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The Meaning We Make

The Meaning We Make

Written by: Dr. Jennifer Musselman
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What if the most defining moments of your life weren’t what happened to you—but the meaning you chose to give them? The Meaning We Make Podcast is a deep, thought-provoking exploration of adversity, resilience, ground breaking treatments, and the pursuit of self-mastery. Designed for entrepreneurs, founders, and self-aware individuals, this podcast goes beyond surface-level self-help to uncover how we transform pain into purpose, setbacks into fuel, and chaos into clarity. Each episode dives into the psychology of personal growth and mental health—exploring trauma, healing, high-functioning ADHD, nervous system regulation, emotional intelligence, relationships, identity, and integrative therapies that transform adversities into peak performance. Through honest conversations, lived experience, and powerful frameworks, we reveal the hidden patterns that shape our lives—and how to consciously rewrite them. This is a podcast about self-mastery, mindset, and meaning. About learning how to regulate your inner world so you can perform, connect, and live at a higher level. Because mastery isn’t about controlling life—it’s about mastering your response to it. If you’re committed to growth, healing, and building a more intentional, purpose-driven life, you’re in the right place. You are not defined by what happened. You are defined by the meaning you make.2026 The Musselman Institute Economics Hygiene & Healthy Living Leadership Management & Leadership Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Self-Help Success
Episodes
  • The Culture Game: Why Some Leaders Thrive and Others Survive

    The Culture Game: Why Some Leaders Thrive and Others Survive
    May 28 2026
    What if your company’s culture is quietly burning out your best people, and no one knows how to talk about it? In this episode of The Meaning We Make Podcast, we explore the emotional reality of workplace culture with HR executive and culture specialist Travis Griffith, through the lens of toxic environments, attachment, trauma bonds, and real leadership at scale. Host Dr. Jennifer Musselman shares how her dream job at MTV Networks-Nickelodeon turned toxic after a leadership change, and how that pain led her to psychotherapy and attachment theory at work. Together, she and Travis unpack how a culture can shift from fun and irreverent to fear‑based and paralyzing, and what founders, executives, and HR leaders can do before it breaks their business. With over 20 years in HR and organizational development (MTV, Nickelodeon, Fox, Blue Sky Studios, tech, and startups), Travis offers candid stories of both healthy and harmful leadership. You’ll hear about culture‑first CEOs like Tom Freston, leaders who “don’t have to be a dick” to be effective, and ego‑driven executives who melt down in front of their teams. We dive into psychological safety, “toxic high performers,” cancel culture, multigenerational workforces, and remote work expectations. Why “we’re a family” is one of the most damaging myths in startup culture. You’ll also learn what to do when you don’t trust HR, how to document mistreatment, how to recognize you’ve become the scapegoat, and when it’s time to negotiate your exit instead of sacrificing your mental health (and your family) to a company that will replace you in a week. If you’re a founder, executive, or people leader trying to reconcile ambition with a more humane, psychologically informed way of working, this conversation will help you see culture not as a poster on the wall, but as the lived emotional experience of everyone in your company, and the primary driver of retention, performance, and innovation. Our Guest: Travis Griffith Travis Griffith is a seasoned HR executive and organizational culture specialist with over 20 years of experience across entertainment, media, tech, and startups. He has partnered with founders, CEOs, and boards to build HR infrastructures, navigate layoffs and restructures, design robust benefits, and negotiate complex executive exits and severance packages. Travis brings a deeply human perspective to HR, shaped in part by his mother, former head of HR at MTV Networks, and by his own experiences working inside both iconic and dysfunctional cultures. Work with Dr. Jennifer Musselman: [YOUR LINK] Executive therapy & leadership coaching: [YOUR LINK] Visit our hub site: [YOUR LINKS] Newsletter + resources: [YOUR LINK] Chapters 00:00:00 Opening: There Is No Longer an MTV Network 00:00:58 Welcome & Intro to Travis Griffith 00:03:07 MTV Memories: The Post-College Experience 00:06:35 Travis's Mom and Getting His Start 00:09:06 Benefits, Illness, and What Really Matters 00:13:17 Tom Freston: The Model Leader 00:15:29 When Leadership Changes Kill Innovation 00:18:07 Don't Be a Dick: Leadership and Respect 00:20:29 Hazing, Bullying & Workplace Evolution 00:21:25 Gen Z, Millennials, & Generational Differences 00:22:44 Remote Work & the Battle Over Flexibility 00:24:48 Toxic Leadership: What Drives People Away 00:41:53 Cancel Culture & Being Judged on Your Worst Day 00:44:00 Diversity Beyond Demographics 00:47:30 When to Leave: Your Line in the Sand 00:34:52 Navigating HR: What Employees Need to Know 01:10:34 Startup Founders: Common Mistakes & Emotional Regulation 01:05:51 Negotiating Contracts & Exit Strategies 01:29:55 PIPs, Firing with Dignity, and Final Advice 01:37:37 Making Work a Place People Want to Be
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    1 hr and 39 mins
  • What Success Couldn't Heal: Trauma, Meditation and Leading from the Heart with Howard Steinberg

    What Success Couldn't Heal: Trauma, Meditation and Leading from the Heart with Howard Steinberg
    May 13 2026
    What if the very struggles that shaped you are the ones keeping you from living authentically? In this profoundly moving episode of The Meaning We Make Podcast, Dr. Jennifer Musselman sits down with entrepreneur and author Howard Steinberg for a fireside conversation about transgenerational trauma, the cost of achievement, and the courage it takes to let your heart lead. From surviving the Holocaust to building successful businesses on shaky foundations, this episode reveals why external success can never quiet internal angst and how healing requires an open heart. It's about recognizing the wounds you didn't know you carried, understanding how fear has been driving your life, and learning it's never too late to come home to yourself. Howard shares his extraordinary journey from being the son of Holocaust survivors to becoming a successful entrepreneur. Carrying unprocessed trauma, shame, and a relentless fear of abandonment. He achieved everything society told him would bring happiness, yet something still felt profoundly wrong. He spent decades navigating life through strength, resilience, and power. But he felt alone in crowds, bored easily, struggled to sit still, and couldn't access his intuition because the noise was too loud. His awakening came from finally stopping. Learning to meditate. Exploring somatic breathwork. Sitting in ceremony with psychedelic medicine and letting his heart speak louder than his mind. He discovered that healing is not thinking your way through. It’s feeling your way home. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN ✔ Transgenerational trauma and how it lives in your body ✔ How children absorb their parents' unprocessed pain ✔ Impact of complex PTSD on high achievers ✔ Why shame keeps us hiding even when we're successful ✔ How fear of abandonment effects your relationships ✔ Cognitive awareness vs felt sense ✔ The mind cannot heal what only the heart can feel ✔ The trap of being a problem seeker to avoid feeling ✔ The role of meditation, somatic work, and psychedelic medicine in awakening ✔ Healing requires surrender, not strategy ✔ Separating yourself from your stories ✔ The privilege and responsibility of healing WHO THIS IS FOR High achievers who feel empty despite external success Anyone carrying shame from childhood they can't quite name Children of immigrants or trauma survivors Anyone clinging to relationships, work, or control out of fear Men struggling to be vulnerable Anyone interested in somatic healing, psychedelics, and authentic living This conversation will change how you approach success and healing. From plant medicine to raw vulnerability, this is your guide to building a relationship with your authentic self. Join Dr. Musselman and Howard Steinberg for this raw, revelatory talk about the cost of living in your head instead of your heart, and how surrendering to your truth is the most courageous act of all. Let your heart lead. HOWARD STEINBERG: Confessions of a Problem Seeker VISIT OUR HUB SITE: https://themeaningwemakepodcast.com 💬 COMMENT BELOW What resonated most with you in this conversation? Have you ever felt successful on paper but empty inside? 🔔 SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE Conversations at the intersection of: psychology, trauma, healing, and authentic living Chapters 00:00:00 The Holocaust and Lasting Impacts 00:01:26 Welcome and Introduction 00:04:22 Burden of Transgenerational Trauma 00:06:34 Diabetes Became My Holocaust 00:09:00 Shame of Hiding and Permission to Conceal 00:10:45 Self-Constructs: Fear, Control, and Survival 00:11:33 My Marriage: Safety Over Love 00:15:15 The Problem-Seeking Mind: Accidental Success 00:19:35 Abandonment Wounds 00:25:44 The Foundation Cracked: Divorce, Loss, and Empty Nest 00:26:59 Learning to Surrender: Meditation and the Journey Inward 00:27:34 Psychedelic Medicine 00:30:20 The Non-Linear Path 00:44:32 The Privilege to Heal: What Success Really Gave Me 00:45:25 Writing the Book: Leaving Truth Behind for My Daughters 00:51:32 The Heroic Story vs. The Heart
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    54 mins
  • Messages from the Other Side: A Medium's Journey from Childhood Visions to Spiritual Practice

    Messages from the Other Side: A Medium's Journey from Childhood Visions to Spiritual Practice
    Apr 25 2026
    What if the voices you hear aren't just in your head... but messages from the other side? In this revelatory episode of The Meaning We Make Podcast, Dr. Jennifer Musselman sits down with rising medium and spirit guide coach, Aja Daashuur for an intimate fireside conversation about mediumship, intuition, and the powerful connection between this world and the next. From childhood visions to spiritual practice, Aja's journey reveals how we can all access the spiritual wisdom that surrounds us. This isn't just about talking to the dead. It's about trusting yourself, hearing your own voice, and understanding that you are never truly alone. 🌟 WHY THIS EPISODE MATTERS We live in a world that teaches us to outsource our power. We look to fortune tellers for certainty. We seek psychics for answers. We want someone else to tell us what to do. 👉 But what if the answers are already within you? Aja shares her extraordinary journey from a terrified five year old seeing ghosts in her bedroom to building a thriving practice helping others connect to their spirit guides, ancestors and highest selves. This episode reframes spiritual connection for what it really is: 👉 A relationship with your intuition 👉 A practice of trust 👉 A pathway to healing 🧠 WHAT YOU'LL LEARN ✔ The difference between spirit guides and ancestors ✔ How to distinguish intuition from spiritual guidance ✔ The clairs: clairvoyance, clairaudience, clairsentience, claircognizance ✔ Why children's imaginary friends might be real ✔ The historical context of mediumship ✔ How to build your own daily spiritual practice ✔ Being stuck is actually a liminal space for growth ✔ The meaning we make from trauma shapes our reality ✔ Healing intergenerational wounds ✔ Past lives and the sphere of time ✔ Psychedelics and spirit work ✔ How to set boundaries with the spirit world ✔ Multiple timelines and existence ✔ Why manifesting isn't enough without soul work ⚠️ THE TRAP OF OUTSOURCING YOUR POWER You cannot give away your power to a psychic and expect transformation. You cannot demand certainty from the universe. You cannot skip the work of trusting yourself. The work isn't about fortune telling. It's about building a relationship with your spiritual team so you can hear the guidance that's always been there. From automatic writing to oracle cards to meditation practices, this episode explores how you can develop your own spiritual language and stop waiting for permission to trust yourself. 🔥 WHO THIS IS FOR Anyone grieving a loved one and seeking connection People curious about mediumship and spirit guides Parents whose children talk about imaginary friends Anyone who feels stuck and needs a new perspective Skeptics willing to explore with an open mind Anyone interested in intuition, spirituality, and self trust 🎧 LISTEN NOW If you've ever thought: "I wish I could connect with someone I've lost" "I don't know if I can trust my intuition" "What if there's more to life than what I can see?" This conversation will change how you think about spirit, self, and the invisible support that surrounds you always. Join Dr. Musselman and Aja Daashuur for this raw, revelatory conversation about connecting with spirit guides, why your intuition is your greatest asset, how to build a spiritual practice that works for you, and why trusting yourself is the most radical act of all. Whether you're a skeptic, a seeker, or somewhere in between, this episode offers hope, clarity, and permission to trust what you already know. AJA DAASHUUR: https://thespiritguidecoach.com VISIT OUR HUB SITE: https://themeaningwemakepodcast.com 💬 COMMENT BELOW Have you ever had a spiritual experience you couldn't explain? What resonated most with you in this conversation? 🔔 SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE Conversations at the intersection of: psychology, spirituality, healing, and human potential Chapters 00:00:00 Opening: Your Mother Is Here 00:01:39 Introduction to Aja Daashuur 00:01:55 The Problem with Fortune Telling 00:03:39 Spirit Guides vs Ancestors: Understanding the Difference 00:05:29 The Psychic Network and Outsourcing Power 00:08:50 Multiple Timelines and the Train Metaphor 00:11:26 A Five-Year-Old's Visions: Aja's Gift Emerges 00:14:37 The Dark Night That Changed Everything 00:18:35 Meeting Monty: The Voice That Started It All 00:25:29 When Your Parents Don't Support Your Calling 00:28:27 Trust Your Kids: Imaginary Friends and Intuition 00:30:05 Historical Context: Mediumship and Survival 00:36:37 The Clairs: How We Receive Spiritual Information 00:39:26 Building Your Own Spiritual Practice 00:42:51 Being Stuck Is Actually a Liminal Space 00:46:15 The Meaning We Make From Trauma 01:00:57 Spirits on This Land: Montecito and Healing 01:11:38 We Are Each Other's Mirror: A Message From Mom 01:30:35 Past Lives and the Sphere of Time 01:28:37 Psychedelics and Spirit Work: Proceed with Caution 01:38:53 Setting Boundaries with the Spirit World
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    2 hrs and 16 mins
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