The Cozy Impact Pod Season 3, Episode 4: Boost Your Oxytocin!

Welcome back to the Cozy Impact Pod, where we explore how softness, joy, and embodiment can be powerful tools for change.

In this episode, Malia and Julia reconnect after a full season of life and work. They reflect on burnout, shifting energy cycles, and the ways we find rest in a world that rarely slows down. From crocheting sea turtles to walking through botanic gardens, they explore how small sensory pleasures, like touching yarn or eating a peach, can ground us when things feel overwhelming.

They also dig into the deeper currents under their work: imposter syndrome, the pressure to have all the answers, and how meritocracy and white supremacy culture show up even in our most well-intentioned spaces. Together, they ask: What would it mean to embrace “I don’t know” as a radical practice? And how can we find comfort without losing our fire for justice?

This is an episode about pausing, recalibrating, and remembering that connection is a form of impact.

Mentions and Resources

• Spicy Brains Get Stuff Done by Dr. Becca Block - https://maven.com/rebecca-block-phd/spicy-brains
• Heather Rebecca Wilson The Cycle Starters Podcast https://www.youtube.com/@thecyclestarterspodcast
• Deena Ismail’s I Just Love Grape Leaves workshop - Follow her on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deendeen87/, and her work with Listening Lab: https://www.listeninglab.nyc/listeninglab
• Rooted Global Village https://rootedglobalvillage.com/
• Abundance by Ezra Klein https://bookshop.org/p/books/abundance-what-progress-takes-derek-thompson/20165403?ean=9781668023488&next=t

Listener Invitations What could you do this week that feels non-productively productive?

What’s one thing you can say “I don’t know” about — with softness and without shame?

Big Announcements 🌊 Bridging the Gap: From Fear to Trust A 5-part disability inclusion series led by Malia Wright and Sarah Kerwin → Starts June 12, 2025 — second Thursday each month → Learn more + register: https://www.maliawright.com/bridging-the-gap

🌺 Phenomena: An Embodied Retreat in Hawai’i August 22–28, 2025 | Kirpal Meditation & Ecological Center → Early bird through June 1 – but mention this podcast and keep the discount! → More info: https://www.ebbwithus.com/phenomena-retreat

🧘 Julia’s Community Open Houses (free) → Second Wednesday of every month, 12–1pm ET → Mindfulness, connection, and non-networking networking → Sign up: https://juliafirestonecoaching.com/events

💼 Coaching with Julia → Sign up for a 6-12 session package with Julia (special rates through June) → Start by booking an initial session: https://calendly.com/juliafirestonecoaching/coaching-clarity-session

Reach out to us!

Julia Firestone - hello@juliafirestone.com

Malia Wright-Merer - malia@maliawright.com

Malia and Julia discuss the current chaotic moment in the US, the LA fires, and each of our responses to navigating the environment we're in. Julia is in her petty era of activism, getting cybertrucks towed. Malia is in her mom-voice era being a powerful grounded goddess on a mountaintop. We discuss declassified CIA files on sabbotaging fascism, attacks on DEI, and how we’re continuing to fight for human dignity.

Links and references:

• https://www.miltwright.com/windmills-training-program
• juliafirestonecoaching.com/events
• Calling In - Loretta Ross: https://bookshop.org/p/books/calling-in-how-to-start-making-change-with-those-you-d-rather-cancel-loretta-ross/21525899?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAkoe9BhDYARIsAH85cDMPIuxHAfMYBfdyeGKPxop5BCTOJSsl6VeZdoL9VH3xRixnA32BRQwaApMYEALw_wcB
• Lily Zheng - What comes after DEI - https://hbr.org/2025/01/what-comes-after-dei?ab=HP-hero-featured-text-1&giftToken=14571969381737647983023
• CIA doc - https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/26184?ref=404media.co
• Links to GoFundMe for folks in LA: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pK5omSsD4KGhjEHCVgcVw-rd4FZP9haoijEx1mSAm5c/htmlview?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaYe3fVHAIXAyOd0fP4BeZxFUTV-xEld6UkQoT31cRCzNrPaq1BfwlfDgKo_aem_ctoXf8hydbBWJ4HkPqRuxw

Woof. These are challenging times with challenging conversations always simmering between us. How can we navigate them? What does "success" mean for hard conversations with those we care about? In this episode, we talk about how we have navigated hard conversations, tools and resources for showing up with authenticity and care to these conversations, and open with silly banter about Halloween costumes.

For our final episode of our 2nd season, Malia and Julia are IN PERSON together talking about expansive visions of culture change for organizations, digging deeper into our own stories and longings, and sharing insights into the challenges and joys of being solopreneurs.

Notes:

🧘 Presence and Body Awareness (00:00 - 02:25)

• Discussion on the importance of being present in the body for business and psychology.
• Introduction to the Cozy Impact Vibe and the podcast's approach to nurturing and supportive vibes around hard topics.

🎤 Malia's Keynote Experience (02:25 - 10:02)

• Malia shared her experience of giving her first keynote on changing perceptions of ability at a disability conference.
• She discussed her preparation process, challenges, and the importance of bringing her full self to the presentation.

🧠 Preparation and Challenges (10:02 - 20:11)

• Malia discussed the stress and preparation involved in delivering a keynote.
• She emphasized the importance of alone time and talking out loud to prepare effectively.

🌊 Entrepreneurial Waves (20:11 - 31:39)

• Discussion on the non-linear nature of entrepreneurship and the importance of trusting the process.
• Malia and Julia shared their experiences with financial ups and downs and the need for resilience.

💡 Innovative Approaches (31:39 - 42:46)

• Malia shared her interest in integrating body presence into executive decision-making.

🌍 Culture Change and Authenticity (42:46 - 52:22)

• Discussion on the importance of culture change and authenticity in business. Malia emphasized the need for leaders to be curious and open to new approaches for sustainable and supportive cultures.

🌳 Belonging and Interconnectedness (52:22 - 01:04:00)

• Malia and Julia discussed the importance of creating a sense of belonging and interconnectedness among diverse change-makers.
• They shared personal reflections on navigating feelings of not being enough and the role of nature in finding peace and presence.

The Cozy Impact Pod, hosted by Malia and Julia, welcomes Mariam Matin, an Austin-based talent entrepreneur passionate about making hiring more equitable and empowering. They delve into the performative nature of job interviews and the invisible barriers that perpetuate inequities in the job search process, particularly for marginalized groups like first-generation college students. Mariam shares her journey of founding Second Day, a nonprofit aiding diverse talent in launching social impact careers, driven by her desire to redefine success and create pathways into meaningful work. They discuss the importance of breaking the cycle of rewarding those who know how to play the game in hiring, highlighting the need for changes both on the job seeker and employer sides to foster greater inclusivity and diversity in the workforce. Mariam introduces her new startup, Forward, co-founded with her sister, a product that better connects early-career professionals and the employers who hire them because the job-matching process sucks. Find out how you can get involved at https://www.forwardjobs.io/.

This week, we continue our conversation about exhaustion and burnout for activists and folks in impact fields with a very special guest, Taj M. Smith.

Taj M. Smith (he/him) is the founder of Rooted Respite, an online burnout support community serving activists, DEI practitioners, faith-based changemakers, and others committed to creating a more equitable world. As a Black transgender entrepreneur, Taj’s work amplifies anti-oppressive thinking and a worldview dedicated to bringing people back into relationship with themselves, each other, and the land.

Taj is a coach, writer, and speaker with a creative passion for music and literature, particularly sci-fi and fantasy. His written work explores the ways sci-fi overlaps with spirituality, justice, and identity to create hopeful futures.

His writing appears in Sojourners, Huffington Post, and the Harvard Divinity Bulletin. His own transition story was published in Austin Hartke’s book Transforming: The Bible and the Lives of Transgender Christians. He holds a BA in Politics from UC Santa Cruz and an MDiv from Harvard Divinity School.

We are bringing transparency to collective exhaustion, exploitative capitalism, how hard it can be to say no, stress, overwhelm and the baseline state that we as a society might be expected to function at. Also how our value or self worth is tied to what we “do” and what happens when we actually pause. There will also be space to invite the question on what about when we are tired and other people’s jobs are at stake, or the climate, or lives. Hopefully we can find a little rest, a little joy, a little ease in how shift our relationship to rest.

This is the first part of our conversation on exhaustion and burnout. If you enjoy this episode, be sure to check out Episode 11 featuring Taj M. Smith!