Shownotes
We keep waiting for meaning to arrive as something grand. Jason Zuk has found it lives somewhere much smaller: in the present moment, the deep conversation, the phone put down.
He joins Somya on Soul Sparks to talk about what his years as a caregiver, a cancer diagnosis, and a life as an attorney and psychic medium taught him about what actually matters. Not what we achieve, but who we are. This is a warm, practical conversation about slowing down, taking baby steps out of your comfort zone, and stopping the regret before it forms.
About the Guest:
Jason Zuk, known professionally as The Social Psychic, is an attorney and psychic medium based in Tampa, Florida. He is the producer and host of the award-winning Social Psychic Radio Show and has spent years offering intuitive guidance, alongside caregiving for his mother and studying life coaching.
Key Takeaways:
- Life isn't about what you do. It's about who you are: kind, present, and there when people need you.
- Don't worry about what's next if you're focused on what's now. The present holds the blessings.
- Illness and caregiving strip it back fast: your health and your people don't fit in five houses.
- Put the phone down. Real connection with the person in front of you is where meaning hides.
- Feeling stuck is often three-quarters your own limiting thoughts. Name that and clarity comes.
- There are no obstacles, only detours. Falling back into old habits isn't failure, it's a course correct.
- Momentum is built from small wins: one conversation, one solo movie, one baby step celebrated.
Connect With the Guest:
Website: https://www.thesocialpsychic.com
Instagram: @jasonzuk and @thesocialpsychic
YouTube: Jason Zuk / The Social Psychic
LinkedIn newsletter: The Social Psychic Study
Substack: thesocialpsychic.substack.com
Show: The Social Psychic Radio Show
Episode Chapters: (approx.)
[00:00] The Whisper That Says You're Meant for Something Truer
[03:30] The Big Misconception About a Meaningful Life
[08:00] What's Now vs What's Next: caregiving, cancer, and clarity
[13:00] Meaning in an Ordinary Day: put the phone down
[17:30] Baby Steps: how connection stops feeling awkward
[21:45] Getting Unstuck: the limiting thoughts doing three-quarters of the work
[26:00] The Solo Movie: one small act outside the comfort zone
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Transcripts
00:00:17 Somya: Welcome to Soul Sparks. I am Sam, and this is where we explore the quiet truths that life that lights up from inside. Today we sit with someone who has learned to listen. Those whispers and what is discovered might change how you see your own life. Today's guest is Jason. Is Jason, also known as Jason. Jason, welcome to the show. It's a pleasure to have you here with us.
00:00:41 Jason Zuk.: Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited about this conversation, appearing on your show and talking to you and sharing our conversation with your audience.
00:00:48 Somya: Yeah, exactly. So, Jason, I want to start with this question that when we normally talk about finding meaning or purpose in life, we often imagine it to like be something, you know, bigger or grand or like a life changing moment, you know? So I want to know from you that What is the biggest misconception you see people carrying about what a meaningful life actually looks like?
00:01:14 Jason Zuk.: I think so many people lose track of their the importance of the living by the minute, not living for, for example, accomplishing all these things and getting wealth and just living with positions in life. I think compassion, empathy, living in the moment, I should say not the minute, the moment. Allowing yourself to realize that our life isn't about who we are, what we do. It's more about who we are. It's about caring for people and being reciprocating and and having empathy. And too many people lose focus of that in, in life itself. And that's been my big challenge. I've been a caregiver for my mom for two years. I took a step back from practicing law full time. And from my vantage point, I've gained so much from that, like living in the moment of appreciating, you know, being with her as much as I can. Um, it's made me realize how important it is for us to take stock of those things, because someday my mom won't be here. A lot of people, when I do readings for them and I connect to their deceased loved ones. A lot of people struggle after the fact because they're like, I wish I had spent more time with my my parent. I wish I had done, you know, the regret. And I'm learning to not have regret by living in the moment.
00:02:35 Somya: Yeah, exactly. You know, we, we normally, like, spend so much time caught up in like all those things that we do our work, maybe our career or maybe our friends and we really forget our people. We really forget and we overlook that so often in our life. So yeah, I think that is really important to live in the moment and to see what life actually means. So why do you think so many of us miss those moments of meaning every day in our life? What is like Underneath that pattern of always looking elsewhere.
00:03:09 Jason Zuk.: When you're constantly trying to strive for something, you lose focus. I think of the present moment of the here and now. So many people, like when I was younger and I became an attorney, I had to study to be a lawyer. At that point in my life, I was focused on what's next, what's next, what's next. I never had the appreciation that you don't need to worry about what's next if you focus on what's now. And so for me, I think it's important to know what's now the the power of now I know it's a book a lot of people talk about, but from my vantage point, I'm not worried about what's next because for me, it's you lose focus and then you lose the value of the present moment. The blessings that we have right now, right here, always trying to strive to get something bigger and better materially. For me, that's a flaw in a person's character, because when we die, none of that goes with us. So you're wasting your time being here trying to get the newest, nicest thing. Don't get me wrong, I like nice things, but having the ability, like when I had cancer in twenty eighteen, it taught me, you know, you could own five houses when you get sick, your health that you can't take back, whatever it is you sacrificed to have those five houses, you know, if you're working hard, you're working yourself to the bone. Your relationships suffer, your ability to enjoy yourself suffers. You lose track of things. And I think for me, I want to remind people that more important than what you attain and what you achieve is who you are. Are you a kind, compassionate, caring person? Are you there for your friends when they need you the most? Are you there for your parents when they need you the most? That to me is weight in gold compared to people who, who, who don't stand, you know, show up when they need to.
00:04:59 Somya: Yeah. And I think people normally, you know, forget that. Where we are right now was once a dream for us. And we we always, like, overlook that. We never appreciate that. We never feel grateful for what we have. And we keep looking. You know, what's next, what's next? What's life bringing us to. You know, now on. So I want to know, like we are all stuck in that pattern. I know a lot of people that are stuck in that pattern. I think I am one of them who is stuck in that pattern. You know, I always see, you know, what is coming next, what is coming next. I never appreciate what is with me right now. So what helps you to come back to that place, to that place of, you know, peace or that gratitude?
00:05:42 Jason Zuk.: I love the question. For me, it's meditation. It's allowing yourself to slow down, not over overthinking, right? What if thoughts, overthinking all those things can rip away at our ability to be present, focused? And if you can give yourself the grace, the opportunity to slow down. Like right now we're doing this interview. Well, we're slowing down to talk about these things, right? Normally, if we're not talking about these things, we're going to be going sixty miles an hour for the what's next and allowing yourself to slow down, have this awesome conversation right now that's going to be recorded and for your audience to hear later as they're listening to us, our audience should think to themselves, what could I do today to slow myself down? If it's meditating, journaling, breathwork, reflection, going for a walk, spending time with a loved one that you, you know, your time is precious because we're not all here. You know, tomorrow is never possible. We have to take today as our primary focus and never take it for granted.
00:06:44 Somya: Yeah, absolutely. And I think a lot of our listeners will feel like so much relatable and so much, you know, they will take a lot from this conversation because this happens with everyone. Our lives are like constantly moving and no one takes a breather to think what we have. So I want to know, like, let's bring this into, you know, real world and can you, like, walk us through what it actually looks like to recognize meaning in the middle of an ordinary day?
00:07:14 Jason Zuk.: Great question. Meaning for me, having one of the most awesome conversations with somebody could be a stranger, could be online, you could be in this long line. You know, so many people, when they're online, they choose to look at their phones, right? We're separated when we go on our smartphones and we doomscroll on social media. I would challenge our audience to put the phone away and live where you're around people, especially younger people I see too. I'm culprit to this. I'm always on my phone, but being able to put the phone down and disconnect from the digital age and go back to communicating with people and appreciating those deep conversations that can give you so much meaning in ways you don't even realize. And if you do that more and practice mindfulness, then those moments will become more frequent, and in time you'll have a pattern. You'll have the opportunity to really connect deeper with with those around you. And that might make you feel like you have more purpose than anything else.
00:08:11 Somya: Yeah, absolutely. And you know, we like our lives are so overstimulated and we are all very overstimulated. Everything is moving and we are all like, our attention spans are really very, you know, they are going really down. We can't really focus on anything. So I want to know if like someone started practicing, you know, they started practicing or doing digital detox. So what is the first thing that changed in that person? Like what will that one thing be like? That person will feel, oh, yeah, that's changing. And that's like going good. What is that one thing?
00:08:47 Jason Zuk.: When you slow down, that one thing is going to be appreciation of the moment, appreciation of what you're creating as a result of that change. Put the phone down. You'll have a deeper conversation with somebody. You'll connect with somebody. You might create a new friend, you might have a different relationship with a family member that you haven't had forever. Because if we're all looking down at our phones, we're not connecting. But if you're able to like connect, we're connecting right now. But if you're able to have that eye contact and reflect with each other and engage in real discussions, then those boundaries between one another evaporates.
00:09:25 Somya: Yeah, that makes so much sense for someone, you know, who has living this life and you know, they are like into it. They are like not living in the moment. They're not appreciating what they have. So I think this, this must have, this must help a lot of people. So I want to know for someone who wants to start living with more intention and presence, what's that one practice or, you know, some mindset shift that you would recommend that they begin with.
00:09:57 Jason Zuk.: Not to get in your head, not to fall in a rabbit hole like allow yourself the the opportunity that if you find that you're struggling with something, reach out to someone you care about. Show up for people. Allow yourself that deeper vulnerability and authenticity. That's what I think will come in time. The more you practice these kind of things, uh, create new habits, you know, every, what, thirty days, you can have a new habit form if you take it upon yourself that when you're in a room with people you don't know, you try to talk to someone, go outside your comfort zone. Um, I find anytime I do that, it's always a positive experience. I haven't had negative experiences when I put my phone down and actually try to relate to people, I think by relating, we allow better relationships to form and we're truer to ourselves, and we're showing respect for other people who are in our in our space, right? Because if you're paying attention to somebody showing up and being present, that person will appreciate you that much more. Maybe that other person is struggling. You know, there's too many. I've seen people struggle and there's a sea of people around them. They might be at a party, but they feel all alone because none of those people are connecting with you. And that can make a significant positive impact in someone's life.
00:11:20 Somya: Yeah, absolutely. I think it's a really great advice, you know, talk to people or live in the moment. But what if it feels awkward at first because we have been living in that, you know, in that shell for so long that now social interaction feels so awkward for people. So how do you stay with it?
00:11:41 Jason Zuk.: Baby steps, small wins. So for example, I, I consider myself a fairly extroverted person. I have my own show and I can talk to people, but if you wanted to put me in a room with people I don't know, sometimes I'll struggle with that because I get in my own way, just like anybody. And so if you free yourself to do something that you're not normally comfortable doing, even if it's a little bit, you might start by just talking to one person, but that little step and then you can celebrate that step later on, right? Because if you, if you leave the experience and you're like, you know, if I was on my phone the whole time, I probably would have had no connections. But if I can take a baby step and put one foot in front of another, then after I do that, I celebrate that as a small win for myself and mark that as a milestone. The next thing you know, you'll be doing little steps. Over time, you'll make significant progress with new habits, new new new thought patterns. You won't get stuck in your own, your own, you know, fears.
00:12:42 Somya: Yeah, absolutely. I think starting small is how anything real begins. Like you cannot just change your life in one day. That is like something that is very unrealistic that I think like, oh, I'm going to change my life in one day. You cannot do that. I think starting small is something that is like the stepping stone of everything. So like, I want to know even when we start strong, like, say, I am trying to, you know, live in the moment, I'm trying to talk to people, but life has like this weird way of pulling us back into, you know, an autopilot. So how do you handle those times when you, you know, lose your footing and drift away from whatever that matters?
00:13:23 Jason Zuk.: Recognize that you will fall backwards sometimes, or you'll fall back into your comfort zone, your old habits, and do a course correction. And don't hold on to it being like, don't punish yourself. Don't be harsh on yourself. Have grace say, you know what? I might have fallen into my little pattern, but that doesn't define you. So many people get stuck and it's hard for them to, uh, adjust. One of the things I'll say to somebody if you're stuck, well, get unstuck. You know I do. I've been studying life coaching the last year or so. And, and part of that process is helping your clients see by their own process, through listening and asking questions, letting your client navigate where they may feel stuck. I'll give you an example for a second. I want to work out more just like anybody. And I did a life coaching session with another life coach, and I kept saying, I don't know why I'm stuck. I can't work out. You know, I make excuses. Like, if I leave my mom alone for a period of time, she could fall and I'll be worried, or I just didn't know what is holding me back. And when I did the coaching session, I realized I was holding myself back. My own limiting thoughts of feeling stuck was three fourths of the issue. Once you remove that barrier, progress becomes clearer and clarity comes. And so that's a way that you could help somebody. If somebody feels like they're, they're, they're stuck in their own way and, and they're not helping themselves reevaluate that. Figure out a way to create a new pattern? It's not. There's no such thing as obstacles. There's just detours. And so if you look at it that way, you may not feel as stuck in the future.
00:15:06 Somya: Yeah, absolutely. I, I think I am really relating to this conversation a lot, but I want to ask, like, what would you say if someone who feels like they have tried a lot, they are trying like so hard and they're failing too many times now. Like they're so scared to even believe that they can even change or they can, you know, have that life in which they can feel like, oh, I'm living in the moment because we are all like, been so much used to that life now. It feels unreal. Like now, like if I talk to with my personal experience, even one social interaction feels so much, I feel like, oh my, my social battery is dead now. And it is happening with a lot of people right now.
00:15:49 Jason Zuk.: You know, when you say, oh, sorry, go ahead, go ahead. I'm sorry. Okay. I was going to say, based on what you're saying and as you say that, I would say be gentle with yourself. Carry your your space, but don't overthink it. And you mentioned the word fear. We all have fear in things. If you let that fear dictate things, you're not going to make much progress. It's like taking off a set of lenses, your paradigm. And if you think you're trapped in something, you'll be trapped until you realize you're not. And the same thing with fear. If you have social anxiety, for example, that social anxiety could cripple you if you do the baby steps. And also you can reach out to help for help to others. You could talk to people in your life that might be able to mentor you, help you through things, give you a greater understanding of things. And by doing that, you'll see you're not alone in struggling. And there's also a lot of people out there that struggle the same way you do. So, for example, when you go on social media as a caregiver, I felt stuck and scared and terrified of my role as a caregiver, until I went on social media and started looking at other people going through the same thing. And then I realized, I'm not alone in this. And so the commonality of understanding that you're not an isolated situation and that you are not an island. And if you need help by connecting to other people, you can. And that can sometimes make a difference for somebody.
00:17:15 Somya: Yeah, I think it is a really great takeaway on that, that you are not alone. I think everyone feels a little scared when they try something new or meet new people or, you know, have that situations in which they feel like, oh, I'm feeling so anxious when they are in some social setting or they are between people. So, uh, before we wrap, I want to ask this last question from you. Uh, if like someone today thinks that, oh, I, I want to change, I want to, you know, really live in the moment and I want to, you know, change my life and I want to get out of this rabbit hole. What would be that one practice that they can start from today so that they, you know, change something in their life.
00:17:58 Jason Zuk.: If you set your goals, have clarity. I'd like to journal. So if I want a new goal, I will sit there, I'll journal, I'll reflect, I'll meditate. And then what I do is I look at the goal and I think, what's the first step I need to do? I'll strategize and I'll do the simplest thing first. So for example, if it means wanting to be more outgoing or connecting with people, then I will look and assess, like, how can I make that happen? Maybe it's reconnecting with old friends that you've lost touch with. Maybe it's going to a coffee shop or a restaurant and sitting there by yourself. And maybe that's uncomfortable. But by doing it, and I'll use an analogy here, I never went to a movie by myself until about a month ago. I really wanted to see Disclosure Day, Steven Spielberg's movie, but none of my friends wanted to see it, so I went by myself. You know what? It was liberating because I did something I don't normally do. I ventured out of my comfort zone and I did it. Yeah. I traveled alone to Europe, and I went to Australia, and I could do all these things internationally. But going to a movie was always stigmatized for me to go by myself, because I've always been with groups of people. I overcame that, and by doing that one baby step, now I feel encouraged, I feel alone, and I'm just really excited because once you do that, you realize there's no limitations, but what you imagine as a limitation. Now, I'm not saying you're going to go skydiving tomorrow, right? But what I am saying is if you have social anxiety, for example, recognize you have anxiety, but take steps to try to challenge that so that once you achieve small feasible goals, it gives you the momentum to keep moving forward. And over time, you'll see what you can accomplish is well beyond what you may have thought or feared or understood as a limitation earlier.
00:19:51 Somya: Yeah. Thank you. Thank you so much for sharing those steps. I think I am going to take this challenge in my life, and I am going to visit or visit a restaurant or go see a movie. And I think a lot of listeners can take this challenge with us. You know, they can go somewhere alone, maybe a bookstore, maybe go to movies, or see how it feels like to spend time with yourself and with your thoughts. And I think it's going to be a life changing experience for a lot of people. I am going to try this for sure. I know, thank you so much for giving me something. Uh, so Jason, thank you so much for sharing your perspective today. This has been such a rich conversation with you today. So I want to know if our listeners want to connect with you or learn more about your work. Where can they find you?
00:20:36 Jason Zuk.: Sure. I go by Jason Zook, the social psychic as like my pseudonym, even though I'm Jason C a follow my legal name. Uh, I would just invite my invite your audience to reach out to me on social media. I'm either Jason Zook or the social sidekick on Instagram. I have two accounts. I have two accounts on TikTok. You could also find me on YouTube. Jason Zucker, the social psychic. I have a website, the social psychic dot com. I have a newsletter on LinkedIn called steady Social, social, psychic, Steady, the newsletter that's been growing. I invite anyone that's on LinkedIn to connect with me there. And I'm even on Substack, the social psychic at dot substack dot com. And I welcome anyone. Also, I have a show called the Social Psychic Radio show.
00:21:17 Somya: That's that's amazing. We are going to make sure to mention everything in our show notes so our listeners can connect with you and learn more from you. Uh, so this is something that our listeners can take from this conversation. Let today be a gentle reminder in your life. You don't need to chase extraordinary the spark that you are trying to find. It's already in you. It's in the breath that you just took, the choice that you just make. The quiet courage of showing up. Keep noticing. Keep listening. That's where the magic lives. And insomnia. I'll see you next time on Soul Sparks. That's it.
