What happens when you let philosophy escape the ivory tower and live in your body? Today's guest is Ximena, a Mexican eco-philosopher who ditched academic elitism for something far more dangerous: thinking as a radical act of love.

We get into why rationality alone made her chronically ill (yes, really), how capitalism hijacked our concept of time, and why resistance fueled by joy might be the only kind that lasts.

If you've tired of activism that depletes rather than sustains, this one's for you. We're philosophizing, asking the bigger questions, and as Ximena so eloquently states: making the intellectual visceral.

Key themes:

1. The Intellectual Turned Visceral

Philosophy often gets confused with being SUPER cerebral, but it’s actually something you FEEL in your entire body. When intellectual work moves through your whole system, that's when transformation actually happens!

2. Philosophy for Humans, Not Just Philosophers

Academia gatekeeps philosophy with intentional jargon, but philosophizing is just having conversations with deep curiosity. It LITERALLY means love of wisdom. You're already a philosopher ;)

3. Time, Capitalism, and the Productivity Trap

Capitalism hijacked time itself, turning it from cyclical and embodied into linear, scarce, and productive, something to optimize rather than experience. We've internalized this timeline so deeply that rest feels like rebellion, and it's legit killing us.

4. Resistance as Love

Resistance rooted only in anger mimics the systems it's trying to dismantle, but real sustained resistance grows from love and knowing what you're for. The long revolution happens when we build the spaces we want to see, making resistance an act of imagination and joy rather than just critique.

5. The Democratization of Knowledge as Radical Act

Philosophy trapped in universities serves power, but the tools of critical thinking are human capacities, not special skills reserved for people with degrees. Your questions are valid, your thinking is valuable, your philosophizing countssss!

Connect with Ximena (and join the next round of ROOTED IMPACT):

• Substack (Ximena Ximena + Tuhella)
• Instagram
• Velvet Philosophy Podcast

Connect with Chelsea:

💻 Website

☄️SUPERNOVA 5 spots left - DOORS CLOSE FEB 4TH!

🪐 Pitch Perfect - next round Spring 2026, get on the waitlist!

📲 Instagram 📲

☎️ Want to send a voice note to the podcast and have Chelsea answer you on air? Do so ⁠HERE⁠.

🫶 Don't forget to rate, review, and share in the group text. This podcast is free and ratings/reviews and shares are our currency.

🙌🏼 Want to contribute to IMNEO to show your appreciation (and keep us going?) Click HERE

It's time to breakup with watered-down content and instead, ask our people to rise with us.

In this episode, I announce the podcast rebrand (finally!), why I'm going all-in on 2-3 episodes per week, and what happens when you delete social apps from your phone for just ONE week. Spoiler: total clarity.

I dive deep into why Rosalía's Lux, Sinners, and Heated Rivalry are proof that audiences are STARVING for work that challenges them — and why we need to stop underestimating people's capacity to pay attention.

Plus: why "the more we are in the era of dopamine, the more I want the opposite" is my new creative north star, and how I'm building SUPERNOVA as a thinking lab where we synthesize obsessions into worldviews that actually move culture.

Snippets from this episode:

The podcast rebrand: After 8 years, I'm retiring "In My Non-Expert Opinion" because it was a shield I no longer need. I'm ready to own my voice, go full throttle, and podcast 2-3x/week.

Deleting social apps = instant brain space - I took the apps off my phone for one week and the clarity was WILD. Ideas landed, brain fog lifted, and I realized: why am I not treating online platforms like contract jobs instead of letting them scatter my attention 24/7?

Rosalía, Sinners, and Heated Rivalry are giving us credit to pay attention - These aren't light, bubblegum experiences. Rosalía dropped an album in 14 languages with the London Symphony Orchestra. Sinners demand you clock in to catch the symbolism. Heated Rivalry became a global phenomenon not because "the guys are hot," but because it shows radical intimacy and vulnerability on screen.

We connect through challenge, not just agreement - Rosalía didn't water down Lux for mass appeal; she asked us to rise with her. The most powerful connection happens when artists challenge us to expand our capacity.

"What is most personal is most universal" - Carl Rogers said it, and Heated Rivalry proves it. We're obsessed because we see ourselves in the yearning, the walls, the avoidance. When you dig into YOUR inner treasure chest and build a captivating world, people will leave their old ones behind to join you.

Question of the week: Why do we say "pay attention"?
Email me at team@chelseariffe.com or DM me @chelseariffe with your thoughts.

This episode is fueled by FOOTNOTES, my newsletter filled with rabbit holes, synthesis, questions and more.

Connect with Chelsea:

💻 Website

☄️SUPERNOVA 5 spots left - DOORS CLOSE FEB 4TH!

🪐 Pitch Perfect - next round Spring 2026, get on the waitlist!

📲 Instagram 📲

☎️ Want to send a voice note to the podcast and have Chelsea answer you on air? Do so ⁠HERE⁠.

🫶 Don't forget to rate, review, and share in the group text. This podcast is free and ratings/reviews and shares are our currency.

🙌🏼 Want to contribute to IMNEO to show your appreciation (and keep us going?) Click HERE

One of my besties Shelly and I pick up RIGHT where we left off from last episode. We talk at 1.5x speed, giggle and kick our feet like 14 year olds at a boyband concert, say "like" 4013 times, and get even further into the series that's causing a cultural phenomenon.

Some questions explored:

• What did we think of the absolute QUEENS in the show?
• Why does this all feel so REAL?
• What's the deal with situationships?
• What are the upsides and downsides of fandom, especially one this rabid?
• How can we use this joy to fuel change?

SEE YOU AT THE COTTAGE BABES.

Connect with Chelsea:

💻 Website

☄️SUPERNOVA 5 spots left - DOORS CLOSE FEB 4TH!

🪐 Pitch Perfect - next round Spring 2026, get on the waitlist!

📲 Instagram 📲

☎️ Want to send a voice note to the podcast and have Chelsea answer you on air? Do so ⁠HERE⁠.

🫶 Don't forget to rate, review, and share in the group text. This podcast is free and ratings/reviews and shares are our currency.

🙌🏼 Want to contribute to IMNEO to show your appreciation (and keep us going?) Click HERE