Daily Creative with Todd Henry

Defy

Jan 14, 2025

Dr. Sunita Sah, a Cornell University professor and organizational psychologist, shares her insights from her book, 'Defy: The Power of No in a World That Demands Yes.' She redefines defiance as acting in harmony with one's true values amidst social pressures. Dr. Sah discusses the concept of conditioned compliance, revealing how early socialization can stifle authenticity. The podcast highlights five stages of defiance, emphasizing the necessity of clarity in personal values to combat fear and ensure actions align with one's principles.

17:06

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Dr. Sunita Sah

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Quick takeaways

Dr. Sunita Sah redefines defiance as aligning with one’s true values despite external pressures, promoting authentic decision-making.

Understanding the five stages of defiance can empower individuals to confidently stand by their values in challenging situations.

Deep dives

The Courage to Defy

During a World War II mission, a German fighter pilot, Franz Stigler, made a significant moral choice when he encountered a heavily damaged American bomber. Rather than fulfilling his orders to shoot it down, he escorted the aircraft to safety, demonstrating profound humanity amidst wartime brutality. Stigler's actions highlighted a crucial principle: the importance of standing by one's values even in the face of serious repercussions. This story exemplifies the essence of brave decision-making when confronted with dilemmas that challenge our personal beliefs.

Intro

4min

Redefining Defiance: The Power of Upholding True Values

2min

The Complexity of Compliance and Defiance in Pursuit of Authenticity

3min

Navigating the Stages of Defiance: Understanding Compliance and Authenticity

5min

Embracing Values-Based Defiance in Leadership

4min

In this episode, we explore the nature of taking a stand.

Our guest, Dr. Sunita Sah (author of Defy), a professor at Cornell University and an organizational psychologist, joins us to delve deep into the concept of defiance. Dr. Sah proposes a new definition of defiance—acting in alignment with your true values when there is pressure to do otherwise. She reveals insights from her research that suggests most of us are conditioned from an early age to comply and how this conditioning affects our ability to act on our values.

We also discuss the five stages of defiance that individuals go through as they act according to their principles. Dr. Sah emphasizes the importance of explicitly knowing and writing down our values to ensure that our actions align with them.

Key Learnings:

Defiance Redefined: Defiance is not about rebellion but about acting in alignment with your true values, despite external pressures.
Conditioned Compliance: From a young age, we are conditioned to comply and this affects our ability to act in alignment with our values.
Insinuation Anxiety: We often hesitate to speak up or correct others because we fear insinuating that they are wrong or unethical.
Stages of Defiance: The five stages—tension, acknowledgment, escalation, threat of non-compliance, and act of defiance—help us understand the process of standing up to pressure.
Value Clarity: Knowing and explicitly writing down our values can help reduce stress and align our actions with our principles.

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