Follow Your Curiosity

"Yes, and..." with Jennifer Nasta Zefutie

This week, I'm talking to Jennifer Nasta Zefutie, who has accomplished what many people think is impossible: she's a working actress, and the co-founder and co-producing artistic director of the Pegasus Theatre Company in Bordentown, New Jersey.

Jennifer has one of the most interesting (and unlikely) creative journeys you're likely to hear, and our wide-ranging conversation also covered loss aversion, why failure is essential, defining success for ourselves, and the theatrical improv rule of "Yes, and...," both as a creative principle and a way of life.

Check out the show notes and links at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram! You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

Off to a Good Start with Kate Hutcheson

At the beginning of a new year, many of us think about new projects we want to pursue before the calendar flips 12 months later—so I wanted to talk to someone who can help us make those projects happen more efficiently than they might otherwise. Kate Hutcheson, project manager and virtual assistant, is here to tell you how planning can be your friend rather than your creative enemy, with insights into how and why things work better with a plan—and the good news that your plan doesn't have to be written in stone.

We also talked about how our perceptions of our creative abilities can be skewed, how guilt gets in our way, and even how tough it can be to claim the word "creative" for ourselves in the first place. I think you'll find a lot to chew on in this conversation with Kate Hutcheson.

Check out the show notes and links at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram! You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

Replay: The Gifts of Creativity with Dr. Kelly Flanagan

For the holidays, my gift to you is a replay of one of the inaugural episodes of this podcast: my conversation with Dr. Kelly Flanagan, which I hope will inspire your creative pursuits for 2020.

Kelly Flanagan, clinical psychologist and author of Loveable: Embracing What is Truest About You So You Can Truly Embrace Your Life, joins me to talk about why following our creative dreams is a vital part of being true to ourselves, and how uncovering and embracing those dreams makes us more human and more whole. 

Find show notes at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

Happy Accidents with Anthony Wilson

Anthony Wilson's varied pursuits almost all came to him accidentally: he is a teacher, composer, and writer—in fact, he co-authored the Doctor Who-related book BOOKWYRM with previous guest Robert Smith?. In this conversation, he shares his accidental path to teaching and writing, how he dealt with the worst criticism he's ever encountered as a musician, and what we can learn from kids. We also talked about the importance of structure and how YOU are the most important audience for your work.

(Note: In October 2020, Robert transitioned and is now known as Stacey Smith? Because of the quantity of material predating the transition, Stacey has chosen to credit Robert for items before October 2020.)

Find show notes and links at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

Replay: Art's What's Gonna Save Us with Domenic Sciortino

Over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, I'm replaying two of my favorite episodes from this past year. Domenic Sciortino isn't a name you're likely to have heard before, unless you live in York, Pennsylvania. He's an old friend of mine whose day job as a barber belies his experience with art and creative expression, which includes drawing, music, and a Beastie Boys tribute band called the Brass Monkeys. Dom's passion for the arts and his vocal advocacy for creative expression are inspiring and infectious.

Check out the show notes for this episode here, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram. You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

Crushing Classical with Tracy Friedlander

Tracy Friedlander is a classical musician and host of the Crushing Classical podcast. Tracy and I talk about how she came to play the French Horn, what it's really like to audition for and perform in an orchestra, the largely untaught art of listening, and what happens when your musical dream turns out not to be quite what you wanted...and how musicians have started to make their own new paths outside the orchestra world. Even if you're not a musician, this is an inspiring interview for anyone who's felt like the existing paths don't fit them.

You can find show notes, including links to Tracy's podcast and artists she mentions, at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram! You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

Bringing Death into Life with Tara Sroka

My guest this week is Tara Sroka, a creative end of life planner who helps make this often taboo topic more welcoming and even fun. We talk about how her mother's passing continues to inspire Tara, ways to remember and honor those who've gone before us, taking fear out of the process, and how to use the idea of your own death to make your life more meaningful.

Check out the show notes and links for this episode here, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram! You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

"There Is No Magic Path" with Kristen Good

My guest this week is Kristen Good, a graphic designer, branding expert, and life coach. We talk about perfectionism, self-worth, vulnerability, self-care, and the willingness to get out there and do what you love without getting hung up on the nit-picky, irrelevant details that often stop us from doing our creative work.

As always, check out the show notes at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram! You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

Finding a True Path with Michelle Ward

Michelle Ward, aka the When I Grow Up Coach, has literally made a career out of staying true to herself, and helping others do the same. Michelle's dream from childhood was to be on Broadway, but after graduating from NYU's Tisch School and going to audition after audition, she realized to her dismay that it was not likely to happen for her. She decided she needed to find something that worked for her—that was true to her creative spirit and fed her soul—and that she wanted to help others do the same. She joined me to tell her story and how it's led her to something unexpectedly perfect for her, and what she learned along the way, from the power of authenticity when auditioning to figuring out what else might meet her creative goals when acting fell through.

Check out the show notes at fycuriosity.com, and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram! You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!

The Power of Ritual with Cat Kessler

Cat Kessler wants to bring more ritual and reflection to your life, and she's started a business called Opt Inward to help you do just that. She joins me this week to talk about how she discovered the importance of ritual in her own life, what modern ritual can look like and how we can fit it into our lives, where ritual and self-care intersect, the writing of Madeleine L'Engle, and what we can learn about spirituality, creativity, and ourselves from the book and new TV series Good Omens.

Find show notes at fycuriosity.com., and join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram! You can rate and review the show here. Thanks!