Making Friends with Fear — with Dr. Mary Poffenroth

In the spirit of Halloween, we’re talking about something that shows up everywhere in our lives — fear.

This week, I’m joined by Dr. Mary Poffenroth — fear researcher, author, and science communicator — to explore how fear shapes the way we think, make decisions, and relate to money.

Mary shares such powerful, practical wisdom about recognizing our fear responses, understanding the cultural messages we’ve learned about fear, and using fear as information instead of letting it quietly run the show.

 

More About Mary: 

Dr. Mary Poffenroth is a fear and courage researcher, author, and educator who’s spent her career helping people understand what fear really is — and how to move through it with more confidence and compassion.

She started her career at NASA, supporting payload experiments for the Space Shuttle Columbia mission, before diving deep into the psychology of fear. She now teaches at San José State University and has spent nearly two decades helping thousands of students and professionals turn fear into fuel.

Mary holds a Ph.D. in psychology (plus three master’s degrees — in biology, psychology, and science communication!) and has spoken at TEDx London, Harvard, and SXSW.

Her new book, Brave New You: Strategies, Tools, and Neurohacks to Live More Courageously Every Day, offers practical, science-backed ways to work with fear instead of against it

  Connect with Mary: 

• Get her new book: Brave New You – available wherever books are sold 

• Find her Neurohacking Cards: hellobravenewyou.com

• Website: marypoffenroth.com

• Social: @marypoffenroth

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