Ethan Kross on Chatter

Ethan Kross is one of the world’s leading experts on controlling the conscious mind. An award-winning professor in the University of Michigan’s top ranked Psychology Department and its Ross School of Business, he is the director of the Emotion & Self Control Laboratory. Ethan has participated in policy discussion at the White House and has been interviewed about his research on CBS Evening News, Good Morning America, Anderson Cooper Full Circle, and NPR’s Morning Edition. His research has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, The New England Journal of Medicine, and Science. In this episode, we discuss controlling thoughts (5:44), the difference between thoughts and thinking (8:10), how feelings and emotions can drive behavior (9:13), how we know when thoughts are serving us vs. getting in our way (12:46), quick decisions and thinking in sports performance (18:44), thinking about fear and anxiety as an expert (23:35), self-leadership (26:21), what Ethan tries to impart in his kids (29:52), what he enjoys doing most in life professionally (34:32), context, and when something serves us vs when it hinders us, as well as introversion and extraversion (39:15), the pandemic and its effects on chatter (46:07), echo chambers and social media (50:15), the power of belief (52:55), how schools should be teaching tools and techniques around chatter (56:09), third person self-talk (57:41), routines and rituals that help him show up and do well (59:44), and chatter at home (1:01:56). Make sure to check out Ethan’s website here, as well as the website for the Emotion and Self Control Lab at the University of Michigan here! Lastly, I would encourage you to purchase Ethan’s book Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It anywhere where books are sold. Thank you so much to Ethan for coming on the podcast! I wrote a book called “Shift Your Mind” that was released in October of 2020, and you can order it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Additionally, I have launched a company called Strong Skills, and I encourage you to check out our new website https://www.strongskills.co/. If you liked this episode and/or any others, please follow me on Twitter: @brianlevenson or Instagram: @Intentional_Performers. Thanks for listening. -Brian