Category: Conscious Business

Raghu Markus and Parvarti Markus: Love Everyone, Serve...

Raghu Markus is a musician and artist who collaborated with Ram Dass on the groundbreaking spoken-word and world music album Love Serve Remember, and currently serves as the executive director of the Love Serve Remember Foundation. Raghu has collaborated with Sounds True and Ram Dass to create Being Here Now: The Essential Teachings of Ram Dass, a nine-week online course beginning on September 19. Parvati Markus has written and edited many nonfiction books, including the recent Love Everyone: The Transcendent Wisdom of Neem Karoli Baba Told Through the Stories of the Westerners Whose Lives He Transformed. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon speaks with Parvati and Raghu about the influence of Neem Karoli Baba on Western spiritual thought, as well as how Ram Dass spearheaded those changes. They also listen to and discuss an excerpt from the Being Here Now course, in which Ram Dass teaches on the essence of karma yoga and how we can maintain joy and lightness even in difficult times.
(63 minutes)

Michael Carroll: Mindful Leadership

Michael Carroll is the COO of Global Coaching Alliance, a former executive, and a certified meditation teacher of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. A globally recognized expert on mindfulness in the workplace, Michael has written many books including The Mindful Leader and Fearless at Work. With Sounds True, he has created the audio series The Mindful Leadership Training. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Michael and Tami Simon speak on using mindfulness to foster a better workplace environment—one that values openness, generosity, and fearlessness. They discuss the challenges inherent in this transformation both from the perspective of business leaders and the entirety of an organization. Finally, Michael describes an example of a mindful leader and the qualities of confidence and vulnerability this person embodies.
(64 minutes)

Lissa Rankin: Leaps of Faith in a Benevolent Universe

Lissa Rankin is a physician, public speaker, and the founder of the Whole Health Medicine Institute. She is the New York Times bestselling author of Mind Over Medicine, The Fear Cure, and The Anatomy of a Calling. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Lissa speak on her incredible personal journey and how it led her to quit traditional OB/GYN medicine as an act of personal integrity. They talk about trusting one’s inner voices and developing the discernment necessary to know when it is time to take an intuitive leap. Finally, Lissa and Tami consider the ability to soften in the face of what might be otherwise overwhelming pain, and how an act of surrender can bring us into better alignment with all of life.
(106 minutes)

Mark Thornton: Meditation at Work

Mark Thornton has more than 20 years of experience in meditation, and has become one of the world’s leading executive meditation coaches, specializing in finding the best techniques for busy people. He’s the author of the Sounds True audio learning program and book Meditation in a New York Minute. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Mark and Tami Simon discuss his personal journey, which took him from being an investment banker to being a meditation coach. They consider the ways that Mark helps his clients find both a sense of purpose and a sense of meaningful connection with the people that matter most to them. Finally, Mark offers practices to create calm even in the midst of the chaos of our busy lives.
(55 minutes)

Led by Spirit

Alice Walker is a poet, essayist, and New York Times-bestselling author who has won both the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award. With Sounds True, Alice has released the audio program My Life As My Self, which vividly recounts her personal, professional, and spiritual journeys. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Alice and Tami Simon speak on what it means to step into the line of fire and receive criticism for what one believes. In this vein, Alice explains her role as an activist in locations such as Gaza and the Congo—and how standing up for one’s principles brings an ineffable lightness to the heart. Finally, Alice and Tami discuss stepping into the role of a societal elder and why it is imperative that we reconnect with the whole of the Earth. (55 minutes)

Nirvana and Samsara Are the Same Thing

Robert Thurman is a prolific author and professor at Columbia University, where he holds the first endowed chair in Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies. A close friend of the Dalai Lama, Robert is a cofounder of Tibet House in New York City, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the fragmented culture of Tibet. In this rollicking installment of Insights at the Edge, Robert and Tami Simon discuss how bliss is a fundamental component of our being, as well as how we can tap into that bliss in our everyday lives. They speak on how people can choose a career that keeps them close to their spiritual tradition and some of the pitfalls involved with becoming a full-time spiritual teacher. Finally, Robert and Tami talk about what exactly continues after reincarnation, and Robert clarifies some of the Dalai Lama’s recent comments about his next life. (90 minutes)

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