The OptimalWork Podcast

Latest Episodes:

[Rebroadcast] The Impact of Awe Apr 01, 2024

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One of the least-discussed emotions may be the most powerful in bringing about well-being. When was the last time you were filled with awe? People may think of awe as a nice-to-have emotion, but not needed for living a good life. Recent research, however, suggests that awe may be essential to true thriving.

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188. Why You Should Stop Labeling People Mar 25, 2024

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#188: It can be tempting to fit people into our categories: we think things like, “she’s sanguine,” “he’s not good at math,” “she’s shy,” “he’s melancholic.” We may even convince ourselves that these labels help us people as they want to or ought to be treated. But taken too far, labels prevent us from forming meaningful relationships with people. They can limit what we say or do, leading us to avoid certain topics of conversation or shared activities, and sometimes even introduce fear into the relationship. To form true bonds, we need to be radically open to the other person and treat them as a unique individual.

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187. Harnessing Your Brain’s Predictions to Transform Anxiety Mar 18, 2024

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#187: The brain’s models and predictions play a central role in the vicious cycles that drive procrastination, dread, and anxiety. When your brain assess a challenge as a threat, often it’s predicting some pain, or shame and sounds the alarm to get you to avoid it. To reverse these vicious cycles and transform them into virtuous ones, we need to shape our brain’s predictions, de-fusing from our models, opening up to reality, and asking: How can this bring out my best? What would a new and better way of doing this look like?

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186. How to Navigate Inner Conflict Mar 11, 2024

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#186: Why do we sometimes feel like we're at war with ourselves? In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres dive into a therapy approach called Internal Family Systems (IFS), exploring how our mind has various parts — protectors and exiles — which are sometimes in conflict. Approaching these parts with curiosity and compassion paves the way to resilience and growth. IFS offers valuable tools for everyday life and self-therapy. This discussion is geared toward empowering you to apply these learnings to your own internal challenges, fostering a path to flourishing.

Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

185. Getting Past Shame-Based Motivation Mar 04, 2024

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#185: What motivates you to get up in the morning? What motivates you to continue working on a challenging task? Learning how to motivate yourself is essential to true success, but so many people are motivated by a fear of failure, that is, by shame. In this episode, we discuss the relationship between shame and motivation, how to tap into deeper sources of motivation, and how to overcome shame using techniques from Internal Family Systems (IFS). In our next episode, we’ll discuss more in-depth how to apply IFS.

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[Rebroadcast] How to Process Negative Feedback Feb 26, 2024

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Negative feedback is a part of life. It’s also essential in helping us identify our biggest opportunities for growth. In this episode, we discuss how to give and receive negative feedback and the role it plays in the social dimension of growth.

Find more at https://www.OptimalWork.com.

183. Overcoming Anxiety III: Incorporating Ideals Feb 19, 2024

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#183: Overcoming anxiety occurs in three successive stages. In the third and final installment of a three episode series, we discuss stage three: using adrenaline to achieve maximal growth. Stage one, bronze-work, centers on challenging yourself by engaging triggers head-on, and it has the effect of habituating the fear associated with that particular trigger. Stage two, silver-work, centers on being mindful of the alarm as it’s sounding, and it helps you accept the discomfort associated with triggers in general. Finally, stage three, gold-work, helps you focus on transcendent goals — skills, ideals, and bonds — so that the adrenaline you have brings out your best.

Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

182. Overcoming Anxiety II: Develop Daring Feb 12, 2024

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#182: Overcoming anxiety occurs in three successive stages. In the second installment of a three episode series, we discuss stage two: using mindfulness to experience the alarm of anxiety. When you focus on the alarm of anxiety, rather than the trigger only, the learning generalizes to all triggers. It also flips the feeling of fear into one of daring, an eagerness to approach the trigger. This sets the stage for you to use your anxiety and adrenaline to achieve peak performance, which is the topic of next week’s episode.

Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

181. Overcoming Anxiety I: Feel the Fear Feb 05, 2024

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#181: Overcoming anxiety occurs in three successive stages. In this first installment of a three episode series, we discuss stage one: confronting the trigger of anxiety head-on, embracing the fear. Over time, the trigger will habituate; as you challenge yourself, the fear you experience will gradually diminish. You can then develop a sense of daring, which is the beginning of the second stage, the topic of next week’s episode.

Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

180. How to Discipline Your Children While Deepening Your Bond with Them Jan 29, 2024

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#180: When a child does something wrong, your first instinct may be justice: to punish them. In this episode, we discuss “No-Drama Discipline,” by Daniel Siegal and Tina Bryson, exploring how to discipline children in a way that builds your bond with them and promotes their moral development. By connecting with your child, helping him or her gain insight into what went wrong, and look for ways to repair and reintegrate, discipline becomes a way of actually deepening your bond with them, rather than a source of friction.

Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

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