In this episode, Ellen introduces systems thinking as a powerful tool for personal and professional growth and development. She provides a worksheet and an example to help you start applying systems thinking in your life. Ellen also shares her personal journey and the reasons behind her decision to pivot the podcast towards systems thinking. Links and Resources: Download the systems thinking worksheet at potential.com.au/podcast Learn more about systems thinking at https://thesystemsthinker.com/...
Feb 05, 2024•24 min
Our guest for this episode is a long time friend of the show. This is her third appearance and we love having her here. Dr. Sarah McKay, neuroscientist, science communicator, online educator and author of the new book "Baby Brain: The surprising neuroscience of how pregnancy and motherhood sculpt our brains and change our minds (for the better)" In this illuminating conversation Sarah and I chat about: The paradox of 'baby brain' - women's experience versus the science. The many factors at play ...
May 03, 2023•1 hr 5 min
"Performance is about focusing on the most important thing at the most important time" My guest today on the Potential Psychology Podcast is sports and performance psychologist, Michael Inglis. Michael is Director and Co-founder of The Mind Room. He works with athletes, coaches and teams to build high performance environments and develop key mental skills to enhance performance. In this episode, Michael and I take a peek at the fascinating world of sport and performance psychology and dig into: ...
Apr 06, 2023•53 min
Part 2 of my interview with Bea Boccalandro, author of Do Good at Work: How Simple Acts of Social Purpose Drive Success and Wellbeing . Bea and I discuss: The importance of empathic connection What is Corporate Social Responsibility and how is it different to job purposing? How to use your strengths to drive success and wellbeing Examples of simple acts that drive purpose and meaning If you’re interested in seeing Bea speak live and attending a workshop on job purposing with her she will be doin...
Mar 08, 2023•48 min
In this episode I'm talking about purpose with my fabulous guest Bea Boccalandro, the author of Do Good at Work: How Simple Acts of Social Purpose Drive Success and Wellbeing (New York: Morgan James Publishing, 2021). Her book has received critical acclaim and she is a joy to talk to. In our conversation, Bea and I discuss: Social purpose - What is it and why does it matter? The difference between sense of purpose and meaning. How purpose can be woven into our working lives. How small social act...
Mar 01, 2023•46 min
We're back for season 14 and celebrating this month as the Potential Psychology Podcast has now been on the air for 5 years. Half a decade of great conversations, insights and ideas all helping you to fulfil your potential. This is our 123rd episode, so, let's dive in 1-2-3, go! In this brief 'welcome back' episode, I talk about: What's in store in our upcoming conversations Our fabulous guest line up I also get nerdy with some podcast proliferation facts and my question for you - 'How we should...
Feb 21, 2023•6 min
"Will the robots replace us? The future is very hard to predict, but we're very adaptive." It's a wrap! This is our last episode on our mini-series on 'The Future of Work." Big thanks to my co-host this season, Dr. Joe Sweeney, who is a long time friend of the show and our guest expert in the areas of education and AI. You can learn more about him here . In our survey "Parenting, Education, and The Future of Work," we asked parents about their worries and concerns as well as their hopes for thei...
Dec 22, 2022•35 min
"Antifragility is more than just resilience. It means you can lean into uncertainty and stress and that you've got what it takes to be able to embrace change." From the results of our recently concluded survey on "Parenting, Education, and The Future of Work," we found that 79% of parents are worried about their kids ability to thrive in the future workplace, and that doesn't come as a surprise. As humans, we're all fearful of things that are outside of our control. We've also had some major dis...
Nov 29, 2022•51 min
"We have the components of psychological hope to drive and motivate us - the will and the way" We're at the half-way point of our podcast series on "The Future of Work." My co-host, Dr. Joe Sweeney, and I explore the answers to questions we put to parents in our recently concluded survey on "Parenting, Education, and The Future of Work." Here are some interesting talking points of the study: The top 5 most important personal traits parents think their kids should have in the future workplace are...
Nov 22, 2022•28 min
"Artificial intelligence can change the world and that's not entirely a bad thing." In our study on "parenting, education, and the future of work", we asked parents about their most pressing concerns for their children. This is what's on their minds: "Will there be enough jobs for our kids in the future?" "What will the quality of jobs be?" "Will humans and machines work together?" "What industries will be in demand in the future workplace?" "Will machines replace people's jobs or make present j...
Nov 15, 2022•37 min
"Job crafting is something we should be teaching to school students. How do I craft my job in the smallest way to maximise my purpose in life?" Do you worry about your children's ability to thrive in the future workplace? In the survey that my co-host for this podcast series Dr. Joe Sweeney ran to give us some juicy data for our conversations, an overwhelming 79% of parents answered 'YES' to that very question. Understandably, a key concern that came up was about job security for our future work...
Nov 10, 2022•44 min
"Hope, in the psychological sense, is a combination of pathways and agency. What we're doing is creating HOPE. " Welcome to our new podcast series: "The Future of Work", with guest expert Dr. Joe Sweeney. I'm really excited about this series as not only do I get to talk to a great friend of the show, but he and his team have done some very cool research with parents to explore their hopes and worries when it comes to future employment for our kids. The extensive survey work that Joe has done inf...
Nov 02, 2022•51 min
We’re revisiting our How to Thrive series co-hosted with positive psychotherapist Marie McLeod for Mental Health Month. This series initially went live in late 2021 - almost 12 months ago - while How to Thrive, the documentary, was still in production. It is now out in the world and showing in cinemas all over the country. "A good night's sleep starts the moment we wake up." We're almost at the end of Season 11 with 2 more episodes left. Today, we're back with our second to the last episode of o...
Oct 27, 2022•46 min
We’re revisiting our How to Thrive series co-hosted with positive psychotherapist Marie McLeod for Mental Health Month . This series first went to air in late 2021 - almost 12 months ago - while How to Thrive, the documentary, was still in production. It is now out in the world and showing in cinemas all over the country. "When we feel a moment of hope, pride, love, serenity, gratitude, inspiration... we actually open up and quite literally. We broaden our peripheral vision and expand our brain....
Oct 27, 2022•45 min
We’re revisiting our How to Thrive series co-hosted with positive psychotherapist Marie McLeod for Mental Health Month . This series first went to air in late 2021 - almost 12 months ago - while How to Thrive, the documentary, was still in production. It is now out in the world and showing in cinemas all over the country . "If only each of us realized the full extent to which all our problems, fears, and desires are shared by the rest of humanity, we'd all be so much more connected, self-forgivi...
Oct 27, 2022•46 min
We’re revisiting our How to Thrive series co-hosted with positive psychotherapist Marie McLeod for Mental Health Month . This series initially went live in late 2021 - almost 12 months ago - while How to Thrive, the documentary, was still in production. It is now out in the world and showing in cinemas all over the country . "Thriving is not a spectator sport. You can't sit back and watch it happen." This is the 4th episode of our new weekly podcast series "How To Thrive", a collaboration with p...
Oct 17, 2022•51 min
We’re revisiting our How to Thrive series co-hosted with positive psychotherapist Marie McLeod for Mental Health Month . This series initially went live in late 2021 - almost 12 months ago - while How to Thrive, the documentary, was still in production. It is now out in the world and showing in cinemas all over the country . "Flow requires us to use our strengths. Sadly many of us don't really know what those are. One of the first things that you must do is to identify these strengths. What are ...
Oct 17, 2022•45 min
We’re revisiting our How to Thrive series co-hosted with positive psychotherapist Marie McLeod for Mental Health Month . This series initially went live in late 2021 - almost 12 months ago - while How to Thrive, the documentary, was still in production. It is now out in the world and showing in cinemas all over the country . In this episode, we talk about the first "beam" of the BEACON model: Belonging. We ask: What do we mean by belonging ? How important is having close connections to others to...
Oct 17, 2022•44 min
We’re revisiting our How to Thrive series co-hosted with positive psychotherapist Marie McLeod for Mental Health Month . This series initially went live in late 2021 - almost 12 months ago - while How to Thrive, the documentary, was still in production. It is now out in the world and showing in cinemas all over the country . In this podcast series, Marie and I go deep into the practice of positive psychology and wellbeing science, sharing how we live what we teach in our work and in our lives. W...
Oct 17, 2022•39 min
"In order to make progress when we're working towards meaningful goals - we need to stop and celebrate our wins." This is my last conversation with Dr Mike Rucker in this podcast series about "Fun and Wellbeing" which is a little sad, but the conversation itself is a cracker. In it Mike and I discuss: The role that fun and pleasure play when pursuing social goals and making a difference to our community. Meaning, purpose and contribution. Finding the small wins in the 'infinite game' of social c...
Sep 19, 2022•37 min
"Growth and mastery happen when you don't hit the mark." Sometimes fun doesn't feel that fun. Not in that exact moment anyway. It's only later, when we reflect on the experience that we realise how beneficial it was to us. This is what's known as Type II fun. In this conversation Mike and I explore this Type II fun, peak experiences, awe and wonder, mastery and the importance of pushing through discomfort to reach the sense of accomplishment and wellbeing on the other side. We also discuss: Why ...
Sep 13, 2022•38 min
"We have the autonomy to take moments of fun and expand and magnify their usefulness." We're at the half-way point of our "Fun and Wellbeing" mini-series, co-hosted with Dr. Mike Rucker, author of The Fun Habit: How the pursuit of joy and wonder can change your life . To recap the previous episodes, we talked about: How peppering your life with fun is better for your wellbeing than the active pursuit of happiness (Happiness Paradox). How we can tweak our lives in small ways to find more whimsy. ...
Sep 06, 2022•34 min
"If we keep doing what we've always done - we can't expect brilliance to appear." In the 3rd episode of our brand new mini-series 'Fun and Wellbeing,' My co-host, Dr. Mike Rucker and I geek out about whether work can be fun . Feeling like you have control of your time and have enough time each day is a predictor of happiness. It's known as 'time affluence.' When we have the autonomy to choose the activities we spend our time on - at work and at home - our happiness quotient increases. In this co...
Aug 30, 2022•30 min
"Stack the decks in your favour - make sure that what you're doing are things that you are going to enjoy." In the 2nd episode of our brand new mini-series 'Fun and Wellbeing,' we talk about the importance of wonder and delight and how creating opportunities for fun is as important as actually having fun . Our co-host for this series, Dr. Mike Rucker, happens to be a VW bus aficionado. You can see pictures of his VW bus on Instagram @thewonderoffun. In this episode, Mike shares a fun anecdote ab...
Aug 23, 2022•47 min
"Emotions, if we sit with them, help us start to understand their purpose. To be emotionally healthy, you should have a wide range of emotions. We can still invite joy and delight even in areas where the emotional state of happiness might not be appropriate." We're back for Season 12 and we're having fun! We're talking about the science of fun and how to make it work for you at home and at work. My co-host for this mini-series is Dr. Mike Rucker, author of The Fun Habit: How the pursuit of joy a...
Aug 16, 2022•39 min
The Potential Psychology Podcast is BACK! We've been off the air since January 2022 due to pandemic disruptions but the hiatus gave us an opportunity to rejig, reshape and reinvigorate the show and add some brand new features to the show. What's coming up? Well, we have 2 new co-hosted mini-series starting this month: Fun and Wellbeing with Dr. Mike Rucker Next week, we'll kick-off our brand new season with brand new mini series that's all about FUN. We'll talk about the science behind fun and s...
Aug 09, 2022•9 min
"Hope is believing that the future will be better than what life is today and believing that we have the power to make that so." Who else needs to hear that right now? Want to know more? Well, hope is the hot topic for this episode of the Potential Psychology Podcast! We've reached the conclusion of this weekly series "How To Thrive", a collaboration with positive psychology coach Marie McLeod. This series is all about exploring how to thrive and practicing the BEACON model; a model of thriving ...
Jan 10, 2022•50 min
......................................................................................................................................................................................................................"A good night's sleep starts the moment we wake up." We're almost at the end of Season 11 with 2 more episodes left. Today, we're back with our second to the last episode of our new weekly podcast series "How To Thrive", a collaboration with positive psychology coach Marie McLeod. We'r...
Dec 21, 2021•46 min
"When we feel a moment of hope, pride, love, serenity, gratitude, inspiration... we actually open up and quite literally. We broaden our peripheral vision and expand our brain." In the 6th episode of our new weekly podcast series "How To Thrive," co-hosts Marie and Ellen explore the fifth "beam" of the BEACON model: Optimism. To recap, the first four beams are: Belonging, Engagement, Accountability, and Compassion. They are discussed in detail in the past 4 episodes of season 11. In each episode...
Dec 07, 2021•45 min
"If only each of us realized the full extent to which all our problems, fears, and desires are shared by the rest of humanity, we'd all be so much more connected, self-forgiving, vulnerable, open, and free." In this, the 5th episode of our new weekly podcast series "How To Thrive" Marie and Ellen explore the fourth "beam" of the BEACON model: Compassion. It's relatively easy to feel compassion for others but practicing self-compassion is more challenging. Why, when we would give a friend facing ...
Dec 03, 2021•47 min
