In this episode, I sit down with Rachel Nazhand, a seasoned ops leader who’s done the high-growth hustle, the burnout, the ER visits… and found her way back to herself. Through a deeply personal conversation, Rachel shares what it’s taken to move from hyper-productivity and depletion into a sustainable rhythm of leadership fueled by presence instead of pressure.

Rachel proves that it is possible to lead in high-intensity environments without losing yourself. She’s worked across Fortune 100s, scrappy startups, and pre-IPO orgs, yet what makes her stand out to me goes beyond her resume: she integrates her somatic practice into how she leads, builds teams, and sustains her own well-being.

We talk about:

* The fallacy of control (and why “just take action” is a trap)

* What the nervous system actually needs to reset at work

* How she stopped equating worth with output

* Tiny, subversive ways to rehumanize fast-paced work cultures

* The weirdly transferable wisdom of toddler parenting

And maybe most importantly, Rachel gives language to what so many high-achieving professionals feel: It might not be the job itself that’s unsustainable. It’s the way we’ve been taught to push through it.

“Nobody’s thinking about you as much as you’re thinking about you—so you might as well use that to your advantage.”

🎧 Listen for real talk about success that doesn’t require self-sacrifice.

Follow Rachel on LinkedIn

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Learn more about somatic work for leaders at Feeling School.

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What if resilience wasn’t something you build alone, but something we practice together? If you’ve ever noticed the way some well-intentioned leadership skills fall flat in high-stakes moments, this conversation is for you.

In this conversation, I sit down with Tamás Hovanyecz — a leadership guide, facilitator, and highliner (yep, he willingly walks across ropes suspended hundreds of meters in the air) — to talk about how our nervous systems and relational patterns shape our capacity to lead, respond, and connect when it matters most.

We explore:

* Why most leadership development quietly collapses the moment pressure hits

* What “relational intelligence” looks like in a room full of Type-A world-changers

* The cost of staying in protection mode — for you, your team, and your nervous system

* How systems mirror survival states (yes, your org chart might be dissociating)

* What actually helps teams innovate during crisis (spoiler: it’s not grit)

* How a slackline can expose your fear and your healing in 10 seconds flat

Tamás also shares a story about what happens when you ask ambitious humans to slow down and just relate. (Spoiler: some tried to form a rebellion. Others had a breakthrough.)

💬 “Shifting how we interact and relate with each other is inherently changing the system.” — Tamás Hovanyecz

The real shift doesn’t happen in your head. It happens in the space between us. As always, this show is about coming back into relationship — with your body, your people, your work. Not in theory. In practice.

Mentioned in the episode:

* Inner Mastery Lab: innermasterylab.co

* WHO Cards: whocards.cc

* Find Tamas on LinkedIn

Find Oren on LinkedIn for the neuroscience of impact from the inside out

Access the Working with Feeling newsletter and show notes

Enjoy this episode? Leave a review, subscribe, and share the episode with one person you kinda like and want to have groundedness amidst the chaos of life.

A relentless pace is the norm for most of us at work. For many leaders, especially those leading in distributed and fast-paced environments, the default has become more: more meetings, more obligations, more to prove.

In this rich conversation with Marissa Morrison, we explore what becomes possible when we disrupt that default. When we pause.

Marissa shares her journey from burnout to clarity, and the small-but-mighty practices she’s brought to herself and her teams—monthly prioritization check-ins, walk-and-talks, meeting resets, and making the phone call cool again. These are more than hacks. They are culture-shaping moves that remind us: we have agency.

And beneath it all, this question: Am I present in my own life?

Whether you’re a seasoned leader or early in your exploration of inner work, this episode offers both permission and practical ways to return to what matters.

We touch on:

• The cost of inherited urgency and what it takes to interrupt it

• Why simplification is a leadership superpower

• How to design your weeks around your natural energy rhythms

• Moving from “shoulds” to “what fills my cup”

• Life audits, seasonal practices, and evolving how we care for ourselves

Clarity isn’t just a strategy tool — it happens through your nervous system.

🔗 Connect with Marissa Morrison on LinkedIn

🌀 Practice mentioned: The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron

📝 Invitation: Try morning pages or a solo, tech-free walk this week.

* Find Oren on LinkedIn for the neuroscience of impact from the inside out

* Access the Working with Feeling newsletter and show notes

Enjoy this episode? Leave a review, subscribe, and share the episode with one person you kinda like and want to have groundedness amidst the chaos of life.