The Meaningful Life with Andrew G. Marshall

At work and at home, we tend to avoid difficult conversations for as long as we can. So it’s not surprising that when we are forced to face conflict, it quickly escalates to a fever pitch. Many of us are also guilty of treating relationship conflict as a winner-takes-all debate, rather than an opportunity for connection and change. Conflict expert, academic and author ROBERT BORDONE has developed an approach to help: conflict resilience. This mindset allows us to sit with and grow from disagreement, and to communicate with authority and confidence while not leaving others feeling unheard. In the episode, Andrew and Bob cover: Getting out of your own way as a communicator The importance of timing Embracing disagreement as an advantage Anticipating and coping with defensiveness Bob Bordone is an internationally recognized expert, author, speaker, and teacher in negotiation, conflict resolution, mediation, facilitation, and conflict resilience. As the Founder and Principal of The Cambridge Negotiation Institute, Bob consults with C-suite executives, government officials and leaders at universities and across a wide range of industries to help them navigate their toughest conflicts and negotiations. He is a Senior Fellow at Harvard Law School, and teaches at Harvard and at Georgetown University Law Center. His latest book, co-authored with Joel Salinas, is Conflict Resilience: Negotiating Disagreement Without Giving Up or Giving In. If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 This week supporters will hear: Getting away from ‘I'm right and you're wrong’. Three Things Bob Bordone knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Attend Andrew’s men’s retreat near Berlin in April 2026: details here Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things Read Bob Bordone and Joel Salinas’ new book: Conflict Resilience: Negotiating Disagreement Without Giving Up or Giving In. Visit Bob Bordone’s website Follow Bob Bordone on YouTube Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

Many of us indulge in escapist or addictive behaviours that fall short of what society would define as problematic addictions. According to author CECILY MAK, however, such behaviours can dim the good parts of life along with the bad. If you want to live life with clarity and purpose, identifying and addressing your “dimmers” can make an excellent starting point. In this episode, Andrew and Cecily discuss: Cecily’s own experience of giving up alcohol. What happens when we avoid difficult feelings. The Eight Awarenesses - a set of principles we can use for inspiration and guidance on the path to embodying a clear life. Why dimmers are not always a substance: they may also include excessive exercise, disordered eating, or overworking. Cecily Mak is a mother, investor, advocate, and founder devoted to helping people live dimmer-free—with clarity, courage, and the freedom to change without stigma or shame. She is also the co-founder of Wisdom Ventures, a bold fund investing in a future of deeper human connection and well-being. If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 This week supporters will hear: Free Yourself from Unwanted Habits Three Things Cecily Mak knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Attend Andrew’s men’s retreat near Berlin in April 2026: details here Read Cecily Mak’s new book, Undimmed: The Eight Awarenesses for Freedom From Unwanted Habits Listen to Cecily Mak’s Undimmed podcast Subscribe to Cecily Mak’s Clear Life Substack Follow Cecily Mak on social media: Instagram | LinkedIn Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

Why is the sky blue? Why do only birds get to fly? Why do people die? It’s natural for children to ask questions, big and small. But too often, adults brush off such questions as an annoyance, or scold kids for being rude, or even respond to their asking with punishment. When that happens, many children stop asking and grow up to become adults who believe it’s safer to stay quiet and squelch their inherent, and essential, sense of wonder. Author LAURA MUNSON joins Andrew this week to discuss: Naming and inhabiting our own creativity Rediscovering our sense of wonder The power of surrendering to life’s mysteries. Finding your calling Finding meaning through slowing down. Laura Munson is the New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author of the novel Willa’s Grove and the memoir This Is Not The Story You Think It Is. Her latest book is The Wild Why. Laura also founded and continues to offer the top-ranked Haven Writing Retreats. Laura has been featured or published in Vanity Fair, Elle, Redbook, Time, Newsweek, The New York Times' “Modern Love” column, The New York Times Magazine, O, The Oprah Magazine, and many others. She has appeared on Good Morning America, The Early Show, WGN, NPR, London’s This Morning, Australia’s Sunrise, and other global media outlets. If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 This week supporters will hear: How to Cope Better with Criticism Again Three Things Laura Munson knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Attend Andrew’s men’s retreat near Berlin in April 2026: details here https://andrewgmarshall.com/mens-retreat/ Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things https://andrewgmarshall.com/download/ Connect With Laura Munson: Website: https://lauramunson.com/ Book: The Wild Why Writing Programs and Retreats Modern Love Essay in the New York Times. Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools https://courses.andrewgmarshall.com/relationship-tools Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 https://www.patreon.com/andrewgmarshall Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

What is personality? Can it change over time? How does our personality influence the ways we find meaning in our lives? DR RALPH PIEDMONT has spent decades answering these questions; training under the original developers of the Big Five personality model, and focusing also on the spiritual and transcendent dimensions that give life deeper meaning. This week Andrew and Dr Piedmont discuss: The Big Five personality model How understanding our own personality can help us create deeper, more authentic relationships. How spirituality fits into our understanding of personality. Dr. Piedmont received his Ph.D. in Personality Psychology from Boston University. He was a full professor in the Department of Pastoral Counseling at Loyola University Maryland and is now the Managing Director of the Center for Professional Studies. His current research interests focus on the measurement of Spiritual Transcendence, a construct that represents a broad, nondenominational, motivational measure of spirituality. Dr Piedmont is a fellow of the American Psychological Association and a member of the American Counseling Association (ACA). If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 This week supporters will hear: Hope: What it is, why we need it, and how to find it in dark times. Three Things Ralph Piedmont knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Attend Andrew’s men’s retreat near Berlin in April 2026: details here Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things Visit the website of the Center for Professional Studies, where Dr Piedmont is Managing Director Read Dr Piedmont’s book, Understanding the Psychological Soul of Spirituality: A Guidebook for Research and Practice Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50. Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

Are narcissists capable of love? Is it possible for them to achieve emotional transformation through therapy? And what does it mean to be the partner of a narcissist? Jungian psychoanalyst and friend of the podcast DR SUSAN SCHWARTZ joins Andrew this week to discuss her new book, An Analytical Exploration of Love and Narcissism: The Tragedy of Isolation and Intimacy. Drawing on Jungian concepts and the myth of Narcissus and Echo, Susan explains: How we misunderstand narcissism The creative energy of the narcissist The ways narcissists can be deeply vulnerable How narcissists can learn to be emotionally intimate. Dr Susan Schwartz is a Jungian analyst who trained in Switzerland and lives in the USA. She teaches in numerous Jungian programs, workshops, and lectures in the USA and worldwide. She is also a clinical psychologist and member of the International Association of Analytical Psychology. Her other books include:The Absent Father Effect on Daughters, A Jungian Exploration of the Puella Archetype and Imposter Syndrome and The ‘As-If’ Personality in Analytical Psychology. If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 This week supporters will hear: Why are narcissists so compelling? Three Things Susan Schwartz knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things Read Dr Susan Schwartz’s new book, An Analytical Exploration of Love and Narcissism: The Tragedy of Isolation and Intimacy Visit Dr Susan Schwartz’s website Follow Dr Susan Schwartz on Facebook and Instagram Listen to Andrew’s previous interviews with Dr Susan Schwartz: Daughters and Fathers, and Imposter Syndrome. Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

If you’re feeling exhausted and unmotivated, clinical psychologist and author Dr Diana Hill suggests that you may be channelling your energy in the wrong direction. Many of us feel that we do too much, and yet get nowhere - this is because we are misdirecting the precious resource of our energy. In this episode, Andrew and Diana discuss: The high-achiever at work whose patterns backfire in relationships. Running away from discomfort and how this keeps us stuck. “Genius energy” - our unique, inherent strengths that show up in our talents and gifts. How to reclaim and better direct your energy Diana Hill, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist and a leading expert on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Drawing from the most current psychological research and contemplative wisdom, Diana bridges science with real-life practices to help people grow fulfilling and impactful lives. She is the author of four books including I Know I Should Exercise, But..., The Self-Compassion Daily Journal, ACT Daily Journal, and her latest, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most (September 2025). She's the host of the Wise Effort Podcast and her insights have been featured by NPR, Wall Street Journal, and Psychology Today. If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 This week supporters will hear: Wise effort at work. Three things Diana Hill knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things Learn more about Diana Hill: Read her book: Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most. Listen to her podcast: The Wise Effort Show Visit her website: www.drdianahill.com Follow her on social media: @drdianahill on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. InsightTimer: https://insighttimer.com/drdianahill Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 https://www.patreon.com/andrewgmarshall Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall

With the help of artificial intelligence (AI), we now know almost everything there is to know: except perhaps who we are and actually what matters to us. With notifications pinging and algorithms grabbing our attention, THAT kind of clarity perhaps feels even harder to find. In this episode, author and entrepreneur SOREN GORDHAMER discusses with Andrew what AI has already changed about the experience of being human, and how we can prepare for an AI-dominated future. Soren and Andrew discuss: Reclaiming your time and attention from digital overwhelm Truth and storytelling in the age of AI Your lived experience vs AI’s advice. Soren Gordhamer is founder and host of Wisdom 2.0, which explores living with greater mindfulness, wisdom, and compassion in the modern age. He spent a year walking through parts of the world on an environmental walk, three years teaching meditation to incarcerated teens in NYC, and is an investor in start ups including OpenAI and Anthropic. A partner at Wisdom Ventures, Soren is currently focused on the impact AI will have on our world, and how our society can prepare. If You’re Looking for More…. You can subscribe to The Meaningful Life (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Google Podcasts) and hear a bonus mini-episode every week. Or you can join our Supporters Club on Patreon to also access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 This week supporters will hear: Working with what is. Three things Soren Gordhamer knows to be true. AND subscribers also access all of our previous bonus content - a rich trove of insight on love, life and meaning created by Andrew and his interviewees. Follow Up Get Andrew’s free guide to difficult conversations with your partner: How to Tell Your Partner Difficult Things Read Soren Gordhamer’s book, THE ESSENTIAL: Discovering What Really Matters in an Age of Distraction Visit Soren Gordhamer's website: www.sorengordhamer.net Follow Soren Gordhamer on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wisdom2events/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Wisdom2confraction X: https://x.com/wisdom2conf Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wisdom2conference Take a look at Andrew’s new online relationship course: My Best Relationship Tools Join our Supporters Club to access exclusive behind-the-scenes content, fan requests and the chance to ask Andrew your own questions. Membership starts at just £4.50 https://www.patreon.com/andrewgmarshall Andrew offers regular advice on love, marriage and finding meaning in your life via his social channels. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube @andrewgmarshall