Smart People Podcast

Christine Montross - Author of Falling Into the Fire: A Psychiatrist's Encounters with the Mind in Crisis, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Brown University, staff psychiatrist at Butler Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island. When you really get down to it, the entirety of our life is a function of our perception.  The way we interact with the world is completely dependent on the way in which our brain deals with stimulus... that is our existence.  I'd say that's a pretty heavy task for one organ.  However, unlike the heart, which will circulate blood through the body the same way for you as it does for me, your brain will perceive these stimuli differently than mine will.  This difference forms our being, our identity.  For example, you and I could have a conversation and both of us could walk away with two completely different understandings.  We could eat the same food, watch the same movie, and work the same job - yet the way we experience these sensations will be only ours to understand. We tend to forget this simple fact on a daily basis for two main reasons.  First, all of us tend to deal with stimulus in relatively similar manners. Second, humans are magnificent at placing themselves at the center of the universe, assuming that everyone else is interpreting things the same way that they are.  However, we are abruptly made aware of our individuality when someone acts in a way that is extremely out of the ordinary - and this is where it get's really interesting. For example, what would cause a woman to purposefully ingest lightbulbs, a box of nails, and a steak knife, just to then admit herself to the emergency room? Why would an otherwise normal man attempt to amputate a fully functional limb? These are just some of the individuals that our guest this week, psychiatrist Christine Montross, sees on a daily basis in her profession working with the mentally ill.  This week we learn more about the devastation that can be caused when our brain malfunctions. Dr. Christine Montross is Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, and Co-director of the Medical Humanities and Bioethics Scholarly Concentration at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She is also a staff psychiatrist at Butler Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island. Dr. Montross has been named a 2010 MacColl Johnson fellow in Poetry, and the winner of the 2009 Eugene and Marilyn Glick Emerging Indiana Authors Award. She has had several poems published in literary journals, and her manuscript Embouchure was a finalist for the National Poetry Series. She has also written for many national publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post Book World, Good Housekeeping and O, The Oprah Magazine. Dr. Montross's first book, Body of Work, was named an Editors' Choice by The New York Times and one of The Washington Post's best nonfiction books of 2007. Her second book, Falling Into the Fire was named a New Yorker Book to Watch Out For. She and her partner, the playwright Deborah Salem Smith, live in Rhode Island with their two young children. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Colonel (Retired) Peter Mansoor - Author of Surge: My Journey With General David Petraeus and the Remaking of the Iraq War, professor of military history at Ohio State University, served as Executive Officer to General David Patraeus. On September 11, 2001, the United States was the target of the deadliest terrorist attack in the history of the world.  It was a day that would lead to over a decade of war, economic instability, and global confusion.  And although nearly every nation was united in the quest to bring the guilty parties to justice, the events that have transpired from that day, including the resulting war in Iraq and Afghanistan have been the subject of much debate and scrutiny.  Perhaps no decision has been more heavily scrutinized than the United States actions to use military force in Iraq.  Were we going after terrorists, Saddam Hussein, weapons of mass destruction, oil? The answer remains unclear to this day, and many people, including our guest this week believe the move into Iraq was done for strategic reasons that were not well defined.  However, going into Iraq was just part of the problem. After Saddam was captured, there was a huge power vacuum in Iraq and the United States with tasked with the difficult and confusing job of bringing stability to the region.  It was at this moment that the "Surge" went into effect and over 20,000 additional troops were sent to Iraq.  The surge was one of the largest counterinsurgency efforts in United States history and is still the topic of many military discussions. This week on the show we have Retired Colonel, Dr. Peter Mansoor.  Colonel Mansoor served as the Executive Officer to General David Patraeus in the midst of the surge.  There are few people in the world that have a better understanding of the United States military efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan than Colonel Mansoor.  In his most recent book, Surge: My Journey With General David Petraeus and the Remaking of the Iraq War, Colonel Mansoor combines newly declassified documents, unpublished manuscripts, interviews, personal notes, and published sources to provide us with a remarkable account of the counterinsurgency. Dr. Peter Mansoor, Colonel, U.S. Army (Retired), is currently the professor of Military History at Ohio State University. He assumed this position in September 2008 after a 26 year career in the U.S. Army that culminated in his service in Iraq as the executive officer to General David Petraeus, the Commanding General of Multi-National Force-Iraq, during the period of the surge in 2007-2008. A 1982 distinguished graduate of the United States Military Academy, Colonel Mansoor served in a variety of command and staff positions in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East during his military career. Colonel Mansoor commanded the 1st Brigade, 1st Armored Division from 2003 to 2005, to include 13 months in combat in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom from July 2003 to July 2004 - service for which his brigade was awarded a President Unit Citation for collective valor in combat. He has captured the essence of the experience of his brigade’s deployment and the difficulties of the U.S. war in Iraq during the crucial first year of conflict in a personal memoir, Baghdad at Sunrise: A Brigade Commander’s War in Iraq. -- This episode is brought to you by Squarespace – the all-in-one platform that makes it easy to create your own website. For a free trial and 10% off, go to Squarespace.com and use offer code SMARTS. Easy – Everything is drag and drop. You can use drag and drop to add content from your desktop, and even rearrange elements of content within a page. 24/7 support – Squarespace has an amazing 24/7 support team in New York City. They do live chat during the week, and have extremely fast email support throughout the day and night. Design Focused – Squarespace really cares about design. All their templates are extremely clean, Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another “Best Of" episode is in the books! This week, we bring you a “Best of technology” episode.  While it was tough selecting some of my favorite technology episodes, I finally picked the ones that made me truly geek out. Sit back, relax, and listen to some of the best clips regarding various aspects of technology. If you want a cheat sheet of what is in this week’s episode, here you go! Part 1 - Clips from Episode 110 - Alexis Ohanian. Alexis discusses Reddit, original (or lack thereof) ideas, and learning to code. Part 2 - Clips from Episode 99 - Nicco Mele. Nicco discusses computer advancements, web content creation, and privacy. Part 3 - Clips from Episode 53 - David-Michel Davies. DMD discusses The Webbys, where technology trends are heading, and the age-old question of, 'Are we really doing more work than previous generations?" Part 4 - Clips from Episode 115 - Scott Sklar. Scott discusses the return on investment of renewable energy and explains solar energy and other types of clean energy to Jon and Chris. Part 5 - Clips from Episode 48 - Josh Klein. Josh discusses the importance of sharing your ideas and the effect of piracy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maddy Dychtwald - Author of Influence: How Women's Soaring Economic Power Will Transform Our World for the Better, co-founder of Age Wave, world renowned speaker, leading expert on the changing demographic trends—both generation- and gender-related—shaping the marketplace, the workplace and our lives. The aging of the workforce has been well publicized.  The baby-boom generation is reaching retirement and there is a supposed "talent gap" that is going to be problematic to our economy.  Talent gap? What about awesome young people! Well, let's hope these young people are awesome, because we are all going to be relying on them to fill some big shoes.  And as we have covered in previous episode, the younger generations are technologically savvy and very motivated; however, they also lack experience, and insist that things are done on their schedule, in their way.  Lucky for us all, we have a secret weapon that is helping us fill this talent gap and change the working landscape...women! The increase in women in the work place and in positions of power has really helped off-set the increase in retirees. This shift has not only helped fill the gaps, but has also greatly improved productivity and innovation - and Maddy is going to tell you how! Maddy co-founded Age Wave, the nation’s foremost thought-leader on population aging trends and their profound business, lifestyle and cultural implications.  The company provides breakthrough research, award-winning communications, and results-driven marketing and consulting initiatives to more than half of the Fortune 500. She has spent more than 25 years investigating and forecasting lifestyle and market trends of older adults and the 79 million baby boomers.  Building on this knowledge, she has recently emerged as a renowned authority on the rising economic influence of women and their impact on industries, ranging from financial services and healthcare to consumer marketing. Her newest book, INFLUENCE: How Women’s Soaring Economic Power Will Transform Our World for the Better explores how women are the major change agent of the decade to come. A graduate of New York University, Maddy has been married for more than 25 years and has been a working mom living in the San Francisco Bay Area for much of her adult life.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we bring you a special "best of psychology and human behavior" episode.  Travel back to the beginning of Smart People Podcast with us and enjoy some of the best clips regarding psychology, the human brain, the decision making process, passion and more.  This is a can't miss episode packed full of great information with none of the fluff. Here is a brief overview of what this episode entails, what order it's in, who are guests are, and where you can find the whole episode.  Enjoy! Part 1 - Clips from Episode 58 with Jesse Prinz.  Jesse gets us started by telling us how awesome and unique humans are! Part 2 - Clips from Episode 51 with Srini Pillay.  Srini gives some of the best advice I've EVER heard about how to live an exceptional life.  He also dives into what passion is and how to utilize it properly.  Don't miss this! Part 3 - Quick clip from Episode 13 with Kathryn Schulz.  Kathryn explains why we need to make mistakes and learn from them. Part 4 - Clips from Episode 41 with David McRaney.  Listen and then go pick up his book if you like psychology! Part 5 - Clips from Episode 83 with Venkatesh Rao.  What can robots teach us about how we make decisions? Part 6 - Clips from Episode 43 with Barry Schwartz.  Are you a maximizer or a satisficer? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jesse Sostrin, PhD - Author of Beyond the Job Description: How Managers and Employees Can Navigate the True Demands of the Job, consultant, speaker, and expert on the hidden world of work. As you are well aware by now, we here at Smart People Podcast do not believe that you have to work for the man, and put all of your own happiness aside just to achieve financial freedom.  We are all given unique talents that are truly beneficial to the world - the key is understanding how to best utilize them. Often times, when seeking out companies or careers that we believe will allow us to be our best self, the only thing we have to go off of is a job description; however, they are almost always misleading. This isn't done on purpose, but managers often fail to recognize what they truly want out of their employees.  They don't take the time to understand how to create environments that bring out the best in people and create mutually beneficial opportunities. From the day you start your first job you quickly realize that your job is much more than what you thought it would be.  You have to understand office politics, identify hidden opportunities, and appease those above you - it's a lot to handle. But if you can realize where your true potential lies and how to thrive in the environment, you can quickly excel and live a life of happiness, wealth, and meaning.  Our guest this week has spent his entire career (and a lot of time in school!) understanding how both employer and employee can be better off by just having a better understanding of what brings out the best in individuals. Jesse Sostrin, PhD is a sought-after consultant and speaker working at the intersection of individual and business success. The results of his innovative research and practice on the hidden challenges of work have helped countless organizations and their leaders navigate a unique path to success through the complex changes of our time. Jesse is best known for translating complex ideas about the workplace into simple language and useful tools that drive learning and performance for individuals and teams. In addition to his writing, speaking, and consulting, Jesse previously served as Vice President—Workforce, Leadership, and Organization Development at Wilshire Health and Community Services. He was the executive in charge of all human resources programs and services, and was responsible for company-wide strategic planning, leadership development, and cultural change.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe Whitcomb - Author of Reboot Your Relationship: Restoring Love Through Real Connection in a Disconnected World - Relationship coach and therapist. Episode Transcript: Episode 119 - Joe Whitcomb Connection is a human necessity.  We need to feel loved and accepted by others, it is a driving force behind much of what we do.  Perhaps no connection is stronger than the one we build with a significant other. In these monogamous, intimate relationships, we share our deepest selves and connect on levels never before experienced. This type of relationship can be one of the most exciting, enlightening, spine-tingling, adventures we embark on in our lives.  It can provide us with a lifelong friend, confidant, and partner. But as we all know, these relationship require an incredible amount of work and dedication.  They take empathy, compassion, understanding, and communication - all the building blocks of a strong bond. And over time, these building blocks can crumble and that bond can weaken.  Throughout almost all relationships, each of us will at some point experience negative emotions such as resentment, jealousy, anger, and frustration.  When these emotions emerge, it's hard to work through them and they can force us to disengage and give up.  There are a number of ways you can get your relationship back on track and continue to thrive as a couple, but you have to have the right tools.  Well open up your toolbox, because this week, we are going to give them to you. It only takes one person to change a dance. - Joe Whitcomb Joe Whitcomb brings more than 20 years of relevant experience to his work as a relationship coach and therapist. With a focus on helping couples connect and communicate at deeper levels, Joe provides effective tools for putting the fun and excitement back into relationships using his proven multidisciplinary approach. Joe earned a B.S. in Psychology with an emphasis in Neuroscience from the University of Maryland College Park. He holds a M.A. in Clinical Psychology and Marriage and Family Therapy from Pepperdine University and a Doctoral Candidate in Psychology and Marriage and Family Therapy from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Joe is the CEO of The Relationship Society and author of the new book, Reboot Your Relationship: Restoring Love Through Real Connection in a Disconnected World. www.facebook.com/therelationshipsociety -- This episode is brought to you by Squarespace – the all-in-one platform that makes it easy to create your own website. For a free trial and 10% off, go to Squarespace.com and use offer code smart12. Easy – Everything is drag and drop. You can use drag and drop to add content from your desktop, and even rearrange elements of content within a page. 24/7 support – Squarespace has an amazing 24/7 support team in New York City. They do live chat during the week, and have extremely fast email support throughout the day and night. Design Focused – Squarespace really cares about design. All their templates are extremely clean, and allow your content to be the focus of your website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Stephen Cowan (Part 2) - Author of Fire Child, Water Child: How Understanding the Five Types of ADHD Can Help You Improve Your Child's Self Esteem and Attention, Board Certified pediatrician with over 25 years of experience specializing in ADD, ADHD, Autism and the like. Dr. Cowan uses a holistic approach incorporating both Western and Eastern medicine to treat these difficult issues. This is an EPIC first for Smart People Podcast.  On consecutive Sundays we are airing episodes with the same guest! What is happening? Well, frankly, this guy kicks ass.  He's smart, fun, energizing, conversational, and kind - all of the attributes that lead to an interview that lasted over an hour - so we decided to break it up into 2 separate shows. In case you missed it, you can check out our previous episode with Dr. Stephen Cowan: Episode 117 - Stephen Cowan Part 1 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Stephen Cowan - Author of Fire Child, Water Child: How Understanding the Five Types of ADHD Can Help You Improve Your Child's Self Esteem and Attention, Board Certified pediatrician with over 25 years of experience specializing in ADD, ADHD, Autism and the like. Dr. Cowan uses a holistic approach incorporating both Western and Eastern medicine to treat these difficult issues. Did you know that according to the World Health Organization, the United States ranks 33rd in the world for average life expectancy? 33rd! For a country that prides itself on innovation, wealth and technology, the average life span in the US is shorter than that of countries such as Israel, Qatar, South Korea, and Iceland.  Hmmm, so much for that incredible Western medicine...right? Well, not really. As we discuss this week (one of many topics we cover in this incredibly varied and interesting episode), Western medicine is by far the best at treating acute illnesses or life threatening emergencies.  Some of the most innovative and miraculous procedures have come from Western medicine and then quickly spread across the globe.  But as the old sang goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and that's where we often go wrong in the Western world. We have bought too much into the idea of the quick fix. We don't want to work for anything anymore.  We want our burgers in under a minute, we want our data instantly, and we want our health with a swig of water (or soda) and a pill.  And as we are learning, it just doesn't work that way when it comes to such a complicated machine as the human body.  To care for the body takes a lifetime of smart choices, and it's no secret what those choices are! We need to eat well, sleep well, exercise, nurture relationships, etc. But sometimes we just aren't willing to make the effort, and we often pay the ultimate price.  Cancer rates are soaring, diabetes and obesity are destroying the lives of both the young and the old, and the number of children being diagnosed with disabilities such as ADD, ADHD, and autism continue to grow at a steady clip.  It's time we change the way we look at illness. Stephen Cowan MD is a board-certified pediatrician with 25 years of clinical experience working with children. He has a subspecialty in Developmental Pediatrics and has developed a unique holistic approach to evaluating and treating children struggling with chronic physical, emotional and cognitive disorders.  Considering the child as a reflection of the inter-related forces of family and environment is the central focus of his practice. This approach respects the inseparability of mind, body and spirit and promotes a deeper understanding of what it means to be healthy. Dr. Cowan ompleted his pediatric training at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in NY in 1987 and went on to complete a 2 year fellowship in Child Development at the Developmental Disabilities Center at Roosevelt Hospital.  He is long-standing member of the American Board of Pediatrics, a fellow in the American Academy of Pediatrics and serves on the AAP committee of Developmental Disabilities. He is a member of the Autism Research Institute's Defeat Autism Now practitioners. Dr. Cowan is a co-founder and advisory board member of the Holistic Pediatric Association and serves on the advisory boards of the Integrative Health Symposium and the TCM World Foundation Building Bridges Conference. Here is how we found out about Dr. Cowan : Mind Body Green - 11 Things I Wish Every Parent Knew -- This episode is brought to you by: the Smart People Podcast Amazon Page! Clicking on the Amazon link is one of the easiest ways to support the show. --   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Debra Benton - Author of 7 leadership books including CEO Material: How to Be a Leader in Any Organization, founded Benton Management Resources, speaker, coach. Episode Transcript: Episode 116 - Debra Benton One of the things that I can really appreciate about our guest this week is her fearlessness.  Yes, she has a number of accolades and is often regarded as one of the top executive coaches in the country, but the way she achieved success was by trusting in herself, working hard, and going after it.  As Debra explains in this episode, she was quickly fired from her first job and from that moment on she decided that she would be the only one to have a say in her career - so she started her own company as a coach and advisor. When I heard this, I had to dig in.  Wasn't she scared of failing? Who was going to hire her, she barely had any real world experience at all? Didn't she feel the need to build a "solid" resume first? Debra told me that yes, she had some worries, but so does everyone.  If you believe in yourself, others will follow. It's hard work, but it's also hard work to live somebody else's life, somebody else's dream. She goes into more detail, so I suggest you just listen up - it's gold! We also cover areas of leadership, communication, success, and more.  Consider it your free weekly coaching session! Debra Benton is an effective, charismatic, and powerful speaker/consultant/author who has been in business successfully for over 30 years having founded Benton Management Resources in 1976. She has helped professionals worldwide to design subtle changes in their presentation, attitude, and leadership style that ultimately resulted in an increase in their personal and professional effectiveness--and subsequently their financial status. Debra has coached corporate executives, politicians, and business leaders on their organization impact in every industry imaginable. Ms. Benton has written seven books and numerous articles in business publications including the Harvard Business Review and The Wall Street Journal. Her best-selling books have been translated into fourteen languages. Her expertise has afforded her front-page coverage in The Wall Street Journal and USA Today. She has been repeatedly written about in Time, BusinessWeek, Fortune, and The New York Times, and has been a welcome guest on the Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, and interviewed by Diane Sawyer for CBS. -- This episode is brought to you by Squarespace – the all-in-one platform that makes it easy to create your own website. For a free trial and 10% off, go to Squarespace.com and use offer code smart11. Easy – Everything is drag and drop. You can use drag and drop to add content from your desktop, and even rearrange elements of content within a page. 24/7 support – Squarespace has an amazing 24/7 support team in New York City. They do live chat during the week, and have extremely fast email support throughout the day and night. Design Focused – Squarespace really cares about design. All their templates are extremely clean, and allow your content to be the focus of your website.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices