Good Life Project

The tiny moments you ignore may hold the key to it all. New research in neuroscience and attachment science reveals that your brain is constantly monitoring your relationships through small, everyday interactions, and the signals it picks up quietly shape everything from your self-esteem to your sense that life has meaning. Most of us pour energy into the big relationship gestures, the long conver...

Stop the cycle of chronic pain by fixing the signals in your brain. We’ve been told for decades that pain is purely a physical problem, born of bones and body parts. But the latest neuroscience proves that’s only one piece of the puzzle. Dr. Rachel Zoffness is a pain scientist, assistant clinical professor at UCSF, and author of the new book Tell Me Where It Hurts . She lectures at Stanford and is...

 If you feel like the world is crashing down, you are not alone in that darkness. This moment of global contraction isn't necessarily the end of the story, but perhaps the beginning of a difficult birth. Today we sit down with Valarie Kaur, a renowned social justice leader, lawyer, and founder of the Revolutionary Love Project. A graduate of Harvard and Yale, she is the author of the book, Sage Wa...

Most of us think oversharing is the problem. It's not. New research from Harvard reveals that the bigger threat to your relationships, your health, and your sense of belonging may be all the things you're choosing not to say. How many times today did something cross your mind that you chose to keep to yourself, a feeling you swallowed, a compliment you almost gave, a truth you pulled away from? Th...

Humor won't cure depression. But it might save your life. That's not a metaphor for Jenny Lawson. It's the hard-won truth of more than two decades of living with treatment-resistant depression, anxiety, and the kind of dark seasons that make getting out of bed feel impossible. Most of us hide when we're struggling. We perform wellness for the world and suffer in silence behind closed doors. Jenny...

You’ve reached a point in life where you thought you’d feel different. You’ve checked a lot of the boxes of achievement, happiness, even success. And, still, something is missing. It is a quiet restlessness that age or achievement cannot seem to quiet. What you’re missing is meaning. Our guest today is Arthur Brooks. He is a Harvard professor and #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Meaning...

Stop blaming willpower and start building the skill of making change stick for good. Pretty much every person wants to change something, about themselves, their lives, or situation. But, so few ever succeed at creating change, let alone sustaining it. In this conversation, we explore why real transformation is a learnable process rather than a test of grit. We look at the emotional hurdles that st...

Turns out, "good vibes only" might be making you feel worse. Today, we’re exploring why the "good vibes only, stay positive, look on the bright side," movement is often more harmful than helpful and how to build a deeper, more resilient form of optimism and hope that is truly capable of making your life better. Our guest, Dr. Deepika Chopra, is a clinical health psychologist known as The Optimism...

Want a deeper, more secure, fiercely connected relationship? Then, you’ll want to check out the power of relationship agreements.  In this episode, we sit down with Krista and Dr. Will Van Derveer. Will is a psychiatrist and author of the book  Psychedelic Therapy , and Krista is a Relational Leadership Educator who helps partnerships move from the "I Operating System" to a "We Operating System."...

Being a super-communicator isn’t a gift, it’s a skill anyone can learn. Ever wish you were the person who could talk to anyone with ease? Like anyone you came in contact with became instant friends, confidantes, or trusted allies and collaborators. Turns out, this superpower is not something you’re born with, it's something you can learn.  This episode shows you how. Our guest is Charles Duhigg, a...

How do you know when to leave a job or relationship? Look for the jolts. Ready to quit your job but unsure if it’s right? A single comment, missed opportunity, or subtle slight can suddenly make everything feel different. But is it really time to leave, or is something deeper happening? We’ve all had that moment when work or even a relationship feels off. Maybe it’s a meeting that hits differently...

Your mind is under siege. Every day, technology and noise fight to hijack your attention, leaving you feeling less present and more distracted than ever. In a word, unconscious. It’s time to stop the scroll and reclaim the most precious thing you own: your consciousness. Learn how to build "consciousness hygiene" and protect the privacy of your own mind.  Today we are joined by legendary author Mi...

Your kids leaving isn’t an ending; it’s an open door to a more intentional version of you. Many of us spend decades organizing our entire identities around our children, only to feel a staggering sense of loss when the house goes quiet. In this conversation, we explore why the term "empty nest" is so limiting and how to navigate the "forced reckoning" of midlife transitions without losing your sen...

Tired of saying yes when you mean no and feeling resentful later? In this powerful compilation episode, you’ll learn how to set healthy boundaries without guilt, conflict, or losing the people you care about. If you’re exhausted from overgiving, overworking, people-pleasing, or overfunctioning, this conversation will feel deeply familiar. We explore why so many high-functioning adults struggle to...

Trying to eliminate anxiety can make it worse. Do this instead… If you wake up with a tight chest, a racing mind, or a constant sense of unease, this conversation offers clarity, relief, and a more grounded way forward. In this episode, we unpack what anxiety actually is, why it shows up the way it does, and how to tell the difference between normal anxiety and anxiety that starts running, or even...

Your brain isn’t breaking. It’s rewiring in ways no one explained, and for many women, menopause is the moment everything suddenly feels unfamiliar. Brain fog, sleep disruption, anxiety, memory lapses, and feeling unlike yourself can be deeply unsettling, especially when no one has given you a framework for what’s happening. In this conversation, we explore the science behind midlife brain changes...

The deeper the love, the more uncomfortable it gets, and learning how to work with that truth may change the way you relate forever. If you’ve ever wondered why love sometimes feels harder over time, why irritation replaces ease, or why closeness can feel strangely destabilizing, this conversation offers a grounded and deeply wise and kind perspective. Rather than trying to fix or escape discomfor...

What if excellence isn’t about winning, but becoming? For so many of us, the word excellence has become tangled up with perfectionism, obsession, and relentless hustle. No wonder it feels heavy, triggering, or out of reach. In this conversation, we explore a very different understanding of excellence, one rooted in meaning, care, and deep engagement. Together, we unpack why modern life makes it so...

When life upends everything, what still matters? When the future you assumed disappears, the questions get sharper. This conversation explores how meaning, values, and hope evolve when time feels uncertain and life breaks open in unexpected ways. In this deeply human and reflective episode, Jonathan Fields sits down with Lucy Kalanithi, a physician, storyteller, and Clinical Associate Professor of...

You can be deeply loved and still feel alone, even when your life is filled with people who care about you. Many of us assume that love automatically translates into feeling loved. But research shows that isn’t how it works. In this conversation, we explore why connection can be present, yet the feeling of being loved never quite lands and what actually helps close that gap. My guest is Harry Reis...

What if chronic pain was caused by faulty wiring in your brain? And that one shift in understanding can open the door to relief many people never thought was possible. Chronic pain affects tens of millions, disrupts relationships, limits work, and quietly erodes joy. Yet for many, scans, surgeries, and medications never bring lasting relief. In this conversation, we explore why pain can persist lo...

You could be having better sex and the science explains why, not because you’re broken or doing something wrong, but because most of us were never taught how desire actually works or how intimacy evolves over time. Instead, we’re handed myths, silence, and a lot of quiet frustration. In this conversation, we explore why great sex is not something that just happens, but something you can learn, pra...

If your life looks good on paper but feels flat, this is for you. Many of us follow the rules, build what appear to be successful lives, and still sense something essential is missing. That feeling sends us on a chase for more meaning or purpose, impact and clarity. But, what if the way we seek them is all wrong, and actually makes us less happy, content and alive, not more? In today’s conversatio...

It's said, pain is inevitable, suffering is optional. But, is that true? Many of us live our lives in pursuit of certainty, believing that if we could just get things more stable - emotionally, financially, relationally - then we’d finally feel at ease. We wouldn't struggle with anxiety, stress, and fear. we wouldn't suffer so much. Problem is, that approach often deepens our suffering, rather tha...

Most new habits fizzle quickly, what if they didn't have to? We blame a lack of willpower, but what if the way we approach habits that's the real problem? Why does true, lasting habit change feel so hard to sustain? And, how can we do it better? In this Best of episode, we explore a gentler and more honest reframe, drawing from the work of James Clear, author of Atomic Habits. We show that lasting...