Creativity isn’t a lightning strike—it’s a practice. In this candid conversation, songwriter–novelist–systems thinker Mark Firehammer unpacks why creativity is a habit you can train, and how treating it like a system beats waiting for the muse. We get the backstory of his new novel The Echo and the Voice (published under a pen name that honors his mother’s Swedish family), and the companion album he produced with AI to mirror the protagonist’s awakening—two mediums pointing back to each other to help readers reclaim a silenced voice.

Mark shares industry war stories (serving lunches in Sony’s boardroom, seeing artists reduced to “commodities”), the craft lessons he got from Songwriters Guild president George David Weiss, and why the best art reflects what’s the same in us—what makes us laugh, cry, and lean in. Then we pivot into feeln️ess, his body-first alternative to traditional fitness: nine everyday movements that restored his mobility and joy in his 60s without chasing aesthetics or gym culture. We close with a simple assignment: make a seven-day list of what you loved as a kid, and do one item every day for 30 days. If your voice has gone quiet—or your body feels stuck—this episode is a roadmap back.

• [00:00] Cold open: “Creativity isn’t magic—it’s a habit you can train.”

• [03:00] Creativity as muscle + habit; why systems beat chaos.

• [07:00] The pen name that honors his mother’s Swedish lineage—and why “Firehammer” felt too aggressive for the work.

• [09:00] Reading the book’s premise: Jonas Wilder, culture’s “flattening,” and the cost of trading truth for belonging.

• [11:00] AI as bandmate: iterative production to match the song “exactly” as heard in his head; book↔album loop.

• [20:00] Jonas’s father as metaphor for culture; learning to question everything while finding “the window.”

• [25:00] New York in the ’90s: Sony boardroom, the commodity conversation, and choosing art over industry.

• [30:00] Craft lessons from George David Weiss; structure serves story (chorus first, bridges only if there’s something to cross).

• [33:00] Favorite story-songs: Harry Chapin’s “Mr. Tanner,” Eagles classics, Dan Fogelberg deep cuts—why place + people endure.

• [45:00] Feeln️ess origin: from “oof” at 58 to pain-free at 62; natural systems > artificial ideals.

• [48:00] The nine daily tasks (bed/floor, chair, reach, bend, rotate, etc.) and 20 minutes/day to restore function.

• [55:00] Blue Zones inspiration; designing a low-to-the-floor home that keeps you moving.

• [57:00] Homework: list what you loved as a kid; do one item daily for 30 days—awareness → action → joy.

• Novel: The Echo and the Voice (published under a pen name honoring his mother’s family).

• Companion Album: AI-assisted soundtrack sequenced to “wake you up.”

• Feeln️ess: Nine natural movements for lifelong mobility (Mark’s framework).

We’re taught to chase the feeling of love, then panic when the feeling fades. In this wide-open conversation, Christian de la Huerta—spiritual teacher, TEDx speaker, and author of Conscious Love—draws a clean line between worldly (ego) power and soulful (inner) power, and why confusing the two makes us abandon ourselves in relationships. We unpack how early conditioning around power and emotions trains us to say “yes” when our body is screaming “no,” why men are taught to suppress feelings (and pay for it in mental and physical health), and the hard truth that love is an act, not a feeling—especially when the honeymoon ends.

Christian shares the personal journey from adolescent depression and religious conflict to an unshakeable sense of self, plus practical ways to stop playing small: name what you want, set clear boundaries, and learn to feel and communicate emotions responsibly. If you’ve ever floated through life on autopilot or handed your power to circumstance, this episode is your nudge to become the author of your own story—on purpose.

• [00:00] Cold open: “Love is the act, not the feeling”—and why the real work starts after the honeymoon.

• [02:00] From depression and self-loathing to an unshakeable sense of self.

• [03:30] Power isn’t the problem—our confusion is (worldly vs. soulful power).

• [06:00] How we give our power away: saying yes when it’s a no; settling for crumbs.

• [09:00] Faith, identity, and the existential questions that won’t be outrun.

• [12:00] Everyday examples of power leaks in work and love—and how patterns form.

• [15:00] Fear of being hurt → sabotaging relationships before they start.

• [20:00] Boundaries without bravado: expressing truth calmly and clearly.

• [30:00] Women’s empowerment, men’s crisis, and redefining “provider.”

• [35:00] Emotions aren’t weakness: feel → express responsibly → return to center.

• [38:00] Ten relationship challenges and why “completion” thinking breaks love.

• [42:30] The Scott Peck reframe: love as action; spiritual growth over comfort.

• Book: Conscious Love: Transforming Our Relationship to Relationships — Christian de la Huerta.

• Website: Soul Healing & Self Discovery | Soulful Power (programs, books, contact).

Most people try to fix money with tactics—budgets, scripts, spreadsheets. Morgana Rae argues the real block isn’t financial; it’s emotional. In this conversation, Morgana shares how a 2003 rock-bottom moment led her to personify money as a “monster”—then destroy it and build a new, loving relationship with “Money Honey.” That shift turned a lifetime of doing “all the right things” with no results into a repeatable framework she calls Financial Alchemy. We walk through her six steps: uncovering root wounds (unlovable, unsafe, unworthy), giving them form, annihilating the monster, meeting a love-based Money Honey, dialoguing for guidance, and taking a concrete, measurable action—today. Along the way: why change happens at the speed of safety, how the subconscious answers after you journal (often in the shower or car), and client stories that range from first five-figure days to seven-figure turnarounds.

Morgana also tells the “29 weddings in 29 countries (to the same husband)” story, the cathedral moment in Puerto Vallarta, and why she believes victim experiences are sacred fuel for evolution—not shame. If spreadsheets never changed your life, this reframe just might.

• [00:00] “The monster isn’t about money”—what money represents (love, value, safety, power).

• [03:00] 29 weddings / 29 countries (to the same partner) + the Puerto Vallarta cathedral story.

• [11:00] Grief is love; money reflects our experience of being loved/safe/valued.

• [12:30] Rock bottom: doing all the things, still broke; the sales-objection class fail.

• [16:00] The turning point: “If money were a person, who would it be?” → the biker “Money Monster.”

• [20:00] Why the monster must hold everything you don’t want (unlovable/unsafe/unworthy).

• [25:00] Slaying the monster → meeting “Money Honey” (love-based, values-aligned).

• [30:00] First dialogue: “What do you need from me to allow you to be with me?” (love ≠ worship).

• [33:00] Immediate results: charging cleanly, clients enroll at double prior rates.

• [36:00] Why breakthroughs can be fast: pressure behind the wall; safety unlocks flow.

• [40:00] Universal patterns: inheritance chaos, guilt/shame, “too much/too little” money.

• [41:00] Six Steps overview: root cause → monster → annihilate → Money Honey → dialogue → action.

• [54:00] Step 6 in practice: the action is often not “businessy” (Paris with the kid; ice-skating).

• [57:00] When stuck, ask: “What do I need to learn here to let go of this struggle?”

• [66:00] Closing: your “victim” experiences are sacred—use them to build a monster worth destroying.

• Book: Financial Alchemy: 12 Months of Magic & Manifestation — by Morgana Rae.

• Website: Make money fall in love with you for Abundance and Prosperity (programs, stories, downloads).