Unicorns and Hand Grenades Jax & Kim

We're BACK! Forgive us listeners, for we have sinned, it's been a year since we last released an episode. 

This is one of our most vulnerable episodes.  It's real, it's raw, and there's a fair amount of laughter in there too.  Mainly at our expense.

We're excited to reconnect with y'all again and we kick off with an update around our Hand Grenade & Unicorn moments, from our time away, and why we've taken a breather.

We talk: 
Affairs - Jax opens up, for the first time about the experience of this  ending her 30 year marriageDating  -  after aforementioned 30 year marriage & 4 years single, ye gods it's a jungle out there!Hustle CultureChasing Happy & pushing Sh*t downDistracting from feeling the feels, Netflix, alcohol, over work, dating apps & validation, you name it, everyone’s got their go to distraction! OverwhelmAnxiety
And loads more.  It's time to saddle up your unicorn and join us on the ride again beautiful humans! 

You can contact us on the ole IG: Unicornsandhandgrenades.life and feel free to slide on into our DM's with feedback or any guest or topic requests.

Keep being freakin awesome.  We appreciate you!

Jax & Jim. xx

We're joined around the mic this week by our first guest of the season Bridgette (Biddy) Jackson.   So saddle up your Unicorns, & get ready for a dose of triple trouble!  This convo's equal parts realness, wisdom & laughter alike.  

There is so much gold here for the taking & Bridgette, or Biddy as we like to call her,  is so generous in sharing her story,  wisdom and expertise.  Lucky us!  If you're single, in a relationship, needing to get out of one, or at the beginnings of one, this episodes for you! Our around the campfire convo covers;
·         The near death of her daughter while in the middle of a separation
·         Questions to ask before getting into a 'serious' or de-facto relationship 
·          How do you know when it's time to end a relationship (and some of the signs)
·         The importance of perspective & gratitude in the face of hand grenades
·         Good enough is freakin great, & perfection is our armour
·         How to know your worth and step into that
·         Finding purpose in what you do & chasing your passion
·         Diving into the dating pool; oh & we had a rather stellar business idea around this
·         What holds people in a relationship, past its expiration date
·         When is the 'right' time to separate if you have children
·         Defining Failure
·         Till death do us part... yeah/nah
·         How to have a healthy relationship (spoiler alert, do the work required for growth before you step into the next one!)


And so much more...


Bridgette is a CDC-certified Divorce/Separation Coach with a post graduate dispute resolution qualification.  She’s also a trained divorce mediator (AIMNZ) Relationship Coach (Institute for Life Coach Training) an enrolled barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand 

Having experienced her own prolonged divorce, she founded Equal Exes in 2018.   Born out of her desire to support and guide people navigate their own separation and/or divorce with dignity. While at the same time enabling the process to be less time-consuming and costly. 

In conjunction with Equal Exes, Bridgette co-established with Nick Scarlett, Equal Group Holdings and Equal Workplace Support, providing new corporate programmes to assist employees with confidential divorce & separation support through their workplace. 

To learn more about the great work she & her team do check them out: 

Instagram: @equalexes & @equalgroupholdings or visit their website at equalexes.com

Thanks for joining us on this ride.  As always, we love hearing from you with guest suggestions, questions or topics.  Best way to reach us... on the old Insta: 
@unicornsandhandgrenades.life

If you need emotional support please head to www.findahelpline.com where you can find the helpline number for whatever country you live in.  IG: @findahelpline.   If in NZ text 1737 for help.

Catch you in the next episode.

Big love
Jax & Kim 

If you want to know how to turn the dial down on stress & start kicking that MOFO to the curb then this episodes for you.   It's our first 'Espresso Ep' of the season.  

Espresso Eps are short & sharp hits, like your morning caffeine (under 30 minutes), where we focus on something that is topical, in a more practical, tips & tricks way.

Ever wondered why some people can experience pressure without becoming totally stressed out,  while others under the exact same situation become overwhelmed with stress...  us too.

Join in to find out more about, and what to do when you're under pressure to help ensure you don't free fall into stress.

Inside you'll find: 


Pressure is NOT StressThe secret ingredient you do NOT want to add to pressure that turns it into stressReflection vs RuminationPractical tips & tricks to drop you out of stress when you are experiencing pressureWaking upPerspective ShiftingControlling your AttentionLetting go (year we hear ya, that MOFO's a tricky one)AcceptanceInstagram shiny happy feeds (calling BS on those)Curating with IntentionVanity Metrics vs Soul Metrics
and more....

Slide on into our DM's on the ole Insta @unicornsandhandgrenades.life to let us know how you find Espresso Eps and if you would like more, we're here for you, not us, so would love your feedback.

Or you can contact us on www.unicornsandhandgrenades.life

As always thanks for listening in.  We appreciate you.

Big Love 
Jax & Kim xx

In this yarn we're talking all things Mental Health and Headspace Hacks with Certified Mental Health Coach, Jem Walker-Carmody.  

We explore what it means to do the Mahi (work), when it comes to owning our own Mental Health and Wellbeing.  What does it look like to set ourselves up for success so we can do our best to live our one wild and freaking precious life from a place of thriving, vs surviving.

We all have mental health.   Some days we feel like Tigger on a sugar high, and others  like Eeyore after a big night on the town...  aka Dusty AF and not that bothered with life.   And other days anywhere in between.   

Jem left her career in the Health & Safety Space to follow her passion and build a career in the Mental Health & Wellbeing space. And she has recently completed an Advanced Certificate in Mental Health with Prekure.

Some of the gems (pardon the pun Jem), we explore inside this episode:
Following your passionFeeling all the FeelsChasing the "Happy" highHeadspace Hacks: the top things we do to set us up for success when it comes to our Mental Fitness/HealthTrauma: transform or transmitDismissing & judging our own traumasAddiction: of the socially acceptable type (exercise/sex/work/social media etc)It's OK not to be OK!  Deep listening and its powerOverwhelm/Stressand so much more.

And remember,  if you're not ok, that's ok, reach out to someone for support, to listen. Have the convo and embrace the Mahi . It's worth it.

Big love Jax & Kim

***If you need emotional support please head to www.findahelpline.com where you can find the helpline number for whatever country you live in.  IG: @findahelpline.   If in NZ text 1737 for help.




 

Heather joins us in this episode where we discuss all things related to mental and physical well-being, growth, meaning making and being the change we want to see!

She's a member of the For All the Brothers Team, Co-owner of Movement Wellness Space,  & Senior Occupational Therapist at Being Therapy and she's an all round epic human.

Heather generously shares her story, & how that led her to doing what she does today.   

We explore amongst many things:


Anxiety/overthinkingBeing vulnerable, real &  building trustWhy we're so passionate about supporting men The power of BrotherhoodMental & physical health & wellbeingCommunication, and why it's so importantCalling BS on the ole "men don't cry"What it means to each of us to be the change we want to seeThe importance of PLAY in lifeCreating a movement through brave conversations
Plus a bunch more.  Oh, and as always we have some laughs along the way at our own expense.

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Dave Beaver (Jax's ex) who passed of prostate cancer this week.  And a reminder that 1 in 8 awesome Kiwi Blokes will be diagnosed with prostate cancer.  The same number that will experience a significant brush with depression.  So lads, ask each other if you're ok, start the convo & get ya prostate checked, it's a simple blood test and can save a life! 

As always, we value and appreciate your support.  And here's to being the change we want to see, on step at a time!

You can connect with Heather via:  IG @forallthebrothers or @mvmt_conz or you can email her at hello@beingtherapy.co.nz

Big love Jax & Kim

Chip's a New York Times best selling Author, TEDx Speaker, Boutique Hotel Entrepreneur, Airbnb Strategic Advisor (Leadership & Hospitality), Mentor to Brian Chesky and founder of the world's first Mid Life Wisdom School, located in Baja California Sur.

We kick off by asking Chip to introduce himself with "If you REALLY knew me"... You might be surprised by his answer.  And that won't be the only suprise you get from this convo.  Did you know mid-life starts as early as 35, yup, 35-75 according to Chip. You'll also find out why 47 is typically when we hit the dip in terms of the U curve of happiness study, and what we can do to support ourselves around that.  We also cover:  
Our primary operating system moving from "ego" to "soul" Accumulating vs editing in our livesShaking up the societal narrative around mid-life and aging, after all life's about growing WHOLE not old! The importance of doing a mid-life edit & bringing ritual to it  The anatomy of transitions and how to accelerate growth through the messy middleTips for how to move more into the Human "being" vs the Human "doing" spaceSpying on the Divine His Flatline experience... And lots more.
Chip's midlife wisdom school teaches people how to cultivate and harvest their wisdom, get clear on their mastery and go out into the world and repurpose that mastery in new ways. 

"On the other side of uncertainty is a door to a room full of wisdom, we just don't know what's in it yet!"  Chip Conley. Never a truer word spoken in this day & age.  Here's to cracking open the door and braving uncertainty. 

You can connect with Chip via linkedin or sign up to wisdom well and learn more about MEA at www.modernelderacadamy.com