Confronting Mortality with Thad Reichley

Confronting Mortality with Thad Reichley

Author: Paul Ollinger November 5, 2025 Duration: 1:04:04
Imagine being told you have a terminal illness. Would it change the way you approach each day? Two years ago, Thad Reichley went to the doctor because he had the flu. When initial attempts to address his symptoms were unsuccessful, additional procedures revealed the presence of three dozen tumors in the lining around his lungs. He was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic melanoma. There is no known cure for the disease. A father, husband, educator, and pro-level endurance athlete, Thad’s “job” over the past 24 months has been to fight cancer and stay alive. In addition to his treatments' side effects (fever, vomiting, inflammation of the eyes, and savage bouts of colitis), Thad has learned to navigate the negative “you are not enough" voices in his head. He’s also come to change his expectations about what makes a good day. “Sometimes” he says, that while trying to carpe every diem, “just walking the dog has to be enough.” Thad and I know each other through his wife, Leigh, who was my colleague on the sales team at Facebook in LA. She’s a very funny, very committed person who, as you will hear, is no stranger to cancer. I am grateful to Thad for sharing his story and hope it inspires YOU to go to the doctor if you haven’t been in a while. As importantly, I hope that it reminds you to cherish and protect your health and loved ones for as long as you have them.

Here’s how Thad sums it all up:
1. Go to the doctor
2. Listen to your wife
3. Hug your kids, and
4. Tell the people in your life you love them.

Prior to his diagnosis, Thad spent two decades as an educator, both as a teacher and an administrator at well-known schools like Crossroads in Santa Monica and Mark Day School in Marin County. He earned his BA at the University of Washington, Master's degrees from both UCLA and Brown University, and his doctorate from the University of Southern California.

✍️Please rate and review Reasonably Happy (https://ratethispodcast.com/paulopod) ✍️

👊Get Paul’s Substack newsletter (http://words.paulollinger.com) 👊

Get full access to Reasonably Happy at words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Paul Ollinger has worn a few different hats-stand-up comedian, tech executive, and now, the curious host of Reasonably Happy with Paul Ollinger. This isn't a lecture series or a dry self-help guide. Instead, it feels more like pulling up a chair for a series of genuinely engaging talks that wander into the places where our daily lives, careers, and inner worlds collide. The conversations, which feature authors, thinkers, and various creatives, are refreshingly candid. They dig into the practical and philosophical questions about what it actually means to build a life that feels both successful and satisfying. You'll find that each episode of this podcast approaches big themes-money, purpose, and the pursuit of contentment-with a blend of wit and thoughtful depth. The underlying idea isn't about finding a perfect, Instagram-ready version of happiness, but something more grounded and attainable. It's for anyone who's ever wondered if there's a smarter, more meaningful way to navigate the pressures of business and culture without losing sight of what matters. Tuning in, you get the sense that Paul is figuring it out alongside his guests, making the insights feel earned and relatable. The result is a consistently interesting exploration of how we can all aim for a life that feels reasonably, and authentically, well-lived.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Reasonably Happy with Paul Ollinger
Podcast Episodes
Jared Dillian on ‘The Awesome Portfolio’ [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:04
My guest today is Jared Dillian, a former Wall Street trader, DJ, and the best-selling author of Street Freak, No Worries, and his new book, The Awesome Portfolio.Let me ask you a question: Can you let your investments r…
Dave Winfield, Baseball Legend [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:40
If MLB first-ballot Hall-of-Famer Dave Winfield’s story tells us anything, it’s that you can’t judge a person by how things appear on the surface.What we saw from the outside: a formidable 6’6”, 220 lb athlete who had ju…
Life in the Soviet Union (w/ Vitaliy Katsenelson) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:21
Vitaliy Katsenelson grew up in the Soviet Union - in Murmansk, the largest city north of the Arctic Circle. Today, he is the CEO & Chief Investment Officer of IMA (Investment Management Associates).An award-winning write…
Senator Phil Gramm Dispels Economic Myths [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:09
This week, I sit down with Phil Gramm, economist, three-term United States Senator from Texas, former chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, and co-author of 'The Triumph of Economic Freedom: Debunking the Seven Great…
‘Young Money’ with Jack Raines [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:39
This week, I’m talking to Jack Raines, the guy behind the mega-popular Substack Young Money and author of a great new book called Young Money: A Field Guide to Wealth and Purpose in Your Twenties.After graduating from co…
Can You Fake Happiness? w/Beth Cabrera [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:08
“People do not decide their futures: they decide their habits and their habits decide their future.” – F.M. AlexanderIf you want to improve, be kind to yourself. That’s the message from this week’s guest, Dr. Beth Cabrer…
Freeze the Rent! And Other Silly Policies ( w/ Paula Pant) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:21
Last week, I received a bill from New York City for $71,1783.16. It was the balance due for my Non-primary residence surcharge, aka the pied-à-terre tax that is a premium on top of the $55k or so we pay in regular, old f…
Nobel Prize Winner on "Moral Economics" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:36
This week, I sit down with Dr. Alvin Roth, Nobel Prize-winning economist, Stanford professor, and author of Moral Economics: From Prostitution to Organ Sales, What Controversial Transactions Reveal About How Markets Work…
How Empathy Is Destroying Western Civilization (with Gad Saad) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:26
In this episode of Reasonably Happy, I sit down with Dr. Gad Saad, an evolutionary behavioral scientist, longtime professor, and author of the New York Times bestseller Suicidal Empathy: Dying to be Kind. Gad lays out wh…