What is a Good Life?

On the 155th episode of What Is a Good Life?, I’m joined by Julian Kirchherr. Julian combines a career as a Partner at McKinsey & Company with his role as an Associate Professor at Roskilde University. At McKinsey, he co-leads the firm’s public sector work in Europe, focusing on people and organisational performance, while his academic research centres on the circular economy. He ranks among the most highly cited circular economy scholars worldwide. He earned his PhD from St Antony’s College, University of Oxford, and is the author of The Lean PhD: Radically Improve the Efficiency, Quality and Impact of Your Research.In this conversation, we explore curiosity, autonomy, and the value of diverse experiences. Julian also discusses caring too much about external demands, and how this can undermine autonomy, meaning, and impact. This episode will resonate with anyone carving out their own path and explores what it can take to make your own impact.For more of Julian's work:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julian-kirchherr-42a52032/For more of my work:Contact me at [email protected] if you'd like to explore your own good life through:- 1-on-1 coaching and online group courses: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/individual-coaching- The podcast's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@whatisagoodlife/videos- My newsletter: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/individual-coaching00:00 Curiosity Over One Question 02:35 Bullshit In Academia07:23 Autonomy And Freedom 09:01 Disillusion With Academia 12:18 Early Intellectual Influences 14:55 Myanmar And Outsized Impact 19:59 Pre-Academia Model26:12 Energy From Dual Roles 30:02 Bias Toward Action 42:50 Bridging Knowledge And Practice 46:51 What is a good life for Julian? 

On the 154th episode of What Is a Good Life?, I’m joined by Katie Elliott. Katie is a facilitator, writer, and programme designer working across community and organisational settings. With a background in jazz and a long-standing fascination with human change and habits, she creates tools, conversations, and projects that explore how people make sense of themselves and one another. Her work includes Amiko® Cards, the Adventures in Behaviour Change podcast, a series of children’s books, and an album of original piano music.In this conversation, we explore curiosity, bewilderment, and the value of staying with experience rather than rushing to explain or resolve it. We talk about patterns, presence, and how meaning slowly reveals itself in relationships and in life — showing how deeper listening and meaningful conversation can genuinely shift how you see yourself and others.For more of Katie's work:Website: https://www.littlechallenges.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katieelliott/For more of my work:Contact me at [email protected] if you'd like to explore your own good life through:- 1-on-1 coaching and online group courses: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/individual-coaching- The podcast's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@whatisagoodlife/videos- My newsletter: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/individual-coaching00:00 — Patterns and Play 04:31 — Bewildered by Humans 07:48 — Not Being Believed 10:21 — Staying Open 13:01 — Kindness Inside 17:17 — Being Human Together 20:56 — Dropping the Mask 23:31 — Jazz and Freedom31:26 — Creating Human Spaces 40:44 — Making Meaning Together 52:31 — What is a Good Life for Katie?

On the 153rd episode of What Is a Good Life?, I’m joined by Ethan Hsieh for a wide-ranging and deeply human conversation on service, being, and what happens when self-work goes too far.Ethan is currently undertaking his PhD research integrating performance-training with 4E cognitive science. With an MA in Professional Practice: Theatre and Drama Facilitation, he has designed and delivered transformational community-building programs, retreats, and workshops across Asia and Europe through his organisation 5ToMidnight, where he is Artistic Director. He also serves as Platform Manager for The Lectern and has co-designed select practices with John Vervaeke, including the Socratic Imaginal Self-Reflection and the Socratic Search Space. Ethan maintains a private coaching practice working with corporate leaders, professional athletes, and social organisations.Together, we explore nihilism, play, embodiment, identity, and the question that now orients Ethan’s life: When does being itself become service?This episode invites listeners to loosen self-fixation, recover participation, and rediscover what becomes possible when we allow life—and each other—to change us.For more of Ethan's work:Website: https://www.5tomidnight.org/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethan-hsieh-828a63240/For more of my work:Contact me at [email protected] if you'd like to explore your own good life through:- 1-on-1 coaching and online group courses: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/individual-coaching- The podcast's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@whatisagoodlife/videos- My newsletter: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/individual-coaching00:00 A Question of Service05:40 Self-Work’s Breaking Point 08:04 From Optimization to Orientation12:52 Not Knowing Intimately 16:31 Returning to Play 26:56 Letting Experience In 31:31 Contact With Life36:46 Seeing Others Anew43:42 Identity Held Loosely52:19 Embodiment and Coherence 59:30 What is a good life for Ethan?

On the 152nd episode of What is a Good Life?, I welcome Tim Leberecht, one of the most original and passionate voices on creating a more humane future of business. Tim is a German-American entrepreneur, curator, and author, and the co-founder and co-CEO of the  House of Beautiful Business, a global community for those who seek more from work and from one another. A sought-after keynote speaker, his two TED Talks have been viewed more than 3 million times. He is the author of  The Business Romantic (Harper Business, 2015), translated into ten languages, The End of Winning (Droemer, 2020), and the forthcoming Supercurator (Basic/Hachette, 2027). Tim is also a BMW Foundation Responsible Leader.In this conversation, Tim reflects on belonging, intimacy, and what it means to live a good life amidst the pressures of performance and an increasingly AI-shaped world. He speaks to the value of sensitivity, connection, and community — and how creating spaces for presence and honest conversation can reshape how we experience ourselves and each other.This is a conversation for anyone longing for deeper connection — with themselves, with others, and with a world becoming ever more synthetic.For more of Tim's work:Website: https://houseofbeautifulbusiness.com/ Books: http://timleberecht.com/books/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tleberecht/ HoBB newsletter: https://houseofbeautifulbusiness.substack.com/For more of my work:Contact me at [email protected] if you'd like to explore your own good life through 1-on-1 coaching and group online courses.- The podcast's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@whatisagoodlife/videos- My newsletter: https://www.whatisagood.life/p/individual-coaching00:00 — The question of belonging 04:15 — Morning reconstruction of self 07:42 — Performance and authenticity tension 11:18 — Limits of self-optimisation 15:03 — Beauty and the good life 19:27 — Connection in a synthetic world 23:54 — Silence as shared intimacy 28:31 — Intimacy beyond human relationships 33:45 — AI as conversational partner 38:12 — Being changed by dialogue 44:08 — Sensitivity as core value 51:36 — Conditions for belonging

On the 151st episode of What is a Good Life?, I welcome Olaf Lewitz. Olaf is the Trust Artist, a leadership thinker and coach who’s endlessly curious about our similarities and differences, and how context shapes the quality of attention we give each other. He’s learning how to change systems so that they support life rather than extract or exploit it, sourcing wisdom and insight from unexpected places. He does this through his TrustTemenos Academy and his work with Dark Matter Labs.In this conversation, we explore the question “What am I missing?” as a way into anger, boundaries, and the stories we tell ourselves – and how much of our “drama” is created by our interpretations rather than reality.Olaf shares how an unshakeable sense of worth and hope help him live with paradox: enjoying a good life while staying awake to harm, responsibility, and the future of our children – and what that invites us to examine in our own lives.For more of Olaf's work:Website: https://www.trusttemenos.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/olaflewitz/Contact me at [email protected] if you'd like to explore your own good life through 1-on-1 coaching and group online courses.- The podcast's YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@whatisagoodlife/videos- My newsletter: https://www.whatisagood.life/00:00 — “What Am I Missing?”06:00 — Discovering Anger & Boundaries11:20 — How We Create Drama15:45 — Interpreting vs. Experiencing Reality20:50 — Laughing at Ourselves24:45 — Balancing Care and Boundaries29:35 — Childhood Patterns & Self-Worth35:55 — Hope Without Optimism41:50 — Paradox of a Good Life47:40 — Future, Responsibility & Children53:50 — What is a good life for Olaf?