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209. Who Are You Really? On Personality and Flourishing with Professor Brian Little

Dec 14, 2025

Join Professor Brian Little, a personality psychologist and acclaimed author, as he unpacks the intricate tapestry of personality and how it influences our learning and flourishing. Discover the interplay between the Big Five traits and effective study strategies. Learn about the unique strengths of introverts in education and the physiological costs of acting out of character. Plus, Brian shares practical tips for educators to engage students meaningfully. It's a blend of science and actionable insights to help you thrive!

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INSIGHT

Four-Box Model Of Personality And Flourishing

Brian Little presents a four-box model: traits and sociogenic (cultural) factors influence personal projects, which drive human flourishing.
Personal contexts and dynamic traits mediate how dispositional and cultural forces play out in real life.

INSIGHT

Why Introverts Often Excel In School

Introverts often outperform extroverts in formal schooling beyond early years because schooling rewards focused, low-stimulation work.
Extroverts thrive early where sociability is valued but risk boredom later when tasks are repetitive.

ANECDOTE

Professor's Personal Example Of Acting Out Of Character

Brian Little describes being biogenically introverted yet performing as an outgoing professor using skills from childhood performing.
He warns acting out of character protractedly can raise cortisol and autonomic arousal, extracting psychological costs.

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In this final very special episode to round out 2025, we welcome world-renowned personality expert Professor Brian Little to help us answer the question: who are you really?

As one of the great scholars of our time in the field of personality psychology, Professor Little's wonderfully engaging teaching style has also won him “favourite teacher” accolades at Harvard and found him described as a cross between seeing Robin Williams and Einstein on stage.

Professor Little helps us explore how your personality traits, character and goals interact to shape your learning, engagement, memory, attention and ability to flourish. We connect the Big Five personality traits with study strategies, teaching craft, and the real costs and benefits of acting out of character. With plenty of concrete examples to help you approach life in personal projects in a way that suits who you are.

Plus a whole segment especially for educators looking for novel ways to engage every student, especially those who are struggling.

Find out more about today’s guest, Professor Brian Little:

• Discover more resources on his website: https://www.brianrlittle.com/

• Find Brian’s TED Talk: “Who are you, really? The puzzle of personality” here: https://youtu.be/qYvXk_bqlBk?si=QAWWBgh1HT0yDqtV

• And his talk for TEDxOxbridge here: https://youtu.be/NZ5o9PcHeL0?si=MPZRzgPDoZM1B84K

• Dive into Professor Brian Little’s bestselling book, Me, Myself, and Us: The Science of Personality and the Art of Well-Being right here: https://geni.us/memyselfus *

• Or find yourself in his second book, Who Are You, Really? The Surprising Puzzle of Personality here: https://geni.us/whoareyoureallylittle *

Find out more about Exam Study Expert:

Hosted by [William Wadsworth], memory psychologist, independent researcher and study skills coach. I help ambitious students to study smarter, not harder, so they can ace their exams with less work and less stress.

• BOOK 1:1 COACHING to supercharge your exam success: https://examstudyexpert.com/workwithme/

• Get a copy of Outsmart Your Exams, my award-winning exam technique book, at https://geni.us/exams *

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Podcast edited by Kerri Edinburgh.

* As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases on suggested books.

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