People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast

Vincent Denault once believed he was learning how to read people’s hidden thoughts through analyzing body language. As a young lawyer in Quebec, he attended behavior analysis and “synergology” trainings that promised the ability to detect lies and determine hidden thoughts from small gestures and movements. But after digging into the research, he realized much of what he’d been taught wasn't true. In this talk, Vincent describes that journey and we explore how body-language myths spread through trainings, media, and YouTube behavior “experts.” We also discuss his research on how judges use behavior to assess witness credibility, his views on Paul Ekman, and his views on how bad-behavior-information spreaders protect themselves from criticism and responsibility. Along the way, we examine why nonverbal behavior still matters in human interaction—just not in the reliable lie-detection ways many people assume.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kent Clisby, a former CIA case officer and counterintelligence specialist, breaks down how flashy claims stand up to official records. He contrasts Chase Hughes' Navy DD-214 with his self-promotion. They dig into military roles, ambiguous academic assertions, psychedelic “matrix” talk, pickup-artist roots, and why charismatic frauds gain wide influence.

The Epstein files release has resulted in many people seeming to lose their minds: engaging in moral panic, having hysterical overreactions, filtering for worst-case interpretations of ambiguous data, images, and emails. Using a video from the political influencer Kyle Kulinski (who has 2M+ YouTube subscribers) as a case study, I examine how ambiguous snippets—like an audio clip of people seemingly talking about killing deer — get instantly, emotionally interpreted by Kyle and others as highly suspicious evidence of criminal wrongdoing. Why are smart, influential people speaking with absolute certainty about what pixelated photos and ambiguous recordings and emails tell us? Why are people claiming to find evidence of cannibalism in the files? What does all this catastrophizing and ultra-pessimistic thinking tell us about our toxic political polarization problem, and our tendency to assume the worst when our perceived enemies are involved? If you’re concerned about paranoid, conspiracy-minded thinking, and how that ties into our political divides, this episode will help you understand why emotional reasoning is so rampant, and why it’s important to fight against it, when we see others doing it, and within ourselves — not just for the sake of society, but for our own mental health. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Arnold Zuboff, philosopher and author of Finding Myself, argues for universalism (open individualism) where the same 'I' underlies all first‑person experience. He explains why immediacy, not bodily facts, grounds identity. Discussions cover split‑brain cases, probability arguments about existence, links to multiverse and anthropic ideas, and moral implications for empathy, punishment, and death.

What actually works to avoid violent outcomes when someone is armed, emotional, and on the edge? I talk with former FBI chief hostage negotiator Gary Noesner, author of Stalling for Time, about the psychology of high-stakes crisis situations — including lessons from Waco (part of which he was present for) and other cases Gary explains the “paradox of power” (why pushing aggressively often backfires), and why most so-called hostage situations are really emotional crises, not bargaining contests. We also discuss the limits of reading body language and behavior, the power of active listening, and the importance of tone of voice and how you phrase things.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What actually makes negotiations work—and why do so many “tough” tactics backfire? In this episode, Zach talks with professional negotiator Andres Lares about why the most effective deals rarely come from trying to win at all costs. Drawing from sports contracts, Fortune 500 negotiations, and decades of real-world experience, Andres explains the “power of nice,” the importance of looking for creative win-win approaches, and why public posturing can kill agreements. They also dig into the hype around body language—what’s useful, what’s overblown, and what actually matters when you’re trying to read and influence people in the real world. Andres also talks about his views on AI-assisted sales-presentation-analysis programs (like Gong and Chorus). We also talk about the realism, or lack of it, in the movie Jerry McGuire. Andres is the CEO and Managing Partner of Shapiro Negotiations Institute (SNI), and the co-author of “Persuade: The 4-Step Process to Influence People and Decisions.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eric Robinson, a recently retired FBI agent and former pastor, shares lessons from 24 years investigating complex crimes. He talks about why rapport and empathy outperform aggression. He explores the power of silence and asking single questions. He critiques overreliance on body language, weighs polygraph use, and explains careful planning and partner signals in serious interviews.

A talk with Doug Teschner and Beth Malow—co-authors of the book Beyond the Politics of Contempt—about an aspect of bridge-building/depolarization-aimed work that rarely gets discussed: the backlash. We dig into the criticisms and skepticism that people on both “sides” throw at bridge-building efforts—claims that it’s naive, weak, morally compromised, or even a form of complicity with the "bad guys." We talk about why contempt can feel justified and righteous, how protest and resistance can unintentionally fuel us-vs-them cycles, and why simply “listening” is often seen as legitimizing harmful views. If you’ve ever thought “that empathetic bridge-building stuff all sounds nice, but now isn’t the time”—or if you’ve rolled your eyes at such work altogether—there’s a good chance this conversation addresses some objections you have.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A talk with former CIA officer Kent Clizbe about his exposure of Wayne Simmons, a man who spent more than a decade on Fox News posing as a CIA counterterrorism expert—but who was a fraud and serial liar. And we talk about how that case mirrors the case of Chase Hughes, who claims to know advanced, top-secret techniques and intelligence, and who has gained many fans, but who is a clear fraud. Topics discussed: how Kent met Wayne Simmons; why he suspected rather quickly he was a fake; how Kent’s intuition about Wayne relates to Kent’s system of holistic contextual analysis, which Kent has a book about; and the negative impacts on Kent’s life from questioning Wayne Simmons. We dig into the psychology of belief, the social and career incentives that keep scams alive, and why fans and followers resist evidence even after it’s laid out clearly.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A talk with Jackie Miller, host of the podcast “Out of Crazy Town: Your Guide to Divorcing a Narcissist.” Jackie shares her personal story of escaping a coercively controlling, psychologically abusive marriage—and how that led her to try to help others navigating similar nightmarish situations. We talk about how these relationships evolve from subtle manipulation into abusive domination and control; and we talk about the mind-bending psychology of narcissistic abuse—projection, gaslighting, smear campaigns, and the delusional self-justifications that can make these people nearly impossible to understand. We also talk about why victims often seem “crazy” to outsiders, how abusers weaponize children and the legal system, and why staying calm in the face of harassment can be the most powerful defense.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices