The Cabrera Lab Podcast

Drs. Derek and Laura Cabrera tackle the dilemma of excelling in a system that prioritizes compliance over creativity. They share a childhood story about a diorama that highlights the struggle against rigid rubrics. With the humorous 'shit slider' metaphor, they discuss how small compromises can accumulate psychological costs. The duo emphasizes the importance of awareness in navigating bureaucracies and maintaining your identity while advocating for curiosity. Their insights provide a framework for making thoughtful choices in both education and the workplace.

This discussion dives into how a boy's fear of monsters opens up a pathway to teaching critical thinking skills. The hosts explain the role of mental models in shaping fears and behaviors. They share practical strategies for helping kids test their beliefs against reality, like reenacting scary moments in daylight. Emphasis is placed on fostering evidence-based confidence and avoiding adult projections of fear. Ultimately, the conversation highlights the importance of raising children who can navigate misinformation with critical thinking.

Drs. Derek and Laura Cabrera delve into the powerful thinking skill of defining what something is and is not. This essential distinction helps clarify communication, fosters personal growth, and reduces confusion in relationships and teams. They break down complex ideas like construct validity in social sciences and emphasize how clear boundaries lead to efficient decision-making. With practical examples, they illustrate how mastering these distinctions accelerates thinking, ultimately making it faster and more accurate. The conversation highlights the transformative effect of practice in navigating complexities.

Explore the innovative concept of O-based education that shifts focus from rote memorization to teaching students how to think. Discover how mental models help young learners adapt to an ever-changing world filled with misinformation. The podcast discusses the importance of teaching thinking through engaging content and the transformative implications for both teachers and students. Get insights on preparing future generations with lifelong learning skills, discerning information, and navigating complexities of modern life.

Drs. Derek and Laura Cabrera tackle the universal struggle of accepting tough feedback. They reveal how we build protective mental walls around our self-image, blocking growth. With humor and insights, they introduce the concept of a semi-permeable mind, encouraging openness to truth while protecting core values. They suggest practical tools like is/is-not lists to uncover rigid self-beliefs and share strategies to transform feedback from something painful into a path for improvement. Embrace feedback to accelerate personal growth!

Dive into a lively critique of famous systems thinking quotes by legends like Deming and Meadows. The hosts humorously rate each quote on validity, reliability, and usefulness, revealing surprising truths and myths. From Deming's insightful principle that systems reflect their results to a skeptical take on Senge's metaphors, listeners will find entertaining insights on which ideas hold weight. Plus, learn how to navigate popular claims with a keen eye for empirical evidence—an essential guide for any systems thinker!

In this Think It Through episode, Drs. Derek and Laura Cabrera of Cornell University tackle two everyday problems that reveal the hidden power of systems thinking. They start by breaking down why theory and practice are never truly separate, showing how real solutions emerge when people think structurally—whether they’re leading teams or navigating family life.Using a 7% market growth challenge as a case study, they introduce a powerful move called P Gen S Drop P—a simple way to align marketing, sales, and operations around a shared mental model instead of competing perspectives. Then, they apply the same logic to a deeply relatable family conflict between two sisters stuck in a feedback loop of stress and unhealthy habits.From corporate strategy to personal relationships, this episode proves one thing: when you stop debating perspectives and start diagramming systems, you can see the real structure beneath every problem—and finally solve it.

In this episode, Drs. Derek and Laura Cabrera of Cornell University help a listener untangle a familiar problem: saying yes to everything and ending up exhausted, resentful, and burned out.They diagram the hidden mental model behind overcommitment—a self-made loop of guilt, fear, and misplaced responsibility—and show how systems thinking can break it. You’ll learn how to set real boundaries without guilt, stop assuming what others think of you, and reclaim your time and energy.From the “2x4 Guy” (you’ll get it) to emotional intelligence and the Rar Quad, this episode offers practical, mindset-shifting tools to help you stop reacting and start acting with purpose.

In this practical episode, Drs. Derek and Laura Cabrera of Cornell University show how the same underlying mental structures shape both family life and organizational culture.From a frustrated parent arguing with a teen about driving to a CEO dealing with conflicting rules in the workplace, the problem isn’t people—it’s the invisible mental models guiding their behavior. Using simple systems thinking tools, they break down how to surface, compare, and rebuild shared mental models that actually work.You’ll learn how to stop having the same argument twice, fix cultural contradictions, and see the structure beneath every problem—at home, at work, and everywhere in between.

In this episode, Drs. Derek and Laura Cabrera of Cornell University take a wrecking ball to the confusion surrounding systems thinking. Whether you’re brand new to the field or knee-deep in its many (often conflicting) methodologies, this episode will save you years of frustration by cutting straight to the core: what systems thinking is, what it’s not, and how to actually get good at it.They reveal why most systems thinking resources are either snake oil or rabbit holes, and why practicing the Six Moves is more powerful than reading 50 books. You’ll learn the difference between systems science, systems methods, and systems thinking—and why that difference matters. They also explain why being smart isn’t about IQ or degrees, but about aligning with reality. And yes, simplicity isn’t just okay—it’s essential.Forget the jargon, skip the cocktail-party credentials, and learn how to actually do systems thinking in real life. This episode is your shortcut to the good stuff.