What if the most important conversations we can have — about politics, faith, and family — are the ones we've stopped having out of fear?

Journalist and bridge-builder Mónica Guzmán joins hosts Dr. John Izzo and Dr. Polina Orlowski to explore why families, communities, and entire generations have stopped talking across political divides — and what it will take to rebuild understanding. Drawing from her book "I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times," Mónica shares the personal story behind her work (a tender moment with her father on Election Day), the neuroscience of why hard conversations feel like physical threats ("our fear of social death is greater than our fear of physical death"), and the practical discipline of curiosity that anyone can develop.

Also in this episode: the role of social media and AI in deepening polarization, how to model brave conversations for children, the "productive conversation" model that distinguishes inquiry from debate, and the Trustworthy Elections Project — where regular citizens from across the political spectrum found 727 points of agreement on a single contested issue.

ABOUT OUR GUEST Mónica Guzmán is founder and CEO of Reclaim Curiosity, Senior Fellow for Public Practice at Braver Angels, and host of the podcast A Braver Way. Website: https://moniguzman.com Book: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/I-Never-Thought-of-It-That-Way/Monica-Guzman/9781637746028 Braver Angels: https://braverangels.org

YOUR HOSTS Dr. John Izzo — bestselling author and pioneer in regenerative leadership. https://drjohnizzo.com Dr. Polina Orlowski, DNP, RN, CNL, CPHQ — Director of Quality & Patient Safety at Ascension.

CONNECT Linktree: https://linktr.ee/thewayforwardpodcast Website: https://wayforwardpodcast.com Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@thewayforwardrc Email: thewayforwardrc@gmail.com

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