PsycHacks

Presented by Orion Taraban, Psy.D. PsycHacks provides listeners with a brief, thought-provoking episode several days a week on a variety of psychological topics, inspired by my clinical practice. The intention is for the core idea contained within each episode to inspire listeners to see something about themselves or their world in a slightly different light.

Last refreshed: July 26th, 2025 at 11:21 AM ⓘ

Follow this podcast in the Metacast mobile app to refresh it and see new episodes.

Follow on

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

RSS

Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app

Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more

Episodes

Episode 5: Follow the function

Why do you have bad habits? If a behavior is causing you significant distress, why can it still be so difficult to change despite the obvious pain that it causes? The answer to this question lies in an analysis of the function a given behavior performs in the context of your life. Most likely, on some level, you believe that the habit's persistence is still a net positive. To really change a behavior, you need to find other, more adaptive ways to perform the same function as your bad habit....

Jul 15, 2021•4 min•Ep. 5

Episode 4: How over what

The hard truth about relationships is that everyone is entirely unique and completely replaceable. However, the key to making yourself (almost) irreplaceable in the context of any particular relationship is to prioritize how over what. This means that -- provided you continue to perform the duties associated with your role -- the way in which you show up is more important than what exactly you're doing when you arrive. After all: there's always another rodeo in town.

Jul 13, 2021•3 min•Ep. 4

Episode 3: Don't blow the whistle on yourself

In any given sport, the one playing the game is not simultaneously the one enforcing the rulebook. Yet in our lives, we all too often decide not to make the attempt if our efforts might run afoul of the (usually unwritten) rules. Let the referees referee. If you're playing the game, focus on playing the game, and learn to foul appropriately. If no one is blowing the whistle, then there's a good chance you're still in bounds.

Jul 11, 2021•3 min•Ep. 3

Episode 2: Everyone is unique and replaceable

A paradoxical truth lies at the heart of all human relationships, namely: everyone you know is both entirely unique and completely replaceable. Success in life depends on your ability to keep both of these facts in your mind at the same time. When you do this, relationships become their proper size: neither too big nor too small.

Jul 09, 2021•3 min•Ep. 2

Episode 1: How to set effective boundaries

Setting effective boundaries with difficult or toxic people in order to safeguard your peace of mind is an essential life skill. Unfortunately, too many people operate under the false impression that boundary-setting is about controlling the other to prevent future abusive behavior. In reality, setting boundaries is about controlling yourself to respond to the target behavior in such a way as to disincentivize its recurrence by changing the operant reinforcement contingency.

Jul 07, 2021•3 min•Ep. 1

← Prev

For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android