Goodpain Podcast

Goodpain Season 03 Trailer: The Artful Life: A Season About Making

Every human life is a work in progress – literally. We are all making something: our days, our relationships, our stories, our selves. Season 3 of Goodpain asks what happens when we stop treating our lives as things that happen to us and start treating them as things we are actively making. Through conversations with makers of every kind – celebrated and unknown, professional and purely passionate – we explore what it means to live Artfully. It is a season about what Art, Creative Expression, and Making reveal about being human: what it costs to develop the fluency to say the thing inside, what it means to risk putting it on the table, and what it asks of us to receive someone else’s offering not as consumers but as witnesses. Season 3 does not treat Art as a category requiring membership. Its subject is the compulsion to express – the interior pressure that builds until something has to come out, and the fact that what comes out is not a translation of experience but a continuation of it. Language is one medium. Art, craft, and making are what happen when language hits its ceiling.

Goodpain Season 02 Episode 21: End of Season Wrap & Preview of Season 03

In this episode, we take a final sprint around the track that is Season 2. Jeremy and Tyler share their brief reflections on the topic of Mature & Immature Masculinity, how it served the candid conversation for the last four months, and how it surprised them in their own personal growth. With two seasons – two dots of data – Goodpain now has a trend line, and the co-hosts consider how Goodpain is developing a clearer perspective on its role, with each season represented a "genre" of the human condition, a perspective on dancing with life challenges.  The episode concludes with a trailer for Season 3, which will be released in late-July/early-August and is titled The Artful Life: A season About  Making

Goodpain Podcast Season 02 Episode 20: This Just Ain't Working for Us – Relando Thompkins-Jones, Social Justice Origin Stories

This just ain't working for us...and it does not have to be this way. Today, our guest, Relando Thompkins-Jones of Social Justice Origin Stories [https://socialjusticeoriginstories.com/] and I explore how power shapes our world. We often say "just" to avoid seeing deeper truths. But maturity requires looking at the actual impact we have. We discuss who gets to set the terms of engagement. This episode explores historical design decisions and systemic harm. These topics are pointed and may spark internal resistance. Invite your objections to come along for the ride. Do not let them close your ears to the message. You are strong enough to lead with your humanity. We must name what is broken to find collective hope. Let’s engage these difficult questions together.  Relando Thompkins-Jones is a macro social worker, social justice  educator, strategist, and storyteller who uses media and education to  advance equity and social justice within people, organizations, and  communities. For more than a decade, he has worked across higher  education, nonprofit, public, and private sectors, planning and  implementing experiential activities and projects that advance  diversity, inclusion, equity, and social justice. He is also the  Founder & Director of Narrative Strategy and Learning Ecosystem at  Social Justice Origin Stories, a multimedia storytelling project that  explores the personal experiences, defining moments, and influences that  inspire people and organizations to pursue social justice. Through  conversations with activists, educators, organizers, scholars, and  everyday changemakers, the project seeks to reduce isolation among  justice-seekers, preserve community wisdom, and help listeners discover  their own place in the work. The phrase "If we can change how we  think, we can change what we do" is central to Relando's approach, and  he finds fulfillment in engaging with others using the liberatory power  of storytelling, education, and authentic human connection to co-create  the conditions for collective thriving. Website: Social Justice Origin Stories [https://socialjusticeoriginstories.com/]| YouTube Channel [https://www.youtube.com/@SocialJusticeOriginStories] | Audio Podlink [https://pod.link/aHR0cHM6Ly9tZWRpYS56ZW5jYXN0LmZtL3NvY2lhbC1qdXN0aWNlLW9yaWdpbi1zdG9yaWVzL3Jzcw] Media Mentions Becoming the People Podcast Episode: Grief is the Medicine [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/revisit-grief-is-the-medicine-with-malkia-devich-cyril/id1519965068?i=1000768714604] Danger of the Single Story TED Talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie [https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare] The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/564989/the-sum-of-us-by-heather-mcghee/]

Goodpain Podcast Season 02 Episode 19: The Architecture of Legacy and the Wisdom of Maturity

Episode Summary In this episode, Jeremy and Tyler explore the profound responsibility of becoming a good ancestor in a world that often prioritizes immediate gratification over long-term resonance. The hosts discuss how personal maturation is found in overcoming fear and the baser instincts that keep us trapped in predictable, reactive habits. By letting go of control and the impulse to stabilize or "ix every chaotic moment, we open ourselves up to a deeper curiosity and the ability to witness life's inherent beauty. The conversation encourages a shift toward intentional living, moving from unconscious behaviors to conscious choices that align with the highest version of ourselves. Central to this discussion is a critique of modern society’s obsession with convenience, which the hosts argue can lead us to trade our humanity for predictability and comfort. Ultimately, they invite listeners to embrace the goodpain of self-governance and accountability to build a legacy that transcends the narrow limitations of the present. Key Themes and Discussion Points: * Legacy and Meaning: The hosts redefine legacy not as a monumental external lift, but as an expression of a higher version of oneself. They discuss the importance of contributing to a "reclamation" of the wisdom class, where being a "wisdom holder" becomes a primary life purpose for those moving into the second half of life. * The Journey of Personal Growth: The conversation highlights the transition from immature to mature expression, which involves a migration from unconscious, reactive behaviors into intentional, conscious choosing. This personal growth requires transcending old habits and baser instincts to align with who we truly want to become. * Developing Emotional Maturity and Self-Awareness: Emotional maturity is characterized by the expansion of internal roles—moving beyond being just a "problem solver" or "fixer" to becoming a "witness" to life as it unfolds. This requires deep self-awareness, questioning why we react to slights or chaos in predictable ways after decades of life. * Navigating Fear and Control: Tyler shares a vulnerable account of a health scare that forced him to confront the fear and control that often drive our reactions. He describes the liberating mindset shift that occurs when one chooses curiosity over the need to "right the chaos" or predetermine how a situation should be solved. * The Power of Conscious Living: Conscious living is presented as the practice of "catching one's breath" and taking a step back to get curious about the root of our actions. It involves setting aside the "idolatry of comfort" and convenience to embrace the necessary, and often "good," pain of self-governance and accountability. * Fostering Human Connection through the "Bridges of Meghalaya": Using the metaphor of living root bridges that take generations to grow, the hosts discuss the necessity of human connection and intergenerational stewardship. They argue that true progress comes from "bumping into the messiness of other people" rather than retreating into algorithmic bubbles of certainty.

Goodpain Podcast Season 02 Episode 18: Fred Rogers' Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

We have a couple more interviews coming for Season 2, but this week we take another break to bring a voice of wisdom to our audience. This week it is the man that always welcomed us into his Neighborhood, never failing to invite us to be his neighbor simply because us to know we were worth knowing.  In this recording from 2001, we hear Fred Rogers' commencement address to the graduating class of Marquette University.