Kelly Corrigan Wonders

Kelly talks with Kendra Adachi (The Lazy Genius), who challenges everything we've been taught about productivity and time management. Together, they explore why traditional approaches aren't working for women's lives, and offer a revolutionary new framework for finding contentment in the chaos. Kelly and Kendra discuss Kendra's new book The Plan and look at how to stop treating exhaustion as a status symbol and start embracing a more integrated approach to daily life. It's an honest conversation about redefining what a successful life really looks like, perfect for anyone seeking a more compassionate way to navigate their time and energy. (Previously aired) To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Once in a great while, maybe even just once in a lifetime, a person comes along who totally changes your perspective, teaches you what matters and gives you an example of what loving your fellow man is supposed to look like. Avery Anderson was that person. She affected people near and far and people around the world showed their love and support of her by wearing rubber bracelets in Avery’s favorite color of teal green. #avethebrave (Previously aired) To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If I don't let myself cry, I risk a migraine, which is to risk several days of living. So when the wave comes, I let it. After my most recent release, I stumbled onto some analysis of the benefits of crying and why we might do well by each other to normalize crying as a natural and effective human behavior. Sharing here for the good of the order. Speaking of which, we'd love to hear about the best cry of your life -- if you feel like sharing, write us at hello@kellycorrigan.com. (Previously aired) To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What does it really mean to be financially fulfilled, and how has the path to wealth changed for younger generations? In this conversation recorded at the Aspen Ideas Festival, host Kelly Corrigan sits down with Edward Jones Managing Partner Penny Pennington and finance influencer and educator Vivian Tu to explore how money psychology shapes our decisions, why traditional retirement models are breaking down, and what families can do to navigate the largest wealth transfer in American history. From the comparison trap fueled by social media to the sandwich generation caring for both parents and children, Pennington and Tu offer practical insights on building financial literacy, having honest money conversations across generations and redefining what middle-class prosperity looks like in today's economy. Whether you're helping your twentysomething get started or planning for your own financial future, this episode challenges assumptions about money, success and what it takes to build lasting wealth. Special thanks to the Aspen Ideas Festival where this episode was recorded. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is our tribute to poet Andrea Gibson, who passed away recently and left behind some of the most stunning insights about love, illness and what it really means to show up for one another. Kelly shares an excerpt from Andrea's blog regarding being sick—how friends would ask what to bring when they visited and Andrea's partner would say "bring your problems," because being needed was just as important as being cared for. It's such a simple but profound idea: that even when we're struggling, we still want to feel useful, to be more than just someone who needs help. The episode ends with Andrea's gorgeous poem "Love Letter from the Afterlife," which completely reimagines what death might be like—not as leaving but as becoming more present than ever before. It's the kind of writing that stops you in your tracks and makes you think about love and loss in an entirely new way. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After Kelly's conversation with Lenore Skenazy this past Tuesday, we're going deeper into the moment that changed everything for this mom and sparked a national conversation about how we raise our kids. When Lenore's 9-year-old kept begging for some independence, she finally said yes—letting him ride the New York subway home alone from Bloomingdale's. The op-ed she wrote about it in The New York Sun brought fierce criticism and praise in equal measure, with some calling her brave and others suggesting she should be reported for child abuse. It's a story that gets to the heart of something so many of us wrestle with: How do we help our children develop confidence and self-reliance in a world that feels increasingly dangerous? And what happens when our desire to protect them might actually be holding them back from becoming the capable, independent people we want them to be? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When well-meaning parents try to keep kids safe from every possible harm, they might actually be creating more anxious, less capable children. In this conversation recorded live on stage at this year's Aspen Ideas Festival, Kelly talks with Lenore Skenazy, who became known as "America's Worst Mom" after letting her nine-year-old ride the New York subway alone and psychologist Dr. Camilo Ortiz, who developed "Independence Therapy" to treat childhood anxiety through independence rather than avoidance. They explore how protecting kids from distress, disappointment, danger, and discomfort interferes with essential skill-building, why being around our children too much leads to over-parenting and how simple changes like waiting five seconds before jumping in to help can make a huge difference. The conversation covers practical strategies for fostering independence, the importance of mixed-age play and the hopeful news that 11 states have now passed laws protecting parents' rights to raise free-range kids. Special thanks to The Aspen Ideas Festival where this episode was recorded. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kelly shares a moving piece by her friend Susannah Meadows about the complex relationship she had with her father. Originally published in the New York Times and titled "What My Dad Gave Me," Susannah writes with unflinching honesty about the gifts she received from her father—some welcome, others less so—and how their relationship transformed in his final years. From awkward silences and missed connections to a surprising moment of tenderness in an assisted living dining room, this is a story about how people can change, even stubborn fathers in their nineties. It's a gentle reminder that our most important relationships don't have to be perfect to hold beauty, and that it's never too late for two people who love each other imperfectly to find connection and understanding. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What if the same playbook that made cigarettes addictive is now being used to make our food irresistible? This week we're exploring Ariana Huffington's eye-opening piece about how Big Food borrowed tactics directly from Big Tobacco, using the same scientists and brain research to hook us on ultra-processed foods. We dig into a groundbreaking lawsuit that's drawing explicit connections between food companies and tobacco giants, and why this might be our "big tobacco moment" for the food industry. From a 1962 memo revealing that tobacco companies saw themselves as being "in the flavor business" to the staggering health costs we're paying today, this episode connects the dots between corporate strategy and our current health crisis - and explains why there's actually reason for hope. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I loved being with Ginni Rometty. She is full of insight and clearly oriented toward world-positive work. I was also taken with her Midwestern charm and candor. Emerging from a tricky childhood, she found herself running IBM in a time when very few women were commanding boardrooms (a statement that is maddeningly still applicable today). Now, she is entirely devoted to making good careers available to many more people, and her plan is working. This is a conversation for anyone who wants to build more purpose into life and perhaps one to forward along to the young professionals in your life as inspiration. Thanks to AmeriHealth Caritas and PBS for supporting this work. You can watch this conversation anytime at PBS.org/kelly. (Previously aired) Ginni Rometty’s book: Good Power: Leading Positive Change in our Lives, Work, and World To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A tender meditation on what it means to live fully, told through the lens of loss and love. Kelly's friend Christine Carter shares the eulogy she wrote for her father Tim—a man who turned everyday moments into acts of devotion and found humor even in hospital rooms. Through stories of midnight baby feedings, homemade lattes for gardeners and gratitude spoken with final breaths, we discover how one person's way of moving through the world can illuminate the path for all of us. This is a celebration of the ordinary magic that happens when someone chooses love over fear, laughter over complaint and commitment over convenience—a reminder that how we live echoes long after we're gone. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happens when your creative passion feels like it's not loving you back? This week we're diving into a brilliant piece by Kelly's good friend, songwriter and music educator Mike Errico, who compares our relationship with creative work to loving a cat - something beautiful, unpredictable, and impossible to control. Mike asks AI how to love a cat, then translates those tips into wisdom for anyone wrestling with the ups and downs of making art. Whether you're a musician, writer, or any kind of creator who's ever felt like you're pouring your heart into something that seems indifferent to your devotion, this episode offers a fresh perspective on how to nurture your craft without losing yourself in the process. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Arianna Huffington loves her mom, reading, America, adventure and getting to the bottom of things. She has spent a lifetime asking Why and Why Not? Our conversation zeroes in what any one of us can do to thrive, such that we might have more capacity to contribute. We loved being together, comparing notes, figuring out what leads to what. Please share with everyone you know who needs a reminder that we have agency. (Previously aired) This episode was made possible by AmeriHealth Caritas and can be viewed anytime you like at PBS.org/kelly. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A touching eulogy for Walter Barry, written by his son Stewart (“Bear Bear"). This is a beautiful tale of family bonds, of three sons who loved to play sports (even inside the family home to a refrain of “Boys take it outside!”) and of a father who led with his heart and intuition. Walter Barry stuck to his guns even when his values and standards weren’t popular, brought joy with his humor, modeled hard work and humility and kept loving his sons - despite their “defects”. (Previously aired) To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I had this crazy thing happen one morning trying to get to LAX that I keep reflecting on. Meant to be shared with anyone you think of as one of those people, the ones who go with the grain of life as it happens. (Previously aired) Please be in touch. Write us anytime about anything — hello@kellycorrigan.com — we read every single one. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Everyone is thinking about war and service. Here’s a conversation with someone who has known many battlefields and paid dearly for his commitment to defend and protect. Retired Colonel Greg Gadson was a kid who dreamed of playing football and who ended up with Super Bowl rings after all. You can watch this episode at any time on PBS. Special thanks to AmeriHealth Caritas. (Please note: this episode was recorded in 2023 and originally aired 10/31/23) Retired Colonel Gadson’s book is Finding Waypoints: A Warrior’s Journey Toward Peace and Purpose. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the space between wanting and receiving, between hope and heartbreak, lies the tender territory of human need. This week, we share an excerpt from Jessica Slice's book Unfit Parent about the night her second child entered the world through another woman's body and how love and trauma can occupy the same breath. Her story moves through hospital corridors and sleepless hours, through the weight of knowing that someone you care about has suffered so you might hold what you've longed for. It's a meditation on the fragile web that holds us all - the friends who bring food and sit in driveways, the hands that help us breathe and the truth that our most broken moments might also be our most beautiful ones. Check out Jessica's book - Unfit Parent: A Disabled Mother Challenges an Inaccessible World https://www.amazon.com/Unfit-Parent-Disabled-Challenges-Inaccessible/dp/0807013242 To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In a world marked by division and old wounds, sometimes a single act cuts through the darkness. This week, through the words of Simran Singh, we encounter the story of Aaron Castro and his choice to release decades of hatred and transform his pain into something else. Aaron's story speaks of cycles that can be broken, burdens that can be lifted and the alchemy that turns suffering into sanctuary. It's a meditation on what becomes possible when we choose to heal rather than amplify the hurt around us and a reminder that forgiveness might be less about forgetting the past and more about refusing to let it dictate the future. Link to Simran's pod that he did with Kelly as guest: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/finding-meaning-in-the-mess-with-kelly-corrigan/id1748199932?i=1000691936504 To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hank Green has spent his career making complex ideas accessible to millions - from creating Crash Course educational videos to co-founding the Nerdfighters community with his brother, novelist John Green. However, when he was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, he discovered an unexpected creative outlet: stand-up comedy, writing jokes in his journal during treatment that eventually made it to the stage. In this episode, Hank reveals what really keeps him up at night, why he thinks most of us are terrible at predicting the future and how he knows when to abandon a project that's not working. Plus, we dive into his approach to creating for humans versus algorithms and why he believes the most rewarding part of making anything is watching people actually engage with what you've created. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Shannon Watts thought she had it all figured out - marriage, three kids, and a steady job. But by her mid-thirties, she realized she was living someone else's life. After leaving an unfulfilling marriage and career, she spent years asking herself one crucial question: "What do I want?" That led her to found Moms Demand Action at age 41 after a mass school shooting - despite being an introvert with ADHD and a fear of public speaking. In this episode, Kelly reads a letter Shannon wrote to her younger self, where she shares her "fire formula" for transformation, why pursuing your desires is a radical act for women and how living authentically became her greatest legacy. Check out Shannon's new book: Fired Up: How to Turn Your Spark into a Flame and Come Alive at Any Age https://www.amazon.com/Fired-Up-Spark-Flame-Alive/dp/0593831934 To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices