About this episode

Dr. Suzan Song discusses the concept of agency in the face of suffering and instability, drawing from her personal experiences and professional insights.

What if suffering is not a detour from life, but one of the places where meaning begins? In this episode of Leveraging Thought Leadership, Bill Sherman speaks with Dr. Suzan Song , MD, PhD, about instability, agency, and the human search for groundedness when life breaks open. Her work spans clinical care, global systems, conflict zones, and executive leadership. Her core question is simple and urgent: how do people move through suffering without losing themselves? Dr. Song shares the deeply personal origin of her work. After losing her father to violence as a teenager, she pushed forward through achievement, education, and service. Years later, while working with former child soldiers in Burundi, she found herself in danger and saw the connection between her past and her work. That moment helped her understand the deeper spark behind her mission. Her book, Why We Suffer , grew out of that mission. It is not a promise that life can be made painless. It is a practical look at how people can navigate hardship through narrative, ritual, purpose, connection, and agency. Dr. Song challenges the idea that healing is only individual. Across cultures, she has seen that people heal in…

People in this episode

Host: Bill Sherman

Guest: Dr. Suzan Song

Topics covered

• agency
• instability
• suffering
• leadership
• healing
• narrative

Keywords

• agency
• suffering
• leadership
• healing
• narrative
• instability
• connection

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Why We Suffer

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