Many New Year resolutions can be directly or indirectly related to this year-end episode’s content: cultivating curiosity.

When we are overcome by our emotions, especially fear or anger, our brain can lose its capacity to reason. When this happens, it’s hard to think, and the phenomenon is referred to as an amygdala hijack. The amygdala, which is responsible for fear, anger, and other emotions, takes over the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for executive thinking, judgment, reasoning, and higher thinking.

But here’s a great brain hack to deal with this, as described by multiple New York Times best-selling author, the hilarious and brilliant AJ Jacobs: get curious, not furious. Activating curiosity can override the action of the amygdala and activate your prefrontal cortex, so your executive brain can call the shots.

So, listen in as four-time guest, AJ and I talk about getting curious and not furious, as well as sprinkling in some gratitude for good measure.