Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Can You Become a "Practical" Optimist?
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Can You Become a "Practical" Optimist?
There are many benefits to being an optimist - particularly when things go wrong in our lives. But we aren't all naturally optimistic, so can we learn to adopt the best and most positive behaviours of born optimists?
Through treating New Yorkers caught up in the 9/11 attacks, psychiatrist Dr Sue Varma developed a concept she calls "practical optimism". She shares her tips on how we can all be more optimistic in the face of life's challenges.
Read more in Sue's book Practical Optimism: The Art, Science, and Practice of Exceptional Well-Being
Dr Laurie spoke to Sue Varma MD at the 2025 World Happiness Summit.
Get ad-free episodes to The Happiness Lab by subscribing to Pushkin+ on Apple Podcasts or Pushkin.fm. Pushkin+ subscribers can access ad-free episodes, full audiobooks, exclusive binges, and bonus content for all Pushkin shows.
Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkin
Subscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
View all episodes
By Pushkin Industries
4.7
1390513,905 ratings
There are many benefits to being an optimist - particularly when things go wrong in our lives. But we aren't all naturally optimistic, so can we learn to adopt the best and most positive behaviours of born optimists?
Through treating New Yorkers caught up in the 9/11 attacks, psychiatrist Dr Sue Varma developed a concept she calls "practical optimism". She shares her tips on how we can all be more optimistic in the face of life's challenges.
Read more in Sue's book Practical Optimism: The Art, Science, and Practice of Exceptional Well-Being
Dr Laurie spoke to Sue Varma MD at the 2025 World Happiness Summit.
Get ad-free episodes to The Happiness Lab by subscribing to Pushkin+ on Apple Podcasts or Pushkin.fm. Pushkin+ subscribers can access ad-free episodes, full audiobooks, exclusive binges, and bonus content for all Pushkin shows.
Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkin
Subscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
More shows like The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos
View all
TED Radio Hour
21,956 Listeners
Hidden Brain
43,570 Listeners
Untangle
813 Listeners
Good Life Project
3,284 Listeners
Revisionist History
59,197 Listeners
10% Happier with Dan Harris
12,697 Listeners
Broken Record with Rick Rubin, Malcolm Gladwell, Bruce Headlam and Justin Richmond
4,107 Listeners
Choiceology with Katy Milkman
1,425 Listeners
The Science of Happiness
1,886 Listeners
Worklife with Adam Grant
9,154 Listeners
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
27,520 Listeners
Life Kit
4,715 Listeners
Solvable
572 Listeners
Go and See
402 Listeners
Making a Killing with Bethany McLean
72 Listeners
Deep Cover Presents: Snowball
4,549 Listeners
Hearing with Tali Farhadian Weinstein
79 Listeners
Fiasco
443 Listeners
How to Be a Better Human
1,387 Listeners
ReThinking
624 Listeners
A Slight Change of Plans
2,036 Listeners
We Can Do Hard Things
41,576 Listeners
Bad Women: The Blackout Ripper
1,221 Listeners
Backstage Pass with Eric Vetro
231 Listeners
What's Your Problem?
263 Listeners
Not Lost
431 Listeners
Car Show! with Eddie Alterman
148 Listeners
The Loudest Girl in the World
332 Listeners
The Mel Robbins Podcast
19,843 Listeners
Come As You Are
372 Listeners
Started from the Bottom
98 Listeners
The Best Audio Storytelling 2022
78 Listeners
Where's Dia?
261 Listeners
Charlie's Place
50 Listeners