The deeper the love, the more uncomfortable it gets, and learning how to work with that truth may change the way you relate forever.

If you’ve ever wondered why love sometimes feels harder over time, why irritation replaces ease, or why closeness can feel strangely destabilizing, this conversation offers a grounded and deeply wise and kind perspective. Rather than trying to fix or escape discomfort, you’ll learn how meeting it together can actually deepen intimacy and connection.

In this Best of episode, Jonathan sits down with writer and meditation teacher Susan Piver, New York Times bestselling author of The Four Noble Truths of Love: Buddhist Wisdom for Modern Relationships. Susan has studied Buddhism for more than 30 years and founded The Open Heart Project, an online dharma community with nearly 20,000 members.

In this conversation, you’ll discover:

• A simple reframe that explains why love feels hardest with the people we care about most
• How discomfort can become a doorway to deeper intimacy rather than a sign that something’s wrong
• The subtle way self-criticism quietly shapes how we treat our partners
• A powerful alternative to blame that changes how conflict unfolds
• Why intimacy can deepen even when romance naturally fades

Love isn’t meant to be comfortable or predictable. It’s meant to be alive. Press play to learn how to stay open, connected, and compassionate when relationships feel hardest.

You can find Susan Piver at: Website | Instagram | Episode Transcript

Next week, be sure to tune in for my conversation with Lisa Mosconi about women’s brain health, menopause, and what it all means for long-term cognitive wellbeing.

Check out our offerings & partners:

• Join My New Writing Project: Awake at the Wheel
• Visit Our Sponsor Page For Great Resources & Discount Codes

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What if excellence isn’t about winning, but becoming?

For so many of us, the word excellence has become tangled up with perfectionism, obsession, and relentless hustle. No wonder it feels heavy, triggering, or out of reach.

In this conversation, we explore a very different understanding of excellence, one rooted in meaning, care, and deep engagement. Together, we unpack why modern life makes it so hard to focus, why joy and rest are essential to growth, and how pursuing what truly matters can quietly reshape who you become.

Brad Stulberg is a bestselling author, writer for The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, co-host of the podcast Excellence, Actually, and faculty member at the University of Michigan. His newest book is The Way of Excellence: A Guide to True Greatness and Deep Satisfaction in a Chaotic World.

In this episode, you’ll discover

• A powerful redefinition of excellence that frees you from perfectionism
• Why mastery and mattering are essential for deep satisfaction
• A simple way to reclaim focus in a world designed to distract you
• How joy, rest, and renewal fuel long-term growth
• A practical framework for balancing ambition with the rest of your life

If you’ve ever felt pulled to do meaningful work but exhausted by the way success is usually framed, this conversation offers a wiser, more human path forward. Press play to explore what excellence can become.

You can find Brad at: Website | LinkedIn | Episode Transcript

Next week, be sure to tune in for my conversation with Susan Piver about why love feels hard and how that discomfort can deepen intimacy. Follow the show in your favorite listening app so it’s right there when the episode drops.

Check out our offerings & partners:

• Join My New Writing Project: Awake at the Wheel
• Visit Our Sponsor Page For Great Resources & Discount Codes

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When life upends everything, what still matters?

When the future you assumed disappears, the questions get sharper. This conversation explores how meaning, values, and hope evolve when time feels uncertain and life breaks open in unexpected ways.

In this deeply human and reflective episode, Jonathan Fields sits down with Lucy Kalanithi, a physician, storyteller, and Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine at Stanford University. She is the widow of neurosurgeon and writer Paul Kalanithi, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller When Breath Becomes Air, for which Lucy wrote the unforgettable epilogue.

Together, they explore what it means to live honestly in the presence of mortality, how our sense of time and identity shifts through loss, and how values can guide choices when certainty is gone.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• A simple but profound way to make decisions when the future feels unclear
• How redefining hope can ease fear without denying reality
• Why you cannot have everything, and how that clarity can be freeing
• A humane framework for navigating medical and life decisions
• What it really means to build a life that fits who you are

When life changes in ways you never expected, clarity does not come from control. It comes from listening more closely. Press play to explore what truly matters, and how to live with intention even when the path ahead is uncertain.

You can find Lucy at: Website | Episode Transcript

Next week, be sure to tune in for my conversation with Brad Stulberg about what excellence really is, and how pursuing it can help you feel more alive, not burned out. And don’t forget to follow the show in your favorite listening app.

Check out our offerings & partners:

• Join My New Writing Project: Awake at the Wheel
• Visit Our Sponsor Page For Great Resources & Discount Codes

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.