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PODCAST

What"s on Your Bookshelf?

Denise Russo and Zach Elliott

“What’s On Your Bookshelf” is a personal and professional growth podcast exploring the intersections of passion, potential, and purpose - featuring multi-certified coach and leadership development consultant Denise R. Russo alongside Sam Powell, Zach Elliott, Tom Schweizer, Dennis LaRue, and Michelle King.

education self-improvement

All Episodes

35:26

141 The Four Agreements: Do Your Best, Today

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/12/17

We explore the Fourth Agreement—always do your best—and how it unlocks the other three. Through stories on careers, caregiving, and community, we trade perfectionism for presence and turn insight into action. • how doing your best changes across seasons • linking the four agreements through daily practice • atomic habits and identity-based change • the meditation parable on joy versus overwork • detaching from rewards to find meaning • action over theory in relationships and work • setting h...

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32:45

140 The Four Agreements: Assumptions Unraveled

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/12/10

We explore the Third Agreement—don’t make assumptions—through real stories at work and home, and connect it to impeccable words and not taking things personally. Curiosity, clear communication, and coaching emerge as tools to replace guesswork with truth and recover agency. • the trap of adding meanings that were never said • how merit myths distort hiring and rejection • assuming positive intent to lower threat and listen • practical questions that replace stories with facts • coaching as a...

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36:55

139 The Four Agreements: Own Your Reactions, Find...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/12/04

We explore the second agreement from The Four Agreements and show how not taking things personally creates real freedom. Personal stories, practical tools, and a clear path to separate identity from other people’s words and your own inner critic • Why “not taking it personally” breaks hidden agreements • Words as spells that bind or free • The cost of praise and criticism when you cling to either • Childhood labels shaping adult identity • Reframing feedback as data not destiny • Choice over...

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39:18

138 The Four Agreements: The Power Of Impeccable Words

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/12/03

We unpack the first of The Four Agreements—be impeccable with your word—and show how language can free you from despair, gossip, and self-betrayal. Through stories, studies, and practical steps, we map a path from reactive speech to clear, kind, and effective communication. • defining agreements as accepted beliefs that shape behavior • why words are “magic” and how tone carries intent • garden metaphor for thoughts as seeds and mind as soil • stories on encouragement, silence, and lasting i...

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32:36

137 The Four Agreements: Waking Up From The Dream Of...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/12/03

We question the dream of society, how attention is trained by repetition, and why most of our beliefs were never chosen by us. We map the Judge and the Victim, explore fear versus love, and share practical ways to rewrite old agreements and reclaim energy. • dreaming while awake and the dream of the planet • attention as a spotlight that shapes belief • domestication through punishment and reward • cultural programming, normalizing and perspective shifts • the book of law, the Judge and the ...

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26:05

136 The Four Agreements: Opening The Door To Personal...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/11/12

We open a new arc with The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, shifting from a year of habits and happiness into a practice of inner freedom rooted in Toltec wisdom. The smoky mirror story sets our theme: clear the fog, see the light, and rebuild beliefs that actually serve. • framing freedom as the progression after happiness and habits • why Toltec roots and the smoky mirror metaphor matter • decisions that pinch and how projection clouds advice • images of light versus labels and roles • ...

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28:20

135 Next Up: The Space Between Books

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/11/05

We pause between books to invite you to read with us and announce The Four Agreements as our next deep dive into practical personal freedom for work and life. We share why slow, deliberate reading changes behavior, and offer a complimentary Agile Brain assessment to support the journey. • reason for a pause and invitation to catch up • announcement of The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz • link promise to buy from Amazon or Barnes & Noble • personal freedom as a leadership cornerstone ...

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49:45

SP6 Special Edition Agile Brain: Climbing The Pyramid...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/30

We map a four-sided pyramid of human needs—self, social, material, spiritual—and explore how foundations enable higher aims like purpose and transcendence. Research, culture, and real stories show why ethics, community, and conscious reflection turn values into action and bias into empathy. • defining the four opposing life domains • why foundations like safety and justice come first • evidence from goal research and world cultures • how self leads to social, then to spiritual • in‑group bia...

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59:31

SP5 Special Edition Agile Brain: Justice, Ethics, And...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/29

We trace how justice, ethics, and transcendence shape a meaningful life and why chasing happiness fails while purpose endures. JD Pincus shares research, history, and a practical tool to surface unmet needs and align action with values. • defining the spiritual domain and why it matters • rules to ethics to transcendence as a growth ladder • evidence for principle-driven sacrifice across species and cultures • history’s awakenings fueling social change and justice • trauma’s link to purpose ...

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45:24

SP3 Special Edition Agile Brain:Autonomy To Flow

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/28

We explore how autonomy enables immersion and why true success is a byproduct of meeting core emotional needs, not a shortcut to status. Stories of lottery winners, creatives, athletes, and leaders reveal why skipping foundations backfires and how failure becomes fuel. • autonomy as permission, resources, skill, and influence • immersion as real employee engagement and deep work • flow state conditions and practical workplace fixes • failure as essential to mastery and learning • power parad...

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49:46

SP4 Special Edition Agile Brain: Lonely Hearts,...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/28

We explore why inclusion, connection, and recognition are the social motives that make work and life feel meaningful, and how loneliness quietly harms health, teams, and trust. Stories from reality TV to school lunchrooms reveal why sincere care and specific praise beat trophies every time. • inclusion as the base of belonging • connection deepening care and trust • sincere recognition versus programs • grief as real social pain in the brain • loneliness risks and hea...

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45:48

SP2 Special Edition Agile Brain: Self, Safety, And...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/24

We explore how psychological safety enables authenticity, and how authenticity unlocks potential. JD Pincus connects fear, narcissism, imposter syndrome, and conspiracy thinking to a broader model of self, social, material, and spiritual domains, leading to transcendence. • Safety as the basis for authentic expression • Apprenticeship and voice development before mastery • Redefining self-actualization as attitude, not fame • The four domains reframed with an integrated self • Evidence-based...

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32:09

SP1 Special Edition Agile Brain: Emotions Drive The...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/23

We launch a special seven-part series with Dr. JD Pincus exploring the 12 emotional needs that shape decisions, leadership, and fulfillment. Emotions lead, thoughts explain, and leaders thrive when they surface needs and align habits with values. • origin story from punk band to psychologist • scope of the book and why the bibliography matters • emotions as primary drivers over rational intention • CBT and habit loops for rewiring behavior • naming and working with the 12 emotional needs • l...

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30:34

134 UnF Yourself: Conclusion-Step Up, Then Think

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/22

We close out the book’s final chapter with a clear call to move from mantra to motion, to treat growth as a loop—think, act, learn, repeat—and to choose deliberate trade-offs instead of waiting for perfect timing. Stories, tools, and a simple challenge help you shift from can’t to won’t to done. • mindset loop from internal assertions to external action • sacrifice and invisible work behind visible success • stop waiting for perfect timing and change current behavior • can’t vs won’t reframe...

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34:08

133 UnF Yourself: Wake Up, Let Go, Move Forward

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/15

We explore how “expect nothing, accept everything” shifts us from rumination to action, drawing on Stoic ideas, happiness research, and candid stories from work and home. The theme is simple: lower the grip of outcomes, raise ownership in the present, and move. • why hidden expectations derail progress and mood • solving the reality–expectation gap without toxic positivity • Inside Out as a model for reframing and presence • attention bias and choosing what to notice • work examples where ti...

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29:33

132 UnF Yourself: Who resists your change more—them...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/10/08

We unpack Chapter 7—“I am relentless”—and connect mantras to motion, turning obstacles, doubt, and even well-meaning advice into fuel for consistent action. We share stories about evolving dreams, identity shifts, and practical ways to align emotion with execution. • recap of key mantras and why action matters • obstacles and discomfort as raw material for growth • rivers and water as a metaphor for persistence • loved ones’ advice as resistance and how to filter it • identity, judgment, and...

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31:52

131 UnF Yourself: I am Relentless-Escaping the...

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/09/03

We explore Chapter Six of Gary John Bishop's "Un-F Yourself," challenging the notion that we are defined by our thoughts and asserting that our actions ultimately determine our reality and results. • Your thoughts influence what you do, but you are defined by your actions, not what's in your head • Breaking through belief barriers requires focusing on the next small step rather than getting overwhelmed by the entire journey • Small, consistent actions compound over time to create significant...

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33:23

130 UnF Yourself: Embracing Life's Uncertainties

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/08/27

We explore embracing uncertainty as the pathway to growth and transformation in our lives, examining how our natural addiction to prediction often keeps us stuck in the past rather than moving forward. • Uncertainty is where new happens, but humans are wired to avoid it as a survival mechanism • What you want in life exists outside your comfort zone - if it were inside, you'd already have it • The most successful people doubted themselves daily but acted despite their fears • Theodore Roosev...

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29:51

129 UnF Yourself: I Got This! The Art of Self-Ownership

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/08/20

We explore Gary John Bishop's powerful message that no matter what obstacles we face, we already possess the inner strength to overcome them, though this doesn't mean we have perfect solutions or easy paths forward. • Negative experiences rarely stay contained – they spread like toxic chemicals into all aspects of our lives • There's no such thing as work-life balance because we have one integrated life where everything bleeds together • Reflecting on past challenges helps us recognize our r...

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32:25

128 UnF Yourself: Breaking Free from Self-Sabotage

What"s on Your Bookshelf? ·

2025/08/13

We dive into Chapter 3 of "Un**** Yourself" by Gary John Bishop, exploring the concept that we are all "wired to win" - sometimes at things we don't consciously want. • 95% of our daily actions are controlled by our subconscious mind • Your brain is constantly pushing you toward goals, even when you don't realize what those goals are • We can be "winning" at negative behaviors or situations like unhealthy relationships or unfulfilling jobs • Running away from something shouldn't be the path ...

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98 results

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