BONUS SEASON: Decode Your Nervous System Signals
Making Positive Psychology Work
Release Date: 01/11/2026
BONUS SEASON: The Grief Undercurrent
Making Positive Psychology Work
One in 3 workers are carrying grief about the changes happening at work — and our data suggests this runs deeper than just sadness: layers of feeling invisible, abandoned, and distrusted by the people making decisions. In this fourth episode of Season 7 — The Change Fatigue Remedy Series — Dr Michelle McQuaid sits down with Dr Margaret Wheatley, renowned teacher, advisor, and author of Restoring Sanity, to explore why leaders often transmit the very fear they're trying to protect their teams from — and what it takes to build an island of sanity where people can find refuge from the...
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BONUS SEASON: The Complexity Conundrum
Making Positive Psychology Work
What if what's defeating us isn't the speed of change but the complexity — multiple crises amplifying each other in ways that no forecasting tool was ever built to handle? In this third episode of Season 7 — The Change Fatigue Remedy Series — Dr Michelle McQuaid sits down with Dr Margaret Heffernan, professor of practice at the University of Bath and author of Embracing Uncertainty, to explore why the focus on efficiency leaves organizations more fragile when complexity hits — and why we need to prioritize optionality instead. Drawing on her work with...
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BONUS SEASON: The Change Fatigue Continuum
Making Positive Psychology Work
Nearly 1 in 2 American workers are quietly fatiguing, cracking, or burning out right now — but the data reveals that these aren't just different degrees of the same thing. In this episode of Season 7 — The Change Fatigue Remedy Series — Katie Beresford interviews Dr Michelle McQuaid about the findings of the most recent US Change Lab study, and what the data tells us about where people are on the change fatigue continuum, why leaders keep missing the early warning signs, and what individuals, teams, and organizations can actually do about it. ...
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BONUS SEASON: The Self-Compassion Challenge
Making Positive Psychology Work
When change keeps coming, research suggests the way we talk to ourselves is making it harder. In this first episode of Season 7 — The Change Fatigue Remedy Series — Michelle explores with Dr Kristin Neff what it practically looks like to be a wiser, kinder friend to yourself when things get hard: why "I should be handling this better" is your threat system talking, not the truth, and what to do instead. With more than two decades of research behind her, Dr Neff explains why the three elements of self-compassion — mindfulness, self-kindness, and common humanity — shape not just how you...
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BONUS SEASON: Learn To Trust Yourself When Challenged
Making Positive Psychology Work
Understand what makes it safe enough to admit mistakes, ask for help, and learn alongside each other — even when you're struggling. In this final episode of our special bonus season, hosts Dr Michelle McQuaid and Evie Wright share the powerful mantra "stay with me" — the opposite of abandoning ourselves when things get hard. With insights from self-compassion researcher Dr Kristin Neff and Internal Family Systems psychologist Dr Tori Olds, discover why your inner critic thinks it's helping (even when it's not), and learn to meet your protective parts with curiosity instead of shame....
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BONUS SEASON: Build Your Take-Anywhere Somatic Toolkit
Making Positive Psychology Work
Our bodies have to calm down before our thoughts can follow — and this is the step most of us skip. In this second episode of our special bonus season, hosts Dr Michelle McQuaid and Evie Wright share practical body-based tools you can use anywhere, anytime: in meetings, during difficult conversations, or mid-presentation (without anyone noticing). With guest insights from somatic expert Nahid de Belgeonne, author of Soothed, learn how to think of your nervous system as an inner toddler that needs our compassion and care — not criticism. 00:03 Michelle and Evie welcome...
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BONUS SEASON: Decode Your Nervous System Signals
Making Positive Psychology Work
Discover why the pace of change has left so many of us quietly cracking — and why this isn't a personal energy or resilience failing. In this first episode of our special bonus season, hosts Dr Michelle McQuaid and Evie Wright explore how to decode the signals your nervous system sends: why you say "I'm fine" when you're anything but, or "I'll take care of it" when you're already exhausted. With guest insights from therapist and author Sue Marriott, learn about the connection and protection circuits that shape your responses to stress, and discover why understanding your green, blue, and...
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BONUS SEASON: Leading Human-Centered Change - Your HEART Check
Making Positive Psychology Work
While new data suggests 58% of changes fail, organizations using human-centered methods achieve 93% success rates. What's the difference? This final episode reveals how the HEART framework helps teams thrive through today's supercycle of change by helping people feel 'safe enough' to embrace not having all the answers, self-organize around actions they care enough to own, and measure success by growing their capabilities to navigate uncertainty together. We bring together all five HEART factors into one simple practice you can do anywhere, anytime. 02:00 Michelle shares how she talks...
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BONUS SEASON: Take Tiny Steps – Sustaining Momentum
Making Positive Psychology Work
Change initiatives often start with such confidence - neat timelines, clear milestones, everyone aligned - yet within weeks things feel messy and unpredictable. What makes the reality so different from the plan? This episode explores why "tiny is mighty" when it comes to navigating complex change. We share the T in our HEART framework with practical tools for embracing polarities rather than false choices, starting where you are, sensing when to adapt, and celebrating small wins that build the resilience needed to thrive in ongoing uncertainty. 01:04 Chelle explains the benefits of Taking Tiny...
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BONUS SEASON: Reach Out – Connecting Ideas & Resources
Making Positive Psychology Work
Why do some teams emerge from uncertainty stronger and more connected, while others splinter into silos where everyone's fending for themselves? The difference lies in whether people feel safe enough to admit they're struggling and ask for help. This episode reveals why reaching out is often the one simple act standing between you and success during change. We share the R in our HEART framework with practical tools for normalizing struggle, making it easier to ask for and offer help, and ensuring no one burns out from caring. 01:12 Chelle explains why Reaching Out helps us to navigate the...
info_outlineDiscover why the pace of change has left so many of us quietly cracking — and why this isn't a personal energy or resilience failing. In this first episode of our special bonus season, hosts Dr Michelle McQuaid and Evie Wright explore how to decode the signals your nervous system sends: why you say "I'm fine" when you're anything but, or "I'll take care of it" when you're already exhausted. With guest insights from therapist and author Sue Marriott, learn about the connection and protection circuits that shape your responses to stress, and discover why understanding your green, blue, and red zones is the first step to navigating the super cycle of change we're all living through.
00:03 Michelle and Evie introduce this special bonus season on why so many of us have been feeling like our nervous systems are fraying.
01:03 The research behind "quiet cracking" — why 1 in 2 workers feel like they're holding it together on the outside while falling apart inside.
03:23 Why many of our resilience tools and self-care practices aren't working like they used to — and what the "super cycle of change" is doing to all of us.
08:44 How your brain decides if you're safe enough or not safe enough and how this impacts your nervous system.
13:36 What happens when you feel safe enough — your nervous system keeps your thinking brain online, so you stay flexible even when things get hard.
16:07 Unpacking the "I'm fine" pattern — when your nervous system shifts into protection mode by shutting down, withdrawing, and disconnecting from your feelings.
21:12 Exploring the "I'll fix it" pattern — when your nervous system shifts into protection mode by heating up, creating urgency, and driving you to over-function.
32:05 Simple ways to notice what's happening in your body throughout the day — and preview the hands-on calming tools coming in the next episode.
Want to go deeper? Grab your free somatic nudge playsheets and videos and check out our Nervous System Advantage mini-masterclass at www.michellemcquaid.com.