Human Potential Lab

Today it’s great to chat with Nedra Glover Tawwab. Nedra is a licensed therapist and sought-after relationship expert. She has practiced relationship therapy for 13 years and is the founder and owner of the group therapy practice, Kaleidoscope Counseling. Nedra has been featured recently in The New York Times, The Guardian, Psychology Today, Self, and Vice, and has appeared on numerous podcasts. She runs a popular Instagram account where she shares practices, tools, and reflections for mental health and hosts weekly Q&As.

Topics

[2:20] Why Nedra wrote a book on boundaries

[3:24] What is a boundary?

[4:22] What is “enmeshment”?

[5:55] Signs you need to set boundaries

[8:52] Why we’re afraid of setting boundaries

[11:16] Is there hope for chronic people-pleasers?

[12:07] Nedra’s personal journey with boundaries

[21:23] How to set professional boundaries

[27:34] Nedra’s experiences with setting professional boundaries

[34:43] The benefits of having healthy boundaries

[36:36] How mental health impacts your physical health

[40:31] How to help people without burning out

[43:40] The importance of boundaries in achieving a work/life balance

[46:57] The 6 types of boundaries

[50:17] Nedra’s experience with writing her book

[51:57] Nedra’s thoughts on growing her Instagram account

[55:26] Porous vs rigid boundaries

[57:09] How boundaries shift depending on the person

[58:13] How to enforce a boundary

[1:00:39] How to deal with depersonalization

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Today the tables are turned on The Psychology Podcast as Andrew Yang interviews Scott Barry Kaufman! This is a really meaningful episode for Scott, as he was a big supporter of Andrew's presidential campaign, and is now a big supporter of his Mayoral NYC campaign. Andrew and Scott share a humanistic viewpoint, and it was great to finally get them together in a discussion.

Andrew is the founder of Venture for America, a non-profit organization aiming to create economic opportunities in American cities. He is a former 2020 Democratic presidential candidate and is currently running for mayor of New York City on a Democrat ticket. In 2012, the Obama administration selected Andrew as a "Champion for Change" and later as a "Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship" in 2015. This episode originally appeared on Andrew's podcast, Yang Speaks.

In this eagerly anticipated episode, Andrew and Scott discuss:

[02:48] Scott’s journey into and out of special-education

[05:45] Why Scott signed up for dance classes in college

[06:30] How Scott accidentally discovered his singing talents

[08:10] Why Scott decided to pursue psychology

[15:30] The worrying trend of schools rewarding behavioral conformity and performance on thinly disguised intelligence tests

[17:29] Scott’s "Dual-Process Theory of Human Intelligence"

[20:23] Why academic psychologists are under pressure to come up with novel ideas

[21:02] Scott’s encounter with creativity research

[24:39] How Scott’s research on human intelligence opened doors for studying other research topics

[26:31] Examples of human-centered schools

[30:41] Andrew Yang’s take on humanistic and positive education

[33:20] Why Americans need to incorporate humanity into their everyday lives

[36:04] The difference between narcissism and healthy self-esteem

[39:20] Scott’s revised hierarchy of needs

[42:17] The distinction between deficiency motivation and growth motivation

[48:04] The reception of Scott’s latest book Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization among psychologist

My friend Andrew Yang is running for New York City Mayor, and he needs our help! Andrew maintains a huge lead in the polls and is dominating press coverage, and together, we can push him into first place in the fundraising race, too. This week, let's make sure Andrew receives more contributions than any other candidate. What's more: any New York City resident who contributes will get their contribution matched 8 to 1 by the City! To contribute, please go to y4ny.com/scott.

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Today it’s great to have Sam Harris on the podcast. Sam is the author of five New York Timesbest sellers, including The End of Faith, Letter to a Christian Nation, The Moral Landscape, Free Will, Lying, and Waking Up. The End of Faith won the 2005 PEN Award for Nonfiction. His writing and public lectures cover a wide range of topics—neuroscience, moral philosophy,religion, meditation practice, human violence, rationality—but generally focus on how a growing understanding of ourselves and the world is changing our sense of how we should live. He also hosts the Making Sense Podcast, which was selected by Apple as one of the “iTunes Best” and has won a Webby Award for best podcast in the Science & Education category.

Topics

[0:17] Sam and Scott discuss materialism and consciousness

[2:59] Sam makes his case for determinism

[11:08] Sam and Scott discuss “the self” and free will

[24:50] Sam’s take on why determinism eases human suffering

[29:23] Sam’s thoughts on the "responsibility paradox"

[36:30] The link between the responsibility paradox, cancel culture, and politics

[43:57] Sam’s thoughts on pride

[48:17] Sam’s reflections on love, hate, and Trump

[1:08:00] Sam’s defense of objective morality

[1:15:51] Why we ‘should’ prevent suffering and promote collective wellbeing

[1:30:23] What if reincarnation was real?

[1:33:37] Would it be good to change someone’s intuition of right and wrong?

[1:39:40] How emotions and values are linked

[1:45:09] Why we need to scale values

[1:48:12] Sam’s issue with the is-ought problem

[1:56:49] Why Sam maintains that free will and determinism are incompatible

[2:02:45] Why the self is an illusion

[2:08:53] Sam’s exploration of mystery

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Today it’s great to have Sam Harris on the podcast. Sam is the author of five New York Times best sellers, including The End of Faith, Letter to a Christian Nation, The Moral Landscape, Free Will, Lying, and Waking Up. The End of Faith won the 2005 PEN Award for Nonfiction. His writing and public lectures cover a wide range of topics—neuroscience, moral philosophy,religion, meditation practice, human violence, rationality—but generally focus on how a growing understanding of ourselves and the world is changing our sense of how we should live. He also hosts the Making Sense Podcast, which was selected by Apple as one of the “iTunes Best” and has won a Webby Award for best podcast in the Science & Education category.

Topics

[1:57] Sam’s reflections on his childhood

[7:18] Sam’s interest in martial arts

[8:04] Sam’s experience with MDMA

[12:09] How Sam ended up on the Dalai Lama’s security detail

[16:39] Sam’s experience with meditation teacher Sayadaw U Pandita

[23:12] Dualistic vs Nondualistic mindfulness

[24:34] Sam’s experience with Dzogchen meditation

[28:27] Sam’s dream about Dilgo Khyentse

[34:15] Sam’s experience with fiction writing

[37:50] Scott questions Sam’s position on free will

[41:33] Sam’s disagreement with Daniel Dennett

[42:41] Sam’s take on free will and human interaction

[46:38] Why Sam thinks we’re getting “free will” wrong

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Today it’s great to chat with Simon Baron-Cohen. Simon is professor of psychology and psychiatry and director of the Autism Research Centre at Cambridge University. He is the author of six hundred scientific articles and four books, including The Science of Evil and The Essential Difference.

[2:47] Simon’s evolution of thought on autism

[5:19] How the social realm of autism has evolved

[8:12] The difference between autism and psychopathy

[10:26] The role of affective vs cognitive empathy

[12:37] How to navigate autism amidst cancel culture

[14:18] Having autistic traits vs being on the autism spectrum

[17:52] How autism drives human invention

[22:11] The “systemizing mechanism” of the brain

[24:03] The role of “if-and-then patterns” in autistic individuals

[26:41] Simon’s thoughts on language acquisition

[27:48] “The empathy circuit”

[37:28] The role of creativity in autism

[41:19] The Brain Types Study

[42:43] The biological basis of creativity and autism

[45:24] Why monkeys don’t skateboard

[48:12] Why language isn’t a necessary precursor to invention

[55:12] How Scott measured implicit learning and pattern-seeking

[59:28] Why Simon’s work has sparked some pushback

[1:01:04] How to support autistic people

[1:05:45] How we can nurture the inventors of the future

[1:07:18] Sex differences in autism

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Today it’s great to chat with Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas on the podcast. Dr. Jennifer Aaker is the General Atlantic Professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a leading expert on how purpose and meaning shape individual choices and how technology can positively impact both human well-being and company growth. Her work has been widely published in lead in scientific journals and featured in The Economist, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and Science. A recipient of the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award and the MBA Professor of the Year, Aaker counts winning a dance-off in the early 1980s among her greatest feats.

Naomi Bagdonas is a Lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and an Executive Coach. She helps leaders be more creative, flexible and resilient in the face of change by facilitating interactive sessions for Fortune 100 companies and coaching executives and celebrities for appearances ranging from Saturday Night Live to the Today Show. Formally trained at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, Bagdonas performs at comedy venues and teaches improv in San Francisco’s county jail. Her constant stream of foster dogs describe her as gullible and full of treats.

Topics

[3:15] Why the world needs more humor

[6:06] Humor at the expense of others/4 Styles of humor

[8:49] Origin story of “Humor, Seriously”

[12:51] The bottom-line value of humor

[18:19] How to infuse humor in the workplace

[22:05] Jennifer’s thoughts on humorlessness

[24:58] Cultivating the comedian’s toolbox

[28:30] How to create your own signature joke

[30:17] Scott and Naomi’s experiences at Upright Citizen’s Brigade

[34:11] The link between humor and mental health

[37:45] The relationship between status and humor

[42:17] The value of self-deprecating humor

[44:10] The importance of context in humor

[50:22] One of Jennifer’s pranks on her students

[51:21] Biological vs cultural dimensions of humor

[54:58] How humor reflects elements of our society

[58:27] Should there be moral rules for comedy?

[1:03:13] Why truth and misdirection are at the core of comedy

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Today it’s great to have Adam Grant on the podcast. Adam is an organizational psychologist at Wharton, where he has been the top-rated professor for seven straight years. He is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of four books that have sold millions of copies and been translated into 35 languages. His work has been praised by J.J. Abrams, Bill and Melinda Gates, and many others. Grant’s TED talks have been viewed more than 20 million times, and he hosts the chart-topping TED podcast WorkLife with Adam Grant. He has been recognized as one of the world’s 10 most influential management thinkers, Fortune’s 40 under 40, Oprah’s Super Soul 100, and a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. Adam received distinguished scientific achievement awards from the American Psychological Association and the National Science Foundation. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife Allison and their three children.

Topics

[4:17] What is rethinking?

[7:02] “Preachers, prosecutors, and politicians”

[8:08] Why we need to cultivate a scientific attitude

[11:48] The path to being effective

[12:17] Linking character and success

[16:10] Adam’s new construct of character

[20:42] The importance of authenticity and integrity

[25:05] The role of consistency in exercising our values

[30:37] The role of integrity in politics

[33:07] The tension between personality and pursuing values

[36:08] “A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing”

[38:32] The trap of cognitive entrenchment

[40:50] The importance of having diverse interests

[41:40] Cognitive underpinnings of thinking again

[42:31] Actively open-minded thinking

[45:53] The benefits of disagreeableness

[51:42] Selfishness as the 6th factor of personality

[57:31] Why “agreeing to disagree” is wrong

[1:00:04] How to destabilize stereotypes

[1:05:25] Psychological safety in universities

[1:09:40] What “good faith” means

[1:11:18] Crossing psychological safety with accountability

[1:12:59] What Scott thinks Adam should rethink

[1:17:26] The importance of benevolence and universalism

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Today it’s great to chat with Steven Kotler on the podcast. Steven is a New York Times bestselling author, an award-winning journalist, and the Executive Director of the Flow Research Collective. He is one of the world’s leading experts on human performance. He is the author of nine bestsellers (out of thirteen books total), including The Art of Impossible, The Future Is Faster Than You Think, Stealing Fire, The Rise of Superman, Bold and Abundance. His work has been nominated for two Pulitzer Prizes, translated into over 40 languages, and appeared in over 100 publications, including the New York Times Magazine, Wired, Atlantic Monthly, TIME and the Harvard Business Review. Steven is also the cohost of Flow Research Collective Radio. Along with his wife, author Joy Nicholson, he is the cofounder of the Rancho de Chihuahua, a hospice and special needs dog sanctuary.

Topics

[4:04] Understanding human potential

[9:58] Why not going big is bad for us

[11:22] Insights into the flow state

[15:06] "Biology scales, personality doesn’t"

[18:44] The importance of confidence and grit

[19:05] Physical vs. psychological recovery

[20:51] Conscious vs. unconscious self-esteem

[22:49] The difference between impossible and Impossible

[25:21] How to get to Impossible

[27:39] Reflections on failure

[31:14] Steven’s thoughts on bravery

[32:51] Fear as a compass

[33:44] Exercising clarity of vision

[34:37] Confronting physical barriers to performance

[36:57] Steven's dimensions of grit

[40:51] How practice makes confident

[43:31] How the "courage to be” may be a form of grit

[44:54] Steven’s thoughts on passion

[49:34] The role of purpose in peak performance

[53:16] How to be a high performer

[55:09] The "habit of ferocity"

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Today it’s great to have the legendary Noam Chomsky on the podcast. Noam is a public intellectual, linguist, and political activist. He’s the author of many influential books, including Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media, and his latest book with Robert Pollin called Climate Crisis and The Green New Deal: The Political Economy of Saving The Planet. Chomsky is also known for helping to initiate and sustain the cognitive revolution. He’s the Laureate Professor of Linguistics at The University of Arizona and Institute Professor Emeritus at MIT.

Topics

[02:06] The cognitive revolution of the ‘50s and ‘60s

[03:49] Noam’s first encounter with behaviorism

[12:41] What it was like to be part of the cognitive revolution

[17:49] Implicit learning and artificial grammar

[26:30] Noam’s view on modern-day behavioral genetics

[28:05] Noam's thoughts on intelligence

[32:02] Noam’s take on creativity

[38:41] Chomsky's view vs. Foucault's view

[42:49] Noam’s thoughts on modern-day social justice movements

[45:50] Is there such a thing as human nature?

[49:06] Identity vs. human nature

[54:54] Noam’s views on race consciousness in America

[59:16] Why Noam thinks Trump is the worst criminal in human history

[1:00:34] How can democrats appeal to Trump supporters?

[1:03:47] Cancel culture

[1:05:10] The complexities of the slogan "defund the police"

[1:08:36] Noam reflects on his life regrets

[1:10:17] Chomsky's life advice

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Today it’s great to chat with Rich Roll on the podcast. Named one of the 25 fittest men in the world by Men’s Fitness and the guru of reinvention by Outside, Rich is a globally renowned ultra-endurance athlete, wellness advocate, best-selling author, husband, and father of four. He shares his inspirational stories of addiction, redemption, and optimal health in his number one best-selling memoir Finding Ultra. Rich has also been featured on CNN, the cover of Outside Magazine, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal. His latest book, Voicing Change, features timeless wisdom and inspiration from the widely popular Rich Roll Podcast, one of the top one hundred podcasts in the world with over 100 million downloads.

Topics

[04:09] Rich’s three major transformations

[05:29] How Rich overcame his alcoholism

[10:12] Rich’s grit and his life as a functional alcoholic

[11:12] Learning how to outwork everybody

[12:20] Rich’s personality structure during his schooling years

[13:55] The relationship between endurance and drug abuse recovery

[17:47] Life after rehab

[23:22] Changes made during his early 40s and the motivation behind his fitness routines

[25:30] You are what you eat

[28:10] Spiritual exploration through active meditation

[30:07] Addictive nature of the flow state

[32:36] Embracing your authenticity

[36:01] How humans are all victims of their character defects

[39:00] Growth and self-actualization

[42:48] How the media interprets Rich’s story

[46:08] The psychologically rich life

[49:17] The apology narrative

[51:21] Why choosing growth is a daily struggle

[53:41] Rich’s third transition

[58:25] The overnight success culture

[1:01:40] Rich’s advice to people trying to adopt a vegan lifestyle

[1:02:47] Focus on controlling the controllable

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