Monster Baby: A Curious Romp Through the Worlds of Mindfulness and Improvisation
Episodes
Monster Baby Episode #109 A Story for Everything with Corey Rosen
01 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What if storytelling isn’t about performance—but about helping meaning emerge? Monster Baby co-hosts Ted and Lisa welcome back dear friend, storyt...
Monster Baby #108 Saying Yes to Shanghai — Saying Maybe to AI
18 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What do we gain, and what do we lose, when we say yes? After a long Monster Baby stretch apart, Ted and Lisa begin by catching up and acknowledging th...
Monster Baby #107 Getting Engaged
10 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What does it mean to be engaged? Big news from Monster Baby land: Lisa got engaged! For Episode, #107 she and Ted take the opportunity to explore just...
Monster Baby #106 The Eyes Have It
13 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How often do YOU hold eye contact? Why or why not? If you’re like Ted and Lisa of the Monster Baby Podcast, there’s a lot there—for both mindful...
Monster Baby #105 Kickin’ It Back Up!
14 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What’s been cooking in Ted and Lisa’s improv and mindfulness kitchen over this last while? It’s been a few months since the Monster Baby crew ga...
Monster Baby #104 Clanging! (A Conversation with Dion Flynn and Josh Radnor)
08 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How does a “silly verbal tennis match” become a profound spiritual practice? Inspired by the intro “Clanging” game they played on the immedi...
Monster Baby #103 You Contain Multitudes (Considering Identity)
21 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Who are you? Answering that question well may require more angles than we usually think of. After starting with a delightful new game (“Clanging”,...
Monster Baby #102 The Joy of Collective Imagination: A Conversation with Dan Klein
01 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s so fun to make stuff up together! That’s one of the truths that Ted and Lisa uncover in conversation with their dear friend, Dan Klein, maste...
Monster Baby #101 RE: Relaxation
17 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What if we put relaxation first? Inspired by mindfulness practitioner Bill Morgan’s book, “The Meditator’s Dilemma,” Ted and Lisa explore the...
Monster Baby #100 Celebrating the 100th Episode!
18 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Time for a celebration and retrospective—Monster Baby reaches 1oo episodes! Welcome to the party, people—Monster Baby has reached a milestone! In ...
Monster Baby #99 Freestyle Life Supreme (A Conversation with Larry Dorsey, Jr.)
06 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Rhythm and improvised poetry can lift the highs and heal the lows. For Monster Baby Podcast episode #99, Ted and Lisa link up with San Francisco frees...
Monster Baby #98 Coming Home
22 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What makes a home “home”? Sparked by Lisa’s move into a new apartment, she and Ted consider the many elements that go into feeling at home. The ...
Monster Baby #97 Inner Voices (a conversation with Kat Koppett)
30 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Making friends with inner voices can be fun—and healing. For Monster Baby episode #97, Ted and Lisa are joined by fellow Applied Improvisor Kat Kopp...
Monster Baby #96 Ensemble! A Conversation with Dan O’Connor, Part Two
24 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Good ensemble members make great humans. Continuing a conversation from the previous Monster Baby episode, Ted and Lisa chat more with improvisor and ...
Monster Baby #95 Ensemble! A Conversation with Dan O’Connor, Part One
24 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
A good ensemble can cure the loneliness blues. For Monster Baby episode #95, come join Ted and Lisa for Part 1 of their conversation with improvisor a...
Monster Baby #94 Your Story, Well Told: A Conversation with Corey Rosen, Part Two
31 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
You’ve got great stories to tell—want some tips for sharing ‘em? In part two of his conversation with Lisa and Ted, improvisor, storyteller and ...
Monster Baby #93 Your Story, Well-Told: A Conversation with Corey Rosen, Part One
31 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What’s more compelling than a well-told story? For Monster Baby episode, #93, Ted and Lisa join improvisor, storyteller, and recently published auth...
Monster Baby #92 Lisa Had a Baby!
16 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Things are different now. It’s been a while since the last Monster Baby Podcast episode but we had good reason for the delay: Lisa had a baby! In Ep...
Monster Baby #91 The Joy of Little Things
13 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Good things come in small packages. That’s especially true if we pay attention to their beauty and impact. In Monster Baby Episode #91, Ted and Lisa...
Monster Baby #90 Gettin’ Comfortable with Discomfort
26 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What to do with discomfort? We all feel stress sometimes. A little noodge. A joint out of whack. A bump in the wheel. In Monster Baby episode #90, Ted...
Monster Baby #89 Talkin’ ‘Bout a Resolution
12 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
What does it mean to make a resolution? Happy New Year Monster Baby fans! Maybe you’re a person who makes resolutions, maybe you’re not. But we...
Monster Baby #88 Hello Humility
16 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re looking for a holiday dessert, how about a taste of humble pie? It’s Episode #88, and Ted and Lisa are thinking about all the ways they ...
Monster Baby #87 November 2020 Grab Bag: Election Day, Lisa’s Big News, and Memory Issues
08 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
A few tasty chestnuts for a warm November—plus some exciting news! In Episode #87, Ted and Lisa consider a little bit of this and a little bit of th...
Monster Baby #86 What’s Your Strawberry?
29 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Simple stories can give a sweet taste of wisdom. Cued by a compact wisdom tale passed on by friend and colleague William Hall, co-hosts Ted and Lis...
Monster Baby #85 All in the Timing
12 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When is the right time to act or to speak? So much of being skillful with life is getting in rhythm with one’s self and one’s surroundings. In Mon...
Monster Baby #84 Oh, Those COVID Doldrums!
01 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How do you dance with your doldrums? Yup. We’re still in a pandemic and it looks like we will be for quite a bit longer. In this episode, Ted and Li...
Monster Baby #83 Find Your Focus
03 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Where’s *your* focus? Where do you want it to be? Spurred by a suggestion from a Chicago-based listener, Ted and Lisa gallop into a conversation abo...
Monster Baby #82 Elements of Effective Collaboration (Part 2 of a Conversation with Matt Abrahams and Adam Tobin)
11 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Effective collaboration brings great joy. How the heck does it happen? In Part 2 of their two-episode conversation, Lisa, Ted, and Stanford colleagu...
Monster Baby #81 Improvisationally Speaking (Part 1 of a Conversation with Matt Abrahams and Adam Tobin)
11 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Speaking on the spot can be tough. And you can get better at it! In the first part of a two-episode conversation with Stanford colleagues Matt Abraham...
Monster Baby #80 Let go. Appreciate more. Use everything. (And happy birthday, Monster Baby!)
19 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It’s a Monster Baby birthday: time to consider some improv wisdom! On the 4thanniversary of Monster Baby’s first episode, Lisa and Ted celebrate b...
Monster Baby #79 Half-Baked Ideas
15 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
That’s the thing about half-baked ideas: they could be gems; they could be duds. In a bit of frivolous departure from their usual deliberations, Ted...
Monster Baby #78 Extroversion Introversion
05 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Are you an extrovert or an introvert? Are you sure? In their continued adjustment to living with the reality of a world-sweeping pandemic, Ted and Lis...
Monster Baby #77 Living Under Lockdown
25 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How do you make sense of living under lockdown? As citizens of the San Francisco Bay Area, Ted and Lisa have been holed up in their respective homes a...
Monster Baby #76 Coronavirus Takes Hold
12 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
With good reason, everybody’s talking about the coronavirus. We are too. In the midst of the growing global coronavirus pandemic, Lisa and Ted take ...
Monster Baby #75 Sorting Through Super Tuesday
27 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Presidential Primary season’s swirling into hurricane mode: how do we make sense of it all? Just before the big Super Tuesday Democratic Primary ele...
Monster Baby #74 Yes to Life! A Conversation on Improvisation and Spirituality with Cindy Franklin and Angelo John Lewis
02 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What if your spiritual practice meant simply saying “Yes!” to life itself? In anticipation of this March’s “Yes to Life! The Improvisation and...
Monster Baby #73 Thunderbolt Moments
25 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What are your “thunderbolt” moments of insight from mindfulness and improvisation? Inspired by a listener’s question, Ted and Lisa consider part...
Monster Baby #72 Waking Up to the Gifts
23 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What gifts do mindfulness and improv bring to your season of light? It’s the season of giving and Ted and Lisa are musing on the life-shifting gif...
Monster Baby #71 Attention to Tension
14 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
How can you play if your string is too tight or too slack? Finding the right amount of tension matters hugely: in improv, in mindfulness, and in life....
Monster Baby #70 What’s Your Story?
30 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Should you tell your story—or step out of it? Storytelling: it’s a topic that lies at the center of both improvisation and mindfulness practices. ...
Monster Baby #69 The Dish–Insights from Improv at Stanford (and other goodies)!
16 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What can you learn from improv without ever taking an improv class? After catching up a bit after a long stretch away from the podcast, Lisa and Ted r...
Monster Baby #68: Best Day Ever (A Monster Baby Grab Bag)
17 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What if this (and every day) were the best day ever? Finding inspiration from their everyday interactions with others, Ted and Lisa offer up a Monster...
Monster Baby #67 Under a Mango Tree: A Conversation with Thiagi
11 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
“You don’t solve problems in life. You keep reconciling paradoxes.” –Thiagi Every now and then—if you’re lucky—you get to spend time “...
Monster Baby #66 Accountability Buddies
06 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Who holds you accountable? Even just a little addition of accountability can make a huge difference in the behavioral choices we make. What the heck m...
Monster Baby #65 Joy Conspiracy
25 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What happens if you conspire for joy? Joy’s a huge part of improv—and hopefully, a huge part of life. On Monster Baby #65, Ted and Lisa explore...
Monster Baby #64 Yes and No
29 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When to say yes and when to say no—how do we know? Both improv and mindfulness teach us to say yes to the unfolding story of life. But is that the...
Monster Baby #63 Simmer Down, Inner Critic (A Conversation with Denise Jacobs)
26 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Can you quiet your Inner Critic and nourish your Inner Coach? Few things block your creativity more than the nastiness of the voices inside your own h...
Monster Baby #62 The Uniqueness Paradox
10 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
You are truly special. As is everyone else. Once more, the Monster Baby Podcast shows its affinity for paradox, this time diving into the topic of uni...
Monster Baby #61 Parenthood without Partnership? Lisa considers motherhood on her own
16 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Some family stories are unconventional from the start. Stepping into a vulnerable arena, Lisa shares her consideration of having a child on her own. T...
Monster Baby #60 “Congrats…it’s a BOOK!”
20 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever wanted to get a creative vision into the world? In Monster Baby episode #60, Lisa and Ted celebrate the release of Ted’s new book, Pla...
Monster Baby #59 Redefine the Ding: Playing with Positive Reinforcement
10 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What behavior do you really want to encourage? Today’s episode starts with the mind-blowing wonder of Lisa’s recent night out at a magic show (1:4...
Monster Baby #58 Ted’s Harrowing Tale
01 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Nothing like a near-disaster experience to get you thinking. Lisa and Ted return to the ambient sounds of the Stanford University campus to share Ted’...
Monster Baby #57 Filter-ama
17 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Want to know what you let in and what you let out? Time to check your filters! For the first episode of another new year, Ted and Lisa lean under the ...
Monster Baby #56 V is for Vulnerability
08 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Does our humanness lie within our tenderness? Let’s dive into the topic of vulnerability and see what we find! Lisa’s back from her month-long jun...
Monster Baby #55 A Grand Experiment
01 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Why not just try some s**t out? In Episode #55, Ted and Lisa extol the virtues of bringing a spirit of experimentation to all of life. The pair starts...
Monster Baby #54 Life Unscripted: A Conversation with Dan O’Connor, Part 2
29 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Improvisation takes care of all of who we are. In this episode, Lisa and Ted continue their two-part conversation with longtime improv stalwart and ne...
Monster Baby #53 Life Unscripted: A Conversation with Dan O’Connor, Part 1
29 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
How do we break free from the stale scripts we’ve been living by? Lisa and Ted have a two-part conversation with longtime improv stalwart and new au...
Monster Baby #52 Lisa Goes to Clown Camp
17 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
What did Lisa learn at clown camp? Still a bit hazy from her experience off in the woods of Northern Ontario, Lisa reports back in on her experiences ...
Monster Baby #51 Insights On- and Off-Stage: A Conversation with Joe Bill, Part 2
10 Aug 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation with Joe Bill goes wider and deeper. When legendary improvisor Joe Bill arrived in San Francisco to teach and perform, Ted and Lisa s...
Monster Baby #50 A Buddhist Atheist: A Conversation with Joe Bill, Part 1
09 Aug 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Joe Bill’s an improv luminary with a brilliant mind that careens joyfully between gutter-level explicitness and spiritual truth—oh wait, are they ...
Monster Baby #49 Speak Up!
28 Jul 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Speaking up is one of the most natural—and most frightening—things we humans do. With Ted back from a month-long voice and speech training in Manh...
Monster Baby #48: Be Specific!
03 Jul 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The devil may live in the details—but’s that’s probably because he likes the magic there. In Monster Baby Episode, #48, Ted and Lisa discuss the...
Monster Baby #47 Why Are You So Emotional?
22 Jun 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Pull out the pillows and the tissue paper—Monster Baby Episode #47 gets emotional. Or, more accurately, gets into emotions. Lisa and Ted start with ...
Monster Baby #46 Playing with Creativity
26 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
What does it mean to be creative? Do you qualify? In Monster Baby #46, Lisa and Ted mix it up with the muses, exploring the boundaries and qualities o...
Monster Baby #45 Gettin’ Some Action
07 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re looking for some action, you’ve come to the right place! In Monster Baby Episode #45, Lisa and Ted consider the many ramifications of ac...
Monster Baby #44 What’s Your Status?
27 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Ted and Lisa are working the levers of status: who’s got it, how it’s communicated, how we get good at playing with it—and more. On this, the Mo...
Monster Baby #43 Let’s Get Physical
13 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
There’s wisdom in them thar’ bodies—so it’s time to get physical! Lisa and Ted open Episode #43 with an audacious shot at a free slot in their...
Monster Baby #42 Beyond Beliefs
31 Mar 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Limiting beliefs get into us from a young age—how the heck can we undo or at least disarm them? In this Monster Baby episode, Ted and Lisa play with...
Monster Baby #41 What’s Love Got to Do With It?
14 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
In honor of Valentine’s Day, Lisa and Ted dive into the topic of love in its many forms. They start by checking the legendary history of St. Valenti...
Monster Baby #40 Great Expectations
05 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Responding to a listener question (thanks, Shannon!), Ted and Lisa start to explore the world of expectations. Some initial responses (1:56) give way ...
Monster Baby #39: Facebook Fasting Results
23 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
How did the Monster Baby Facebook fast go? Lisa starts with her results and notices the power of habit, voyeurism and what it means to think in status...
Monster Baby #38: What’s on Your Mind?
11 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
For this more free-form episode, Ted and Lisa share what’s been on their minds recently. Ted starts by considering how his relationship to technolog...
Monster Baby #37: A New Start
31 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
On the eve of a New Year, Lisa and Ted consider the value of fresh starts. They begin with some numerical musings (2:29) and warm up with a round of t...
Monster Baby #36: Less is More
21 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Just in time for a holiday season that so often leads to excess, Ted and Lisa return to extol the virtues of “Less is More.” They revisit an old s...
Monster Baby #35: On Aging
01 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
It’s Lisa’s birthday and Ted’s about to turn 50—time to talk about aging! Our Monster Baby duo starts with a challenging warm-up game of “Fi...
Monster Baby #34: Listen Up!
16 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Listen up, people! In Monster Baby #34, Ted and Lisa dig in to the nitty gritty of the world of listening. They start by defining the word itself and ...
Monster Baby #33: 10 Days of Insight
05 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
What sorts of intriguing insights show up on a 10-day silent retreat? Ted and Lisa find out in Monster Baby Episode #33. They start by acknowledging...
Monster Baby #32: Press Play
13 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Regular Monster Baby listeners know that Ted and Lisa love to play. In their latest episode, you learn why. The intrepid pair discuss play as a connec...
Monster Baby #31: Find the Flow
27 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Glide down a river of insight as the Monster Baby podcast takes on the topic of flow. Despite her uncertainties, Lisa offers a great San Francisco-bas...
Monster Baby #30: Handling Heartbreak: A True Story
12 Sep 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Coping with a wounded heart can be tough, but mindfulness and improvisation principles and practices can help. In this episode, Ted and Lisa process T...
Monster Baby #29: It’s Not About You
30 Aug 2017
Contributed by Lukas
How does yielding at the right times serve creativity and collaboration? Ted and Lisa start with a game of Sound Ball (1:49) and catch back up after a...
Monster Baby #28: Dig Deeper
27 Jul 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lisa and Ted reach across the country to dig deeper into life’s offerings. Lisa shares some perspective from her time at Girl Scout camp and Ted rel...
Monster Baby #27 Speaking of Spirituality or Why Lisa Might Be Going to Hell
16 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
What’s spirituality got to do with it anyway? Ted and Lisa take on the thorny task of exploring the realms of spirit and what they have to do with m...
Monster Baby #26 Isn’t That Curious?
05 Jun 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Ted and Lisa get curious about curiosity in Monster Baby Episode #26! They laugh their way through the opening challenge of a few Line-at-a-Time Limer...
Monster Baby #25 Be Average
16 May 2017
Contributed by Lukas
In Episode #25, Ted and Lisa dive into the paradoxical wisdom in the Improv maxim “Be Average.” They start with a chat about the San Francisco pro...
Monster Baby #24: Get Presence
26 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Time to get present, y’all! Celebrating the one-year anniversary of the first Monster Baby podcast, Ted and Lisa offer Episode #24, a deep dive into...
Monster Baby #23: Attitude of Gratitude
02 Apr 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Episode #23 finds Ted and Lisa taking on an attitude of gratitude. A humorous warm-up (1:46) gets the ball rolling before the co-hosts start to clarif...
Monster Baby #22: A Cup of Courage
09 Mar 2017
Contributed by Lukas
In Episode #22, Ted and Lisa share a conversational cup of courage. A brief and playful check-in (1:59) leads to defining what they mean by courage (4...
Monster Baby #21: Puzzle Nuzzle
05 Feb 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Ted and Lisa welcome special guest (and Jeopardy contestant-to-be) Troy Steinmetz for a conversation about the wisdom of puzzles. They enter a warm-up...
Monster Baby #20: Adventure Time!
05 Jan 2017
Contributed by Lukas
For their first podcast of 2017, Lisa and Ted venture into the world of adventure. They demonstrate an adventurous improv game of “What Comes Next?”...
Monster Baby #19: The Monster Baby Mailbag!
15 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In the inaugural Monster Baby Mailbag episode, Ted and Lisa (and Lisa’s cats) take questions from a few loyal listeners. They wonder whether Mons...
Monster Baby #18: Harmony
03 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
What is harmony and what the heck makes it so delicious, both literally and metaphorically? Ted and Lisa start with a modified round of “Three Thing...
Monster Baby #17: Post-Election Reflections
12 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
After a world-changing, head-spinning Election Day outcome, Lisa and Ted turn to each other to process their emotional turmoil. Lisa relays the experi...
Monster Baby #16: A Conversation with Patricia Ryan Madson (Part 2)
10 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Lisa and Ted continue their conversation with teacher and mentor, Patricia Ryan Madson, drama teacher and author of the acclaimed Improv Wisdom. In...
Monster Baby #15: A Conversation with Patricia Ryan Madson (Part 1)
08 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Lisa and Ted welcome their teacher and mentor, Patricia Ryan Madson, drama teacher and author of the acclaimed Improv Wisdom, for a two-part Monste...
Monster Baby #14: Silence, Please
28 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when you talk about silence? In this episode, Lisa and Ted offer a short check-in (1:43) and get some questionable advice from their res...
Monster Baby #13: Ch-ch-ch-changes
03 Oct 2016
Contributed by Lukas
A recent loss gets Ted and Lisa reflecting on how best to relate to change. They start with a playful word-at-a-time school announcement (1:45) and so...
Monster Baby #12: Meta-tation: This is a Subtitle
14 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Lisa and Ted return from their most recent retreat to share a few meta-level insights. After a storytelling warm-up game (1:27) and a check-in about T...
Monster Baby #11: Passing the Bechdel Test: On Gender in Improv and Facing Old Demons
02 Sep 2016
Contributed by Lukas
With Ted finally back from a month in Europe, he and Lisa explore the ramifications of her recently directed run of “Bechdel Test” improv shows.* ...
Monster Baby #10: Chaos Theory
28 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Finally back from a month-long hiatus, Lisa and Ted get into their different preferences around chaos and order. They open with a ribald riff on unico...