Story Signals

Inspiring interviews and lessons learned on living with purpose, clarity, and meaning

The Most Important Lesson I’ve Learned: “You Are Enough”

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Today’s episode is just you and me, because I want to share the most important lesson I’ve learned.

You Are Enough

For me, it bears repeating every day. When I forget, I pursue all types of ways to find meaning and definition. It could be in my work, writing, status, power, influence, travel, or new stuff. If I’m who I am and was made to be at the core is not enough, then none of those symbols or achievements will ever fill in the gap.

Now hold on! If contentment and fulfillment is your base mindset, then how will you ever achieve anything?

A valid point, and I think this is the crucial balance of our lives. My hope is that because I am ultimately fulfilled by love and purpose, it gives me such great clarity that I can pursue and achieve more. Or less. But the defining characteristic of life won’t be how many products we sell, subscribers we have, money we make, or stuff we accumulate.

Ready to Listen? Here we go.

3 Questions to Ask

  1. What personal identity am I placing in my work?
  2. How would I feel if I wasn’t working here? What else would I do? And what if Plan B (C, D, etc) didn’t work out? Am I still enough then?
  3. What personal traits am I proud of and are valued regardless of the work I’m doing?

Resources

I’ve also included a great song from Ryan O’Neal of Sleeping at Last, aptly titled You’re Enough. I highly recommend you give it a listen. Other than the song, this episode was pretty resource light. The main action items were to continually ask yourself the 3 questions mentioned above.

Thank you!

I really appreciate everyone listening to the show, and especially this episode. It comes from a deep place inside me, and I hope it resonated with you as well. I think finding our personal meaning and definition is a crucial part of our story, and helps give clarity to everything else we do.

I would also like to hear what you think of the solo shows in general, just you and me. Do you prefer interviews, or the solos? A mix of both perhaps? I would love to hear your thoughts, you can find me on twitter @mattragland or @storysignals. Email also works, and it’s matt[at]storysignals.com (click to email).

Thanks so much for listening!

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

James Clear teaches us about habits, leveraging your skills, and the power of marginal gains

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Our guest this week on Story Signals is James Clear, a writer, photographer, and entrepreneur. James’ story is inspiring not because of drastic changes he has made, but primarily because of the small, incremental changes that have yielded big results. We talk about his life and work, the trick of upper boundaries, why humans are like rose bushes, and much more. I really enjoyed our conversation, and there is so much to use right away, with lots of actionable tips.

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What You’ll Learn

  1. We can use all kinds of excuses to keep us from taking action and doing the work that matters to us. One of the biggest excuses is “I just need to improve my skills a little more”. The good news is you will always be improving your skills, but once you get started, you’ll have a better filter for choosing which skills apply to your work.
  2. Humans are like rose bushes. A careful, intentional gardener will prune away many flowers so that a few roses can grow and bloom to the height of their beauty and potential. As we eliminate some of the choices and habits that choke our growth, making the right decisions become easier.
  3. If you have a big goal, let’s break it down to small, incremental gains you can make on a regular basis. Applying the rule of upper limits really helps with this. If you need to start exercising, decide that you can only exercise for 5 minutes a day to start. Then after several weeks, start increasing the upper limit in a small way, until you’ve reached your goal.

Listen here

Resources

Connect with James

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Jeff Brown of the Read to Lead Podcast talks about recognizing talent in others, the importance of mentors, and his favorite business books

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Our guest this week is Jeff Brown, host of the Read to Lead podcast. It’s always a pleasure to interview a fellow podcaster, and Jeff is no exception. Right away you’ll hear his ease on the microphone, because not only is he a podcaster, but spent years on radio as well. Jeff has a great story filled with ups and downs, challenges, success, and a time of real soul-searching. We also cover topics like adapting knowledge to fit our industry, the importance of public speaking, recognizing talent in other people, and being a mentor who multiplies the collective skill of those around her.

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Jeff’s advice was invaluable, not just from his own experience, but the wisdom he’s gleaned from interviews with some of the best minds in business, art, and leadership. Now, of all the great advice Jeff shared though, here are the three points that really stood out to me.

What You’ll Learn

  • Be a leader who recognizes the talent in others, and help multiply it! This was the best part of the interview for me, and reminds of all us that we can be a leader who multiplies the collective talent around us, or divides and diffuses it. Choose to mentor and multiply!
  • Know the unique skills you have that can be leveraged in your current and future work. If you have trouble pinpointing those skills, take the time to reflect on what topics or skills people usually ask for your help on. That’s a good place to start!
  • Finally, public speaking is rapidly becoming a skill we all need to have. The ability to clearly communicate our ideas and values in front of an audience of one or one thousand can be what sets you apart in your field. For this skill, I recommend Jeff’s interview with Dan Roam, and also the podcast What the Speak?! with Bryan Kelly.

Listen here

Click here to download the episode directly.

Resources

Connect with Jeff

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Tyler Tervooren helps us take smarter risks, and shows the way to better living through uncertainty

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Tyler Tervooren of Riskology.co is our guest on Story Signals this week, and I’m grateful he took the time to share his story and advice with us. We talk about risk-taking, habit formation, and better living through uncertainty. Tyler’s experience and skill in balancing story with data leads to advice which both inspirational and instructional.

In 2010, Tyler was a part of series of layoffs in his company, leaving him with the opportunity to pursue a niche in finding correlations in risk, behavior patterns, resiliency. You’ll find many applicable actions from this conversation, but these stood out.

  1. The ways Tyler found adventure and risks were making him smarter, stronger, and more attractive.
  2. How he was able to find the convergence of talent, interest, and funding to become a bootstrapper.
  3. Why he has never (successfully) started a new habit without taking the time to slowly and steadily build the habit.

Listen here

Download the audio file

Resources & Where to Connect

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Jon Acuff shares How to Start, Cultivate Skills, and Punch Fear in the Face

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Jon Acuff is the best-selling author of Quitter, Stuff Christians Like, and his most recent book Start: Punch Fear in the Face, Escape Average, and Do Work that Matters. With a title like that, I hope you’re getting just as excited as I was to talk with Jon! We talk about fear, the temptation to play the blame game, cultivating flexible skills in a changing workforce, and the importance of relationships.

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3 Big Lessons You’ll Learn

1. Fear is a big part of what’s holding us back.

Whether in creative work, daily work, and sometimes in relationships. We don’t want to look dumb, silly, or foolish. We’ve created a culture of “instant expert” and sometimes it can be crippling. Have the courage to learn, risk, and simply start on something you feel compelled to work on. This week, make sure you punch fear in the face and get started on something you’ve been delaying, and let me and Jon know about it on twitter using the hashtag #fearpunch!

2. Relationships and community are essential.

They are ways we connect and learn from each other. One of the best traits we can cultivate is to close the gap between the time we receive good feedback to the time we actually receive it, then act upon it. Who are the people in your life you trust to give you good feedback. Listen to them!

3. The importance of flexible skills.

Did you catch the story where Jon told his youngest sister that much of the work he’s doing now didn’t exist when he was in college? That’s crazy! But every generation now seems to be doing types of work that didn’t exist previously. Understand what skills you need for the work you’re doing, and be flexible. Stay in touch with where the industry is going, and be willing to take risks. In episode 4, Mike Rohde shares his own progression as a designer and artist through the years, so if you’re interested in more advice on flexible skills, definitely check that episode out too.

Listen Here

Download the episode directly

Resources

Connect with Jon

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Eric Zimmer teaches us why and how we should feed the Good Wolf

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TOYF_LightEric Zimmer is the host of The One You Feed podcast, one of the top shows on iTunes and one I listen to on a regular basis. An aspect of this interview I really enjoyed was Eric’s skill as a storyteller, and he shares a couple of his favorite parables with us. I really appreciated his vulnerability with some of the messy parts of his story, and that’s a vital aspect of any story we’re living. The messiness is what teaches us and brings us together as people, and I’m thankful Eric brought that darkness to light.

 Now, of all the lessons and stories Eric shared, these three really stood out.

What you’ll learn

  1. Avoiding the negative self-talk is an integral part of our stories. When we can recognize it, name it, and even talk back a little, we decrease it’s power and allow our good wolf to feed!

  2. We all have the tendency to be addicted to something. Don’t get caught thinking that just because you’re not hooked on drugs or alcohol that something else isn’t battling for your time and attention. We can be addicted to money, status, power, possessions, and countless other things. It’s important to have a community around you to help stay in check.

  3. Clean the lens of your perspective regularly, and frame your choices in the mindset of what will make me happy in the long run, not what will make me comfortable now.

Listen here

Resources mentioned in the show

Connect with Eric & The One You Feed

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Allison Vesterfelt shares her story of Road Trips, Relationships, and Packing Light

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fb1I’m so glad to have Allison Vestefelt on this week’s episode of Story Signals. Allison is a writer who has recently moved from Portland to Nashville, and she has an incredible story to share with us today. Her book, Packing Light, has become a best-seller, and we talk about her road trip to all 50 states, her personal journey to becoming a published writer, and all the messiness that comes with being in great relationships. I loved the book, the messages of courage, risk, sacrifice, and relationships all spoke to me at a very important time in my life.

Allison shared a lot of wisdom and great advice for us on our own journeys, especially when we feel a little stuck in the same-old-same-old. We talked about pursuing your calling, bravery, a willingness to get out in to the party, and the delicate balance between taking action and trusting in the big picture. Again, there are so many great stories and takeaways from the interview, but here are the three points that really stood out to me.

What You’ll Learn

  1. Take small steps towards your goals, instead of being intimidated by the bigness of it. Break it down to smaller goals you can accomplish weekly or daily, and go from there! This leverages the “winner effect” we talked about.
  2. Ask yourself “what would I do if I could anything”? What unique gifts do you have that can serve the greater good? Is there a way for you to begin pursuing this in small ways?
  3. Remember that the journey is the reward. We need to appreciate the adventure while we’re living it, and not make the end goal the only part we enjoy or are fulfilled by.

Listen Here

Great Quotes

Creating good art is waking up every day and getting over yourself.

There is nothing more humbling than putting your art out into the world.

What would you do if you could do anything?

Resources

Connect with Allison & Say Thanks!

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Joshua Becker helps us on the journey of living with less

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Joshua Becker writes and shares his wisdom at BecomingMinimalist.com, a wonderful site full of stories and ways to begin your journey of living with less. He’s the author of Simplify, Clutter Free with Kids, and other great books. This interview is packed with stories and advice that will challenge you and even leave you a little frustrated. Why? Because the truth is that many of us have too much stuff, and spend our time on things we don’t care that much about.

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For Joshua, the moment of clarity came when he was cleaning out his garage, trying to organize all of his stuff, much of which he couldn’t remember why he bought in the first place. While this was happening, his 5 year old son was playing in the backyard, and Joshua was frustrated at how long the garage project was taking. He took a moment to share this with his neighbor, who surveyed the pile and said the words that changed his life.

Well, maybe you don’t need this much stuff.

This was a turning point, when a guide had the wisdom and courage to point out a problem and offer a solution (albeit simple and concise). Joshua realized that none of his stuff was bringing him lasting happiness, in fact it was distracting him from the the things that did make him happy and fulfilled!

Joshua points out the danger of cluttering our homes with stuff is more than simply the physical space it occupies, but the mental space it accumulates! When we have a lot of stuff, we have to organize, clean, maintain, and finally replace all of that stuff, and that takes up great physical and mental energy which could be better spent. Joshua shares so many good lessons and tips for us, and I can’t wait for you to hear it. But to me, three lessons really stood out.

What You’ll Learn

  1. The possessions we accumulate will never make us happy simply by owning them. What makes us happy are the relationships, experiences, and contributions we make to the world.
  2. A journey of living with less is not simply about making fewer things the meaning of your life. It’s about intentionally asking yourself each day what brings life to you and your community, and pursuing those life-giving actions, not filling your life with more stuff.
  3. Whatever we think is going to be the end-all-be-all solution to our discontent and unhappiness will routinely disappoint us, unless we can learn to be happy, content, and fulfilled with what we already are blessed with. While many people focus on physical possessions, this can also include travel, power/promotions at work, wealth, and anything else that we may try and make the end goal.

Listen here

If you’re joining us at Story Signals for the first time, welcome! The show focuses on lessons we can learn on living with purpose, clarity, and meaning. There are several ways to subscribe and listen, including on your smartphone or computer. Check out your options here.

Great Quotes

All the things we own and accumulate are not bringing us lasting happiness. Even worse, they are distracting us from the things that do bring us happiness.
It’s not until we start to remove unnecessary things and pursuits from our lives that we can find the freedom to start living the story we want to live.

Resource list

Where to connect with Guest

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Jon Gordon shares the power of a positive culture, and the most importance choice you make each day

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Our guest this week on Story Signals is Jon Gordon, best-selling author of nine books (soon to be ten), including the Energy Bus, Soup, and Training Camp. Jon is also a speaker and consultant to businesses, professional sports teams, and school systems. I’m so glad to have him on the show, and am thankful for the time he spent with us.

If you’re joining us at Story Signals for the first time, welcome! The show focuses on lessons we can learn on living with purpose, clarity, and meaning. There are several ways to subscribe and listen, including on your smartphone or computer. Check out your options here.

jongordon-quote3 In this interview, Jon shares so many good lessons and tips for us, and I can’t wait for you to hear it. We cover topics like company and community culture, including a few actionable steps for how we can be a catalyst for change. We also discuss the practice of writing, how prevelant fear is in the creative process, starting a movement, and so much more. But to me, three lessons really stood out.

What You’ll Learn

  1. The importance of being a lifelong learner.
  2. How vital a positive culture is in your company and community.
  3. The most important choice we make every day, and how it shapes our actions.

Listen here

JON_GORDONGreat Quotes

If you’re fearful of failure, you’ll never be the success you long to be.

Each day, we make a choice between faith and fear. Both believe in a future that hasn’t happened yet. So choose faith!

When your work is about others, and not you, it becomes a movement!

Resource list

Where to connect with Jon

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.

Branden Harvey tells stories through photographs and does what gives him the “willies”

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I’m really excited to have photographer Branden Harvey on this episode of Story Signals. Branden is an immensely talented photographer and storyteller, and is one of the best I’ve seen at having the courage and skill of drawing out the stories of other people. Let me give you an example:

Branden is the creator of the instagram movement #storyportrait, and proudly states on his profile his belief that your story matters. He does this by essentially sharing instagram long-form, digging in to the life and story of the people he’s photographing. But the reach of #storyportrait has grown beyond Branden, and over 16,000 people have submitted their own stories using the hashtag.

branden-quotelink

If you’re joining us at Story Signals for the first time, welcome! The show focuses on lessons we can learn on living with purpose, clarity, and meaning. There are several ways to subscribe and listen, including on your smartphone or computer. Check out your options here.

Besids his succes at building community on Instagram, Branden is also a sought-after wedding and fashion photographer, and spent the majority of 2013 traveling around the USA , plus visiting the Phillipines and China. Branden has a lot going on, and I was very grateful he spent a little time sharing his story with us.

Speaking of which, I know you’ll learn a lot from Branden is this episode. We talk a lot about creativity, facing fear, the value of mentors, and balancing art with social connection. But to me, three lessons really stood out.

What You’ll Learn

  1. Why Branden turned down his first big fashion shoot, and how he got it back.
  2. How to dig in to people’s stories and find out more about what makes them different and special.
  3. The defining characteristic of who Branden calls the “secretly incredibly people of the world”.

Listen here

Great Quotes

I want to live a life that demands an explantion.

Do what gives your stomach the willies.

The pitfall of modern artists is working to impress people on social media when we should be working to make better art.

Resource list

Where to connect with Branden

Want more? Stay in the Story Signals community!

Thanks for checking out this episode of Story Signals. If you’d like to be notified when a new episode is available, here’s the ultimate list of resources to get started. After, there are 2 easy ways to stay involved and keep listening.

  1. If you think Story Signals is deserving, leave a 5 star rating on iTunes or Stitcher. Click here for iTunes, and click “View in iTunes” – “Reviews & Ratings” – “Write a Review” (see the screenshots). For Stitcher, click here.

  2. Share with a friend! I would be very appreciate of your recommendations to family, friends, and social networks. If you mention me, @MattRagland, or @StorySignals on Twitter, I’ll be sure and retweet the share! Just share StorySignals.com – StorySignals.com/itunes – StorySignals.com/stitcher.