This episode contains adult subject matter and some listeners may be triggered by this content. Listener discretion is advised.
In this episode, we explore what lingers when success on the outside doesn’t touch what feels unsettled within. It is possible to meet every expectation, build the life others admire, and still find ourselves searching for something more.
We spend time with the difference between achievement and meaning, and how easily the two become confused. The focus turns to creativity, connection, and the kind of joy that grows from within rather than from accomplishment alone.
Dr. Agnieszka Piotrowska
Dr. Agnieszka Piotrowska is a filmmaker, academic and certified life coach whose work unpacks the invisible stories people carry, particularly those who appear outwardly successful but wrestle with anxiety, isolation or a lingering sense of unfinished business. Through The Scholars’ Mentor, her platform for coaching and mentoring, she supports international PhD students and accomplished professionals in reclaiming their voice and direction through honest conversation, creative exploration and a clear-eyed view of what is really going on beneath the surface.
Her practice is grounded in academic rigour and lived experience, with a PhD in psychoanalysis, a career directing emotionally charged documentaries, and years spent mentoring creatives and researchers through complex transitions. Her background includes BBC training, award-winning films such as Married to the Eiffel Tower, and leadership roles across universities in Europe and Africa. Moving between roles as filmmaker, professor, coach and critic, she challenges the shallow optimism often found in coaching spaces and offers a path that makes room for discomfort, depth and growth on your own terms.
Dr. Agnieszka's Resources
The Jōrni Resources
https://thejornipodcast.com for show notes
https://thejorniblog.com for more holistic healing and mental health resources
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