Ep24: What it looks & feels like to follow your 'calling' w/ Claire MacKinnon

Every now and again you'll come across someone and/or something that touches you so profoundly, it stops you in your tracks, demands your full attention and helps to make sense of your human experience of life in all its messy, brilliant, maddening glory... Briony Greenhill and 'Thank You For Your Heart' is one such person and song for me. Having her accept my invitation to come play is a treat for the soul. And she doesn't disappoint! We laugh. We cry. We go deep. We get curious. We get silly. We get serious. We dare to explore and share it all... Unpacking the origins of the song, how she's managed to come to peace with so much of who she really is, how improvised singing has provided such a medicine for her healing journey and how she so wonderfully manages to teach others to do the same... At nearly 2-hours, it's the gift that keeps on giving. Enjoy. And please do let me know your thoughts. RJx --- Watch Briony sing 'Thank You For Your Heart' here. Visit: https://youtu.be/duNDBPXNj6k?si=CU-psDep1YIhhC0h⁠ Find out about all that Briony offers here. Visit: https://www.brionygreenhill.com/⁠ The books Briony mentioned: 'Soulcraft' by Bill Plotkin 'Play' by Stuart Brown Ask a question or share a note of appreciation with me here. Email me: ⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠ ⁠ Find out about all that I offer with We Won't Die Wondering. Visit: ⁠⁠⁠www.wewontdiewondering.com⁠⁠ ⁠ Find out about my coaching for small business owners. Visit: ⁠⁠⁠www.ryan-james.co.uk⁠⁠ ⁠ Like this episode? Please leave me a review and/or star rating.

Let's be honest, the topic of this episode got your attention didn't it?! Yeah, the first time I stumbled upon Sam Ntatalika, she got mine! Her Facebook feed is real, funny, touching, interesting and given her profession and area of expertise, she regularly goes 'there' too. Which is precisely what prompted me to ask her on my podcast. How to have mind-blowing sex in midlife... I don't want to die wondering, do you? Let's go 'there'. How do we do it? Top tips and secrets? Biggest barriers and hang-ups? Debunking myths and mysteries? Adding novelty and adventure? Responsive vs. Spontaneous desire? Taboos and traumas? Self pleasure? So many questions. So many deeply fascinating, enlightening, enlivening, real, refreshing, relieving answers and insights revealed. Let's do this! Enjoy RJx --- Book a FREE discovery call with Sam:  Visit: https://linktr.ee/sam_ntatalikas Follow Sam on Facebook: Visit: ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/sam.ntatalika⁠⁠ The book Sam mentioned: 'Come Together' by Emily Nagoski Want to share a reflection or note of appreciation? Email me: ⁠[email protected] ⁠ Want to find out about my Wonder Wander events? Visit: ⁠www.wewontdiewondering.com ⁠ Want to find out about my coaching for small business owners? Visit: ⁠www.ryan-james.co.uk ⁠ Like this episode? Please leave me a review and/or star rating.

What if… 'The object isn't to make art, it's to be in that wonderful state which makes art inevitable.' ~ Robert Henri What if…  The object isn't to find your purpose... The object isn't to win more clients… The object isn't to grow your business… The object isn't to enjoy a better relationship… The object isn't to find your true love… The object isn't to become a BCorp… The object isn't to 'heal' or 'awaken'... The object isn't to overcome depression... The object isn't to sleep better… The object isn't to get fit & healthy… The object isn't to have better sex... The object isn't to get to 'Santiago'... It's to be in that wonderful state which makes the fruition of all these things INEVITABLE. ❤️ --- This is the opening gambit to an extraordinary new book by the creative genius that is Rick Rubin - the guy that musicians choose to work with when they need a reset. And in this episode I explore and unpack the principle behind this BRILLIANT idea... The fact that we always, already intuitively KNOW what's needed to make something 'inevitable' without effort! And in this episode both challenge you to consider what you already KNOW and share with you my own truth too. A perfect place to kickstart 2024. Not that it's time specific! Enjoy RJx --- Like this episode? Please leave me a review and/or star rating. Want to share a reflection or note of appreciation? Email me: [email protected] Want to find out about my 'Wonder Wander' events in nature? Visit: www.wewontdiewondering.com Want to find out about the coaching I provide? Visit: www.ryan-james.co.uk

Sometimes the bravest thing we can do is learn to say 'NO'. No matter how good the idea might seem or what other people might think, what's important is how much we're willing to honour ourselves and our truth and what feels right for US. Or to put it another way... 'Just because we can, doesn't mean we should.' In this episode you hear me share two ideas that call into question this very notion and have demanded my full respect and attention. One of which everyone loves and I've always felt tempted to revisit... This being that day, on the brink of going live, something deep inside of me just screamed 'NO' - this is me honouring that. A window into my world and what I've been wrestling with and how I finally came to realise what was good and right for me in the hope that it will help you tune into what feels good and right for you. PLUS I also share an 18 minute 'P.s.' of what I truly long for you this Christmas, New Year and every other day from here on in! Enjoy RJx --- Like this episode? Please leave me a review and/or star rating. Want to share a reflection or note of appreciation? Email me: [email protected] Want to find out about my 'Wonder Wander' events in nature? Visit: www.wewontdiewondering.com Want to find out about the coaching I provide? Visit: www.ryan-james.co.uk

Stuck doing a job she didn't particularly enjoy, feeling uninspired by her life circumstance, Fiona Eadie had an urge to follow 'The Artist's Way' (by Julia Cameron - worth a read in itself!) and see what came of it... What came was an emphatic soul's calling to go learn the art of 'storytelling'... Guide by some super helpful, kind, encouraging souls along the way and committed to the invitation to follow her joy, the universe responded in kind and opened up a whole new abundant world of possibilities and opportunities beyond her wildest dreams... Effortlessly & joyfully. Dive in and listen to this brilliant, beautiful story of what can happen when we tap into the real magic of daring to not die wondering. This is GOLD. It's so relatable. And who better to tell that story than a professional storyteller that's walked the walk and loves her work?! Enjoy. RJx --- Like this episode? Please leave me a review and/or star rating. Want to share a reflection or note of appreciation? Email me: [email protected] Want to find out about my 'Wonder Wander' events in nature? Visit: www.wewontdiewondering.com Want to find out more about Fiona Eadie? Visit: www.fionaeadiestoryteller.com

Virtually a year ago to the day, I interviewed the brilliant Claire MacKinnon as she dared to step out from under her executive corporate coaching persona and show up as most unapologetically, unfiltered, brilliant, beautiful, messy, glittery & biscuity self... Once a week, every week in an email newsletter. Just sharing what's really here... No matter how she felt or who might read it. One year later I was keen to hear how it has all unfolded, what's she's learnt, what she's gained, what she's come to realise... Fully cognisant that as a result of this commitment alone, she's had her most lucrative, abundant financially successful and rewarding year in business yet - so it's not just been a nice thing to do! Enjoy. RJx --- Like this episode? Please leave me a review and/or star rating. Want to share a reflection or note of appreciation? Email me: [email protected] Want to find out about my 'Wonder Wander' events in nature? Visit: www.wewontdiewondering.com Want to find out more about Claire MacKinnon? Visit: https://glitterandbiscuits.substack.com/ AND/OR https://www.clairemackinnon.com/

Does the arrow seek the target or does the target draw the arrow? Is it just that you follow your calling or is it that the thing you feel called to do, calls you in? Only as and when it, you, the time and circumstances are aligned? I stumbled on this idea whilst reading 'Greenlights' by Matthew McConaughey. It took a while to land but when it did, it disarmed me so much that I felt called to get behind the WWDW microphone once more and explore and unpack just how juicy and relieving and playful and creative an inquiry this really is... And it feels GREAT to be back doing it too. Maybe, just maybe the true art of not dying wondering comes in giving up trying so hard to make anything happen at all... And we trust the magic and mystery of it all?! Curious. Cosmic. Juicy. Liberating. Dive in, see what I make of it. Feel free to reach out and let me know what lands for you. [email protected] Please leave a rating as you feel appropriate and called. And please visit www.wewontdiewondering.com to explore other podcast episodes I've recorded, future adventures in nature I'll be organising and read more of the coaching I provide. Thanks for listening. Go well, Ryan

I bloody love Claire Mackinnon. Or should I say 'Aphrodite Jones'. Your average everyday girl next door, come divine burlesque dancing goddess! Really, I think she's bloody GREAT! So relatable. So real. So human. So honest. So curious. So playful. And so f**king done with trying to fit herself into nice, neat corporate shapes and spaces... So much more than the 3000-character LinkedIn marketing posts she was contorting herself to write to help promote herself... Listening to the call from deep within to shake off her shackles and dance out of the box she had placed herself in, she eventually gave birth to 'Glitter & Biscuits' her new Substack newsletter... The place she is taking great delight in expressing her whole self more fully. This being the very creation that inspired me to get back behind the microphone to record this episode. And boy oh boy does she not disappoint! This is Claire MacKinnon - corporate leadership coach, mother, wife, friend, dancer and recovering ass-kissing people-pleasing perfectionist (her words not mine!) in surround sound, fully-reclaimed, sexy, sassy, silly, messy, unprepared, unfiltered full bleed. And it's a thing of pure unadulterated joy. Better still, by its very nature, it's also a permission slip and invitation to the rest of us to follow suit, just be ourselves and do something we love just for the simple, joyful sake of it... And see where it takes us... Knickers in the air, let's go! WOOHOO!!! Hahaha!! Listening back, this interview makes my whole body smile just as much as the moment I made it.  Enjoy --- Claire’s Substack: https://glitterandbiscuits.substack.com/ Claire’s burlesque teacher as mentioned in the interview: Showgirl Awakening --- Come join the We Won't Die Wondering community for latest news, discussions, events and much more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wewontdiewondering And feel free to send me your thoughts on this podcast and any further reflections you may have: [email protected]

Why are we here? What is the point of it all?  To live our best lives? To do our best work? To find happiness?  Where do we find happiness? Happiness according to who? By who's rules? Is that your head or your heart talking?  Is it 'you' or an old narrative you're still trying to uphold? Is that a conceptual idea or reality, in the here and now? Join me as I dive back into another deeply fascinating conversation with the truth drug that is Kate Maryon, my therapist and one of my most valued teachers. Someone who has dared to face her own stuff head on and find peace in amongst it all, who now helps others do likewise.  Brace yourselves, we go way, way, waaaaaaay out there. And as always, I take it upon myself to pull it right back to the moment, to make it digestible and relatable to us in our every day lives... Which of course is exactly the point Kate is trying to help us see and feel. Reality. The true nature of things. The joyful relief in letting life touch us as it unfolds. Ooft.  Enjoy.  --- Come join the We Won't Die Wondering community for latest news, discussions, events and much more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wewontdiewondering And feel free to send me your thoughts on this podcast and any further reflections you may have: [email protected]

'There is a woman.... and the way she wears her wildness is intoxicating. Luxurious, ferocious. stylish... she is untamed of heart but sophisticated of stance. Beautiful and alluring, daring and accomplished, fierce and free, she is unapologetically herself. She strikes a cut-glass pose between the simple and the sensuous. There is a radical richness and a down-and-dirty decadence that crackles through her limbs and flies from her hair. Lit from within, she is glorious to behold.' (Words lifted directly from www.ninapowell.com) That woman is Nina Powell. A metaphorical rock star. A real life Goddess. A woman who completely and utterly owns her own life force and sexual energy, both inside the bedroom and out in the world, and knows how to wield it with such presence and power that it will make you purr and roar in equal measures. And better still, knows how to help others unlock and live their most wild, divine, orgasmic life too.  And in this podcast I dare to go there and to try to find out for myself what she's eluding to... Well, brace yourself, cos whilst I knew this would touch on paradigm shifting stuff, boy she does not disappoint! We go deep. It gets juicy. And together we produce yet more 'We Won't Die Wondering' podcast gold! Enjoy.  --- Come join the We Won't Die Wondering community for latest news, discussions, events and much more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wewontdiewondering And feel free to send me your thoughts on this podcast and any further reflections you may have: [email protected]