Turning the Lens Inward | Scott Wright on Awakening, Relationships, and Radical Self-Honesty revisited

Threads of Being | Jake Orak on Spirituality, Self-Discovery, and Living Authentically revisited

In this episode of The Observatory, Jake Orak joins the show to discuss his journey of self-discovery, spirituality, and what it truly means to live authentically. From his early years in drumming to life-changing experiences in Vietnam, Switzerland, Bali, and Nepal, Jake shares how travel, entrepreneurship, and personal breakdowns opened the door to deeper self-awareness and intentional living. He reflects on closing one chapter of his life through a powerful completion ceremony, the origins of his meditation and inner work, and how these threads eventually wove into his book, Threads of Change. Timestamps [02:02] Jake Orak’s background in drumming [03:00] Jake’s background information [06:00] Jake’s experience in Vietnam and Switzerland [14:07] Jake’s entrepreneurial journey [23:57] The completion ceremony that Jake did with his ex-wife [27:28] How Jake nurtured his self-awareness and intentionality [29:40] The nervous breakdown that Jake had in Bali [37:30] The genesis of meditation and personal work [47:57] How Jake’s trip to Nepal influenced his life [01:08:45] Jake's connection with Utah [01:17:20] Jake’s journey of writing the book: Threads of Change [01:21:28] How Jake met his partner, Adrian [01:24:57] The Inner Circle Stewards Drum Session [01:30:41] Developing your spirituality [01:35:24] The difference between living in the space of being and the space of doing Notable quotes: * “When you start doing things consciously for yourself and developing your own flavor of spirituality, that’s when things start to unfold, especially when you are able to share that openly within a group.” - Jake Orak [01:30:41] Relevant links:  Jake Orak Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jakeorak/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/jakeorak/?hl=en] Subscribe to the podcast: Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-observatory-discovery-of-consciousness-awareness/id1644040572] Produced by NC Productions [http://NCP.media]

Turning the Lens Inward | Scott Wright on Awakening, Relationships, and Radical Self-Honesty revisited

In this episode of the Observatory Podcast, Stephen Karafiath steps into the interviewer role alongside LaRae Wright to turn the conversation toward host Scott Wright himself. What unfolds is an honest and expansive discussion about Scott’s personal awakening, the evolution of his relationships, and the inner work required to live life from the inside out. Scott reflects on pivotal life experiences that reshaped how he views identity, connection, and spiritual growth. Together, they explore vulnerability, shadow work, emotional responsibility, and the courage it takes to dismantle old belief systems while building a deeper sense of authenticity. This episode offers listeners a rare look behind the microphone as Scott shares his own story — not as a teacher, but as someone continually learning, questioning, and growing. Timestamps [00:00:03] Welcome to The Observatory Podcast [00:00:18] Stephen Karafiath introduces the idea of interviewing Scott Wright [00:01:12] Why turning the lens inward feels different [00:03:40] Scott reflects on early identity and personal shifts [00:08:22] Awakening moments that changed his trajectory [00:15:06] Navigating relationships through transformation [00:21:55] Vulnerability and emotional honesty as a practice [00:29:14] Letting go of certainty and embracing curiosity [00:37:45] The cost of authenticity and redefining success [00:48:30] Shadow work and self-accountability [00:59:11] Building emotional resilience through discomfort [01:10:44] Partnership, growth, and relational evolution [01:22:05] What it means to live from the inside out [01:33:50] Integration — how Scott applies these lessons daily [01:44:12] Reflections on hosting the Observatory Podcast Notable Quotes * “Sometimes the hardest thing is realizing you don’t have to defend the version of yourself you used to be.” – Scott Wright [29:14] * “The work isn’t about becoming someone new — it’s about remembering who you’ve always been underneath the noise.” – Scott Wright [37:45] * “When we stop trying to control how others see us, that’s where real freedom begins.” – Scott Wright [48:30] * “You can’t bypass the shadow… you have to sit with it long enough to understand what it’s asking from you.” – Stephen Karafiath [59:11] * “Living from the inside out means you’re willing to let your life look different than you imagined.” – LaRae Wright [01:22:05] Relevant links: Earlier episode with Stephen can be found here [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wading-through-the-muck-stephen-karafiath-carrie-cox/id1644040572?i=1000747152595]. Subscribe to the podcast: Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-observatory-discovery-of-consciousness-awareness/id1644040572] Produced by NC Productions [http://NCP.media]

Retire on Your Terms | Bob Coleman on Money Mindset, Financial Freedom & Non-Traditional Retirement Planning

In this episode of the Observatory Podcast, Scott and LaRae Wright sit down with Bob Coleman, with Wendy Wilde joining the conversation, to explore what it means to retire on your own terms and rethink your relationship with money. Bob, a non-traditional financial and investment advisor and author of Retire on Your Terms, shares why many people feel stuck inside the traditional financial “industry matrix” and how curiosity, access, and education can open up new possibilities around retirement planning, investing, prosperity, and abundance. Together, they discuss inherited money stories, scarcity conditioning, financial safety, the difference between retail and wholesale thinking, Blue Ocean Strategy, the Prosperity Code, work becoming optional, and why money does not have to be separate from spirituality, healing, or personal growth. This conversation invites listeners to question the old voices in their heads, get curious about new options, and imagine a more aligned relationship with money, retirement, and freedom. Timestamps: [00:00:18] Introducing Bob Coleman, Wendy Wilde, and Retire on Your Terms [00:04:02] Non-traditional financial advising and the “Industry Matrix” [00:05:23] Relationship with money, abundance, and asking better questions [00:13:03] The traditional advisor box and how financial products are packaged [00:16:22] Breaking old money rules and creating open architecture [00:20:49] Questioning money conditioning, programming, and safety [00:24:47] “Whose voice is in your head?” and inherited money stories [00:26:16] The Prosperity Code and access to new possibilities [00:28:49] Curiosity as the doorway to a different financial path [00:40:57] Blue Ocean Strategy and moving out of financial competition [00:48:56] Retire on Your Terms, Money is My Friend, and redefining success [00:55:53] Why Bob gives the book away and invites curiosity at any age [01:00:15] Energetic exchange, love, and abundance beyond money [01:06:42] Aligning money, spirituality, healing, and financial well-being [01:10:20] Enlightenment, poverty, and closing thoughts Notable Quotes: * “And most people don't know that they have options and choices that are out of the traditional advisor and industry created box.” - Bob Coleman [00:05:02] * “What if we think about it differently and say, what if we recreate the rule? What if we unwind the rule and look at it differently and create a whole new one?” - Bob Coleman [00:16:41] * “Whose voice is in your head telling you that truth? Whose voice is that? Is it your own?” - Bob Coleman [00:24:47] * “We could not have goal set our way here to where we are, to how abundant our life is, how abundant our relationship is.” - LaRae Wright [00:31:28] * “One percent of curiosity is all it takes and it will open you up to a whole new way of doing life.” - Bob Coleman [01:04:55] * “Money is not separate from the rest of you.” - Wendy Wilde [01:07:40] Relevant Links: Non-Traditional Financial Solutions: www.nontraditionalfs.com [http://www.nontraditionalfs.com/] Email Bob Coleman: bob@nontraditionalfs.com Subscribe to the podcast: Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-observatory-discovery-of-consciousness-awareness/id1644040572] Produced by NC Productions [http://NCP.media]

Primitive Skills Gatherings | Scott & LaRae Wright on Ancestral Skills, Nature Connection & Community

In this episode of the Observatory Podcast, Scott and LaRae Wright explore primitive skills gatherings—family-friendly, community-centered events where people learn ancestral skills like fire-making, basket weaving, pottery, herbalism, animal processing, drum making, flute playing, and nature awareness. Scott shares his experience with Fire to Fire, Elkhorn, and Rabbit Stick, and how these gatherings helped reconnect him to music, nature, community, and the deeper traditions carried through human history. Together, they discuss why these spaces are about more than survival skills. They are places of learning, wellness, creativity, barter, storytelling, and connection back to the land and each other. Whether you are curious about wilderness skills, ancestral technology, natural medicine, family camping, or simply finding a more grounded community, this conversation is an invitation to step out of everyday noise and into something older, simpler, and deeply human. Timestamps: [00:00:03] Welcome to The Observatory Podcast [00:00:20] Introducing primitive skills gatherings and why they matter [00:01:20] Fire to Fire, Elkhorn, and Rabbit Stick [00:03:21] Why people seek community and family-friendly learning spaces [00:04:35] Fire-making, basketry, plants, pottery, and ancestral skills [00:07:02] Learning as beginners and the joy of community [00:11:20] Reconnecting with nature, ancestors, and older technologies [00:12:27] Camping, primitive living, and stepping into a time capsule [00:13:11] Scott’s transformative first experience with drumming and fire [00:14:20] Mercantile tents, handmade goods, and barter fair traditions [00:19:00] Why the education and experience are so valuable [00:20:15] Camp Mom, newcomer support, and feeling safe in community [00:23:07] Elders, younger teachers, and keeping traditions alive [00:27:00] Presence in nature, owl eyes, and meditative awareness [00:28:22] Upcoming gatherings and how listeners can get involved Notable Quotes: * “They've been very transformational in my life and I've watched it transform other people's lives as well.” - Scott Wright [00:40] * “And you're learning in a community of people that everyone's a learner.” - LaRae Wright [07:02] * “They come from all over and it's a great way to again build this community, build this sense of connection back to nature, connection back to you know, our ancestors in many ways and what they may have experienced or what they were doing and have a real sense of appreciation for the technology they lived with and the technology that we live with and how to find balance between the two.” - Scott Wright [11:20] * “And it's connecting back to those, those ancestral roots that we all have encoded in our DNA somewhere.” - LaRae Wright [11:48] * “I mean, you can't even put a price on the kind of education that you're going to receive at those.” - Scott Wright [19:04] * “You can feel the difference because it's like checking out of all of those, those day to day things that we experience like traffic and being on your phone and social media and the news and it's just an opportunity to check out of all that stuff and take a break.” - LaRae Wright [21:26] Relevant Links: Subscribe to the podcast: Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-observatory-discovery-of-consciousness-awareness/id1644040572] Produced by NC Productions [http://NCP.media]

Wading Through the Muck | Stephen Karafiath & Carrie Cox on Secure Attachment, Co-Regulation, and Conscious Relationship revisited

In this episode of the Observatory Podcast, Scott and LaRae Wright sit down with Stephen Karafiath and Carrie Cox, two friends in a new relationship who are intentionally building love through secure attachment, emotional honesty, and nervous-system awareness. Together, they explore what it means to “wade through the muck” instead of bypassing discomfort — how trauma can be alchemized, how boundaries create safety, and how a shared relational container allows for co-regulation, depth, and intimacy. This conversation touches on vulnerability, conscious partnership, and the courage required to stay present when things get messy — because that’s often where transformation lives.  Timestamps [00:00:18] Scott and LaRae introduce Stephen Karafiath and Carrie Cox [00:01:03] A new relationship built on depth, presence, and intention [00:02:45] Referencing the Safe to Love podcast conversation [00:03:44] Growth, humility, and learning to soften [00:04:42] Experiencing secure attachment for the first time [00:06:25] Vulnerability, grief, and emotional safety [00:09:22] Metasound, play, and relational witnessing [00:10:31] Water rituals and nature as grounding allies [00:12:46] “Wading through the muck” and where alchemy happens [00:26:02] Alchemizing inherited shame and childhood beliefs [00:26:21] Letting water and nature help hold what can’t be fixed [00:32:45] Polyamory as a doorway into deeper relational conversations [00:34:04] Creating a relationship container that doesn’t leak energy [00:40:32] Exploring depth together — even where there might be dragons [00:48:17] A shared nervous system and the power of co-regulation [00:49:29] Boundaries, communication, and relational clarity [00:55:46] Relational pillars: emotional, physical, spiritual, sexual [01:10:04] Closing reflections and gratitude Noteable Quotes  * “From secure attachment, for what feels like the first time in my life.” – Carrie Cox [04:42] * “I love to wade through the muck because I know that’s where the alchemy occurs.” – Carrie Cox [12:46] * “Setting a container around our relationship that’s bigger than both of us, and not leaking any energy outside of it.” – Stephen Karafiath [34:04] * “We can go right back down to the depths — you’re not afraid to explore coves that might have dragons.” – Stephen Karafiath [40:32] * “We’ve created this shared nervous system, and the benefit is co-regulation.” – Carrie Cox [48:17]  Relevant links: Stephen Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/stephen.karafiath/] Carrie's Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/coxyphotos/] Subscribe to the podcast: Apple Podcast [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-observatory-discovery-of-consciousness-awareness/id1644040572] Produced by NC Productions [http://NCP.media]