Finding Mastery with Dr. Michael Gervais

How to Harness the Voice in Your Head | Psychologist, Dr. Ethan Kross

Mar 24, 2021

In this conversation, Dr. Ethan Kross, a leading psychologist and author of 'Chatter,' delves into the impact of our inner dialogue on health and decision-making. He explores how negative self-talk, or 'chatter,' can derail us and offers techniques to manage these thoughts effectively. Kross shares insights on the importance of self-control, how to navigate stress through perspective shifts, and methods like 'distant self-talk' to enhance focus in high-pressure situations. His personal anecdotes add depth to the conversation about introspection and emotional resilience.

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INSIGHT

The Dark Side of Introspection

Introspection, while valuable, has a dark side.
Ethan Kross's book, "Chatter," explores this negative aspect, focusing on how introspection can become harmful rumination.

ANECDOTE

Ethan Kross's Threatening Letter

Ethan Kross received a threatening letter after his study on social rejection gained publicity.
This triggered intense chatter and anxiety, highlighting the difficulty of controlling one's mind even as an expert.

ADVICE

Harnessing Emotions

Reframe "control" as "harnessing" or "managing" emotions.
Focus on reducing the amplitude and duration of emotional responses rather than suppressing them entirely.

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This week’s conversation is with Dr. Ethan Kross, one of the world’s leading experts on controlling the conscious mind.

After graduating magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania, Ethan earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from Columbia University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in social-affective neuroscience to learn about the neural systems that support self-control.

He moved to the University of Michigan in 2008, where he founded the Emotion & Self Control Laboratory.

As an award-winning professor in the University of Michigan’s top-ranked Psychology Department and its Ross School of Business, Ethan studies how the conversations people have with themselves impact their health, performance, decisions, and relationships.

And Ethan just published his first book, Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It.

I’d be surprised if anyone listening hasn’t experienced what Ethan describes as “Chatter.”

That process where you have a thought such as, “Why did I screw up this shot or presentation at work?” But rather than just identify how to fix it and move on, you keep getting stuck.

Our ability to reflect on what we’re doing, learn from our experiences and optimize how we navigate the world is an incredibly powerful tool, but that introspective capacity can also steer us off course.

Ruminating and getting stuck in this cycle of negative thinking can make life miserable, so in this conversation, we discuss what to do when you find yourself stuck in that cycle.

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