The Power of Optimism: How to Overcome Helplessness
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Release Date: 10/16/2026
The Power of Optimism: How to Overcome Helplessness
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Why do some people bounce back from setbacks while others feel powerless to change their circumstances? founder of positive psychology and author of , joins Dr. Phil Stieg to explore how optimism, resilience, and our belief in our ability to shape the future influence everything from mental health to human progress. He explains the neuroscience of learned helplessness, why positive thinking alone isn't enough, and how we can train our brains to overcome pessimism and regain a sense of control. Discover practical strategies for breaking free from negative thought patterns,...
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May We Have Your Attention ... and Keep It?
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Do you scroll on your phone for hours but then quit a meaty news story in 15 seconds? Maybe your attention span isn't the problem! thinks the way to get people to pay attention is better content delivery that's designed to work with their busy lives. Find out what actually captures and keeps our attention... and why.
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Is AI Making Us Dumber?
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Every time AI answers for you, part of your brain may switch off. Theoretical neuroscientist explains why, including a striking claim about GPS use and Alzheimer's risk. Dr. Ming She calls it the nemesis prompt, a technique for turning AI into your harshest critic instead of your biggest fan. Vivienne joins Dr. Stieg to unpack what it actually takes to come out of the AI age sharper, not dumber.
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Profiling The Criminal Mind - James Fitzgerald
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
For 17 years, the Unabomber skillfully eluded investigators, leaving behind no fingerprints, DNA, or usable forensic evidence but in the end it was his own words that gave him away. Dr. Phil Stieg speaks with retired FBI criminal profiler , a pioneer of forensic linguistics whose analysis of Ted Kaczynski’s writings helped crack one of the most notorious investigations in FBI history. Fitzgerald reveals how investigators constructed a personality profile from the bomber’s writings, identified the unusual turn of phrase that became a “linguistic smoking gun,” and used patterns in...
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A Memory Workout
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Can’t remember the fourth item on your grocery list? Nelson Dellis, a professional “memory athlete,” can remember 100 things or more (though he still may forget the butter). Hear how Dellis learned to memorize lists so long that he became a five-time USA Memory Champion, and how you can use some of his strategies to improve your own memory. Dellis explains how he uses tricks like the “memory palace” and mnemonic devices to recall lengthy lists with perfect accuracy. In an era when cell phones are making memory superfluous, you can regain some of those lost skills by using his...
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"Awestruck!" - Part 2 with Beau Lotto, PhD
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
The human brain resists uncertainty — whether it's an approaching tiger or a global pandemic, we've evolved to move from fear and chaos to order and resolution. Dr. Beau Lotto, founder of the Lab of Misfits, explains why the brain takes small steps instead of large leaps, and why we need to teach kids to think more like scientists. Plus... why we react to a pandemic by hoarding toilet paper! Since this episode was first released in 2021, Dr. Lotto has launched a new project - "Evolvable.Me" "Our interactive AI-powered platform reveals precise, science-backed insights into how you think,...
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"Awestruck!" - Part 1 - with Beau Lotto, PhD
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
What is awe? It's not wonder, or surprise, or pleasure — it's a state of mind that Dr. Beau Lotto calls "finding the impossible in the common." Dr. Lotto is a neuroscientist who specializes in perception; he once actually measured awe in the brains of people watching Cirque du Soleil. Learn where awe originates, why it evolved, and even how military leaders might weaponize it. Plus... why Dr. Lotto says babies are born "useless". Since this episode was first released in 2021, Dr. Lotto has launched a new project - "Evolvable.Me" "Our interactive AI-powered platform reveals precise,...
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The Mercurial Genius of Candace Pert
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Candace Pert discovered the opioid receptor, created a drug to stop AIDS in the brain, and identified stress as a cause of disease. She also inadvertently unleashed the overdose epidemic, got kicked out of the NIH, and was denied credit for much of her work. Largely forgotten, Pert was a trailblazing yet mercurial neuroscientist. Emmy award winning writer and producer Pamela Ryckman shines a light on Pert’s breakthroughs and her fascinating legacy on the podcast. For a transcript and more information about this episode use this link: For more about our...
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The Mother of all Brain Changes - Chelsea Conaboy
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
New parents - especially moms - experience profound changes in the brain when they are expecting and welcoming a new baby. Health journalist explains how the caricature of "mommy brain" and its cognitive fog has it all wrong - parenthood actually has a neuroprotective effect, as the brain adapts to meeting the needs of children. It happens to all parents, not just mothers, but it's most dramatic in gestating parents. Plus... how it takes a troop to . For a transcript and further information use this link:
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Cultivating Confidence
This Is Your Brain With Dr. Phil Stieg
Where in the brain is that little something that makes top performers feel so confident in their ability? Can that confidence be developed in someone who is naturally more timid? Dr. Nate Zinsser, director of West Point’s Performance Psychology Program and author of The Confident Mind, explains how a sense of mastery develops, and why butterflies in your stomach are a signal from the brain when you’re about to do something great. Plus… why Ted Lasso wants us all to be a little more like goldfish. For transcript and further information, use this link:
info_outlineWhy do some people bounce back from setbacks while others feel powerless to change their circumstances?
Dr. Martin Seligman, founder of positive psychology and author of Agency: The Psychological History of Human Progress, joins Dr. Phil Stieg to explore how optimism, resilience, and our belief in our ability to shape the future influence everything from mental health to human progress. He explains the neuroscience of learned helplessness, why positive thinking alone isn't enough, and how we can train our brains to overcome pessimism and regain a sense of control.
Discover practical strategies for breaking free from negative thought patterns, building resilience, and creating a more fulfilling life.