Meet the Joy Concierge! That's the nickname my guest Teresa Thomas earned after turning her 50th birthday into a wildly contagious practice: a list of 50 fun things to experience before the big day — everything from Santorini-sized dreams to finally ordering the latte instead of the regular coffee.

We dig into why saying what you want out loud seems to summon it (wait for the drum jam story), the real difference between toxic positivity and joy as an act of resistance, and why "I'm good at this" is one of the hardest sentences for women to say without flinching. We also get into foreboding joy, Teresa's decade-long refusal to skip dance, and the archery outing she still hasn't taken.

Grab your coffee (or your latte, no judgment) and press play.

If this one gave you a little spark, you can support the podcast by "buying me a coffee (or Teresa's latte)" at the link below. Every cup keeps these conversations coming.

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What happens when your brain is really good at solving problems... and then, for once, there isn't one to solve?

This week's Nudge episode started with a line from a novel I read recently — "What am I supposed to seek justice for now?" — and a much bigger question from a conversation with my coach: what if the actual problem is that there isn't a problem? Turns out my nervous system finds "everything is fine" more than a little suspicious.

I get into hovering above our own lives with a clipboard, dragons we may have already finished slaying, and whether joy and ease ask something of us that achievement never had to.

But there's no seven-step plan here. Just some out-loud wondering about who we are when there's nothing left to fix.

If you are enjoying the show, please consider supporting the podcast by "buying me a coffee" at the link below. Every cup keeps these conversations coming.

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What if the truest résumé of your life isn't the one with job titles on it?

This week's Play Date is with Cynthia Morris — writing and creativity coach, novelist, and former hot air balloon chef in the Alps (a real job, apparently) — who's spent 25+ years helping creative people clear out what she calls "the inner gunk." We dig into her concept of an adventure résumé: mapping the moments that actually shaped you instead of the ones that fit neatly on LinkedIn.

We also get into what happens once "good" already exists and you're reaching for spectacular and why Cynthia flatly rejects the word permission in favor of recognition.

Grab your coffee — this one's a generous, wide-reaching conversation about the detours that turn out to be the whole point.

Find Cynthia's novel Her Lisbon Colors, her Substack, and more in the show notes.

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What if “I’m too old” isn’t a fact, but a story we’ve been telling ourselves for so long it started to sound true?

In this Nudge episode, I explore the particular gremlin that insists we’ve missed our chance or gotten too old for something—and the possibility that maybe we’re not too late at all. Maybe we’re just standing at a threshold, looking at doors we haven’t tried yet.

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In this Play Date episode, I’m talking with creativity coach, writer, artist, and podcaster Catherine LaSota about becoming your own authority—questioning the expectations you’ve absorbed, trusting the path that actually fits you, and building a life around your real values and needs instead of somebody else’s idea of how you should be doing it.

We talk about giving ourselves permission to make our own rules, creating lives that are sustainable instead of simply productive, following the threads that pull at us, and why fun isn’t nearly as frivolous as we’ve been taught to believe.

We also get into winding career paths, creative identity, and Catherine’s delightfully named Be Your Own Daddy approach to becoming your own authority figure.

And perhaps the most important point: you are never going to be the valedictorian of life. Which means maybe we can all stop trying quite so hard to earn the A+.

Find Catherine at catherinelasota.com and her podcast, Feed the Art.

Sign up for Catherine's free Fall Equinox Writing Workshop on Sep 22, 2026 HERE

Making an independent podcast takes time, coffee, and yes, actual money. If this episode made you laugh, think, or see something a little differently, please consider supporting the show by "buying me a coffee" -- we all know how much I like a good cuppa.

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Have you ever caught yourself rushing when you have absolutely nowhere you need to be?

In this Nudge, I’m sharing the morning I found myself hurrying just so I could relax and meditate. (Yes, I see the irony.)

It got me wondering how often we rush simply because we’ve gotten used to rushing—and whether the pace of our lives might be a little more ours to choose than we think.

Consider this episode your invitation to question the hurry.

Making an independent podcast takes time, coffee, and yes, actual money. If this episode made you laugh, think, or see something a little differently, please consider supporting the show by "buying me a coffee" -- we all know how much I like a good cuppa.

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Somewhere around midlife, the roles that used to fit us start to feel like pants that won't button — and creativity, it turns out, is how we find our way back to who's underneath them. In this Play Date, I sit down with artist and midlife transformation mentor Minette Riordan to bust the myth that creativity = art (blame the Renaissance), explore why wordless collage can crack open truths we didn't know we were hiding, and talk about what happens when you finally give yourself permission to put art at the center of your life instead of cramming it into the leftover minutes. Along the way: the "cup and saucer" wisdom about filling your own well, why resistance is often just fear wearing a disguise, and Minette's gorgeously defiant mantra — be the queen of your own damn story.

Making an independent podcast takes time, coffee, and yes, actual money. If this episode made you laugh, think, or see something a little differently, please consider supporting the show by "buying me a coffee" -- we all know how much I like a good cuppa.

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I grew up in the era of fine china saved for occasions that never came, and formal living rooms no one was allowed to sit in — a whole generation preparing for a party that never quite happened.

Turns out I never outgrew asking why. In this Nudge episode, I follow that question somewhere I didn't expect — from the stuff in our closets to the beliefs and dreams we've quietly packed away and stopped looking at altogether.

What are you saving instead of savoring? I have a hunch, by the end of this episode, you'll have some unexpected answers, too.

Making an independent podcast takes time, coffee, and yes, actual money. If this episode made you laugh, think, or see something a little differently, please consider supporting the show by "buying me a coffee" -- we all know how much I like a good cuppa.

Support the show

Find more episodes at www.iusedtobefunpodcast.com

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