Shadows are unconscious distortions that undermine our experience. Example shadows include limiting beliefs, unhealthy patterns, suppressed emotions, small and big traumas.

When I realized my life was quietly being directed by unconscious patterns and concepts, I became obsessed with uncovering and healing my shadows.

This went on for a few years. I experienced a lot of growth but also realized that there is actually a shadow to shadow work.

I’m a bit older and maybe a smidge wiser now, and continue to learn about the vast nuances of working with the unconscious.

Today’s guest Kim Barta has helped expand my perspective and understanding of shadow work. Kim’s background as psychotherapist and teacher has culminated in him developing several new forms of therapy and models for human understanding including the evolution of shadow resolution and the stages model of human development.

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

I’m glad that there’s a seemingly growing contingency in the scientific community who feel deeply inspired to help us better understand consciousness in the language of Science.

It’s an important step in human development and will be imperative for consciousness expansion to be embraced by the mainstream.

Today’s guest is one of those people. Andrés Gómez-Emilsson is the founder of Qualia Research Institute (QRI). QRI seeks to formalize the math behind our subjective experience and its emotional valence in order to map the  state-space of consciousness. One way you can think about this is that all states of being are just different expressions or configurations of underlying math.

The bet is that understanding this math can help improve the human experience. Broadly speaking, I think anything that helps us see and understand ourselves more clearly is generally supportive. So I find approaching this from the vantage point of math vs. direct experience to be quite interesting.

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

Life has probably never felt more frenetic and speedy for humans than it does today.

Technology and culture have made it easy to always be on, always be productive, always be improving ourselves, and always be running to the next thing.

Underlying this behavior is the idea that more and faster is what’s going to create the best experience and outcomes.

But is that true?

I think it behooves us to take stock on how this narrative is actually playing out for our well-being and prosperity.

And are there times in life when it is particularly useful to slow down?

Today’s guest Steve Schlafman thinks so. Steve is the first boomerang guest I’ve had on the show. This time he is coming back to talk about Downshift, the world’s first decelerator for high performers. 

Steve has been a leader, investor, and coach in the world of startups and technology. More recently he has focused on helping higher performers in periods of transition.

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

I am honored to bring a very special guest to the EvolutionFM today.

Today’s guest is Ron Michael. Ron is the founder of Ascension Keys and is someone who has had a big impact on my life. 

In 1993, he had a near death experience. While he floated above his body and went towards the light, he was told if he chose to come back, he would help usher in a new paradigm of how we looked at the frequency, resonance, and the human organism. When humans embraced the new paradigm, it’d help us far enhanced states of being. 

We did this podcast, so Ron obviously decided to come back!

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

Energy, Qigong, Kundalini, + how it can shift our experience

An essential part of consciousness evolution is finding other people you can relate to.

It helps us realize we’re not alone and has the ability to refine our understanding of our experience.

Today’s guest is someone I have some shared experience with. Master Kambo has spent the past 20 years exploring and deepening his understanding of the metaphysical arts which he now teachers others. He is the founder of The Mind of Matter and Kamotion Qigong.

A formative part of his experience was his Kundalini awakening which began in 2015. In this discussion we talk about how this process unfolded and how impactful learning to work directly with our primordial energy can be.

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

Life is kind of funny in that pretty much everyone is trying to do the same thing - create a good experience.

Yet we all run around with such profoundly different ideas of how to do that.

The central idea in today’s conversation is the art of creating a good experience. 

Our guest is Burgs, the founder of the art of meditation. I first discovered him through this beautiful Mt. Wolf track a few years ago. Since then he has become one of my favorite teachers to listen to Spotify.

Like many teachers, Burgs life took him to Asia where he studied and practiced under the guidance of some of the world’s greatest living masters. He moved back to England at the request of one of his teachers where he has been teaching meditation for the past 25 years.

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

We live in a time where there are many paths to increasing our awareness.

The information age has really changed the game for those who feel called to go on the journey of self discovery and realization. 

The people I know who seem to have went the deepest, usually try a bunch of things and then eventually commit to one tradition or pathway to really focus their energy. This focus creates a capacity for depth that seems to be harder when people are dabbling in many things.

Today’s guest Delson Armstrong is quite unique in that he has been verified to reach the highest levels of many different systems. Verification is when someone like a master within a tradition provides confirmation of your depth of experience.

He has mastered the levels of Samadhi mentioned in the Yoga Sutras, received the six degrees of kriya under the lineage of Hariharananda, as well as the seven degrees of kriya under the lineage of Panchanon Bhattacharya. He has also mastered the eight jhānas and attained the ability to entered into the state of Nirodha Samapatti or cessation.

As a Dhamma teacher and author, this diversity of depth and experience is incredibly rare and gives him a unique perspective to guide students on their path to deeper awareness and realization.

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

And the inner gold that comes with it

I was recently in a text thread about how to find truth in our current times?

There has never been more people with microphones in history telling us how to live, what to believe, and what is happening in the world.

Although this diversity of information has created an immense amount of opportunity and freedom, it’s also made discernment more important than ever.

This is true whether we’re trying to understand what’s happening in the world or the wisdom we choose to follow for our growth.

Today’s guest Nadine Kreisberger has a unique perspective on this topic. As a counselor and consultant on her own journey of self exploration, she has spent the past 25 years studying many wisdom traditions, psychology, and geopolitics to help herself and others discover what she calls “the inner gold.” The inner gold is our deepest essence and gifts that we come into this experience to discover and contribute. 

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

I think a lot about how to integrate working on consciousness in the business world.

Some people view these things as best kept separate, but this idea or path never resonated with me.

If we’re going to spend so much time in the working why not use that as an opportunity for Self discovery?

A lot of people think we are going through a shift in human consciousness. Many people think this is a necessity if humans want to continue to live here. I agree with both.

The question is how do we usher in a more harmonious way of being and society? If consciousness is part of the solution, I don’t expect large portions of the population to all of a sudden become renunciates. It seems like we’re going to need more and more efforts to integrate consciousness work with existing parts of life like work in ways where the sum is greater than the parts.

I love learning about this intersection and people who are pushing it forward. Today’s guest Scott Shute is doing exactly that. Scott is the co-founder of Changing Work and was the first head of mindfulness and compassion at LinkedIn. 

His story is a powerful one that demonstrates how our calling often starts as a seed in an unexpected place before it can blossom into something bigger. Scott was a customer operations executive who volunteered to host a meditation session at LinkedIn for employees. One person showed up to the first session. But he kept at it he was still VP of Customer Operations and gradually he became known inside the company for leading meditations. Eventually this turned into a full time position pioneering mindfulness and compassion internally at LinkedIn.

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast

A convo with my dear friend Mark on playing the non-linear space

What if success wasn’t just about picking good bets, making good decisions, and working hard?

This is the traditional narrative and I’ve come to believe it’s missing an integral part of the pie. Oftentimes, this can lead us to what today’s guest calls “counterfeit success” where everything on the outside looks great, but their personal lives and inner experience is a different story.

Today’s guest is my dear friend Mark Krassner. Mark Krassner is a 2x founder and executive coach who brings a fresh approach to the art of achievement, contribution, and fulfillment.

As a coach, he began to notice a distinct pattern where some of his clients toiled away following the traditional narrative achieving mediocre results while others seemed to experience wild success with flow and ease.  

For full show notes: https://blog.scottbritton.me/s/evolutionfm-podcast