From thoughtfully designed college campuses that encourage lifelong connections to workplace environments that can subtly undermine autonomy, the spaces we inhabit have a profound impact on our behavior, yet this influence is often overlooked in traditional self-improvement advice. Leidy Klotz joins us to explore this hidden dynamic. Drawing on research across science, history, psychology, and urban planning, he reveals how changing the setting of a negotiation can influence outcomes, why our fascination with home improvement is rooted in evolutionary instincts, and how learning becomes more lasting when tied to new environments. He has contributed to major outlets like The Washington Post, Scientific American, and Harvard Business Review, published in leading journals including Nature and Science, and appeared on podcasts such as Hidden Brain and Freakonomics.

Stepping into leadership after excelling as an individual contributor can feel overwhelming. Tess Fyalka explores the common challenges new leaders face, from self-doubt and team conflict to navigating difficult conversations with former peers. She shares practical tools to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and resilience. Learn how to communicate effectively, manage emotions under pressure, and turn tension into teamwork. She breaks down strategies to reduce turnover, delegate without burnout, and build a unified, high-performing team culture. Whether you're new to leadership or still finding your footing, this conversation offers actionable guidance to help you grow into a leader your team trusts and respects. Tess has worked with leaders in multiple industries and is the founder of Angle Coaching and Communication. Her passion is helping leaders at all levels develop the essential tools they need to cut through challenging team dynamics.

What if luck isn't random at all? Tina Seelig PhD reframes what we call "luck" as something you can actively create. Fortune grows from the choices you make and the risks you take when opportunity appears. Drawing on insights from her renowned TED Talk, she shares simple, practical strategies to help you build your own momentum—strengthening your mindset, surrounding yourself with the right people, and taking purposeful action. Through compelling stories and research-backed ideas, she explains how to turn setbacks into progress and challenges into breakthroughs. She has taught at Stanford University for more than 25 years and is Executive Director of Knight-Hennessy Scholars, a highly selective leadership program for 300 graduate students across Stanford University.

In her captivating memoir, Deborah K. Shepherd examines her first great love, with a man thirty-four years her senior. In 1968 and at age 21, she ditched college in Tucson for hippie life in New York. When that soured, she found a low-level corporate job, where she met Bill Shepherd, an unhappily married, 55-year-old senior executive. That they had a fling is unsurprising for the time. What is surprising is that they stayed together, for twenty years and two children, despite their age gap, differing religions, and society's expectations. With today's perspective, and the benefits of both age and hindsight, she revisits her past, scouring old letters and asking tough questions, of herself and about romantic love, religious roots, judgement from others, and feminism. Deborah's essays have appeared in Oldster Magazine,Fauxmoir, Motherwell Magazine, Herstry, Eat Darling Eat, Persimmon Tree and more.

Racism and how it has developed over the years is constantly evolving, shaped by shifting social norms, political power, and the everyday assumptions people often take for granted. Ainsley LeSure PhD offers some powerful insight on how racism since the end of the civil rights era has fundamentally weakened our ability to fight it. She explains how we got from the Obama era to Trump's openly racist politics--and why our current frameworks made this trajectory not just possible, but predictable. She offers a different approach and insight about what it would actually take to combat racism: a democratic politics grounded in observable reality that makes equality something people can act on in their daily lives, not just an abstract ideal. LeSure is the Richard and Edna Salomon Assistant Professor of Political Science and Africana Studies at Brown University.

Choosing Emotions

For centuries, emotion has been debated, measured, regulated, and theorized, yet no single work has mapped the full range of everyday emotional experience across disciplines—until now. D. Earl Johnston introduces a groundbreaking reference that defines 272 emotional states, drawing on 3,000 years of thought spanning philosophy, science, linguistics, psychology, art, and spiritual traditions.Expanding far beyond psychology, the work integrates perspectives from seven fields and over 30 philosophical and faith traditions. Organized as an accessible "Emotionary," it also presents three frameworks: emotions as an internal operating system, the gears driving behavior, and a unifying bridge across cultures. Mr. Johnston is a former corporate executive, testifying expert and world champion sailor. Over a multi-decade career spanning banking, private equity and litigation consulting, he developed a sustained interest in language, motivation and emotional definition.

Good Girl Detox

Many women are socialized to act as constant caregivers, the "good girls" who prioritize everyone else's needs above their own. However, mental health clinician, professor, and author Dr. Julie Merriman reminds us that you cannot pour from an empty cup. This deeply ingrained "Good Girl" pattern lives within the nervous system. Releasing it requires gentle, manageable steps that avoid overwhelming the body, while rebuilding connection to oneself and embracing small, guilt-free moments of joy. She offers insights and compassionate strategies to help women reclaim balance, energy, and authentic connection in daily life. With over 30 years of clinical experience and academic leadership, Dr. Merriman has dedicated her career to the science of human helping.

Autoimmunity and The Good Girls

For generations, women have been conditioned to prioritize others, silence their voices, and neglect their own needs. In her latest work, Sara Hirsh Bordo addresses a critical gap in women's wellness: the power of self-permission to speak, transform, and heal. Drawing on more than 50 hours of interviews, she explores why women often minimize their own suffering and health concerns, and offers a path toward self-prioritization. Her new book encourages women to put themselves first, alongside her limited-edition podcast, Behind the Page: Autoimmunity and the Good Girls, launching March 31. Bordo is an award-winning filmmaker and founder of Women Rising®, recognized by Inc. for leading a purpose-driven, innovative women-led company. She is currently directing short documentary films for Toyota and ESPN Women, and most recently served as executive producer of the ConnectHer International Film Festival.

A Letter Is Better

In a world of texts, DMs, and disappearing messages, one woman is bringing back the lost art of the thank-you note, typing over 1,000 letters a year on vintage typewriters, and the results are nothing short of extraordinary. Erica Gerard Di Bona explores why expressing gratitude in writing doesn't just make someone feel appreciated; it strengthens relationships, boosts mental wellbeing, and even opens unexpected professional doors. Erica is a former producer in network news, The Playboy Channel, documentaries, and kids' game shows. She has often received letters and messages back from such notables as Connie Chung, Norman Lear, and Henry Winkler.