Potential Psychology

Hi Ellen here. If this is your first time listening to the podcast, welcome! I'm your host and I'm here with this mini episode to tell you a bit about what's coming up on the podcast in Season 3.

This season we have a performance theme for this upcoming season and by performance I don't mean how to perform bigger, better or faster although I know you will pick up some tips on that if that's what you're looking for.

Our focus is on the individual experience of performing, whether as an athlete, a leader, a musician, a business owner or just someone working really hard to achieve meaningful goals. I'm exploring with my guests the stuff that sits below the surface but plays a really important part. Things like self awareness, understanding our values, identity, mindset and the role of families and relationships in supporting our goals and performance..

Listen in to learn more and to hear about my plans for experimentation this season. Our first guest interview goes live on September 12.

Thanks for listening!

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Love it or hate it, today's show is about exercise - and how you can use it to fulfil your potential.

My guest is Nonie Carr, a Melbourne based psychologist from Enhance Life Psychology. Nonie has a passion for cycling and the benefits of exercise for our wellbeing and success.
Nonie began her career in schools, first as a high school teacher and later as a school psychologist. She left education to start her private practice and she now works with individuals to help improve their well-being and relationships and boost their motivation to pursue their goals.

She's here on the podcast to talk to us about the benefits of exercise for your brain and mind - and give us some tips on how to incorporate it into our daily life.

Nonie and I discuss:

•The neurological effects of exercise and how the hormones released into the brain during exercise boost our mood and brain function
•The emotional effects of exercise for our wellbeing and mental health
•How exercise can be motivating
•The best types of exercise for our mental and physical health
•'Find Your 30' and simple ways to make moving fun.

By the end of this episode you'll be ready to get out there and exercise!

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This episode is one for the new parents and parents to be.

My guest is clinical psychologist and parenting expert Nadene van der Linden. We're chatting about the psychological transition that we make when we move from non-parent to parent.

What are the challenges? Why is it harder for some of us than others? And how can we best prepare ourselves?

Much of the focus when you're expecting or a new parent is on the baby and what's best for him or her. But parents and their well being are just as important and becoming a parent is a BIG deal that can have unexpected effects on our mental health and state of mind.

In this episode Nadene and I share our personal stories of becoming a parent - the good, the bad and the ugly. We consider:

•The work life juggle that comes with parenting
•How your expectations of parenthood - and yourself - can mess with your head
•The role of identity in the transition to parenthood
•Nadene's tips for making the journey easier

Join us as we get a little personal about parenting.

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My guest today is on a mission to disrupt education and spread well being throughout schools, organisations and our community.

Andrea Downie is co-founder of Project Thrive, an Australian consultancy firm that collaborates with its clients, co-creating school and work environments that help us all to live and work at our best. She and her colleagues fuse positive psychology, education, sociology, anthropology, wellness and leadership in their - and from my experience in this interview, I bet they laugh a lot too!

Listen in as Andrea (a former primary classroom teacher and school leader in Wellbeing, Learning Enhancement, Technology, Gifted Education and a former Deputy Principal) and I explore:

•Eco-systems of well being - How parents, their work, home life, teachers and schools interact to affect students learning and well being.
•Andrea's vision for disrupting education and helping kids to find meaning and purpose in their school days.
•The insight that kids have into what's good for them.
•Well being, motivation and performance as a University subject.
•Experiential positive psychology - living and breathing it, not just learning it.
•Hope and what it means for our resilience.

Andrea shares many wonderful ideas in this episode. Make sure you listen in!

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What is the future of work and how do we prepare our kids for it?
Are schools and universities setting kids up for future success?
Does technology in the classroom improve outcomes for kids?
Should every school student be learning to code?
And what are the skills that kids will need in tomorrow's world?

These are just some of the questions I ask Dr Joe Sweeney, technologist, researcher, writer and expert in workforce transformation in this episode of the Potential Psychology podcast.

Joe and I discuss schools, education, technology, tools, parenting and the future of work. We talk about why LEGO is important for the digital world, the role of books in future happiness and success and why the most important thing we can do for our kids is teaching them to think.

Join me as we explore the future - and the past - with Dr Joe Sweeney.

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Something to get you thinking today. I'm talking to Dr Madeline Fernbach, Australian Clinical Psychologist with expertise and a passion for working with the transgender and gender fluid community.

Madeline is fascinated by identity and the way people see themselves. She explains in this episode that during her awkward middle teenage years she drifted at the fringes of many social groups. Without a fixed groups of friend until later in her life she developed an interest in what makes humans belong - or not belong - in groups.

This is interest drove her to complete a PhD on the topic, after which she began work at the Australian Research Centre for Sex, Health And Society at Latrobe University.

Throughout her career she has been involved in sexual health and identity research, and in the last five years these interests have coalesced, leading her to specialise in supporting the transgender community.

She says, 'The best part of my job is talking about identity and providing support so that people can take control of their lives in ways that are consistent with who they are.'

In this episode Madeline and I discuss:

•What identity is and how it relates to gender.
•Social identity theory and the sense of self we get from the groups we belong to.
•The importance of authenticity for our wellbeing.
•How our mental health is affected when there is a gap between our public and private selves.
•The Genderbread Person. What is it and how does it help us to understand the many facets of gender?
•The fascinating, complex nature of gender and how we express it.
•Madeline's tips for individuals and families grappling with gender and identity.

This is a really thoughtful, insightful and frank interview that might get you thinking about your identity, your personal and public personas and what it means to you to live a truly authentic life.

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Something completely different for you on the podcast this week.

I recorded this episode at the 13th Happiness & Its Causes Conference in sunny Sydney, Australia. It's five pocket interviews and an insight into the conference highlights for me.

Happiness and Its Causes is the world's largest happiness and wellbeing conference, with speakers exploring the many and varied causes for a happy and fulfilling life. The line up was formidable with no less than His Holiness the Dalai Lama making an appearance (he is quite the comedian).

We were inspired by an impressive array of experts from psychology, education, the world of media and entertainment, the corporate world and incredible individuals like Domestic Violence Campaigner Rosie Batty who shared their personal stories of connection and compassion with us.

In this episode you'll hear some familiar voices such as Dr Suzy Green, a previous podcast guest, and some exciting new interviewees such as Dr Justin Coulson and Sue Langley who I'm lining up for future podcast appearances!

Join me for a whistle-stop tour of Happiness and Its Causes 2018.

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I'm very excited that my guest for this episode not only shares two of my personal passions - psychology and yoga - but she combines the two in her professional practice to help everyday people thrive through life's challenges and difficult moments.
Suzy Reading is UK based psychologist, yoga instructor and personal trainer. She is the author of The Self Care Revolution which was published in the UK late in 2017 and in Australia in early 2018. She is passionate about helping to bring people back from stress, overwhelm, crisis and grief to a place of feeling whole, energetic and on the path to a rewarding life.
Our conversation in this episode ranges from:

•What it means to nurture head, heart and body and how you can incorporate these simple steps into your life everyday.
•How to recover when you are 'energetically bankrupt'
•Why Suzy believes yoga is 'body-centred therapy'
•The two minute yoga sequences that we can all use every day to calm the body and mind - or energise it!
•How movement helps us to process emotion and recover from life's challenges
•The parallels between the Eastern philosophies of yoga and Western psycholocial sciences, and
•Suzy's personal experience that flattened her then led her to breathe again and create a flourishing life. Be inspired by Suzy's wisdom, calmed by her soothing style and discover her simple tips for self-care and rediscovering your vibrant, flourishing self.

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My guest today is Karen Young, founder of the popular 'Hey Sigmund' website. Karen is a psychologist, an author, a speaker, an educator and a parent.
She founded Hey Sigmund after realising the power of solid information to help us to manage life's challenges and live well. The website attracts millions of readers each year worldwide. Her articles have been translated into a number of languages and her work has been published on various international sites including The Good Men Project, The Huffington Post, The Mighty, and Yahoo Health.
My conversation with Karen is a wellspring of wisdom ranging from career advice to parenting teens, to understanding and managing anxiety to book, exercise, meditation and tips for staying happy and well.
We dive into:

•Karen's book 'Hey Warrior', which she wrote for kids to help them understand anxiety and find their 'brave'. (The book has now been translated into a number of languages).
•The power of parents to support and guide kids through life's more challenging days
•How to help teens when they stuff up monumentally.
•We even get existential with a chat about the nature of being human.Listen in and enjoy!

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My guest today is James Garrett, the founder and CEO of Brain by Design - a US-based organisation that teaches strategies for getting more from your mind. He's a psychologist, a former academic, co-founder of a highly successful social venture - Think Unlimited, which taught innovation and creativity to young people in the Middle East - and he's chatting to me today about using your brain to enhance your productivity and creativity and live your best life.
This is an exciting and illuminating conversation and James and I have a ball discussing the science behind:

•Why your focus and attention is like a battery that requires recharging.
• How to get more done by working less
•How to use your mind to start on difficult or unpleasant tasks
•The importance of taking breaks for your productivity and creativity and why your brain doesn't know how to do this

•Why the standard '8 hours at your desk' is a disaster for your effectiveness, innovation, happiness and wellbeing.
•James's Brain in Mind Program and the science of productivity and wellbeing, and
•How he reads one book per week!Listen in to discover James's tips and strategies.

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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/potentialpsychology/message

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit potentialpsychology.substack.com