Embracing Somatic Wisdom with Stephanie Peirolo

How do you make the biggest decisions of your life — the ones that a pros and cons list simply can't solve?

In this episode, Javier sits down with Stephanie Peirolo — board-certified executive coach, writer, and author of The Saint and the Drunk: A Guide to Making the Big Decisions in Your Life. Stephanie blends the 500-year-old discernment practices of St. Ignatius of Loyola with the inclusive spiritual framework of Alcoholics Anonymous to offer a modern, spiritual-but-not-religious path to clarity.

Whether you're a leader facing a career pivot, a parent at a crossroads, or simply someone who feels "stuck," this conversation offers practical tools to reconnect with your inner compass through somatic wisdom — the quiet intelligence of the body.

What You'll Learn:

• Who the "Saint" and the "Drunk" really are — and why this unlikely pairing unlocks decision-making for everyone
• The "Genius of the Body" — how to access somatic wisdom beyond intellectual frameworks
• Why honoring resistance is often more powerful than pushing through
• How attraction and aversion can guide you where logic can't
• The concept of your inner community — and how to quiet the voices that no longer serve you
• How cultural and family narratives shape (and limit) our choices around money, work, and quitting
• Why feeling "stuck" may actually be a winter season of growth — not failure
• The value of real-life community in an increasingly screen-based world

About Stephanie Peirolo:Stephanie Peirolo is a board-certified executive coach with a BA in Creative Writing from Stanford and an MA in Transformational Leadership from Seattle University's School of Theology and Ministry. Her storytelling has been featured on NPR's The Moth and in the bestselling book All These Wonders. She is an Associate of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace.

Connect with Stephanie:

• 🌐 Website: https://www.speirolo.com/
• 📘 Buy the book (US): https://www.amazon.com/Saint-Drunk-Guide-Making-Decisions/dp/1916517110
• 📘 Buy the book (UK/Europe): https://shepheardwalwyn.com/
• 📘 Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-saint-and-the-drunk-stephanie-peirolo/1147208379
• ✍️ Substack (Fierce Grace): https://speirolo.substack.com/
• 🎧 Podcast (The Bad Boss Brief): available on major podcast platforms
• 🔗 All links: https://linktr.ee/speirolo

Connect with Javier & the Positive Leadership Academy Podcast:

• 🎧 Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts
• 💬 Share this episode with a leader who's facing a big decision

Chapters:

• 00:00 – Welcome Stephanie Peirolo
• 00:28 – The Saint, the Drunk, and the origin of the book
• 03:35 – Opening the aperture: vocation, calling, and atheists
• 05:06 – The Genius of the Body explained
• 07:47 – Honoring resistance (and why "no pain, no gain" is wrong)
• 08:49 – Attraction, aversion, and listening to both
• 12:27 – Building your inner community
• 14:12 – The narratives we inherit about work, money, and quitting
• 16:01 – Community, accountability, and staying humble
• 21:14 – Advice for leaders who feel stuck
• 25:28 – Where to find Stephanie & her book