The Other F Word: Conversations About Failure

Jonathan Fields is the best selling author, entrepreneur,  and founder of The Good Life Project, an online and educational program aimed at helping people live a better life, both personally and professionally.  He is also the host of the world famous podcast The Good Life Project Podcast and travels the world sharing his research and wisdom on the human condition and human potential.  Jonathan brings an incredible blend of science and spirituality to the pursuit of wellbeing and shares years of experience in his search for a life well lived. His approach to failure is inspiring, as he seeks meaning and purpose where there is stumble and uncertainty, allowing for huge growth and potential.  He offers practical steps and interventions to walk through the failure zone and see it as a chance for a better life. Find out more about Jonathan and the Good Life Project @: www.goodlifeproject.com

Tommy Tomlinson, journalist and author of “The Elephant in the Room” speaks about his struggle with weight and his chronicle of profound self-discovery and weight loss. After his sister died from complications of obesity, Tommy knew that at 460 lbs he needed to turn his health around. After many years of failed diets and exercise regimes, he knew he needed a different approach, one that addressed the underlying factors to his relationship with food. In an honest and painful effort to understand how he got to be so heavy, Tommy went on a search for truth. He looked at his childhood and the blue collar culture in which he was raised. He sent a questionnaire to his closest friends and interviewed his mom and wife, asking for their honesty in order to help confront the most painful and shameful parts of himself. He shares his experience of surviving throat cancer and how that propelled him further on his journey towards wellbeing. Tommy’s book is the inspiring story of looking deeply into one’s darkest parts and

Author, speaker, relationship and life advice expert Liz Pryor opens up about her experience of getting pregnant at 17 and being sent away to a home for pregnant teens by her mother. Liz describes the shame her parents felt about her pregnancy and how it impacted her so strongly that she kept the experience a secret for 28 years when she finally shared it with her siblings and friends. Although being sent off alone to have her baby, giving it up for adoption and then hiding it from everyone for so many years was extremely difficult, Liz explains that it shaped who she is as a person and as a parent and led her on a path of helping others. Find out more about Liz @: www.lizpryor.com

Jia Jiang is an entrepreneur, author and TED speaker who adapted the card game “Rejection Therapy” and created a blog, products and services to further explore rejection. He talks about how the experience of rejection is universal amongst all human beings and discusses the value of rejection in the process of becoming fearless.  He shares his research of actively seeking out rejection for 100 days straight and learning that it can be less painful and destructive than anticipated. The experience helped to desensitize him and diminish his fear of rejection so that it no longer drove his decisions. He has used his ability to turn rejection into something positive to push him to pursue his dreams. Find out more about Jia @: rejectiontherapy.com Follow Jia on Twitter @: www.twitter.com/JiaJiang

Jace Downey, Recovery Empowerment Specialist, shares her powerful story of struggling with sex addiction. After repressing her early experience of sexual abuse, she assumed she was just born broken and spent much of her early life looking for ways to ease her pain and regain her power. She hid her fear and self loathing so well, that no one knew she was suffering. Instead she led a secret life using sex as a way to numb herself and gain a sense of control. In her incredible journey towards healing, Jace shares deep insight and practical advice to inspire others on their quest for wholeness. Find out more about Jace @: www.jacedowney.com  

Melissa, Morgan, and Sara talk about the upcoming holidays and the many failures that often come along for the ride. Whether it be unmet expectations for perfection, family dynamics and tension, or a sense of loneliness and sadness that often come as a surprise, there is plenty of failure to explore. The Other F Word team thought it would be helpful to anticipate these possible failures in an attempt to feel less blindsided when they come and try new ways to cope during a time when there’s so much pressure for that perfect holiday celebration.

A.J. Jacobs is a New York Times best selling author, most recently of the book “Thanks a Thousand” a chronicled journey thanking everyone who was involved in the making of his morning cup of coffee.  A.J. joins us to talks about his varied lifestyle experiments that have taken him outside of his comfort zone.  Whether it be “living biblically” for one year, strictly following the rules of the Bible, or adopting the challenge of Radical Honesty for one month, where he told the truth or said whatever was on his mind, no matter the cost, AJ Jacobs is committed to illuminating experiences that involve a lot of failure.  His honest, self deprecating style makes his storytelling engaging, while his often outrageous methods make his “humble quest” for learning outside his comfort zone quite inspirational. Find out more about AJ @: www.ajjacobs.com  

Author A.N. Turner talks to us about internet addiction and specifically, internet porn addiction. Turner who is still a young man in his early 20’s, describes how he became addicted to online porn and how it took over his life, interfering with his work and his relationships. And how he managed to turn his life around by cutting out pornography all together and cutting back massively on his use of the internet. He openly shares his struggle and the shame that he continues to feel, while offering helpful tips to listeners to avoid what he sees as the epidemic of our society. Find out more about A.N. on his website here You can follow A.N. @: www.twitter.com/A_NTurner And you can find his book here

Angela King is the program director of Life After Hate, a non-profit organization that helps people extricate themselves from hate groups and turn their lives around. Angela shares her deeply personal experience of being raised by extremely strict and racist parents, being bullied in junior high and eventually bullying others in an effort to survive. Angela found herself desperate to connect and belong, struggling with confusing feelings about sexuality and identity,  but her deep fear and anger led her to act out and join hate groups as a white supremacist. Her hate and violence eventually hit a rock bottom which landed her in prison, where she was forced to face her past and deepest failures. In her remarkable story, she shares how her time in prison and the incredible connection to her fellow inmates, led her to shatter  her way of thinking and ultimately find love with a black woman. Angela’s story is one of true inspiration where she was able to confront her racism and embrace the profound ability to cha

Alexia Vernon, leadership and women’s speaking coach and author of “Step Into Your Moxie” shares her journey of finding her voice and self confidence after experiencing harrowing moments in her past. In an articulate and vulnerable voice, Alexia shares her experience of postpartum depression and child sexual abuse and how these darker moments brought her to truth and clarity. In her work as a leadership coach, she weaves in these personal narratives to inspire strength and develop the resiliency necessary to navigate the many experiences of failure.  Find out more about Alexia @: www.alexiavernon.com www.stepintoyourmoxie.com And you can connect with Alexia @: http://www.facebook.com/AlexiaVernonEmpowerment http://www.linkedin.com/in/alexiavernon http://www.twitter.com/alexiavernon http://instagram.com/alexiavernon/  

Alethea Black, author of “You’ve Been So Lucky Already” shares her story of navigating through chronic illness that had no cure for years. This experience of failure on a bodily level led to crushing fatigue, profound loss of joy and a deep worry that she was dying.  Trusting her own inner voice instead of listening to external sources, her survival instinct kicked in and she was able to find her way to health. Her take on failure as funny, once you get past the pain of it, and as the engine of life are just some of her fascinating ways of seeing the world. Find out more about Alethea @: www.welcometoheaven.com And you can follow her @: www.facebook.com/alethea.black

Born with spina bifida, a chronic spinal disability that she tried to hide for most of her life, Dr. Church went on to become a pediatric specialist who treats kids with the same condition. Growing up without much language on how to talk about and process her condition, she spent much of her life grappling with wanting to tell her story in a way that shares the issues associated with it while maintaining dignity and privacy for herself and her patients. She has become an important advocate for kids in medical settings where she has challenged her colleagues to treat patients with more sensitivity and understanding and less  scientific objectivity. She has also been vocal in her efforts to reframe our society’s views of disabilities as a weakness and instead view all people as living on a spectrum of varying abilities. You can follow Dr. Church @: https://twitter.com/paigetchurch1?lang=en  

Preston Pollard is a skateboarder, life coach and motivational speaker who shares his journey of growing up in Alaska and struggling to find his identity. As a black child, he was pressured to play basketball and football but Preston was drawn to skateboarding. Driven by untreated ADHD and teased by people who told him black kids don’t skateboard, he persisted against the naysayers. His story is filled with hope and possibility that anyone can persevere through failure and reach their dreams. Find out more about Preston @: https://www.prestonpollard.com Follow Preston @: https://www.instagram.com/prestonpollard1

Rowan Hooper, evolutionary biologist and author of the new book “Superhuman-Life at the Extremes of our Capacity” shares the awe-inspiring stories of people who have reached extraordinary places in their lives in terms of human achievement. Each chapter is filled with fascinating details about what it takes to overcome adversity and push beyond ones limits to reach peak potential. Whether it be endurance, strength, bravery, intelligence, or memory, a common trait throughout is an appreciation and overcoming of failure. Find Rowan on Twitter @: https://twitter.com/rowhoop Find out more about Rowan's book "Superhuman" @: http://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Superhuman/Rowan-Hooper/9781501168710  

Twin brothers and comics Randy and Jason Sklar share their experiences of failure amidst their successful careers as writers, actors, stand-up comedians and hosts of the podcasts "View from the Cheap Seats" and "Dumb People Town". With brilliant humor and refreshing honesty, they share compelling stories of pushing through feelings of failure live and on stage as comedians, as well as behind the scenes navigating the entertainment industry. They’re a fascinating partnership of identical twin brothers who have a powerful connection that comes across easily in their alternative comedy routines, as well as in thoughtful conversations about the value of failure, as it relates to careers, relationships, parenting, sports, and life in general. Find our more about the Sklar Brothers @: www.supersklars.com Follow the Sklar Brothers @: www.instagram.com/sklarbrothers/ Watch Randy, Jason, Morgan and Heather in "Assisted Living" short they talk about in this episode @: https://vimeo.com/275948566

Mother, wife, writer, producer and ultimately artist Patti Grabel describes the long journey she followed to find herself and follow her passions after focusing solely on her family for many years. Patti paid attention to some things she was struggling with and after seeking advice from a therapist, she decided that pursuing a writing career was her “cure”. Despite many challenges and obstacles along the way, Patti fought through failure and a sense of not belonging to eventually achieve her ultimate goal: getting a tv show on the air before 50! Patti didn’t stop there though and went on to create art and even get her own exhibition in New York. Patti’s story reminds us that life doesn’t have to be over after kids or when we reach mid life. www.pattigrabel.com

Mike Downey, a serial entrepreneur and intrapreneur, explores his early failures as a child and the impact they had on his development into adulthood. With humor and great insight, Mike shares his varied stories of things not going his way and the shame that came as a result. Instead of letting rejection and failure define him, Mike shares how he took the important feedback gleaned from his experiences and turned it into the grit he needed to persevere. http://www.plushd.com

Tessa Fontaine is the author of “The Electric Woman”, a story about her complex relationship with her mother and her parallel experience of traveling with America’s last Sideshow. Tessa shares her remarkable journey of pain and loneliness growing up with a mother who couldn’t connect  emotionally. Their relationship was further complicated by her mother suffering multiple strokes and near death experiences, leaving her in a profound state of disconnect. Needing an escape from the constant state of crisis and worry, Tessa joined America’s last Sideshow as a strange new way to face her fears, connect with others who had also suffered, and persevere on a whole new level. She articulates how this crazy experience led her to a new sense of understanding and compassion for her mom and their complex relationship. Her journey is filled with layers of failure and the strange bright sides that come from facing your darkest moments. Find out more about Tessa & her book @: www.tessafontaine.com  

Jed Davis is in sales and Scott Casperson is a children’s picture book author. Jed and Scott are friends, in their mid-life, and have never been married. Both men are looking for love. In a funny, honest, and thought provoking conversation, they share their different experiences of navigating the online dating scene.    Jed seeks his complementary counterpart to adore, to challenge and be challenged, to share adventures both risqué and blasé, and to join him for more woefully overdue international travel. Scott is hoping to find somebody creative, playful and inspiring enough to join him for this carnival of life. Despite these clear ideas of what they want in a partner, along with great insight and hard work, their encounters in the dating world have been met with much failure.  And yet, they persevere, holding onto the hope of connection. You can find out more about Scott's book & purchase it @: thecandycanestory.com

Dima Ghawi is a leadership speaker, executive coach  and author of “Breaking Vases”, a story of the pressure for submission and perfection by her Middle Eastern culture and her terrifying escape to save herself. Dima speaks honestly about her journey of leaving her family in Jordan by arranged marriage and relocating to America, a move of hope for freedom. Controlled by her new husband’s family in America with more pressure for a quiet subservient way of being, Dima found herself profoundly depressed. In a brave move to save herself, she left her marriage and faced the terrifying consequences of her escape. Through this  struggle, she was able to face her fears, find freedom through education and connection, and now guides others on their own journey of self discovery. Her story is one of incredible courage, and how her depression and feelings of failure saved her life and led her to a place of new awareness, transformation, and inspiration to many. You can download Dima's free audio program @: https://www.di