Clear & Loud with Josh Harris

In this episode, Josh Harris has a thought-provoking conversation with Stephanie Stalvey, a gifted comic book artist who is using her art to navigate and critique the complexities of purity culture. Stephanie shares the inspiration behind her graphic memoir "PURE," a deeply personal exploration of growing up within and ultimately questioning the evangelical purity movement.

Listeners will dive into:

• The unique power of comics as a medium for storytelling and social commentary.

• Stephanie’s personal journey from adhering to purity culture to questioning its norms.

• The creative process behind translating intimate life experiences into art.

• The impact of purity culture on personal identity, relationships, and sexuality.

• How "PURE" has become a platform for community, conversation, and healing for those with similar experiences.

Whether you’re fascinated by the intersection of art and activism, curious about the effects of purity culture, or a fan of graphic storytelling, this episode offers insightful perspectives on how personal narratives can challenge societal norms and promote healing. Join us to discover how Stephanie Stalvey is making waves with her comics and sparking important discussions around faith, freedom, and the right to own one’s story.

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In this episode, we dive into the transformative world of memoir writing with Janelle Hardy, the innovative mind behind the "Art of Personal Mythmaking" course. This discussion is not just for those who see themselves as writers, but for anyone grappling with their life's narrative and seeking clarity and healing.

Episode Highlights: 

• Memoir Writing's Healing Power: We explore how writing about one's life journey can both challenge and aid in understanding and overcoming personal hurdles.
• Janelle’s Methodology: Learn about Janelle's unique blend of body-based, trauma-informed prompts and the rich stories of fairy tales and myths to help people heal and regain joy through writing their memoirs.
• Addressing Trauma in Writing: The conversation touches on the common fear and difficulty of revisiting traumatic memories during memoir writing and how to navigate these challenges.
• Beyond Writing a Memoir: This episode is relevant to anyone looking to make sense of their past experiences, understand the stories that have shaped them, and learn from them.
• A Special Narrative Experience: Janelle shares a fairy tale within the interview, providing a unique and engaging listening moment.

This episode is an invitation to discover how articulating your life story can be a path to understanding and growth. Join us as we unravel the power of memoir writing with Janelle Hardy.

About Janelle:

Janelle Hardy is a writer, artist, host of the Memoir Body, Healing Story Podcast and the creator/teacher of a transformational memoir-writing course called The Art of Personal Mythmaking. 

This process uses body-based, trauma-informed writing prompts, stories like fairy tale and myth, and themed modules to support people who want to heal from the difficult parts of their life stories as they write their memoirs.

She’s helped young single mothers, organic farmers, cabinetmakers, PhD writers and editors, psychotherapists, professional novelists, podcasters, entrepreneurs, stay-at-home moms, former Members of Parliament, retired teachers, spiritual directors, principals (and more) heal from the difficult parts of their life story as they write the first drafts of their memoirs and reclaim themselves.

Janelle is a born and raised Yukoner and single mother, who has worked as a trauma-informed bodyworker in the hands-on healing arts fields since 2007 and as an artist (writing, painting + dance) for 17+ years. Throughout that time she’s taught adults out of her living room, arts centres, universities and community colleges.

She currently lives and works in both Whitehorse, Yukon and Vancouver, BC, Canada. Whitehorse is on unceded Kwanlin Dün First Nation and Ta’an Kwäch’än Council land. Vancouver is on unceded Coast Salish People’s land (the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Səl̓ílwətaʔ (Tsleil-Watuth), and Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) Nations).

For the past 6+ years she’s integrated all of her expertise, including a BA in Anthropology, an MA in Dance and a Diploma in Structural Integration, into supporting people in their creative healing work via the alchemy of transformational memoir-writing.

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She describes herself as “Walmart version Sofia Vergara” which most people would consider an asset, but for Nacya Marreiro, being pretty isn’t always a plus in comedy. In this podcast interview, Nacya talks about the double standard for women in stand-up comedy and the hurdles she’s had to overcome as she strives for stardom in Los Angeles. 

Interview Highlights include: 

• What the real-life week-to-week hustle of a rising comic looks like

• How the right amount of childhood trauma pushed her to succeed

• How she literally stopped traffic to get Tiffany Haddish in her stand-up show

• How her career in comedy all started with a friend’s dare

About Nacya: Born and raised in the South of Portugal, Nacya first discovered her love for stand-up comedy while traveling around the world as a flight attendant, and hasn't stopped ever since. She has performed her stand-up comedy on stages all around the world, including NYC's The Stand and Grisly Pear Comedy, Austin Texas' Creek and the Cave and Vulcan, and LA's Laugh Factory, Comedy Store, Bourbon Room, and Haha Comedy Club. She's also created her own comedy show, "The Riff," which has attracted high-profile guests like Joe Rogan and TJ Miller, as well as her own comedy cooking show called "Mouth Full." 

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Did evangelicalism fail a generation? How do disillusioned Christians process their experiences in churches and hold on to their faith? How do families divided over Trump find common ground? 

In this revealing episode, I sit down with Jon Ward, journalist, author, and chief national correspondent at Yahoo! News, to discuss his latest book, Testimony: Inside the Evangelical Movement that Failed a Generation.

Jon Ward describes his life as being divided in half: two decades inside the evangelical Christian bubble and two decades outside of it.

In Testimony, Ward tells the story of his upbringing in, and eventual break from, an influential evangelical church in the 1980s and 1990s (more about that particular church below). Ward sheds light on the evangelical movement's troubling political and cultural dimensions, tracing the ways in which he believes the Jesus People movement was seduced by materialism and other factors to become politically captive rather than prophetic.

Full disclosure: the church Jon grew up in and which he strongly critiques in his book is the same that I joined at age 22 and went on to pastor for ten years. For me, this is a very personal conversation. Our discussion offers listeners a front-row seat to the intersection of faith, politics, and the challenges of reckoning with one's past. 

Interview Highlights: 

• Jon's perspective on influential figures like CJ Mahaney and Al Mohler and their roles within the evangelical movement.

• The ramifications of political trends and the Trump presidency, on personal relationships and faith.

• Whether it’s possible to be open to being wrong and still hold to absolute truth 

• Comparing the roles of church leaders and the media in accountability and the parallels Jon sees between them.

• Jon's vision for the future of modern American Christianity and the steps he believes are crucial for its transformation.

Whether you're entrenched in the evangelical community, just curious, or somewhere in between, this episode promises a candid exploration of faith, growth, and the complexities of human experience.

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Dive into the intertwined worlds of screenwriting for television and standup comedy in this podcast interview with Charla Lauriston. From the bustling writer’s room of NBC's “Grand Crew” to the vibrant stages of Comedy Central, Charla’s career is a masterclass in crafting clear, impactful messages that resonate.

This Vancouver and Los Angeles based talent shares her journey from Haiti to Hollywood. We discuss the nuances of comedic styles, how faith complements humor, and the challenges of writing for television. Charla also provides insights into finding humor in heavy subjects like race and politics. Plus, we delve into the recent writers’ strike, the delicate dance of capitalism and creativity, and her latest endeavor, The Werking Writer School. For anyone seeking to understand the art of capturing an audience through compelling stories and humor, this episode is a must-listen, shedding light on the power of a clear message in both comedy and screenwriting.

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Leaving a job is never easy. It becomes even more complicated when your job is wrapped up in a spiritual tradition. Matt Davis, served as a Teaching and Executive Pastor for more than two decades in Orange County, California. After going through his own pastoral transition out of ministry, Matt learned the difficulty of this season. He helped start an organization that assists pastors who are transitioning out of pastoral ministry. 

Now churches and nonprofits are hiring Matt and his team to help give coaching, counseling, and career guidance to people whose lives have been upended by leaving their pastoral role. 

Interview Highlights: 

• Are churches uniquely bad at firing and transitioning people? 

• What makes a pastoral transition extra painful compared to other careers? 

• Why do so many pastors need leave their church community after they change their role? 

• How does having your personal identity being wrapped up in your professional identity affect you when it’s time to step aside? 

• How does all this impact your family? 

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Can empathy be designed into society? Mayra Kapteijn thinks so and she's dedicated her career to the endeavour. Mayra is an Amsterdam-based social designer with a background in social psychology. At the age of 31, she has co-founded and jumpstarted multiple social impact platforms, such as 29k, which provides free evidence-based mental fitness tools, and Peerby, a neighborhood sharing app. Currently, Mayra collaborates with leaders in healthcare and wellbeing to develop cutting-edge platforms that foster a more connected and caring world, empowering individuals towards collective change.

Born out of a family of Argentinian revolutionaries, Mayra firmly believes that humans are not only the source of global challenges but also the key to finding solutions. Her philosophy is grounded in leveraging the power of design and technology to bring out the best in people, as a means to collectively build a more sustainable and just world.

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Is Instagram over? Join us for a little father-daughter debate about Instagram’s destiny. 

In today's episode of Clear & Loud, I'm diving into the ever-evolving world of social media, discussing the potential decline of Instagram and its impact on users. I'm bringing on a very special guest, my daughter, Emma Sato, a talented 23-year-old product designer, podcast enthusiast, and all-around amazing human, for a dynamic and insightful conversation on the intersection of tech, culture, and current trends.

Join us as we explore topics like:

• What sets Instagram apart from other social media platforms

• The evolution of the app and its effect on the user experience

• Instagram's integration into our daily lives and its unique strengths

• The impact of the platform on mental health and self-esteem

• A comparison between Instagram and its rival, TikTok

• The role of social media in shaping our society and culture

Interview Highlights:

- Emma's personal experience with Instagram and her extended break from the platform

- The challenges faced by young women on Instagram and its impact on mental health

- The rise of TikTok and its influence on Instagram and user engagement

- Instagram's role in shaping our collective understanding of the world

- Parental insights: If Emma had kids, would she handle their social media exposure differently?

Tune in for this lively discussion between a father and daughter, offering unique perspectives on the ever-changing landscape of social media and its role in our lives.

More about Emma: 

Ever feel like you're flying blind when it comes to hiring? Ever agonized over the time and money wasted by hiring the wrong person?

Mike Moreau is on a mission to fix today’s broken hiring system. Most pre-employment personality tests measure the wrong things and the result is frustration for everyone—leadership, HR, management, and new hires. Mike’s company called TRAITS is built around a powerful psychometric assessment—a 15 minute test called the TRAITS Assessment— that helps predicts how a person works and how they’ll fit into a specific role.

If you lead a team, or you’re building a company, you’ll want to hear this interview.

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Allison Fallon is an award winning author, sought after public speaker, and nationally recognized writing coach. She has coached thousands of writers—from NYT Bestselling authors, to total beginners, to help them finally get their books written and on shelves. Her most recent project—called Write Your Story—helps everyday people turn their life experiences into stories that heal and inspire. She lives in Nashville, TN, with her husband and two young kids.

Highlights of the conversation:

• How a romanticized vision of writing keeps people from getting started
• Whether you need 50,000 followers on Instagram to write a book
• Why a writing practice can improve your health
• How writing can help you process the deconstruction of old beliefs

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Jarrett is an Adjunct Professor at the University of British Columbia Sauder School of Business. Ten years after he helped place students in his marketing class into cutting edge roles as social media managers, he was on the lookout for the next big thing. What field would just a little extra knowledge give his students an edge and expertise that would position them for success?

In 2017 he began to invest in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, this introduction to blockchain technology convinced Jarrett this was the future and exactly what his students needed to learn. At UBC he now teaches crypto, NFTs, blockchain technology, and marketing. Jarrett provides a solid education based approached in his courses.

He is currently launching an NFT project for social good, based on art that his 7 year old daughter created while she was recovering from her 16th surgery. He is also leading a new start up which focuses on capturing carbon credits from bamboo forests, turning those credits into NFTs and selling them for both digital and physical art.

Jarrett is married with three children. He is a musician, an urban farmer, and loves outdoor adventure sports. Jarrett loves to travel and is a champion for children with disabilities. In his spare time, he can be found tending to his honey bees and studying libertarian economics.

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Dutch researchers found in 2010 that planning a trip makes people happier than actually taking it. Conner Galway is a marketing expert focused on tourism. And he thinks this means people tasked with marketing destinations have to pay a lot more attention to digital and the way it improves peoples overall experience of travel. 

When it comes to tourism, Conner Galway has spent a lot of time studying what matters, what works, and how digital experiences tie into real-life visits. Which is why helping teams improve the digital side of travel planning is one of his passions.

Favorite parts of this episode include…

• How Conner and his team creatively promoted a seemingly sleepy fishing town.
• Why the digital experience of planning a trip is a bigger part of our travel experiences than most of us realize
• Why email might be more strategic than TikTok for your business
• How Nashville, TN, became a huge success in attracting tourists (and might have been too good at it).

Conner Galway is President of Junction Consulting – a digital consultancy based in Vancouver, BC. He founded Junction in 2012 when he saw a need for organizations to expand their thinking about what’s possible for digital value within an organization.

As Junction’s strategist, he spends his days researching, training, and solving problems with clients. He shares his latest thinking in an award winning weekly email called The Brief that’s read by leaders at many of North America’s most respected brands.

Some of his recent work has seen him help create a digital learning platform for Destination BC, training for lululemon and, most recently, he was named Leader of the Year by Marketing News Canada for his support of the tourism industry through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aside from his work as a consultant, Conner has become one of Canada’s premiere digital educators, teaching and developing curriculum at many of Canada’s most prestigious Universities, and most recently he has launched the all-new eLearningU - North America’s largest collection of online learning for the tourism industry.

Links:

A healthy company culture can make or break your company. So how do you build one? Today on the show we’re talking to Laura Graven a successful business owner who has thought hard about and worked hard on fostering a healthy culture for her team.

Laura Graven is a salon owner, a small business coach, and a hair designer, serving her guests in the chair for over 17 years. Throughout this time she has grown a successful small business culture, serving and loving her clients well with handcrafted salon services. In more recent years she has shifted her energy into developing leadership within her salon team, and growing her coaching business to support small businesses to discover and execute what matters most to them.

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In this episode, executive coach and a triple-certified Enneagram teacher, Vanessa Fernandez, walks through all nine Enneagram types and explains how insights from this ancient personality typing tool can help anyone be better at leading others.

There’s often a gap between how we think we’re coming across and how our communication is actually being received. (For example you think you’re being helpful but other people feel you’re micromanaging and hovering). Vanessa explains how the Enneagram can help us narrow that gap and thus be a more effective leader.

Highlights from the interview:

• What’s unique about the Enneagram compared to other tools
• Whether there’s a danger that people use the Enneagram to justify bad habits
• What the “Great Resignation” tells us about how views of work are shifting
• How to reconcile the highly competitive world of business with a human-centered approach to nurturing your employees
• How the Enneagram can help in hiring

Steve Benjamins doesn’t like the title entrepreneur, but since he was 13-years-old, he has been starting businesses, launching projects, and experimenting with various endeavors. In this interview, Steve talks about his journey from amateur counterfeiter to being the owner of multiple companies. His advice for people who want to start a side-hustle: follow your enthusiasm. If you’ve ever wanted to start something new, you’re going to find this conversation inspiring.

We talk about:

• Why Steve quit TikTok after racking up millions of views
• How his parents encouraged him to try new things as a kid
• How he makes $750 a month from Spotify
• A rapid-fire explanation of each of his business ventures
• How Tesla uses his company's mapping tool
• How Steve divides his time between different projects and manages his time
• Why most business books are like romance novels

Learn More about Steve Benjamins:

Okay, so this episode’s title isn’t technically correct—I’m not part of the “Baby Boom” generation, I’m Gen X (born between 1965 - 1980). But boy did I feel like a Boomer as I interviewed two students aged 19 and 18 respectively, about blockchain, DAOs, and NFTs.

Regardless of your age, it’s tempting to be skeptical of new technology and new ideas. It can take effort to stay open and curious, but it’s worth the effort—especially when the next generation aspires to use technology to improve the world.

Tim Schurrer spent almost a decade of his career as the right-hand man of Donald Miller. He helped launch two brands—StoryBrand and Business Made Simple—and built a $16 million dollar company. Now Tim is sharing secrets…about what real success really is. 

In this interview, we talk about the core message of his new book “The Secret Society of Success” and Tim's mission to help people escape the spotlight mindset. Tim challenges us to reevaluate our definition of success and learn a new, freer way to go about achieving it. 

Interview highlights: 

• How Tim built a healthy culture on the StoryBrand staff
• How Tim decided to give up a stable career to pursue the dream of writing a book
• How Donald Miller responded when Tim told him he needed to move on from his role as COO

Connect with Tim:
Website - http://SecretSocietyBook.com
Instagram - https://instagram.com/timschurrer/
LinkedIn - http://linkedin.com/in/timschurrer/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/timschurrer

Nick Kennedy believes that being successful in business isn't about conquering the world—it's about conquering yourself. He's an entrepreneur with over twenty years of experience building successful ventures. He started an airline that was acquired by Surf Air. He now coaches high-power executives to become fully integrated spouses, parents, and businesspeople. Nick’s new book is titled The Good Entrepreneur: An Insider’s Guide to Building a Principled Business and Powerful Personal Legacy.

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Erin Power is not your typical health coach. She thinks the bathroom scale is too often a tool of ignorance. She has been known to assign her clients taco nights. She’s a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and board-certified health coach but after 30-years in the health, fitness, and nutrition world she’s convinced we’ve gotten things wrong. Now she helps people fix their metabolism, deprogram themselves from diet culture, and achieve an effortless relationship with food.