Your Time With James Sweetman

Episode 148 Oh wow! The importance of awe

This week’s I’m focusing on a topic that is gaining more traction when it comes to general well-being and that’s awe. It’s a tiny word, but a vast concept. Awe is a deep, rich feeling, that I believe we all crave. We want to feel the wonder of the world, not the weight of it. I speak about how awe benefits us, the humility, compassion and creativity it stimulates, as well as the ways we can open ourselves to experiencing more awe in our lives. I also share my experiences of awe, those moments that stopped me in my tracks and more often than not, brought a lump to my throat.

Episode 147 My journey through burnout

This week, the tables have been turned as Nichola Flood, aka the Queen of Health, interviews me about my experiences of burnout. This conversation was first broadcast on Nichola's YouTube Channel (where you can see us as well as listen to us!) In our open and honest chat, I speak about my health challenges, the symptoms of exhaustion I experienced and how I’m navigating a path forward. 

Episode 146 How do I know if it’s time to change jobs?

How do I know it’s time to change jobs? It’s a question most of us have asked ourselves at some point. This week I’ll take you through the different motivations for changing jobs, the  push and pull factors, criteria to consider and the pitfalls to avoid. I also pose some coaching questions to help you gain clarity on your specific situation. 

Episode 145 Five minutes for me

There are 1440 minutes in the day, and this week I’m ensuring that we take just 5 minutes for ourselves. This is a new type of episode for me, as it’s a reflection piece, a combination of words and music that hopefully encourages some introspection. Most of us are busy managing responsibilities and juggling commitments that we rarely have a chance to pause, reflect and remind ourselves of how far we’ve come and what’s truly important. 

Episode 144 The 5 disciplines of the ruthlessly efficient!

A conversation with a man with 100K unanswered emails and a woman who realised she couldn’t be in two places at once, were the joint inspiration for this episode on time management. We all know the fundamentals of effective organisational skills, so this week I’m focusing on 5 key distinctions that make all the difference when it comes to being focused, proactive and productive. These tips gives us an enhanced sense of control over our workflow and are a counterbalance to feelings of overwhelm, which for me, makes organisational skills a key part of my self-care routine.

Episode 143 What am I shedding?

This is the time of year when trees shed their leaves. It prompted me to think, what can I shed? In this week’s episode, I suggest 5 areas where we can contemplate what we can drop, including goals or ambitions that no longer serve us, as well as habits and routines that may be beyond their sell-by date. By pondering the question – what I can shed, or drop we are aligning with the cycle of nature.

Episode 142 Why my sabbatical wasn’t enough

This week, in the first in a new series, I speak about how taking an extended sabbatical wasn’t enough. Yes, I need physical rest, but burnout is not the same as tiredness. I share how overthinking was the root cause of my exhaustion and how I learned that you cannot skip any of the of stages of change, including that sense of feeling lost. I also speak about how our lives transform when we are courageous enough to bring our values front and centre. I close  with some reflections on the spirit of adventure, something we all crave deep down.

Episode 141 An alternative approach to the New Year

If, like me, you don’t buy into the ‘New Year, New You’ hype, then this is the episode for you. I believe that we are all perfectly ourselves whilst still works in progress. So in this special episode at the start of 2023, I share the questions that I reflect upon at this time of year including - What have I been resisting? How can I nourish my soul? How can I exercise my creativity? In 2023, let’s focus on the inner work and allow our ‘doing’ to be a natural bi-product of our well-being.

Episode 140 Reflection questions to close the year

In this special episode, I share my thoughts on what makes Christmas meaningful as well as some self-care tips for this time of year. At the heart of this episode I share 18 self-reflection questions, a great way to close out the year. These are ideal to ponder curled up with a journal and a cuppa, or to discuss with a friend or family member. Wishing you all a wonderful and wonder-filled Christmas.

Episode 139 In conversation with Gerry Duffy

This week, I’m delighted to be joined by international speaker and author Gerry Duffy. In the past 12 years Gerry has delivered over 2,000 presentations at conferences and workshops in Ireland and overseas. His sporting CV has seen him complete many extreme endurance challenges, including running 32 marathons on 32 consecutive days. He is an expert on corporate performance, effective leadership, goal-setting and presentation skills. We kick off our chat discussing how Gerry went from having a pathological fear of public speaking to his work as a professional speaker. Our conversation soon goes deeper as we explore the broader topics of performance, growth and fulfilment. Gerry is very generous with his tips and insights. It was a fantastic conversation and a great way to close this current series of episodes.