Conditioned: How Your Brain Makes Decisions and What It Means for Work Design | Loretta Breuning

Dr. Loretta Breuning's upbringing was marked by conflict, which shaped her into an adult who avoided confrontation. Much like many of us, she often felt stuck in her automatic reactions, not understanding their origins. However, her exploration of mammalian behavior unveiled the link between our brains, past experiences, and fundamental chemicals.

Through this understanding, Dr. Breuning discovered that we can rewire our brains using targeted psychological techniques. This rewiring process enables us to foster greater self-acceptance and achieve more positive outcomes, both in our professional and personal lives.

Loretta Graziano Breuning, Ph.D., is Founder of the Inner Mammal Institute, Professor Emerita of Management at California State University, and author of Habits of a Happy Brain. Her work has been translated into 14 languages and has helped thousands of people build new neural pathways to produce more positive outcomes.

In this episode, Dart and Loretta discuss:
- 4 core brain chemicals and how they affect our experience of work
- The origin and purpose of serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin, and endorphin
- Our “survival needs” in the workplace
- How to identify and understand our emotional responses to improve the experience of work
- Psychological techniques for hacking our brain patterns
- How to use this knowledge to create more happiness – internally and at work
- And other topics…

Loretta Graziano Breuning, Ph.D., is Founder of the Inner Mammal Institute and Professor Emerita of Management at California State University, East Bay. She's the author of many books on happiness, including Habits of a Happy Brain: Retrain your brain to boost your serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin and endorphin levels. Her work has been translated into 14 languages and has helped thousands of people build new neural pathways to produce more positive outcomes.

Before teaching, Loretta worked in Africa for the United Nations. She holds a BS from Cornell University and a PhD from Tufts University. In her free time, she travels to historic places and studies foreign languages.

Resources mentioned:
Habits of a Happy Brain, by Loretta Breuning: https://www.amazon.com/Habits-Happy-Brain-Serotonin-Endorphin/dp/1440590508

Connect with Loretta:
www.innermammalinstitute.org 

Work with Dart:
Dart is the CEO and co-founder of the work design firm 11fold. Build work that makes employees feel alive, connected to their work, and focused on what’s most important to the business. Book a call at 11fold.com.