Don’t Be Strangers ✨☺️

soul refresh: healing girl retreat⁠SEPT 27-29, 2024 | WEEKEND IN BELTON, TEXAS

Co-Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Dmitri Sennikov (⁠⁠@powerfulcreator) / Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠✕💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
how to make better decisions
being cultural misfits and our coping mechanisms while growing up in a foreign country
recognizing and honoring your own needs and energy
and vulnerability, experimentation, and self-connection

Dmitri helps busy leaders and entrepreneurs elevate their consciousness by dissolving inner friction. Here we don't talk about "How to get to the next level" but how to dissolve what stands in your way from being there already. Eliminate your barriers and accelerate your results by discovering how you've been creating your reality up till this point today. Learn more on https://powerfulcreator.com/.

Book a free Human Design consultation with Dmitri.

⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a podcast and community fighting adult loneliness. Our mission is to create spaces that foster intentional conversations and deeper connections by providing resources and events for the curious and creative.

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soul refresh: healing girl retreat

SEPT 27-29, 2024 | WEEKEND IN BELTON, TEXAS

Co-Host: ⁠⁠⁠Anna (⁠@alignanduplevelcoaching⁠) / Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠✕💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

From first impressions of Anna, I would describe her as someone with soothing but vitalizing energy. We bonded over…

Our excitement to learn and try out different things
How we got to where we are, her with her coaching business and me with DBS
Being introverts and how we manage that
Meditation
Learning to take breaks

There’s a lot of gold in this episode, so I hope you take some notes!

⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a podcast and community fighting adult loneliness. Our mission is to create spaces that foster intentional conversations and deeper connections by providing resources and events for the curious and creative.

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Dallas Business Tribeis a trailblazing women-led nonprofit community that fosters true sisterhood. We're fueled by the belief that nurturing collaboration in a safe environment is the key to unlocking growth.

Featured Speakers:

🎤Sara Bannat |Serial Entrepreneur | Nonprofit Leader| Activist (@dallasbusinesstribe, @blendedrelations , @roof.raidersco)

🎤The Honorable Tonya Parker |Judge | Keynote Speaker (@thehonorabletonyaparker)

🎤Maria Garcia | Business Owner| Wellness Coach (@urbannutritionlounge)

🎤Heidi Levan | Founding Partner| Registered Nurse & Anesthetist| Mental Health Advocate (@nuwellnetwork )

🎤Ingrid Rivera |Tantric Therapist |CEO of a hispanic chamber of commerce (@bellaini , @mujeresconalashispanicchamber)

🎤Rosa Oneal | Dallas Lifestyle|Influencer | Business Owner| Community Leader (@dallassocialbutterfly, @dallassocialbutterflies)

🎤Ari Medrano | Impact Speaker| Serial Entrepreneur (@arimedranoofficial)

🎤Jamie Lopez | Home Builder | Nonprofit Founder | Investor (@empowher_mind , @first_choice_customhomes)

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (We are aiming for 100 reviews on Amazon 🥹)

👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠✕💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Pssst. Super secret drop of the new girl’s only weekend getaway September 27-29! Learn More Here!

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Co-Host: ⁠Rachel Saslaw (@StoryTellNYC) / Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠✕💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you've been considering building your own community to find likeminded people, this episode is for you.

But even if you're not into hosting and organizing, this is juicy insight into how and what your community organizers are thinking about!

Today we're chatting about...

What is StoryTell and why and how did she build this community
How our personality impacts our hosting style
Our thoughts on scaling and building intimate spaces
What would success mean for us in terms of our respective communities we're building
and of course, how Rachel would define a stranger

⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a podcast and community fighting adult loneliness. Our mission is to create spaces that foster intentional conversations and deeper connections by providing resources and events for the curious and creative.

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: ⁠Jasmine Bilali ⁠/ Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠✕💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

If you’ve been feeling lost in life or feeling a pull for a change, you’re in for a treat. In today’s episode we will chat about:

Listening to your intuition
How Jasmine drastically changed her career path later in life
Her advice for younger and older generations
Book recommendations to change your life
New challenges we’re facing for connecting post-pandemic

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Co-Host: Ana (of ⁠⁠@ThePodcastSpace⁠) / Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠)
⁠⁠⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠⁠⁠
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠✕💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠

In this chat, we talk about...

Pod hosting vs. guesting
Evolution vs. Vision of podcast
3 pivotal moments in Ana’s life
Tools for personal empowerment and self reflection
Loneliness as an Extrovert vs. Introvert

Favorite Quotes from the Episode:

“I want to control every aspect of this interview”
I met my husband
Beautiful black lady “oh my god honey”
That’s the word of the year btw
Networking isn’t the greatest thing
Waiting to be picked up for the team
“I don’t have enough time”
Misconception — extroverts — “really really lonely”
When you believe that

⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a podcast and community fighting adult loneliness. Our mission is to create spaces that foster intentional conversations and deeper connections by providing resources and events for the curious and creative.

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Larry (of ⁠@larrythesociologist) / Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠⁠⁠)
⁠⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠⁠
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠✕💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠

In this chat, we talk about...

2023 Accomplishments
Tips for Moving to a New City
What or Where is Home?
Career Chaos (changing your career… again!)
Types of people we’re drawn to
One-sided conversations

@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a podcast and community fighting adult loneliness. Our mission is to create spaces that foster intentional conversations and deeper connections by providing resources and events for the curious and creative.

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Rob (of @robs10kfriends) / Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠⁠)
🏝 Healing Girl: ⁠⁠⁠Spring Break March 2024⁠⁠⁠
⁠🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!⁠
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠⁠ ✕ 💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠

In this chat, we talk about...

Our identities as pie charts
Balancing your personal social life when your work is all about making friends
How Rob makes a living doing this full time
His memory ticks and tips for sharing the stories of people he meets
Other communities out there helping you to make friends

With that... please meet Rob!

Don't Be Strangers is a podcast and community fighting adult loneliness. Our mission is to create spaces that foster intentional conversations and deeper connections by providing resources and events for the curious and creative.

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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⁠⁠spring break: healing girl retreat ⁠⁠⁠

MARCH 25-19, 2024 | PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO

In this episode we cover our weekly R.E.P.O.R.T!

What we are...Reading, Eating, Playing, Obsessing, Recommending, Treating!

We also chat about how we're looking forward to 2024! 💚

Application Process (only 5 spots):

Submit your application
Short video call for vibe check
Pay to reserve your spot!!

this is for you if:

you love time alone but also the company of like-minded students of life.
you value growth and believe in constantly expanding your knowledge.
resonate with hobbies like journaling, meditating, reading, connecting with nature, and exploring by foot.

Learn More About...

⁠⁠⁠Molly Ho⁠⁠⁠

⁠⁠⁠Don't Be Strangers

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Co-Host: Marilyn (of ⁠@popadelics⁠⁠)⁠ / Host: Xinyi Xan (⁠⁠@xinyixan⁠⁠)
🏝 Healing Girl: ⁠⁠Spring Break March 2024⁠⁠
🎙 Apply to Guest on this Show!
📗 FREE eBook: ⁠⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠⁠
👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠⁠@dontbestrangers⁠⁠ ✕ 💬 Chat on Our ⁠⁠Discord⁠

Welcome back to Don't Be Strangers, a podcast and community fighting adult loneliness. Our mission is to create spaces that foster intentional conversations and deeper connections by providing resources and events for the curious and creative.

In this conversation, we chat about...

How Don’t Be Strangers started and grew to what it is today!
The Renaissance Woman (or what I would call a Creative Chimera)
Non-traditional career paths and being rebels
Popadelics and Marilyn's journey into entrepreneurship
her secret to time management

With that... please meet Marilyn!

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Early Bird Special! ⁠spring break: healing girl retreat ⁠⁠

MARCH 25-19, 2024 | PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO

(Normal Price: $1,500) ⭐️ Early Bird Price: $1,200 ⭐️ Apply before Jan 1, 2024 midnight PST

Application Process (only 5 spots):

Submit your application
Short video call for vibe check
Pay to reserve your spot!!

this is for you if:

you love time alone but also the company of like-minded students of life.
you value growth and believe in constantly expanding your knowledge.
resonate with hobbies like journaling, meditating, reading, connecting with nature, and exploring by foot.

Learn More About...

⁠⁠Molly Ho⁠⁠

⁠⁠Don't Be Strangers

--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Black Friday Special! spring break: healing girl retreat ⁠

MARCH 25-19, 2024 | PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO

(Normal Price: $1,500 - Early Bird Price: $1,200)

⭐️ Black Friday Price: $1,000 ⭐️ Apply before Cyber Monday 11/27 midnight PST

Application Process (only 5 spots):

Submit your application
Short video call for vibe check
Pay to reserve your spot!!

this is for you if:

you love time alone but also the company of like-minded students of life.
you value growth and believe in constantly expanding your knowledge.
resonate with hobbies like journaling, meditating, reading, connecting with nature, and exploring by foot.

Learn More About...

⁠Molly Ho⁠

⁠Don't Be Strangers

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Co-Host: Trangy (@trangy) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
🛒 ETSY STORE: Don't Be Strangers Conversation & Affirmation Cards
🏝 Healing Girl: Spring Break March 2024
📗 FREE eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community against adult loneliness. Our mission is to create deeper conversations by providing resources, events, and community for the curious student of life. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

I hope this conversation inspires you as we dive into…

my experience being back in Meixco City which is starting to become my 2nd home
Trang’s big move to LA, upping her life and leaving Dallas (the how, and why)
it’s never too late to start a new hobby (which is photography for Trang)
how do we form our identities
our chaotic taste in music and shared love of R&B

With that, please meet Trang….

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Co-Host: Sam Oh (of @7thDayCoffee) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
🛒 ETSY STORE: Don't Be Strangers Conversation & Affirmation Cards
🏝 Healing Girl: Spring Break March 2024
📗 FREE eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord

Don’t Be Strangers is a podcast and community against adult loneliness. Our mission is to create deeper conversations by providing resources, events, and community for the curious student of life. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

I hope this conversation with Sam inspires you as we dive into…

going from a career in accounting to starting your own coffeeshop
how we both got so deep into this passion for coffee
advice from elders on pursing your passion
the real reason why Sam started 7th Day Coffee
how we’re both actually soft-core coffee aficionados

With that, please meet Sam….

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spring break: healing girl retreat

MARCH 25-19, 2024 | PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO

this is for you if:

you love time alone but also the company of like-minded students of life.
you value growth and believe in constantly expanding your knowledge.
resonate with hobbies like journaling, meditating, reading, connecting with nature, and exploring by foot. 3 early bird spots at $1,200 * save $300 when you sign up before december 31, 2023 ***

Learn More About...

Molly Ho

Don't Be Strangers

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Co-Host: Amanda (of @dallasgirlgang) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
✨ Boss Vision Con - Discount Code: “dontbestrangers”
🛒 ETSY STORE: Don't Be Strangers Conversation & Affirmation Cards
🏝 Healing Girl: Spring Break March 2024
📗 BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
Life Coaching Services, email 💌 donotbestrangers@gmail.com

I hope this conversation brings a huge smile to your face as Amanda and I cackle (that’s how I describe how I laugh) through topics such as…

what we think is missing from social media right now
how Amanda made friends moving back to Dallas after college and the inspiration behind DGG
stories from our past on social anxieties and challenges of friendships in adulthood
marriage and raising a child as boss of 2 businesses
and the real-real behind work-life balance

With that, please meet Amanda….

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Co-Host: Henriette Einevoll Husby (@businesshenriette of the podcast Businesstalk with Henriette) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
🏝 Healing Girl Spring Break March 2024 (come with us!)
📗 BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
Life Coaching Services, email 💌 donotbestrangers@gmail.com

If I had to sum up this episode in a phrase, it probably would be “sure, why not!” From my one chat with Henriette, I would definitely sum her up as a social butterfly full of love and energy to share. She’s all about women empowerment and you’ll feel it as we dive into our conversation about…

how her podcast started from her budding career in real estate
her road to entrepreneurship as she made the transition to being a full time soloprenuer
how she is able to book really interesting celebrity-status guests on her show
how we combat anxiety in the modern work age
and her perspective of New York as a foreigner

With that, please meet Henriette….

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Co-Host: Franklin The Helper (@franklinthehelper) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
(Dallas - Sat 9/23) 💚 2 Year Birthday Party & Book Launch of How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
📗 BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
Life Coaching Services, email 💌 donotbestrangers@gmail.com

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community against adult loneliness. Our mission is to create deeper conversations by providing resources, events, and community for the curious student-of-life. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Today I’m speaking with Franklin, who is a children’s book author and the owner of his very own bookstore called Franklin The Helper! We met because back in the spring, I was at a mixer event hosted by Dallas Book Tribe (which, I have to add an aside that I typically don’t like networking events but I was out there to support my girls at Dallas Book Tribe because they’ve shown so much love to the Don’t Be Strangers community and we regularly partner on Women’s Hikes out here in Dallas that I made an exception.) There, I was sharing my newly published book How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts, and his mom came up to introduce herself and told me about the bookstore her and her son had recently just opened! She invited me to do a book launch and signing at the store and I thought… why not?

So from there, Franklin, his mom, and I have been preparing for this event for this Saturday 9/23. Franklin and I haven’t interacted much besides a few email exchanges, and I thought a podcast episode with him would be a great way to cross-promote his store and my book launch so… here we are.

I had a blast chatting with Franklin because I didn’t know what to expect but ended up finding so many parallels in our stories. You’re about to see as we dive into:

our advice for readers struggling with finding meaning and purpose
Franklin’s relationship with books growing up
how he pulled the trigger and actually wrote his first children’s book
how we both never imagined ourselves as authors
Franklin’s definition of fun

With that, please meet Franklin!

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Co-Host: Jacey (@jaceyupsidedown of @recalibrate.podcast) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
(Dallas - Sat 9/23) 💚 2 Year Birthday Party & Book Launch of How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
📗 BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
Life Coaching Services, email 💌 donotbestrangers@gmail.com

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community against adult loneliness. Our mission is to create deeper conversations by providing intentional resources, events, and community for the curious and optimistic. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Today I’m speaking with Jacey who also has her very own podcast, teaches yoga, and is starting her own community called Self Hug Club based in New York! We connected because she found the @dontbestrangers instagram page a few days before I left the big apple and instantly hit it off. I’m truly excited for you to meet this beautiful gem of a human. I don’t want to spoil too much before the conversation even gets rolling so I’ll just give you some highlights. I hope this chat will bring a smile to your face as we dive into:

why did we choose podcasting (and how that relates to us being introverted)?
how we struggled growing up with trying to box different parts of ourselves to fit specific niches and cliques
my book How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
the evolution of Don’t Be Strangers, from podcast to community and how freaking nervous I was when I started throwing events
our philosophies on making friends

With that, please meet Jacey!

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Do you need a reset? How about an intimate community of women who cheer you on and help you reconnect with yourself? If so, we’re looking for you!

In this episode, we will be chatting with Molly Ho (from episode 28 on Don’t Be Strangers Podcast) about an exciting spring break retreat for the everyday healing girl, you. ☺️

Intrigued? More info @ https://dontbestrangers.club/spring-break

✨ Molly Ho on instagram @withmollyho

✨ Don’t Be Strangers Podcast + Community @dontbestrangers

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Co-Host: Kate of SheConnects(@katesheconnects @sheconnectsclub) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👩🏻‍💻 Fridays in NYC (August 2023): Creative Coworking
🥳 Sunday August 27th: Craft & Play - Creatives Meet Convos
Life Coaching Services, email 💌 donotbestrangers@gmail.com
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord

I hope you enjoy our chat as we dive into…

How we make friends as adults
manifestation and goal setting
NYC lifestyle and what it’s all about
Kate’s tips for work-life balance and self-care
our long term visions for our respective community projects She Connects and Don’t Be Strangers

I’m so delighted to introduce you to Kate….

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Pallavi of Hamesha Project (@hameshaproject) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
Life Coaching Services, email 💌 donotbestrangers@gmail.com
📆 See Our Calendar of Events
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord

I hope this conversation brings a smile to your face today as we talk about…

how our relationship with art has changed over time
surprising things that have brought us joy
spending a day as an animal
how we define and pursue happiness
and the best piece of advice we’ve ever received

With that, please meet Pallavi…

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Jasmine Lee (@whereisjasminelee) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
Jasmine’s free photo book Stern Reflections 📸 📗
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

Today we’re speaking with Jasmine, a fellow traveller with a keen curiosity for the world. I met Jasmine earlier this year because she reached out to see how she could get more involved with Don’t Be Strangers. And this sparked a series of calls where we discussed visions for our personal passion projects, travel adventures, and eventually led to this very special collaboration, our episode. So while she’s not a total stranger, I definitely learned a lot of new things about her via today’s conversation. I would describe Jasmine as a very deep thinker with a keen eye for aesthetics. If you visit her instagram (which I link in the description), you’ll know exactly what I mean. In today’s thought provoking chat, we cover…

how travel has changed us fundamentally as introverts
mantras we live by
how Jasmine got into activism and how she champions this on the day to day
ethical travel
and The Little Prince

Have I piqued your curiosity? If so, please meet Jasmine…

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Kelly (@pinchekelly founder of @petitknock) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

Don’t Be Strangers is a podcast and community against adult loneliness. Our mission is to create deeper conversations and more meaningful connections by providing intentional resources, events, and community for the curious and optimistic. We’re fighting the myth that “making friends is hard!”

In today’s conversation, we cover…

how we met and developed our sisterhood
recovering from one of those days when you’re just not feeling life
the launch of Kelly’s new project Petit Knock
the essence of adventure
and how we keep our childhood alive as full grown working adults

I hope this recording will bring so much joy to your day! With that, please meet Kelly…

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Co-Host: Didi Paterno (@didipaterno)/ Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

Today we will talk about:

how Dallas has changed in the last decade
Didi’s experience living everywhere around the world
re-establishing a social network when moving to a new country
how Didi discovered tarot reading and vedic astrology
finding purpose and significance in this life

If this all sounds intriguing to you, please meet Didi…

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Co-Host: Harry Au (www.harryautherapy.com) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community against adult loneliness. Our mission is to create deeper conversations and more meaningful connections by providing intentional resources, events, and community for curious and optimistic students-of-life to fight the myth that “making friends is hard!” I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

For today’s episode, Harry reached out to me via another friend, Kyle, of the What Kind of Asian Are You? podcast asking for a collaboration. At this point, I had not edited a podcast episode in almost 5 months and had completely put this project aside in favor of working on my book How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts. At around the same time, I got reached out to by a musician and artist in NYC inquiring about the podcast as well as another long time friend asking if she could come on. With my book published and me primarily focusing on getting reviews at this point, I felt like it was the right time to get back into this podcast.

So for the first time in a few episodes, this was recorded relatively recently, in fact, only less than a month ago. Harry was a pleasure to talk with and so thoughtful in the way he responds. I would guess it attributes to his personality which perfectly suits his profession as a therapist. I hope today’s conversation puts a smile on you face as we cover topics such as…

how to find the right therapist for you, Harry’s tips after having worked with 6 different therapists on different issues
friendships and relationships as a digital nomad
his love for Totoro
our roles in activism and how we can participate even if we don’t have the emotional capacity to do so
and my book, How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

With that, please meet Harry…

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Molly Ho (of @mollyhostudio) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
🎧 It’s All Connected with Molly Ho
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast + community against adult loneliness. Our mission is to create deeper conversations and more vulnerable connections by providing intentional resources, events, and community for curious and optimistic students-of-life. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Today is a special bonus episode because I’m sharing something I recorded with my good friend Molly for her podcast It’s All Connected. On it, she shares experiences, stories, thoughts, and challenges in life, business, travel, mental health, healing, and personal growth journey. She’s here to encourage herself and others to try new things, believe in themselves, take the leap, be patient, and live life on their own terms. We don’t have to have all the answers to take the first step. The journey is part of the adventure.

Today we are talking about the journey of writing my book - How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts, from idea to publication. If you’re interested, in receiving a free copy in exchange for a review, you can find the link on my instagram @dontbestrangers in the bio OR visit the website dontbestrangers.club/free-book. I’m on a mission to reach 100 reviews, and am currently at 22%. If you know of anyone who’d be interested in reading this, just pass them the link or this podcast episode!

Also, if you happen to live in Dallas or will be in the area in September, I will be doing a book signing… more details on that to come. So without further ado, let’s jump into this episode!

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Neil (of @passportpodcast) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

Today, we chatted about…

our relationship with music and how it’s changed over time
his worries about never being able to quit smoking
a memory he keeps replaying from when he was 12
how did he get into podcasting professionally?
what makes us cry every time

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers. Our mission is to create deeper conversations and more vulnerable connections by providing intentional resources, events, and community for curious and optimistic students-of-life to fight adult loneliness and the myth that “making friends is hard!” I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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👋🏼 Say Hi ⁠@dontbestrangers⁠ ✕ 💬 Chat on Our ⁠Discord⁠
📆 ⁠See Full Calendar⁠ of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: ⁠How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts⁠

Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/dont-be-strangers/message

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Co-Host: Hanis (of @radcultureofficial) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers. Our mission is to create deeper conversations and more vulnerable connections by providing intentional resources, events, and community for curious and optimistic students-of-life to fight adult loneliness and the myth that “making friends is hard!” I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

I recently launched my first book How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts where I share my insights on how to shift your identity and mindset for approaching conversations, how I start, flow, and exit chats, and my insights on friendship building which includes conflict resolution. There’s also a bonus 7-day challenge where I make it very actionable for you to take everything you learn and actually apply it! I’m on a mission to get to 100 reviews so if I’ve piqued your interest and you’d like a free copy in exchange for a review, you can visit our instagram @dontbestrangers where it will be linked in the bio OR you can visit our website: dontbestrangers.club/free-book ! I’m mentioning this because in this episode, which was recorded back in January while I was deep in the middle of working on this book, covers (by coincidence) the topic of adult friendships, making friends as an introvert, and friendship green flags.

So that’s a nice transition to introducing my co-host Hanis, whom I actually met in person when I was visiting KL Malaysia back in December. I still so clearly remember our dinner date conversation about her recent drastic changes in her adult life from a career pivot to letting go of friendships that didn’t serve her anymore… when she suggested that we record a podcast episode, of course I immediately said yes. Other topics we cover include…

our take on the idea of “new year, new me”
journaling practices
happiness via slow living
what is love?
is social media toxic?

With that, please meet Hanis…

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Co-Host: Sana (@artsy.sl) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All Upcoming Community Events!
BONUS free eBook: How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts

In this conversation we will touch on

my goals of living into #BIGKIDENERGY
balancing our time and energy as a 9-5 professional adult vs a university student
why taking breaks is productive and time blocking your calendar
Sana’s experience with introverts from an extrovert’s perspective
the relationship you can have with oneself

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"How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts" Free eBook Download
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

Where have I been? MIA?

DBS is a playground for me — do what I want
Full transparency, break out of the 9-5
- AmazonFBA
- FB Ads
- eBooks
- Self Publishing via Amazon
- PERFECT — I get to fulfill my dreams of writing a book, etc. And the best part is that I use it to grow Don’t Be Strangers
- So I set to work beginning of December, working on my first book “How to Talk to Anyone for Introverts” and now 5 months later…I just launched Monday April 17. My goal is to bring awareness to the issue of loneliness and the fact that we have the agency to do something about it, for ourselves, which ultimately impacts our communities. Especially introverts who need deep authentic connections as much as anyone else. So I’m giving away this book for free in return for reviews on Amazon until I get to 100. The idea being that the more reviews this book has, the more Amazon will promote, and the more it will organically reach the readers who are looking for information like this. As of this morning I’m at 11% of this goal, which is amazing. I would love your help to spread the word about this if you think this book could potentially help someone. You can download it by visiting dontbestrangers.club/free-book or if that’s too long to remember, it’s also linked on the instagram!

So to celebrate this book launch, I asked everyone to ask me some questions which I answered some live on instagram and Discord. We didn’t have time to go through all of them so I thought it’d be good to do so now.

Book Launch Q&A

Dallas Book Tribe ™ (@dallasbooktribe) | Instagram [14:30] What is your best advice on writing a book?
molly | digital nomad traveling & marketing (@mollyhostudio) | Instagram [16:13] What was your fav part about putting the book together?
KELLY 🦋 MASON (@pinchekelly) | Instagram [17:30] Have any fav ice breakers when meeting new peeps?
Tia Joseph (@tiaxjos) | Instagram [19:16] Top 3 favorite ways to make friends?Joyce: As an introvert, how do you personally recharge your batteries fater socializing?

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Co-Host: Emil / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community focused on fighting adult loneliness by deepening our connections with ourselves and others. **If you’re into personal development and believe there’s something to be learned from everyone, then you’re in the right place. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

I am diligently trying to clear my backlog of recordings from last year so that I can start recording new episodes again, and I’m proud to say I’m basically all caught up. After this, I have one more episode from last year, and then I’ll feel situated to re-evaluate the direction of my podcast. If you’ve been here from the beginning, you’ll know that very quickly this project transformed a podcast to more of a community. And speaking of communities, the co-host today is actually from another community I’m part of for digital nomads.

I had never spoken to Emil prior to this call, but I had put out a post asking for co-hosts in the digital nomad community Slack channel and that’s how we connected! Just from first impressions, I loved how candid Emil was regarding his failures. His approach to life is definitely very bold, but extremely inspirational. And the way he analyses and thinks about different situations is so fascinating, I felt like I learned a lot in the process of editing and reviewing this particular conversation. In it we cover…

keeping things perfect, but in your head vs letting things change but making it reality
how Emil failed 137 times in his job search before finally landing his current job
conversations to have in romantic relationships, especially as a nomadic soul
is it possible to learn how to talk to anyone?
how to create value from connecting with others

With that, please meet Emil…

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Co-Host: Pao / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community focused on fighting adult loneliness and the myth that “making friends is hard”. **I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Today I’m chatting with Pao whom I actually had my first ever conversation with on this podcast. Sure, he applied and we had a few back and forths in terms of setting up the call, but I had no idea what to expect when I logged on. And I must confess that I’m often easily swayed by how people communicate virtually via text. So something I recognize that I personally value is the use of emojis and exclamation points, because otherwise, I read sentences with a tone of almost indiference? So Pao, if you’re listening, my first text-impression of you was that you were very serious. And I was doubly intimidated by the topics he proposed. But standing behind my mission to share the stories and perspectives of everyone who is gracious enough to come on, I didn’t let it deter me.

Now, you may have a very skewed perspective of Pao given that introduction, but let me say — he completely surprised me and I absolutely adored this conversation. It truly surpassed all expectations and allowed me to dig into conversation topics that I need practicing with. This conversation today touched on…

the Filipino, Spanish, and Chinese cultural perspective on celebrating and honoring our ancestors
teaching English and living abroad in Korea
finding out you’re adopted at the age of 22
our first experiences with death (I’ll add the trigger warning of suicide)
finding out that Pluto is no longer a planet

There is so much gold in this conversation, and even though the topic of death was extremely intimidating to me, Pao taught me that it’s completely possible to talk about scary topics in a very light-hearted, encouraging, and positive light. There was also a bunch of storytimes in this conversation, so if you like that stuff, you’re gonna love this! With that, please meet Pao…

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Co-Host: Jonny (@col0or) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community focused on fighting adult loneliness and changing the narrative that “making friends is hard”. **I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Today I’m chatting with Jonny who I met via this very Don’t Be Strangers community. If I remember correctly, he found our instagram page via episode 26 “aromanticism in relationships, growth from suffering, and the beauty of daily life with Nathan of Crawl Across the Sky” and that’s how we started chatting via text. So obviously, this is one of those scenarios where the co-host is not a complete stranger yet it was through this episode that I felt like I really got to know Jonny much better.

My deep impression of Jonny after this particular conversation is that he’s very upbeat and insightful, derives his energy based on his surroundings and the types of people he’s with, and a fantastic friend. A sneak peek of what we cover include…

Jonny’s stories from assisting a militant school for 6 months
the fear of success
my two top favorite podcasts for life and biohacking
anime worlds that Jonny would potentially want to live in
stereotypes we would like to break about us

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Co-Host: Curtis C. of @theinfatuasianpodcast / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community focused on fighting adult loneliness and changing the narrative that “making friends as an adult is hard”. **I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Today I’m chatting with Curtis who is the host of a podcast called Infatuasian which focuses on elevating Asian culture and creators. Curtis will be the second fellow podcaster I’ve had on the show and I’ll say that it’s always really fun to pick the brain of someone else doing what you’re doing. As you’ll hear, we swap our workflows and how we plan, prep, and produce our respective podcast episodes.

From first impressions via this conversation, I would say that Curtis is a really jolly person. I think you can hear it in his voice, from the way he speaks, and the fact that he enjoys teaching and being with students… I left the conversation feeling more youthful. If I’ve made you curious, you should definitely stick around as we will cover…

how he became a biology teacher
how teaching during the pandemic actually inspired his podcast
enjoying the change of seasons in San Francisco
how I research my trips as a digital nomad
what’s in my travel bag

With that, please meet Curtis…

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Co-Host: Gabriel Lee of HugMatch (@hugmatch) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club ✨ Meet Other Introspective Students of Life
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

If you listened to my last episode, which was a Love Letter reflecting on me hosting my first-ever in-person meet up for Don’t Be Strangers here in Dallas, you know that I’m on a mission to translate this virtual and global community into a physical one with city chapters all of the world. If you live in Dallas, we’re hosting another event in Staycation Coffee Richardson on Tuesday Oct 11. Tell your Texan friends. If you’d like to co-host a meet up in your own city with the help of Don’t Be Strangers with our mission in mind, reach out to me @dontbestrangers on instagram!

Today I’m chatting with Gabriel Lee who is in charge of PR at HugMatch, a company that focuses on developing interactive toys for the visually impaired. To be completely honest, when he reached out and presented his pitch for co-hosting, I was under the impression that this would be purely a PR episode for HugMatch, which honestly, I have no qualms about because marketing and promoting your own passions is part of the experience and should be shared. But getting to know him and the story behind this project, as you will experience with me in this episode, I’m floored. I think he has a very precious perspective on life, and I would love to meet his wife and the rest of his team. In this conversation, we talk about…

pivoting in life and exploring who we are, through the lens of being Asian American
how he became part of the mission behind HugMatch
the staggering stats behind visual impairment
solo traveling as an introvert
what’s on the other side of fear

Also, a small note, there will be some background noise in this episode so if you hear stuff, no, nothing is happening in your house. With that, please meet Gabriel…

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At the end of the day, knowing that I want to scale Don’t Be Strangers as a global community (soft world domination?), I know it’s not reasonable to expect that the community would fold together so perfectly that everyone would want to be everyone else’s friend.

But what I hope is that this community will provide an emotional point of reference for what a community can feel like. I hope that it inspires you to seek and create your own community, whether it is through Don’t Be Strangers, or any other means — one that wants to know you deeply, support you fully, and always make you feel as if you are coming home.

🏡

👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club ✨ Meet Other Introspective Students of Life
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

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Co-Host: Melody Joy (@melmusica @immelodyjoy) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club ✨ Meet Other Introspective Students of Life
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming Events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a podcast and community focused on fighting adult loneliness and changing the narrative that “making friends as an adult is hard”. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

While Don’t Be Strangers is currently a virtual and global community as facilitated by our instagram and Discord chat server, I definitely feel that nothing beats in-person conversations. That said, I’m piloting a series of different events here in Dallas, Texas this month of October 2022 with the hopes that I’ll take my learnings and write a little template that I can share with anyone who wants to create a physical Don’t Be Strangers community in their very own city. If you’re potentially interested in throwing community events in your part of the world in collaboration with Don’t Be Strangers, just reach out via our instagram @dontbestrangers or write in via our website dontbestrangers.club !!

Today we’re chatting with Melody Joy who is a Taiwanese Texan, singer, and mindset coach who has the most soothing voice ever — you’re about to hear what I mean. Also she has such a beautiful perspective on the world, I definitely felt re-inspired to live life just editing this episode. In this conversation, we will be covering topics such as

what is the common tie between her interest in singing and being a mindset coach
why music is magic
the importance of play and how it helps us learn about ourselves
when can we consider ourselves good at something
pro-tips for attending conferences

With that, please meet Melody…

Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/dont-be-strangers/message

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read all my love letters 💌
🥳✨Conversational Game Night: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼 Meet Strangers, Become Friends. No Small Talk, Just Deep Stuff.
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices
💬 Join Our Discord!

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Co-Host: Marieke (@studiomusters) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club ✨ Meet Other Introspective Students of Life
📆 See Full Calendar of All FREE Upcoming events!
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a social experiment and community of wholesome conversations that focuses on deepening connections through stories of everyday people. **I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode.

Ways you can plug into the community this month is attending our open journaling session — come gain some clarity with us by answering the 3 most important questions. I’m asking everyone on the Don’t Be Strangers Team to do this together, so it’d be really fun to have you along. That’s happening on Saturday September 17th, please check the link in the description to register! We also have our monthly conversational game night on Sunday September 25th. Dallas friends, if you are available Wed Oct 5th, I’ll be trying the conversational game night in person at Union Coffee Shop so it’d be so great to meet you.

I’m sooo excited to introduce to you my friend Marieke from the Netherlands. I met her during my first adventure in Oaxaca, Mexico with this digital nomad group called Wifi Tribe. If you’ve listened to some of the older episodes, you may have heard me speak about this particular adventure as well as with other Wifi Tribers from that particular stay. But I especially adore Marieke because she’s just so freaking cool. She’s one of those people who makes you feel elated to grow older, which I think is a special and rare kind of soul. Get ready to feel inspired for life as we chat about…

our newest friends and how we’ve met them
Marieke’s life changing sabbaticals
how she’s turned her job as an interior designer into one where she can work from anywhere
rituals we practice
and Salsa culture

With that, please meet Marieke…

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Co-Host: Viveca Chow (@helloitsviveca) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Say Hi @dontbestrangers ✕ 💬 Chat on Our Discord
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club ✨ Meet Other Introspective Students of Life
🥳✨Monthly Conversational Game Night: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼Do you love meeting new people? Do you like deep conversation? If you enjoy conversational card games such as Table Topics or We’re Not Really Strangers, we’ll be playing a similar game: Don’t Be Strangers Q&A Edition, where everyone will have a chance to answer thought-provoking questions inspired by the podcast.
BONUS: 📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices

In case you didn’t know, Don’t Be Strangers also has it’s own e-Pen Pals Club as well as a public Discord Server where anyone can come through to chat! And with new teammates whom have volunteered to share their time in growing this community, I’m supperr excited to see where Don’t Be Strangers go from here! While I’m no longer actively seeking to expand our team at the moment, if you want to contribute in any way, please don’t be shy to reach out and say hi. You never know how we could potentially collaborate!!

Today I’m chatting with Viveca Chow who is a NYC-based influencer and actress who is full of zeal and bursting with life. My first impression of her says that she’s someone who truly enjoys life, and I feel like you can hear it in the way she speaks and the energy in her voice. Get ready for a treat as we dive into topics such as…

how to respond when people say “I love you”
viveca’s art and its connection to healing
how she got into acting
zombie apocalypses
culture shocks between America and Hong Kong

With that, please meet Viveca…

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Co-Host: Penpal Central (@penpal_central) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices
💬 Join Our Discord!
🥳✨Conversational Game Night: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼Do you love meeting new people? Do you like games? Do you like conversation? If you enjoy conversational card games such as Table Topics or We’re Not Really Strangers, we’ll be playing a similar game: Don’t Be Strangers Q&A Edition, where everyone will have a chance to answer thought-provoking questions inspired by the podcast.

Sign ups for our Pen Pals Club for September is due Sunday August 28th. This upcoming month, my Pen Pals Club Nudge Friend Hajar will be helping me with running an optional Kickoff Call where you’ll get to meet all the pen palers. It’ll be similar to the conversational game nights that we already do but only among the pen palers. Speaking of friends of Don’t Be Strangers, I’m looking for people to volunteer their time on this team. As I’ve grown this project from a podcast to a pen pals club to a Discord server and more, I’m realizing that I need help if I want to keep this sustainable for myself. If you’re interested in anything I’ve mentioned, all that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

On the topic of pen pals, today I’m chatting with Pen Pal Central of Instagram. I felt extra honored because while she prefers to stay anonymous online, she was still interested in chatting with me and sharing her story. And naturally, because we both care about pen palling, there’s a lot of overlap in our communities. I’m ever grateful for social media because it was thanks to the power of instagram that we met. She has amazingly positive energy, and I feel like she’s exactly the right person to run an account that shares submissions of people’s bio’s in the hopes of finding pen pals.

Prepare yourself for a fun conversation as we dive into topics such as…

our travel styles and how they are connected to our interest in pen paling
love languages and pen paling styles
how she got into the world of pen paling
how she started Pen Pal Central
and making friends as an introvert

I hope this chat fills you with as much joy as it filled me with. With that, please meet Pen Pal Central…

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read all my love letters 💌
🥳✨Conversational Game Night: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼

Do you love meeting new people? Do you like games? Do you like conversation? If you enjoy conversational card games such as Table Topics or We’re Not Really Strangers, we’ll be playing a similar game: Don’t Be Strangers Q&A Edition, where everyone will have a chance to answer thought-provoking questions inspired by the podcast.

💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices
💬 Join Our Discord!

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Co-Host: April (@cypris.morph) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
FREE Life Vision Manifestation Workshop (+BONUS eBook)
🥳✨Conversational Game Night: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼Do you love meeting new people? Do you like games? Do you like conversation? If you enjoy conversational card games such as Table Topics or We’re Not Really Strangers, we’ll be playing a similar game: Don’t Be Strangers Q&A Edition, where everyone will have a chance to answer thought-provoking questions inspired by the podcast.
💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices
💬 Join Our Discord!

Some special announcements is that we’re hosting two free events this month. I would love to see you and have you plug into the community! This Sunday August 21st, we have a free Life Vision Manifestation Workshop where I’ll also include a free eBook that I wrote for you to take home with you upon completion of the workshop. Next Sunday August 28th, we will have our second ever conversational game night. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Today we’re chatting with a past Pen Paler of this community, April, who is a fellow travel enthusiast and a truly romantic soul, you’ll see what I mean. She’s exactly the reason why I feel so passionate about Don’t Be Strangers. Because of this community and podcast I’m building, I was able to connect with her. And I hope that if you, as a listener, have any itch to find super cool people who want to know you deeply, that you take the initiative to join our Pen Pals Club or Discord channel!

I was furiously taking notes while editing this episode because there is just so much gold! Get ready to feel hugged as we touch on topics such as…

why we think mistrust exists in this world
my only experience participating in a march/protest which was International Women’s Day in Mexico City
places that make us feel at home
how we know that we’re in love with someone, romantically or platonically
the beauty of hardship

With that, please meet April…

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read all my love letters 💌
FREE Life Vision Manifestation Workshop (+BONUS eBook)
🥳✨Conversational Game Night: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼

💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices
💬 Join Our Discord!

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Co-Host: Molly Ho (@mollyhostudio) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)

💌 📬 Join Our Digital "Pen Pals" Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation through stories of everyday people. **I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode. Or if you’re into community building and making friends, we now have a Pen Pals Club and Public Discord channel open to you. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Today we’re chatting with Molly a fellow female digital nomad and business owner focusing on digital products and marketing. I almost met her in Playa Del Carmen through a mutual friend who ran into Molly casually at one of the popular remote office coffeeshops over there. And just as I was reaching out to Molly to ask for a coffee date, Molly told me she had just left for Oaxaca. The irony of all this was that I had just left Oaxaca to hang out in Playa Del Carmen, so we essentially swapped places. But we just kept in touch through direct messages on instagram until one day when she posted a job listing to find an assistant to help run her business and I thought… why not. I’m a huge student of life so I like trying things out just to try it because I never know what I’m going to learn about myself or the world through it.

After one job interview video call we decided that maybe it’d just be better to host virtual co-working sessions between as accountability partners working on passion projects, her with her business, and mine with my brand Don’t Be Strangers and its every evolving sub-projects that I keep imagining and trying to start. At the point of this recording, we’ve had weekly coworking calls for 3 months and over these 3 months, I’ve come to feel like I’ve known Molly for years.

I really adored this conversation because you can hear how much we were smiling through audio only. Get ready for a lot of story times as we share…

how we became addicted to this travel lifestyle
how Molly’s found friends while on the road
lessons we’ve learned from being nomadic
how she’s working on healing herself
how to enjoy life

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🥳✨JULY GAME 1YR BDAY GAME NIGHT: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼

Do you love meeting new people? Do you like games? Do you like conversation? Grab your favorite drink and join us for the 1 year anniversary of Don’t Be Strangers Podcast + community with a game night celebration! If you enjoy conversational card games such as Table Topics or We’re Not Really Strangers, we’ll be playing a similar game: Don’t Be Strangers Q&A Edition, where everyone will have a chance to answer thought-provoking questions inspired by the podcast.

💌 📬 Join Our Digital “Pen Pals” Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 ☕️ Coffeeshops + 💻 Remote Offices
💬 Join Our Discord!

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Co-Host: Sophia (of @itsuncomfortablycomfortable) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
🥳✨JULY GAME 1YR BDAY GAME NIGHT: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼

Do you love meeting new people? Do you like games? Do you like conversation? Grab your favorite drink and join us for the 1 year anniversary of Don't Be Strangers Podcast + community with a game night celebration! If you enjoy conversational card games such as Table Topics or We’re Not Really Strangers, we'll be playing a similar game: Don't Be Strangers Q&A Edition, where everyone will have a chance to answer thought-provoking questions inspired by the podcast.

💌 📬 Join Our Digital "Pen Pals" Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation through stories of everyday people. I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode. Or if you’re into community building and making friends, we now have a Discord channel open to you. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Also… July is the official one year birthday of Don’t Be Strangers! We’re celebrating with a public free virtual game night on Sunday July 24th. It’ll be small groups, conversational style, answering questions from past podcast episodes. You’ll get to meet other cool potential new friends who are all into deep-talk. I’ll just be chill with good vibes. Sign-ups are currently open and linked from the instagram page!

Today I’m speaking with my friend Sophia, founder of Uncomfortably Comfortable. Matt of Episode 17 actually connected us, and now I’m part of her creative community for getting out of our comfort zones as creators! Just as of 2 days ago, I attended the first monthly meeting of UC for the 2nd cohort of 2022, and I’m definitely drawing on ideas of how Sophia nourishes her community to see how I can build mine. I think it’s really cool because there’s a lot of overlap between the values of UC and DBS, but catered towards different groups of people. While UC is specific to creatives, DBS is meant to be a space that helps connect optimistic students-of-life who are seeking deeper connections!

Sophia is just full of good energy and you’re about to feel it as we dive into topics such as….

how I got into digital nomading
my past life on YouTube and how it led to the birth of Don’t Be Strangers
how Sophia changed her social circles post college graduation
how she found her passion as a community builder
her vision of the ideal world

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Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
🥳✨JULY GAME 1YR BDAY GAME NIGHT: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼

💌 📬 Join Our Digital "Pen Pals" Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
✍🏼 Show Notes & My Writings on Medium
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

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Co-Host: Crawl Across the Sky / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
🥳✨JULY GAME 1YR BDAY GAME NIGHT: 👉🏼 Sign Up 👈🏼

💌 📬 Join Our Digital "Pen Pals" Club to Meet Other Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation through stories of everyday people. **I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode. Or if you’re into community building and making friends, we now have a Discord channel open to you. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Also… July is the official one year birthday of Don’t Be Strangers! We’re celebrating with an public free virtual game night on Sunday July 24th. It’ll be small groups, conversational style, answering questions from past podcast episodes. You’ll get to meet other cool potential new friends who are all into deep-talk. I’ll just be chill with good vibes. Sign-ups are currently open and linked from the instagram page!

Today I’m speaking with my friend Nathan of Crawl Across the Sky whom I first met in a FB group called Asian Creative Network. Occasionally I scroll through the newsfeed in that community and like posts and comments to send some good vibes. Well, apparently I had liked one of Nathan’s posts and he tried to friend me. I asked him who he was (because I forgot that he was one of the people’s who’s post I liked) and he told me that he thought I lived in his part of the world due to the context of the post he shared (the one that I liked). And then, me being me, was like, hey why not. I accepted the friend request and soon after we had our first video call.

My first impression of Nathan from 2019 is that he’s a multi talented artist who does graphics, illustrations and paintings, and is a musician. Extremely well read and it showed in the way he spoke. And honestly, I left that first conversation lowkey intimidated by how cool he was.

In this conversation, we touch on topics such as…

my aromanticism
his aspirations to pivot his career from being a studio patiner into programming
Everything Everywhere All At Once
Sunflowers and how they grow in nuclear toxic waste
the theme of suffering in Nathan’s art

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Love Letters from a Creative Chimera. 💌 my hypnotherapy experience & overcoming chronic stress, 🌾 a bday present for myself - 18 again.

Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
JOIN OUR Pen Pals Club 📬 ✍🏼 💌
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

Don’t Be Strangers is a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation through stories of everyday people.I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode. Or if you’re into community building and making friends, we now have a Discord channel open to you. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Full letter on Medium. ✍🏼

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Co-Host: Tiffani Cappello / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
💌 📬 Join Our Digital "Pen Pals" Club to Meet Introspective/Students of Life
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation through stories of everyday people. **I’m XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode. Or if you’re into community building and making friends, we now have a Discord channel open to you. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Today I’m speaking with my hypnotherapist Tiffani who was introduced to me by my friend Abhas of episode 9. The way that it was explained to me by both Abhas and Tiffani is that hypnotherapy uses light hypnosis (where you are completely conscious the entire time) to access and explore your subconscious mind. You do this to find the exact source of your issue and therefore resolve your problem in a single session as opposed to using traditional therapy where you might spend years never actually targeting the source. The reason why this came up in conversation was because Abhas had used and successfully resolved a problem using Tiffani’s services in the past and was about to try again to tackle a different problem. Furthermore, he’s had two other friends successfully use Tiffani’s hypnotherapy to resolve their problems.

As a fellow introspective and personal development junkie and someone who highly regard Abhas’s opinions…. my interest was piqued. So at the beginning of April this year, I asked Tiffani to help me with an issue I’ve been struggling with all of my adulthood and… I’m really happy with the results. That’s just a little context for how we met. If you’re interested in hearing more about my personal experience, I’ll speak more about it at the end of this conversation.

As someone in her 50’s, I admire Tiffani greatly for the enthusiasm and outlook she has on life. Honestly, whenever I meet someone significantly older but full of energy, I think to myself, “I hope I age gracefully like you.” In this next hour, we cover topics such as…

her experience being in a cult
how she extricated herself from that toxic environment
which occurred in parallel with her completely turning her life around in her 30s
the issue behind isolation, beyond what the pandemic has generated
and embracing imperfectionism as the key to vulnerability and connection

With that, please meet Tiffani!

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Love Letters from a Creative Chimera. 💌 “will I ever feel at home?” asks nowhere girl (Dallas, San Francisco, & Cusco in 3 weeks)

Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

Full letter on Medium. ✍🏼

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Co-Host: Erin (@theredpaladin) / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
📍🗺 My Remote Office Coffeeshop Reviews (Google Maps)
💬 Join Our Discord!

Welcome back to Don’t Be Strangers, a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation through stories of everyday people. **I’m your host XinYi, and I typically meet my co-hosts for the very first time while recording! If this sounds fun to you, please consider applying to co-host a future episode. Or if you’re into community building and making friends, we now have a Discord channel open to you. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Today I’m speaking with a stranger Erin who is currently in university studying all things filmaking. I love that I’ve been able to, in the very small sample size of co-hosts I’ve had on this show, speak to strangers and friends as young as students to as hold as breaching their 50’s. I believe there’s something to learned from everyone, hence why I decided to start this podcast where I hoped, in contrast to other interview-type podcasts where the interviewees are typically famous or universally accepted “successful” public figures, I could share your story. So thank you Erin for offering your voice as we dive into…

how she got into acting and why she’s trying to get back into it
children cartoons we watched growing up
what we’re currently working on in terms of personal development
our struggles with depression
how the pandemic has affected Erin

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Co-Host: Sean / Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)
👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers
💬 Join Our Discord!

Hi, you’re listening to episode 23 of Don’t Be Strangers, a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation through stories of everyday people. Today I’m speaking with a very special childhood friend of mine, Sean, who was actually the reason why I re-connected with Bekah from episode 21. I’m confessing publicly that growing up I was always very envious of how incredibly and effortlessly intelligent Sean has always been. I remember suffering in computer science class by his side while he crushed all the assignments and exams. However, he’s also the type of person who you could never dislike. I always felt a deep sense of respect despite my jealousy. That said, it’s been really cool seeing how we’ve both grown up since our middle school days. In this conversation we cover topics such as

stepping outside our comfort zones
quitting a job without a plan
if we’re real gamers
language learning
and our relationship with health and fitness

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Co-Host: Eva Tang (@etang20 + founder of @fosterpints) | Host: Xinyi Xan (@xinyixan)

📮 Pen Pals Club | 👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers | 🎉 Never Miss an Ep & Support for Free: Sign up for the Newsletter

Hello, hello, you’re listening to episode 22 of Don’t Be Strangers, a series of wholesome conversations that focuses on fighting social isolation via stories of everyday people. Think Humans of New York meets casual coffee chat. I’m XinYi and normally my co-hosts are strangers who I meet for the very first time while recording! If that sounds interesting to you, please consider applying to co-host an episode. Or if you’re into community building and making friends, we now have a Discord channel associated with our Pen Pals Club. All that information can be found on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Today I’m speaking with a fellow adventurist and travel addict who I was connected with from a previous co-host, Jeremy, from episode 15. After our recording, he was telling me about his super cool ex-roommate who was a hardcore digital nomad before digital nomading was a thing. Except Eva’s not so fond of the term “digital nomad” itself which we’ll dive into in the conversation. I especially loved editing this episode for all the anecdotes that were shared. My favorite topics we touch in this conversation include...

misconceptions with being a digital nomad
Eva’s hobby for making ice cream
how she combined that hobby with fostering pups into a fun side gig
her favorite perspective she’s gained while on the road
and why we don’t believe in Stranger Danger

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES HERE 🔗 ]

I couldn’t have put it better myself. So generally, I try my best not to set expectations not too high. Not because I’ve become a pessimist but because I want to leave room to welcome the unexpected.

Thanks again Eva for sharing your voice and time. The last time I got in touch with her, she was telling me that she had just gotten home from Mexico City and is back in Toronto for a little bit before jetsetting off again. If you would like to reach out to Eva, you can reach her on instagram @etang20 and check out her ice cream project @fosterpints ! And if you found any topics on this episode interesting or want to chat, of course you can reach me at @dontbestrangers! The instagram page will also have links to our Discord where we host our “Pen Pals” Club and the co-host application if either of these things interests you!

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Co-Host: Rebekah Hedges @bekahthehedgephoto | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

🎙 Need another show to binge? Bekah’s Podcast — Sister Sibs
📮 Pen Pals Club + 👋🏼 Come Say Hi! @dontbestrangers

Hello and welcome to episode 21 of Don’t Be Strangers, your community for making friends via deep and soulful conversations. **I’m your host XinYi, and if you’ve ever had the curiosity of co-hosting a podcast episode, then here’s your chance! There are absolutely no requirements other than a willingness to share your time and thoughts. The application is always opened to you and all you have to do to prepare is come up with 5 questions of your choosing for me and I’ll do the same for you! Or, if you’d rather plug into the community and meet 2 new friends a month, our Club is always open for sign ups. Find all the information on instagram @dontbestrangers!

Today we’re speaking with my very dear friend Bekah whom is a full-time Dallas based photographer who has lived all over the globe. We actually loosely knew of each other from going to the same high-school but didn’t really connect and become closer friends until well after college. That’s to say, you simply never know! Bekah has one of the most open and instantaneously infectious warmth that makes it hard to not want to be her friend. In this conversation we get really real and really deep while keeping everything very light hearted. We chat about...

Bekah’s weird reoccurring cheesy fingers childhood nightmare and what does it mean?
Her current journey through reconstructing what spirituality and faith means to her thanks to religious trauma
Advice we would give our younger selves
Our current phase in life
Our thoughts on the idea of “Stranger Danger”

There is one mention about suicide so I’ll just give you this heads up, but with that... please meet Bekah.

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES HERE 🔗 ]

Thanks so much Bekah for reminding me why I do this. I think I mentioned my creative funk in the last episode but I’m still working on pushing through it so that I can continue spreading this message. If you wanna chat with Bekah yourself, you can find her on instagram @bekahthehedgephoto which is also where you can see her beautiful photographs as well as some just-for-fun creative shoots we’ve collaborated on. She recently dropped our paparazzi shoot concept photos of my husband and me which was inspired by rumors going around that we were dating. But also, if you know of anyone in Dallas who needs photos, please consider passing her information along. Being an entrepreneur is no easy feat and all connections are a blessing!

As for how you can reach me and plug in with the community, check out @dontbestrangers on instagram. The monthly sign-ups for our Club is always open to you if you would like to personally get in touch with 2 new friends within the group. There are some exciting changes dropping very soon with the Club, so I’d love to have you in on the ride!!

Voice Vlogs entry no. 7, today is Tuesday April 12, 2022. Since this conversation with Bekah, I’ve indeed had my hypnotherapy/RTT session...

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Co-Host: Chloe Choe @offhourhustle | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

QUICK LINKS:

Join Our Pen Pals Club 📮
Come Say Hi! 👋🏼 @dontbestrangers
Time to Kill, Binge Listen Maybe? 🥺 LAST EPISODE: 🌌🐇🇦🇪 creative chimera (stranger! from Dubai) Noor on going down rabbit holes + asking: what does it mean to travel? (019)

Welcome to episode 20 of Don’t Be Strangers, a social experiment that focuses on the question “How do you define a stranger, and at what point do they transition from being one to not being one?” Think Humans of New York meets casual coffee chat. I’m your host XinYi and I’d love to invite you to come on to co-host an episode! These conversations usually are super chill and guided by any topics the co-hosts are interested in! Or, if you’d rather plug into the community, our Pen Pals club is always open for sign ups. Find all the information on instagram @dontbestrangers!

In this final episode of season 4, I’m chatting with Chloe who is honestly such a badass. She started her personal finance blog during quarantine and is now breaking into the instagram and potentially YouTube space to inform the everyday person to optimize their financial health. Her content on instagram is really bite size and approachable, which makes total sense given that from first impressions, I’d definitely describe her as empathetic and warm. In this conversation we dive into (1) pivotal moments in our childhood that shapes us into who we are today (2) what she’s learned from disappointing her parents (3) how we both got into software engineering as a career (4) Chloe’s pro-tips on time management and... (5) is it really that important to be a morning person? With that, please meet Chloe...

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE ]

Q - What was your childhood like and how did it affect who you became? (2:26)

Q - When did you disappoint your parents? (10:03)

Q - How do you determine where you want to go digital nomading? (13:52)

Q - How did you get into software if your dad was pressuring you into medicine? (18:48)

Q - What are your passions? (21:07)

Q - What’s something that you’re struggling with currently and how long have you been struggling with it? (35:05)

Q - How do you define a stranger and at what point do they transition from being one to not being one? (42:07)

Q - What are your eventual goals with the podcast? (47:58)

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Co-Host: Noor @designdrawdo | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Noor’s Links ( Podcast 🎙 Pixel Paper Podcast | Newsletter 🗞 Design. Draw. Do. | YouTube 🎥 Design. Draw. Do. )
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Welcome to episode 19 of Don’t Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations that focuses on learning how to create agency in your life and manifest deeper connections. Think Humans of New York meets casual coffee chat. My name is XinYi and as anyone of any background is welcomed to apply to come on to co-host an episode, this is my invitation to you to consider applying! Or if you’re not quite up for this sort of thing, you should consider joining our Pen Pals Club. All the information can be found on instagram page @dontbestrangers!

Today I’m speaking with Noor from Dubai who is a fellow creative chimera sister who does it all. I mean, she has a newsletter, a youtube channel, and a podcast where she has interviewed over 25 upcoming artists to get to know the mysterious workings behind their creative process. In this conversation we cover topics such as (1) productivity and anxiety, (2) her favorite hack for creative productivity, (3) what it means to truly travel, (4) our creative parents, and (5) her current struggles. I don’t want to steal any more of her thunder so I’ll let her explain more about herself...

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES HERE 🔗 ]

Voice Vlogs entry no. 5, today is Thursday Feb 24, 2022, and I’m on vacation in Oaxaca, Mexico. It’s actually my second to last day here and wow, the experience of re-visiting a place is so interesting to me. But this time around, it feels quite different because last time, I was here for a month but I basically worked that entire time and took Spanish classes 3 hours a day. This time was truly a vacation and my husband and I attended a traditional mole cooking class, some salsa dancing classes, and even met up with my old Spanish teachers as friends catching up for coffee and food in the city. It’s been really lovely. Especially because, I also missed out on the culinary art aspect of visiting Oaxaca last time? I basically cooked almost all my meals in (more details of that in episodes 8 and 15 if you’re curious). But this time, since it’s vacation and also the celebration of my husband’s birthday, we’ve just allowed ourself to indulge a little...

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Co-Host: Jemarc Axinto @jemarcaxinto | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Jermarc’s Masterclass - Reclaiming My Passion: Empowering Our Community Care. Sat, February 26, 2022 (1:00 PM – 3:00 PM CST)

Jemarc will share his combined interest and expertise in ancient Tantric Buddhism and modern neuroscience to take you on a journey towards reclaiming your compassion, healing old wounds, and opening your heart. 💗

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Hello & you’re listening to episode 18 of Don’t Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations that focuses on learning how to create agency in your life and manifest deeper connections. Think Humans of New York meets casual coffee chat. If we haven’t met before, I’m your host XinYi, and anyone of any background is welcomed to apply to come on to co-host an episode. Sign ups for our Pen Pals Club for March is open until the 25th. Find all the information and more on the instagram page @dontbestrangers!

Today we’re speaking with total wellbeing coach and spiritual guide Jemarc who I met for the very first time through this very conversation. We get really real and really deep, so I’m going to drop 2 gentle warnings here upfront. If you feel uncomfortable with listening to swear words, you might just want to sit out on this one. We also touch on the topic of the fight against suicide. If you’re on the fence after hearing about those two tidbits (aka, you’re not sure but willing to giving it a try), I’d highly encourage you to try because... just re-listening to this episode, I was transcribing and taking all the notes from the wisdom that Jemarc was sharing with me and... actually, even if you don’t listen, you should peep the show note transcriptions. We dive into (1) Jemarc’s daily morning ritual with a death mantra (2) relative vs absolute truths (3) our journey towards self healing (the how’s and why’s) (4) what is community care and (5) how to make the world a better place. So, with all that hype... please meet Jemarc!

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES HERE 🔗 ]

I’ve already signed up for Jemarc’s masterclass, so if anything that we’ve touched on piqued your interest, I’d highly recommend checking out their instagram page @jemarcaxinto. If you miss this month’s masterclass, as they mentioned, there will be more in the future to come. And as Jemarc said, if you know of anyone holding wellness retreats or conscious spaces that are looking to higher a teacher and guide, they’re looking for plugging in with the community! So please reach out!!! Speaking of communities, if you want to participate in our pen pals club and connect deeper with our community, information for that can be found @dontbestrangers!

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Co-Host: Matthew Curran @tyresidon | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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Hello & you’re listening to episode 17 of Don’t Be Strangers, a social experiment focused on learning to create more meaningful connections. I’m your host XinYi, and anyone of any background is welcomed to apply to come on to co-host an episode. As a gentle reminder, if you’ve been meaning to join us for our Pen Pals Club, sign ups for March is open until the 25th. You come find all the information and more on the instagram page @dontbestrangers!

Today we’re speaking with yet another stranger, Matt who was an absolute joy to speak with. This is going to be a fun one as we dive into topics such as (1) Matt’s experience growing up mixed race (2) nicknames and what they reveal about our relationships (3) our favorite creative collaborations (4) his audio drama Project Gnosis and (5) things we have in common. With that, this is Matt...

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES HERE 🔗 ]

Thank you Matt for such an interesting and thought provoking conversation. If you’d like to connect with him, you can reach out directly on instagram @tyresidon OR if you’d like a personal introduction, you can always say hi to me @dontbestrangers. Again, sign ups for the pen pals club for March is open until the 25th of the month! I’d love to write to you if that’s your thing.

Voice Vlogs entry no. 3, today is Friday Feb 11, 2022, and I’m a week out until my vacation to Oaxaca, Mexico. It’s pretty rare that I re-visit a place because the logic I follow in my head is... “Why return somewhere when it’s more interesting to explore someplace new?” But I just fell in love with Oaxaca from my time there in October last year and I really wanted to share it with my husband so... that’s that.

Last night I meet up with Pallavi who was a friend that I found via a FB group when I was temporarily moving to Chicago for 5 weeks last May. We didn’t actually have the opportunity to meet when I was out in Chicago and shortly afterwards she moved to San Francisco. But we kept in touch and she happened to be in town in Mexico City so... almost a year later since I first reached out... we grabbed dinner together last night. Life is incredible, isn’t it?

The only other thing that’s been on my mind lately was that Abhas of episode 9 has introduced me to this idea of hypnotherapy, and I’m keenly interested to use it to help with some chronic stress that I’d love to find the source of and heal from. All in all, life’s good and I’ll speak with you again soon. Until then, don’t be a stranger!

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Co-Host: Chris Sinn @sinumber4 | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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Chris’s... Films 🎥 | Twitch 🎮 | Twitter 🕊

Welcome to episode 16 of Don’t Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations on learning how to create meaningful connections. The name’s XinYi, and anyone of any background can apply to come on to co-host an episode. As we’re dipping into February, I’m very pleased about Round 2 of our Pen Pals Club getting underway. If you’re interested in joining us for Round 3 in March, you can learn more about our digital journaling and pen pals club on our instagram page @dontbestrangers!

Today we’re speaking with Chris who was an actual stranger to me. I had posted a call for co-hosts in a Facebook Group that we are both part of, he liked that post, and I tried to friend him. This is what happened next...

Next thing I know, I get a co-hosting application from him. And I will say that, given the tone that Chris approached me in response to me trying to friend him totally did not match my expectations for what a fun conversationalist he is. So, this is exactly why I don’t really hold myself back from trying to connect with people. Because I never know what sort of connection I can potentially make.

So post discussion re-cap, I’d describe Chris as a life enthusiast through and through, a deeply provocative thinker, and honestly... friend. Because he has such a warm vibe that makes you instantly feel like his friend. Or at least, that’s how I felt. And that’s how I hope you’ll feel as we talk about (1) liminal (AKA. inbetween) spaces, (2) how his hometown is a little bit sequestered from the rest of reality, (3) his formula for pricing his service as a creative working professionally in the industry, (4) critique vs criticism, and (5) our thoughts on digital vs analog. So please, meet Chris...

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE ]

3:00 - Q - Chris to Xinyi: How do you learn to live in liminal (in-between) space?

10:40 - Q - Xinyi to Chris: What is your relationship like with where you currently live (LA)?

16:48 - Q - Xinyi to Chris: How do you price your work as a creative?

21:12 - Q - Xinyi to Chris: What do you think I do?

24:26 - Q - Chris to Xinyi: How do you learn to separate critique from criticism?

29:26 - Q - Xinyi to Chris: What are some of your current intensions/projects?

32:56 - Q - Chris to Xinyi: Did you have a moment where you felt like this is really what you’re meant to be doing?

39:06 - Q - Xinyi to Chris: Digital versus analog? What are your thoughts?

47:09 - Q - Xinyi to Chris: How do you define a stranger and what point do they transition from being one to not being one?

51:23 - Q - Xinyi to Chris: How do you make friends as an adult?

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Co-Host: Jeremy Fernandes @jeremy.fernandes6 | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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I’m so pleased to introduce you to my friend Jeremy whom I met while traveling to Oaxaca, Mexico with a digital nomad group. My first impressions of him (which we’ve never discussed so hi Jeremy if you’re listening to this... it’ll be his first time hearing this as well) is that he’s definitely a health and fitness coach — not only physically but from his very friendly demeanor which is mandatory to be a good educator and counselor. He was always a little quieter and more aloof so I found him a tad mysterious yet... he always had great energy and was someone I wanted to learn more from. Needless to say, I was so thrilled that he applied to come on to share his story. You’re definitely in for a treat as we dig into (1) his story of how his career in nutrition coaching came to be (2) what it takes to be a good coach (3) what his experience was like traveling while maintaining his coaching job (4) instantly connecting with strangers in the big city and (5) what is #bigkidenergy?

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE ]

03:23 - Q Jeremy to Xinyi: How do you view failure? What is your favourite way to fail?

09:57 - Q Jeremy to Xinyi: Why do you share your creative content? Do we see the finished product or is there a secret stash for your eyes only?

12:57 - Q Xinyi to Jeremy: Why don’t you see yourself as creative?

17:05 - Q Xinyi to Jeremy: What was your health & fitness journey like and how did you end up in your current career?

25:29 - Q Xinyi to Jeremy: Did anyone give you that warm fuzzy feeling when you started to develop your creative self?

53:57 - Q Jeremy to Xinyi: What's your favourite word of the last year / going into this year?

No, thank YOU Jeremy for sharing your time and light with us. I love how thoughtful he is in the way he articulates his thoughts and brings a little bit of comedy into anything he’s explaining. He told me that one of his intentions of this year was to try more stuff like coming onto this podcast. So if you know of any podcasters who need a co-host or interviewee, please reach out to Jeremy @jeremy.fernandes6 on instagram OR you can always DM me @dontbestrangers and I can make the introduction between you and him!

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Co-Host: Rachel @vibrantafternoon | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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Your Life Vision Guide: My eBook on how to find agency in your own life! 🌅
Time to Kill, Binge Listen Maybe? 🥺 LAST EPISODE: w Moroccan artist from Netherlands Sana 🍊🥺🌻 on lessons from 2021 + asking: who can you share your struggles with? (013)

Hi! You’re listening to episode 14 of Don’t Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations on creating meaningful connections and finding agency in your life. My name’s XinYi, and anyone of any background can apply to come co-host an episode. If you’re also into community building or love digging into topics deeply, this is my invitation to you to consider applying! Or, if you’re not ready to record a podcast, we also have a Pen Pals Club which you can learn more about on our instagram page @dontbestrangers! There, you can personally connect with like-minded students of life and potentially even personally meet past co-hosts of this show!

Today, I’m speaking with my creative chimera friend Rachel, who I met through the wonders of instagram. I remember I. was asking a stranger on instagram who were some of her favorite artistic inspirations and she mentioned Rachel’s art account! That’s how we connected and planted the seed of a very special and wholesome friendship! Rachel’s always sending me Good News articles supporting the cause of this podcast (such as studies showing the positive effects of speaking with strangers) and quietly supporting on the sidelines, so I truly didn’t except it when I received a co-host application from her. But I’m sure glad she applied.

In this conversation, we dig into... (1) what drives us to create, (2) recent moments of sweetness and joy, (3) Rachel’s struggle with social media, (4) our grocery store run strategies, and (5) our tips on how to build connections when starting over in a new stage in our life.

With that, I present to you Rachel...

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE ]

2:46 - Q Rachel at Xinyi: As a creative chimera, to what can attribute your desire to make so many different things? 🎨

9:35 - Q Xinyi to Rachel: Can you describe some moments of sweetness in your life lately? 🍦

15:55 - Q Rachel at Xinyi: What’s something, big or small, that brings pleasure to your life right now? 🥳

24:34 - Q Xinyi to Rachel: Do you mind sharing more about your struggles with Social Media? 📱

36:31 - Q Rachel at Xinyi: What is your favorite childhood memory and why? 👧🏻

39:55 - Q Xinyi to Rachel: What is your grocery store run strategy? 🛒

53:10 - Q Xinyi to Rachel: What are some tips we can share to help close the gap between strangers? 📣

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Co-Host: Sana @artsy.sl | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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Welcome to episode 13 of Don’t Be Strangers, a series of long wholesome phone calls (with your could-be friends) digging into all the posibilites of life. If we haven’t met before, my name’s Xinyi and I started this podcast mid 2021 as a social experiment. I’ve always had such deep, rich, and soulful conversations with my friends that I wished I could record and share with the world and... that’s exactly what I’m doing now!

The reason why I changed the tagline to include “could-be friends” is because I really want to focus on the community building aspect of running this podcast in 2022. We just kicked off round 1 of our Pen Pals Club which, as you can guess, some of the past co-hosts are actually participating, which means you can personally connect with these very introspective, kind, and open-hearted people. If you enjoy the questions that are asked on the podcast, you’d be a perfect fit for our Pen Pals Club! Find the link in the show notes or on the instagram page @dontbestrangers! We’d love to have you!

And last but not least, while I’m setting my intentions on building this community — I’d be so honored if you could share your favorite episode of this podcast with a friend or two whom you think would appreciate the topics discussed. I’m also dreaming of a way where I can easily accept submissions for featuring works and instagram posts from the community so that it becomes more of a platform that even you, the listener, can use to find inspiration and share your own light.

So with all that said, I’m so stoked to introduce you to my friend Sana from the Netherlands. We met primarily through my IG lives when I was hosting these “office hours” for creating art early on during the pandemic. While I didn’t know too much about her besides our warm small conversations over my sketchbook, I loved her vibrant energy. And as you’ll hear during our conversation, I was really pleasantly surprised when I received her application to co-host because it meant that I’d have exactly this conversation to see her “face-to-face” for the very first time, to learn more about her and from her, and to really make this new friend whom I’d already been very loosely chatting with through text for over a year. My first impression of Sana is that she’s so vibrant and zesty and a little sassy but in a very playful and refreshing manner.

We laughed SO much during this conversation and I’m so excited for you to dig into these topics with us which includes:

What we learned from 2021 and our word for 2022
New mediums we want to try as Creative Chimeras
Sana’s daily habits
How she found her best friend
This idea of “Life Goes On” (as loosely inspired by BTS)

And with that, please meet Sana...

[ SHOW NOTES 🎉]

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Co-Host: Tiffany Phan @ti_phanny | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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Xmas Special! 🎄🐥🐈‍⬛🐕 Fam Reunion w the hubs + my lil sis! First impressions, Chinese Media, and Public Astrology Apology! (BONUS)
Xmas Special! 🎄🍵🫖 Spilling Some Tea w the hubs! 🙄 Digital Nomad Drama + sorry, I’m aromantic 💔

Hi! You’re listening to episode 12 of Don't Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations for learning from friends and strangers alike on how to create agency in your life and deepen your connections with everyone you meet. As we’re coming to a close on 2021, I’m super excited to say that this is the last of my backlogged episodes from my beta test trail this year which will allow me to start 2022 fresh!!

Speaking of the New Years — have you joined our Pen Pals Club yet? Since this is round 1 of this monthly series of digital pen pals, I’m extending the opt-in date for Jan until end of day Friday Dec 31! Every month, you’ll receive a journal prompt (inspired by questions discussed on the podcast) which you will ponder and answer in an email to someone else in the group. What’s really fun and unique about this pen pals community compared to others is that everyone will be lined in a circle (instead of being exclusively paired) so you’ll personally connect with 2 others within the community, someone you write to and someone who writes to you. If this piques your interest, hurry and sign up before the turn of the year so you’ll be on the mailing list! And who knows — maybe I’ll get paired to send or receive a response to you! I’d honestly love that.

So, today I’m speaking with Tiffany, a fellow Asian American whom I met in Oaxaca, Mexico thanks to the digital nomad group Wifi Tribe. Honestly, thinking back on it, I kinda wish I had spoken to Tiff earlier during our 4-week stay together because this girl is so cool. I’m just grateful that we had the chance to have such a soulful conversation here on this podcast because in this conversation we cover (1) our favorite feelings and sensory experiences, (2) our creative goals and processes, (3) K-pop and the rise of Asian representation in Hollywood, (4) growing up Chinese in Dallas vs NYC, and (5) judgement vs curiosity in response to Black Lives Matter and Stop Asian Hate. And... if you stick till the very end, I’ll share a funny mis-adventure Tiff and I shared about a week after the recording of this podcast during our time together in Oaxaca.

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE ]

Anyways, as always, if you have thoughts you’d like to share about anything we talked about — please swing by the instagram page @dontbestrangers ! That’s also where you’ll find the link to sign up for our pen pals club, Tiff’s instagram account if you’d like to connect with her, and my personal instagram if you want to reach out! And... if you’re listening to this in real time, happy soon-to-be New Years and... don’t be a stranger!

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Come Say Hi! 👋🏼 @dontbestrangers

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Pen Pals Club - Sign Up for Jan 2022!! 📮
Xmas Special! 🎄🐥🐈‍⬛🐕 Fam Reunion w the hubs + my lil sis! First impressions, Chinese Media, and Public Astrology Apology! (BONUS)

Welcome back to another Xmas special on this podcast Don't Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations for learning from friends and strangers alike on how to create agency in your life and deepen your connections with everyone you meet. This is yet another experimental off-format episode, but I posted a screenshot of this really direct text response to this dude in my instagram stories and my friends all reached out to send me love. Some asked for more context... and while I am normally not someone who ever feels the need to bother others with my personal problems... I’ve really been digging into this idea of vulnerability and authenticity.

If you're new here, the normal episodes run as chill conversations between me and a co-host about any topic of our choosing. But today... I'm spilling some tea on drama that occurred the last weekend I was out of town in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. The irony of all this is that all of these events occurred as I was editing and publishing the last Xmas special episode where I had a blast of a conversation with my husband and my sister... and I was sort of using that episode to dispel the bad vibes from the events of what we'll speak about on this episode...

[Full Show Notes Here]

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Co-Host: Megan Warren | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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Hello and welcome back to Don't Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations for learning from friends and strangers alike on how to create agency in your life and deepen your connections with everyone you meet. My name's XinYi, and I want to thank everyone who participated in the official launch giveaway! If you have an extra 2 minutes this holiday season and would like to support for free, please consider sharing this show with a friend you love, signing up for the newsletter, and/or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. That would be the most amazing Christmas gift ever.

Speaking of which, did you get to listen to the bonus early-Christmas special episode with my hubs and sis? It was absolute chaos but as it is an off-format experimental episode, I'd adore some feedback which you can send my way on the @dontbestrangers instagram page!

With all that out of the way, I want to introduce to you Megan Warren the co-host of today's podcast. I met Megan via a mutual in Wifi Tribe and... if you haven't been following along in the episodes, Wifi Tribe is a group of digital nomads who travel together to work remotely from destinations around the world. And if this piques your interest, you can listen to episode 8 where I chat with my Oaxaca, Mexico Wifi Tribe host Joe.

You know when you meet someone who has absolute exuberance for life and what they're creating or contributing to the world? Well, Megan, gave me exactly those vibes. She's an example of someone who really created agency in her own life. We dug into (1) travel as a form of escapism, (2) how people end up unconsciously making fear-based decisions, (3) why we cave into peer pressure, (4) how I overcame a horrible friend breakup, and (5) authentic self connection. So this is Megan...

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE ]

And if any of the personal development stuff resonates with you — I actually wrote a Life Vision Guide eBook during my time in Mexico. The context for this is that within Wifi Tribe, we're encouraged to give a skillshare session and, as you may have noticed, I'm super passionate about the subject of living for yourself. As I've spent quite a number of years consuming different resources and trying out different life hacks, I decided to compile all the books, podcasts, blog articles, etc. into my little personal 4-week course for you to define your life vision to really figure out what you want from life in one little 1-hour read eBook. If I've piqued your interest, I'll link Your Life Vision Guide my eBook in the shownotes and you can check it out! It'll also be a great way to wrap up 2021 and kick off 2022 in a really fantastic way! Until next time... don't be a stranger!

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Co-Host: Hubs (from episode 1) + Sis (from episode 3) | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

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Hi~ this is XinYi and the host of this podcast Don't Be Strangers, a series of collaborative conversations for learning from friends and strangers alike on how to create agency in your life and deepen your connections with everyone you meet. As of officially launching this podcast with my 10th episode released with Kyle of What Kind of Asian Are You Pod, I'm celebrating with a $100 Amazon Giftcard Giveaway which was supposed to end EOD today, but I decided that as I haven't had a chance to announce it on a podcast episode, I'll extend it by 4 days so that those listening now still have a chance if this is the first time you're hearing of it (EOD Thursday 9th of December, 2021). You can find all the details linked in the bio of the instagram @dontbestrangers ! Also, if you've been listening and enjoying in general, I'd love for you to help celebrate by subscribing to the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and leaving a review OR simply sharing these conversations with a friend whom you know would appreciate some deep conversations.

Speaking of December and the holiday season, this is a bonus early-Christmas special episode which I've dubbed FamRe short of Family Reunion because it's the first time I'm having 2 guests at once, my husband (featured in ep 1) and my sister (featured in ep 3). It's not necessary to listen to those two episodes for context but it'd probably would help a little bit so pick your own adventure, listen to those first or not, and boy if that little intro snippet wasn't any indicator, it's always a blast with my two favorite people. The two big topics we cover will be first impressions of each person to everyone else and the emergence of Chinese media in Western pop culture. Yes, we only covered 2 topics in this hour because we're all very wordy but... I think it'll make you laugh a lot because it made me laugh a lot. It's a really raw episode that can get a little emotional at times but overall, I hope that it'll bring you a little bit of joy this holiday season.

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE ]

At the end of the day, my mission is to fight social isolation and help people deepen and create authentic relationships because of the importance of the role of having a strong social network and how it ties into health, happiness, and longevity. If you believe in these things, too, you might want to consider coming on to co-host an episode. The application is always open to you and anyone of any background is welcomed to apply!

Or if you're not so much into the idea of coming on to talk, you can always connect with past co-hosts via our instagram OR even better, join our Pen Pals Club which will connect you with the larger community! All that and more on the instagram so I really hope I can catch you over there! Let's keep this conversation going and I invite you to tell me if you check out any of the shows we mention or if you have any opinions about how you get along with your siblings.... write to me. Sending you so much love, and until next time... don't be a stranger!

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Co-Host: Kyle Leung (host of @whatkindofasianpod) | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Hi! I can't believe that we're already at episode 10 of Don't Be Strangers!

I'm XinYi, and I started this series of collaborative conversations to learn from friends and strangers alike for how to create agency in your life and deepen your connections with everyone you meet. Before we jump into the meat of the topic, I want to remind you that early sign ups for the Pen Pal community that I'm trying to build is still open and you can find the link to sign up on the instagram page @dontbestrangers. I'm extremely stoked for this community because it'll allow the listeners (AKA you) to directly connect with past co-hosts as well as with each other!

Each month you'll be sent a prompt inspired by questions from the podcast which you will answer and send to someone else within the club. This club will be a whole-community experience because instead of mutual 1-1 pairings, everyone will be ordered in a circle so you'll feel part of the bigger whole... who you send to will be different from who you receive from! Every month, get connected to 2 new friends. And because I'm providing the the prompt which you know you already find interesting (because you listen to this podcast), you can skip the small talk and dive straight into the deep stuff... Again, if I've piqued your interest, you can find the details for signing up on the @dontbestrangers instagram page.

With that out of the way... today I'm chatting with a fellow podcaster named Kyle who runs What Kind of Asian Podcast, a podcast series dedicated to exploring and telling the stories of the Asian diaspora. He's been running his passion project for over a year with over 50 episodes out, and I am so honored that he lended me some of his time so that we can bring you this episode!

Through a single conversation with Kyle, my first impressions of him are that he's extremely thoughtful, expressed in both the way he asks questions as well as the way he perceives his introspectiveness. Highlights of this conversation includes... (1) activities that we do that makes us feel most authentically ourselves, (2) the inner world of an introvert, (3) my happiest memory with my family, (4) Kyle's strategy for making big decisions in life without over-worrying, and (5) the real reason behind his decision to move to Toronto. So this is Kyle!

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS + SHOW NOTES 🎉 CLICK HERE]

You can check out Kyle's podcast @whatkindofasianpod on instagram. If you're a fellow Asian who grew up in non-Asian context, you'll probably find these vignettes extremely inspiring and interesting. When I listened to a few of his episodes, I definitely thought to myself, "wow, I wished I had access to these conversations while I was growing up." And even if you're not Asian but simply into culture and people, it's worth taking a listen to!

And don't forget to take a look at the Pen Pals Club information on the @dontbestrangers instagram page if you might be interested. It's also the page to go to if you want to show your support, leave some feedback, and/or apply to come on to co-host an episode! We can chat about anything you'd like and it's just a very chill conversation. Hope to keep in touch with you over instagram... and as always, don't be a stranger! Let's catch up again soon.

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Co-Host: Abhas Misraraj @abhasmisraraj | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Hi! You're listening to episode 9 of Don't Be Strangers, and I'm your host XinYi. This is a series of collaborative conversations that focuses on learning from friends and strangers alike on how to create agency in your life and deepen your connections with everyone you meet. Today's conversation was an absolute blast re-living because the co-host is my creative chimera brother Abhas who is helping me to co-create a community for fellow creatives like us.

The story of how we met is a little unlikely because years ago, I recorded an episode with Aileen for her podcast called The Lavendaire Lifestyle and it was through this episode that Abhas actually found and followed my account. I have this habit of occasionally dm'ing strangers who are lurking in my instagram stories just to say hi and thank them for their support and.... that's how Abhas and I met. From years of anonymity to suddenly exchanging voice and video clips at the cusp of my 5-week trip to Chicago where Abhas happened to be based at the time... that's how we ended up meeting in-person and sparked a very special kind of friendship.

He's an absolute joy to speak with and has such a big heart — get ready as we dive into topics such as (1) his dream home, (2) our shared struggles of wanting to build a place to call our own while simultaneously wanted to disown everything to travel the world, (3) his life changing trip as a solo traveler, (4) how our art has changed based on our personal growth journey, and (5) reframing anxiety as excitement to overcome the fear of public speaking. So this is Abhas describing a little bit about himself...

[TIMESTAMPS & HIGHLIGHTS LINKED HERE]

Thank you sincerely again Abhas, for our weekly check-in calls that are so so so nourishing for my soul. It's something akin to having a life-coach / therapy because you're just so introspective and intuitive — I feel very lucky to have a brother like you in my life.

Last but not least — I mentioned in the last episode that I'm trying to expand this community by developing a pen pal club to accompany this passion project. The little one-liner I settled on is:

The Don’t Be Strangers ✨☺️ Pen Pal Club is a whole-community experience supported by life enthusiasts seeking deeper friendships (hello, is this you? 👀).

Join our community to…

connect with like-minded and adventurous friends 💭
participate in monthly journal prompts 📓 (inspired by questions explored in the podcast!)
learn, practice, and develop genuine and profound connections

If I've piqued your interest and you want to find out more or sign up for the email list that will notify you when this pen pal community goes live — you can find the link in both the show notes and on the @dontbestrangers instagram page where you are always more than welcomed to leave feedback, meet other cool humans, and just drop by for the good vibes. Until next time, ciao from Playa del Carmen, Mexico and remember — don't be a stranger!

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Co-Host: Joe Santini @savagesantini | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Annnd we're back with episode 8 of Don't be Strangers. My name's XinYi and this is a series of collaborative conversations that focuses on sharing and learning about alternative ways to create agency in your life while manifesting deeper connections with everyone you meet. So in the last few episodes, I've mentioned that I would be doing an extended stay in Mexico for 2.5 months... well I'm recording this on my very last week of the first leg of my trip in the beautiful city of Oaxaca. And this episode is extra special because the guest is the host of our little coworking nomad group here.

This is the first time that I've ever joined a coworking nomad group and I could not have imagined a more empathetic, fun-loving, open minded, and caring host as Joe. This experience definitely wouldn't have been the same without him and you're about to find out why... We cover topics such as the (1) magic of journaling: how it's helped him capture experiences such that he can essentially time travel into his own memories, recognize patterns and behaviors, and overcoming a break up, (2) is anything truly frivolous or pointless?, (3) fomo (AKA the fear of missing out) and how it plays into travel, (4) a memoir he's currently writing, and (5) advice my future self would give me today. So this is Joe...

[ FULL TIMESTAMPS HERE ]

So before I forget, I mentioned something something about an extension to the podcast project involving handwritten notes. I have always wanted to facilitate a pen pal community of some sort so... so I'm in the middle of manifesting it. The differentiator between this pen pal community and others out there is that you'll receive a monthly postcard designed by me with a thought-provoking prompt inspired by one of the episodes on this podcast, you'll fill out that postcard and forward it to someone in the group. In this way, it's not a huge time commitment because the postcard will limit the amount you write (although you can certainly write more if you'd like), the nature of the project naturally vets for and connects you with people who you already know are into interesting conversation topics because they like such prompts/this podcast, and to top it all off you get monthly designs and a handwritten card. This is still a work in progress but I'd love love love to hear what your thoughts are.

Speaking of which, feedback, comments, and discussions always welcomed in this community. Free to shoot a dm or leave a public comment and start a thread @dontbestrangers on instagram! As anyone of any background can apply to come on to co-host an ep, this is my invitation to you to consider applying! Or if you know anyone who appreciates deep conversations or loves making friends, you should consider nominating them to come on the show!

Thank you again Joe for making my experience in Oaxaca so absolutely memorable and I'm excited to see you again in Playa del Carmen. If you'd like to get in touch with him to discuss more about journaling best practices or dig a bit into any of the topics we touched, you can find his contact linked in the show notes or on instagram at @savagesantini! Or if you want a personal introduction, remember that you can always just reach out, and don't be a stranger! Let's talk again soon. ✨

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Co-Host: Winnie Storey @skinniwini | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Welcome back to episode 7 of Don't Be Strangers, a podcast and social experiment for learning to create meaningful connections together via collaborative conversations! My name's XinYi and every episode is co-hosted by a friend or stranger (or stranger-turns-friend). In this episode, I'm speaking with @skinniwinni of instagram, whom graciously volunteered to co-host this episode as my second ever stranger to come on. I adored this conversation with Winnie because we hit on so many really interesting topics as well as the way that our shared cultural Chinese background influences these experiences.

As always, I try to give a little personal introduction as well as ask each guest to give an introduction so you can see two perspectives on the same person. After talking with Winnie for an hour, I'd describe her as a heroine for immigrating from Hong Kong to America at the cusp of entering 9th grade, which is an especially fragile time in anyone's life to make a transition — especially one as dramatic as her's. She's extremely thoughtful and astute, as observed through her open-ness to share her personal struggles with clinical depression and her resolve to heal her own trauma by dedicating herself to a life of self-studying psychology. But the conversation is definitely not all serious, gloom, and doom. Winnie shares her pro-tips for how to refine your search when deciding on a new city to move to (hint: it has something to do with H-mart's, a Korean supermarket chain), we talk about my favorite book The Art of Travel by Alain de Botton, and her obsession with colors and rainbows, all sprinkled with generous amounts of laughter and serotonin. I will place a trigger warning here, as advised by my friend Hajar. There is no explicit mention of suicide, but I do share some negative self-talk that I mull over whenever I personally dip into a depressive funk.

But as always, I'll have timestamps in my shownotes if you want to jump around and listen to the gem's of her immigration story or our discussion of the topic of strangers...

[Full Index & Timestamps - Click Here]

And I love that Winnie emphasized this idea of self acceptance throughout her story. It's something that I'm always working on. In fact, just this past week, I've been dealing with a lot of stress which was starting to burn me out. And as I mentioned in the conversation, whenever I start feeling tired, it's inevitable that I also begin to feel sad. But I somehow managed to kick my butt into doing something to distract myself, and what I ended up doing was editing this podcast. Re-living this conversation was just the prescription I needed to uplift myself.

So Winnie, if you're listening to this, thank you sincerely again for being as vulnerable as you were with someone whom you had just met as we were recording live. Your story is truly an inspiration, and I will be referring back to it, every time I feel down.

As a general life update, Winnie has indeed officially moved to Texas!! I'm so excited for her! And I'm actually flying out to Mexico in under a week. I am so nervous....

As always, feedback, comments, and discussions always welcomed in this community. Free to shoot a dm or leave a public comment and start a thread @dontbestrangers on instagram! As anyone of any background can apply to come on to co-host an ep, this is my invitation to you to consider applying! Or if you know anyone who appreciates deep conversations or loves making friends, you should totally consider introducing us!

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Co-Host: Elan @lano.illo | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Shop Elan’s Prints!! https://lanostudiostore.bigcartel.com

Hey! You're listening to episode 6 of Don't Be Strangers, a podcast and social experiment for learning to create meaningful connections together via collaborative conversations! I'm your host XinYi and in this episode, we're chatting with my creative chimera sister Elan who describes herself as a life enthusiast and lover of colors. We had rainchecked the recording of this episode at least 2 times due to travel and moving schedules, so I'm so grateful we finally made it happen.

I was personally really ecstatic about this conversation because I met Elan through instagram after a mutual friend of ours, Amy, featured her. Her art, poster design skills, intuition for pop color palettes, and illustration skills are to be envied. When I reached out to ask for an art collaboration, I had no idea it would lead to recording this podcast episode together. So albeit this isn't the first time we've communicated, it was definitely the first time I spoke to her in real time and over video. And we talked a lot.. like for almost 3 hours straight. So yeah, I have a lot of editing ahead of me. Highlights of our upcoming chat includes (1) how she pivoted from studying neuroscience to a career in design, fresh out of school (2) my favorite sensory experiences that make life colorful such as scents, visuals, textures, etc. (3) if Elan was a secondary character, who would she pick to be the protagonist? (4) a potential method for overcoming imposter syndrome and (5) what quarantine revealed about her friendships and long distance relationship.

[TIMESTAMPS & HIGHLIGHTS - CLICK HERE]

Man, it's conversations like these that makes my heart ache for the existence of teleportation. Like why don't we live closer? But in any case, how would you answer some of the questions that Elan proposed to me? Feel free to shoot a dm or leave a public comment and start a community thread @dontbestrangers on instagram! And don't forget, anyone of any background can apply to come on to chat. Or if you know anyone who appreciates deep conversations or loves making friends, you should totally consider introducing us!

I'll link Elan's art in the show notes, but you can also directly connect with her on instagram via @lano.illo! Or if you want a personal introduction, just reach out, and don't be a stranger! Let's speak again soon.

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Co-Host: Anthony “Doza” Mendoza @dozaleprince | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

All of Doza’s Socials & Links: https://linktr.ee/dozaleprince

Welcome back to Don't Be Strangers, a podcast and social experiment for learning to create meaningful connections together via collaborative conversations! My name's XinYi, and this is a huge milestone episode for me because when I started the project, knowing who I am and my propensity to be suddenly struck with a lightning bolt of an idea, fall madly in love with it, begin working on said idea feverishly like I'm possessed, then proceed to fall horribly out of love with it — I had promised myself to produce at least 5 episodes before seeing if I want to continue or to set aside this project. Well, this is episode 5, and I have about 8 more recordings scheduled in the next month or so... so I don't think I'll be stopping any time soon.

The other reason why this episode is incredibly special is because this is the first true episode I recorded with an actual stranger. I had made a public post announcement in a Facebook group asking for co-hosts and Anthony Mendoza or "Doza" as we refer to him in this ep, graciously volunteered. I was super nervous, lol, but ultimately, it was super fun! In this conversation, we talk about (1) what villains we would want to be vs what villains we would most be like, (2) Doza's creative process as a rapper, (3) what we're currently struggling with in life, (4) the moment I realized I was old, and (5) is it better to be single or to be married, especially if you're really trying to focus on your career?

Full Questions & Highlights [ Timestamp Index ] * Linked Here

And that's the scoop! As always, if you have any thoughts on anything we talked about, feel free to shoot a dm or leave a public comment and start a community thread @dontbestrangers on instagram! As the goal of this podcast is to simply narrow the gap between all of us as fellow humans, anyone of any background can apply to come on to chat. Which means, yes, you too can apply to co-host an episode! Or if you know anyone who appreciates deep conversations or loves making friends, you should totally consider introducing us to each other!

I'll link all of Doza's socials and music in the show notes, but can also directly reach out to him via instagram at his account @dozaleprince! Let's connect again soon, and remember, don't be a stranger. :')

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Co-Host: Claire Petersen @byclairep | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Claire photography portfolio: @shotbyclairep / www.clairepetersen.com

Hellooo, it's so good to catch up again. Today I'm sharing episode 4 of Don't Be Strangers, a podcast and social experiment for learning to create meaningful connections together via collaborative conversations! My name's XinYi, and the way this works is that anyone of any background can apply to come on and chat with me about anything under the sun. The goal is to simply narrow the gap between all of us as fellow humans. Today we're chatting with my Berlin-based Irish friend Claire, whom is I met in New York City thanks to the power of YouTube. Highlights of our conversation includes (1) The Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin — a personality analysis of how you deal with internal and external expectations which is very useful for understanding why there can be disagreements or tension, (2) Claire's secret to not burning out as she attempts to turn her photography hobby into a business (3) Is the 40 hour work week actually effective, productive, and sustainable? (4) What living in Berlin is actually like and why does Claire adore it so much?, and (5) success defined as "doing what you said you'd do, with ease..." As usual, I'll include all the timestamps and more in the show notes, so let's jump to it!

CLICK HERE FOR FULL HIGHLIGHTS & TIMESTAMPED INDEX

I swear that Claire is my secret twin sister because sometimes we still read each other's minds... even when we haven't spoken in over two years! Do you have any friends like this? Please feel free to shoot a dm or leave a public comment and start a community thread @dontbestrangers on instagram to share your your thoughts about the conversation or any feedback you'd like to give! Speaking of which, since starting to introduce each of the co-hosts, as per feedback from episode 1 with my husband, I'd love to know if it's been too extra that I both introduce the guest and ask them to introduce themselves? Or how do you feel?

And thank you for the overwhelming support I've gotten thus far because my initial goal was to produce 5 episodes, so I could get a feel of whether this was a project I wanted to keep longterm. And I think as of right now, I have scheduled enough conversations that I can produce 10 episodes. So truly, thank you from the bottom of my heart, and this is your reminder that you, too, can apply to co-host an episode! And if you know anyone who would appreciate these conversations or loves making friends and building community, it would be amazing if you could share the podcast and help make a few introductions!

Speaking of introductions, you can also say hi to Claire via @byclairep / @shotbyclairep on instagram where you can find her gorgeous portrait photography works & remember, don't be a stranger. :- ) I can't wait to chat again soon~

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Co-Host: Mei (Xinyi’s little sister) | Host: Xinyi @xinyixan

Hello~ Thanks for joining me for episode 3 of Don't Be Strangers, a podcast and social experiment for learning to create meaningful connections together via collaborative conversations! The way this works is that anyone of any background can apply to come on and chat with me about anything they want. The goal is to raise awareness of social isolation and to narrow the gap between all of us as humans. Today I have a very special guest because it's my one and only favorite little sister. I feel very fortunate that I have such a tight relationship with my sibling because I know it's not a universally shared experience. We recorded this podcast kind of spontaneously because we were having one of our usual conversations this morning, and I suddenly turned to her and said something along the lines of: "ok stop talking, we need to record this so it can go on my podcast."

And I think it's perfect because I got feedback from episode 1 that maybe I should have given more of an introduction of myself so this will be the ultimate introduction as my sister will lovingly roast me by describing 1. what a bad older sister I was as a child, 2. how our relationship developed and was strengthened with age and maturity, 3. a really thorough astrology breakdown of me, her, and my husband including a relationship analysis between all three of us (don't worry, she gives an 101 introductory crash course so the conversation shouldn't be too hard to follow even for an astrology newbie like me) and 4. her sharing some really entertaining and vivid dreams which will also paint a picture to you of what my mornings look like.

Quick notes here, 1. she does cuss maybe 2-3 times so just FYI if you have any sensitivity to that sort of thing and 2. we've been told that we have pretty similar voices so hopefully the conversation won't be too hard to follow....

[index of conversation highlights + timestamps here]

And we cut it off there because honestly we can talk for hours about absolutely nothing and everything. Yes, I'm aware that I totally forgot to ask her the key question of, "how do you define a stranger and how does one transition from being one to not?" but I'm obviously extremely flawed, so I'm just going to forgive myself on this and keep moving forward. Maybe, if you enjoyed this episode enough, I can bring her back on and remember to ask her next time. Or better yet, I can do a little family reunion episode where I get both her and the hubs together.

Anyways, as always, I'd love to hear if you had any thoughts, as you can always shoot a dm or leave a public comment and start a community thread @dontbestrangers on instagram! So I'd love to know, do you care about astrology or personality typing? If so, what are your signs? What are your favorite personality tests and how have they helped you? And it would be an honor if you know anyone else who is passionate about having deep conversations or community building, if you could connect us! Or if you're feeling adventurous, you are always welcomed to apply to co-host an episode yourself! And with that.... ciao!

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Co-Host: Arty Braud @artybraud | Host: Xinyi Xan @xinyixan

Arty’s portfolio + website: https://www.artyb.art

Hi, I hope that you're having a good day and I want to thank you for making me/us part of your day? This is episode 2 of Don't Be Strangers, a podcast and social experiment for learning to create meaningful connections together via collaborative conversations! The way this works is that anyone of any background can apply to come on and chat with me about anything they want. The goal is to raise awareness of social isolation and to narrow the gap between all of us as humans. Today, I'm talking with my friend Arty (I hope it's ok that I call you that if you're listening, because he told me that only his close friends call him that but... LOL). I got some feedback from episode one and people were insisting on an introduction of some sort of the co-host, so I'm going to be super extra and not only introduce him from my point of view, but also ask him to introduce himself!

So, I met Arty in Chicago May of 2021 (so pretty recently if you're listening in real time) via this FB group called Asian Creative Network. I was spending 5 weeks out there which is pretty long for a nomad like me so I felt like I needed to establish some friendships so... I just searched the term "Chicago" in said FB group and dm'd anyone who had ever mentioned Chicago in a post or comment up to 3 years back asking for local recommendations as I'd just moved to town. So yeah, that's how Arty & I started speaking and we've only met twice in person and today's conversation will actually be the 3rd time we've ever talked and we cover a lot. It was really apparent to me from our first meet up which was an urban hike through the Boystown neighborhood that took upwards of 2-3 hours, and I was so intrigued because he's a multi-disciplinary artist who does it all, has a free nomadic soul that I completely relate to, and thinks about things profoundly. Highlights of this upcoming conversation includes (1) an analogy of why it isn't healthy to draw all your energy from one thing or hobby similar to how you shouldn't depend solely on one person, (2) upcoming travel plans to California and an extended work from home situation in Mexico, (3) Arty's potential future business plan for a creative space in Chicago, (4) my top cities I've traveled to and what is the commonality between them, and (5) are we actually insane? I'll include all the timestamps and more in the show notes and if I've piqued your interest... here's Arty, introducing himself...

I am always so inspired when I meet people like Arty because they're just brimming with life and possibilities. As always, I'd love to hear if you had any thoughts on anything we touched on in the conversation. Please feel free to shoot a dm or leave a public comment and start a community thread @dontbestrangers on instagram! I will also link all of his socials in the show notes and associated instagram posts (if you want to reach out to him yourself) or I can always also totally make an introduction. Just reach out and don't be strangers.

Just as a reminder, anyone can apply to co-host an episode and if you were so gracious, I would love to hear your feedback or if you know anyone who is also passionate about making friends and community building, I would be floored if you said hi and/or even helped to make a few introductions. Thank you for being who you are and I just want to let you know that you make a positive impact on this world no matter how small it is, I promise you that you've most definitely changed someone's life. Until next time... let's talk again soon.

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Hi & welcome to episode 1 of Don't Be Strangers ✨☺️ a podcast and social experiment for learning to create meaningful connections together via collaborative conversations! Statistics show that (1) social isolation is on the rise and (2) the number of close friends someone would say that they have is decreasing. Considering that having a strong social network is one of the key factors in general happiness, overall health, and prolonged longevity, my hope is that this podcast will serve to bring awareness to the issue as well as provide a platform to start solving the problem, together!

My name is XinYi and I dreamt up this little experiment... and when I say experiment, I stress, this is a complete experiment because I fully intend to treat each episode as a test and learn and improve along the way. So I thought I'd start off easy and not put a lot of pressure on myself by asking someone whom I already knew that I adored having conversations with ... my husband, Joseph. I kind of forgot how wordy we both can be and it was made extremely apparent during the recording because I think we ended up recording close to 3 hours of content (which I was able to edit down to only 1 and a half hours?), so if you like long-format podcasts or if you listen to everything at 2x speed like me — I've got you covered! And to avoid making this any longer... let's just cut to it.

And that concludes our conversation! The point of this podcast is to encourage open and meaningful conversations so I'm very keen to know if you found any part of our conversation interesting or unconventional. Did you agree or disagree with anything? If so, why? This is your warm invitation from me to you to find the instagram post associated with this episode and to share your thoughts (I'll link them the show notes) OR if you feel so inspired... you can send a direct message to @dontbestrangers on instagram or email me at donotbestrangers@gmail.com and maybe potentially co-host a future episode with me? I know I would love to meet you.

Also, if you happen to know anyone who is passionate about community building, loves meeting new people, or simply enjoys listening to and participating in deep conversations — I'd be so honored if you could connect us. Again, you can reach out to me @dontbestrangers or email me at donotbestrangers@gmail.com or you can share this podcast with this loved one and see what they think!

So, thanks again if you've stuck around till the end here for sharing your time and energy with us! I hope something that we talked about made you laugh or smile at the very least and until next time, wishing you all the very best that life has to offer. ✨

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Don’t Be Strangers ✨☺️: Recent Episodes

Creative Chimera