Speak to a thousand people for an hour, and you haven’t just given a talk. You’ve spent a thousand hours of human life. That’s the math I run before every stage. Not “how will this go?” Not “will they laugh or learn …?” Just — I’m about to take the one thing not a single … Read more
63% of workers admit exaggerating their AI skills, and 70% think their peers are doing it too. A stress physiologist on why feeling permanently behind is a threat response, not information, and how to step out of the arms race.
In 2004, two researchers named Sally Dickerson and Margaret Kemeny went through 208 laboratory experiments looking for what actually makes the human stress system fire. Not what people say stresses them. What raises cortisol, measurably, in a body. Most laboratory stressors did very little. Hard tasks, unpleasant tasks, boring tasks — the effects hovered near … Read more
You know that knot in your stomach when leadership announces another AI initiative? The one that tightens when you see yet another headline about AI replacing jobs, transforming industries, or making your current skills obsolete? The stress that keeps you up at night wondering if you’re falling behind, if your company is doing it wrong, … Read more
Why Our Brains Miscalculate Risk Here’s what neuroscience tells us about why we consistently underestimate the cost of inaction: our brains are wired to weigh immediate, concrete costs more heavily than future, abstract ones. When we consider taking action, the costs are vivid and immediate. We can picture the meeting where we might get rejected, … Read more
The Most Misunderstood System in Your Body Stress has the worst public relations team in the history of human biology. Seriously, think about it. Your immune system gets celebrated for “fighting off infections.” Your cardiovascular system gets praised for “pumping life through your body.” Your nervous system gets admired for “controlling complex functions.” But stress? … Read more
War That’s Already Lost In 1971, President Nixon declared a “War on Drugs.” Fifty years and over $1 trillion later, drug use rates are virtually unchanged, overdose deaths have skyrocketed, and we’ve incarcerated millions of people for a public health issue. Today, we’re fighting another war that’s equally doomed to fail: the War on Stress. … Read more
As a stress physiologist and wellness speaker, I’m sick of people believing they are sick. How many self-help books are on your shelf right now? How many meditation apps have you downloaded? How many wellness programs have you tried, only to find yourself back where you started, searching for the next solution? If you’re reading … Read more
The Breakdown I recently wrote a piece for the Wall Street Journal about a stressful experience and the surprising antidote I discovered – helping others. This discovery aligns with research from organizational psychologist Adam Grant, whose work in “Give and Take” reveals why helping others transforms our entire relationship with stress and pressure. The Neuroscience … Read more
The Silent Killer of High Performance (Tips from a science-backed motivational speaker) I was recently in a meeting with a typically high-performing leadership team when the CEO said something that stopped me cold: “Our best people have just… stopped trying. They show up, they do the work, but they’ve lost that fire. It’s like they’ve … Read more
