Reflections and Revelations

Kevin Monroe goes solo in this end-of-year episode of This Extraordinary Life. He reflects on the past 90 days of the podcast and 150 days of the This Extraordinary Life community.  You’ll hear him talk about:  The joy of being associated with gratitude. The fallacy of perfection. The serendipitous moments that the year 2020 has instigated. A new project under the This Extraordinary Life banner. Intentionality. Kevin encourages anyone who is willing to add their take to This Extraordinary Life to call or text him at 404-713-0713, or send their suggestions to [email protected]  Resources Kevin Monroe on LinkedIn | Twitter  ThisExtraordinary.life Reach out to Kevin at 404-713-0713 to find out more about his newest project!

Today’s guest is Paul Haury, a self-proclaimed Belonging Coach and Evangelist for heart-based leadership in workplace culture and happiness. He is the founder of Heart Based Leading, a coaching and consulting service dedicated to making workplaces happy, healthy, and fun in order to perform better.  This week’s theme is about belonging. As most of us spend most of our time at work, our experiences there have the potential to impact all other aspects of our lives. When you belong at your workplace, it improves your quality of life. You go home happy which encourages a happy and healthy home atmosphere; this then enables you to go to work happy and healthy, and the cycle continues.  You’ll hear Paul and Kevin Monroe talk about: What happens when teamwork, love and the environment work together in harmony. The misconceptions surrounding leadership from the heart. How belonging is more than just a feeling. What true courage is about. The full value of belonging. Paul stays for the Community Magic segment and shares his experiences with belonging in the This ExtraOrdinary Life community. Resources Paul Haury on LinkedIn | Twitter HeartBasedLeading.com Email: [email protected]  Call or text Paul at +206-714-6113

This week’s guest is Theo Prodromitis. Theo is a keynote speaker, Amazon Entrepreneur and Marketing Strategist, and the Author of The Balance Between Hustle and Flow. Her work is motivated by philotimo, a Greek personal and cultural imperative that life has a deeper meaning through larger contributions, to honor your God-given gifts by improving the lives of others.   This week’s episode is all about balance and energy. Theo and Kevin talk about the different ways energy shows up in our lives and how to balance the different kinds we experience to be happier and more fulfilled, and ultimately able to do more for others.  Some of the topics they explored are: The importance of family, history and culture - and how they shape us. How ideas take work - even inspired ones. Pairing hustle with flow can make all the difference in how you approach things.  Presence - being present is the ability to suspend the chatter in your mind. This is a gift you can give to the people you spend time with. You are the curator of your own life and can make space for what you want to have in it. This is true for people, projects, energy and emotions.  The importance, and sometimes the difficulty, of being kind to yourself, and the micro strategies you can use to do so.  This week’s community magic - we have another wonderful thought from Theo ConnectWithTheo.com The Balance Between Hustle and Flow

Today’s guest is Marc Brackett, the Founder and Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and the author of Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help Our Kids, Ourselves, and Our Society Thrive. He is a lecturer in the Department of Psychology at Yale University, with a Ph.D. in Personality and Social Psychology.  This week’s theme explores emotions. Emotions carry over into every aspect of our lives, from decision-making to relationships and our mental and physical health. Emotions also fuel the creative process. Developing emotional intelligence unlocks untapped potential and has the power to change our whole lives. You’ll hear Marc and Kevin Monroe discuss: The effect that emotions have on our personal and professional lives. Why there is no such thing as a ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ emotion. There’s no correlation between your inclination to experience strong emotions and your skill in managing them.  How community affects the individual. Why it’s important to identify which emotions are best suited for different tasks. Arlene Mendoza of the This ExtraOrdinary Life community talks about emotional language. Resources Marc Brackett on LinkedIn MarcBrackett.com Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help Our Kids, Ourselves, and Our Society Thrive

Today’s guest is Terry Smith, the lead pastor of The Life Christian Church (TLCC), a nondenominational faith community known for its diversity and robust leadership culture. Terry is the co-founder of the New York CIty Leadership Center, a speaker, and an author. He is a firm advocate for incorporating hospitality into leadership. The theme of this week’s episode is hospitality. When we say hospitality, we don’t mean how to set a table; it’s about creating a genuinely welcoming climate in an organization. When you create an environment that is truly welcoming to a diverse group of people, you have amazing potential to combat the difficulties of the world today.  You’ll hear Terry and Kevin Monroe talk about: How hospitality combats polarization. The five welcomes of hospitable leadership. Hospitality and belonging. How hospitality intersects with diversification and inclusivity. What it takes to be hospitable. Kat Haste, the resident artist for the Gratitude Challenge, shares what excites her most about creating art that inspires gratitude.  Kevin and Kat are proud to announce the unveiling of a new facet of the Gratitude Challenge: the Gratitude Challenge Card Deck! This deck consists of 54 prompts in a lovely gift box sized for your convenience to use anywhere at any time you wish.  Resources Terry Smith on Twitter | Facebook | Instagram TerryASmith.com The Hospitable Leader: Create Environments Where People and Dreams Can Flourish Pre-order the Gratitude Challenge Card Deck

Today’s guest is Lorin Beller, a business and life strategist and the owner of Lorin Beller & Co. Lorin is dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs and helping them grow their businesses, build powerful partnerships, and become extraordinary leaders. She has been empowering entrepreneurs since 2001, providing exceptional coaching and training to help them achieve their goals. Lorin is also the founder of Change Maker Nation, an intention-driven community committed to making a difference, one intention at a time. This week, we explore the theme of intention, a concept that is often misunderstood. Intention is energy: living intentionally shortens the amount of time one gets thrown off course. Choosing to live intentionally gives you more options for how to go about life. It takes practice, and is a conscious choice you have to make every day.  You’ll hear her and Kevin Monroe discuss: The connection between intentionality and serendipity. What success really means. The disciplines of focusing on one thing. The definition of intention. How intentionality impacts your life. Kevin Monroe reflects on the impact that the This Extraordinary Life community has had on his life so far. Resources Lorin Beller on LinkedIn | Twitter LorinBeller.com | ChangeMakerNation.com

Today’s guests are Emma Lloyd and Joanna Suvarna. Emma is the Head of Experience at MB People and the Global Facilitator, Director, Coach and Director at Create the Ripple Ltd. Joanna is a voluntary Ambassador for BulliesOut, a voluntary Learning Community Champion at CIPD, and the Founder of the ‘Be The Ripple’ movement. Dubbed ‘Kindness Champions’ by Kevin Monroe, they both embody the spirit of compassion and possess a passion for making a difference through other people. This week’s theme is kindness, and why we need it. Kindness is bigger than just being kind; it involves being your authentic self, warmth, depth and empathy. Kindness is not a soft skill. Though society sees kindness as a weakness, it requires immense strength. You’ll hear them and Kevin Monroe discuss: What kindness means to them. Instances where they were recipients of kind acts. Why we should be kinder to ourselves. The correlation between kindness and gratitude. Overcoming your negativity bias. Sarah Radican of the This Extraordinary Life community returns to share more thoughts about community and belonging. Resources Emma Lloyd on LinkedIn | Twitter Joanna Suvarna on LinkedIn | Twitter BeTheRipple.co.uk

Today’s guest is Nilofer Merchant, a speaker at Speaker’s Spotlight and a former writer for Harvard Business Review. She is the author of the critically-acclaimed book “The Power of Onlyness,” and was ranked number 1 by Thinkers 50 as the Most Likely Person to Influence the Future of Management.  The theme of this week’s episode is belonging, and how it impacts your life both personally and professionally. Onlyness is the experience, purpose, talent and perspective that lies untapped within every person. Feeling a sense of belonging is key to untapping the potential of your employees. You’ll hear her and Kevin Monroe talk about: What onlyness means. The power of questions. The importance of choosing your friends wisely. What belonging feels like. Defining your identity. Linda Simpson of the This Extraordinary Life community shares past experiences with belonging at work.  Resources Nilofer Merchant on LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram Call or text Nilofer: 404-713-0713 Join Nilofer on a journey to change the workplace at @work. The Benefit of Belonging

Today’s guest is Gina Bianchini, the co-founder and CEO of Mighty Networks, the software that powers the online home of This Extraordinary Life. Mighty Networks is a website-building platform with a mission to pilot a new generation of creative business founded on community. It provides creators with the tools they need to create their brand and business.  The theme of this week’s episode is the intersection of modern technology and social networks. Software has a generative ability to unlock positive, constructive relationships and build deeper connections. Additionally, creator-led communities present us with the opportunity to redefine success.  You’ll hear Gina and Kevin Monroe talk about: The origins of Mighty Networks. The role of software in facilitating community and connection. The keys to a flourishing online community. How software has been weaponized to destroy rather than construct. How community is more than just having commonalities. Sarah Ratekin of the This Extraordinary Life community shares thoughts and reflections about community.  Resources Gina Bianchini on LinkedIn | Twitter MightyNetworks.com

Today’s guest is Jeff Durso, a serial entrepreneur with more than 15 launches. He is the co-founder of Blitzr. He is also the President of Native Britain, the parent company of an e-learning application for mathematics with almost 600,000 learners. Jeff’s experience with entrepreneurship enables him to help visionaries turn big ideas into high-growth opportunities.  The theme of this week’s show is that conversation begets connection, and connection begets community. Our conversations have the potential to be profound and life-changing in the simplest of ways. Within the last 50 years our means of communication have advanced tremendously; this enables us to have more conversation, make more connections, and build more communities.  In this episode you’ll hear him and Kevin Monroe discuss: The definition of conversation. Serendipitous encounters. How to replace expectation with anticipation. Blitzr, an online platform that lets you interact with and have stimulating conversations with new people. Practical steps one can take to create better conversations with those we’re distanced from. Hedden of the This Extraordinary Life community talks about his experiences with conversations and how they led him into the extraordinary. Resources Jeff Durso on LinkedIn | Twitter JeffDurso.com Blitzr.com Jeff and Kevin are extending an invite to listeners to join a Blitz with them! Visit the website to learn more.