Curious Minds at Work

It’s tempting to believe that the self is a constant. That it’s a core component of who we are from the time we’re born.

But social psychologist and Stanford Professor Brian Lowery has a different view. He believes the self we are today is a product of our social relationships – our friends, our families, our communities, our technologies, even our geography. That as our circumstances change, so does the self we believe ourselves to be. In this interview, we talk about this and more from his book, Selfless: The Social Creation of You.

Brian’s argument explains so much about how we operate in the world, and he gives us another reason to prioritize social relationships in our lives.

Episode Links

A Provocative Theory of Identity Finds There is No ‘You’ in Self

Brian Lowery on the Myth of Rugged Individualism and What This Means for the America of the 2020s

Interview with Gregory Burns

The Team

Learn more about host, Gayle Allen, and producer, Rob Mancabelli, here.

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We need pleasure in our lives. We also need meaning. Pleasure gives us joy and delight. Meaning gives us purpose and a set of goals to work toward.

But have there ever been times in your life when you’ve experienced meaning and pleasure, yet felt something was missing? Turns out, you’re not alone.

What’s missing, according to recent research, is something called psychological richness. Think of it as mental stimulation. A combination of curiosity and wonder. Lorraine Besser writes about this in her book, The Art of the Interesting: What We Miss in Our Pursuit of the Good Life and How to Cultivate It. She also shares what she and her research colleagues have learned about how to get it.

This is a book that takes something we know we need – mental challenge and stimulation – and calls it out as a key component for living a good life.

Episode Links

What If You Pursued What's Interesting Instead of Happiness?

How Novelty Positively Impacts Your Brain

Interview with Rainesford Stauffer

The Team

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When we’re looking for insights on how to make friends, manage our anxiety, or just live a happier life, we rarely look to the past. Instead, we tend to focus on what today’s thinkers have to say.

But what if the recipe for happiness lies in the past, specifically the 2000-year-old past? What if the ancient writings of Greek philosopher Epicurus hold the answers?

That’s what modern-day philosopher, Emily Austin, argues in her book, Living for Pleasure: An Epicurean Guide to Life. She teaches us what Epicurus really thought about pleasure and why he made it a cornerstone of his life. She also points out the advantages of an Epicurean mindset over a Stoic one.

Emily’s book is proof that we still have much to learn, for our work and our life, from the ancient Greek philosophers, especially Epicurus!

Episode Links

The Good Life is the One Where Anxiety Falls by the Wayside

The Epicurean Search for Happiness and Serenity

Interview with Tali Sharot

The Team

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We often assume that stress and anxiety are the price we pay for success. Yet these feelings can lead to burnout and self-doubt, two debilitating outcomes that can get in the way of the very achievements we’re striving for.

This is a pattern psychologist Mary Anderson often sees in her high-achieving clients: their very success has left them so scarred that they can’t enjoy it, let alone build on it. The good news is that Anderson has developed a set of research-backed strategies to get us unstuck. Anderson shares these stories and strategies in her book, The Happy High Achiever: 8 Essentials to Overcome Anxiety, Manage Stress, and Energize Yourself for Success – without Losing Your Edge.

I walked away from the book – and our conversation – with tools to rethink some of my own limiting beliefs. I bet you will, too.

Episode Links

Perfectionism Is Not Healthy or Sustainable. Here’s What to Strive for Instead

5 Ways to Find Relief in a Moment of Overwhelm

Staying Determined on the Way to Achieving Your Goals

Interview with Michael Gervais

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As a knowledge worker, you face two challenges. First, you need to take in staggering amounts of information to stay current. Next, you're expected to convert that information into innovative solutions that benefit your team and your company.

While expectations for consuming and processing information have changed, most of our mental habits harken back to factory model days. Yet we’re ignoring the tremendous power of our human biology, namely, our brains.

What if we designed an optimal work style built around key features of the human brain? That’s the question Mithu Storoni works to answer in her book, Hyperefficient: Optimize Your Brain to Transform the Way You Work. She likens brain function to a car engine with multiple gears. Then she shares how to best put those gears to work for us, and how best to shift them as circumstances change.

It’s just the right book – with just the right information – for the age we’re living in.

Episode Links

Uncertainty is Uncomfortable, and Technology Makes It Worse. That Doesn’t Have to Be a Bad Thing

Help! It Turns out Breaks Make You More Productive

Interview with Ayelet Fishbach on the Science of Motivation

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We like the idea of the lone genius, that one person who developed a game-changing innovation. But whether or not we realize it, research shows that creativity is collaborative.

Yep. You heard that right. And we have lots of examples: the development of the airplane, the Internet, the mountain bike, and so many more.

We’re schooled in the notion that creativity is an individual thing, yet research shows, again and again, that it’s not. Instead, it’s through connecting with others, then working alone, and then connecting again, that we innovate.

Keith Sawyer has studied groups and creativity for decades. His book, Group Genius: The Creative Power of Collaboration, elucidates what group genius looks like, why it works, and what it takes to cultivate it, so we can develop game-changing innovations.

This book changed how I see groups, creativity, and the connection between the two, and the research findings are fascinating.

Episode Links

Group Creativity and Collaboration

Everyone Can Be More Creative – But Not Alone

Being More Creative in Everyday Life is Simple

Interview with Moshe Bar

The Team

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It’s become common knowledge that we need to prioritize our physical and mental health. In fact we’re encouraged to commit to regular exercise and good nutrition, and to engage with mental health professionals as part of a healthy lifestyle.

And if public health experts like Kasley Killam have their way, social health will become just as important. It’s why she wrote the book, The Art and Science of Connection: Why Social Health is the Missing Key to Living Longer, Healthier, and Happier.

Kasley’s book is the proactive solution to today’s loneliness epidemic. It’s also a research-backed argument for why social health needs to be on equal footing with mental and physical health.

Episode Links

Shifting the Focus from Loneliness to Social Health

What is Social Health? The Little-Known Idea that Could Make All the Difference

The Mental Health Industry is Booming. Next up? Social Health Innovation

Interview with Malissa Clark

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Each day, millions of doctors write prescriptions for drugs intended to help their patients. But what if many of our modern health ailments, like depression, anxiety, and chronic pain, would benefit as much, if not more, from a social prescription?

What if nature, art, movement, and service could reduce our symptoms, decrease doctor visits, and improve our health?

These are questions Julia Hotz set out to answer. Julia is author of the book, The Connection Cure: The Prescriptive Power of Movement, Nature, Art, Service, and Belonging. By sharing research findings, as well as people’s stories from around the world, we get to see a whole other side of medicine.

After reading her book, I’m more convinced than ever we need to seek out and prioritize healthy social time.

Episode Links

New Horizons in Medicine: Why Art, Service, and Nature Might Be What the Doctor Orders

What If Your Doctor Could Prescribe Fishing Trips or Art Classes? Social Prescribing on the Rise

Doctor’s Orders: A Social Prescription for Health

Interview with Geoffrey Cohen

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We know how important friendships are. At the very least, for our health and well-being. But we also know how hard it gets to make and keep friends over the course of a lifetime, especially as we move, change jobs, and have families.

That’s why Anna Goldfarb’s book, Modern Friendship: How to Nurture Our Most Valued Connections, is so important. We need friendships for good health, and Anna’s book teaches us ways to make, keep, and move on from toxic friends. And she readily shares what to say to build and deepen friendships.

I think it’s a terrific book for understanding how to be a better friend.

Episode Links

Let’s Make This the Golden Age of Friendship

The Secret to Modern Friendship, According to Real Friends

How to Deal with a Friendship Quiet Season

Interview with Kat Vellos

The Team

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Most of us believe we can make a difference in the world. That we can have an impact. What holds us back from acting on those beliefs are often the doubts. Doubts about our skills, our credentials, even our roles at work.

Alex Budak studied the research and interviewed the changemakers, and he argues we can all be changemakers, no matter our resumes. That’s what led him to write his book, Becoming a Changemaker: An Actionable, Inclusive Guide to Leading Positive Change at Any Level.

I was inspired by Alex’s book and our conversation. I walked away with a changemaker playbook on the mindset, leadership qualities, and behaviors to make it happen.

Episode Links

Finding Leadership Treasures in World Cup Trash

Stop Waiting for Permission

Be the Light

Interview with Sheena Iyengar

The Team

Learn more about host, Gayle Allen, and producer, Rob Mancabelli, here.

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