Derek “Deek” Diedricksen is a builder of tiny homes, a musician, an artist – and exemplifies not putting people into boxes. He is a host of HGTV’s “Tiny House Builders” and the author of Microshelters: 59 Creative Cabins, Tiny Houses, Tree Houses, and Other Small Structures.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Deek shares about:

• building a multi-faceted life composed of the things he loves;
• creation in many forms: building, writing, music;
• dealing with the fact that people will inevitably complain and criticize;
• following your instincts about how to invest your time and energy;
• choosing “Option B.”

Links from the Show

• Relax Shacks on YouTube
• Relax Shacks website
• Facebook: Tiny House Hub
• Tiny House Builders on HGTV
• Microshelters: 59 Creative Cabins, Tiny Houses, Tree Houses, and Other Small Structures
• Humble Homes, Simple Shacks, Cozy Cottages, Ramshackle Retreats, Funky Forts: And Whatever The Heck Else We Could Squeeze In Here

Transcript

Tara Byrne is a serial entrepreneur who had some unique “unschooling” educational experiences, and is the founder of Under 30 Changemakers, a support network for young entrepreneurs.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Tara shares about:

• how breaking into a church led to an unexpected change of plans for her life;
• how unschooling taught her that failure itself was a great instructor;
• engaging in non-traditional education that set her on a path for social entrepreneurship and making business meaningful;
• learning to accept personal responsibility and become the artist of her own life;
• the paradox that the things that “should” have been successful weren’t, and vice versa;
• developing a sense of detachment and learning that quitting was different from giving up;
• understanding that people are a business’ greatest asset, and focusing on self care.

Links from the Show

• Under 30 Changemakers
• Facebook: Under 30 Changemakers
• Twitter: @Under30change
• Mycelium
• Ryan Holiday: The Obstacle is the Way
• Nassim Nicholas Taleb: Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder

Related Episode

ACL 054: Victor Saad

Transcript

Jacob Sokol had all the trappings of a successful life in New York City but longed for passion and purpose. So he set off to find it, and deliberately and consciously designed the kind of life he was enthusiastic about. He ended up creating Sensophy, a blog that chronicled his journey and evolved into a business helping others live extraordinary lives.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Jacob shares about:

• the meaning and mission behind Sensophy;
• a sense of disbelief in first grade in the rules of success in the world;
• going through the motions of his career, but feeling shame about not being enough;
• recognizing that the pain of staying the same was worse than the fear of the unknown;
• a “ladder of consciousness,” the dangerous place in the middle, and taking ownership of our lives;
• the essential scaffolding of taking care of ourselves;
• when we feel at our best, we perform at our best;
• being willing to be “more you than is socially acceptable.”
• challenging that voice saying “Who am I to do this?”

Links from the Show

• Jacob’s story on Sensophy
• 12 Things Happy People Do Differently
• Twitter: @JacobSokol
• Facebook: Sensophy

Transcript

Katrin Macmillan is the founder of a human rights organization called Projects for All. An innovative project called “Project Hello World” is helping to connect and bring education to millions of children without traditional resources.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Katrin shares about:

• the goals of Projects for All, and specifically what her organization is trying to accomplish with Project Hello World;
• deficits that she sees in traditional education models, and how Project Hello World is addressing them;
• how her original training in theatre became an ideal fit for working in the non-profit sector;
• wrestling up the confidence to shift the trajectory of her life;
• pushing up against a “fictional sense of meritocracy” and embracing the “joy of being useful”
• seeking balance between her work and other parts of her life, particularly with respect to her family; and
• discovering that the most authentic times of her life have actually been the times when she encountered the most resistance.

Links from the Show

• Projects for All
• Project Hello World
• YouTube video introducing “Hello Hubs”

Transcript

Jason Zook personifies reinvention and unconventional thinking: he has worn T-shirts for a living, sold his last name twice, and is now literally selling his future. The author of Creativity for Sale, Jason helps people see beyond boundaries, chart their own life paths, and turn unique talents into opportunities.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Jason shares about:

• trusting your gut about the path you’re on,
• creating your own luck,
• his recurring mantras about hard work and consistency,
• giving ourselves permission to take a step forward without hiding behind research,
• the challenge of consumption versus creation, and realigning our values,
• how his own core values that guide the life and business decisions he makes,
• behind the scenes of his latest project, detailing the process he has taken from concept to launch, and
• focusing on delivering value, and being aware of what brings you value.

Links from the Show

• BuyMyFuture
• Jason Does Stuff
• Purple Cow: Transform Your Business By Being Remarkable by Seth Godin
• Body of Work: Finding the Thread That Ties Your Story Together by Pamela Slim
• The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday

Related Episode

ACL 019: Pamela Slim

Transcript

Belden Lane is a teacher, author, storyteller, and theologian who explores the deep connection between nature and spirituality, and in particular the threads between those topics and men’s spirituality work.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Belden shares about:

• discovering his love of nature as a young child,
• the yearning for wilderness in the middle part of life,
• getting out of your own head, and embracing being a “recovering scholar,”
• the many different lessons that nature has to teach us,
• his own “calling story” that led him to accepting the mantle of being a storyteller,
• reflections about accepting the names we are given,
• dealing with “false self” issues of impression management, the letters behind our name, and tiring of the masks we wear,
• the “true self” disciplines that now bring him joy in this stage of his life.

Links from the Show

• Belden’s website
• Illuman
• Soularize conference for men: November 2015

Belden’s books:

• Backpacking with the Saints: Wilderness Hiking as Spiritual Practice
• Ravished by Beauty: The Surprising Legacy of Reformed Spirituality
• The Solace of Fierce Landscapes: Exploring Desert and Mountain Spirituality
• Landscapes of the Sacred: Geography and Narrative in American Spirituality

Belden’s “Last Lecture” presentation at Saint Louis University:

Transcript

Andy Hayes Andy went from a lucrative career in enterprise software development and consulting to found a company called Plum Deluxe, whose philosophy is helping you create moments that matter.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Andy shares about:

• working in a toxic work environment, and realizing that “the biggest risk was staying where I was,”
• re-engaging with core desires as an antidote to urgency and stress,
• coping with fears around change, especially money and disapproval from others,
• being willing to “build the plane while I was flying it,”
• mindfulness about what you’re saying yes and no to,
• using time tracking to increase awareness of how you’re spending time,
• infusing a business with your core values, and operating consistently with those,
• how his mom’s perspective on living informed the kind of community he wanted to build.

Links from the Show

• Plum Deluxe website
• Andy Hayes on Twitter
• Plum Deluxe on Facebook
• Plum Deluxe on Pinterest

Transcript

Dianne Bischoff James found herself challenged by a “midlife reboot” in confronting the truth that she had built a life that she wasn’t truly proud of. She chronicles her journey of reinvention and distills the practical lessons she learned in a book titled The Real Brass Ring: Change Your Life Course Now.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Dianne shares about:

• realizing that she felt like a liar when describing herself inauthentically,
• coming to grips with fear, and learning to turn it into an asset,
• coping with fear of rejection, isolation from her tribe, and pushing through to acceptance,
• “logical mysticism” and distilling her learning into rules for happy living,
• a reminder that “someone’s got to do the laundry,”
• living out the principle that we ultimately have the choice to create the lives we want.

Links from the Show

• Dianne’s website
• The Real Brass Ring on Amazon

Transcript

Stephanie Trager draws on a wide array of life experiences ranging from activism, law, martial arts, 9/11, and a serious injury and parlays that into entrepreneurship and transformation coaching.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Stephanie shares:

• being drawn to activism as a young adult, and how that has influenced her perspective on life,
• the process of “waking up” and developing an increased sense of awareness,
• her motivation behind deciding to go to law school and become an attorney,
• the impact that an ongoing martial arts practice has had on her personal journey,
• two major events outside of her control that changed her life.

Links from the Show

• Stephanie’s website
• Blaze Your Worth

Stephanie is offering A Congruent Life listeners a complementary “Soul Success Strategy Session” to help you connect to your passion – thanks, Stephanie!

Transcript

Wondering what he could do to help disaster-impacted people in Haiti, Andrew Newman started asking others on the street for poems to share. Little did he know at the time that “poemcatching” would take him around the world and result in several anthologies of collected poems.

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In this episode of A Congruent Life, Andrew shares pieces of his story, including:

• how he was motivated to start poemcatching,
• veering away from several generations of a family-owned business,
• discovering that he was, in fact, a creative person, and what that means for all of us,
• advice for tapping into our creativity and “unfolding” our own creative visions,
• the impact that men’s work and spiritual questing has had on his personal journey,
• embracing mission as a larger framework for life beyond goals and tasks.

Links from the Show

• Poemcatcher website – please submit your own poem here!

Poem anthologies:

• Quake – Built from Nothing
• FUNGUS Poems
• SALTY Poems from the Sea
• Royal Wedding Poems
• Haunted Halloween Poetry
• BALLS from The Queue
• Fantastic Fireworks

Andrew’s children’s books:

• The Fish Who Nearly Drowned in His Search for Water
• The Bee Who Could Not Choose His Flower
• A Little Light
• The Tree of Goodness

Transcript