How are you? (a simple question) / From Mike O'Day

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This is MIKE. Although in my mind, he’s always mike o’day.

I met Mike at one of my workshops. My first Men’s Workshop in New York. He ended up attending quite a few, including the last one I did before I left the States for Russia. Really, I don’t know much about him aside from the things I see on social media. He has a show on instagram which airs at 11:59pm titled The 11:59pm show. He has a great sense of humor. He works hard at the work that he does. He seems to me outgoing, and a person who’s always doing something and meeting someone. Most importantly, he’s always been kind. At least from what I’ve seen in the way he’s acted with me and those in workshop.

Because of this I’m not surprised by his question <<HOW ARE YOU?>>. It’s seemingly simple yet unexpectedly loaded with a million different undercurrents. It seems surface but is simultaneously extremely personal. It’s probably the question we ask the most and also the answer we listen to the least. It is QUITE PERPLEXING and iMPORTANT.

So, Mike, I poke fun at this a little to get our listeners listening (and thinking) but I end up with something quite serious. My answer below.

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Music clips used in this episode:

Disney’s Alice In Wonderland Soundtrack, 1951

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About mike.

You can follow him on IG @itsmikeoday.

Watch his 11:59pm show. It’s quite funny.

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LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE ON APPLE PODCASTS

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About this podcast: I created this podcast because i needed to find a way to stay in touch with my friends, social media acquaintances, and life-coaching clients while i built a life for myself in Moscow, Russia. Yes, after 30 years in North America, I relocated back to the place that birthed me.

The concept here is simple: send in a three-minute voice note with anything on your mind.

A question. A thought. A song. A message. An observation. A complaint. Anything. It doesn’t even have to be three minutes. It can be a total of 10 seconds. There are no rules except that you relinquish control to your Voice Note once it’s been sent. After which, I dive into the depths of myself to come up with an adequate answer to whatever it is that you’ve said. Perhaps, this will evolve into a dialogue in which I’ll send back a question your way through my answer. Perhaps, i’ll ask you to never Voice Note me again (kidding).

The point is to challenge ourselves to be daring enough to record, bold enough to send something and to let it go, and patient enough to see where it ends up in the process of creation. Like you, each episode will vary. There are no guarantees except for the guarantee that you’ve put something out there.

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