Bounce! Conversations with Larry Weeks

What do you do when you're faced with a big decision? If you're like most people, you might make a pro and con list, although many don't even do that - if you're like me, you might over-analyze and spend too much time searching for that extra data point that might make you sure. There is a better way to make quality decisions and minimize second-guessing. My guest is Annie Duke. Annie is an expert on decision fitness and is the author of two books on decision making, the bestseller Thinking In Bets, and her latest How To Decide, Simple Tools For Making Better Choices, is the topic of the show. Prior to the books, Annie used high stakes poker as her decision lab and became one of the world's top poker players, winning her first World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet in 2004. That same year, she won the $2 million winner-take-all, invitation-only Tournament of Champions. In 2010, she won NBC National Heads-Up Poker Championship. Before professional poker, Annie was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship to study Cognitive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. This is the second time I've had Annie as a guest (See Ep. 22) and the topic of this episode follows from the first except here we shift from highlighting causes of bad decisions to discussing in more detail the process for making better ones. We move to the more practical as she outlines the tools and heuristics we can use to make quality decisions and second-guess yourself less. Here are just some of our talking points. A review of "resulting" and why it's a problem What's wrong with pro-con lists - and what's better Assigning probability and forecasting The tree of possibility The decision multiverse The three-column decision map Why we should embrace educated guesses Factors leading up to election cycles and how predictions might be wrong yet correctly made before and much more Note Annie's audio is less than optimal but listen closely, it's a gold mine of decision-making wisdom you can use right away. Enjoy!

"It's like an aha moment when you suddenly see it, the moment you say, oh, all these negative feelings are awesome and wonderful, this is a positive deal. The moment you see that you suddenly won't want or need them anymore." - Dr. David burns "What you resist not only persists but will grow in size" - Carl Jung This was recorded in late August and throughout much of the world, we are still dealing with the pandemic via restricted living. Our routines have been disrupted and our world of experiences narrowed, going on six months. Add to the mix all the negative news that precedes a national election, and you have a recipe for depression and anxiety. Enter my guest on this episode is Dr.David Burns, M.D. David was a previous guest back when I started the podcast (episode 5), and he is one of the pioneers in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) so very happy to have him back on. Dr. Burns is currently Adjunct Clinical Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Stanford University School of Medicine, where he is involved in research and teaching. He has received numerous awards, including the A. E. Bennett Award for his research on brain chemistry, the Distinguished Contribution to Psychology through the Media Award, and the Outstanding Contributions Award from the National Association of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapists. He has been named Teacher of the Year three times from the class of graduating residents at Stanford University School of Medicine, and his best-selling book, Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy, published over 40 years ago, is still in the #1 Amazon spot for books on depression. Now he has a new book that innovates on the methods in the first called Feeling Great – The Revolutionary New Treatment for Depression and Anxiety, which is based on more than 40,000 hours treating individuals with severe mood problems. Dr. Burns says that our negative moods do not result from what's wrong with us, but rather - what's right with us. And paradoxically, when you listen and "hear" what your negative thoughts and feelings are trying to say, you won't need them anymore, and recovery follows. The goal, according to Dr. Burns, is not just complete elimination of negative feelings, but the development of joy and enlightenment. Some talking points from the show. A review of the origins and basics of CBT David's new treatment protocol - TEAM CBT A list of cognitive distortions Discerning healthy and unhealthy sadness On dealing with cancer Agenda setting How and why of honoring negative thoughts Case studies and patience response Read to investigate your feelings and experiment with how to change them? Enjoy! For resources and more visit larryweeks.com

"The greater the mistake, the more foolish the belief, the more consequences of that belief...Then, the greater your need to reduce that dissonance in your favor because the gap is greater between yourself and feelings of self worth" - Carol Tavris On this podcast, we talk about what happens after we make a terrible mistake. What is our response to our mistakes? Do we try to brush it off? Do we say screw it and double down? Mistakes don't necessarily end with the mistake itself - it can get worse, much worse. It's akin to the axiom for failure testing software; Almost all catastrophic errors are the result of incorrect handling of non-fatal errors that are explicitly signaled. Consider Bill Clinton. It is arguable that had he admitted to his relationship with Monica Lewinsky early and contritely, he would have avoided a 4-month long impeachment process - and embarrassing testimony recorded for posterity. Or we can get better, we can learn and grow from our mistakes. But that takes admission along with taking responsibility so that we don't make the same mistake again. This podcast explains why that's so hard to do. My guests are Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson. They co-authored the book "Mistakes Were Made (but Not by Me): Why We Justify Foolish Beliefs, Bad Decisions and Hurtful Acts" The book, and our conversation, is about cognitive dissonance theory applied to a wide variety of topics, including politics, religious belief, memory, criminal justice, and even family quarrels. Carol is an American social psychologist, public intellectual, well-known writer, and lecturer. She's devoted her career to the psychological sciences; the beliefs and practices that guide people's lives. Carol has a Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Michigan, has taught psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles and the New School for Social Research. Carol is also a member of the editorial board of Psychological Science in the Public Interest. Her articles, book reviews, and op-eds have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, The Times Literary Supplement, Scientific American and other publications. Elliot Aronson is one of the most famous names in the discipline of social psychology due in no small part to his best book, The Social Animal. He is listed among the 100 most eminent psychologists of the 20th century. He has taught at Harvard University, the University of Minnesota, the University of Texas, and is currently professor emeritus of psychology at the University of California, Santa Cruz. This was an easy conversation as Carol and Elliot are both so very likable. I told them that if I had to tell someone about my mistakes, it would be them, as they came across as genuinely caring. I think you'll agree. Our conversation covers these topics and more. Why people might justify bad decisions. Cognitive dissonance The pyramid of choice Faulty memory Keeping beliefs against revealed evidence Dealing with our bad memories How to learn from mistakes Cancel culture Partitioning mistakes from persons Anatomy of an apology Enjoy! For resources and more visit larryweeks.com

Rory Sutherland is a best selling author, ad man being the Vice Chairman of Ogilvy and Mather and co-founder of Ogilvy Change, a behavioral science practice where they believe the greatest gains to be made in business and society are psychological, not technological. Rory is regarded as one of marketing and advertising's most original thinkers and inspirational speakers; a cumulative 7M viewers have seen his Ted Talks. This is Rory's second appearance on the podcast. The first episode 20, which is still very popular. Because Rory has his finger on the pulse of consumer psychology, I wanted his take on the impact of stay at home orders on our respective western consumers as the Coronavirus (hopefully) wanes. How will our consuming and workplace behavior change? So this is a wide-ranging conversation covering these topics and more... Speculating on permanent and temporary consumer behavior changes Behaviors that are inherently resilient Social norms The future of the workplace, commuting, public policy, travel, and movies Trends vs. vectors What does he think about marketing/advertising on the edge of a pandemic? What should brands do amidst all this change? Habits and social copying Enjoy! For resources and notes see larryweeks.com

I'm never sure how to introduce James Altucher to anyone who might not have heard of him. He's a best selling author with a hugely successful podcast, investor, serial entrepreneur, former VC & hedge fund manager, computer programmer, and chess master. I'm sure I've left some out but just Google him, he's everywhere. Returning for his second appearance on the podcast (see more of his story here), James is one of the most interesting people I know. But his superpower and what I admire about him most is his vulnerability. He's an open book and not afraid to lean into controversy. To the point of this show, on his podcast, he's been talking with a wide variety of experts about the Coronavirus, everyone from an immunologist, physicians, geneticist, economist to policy experts and super forecasters in the form of regular updates starting in February. He also lives in Manhattan, which is ground zero for the epidemic here in the states, which gives him another perspective I don't have. Well, I thought I'd short cut my research and just call him for a distillation of what he's finding out; what after all these conversations has he concluded about what is happening now? So here are just some of the topics we cover Political risks for any opinion on what to do next The math used for Coronavirus spread / who got what wrong? Issues with flattening the curve Dividing the certain from the uncertain He view on when this will it effectively "end" Possible shape of the recovery - L,U,V,W? Economic impact and when he thinks the country should open up or could open How the future has been pulled forward Businesses that may never return to normal How to be an idea machine Business ideas that are favorable in this environment His personal practices for recovering from setback - as he's been through many Enjoy Seem more at larryweeks.com

William B. Irvine is a professor of philosophy at Wright State University. The author of seven books, including The Stoic Challenge and A Guide to the Good Life, he has also written for the Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post, Salon, Time, and the BBC. He lives in Dayton, Ohio For the context of the show I refer you to his latest, The Stoic Challenge: A Philosopher's Guide to Becoming Tougher, Calmer and More Resilient Philosophy for William is not just an academic career; he actually lives it, having adopted Stoicism many years ago, making him an outlier in the academic community. In many ways, this ancient school of thought preempted many aspects of modern psychology and how to use some of its tenants to deal with setbacks. The Stoics' realized that even though you have limited control over what setbacks you experience, you can develop considerable control over how you respond to them. One of the 1st century Stoics Seneca wrote about the differences between experiencing a setback and suffering from it, by changing the perspective of how one thinks of setbacks. You've probably read or heard of some form of this quote attributed to another Stoic, Epictetus "We suffer not from the events in our lives but from our judgment about them." On this show, we explore that precept - with some helpful thought experiments that I encourage you to try Topics covered How he came to Stoicism Comparisons with Buddhism Psychology of a setback Stoic framing (the test frame, hero frame, target frame) Negative visualization "The last time" exercise and premature nostalgia Resetting hedonic standards The power of perspective Enjoy! For show notes and more see larryweeks.com

This episode is about trying to understand our true capacity to cope with stress and how to arouse the dormant resilience in all of us. My guest on this show seems to be proof there are benefits from extreme physical challenges. In his case, actually seeking out stressors and using them to hack the nervous system - reprogramming it's response to those stressors. Scott Carney is an investigative journalist who has worked in some of the most dangerous and unlikely corners of the world. His work has been the subject of a variety of radio and television programs, including NPR and National Geographic TV. Before writing what eventually became the New York Times bestseller, "What Doesn't Kill Us," Scott set out to prove that the now-famous "iceman" Wim Hoff was a charlatan and his workshop retreats destined to kill people. Instead, Scott winds up climbing Mount Kilimanjaro half-naked, submerging himself in ice water learning radical breathing techniques (see Episode 6 of this podcast). The experience gave Scott almost superhuman levels of endurance, and he says it quieted a persistent autoimmune illness. At the core of these methods is a technique Scott outlines in detail with his new book "The Wedge." In this episode, we talk about how it works, what he found on his search for other people who understood the language of the body's response to the environment. What other "wedges" did he discover? This chat with Scott helped me think of stress as something to use. Specific stressors can be opportunities to build a form of strength in the area where the stress is met, whether physical or mental. During the interview, Scott talks about the brain's ability to build "libraries of emotional experiences" tied to stressful events. He thinks you can hack the libraries by various means of exposure and or wedges dealing with the stress to change how you experience it, thus increasing your ability to cope. This chat will push you to reconsider how far out your limits may be. Some interesting sections of the conversation... What he learned from Wim Hoff The two way communication between the mind-body and body-mind Relationships between physiological and psychological stress Possibilities in reprogramming the nervous system Placebos How to use environment to increase resilience A new game of catch - with iron weights Confronting fear in a laboratory Enjoy! For show notes and more visit larryweeks.com

At the moment as I publish this, there are 340,000 cases of the Coronavirus and over 9,700 deaths from it in the U.S. Over 70,000 deaths world wide. The amount and velocity of information on the pandemic is overwhelming and much of it conflicts. Do this - don't do that. I need help parsing all of it. Enter Dr. Alex Lickerman, M.D. Alex is a direct primary care physician at ImagineMD, spending the first 20 years of his career as a leader at the University of Chicago, where he ran primary care for seven years and taught generations of today's leaders in medicine. There he enjoyed a reputation as "a doctor's doctor," caring for many physicians who are themselves today considered leaders in their fields. I wanted to talk with Alex about the Coronavirus because of his unique qualifications as a physician and his work in resilience. Alex is the author of, The Undefeated Mind: On the Science of Constructing an Indestructible Self that formed the basis of the landmark Resilience Project, which he began while at the University of Chicago. Short show (36 mins) but I get to ask a lot of questions that he kindly answers in detail Comparisons New York vs Chicago What's unique about the Coronavirus Current best treatments Separating fact from the news Symptoms and timeframes What should I do if I get sick? How long will this last? Tylenol, Advil - which ? The problem with hydroxychloroquine Percentages - sick or very sick Hospital capacity in the US On face masks How long will this last? Why and how we can be calm

As I publish this (April 2020) the current Coronavirus pandemic has been a setback for all of us in various degrees, some worse than others. Hence, I would encourage you to listen to this episode and share with someone who could use it. My guest is Dr. Steven M. Southwick, who along with Dennis Charney are the co-authors of Resilience: The Science of Mastering Life's Greatest Challenges. The book summarizes research into the psychological, biological, and social impact of trauma, and it combines the latest scientific findings in the area of resilience drawing on two decades of work with trauma survivors "Resilient individuals resemble a twig with a fresh, green living core. When twisted out of shape, such a twig bends, but it does not break; instead, it springs back and continues growing" - George Vaillant Steven completed his psychiatry residency at Yale University School of Medicine. He is the Glenn H. Greenberg Professor of Psychiatry, PTSD and Resilience at Yale University Medical School and Yale Child Study Center. He is also the Medical Director of the Clinical Neuroscience of the Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD. Steven has worked with a wide range of trauma survivors including combat veterans, civilian children and adults with PTSD, and very high functioning, former prisoners of war. There is a bit of irony in this episode based on the times we are living through in 2020. One, is my warning to those who were having an easy time of life that challenge would come so prepare now. The other is Steven's admonition for social connection. Harder now as we are all social distancing but even more important due to the stress many are going through. Hello Zoom. We also cover these topics on this episode His research into resilience and PTSD What led him to write the book How the brain may work against you in traumatic or challenging circumstances. Why and how each of us differ in our responses to stress The resilience factors Passive and active "toughening" Trauma and growth What survivors do to successfully cope with extreme circumstances. Active toughening and the importance of recovery Social pain and the importance of social networks. The "bleed" effect of exercise on emotion The power of "squads" What he asks someone who is suffering when they first come to him for help Much more here so please listen I write about all my shows, visit www.larryweeks.com

Depending on the research, there are anywhere from 40% - 60% percent of us admitting we make New Year's resolutions, A study from the University of Scranton found that 23% of people quit their resolution after one week. And only 19% of individuals actually stick to the goals longer term. We put off starting a project we planned, or once started, we never finish. We swear to eat healthily, lose weight, or you name it, only to see ourselves defeated by what seems to be a lack of will. If we really want to do these things, why don't we do them? My guest on the show is Dr. Piers Steel. Piers is a Distinguished Research Chair at the University of Calgary, where he teaches human resources and organizational dynamics at the Haskayne School of Business. Piers is one of the world's leading researchers on the science of motivation and procrastination. He's also the inventor of the procrastination equation – an equation that can explain every scientific finding on procrastination ever and is laid out in his oft-cited book The Procrastination Equation: How to Stop Putting Things Off and Start Getting Stuff Done. You're about to find out not only why you procrastinate, but the science around what works to overcome it, i.e., how to increase motivation. When you learn the equation, you can use it to diagnose where your lack of motivation might be coming from. And from there, you can increase your motivation on-command. Piers lays it out for us. On this show, some of the topics we cover include … Long-held myths on why people procrastinate The truth about why we procrastinate He breaks down each part of the motivation equation and talks through how to work with them The power of context The real problem with impulsiveness and some tricks to thwart temptation Sort ranking the motivation variables by impact THE #1 Reason people procrastinate What elevates motivation and what depresses it The problem with smart goals Enjoy! For resources, show notes and more visit larryweeks.com