Flourish FM

Dr. Eli Susman is a psychologist who studies how well-being can fit into the smallest moments of an ordinary day. He coined the term “micropractice” to describe brief, evidence-based well-being practices that take thirty seconds or less, and has spent more than a decade researching how contemplative practices can be adapted to the rhythm of modern life rather than requiring us to rearrange it around them. His first book, Micropractice: A Science-Backed Approach for Calm, Clarity, and Joy in 30 Seconds or Less, published in October 2026, gathers this research into fourteen practices across four elements: move, touch, breathe and flow, alongside chapters on the science of habit formation and on breaking free of a “busy mindset.” 

Eli holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley and has conducted research at Harvard. His best-known study, published in Behaviour Research and Therapy in 2024, tested a twenty-second daily practice he developed called “self-compassionate touch.” Those who practised almost daily showed gains in self-compassion, stress and mental health that rivalled interventions demanding many hours a week. The paper was covered in more than a hundred outlets across thirty languages, including The New York Times, CNN, the BBC, NPR’s Hidden Brain, Forbes and Psychology Today, and Greater Good magazine, who called the finding one of the Top 10 Insights from the Science of a Meaningful Life in 2024. 

Eli is also a certified yoga teacher, a laughter yoga leader and a longtime meditation facilitator, whose own practice has taken him everywhere from a Thai forest monastery to Plum Village in France.

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Dr. Anne-Laure Le Cunff is a neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and educator whose work explores the neuroscience of curiosity and what it shows us about how to live, learn, and flourish in an uncertain world. She is the founder of Ness Labs, whose weekly newsletter on mindful productivity and lifelong learning is read by more than 100,000 people. 

Anne-Laure is the author of Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World (2025), which draws on ancestral philosophy and contemporary neuroscience to argue for replacing rigid linear goals with small, curiosity-driven experiments. Her writing and ideas have been featured in media outlets including Big Think, Forbes, Wired, and on leading podcasts on creativity, productivity, and well-being.

Anne-Laure is a UKRI-funded researcher at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King’s College London, where she applies her research on the neuroscience of curiosity to ADHD, AI, mental health, and lifelong learning. She holds a PhD in Psychology & Neuroscience from King’s College London, and before her doctoral research she worked as an executive on Google’s digital health team.

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About this episode: 

Dr. Ethan Kross is one of the world's leading experts on emotion regulation. An award-winning professor in the University of Michigan's top-ranked Psychology Department and its Ross School of Business, he is the director of the Emotion and Self-Control Laboratory, where he studies how the conversations people have with themselves shape their health, performance, decisions, and relationships.

He is the two-time national bestselling author of Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why it Matters and How to Harness It (2021) and Shift: Managing Your Emotions – So They Don't Manage You (2025). Chatter became an international bestseller, translated into over 40 languages, and was chosen as one of the best new books of the year by the Washington Post, CNN, and USA Today. Shift was named a best book of the year by Publishers Weekly.

Ethan has participated in policy discussions at the White House, spoken at TED and SXSW, and consulted with some of the world's top executives and organisations. His research has been published in leading academic journals and has featured in major media outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, and the BBC. He has been interviewed on CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, and NPR's Morning Edition.

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00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

03:51 Ethan Origin Story

07:40 Dad and Meditation Roots

10:34 What Are Emotions

14:27 Why Negative Emotions Matter

17:46 Chatter vs Shift

19:42 Three Step Regulation Framework

25:38 Sponsor Antifragile Academy

27:10 Emotion Gym Toolkit

28:43 Sensory Shifters Fast Wins

32:35 Attention and Strategic Avoidance

39:01 Perspective Shifters Reframing

41:56 Venting and Introspection Traps

47:21 Validation Without Suppression

About this episode: 

Michael Easter is a journalist, professor, and bestselling author who writes about how modern environments shape human behavior, health, and performance. He’s best known for translating scientific research and immersive reporting into practical insights about living better in an age of abundance. 

Michael is the author of two New York Times bestsellers: The Comfort Crisis (2021) and Scarcity Brain (2023). Comfort Crisis explores how modern life has become too easy and why seeking out purposeful discomfort can improve our mental and physical health. Scarcity Brain examines how evolved human instincts collide with today’s world of endless food, information, and stimulation, leading to overconsumption and addictive behaviors. 

Michael’s work has appeared in over sixty countries and in media outlets including Men’s Health, Outside, New York, Scientific American, Esquire, and Vice. Through his writing and speaking, he focuses on how people can design their environments and habits to live healthier, more intentional lives in a world built for comfort and excess. His work has been adopted by NASA, special forces units, Fortune 500 companies, top pro teams, and millions of readers worldwide.

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02:35 Why Discomfort Matters

04:25 Stress Sweet Spot

07:42 First World Problems

12:37 Arctic Reset Story

17:19 Boredom as Signal

21:24 Unpleasant Emotions Help

24:47 Misogi Annual Challenge

28:12 Physical or Mental Misogi

28:41 Sushi Fear Breakthrough

29:41 Anti Fragile Academy Update

31:12 Chosen Stress And Proactivity

33:39 Beneficial Versus Harmful Stress

36:01 Finding The Sweet Spot

38:11 Daily 2 Percent Mindset

42:13 Movement Culture And Walking

43:32 Why Walk With Weight

48:31 Rucking Gear And Sex Differences

50:06 Designing Environments For Discipline

About this episode: 

Karen Guggenheim is a pioneer in the global happiness movement, a leader in promoting the science behind well-being to an international audience, and a motivational speaker inspiring people about how to grow post trauma and rebuild a life focused on meaning, purpose, and happiness. 

Kareni is author of Cultivating Happiness: Overcome Trauma and Positively Transform Your Life (2024), and has given a TED Talk entitled “The Bridge to Happiness.” She is the producer of the World Happiness Summit®, a leading well-being conference promoting the benefits of an evidence-based approach to increase happiness in all areas of life. She is also CEO of WOHASU®, the comprehensive wellbeing ecosystem named after the Summit which is inspiring a fast-growing movement sending a positive rippling effect around the world.

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00:00 Meet Karen Guggenheim

00:59 Why Trauma and Happiness

02:39 Loss and Choosing Life

05:28 Meaning as a Shield

09:09 From Accidental to Intentional

12:12 Relationships and Legacy

16:07 World Happiness Summit Origins

20:59 WOHASU Discount Details

21:48 Defining Post Traumatic Growth

25:31 Beyond Positivity Mindset

27:23 Gratitude As Reset

28:45 Presence Through Grief

30:02 Practical Happiness Tools

33:52 Design Your Day

37:53 Acceptance Not Suppression

40:13 Values As Lighthouse

43:23 Forgiveness Frees Energy

44:59 Choose Life Focus

46:38 Explorer Mindset

48:38 Summit And Farewell

About this episode: 

Annie Duke is an author, speaker, and consultant in the decision-making space. She loves to dive deep into decision-making under uncertainty. Her latest obsession is on the topic of quitting. In particular, she is on a mission to rehabilitate the term “quitting” and get people to be proud of walking away from things. 

Annie is the author of two bestsellers, Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away (2022), and Thinking in Bets (2018). As a former professional poker player, she has won more than $4 million in tournament poker. During her career, Annie won a World Series of Poker bracelet and is the only woman to have won the World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions and the NBC National Poker Heads-Up Championship. 

Annie retired from poker in 2012. Prior to becoming a professional poker player, she was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship to study Cognitive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, where she earned her master’s degree. In 2023, Annie completed her Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology. 

Annie is the co-founder of The Alliance for Decision Education, a non-profit whose mission is to improve lives by empowering students through decision skills education. 

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00:00 Meet Dr. Annie Duke: Decision-Making, Poker, and the Case for Quitting

05:22 Defining a “Good Decision”: Goals, Values, and the Four Quadrants

09:14 Luck vs. Choice: Avoiding Nihilism and Leaning Into Uncertainty

12:49 Sponsor Break: The Anti-Fragile Academy

14:21 Decision-Making for Flourishing: Agency Without Illusions of Control

18:33 Quitting Well: Updating Beliefs, Identity Threats, and Mental Time Travel

28:03 Quitting, Happiness & the Forecasting Problem (Tying the Strands Together)

29:38 Why We Misread Our Values—and Resist Changing Course

30:52 The ‘Future Unhappy’ Exercise: Mental Time Travel for Better Decisions

32:42 Get Outside Perspectives (Independently): Friends, Mentors & Written Answers

34:11 Real-World Example: Forecasting Reveals It’s Time to Shut the Business Down

35:15 Why Focus on What Could Go Wrong: Optimism, Faster Pivots & Opportunity Cost

37:01 Flourishing Takeaway: Tech-Free Savoring Walks (and the Dog Rule)

43:26 Flow, Sports & Real Connection: Pickleball/Tennis as Tech-Free Joy

46:10 Wrap-Up: Courses, Decision Education in K–12, and Final Thanks

About this episode:

Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky is the world’s preeminent expert on happiness. She is a Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of California, Riverside and is the author of The Myths of Happiness and the bestseller The How of Happiness, which have been published in 39 countries. Her next book, co-authored with Harry Reis, is coming out in February and is titled, How to Feel Loved: The Five Mindsets That Get You More of What Matters Most.

Sonja received her degrees from Harvard and Stanford. She has been awarded many grants and honors for her research, which focuses on how and why happiness can shift over time, and how to build lasting happiness via gratitude, kindness, and connection interventions. 

Sonja’s work has been written up in hundreds of magazine and newspaper articles, and she has appeared on multiple TV shows, radio shows, and feature documentaries worldwide. 

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02:05 Defining Happiness 

03:56 Happiness and Human Flourishing

07:17 The Benefits of Happiness

11:56 Effective Happiness Interventions

13:55 Gratitude Interventions

21:35 Acts of Kindness and Their Impact

23:38 Connection Interventions and Upcoming Book

28:14 Understanding Loneliness and Connection

29:51 Introducing the New Book: How to Feel Loved

33:26 Mindsets for Feeling Loved

39:23 The Role of Negative Emotions

41:20 The Power of Gratitude

45:33 The Secret to Happiness: Deep Conversations

50:11 Holiday Conversations and Final Thoughts

Dr. Joanna Moncrieff, M.D., is Professor of Critical and Social Psychiatry at University College London, and a consultant psychiatrist for the NHS in London. She studies the effects, action, use and representation of psychiatric drugs, including antidepressants and antipsychotics, and has also written about the history and philosophy of psychiatry. 

Joanna has published several books, the most recent of which is Chemically Imbalanced: The Making and Unmaking of the Serotonin Myth (2025). Her previous books include The Myth of the Chemical Cure, The Bitterest Pills and A Straight Talking Introduction to Psychiatric Drugs.

Joanna has written for The Guardian, Daily Mail, The Conversation, Literary Review, was profiled in The Spectator and has been interviewed for Channel 4’s Ways to Change the World Podcast, Dr. Rangan Chatterjee’s Feel Better, Live More podcast, The Guardian’s Science Weekly podcast and the Evening Standard’s Tech and Science Daily, among others. 

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Timestamps:

[00:03:04] Critical psychiatry's alternative perspective.

[00:04:10] Questioning the pharmaceutical industry's dominance.

[00:09:40] Emotional reactions to personal loss.

[00:14:00] Serotonin theory of depression.

[00:17:27] SSRIs versus benzodiazepines distinction.

[00:21:44] Biological vs. psychological treatment approaches.

[00:27:50] Flourishing despite mental illness.

[00:30:56] The role of suffering.

[00:36:09] Emotions as signals for change.

[00:42:07] Psychedelics and depression treatment.

[00:46:19] Depression's complex nature.

[00:48:38] Finding purpose in life.

Dr. Laurie Santos is a Professor of Psychology at Yale University and one of the world’s leading experts on the science of happiness. She is also an expert on the evolutionary origins of human cognition and the ways our minds lie to us about what makes us happy. 

Laurie’s course at Yale, “Psychology and the Good Life,” teaches students how the science of psychology can help us make wiser choices and live a happier and more fulfilling life. It’s the most popular class ever taught at Yale, with almost one out of four students enrolled. It has been featured in media outlets including the New York Times, [and] NBC Nightly News, The Today Show, GQ Magazine and Slate. The publicly available online version of the class, called “The Science of Well-Being,” has attracted more than 4 million learners worldwide.

Laurie has won numerous awards, both for her science and teaching. She was recently voted one of Popular Science Magazine’s “Brilliant 10” young minds and was named in Time Magazine as a “Leading Campus Celebrity.” Her podcast, The Happiness Lab, is a top-3 Apple podcast which has attracted over 100 million downloads.

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Timestamps:

[00:02:46] Definition of happiness.

[00:04:09] Balancing affective and cognitive happiness.

[00:06:57] Happiness in vs. Happiness with.

[00:10:25] Misunderstandings about happiness.

[00:12:27] Evolutionary perspective on happiness.

[00:16:09] Happiness is within our control.

[00:19:08] Pursuing happiness the wrong way.

[00:23:14] Misguided happiness metrics.

[00:31:40] Social comparison and happiness.

[00:35:25] College student mental health crisis.

[00:39:05] Changing thought patterns for happiness.

[00:45:06] Parenting practices and discomfort.

[00:48:10] Practical steps for happiness.

Dr. Judith Joseph MD, MBA is a world-renowned, board-certified psychiatrist and researcher specializing in mental health and trauma. She is the founder and chief investigator at New York City’s premier clinical research base, Manhattan Behavioral Medicine, assistant professor in child and adolescent psychiatry at New York University, and chair of the Women in Medicine Board at Columbia University. 

Judith conducted the world’s first peer-reviewed clinical research study on high functioning depression in her laboratories. She recently published her instant national bestselling book based on her findings from this study, High Functioning: Overcome Your Hidden Depression and Reclaim Your Joy (2025). She has become the world’s leading voice on high functioning depression.

Judith received a 2023 Congressional Proclamation from the US house of representatives for her social media advocacy and research in mental health. She has received several awards, including Share Care Awards in 2020 and 2023 for her MedCircle series on PTSD and a Good Morning America investigative special on ADHD. In 2025, Judith was featured as a

Mental Health Thought Leader on CNN’s Game Changers series. She has written for or been quoted in media outlets including the New York Times, Washington Post and Forbes, and has been featured on Good Morning America, The Today Show, Oprah Daily and more. 

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Timestamps:

[00:02:19] Understanding high functioning depression.

[00:09:06] High functioning depression explained.

[00:14:05] Anhedonia and trauma connection.

[00:19:28] Pathologically productive behaviors.

[00:20:44] Joy and technology's impact.

[00:25:17] Joy vs. pleasure in happiness.

[00:28:46] The hedonic treadmill explained.

[00:32:45] Awareness of anhedonia in therapy.

[00:35:43] Role of gratitude in healing.

[00:39:49] Gratitude practices for mental health.

[00:42:39] Tapping into your values.

[00:45:38] Overcoming hidden depression.