Podcast
Life's Learning Curve
Hosted by Paul Hardt · EN
Storytelling: How we became us! We take a look backward & find ourselves negotiating our LIFE EXPERIENCES, discovering life's various tones -comedy, drama, and nostalgia. Our podcast offers imagery of a documentary recreation, but for audio. Life happens in a heartbeat. Let's learn, thrive and love from our experiences while we're here. Cheers!
22episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
The Florida Guitar
1w ago00:32:26Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailPaul’s father kept calling to ask for his address… So he could send his “favorite sweatshirts.” But the clothes were never the point. As generations continue on, we experience how favorite sweatshirts morph into a Florida Guitar. This episode of Life’s Learning Curve is about aging fathers, grown sons, grown daughters, memory, and the quiet ways love keeps reaching for us long after childhood ends. Catch Paul's new song "The Florida Guitar" within the show. Huzzah!Support the show
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The Flight That Never Left
Mar 2500:24:38Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailWhat if the flight you think you missed… was never meant to leave without you? In this milestone Episode 100 of Life’s Learning Curve, Paul returns to a forgotten airport in 1970s Key West—where time stalls, flights are “scheduled”… and decisions quietly shape your life. A chance meeting with mentor Clay Greager turns a missed flight into something far bigger: a realization that delays aren’t failures—they’re invitations. If you’ve ever hesitated… waited… or wondered if you’re still on the right path—this story will hit close.Because sometimes… time doesn’t move forward… until you do.This isn’t just a story about leaving. It’s about finally being ready to.Support the show
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Did We Really Make It Happen?
Jan 700:26:16Tap to summarizeSend us Fan Mail DID WE MAKE IT HAPPEN? What if your teenage dreams could look you in the eye and ask the one question you’ve been avoiding? In this moving, funny, and nostalgic episode of Life’s Learning Curve, Paul Hardt travels from a 1975 high school gym to adulthood—through pep bands, basement rock bands, first heartbreaks, quiet fears, and the doubt that never really leaves: Did I become who I thought I would?Through storytelling, reflection and warmth, this story isn’t about winning—it’s about surviving, creating, loving, and realizing that maybe… We did make it happen. Just not the way we expected.This episode is for you. Remember. Reflect. Because the story isn’t over yet.Support the show
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One Little Dog
Nov 1800:31:02Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailWhat if the smallest heartbeat in your home ended up shaping the biggest chapters of your life? Meet Mia — a shy little Havanese puppy who chose Paul’s family one spring night in 2007… and quietly became the glue that held them together for nearly eighteen years.This episode is a warm, heartfelt trip through the memories of a dog who chased squirrels, crashed high-school soccer practice, comforted lonely coworkers, and waited at a bedroom door every day for the girl who went off to college. It’s about kids growing up, a house growing quieter, and a dog who never stopped loving the people she chose. It’s funny, nostalgic, emotional — and deeply human. If you’ve ever loved a family dog — really loved one — this story will hit home in all the right ways.Click play and meet Mia — the one little dog who changed everything.Support the show
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My First Summer Job
Oct 2100:36:35Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailWhen you’re sixteen, the right summer job can feel like hitting the jackpot. For Paul, it was working on a school district’s grounds crew—sun on his back, cash in his pocket, and a cast of unforgettable coworkers: Shorty, Sarge, Birdman, and Mr. Excitement. It wasn’t just mowing fields—it was growing up.Support the show
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Mr. Feature Creep: Just One More Change
Sep 2200:26:30Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailEver had a media video client ask for “just one more thing”? Welcome to the world of Feature Creep—where a simple three-minute video spirals into CGI mascots, helicopter shots, courtroom drama, and toddlers dictating color palettes. From a newsroom commercial gone wild in 1990, to the Fast & Furious of plant nursery training videos, Paul Hardt shares hilarious (and painful) true stories of edits that never ended. Learn why chasing “perfect” can turn into ego management, how to stop projects before they become hostages, and the one rule every creator should live by: export at version twelve—before you lose your mind.Order in the court—this is Mr. Feature Creep: Just One More Thing.Support the show
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That Fish Had More Paperwork Than Our Boat
Aug 3100:17:28Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailMeet Ernest “Skip” Wilson—Florida Keys legend, part-time adventurer, full-time excuse machine. In this episode, Skip, Chug, and Ricky Two-Toes haul in a monster grouper… only to realize it’s tagged by marine scientists and comes with more paperwork than their boat. From shady bars to busted skiffs, and with the marine patrol closing in, Skip’s only weapon is his charm—and maybe one legendary fib about “Principal Finnegan” the noble fish. A sunburnt comedy of errors, packed with laughs, close calls, and just enough truth to keep you guessing.Support the show
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You're Someone's Barstool Now
Jul 800:28:32Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailWhat happens when a man who's spent his whole life dodging expectations finally… sticks around? In this episode, we meet Ernest “Skip” Wilson—ex-adventurer, ex-romantic, and full-time Keys philosopher with a caffeine addiction and a rusted mailbox full of stories. From fishing scams and love lost, to the kind of porchside wisdom you can only earn after three decades of sunburn and bad decisions, Skip serves up laughs, longing, and a few lessons that sting just the right amount. Come for the seashell wind chimes and Slim Jim economics—stay for the moment a busted old mailbox becomes a badge of belonging. This one’s not just a goodbye. It’s a barstool-level promotion. Support the show
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Callan Lee & The Legend of Grandaddy Pal
Jun 1300:18:11Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailTime doesn’t just pass—it dances. Meet Callan Lee, a spirited two-year-old boy from Austin, Texas, seen through the eyes of his grandfather—and Callan’s own future ten-year-old self. What unfolds is a playful and poignant ride through memory, imagination, and legacy. Told as if young Callan himself is narrating, this story zips between superhero dreams on Illinois ranches, cowboy wisdom under Texas stars, and a garage Batcave packed with burritos, rubber chickens, and homemade label makers. Along the way, Grandaddy Pal shares lessons learned from war, storytelling, and simply showing up. It's a tale that proves love between generations doesn’t just echo from the past—it lights the way forward. Saddle up, press play, and ride into a story full of laughter, wisdom, and a little boy’s big dreams. No bunny.Support the show
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Technicolor Teenager 1972
May 21, 202500:32:28Tap to summarizeSend us Fan MailIt's 1972. Polyester clung. Adidas squeaked. And one 14-year-old kid believed that walking thirty miles might fix his whole personality.This isn’t just a story about a charity hike. It’s about awkward adolescence, Kool-Aid commercial dreams, abandoned comedy writers, and discovering the kind of strength that doesn’t brag—it just limps quietly and keeps going.Full of 70s nostalgia, bittersweet laughs, and one brutally earned life lesson, this episode walks the line between who we want to be… and who we become when no one shows up but us.👟 Tune in. Tie your laces. And remember to pack extra socks.Life’s Learning Curve – Streaming now.Support the show
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