Episodes

  • Secret Sangha: Paradox

    Secret Sangha: Paradox
    May 4 2026
    Do you feel stuck in a tug-of-war—like you have to choose between two things that both matter? In this Secret Sangha episode, Diana Hill shares on the topic of paradox, and how the tension you’re trying to “solve” may actually be the place where growth happens. Drawing on examples from relationships, parenting, work-life balance, and her own struggle between service and making a living as a therapist, Diana explores Marianne Lewis’s “both/and” approach—shifting the question, seeing interdependence, and rethinking outcomes so you can walk the tightrope with more ease.Listen and learn:The three core features of paradoxWhy trying to eliminate a paradox often keeps you stuck in struggleHow to shift from “either/or” to “both/and” thinkingShare this episode with someone who feels forced to choose—and practice holding both sides with wise effort.Suggested Next Episode:The Power Of Both/And Thinking To Find Creative, Integrative Solutions To Paradoxes With Dr. Marianne LewisRelated ResourcesGet enhanced show notes for this episodeOrder my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.Diana's EventsReserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!See Diana at an upcoming eventConnecting With DianaSubscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.
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    15 mins
  • Hope, Joy, and Are We Going To Be OK? Live in Costa Rica With Doug Abrams

    Hope, Joy, and Are We Going To Be OK? Live in Costa Rica With Doug Abrams
    Apr 20 2026

    Dr. Diana Hill welcomes author and Idea Architects founder Doug Abrams live from Blue Spirit Costa Rica to explore how to stay grounded, joyful, and hopeful in uncertain times. Abrams shares lessons from working with leaders like the Dalai Lama, Desmond Tutu, and Jane Goodall, including Tutu’s guidance to “never surrender your joy,” taking the wider perspective, and resisting without “othering” opponents. He describes his in-progress book inspired by his daughter’s question, “Are we gonna be okay?” Abrams discusses living with ADHD, shame, and vulnerability in relationships, and highlights Goodall’s four reasons for hope—human intellect, nature’s resilience, young people, and the indomitable human spirit—emphasizing that hope is an action.

    Related Resources

    Get enhanced show notes for this episode

    • Order my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.
    • Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.

    Diana's Events
    • Reserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!
    • See Diana at an upcoming event

    Connecting With Diana
    • Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
    • Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.
    • Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.
    • Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.
    • Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.

    Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.

    Mentioned in this episode:

    Business of Therapy and Coaching

    Make a big move in your therapy or coaching practice. Join the New Cohort Starting May 11

    Wise Effort: The Business of Therapy
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Secret Sangha: Annoyance

    Secret Sangha: Annoyance
    Apr 6 2026

    Do little annoyances keep piling up until you feel overwhelmed and reactive? In this episode, Diana Hill explores why annoyance isn’t just about what’s happening—it’s shaped by your capacity (stress, heat, hunger, sleep) and the story you tell about the incident. Diana shares how noticing her own story with an airline agent, Wade, helped her soften, connect, and respond differently—ultimately increasing her ability to be with what is.

    Listen and learn:
    • How stressors like heat, hunger, and poor sleep reduce your capacity and increase irritation
    • Why the “story” you tell can turn a small incident into a bigger threat.
    • How separating from others fuels annoyance—and connection can shift it

    Suggested Next Episode:

    You can also enjoy Diana's related Bonus Meditation: Annoyance

    Related Resources

    Get enhanced show notes for this episode

    • Order my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.
    • Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.

    Diana's Events
    • Reserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!
    • See Diana at an upcoming event

    Connecting With Diana
    • Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
    • Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.
    • Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.
    • Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.
    • Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.

    Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.
    Show More Show Less
    9 mins
  • Bonus Meditation: Annoyance

    Bonus Meditation: Annoyance
    Apr 6 2026

    Diana guides a meditation practice focused on increasing capacity to be with silence and open awareness. The practice emphasizes noticing the mind’s urge to comment or problem-solve, then letting go, leaning back, and relaxing into the silence and space around noise—like a “permanent layover” with nowhere to go and nothing to do—while adding warmth and kindness.

    Suggested Next Episode:

    You can also enjoy Diana's related talk--Episode 197 Secret Sangha: Annoyance.

    Related Resources

    Get enhanced show notes for this episode

    • Order my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.
    • Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.

    Diana's Events
    • Reserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!
    • See Diana at an upcoming event

    Connecting With Diana
    • Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
    • Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.
    • Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.
    • Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.
    • Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.

    Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.
    Show More Show Less
    22 mins
  • Secret Sangha: Recovery

    Secret Sangha: Recovery
    Mar 30 2026
    Enjoy this Secret Sangha talk where Dr. Diana Hill describes recovery as a non-linear, stop-and-start process. She emphasizes psychological flexibility as a key predictor of doing well after major life events: knowing what matters most in the moment, using your skills, and taking feedback about what isn’t working. She highlights additional supports like social connection, positive emotion amid difficulty, and meaning-making. Diana shares her own recovery story and offers core practices.Listen and learn:To decide what and who recovery is worth it forWays to leave your “imaginary box”The importance of focusing on small daily actions without waiting to feel differentSuggested Next Episode:You can also enjoy Diana's related Bonus Meditation: RecoveryRelated ResourcesGet enhanced show notes for this episodeOrder my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.Diana's EventsReserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!See Diana at an upcoming eventConnecting With DianaSubscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.Mentioned in this episode:Business of Therapy and CoachingMake a big move in your therapy or coaching practice. Join the New Cohort Starting May 11Wise Effort: The Business of Therapy
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    14 mins
  • Bonus Meditation: Recovery

    Bonus Meditation: Recovery
    Mar 30 2026

    Diana guides walking meditation as a core recovery practice, comparing each step to a trusting fall and a snail’s glide. The practice invites letting go of self-focused stories, embodying chosen values through how one walks, and widening awareness to include others. Then you return to seated meditation to practice compassion by holding one difficult person, self-issue, or global concern with wishes for relief. Diana closes with a poem about recovery as lacing up worn running shoes and trusting the open road.

    Suggested Next Episode:

    You can also enjoy Diana's related talk--Episode 195 Secret Sangha: Recovery.

    Related Resources

    Get enhanced show notes for this episode

    • Order my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.
    • Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.

    Diana's Events
    • Reserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!
    • See Diana at an upcoming event

    Connecting With Diana
    • Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
    • Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.
    • Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.
    • Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.
    • Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.

    Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.
    Show More Show Less
    24 mins
  • Secret Sangha: Growth

    Secret Sangha: Growth
    Mar 23 2026

    Are you growing? Growth is becoming more comfortable in your own skin and prioritizing what is most essential.

    Growth is also letting go of needing to be the center of attention things.

    In this week's, Secret Sangha we explore growth and a personal level to a transpersonal one.

    Join me. It's a good one.

    Listen and learn:
    1. When to follow structure versus improvise, and recognizing when not to be the “star.”
    2. How growth moves you towards self-transformation and deeper interconnection
    3. That real growth often emerges when life cracks you open

    Suggested Next Episode:

    You can also enjoy Diana's related Bonus Meditation: Growth

    Related Resources

    Get enhanced show notes for this episode

    • Order my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.
    • Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.

    Diana's Events
    • Reserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!
    • See Diana at an upcoming event

    Connecting With Diana
    • Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
    • Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.
    • Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.
    • Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.
    • Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.

    Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.

    Mentioned in this episode:

    Business of Therapy and Coaching

    Make a big move in your therapy or coaching practice. Join the New Cohort Starting May 11

    Wise Effort: The Business of Therapy
    Show More Show Less
    16 mins
  • Bonus Meditation: Growth

    Bonus Meditation: Growth
    Mar 23 2026

    Dr. Diana Hill guides a non-dual, open-awareness meditation beginning with listening to a bell, landing in the body through sound, contact with the ground, and breath (“Breathing in, I’m alive; breathing out, I’m here”). Participants visualize their life as a timeline stretching left into the past—through birth, ancestors, and even a star’s “cracking open”—and right into the future through their continuing influence. They are invited to meet a younger self from a moment of growth, bring that self to sit on the left, and then welcome an older, more authentic, flexible, focused, and harmonious self to sit on the right, offering stability while feeling “lost” in the unknown. The practice emphasizes presence, radical acceptance, and saying “I don’t know,” followed by a Shel Silverstein reading on “growing down,” and closes with the three refuges: being, becoming, and belonging.

    Suggested Next Episode:

    You can also enjoy Diana's related talk--Episode 193 Secret Sangha: Growth.

    Related Resources

    Get enhanced show notes for this episode

    • Order my book, Wise Effort: How to Focus Your Genius Energy on What Matters Most, and receive special bonus gifts.
    • Want to become more psychologically flexible? Take Diana's "Foundations of ACT" course.

    Diana's Events
    • Reserve your spot in Diana's Costa Rica retreat in 2026!
    • See Diana at an upcoming event

    Connecting With Diana
    • Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
    • Leave a 5-star review on Apple so people like you can find the show.
    • Sign up for the free Wise Effort Newsletter.
    • Become a Wise Effort member to support the show.
    • Follow Diana on YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Diana’s website.

    Thanks to the team, Craig and Ashley Hiatt, and Benjamin Gould of Bell & Branch for your beautiful music.
    Show More Show Less
    27 mins