Seize the Yay

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The 100th episode!!! Aug 05, 2020

Show notes

Thank you all so much for your wonderful, thought-provoking and well-considered questions, I had so much fun reflecting on them (and not so much fun listening back to my answers - even after all this time I hate listening to my own voice unless it's bantering with a guest). I can't properly express how grateful I am to everyone who has ever joined, listened or been part of the podcast in anyway - Seize the Yay brings so much depth and joy to my life and opens my mind in new ways each week to create it for you.

I covered as many questions as I could in this one and, as I mention in the intro, I genuinely can't tell anymore if my answers makes sense, are useful or if it's all just nonsense but hopefully I've addressed at least some of your curiosity. I definitely missed some things, could have said some things better, and wanted to re-record as soon as I listened back, but I'm learning to take my own advice that "done is better than perfect", that self-doubt will always make you overly self-critical and that the essence of seizing the yay is sharing my real spontaneous answers, not the curated ones.

The questions I answered in order are:

The podcast

Which have been your 3 most eye-opening interviews?
Which interviewee surprised you the most? Why?
What are the three biggest challenges you have faced since starting your podcast?
Have you had any interviews that never went to air?!
Any awkward interviews where it was hard to get the conversation flowing?
How do you speak so eloquently on your podcast episodes? You practically never say "um" or "uh". What's your secret?
What do you think you have learnt about YOURSELF since starting this podcast?
Who would be your dream person to interview?
How do you choose who you interview for your podcast? What’s the process
How did you get into what you do and what’s the advice you’d give to others getting into the podcasting space?
How do you find your topic, tone of voice, first guests?

The book

Can you give us a little sneak peak snippet of your book?
Can you tell us a bit more background about the story behind it etc?
What are the chapter headings?

Personal life

Top 3 achievements so far?
Who’s your biggest inspiration?
What did you wish you knew in high school or uni?
How do you do it all? Do you have a virtual assistant or manager?
Recommendations for coping with chronic fatigue or similar
Are you medicated for anxiety?
What's one piece of advice that has always stuck with you throughout your life?
How did you know Nic was the one and what was your history of relationships prior?
Have you been back to the town where you were born?
Would you consider adopting a child, considering how blessed you feel you were to be adopted?
What would be your last meal before you die!?
Do you drink Matcha everyday?
What is your absolute guilty pleasure to treat yourself?
Favourite foods and cheat meal?

On 2020

As you reflect on the volatility of 2020, what have you learnt about yourself? Maybe, have you noticed your values changing?
How’s your mum coping with lockdown?
What motivates you to keep going day to day?
How do you get yourself out of a deep funk?
How do you stay positive in iso?
If you were single how would you have copied?

What’s next?

Will you be starting a Youtube channel?
Do you plan on increasing the podcast production for other companies?
Do you plan on growing MM? Or happy where it's at?
What does the next year hold for you?

I had to skip a few so tried to group them all by themes. Can't wait for hundreds more to come. Lots of love to you all x

Manoj Dias // My spiritual guru on trauma, transformation and embodiment Jul 28, 2020

Show notes

We’re back with another guest whose episode couldn’t be more perfectly timed. You may have heard my chat with him on the TOM Organic podcast earlier this year and, if you did, you’ll know I refer to him as my spiritual guru but, if you didn't, you’ll very soon understand why. Manoj Dias has taught me so much of what I know about sitting with discomfort, understanding suffering and the deeply life-changing impact of meditation and connection. We explored some of this on the Taboo Podcast but went a whole lot deeper here, which I found enormously helpful particularly during this shit-storm of a year and I hope you do too.

Although you might not be able to imagine it of either of us as we are now, it was not wellness that brought us together but our nightclub glory days before our ways to yay really began. That alone is a reminder of my favourite theme – the non-linear nature of life and the way it unravels in many chapters not just the one you know someone from. Born into the Theravada Buddhist tradition, you might think Manoj skipped logically and smoothly straight to his position now as a globally recognised meditation teacher, writer, entrepreneur & co-founder of Open Meditation... But, squeeze a successful corporate career, teenage fatherhood, a mental health breakdown, an eating disorder and an ensuing transformative healing journey in between and you’re getting closer to the real picture.

Manoj shares all of the facets of himself so generously as well as busting some myths on meditation and I hope you enjoy our chat as much as I did.

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Liz Dawes // Connor's Run, combating cancer and creating legacies Jul 22, 2020

Show notes

This week’s episode is another one of many that’s been shuffled around and pushed back for various reasons, but that has ended up coming out just when I think our guest’s insights are most powerful. A big part of seizing your yay is acknowledging that both the best and worst times of our life play a role in our journey and If we ever needed some guiding words on turning adversity, uncertainty and grief into something positive, Liz Dawes is your woman.

Like many of our guests, I loved diving into her earlier years because she had an entire life and career going from a small town in Wisconsin to travelling the world leading multi-million-dollar sales and marketing accounts BEFORE the chapter most of us know her from now as an adopted Melbournian and internationally recognised CEO and Chairman of a charitable foundation. Liz and her husband Scott had their world turned upside down when their son, Connor, was diagnosed with paediatric brain cancer – the #1 disease killer of young people – and passed away a few years later. We discuss the many different ways people process grief and how just a few short months later, Liz held the first Connor’s Run founding the Robert Connor Dawes Foundation which is now the biggest paediatric brain cancer foundation in Australia. As she puts it in her TEDx talk last year, Liz reframed, reimagined and reaffirmed her way forward and has now raised $7million impact dollars that’s helping fund research, care programs and so much more. Parts of this one are heavy but incredibly meaningful and with a beautiful happy ending (or happy beginning that's now eight years in) – I hope you are as moved as I am by Liz and the beautiful legacy she has created for Connor.

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Dr Katrina Warren // Pets, professional pivots and pandemics Jul 15, 2020

Show notes

Today I’m joined by a face many of you will know and love as I have since childhood, Dr Katrina Warren, an Aussie vet (along with her golden retriever Riley who had a great stare-off with Paul during the chat). You probably know Dr Katrina from Totally Wild or Harry’s Practice or even Animal Planet or Dancing with the Stars, and I’m sure she’s responsible for so many people’s love for animals.

As the only person I know of who did sheep husbandry for their HSC, Dr Katrina is a qualified vet but didn’t take the conventional private practice pathway going into the media instead (with a fashion modelling career in Japan in the mix photos of which she has graciously shared with me for us to enjoy in the Facebook group!) She’s definitely not the first guest who ended up seizing a yay they wouldn’t have imagined in a million years, but she’s possibly the first who’s openly discussed the come down and disorientation of that yay abruptly ending pushing her to re-craft her identity and start her next chapter, which she’s now in the swing of and enjoying thoroughly with Wonderdogs, as a Snooza ambassador and so much more.

Paul also interrupts a few times to chat with Riley about his opinion on the beautiful Snooza beds they both have now – the woes of working from home! Enjoy!

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Taliqua Clancy // Origins, Olympics and Old Gold Jul 08, 2020

Show notes

I’m joined this week by our first Wulli Wulli woman, Beach volleyball Olympian and Commonwealth silver medallist, Taliqua Clancy. You’ve probably seen I’ve been reflecting on Seize the Yay’s commitment to diversity (of all kinds), but also, in light of the past few weeks, the best way to contribute to the BIPOC dialogue specifically and Taliqua is the first of a few wonderful guests coming up who offer some generously personal and thought provoking insights to the conversation.

Growing up in Kingaroy QLD (otherwise known as “peanut town”) over 200km from the nearest beach, you wouldn’t expect Olympic success at beach volleyball to be in Taliqua’s future. And yet, she reached the quarter finals in the Rio Olympics becoming the first Aboriginal Olympian to compete in the sport and is on her way to the slightly delayed Tokyo Olympics next year. Taliqua is also an Ambassador for our mutually beloved Cadbury who are launching an amazing Smart Watch campaign this week to support us all staying active in #iso which you’ll hear more about. I hope you enjoy as much as I did…

NOTE: Terra Nullius is the concept we discussed, that you might want to research.

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Elle Halliwell // Lessons on Leukaemia, lifestyle and love Jun 24, 2020

Show notes

I’m sure I’m not the only one who has been experiencing a lot of ups and downs with the uncertainty and chaos of this year so far and I can’t think of anyone better to give us some perspective and guidance on getting through adversity than the divine Elle Halliwell. Hers is a story I can never hear too many times that brings forth every ounce of emotion I have in admiration and awe and I’m so grateful she has shared it again today for the yay-borhood.

Elle began in the world of journalism applying her incredible work ethic to climbing from making coffees to becoming a fashion editor at The Sunday Telegraph at just 21. She worked herself to the bone for almost a decade until just after her 30th birthday when her and her husband starting to think about having children. In the course of some preparatory blood tests, despite having no symptoms, Elle was diagnosed with a rare form of incurable Leukaemia. And, within the same 48 hours, she also discovered that she was pregnant leaving her with an impossible and unimaginable choice – to terminate and pursue treatment or continue with her pregnancy but risk not making it through.

Rest assured, Elle’s story has a very happy and heart-warming ending – her beautiful boy Tor is now three and Elle is absolutely thriving with a glow that belies what she’s been through. She has since completely changed her life and direction and has also just started her first business, Auricle, which you’ll hear all about shortly. Elle speaks so eloquently about what her experience has taught her about uncertainty, self-belief and strength and I think we can all take so many lessons from her wisdom. I hope you enjoy listening as much as I did.

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Dr Kieran Kennedy // Men's health, mental health and life in medicine Jun 16, 2020

Show notes

You might know that this week is Men’s Health Week and while, of course everyone’s health is equally important, I really support the particular focus this week on the unique challenges faced by men in both their physical and mental health. As you’ll hear, men’s health outcomes often fall far behind those of women and they still face a lot of stigma around the perceived “weakness” of seeking help, so I think this is a wonderful way to remind men they’re not alone and to help women too understand how we can help change the dialogue for our partners, brothers, sons and friends.

Men’s mental health statistics in particular always come as a shock to me and if you haven’t listened to our chats with Osher Günsbergand Jake Edwards, they share some honest and personal insights on their mental health journey that are well worth a listen. For this episode, I thought we’d get a medical expert’s perspective and who better to join us than medical doctor, psychiatry resident and mental health advocate, Dr Kieran Kennedy.

You might have seen Dr Kieran on the latest cover of Men’s Health Magazine dedicated to the incredible efforts of healthcare workers through the COVID19 pandemic and that’s just one of the many challenges he generously opens up about in our chat. From humble, idyllic beginnings in rural New Zealand (you’ll hear ALL about the joys of what’s called Calf Club), Kieran is the embodiment of persistence and grit working his way through a Bachelor of Science into medical studies and is now six months off finishing his specialisation in Psychiatry AND fits his passion for fitness and a bodybuilding career in on the side.

He is self-deprecating in a way that belies his success and he gives us such powerful insights into men’s struggles with societal views on manliness, hardening up and even on how much more widespread men’s battles with body image is and valuing themselves on how they look. This conversation opened my eyes up to so much and I hope it does the same for you too.

PLEASE REACH OUT IF YOU ARE STRUGGLING:

Lifeline 13 11 14

Beyondblue

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Jasmine Smith // The Swisse-pirational people person Jun 10, 2020

Show notes

It's been a little while since our last INTRApreneurial guest, but I'm delighted to have one of the best with us today - Jasmine Smith, Director of People and Culture from Swisse Wellness. You know I love a good non-linear way to yay, so I found Jasmine's story captivating from her nomadic and adventurous childhood to make up artistry, then a late entry to tertiary studies in behavioural science after her first child, a successful career in retail and sales and only after seven years at each of Mecca and T2, an eventual pivot into HR where she is working wellness wonders for the workforce at Swisse. She represents everything I love to share about life unravelling in chapters, the importance of self awareness and the shapeshifting nature of what your yay looks like over time.

I think HR or, as it is known at Swisse, People and Culture, is another one of those areas of work that can absolutely make or break a business but that many of us barely understand and take for granted. You'll hear that Jasmine herself didn't know it was even a job she could do until years later, and those are the areas I LOVE to delve into - I learnt so much from this chat! I was reminded all about the many tools Swisse and other businesses use to help identify employees' strengths, weaknesses and passions - I tend to forget you don't have to learn everything on the fly, so if you're wondering how to figure out what your yay is, Jasmine shares a HEAP of useful hacks along with so much other wisdom about igniting human potential! Hope you enjoy as much as I did!

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Nicole Liu // Next of Kin Fertility May 27, 2020

Show notes

This week, we’ve got another way to yay full of twists and turns ending up nowhere our guest thought she’d be but exactly where she was meant to be. Nicole Liu started out on the very conventional “finance-y” pathway, climbing, (much like me) a ladder she thought she was genuinely passionate about.

That was until a misdiagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome and the similarly inaccurate news that she was necessarily infertile threw her world upside down and opened her eyes to the difficulty of wading through information on women’s health and how alone many of us feel trying to navigate it. Her experience led her to leave corporate to start her wonderful business, Kin Fertility, with the goal of raising standards for women’s reproductive health and opening up the heavily stigmatised conversation around fertility.

I am continually baffled by how even a chronic oversharer of a modern woman like me can have lasted as long as I did without knowing much at all about my cycle or the fundamentals of hormones and fertility (especially being adopted!!) and loved chatting to Nicole about blazing a trail in the industry and opening up the dialogue. As the first of many services that Kin will offer, they currently run Australia’s first pill prescription service with the contraceptive pill being delivered to your door, letting you ditch the in-person doctor’s appointment, without compromising quality healthcare. I’m so excited for what else is to come and also loved her advice (which I have thus far been unable to offer anecdotally) on getting immigrant parents on board with a big move away from the stability of a corporate career, so for those asking, Nicole’s got your answer! Hope you enjoy!

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Tasia Valenza // Entertainment, Emmys and enhancing expression May 14, 2020

Show notes

I’m not sure about you guys but these crazy times have definitely made me reflect on, among many other things, the way we communicate and connect with each other. What a perfect time to have today’s guest join the show to dive a little deeper into just that – I’m delighted to have expert communicator, TEDx speaker, and Emmy-award winning voice actress, Tasia Valenza, join from New York.

You might not have realised, but you’ve almost definitely heard Tasia’s incredible voice (or voices) before as Poison Ivy in the Batman: Arkham Series, Venisa Doza in Star Wars Resistance, Shaak Ti in Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Sniper Wolf in Metal Gear Solid games… She has had an incredible career as an actress turned voice actress and has turned that passion into a business founding Give Great Voice to share her learnings on the impact of tone and expression with all of us. You already know I love exploring the stories behind pathways we take for granted in everyday life so I had so much fun learning about just how one becomes the voice in our ears behind so many different characters. I hope you enjoy and learn something about using YOUR voice along the way.

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