Chris and Michelle Talk 2026
Oxygen for Educators
In this episode, Chris and Michelle share personal news and plans for 2026. Opt in to receive your gifted print magazine at the mailing address of your choice. or Copy and Paste this link: https://forms.gle/V7YBXvHNmRNonpCw7 ------------------------ Visit the Oxygen for Educators website to learn more.
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Oxygen Replay - Amanda Muhammad, MA
Oxygen for Educators
In this episode, Michelle Kinder and Chris Kent Phelps interview mindfulness-based stress management consultant Amanda Muhammad, exploring preventative self-care, psychological safety, nervous system regulation, and practical mindfulness tools that help educators shift perspective, honor boundaries, and cultivate meaning, well-being, and presence through breath, grounding, and intentional being. LINKS Psychological Safety Consultant CHAPTERS 00:00Preventative Self-Care Strategies 02:05Introduction to Amanda Muhammad 06:01Amanda's Journey into Mindfulness and Stress...
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Oxygen Replay - Dr. Laura Lockhart
Oxygen for Educators
This episode offers a practical conversation with Dr. Laura Lockhart about how educators can manage stress, understand their triggers, and show up with more self-awareness and compassion in hard moments. ************************************************************************************************ Follow on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/oxygen-for-educators/id1775510846 Follow on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2i21QueuqVqmEPmI7gzFfQ?si=1bef3354bff2402c Follow on Audible:...
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Nicholas Ditto
Oxygen for Educators
SUMMARY In this episode of Oxygen for Educators, Michelle Kinder sits down with Nicholas Ditto, founder and CEO of Fort Worth STEAM Academy, for an honest conversation about the unseen weight educators carry every day. Nicholas shares his journey into education, the thousands of decisions teachers make daily, and how leadership, culture, and community directly shape student outcomes. After the conversation, Michelle and Chris Kent Phelps return to break down the moments that mattered most, reflecting on what educators can take with them as they lead, teach, and serve their communities. ...
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Oxygen Replay - PART 2 Alex Vesely-Frankl, Viktor Frankl's Grandson
Oxygen for Educators
Opt in for your gifted copy of the Oxygen for Educators magazine! ( ) SUMMARY In part two of our conversation with filmmaker and logotherapist Alex Vesely, grandson of Viktor Frankl, we explore what it really means to live a life of meaning as an educator. Alex unpacks burnout through a logotherapy lens, shares powerful stories about suicide and hope, and invites us to ask a different question, not “What is in it for me?” but “Who am I still here for?” This one is a North Star episode for anyone feeling overwhelmed, misaligned, or called to pick up the “right...
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Oxygen Replay - PART 1 Alex Vesely-Frankl, Viktor Frankl's Grandson
Oxygen for Educators
Don't forget to opt in for your gifted copy of the Oxygen for Educators magazine! ( ) SUMMARY We’re re-releasing this conversation with Alex Vesely because it has never felt more needed. In a moment when so many educators are exhausted and searching for steadiness, Alex brings a rare clarity about meaning, purpose, and why our inner life matters. This is Part 1 of a powerful two-part conversation. Part 2 drops next Friday. LINKS: Man Search For Meaning: https://a.co/d/iS2XrjX Logotherapy-online.com Logotherapy Institute of America Courses:...
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Jose Villasenor
Oxygen for Educators
SUMMARY Jose “Joe” Villaseñor has one of the most unexpected paths into education you’ll ever hear: TV production, seminary, bail bonds, school counseling, and now leading Employee Wellness at Irving ISD. In this conversation, he shares how those turns shaped his deep empathy for people in hard places and how that shows up in real, practical supports for educators today, from yoga and fitness classes to laughter workshops and campus wellness champions. If you’ve ever wondered what it looks like when a district truly cares for the adults in the building, this episode will give...
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Maurine Molak
Oxygen for Educators
Educators, we’re gifting you the Oxygen for Educators keepsake magazine. Opt in here: SUMMARY After losing her 16-year-old son David to suicide following relentless cyberbullying, Maurine Molak turned her grief into advocacy. She has led the passage of groundbreaking laws protecting children from online harm and now champions federal reform through the Kids Online Safety Act. Her story is one of heartbreak, courage, and a mother’s determination to protect every child. CONTACT CONGRESS TO HELP PASS THE KIDS ONLINE SAFETY ACT ( ) ( ) ...
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Radical Hope Update
Oxygen for Educators
Educators, we’re gifting you the Oxygen for Educators keepsake magazine. Opt in here: Before Radical Hope resumes in the new year, Michelle offers a moment of reflection and gratitude. Drawing from The Small Work in the Great Work by Victoria Safford, she honors educators who keep showing up with heart and humanity, even when things are uncertain, and reminds us that the smallest acts often become the great work. ************************************************************************************************ Oxygen for Educators is proudly sponsored by Tacky...
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Oxygen Replay - Dr. Maricela Helm
Oxygen for Educators
Coming early 2026: Get your FREE copy of Oxygen for Educators magazine — radical hope delivered straight to your home, no strings attached. Opt in . SUMMARY What if the secret to transforming a school isn’t a new program, but a new perspective? In this re-released conversation, Dr. Maricela Helm—now Executive Director of Student Services at Whitehouse ISD—shares how shifting from discipline to relationship, and from pressure to presence, changes everything. She and host Michelle Kinder explore how mindset becomes freedom, joy becomes evidence of...
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Educators are carrying more than ever, and in the middle of all that noise, the inner critic often shouts the loudest. In this episode of the Radical Hope Series, Michelle Kinder offers practical, light-lift ways to quiet that critic and tune into a steadier guide, the inner mentor.
With relatable stories, examples pulled straight from the classroom, and strategies from Tara Mohr (Playing Big), Richard Schwartz (No Bad Parts), and Jay Early & Bonnie Weiss (Freedom from Your Inner Critic), Michelle shows how to:
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Spot and name the critic’s different disguises (from perfectionist to guilt tripper).
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Create distance and compassion instead of being overtaken by self-judgment.
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Call on the calm, grounded wisdom of your inner mentor, even in the middle of a busy school day.
This conversation is about moving from exhaustion to steadiness, from fear to freedom, and remembering that you already carry the wisdom you need. It’s not about silencing the critic, but choosing a truer voice so you can keep showing up, for yourself and for your students.
CHAPTERS
00:00 Understanding the Inner Critic and Inner Mentor
05:57 The Role of the Inner Mentor
10:45 Practicing Connection with the Inner Mentor
16:42 Types of Inner Critics
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