I met Dr. Mike Barnes in 2018, when I served as executive coach for the leadership at the Foundry, the addiction treatment center here in Steamboat Springs, CO, where he served as Clinical Director. My respect and appreciation for Mike grew quickly in the course of that partnership, built especially upon Mike's willingness to learn from anything and anyone–despite the long alphabet salad of credentials behind his name and his position of esteem in the addiction treatment, trauma, and family therapy community. Since then, our paths have continued to cross, and I've continued to benefit greatly from his friendship and mentorship.

This year, he published his first book, When the Solution Becomes the Problem: Helping Families Struggling with Addiction and Trauma. Unlike most books on families and addiction that give prescriptive advice, this book partners with families to help them understand why implementing expert recommendations can be so challenging. By delving into the "why," families gain insights into their current crisis and the factors contributing to it. Ultimately, the book aims to guide families away from the perspective of "we are a family with a loved one who struggles with addiction" towards embracing the identity of "we are a family in recovery from addiction and trauma." By fostering understanding, empathy, and actionable guidance, it empowers families to break free from the cycle of addiction and trauma, promoting healing and a renewed sense of togetherness.

It's a pleasure to introduce you to Mike and provide a glimpse into an innovative and compassionate approach to helping families struggling with addiction and trauma.

Let's Connect

If this episode helped you, I'd love to know. Find me on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, visit my website, or email me.

Connect with Mike

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Get Mike's Book

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At the beginning of 2024, Chris Ray embarked on a new Adventure. We captured Chris' thoughts and expectations at the beginning of the Adventure in Ep. 096. This is the promised "after" episode, in which Chris and I explore how the Adventure impacted him.

Chris' story showcases the power of the Big 6 to create big results in our lives. The Big 6 are essential ingredients in the recipe for a life we're outrageously proud of: Courage, Humility, Truth-telling, Self-permission, Self-responsibility, and Self-knowledge. Tune in to Ep. 095, How to Become Someone You Feel Genuinely Good About, for a deep dive into the Big 6.

I hope this episode is useful to you! As always, thank you for your time, trust, and attention.

Remember, you ARE going to die. But you're not dead yet. So get after it!

How Did This Episode Land for You?

I'd love to know. Find me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, visit my website, or email me.

Connect with Chris

Email | Instagram | Facebook (public) | Facebook (private) | Website

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If You Liked This Episode, I Think You'll Like These, Too

• Ep. 086 | The Best is Yet to Come: Rediscovering an Ancient Compass for a Life of Purpose and Adventure Today
• Ep. 090 | A Tale of Two Mountaineers: How Comfort Sabotages Our Contentment, and What To Do About It
• Ep. 092 | Crack the Contentment Code: Find the Path to Contentment
• Ep. 094 | Beyond Resolutions: A Heroic Path to Your Best Year Yet

New Here?

If you're new to this show, welcome! I invite you to browse the archive of past interviews with fascinating people and short, topical solo episodes--all designed to equip you with the mindset and the means to become the person you were made to be and live the life you were made to live with guts, gusto, and abandon. We flip the script by inviting our ancient foe, Death, to become an unlikely ally in our heroic journey to leave it all out on the field of life. Mortality might just be the best motivator available--blasting us out of our ambivalence and complacency and toward the fullness of our potential. I'm so glad you tuned in today. Thank you for your time, trust, and attention. Don't forget to follow this show, and I'll see you next time on Andrew Petty is Dying.

In this episode, I sit down with my pastor and friend, Chris Marsh, to dig into how a very recent and very close encounter with Mortality has impacted him and his family. Along the way, we explore:

• how to find solid ground in the face of crippling fear
• the necessity of appealing to the transcendent
• the gift of suffering

As always, thank you for your time, trust, and attention.

Remember, you ARE going to die. But you're not dead yet. So get after it!

Let's Connect

If this episode helped you, I'd love to know. Find me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, visit my website, or email me.

Connect with Chris: Email

Follow Andrew Petty is Dying & Leave a Review

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If You Liked This Episode, I Think You'll Like These, Too

• Ep. 011 | Embracing Mystery, When to Call It a Day, and What Matters Most: Lessons from an Astonishing Life-After-Death Story
• Ep. 018 | Life's 3 Big Questions: A Conversation with the Coroner

In a hurry? Like me, you might do well to tap into some wisdom from the farm.

On this episode, I offer a confession en route to extracting some wisdom from the farm that applies to all of us if we're willing to hear it.

I also offer what I suspect is a much-needed clarification of what I mean by "get after it"--the phrase with which I close my standard episode sign-off. If you're often in a hurry and "get after it" only makes it worse, be sure to stay tuned in to the end of this episode.

Remember: You ARE going to die. But you're not dead yet. So get after it!

Let's Connect

Find me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, visit my website, or email me.

Follow Andrew Petty is Dying & Leave a Review

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts

If You Liked This Episode, I Think You'll Like These, Too

• EP 095 | How to Become Someone You Feel Genuinely Good About
• EP 075 | Keep Going: The Underrated Secret to a Wonderful Life

How can we stay positive and free from fear when the news is overwhelmingly bad and fear-based?

I got this topic idea in the form of a question from a good friend and a former guest on this show, Frederic Tate. You can find him on Ep. 056 Ignore at Your Own Risk: How Your Relationship with Death Affects Your Quality of Life, with Dr. Frederic Tate. Frederic's a fascinating guy with a fascinating story. I thoroughly enjoyed that interview, and I wholeheartedly recommend that episode.

Frederic's experience is that it is difficult to stay positive and free from fear when he perceives the news to be overwhelmingly bad and fear-based. Many of you can relate. It is a wild time to be alive on planet earth.

In this episode, I offer 5 specific ways to stay positive and free from fear when the news is overwhelmingly bad and fear-based:

1. Practice solitude.
2. Consume the news in small doses and pick your sources thoughtfully.
3. Invest much more of your time, energy, and attention in things that are within your realm of influence than in things that aren't.
4. Nurture meaningful relationships and cultivate more as needed.
5. Cultivate a relationship with the Transcendent.

I elaborate quite a bit on each of those five points, and point three has several supporting subpoints, so tune into the full episode for the full benefit–including a discussion of some of the particular perils and pitfalls to avoid that are uniquely associated with the globalized age we live in.

Remember: You ARE going to die. But you're not dead yet. So get after it!

Let's Connect

Find me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, visit my website, or email me.

Follow Andrew Petty is Dying & Leave a Review

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts

If You Liked This Episode, I Think You'll Like These, Too

• Ep. 022 | Tune Out to Tune In: Hearing & Heeding Your Inner Voice in a World Full of Noise
• Ep. 081 | How to Change the World: An Antidote to Apathy and Despair in an Age of Doom and Gloom

What is bravery, and why is it so important? What are some of the common counterfeits of bravery? How can we detect and eliminate them from our own lives? How can we get braver?

As an "arms dealer for the creative revolution," Todd Henry is the author of seven books and a veteran podcaster of 19 years who speaks internationally on creativity, productivity, and passion for work, and helps people and teams generate brilliant ideas.

Todd's new book, The Brave Habit, is a concise, persuasive, and timely treatise on bravery. In today's conversation, we explore bravery through the lens of The Brave Habit in pursuit of actionable insights for all of us. Todd also shares how an encounter with Mortality when he was 15 radically altered his perception of risk and what's most important.

I first invited Todd to be on the show in early 2020. The timing wasn't right for a variety of reasons, though, and then COVID hit and all bets were off for a while. I'm grateful four years later to be able to bring you Todd's wisdom and insights today.

In this episode, you will learn how to:

• Cultivate authentic bravery in your daily life to unlock more of your potential in service to others.
• Overcome fear by taking action and embrace the exhilarating freedom on the other side.
• Embrace the impact of mortality on life choices and discover the transformative power it holds.

Key moments in this episode include:

• 00:00:00 - The Deceptive Nature of Fear
• 00:00:54 - Importance of Bravery
• 00:02:04 - Cultivating the Brave Habit
• 00:04:43 - Todd Henry's Journey to Brave Habit
• 00:07:38 - The Definition of Bravery
• 00:13:40 - Starting Over with Daily Creative
• 00:14:44 - The Right Thing to Do
• 00:17:32 - Bravery as a Habit
• 00:18:53 - Close Encounter with Mortality
• 00:23:32 - Connecting with Todd Henry's Work

Remember: You ARE going to die. But you're not dead yet. So get after it!

Let's Connect

Find me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, visit my website, or email me.

Connect with Todd

Email | Website | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter

Get your copy of The Brave Habit.

Follow Andrew Petty is Dying & Leave a Review

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If You Liked This Episode, I Think You'll Like These, Too

• Ep. 005 | How to Become the Boss of Your Fear: Bravery-building to Live With More Guts and Gusto
• Ep. 077 | The Big 6 (Part 1): Essential Ingredients in the Recipe for a Life You'll be Outrageously Proud of When You Die

This episode is different in a few notable ways. First, it's extemporaneous. Second, I recorded it to video for release on my fledgling YouTube channel, where all of my past episodes currently reside. Finally, I share news about the future of the podcast–an ending to make way for a new beginning.

Key moments in this episode include:
00:00:01 - Embracing Change and New Beginnings
00:03:24 - Pursuing a Unified Framework
00:08:07 - Making Bold Choices
00:11:10 - Moving Forward with Conviction
00:13:48 - Seeking Audience Input

Remember, you ARE going to die. But you're not dead yet. So get after it!

Let's Connect

Find me on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, visit my website, or email me.

Follow Andrew Petty is Dying & Leave a Review

Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher

If You Liked This Episode, I Think You'll Like These, Too

• Ep. 022 | Tune Out to Tune In: Hearing & Heeding Your Inner Voice in a World Full of Noise
• Ep. 032 | Reimagining Productivity: A Path to Greater Freedom and Fulfillment