Love is the power podcast

Who’s ready to question a collection of some of our favourite fears? In this episode, Tom brings up the thought, “There are certain experiences I need to be afraid of.” What follows is a popcorn inquiry of a mish-mash of terrifying situations, including: being burned alive, drowning, being judged, being rejected, losing support, hurting other people, and many more. Choose your own adventure: Fear Edition. What the belief in fear boils down to, we notice, is just not wanting to suffer. But as Tom points out, would you consider being constantly terrified of an endless list of possibilities suffer...

Can you think of something you wanted your parents to give you? Comfort, safety, honesty, love, consistency, a calm presence, equality, permission to be yourself… Something you wanted from them that, for whatever reason, they were unable to give. This week’s episode delves into what it’s like to be waiting to be given our heart’s desires from our parents. Whether we’re angry with them for how they treated us, or suspect that they were right and we were the problem, could it be time to take care of the little one inside who feels so abandoned...

In this week’s episode we’re exploring the thought, “I am not beautiful.” Can you absolutely know that it’s true that who you are, what you are, is not beautiful? Do you? For many of us, life can become veiled in layers of this thought. Believing ourselves to be unbeautiful brings with it a feeling of being undeserving of good things, so we try to become the best. The best in our career, achievements, relationships, finances… and you know, everything else. But how much of the way we treat ourselves comes from an underlying sense of not being truly...

What is it like walking around all day, wanting safety and security from the world? That is this week’s exploration; looking into the true effect of living that way, as if the thought “I need safety in the world” is true. We notice not being able to relax (because that would be dumb and irresponsible), feeling irritable, and being hyper-vigilant all the time. On guard for any danger that might be around the corner. And one of the biggest effects we saw is how it becomes so important what other people think of us. We believe we need approv...

According to Byron Katie, the order of creation is this: think, feel, act, have. And as Tom points out in this episode, we think according to whatever concept we’re holding to be true. That thinking then becomes our feelings, and we act from the feelings, creating the life we’re living. So it stands to reason that if we’re not liking what we’re living, we could go back to the stressful concepts that direct our thinking and question them. This week’s stressful concept is a subtle conclusion that permeates most of our waking hours: So many thing...

Do you ever notice living with the thought, “There’s something better than this”? Something better than here, better than now, better than what I’m living… It can become like a white noise machine – on in the background until we forget what silence feels like or that it’s even running at all. In this episode, we explore that silence in the form of being without this thought. And there are some pretty beautiful findings in the experience. One way we notice reacting when we believe there’s something better than what we’re living, is we see mistakes everywher...

This week’s inquiry begins by noticing all the movements of life. Relationships, jobs, houses, cars, kids, wellbeing … everyday stuff. Do you experience any resistance just hearing that list? If you do, we invite you to follow along with an inquiry on the likely cause of that stress: believing the thought, “I have to keep it all going.” Is it true? Can you absolutely know that it’s true? Does this thought bring peace or stress into your life? If it’s stressful, it might be worth a second look.

This week’s episode holds space for one of the main fears that can come up when we’re experimenting with inquiry and getting free: the fear of being insensitive. As Tom points out, deep down nobody wants to be insensitive to the suffering that goes on in this world. And when we reach states of openness and freedom ourselves, sometimes the fear that shows up is hurting other people by not joining them in their misery. Through a vulnerable health-related share and an exploration into the possibility that everything – everything – works out in the best way possible, that sparks t...

Do you notice within yourself a tendency to approach life from a place of resistance? Resistance to what you don’t want to experience, resistance to what appears to oppose you, or resistance in its other form: effort. Often we hold tightly to resistance as if it’s the only thing between us and utter disaster. Or just living an experience we don’t like. But could it be that our resistance is the only thing between us and relaxation? And that the only thing effort truly brings into our lives is stress? As Katie says, don’t believe it. Find...

“If I receive, I owe something in return.” This thought is drilled into us from the very beginning with the teaching of “pleases” and “thank yous,” but is it true? It can be so easy to slip into the current of belief in this thought, because that’s the way the world seems to work. But might it work differently if we didn’t believe that receiving and owing go hand-in-hand? And more importantly, what is it like on a personal level believing that it’s true that we can’t receive without owing something in return? Could it be that nature doesn...

Byron Katie does not want people’s approval. She has no interest in manipulating people out of the way they see her. She wants them to think the way they think. According to Katie, that’s love. In this episode, Tom guides a meditation around noticing wanting approval. Noticing what it’s like living in the world of holding tightly to that desire, and noticing what it’s like being free of it. Could it be that it doesn’t matter what anyone is thinking about me? We invite you to follow along in this inquiry with situations in your own l...

Often we can experience the fear that if we follow our heart’s desire, we will end up hurting people we love, or causing disasters, or being reckless, or any number of miserable outcomes. This week’s brave share is an inquiry into that fear. What if the people in your life already see you as reckless and irresponsible? What if you think you might be showing up that way too? In the world of obligation, permission and justification, it becomes impossible to see with clarity. If you’ve been there (or are there now) we invite you to follow...

Do you ever have a situation show up in your life that feels less than ideal and think, “I didn’t sign up for this”? A partnership isn’t like the beautiful image we thought it would be, a child gets sick, a job isn’t what you hoped for, difficult communication arises. Or just this being human thing doesn’t feel like a choice you made freely. All the challenges feel like way too much. It’s impossible to rise to any occasion. It’s impossible to be really happy. Welcome to the world of the thought – “I didn’t sign up for t...

In this inquiry on the thought, “who/what I am is not beautiful,” Tom says that when we discover our beauty it changes our relationship with everything. What’s it like in the world of seeing ourselves as unbeautiful creatures? How do we show up? How do we treat ourselves? These are the questions that arise in this beautiful inquiry, along with their profound answers. Could it be time to allow ourselves to consciously experience being beautiful?

This week’s episode looks at some words from awakened masters on the vanity of the Universe, of the God/Creator/Consciousness that uses existence to experience itself. It also looks at some of our reactions to those words. A common response to the idea that there is no separation, or as Katie puts it, that there is only One, can be a fear of loneliness. As if there only being One means it’s a cold, lonely existence. Hand-in-hand with that fear can be a fear of not being enough, that sense of inadequacy that seems often so inte...

Tom likes to say there’s two main religions on this planet: “There’s right and wrong,” and “If you get it wrong it’s serious.” This week’s episode focuses on the first of those commonly held beliefs and – through The Work – questions it. When we enter question 3 and look at how we react, what happens when we believe the thought, we’re done looking at whether it’s true or not. We are purely experiencing the effect of believing that it is true. So even if this thought has been drilled into you by parents/school/society/what have you, you have...

If you’ve been on a spiritual path or a journey of personal freedom of some kind, you might have come across the question of separation. Are we separate? From each other? From anything? From all that is? You might have also experienced the fear of “waking up” and having all individuality, all sense of self dissolve. What we noticed in this inquiry was that type of fear being one reason we hold onto believing in ourselves as separate from the rest of life. But maybe it isn’t like that. As Tom often asks: Are you? Meaning are you awar...

Have you ever believed the thought, “I have to earn my keep”? This week Tom guides a beautiful and bountiful inquiry into that thought, and all the ways we use it to keep ourselves from the natural abundance and beauty of life. It was so easy to begin believing as children that we are not worthy of all good things. But what kind of life do we create when we take that concept for truth? Could it be that life sees us differently? As Tom points out: the sun is free, the trees are free, the air is free… nature...

There’s a lot going on in the world. Again. For many of us, the political landscape is where we get our work. Watching things that feel very far out of our control happen in ways we think they shouldn’t is infuriating. Take political “leaders” contributions to climate change or as an example. It can be incredibly difficult and terrifying to watch, as is bravely brought up in this week’s episode. One amongst many deep insights Tom shares in this time is that we reap what we sow, and if there’s fear behind a tree-planting project (e.g.) then w...

This week we’re looking at the tendency to identify with “The Efforter” as it relates to practical daily life. Unsurprisingly, identifying as The One Who Has To Make It All Happen can be a not-so-fun experience when we’re being pushed from our comfort zone by life’s twists and turns, especially when they’re to do with a job/work situation that affects our day-to-day experience. Tom walks us through an insightful share-turned-group-inquiry in this episode that leads to some powerful awareness and freedom when we’re willing to see the truth.

This week’s episode took a turn from an exploration about money to the concept, “I need a reason to…” (fill in the blank). It took that turn for no apparent reason, although we think it did make for a pretty sweet episode. Tune in now to inquire into the assumption that everything we do needs a good reason behind it. A good reason to have the goals we have, a good reason to follow through on them, a good reason to say no, a good reason to say yes… Is any of that true? (You get to ask YOU.)

This week’s episode centers around the feeling many of us experience as the worst possible fate: getting in trouble. Have you ever, as a kid or a grown-up, experienced someone being upset with you? Can you find the drop in the pit of your stomach when you believe that their anger means you’ve gotten ‘in trouble?’ Some people’s response to this thought is to yell back, some run away at the first chance, while others go numb and end up feeling like they abandoned themselves. Can you relate to these? What other reactions do you notice to the tho...

This week’s episode is on trusting. Whether it’s distrust in ourselves or in life, how do we react when we believe either one can’t be trusted? Could it be that one belief is not so different from the other? As Tom puts it, at some point we got convinced that we can’t trust ourselves and that we need threats of negative consequences in order to live intelligently. Is that true? Follow along with your own experience or simply listen and soak in the fresh-air feeling of inquiry.

Welcome back and happy new year! This week we’re looking at the ups and downs (mostly downs) of believing the thought “I could lose support.” This might be something you’ll relate to if your holidays consisted of either: A) relaxation and a sense of permission to just be that you now feel slipping away as the world spins back into its usual belief in “the grind” or B) a rushed, overwhelming time of feeling like everyone’s enjoyment depended on you. Both experiences can be the results of believing it’s true that you could lose support, so together let’...

This week we’re looking at the concept of “me time.” The coveted, elusive space that exists just for us, without obligations, roles, and responsibilities weighing us down. But could it be that “me time” is actually just a thought? A thought that, when we believe it, gives us a strong sense of being misused, undervalued, underappreciated and overworked? As Tom points out, it’s a world of poverty we live in when we believe we have to carve out and protect our personal time. What if it’s all my time? Would that make it easier to give an honest “Yes...

This week’s episode is exploring the two halves of holding on. Specifically, holding onto opposing what we would not like to experience in life, and also holding onto what we would. What kind of creation do we live in when that’s the belief we’re operating from? Life becomes a tug-of-war of grasping and clutching at what we want, and resisting everything we want to avoid. Enjoy this week’s group meditation as we notice what it’s like to live these thoughts, and what possibilities lie beyond them.

This week Tom posed the question, “Can you absolutely know it’s true that you are undeserving of a happy, wonderful life?” In the ensuing meditation, he also points out the possibility that our current individual lives and their events (whether we happen to be enjoying them or not) are exactly within our comfort zone, which is dictated by our sense of worthiness. It’s when the vast majority of people believed the Earth is flat. It didn’t make it true, but it did make the entire world feel limited and scary. It did make those who believed it live as...

Love Is The Power listeners, join us this week for a powerful inquiry of a fearful mind. Tom guides a brave, beautiful share through The Work on the thought, “I can’t trust life with the outcome of this situation.” If you can relate to ever feeling afraid (of loss of time, money, agency, freedom, or anything else), this week’s episode is for you!

This week we’re looking at the thought, “I have to survive.” To the mind, this is a concept that would be unthinkable to question. Of course we have to survive! But we’re meeting that seeming certainty with an “Is it true?” As Katie says, everything is questionable. Even things that feel so obvious, like needing to stay alive. How do you react? What happens when you believe that?

In this short but sweet part II from last week’s episode, the “our true nature is not beautiful” inquiry is expanding to hold, “I am not beautiful.” In a world obsessed with physical beauty, this thought is so painful for those of us who believe it. Enjoy this precious, brave exploration of that concept, and find out if it’s really true.

This week’s episode is an inquiry into the nature of humans. Is it true that who we are, deep down, is not beautiful? Even ugly? Do you notice a part of you that has that sneaking suspicion? Join us as we look at people, in all their ways of being, and see for yourself the true nature of humanity.

This week’s episode is a hilariously relatable vignette of how we can sometimes be in such a great place, letting go off all sorts of large-scale problems in the world, feeling very accomplished in our practice of meditation or inquiry or whatever peace-creating habit is our favorite…and then it all comes crashing down because of one tiny thing that isn’t how we want it to be. A chip in a chair that’s not supposed to be there, for example. How do you react when you believe the thought, “I have to hold on to how wrong this...

Can anyone relate to being afraid of being selfish? Accidentally hurting someone because you dared to explore what genuinely feels good to you? In this week’s episode, we look at the world of the concept, “What’s good for me will be bad for someone else,” that comes from a deeper belief in a win-lose world. (As in, if someone’s winning, or experiencing something good for them, someone else must be losing and experiencing something that’s bad for them.) What might happen if we give ourselves full permission to explore what feels good to us? Could it be just a...

This week’s episode is a continuation of the conversation that started last week about needing other people to show up differently. As Tom points out, when we make something wrong, we automatically go to work on it, whatever it is. When other people show up a certain way that we declare “wrong,” we work on it by arguing with them (even internally). But we also declare things we notice about ourselves wrong. And we work on them too. We even declare our thinking that someone else has wronged us… um, wrong. Could it be that life is not actually...

Is there someone in your life you notice unlovingness towards? This week’s episode is an open-minded conversation and mediation on the experience of withholding love from the people we feel need to be different for the sake of our happiness. What’s it like being dependent on what someone else does or doesn’t do? As Tom puts it, everyone on the planet is fighting a righteous war. Everyone is on the side of right, as in all actions feel justified to the doer in some way. Could this be true? If it is, might the intelligent response be an...

This week’s episode takes a look at the stories we have about stories. Sometimes, in its precious eagerness to ‘get it right’ the mind jumps ahead and asks, “Isn’t the turnaround just another story?” And sometimes we believe that and become obsessed with what Byron Katie calls pretending ourselves beyond our own evolution. We assume that we should be constantly living in the blissed-out, meditative, formless perfection that we so often get to experience in question four of The Work. But in this episode we explore that idea and its accompanying implication, “Life is a race.”

This week’s episode is an inquiry into the thought, “I need to keep myself alive.” Something that’s easy to believe, and something we react to in small and large ways. From obsessively feeding the body to attempting to protect ourselves from emotions like disappointment or fear (ironically by living in constant pre-emptive fear), we’re unearthing what the life experience is like when we assume keeping ourselves alive is just part of the job description in this life. This entrenched belief can come from a fear of not existing, and cause us to hold on for dear life to a...

This week we’re exploring the thought, “I could do or be Me wrong.” What happens when we believe this? Does it give rise to self-condemnation, worry, and defence? A sense of having to constantly prove that I’m not doing ‘me’ wrong? It could be that this belief is a major player in a lot of scary stories we tell about ourselves. And what is it like without this thought? What do you notice as you follow along?

In this week’s episode, we revisit a group inquiry into the thought, “I can waste…[fill in the blank].” It’s a popular belief held by most of us in one way or another. We believe we can waste time, energy, money, food, resources and a litany of other things, but as Tom puts it: what if the nature of the Universe is limitless? Meaning “wasting” could be a non-issue. Sound like a fantasy? Let’s find out.

This week Tom leads a simple yet powerful exploration: What are some of the stressful stories you tell about yourself? “I’m not good enough.” “I don’t fit in.” “I’m just an anxious person.” “I’m too much, too intense.” And why not open it up to life? “Life is too difficult.” “Life is out to get me.” “Life is short (and therefore I can get it wrong).” How can we believe these stories without experiencing ourselves as limited and defective, and life as cruel and punishing? As Tom puts it, “Notice how perfectly you live whatever you’re believing.” What kind of world...