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From Breakdown to Breakthrough with Laura Cooke

From Breakdown to Breakthrough with Laura Cooke

Author: Brett Kaufman April 20, 2026 Duration: 59:29
Innerspace: Deep, Meaningful Conversations with Brett Kaufman
HealthHealth & FitnessEducationFitnessMentalReligionReligion & SpiritualitySelf ImprovementSpirituality

Laura Cooke had everything that should have made her happy — successful career, beautiful family, dream job as assistant head of school at Wellington School in Columbus. But her body was keeping score. Stress-related illnesses forced her to confront a hard truth: she was walking around pretending to be happy while making choices that led to misery.


In this conversation, Laura shares her journey from a CompuServe founder's dinner table to building Positive Foundry, a company that brings emotional intelligence and well-being tools to frontline workers. She opens up about the moment Martin Seligman's book "Flourish" changed her trajectory, why she walked away from her dream job, and how installation crews are now having "feelings meetings" because of her work.


This episode explores the courage it takes to rebuild your life from the inside out, the power of conversation to create real change, and why the inner work isn't just for people who think they need it. Laura is creating generational change one conversation at a time, proving that transformation happens not through information but through connection.


There's a quiet hum beneath the noise of daily life, a place where genuine understanding begins. Innerspace: Deep, Meaningful Conversations with Brett Kaufman tunes into that frequency. Hosted by entrepreneur and philanthropist Brett Kaufman, this podcast creates a grounded environment for exploring the subtle forces that guide us. The discussions move beyond surface-level advice, delving into personal transitions, moments of unexpected clarity, and the inner signals we often learn to ignore. Brett approaches each conversation with a thoughtful curiosity, whether examining setbacks or breakthroughs, to uncover how these lived experiences fundamentally shape our paths. It’s a series for anyone interested in the interconnected realms of mental fitness and spiritual self-improvement, framed not as lectures but as calm, reflective dialogues. Listening feels like gaining a deeper awareness of the quiet mechanics behind our actions and choices in health, relationships, and purpose. This podcast offers a consistent space to pause and consider what truly moves us from within.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

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Innerspace: Deep, Meaningful Conversations with Brett Kaufman
Podcast Episodes
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Duration: 40:45
Five women. Five very different lives. One thread running through all of them.Each of them learned early to go quiet. To keep the peace, to be the good one, to do what was expected. Each built a life on that script, and…
ASK ME ANYTHING, PART TWO | Brett Kaufman [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:25
You sent the questions. Brett answers them.Part two picks up with the one that comes in most often, in some version or another. Twelve years into a business, successful by every measure, and completely empty. Brett has f…
ASK ME ANYTHING, PART ONE | Brett Kaufman [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:07
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Michael Clune was born in Dublin and raised outside Chicago. When his parents divorced at twelve, what gave way was not just the household. It was his sense of what was real. Alcohol and weed came at fourteen, ecstasy at…
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Duration: 1:32:20
Alex Charfen is the founder of The Brotherhood, A Society for Men, and the creator of Masculine Containment, a discipline that trains men to regulate themselves in real time.The work came out of the most confronting mome…
Nicole DiTommaso: Getting Her Inner Voice Back [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:22
Nicole DiTommaso is the founder of Sauce Boss Gang, a woman owned brand built on the belief that confidence is the most powerful ingredient. More than a hot sauce company, Sauce Boss Gang is a movement that uses flavor a…

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