WALL24: You Don’t Need to Have a Purpose: A Conversation about Belonging with Owen Eastwood

In this episode, I'm joyfully bringing you a conversation with the author of the book “Belonging: The Ancient Code of Togetherness”, Owen Eastwood.

Watch our conversation on YouTube!

Have you been in work situations where you might have started in a company and you just didn’t feel like you belonged, which then led to a lot of stress and tension? Join us as we learn how to create a sense of belonging with the Belonging author, Owen Eastwood.

Owen draws on his own Maori ancestry and weaves together insights from our evolutionary story and our collective wisdom as he helps people create a sense of belonging, especially in workplaces. Owen shines a light on where these powerful ideas are applied around the world in high performing settings, encompassing sports, business, the arts, and military.

In this conversation, you’ll hear Owen and I discuss: 

• His book, “Belonging: The Ancient Code of Togetherness”
• What the concept of Whakapapa is all about
• How he felt when he was called in to create an intervention for the South African cricket team
• How to create a collective feeling of belonging
• Why he dispels the myth that we all, as individuals, need a purpose
• The impact of environment and how that affects your ability to be resilient and to feel like you belong
• Our central nervous system (the cues that our body gives us)
• Rapid round

Conversation moments:

(00:00:35) Introduction + Talking about today’s guest and his book

(00:04:06) Some stories about his intervention at the camp of the South African cricket team, the Proteas

(00:08:06) Make them listen to themselves: Having the brutal honesty come out of the conversation

(00:10:43) From being a lawyer to then working with different teams

(00:11:33) Owen’s advice on how to create a sense of belonging and connection: “Build relationships”

(00:14:31) What the Maori concept whakapapa is all about + the definition of a strong culture

(00:17:47) Why Owen doesn’t believe that we need a purpose at an individual level

(00:27:43) The central nervous system: Our body’s cues and why we should pay attention to each

(00:34:45) Rapid Round

 Notes/Mentions:

• Belonging: The Ancient Code of Togetherness
• Leap of Perception: The Transforming Power of Your Attention

 Connect with Owen Eastwood:

• Owen on LinkedIn

 Rapid Round Recommendations:

• Book: Sacred Hoops by Phil Jackson
• Song: My Hometown by Bruce Springsteen
• Quote: “Never judge a day at lunchtime.” – Owen’s mother

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Thanks for being here. See you next week.