Welcome to Season 5 of The Discomfort Practice! In this first interview of the new season, Betsy Reed is joined by Thea May, a communication coach for ‘Edgewalkers and soul-led leaders.’ Together, they explore the theme of ‘edginess’ and dive deep into the discomfort of breaking away from outdated communication norms to create a world where we can all thrive.

Thea shares her journey, the power of embodying discomfort, and how to ‘scale ourselves to meet the messages that move through us.’ This episode is packed with insights that will inspire you to embrace your own edges and communicate more authentically, but we’re betting you’ll feel like you were sitting at a kitchen table, just listening to friends.

Key Moments:

• [00:01:05] - Betsy reflects on over three years of podcasting and introduces the theme of Season 5: Edginess.

• [00:01:54] - Introduction to Thea May, her work as a communication coach, and her unique approach to soul-led leadership.

• [00:06:06] - Thea shares a pivotal uncomfortable moment that shaped her journey as an Edgewalker.

• [00:13:49] - Thea discusses her name change from Dolly to Thea, representing a significant shift in her identity and work.

• [00:21:04] - Diving into the edges of communication, poetry, and identity as core elements of Thea’s life and work.

• [00:30:06] - Thea introduces her three-part communication process: Tuning in, Hooking in, and Opening out.

• [00:32:15] - The power of confident introverts and the shift from power-over to power-with communication.

• [00:45:34] - The importance of scaling yourself to meet the size of your message.

• [00:51:03] - Betsy shares a personal story about receiving (the other) Betsy Reed’s hate mail and what it taught her about resilience.

• [00:52:07] - Thea emphasises the importance of building confidence through low-risk discomfort practices.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to The Discomfort Practice on your favorite podcast platform, and don't forget to leave a 5-star rating and a written review. Your support helps us grow our community and reach more people who are ready to embrace the discomfort of growth. Follow us on Instagram @thebetsyreed for more behind-the-scenes content and updates. Let's get uncomfortable together…

She's baaaack. Well, I'm back. If you don't know me yet, I'm Betsy Reed, and I'm obsessed with the value of discomfort. The juicy, hot, cold, annoying, uncomfortable feeling of being outside of our comfort zones... and pushed to expand. Pushed to perhaps discover things about ourselves that are getting in our way. Or forced to innovate, to forge new pathways, to walk away from the things we thought were forever and create a new reality.

Over the past four seasons, I've talked to some truly inspiring guests about the value of discomfort in shaping them and what they do in the world. And I've gotten a lot less uncomfortable doing solo episodes, where I just waffle on about myself and my life. (Apparently those are a lot of listeners' favourite episodes, so there you go - the subjective nature of discomfort!)

Season 5 will be launching fully in early September 2024 so please subscribe, like and leave me 5 stars and written reviews wherever you listen to podcasts. I record this podcast out of love, rather than any fancy-pants ambitions to make money from it, so you sharing it really does help it reach new ears and I need your help.

Settle yourself in, have a good listen, and let's get uncomfortable together. xx

In this final episode of Season 4 of The Discomfort Practice, Betsy looks back at some themes that arose over the course of the year+ it has spanned, before taking a brief hiatus to prep the launch of Season 5 in March 2024.

What she found in looking back was some striking themes - the greatest of which was love. This has woven its way into many episodes, including:

Episode #76 with Kim Polman, founder of Reboot the Future, whose ethos is based on the Golden Rule

Episode #84 with Daze Aghaji, who talked about creating change from a place of love
Episode #86 with Pilar Garrido, Minister for the Economy in Costa Rica during the Covid-19 pandemic
Episode #110 with Dr. Terence Lester, a public policy advocate for people experiencing homelessness

Betsy’s own solos have focused a lot on love, with a couple of favourites linked below:

Episode #82 On loving all parts of yourself

Episode #98 A love letter to introverted moments

Betsy would love to hear from you. Get in touch via any of the platforms listed below to let her know what you have found helpful, uplifting or positively challenging, as well as what you’d like to hear more about or hear an interview with in Season 5.

Connect with Betsy:

• Betsy on Instagram

• Betsy on email

• Betsy on Linkedin

Rate, Review, Learn and Share

Thanks for tuning into The Discomfort Practice! If you enjoyed this episode, please drop us a five star and written review, follow and share how it has benefited you. Don’t forget to tune into our other episodes and share your favorite ones on social media! Be sure to come back for Season 5, launching in March 2024.