A Slight Change of Plans
You can follow the show at @DrMayaShankar on Instagram.
Apple Podcasts’ Best Show of the Year 2021 Editor's Note: Maya Shankar blends compassionate storytelling with the science of human behavior to help us understand who we are and who we become in the face of a big change. Maya is no stranger to change. “My whole childhood revolved around the violin, but that changed in a moment when I injured my hand playing a single note,” says Shankar, who was studying under Itzhak Perlman at the Juilliard School at the time. “I was forced to try and figure out who I was, and who I could be, without the violin." Maya soon discovered a new path in the field of cognitive science, where she earned her PhD as a Rhodes Scholar studying how and why we change. Her insights into human behavior ultimately led her to create A Slight Change of Plans—Apple Podcasts’ Best Show of the Year in 2021. You’ll hear intimate conversations with people like Tiffany Haddish, Kacey Musgraves, and Riz Ahmed, as well as real-life inspirations, like John Elder Robison, who undergoes experimental brain stimulation to deepen his emotional intelligence, Daryl Davis, a Black jazz musician who inspires hundreds of KKK members to leave the Klan, and Shankar herself, who had her own “slight change of plans” earlier this year. The show also explores the science of change with experts like Adam Grant and Angela Duckworth. "What I love most about this show is that the content is evergreen," says Shankar. "You can listen to episodes in any order and at any time."
Latest episodes
25 snips
Sep 27, 2021 • 38min
BONUS: The Science of Happiness and Change
New episodes of A Slight Change of Plans coming every Monday starting October 11th!Maya joins Dr. Laurie Santos (host of The Happiness Lab) to talk about how we can reframe the change in our lives and learn to fear it less; and also how we can inspire far greater changes in ourselves than we ever thought possible.Maya and Laurie also take a few listener questions.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Aug 5, 2021 • 32min
Kacey Musgraves on Psychedelics
Singer-songwriter Kacey Musgraves has never been willing to change herself or her music for anyone else. But a recent psychedelic trip allowed her to change on her own terms and inspired her upcoming album.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jul 29, 2021 • 26min
Getting My Silence Back
When Ramsey Khabbaz was 20 years old, he woke up to the sound of a blaring fire alarm. It took him a moment to realize that the sound was originating from within his own head.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jul 22, 2021 • 28min
I'm Not as Free as I Thought
Morgan Givens was initially filled with joy when he came out as transgender and began hormone therapy. But his joy was soon pierced when he confronted the reality of being a Black man in society.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
26 snips
Jul 15, 2021 • 32min
The Life-Changing Diagnosis
Scott, a young researcher who builds cancer detection tools, has spent his entire adult life trying to avoid getting cancer. He is now facing his own stage 4 diagnosis.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jul 8, 2021 • 36min
The Girl in the Mirror
From the time she was a little girl, Elna Baker had dreamed of being thin. And she did become thin. She lost close to 100 pounds in five months. For a while Elna thought she was living her dream life, until she realized that she had lost herself in the process.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
17 snips
Jul 1, 2021 • 34min
Adam Grant Thinks Again
Psychologist and author Adam Grant talks with Maya about the science of changing peoples’ minds, including our own. Adam also takes some of his own advice and rethinks some of his ideas.
You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram.
Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jun 24, 2021 • 30min
Leaving a Religious Cult
Megan Phelps-Roper was born into the Westboro Baptist Church, a religious cult called the most rabid hate groups in America. Megan was a true believer and one of the Church’s most vocal advocates...until one day, she changed her mind.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Jun 17, 2021 • 38min
Life After Escaping Captivity
Tommy Caldwell's near-death experience unlocks a completely new state of mind that propels him to become the greatest big wall climber of all time.
You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram.
Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
46 snips
Jun 10, 2021 • 33min
The Science of Change
Maya chats with her friend and fellow cognitive scientist Dr. Katy Milkman about science-based strategies to help you inspire change in your own life.You can follow Maya @DrMayaShankar on Instagram. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
