BONUS EPISODE! Recap and season 2 preview

In this episode of ThrivTalk, host Jenn Ocken and producer Samantha Morgan reflect on their first season and discuss their learnings and experiences. They joke about how they've mastered the art of talking into the microphone, and they playfully banter about their individual preferences in branding and podcasting.

This bonus episode does a little fact checking and reminiscing. They share how this season of ThrivTalk was a way for Jenn to explore her passion for podcasting and to discover her authentic voice in sharing valuable insights and tips with listeners.

Jenn opens up about her personal journey of striving for sustainability and finding joy and purpose in her work. She talks about her process of envisioning and feeling her dreams and making them a reality. She also emphasizes the importance of being authentic and present in the moment.

Also, find out the plans for the next season of ThrivTalk, including the launch of the "Focus Journal." She talks about her vision for the second season of ThrivTalk, where she aims to have authentic conversations with guests about their experiences, goals, and tools for living purposeful and fulfilling lives.

AUDIO VERSION

TRANSCRIPT

Samantha Morgan: So, you know, the funny thing is I'm doing that right now because that is one of the things we learned this season

Jenn Ocken: Is how to talk into the mic,

Samantha Morgan: Is how to talk into the microphone.

Jenn Ocken: Love the microphone.

Samantha Morgan: How to talk to the microphone. Hello. Jennifer Oken. Oh my God. <laugh>. We also learned that she does not like to be called Jennifer. It's Jen with two ins. Thank you very much.

Jenn Ocken: Okay. It's a branding thing.

Samantha Morgan: It's a

Jenn Ocken: Branding thing. I'm okay being called Jennifer. It's a branding thing. I am strong on brand. It's true.

Samantha Morgan: It's true. We kind of just started, but actually that's what we're doing today is we're just talking about what we have done for the last lots of weeks. Lots of weeks now. Yeah. We did eight episodes.

Jenn Ocken: Right. Of ThrivTalk. ThrivTalk. The new,

Samantha Morgan: The new Thriv

Jenn Ocken: Talk.

Samantha Morgan: And I thought that that was a record <laugh>. Little did I know.

Jenn Ocken: I guess I totally blocked

Samantha Morgan: That out. I think we should start with a fact check. First. Season one, <laugh> first fact. How many episodes did you do the first time you did this?

Jenn Ocken: Um, eight. <laugh>. Eight.

Samantha Morgan: Eight. Originally it was four, right? We said it. Yeah. We were

Jenn Ocken: Celebrating. We we're like, woo.

Samantha Morgan: Yeah.

Jenn Ocken: Maybe I didn't celebrate enough back then.

Samantha Morgan: Clearly not. Yeah. I think you kind of blocked it all out of your memory because it was kind of a traumatic experience for you.

Jenn Ocken: Well it was. It was, yeah. It was

Samantha Morgan: Not the podcast itself, but the whole Thrive experience. Yes.

Jenn Ocken: It was a thing that I'm glad I went through to come out and be what I'm doing now. Like it's valuable because now I know what I don't wanna do. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> and I am doing things way more in flow of what I like to be doing and how I like to do it and how it likes to evolve

Samantha Morgan: And organically organic. Yes. Yeah. I mean it's kind of the key word for everything in life right now is organic.

Jenn Ocken: It is. And I hope it's one of those things that don't get overused.

Samantha Morgan: That's true. But I don't think you can overuse it, quite frankly, because I

Jenn Ocken: Almost feel like we're getting back to it

Samantha Morgan: To it. Mm, yeah. True, true.

Jenn Ocken: Um, doing what you're good at and creating sustainable life with your skills and crafts and talents and not trying to be something you're not because of a material value or something

Samantha Morgan: Sustainable, I think is a word that can't be overused right now either. Because that's really the key to everything is figuring out Sure you can do all of this stuff. And that's one of the things we talked about this season is that you can do all of the pieces of the puzzle yourself. Sure, no problem. But is it sustainable?

Jenn Ocken: Well, that and is an enjoyable, which also mm-hmm. <affirmative> is a reflection of sustainability. I think one thing that I did back in 20 18 20 19 with Thrive and and Thrive Talk the podcast is I wasn't enjoying it. I was just trying to be somebody that my coaches or my marketing person told me I needed to do to promote this platform. And it wasn't sustainable because it wasn't enjoyable. Yeah. But it was very much a sustainable system. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> other people were doing it. Yeah. It just wasn't a system for me, which is now where we have come into doing it now, wanting it to be sustainable in the fact that I'm enjoying what I'm doing. The people around me, like you, Sam, are enjoying this. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Um, I'm coming up together with my community.

Samantha Morgan: Let's pull back the curtain. This is all pretty wide open to begin with. Yeah. But let's, let's take it even further and let's tell everybody a little bit about how we did this season, this first season. And so I'm gonna kick it off by saying this is not a week after <laugh>. We filmed episode eight. No. So, no. We filmed those several months ago and we're now doing the recap of the entire season. So we've had time to sit and process and think about what we did and we learned and we grew and we have come across a lot of different things. So if you can Yeah. Tell people a little bit about how we went about recording this first season and how we got to where we are today.

Jenn Ocken: This first season I just kind of wanted to get my feet wet back into being a podcast host. I had some hangups or some like reservation about doing it cuz I just wanna make sure that what I have to say is valuable to the listener. And I think we touched on some really good topics this season. I'm very grateful for having you be the support of it and keeping me moving and helping me with the ideas. Especially as you're growing into doing a more solopreneur entrepreneur Yeah. Way of life or career. It was easier for me to talk to you about these tips instead of just like a talking head or something like that and just mean by myself. But I approached it as wanting to get my feet wet and just kind of exploring what it is that I want to utilize to guide people into creating their own sustainable life. Doing what they enjoy and making sure that it's purposeful. Cuz that's another part of that sustainability is the whole purpose thing. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. And so moving through, utilizing tips and ideas and mindsets and boundaries and core values and all the things that we got to touch on pricing and my philosophy behind it kind of jazzed me up. It got me excited. It also kind of inspired me, like re-inspired me. Okay. I'm getting too far into my head, where's my heart in this? So I was bringing back my vision to reality stuff. I'm really getting excited to start promoting my tools. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> and my focus journal is coming out soon. Oh,

Samantha Morgan: You said vision.

Jenn Ocken: Oh, oh, <laugh>. See <laugh>

Samantha Morgan: You said Vision.

Jenn Ocken: Well played Sammy. Well played, played. So I g everybody take a look at Sam real quick. How she is right there. I don't know if you can tell on this part of my little vision board. I literally found Sam in a magazine and put her on, this is my podcast vision board, but it's pretty funny. I actually showed this vision board to a good friend of ours who is also in my network of solid women that are my accountability people that just, we just kind of all are lifting each other up. And Tina, Tina goes, you literally put Sam on your vision board. <laugh> did you do that on purpose? And I was like, oh my gosh, I did.

Samantha Morgan: I like that you put the word rich underneath it too. High

Jenn Ocken: Five. Right? Yeah. We're rich in creativity, we're rich in all things. But I really loved this. I actually went away and did a sabbatical of shorts mm-hmm. <affirmative> for about a week and, and did some visioning on my own. You did.

Samantha Morgan: The thing that I've always, always, like I've dreamed of doing. You gotta Airbnb. I've always had the hotel in mind. Maybe it goes back to the whole, uh, on the road thing. Yeah, yeah. That like sitting in the, you know, with a, a cigarette smoke pluming, a typewriter in front of you and just like

Jenn Ocken: Barry Jack Kerouac,

Samantha Morgan: Jack Kerouac, just, you know, I'm like banging out. But that's kind of what you did just without the cigarettes and the um

Jenn Ocken: Yeah, no, I had a little beach town and depression. I went there <laugh>. Yeah. The angst just

Samantha Morgan: Without the angst and

Jenn Ocken: Well I did have the angst and the depression. Right. You did have a little

Samantha Morgan: Angst going into it, I'm not gonna

Jenn Ocken: Lie. Yeah, no. And it wasn't about going into it. It's like, am I really gonna get out of what I want doing these vision boarding and everything? You know, it's great to have the vision and to have the idea of what you want to happen. Yeah. But where I'm really understanding and I I have really mastered is the feeling. So I felt the awareness of the angst of, okay, so if I did all of this stuff that I put on my vision board, how does that look for me? That's kind of easy to figure out. But then I see a lot of work, I see a lot of layers and a lot of of responsibility that comes up with it. And so that angst came and I was like, wait a minute. I have to feel the feels of the joy. Yeah. And the, you know, so as I'm moving through, cuz I start with the vision and then I work my way back. So if you, you've done any of my stuff, then you'll know that turning visions into reality, that system is, you start with the big picture and then how do you feel right. Before you step into that big picture. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, it's, that's a moment in time that not a lot of us really kind of hone in on when it happens and then you work back. So I need to do this, this, and this to get to this. Like it's just goal setting sort of stuff and having that angst in those feels and being aware of it. You can have then a choice. You either are, okay, I'm gonna feel this way and walk away because it's too much mm-hmm. <affirmative> and I'm gonna stay safe in this how I feel, even though I'm gonna be pissed because I'm not going towards my vision or my dream. Right. Or I can choose to feel differently. And so that is what I really go away for, is to step into that space where I can safely feel the angst and the frustration or whatever comes up. And then I become aware of it and I do the introspective work that we all need to do. And that all looks different for different people. But it's definitely a step in my plan and you start feeling what it's like to receive it. The good feelings, the joy, the peace. Sometimes I kind of skip over abundance because with that comes a lot of responsibility and angst and so now I just really wanna have a good time when I'm talking to people. Yeah. Which is kind of the inspiration for the second season of the podcast.

Samantha Morgan: Yes.

Jenn Ocken: And I'm really excited because we have some really cool people that are in my network of friends, friends that have become family, but also entrepreneurs and solopreneurs and, and career minded people in corporate. I think too that or in that like kind of

Samantha Morgan: Traditional

Jenn Ocken: Tradition. Thank you. But they're all living a life of purpose. They're all reaching towards something or they're pivoting or they have pivoted since I've known them. Right. And some of these people I've known for over 10 years. So

Samantha Morgan: Does this mean I'm fired <laugh>? Is that what's happening?

Jenn Ocken: No, Sam, you're not

Samantha Morgan: Going anywhere too. Am anywhere. Am I out of the picture now?

Jenn Ocken: Well, like physically you might, you might not. You might beat me on camera, but you physically you are Go, you

Samantha Morgan: Are. I'll be like the voice from God. I'll just be off camera. The, the chi

Jenn Ocken: In behind the curtain.

Samantha Morgan: Yes, yes, yes, yes.

Jenn Ocken: So no. Yeah. I'm really kind of excited about talking to people about real life experiences, how they're living through purpose. How did they reach their goals? What are their tools Yeah. That they used. And just leaning into cultivating the conversation that is around the ability that we have what it takes to be and do and feel and experience what we want in life. And Okay. So people say authentically. Well, when I'm in angst, I'm very authentic <laugh>. So I wanna say enjoy. Yeah. Enjoy in being present, not living in the past or making decisions about things because of our past conditioning, how they've reconditioned themselves. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> a lot of things.

Samantha Morgan: Yeah. Uh,

Jenn Ocken: And it's gonna be organic, <laugh>

Samantha Morgan: Organic, fresh grown right out of the

Jenn Ocken: New season park

Samantha Morgan: Boulevard house. That is the house of Oken. The house of Oken. The house of

Jenn Ocken: Ok. The house of new growth

Samantha Morgan: Right now because you've religiously watched

Jenn Ocken: Appreciate

Samantha Morgan: Every episode and you're like, wait a minute, this is not the backdrop. Where is the vacuum lamp and where is the cookie tin lamp? Where are these things? Well, they're on the literal other side of the table. We literally turned around, we flipped, we flipped on ya with the script. And we are facing a different direction in Genzel. And so we may be doing more of that in season two. Explain to people though, why it was so important for you to highlight your house and how your house kind of is almost a third member of the team.

Jenn Ocken: <laugh>. Yes.

Samantha Morgan: Fair. It's almost a staff member at this point.

Jenn Ocken: It pretty much is. Yeah. It, yeah. Well it, it's a representation of everything that I've worked for. This is my dream. Yeah. Living in a house, a craftsman style house with hardwood floors and solar panels and all of its little decor. I literally visualize this type of life I felt like, and I still do when I am kind of moving around in this house in my neighborhood, being able to bike places, having restaurants and is that what they call

Samantha Morgan: A sustainable life?

Jenn Ocken: It's a very sustainable life. I am living it. And so if I'm gonna talk the talk about living your dream and going after it. Now do I have fears and hangups? Yeah. And I want to talk more about that stuff. In fact, I plan on talking more about that on the YouTube channel. Mm. And I've started it, I don't know if you saw that last little video I did. That was just a talking head to the screen.

Samantha Morgan: I'll allow it <laugh>.

Jenn Ocken: Um, but I wanna talk about more of the realistic everyday parts of coming into living your dream and feeling it. I love to travel and I do a lot of traveling, but that's not what I was personally working for. I was working towards this house where I could have a hang with my dogs and hang with my friends and, and it is a very, very easy house to come into and network. I'm planning on having some live workshops, in-person workshops at this kitchen table. Um, we've done a couple of vision board workshops where I can guide people through and allowing them to give themselves permission to have their vision come into reality, however that looks. So the idea that we do this in my house and that I invite people into my house is very much a reflection of the talk that I am expressing and saying that it is possible. And this is living proof, but this is my dream. Yeah. And that's very important to me. And I want to understand what's very important to other people and help them move towards

Samantha Morgan: That. Yeah. Explain thrive, thrive talk. You know, we had a conversation about this recently and I don't think it fully processed in my head until you said it the way that you said it recently. So

Jenn Ocken: Yeah. Well, thrive talk is my way of life. I understood back in my, probably like 2003, early, early two thousands that my speak, the way that I was talking about things, the way I was hounding in on my troubles, my past conditioning, the bitterness I felt when things happened to me, I was hanging onto them and I was constantly, it's like I was validating my angst by retelling these stories and these stories happened. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, there is validity in those stories, but there comes a time when you, if you want to obtain your dreams and your visions and you want the things on your vision board to come into reality, <affirmative>, you're gonna have to let go of the past. I've been listening to research and ideas and thoughts about that a lot lately. Just I guess really to, as a reminder, thrive talk is a way of life. Yeah. For me now, when I catch myself being negative, I stop and I'm like, oh hey, that was a part of my past. Or Oh that just happened to remind me not to do that again. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, it's human nature to kind of be pissy and that you gotta feel those, I'm not saying squash any feelings. Yeah. But you've gotta be kind to yourself when it does happen, which is a part of the Thrive Talk way of life. So

Samantha Morgan: That reminds me of one of my favorite episodes, which is, uh, about our little poof flinging friends. Poo flinging

Jenn Ocken: <laugh> monkey mind.

Samantha Morgan: There we go. I didn't know, I hadn't heard that term before. I had kind of heard of the Buddhist principles before, just, I'm sure I probably heard the word too and I just am blocking it out of my monkey mind. Right. <laugh>. But, um, but I thought that was a really important episode and I really enjoyed that one for the fact that like, it really made me stop and think about, you know, those things that I do and those things that I say. And that's been a big change for me since we've started working together is reframing those conversations in my head and re-looking at, uh, the voices that are, you know, kind of pushing you towards the negative side of things where you stay

Jenn Ocken: Comfortable.

Samantha Morgan: Yeah, exactly. Where you stay comfortable. Recently I had a very uncomfortable moment. A thing that would have normally made me very uncomfortable and I was able to not only feel comfortable, but like kind of excited by it.

Jenn Ocken: That's awesome. Yeah.

Samantha Morgan: And so, and I was excited by it because it's gonna lead to me having more time to do the things that I have been working really, really hard to get the time to do. So, even though it feels like a negative because it comes with a financial hardship.

Jenn Ocken: <laugh>. Well no, it's a, it's a financial void. Right. Or a financial space. Maybe that's a better way to space. Space. A financial space that gives you the opportunity to provide more doing the things you love. And I guarantee you not only is it gonna be more valuable because you're enjoying it mm-hmm. <affirmative>, but it also might be more money. Right.

Samantha Morgan: Um,

Jenn Ocken: So let's just call that a financial space. I like that.

Samantha Morgan: I like that. So what was, uh, one of your favorites <laugh> this season?

Jenn Ocken: Well, you know what, I'm gonna have to say the pricing to choose from <laugh>. All eight. No, all eight. Yeah. I'm gonna cop out now. No, I'm gonna say the pricing one because it brought up for me a more in a just my issues about pricing than I still had and money that I still had. You were leftover

Samantha Morgan: Holding on tight before getting to those episodes. Like it was like really kind of stressful for you I think. Yeah.

Jenn Ocken: Like, well because I mean there's a lot like, like these things cost money to produce. Right. And it's coming from the mindset that everything I do needs to somehow return monetarily. That's the system. There's no value in it unless it's bringing you money. And I want to shift, I personally am making the shift to say I want to give without expectation of receiving. And I have to remember, cuz I have done it very well in the past mm-hmm. <affirmative>, like the front porch project. There was no monetary exchange of my services during that project or expectation of it. I was just doing it to stay busy and to cultivate the education that we have to keep our small businesses in our community. Yeah. We're all in this together. We all gotta come up together. And I ended up having one of the best online sales of my entire career that year. But that was not the expectation. And so that pricing episode really got me back to that because I felt the angst of I'm putting out money and I'm not seeing a return on my investment. Whereas, you know what that lesson, just that little lesson that brought me back was worth doing this whole project and it took me a little bit, but I'm, I'm getting back into that space, doing the introspective work that is so valuable and important.

Samantha Morgan: We both have really learned a lot in this recording process. I mean, I'd had some experience with podcasting before. You had some experience with it before, but we've definitely grown, I think mm-hmm. <affirmative> and done some to get to that level

Jenn Ocken: And, and, and I gotta say high five and pat ourselves on the back cuz we were very kind to ourselves through the process. Yeah. We were very fluid. We did not let realistic, we were realistic and, but also we had a lot of grace Yeah. For the process. Yeah.

Samantha Morgan: Yeah. Um, you since then been doing a lot of things like, uh, let's say taking a class.

Jenn Ocken: Oh yeah, yeah. Yeah. I did <laugh>.

Samantha Morgan: She was like, where are you going with this? <laugh>?

Jenn Ocken: I'm back on. I'm back on here I am. No, I I started improv Yeah. To help me get well and I realize in fact Yes ma'am. The teacher, uh, Angie said we were doing an exercise in improv class and they see my angst. Mm. And and I was like standing there and all of a sudden she comes up, she goes, Jen, get out of your head. And I was like, it hit me. I was like, when I am speaking from the heart, no stopping me. Yeah. No stopping me when I am trying to sell something. Like the recordings we were doing for the YouTube video the other day mm-hmm. <affirmative>, I was so wrapped up into saying the right things that I couldn't get out of it. And it's that mindset of the thought leadership that I could do, the guiding that I have, the systems that I've mastered, even though I don't have a structure around all of that. Yeah. I didn't feel like what I had to say was gonna resonate with anybody. Yeah. So it was just a space where we needed to be. I mean there's a lot of tools and a lot of things out there.

Samantha Morgan: Uh, where can they get some of these

Jenn Ocken: Tools? Well, my YouTube channel for one. Oh, okay. Um, and then also on the website.

Samantha Morgan: Okay.

Jenn Ocken: Jen with two ns. Oken oc k e n.com mm-hmm <affirmative> and you can go to Thrive Talk and then there's also going to be free resources. The one thing I'm really excited about, I'm working with the printer right now in publishing the focus journal. Yep. We've made some pretty cool changes to it. Made it very versatile. It's called the focus journal, but it could also be a planner. You can make it into what you need to be the tool you need to be. Which, you know, I'm constantly changing it to fit where I'm at in my life. Just talking more about, you know, turning your visions into reality and that focus journal is a strong tool For that

Samantha Morgan: Final thought,

Jenn Ocken: Subscribe to my YouTube channel so you guys can make sure that you get to see how we are changing in a vault and understand that this is a real thing, like a real authentic thing. Like we're not some manufactured, it doesn't have to be perfect before we put it out there kind of stuff.

Samantha Morgan: I have worn zero makeup this entire

Jenn Ocken: Series. I applaud you. I applaud you. I love it.

Samantha Morgan: It's just cuz I'm too busy to put the shit on <laugh>. I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding.

Jenn Ocken: But no, like, we don't worry about that. I want people on the YouTube channel listening to the podcast. I want them to not only be inspired, but I want them to understand that it doesn't all look the same. Yeah.

Samantha Morgan: That's cuz this is not a fake it till you'll make it concept. Oh

Jenn Ocken: I used to try to do that.

Samantha Morgan: Yeah. That was, that was a, a once upon a time mindset. What is the mindset now? It

Jenn Ocken: Is um, <laugh>. Well we're all in this together so we might as well just come up together. That's

Samantha Morgan: Right. And you too can be part of Gin's network. All you have to do is subscribe. Kidding <laugh>.

Jenn Ocken: She can go right into it. Like the girl has the voice and there's so many things like the she's

Samantha Morgan: My agent now, too. I

Jenn Ocken: Know, right? I would not love to do that. So that won't ever happen. Um, cuz I've tried to be Jess Creative. I've tried, Jess is my office manager. Um, I've tried to be a, what do you call it? An agent for people because I'm really good at networking and you are and connecting people. But I'm not good at that. Yeah. Like for other people. That's,

Samantha Morgan: That's Leah Marsha's world. There's a shout out girl.

Jenn Ocken: <laugh>. I truth.

Samantha Morgan: Are you going to be working with more people one-on-one other than No,

Jenn Ocken: I'm gonna do workshops.

Samantha Morgan: Just me. Just me.

Jenn Ocken: Just you. Just you. Okay. Well you have been kind of the It's a great career. Yeah. <laugh> just, just saying You're

Samantha Morgan: Welcome.

Jenn Ocken: <laugh> <laugh>. No, I'm gonna do more workshops. I like those workshops and the in-person workshops are really awesome. I like my house too. Yeah, I know you and I do a lot of webinar stuff. Oh yeah. But I'm not quite sure if that's personal enough for me. Mm,

Samantha Morgan: Fair enough. Um, my parting thought is we might need a third camera so people can see what's going on under the table. So when they see me just going like this

Jenn Ocken: <laugh>

Samantha Morgan: They know it's cuz I'm holding a toy and letting a dog pull on it. Basically.

Jenn Ocken: <laugh>. So, so, so this is the bonus episode. Now

Samantha Morgan: Is the official We've broken the record

Jenn Ocken: Now it's, Hey, celebrate,

Samantha Morgan: Celebrate.

Jenn Ocken: No, you're right. We have broken the record of the podcast. What are we gonna do with those podcasts? I found them in the archives.

Samantha Morgan: Oh, we need to, we need to do something with it. We might put those up on the YouTube too. Yeah. How

Jenn Ocken: About that? Maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe. You can only see 'em on the YouTube

Samantha Morgan: Maybe.

Jenn Ocken: Ooh, ooh.

Samantha Morgan: Evolving as we speak.

Jenn Ocken: I know, right? Yeah. Organic.

Samantha Morgan: All right. We're done here, <laugh>.

Jenn Ocken: That's it. I know. We can go on. That's, that's

Samantha Morgan: It. We're done. We're outta here.

Jenn Ocken: Thanks y'all. Really grateful you're here. Thank you for watching this first season. That's it.

Samantha Morgan: Seriously. We're

Jenn Ocken: Done Pie. Goodbye. Love my life.