On Meaning is a podcast meant to be an audio companion for your journey of finding and refining meaning in life. Join host Eugene Leventhal for conversations with psychologists, philosophers, and others with interesting perspectives on how to view meaning in life. While there won't be any simple answers here, the podcast is meant to explore the various topics relevant to more deeply exploring the question of meaning in life.
Spirituality and Meaning with Dr. Pninit Russo-Netzer
In this week's episode I speak with Dr. Pninit Russo-Netzer, who is the head of the academic training program for logotherapy in Israel and co-developer and co-instructor of the Mindfulness-Based Meaning Program, amongst other things.
I really enjoyed the conversation touching on spirituality and meaning.
If you want learn more about Dr. Russo-Netzer, you should check out her website (https://www.pninitrn.com/about-en).
1 Jul 2021
Relationships and Meaning with Amy Bucciere
In this week’s episode, I speak with Amy Bucciere, who is a therapist focused on relationships and sex therapy with a particular specialization in Imago therapy and EMDR.
I really enjoyed getting the chance to explore the complexity of relationships, how the nature of relationships can change, whether the transactional lens is a useful one to assess relationships, and discussing what Imago Therapy is with Amy. We also touched on the idea that the term itself carries some baggage and it’s important to think about any connections with other people as relationships. The word isn’t just for families or partners.
Learn more about Amy here (https://www.amykbucciere.com/about-amy)
17 Jun 2021
7. Meaning Therapy with Dr. Paul Wong
The guest this week is Dr. Paul Wong, who is a Professor Emeritus of Trent University and President of the International Network on Personal Meaning. Paul has published across topics relating to meaning related therapies and we touch on his journey getting to the work of Viktor Frankl and logotherapy as a starting point.
We spent some time talking about how dealing with depression is not an indicator that a person is ‘broken’ or ‘flawed’ and we got into how we can best repurpose that energy and experience to something positive in the end. We also got to talk about the PURE model that Dr. Wong created and talked about Meaning Therapy and how it differs from Existential and other meaning-oriented therapies more broadly.
Here are some links to learn more about Paul and his work:
http://www.drpaulwong.com/ (http://www.drpaulwong.com/)
http://www.meaningtherapy.com/ (http://www.meaningtherapy.com/)
Be well!
3 Jun 2021
6. Virtues and Happiness with Pelin Kesebir
Welcome to On Meaning. I'm Eugene Leventhal. In this week's episode, I got to speak with Pelin Kesebir, who is a social psychologist interested in the study of happiness and virtue. She is an honorary fellow and a former assistant scientist at the Center for Healthy Minds.
We started the discussion be exploring some similarities and differences between existential psychology and positive psychology before getting into virtues and wellbeing, and the role that spirituality can play in regards to well-being.
Two things in particular really resonated with me from this conversation. The first was the role that the virtue of curiosity can play when it comes to finding interest in life as a whole and in terms of leading a fulfilling life. The second thing, which was just the different types of virtues we discussed, curiosity and connection are so key when it comes to well-being.
To learn more about Pelin's work, check out this site (https://centerhealthyminds.org/about/people/pelin-kesebir).
20 May 2021
5. Dimensions of Meaning with Joel Vos
In today’s episode, I spoke with Dr. Joel Vos, who is, amongst other things, a psychologist, a philosopher, and an existential therapist. We spoke about some of his research that has looked at what components go into living a meaningful life, we talk about the dimensionality of meaning, and we wrap up with some of Joel’s work in the last year looking at meaning during a global pandemic.
We also got into phenomenology a bit, which is a school of philosophy exploring consciousness and the structure of experience. Joel also laid out a few different ways to start the process of thinking about meaning in/of life. The way that he talks about the sailboat metaphor for thinking about life really stressed how much of the exploration of leading a meaningful life is a journey and not a destination.
You can learn more about Joel’s work on his website: https://joelvos.com/
6 May 2021
4. Happiness & Dimensions of Life with Prof. Emmy van Deurzen
This week’s episode is with Prof. Emmy van Deurzen, a philosopher, existential psychotherapist, and a Principal of the New School of Psychotherapy and Counselling at the Existential Academy in London.
We start the chat with the cycle of ideology she mentions early in her book called “Psychotherapy and the Quest for Happiness,” specifically talking about why this cycle is a good place to start a quest for happiness. We then shift to Emmy’s breakdown of the four dimensions of life before wrapping up with a short discussion on the topic of emotions.
If you want to connect, feel free to reach out: OnMeaningPod@gmail.com and @OnMeaningPod on Twitter
Learn more about Emmy: https://www.emmyvandeurzen.com/
22 Apr 2021
3. Existential Psych & Meaning with Mick Cooper
This week's episode features Mick Cooper, is an internationally recognized author, trainer, and consultant in the field of humanistic, existential, and pluralistic therapies. He is a Chartered Psychologist and Professor of Counselling Psychology at the University of Roehampton. Books he's published include Existential Therapies and The Handbook of Person-Centered Psychotherapy and Counseling, amongst many others.
This discussion with Mick is meant to provide an overview of existential psychotherapy, which is a school of psychotherapy that is based on some ideas from existential philosophy. We talk about the influential thinkers and some of the core concepts of existential therapy.
22 Apr 2021
2. Why Am I Doing This
In this episode, I get into the background of why I'm doing this podcast and building this community. I touch on my own mental health journey and how I think some of the major factors of my development shaped that journey.
If you're interested in connecting, feel free to reach out at OnMeaningPod(at)gmail(dot)com or @OnMeaningPod on Twitter or Instagram
22 Apr 2021
1. About The Podcast
This episode gives an overview of what you can expect from this podcast. I go over the structure and the types of episodes that will be coming out.
If you want to connect, reach out over email (OnMeaningPod(at)gmail(dot)com) or OnMeaningPod on Twitter.
3 Apr 2021
0. Trailer - On Meaning
On Meaning is a podcast where we'll go on a journey of finding and refining meaning in life. Join host Eugene Leventhal as he talks to psychologists, philosophers, and people actively working on creating meaningful lives.
The goal of On Meaning is to provide you with different ways of looking at how to live a fulfilling life as well as giving you tangible learnings and advice to help you on your own personal journey.
The first episodes drop on Thursday, April 22nd and every two weeks from there. Learn more about the podcast or our discussion group at OnMeaningPod.com (http://OnMeaningPod.com).
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