Hope Is the Strategy: Burnout, Mattering, and Meaningful Work with Jen Fisher

Hope Is the Strategy: Burnout, Mattering, and Meaningful Work with Jen Fisher

In this episode, I sit down with workplace well-being expert and author Jen Fisher to talk about her book, Hope Is the Strategy, and why hope matters so much in a world where so many people are burned out, languishing, and struggling to feel like they matter. Jen shares her own story of severe burnout and how achievement-based identity, constant performance pressure, and external definitions of success can slowly disconnect us from our well-being. This conversation felt especially meaningful to me because so many of us, athletes, high achievers, leaders, parents, professionals, know what it feels like to keep pushing, even when something inside us is saying, “This is not sustainable.” We talk about the difference between hope and optimism, and Jen breaks down hope as an evidence-based framework: having a goal, seeing pathways forward, and believing we have agency. We also explore how hope is connected to mattering, why feeling valued is essential for well-being, and what individuals, teams, and organizations can do to create environments where people can actually thrive. We also get into rest, recovery, human connection, and the role of AI in the future of work. If AI is going to change how we work, how can we use it to make work more human instead of less? This conversation is for anyone who has ever tied their worth to achievement, felt stuck in a system that was eroding their well-being, or wondered how to keep moving forward with more hope, courage, and connection. Top 5 Takeaways 1. Hope is active, not passive: Hope includes a clear goal, pathways to move forward, and the agency to take action. 2. Achievement-based identity can fuel burnout: When our worth depends on performance, success can become unsustainable. 3. Languishing gives language to the in-between: You may not be in crisis, but you may not be flourishing either. 4. Mattering and hope are deeply connected: Feeling valued and knowing your contributions matter can help create the conditions for hope. 5. Work needs to become more human, not less: Rest, recovery, connection, and thoughtful AI use all matter in the future of well-being. LINKS Learn more about Jen Fisher [https://www.jen-fisher.com/] Read Jen Fisher’s new book Hope is the Strategy [https://www.jen-fisher.com/book] Finding Meaning and Mattering at Work [https://sonyalooney.com/eudaimonia-andrew-soren/] with Andrew Soren Finding Meaningful Work [https://sonyalooney.com/finding-meaningful-work-with-tamara-myles-and-wes-adams/] with Wes Adams and Tamara Myles -------------- The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.  [https://www.palmtreepodco.com/]

Mindfulness in Action: Letting Yourself Feel Valued

In this Mindfulness in Action episode, I’m exploring what it means to not only add value, but to let ourselves feel valued. So many of us are working hard to matter. We’re trying to contribute, perform, improve, achieve, help, and show up for other people. But even when we are adding value, we may not actually let the feeling of mattering land. We move so quickly that we miss the evidence that we are seen, appreciated, and needed. This episode is deeply personal for me. I share a reflection on the loss of Isaac Prilleltensky, whose work on mattering has profoundly shaped my life, my research, and the book I’m writing. Isaac embodied mattering in the way he made people feel seen and valued, and his encouragement helped me keep going when I needed it most. From there, I guide you through a short mindfulness and reflection practice to help you remember a time when someone made you feel valued. We’ll practice noticing not just the thought of that moment, but how it felt in the body. The warmth, lightness, relief, energy, or connection that can come when we allow ourselves to receive care, recognition, or support. Because mattering is not only about what we give, it's also about what we are willing to receive. Top 5 Takeaways * Mattering has two sides: It includes both adding value and feeling valued. * Many of us struggle to let feeling valued land: Compliments, help, encouragement, and recognition can be uncomfortable to receive. * Feeling valued is embodied: It can show up as warmth, lightness, relief, energy, or a sense of connection. * Accepting help allows others to add value too: Receiving is not a burden; it can deepen connection and mattering on both sides. * What we focus on, we begin to notice: Practicing awareness of where we feel valued can help us see more evidence of mattering in everyday life. LINKS What It Really Means to Matter [https://sonyalooney.com/what-it-really-means-to-matter/] How to Build a Life of Contribution with Tom Rath [https://sonyalooney.com/what-it-really-means-to-matter/] Other Mindfulness in Action episodes [https://sonyalooney.com/?s=mindfulness+in+action] -------------- The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.  [https://www.palmtreepodco.com/]

What It Really Means to Matter

What does it actually mean to matter? In this solo episode, I’m diving into a topic that has been occupying my mind for years and has become a central part of my research, workshops, and the book I’m writing: mattering. Mattering is more than belonging. It’s more than self-esteem. It’s the lived experience of both adding value and feeling valued — to yourself, in your relationships, at work, and in your broader community. And when one of those pieces is missing, achievement can start to feel hollow. This episode is an invitation to look at your own goals, your own striving, and your own relationships with more curiosity. Where do you genuinely feel like you matter? Where does your mattering feel conditional? And where might you be trying to earn recognition from people or places that may never be able to give it? I’m with you on this journey of personal growth, adventure, and our mission to be better every day. Learn more and follow my work: Substack: sonyalooney.substack.com Newsletter: sonyalooney.com/newsletter -------------- The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.  [https://www.palmtreepodco.com/]

How to Build a Life of Contribution with Tom Rath

What if the real value of achievement isn’t what it proves about us, but how it contributes to others? In this episode, I sit down with bestselling author, researcher, and publisher Tom Rath. Tom is known for books like How Full Is Your Bucket?, StrengthsFinder 2.0, Strengths-Based Leadership, and Eat, Move, Sleep. His work has shaped how millions of people think about strengths, well-being, purpose, and the way we spend our days. We talk about the difference between purpose and passion, why strengths only matter when they are used in service of others, how to think about career fit, and why retirement may not be the goal we’ve been taught it is. We also explore the role of AI in the future of work, and how it might free us to spend more time on the creative, relational, and meaningful parts of our lives. This episode is for anyone who wants to keep striving, but in a way that feels more grounded, sustainable, and connected to what really matters. Top 5 Takeaways * Achievement feels different when it is connected to contribution * Purpose is not the same as passion * Strengths need direction * Well-being and performance are connected * AI may change how we work, but it can also create opportunity LINKS - Learn more about Tom [https://www.tomrath.org/] - Read Tom's new book Life's Great Question: Discover How You Contribute To The World [https://www.tomrath.org/book-lifes-great-question] - Finding Meaningful Work [https://sonyalooney.com/finding-meaningful-work-with-tamara-myles-and-wes-adams/] with Tamara Myles and Wes Adams - Meaning and Mattering [https://sonyalooney.com/eudaimonia-andrew-soren/] at Work with Andrew Soren -------------- The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.  [https://www.palmtreepodco.com/]

Mindfulness in Action: Practicing Mental Agility in Real Time

This Mindfulness in Action episode is a real-time practice in mental agility: the ability to notice what’s happening in your thoughts, emotions, and body, and make small adjustments that help you stay aligned with what matters. In the previous solo episode, I talked about mental agility from a more practical and educational lens: emotional agility, attentional agility, mindfulness, and the internal and external shifters that help us regulate and adapt. In this episode, we take those ideas out of the theoretical space and into real life. I recorded this while moving outside, because movement often helps me feel more embodied and aware of what’s happening in my inner world. I talk about resilience, adaptability, psychological flexibility, and the constant adjustments we make as athletes, parents, partners, professionals, and humans trying to do hard things. This episode includes a short mindfulness practice to help you notice where you might feel rigid mentally, emotionally, or behaviorally, and then gently practice shifting.  Here's what you'll learn: - Mental agility is resilience in motion - Hard things happen on many scales - Flexibility takes practice - Emotions need space - Small actions build capacity LINKS - Recently solo episode on mental agility [https://sonyalooney.com/mental-agility-how-to-work-with-your-emotions-attention-and-inner-chatter/] - MIA: What It Means to Get Better [https://sonyalooney.com/mindfulness-in-action-redefining-what-it-means-to-get-better/] - MIA: How to Build Human Connection [https://sonyalooney.com/mindfulness-in-action-burnout-drive-and-how-to-build-real-human-connection/] -------------- The Grow the Good Podcast is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.  [https://www.palmtreepodco.com/]