The Leader’s Way

82: Fulfilled with Anna Yusim

How can the science of spirituality help us discover our true purpose in life? 
Welcome back to Within, a contemplative segment of The Leader’s Way Podcast that explores the convergence of mental health, art, and spirituality through authentic conversations across traditions about personal and collective transformation.  
In this episode, Brandon Nappi talks with psychiatrist and spiritual coach Dr. Anna Yusim about the science of spirituality as a path to wholeness and healing. Weaving together teachings from Kabbalah, Buddhism, and shamanistic traditions, Dr. Yusim has developed a program that marries empirical science and spirituality to help us find more meaning, more joy, and more fulfillment in life. 
Dr. Yusim is an internationally-recognized, award-winning Stanford- and Yale-educated Psychiatrist & Executive Coach with a Private Practice in New York City, Connecticut, California and Florida. She is the best-selling author of Fulfilled: How the Science of Spirituality Can Help You Live a Happier, More Meaningful Life. With clients including Forbes 500 CEOs, Olympic athletes, A-list actors and actresses, and the Chairs of academic departments at top universities, Dr. Anna Yusim helps influential people achieve greater impact, purpose, and joy in their life and work.  
Host: Brandon Nappi 
Guest: Anna Yusim 
Instagram: @theleadersway.podcast 
berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/podcast 
 
You can support our work at https://tinyurl.com/support-transform... 

81: All Things Mysticism with Volker Leppin

Welcome back to the new season of The Leader’s Way, a podcast for people who aren’t ready to give up on the world.
In this episode, host Brandon Nappi talks with Volker Leppin about all things mysticism, for Meister Eckhart to Francis of Assisi to Martin Luther to so much more.
Dr. Leppin is a German Protestant theologian and the Horace Tracy Pitkin Professor of Historical Theology at Yale Divinity School. A historian of medieval and Reformation studies, his research focuses on scholasticism and mysticism in the late Middle Ages. He is a prolific author of 19 monographs and 11 critical editions of text, the editor or co-editor of 49 books, and the author of more than 300 scholarly articles or chapters. He is well-known for arguing that the Reformation should be understood not as a rupture, but as a transformation, one encompassing both continuity and change. His most recent book, Ruhen in Gott, Eine Geschichte der Christlichen Mystik (C. H. Beck München, 2021), emphasizes the importance of mysticism within Christianity while exploring also its interreligious potentials.
Host: Brandon Nappi
Guest: Volker Leppin
Instagram: @theleadersway.podcast
berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/podcast
You can support our work at https://tinyurl.com/support-transforming-leaders
 

80: At the Intersection of Contemplation and Activism with Sophfronia Scott

In this live-recorded episode of The Leader’s Way Podcast, Brandon interviews Sophfronia Scott, a novelist, essayist, and leading contemplative thinker, whose book The Seeker and the Monk: Everyday Conversations with Thomas Merton won the 2021 Thomas Merton “Louie” Award from the International Thomas Merton Society. In this conversation, Brandon and Sophfronia explore the powerful ways a contemplative life can infuse a life of activism, a life rooted in justice. This episode was recorded at the Berkeley Center at Yale Divinity School in front of a live audience that includes seminarians, Yale faculty, and special guests.
Host: Brandon Nappi
Guest: Sophfronia Scott
Instagram: @theleadersway.podcast berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/podcast
You can support our work at https://tinyurl.com/support-transforming-leaders

79: Charging Toward the Light with Shabnam Mogharabi

Welcome back to Within, a contemplative segment of The Leader’s Way Podcast that explores the convergence of mental health, art, and spirituality through authentic conversations across traditions about personal and collective transformation. In this episode, Brandon Nappi talks with Shabnam Mogharabi, an award-winning entertainment executive and entrepreneur who is also trained in positive psychology. Shabnam is the oldest daughter of immigrant parents from Iran and grew up wanting to tell stories that uplift, connect and shine a light on our capacity for joy. With actor Rainn Wilson, Shabnam co-founded the inspiring, mission-driven studio SoulPancake. Brandon asks Shabnam about her spiritual journey, her work as a storyteller and journalist, and the new workbook she and recently co-authored with Rainn Wilson, Soul Boom Workbook: Spiritual Tools for Living
Host: Brandon Nappi
Guest: Shabnam Mogharabi
Instagram: @theleadersway.podcast berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/podcast
You can support our work at https://tinyurl.com/support-transforming-leaders

78: Saint John's Bible with John Ross

The Reverend Dr. John F. Ross is the Executive Director of The Saint John’s Bible Heritage Program at Saint John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, where he shepherds global engagement with the Saint John’s Bible—the first handwritten illuminated Bible in over 500 years. In this episode of The Leader’s Way, Brandon Nappi asks John to tell the story of how this artistic and beautiful Bible came to be, from the early inspirations of renowned calligrapher Donald Jackson to the Bible's commissioning by a Benedictine monastery and its subsequent travels across the world.
Explore more of the history and images from The Saint John’s Bible project here: https://saintjohnsbible.org/
Host: Brandon Nappi
Guest: John Ross
Instagram: @theleadersway.podcast
berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/podcast
You can support our work at https://tinyurl.com/support-transforming-leaders

77: Being Grounded in the Love of God with Sean Rowe

In this lively conversation, Brandon, Misty, and Whitney talk with The Most Rev'd Sean Rowe, presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church. In this role, he serves as the church’s chief pastor and CEO. Known for his expertise in organizational learning and adaptive change, Rowe is committed to strengthening support for local ministry and mission. This episode offers a wide-ranging conversation, touching upon everything from the role of seminary in spiritual formation, to leadership in a church that is still becoming, to our willingness to engage with God’s imagination.
 
Hosts: Brandon Nappi, Whitney Kimball Coe, Misty Krasawski
Guest: Sean Rowe
 
Instagram: @theleadersway.podcast
berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/podcast
You can support our work at https://tinyurl.com/support-transforming-leaders

76: Walking with Survivors of Gun Violence with Nelba Márquez-Greene

In this tender and powerful episode, Leader’s Way host Brandon Nappi interviews Nelba Márquez-Greene, a devoted advocate for survivors of gun violence and someone who has been named one of the “Ten Women Changing the World,” according to People Magazine’s October 2019 issue. A Community Scholar at the Yale School of Public Health, Nelba also hosts the “Shared Humanity” podcast and video series, which focuses on the humans behind the headlines of gun violence in a moment in history where all too often we focus on everything but our shared humanity. Márquez-Greene seeks ways to partner with community organizations, clergy, and those looking to strengthen their response to the trauma of gun violence and injustice in our communities.
Nelba would like to dedicate this episode to all clergy who have ever prayed for her and her family and all people who are in winter seasons of their souls.
Host: Brandon Nappi
Guest: Nelba Márquez-Greene
Instagram: @theleadersway.podcast
berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/podcast
You can support our work at https://tinyurl.com/support-transforming-leaders

75: The Seminarian Takeover!

If you’re considering applying to Berkeley Divinity School at Yale, this episode is for you!
 
It’s the SEMINARIAN TAKEOVER episode of The Leader’s Way Podcast. Berkeley Divinity School at Yale students Whitney Kimball Coe ’26, Misty Krasawski ‘26, and Jae Kirkland Rice ’27, pull back the curtain on what it’s like to be at seminary and divinity school. 
 
Our seminarians tell stories about how they made the decision to apply to Yale Divinity School and the questions, longings, and experiences that led them here. In this episode, we learn that there is no single path that leads a person to seminary, but many. We hear about worship at Berkeley, favorite courses, the importance of staying “prayed up,” and the ways God surprises us throughout this journey.
 
Learn more at the Berkeley at Yale website: https://berkeleydivinity.yale.edu/