Fulfillment Equation

David Carley and Erin on Resourcefulness, Travel and Lifelong Learning

In this episode, I'm talking with entrepreneur, real estate investor and world traveller, David Carley. Dave is like a modern-day MacGyver in his persistent (sometimes stubborn, as he describes) commitment to figuring things out and making things happen. I dig into the innate qualities that have led to Dave's success to see if we can learn tricks to adopt them too! Things like: ability to handle stress, learning the rules, positive attitude, confidence, courage, persistence and dedication. We discuss travel and Dave shares his 1:1:1 rule - 1 day/week, 1 week/month, 1 month/year. He describes why it's helpful to learn from others and how experiences are like a university degree. Dave also describes how he's currently researching and designing his own formula for retirement. He gives us a good trick for defining your "why", which can be really helpful in getting you through tough times. Plus, you'll never believe the crazy story he tells about swapping jobs with his Dad! 
Finally, we build Dave's equation: 7F + 4W + 2T + 5e + 7ce

Erin and Josh on Adventures in Life Travel

Erin and Josh are back with a fresh travel episode! In this one, we lift out of commentary on specific destinations and focus on the experience of what we call "life travel". This refers to the 4-5 months a year we spend as a family, immersed in a blend of work, school, vacation and adventure on the road. We cover the what, why and how of life travel. We talk about what’s worked well, what’s not worked well and what we’ve learned - and we don't shy away from sharing the good, the bad and the ugly of it all! We also address how our travel experiences are evolving now that one of our kids has started high school. If you're interested in getting the inside scoop on what’s involved with living away from “home” for chunks of time every year, this episode is for you!

Shawn Johal and Erin on Tools for Well-Being, Success and Entrepreneurship

The power of the word success is in understanding that it is personal. YOU get to define what success means and YOU get to celebrate yourself when you meet your own criteria. Redefining success for yourself is one form of freedom. This involves letting go of everyone else’s definitions of success. As this week’s guest, Shawn Johal, says, “The only time you’re going to have the most liberating feeling of freedom is when you stop caring what other people think about you”.
My conversation with Shawn is absolutely jam-packed with all sorts of ideas and tools you can use for your own personal growth. Shawn is an entrepreneur, business coach, author and speaker. We talk about personal success, how stress is the biggest killer of energy and passion, the time/anger gap, the 3-2-1 rule, how to cultivate open-hearted curiousity, and small changes you can make to your morning/evening routines to foster well-being. Shawn also discusses the 3 key ingredients to being a great entrepreneur. You’ll be surprised to hear that they aren’t what you think (e.g. “risk-taker”) and not only that, they can be learned! Even if you aren’t an entrepreneur, these are skills worth growing.
Oh, and you’ll never guess the surprising translation behind Shawn’s birth name. Listen to find out!

Erin on Designing Your Personal Strategy (Personal Strategy: Step 2)

Now that we have created a clear picture of our future fulfillment, we can start the journey of connecting that wild, beautiful, long-term vision to our present life. But how do we do that? What if the distance between where I am and that future state feels less like a direct, well-marked path and more like trying to leap over a giant chasm on a motorcycle, blindfolded!
The goal of this next step is to create a personal strategy - a model - that will give us clarity and focus. It will be like taking off the blindfold so that we can see clearly, and constructing a bridge over the gap so that we can safely and efficiently navigate to the other side. Waiting there with anticipation, ready to greet you, will be your desired future self.
In this episode, I’ll explain three different approaches that you can take to identify the pillars and priorities that make up your personal strategy. It's like a choose-your-own-adventure for your own strategy design! Similar to other steps, I’ve included tons of examples, tips and tests to help you apply this in your own life.
Once developed, your personal strategy model will become your roadmap as you work towards building fulfillment in your future.

Lauren Best and Erin on Attitude, Preparation and The Power of Voice

This week, I’m talking to talented musician and published poet, Lauren Best. As an experienced vocal coach, Lauren talks about the power of voice and how singing is a gateway to many of the fulfillment foundations - things like relaxation, movement, connection to others, connection to our bodies, intuition, etc. Whether you're wanting to sing or build some other skill, Lauren has some great insights and advice that applies to all of us.
We take a deep dive to discover that attitude is a product of mindset and energy (attitude = mindset x energy) and that preparation is a combination of managing your expectations and doing the work (preparation = expectations + effort). We also discuss the importance of “3 P’s”: preparation, presence and purpose.
One of my favourite parts of the conversation was building Lauren's equation together: 14k + 7h + 7fd + 7e + 7fi + 7n + 4le +20w

Kevin Brady and Erin on Reaching Peak Health in Middle Age

In this week’s episode, I’m talking to entrepreneur, adventurer and world triathlon athlete Kevin Brady. For Kevin, it took a near-death experience to realize that being fit and being healthy are not the same thing. Kevin talks about the four wheels of health and how he said goodbye to a lifestyle full of busyness and stress and instead adopted a lifestyle focused on health and well-being. We also explore how to build more of what you love into every day, the relationship between adventure and risk, and examples of how he’s rewired his brain.
Finally, we build Kevin’s equation: (2i + 2c + 2bd)W +14e + 10s + [f + t]

Erin on Creating a Vision (Personal Strategy: Step 1)

When it comes to designing a personal strategy as part of your fulfillment journey, the first step is creating a vision. Our task: to write 7-10 sentences that clearly describe what our desired future looks like. But how do we do this? How do we dream big? And how do we craft our vision in a way that is most useful and powerful?
In this week’s episode, I’ll walk you through all of this and more. I’ve included tons of examples, tips and tests to help you create a rock solid personal vision. Why is this important? Because your personal vision will become your guiding light as you work towards building fulfillment in your future!

Sharon Bala and Erin on Redefining Ambition and Refining Your Craft

When this week's guest, Sharon Bala, moved from a big city to a remote area, she found a door closed on her corporate communications career and a new one opened for pursuing her interest in being a writer. Fast forward years later, and Sharon has become an award-winning, best-selling author whose debut novel "The Boat People" has been a national hit. In this episode, we talk about her experience in letting go of traditional measures of achievement and instead redefining ambition in the work itself. We also explore developing resilience to failure and rejection, and how community is just as important to a writer as is solitude. Sharon also offers helpful advice for venturing bravely into something new, particularly for aspiring writers. Finally, we build her equation - and she is the first to rethink it as a pie chart with percentages!
60% v + 30% cf + 10% en

Rich Mulholland and Erin on Gamifying Your Life

Today I’m talking to entrepreneur, author and global public speaker, Rich Mulholland. Rich teaches me all about gamifying life. He describes how to design small, finite games for yourself, how to set your own victory conditions and how to track your progress. Our discussion leads to an “ah-ha” moment for me about why the fulfillment equation practice works so well. As Rich says, “it’s freedom in a framework”!
We also cover other interesting topics such as novelty vs. utility, why the best businesses are boring businesses, the importance of hobbies and reflections for budding entrepreneurs. And Rich gives some great advice to his 25-year old self!
Finally, we build Rich's equation: 7W + 7sd + 5cd + 7er + 4 bg + 5e + 11f + fr(3m + 1c + 3b)

Lawrence Loh and Erin on Connecting with Others and Your Inner Voice

In this week’s episode, I have the wonderful opportunity to chat with Dr. Lawrence Loh. Lawrence is a public health and physician leader, a lifelong learner and a self-described extreme extrovert. Our conversation focuses on connection; both with others and with ourselves. When it comes to connecting with others, Lawrence offers some simple tips. We also talk about rebalancing after crisis fatigue, getting in touch with your inner voice and defining your own identity. And we bond over our mutual belief that most things work out and that most people are good. As Lawrence says, "it's just mentally easier" to believe that!