Feeling Stuck? It's Time to Take Inventory of Your Life! >> Access our 'You Are' Here' Exercise Now
Looking for the Lessons and the Blessings in Every Experience
Rethinking Recovery with Jeff Jones: Beyond Black-and-White Thinking in Addiction Recovery - Ep. 102
DISCLOSURE: THIS POST MAY CONTAIN AFFILIATE LINKS, MEANING WE GET A SMALL COMMISSION IF YOU DECIDE TO MAKE A PURCHASE THROUGH OUR LINKS, AT NO COST TO YOU. PLEASE READ OUR DISCLOSURE FOR MORE INFO.
What if the way we think about things is part of the problem?
In this episode of Recounting Life Lessons, we're joined by Jeff Jones, coach, creator of The Family Recovery Solution, and former addiction professional. Jeff grew up in a family impacted by addiction and later worked inside the system designed to treat it—only to discover its deep limitations, stigmas, and blind spots. His personal and professional experiences inspired him to reimagine how families can become stronger than addiction by shifting mindsets, improving communication, and embracing curiosity instead of control.
This conversation goes far beyond addiction. You’ll walk away seeing how “both/and” curiosity thinking can open up new ways to approach challenges in your relationships, your mindset, and even the way you consume media and understand world issues.
Listen now if you care about finding real solutions to problems that matter
In this episode:
- Why traditional approaches to addiction and recovery often fall short—and what families can do differently
- How language, stigma, and shame can unintentionally limit healing and connection
- The power of "both/and curiosity thinking" to reduce black-and-white thinking and set the stage for more creative, compassionate solutions
- How shifting from judgment to curiosity transforms communication and relationships
- The ripple effect of applying these principles to your own mindset, your family, and even how you interpret media, politics, and world events
- How understanding multiple perspectives helps you grow, connect, and make more empowered choices in every area of your life.
Tune in if you've ever wished people could talk about hard things with more compassion and less blame
Resources Mentioned:
- Jeff's Website: The Family Recovery Solution
- Free 3 Step Guide to Disrupt Addiction: Get the Guide
- LinkedIn: Jeff Jones on LinkedIn
- Substack: JeffJones@substack.com
A FEW Takeaways & Golden nuggets of wisdom from this episode:
This episode was rich with insights, here are a few of them:
Golden Nugget 1: Choose Curiosity Over Blame
Blame narrows our vision, while curiosity expands it. When we stop trying to figure out who or what's at fault, and step back to allow ourselves to see what's really going on, we make room for new understanding and creative solutions to be realized.
Golden Nugget 2: Words Matter
The language we use has the power to heal or to harm. Words can keep people stuck in shame or help them think in more empowering ways. The way we talk about something shapes the way we and others think about it.
Golden Nugget 3: Embrace Both/And Thinking
The world isn't black and white. Two things can be true at the same time. When we let different perspectives challenge and expand our ways of seeing and thinking, it can help us move from opposition and division to understanding and solutions.
Golden Nugget 4: Capacity Matters
When we're stretched too think, overwhelmed, or in survival mode, our capacity to do something extra like overcome a bad habit or adopt a more empowering one shrinks. Take time to identify ways to increase that capacity or allow others to help you so you can afford to direct more of your time, energy, or resources to making lasting changes that matter most.
" I'm really trying to change the way we think about addiction, talk about addiction, and behave and take actions around addiction."
For an in-depth exploration of these takeaways and more, be sure to listen to the full episode below.
Ideas for applying these takeaways:
Want to apply these insights to your life? Here are some actionable steps you can take today:
- Start noticing when your critic shows up: Write down the negative self-talk and reframe it into a constructive or neutral statement. For example, replace "I'm not good enough" with "I'm learning and growing."
- Do something you love: Identify one activity this week that excites you for no other reason than that you enjoy it. Track how it makes you feel compared to a task you "have to" do.
- Assess your goals: Ask yourself, "If no one else knew or judged me, would I still want this?" Reassess your current goals and identify why you have them and which of them are truly things that you want.
- Reframe a responsibility: Take one recurring task you dread and reframe it: "I have to do laundry" can become "I get to care for my home and family today."
- Try logging: Take time to log the good, the wonderful, and the done throughout the day and make note of how you felt during those moments.
- Pay attention to how your inner critic shows up: Does your inner critic show up as self-criticism, playing small, settling, conforming, or putting everyone else's needs before your own? Awareness is the first step in quieting the critic and reframing the feedback it give you.
And for even more tips, be sure to grab a copy of Sue's book, Lose Your Inner Critic For Good.
Listen now to reframe obligations, discover what truly drives you, and create space for joy in your daily life
final thoughts:
At its core, this episode is really about helping us to learn how to expand our perspectives to see more clearly. It will help us to see more of the truth, more possibilities for solutions, and more humanity in others. Whether you're supporting someone in recovery, navigating a personal challenge, or just trying to make sense of the noise of the world we live in, these principles remind us of the impact of perception.
When we stay curious, use empowering language, make room for new perspectives, and we are mindful of our capacity, we can become people who see and come up with solutions where others only see problems
Stay tuned for more inspiring episodes as we and people from all walks of life share their experiences and we identify the lessons, blessings, and success principles that life is providing—lessons that we can all take advantage of and learn from if we pay attention.
If you're ready to step into your full potential, make sure to listen to the episode and share it with someone who could benefit from this powerful message. And don't forget to subscribe to Recounting Life Lessons and jump onto our Insider email list for more insights, actionable tips, and empowering stories.
We are Sione & Alana
Co-Hosts and Owners of
Recounting Life Lessons
We're a married couple from Hawaii who are now living in Vancouver, Washington.
Two things that we are passionate about are:
1) Uncovering the success principles and life lessons that help us all grow into our best selves.
Our favorite ways to uncover success principles and life lessons are by sharing stories from our own adventures and interviewing inspiring guests from all walks of life on our podcast.
2) Making personal growth and consistently leveling up in your life simple and sustainable, no matter what your circumstances are.
We take special care to craft the programs and resources we create, in a way, that keeps things simple and easy to follow-through on.
Through our blog, podcast, courses, and programs, we aim to empower you to grow into your best self, live with purpose, and make a meaningful impact on the world around you.
Create Your Plan to Make the next 12 Months Your Best Year Ever
Discover the ultimate guide for designing a clear vision, simplifying decision making, and implementing a 3 step-daily plan to make your top goal a reality.
Get Unstuck, Get Clarity, & Take Action
Discover the simple yet powerful framework for turning overwhelm into empowering actions
Unlock Insights for a Better Year Ahead
Grab this free guide to get key reflections for taking inventory of the last 12 month...
Master a New Habit in 100 Days
Grab this free tracker to help you build better habits to transform your life
Inspiration & life's lessons every week!
Join our Recounting Life Lessons community and receive a fresh dose of inspiration, personal insights, and practical takeaways every week. Through life's highs, lows, and everything in between, we share lessons that help you grow, reflect, and thrive. Sign up now to stay connected and uncover the wisdom in your own journey!
