I've been running a chillout music station which has been growing nicely for some time now. In a new series of podcasts, I'm starting a conversation about what it means to find "chill" in a stressful life. Join me here for a bit more chill time!

Welcome to "Living a Chilled Life" - the podcast I'm putting together to help us chill and deal with stress.

We have just started a new series on how we make the most of living in a changing world. I find change hard, especially when it involves cutting back and doing less stuff. I want to grow and do more! That feels like success to me, while cuts feel like failure.

So is it best for us to fight through changes and get better at pushing and growing in all circumstances? Or are there benefits for us in developing a rhythm of growing and cutting back, working and resting, and spotting the signs of when we need to change gear? If so, why does it feel bad to cut back? Why do we want to keep pushing and not have a "reverse gear"?

And a really big question - if lots of things in life do change, is there anything we can rely on that does not change? If we can find that, it might help us let go of some things we don't need to hold onto.

I think I've learned a lot about this over recent years, and I want to share some thoughts and stories with you. I would love to hear about your experiences too. I know that if you have recently experienced cutting back, it feels painful. As I've been writing this, a lot of my colleagues have been put at risk of redundancy, and I hope to chat with some of them who may want to share their experiences. It's really important to me that what we share in "Living a Chilled Life" is real and practical, so if you would like to share, please get in touch - you can email bern@bernleckie.com

In the next few podcasts, we are also going to look at another of the "Life Shapes" developed by Mike Breen. Last series was about "the learning circle", and this one is about the "semi-circle" - a pendulum which sets a natural rhythm between work and rest, growing and cutting back. I hope you will enjoy this journey, and come back here later for more info, and to join the discussion.