Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning

Episode 346: The Midlife Shift—Discovering Authenticity and Vulnerability with Mo Issa

Host: Andrea Samadi
Guest: Mo Issa
Date: October 27, 2024

Overview

In this heartfelt episode, Andrea Samadi welcomes acclaimed writer and business leader Mo Issa to discuss his new memoir, The Midlife Shift. Their conversation travels deeply into themes of self-discovery, authenticity, and vulnerability—both personally and in the workplace—exploring how conscious reflection and intentional living can help us uncover our truest selves, especially during midlife transitions. Mo shares the personal and often-unexpected journey that led him from outward success to inward fulfillment, touching on the science, soul, and everyday practices that support emotional wellbeing and leadership.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Mo’s Journey: From Corporate Success to Inner Fulfillment

[03:27 – 04:56]

• Mo reflects on his accidental entry into writing, despite a legal background.
  • “As my journey unfolded… I was struggling for a while to find my voice, my authentic voice, and that’s when writing sort of fell on my lap.” (Mo, 05:10)
• The pivotal role of reading: Mo credits voracious reading for unlocking his urge to write and self-express.
• The turning point: Starting journal writing with Julia Cameron’s Morning Pages introduced him to his emotions and ideas.
• Self-discovery happens late for some: Mo describes himself as a late bloomer, only beginning to express himself in his mid-40s.

2. The Mind-Body Connection: Exercise as a Pathway to Self-Awareness

[07:43 – 12:09]

• Mo recounts how a running injury shifted his routine and led to new emotional releases:
  • “Without knowing it, I started getting very emotional in my runs—I would run with tears running down my cheeks…” (Mo, 08:11)
• Physical movement (running, walking, hiking, playing paddle tennis) helps “untie knots of energy” and deepens self-awareness.
• He references Bessel van der Kolk’s The Body Keeps The Score as foundational in understanding how movement aids emotional processing.
• Mo and Andrea discuss the balance between intellectual self-reflection (journaling) and embodied practices.

3. Routines & Maintaining Inspiration During Life Transitions

[14:07 – 16:34]

• Mo admits that staying aligned with one’s passion is an ongoing process with regular setbacks and realignments:
  • “I keep losing it and sort of realigning to it… it’s not easy.” (Mo, 14:10)
• He shares his morning routine: waking early, reading inspirational texts, journaling, sporadic meditation, and writing; all these anchor his sense of self.
• Balancing business demands and inner work remains a “lifelong challenge.”

4. The “Midlife Shift”: Rethinking Success and Authenticity

[16:59 – 22:05]

• The origins of Mo’s TEDx talk: At the height of external success, he felt empty.
• Major life events triggered self-reflection: a family emergency and business crisis led to panic attacks and eventually therapy.
• Reading The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Tolstoy catalyzed his realization that outward accolades mean little without inner fulfillment.
  • “All this lavish lifestyle… I wasn’t really happy, I wasn’t satisfied. But it took me all that time to really understand that.” (Mo, 21:53)
• Values shifted from acquiring “more” to seeking peace, meaning, and authenticity.

5. The Unexamined Life & Small, Sustainable Change

[25:11 – 27:49]

• Mo echoes the Socratic wisdom: “The unexamined life is not worth living.”
• Real change is incremental, not dramatic (“1% change every day”), and punctuated by setbacks.
• Compassion for oneself is crucial:
  • “We need to be a bit more accepting, compassionate with ourselves because we are human at the end of the day.” (Mo, 27:41)

6. On Authenticity: What Does It Mean and Why Does It Matter?

[29:29 – 31:48]

• Mo details how authenticity means expressing your unique self, not following inherited scripts:
  • “I was blinded by a formula that worked for my father… and I followed it like a robot…” (Mo, 29:39)
• Creativity and authenticity are linked; creative activities cultivate and reveal the “real you.”
• Authenticity is not a fixed destination, but a guiding path—“None of us can ever be 100% authentic, but it’s a goal… a pathway.”

7. On Creativity: Building Inspiration and Flow

[34:20 – 39:21]

• “If I wanted to answer in one word… [the source of creativity] would be reading.” (Mo, 35:05)
• Constant engagement with a creative environment—writers, books, courses—fuels ongoing inspiration.
• Solitude and nature are fertile ground for creative breakthroughs; Mo shares a moving journal passage inspired by Lebanon’s cedar trees (see Notable Quotes below).

8. Vulnerability: From Weakness to Superpower

[40:42 – 47:49]

• In Mo’s culture/generation, especially as a male and business leader, emotional openness was taboo.
• Showing vulnerability (“shedding the armor”) became a source of personal strength and genuine connection.
  • “Vulnerability is strength. It really is. Because the more you show that you're vulnerable… you’re shedding this armor, you’re becoming lighter.” (Mo, 42:26)
• Vulnerability improved his relationships, especially with his children; his openness allowed for deeper familial bonds.

9. Journaling, Reflection, and Healing Old Wounds

[49:37 – 52:27]

• Mo describes journaling as a key to unlocking buried childhood influences and patterns:
  • “When I wrote that down, I understood it…It was just the awareness—when I wrote it down, on paper…” (Mo, 50:27)
• Exploring “mysterious places of our hearts” can generate compassion for earlier self and allow conscious change.

10. Final Reflections: Designing an Intentional Life in a Noisy World

[53:16 – 54:41]

• Mo’s mission: Encourage everyone, especially younger generations facing constant digital distraction, to cut through “noise,” examine their own values, and intentionally design their lives.
  • “What your friends, what society are doing doesn’t necessarily mean you have to do as well.” (Mo, 54:18)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On finding your path:

  • “If you were living an alternate life, what would you want to be? I just blurted out, I’d love to be a writer.” (Mo, 05:00)

• On the mind-body link:

  • “Self-awareness alone is not enough sometimes. You need some kind of bodily activity to release some of these obstacles in us.” (Mo, 08:40)

• On values and transition:

  • “I knew my values had changed. My values are no more getting up that success ladder or the money symbols… we need money, but why do we need three, four homes?” (Mo, 21:54)

• On the experience of vulnerability:

  • “I learned the hard way: the more vulnerable I became, the more all these fantastic words—authenticity, connection—showed up.” (Mo, 41:23)

• On creativity and solitude:

  • “I walked down to a spot by some cedar trees… I could swear they were talking to me, inviting me to come closer…” (Mo, 38:01)
  • See full passage at [37:32 – 39:21] about cedar trees and journaling.

• On small, persistent change:

  • “Change… doesn’t happen like this—like in the Hollywood moment… it’s all very minimal change, maybe like 1% change every day.” (Mo, 26:18)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:27 — Mo’s background & evolution into writing
• 07:43 — Exercise, journaling, and emotional breakthroughs
• 14:07 — Maintaining morning routines and inspiration through transitions
• 16:59 — The TEDx talk; discovering emptiness amidst success
• 25:11 — The unexamined life and embracing incremental change
• 29:29 — Defining and striving for authenticity
• 34:20 — On creativity, reading, and the importance of environment
• 37:32 — Mo reads a journal passage inspired by nature and solitude
• 40:42 — Vulnerability, strength, and fatherhood
• 49:37 — Exploring old wounds and journaling for self-understanding
• 53:16 — Summing up Mo’s mission: intentional living amid digital noise

Episode Resources

• Mo’s website and books: [Link provided in show notes]
• Mo’s Substack newsletter: [Link provided in show notes]
• Recommended reading:
  • The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy
  • The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk
  • Works by Rumi, Khalil Gibran, Julia Cameron

Tone & Takeaways

This conversation is characterized by warmth, vulnerability, sincerity, and practical wisdom. Both Andrea and Mo openly discuss their ongoing journeys—emphasizing that self-awareness, true creativity, and authentic connection are lifelong pursuits filled with setbacks and breakthroughs alike. Listeners are encouraged to carve out time for both stillness and movement, reflection and action; to approach inner work with gentle self-compassion; and, above all, to seek fulfillment not in the approval of others, but in living and expressing their authentic selves.

For more from Mo Issa:

• Website and book info: [See show notes]
• Substack newsletter: [See show notes]
• The Midlife Shift available on Amazon Kindle from November 12, 2024

For further episodes and neuroscience-backed resources: achieveit360.com