Everyday Better with Leah Smart

Lynne Peeples is a journalist and author of The Inner Clock: Living in Sync With Our Circadian Rhythms. She covers science, health and the environment and holds master’s degrees in biostatistics and science journalism.

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Lynne joins Leah to discuss the science behind our circadian rhythms. Lynne explains why our inner clocks are out of sync and what that means for our physical and mental health. She also offers strategies for resetting our clocks, including limiting the hours during which we eat and following a consistent sleep/wake schedule.

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To learn more about circadian rhythms, check out Lynne’s book The Inner Clock.

Carole Hopson is a Boeing 737 captain for United Airlines and the author of ‘A Pair of Wings,’ a historical fiction novel about Bessie Coleman, the first Black woman to get her pilot license. After a successful twenty-year career working for iconic brands like the National Football League, Foot Locker and L’Oréal, Carole quit her job to pursue her lifelong dream of flying planes. 

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Carole tells the story of how she turned that childhood dream into a second-act career. She shares wisdom on balancing your career alongside the responsibilities of being a parent, demonstrating why moms make for some of the best employees. She also discusses her novel and her next big dream: sending 100 Black women to flight school by 2035. 

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To learn more about the life of Bessie Coleman, check out Carole’s novel A Pair of Wings.

Cassie Holmes is a Professor of Marketing and Behavioral Decision Making at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. Her first book Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most is a practical guide for how to think about and spend time in order to experience joy every day. 

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Cassie joins Leah to discuss her research on time and happiness. After dispelling the notion that more free time equals more happiness, Cassie offers tips for making the things you have to do every day – commuting, house chores, etc. – more enjoyable. She also explains the concept of ‘time crafting’ and why it’s so important to account for how we spend the hours in our days.

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Jeffrey Hall is a Professor of Communication Studies and the Director of the Relationships and Technology Lab at the University of Kansas. He studies the way technology influences relationships, including the impact of social media on feelings of belonging, connectedness and loneliness.

The harms of social platforms have been well documented over the past decade – political polarization, misinformation – but is social media also to blame for the rise in loneliness? On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Jeffrey joins Leah to discuss the role of social media in the loneliness epidemic. Jeffrey argues that when used more intentionally, social media can fulfill its original promise: help us stay connected and deepen our connections with the people we care about most.

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Keep an eye out for Jeffrey’s forthcoming book The Social Biome: How Everyday Communication Connects and Shape Us.

Thubten Chodron is an American Tibetan Buddhist Nun and the founder of Sravasti Abbey, the only Tibetan Buddhist training monastery in the United States. In her recently re-released book Working With Anger, Thubten describes different practices for dealing with our anger that don't involve expression or suppression.

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Thubten and Leah explore the Buddhist perspective on some of the toughest emotions we experience, including anger. While many of us believe that anger is useful or even righteous, Thubten argues that anger distorts our perception of reality. She encourages us to reframe our anger using techniques such as meditation, self-reflection and humor.

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To learn more about the Buddhist perspective on anger, check out Thubten’s book Working with Anger: Buddhist Teachings on Patience, Acceptance, and Transforming Negativity.

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David Kessler is a grief and loss expert and the author of several bestselling books, including two he co-authored with Elizabeth Kubler Ross. He’s worked with thousands of people on the edge of life and death, helping them to find happiness and fulfillment after experiencing life’s gravest tragedies. 

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, David joins Leah to discuss the role of meaning and how we make it after experiencing a loss and the grief that accompanies it. He describes the process of ‘excavating’ one’s pain – a crucial step in the grieving process that must precede meaning-making. He also offers advice for talking to your coworkers about grief, stressing the importance of simply being present for those who are in the midst of grieving as opposed to offering solutions. 

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To learn more about the meaning-making process, check out David’s new workbook, The Sixth Stage of Grief: Tools for Releasing Pain and Remembering with Love.

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This week, in honor of World Mental Health Day, Everyday Better host Leah Smart is sharing her story of living with anxiety – and how she’s learned to manage it. 

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Additional Resources:

Anxiety and Depression Association of America

A Return to Love by Marianne Williamson

Anxiety Rx by Dr. Russell Kennedy

Overcoming Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts by Dr. Martin Seif and Dr. Sally Winston

The Tapping Solution by Nick Ortner

We’d love to hear from you! Take our quick audience survey here.

Bonnie Wan is a brand strategist and author of The Life Brief: A Playbook for No Regrets Living. She’s passionate about helping people uncover their true desires and believes deeply in the power of intention to propel personal and professional growth.

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Bonnie joins Leah to explain the concept of a life brief, which is a tool for getting clear on what you want and how you’re going to get it. Bonnie highlights the importance of wanting when it comes to personal growth, as well as the role privilege plays in shaping our desires.

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To learn more about Bonnie’s work, check out her book The Life Brief: A Playbook for No Regrets Living.

We’d love to hear from you! Take our quick audience survey here.

Corey Keyes is a sociologist and professor emeritus at Emory University. He studies how people find satisfaction in their lives, and why achieving a sense of well-being is no easy feat. 

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Corey joins Leah to discuss his research on languishing, flourishing and how to move from one to the other. Corey argues that good mental health isn’t just the absence of mental illness but the presence of well-being. He also explains the concept of “functioning well” and why working towards that is more important than chasing happiness. 

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For more tips on how to move out of languishing and into flourishing, check out Corey’s book, Languishing: How to Feel Alive Again in a World That Wears Us Down.

We’d love to hear from you! Take our audience survey here.

Anna Sale is a journalist, author and host of the award-winning podcast Death, Sex & Money. On her show, Anna has intimate conversations with people about life’s toughest yet often under-discussed moments – infidelity, bankruptcy, aging and illness to name just a few.

On this week’s episode of Everyday Better, Anna joins Leah to discuss what it was like when her podcast was unexpectedly canceled after nearly ten years on the air. Anna talks about how she transformed a moment of major career uncertainty into an opportunity to clarify her purpose. Anna and Leah also explore the evolution of ambition and what happens when we mine deep meaning from our work.

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To hear more from Anna, listen to Death, Sex & Money wherever you find your podcasts.