From Pitchforks to Peace: How to Lead in Highly Polarized Times w/ Betsy Stix
Release Date: 03/04/2025
The Performer’s Gift: How to Awaken the Creativity in Others w/ Jennifer Blaine
Be. Play. Love.
Most people don’t think of themselves as creative. We say, “I’m not artistic,” or “I can’t perform,” and leave it at that. But the truth is, creativity isn’t reserved for the select few. It lives in everyone. It’s baked into how we think, feel, dream, and respond to the world. The problem is that most of us were taught to shut it down. We were told to color inside the lines, follow the rules, and keep things appropriate. Over time, we stopped expressing the weird, wonderful parts of ourselves and started believing that creativity belonged only to the professionals. But...
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Your Creativity Isn't Dead...Here's How to Revive It w/ Laurie Shiers
Be. Play. Love.
In a world that worships productivity, we’ve traded our inner spark for efficiency and completely lost the creativity that’s vital to flow. For many of us, this disconnection with our creativity goes back to childhood. This is where we were taught not to be weird. Where we were trained to do things in one specific way, and forced to correct ourselves when we didn’t. For years, we’ve heard negative things that have shaped how we feel about our creativity, so no wonder we’ve suppressed it. But without play, coloring outside the lines, and trusting the parts of ourselves that don’t...
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How to Release the Old to Make Room for What’s Next
Be. Play. Love.
You’re standing in front of a mess…clothes, memories, identities…scattered on the floor. A rod gives out, a shelf falls, or maybe your inner structure does. It looks like chaos, but it might just be intuition telling you: it’s time to release the weight, it’s time to let go. Whether it’s a closet full of old identities, a childhood belief you’ve outgrown, or a lingering fear that you’re still “too much,” life finds ways to show us what no longer fits. But what if that collapse isn’t a failure but an invitation to release, integrate, and reclaim ourselves? It’s a shift...
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From Interruption to Inner Flow: How to Use Play As a Path to Wholeness w/ Alana Shaw
Be. Play. Love.
Creativity isn’t just a skill, it’s a lifeline in a play-deprived society. When young people feel unseen, unheard, and unwelcome, they shut down. Their development gets interrupted. Their story gets cut short. But give them the joy of movement, and a place to express their creativity, and something transformational happens. They come alive. Not because someone told them what to say or how to be, but because someone finally asked: Who are you? And what’s inside you, waiting to be expressed? In this episode, we explore what happens when we stop trying to “fix” kids and instead create...
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Embodied Power: How to Stop Running From Your Emotions w/ Julie Colwell
Be. Play. Love.
The power-over / power-under / power-with dynamic isn’t just something we have with other people, it often resides inside us. When we override our emotions, suppress our sensations, and try to outmaneuver our discomfort, we manifest that dynamic. We see it when we push past our sadness, armor over vulnerability, or try to exert power in ways that are loud and forceful instead of connected and quiet. Maybe it’s thinking we need to toughen up and act like a badass in reaction to our sadness. That’s what we think being powerful looks like. But what if the...
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When Love & Beliefs Collide: Repairing or Releasing a Friendship
Be. Play. Love.
Here’s an uncomfortable or even painful experience many people are having right now. Losing a friendship over differing political views or fundamental values. It hurts…but what if it’s also a window into something deeper? In today’s cultural climate, the divide between people often goes far beyond a simple disagreement or differing opinions. It can reveal a far deeper truth: when values clash, friendships can break. But what does that rupture reveal about how we relate, how we build trust, and how we stay open in moments that hurt? Most of us are taught to manage difficult emotions by...
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The Fear-Driven Urge to Fix and How to Get Past It
Be. Play. Love.
Sometimes, the danger isn’t real, but our bodies still act like it is. You’re stuck in traffic, someone you love is upset, or a friend doesn’t text back, and suddenly, you’re spiraling. Your heart races, your thoughts scramble, and before you know it, you’re either fixing, fleeing, or shutting down. What’s happening? In a world that constantly pushes us to stay in control, we forget how to stay connected, to ourselves, to others, and to the moment. But our bodies remember. They hold wisdom, intuition, and the capacity to guide us, if we’re willing to...
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Psychedelic Presence: How to Heal the Places Words Can’t Reach
Be. Play. Love.
There are many ways we try to heal. Therapy, meditation, breathwork, movement, and mindset work - just to name a few. These paths are powerful, transformative, and often life-changing. But sometimes, despite all the tools and effort, there are places within us that remain untouched, places our intellect can’t quite reach. We’re exploring one such threshold, where healing stops being something we do and becomes something that happens to us at a cellular level. Where transformation drops from the head into the body through the quiet, mystical intelligence of mushrooms. Journeying...
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From Defensiveness to Discovery: How to Stop Assuming the Worst
Be. Play. Love.
We all do it. When there’s silence, ambiguity, or the absence of clear feedback, we fill in the blanks with stories. But here’s the problem: our minds don’t reach for generous interpretations. They default to criticism, fear, and doubt. Whether it’s giving a talk, navigating a friendship, or reflecting on ourselves, we often assume the worst, even when reality is far more kind. Evolutionary survival instincts, societal conditioning, and inner critics keep us stuck in fear-based thinking. What if there was a powerful alternative (spoiler alert, there is!) - reconnecting to the...
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How to Reclaim Creativity in a World Obsessed with Productivity
Be. Play. Love.
In our world, productivity and creativity occupy two different buckets. The former is functional, necessary, and purposeful. The latter is frivolous, chaotic, and irresponsible. It should be put on the back burner so that we can focus on “more important things.” As a result, creative expression ends up as an afterthought, something we can only do after the real work is done. The problem is: so many of us end up feeling disconnected from our creativity, cut off from a vital resource for resonance. What if instead of putting off creativity for later, we could integrate it into...
info_outlineOne of the unfortunate truths about our society is that we’re more divided, vitriolic and operating from fear than ever before.
When we look at how people interact, there’s no civility and mutual respect anymore. There’s this huge collective tantrum and so much anger in people and it’s completely polarized the culture.
This is especially highlighted in the political sphere. From local government to the national stage, there’s more division, more contempt than collaboration, and that was never the original intent.
At its very basic level, government is about creating harmony and equity in society, but that’s not happening anymore. How did we get here? How do we find peace in the midst of such vitriolic polarity?
In episode, former mayor of Ojai, California, Betsy Stix joins us to talk about leading in these contempt-filled times, and how she maintained equanimity in inflamed situations.
Things You’ll Learn In This Episode
-A powerful impetus
How did The Big Leap lead Betsy Stix into local government?
-The source of our separation
The amount of conflict and polarity we’re seeing in our world feels unprecedented. How did we get here?
-React, disengage or rise above
In these times of high conflict, it’s really easy to get hijacked by fear. How do we redirect towards love?
-Back to breath
How do we use our breath to create safety for ourselves when there’s chaos all around us?
Guest Bio
Betsy is a lifelong teacher of human development, yoga, English, and French and former mayor of Ojai, California. After teaching for decades, she decided to run for mayor in 2020 during COVID, after reading Gay Hendricks’ “The Big Leap” and learning that the city council was slow to enact environmental and social justice policy. She canvased the town of 7,500 people in a mask and won 64% of the vote! And she won again in 2022 when she ran against actor Anson Williams. During her tenure, the Ojai City Council passed rent stabilization/tenant protection, a greenhouse gas emission reduction code, approved truly low income housing while developing better solutions for the unhoused, passed animal protection ordinances celebrated by PETA, improved the city’s plastic and tree ordinances, flew the Pride Flag for the first time, and founded the Mayor’s Youth Council. She is proud to have run two 100% positive campaigns and championed emotional and spiritual intelligence while moving the ball forward for progressive issues. She was so grateful to have been able to depend upon her yoga practices and experience teaching children and young people as well as the teachings of Katie Hendricks and Marianne Williamson to support her during her time in office. She looks forward to continuing to serve her community and the planet. Follow Betsy on Instagram.
About Your Hosts
Katie Hendricks, Ph.D., BC-DMT, is a pioneer in body intelligence and conscious loving with over 40 years of experience. Known internationally as a presenter and seminar leader, she focuses on authenticity, responsibility, and appreciation in conscious living. She co-authored 12 books, including best-sellers Conscious Loving and Conscious Loving Ever After and she has appeared on over 500 radio and TV programs.
Sophie Chiche is a seasoned coach and consultant who has worked with thousands of individuals and teams globally. With a focus on helping people live fully expressed lives, she guides clients and facilitates group sessions to remove obstacles and design meaningful lives. Sophie has developed unique methods, mindset shifts, and healing modalities to create lasting change.
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