Committed relationships, another name for marriages, are a confusing topic for almost everyone. While most people will say these are the building blocks of any culture, understanding the how, the why, and the what of making a good one seems to elude us. The statistics of divorce, the costs of broken families, the tragedy of Domestic Violence appals us. No cultural institution faces conflict more often or more directly than a committed relationship.

However, do we know what to do about it! Al Turtle is the lucky kind of person to penetrate the mysteries and to find a satisfying Map of Relationships. “With a good map, you know which way to turn next,” he says. Al, as a marriage therapist, has been using his Map to understand and guide thousands of lost couples over the past 9 years. Many more have stumbled on his Map and are using it to find their own ways.

In our time together Al shares his Map, how he found it, what he does with it. He explains how it works and answer your questions. You might just survive it yet.

Al Turtle M.Ed. was originally trained as a counselor in the 1970s. In 1992, he and his wife Sandra set up a private counseling practice in Coeur d’Alene Idaho. One of their specialties is relationship work and the development of the practical skills of living together peacefully. Al has been an active member of Imago Relationships International since the early 90s. This large group of Marriage Therapists, founded by Harville Hendrix, has been extending their coverage across the world. He teaches and guides peace-making efforts in the U.S. and overseas.

Al is an original thinker who approaches conflict and coexistence issues from a unique and practical perspective. He uses his experiences with over 2400 couples in Idaho in continuing to develop his understandings of, and resolutions to, the dynamics of conflict in dyads, families, groups, communities, with extensions into politics and beyond. His approach to sharing his ideas is both humorous and penetrating.

Recorded on the Calliflower Conference Call system the evening of October 14, 2008.

Josh Waitzkin, an eight-time National Chess Champion in his youth, was the subject of the book and movie Searching for Bobby Fischer. At eighteen, he published his first book, Josh Waitzkin’s Attacking Chess.

Since the age of twenty, he has developed and been spokesperson for Chessmaster, the largest computer chess program in the world, currently in its eleventh edition. Now a martial arts champion, he holds a combined twenty-one National Championship titles in addition to several World Champion titles. He is the president of the JW Foundation, which helps struggling youths with the learning process, and regularly gives seminars and keynote presentations.

Recorded the evening of September 25, 2008 on the Calliflower Conference Calling system.

Recorded live on the Calliflower Conferencing Calling system, September 19, 2008

There are two parts to this podcast. In the first, we hear the actual interview which was recorded the evening of Sept 19.  In the second, we hear the conversation and banter between Alan, interviewer Allan Hunkin, and Alec Saunders during the setup of the call.

Recorded on Calliflower, September 4, 2008 - Monday - 6:30pm - 8:00pm Pacific

Ariane de Bonvoisin is the CEO and founder of first30days.com, a website to help people transition through any change, whether it’s a health diagnosis, going green, moving to a new city, or getting married. With a degree in economics and international relations from the London School of Economics, she joined The Boston Consulting Group and worked in over a dozen countries in a few years. After an MBA at Stanford, she moved back to New York, working with media giants BMG and Sony Music.

In 2000, Ariane was tapped by Time Warner to become the Managing Director of a new digital media venture fund. First30days.com became her life’s work in 2004. Ariane is based in New York City where the company is also headquartered.

Recorded using Calliflower conferencing : August 21, 2008 - Thursday - 6:30pm - 8:00pm Pacific

Gabor Mate, M.D. is the author of four bestselling books including Scattered Minds and When the Body Says No-published in ten languages on five continents-and co-author, with Gordon Neufeld, of Hold On To Your Kids.

A Former medical columnist for the Globe and Mail, where his byline continues to be seen on issues of health and parenting, Dr. Mate has had a family practice, worked as a palliative care physician and, most recently, with the addicted men and women in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver.

Recorded August 6, at 6:30 PM PDT.

Peter talked with us about a wealth of strategies that individuals and organizations can use - specific tools and ways of thinking - to help us build the confidence and competence to respond effectively to the greatest challenge of our time.

Dr. Peter M. Senge is the founding chairperson of SoL and a senior lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. Senge is the author of The Fifth Discipline: the Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. He has lectured extensively throughout the world, translating the abstract ideas of systems theory into tools for better understanding of economic and organizational change. He has worked with leaders in business, education, health care and government. The Journal of Business Strategy (September/October 1999) named Dr. Senge as one of the 24 people who had the greatest influence on business strategy over the last 100 years.

This interview was conducted with Peter Senge on the evening of July 21, 2008

After almost sixty years as an actor, William Shatner has become one of the most beloved entertainers in the world. And it seems as if Shatner is everywhere. Winning an Emmy for his role on Boston Legal. Doing commercials for Priceline.com. In the movie theaters. Singing with Ben Folds. He’s sitting next to Jay Leno and Jimmy Kimmel, and he’s practically a regular on Howard Stern’s show. He was recently honored with election to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame. He was a target on a Comedy Central’s Celebrity Roast entitled “The Shat Hits the Fan.”

In Up Till Now, his autobiography Shatner sits down with readers and offers the remarkable, full story of his life and explains how he got to be, well, everywhere. Bill Shatner reveals the man behind these unforgettable moments, and how he’s become.

This interview was conducted on Calliflower on July June 26th 2008.  Enjoy the call, and the Q&A with our audience afterward.