The You Project

Yep, conversation is a science. Who knew? There's actually mountains of research which analyses effective (and ineffective) conversation and provides great insight into what works (in a chat) and what doesn't. As somebody whose job is literally conversations, I was super interested in this... conversation (sorry) and it didn't disappoint. Professor Elizabeth Stokoe is a social psychologist who has...

According to our loveable resident nerd Patrick, in the not-too-distant-future (coupla years), I'll be able to 'stand on a stage on the opposite side of the world' (well, a 3-D hologram version of me), deliver a presentation, see the audience, interact with the audience and be 'back home', as soon as I'm done. Sh*t's gettin' weird folks. This was a fun one. Enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for p...

From the outside looking in, Laura Cathcart Robbins was a picture of success; happy, healthy, wealthy, respected, connected and admired. Or so it appeared. But behind the persona, the picture and the story, was the reality of a woman battling to navigate life with a debilitating addiction, a huge secret and a world of mental and emotional pain. Laura is the author of the brand new 'Stash: My Life...

How do we keep ourselves physically, mentally and emotionally younger than our chronological age? How can we maintain our level of functional health (or even improve it) as we get older? In this episode, I share some not-so-typical strategies that are both simple and effective (when they're applied). Enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today (June 7, 2023) David wrote a fascinating article for substack.com titled 'Nicotine: The Free Will Assassin'. *An Insight into the Destructive Consequences of Smoking and Vaping, and the Uphill Battle Against Nicotine's Grip on Society. This episode is a chat about that and as always, it's great. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Samantha Gash is a corporate lawyer turned international endurance athlete, inspirational speaker and social change advocate, who you may have seen on seasons two and seven of Australian Survivor. Sam is a five-foot package of inspiration, courage, intellect and passion and I loved chatting with her. Enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bobby and I have been friends for decades and he's been on TYP many times talking about personal development, sociology, psychology and all-things human behaviour. But this episode is very different. We've chatted briefly (before) about him growing up in a violent, abusive and loveless home but this time, he opens the door wide and we discuss the numerous challenges of navigating life with brain d...

Dr. Scott Lyons is a recovering drama addict. And no, I'm not using that term as a metaphor or analogy. As a clinician, Scott describes himself (and many others) as having been (or still being) addicted to drama. Who knew it was a thing? Well, it is and this was a fascinating and different conversation that l'm sure will resonate with many. Who is Dr. Scott Lyons? He is a licensed holistic psychol...

Bart Walsh is a younger, smarter me. He is the head of fitness for Jetts (gyms) Australia and he's a deep-thinking, talented, interesting, interested, and inspirational young man, who has been through some serious sh*t and somehow, just keeps rolling on. I had no real expectations (good or bad) going into this chat because I knew very little about Bart, but it's fair to say I was impressed. I won'...

Our intended tech-talk with Patrick didn't eventuate, as our pre-show catch up turned into a 45-minute chat about his surprise recent illness, a hospital stay and some lightbulb moments and realisations to come from that experience. I know it sounds obvious and cheesy to suggest that kindness is powerful, healing and potentially transformational, but sometimes life has a way of reminding us, groun...

On Planet Me, there's an absolute correlation between the quality of the questions I ask myself and others (solution-focused, intelligent, curious questions) and the quality of my subsequent decisions, actions, interactions and outcomes. In short, better questions produces better results. This episode is me riffing about that. Enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Different episodes resonate with different people, but from the almost 1,200 episodes of TYP that I've recorded, this conversation sits comfortably in my all-time top 5. I truly loved it and wish it could have gone for longer. In 1991, Shaka Senghor entered prison for committing second-degree murder. Today, he's a best-selling author, lecturer at universities, and leading voice on criminal justice...

The other day I had the pleasure of joining Mark LeBusque on his poddy (Simply, Practically Human) and he wheeled out an assortment of my whiteboard lessons (from Insta) to unpack. Among other things, we spoke about being an Opsimath (it's a thing, you might be one), chest-beaters (and the quiet ones up the back), sharing a 'selfie' of your mind (versus your body), becoming aware of our conditioni...

Training your mind. Herding Cats. Same. Same. Feels like, anyway. So much of how we manage our lives, is dependent on our ability to manage our mind and potentially, to train it to 'perform' better. And while there's no three-step plan or fail-proof protocol (of course), a lifetime of training my own mind and a career (four decades) of helping others do the same, has given me some insights that I...

Young Tommy dropped by TYP Central and we had a casual chat about how work affects us positively or negatively (work impact vs. work-life balance), the need we humans have to ‘feel special’ (in a world of 8 billion other humans), the idea of starting at the bottom to build the skills, competence and understanding in order to get to the top, the K-Pop phenomenon, whether or not self-promotion is a...

For over thirty years, Dr. Steven Gundry was one of the world’s pre-eminent experts in heart surgery. His experiences took him to new frontiers of medical science, where he was a driving force behind major progress in medical technology, surgical procedures and breakthroughs that revolutionised the way doctors save lives. But then in 2001, Steven had an experience which saw him step away from Card...

Andrew Simmons is the owner of Vision Personal Training (with more than 50 franchises around Australia). He and I have been mates since the early 90’s, when he and the great Geoff Jowett flew down to Melbourne (from Sydney) to have a look at the largest PT Centre in the Southern Hemisphere (my gym) and to ask me a bunch of questions. Since that time, Simmo has well and truly taken over the mantle...

I'm not sure how David Gillespie and I end up talking about psychopaths so often but nonetheless, we do. I fully intended to chat with him about another topic heading into this episode but I opened with a question about his upcoming book (before the intended chat) and then thirty minutes later there I was; Psychopath Central. *WARNING: Just letting you know that this episode contains is a conversa...

Philip Goff is a Professor of Philosophy, which is why I call him either Prof. Goff or Phil-osophy. Alright, I’ll stop. Seriously, this was my kind of mind-bending, paradigm-shifting, reality-challenging conversation. Enjoy. philipgoffphilosophy.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This was my favourite episode (so far) with Professor Bill. Funny, enlightening, terrifying, educational and inappropriate. Perfect. Enjoy. authorbillsullivan.com See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week I chatted with young Tiff on 'Roll with the Punches' and as always it was rambling, casual and thought-provoking conversation about everything and nothing. Enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andy Norman, PhD, is back and this continuation of our last chat was enlightening, thought-provoking and educational. And if I do say so myself, mildly entertaining. Andy is the award-winning author of ‘Mental Immunity: Infectious Ideas, Mind-Parasites, and the Search for a Better Way to Think’. His work has appeared in Scientific American, Psychology Today, Skeptic, Free Inquiry, and The Humanist...

The title will be self-explanatory when you listen. Again, this was a wide-ranging, mildly terrifying and thought-provoking conversation with our resident TYP Nerd (Patrick), about all-things tech and its potential ramifications (good and bad) for us mere biological, flesh and blood mortals. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How much of our thinking, behaviour and outcomes is about nurture and how much is about nature? What is cognitive fatigue and what can we do about it? Why does our brain use so many calories? Why do we fall apart when we finish a big project (not in the middle of it)? How does our intellect and creativity work together? What if Roger Federer never picked up a tennis racquet? Or Layne Beachley neve...

I’ve known Geoff Jowett for a long time; through his mayhem years of drugs, booze, big business, bodybuilding, TV appearances, self-destruction and instant gratification through to Geoff, the clean, sober, inspirational bloke who lives on a farm with four dogs, a family of ducks, two horses and is in bed by 8.30. This was a fascinating chat.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.