A Roadmap for Introverts: Morra Aarons Mele | My Instruction Manual
Keith McArthur

Morra Aarons-Mele: A Roadmap for Introverts

Morra Aarons-Mele, author of Hiding In The Bathroom, shares tips for ambitious introverts. And host Keith McArthur speaks with mindfulness contributor Joelle Anderson about the importance of paying attention to physical sensations when we meditate.

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Episode 9 Show Notes

[00:00] Welcome and Intro

[0:58] Featured interview with Morra Aarons-Mele

Morra is author of Hiding in the Bathroom: An Introvert’s Roadmap to Getting Out There (When You’d Rather Stay Home). She lives in Boston and runs Women Online, a social media communications firm. She’s also the host of the Hiding in the Bathroom podcast.

In this conversation, Keith and Morra discuss:

  • The last time Morra hid in the bathroom [2:04]
  • When inner peace is interrupted by: “Wait, aren’t I supposed to be worried about something?” [3:31]
  • Morra’s life-long battle with anxiety [4:44]
  • In her twenties Morra was very ambitious and successful but unhappy [6:17]
  • “There is nothing about introversion that says I am not going to be the most powerful person in the room [8:25]
  • Morra says her privilege allows her to be open about her anxiety and introversion  [10:18]
  • Having the best of both worlds comes at a cost [12:37]
  • Writing & marketing the book. “I knew I was a true hermit when I enjoyed writing the book.” [16:08]
  • Why Morra says anxiety is a gift [19:41]
  • How to manage anxiety [21:41]
  • The importance and difficulty of self-love [24:23]
  • Trying a “hermit pilot” [25:23]
  • Managing for being in the office vs. managing for outcomes [29:23]
  • Why women graduating today aren’t as happy as those who graduated in the seventies [32:01]

[34:18] Morra Aarons-Mele’s Instruction Manual

1. What are the habits you maintain every day to stay happy and healthy? [34:35]

  •  Take care of body
  • Not eat too much sugar
  • Try to have hour to self every day

 2. What personal development book do you recommend? [35:00]

3. Personal mantra [36:53] 

  • “The perfect is the enemy of the good.”

4. What’s your one guilty pleasure? [37:45]

  • Watching Netflix for an hour in the middle of the day

5. When your time comes, how do you want to be remembered? [38:18]

  • To be remembered as a good mom

[39:13] Where to find Morra

[40:04] Mindfulness contributor Joelle Anderson on why we need to pay attention to our bodies when we mediate

Joelle Anderson is a therapist specializing in mindfulness meditation and creator and host of the Kernel of Wisdom YouTube channel.

  • Why is it important to pay attention to the body? [40:33]
  • Keith shares that he feels a pit in his stomach that he recognizes as fear [41:02]
  • The average emotion only lasts for 2-3 minutes if we let them go [42:04]
  • Where to find Joelle[43:39]

[44:02] Closing words

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