The Lazy Genius Podcast
Episode #434 – 10 Ways I Feel Like Myself
Host: Kendra Adachi (“The Lazy Genius”)
Date: September 8, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Kendra Adachi, known as “The Lazy Genius,” explores the theme of feeling like your truest self, even amidst the chaos of daily life and many responsibilities. Kendra shares her personal list of 10 activities—split into two categories: things that “fill her up” and things that “wake her up.” Her aim is to encourage listeners to discover their own practices that help them feel connected and authentic, promoting a sense of wholeness and integration rather than burnout or fragmentation.

Additional segments include:

• A peek behind the scenes at her monthly newsletters
• The Lazy Genius of the Week
• A mini pep talk on accepting help

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Defining What Makes You Feel Like Yourself (03:10–08:10)

• Kendra unpacks the challenge of maintaining a sense of self amid various life roles.
• She introduces the concept that activities making you feel like yourself are “its own kind of rest”—sometimes restful, sometimes invigorating.
• She distinguishes between feeling “filled up” (restored, peaceful) and “woken up” (energized, alive), noting that discovering this nuance in her own life was illuminating.
• Kendra emphasizes integration: “Being whole and connected and grounded as yourself, no matter your circumstances or the length of your to-do list, is way more important than getting everything done.” (07:29)

2. Five Ways Kendra “Fills Up” (Restores Herself) (09:50–18:44)

A. Reading (10:15)

• “Reading is my favorite hobby, my favorite activity ... 99% of the time when I read, it is purely for my own pleasure and enjoyment.”
• “If I’m reading a physical or a digital book, it means I cannot be doing anything else... It immediately focuses my attention away from anything productive.”

B. Music (12:59)

• Using music to shift mood, connect with herself, and process feelings.
• She has playlists tailored for different emotional needs, highlighting the “breezy instrumental playlist” as especially grounding.
• “The right song at the right time... it’s like pressing a button on my stress and my disconnection from myself.” (13:50)

C. Making Art (15:38)

• Drawing and watercolor painting faces is a recurring restorative practice.
• “There are days when I’m just feeling empty ... I know that pulling out my sharpie and paints is going to start to hydrate me again.” (15:57)

D. Baking (16:40)

• Baking serves as both a joyful and relational activity.
• “Baking is what I do when I’m feeling disconnected from other people, which is honestly a surefire way that I’m not gonna feel like myself.”

E. Solitude (17:33)

• Despite her relational nature, time alone is essential.
• “I need to be alone in my own home and with my own thoughts and my own quiet... There is so much wisdom… about the importance and the power of solitude, and I need that so much in my own life.” (18:12)

Reflective Invite (18:39)

• Kendra encourages listeners: “You don’t need five things. One is great. But what is one thing that makes you feel the way I described myself feeling?”

3. Five Ways Kendra “Wakes Up” (Feels Most Alive) (23:16–32:55)

A. Being with Her People (23:31)

• “Being with my people is maybe my favorite thing that just lights me up... I get so much energy from being around people, especially people who know and love me.” (23:50)

B. Talking (24:50)

• Processing aloud is vital: “Talking is also how I figure stuff out. I cannot internally process. It is genuinely not how my brain works.” (25:48)
• Notable quote: “I am a talker. And when someone gives me the freedom to do that... I genuinely feel super alive.” (25:11)
• She reads from the novel The Colony about speech as a “juicer”:

  “When she was alone, she sometimes felt blocked up, like her head was full of fruit and her speech was a juicer that allowed the fruit to be used…” (26:18)

C. Cheering Others On (28:05)

• Finds joy in supporting others during their achievements or performances.
• “I love cheering on friends when something special happens in their lives. I love watching football with my family... I love being part of something that is focused on another person...” (28:27)

D. Problem Solving (30:03)

• Loves “figuring something out” whether at home, among friends, or in her work.
• “When I get to be in a way that helps somebody, it’s like the best feeling. I feel like I’m doing exactly what I was made to do.” (31:25)

E. Activating Her Passionate Side (32:08)

• “Anything that activates my passionate side... Stories that keep me up at night ... things I have to share, like a favorite TV show — I will die on the hill that it’s the best thing ever.” (32:18)
• She notes, “Stoking your passions will absolutely help you feel more integrated and more like yourself.”

Summary (34:13)

• “You might resonate with these two different categories of ways to feel like yourself. You need ways to fill up and you need other ways to wake up. Both help you become a more integrated person.”

4. Behind the Scenes: Newsletter Corner (34:53–39:52)

• Kendra describes the writing process for her two newsletters: the Lazy Letter (personal essays) and the Book List (monthly reading reviews).
• The newsletter is written “in the moment,” reflecting what she is currently feeling or experiencing.
• “I’m a responsive person, meaning I feel the most like myself when I’m responding to where I am right now and who I am with right now, which is why I can’t plan what I want to personally share.” (36:37)
• Team process: Other team members review newsletter drafts for sensitivity and inclusivity.

5. Lazy Genius of the Week: Rosie from Richmond, VA (39:53–41:05)

• Rosie changed the order of after-school tasks: bringing things inside and feeding the dog before unbuckling her kids.

  “Now I tell the kids I’m gonna bring all the stuff inside and feed the dog, then get them out. It takes like two minutes and they are happy enough to just sit in their car seats... It’s made a huge difference.” (41:04)

• Kendra affirms: “The right order really can do wonders... Just do them in a different order and see what happens.” (41:31)

6. Mini Pep Talk: Accepting Help (41:10–44:08)

• Pep talk takeaway: “If someone offers to help you, say yes. That’s it. Like, that’s the pep talk.” (41:18)
• Kendra reflects on building the “muscle memory” to accept help, so that in big moments of need, it’s not an unfamiliar act.

  “Say yes to accepting something that isn’t dire but sure is nice to be given. Accept help when someone offers, find a reason to say yes.” (43:36)

Notable Quotes / Memorable Moments

• On Integration:
  “Staying grounded is more important than staying on task. It’s like an oak tree with roots that are planted real deep.” (08:01)

• On Permission:
  “This list is not a prescriptive one at all. It’s just a reminder that we have these things that we can connect with and bring us back to ourselves. And those differences are so fantastic.” (14:58)

• On Passions:
  “We can’t all care about the same things. But together as a collective, we all get to care about our specific things that move us and wake us up and ignite our passion.” (32:31)

• On Cheering Others:
  “I am all the way moved watching my oldest play his music. Like, I can feel it in my gut, the happiness and excitement and leaning toward him that I feel.” (29:13)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Defining “Feeling Like Yourself” and Integration: 03:10–08:10
• Five Ways Kendra “Fills Up” (Reading, Music, Art, Baking, Solitude): 09:50–18:44
• Reflective Self-Check (“What fills you up?”): 18:39
• Five Ways Kendra “Wakes Up” (People, Talking, Cheering, Problem-Solving, Passion): 23:16–32:55
• Behind the Scenes: Newsletter Corner: 34:53–39:52
• Lazy Genius of the Week: 39:53–41:05
• Mini Pep Talk: Accepting Help: 41:10–44:08

Episode Structure

• Main Topic: 03:10–34:13
• Newsletter Corner: 34:53–39:52
• Lazy Genius of the Week: 39:53–41:05
• Mini Pep Talk: 41:10–44:08

Closing Thoughts

Kendra encourages listeners to identify just one thing that helps them reconnect with their authentic self, whether it’s an activity that restores or energizes. She emphatically invites everyone to take small permission-giving steps toward a less fragmented, more integrated life. As always, her tone is warm, inviting, and deeply practical, providing reassurance that there is no one right way to “feel like yourself.”

“Be a genius about the things that matter and lazy about the things that don’t.” (44:55)

For more:

• Sign up for Kendra’s newsletters at thelazygeniuscollective.com
• Get episode recaps via the “Latest Lazy Listens” email.
• Find full book recommendations in the “Book List” newsletter.