This one’s all about how you relate to yourself and other people - and the warm and fuzzy rewards you get when you’re more emotionally available, authentic and vulnerable. Let’s face it, modern life keeps your head down, your attention inward and your spirits low. The pace is of life relentless, urgent and fast - more, more, more, they tell you! In my experience this can sit at odds with the slower, softer, whispered language of the heart. Here you’ll find three ways to get yourself something we...
Oct 14, 2024•26 min
If you’re anything like me, slowing down physically, mentally or emotionally is a lesson you’re doomed to learn over and over again. There’s an underlying habit of urgency, to do and be more, and to get there quickly in case time runs out or you miss it. In this episode I reflect on some enlightening feedback, and share insight from my recent adventures in Authentic Relating. Hopefully I make a fair case for both fast and slow, as well as attuning to whatever the situation needs from you. This i...
Oct 08, 2024•32 min
Your playfulness helps you navigate uncertainty, deepen your relationships, be more creative with problems, and generally have more fun and joy in life. Here I explore three powerful ways to invite more of that into life. I think we’re all naturally playful at heart, it isn’t something you need to learn or add. More of a remembering or uncovering beneath what life can dump on top of it. That’s certainly been my experience. For many years I got stuck in serious and sensible mode - joyless and apa...
Oct 07, 2024•19 min
If you’re anything like me you avoid arguments and confrontation. I prefer the easy life - it’s only natural. Yet in choosing the path of least resistance, we can miss out on what’s on the other side of all that pain, conflict and tension. Also known as ‘rupture and repair’ with our fellow humans. Here I explore what’s on the other side with a live story from the Authentic Relating leadership retreat I’ve been on in France. Join me by the lake for the third and final instalment of reflections on...
Oct 03, 2024•23 min
Is life something that happens to you, or something you have a say in? This one’s about how much power and agency we have, or choose, in our own lived experience. If we choose none, we can fall into a state of collapse and victimhood. If we seize it all there’s a risk of becoming a bully in a state of aggressive posturing at the world. So what’s a healthier way to meet pain (and pleasure) in life? This is the second part of my reflections from an Authentic Relating leadership retreat in France. ...
Sep 30, 2024•26 min
Ever jump to conclusions about people? Or feel a bit judgey - like you know better. Here we’ll explore what happens when we do this, how it gets in the way of relationships and how we might try something different. Assume nothing is one of the five practices of Authentic Relating (AR). I recorded this while on retreat in France, doing my level 3 leadership training in this beautiful way to rediscover your love for life, self and other humans. This is a public episode. If you would like to discus...
Sep 27, 2024•17 min
If, after doing a big or difficult thing, you quickly move on to the next big or difficult thing, taking your performance for granted - you probably had high expectations and low support as a youngster, like me. Perhaps you too are a lifelong perfectionist, hyper self-reliant type, or chronic overachiever. Hello, I see you. Join me as I unpick a recent experience that brings this to life, and the journey before/during/after of how this shows up. We’ll also explore how to break the pattern of dis...
Sep 17, 2024•20 min
Is it possible to 'get on' on life, yet be more consciously lazy? What's like life with the absence of striving. This August I checked out, and gave things more space in life. And three curious, unexpected things happened, that'll I'll share in this episode. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
Sep 04, 2024•16 min
Life is all about giving and recieving. Give and take. And trying, striving, efforting to stack the odds in your favour so you get what you want only seems to make life more difficult. I'm exploring a new way to get on in life. With more grace, acceptance and allowing of what is. The universe heard me and offered a challenge with a recent experience. Here I attempt to make sense of it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episo...
Aug 07, 2024•24 min
What's it like to give and recieve one of the finest human virtues - our interest and attention? Curiosity is what drives us to explore, relate and discover. Yet I've noticed, like playfulness, it's one of the first qualities we lose when we're feeling low or under-resourced. Join me for a think-aloud exploration of what it is to be curious, and our relationship with it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chri...
Aug 04, 2024•27 min
Your body speaks in subtle ways. It signals what you need more of less of, keeps you safe, and gets stuff done. But do you listen though? After a period of intense study and travel, Chris is a bit fragile and restless. Join me as I explore these signals and discover a new need to hiding, being small and blending in - at odds with a lifelong habit of showing off, trying and performing. This one is about finding calm and self-soothing when your body isn't up to playing big. This is a public episod...
Aug 01, 2024•18 min
Emotional intelligence, empathy and self-awareness all have their place, but if you're fully attuned to yourself and everyone around you, you'd never get anything done. In this episode I ponder a question put to me by Mark Walsh on a recent embodiment retreat. I make the case for both expanding awareness of your inner world, as well as numbing out - escapism from the intensity of what it is to be alive. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get acc...
Jul 24, 2024•20 min
This last week I've been in Slovenia, exploring how we relate to, express, and experience life through that thing below your neck. Join me on a mountaintop for helpful insights I picked up studying with Mr Embodiment, Mark Walsh, like how to find yourself when stressed, and what other people make of you. I recorded this while having a very direct experience of the universe; all the feels you can expect from eny immersive adventure, be it a retreat like mine, a festival or any experience full of ...
Jul 22, 2024•38 min
This one's for anyone curious about or new to improv. I'll dispel some myths about what it is, as well as give you a flavour of what to expect when you first try it. You'll also get a sense of how I run Leeds Improv Co-Lab - my growing community of improvisers who regularly come for open play sessions. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
Jul 10, 2024•17 min
Here are three big insights from the lovely improvisers who came out to play this Sunday for the third Undefended Improv workshop, this time in Liverpool, hosted with my friend Jen Hardy. In opening up, relating, and revealing what it's like really being us, we uncovered some universal truths that apply to life, whether you improvise or not. This one's for anyone tired of trying so hard to follow the rules and get everything right, keeping up appearances, yet deeply in need of more support and c...
Jun 24, 2024•30 min
Hey perfectionist: "Allow yourself acceptance and rest, trusting that there is loving, transformative power in the absence of striving." Easier said than done though, right? But what if no doing is required? Can you still progress, grow, have good things happen in life if you simply allow life exactly as it is? That's the work for every perfectionist, even though it's totally at odds with how we relate to the world. Quote from @enneagrampaths on Instagram. This is a public episode. If you would ...
Jun 21, 2024•24 min
This is one of improv's finest and most transferable principles for getting you out of a tight spot. Whether that's a tricky scene, or just generally in life when you feel low mood or motivation. I certainly feel that way at the moment, so here I explore the value in focusing on what's good - like gratitude for what's here and now or our relationships. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack...
Jun 19, 2024•18 min
Join me in the woods for a big one, exploring the case for having a more emotionally engaged experience, and how that affects quality of life. I'll also share 3 ways to change your relationship with how you feel those tricky feelings that every part of you wants to avoid. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
Jun 13, 2024•27 min
A bittersweet one for you here, all about the way we handle change, a threshold, or something coming to an end. Also what this can invite or reveal about our inner world. I share reflections on work I've done to make endings smoother or at least less uncomfortable. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
Jun 11, 2024•22 min
Do kids annoy you? Or pets? What about high-vibe people? Or loafers; the rich and leisured classes; care-free folk who drift through life, unaffected. Ever feel jealous or sad you don’t? These strong reactions could be telling you something about your unmet need for play. Here I make the case for more of it in life. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
Jun 05, 2024•14 min
Sometimes we don't have big up-and-out-there playful energy Maybe you're flat, tired, lonely AND you have an appetite for some kind of light playfulness - you're in need of fun. In this episode we discuss that tension, and explore 3 ways to be playful and creative when you're a bit low. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
May 29, 2024•21 min
A chilly swim in the English channel prompts some reflections on how the way we do one thing, is the way we do everything. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com
May 26, 2024•11 min
Earlier this week, 8 improvisers explored their innate qualities of earthiness, fire, water and air and how that helps you relate and express to other humans. Here's what happened and how the 4 elements help or hinder us. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com
May 23, 2024•23 min
Do you fear becoming an arsehole if you 'indulge' yourself or even dare to put your needs first? Do your needs even matter? Because your inner child certainly thinks so, it knows you DESERVE fun and pleasure. Yet as grown-ups we deny ourselves joy. Here's another installment of how to reclaim play and build a healthier relationship with your inner child. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substa...
May 23, 2024•19 min
Tomorrow, we're exploring the 4 elements in a workshop I'm leading. Each element has a quality that can feel familiar or less so, and with it an invitation to play with a different way of showing up in the world. In this episode I explore each element and give a favour or how to get playful with your elements, and what change that can bring about. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
May 20, 2024•25 min
Join me for a coffee walk, reflecting on three big insights to come out of Saturday's Undefended Improv workshop in Leeds. We explore tricky conversations, why everyone is waiting for everyone else to go first, and why it's easy to drop the mask when you stay with yourself and what you really care about. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com...
May 16, 2024•31 min
Chris has another rant about goals and a possible antidote to find your way through life with more ease, fun and fluidity. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com
May 15, 2024•10 min
In this live recording, I explore who your inner child is, how it relates to creativity, and how to nurture yours so life's more joyful. Recorded live at The New Mondays creative network event in Leeds on Monday 7th May, 2024. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com
May 15, 2024•22 min
Leeds improv Co-Lab community is 1 year old. Here's 3 lessons I've learned (hard won) about taking risks, and turning an idea or hope into a real-life event. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chriskenworthy.substack.com
May 09, 2024•22 min
Tomorrow at The New Monday Leeds, we'll be exploring how to help your inner child go nuts, creatively, by tapping into your innate playfulness. I'll do this through the lens of improv, during a short talk at this local networking event. This is me getting some practice in, and giving you the unedited, full-fat version full of tips and tricks on how to handle uncertainty, while feeling more free and expressed. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or g...
May 06, 2024•22 min
