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Change Wired

Angela Shurina

Change Wired: change in days - not in years!

If you are the kind of person who wants to explore the edges of your potential, while living your most extraordinary life, feeling, looking, doing your best, driven by impact beyond yourself - you'll love this pod!

Change Wired is your new favorite podcast for practical, science-based insights into personal growth and change of behavior, 𝗻𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵, 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿, 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, diving into tools and strategies for meaningful productivity, mindset mastery, emotional regulation, stress management, sleep optimization and creating high-performing habits to 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹, 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁.

𝗛𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗔𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗹𝗮 𝗦𝗵𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗮, 𝗮 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵, 𝗘𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲, 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗳-𝗔𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 & 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵-𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵, 𝗕𝗲-𝗦𝗰𝗶 𝗙𝘂𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝟭𝟴 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 now based in Cape Town, with her company Your Best Coaching.

Each episode breaks down science-backed tools from biology, neuroscience, psychology of change, systems thinking and behavioral science into 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆.

Expect lively solo episodes, inspiring guests, and real-world-applicable strategies designed specifically for business owners, change agents and high performers, strivers and leaders, entrepreneurs, and growth-focused professionals 𝗲𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳.

Tune in, wire your brain for change, and get ready to transform in days - not years!

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Thursday · 23 min
A 4-Lens Toolkit For Impossible Life Decisions: there's no best candy.
You can have a great life and still feel stuck when you’re surrounded by great options. That’s the modern trap: career opportunities, relationship paths, places to live, even “best” health choices can turn into analysis paralysis when there’s no clean yes or no. I’m Angela Shurina, and I’m sharing a practical way to make complex life decisions without trying to logically rank your entire future - based on some of the best work of experts in life coaching/navigation including Simon Sinek's Discover Your Why process. We start with the mindset shift that unlocks everything: there is no best candy. Just like there’s no single best ice cream flavor, there’s no universal best job, best city, or best path. When you stop hunting for the “correct” answer, you can start choosing what fits you. I break down why too many options quietly destroy focus, why even smart people drown in decision fatigue, and why more data (or AI analytics) won’t fix a decision that’s really about identity and alignment. Then we get tactical. I walk you through my 4-lens decision-making toolkit: (1) values, including a research-backed values assessment I love, (2) an Energy Audit Journal to spot what truly energizes you, (3) a Why Worksheet to clarify purpose and the causes that matter most, and (4) a Work-Life Integration Journal to design a coherent vision for your health, schedule, relationships, and lifestyle. The goal isn’t the “best” choice on paper, it’s the most aligned choice for you right now. If you’re ready to stop spinning and start choosing, listen all the way through, grab the worksheets in the show notes, then subscribe, share this with a friend who feels overwhelmed, and leave a review so more people can find the tools. Feel free to connect with me on Whatsapp for a Clarity Session or to ask any questions Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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Tuesday · 1 hr 7 min
Brandon Fairweather's Anxiety Survival Toolkit and The Hell Inside Our Heads: why you can't beat anxiety and how to manage it well instead.
Brandon Fairweather was born with a heart defect doctors said he'd need to fix "someday." That someday came at 28 — heart surgery on his third wedding anniversary. Since then: 2 strokes, a near-fatal internal bleed, and a cancer diagnosis. Through all of it, a level of anxiety that, at its worst, made it hard to get out of bed. He wrote his way through it, and that became his book, The Hell Inside Our Heads: Managing Anxiety and Practical Steps for Better Mental Health. In this episode, Brandon and Angela unpack what actually helped NOT to beat anxiety but to manage it for health, fitness and life's most joyous moment — the practical, the philosophical, and the occasionally unconventional toolkit you don't want to miss! What we cover: Brandon's health journey — heart surgery, two TIAs, a near bleed-out, and cancer, all before 44 Why you can't "beat" anxiety, and why that's actually good news The breathing technique and grounding tools Brandon still uses today How sleep, food, movement and "social diet" shape your nervous system The champagne he opened on the day of his cancer diagnosis, and why "Progress, not perfection" — treating mental health like a skill you train, not a switch you flip Why talking to someone, anyone, is never the wrong move "You don't try to beat happiness, you don't try to beat sadness. So why would you try to beat anxiety?" — Brandon Fairweather Links Brandon shared: Get the book — The Hell Inside Our Heads: Exclusive Books, Takealot, Bargain Books, Reader's Warehouse, Estrell Books, Amazon, Apple Books, loot.co.za hellinsideourheads.co.za Follow Brandon: Instagram & LinkedIn — @BrandonFairweather About Brandon Fairweather Brandon Fairweather is a South African brand manager and health industry leader with over two decades of experience in wellness, sports nutrition and consumer health. He's currently Brand Manager for Biogen South Africa and Health Category Marketing Manager for Dis-Chem Pharmacies. At 43, his professional expertise is matched by the depth of his personal story — open-heart surgery at 28, two strokes, a near-fatal bleed-out, and a successful fight against cancer have shaped his belief that adversity can be transformed into purpose. Brandon lives in Johannesburg. Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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Tuesday · 15 min
A 3-Step Mental Reset to Stop Procrastinating: what I teach to every one of my clients to stop stealing your own progress and growth
Procrastination can feel like a character flaw, but I see it as a predictable brain pattern, a bad mental habit and that means we can train our way out of it. If you’ve ever stared at a workout plan, a report, a nutrition goal, or a hard conversation and thought, “I’ll do it later,” this one is built for you. I’m Angela Shurina, and I’m sharing the 3-step mental strategy I use with my coaching clients and in my own life to take action when the “I don’t want to” or "I'll do it later" mood hits. First, we talk about why resistance shows up in the first place and why the struggle is usually concentrated in the very first step. I walk through a simple reflection practice that cuts through excuses fast and turn motivation, productivity, and discipline into a repeatable habit. If you got value from this, subscribe so you don’t miss what’s next, share it with a friend who’s been stuck lately, and leave a quick rating and review so more people can find the show. _______________________ Support The Show and Turbocharge Angela 🙂 1-1 Session to Feel & Look Your Best with 2-week Support to Build Consistent Habits. Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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September 18 · 17 min
Why your sleep supplement stack can’t fix your bedtime.
If you’ve been chasing better sleep, fat loss, or muscle gain with “perfect” supplements and still feel stuck, this episode will explain why. I’m Angela Shurina, Certified Sleep Coach, and I’m breaking down the coaching framework I use to help clients stop majoring in minors and start getting real results from the essential efforts. We start with a simple story: a client sleeps poorly, takes all the supplements, and still wakes up tired. Then we zoom out to performance and body composition. Muscle building is a recipe: challenging strength training, enough total calories, adequate protein, key micronutrients, and sleep for recovery and muscle protein synthesis. Fat loss is also a recipe, and it still runs on energy balance and a calorie deficit, no matter how magical a new diet trend sounds. If this helps, subscribe, share it with one person who’s struggling, and leave a review on Apple Podcasts or a five-star rating on Spotify. Want direct help prioritizing your habits for sleep, stress management, nutrition, fat loss, or muscle gain? Book a one-on-one session through the link below. _______________________ Support The Show and Turbocharge Angela 🙂 1-1 Session to Feel & Look Your Best with 2-week Support to Build Consistent Habits. Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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September 16 · 18 min
1694 Podcast Episodes - how to build consistent creative output without waiting for inspiration. 3-step secret formula that every artist follows.
If you’ve ever said, “I just don’t feel like creating today,” this conversation challenges the assumption hiding inside that sentence. We’re talking about consistent creativity, deep work, and the unglamorous skill that separates people who finish from people who only plan. We connect the dots between professional standards in everyday work and the way we often treat our creative goals like optional hobbies. A key theme is the shift from amateur habits to a professional mindset: Steven Kotler’s willingness to practice in bad conditions so output doesn’t depend on perfect energy, and Neil Gaiman’s simple constraint that protects focus, write or do nothing. Then we get practical. We explain why routine is more than discipline, it’s biology. When you write, train, eat, or sleep at consistent times, your brain and body start preparing in advance. Your homework is simple and challenging: when is your muse date, and how will you protect it? Subscribe for more tools on personal growth, creativity, and high-performance habits, and if this helps, share it with a friend who wants to be consistently creative and leave a review so more people build a creative routine that lasts. _______________________ Support The Show and Turbocharge Angela 🙂 1-1 Session to Feel & Look Your Best with 2-week Support to Build Consistent Habits. Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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September 13 · 1 hr 15 min
From 11 startups to Entrepreneurs' Organization Global Chair: Joaquin Cordero's unlikely climb through broken bones, bee attacks and buying failing companies.
Joaquin Cordero was 8 years old the first time he made money selling something — small wooden spinning tops to other kids in Guatemala City. Since then he's founded eleven companies, survived 2 broken necks, a bee attack 30 meters up a rock face, and a bone infection that hit the exact week he stepped into the EO Global Chair seat at a 22,000-member global organization. In this episode, Joaquin unpacks what carried him through all of it — and the one piece of advice he keeps giving younger entrepreneurs. Some notes from Joaquin's story we get into: 🪃 Started hustling at 8 — spinning tops, then music-for-parties, then a hot dog cart — long before his first "real" business 📚 Credits an early reading habit (now mostly podcasts) for the growth mindset that got him through repeated failure, including a franchise that went bankrupt right out of university 💥 A near-fatal bee attack 30 meters up a rock face, followed by a broken neck and foot — one of two close calls that reshaped how he sees mortality and risk 🦴 Broke his fibula in the Dolomites right as he began his year as EO Global Chair, then spent 45 days on IV antibiotics for a bone infection — a real-time stress test of his systems and mindset 🧘 Stoicism (Ryan Holiday, Marcus Aurelius) as an operating philosophy, and why he believes falling into victimhood is "a very hard place to fall into" 💊 Why he calls discounts "cocaine" for a business, and the simple framework he uses to choose — and fire — clients ⏰ His 1-10-10-10 "miracle morning" (tracked for 2,000+ days), intermittent fasting, and a weekly huddle built around one word, one win, and one bottleneck 👥 Building a company of "collaborators, not employees" with 10–17 year tenures, a hard stop at 5pm, and a belief that culture beats strategy 👥 How relationships — not tactics — got him elected to lead 22,000 entrepreneurs across 68+ countries 🙏 The advice he keeps giving younger entrepreneurs: don't be afraid, because your brain isn't you — it's just trying to keep you alive ... and so much more!😃 If you've ever wondered how to keep building after your business fails, your body breaks, or your title disappears — this conversation is for you. Bio Joaquín Cordero is CEO and founder of Lumen, a communications and advertising company operating across Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, serving global brands including Volkswagen, Danone, and Mitsubishi. Over 25 years, he's founded or co-founded 11 ventures — from a VHS rental shop and a rock-climbing gym to Kinimovil, a mobile content and billing company that operated across 12 countries and partnered with more than 20 telecom providers. A 14-year member of the Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO), Joaquin climbed every rung of its leadership ladder to become Global Chair for 2025/26, leading a network of 22,000+ entrepreneurs across 68+ countries. He hosts the Lumen Podcast, is a devoted rock climber and adventure motorcyclist, and lives in Guatemala with his wife and daughter. Links Mentioned LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joaquin-r-cordero-a1268b3b/ Instagram (@time.line.traveler): https://www.instagram.com/time.line.traveler Lumen: https://www.grupolumen.com/ Lumen Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/3xFOU99D3FJPQMTABZVxfN YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCH-1UVFenIp5bCtQNmMl9mw 📚Books mentioned: The Obstacle Is the Way & Ego Is the Enemy (Ryan Holiday), Meditations (Marcus Aurelius), How to Win Friends and Influence People (Dale Carnegie), The Laws of Human Nature, Mastery & The Art of Seduction (Robert Greene), Die With Zero (Bill Perkins) Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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September 11 · 16 min
Why you fail to do things you know you “should” do. And 2 steps to fix your discipline for fasting.
You can feel fully capable and still not follow through and that is not a moral failure, it is a signal. When we catch ourselves saying “I should” or “I could,” we’re hearing hesitant language out loud, and it usually means our brain is not convinced the goal is worth the cost. In this episode I unpack how that shows up with healthy habits like intermittent fasting, nutrition, exercise, sleep, and productivity, and why forcing more willpower backfires. We start with the first lever: getting very clear on your why and the best exercise I do with my clients for that. Then we hit the second lever: planning for when it sucks (not the way you think). I give concrete self-management options I give to my clients and use myself when I'm getting ready for a fitness competition, and explain why “I’ll try harder” is not a plan. If you want practical behavior change tools, motivation that lasts, and a cleaner path to your goals, listen through the end. If this helps, subscribe, share it with someone who keeps “should-ing” on themselves, and leave a quick review so more people can find the show. _______________________ Support The Show and Motivate Angela 🙂 1-1 Session to Feel & Look Your Best with Support Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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September 9 · 19 min
How to build habits when your life has no schedule, routine or consistency. Anchor Moments.
If your calendar changes every week, your habits can still stay rock solid and it starts with one surprisingly simple move: stop attaching consistency to a schedule and start attaching it to a consistent daily trigger that happens no matter what. We talk through why more than 80% of daily decisions happen on autopilot, and how that autopilot can either build your health or quietly drain it when life feels scattered. We answer a common question from people who retire, travel often, work hybrid hours, raise kids, or run their own business: how do you build routines when you have no routine? Our go-to strategy is “anchor moments” the few things that happen no matter where you are, like waking up, brushing your teeth, showering, coffee, lunch, or dinner. We show how to tie your most important habit, especially consistent exercise, to one of those moments so it becomes as automatic as hygiene. You’ll also get the practical layer that makes this work anywhere. "Your best intentions die of lack of preparation" If this helped, subscribe, share the podcast with a friend, and leave a review so more people can build calm, strong routines in a chaotic world. _______________________ Support The Show and Motivate Angela 🙂 1-1 Session to Feel & Look Your Best with Support Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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September 5 · 1 hr 10 min
The Sleep Doctor, Dr. Michael Breus will teach you how to get the best night of your life. And the one habit that beats 8-hour rule every time.
Dr. Michael Breus has spent 26 years studying why we can't sleep — and has helped everyone from Fortune 500 CEOs to Olympic athletes fix it. In this episode of Change Wired, "The Sleep Doctor" breaks down the one habit that matters more than eight hours, why every human on Earth wakes up between 1 and 3am, and what to do about it to sleep well tonight. Even Michael isn't immune — he only discovered his own sleep apnea 6 months ago, and he's using the exact tools he tells his patients to use. In this episode: The single sleep habit Michael says matters more than anything else — and it's not 8 hours The biology of why you wake up between 1–3am every night (and what to do when you do) His "don't go pee, don't check the clock" protocol for falling back asleep fast The military breathing technique that quiets a racing mind Why CEOs who sleep 5 hours make worse decisions — and the "worry journal" trick Michael uses with them The cost of a sleepless workforce — it's not just tiredness, it's presenteeism His "3-15s" morning routine and "3-2-1" nutrition rule for better sleep tonight How to beat jet lag using light, caffeine, melatonin and napping — in a specific order What's next in sleep medicine: a pill for sleep apnea, GLP-1s, and redefining diagnosis for women ... and so much more!😀 Grab a notebook — this one's full of things you'll want to try tonight! About Dr. Michael Breus Dr. Michael J. Breus, PhD, is a double board-certified Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Sleep Specialist. He is one of only 168 psychologists in the world to have taken and passed the Sleep Medicine boards without going to medical school. He is also the founder of sleepdoctor.com. Dr. Breus is the author of 4 books. His newest, "Energize! Go From Dragging Ass to Kicking It in 30 Days" (2021), adds the concepts of movement and intermittent fasting to his famous Sleep Chronotypes, and was named one of the top books of 2021 by The Today Show. His third book, The Power of When (2017), is a groundbreaking biohacking book proving there is a perfect time to do everything, based on your biological chronotype — whether you're an early bird or a night owl — drawing on more than 200 research studies. Dr. Breus is an expert resource for most major publications, doing more than 400 interviews a year, including Oprah, Dr. Oz, The Doctors, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. He has been in private practice for 23 years and was named Top Sleep Doctor of Los Angeles by Reader's Digest. Learn more about and connect with Dr Michael Breus' work: https://sleepdoctor.com/changewired Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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September 2 · 35 min
Feeling Your Best for The Long Game: 8 evidence-based practices for whole body-mind vitality till the day you die.
Your body keeps score, but it also keeps receipts. If you are tired, stiff, or dealing with nagging pain, the problem is often not “age” or a lack of willpower, it is missing body maintenance habits that compound for years. After attending the Long Game Summit hosted by Dr. Kelly Starrett and his wife, we bring you a clear, science-backed system for longevity that fits real life, even if you have zero interest in being a professional athlete. We unpack the biggest gaps most people face today, from there, we lay out the “eights” framework of 8 habits you can follow for life. The episode also connects the dots between food quality and tissue quality, why energy balance still matters even with “healthy” calories, and how play and social connection are not optional extras but key drivers of consistency and mental health. You will also get a simple day plan for mornings, work hours, and evenings so these habits run like a system instead of another set of intentions. If you want more energy, better sleep, and a stronger, more mobile body for life, hit play, then subscribe, share this with a friend who needs a reset, and leave a review so more people can find the show. https://www.instagram.com/angelabrainbodycoach/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-shurina/ Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 31 · 14 min
1 Tiny Habit That Ends Procrastination
Waiting for “the perfect time” is a sneaky way to stay exactly where you are. Then I share one of the most underestimated tools in coaching and behavior change: Minimum Viable Habits. I tell you why this works so well psychologically: consistency builds self-trust, strengthens self-efficacy, and makes it easier to show up again tomorrow. We also get practical with examples from real life and clients, including the kind of gradual consistency that can lead to major results like significant 30kg permanent weight loss over time. If this helps, subscribe, share it with a friend who keeps waiting for the perfect moment, and leave a quick review so more people can find the show. What minimum viable habit are you choosing this month? https://www.instagram.com/angelabrainbodycoach/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-shurina/ Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 29 · 14 min
Sleep is like weight loss, only possible when you consistently follow a set of rules. Here are the rules.
Great sleep isn’t magic, and it definitely isn’t “just luck” When I get a truly solid night, I feel it everywhere: better mood, better workouts, better focus, and a calmer baseline even after a brutal week. Today I’m giving you the exact framework I use as a certified sleep coach to help people move from 4 to 5 hours of broken rest to 7 to 8 hours of consistent, high-quality sleep 95% of nights. If you’re tired of getting lucky with sleep, press play and try this for a week. Subscribe, share this with a friend who’s wired and awake at 3 a.m., and leave a review so more people can find the sleep they need to handle the hardest week. If you need the full protocol in writing: https://yourbestcoaching.substack.com/p/sleep-is-like-weight-loss-only-possible Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 20 · 23 min
Rest Protocol to Beat Your Best: how elite performers match work with time off and breaks.
You can be incredibly driven and still be held back by the one thing you keep postponing: recovery. After DMing 50 founders, business owners, and leaders to ask what limits their performance, I got a surprisingly consistent answer: rest, recovery, and sleep. Not strategy. Not hustle. The basics we all “know,” but rarely protect on the calendar. Drawing from the book *Peak Performance* by Steve Magnus, I share the work-rest rhythm that shows up again and again in research and elite training. We also dig into the Roger Bannister story and why breakthrough moments often arrive during the incubation phase, not while you’re grinding. Then I get personal about what it feels like to wake up flat, lose creativity, and think you might want to quit, and why that’s often a sign to rest, not to walk away. You’ll leave with practical recovery tools to reset high performance. If you’re chasing your next level goal, this is your reminder to build a rest strategy that matches it. Subscribe, share this with a high performer who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find a healthier path to peak performance. Find the full protocol on my Substack Blog: "I asked 50 founders what’s killing their performance. They all said the same thing." Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 18 · 14 min
How to Make a Habit Automatic (Without Trying Harder)
Willpower isn’t your real problem. Your environment is. I’m Angela Shurina, and I’m diving into habit formation, aka your brain's automations, through the lens of high performance, neuroscience, and a simple principle I use daily: zonality, or assigning clear locations to specific behaviors so your brain stops debating and starts executing. We talk about why habits are the brain’s automations and how automating more of your routine frees up limited brain power for the work that actually matters: leading, creating, training, building, and handling surprises without falling apart. I also unpack decision fatigue. When your mental energy gets spent on constant micro-choices, the big challenges hit harder and you end up surviving instead of performing. The core tool is context-dependent automation, the way your brain links a setting to a behavior and flips into “do the thing” mode with less conscious effort. That’s why the gym makes workouts more likely, why offices can instantly trigger focus, and why a dedicated meditation corner can calm you down before you take a single breath. You’ll leave with practical, step-by-step examples that make consistency feel automatic. If you want better habits without more grinding, listen through, pick one habit you’ve been struggling to make stick, and design its dedicated place today. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review so more people can build habits that actually last. Connect with Angela on LinkedIn: Angela Shurina https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-shurina/ Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 14 · 43 min
Leading Success Without a Map: Rashid Toefy's wild journey from apartheid to government leader, entrepreneur, and CEO before earning a PhD at 50.
In 1985, a 13-year-old boy watched his father sell the family house, move them into a caravan, and start training to cycle around the world — at a time when South Africa was closed off from most of the planet. The trip never happened. But something about that audacity never left him. That boy is Rashid Toefy. By the time he sat down with Angela for this episode of Change Wired, he'd already lived what feels like several lifetimes: gap years in London and Washington, DC (where he watched Nelson Mandela walk free and his own country begin to transform), a career built almost by accident in the youth travel industry, a "six-month" move to Amsterdam with his new wife that turned into three years traveling to a different country every month across 30+ countries, seven years as CEO of the Cape Town International Convention Centre starting at just 37, a bruising stretch as an entrepreneur opening the African division of a Geneva-based global company, a pivot into government where his job today is creating jobs across an entire regional economy — and, at 50 years old, a PhD completed in three years on how leaders make decisions inside a crisis. Rashid and Angela cover all of it — the exhilarating parts and the hard ones. Rashid opens up about growing up under apartheid, having to split from friends onto separate train carriages because of the color of their skin, and meeting Nelson Mandela as a student leader. He talks about 9/11 hitting while he had a hundred South African students on exchange visas stranded in the US. And he's disarmingly honest that he sees a therapist and works through personal challenges "day by day" — because, as he puts it, trauma either shrinks you or grows you, and which one happens is partly a choice you make. What you'll learn in this episode: Why Rashid believes you can't plan a career from day one — you can only make sense of opportunities as they come, and trust your gut once the fundamentals are in place What "sense-making" means, and how it differs from both blind risk-taking and overthinking every decision The one question his first-ever coach, Karina Anderson, taught him to ask after any setback — and how it reframes adversity into fuel How 3 philosophies from 3 different cultures — Japan's Kaizen (continuous improvement), China's guanxi (relationships before business), and South Africa's own Ubuntu ("I am because we are") — combine in his approach to leadership Why Rashid believes refusing to settle for mediocrity isn't about ego — it's about what we owe to the world we're passing on ... and so much more! Wow, in such a short episode it feels like we've covered a whole era! Connect with Rashid: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rashid-toefy-phd-5b09689/ — he's genuinely open to people reaching out about his leadership philosophy, his journey, or his PhD thesis on crisis leadership. About Rashid Toefy: Rashid Toefy is the Deputy Director-General in the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, with the mandate of creating jobs in the Western Cape economy. Rashid has served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) and has worked extensively in the travel and tourism industry, both in South Africa and abroad. He spent three years based in Amsterdam, developing business and marketing strategies for businesses in over 30 countries, working extensively in Central Europe and Latin America. He has a degree in Economics and Environmental Science, as well as an MBA, and has recently completed his PhD, focusing on "How leaders make strategic decisions in crisis conditions." Rashid hates settling for mediocrity and wants to do profound things that impact positively on all those around him. Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 12 · 21 min
Beat Your Internal Resistance with 6 Questions: what winners do when they feel like quitting.
Motivation is a terrible plan and most of us keep learning that lesson the hard way. When you’re tired, stressed, or not “feeling it,” the real challenge is not willpower, it’s the story running in your head and whether you know how to work with it without sliding into burnout. We get extremely practical with 6 questions you can start using in the moments when your resistance to do the work shows up. Write them down. Put them on a sticky note. Put them on your phone's screensaver. We unpack the “what’s so special about tomorrow?” trap, the power of a minimum viable rep (5%, 10%, 20% still counts), and how to make hard tasks easier to start using temptation bundling. We shift into focus and identity: what to think about, who to “hear” in your mind when you need to move, and how imagining two futures can snap you back into action right now. If you care about consistency, discipline, mindset, productivity, and goal setting for fitness, business, or life, this one gives you a simple framework you can reuse anytime resistance hits. Subscribe, share this with one person who’s stuck in a yo-yo cycle, and leave a review with the question that helped you most. Read all the questions on my Substack: https://yourbestcoaching.substack.com/p/what-winners-do-when-they-feel-like Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 10 · 16 min
Stop Chasing Discipline and Start Copying Better People: how I wrote 801 blogs in a row.
Discipline gets all the credit, but your environment does most of the work. I’m Angela Shurina, and I’m unpacking a simple idea that can change your health, habits, and results fast WITHOUT more discipline. When you choose the right “everybody,” you stop relying on willpower to do hard things. If you’ve ever told yourself you just aren’t disciplined enough to work out, eat well, wake up early, or stay consistent with your craft, this conversation is your permission slip to redesign the inputs instead of blaming your character. We look at the crowd you’re currently copying and ask the uncomfortable question: do you actually want their outcomes? Because “everybody does it” is only a good guideline if you want what everybody gets. We talk about overindulgence culture, the cost of average norms, and why being the odd one out is often the price of real change. Then we get practical: how to build a better people diet by curating your tribe across different areas of life. If you want sustainable behavior change, self-discipline, productivity, and better health and fitness, start by choosing smarter comparisons. Subscribe, share this with one person who needs a reset, and leave a review with your answer: who is your everybody? Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 7 · 1 hr 8 min
Yaron Assabi: 8 thriving businesses, 3 cancers, the world's first mobile commerce transaction - and he's just getting started.
When your doctor gives you 3 months to live, what do you do with the company you spent 23 years building? What do you do with your life? What would crash most people resulted in another successful business venture for Yaron. What kind of person can do that? Let's find out! Yaron Assabi built 1 of South Africa's first e-commerce businesses in 1998 — before most of the country had ever been online. He rode the dot-com wave to a FTSE listing, watched it crash, bought his own company back, and spent the next 2 decades quietly building Digital Solutions Group into 7 specialist businesses serving brands like Nando's, KFC, DStv and Coca-Cola across Africa, the Middle East and the UK. Then, in April 2021, everything stopped. 3 cancers, diagnosed at once. A family history that had already taken his mother at 39 and his father twenty years later. Doctors gave him 3 months without chemo. He chose to fight it his own way instead — and rebuilt his health, his mindset, and eventually a whole other business, from the ground up. This episode is the rare kind of conversation that moves fluidly between "how do you scale 7 companies" and "how do you sit with your own mortality and choose to do your own thing" that only Yaron could pull off so well it feels. In this episode, you'll learn: How Yaron decides what to say yes to The shared-services model that lets DSG launch new startups faster every time, without founders having to be good at everything Why he believes a business that depends on its founder is a business that hasn't really been built yet — and how to design yours so it can run without you The exact morning system Yaron credits with his recovery and the energy that carries him through his day What changed in his mind the day he was diagnosed — and why he says fear is just "a false experience appearing real" How losing both parents to cancer shaped his relationship with risk, intuition, and not postponing his life Yaron's take on AI in the business Why Yaron believes you don't have to sacrifice your wellbeing to build something great — and what changed his mindset Whether you're building a company, rebuilding your health, or trying to figure out how to do everything - this episode will be your inspiration, breaking many limiting beliefs and fears that are stopping you from Doing Something Great with every day of your life. Tune in, get inspired - Do Something Great! About Yaron Assabi Yaron Assabi is the Founder and Group CEO of Digital Solutions Group (DSG), a South African-founded, globally active group of seven specialist digital businesses spanning customer experience, digital marketing, telecoms, cybersecurity, data and AI, and digital commerce. Since founding the company in 1998 as one of South Africa's first e-commerce ventures, Yaron has grown DSG into a 600+ person group serving 60+ enterprise brands across Africa, the Middle East and the UK, with clients including Nando's, KFC, DStv, Coca-Cola and Unilever. He built and launched one of the world's first mobile commerce transactions in 2000, served as ICT strategist for the Nelson Mandela Foundation, and designed the 46664 global HIV/AIDS awareness campaign technology. A 3-time cancer survivor who chose to heal through lifestyle transformation rather than chemotherapy, Yaron also founded Chilled, a plant-based wellness and lifestyle brand born from his own recovery journey. He holds a degree in Economics from the University of the Witwatersrand. Links mentioned in this episode: DSG: www.dsg.co.za Chilled: chilled.mobi Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 5 · 24 min
Pre-bed anxiety? Wired and tired and can't fall asleep? 3AM wake-ups? - 3 psycho-biological tools from sleep science to put your brain to sleep.
Your sleep is not “just sleep. When nights get choppy, it is easy to blame stress, age, or bad luck. I see something else again and again: small, fixable habits that keep people stuck in a tired and wired loop, then they wonder why they wake up at 3 a.m. with a brain that will not shut off. I walk you through 3 specific, practical sleep protocols I use personally and with clients to improve sleep quality fast. Yoga Nidra (also called NSDR), a simple brain dump journaling practice, finally, we get concrete about nutrition for sleep: what to eat for dinner to sleep through the night like a baby. If you struggle with insomnia, racing thoughts at bedtime, frequent wake-ups, or early morning waking, this is a one-week experiment I'd recommend. Listen, try the three-step routine tonight, then share this with a friend who needs better sleep and leave a review so more people can find the tools. What is the biggest thing ruining your sleep right now? Yoga Nidra: https://youtu.be/M0u9GST_j3s?si=W_gIDXa-auRwSGwC Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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August 3 · 24 min
5 steps to make progress in uncertainty of the world that's changing every moment: goal-setting is nonsense.
You can do everything “right” and still not get the result on your preferred timeline and that doesn’t mean you’re failing. Today I’m unpacking the mindset shift that removes so much goal frustration: outcomes don’t owe you a deadline. When you stop demanding that the scale, the KPI dashboard, or the relationship dynamic change on command, you get your power back and start making real progress. I share a practical, coaching-tested, 5-step goal achieving framework built on goal setting science, motivation, behavioral science, and 18 years of work with ambitious clients. I also explain why tracking and rewarding actions beats obsessing over outcomes, and how to reflect and adjust without spiraling into self-criticism. The big takeaway is simple and freeing: obsess over the process like masters do, and let the “masterpiece” arrive as a side effect of consistent work. If this helps you, subscribe, share it with someone who needs a better process, and leave a rating and review so more people can find the show. Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas Support the show Brought to you by Angela Shurina Certified Health, Sleep, Performance & Executive Coach 360 with 18 years of experience helping people change to feel, be and do their best.
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