I watched the most recent cult document released on Netflix over the weekend called Trust Me: The False Prophet.

It is an absolutely disturbing and important show.

It’s the most recent in a long line of cult documentaries and crime podcasts I’ve watched over the years and I have noticed a pattern, a list of behaviors and dynamics that can coerce otherwise intelligent, successful, big-hearted people to do things they would otherwise find abhorrent.

Most distressingly, none of us are immune. These tactics are common and effective.

And they are deployed all around us, as we speak.

So how do we stay in our power? On today’s episode, I share what I’ve learned from many years of working with writers and the powerful tool for accessing agency that is at your fingertips perpetually, no matter who you are.

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

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This week I asked my 4 year old a question that I realized was actually for me:

How much would it take for you to be happy?

As I watched him wrestle with this big question, I realized I have the same dilemma he does, the same dilemma all human beings face as we think about how we will love and live: do we surrender everything to discover love?

Or do we fight for what’s “rightfully” ours?

Do we defend ourselves and our possessions no matter the cost?

The conversation stuck with me and got me thinking about a childhood book I loved, about the Garden of Eden (of all things) and about what a life of meaning really requires.

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if the one thing you’re avoiding is the single thing that could get you unstuck?

In this episode, I admit that I’ve been feeling creatively stuck lately and wondering if I’ll ever get out of this rut.

The truth is I’ve been feeling frustrated, flat and under-inspired.

I haven’t been writing much of anything.

I was starting to wonder (after 6 years of struggling) if I was going to be behind this block forever. That’s when the insight for today’s episode came to me.

Maybe the way out is through the one thing you least want to do.

Which isn’t about doing something as much as it is about allowing what is to be what is.

Maybe your pain is a portal.

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you didn’t listen to my episode a few weeks ago about how the worst people in the world sometimes have the most confidence—this week I’m revisiting the topic.

This time, I’m coming in hot with some real-world examples of how my four and five year old kids taught me about confidence.

While watching my preschoolers have the quintessential childhood experience of learning to ride a two-wheeled bike, I simultaneously learned about human nature, my own nature, and was reminded where confidence actually comes from.

If you struggle with confidence sometimes like I do, first of all—you’re normal. Second of all, I hope you’ll enjoy these reflections on why confidence matters and what we can do to cultivate confidence everyday.

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You are not a problem to solve.

Your life is not a problem to solve.

Your body is not a problem to solve.

It’s easy to lose track of that.

It’s easy to get stuck in a loop of endless problem-solving, thinking that if you can just think harder, work harder, be smarter, or chase down the right information, you might finally feel at peace in your own life.

But has that ever worked for you?

What if your life is speaking to you, right here, right now?

The question is: are you listening? Are you really hearing what your life is trying to say?

The Power of Writing it Down

A Book in Six Months

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you ever had a situation where your mind said “yes” but your body said “no”?

Or vice versa — your mind said “no” and your body said “yes”?

Maybe someone asked for your help and your mind told you that helping was the kind, generous thing to do but you also felt your stomach tighten, your breath constrict and voice shake as you agreed to be of assistance.

We’re quick to dismiss our bodies but at what cost?

The body speaks in whispers; but then when we don’t listen, it speaks louder and louder until it gets its message across.

What might your body be saying that you aren’t hearing?

How much louder will it have to speak before you listen?

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are only two real responses to suffering:

Push it away.

Or say to it: “yes and thank you”

There is no “right” way to suffer, and in fact, most of us have tried both responses many different times.

But once you discover what’s possible when you soften into suffering, you can’t unsee it.

In today’s episode I’ll share an update on my health and talk about what I’m learning lately about loss, failure, heartbreak and suffering.

I hope this lesson finds its home with you too.

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are so many things falling apart right now and if you’re someone like me who likes to:

- Hold things together

- Bring things together

- Keep things together

This time is probably uncomfortable at best and maybe painful at worst.

I’m today’s episode, I’ll share with you something that is currently falling apart in my world and share how I’m coping.

Not because I have the answers. But because sharing stories is how we survive.

I hope you’ll find the courage to share yours too.

What’s falling apart for you?

Host: Ally Fallon // @allyfallon // allisonfallon.com

Follow Ally on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/allyfallon/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.