Olga Khazan, a staff writer and author of 'Me, But Better,' undertook a bold experiment to change her personality, aiming to become more likable. She shares her intense journey through activities like improv and meditation, ultimately striving for greater extroversion while grappling with her own neuroticism. Additionally, she discusses the significant impact of motherhood on her personality transformation. Khazan's insights reveal the potential for personal growth amidst life's challenges, making for a refreshing conversation about self-improvement.
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Olga's Breakthrough Rough Day
Olga Khazan describes a rough day leading her to realize her high neuroticism affected her happiness negatively.
She identifies personality traits as core to personal experience and decides to experiment with changing them.
insights INSIGHT
Personality is Plastic, Not Fixed
Modern research shows personality is plastic and can change over decades.
People who actively try to change their personality tend to change faster.
insights INSIGHT
The OCEAN Personality Model
Personality consists of five traits remembered by OCEAN: openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, neuroticism.
Everyone has these traits to varying degrees, which shape behavior and feelings.
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The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking
Susan Cain
In 'Quiet', Susan Cain presents a comprehensive argument that modern Western culture misunderstands and undervalues the traits and capabilities of introverted people. She charts the rise of the 'Extrovert Ideal' and explores how it permeates various aspects of society, including workplaces, schools, and social interactions. Cain draws on research from biology, psychology, neuroscience, and evolution to demonstrate that introversion is common, normal, and valuable. The book offers advice for introverts on functioning in an extrovert-dominated culture and advocates for changes to support and recognize the contributions of introverts. It also distinguishes between introversion, shyness, and anti-social behavior, and highlights the unique strengths of introverts, such as deep thinking, persistence, and excellent negotiation skills.
Me, But Better
The Science and Promise of Personality Change
Olga Khazan
A few years ago, Olga Khazan, author of Me, But Better, set out to change her personality, which even she found unpleasant. After consulting with experts on personality plasticity and then setting a deadline, Khazan put herself through an intense experiment intended to make herself more likeable, to herself and others.
Khazan tested and scored herself on a range of key personality traits at the beginning and end of the experiment. In this episode, Khazan and I talk about two of those traits: extroversion and neuroticism. Khazan shares how she dragged herself to improv classes and meditation lessons, and how having a baby threw a kink in her experiment. --
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