Episode 334 The Upper Hand with Dr. Abbie Maroño (Part 2)

John continues his conversation with Dr. Abbie Maroño. Dr. Abbie opens up about her difficult past and how she learned to keep moving forward even when things felt impossible. They also talk about the pressure to be perfect, why we should stop waiting until we feel completely ready, and how taking action can help us grow. Dr. Abbie also discusses her books, Work in Progress: The Road to Empowerment, The Journey Through Shame and The Upper Hand: Mastering Persuasion and Getting What You Want with the Science of Social Engineering. About Dr. Abbie Maroño: Dr. Abbie Maroño is a keynote speaker, behavioral scientist, and author specializing in trust, influence, and nonverbal communication. She is known for challenging conventional thinking and translating complex behavioral science into practical insights that audiences can immediately understand and apply. Her interest in human behavior did not begin in a classroom. Growing up in an unstable and traumatic home, she learned early that no one was coming to save her. At 16, she faced a choice no child should have to make: continue down a path of addiction or fight for a different future. She chose the latter. That decision sparked a lifelong fascination with why people make the choices they do and how understanding human behavior can change the course of a life. ​Earning her PhD in Psychology, Dr Abbie became a Professor of Psychology at just 23 years old. She was later recognized by the U.S. Department of State for extraordinary ability in behavioral science and named one of Central Florida's 40 Under 40 by the Orlando Business Journal. She is the creator of The Upper Hand, a proprietary framework focused on trust, influence, communication, and decision-making. Dr Abbie has trained representatives from 29 U.S. federal agencies, including the U.S. Secret Service, FBI, and Department of Homeland Security, as well as senior leadership at INTERPOL. The U.S. Secret Service also recognized her contributions with an award for outstanding contribution to their forensic services. As a bestselling author, TEDx speaker, Forbes contributor, Court TV contributor, and media commentator, her work has been featured on BBC News, Fox News, WIRED, Reuters, Forbes Breaking News, Apple News, and many more outlets. She also provides expert witness services in matters involving behavioral analysis, nonverbal communication, and human behavior, including high-profile civil and criminal cases. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Dr. Abbie's early life and trauma [02:28] - Learning to deal with trauma gives you powerful life skills [04:08] - The importance of struggle [07:43] - Letting go of perfectionism [10:25] - Ready vs prepared [12:13] - The Dr. Abbie Show and why she delayed it for so long [15:21] - Why Dr. Abbie chose behavioral psychology [20:29] - Leaving academia for the private sector [23:48] - Differences between British and American culture [26:51] - How Dr. Abbie's TEDx talk happened [28:11] - The story behind her book Work in Progress [33:12] - The time gap between Work in Progress and The Upper Hand [36:49] - How AI affected her love for writing [38:34] - The F6 Secrets of Relationships is coming out soon [41:24] - The five principles behind The Upper Hand [43:41] - What is nonverbal communication? [45:34] - The best way to connect with Dr. Abbie [46:25] - Wrap-up NOTABLE QUOTES: "Struggle is a gift because it helps create things in you that weren't there before." "We don't see the work people have done to be where they are. We just see how they front." "The skills needed to deal with trauma and deal with pain are incredible life skills, and they will serve you very, very well." "I'd never wish struggle on people, but I do think it is an important character-building thing to go through the struggle." "Done is good enough. People get it done, then you can adjust. Don't adjust before you do it." "The longer we delay, the longer we don't get what we want." "Time will pass anyway. We don't do things because of the time it will take. The time will pass anyway. And then when that time has passed, you look back and you think, 'If I had done that, then I would be in a much different place right now.' So you just have to start." "Be prepared as you can, but just start." "When you admit to, 'I don't know,' 'I'm not perfect,' or 'I made a mistake,' it makes you better, and it makes you more of an expert, and it makes people actually look up to you and relate to you more." USEFUL LINKS: https://www.abbiemarono.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/drabbiemarono/ https://www.instagram.com/doctorabbieofficial/ https://www.facebook.com/DrAbbieofficial TEDx Talk "How to Turn Your Personal Shame Into a Source of Strength" - https://youtu.be/ptvCTuct4GE?si=A8vpm6D5n9UfG0Td  The Upper Hand: Mastering Persuasion and Getting What You Want with the Science of Social Engineering - https://a.co/d/0ctZMkgv Work in Progress: The Road to Empowerment, The Journey Through Shame - https://a.co/d/04nYbXkh The Doctor Abbie Show - https://www.youtube.com/@TheDoctorAbbieShow CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com    LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen    Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen    X - https://x.com/johnhulen    YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@iamjohnhulen    EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/