If you have these four, you'll have a deep, rich, and meaningful career. In this episode of the School of Purpose podcast, Kristin shares her insight on finding purpose.
In this episode, you'll learn about:
The power of self-awareness for finding purposeHow others' concern for us can hinder usDeveloping skill stacks for purposeHow we can think of our strengths as weaknessesHow to uncover our valuesKristin's Links
Website
LinkedIn
Books
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Want to connect? Email me at bradleywrightphd@gmail.com or connect on my LinkedIn page.
Want to start your own podcast? This podcast is edited and produced (and music too) by Josh Gilbert. Contact him at joshgilbertmedia@gmail.com. He specializes in working with early podcasters. -
#97. How Colleges Creatively Guide Students into Purpose: Sociologist and Vice Provost Time Clydesdale
Colleges have extraordinary responsibilities in the lives of their students. Sometimes overlooked is guiding students into purposeful careers.
Tim Clydesdale is the author of The Purposeful Graduate. It's an evaluation of a large-scale program funded by the Lilly Foundation that paid for 88 colleges to create purpose programs for their students. In this episode, you'll learn the lessons from these programs, including what worked and what didn't.
In this episode, you'll learn about:
Research on fostering purpose among college studentsThe power of narrative in exploring purposeThe longterm effect of college students finding purposeThe value of hands-on experience related to purposeThe best year in college for exploring matters of purposeTim's Links
Website
Books
The Purposeful Graduate
The Twentysomething Soul
The First Year Out
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Want to connect? Email me at bradleywrightphd@gmail.com or connect on my LinkedIn page.
Want to start your own podcast? This podcast is edited and produced (and music too) by Josh Gilbert. Contact him at joshgilbertmedia@gmail.com. He specializes in working with early podcasters. -
#96. Finding Purpose after Severe Trauma: Author and Survivor Michael Unbroken
Severe childhood trauma changes one's life--often for the worse. Sometimes, however, it has a redemptive effect as it leads one into purpose.
Michael Unbroken experienced a level of trauma in childhood that's difficult to fathom. Yet, today he feels fully alive and health, and he works with people around the world to help them overcome their own trauma. He's used the pain in the past as a prompt for purpose. In this episode he tells his story.
In this episode, you'll learn about:
How to find clarity in lifeHow to tap into what's next in your lifeAgency and purposeThe need to start with values in finding purposeThe importance of specificity in purposeMichael's links
LinkedIn
Instagram
Podcast
Website
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Want to connect? Email me at bradleywrightphd@gmail.com or connect on my LinkedIn page.
Want to start your own podcast? This podcast is edited and produced (and music too) by Josh Gilbert. Contact him at joshgilbertmedia@gmail.com. He specializes in working with early podcasters. -
#95. From $500 Million to Prison to Purpose: Author and Musician John Lefebvre
How do you make sense of the world when you had a lot and then lost just about all of it?
John Lefebvre co-founded Neteller, a publicly traded online payment company often used by gamblers. In 2007, John ran into legal problems and lost almost $500 million dollars that he had earned by starting the company. He went to jail and started his life again in hi mid-fifties. Now John writes and advocates for good in the world, including addressing climate change.
In this episode, he shares his journey and the lessons that he learned along the way.
John's links
All's Well
Good with Money
DeSmog.com
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Want to connect? Email me at bradleywrightphd@gmail.com or connect on my LinkedIn page.
Want to start your own podcast? This podcast is edited and produced (and music too) by Josh Gilbert. Contact him at joshgilbertmedia@gmail.com. He specializes in working with early podcasters.
Customer Reviews
My one regret is not discovering this earlier
Prof. Wright’s unique blend of humor and insight is always a pleasure to listen to. Coolest sociologist at UConn, bar none.
Intriguing and Inspiring
This podcast is a delight to listen to. Each episode will leave you feeling happy and inspired to find more purpose in your own life. It is great to hear from experts as well as experiencers of purpose. I look forward to listening to this podcast for years to come!
Prison to Purpose
Thanks for sharing such an empowering story! And congratulations for your sobriety and and accomplishments. I know that your story resonates with many!