You can quickly tell that Steve Cohen is living a meaningful life of helping others - of transcending the self - through his work as an RN and hypnotherapist; but it's his masterfully storytelling that makes you forget he is using time-test techniques to encourage people to go beyond their perceived limits. You might even notice he had me completely enthralled with his stories - I'm not sure if it was the stories, or the issues with my mic, but he silent through much of this podcast - sorry abou...
Oct 31, 2022•35 min
What is the difference between Meaning and Purpose? Ever since The Purpose Driven Life, written by Rick Warren back in 2002, it feels like "Purpose" has taken the lead in pop culture and common language, while Meaning has been left in the ethereal or even mystical realm . In the, my good friend and interlocuter, Rabbi B., and I tackle this comparison through the lens of the recently released text, Viktor E. Frankl's Logotherapy and Existential Analysis: Theory and Practice. Enjoy! The Meaning Pr...
Oct 24, 2022•47 min
Michael Butera is President and CEO of Association Activision. He is a professional speaker with more than 40 years of experience working exclusively with nonprofits. He focuses on inspiring, educating, and motivating associations and individuals to unlock curiosity and be future-focused to understand and solve the impact of short-term tactics on long-term success and sustainability. In this episode, we discuss how the ideas and concepts he shares with organizations to help them grow and adapt a...
Oct 17, 2022•44 min
Rayna Steigman is, quite possibly, THE MOST energetic and enthusiastic person I know. And definitely one of the hardest working. Not only is she a training manager and professional speaker by day, but she is also studying for her doctorate in organizational leadership and innovation by night!! She is truly a powerhouse of empowerment and self-love. In this episode of the podcast, we talk about her personal journey from "I'm sorry for being here" to empowering herself and others. You can find out...
Oct 10, 2022•45 min
It is difficult, sometimes if may feel nearly impossible, to maintain our own health and wellness when trying to take care of others - whether that means taking care of an ailing family member, or an organization or corporation. Kyla Cofer, talks about how to prevent reaching this wall of impossibility - what we commonly call "burnout" and "compassion fatigue" - as a professional public speaker and with her work on The Leadership School podcast. In this episode, she shares her perspective on sel...
Oct 03, 2022•38 min
The great thing about working with Rabbi B. is that we don't really have a plan - we start with a topic and see where it goes, and we end up covering a lot on the topics of mental health, meaning, logotherapy, and a whole bunch of, hopefully, helpful information. In this episode, we catch up what B. has been creating with the Enneagram, and I share a bit about my summer and time away from the podcast. Through that, we weave in the difference between "Discovering" and "Making" Meaning. Enjoy! To ...
Sep 26, 2022•40 min
Resiliency continues to be an important topic in our world today. The better we are at it, the more we train ourselves to be resilient in good time, the better we will "bounce back" from difficult times. Matthew Lostaglia ("like 'lasagna', you don't say the G") has a unique perspective on Resiliency from his military training and teaching in the subject, that he brings to organizations and corporations. In this episode, we discuss Resiliency, the new trend of "Quiet Quitting" and many other topi...
Sep 19, 2022•56 min
"Preach, Teach, Coach, & Serve" - these are the words Jay Thompson has lived by for the past decade. He lives these principles through his work with HikeTheMountain.org; helping businesses and organizations craft their culture with intentionality and purpose. In this episode of the podcast, we discuss how these principles fit with Mental Health and Meaning. To find out more about Jay and his work, go to www.HikeTheMountain.org . To support your favorite podcast on Mental Health & Meaning...
Sep 12, 2022•51 min
For this episode, we go back into The Meaning Project archives to a past discussion with Sarah D., a client I worked with almost two decades ago, who is now a mental health professional. In the early days of my career, I worked with adolescents in an "innovative and successful" intensive substance abuse treatment program. I think this may have been the first place I started to understand the concept of "meaning" as it relates to human suffering and substance abuse. In this episode, Sarah and I d...
Sep 05, 2022•48 min
We are so close to a feature length film on the life of Dr. Viktor Frankl! For this episode, we went deep into the archives to pull up one of my previous discuss with Alex Vesely - Dr. Frankl's grandson. What a great chat - hopefully we get to talk again sometime soon! Alex Vesely is an established Logotherapist, the director of the movie Viktor and I - a collection of recollections of friends of Dr. Frankl's, and a founder of the Viktor Frankl Institute of America, as well as the grandson of Vi...
Aug 29, 2022•59 min
We seem to be facing an ever increasing substance use and abuse problem. But recovery is possible. In this episode, we go back to a discussion with a former client from my days in adolescent substance abuse treatment. We continue our discussion on substance abuse, recovery, and meaning, in a discussion with Chad P. His story of absolute desperation at a very young age could be the story of many adolescents today. Chad fought treatment and help for a long time, until it was the only option left. ...
Aug 22, 2022•56 min
In this episode we go back a few years to a discussion about anxiety and trauma - something we seem to be facing more of now than ever before. EMDR - Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing - a fancy way of saying "bi-lateral stimulation", which is a fancy way of saying "making your eyes move back and forth"... I've referred MANY clients to EMDR specialists, and this almost the way I explained the process to them... Crystal, not just a practitioner, but a trainer in EMDR, teaches me all ab...
Aug 15, 2022•51 min
Well everyone, it is time for a meaningful break in podcast production. I will be taking the next few weeks, perhaps few months, off from the podcast. So, I thought it would be fun to share some of my latest, and long standing, clinical "pet peeves", and what you can do to make sure they don't impact you! I'll be back in a few weeks - in the meantime, sign up for my weekly Mental Health & Meaning Monday Morning Update at www.DanielAFranz.com . Take care! To support your favorite podcast on M...
Jul 11, 2022•29 min
“Freedom is in danger of degenerating into mere arbitrariness unless it is lived in terms of responsibleness. That is why I recommend that the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the West Coast.” -Dr. Viktor E. Frankl (Mans Search for Meaning) Dr. Frankl suggested be handled with responsible action - and thus goes the conversation with Rabbi B. and I as we discuss freedom in our modern times, and how maybe he tend to lapse into that "arbitrariness...
Jul 03, 2022•37 min
The conclusion of Dr. Ann V. Graber's lecture about the evolution of humankind from Homo Sapien to Homo Noeticus - people of interconnectedness. To support your favorite podcast on Mental Health & Meaning, pick up some meaningful The Meaning Project Podcast merch in our store at https://the-meaning-project-podcast.creator-spring.com/ And finally, if you would like to support our efforts to improve the podcast and maybe even connect with Dr. Dan in different ways, become a Patron on our Patre...
Jun 27, 2022•22 min
I've been meaning to share this with you for quite a while - probably since I started The Meaning Project Podcast. "Homo Noeticus" is the name Dr. Ann V. Graber gives to the potential evolution of humankind in her 2005 speech at the World Congress of Logotherapy, commemorating the life of Dr. Viktor Frankl. Dr. Graber, as you will hear in the podcast, was instrumental in my decision to study logotherapy; and she was also one of my favorite professors during my studies. The speech is masterfully ...
Jun 20, 2022•43 min
For those who follow along on social media - which I am not very good at, so don't feel compelled to follow along, but if you want to, I believe the links are on this page and on my website - for those of you who do, you know I attended The Purpose Summit 2022 at the University of Notre Dame a few weeks ago. Now, this was not my normal CEU (continuing education unit) psychology oriented conference, but since I had been interested in doing some work with one of the companies last year, and had me...
Jun 13, 2022•38 min
This conversation with Rabbi B. started with me saying, "B., I'm getting calls to come talk about Mental Health & Meaning from places I never would've expected it - construction, manufacturing, business... People are struggling." And so it went. That's the funny thing about working with Rabbi B., our combined training and experience seems to connect some great ideas together. In this discussion, hopefully we have some 'great' ideas on how you can improve your mental - and overall - health in...
Jun 06, 2022•39 min
Today we celebrate Memorial Day in the US - the unofficial start to summer - more importantly, the day we remember those who sacrificed their lives in military service. My good friend, Chief (retired) Paul shares his experience in the military - what led to his decision, how he survived and thrived in adversity, and now, what retirement means to him. Enjoy! For professionals looking to help military families, veterans, and active duty, please check out the Star Behavioral Health Program: https:/...
May 30, 2022•52 min
Money. Little green, or other-colored, pieces of paper. Numbers and decimals on a screen. Simple, as an object. But money has so much more emotional connotation - it represents work we've done, and opportunity ahead of us. It is ripe with the potential for meaning. But it also causes serious conflict - both interpersonally, and in our own selves. Therefore, it can also have a considerable negative impact in our lives - especially when we perceive it as scarce, or when it is, factually, scarce. I...
May 23, 2022•40 min
Manya Chylinski was at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in 2013 when the bombs went off. She was fortunate to suffer minimal physical damage. But the mental/emotional trauma she suffered last far longer than she expected. Fortunately, even though she didn't know of the science of "Resilience", she knew to take steps in that direction. I've spoken quite a bit about the opportunity to discover meaning in difficult, even traumatic times. In the past few weeks, we've address resiliency in the ...
May 16, 2022•45 min
I often speak of turning suffering into achievement in my logotherapy work - one way to do this is by becoming more RESILIENT. Resilience has become an important field of major study in recent years, and Dr. Steven Southwick has led the way with some outstanding research. However, the world lost a great contributor to the field of Resilience and Mental Health & Meaning in the past few weeks. Dr. Stephen Southwick was a brilliant researcher and author who passed away in April 2022 after a lon...
May 09, 2022•1 hr
You may have noticed I missed a week - you can hear a little bit about why in this podcast, it's just been a busy few weeks, but this last week was especially rough. I hope you don't mind me sharing about it, and how I apply the principles of Logotherapy in my own life in this episode. I also share about some of the writings from Dr.'s Maria & Edward Marshall's latest textbook on Existential Dynamics, or "noo-dynamics", and the spiritual aspects of logotherapy. Enjoy! And, as I mention in th...
May 02, 2022•36 min
I always get a little skeptical when standard behaviors for healthy humans become buzzwords - especially when those buzzwords seem somewhat politically motivated or forced in a way that causes the concepts to lose meaning. I've been curious about the "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion" movement - now including "Belonging", for quite some time. Mostly because it seems forced, or maybe not fully embraced in a healthy way, and I wanted to learn more. Fortunately, my good friend of almost 30 years, r...
Apr 18, 2022•1 hr
This is a LinkedIn Live show with Cam Beaudoin of Accelerated Accessibility. In this stream, Cam and I talk about the nature of Mental Health and Meaning as it relates to today's post-pandemic (hopefully!) workplace climate. I even manage to sneak in some benefits of the MBTI here! Enjoy!
Apr 12, 2022•42 min
Sexual infidelity is often considered to be a 'deal breaker' in committed relationships. It is something I work with often in my clinical work, and I am happy to say, those couples who put forth the effort, DO come back from it. However, BETRAYAL takes on many forms - some so innocuous, we often don't consider them to be a breach of the committed contract. But they are. And they should be avoided if possible, or healed when they are committed. So, in this episode, I offer 10 betrayals to avoid. ...
Apr 04, 2022•50 min
I could sit and chat with these two wonderful individuals for days - but witnessing them go back and forth on all things Frankl and meaning; that was truly special. Pam and Alex are co-founders of The Viktor Frankl Institute of America. In this episode, Alex discusses the history of his grandfather's 10 Theses of The Person and the modern application of these principles, and both of them share about upcoming projects to bring more meaning to the world.
Mar 28, 2022•1 hr 2 min
Recently translated and released on ViktorFrankl.org, Dr. Frankl's 10 Theses About the Person is considered to be "a fundamental text on Frankl's conception of the human being." You can tell, about 2/3 through the podcast, that I am in way over my head on this one... Fortunately, we will have a few people a bit smarter than me on the podcast soon to continue to discuss this writing. I thought it would be helpful to introduce it to you before Alex Vesely and Pam Roy come on the podcast to discuss...
Mar 21, 2022•28 min
I recently finished reading Johann Hari's latest book, Stolen Focus - Why You Can't Pay Attention and How to Think Deeply Again. I found it to be well researched and informative, and perhaps a little unsettling; so I thought I would share my perspective on it with you.
Mar 14, 2022•46 min
The past few years have been full of change in the work world, regardless of your occupation or vocation. In this episode, Rabbi B. and I discuss the logotherapeutic value of work in discovering meaning and in living a fulfilling life.
Mar 07, 2022•41 min
