Live Immediately With Mike Campbell

Our body is communicating to us all the time but too often we don’t listen. My guest today, Matthew Bate, spent a decade playing Australian Rules Football at the top level for the Melbourne Football Club. For many years he tried to mask what his body was trying to communicate to him by using pharmaceutical drugs, painkillers and sleeping pills, which transformed into an addiction. Life now looks and feels very different for Matthew, as he has reconnected with his body through food. This episode is about holistic health and how being healthy allows you to do the things you love with the people you love. Matthew and I talk about seasonal eating, fitness, and being aware of what we eat. Along with anxiety and stress, vulnerability, shame, following your heart, and dealing with the unknown with big life decisions. Matthew is a wealth of knowledge when is comes to health and food and how our body responds to what we put into it. I hope you enjoy x www.liveimmediately.com

Simplifying your own life is one thing, but we all know things start getting challenging when we bring our kids and family into the equation. Today I chat with Denaye Barahona about all things to simplify your family. As a Clinical Social Worker with a specialty in Child and Family Practice and a Ph.D. in Child Development, Denaye is also the voice behind the information packed website simplefamilies.com We dive into many topics in this episode as Denaye and I talk about simplifying your family in terms of clutter, letting go of difficult items, Denaye’s brilliant Toy Detox Program and the difference between open and closed toys, and not over scheduling our lives and our children’s lives. We also chat about how kids learn from their parents, positive discipline in the household and the “first then” principal (works wonders), building confidence in our kids by stepping back and not hovering, and one of my favourites—family meal time. If you have difficulties with food an

My guest today is the lovely Rachael Kable, who is a mindfulness mentor, blogger and host of the wonderful Mindful Kind podcast, where she shares great tips and her journey into mindfulness to help people around the world to live more mindfully. If you’re new to mindfulness, feel like you are always busy being busy, or suffer from anxiety, then I think you will really enjoy this episode, as Rachael opens up about her journey into mindfulness and shares some wonderful tips and resources to help people getting started. In this episode Rachael and I dive into the inner talk that we all have, how we can find ourselves constantly thinking about the future, and planning on always trying to be better. One of the tips I really loved was the Breathing Waltz, which is where you breathe in for three, hold for three, and breathe out for three—so simple but yet so powerful. Rachael is a fun thinker and I love it that she doesn’t take herself too seriously. I hope you enjoy x www.liveimmediately.com

The road less travelled isn’t always an easy one to walk, but it does do wonders for your soul. My guest today, Joe Fairleigh, is a father, surfing guide, and a student of life. I gravitate towards Joe, as I love his outlook on life, the type of questions he asks himself, and the way he approaches parenthood. This is a deep conversation on many levels, and in this episode Joe and I get stuck into many interesting topics including; health and happiness, teaching kids to tackle fear and learn life skills via sport, scaring yourself when you start to feel numb, the simpleness to asking yourself big questions, letting go of control, the importance of movement, the maintenance of physical possessions, and the beautiful lessons of fatherhood. If you have ever asked yourself the question, “What is this life all about?” then I think you’ll really like this episode. You never know, the answer might be quite simple. I hope you enjoy x www.liveimmediately.com

Simple living looks different for everyone. What does it look like for you? In this episode I chat with Clare Short who is a wife, mother of two, and someone that is navigating her way through simple living. If that description sounds very similar to you, well that is exactly why I wanted to have Clare on the podcast today. To share the ups and downs, little strategies and resources which have helped her and hopefully will help you. Clare talks about how she first eased her way into simple living by doing the 40 bags in 40 days challenge, a fun game and something I hadn’t heard of before. We also chat about decision fatigue when we don’t know where to start so we just don’t start at all, simple living and parenting, and that natural progression from living more with less to simplifying our food and being more mindful about our waste. Clare also shares many of the resources that she turns to for inspiration and motivation including Marie Kondo, Joshua Becker, Courtney Carver and her project 3

One of the easiest ways to learn is to listen to people that have done it before you. We often do this when it comes to learning new skills for a profession—we do an apprenticeship, attend university or have a tutor. So why don’t we listen to people about living life, as it seems to be one of the most challenging adventures we are all trying to navigate through. My fun conversation today is with Emrys Westacott, who is the professor of philosophy at New York’s Alfred University. Emrys’ most recent book is titled The Wisdom of Frugality, where he examines why, for more than two millennia, so many philosophers and people with a reputation for wisdom have been advocating frugality and simple living as the key to the good life. In this episode Emrys and I discuss how simple living has changed over the centuries, the role our expectations play, simple pleasures, and holding our materialistic desires in check. Along with the importance friendship has on our happiness and one of Emrys’

What changes can you make in your life today that will enable you to live immediately? That is really the essence of the episode this week. My guest today is Ricki Coleman, a man, who at his heaviest, weighted 130 kilograms. Ricki lost his father at a young age, he turned to excessive eating and alcohol to numb the feeling, to the point where his weight had paralysed him from living the life he truly wanted to live. But Ricki’s story is so much more than lost kilograms. It is about taking control of your life, making the decision to change and allowing that change to slowly happen. Ricki talks about the importance of a support network, getting back on the pushbike to clear his head, and learning patience. The change we need to make can often be simple, but that doesn’t make it easy. Every change will come with its own challenges, it will push us and make us question if we really want the change to take place, even if we know we will benefit from the outcome of the change. We might not all have 45

My guest today, Frances Trussell, is one of the leading mindfulness and meditation teachers in the UK and I personally had an absolute blast chatting with her. We cover so much in this conversation including, mindful eating, being mindfully happy, how we always wait for the perfect conditions in life, travelling through life with our blinkers on, and the relationship between mental health and mindfulness. Frances gives some great mindfulness tips when dealing with teenage kids, mindfulness and being a parent, and how our bad days filter through to our kids. We also touch on Paradise Syndrome, which is when we achieve everything but we’re still not happy. If you are new to meditation or simply want a different guided meditation, then please check out Frances’ podcast, Mindfully Happy, in the show notes below. She has a bunch of little series and in each there are five and ten minute meditations.  I love my morning meditation with Frances. There are so many great takeaways in this episode and F

Money is an interesting element in our society—we seem to work so hard to acquire it, often not knowing why we want it, and simply believing we need more of it. In today’s episode I have a wonderful chat with Samantha Doove about the rich life and how money is only a small ingredient of it. We cover a lot in this episode as Sam and I discuss the real cost of things, not just the money cost but also the time and mental costs, the balancing dance between money and time, the benefits of experimenting and testing things in your own life, and the juggle between kids and work. Sam also touches on this notion of knowing your number, that financial dollar amount that you need to live on each year, that once you know “the number” it can help with making other life decisions. Sam also talks about the importance of recording what you spend, analysing what you spend your money on, and then comparing that with your values. This was a fun chat and I love it that Sam has made some financial decisions

If you are a long time listener of the Live Immediately Podcast or even if you’ve only listened to a handful of episodes, I am certain that you’ve heard me say, many times, that “time is the true currency”. It really is the cornerstone of Live Immediately. That we only have this moment, right now, to do the things we love with people we love. Many people have asked me about this notion of time, as they continuously feel busy. Through all their questions, the underlining theme is, “How can I reclaim some of my time back.” In this episode I talk about three simple ways to take back your time, three simple techniques that I learnt, or was forced to lean, that have been huge game changers for me. All three of these techniques are free and you could implement them into your daily life starting today. Let me know how you go and what you end up doing with all your additional available time. I hope you enjoy x www.liveimmediately.com

I had a blast talking at the Idea Bombing Newcastle event last week to kick off the Hunter Innovation Festival. It was exciting to hear so many ideas being passed around the room, and to meet a wonderful collection of people that want to create change.  The change I created in my life started when I purged the excess, the items and stuff that I mindlessly accumulated over the years. The interesting thing is, I didn’t start purging items to change, I didn’t start purging items so we could slow travel around North America for a year, I didn’t start purging items so I could spend more time doing the things I love with people I love. But all of that, and more, happened because I let go of things I didn’t need in my life. All those wonderful changes and experiences were bi products of living more with less. I try to cover a lot in a short amount of time and there is a bit of background noise as the Edwards was quite full. But hopefully this talk will help you create change in your life

Today I have a beautiful conversation with Hope Zvara, who has experienced the most heartbreaking of things any parent could go through. But what I truly admire about Hope is how she decided to learn the most wonderful lessons throughout her ordeals. In this episode Hope describes the eating disorder she had during her younger years, the messages we observe in our childhood, and how the yoga mat became a safe place for her to practice how to live life again. There are some things we should never experience, and having your child die in your arms would have to be at the top of that list. As you will hear, I was moved deeply when Hope shared her story of her first daughter Faith and how she only lived in this world for twenty minutes. Something that I feel would be the hardest thing for any parent to go through. But how Hope reframed this situation to herself, believing that “there has to be a reason for this”, is simply beautiful. Hope saw the death of her first child Faith as a sign.  That Fa

We have such a short-term memory when it comes to achievement. We easily forget all that we have done and allow self-doubt and fear to creep back in. My guest today is fictional author Lauren Sams, and we discuss this notion, or otherwise known as impostor syndrome—the feeling that you’re not good enough or worthy of your accomplishment and worry that you’re going to be exposed as a fraud. In this episode, Lauren shares her story about becoming a published author and growing through rejection, the selflessness that motherhood brings, and the importance of teaching our children to choose work they love. We also discuss the philosophy of minimalism and how it has less to do with the amount of things you own and more about what you value in life. We also touch on being optimistic through adversity, and positively reframing the story we tell ourselves. Like all parents, Lauren has moments where she feels crazy, busy, guilty, but she is mindful of being completely present when she is with her chi

To me the “rat race” isn’t about working a 9 to 5. It is about living your life by default—simply going through the days, doing the things you do, without much thought. We often do this because we’re programmed to think that we are just one more purchase away from being happier, better, higher up the social platform. But we all know this isn’t the case. My guest today is Lisa Luken and we discuss this notion of living life by default and how when we simplify our life we can see what is truly important. We can make changes, sometimes big leaps of faith, in a direction where we are deliberately living—that we don’t need to wait until “someday”, that today can be that day. Lisa and I also discuss the concept of easy. That often “easy is the default” that simple living isn’t always easy, but it does make you feel like you’re living. This is an episode that will make you think and question what it is in your life that you truly wan

The death of a parent would be life altering at any stage of your life, but more so when it happens suddenly and you’re in your adolescence. My guest today, Audrey Wanders, had the unfortunate experience of dealing with her father’s death when she was only fifteen. The road definitely wasn’t easy as Audrey felt a lot of guilt, she would shut people out and she had to navigate the growing pains of youth without her father. But listening to Audrey’s beautiful story, her father left her with so many gifts and helped shape her life from the inside. Audrey and I pack a lot into this conversation as we hold hands and jump into the deep-end from the beginning. We discuss growing in discomfort, the importance of reflection, minimalism and asking that important question, “does this add value to my life?”, Audrey’s 31 Days of Nature challenge, microadventures, building habits around mental health, putting passion before your paycheque, and so much more. Audrey is creating her p

The modern life is a busy one, and more often than not, it feels like we are being pulled in all different directions. We’re busy, but we don’t feel like we get anything done. Often thinking, am I succeeding at work, am I being the best parent, am I a good partner, am I simply good enough. My guest today, Apryl Schlueter, wants to take you on a journey to the cheerful mind. Because Apryl was being pulled in all directions, was feeling overwhelmed, was getting angry and frustrated, complaining when things didn’t go the way she wanted them to as she had put in so much effort, and she was tied. Until something completely changed her mindset. Apryl realised that “being happy is actually one of the ingredients to be more productive”. When she changed her thoughts on a situation her productivity levels changed too. Apryl and I dive deep into this notion, of increased productivity through happiness, along with listening to our bodies, self-care, having a positive mindset, and the ridicu

We often hear from people that have succeeded, that have done something or gone through a process and come out the other side. But we rarely hear from people at the beginning of their journey—people who are going through the same issues that we are going through. This is why I really wanted to chat to my guest today, Leigh Campbell, as she is at the beginning of her minimalist journey. She is going through all the struggles, battling a “hoarding husband”, and dealing with the challenges of changing her habits. Those same rocky hurdles that we all face and that we all need to get over at some point. Leigh and I cover a lot in this episode: how everyone’s journey is different, fast fashion and the quick joy we get from shopping, decision fatigue, the link between physical clutter and mental clutter, along with the 30 day no shopping and no wearing the same outfit twice challenge that Leigh is doing. Leigh is honest and open about how she stuffs up sometimes and that there are still areas

There are many things that we neglect in our life when we are busy being busy or when we are not mindful of what we are doing each day. In this episode my guest, Gary Ware, and I discuss one very important element that many people neglect, something that can have a huge effect on all areas of your life—play. In this episode Gary and I discuss the relationship between happiness, success and choice, learning from play, the importance of play, growing through play, and living a life of gratitude. Gary is charismatic, fun and someone who is going to power-up your day with a little play. I hope you enjoy x www.liveimmediately.com

Living more with less has been a real game changer for me and this deliberate way of living has had many beautiful consequences on my life. Many people have been asking me what I think the benefits of living more with less are, and even though I believe the benefits of living more with less are individual for everyone, I have seen four fundamental benefits of living more with less in my own life that I fell would be quite universal to everybody. In this short solo episode I discuss the four fundamental benefits of living more with less. If you do feel that living more with less could be beneficial to you but you don’t know where to start, or you have some questions, then please reach out, as I would be more than happy to help you in any way I can. I hope you enjoy x www.liveimmediately.com

I am mixing it up a little bit in this episode as my good friend, Jeff Sandquist, is taking on the hosting duties. I interviewed Jeff for the Live Immediately Podcast way back in episode one, and I first met Jeff when my family and I were on our year adventure through North America. I was on a Skype call with Jeff the other day and he suggested that he guest host an episode of my podcast and interview me. I had no idea what questions he was going to ask and it is quite free flowing. Jeff starts off with a fast 20-question game to get to know me a little, and then he dives into this notion of FUN. Fun is a big component of my life and my personality, and it is something that Jeff and I have been discussing a lot lately with each other. Even though fun has been part of my DNA for a long time, it was Jeff who raised it with me and really got me thinking about fun in a different way. Some key takeaways from this episode would be, to start things with no expectations so whatever happens is going to be great and su