Courageous Ones is a long-form podcast hosted by Tenzin Lhoden — a Tibetan-Belgian creator based in Belgium. Every episode is a deep conversation with people who chose courage over comfort. We talk about mindset, identity, fear, entrepreneurship, and what it takes to build a life on your own terms. No scripts. No filters. Just honest conversations.
Your Obsession Is the Way Out of the Lonely Chapter | Anik
Fitness coach Anik explains why your obsession is the way out of the lonely chapter, and how losing his father at 13 became the reason he trains, coaches and shows up every day. Anik lives in Ireland, runs his coaching business Infinite, and went from childhood asthma attacks to nine half marathons.
In this conversation:
What the lonely chapter is, and how to get out of it
How losing his father at 13 became Anik's strongest why
How to act on your obsession before it fades
Why you never miss a habit twice
How to start without perfect conditions
How one seven kilometer run broke a limit set by childhood asthma
Why the best way to learn is to teach
The move from wantrepreneur to entrepreneur
The birthday message from a client that nearly made Anik cry
Chapters:
00:00 How Losing His Father at 13 Shaped Anik
00:50 Meeting in Person After Four Years of Friendship
04:51 How Chris Williamson Brought Us Together
07:16 James Smith Opening the Modern Wisdom Show
09:41 Why You Should Always Shoot Your Shot
12:50 What Was Anik Like at School?
14:41 The Two Years Anik Spent Alone
17:13 Our 30 Day Meditation Challenge
17:58 Why You Never Miss a Habit Twice
21:40 Why Rigid Routines Make You Self-Sabotage
23:55 Talking About It Is Not Doing It
24:39 How to Start Without Perfect Conditions
26:39 The Perfect Plan Is the One You Keep
29:04 How Anik Beat Imposter Syndrome
30:40 What Is the Lonely Chapter?
31:11 Is Anik Out of the Lonely Chapter?
34:48 How to Start When You Are Scared
35:59 Why Nothing Easy Is Worth It
38:45 How to Break a Limiting Belief
40:38 The Seven Kilometer Run That Changed Anik
43:16 Why Going Zero to a Hundred Burns You Out
45:16 Hard Choices Now, Easy Life Later
47:40 Why Money Is Not a Strong Why
49:44 Anik's Strongest Why: His Father
52:12 Growing Up in an Asian Household
54:17 How Anik's Father Died and What It Taught Him
55:36 What Anik Begs Every Parent to Do
57:43 What Fitness Looks Like at 80
58:43 What Would Anik's Father Say Today?
59:50 Mending the Relationship With His Mother
1:01:27 The Birthday Message That Nearly Made Anik Cry
1:03:26 Why Coaching Is More Than a Training Plan
1:05:05 Why You Should Message the People You Look Up To
1:07:46 Why Everyone Needs a Coach in Their Corner
1:08:32 What an Accountability Partner Does for You
1:10:32 From Wantrepreneur to Entrepreneur
1:13:15 Why Teaching Is the Best Way to Learn
1:16:04 What Would Make 2026 a Good Year for Anik?
1:18:40 Why You Need a Season of Obsession
1:21:22 The Right Obsession and the Wrong One
1:21:46 Practice Your Obsession Before It Fades
1:22:47 How to Become the Person You Picture
1:23:34 What Four Years of Friendship Gave Us
1:25:00 What Are You Waiting For?
Anik
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anik.infinite/ (https://www.instagram.com/anik.infinite/)
Tenzin Lhoden
Watch the video on YouTube (https://youtube.com/@tenzinlhoden)
Instagram: https://instagram.com/tenzinlhoden (https://instagram.com/tenzinlhoden)
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tenzinlhoden (https://www.tiktok.com/@tenzinlhoden)
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@tenzinlhoden (https://youtube.com/@tenzinlhoden)
Newsletter: https://tenzin-lhoden.kit.com/8f2c85f47b (https://tenzin-lhoden.kit.com/8f2c85f47b)
28 Oct 2026
Buddhist Monk and Doctor: Your Self-Doubt Was Never Yours | Dr. Barry Kerzin
Buddhist monk and physician Dr. Barry Kerzin explains why the thought that you are not good enough never started with you, and what to tell yourself when it comes back. Barry has lived in Dharamsala since 1989, took his monastic vows from the Dalai Lama, and works with Google DeepMind on bringing compassion into AI.
In this conversation
Where the "not good enough" thought comes from, and what Barry tells himself when it returns
Why self-confidence comes before less doomscrolling
Whether ambition and contentment fit together
Emotional hygiene: how to catch early anger and let it dissolve
What Barry saw on the roof of Kopan Monastery when he looked inside himself
A five-minute meditation, eyes open. The silence runs from 54:36 to 59:35.
The best advice Barry ever received
Chapters
00:00 Why Your Self-Doubt Was Never Yours
01:04 Bringing Compassion Into AI at Google DeepMind
02:00 What Led Barry Kerzin to Buddhism?
05:23 How Barry Ended Up at Kopan Monastery
06:50 The Hallucination on the Kopan Roof
09:19 What Is It Like Being Around the Dalai Lama?
11:09 The Teaching the Dalai Lama Gave Barry in 1989
13:39 Why Did Barry Stay in Dharamsala?
19:39 When Did Barry Decide to Become a Monk?
21:23 Ordained Twice in One Morning
27:19 How Do You Choose the Right Path?
30:17 How Do You Reduce the Ego?
33:34 Is It Possible to Be Ambitious and Content?
39:00 How to Stop Comparing and Doomscrolling
41:14 Where Does "Not Good Enough" Come From?
43:44 What Is Barry's Relationship With Himself?
45:57 Emotional Hygiene: Catching Anger Early
49:52 What Does Barry's Daily Meditation Look Like?
51:28 A Simple Daily Meditation for Beginners
54:36 Meditate Together: Five Silent Minutes
59:35 How to Keep the Calm After Meditating
1:01:05 Why Meditate With Your Eyes Open?
1:02:54 What Is the Best Advice Barry Ever Received?
1:05:25 Where to Find Barry's Free App and Teachings
Dr. Barry Kerzin
Altruism in Medicine Institute: https://aimicare-app.webflow.io/ (https://aimicare-app.webflow.io/)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/altruismmedicine/ (https://www.instagram.com/altruismmedicine/)
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@altruismmedicine (https://www.youtube.com/@altruismmedicine)
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/barry.kerzin (https://www.facebook.com/barry.kerzin)
Tenzin Lhoden
Watch the video on YouTube
Instagram: https://instagram.com/tenzinlhoden (https://instagram.com/tenzinlhoden)
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tenzinlhoden (https://www.tiktok.com/@tenzinlhoden)
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@tenzinlhoden (https://youtube.com/@tenzinlhoden)
Newsletter: https://tenzin-lhoden.kit.com/8f2c85f47b (https://tenzin-lhoden.kit.com/8f2c85f47b)
Thank you to Jinsel for introducing us: https://www.instagram.com/iam_jinsel/ (https://www.instagram.com/iam_jinsel/)
19 Oct 2026
How to Find Peace in Your Mind Through Buddhism and Neuroscience - Tenzing Dolma Sherpa
What can Buddhism and neuroscience teach us about finding more peace in our minds?
In this episode of Courageous Ones, I sit down with Tenzing Dolma Sherpa to explore meditation, compassion and how we respond to everyday life.
Tenzing shares her journey from growing up in a Tibetan Buddhist family to studying neuroscience and Tibetan Studies. We talk about her experience on a silent retreat, bringing mindfulness into a busy day, and practising kindness towards ourselves and people we find difficult.
As someone who grew up Tibetan, I was curious about both the teachings themselves and how we can put them into practice. We explore what meditation research can tell us, where questions remain, and how noticing our thoughts might help us pause before reacting.
We also talk about her interest in the Nechung Oracle, where to start with Buddhism, and her father’s advice about moving forward without knowing where you will land.
What helps you slow down and find a little more peace? Let me know in the comments.
Subscribe to Courageous Ones for the next conversation.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:42 Finding belonging in Nepal at 13
04:00 Growing up in a Tibetan Buddhist family
07:45 How her grandmother sparked her curiosity
11:56 What a silent retreat is like
16:47 Bringing meditation into everyday life
21:33 Meditation, the brain and the limits of research
26:53 Practising loving-kindness meditation
31:12 Noticing anger before reacting
33:05 Where Buddhism meets neuroscience
36:55 Can science measure our inner experience?
40:29 Books on Buddhism and neuroscience
43:45 Compassion and questioning what we believe
48:25 Making knowledge accessible
53:04 Thinking about your thinking
56:14 Where to start with Buddhism
1:02:13 Moving forward through uncertainty
1:06:43 Why sleep matters
1:08:28 Where to find Tenzing’s work
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Substack: https://kyithep.substack.com/ (https://kyithep.substack.com/)
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#Buddhism #Neuroscience #Meditation
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