The Cozy Impact Pod with Malia and Julia
Welcome to The Cozy Impact Pod where we open the door to topics that impactful people and conscious leaders constantly think about but rarely get to talk about. We’re destigmatizing, playing, and laughing our way to a greater sense of belonging for our friends in helping professions - from social entrepreneurs like ourselves to activists, nonprofit and social impact folks, educators, and anyone who wants to contribute to making the world a better place. Welcome home. Connect with us! Malia Wright-Merer www.maliawright.com malia@maliawright.com linkedin.com/in/maliawrightmerer Julia Firestone https://www.juliafirestonecoaching.com/ hello@juliafirestonecoaching.com linkedin.com/in/juliafirestone
Episodes
5 days ago
5 days ago
The Cozy Impact Pod, hosted by Malia and Julia, welcomes Mariam Matin, an Austin-based talent entrepreneur passionate about making hiring more equitable and empowering. They delve into the performative nature of job interviews and the invisible barriers that perpetuate inequities in the job search process, particularly for marginalized groups like first-generation college students. Mariam shares her journey of founding Second Day, a nonprofit aiding diverse talent in launching social impact careers, driven by her desire to redefine success and create pathways into meaningful work. They discuss the importance of breaking the cycle of rewarding those who know how to play the game in hiring, highlighting the need for changes both on the job seeker and employer sides to foster greater inclusivity and diversity in the workforce. Mariam introduces her new startup, Forward, co-founded with her sister, a product that better connects early-career professionals and the employers who hire them because the job-matching process sucks. Find out how you can get involved at https://www.forwardjobs.io/.
Friday Mar 29, 2024
Dreaming of Rest with Taj M. Smith, Activist Burnout Coach (Episode 11)
Friday Mar 29, 2024
Friday Mar 29, 2024
This week, we continue our conversation about exhaustion and burnout for activists and folks in impact fields with a very special guest, Taj M. Smith.
Taj M. Smith (he/him) is the founder of Rooted Respite, an online burnout support community serving activists, DEI practitioners, faith-based changemakers, and others committed to creating a more equitable world. As a Black transgender entrepreneur, Taj’s work amplifies anti-oppressive thinking and a worldview dedicated to bringing people back into relationship with themselves, each other, and the land.
Taj is a coach, writer, and speaker with a creative passion for music and literature, particularly sci-fi and fantasy. His written work explores the ways sci-fi overlaps with spirituality, justice, and identity to create hopeful futures.
His writing appears in Sojourners, Huffington Post, and the Harvard Divinity Bulletin. His own transition story was published in Austin Hartke’s book Transforming: The Bible and the Lives of Transgender Christians. He holds a BA in Politics from UC Santa Cruz and an MDiv from Harvard Divinity School.
Friday Mar 29, 2024
Episode 10: We're Tired.
Friday Mar 29, 2024
Friday Mar 29, 2024
We are bringing transparency to collective exhaustion, exploitative capitalism, how hard it can be to say no, stress, overwhelm and the baseline state that we as a society might be expected to function at. Also how our value or self worth is tied to what we “do” and what happens when we actually pause. There will also be space to invite the question on what about when we are tired and other people’s jobs are at stake, or the climate, or lives. Hopefully we can find a little rest, a little joy, a little ease in how shift our relationship to rest.
This is the first part of our conversation on exhaustion and burnout. If you enjoy this episode, be sure to check out Episode 11 featuring Taj M. Smith!
Monday Feb 26, 2024
Episode 9: Designing with disability in mind with Lauren Goldberg
Monday Feb 26, 2024
Monday Feb 26, 2024
What would it look like if we all had the support we needed? What would it feel like if we were able to self-accommodate and have more space for accessibility and adaptability in our lives and work environments? We are exploring what it is actually like to be in self-accommodation, have the conversation around disability, and ask for adaptability. How to create more space for possibility and honoring where our bodies are. We have invited our FIRST guest, Lauren Goldberg, a proudly disabled and neurodivergent social impact entrepreneur, to join us in the conversation!
Notes:
Follow Lauren at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-e-goldberg/
Learn more about working with Lauren Goldberg at https://laurengoldbergcoaching.com/
Malia is co-facilitating a 4-part workshop called The Belonging Ambiguity Project: An embodied exploration of mixed race identity with Karine Bell, Dr. Leticia Nieto and Resmaa Menakem, - March-June 2024. Go to: https://www.rootedglobalvillage.com/belonging
Julia is hosting a 1-day in-person retreat in NYC on Sunday, March 24th - The Belonging Lab. Learn more and sign up at https://www.juliafirestonecoaching.com/retreat
Curious about Malia's Windmills Disability and Inclusion training? Reach out to Malia at malia@maliawright.com
Friday Feb 16, 2024
Episode 8: Comparisonitis
Friday Feb 16, 2024
Friday Feb 16, 2024
Does it seem like everyone is doing better than you? Do you feel like you're behind where you "should" be in your career or life? Surprise! US TOO! Let's talk about it! This week, in the first episode with our new title, The Cozy Impact Pod, we'll be talking about the experience of comparisonitis - what it's like, where it comes from, and how to make it hold less power over us
Special Nods in this episode:
Taj Smith - Burnout Recovery Coach for Activists https://www.rootedrespite.com/
Belonging Ambiguity Project - An exploration of belonging for Mixed race folks with Malia Wright-Merer, Leticia Nieto, Karine Bell, and Resmaa Menakem https://www.rootedglobalvillage.com/belonging
The Belonging Lab - Sunday, March 24th
A one-day in-person retreat for do-gooders and troublemakers in NYC! with Julia Firestone.
Wednesday Jan 24, 2024
Episode 7: Work Hard, untangling effort and exploring ease
Wednesday Jan 24, 2024
Wednesday Jan 24, 2024
We tend to place "difficulty" on a pedestal, celebrating when people work hard. But where did we learn that it has to be hard? Why is easy bad? And is easy the opposite of hard or can we look to pleasure, softness, and play as antidotes to widespread burnout from the constant effort we're encouraged to make.
Thursday Jan 04, 2024
Episode 6: Subverting New Year Pressures
Thursday Jan 04, 2024
Thursday Jan 04, 2024
For many of us, this time of year feels like a fresh start...but it can also come with a ton of pressure to transform who you are, feel magically fulfilled all the time, and meet the expectations flying at us from all directions. Let's be honest, it also tends to set us up to feel like failures.So, as we move into a new year, we'll be sharing insights on how to navigate this time of year with more compassion for yourself so you can sustain your momentum long-term.
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
Episode 5: Demystifying the gifts of magic and mysticism in business and careers
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
In this episode, we're demystifying our own magical, mystical, and spiritual practices that are part of who we are and how we approach our work and lives beyond.
We explore...
💫 Use of a dream, tarot, astrology, Human Centered Design, and other spiritual modalities,
😅 sharing magical selves publicly
🦋 Intentions of practitioners
🤓 Skepticism/”professionalism”
🌱 Alternative tools in business that can be helpful
And more!
Tuesday Aug 01, 2023
Episode 4: Welcoming All Outsiders
Tuesday Aug 01, 2023
Tuesday Aug 01, 2023
This week, we’re Welcoming All Outsiders, discussing: Who or what is the “insider”?, busting the myth that anyone has it together, feeling like an imposter, cultivating a sense of belonging, ADHD, embracing your inner weirdo, and more! Join us live on Linkedin Audio as we host weekly(ish) convos!
Tuesday Jul 25, 2023
Episode 3: Shame
Tuesday Jul 25, 2023
Tuesday Jul 25, 2023
This week, we’re talking about SHAME! How shame shows up in activism, what is happening in the body in shame, how to shift shame into discernment, and so much more.