Do we always need a plan? What happens to our lives when we don’t know the next step, the correct answer or what we feel, want or need? Can we actually know and be certain about things? And what is the benefit of the unknown?
This interview podcast brings you stories from and about people, who stepped into the unknown, stories about fear, uncertainty and the Illusion of security.
Why should we tell more stories? Aren’t we all indegenious? What does it mean to be a wisdom keeper? Wakanyi Hoffman is the best person to ask all of that. She is a wisdom keeper for indigineous knowledge, an author and a keynote speaker specialized in ubuntu philosophy. Wakanyi just concluded a research fellowship at The New Institute in Hamburg and will soon be joining the Institute of Cultural Inquiry at Utrecht University as part of a newly launched Inclusive AI lab, where she will be adding voices of indigenous wisdom to AI.
The World Economic Forum recently shared that empathy and active listening are among the 10 most important skills needed for 2027. What happens when we listen to each other whilst suspending judging, not interrupting or trying to rescue the other person? What is the way of Ubuntu and how do we deepen our relationships in daily life to find much needed connection again? In this interview, Rachel Smith talks about our inherent connectedness and offers suggestions for being more compassionate with one another. Rachel is a facilitator and leader for individuals and groups and shares the power of active listening as we become more than the stories we tell ourselves.
18 years ago Donovan Copley started the band Hot Water without knowing who was going to be in the band or what the band was going to be about. One thing he knew: music has called him. In this interview Donovan talks about how he learned to leave his ego behind and allow music to hold space for people. He talks about his rituals before going on stage and about the importance of having structure and feeling safe to let go.
Transformation starts from within. But what does that mean? In today’s episode I talk to Volker Schlettwein, who supports leaders on their path of transformation. To do this, he uses the power of breath to do the inner work, let emotions flow and find one’s own authentic leadership style.
Being in the present moment is easier said than done. Meditation is one way to do this. But as soon as you have to be in the present moment with someone and react to someone else, another difficult level comes in. Improv theatre has taught me a lot in this respect. And just a few weeks ago I heard about contact improvisation for the first time. So I thought: let’s invite Matan Levkowich to talk about Contact Improvisation, a form of result open dance.
Why are so many people fascinated by flying? What lessons can we learn from skydiving? And how can we pursue our passion? Who better to ask than Will Penny, a world champion freestyle skydiver who has already completed 19,000 jumps. Will tells us how his passion for skydiving became his profession and why it is so important for us to pursue our dream. We talk about ego, fear, personal growth and of course the adrenaline rush.
Sounds can take us to places we have never been before. Some sounds bring back memories, some are unpleasant, and some put us in a wonderful vibration. Nature is full of different sounds. How many times have you just been silent and listened to them? In this episode, Tarynn O takes us on a sound journey into uncertainty. Lie down, put on your headphones, follow her guidance and engage with unfamiliar sounds and a whole new experience.
Imagine it has been three and a half weeks since you last saw the sun. The darkness is only broken by the light of the lamp of another diver working on a big oil pipe. The only thing that is between you and death is a rubber suit and your umbilical, providing you with oxygen and hot water. In case of an emergency the decent takes more time than an astronaut would take to fly to the moon. In this interview I am talking to David Gibbs, a saturation diver, who’s workplace in more than 150 meters under water surface in absolute darkness.
Imagine you are a teenage boy and you are attracted to men. You get a girlfriend, start dancing and move to another country. And then, a few years later, you represent the LGBT+ community of your country of birth and also find out how toxic social media is. In this episode, I talk to Liam Reid. He was Mr Gay New Zealand in 2020 and tells us how he discovered himself.
Yoga is one of the oldest physical activities. The word “yoga” comes from Sanskrit and means “to unite”, in the sense of uniting body and mind. For some people yoga means a deep stretching of the body, for others it is a sport, for still others it is like meditation or a spiritual path. But what does it really mean to practice yoga? In this episode, I talk to yoga teacher Sébastien Dupont about meditation and entering an inner stillness and state of ego-lessness. Why yoga is not for everyone, mantras, the spiritual path as a struggle and that a little yoga brings a little relief.
They say, “The more you plan, the harder fate hits you.” So what happens if – on purpose – you just drift during an interview and are hardly prepared? Even though this episode seems a bit philosophical, it’s worth sticking with it to the end. I talk to former European Karate Champion Fabrizio Della Piane about his near-death experience, why training helps to be fully present in a future situation, how a fixed mindset doesn’t allow us to see reality, the art of noticing and how he uses martial arts to have personal freedom in everything he does.
How many people have you asked recently what they love about you? What does happiness mean to you? And how do you own your own story? In todays episode, I talk to Deepak Ramola, he created a platform, in which you can learn from life lessons of common people, with the idea to share wisdom all over the world. One lesson he definitely thought me is: “Your potential is not a gift, it is a responsibility.”
What does body tension tell us about how we deal with emotions and trauma? How can we soften our physical shield and feel safe again? How does bodywork support our body’s ability to correct? In this episode I talk to Edan Harari, founder of Kinetic Body Therapy, who has worked with over 10,000 bodies in the last 13 years, about listening to the client’s body, the mind-body connection and what it means to treat holistically.
Image you are living in a world that has no concept of beauty or guilt. You only work four hours a day and most of the time you are laughing loud and you and your family is considered the happiest people. This is the world of the Pirahã. Daniel Everett lived with the indigenous Pirahã in the Brazilian Amazonian Basin for almost eight years and studied them since 1977. Originally he went to this tribe as a missionary to translate the bible into their language. But instead of turning the Pirahã into Christians their way of living and just believing what they see or who they know, changed his life completely. He turned to atheism, got divorced from his former wife and went on to be a famous linguist.
Through this podcast you will get a glimpse into the great pleasures of not-knowing, the power of fear, being in the present moment and how to feel secure in uncertain times.
Why should we shift from mindfulness to bodyfulness? And why are fear and pain our friends? What can we gain from body attention and how can you be fully present with another person? In this episode, I talk to Avi Grinberg, the founder of the Grinberg Method. He teaches people to be bodies again. We talk about the pleasure of being afraid, being present and, how our mind is just interpreting reality.
What impact does it have on a community if there is no word for past or future in its language? And also no word for childhood or of comparison. In this episode, I speak with Bettina Ludwig. She has been researching hunter-gatherer communities for six years and lived with them for three months in the Kalahari Desert. How much interest do hunters and gatherers show in us and is there anything we can learn from them and implement in our complex world? Listen for yourself.
To what extent can you maximize your output and how much in poker is fate? What can you learn from poker when it comes to making decisions? And why is it better to focus on the things you can influence? In this episode, I’m talking to Fedor Holz, who, in his mid-20s as a professional tournament poker player, has won more than 30 million. We talk about taking risks, “seeing” the opponent, money versus self-worth, the joy of the game, but also about rejection and vulnerability.
How many of us know our life dream and how can we find out, what we actually want to do with our lives? Is it a risk to follow your passion or rather a risk not to? Today I am talking to a man who I met for the first time in late 2019 at a small-scale celebration. I was about to leave and sat down on the floor with him for a moment. A few hours later I went home inspired. His name? Hermann Gams. He is a dream developer, who gives without expectations. So let’s talk about life dreams.
Why should companies celebrate mistakes and what can they do to make their employees more resilient? How does our brain react, when we step out of our comfort zone and how can we use the future to create our present? Today I am talking to Rike Pätzold an uncertainty expert, who supports companies and managers on their way to deal with the unknown. But isn’t it a paradox to be an expert for not knowing?
Is being curious a good quality? Even if you decide to travel to a war zone as a young woman to interview soldiers on the frontline – just because you are curious? And how much of your life makes sense – looking at it from hindsight. In today’s episode I’m talking to Verena Gruber-Sytchev, who left for the frontlines of Kurdistan at the age of 23. We talk about going to places where few others dare to go and what we can learn from crises.
How much pressure do we put on ourselves to keep our sex life interesting and why do people look for adventures outside their relationships? What can you learn about yourself after travelling 36 countries in 5 years? And what happens when you sit down at the age of 30 and start writing your memoirs? Can you show the whole world how vulnerable you are? In this episode I talk to Theresa Lachner, journalist, speaker and founder of the largest sex blog in German language, who knows her boundaries and supports others on their way to set theirs.
Doesn’t it sound tempting in a relationship to trust completely even if you sometimes feel jealous? The partner can feel free? But where does this freedom stop and what is allowed to fall under trust or even fidelity? Does fidelity mean consequently monogamy? Today I am talking to Raphael Spannocchi, a man in his mid-40s who has consciously taken the step into open marriage. A step with an open and uncertain end, which is even desired.
How do we limit ourselves on how much we perceive? And why is planning so dangerous for us? How much are we doing what we think that others expect from us? And how many of our fears come true? In today’s episode I talk to Samy Molcho, probably the most famous mime and body language expert. He was born in 1936 in Tel Aviv, Israel, where he started his stage life at the age of 10. He has lived in Vienna for 60 years and says that the answer “no” is actually increasing your possibilities.
Life is uncertain – embrace it. Welcome to the podcast Into The Unknown with Katharina Baier.