• The Gentle Rebel Podcast

  • By: Andy Mort
  • Podcast

The Gentle Rebel Podcast

By: Andy Mort
  • Summary

  • Exploring the intersection of high sensitivity, creativity, and culture
    Andy Mort
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Episodes
  • Do You Truly Accept and Understand Your Underlying Personality Traits?
    Jun 22 2018
    Many people wish they were different. They compare themselves with others and think that life would be better if only they had their traits, gifts, and confidence. They struggle to accept their nature, and in so doing fail to enjoy everything their uniqueness brings. “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” - Howard Thurman Think about it for a second. What the world needs is for you to conform to its own needs. It needs you to buy the stuff it says you need. It needs you to be predictable. What the world needs is for you to fit in and be like everyone else. In other words, it needs you to rely on the stuff it paints as important, and neglect the stuff that actually matters to you. Perhaps this is better described as what the world "wants". Because as Thurman says, what the world actually "needs" is people who have come alive. A world of people who have come alive is a world of love, creativity, and acceptance. It's a world where people live at peace with themselves, and in full acceptance of the aliveness of everyone else. Stop asking what the world wants from you. Forget trying to change in order to fit in better. Look at what brings you joy, and accept those parts of yourself. What brings you to a place of flow? Do those things and the wants, comparisons, envy, and unhealthy competitiveness will naturally drain away. In this episode of the podcast we look at these ideas in more depth. We examine the first of three disciplines that come from Stoic Philosophy, which is a great help to us as we think about how to thrive as introverts and sensitive types in the modern world. How can you accept who you are? We consider the Big 5 Personality Traits, and what they can teach us about how who we are is both fixed and flexible. By accepting what is fixed, we are able to develop our temperamental flexibility. I share why personality is like a bead on a rubber band. It's my hope that by the end of the episode you will see that you have more control over your personality than you might otherwise think.
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    34 mins
  • The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Still Has a Lot to Teach Us (a chat with Bo Miller)
    Apr 1 2018
    You may well be familiar with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. It's one of the most recognised and used personality tests in the world. It is based on the psychological theory of Carl Jung along with Katherine Cook Briggs and Isabel Briggs Myers. In this week's podcast I chat with Bo Miller, who is an author, blogger, podcaster, introvert, and certified Myers-Briggs practitioner. He helps people identify and maximise their unique gifts through his website, iSpeakPeople. It's a site for INFJs (a Myers-Briggs personality type). However, Bo publishes great stuff for introverts of all colours. You can download his free ebook, The INFJ Personality Guide, which is a fantastically in depth look at life as an INFJ. Criticisms of The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator I loved talking to Bo about the MBTI, and its use in our lives. Over the years of working with introverts and sensitive types I have come across various critics of the test. It was lovely to talk with Bo though, who recognises that while it is not perfect, it carries a huge amount of value. It helps us better understand ourselves, others, and maximise our own impact on the world. Escaping Tribalism and Reductionistic Language Conversations about introversion can be deterministic; a pre-determined set of characteristics and values. Introverts have no control over what they are capable of...and what they are incapable of. We are good at building walls around ourselves, using labels to justify the behaviours and attitudes we want to get away with. But this is not helpful, necessary, or healthy. What I love about Bo Miller's approach to this topic is that he sees the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator as a tool we can use to free ourselves. It's not a tool to label and thus restrict our self-understanding, but one to help us better understand who we are and how we can create conditions in our lives for the best way of being. It's important for all of us to embrace this approach. To enjoy the validation of recognising ourselves in a certain personality profile, whether that's as an INFJ. But then to use it as a way to understand ourselves within the context of the richly spiced variety of humanity, of which we are but one small speck. In the interview you will learn: Why the MBTI is still relevant today What it helps us understand about ourselves and other people Why Bo wanted to be a licensed practitioner Bo's favourite kind of resources to create (as a podcaster, writer, YouTube creator etc) What advice Bo would impart to his younger self if he could How Bo balances family, work and business life, without burning out Over to You What did you enjoy about this interview? Has it changed anything in your understanding of yourself as an introvert? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below. Support the Podcast and get bonus extras:
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    48 mins
  • 68 | The Impact of The Hero’s Journey on People and Pursuits
    Jul 21 2024
    Even if you aren’t aware of its particular elements, you are familiar with the hero’s journey. It underpins many of our favourite stories, used in PR and marketing, and informs the narratives around sports and celebrities. In this episode of The Gentle Rebel Podcast, I explore the personal and cultural impact of the hero's journey. We'll explore how it shapes self-worth, personal value, and the pursuits we deem meaningful. By contrasting it with elements of Kishōtenketsu narrative structure, which Kendra Patterson helped us explore in our recent Courtyard workshop, we will begin to consider different ways to perceive and respond to life's unexpected events. The Hero's Journey Archetype Joseph Campbell suggested that all mythic narratives throughout history and across cultures are variations of the same story—a hero's journey archetype. This concept picked up mainstream momentum in the 70s and 80s, after it influenced George Lucas in creating Star Wars. This was a tipping point for the monomyth, as it started to PRODUCE culture rather than deriving FROM culture. In other words, it went from being a description of the patterns Campbell concluded (cultures tell stories with similar archetypes) to a prescriptive model (here are the universal elements for telling a story). The textbooks started flowing and the hero's journey became ubiquitous. We see it in fields of psychology, marketing, and personal braining as well as books, TV, and film (including documentary-making). In this episode, I explore some of the implications of using the hero's journey to frame, perceive, and judge ourselves. We will spot some examples in culture. Including England's recent Euro 2024 disappointment, the story of Diana Nyad's swim from Cuba to Florida, and the tropes we see in some of our favourite TV shows. My intention isn't simply to poop on the party. But rather to become more sensitive to the hero's journey. When we recognise it, we can choose whether it's useful to us or not. We can then spot it being used to manipulate us into spending money, energy, and trust on bad actors. We will consider Kishōtenketsu as an alternative way of relating to the story we embody and tell with our lives. Rather than using conflict as a necessity for change, what happens when we relegate it to tangential and contingent parts of life that we choose our response to instead? In the episode, we consider: Ways the hero's journey creates a conflict with reality as its source of meaning How the hero's journey structure has become embedded in marketing and PR Why I get frustrated at the types of pitches I am often sent by people wanting to appear as guests on the podcast The unrealistic expectations the hero's journey sets and its impact on self-judgment and societal pressures The role of conflict in Kishōtenketsu compared with a hero's journey How highly sensitive people might get subsumed into other peoples' hero's journeys (using the movie, Nyad as an example of this) Kishōtenketsu, through a "guy walks into a bar" joke by TB Mckenzie, demonstrates how this narrative structure uses conflict as a tangential element rather than a central premise Links Listen to Kendra's episode about calming effects of Kishōtenketsu on Stepping Off Now Learn more about the Haven Courtyard workshop For further reading on Kishōtenketsu, check out Adeline Bindra's article. https://youtu.be/5vIKpOsIrP4
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    Less than 1 minute

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