PODCAST · education
The OptimalWork Podcast
by OptimalWork
Hosted by Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif Younes, co-founders of OptimalWork, The OptimalWork Podcast will help you learn to challenge yourself in each hour of work according to your highest ideals. We discuss all aspects of Dr. Majeres's approach to work, which he developed in his private practice and teaches at Harvard Medical School, and show how it applies to everyday situations like professional work, study, sleep, and relationships.For personalized plans to help you put the ideas into practice, visit www.OptimalWork.com.Please send questions for discussion to [email protected].
Episodes
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321. Work With AI Without Sacrificing Your Growth
#321: AI can produce better work in seconds—but what happens to the person doing the work? Kevin and Sharif explore the hidden cost of outsourcing challenges that build skill, judgment, and character. Drawing on Aquinas’s distinction between making and doing, they examine what separates AI...
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320. How to Want to Do the Hard Thing
#320: What turns “I have to do this” into “I want to do this”—especially when the task is difficult? Kevin and Sharif explore how deeper judgment transforms an apparent loss into a worthwhile cost, and then into an opportunity to grow and serve others. From the pull of doomscrolling to the...
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319. Why Bad Decisions Can Feel Reasonable
#319: Fear can make a difficulty seem insurmountable; desire can make getting what we want seem like all that matters. Kevin and Sharif explore how both can distort understanding and turn careful reasoning into rationalization. Drawing on Aquinas’s account of prudence, they connect everyday...
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318. Prudence, Fast and Slow
#318: How do people make good decisions without getting trapped by their first impression? Sharif and Kevin explore the first act of prudence—counsel—and why clear thinking begins with making genuine contact with reality. They unpack the role of intuition, experience, memory, and advice, while...
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317. How a Good Decision Becomes an Action
#317: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin explore prudence as the virtue behind good decision-making — not simply knowing what to do, but discerning what truly serves the people entrusted to us and then putting that decision into action. Drawing on Augustine’s definition of prudence as “love…
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[Rebroadcast] Professional Humility IV: Stonewalling
#316: Dr. John Gottman identifies four stages in the breakdown of a relationship: defensiveness, criticism, stonewalling, and ultimately contempt. Each of these reflects a deeper issue— a lack of humility. In this episode, we delve into the third stage: stonewalling. Stonewalling means putting up...
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[Rebroadcast] Professional Humility III: Critical Spirit
#315: Dr. John Gottman identifies four stages in the breakdown of a relationship: defensiveness, criticism, stonewalling, and ultimately contempt. Each of these reflects a deeper issue— a lack of humility. In this episode, we delve into the second stage: criticism, or what we call a critical...
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[Rebroadcast] Professional Humility II: Defensiveness
#314: Dr. John Gottman describes four stages in the breakdown of a relationship: first defensiveness, then criticism, then stonewalling, and finally contempt. Each of these is a manifestation of a lack of humility. Having laid out the big picture in our previous episode, here we do a deep dive…
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[Rebroadcast] Professional Humility I: The Core Elements
#313: In this episode of the OptimalWork Podcast, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres delve into the significance of humility in leadership and team dynamics. They explore the concept of humble leadership, the detrimental effects of pride, and the four horsemen of team dysfunction: defensiveness,...
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[Rebroadcast] Navigating Challenges with Extreme Ownership
#312: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss the concept of Extreme Ownership, as introduced and developed by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. Willink and Babin learned this concept from their time serving as Navy Seals and have gained popularity adapting it to other contexts, like...
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[Rebroadcast] Developing Mastery IV: The Optimizing Stage
#311: In this installment of our series on mastery, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres explore the third and final stage: the optimizing stage. The optimizing stage of mastery has deep connections to other core concepts of OptimalWork like deliberate practice, continual growth, and above all service.…
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[Rebroadcast] Developing Mastery III: The Implicit Stage
#310: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres explore the second of the three phases of mastery: the implicit phase of mastery. This phase is the most dangerous, because it is where bad actions can become automatic habits, and where good habits can become plateaus. Fortunately, there are…
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[Rebroadcast] Developing Mastery II: The Explicit Stage
#309: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres delve into the concept of mastery, focusing on its explicit phase. Broadly, mastery has three forms: mastery over a technical skill, self-mastery, and mastery in the context of bonds. For all these forms, crafting a strategy (a goal plus steps)…
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[Rebroadcast] Developing Mastery I: The Three Stages
#308: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres explore the concept of mastery, its relationship to service, and the neuroscience behind it. We can distinguish between three stages of mastery: explicit, implicit, and optimizing. Ultimately, mastery is not just about raw technical skills, but...
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[Rebroadcast] How Breath Shapes Mind and Body
#307: Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres delve into the significance of breath in regulation attention and managing anxiety. One of the most interesting advances in the understanding of breath is the discovery of the oxygen paradox: breathing too much can actually reduce the amount of oxygen that…
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[Rebroadcast] How to Let Go of Your Worries
#306: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss the importance of learning how to self-regulate your attention. We often try to address distraction and worrying — two common obstacles relating to attention — by re-arranging our external circumstances, changing aspects of our lives.…
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[Rebroadcast] Mastering Your Attention to Work Optimally
#305: In this episode, Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif discuss the importance of attention for working at your best. Understanding how your attention works — especially the dynamic between task attention and default attention — can help you improve how you both rest and work. Some may think that…
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[Rebroadcast] How to Approach Anxiety
#304: In this episode, Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif discuss OptimalWork's recently launched anxiety course called Overcoming Anxiety. Having the proper attitude toward anxiety is essential. Rather than thinking we must get rid of anxiety or merely cope with it, we need to see how to embrace…
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[Rebroadcast] The Ultimate Guide to Complaining
#303: Complaining is very tempting. When experiencing difficulty, it can seem helpful to vent our frustration. But chronic complaining can hinder the development of genuine bonds and can reinforce a negative mindset. Complaining narrows our focus and prevents us from reframing challenges as...
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[Rebroadcast] Equipping Yourself to Engage Challenge
#302: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss the concept of self-efficacy and its practical application in various examples. Self-efficacy is the brain's prediction of success right before engaging in a task. It affects motivation, resilience, and the ability to overcome…
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[Rebroadcast] Why Self-Efficacy is More Important than Self-Esteem
#301: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss the concept of self-efficacy and its relationship to mastery and confidence. Albert Bandura, a psychologist at Stanford, initiated the self-efficacy literature. He developed ways to help people overcome their fear of snakes and observed...
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[Rebroadcast] Reviewing Cal Newport’s “Slow Productivity”
#300: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss Cal Newport's new book, “Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout.” “Slow Productivity” builds on themes he explores in his previous books: for instance, mastering your craft and focusing on the process of…
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[Rebroadcast] Mindset Mistakes that Sabotage Success
#299: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss the theory and science behind reframing, which is a foundational skill of OptimalWork. Reframing is essential to personal growth and overcoming challenges. But it goes beyond many of the techniques espoused by “self-help experts.” It is...
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298. When Abstention Becomes the Measure
#298: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin turn their attention to temperance — the most misunderstood of the cardinal virtues in modern culture. While today's wellness conversations obsess over macros, seed oils, and "locking in" on the perfect diet, Kevin argues that classical temperance was never...
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[Rebroadcast] Going Beyond Outcomes with Growth Goals
#297: Automaticity, while beneficial in some ways, can also be a danger if it makes everyday actions become rote. Treating each moment of a task as unique allows for growth, meaning, and mastery. One way to do this is frequently setting growth goals to stretch yourself in how you do things. The...
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[Rebroadcast] How to Help the Anxious Generation Thrive
#296: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres review the book “The Anxious Generation” by Jonathan Haidt. “The Anxious Generation” attributes the skyrocketing levels of anxiety among youth, particularly Gen Z, in large part to the widespread use of smartphones and social media. The negative...
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295. The Sacrifice Trap
#295: In this episode, Sharif asks Kevin to untangle one of the most common mindsets he encounters when coaching people on work: the urge to "just get things done." Kevin argues that this seemingly reasonable attitude is actually a form of anti-fortitude — an effortful suppression of the cost of…
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294. How Being Right Can Keep You Stuck
#294: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin explore one of the most psychologically subtle traps people fall into after being wronged: resentment. Kevin opens with a bold claim — that a hyperfocus on wounds is actually an inversion of justice, not an expression of it. Drawing on Augustine and…
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293. How to Conquer Scrupulosity
#293: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin explore scrupulosity — a form of OCD that targets the conscience itself, trapping thoughtful, well-intentioned people in endless loops of moral doubt. Kevin explains how scrupulosity hijacks the machinery of prudence, replacing genuine moral reasoning with...
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[Rebroadcast] Is All Therapy Bad Therapy?
#292: In her recent best-seller “Bad Therapy,” Abigail Shrier argues that therapy for children causes more problems than it solves. Shrier critiques the approach many therapists take as based on a flawed understanding of human nature, and she also draws attention to data suggesting that modern...
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291. OptimalWork Gets Intelligence: AI, Goals, and the Future of the Golden Hour
#291: Kevin and Sharif pull back the curtain on the major AI overhaul inside OptimalWork, explaining how the platform has evolved into a personalized growth system that helps people set better goals, reflect more effectively, and build momentum day by day. They explore why generic AI advice often...
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[Rebroadcast] Why You Should Stop Labeling People
#290: It can be tempting to fit people into our categories: we think things like, “she’s sanguine,” “he’s not good at math,” “she’s shy,” “he’s melancholic.” We may even convince ourselves that these labels help us people as they want to or ought to be treated. But taken too far, labels prevent…
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[Rebroadcast] Harnessing Your Brain’s Predictions to Transform Anxiety
#289: The brain’s models and predictions play a central role in the vicious cycles that drive procrastination, dread, and anxiety. When your brain assess a challenge as a threat, often it’s predicting some pain, or shame and sounds the alarm to get you to avoid it. To reverse these vicious cycles...
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288. Dynamics of Vitality VI: Friendship & Justice
#288: In this capstone episode, Sharif and Kevin explore a powerful question: Do you have to fix yourself before you can serve others? As they unpack the virtue of justice, Kevin challenges the common belief that relief from anxiety, depression, or anger must come first. Instead, he argues that...
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[Rebroadcast] How to Navigate Inner Conflict
#287: Why do we sometimes feel like we're at war with ourselves? In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres dive into a therapy approach called Internal Family Systems (IFS), exploring how our mind has various parts — protectors and exiles — which are sometimes in conflict. Approaching these...
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286. Dynamics of Vitality V: Centered on Justice
#286: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin continue their deep dive into the dynamics of vitality by tackling the most overlooked of the cardinal virtues: justice. Building on their framework linking anxiety, depression, and addiction to different “engines” of human behavior, Kevin explains why...
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285. Dynamics of Vitality IV: The Cardinal Virtues
#285: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin map the ancient framework of the cardinal virtues—prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance—onto the modern “three engines” model of meaning, effort, and attention. Kevin argues that love sits at the core of both emotion and virtue, and shows how different...
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284. Dynamics of Vitality III: The Power of Saddle Points
#284: Sharif and Dr. Majeres return to unpack one of the most practical ideas in OptimalWork: valleys, vitality, and the “saddle points” where change actually happens. Kevin explains how anxiety, depression, and addiction are shaped by love misdirected toward relief, and why the moments in...
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[Rebroadcast] Getting Past Shame-Based Motivation
#283: What motivates you to get up in the morning? What motivates you to continue working on a challenging task? Learning how to motivate yourself is essential to true success, but so many people are motivated by a fear of failure, that is, by shame. In this episode, we discuss the relationship...
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[Rebroadcast] Overcoming Anxiety III: Incorporating Ideals
#282: Overcoming anxiety occurs in three successive stages. In the third and final installment of a three episode series, we discuss stage three: using adrenaline to achieve maximal growth. Stage one, bronze-work, centers on challenging yourself by engaging triggers head-on, and it has the effect...
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[Rebroadcast] How to Approach Every Challenge With a Sense of Newness
#281: Whenever we do something repeatedly, we’ll tend eventually to do it in a rote, automatic way. This even applies to OptimalWork’s core practices: reframing, mindfulness, and challenge. In this episode we show how curiosity can help you overcome this tendency and bring a sense of newness to...
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[Rebroadcast] Beginning the Year with High Hopes
#280: The New Year provides a unique opportunity for a fresh start. To make the most of this opportunity, approach your resolutions with hope and creativity: hope so that you strive for the highest things (ideals, bonds) and creativity so that you can strategize how to achieve them. In this...
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[Rebroadcast] A Cheerful Giver
#279: In this episode, Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif discuss some questions received by email about service. Working with a spirit of service means shaping yourself so that you’re the kind of person who is ready to give cheerfully to all those around you. Although this requires that the actual…
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[Rebroadcast] Overcoming Anxiety II: Develop Daring
#278: Overcoming anxiety occurs in three successive stages. In the second installment of a three episode series, we discuss stage two: using mindfulness to experience the alarm of anxiety. When you focus on the alarm of anxiety, rather than the trigger only, the learning generalizes to all...
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277. Dynamics of Vitality II: Valleys and Vortexes
#277: In this conversation, Sharif and Kevin delve deeper into the dynamics of human growth and why progress often feels nonlinear. Drawing from chaos theory, they explore the idea of “valleys” and “vortexes” of anxiety, depression, and addiction—and how a single loving, willing action in the...
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276. Dynamics of Vitality I: Tipping Points
#276: In this conversation, Sharif Younes and Dr. Kevin Majeres introduce the idea of “strange attractors” as a framework for understanding why people can abruptly shift between vitality and states like anxiety, depression, or addiction. Drawing from chaos theory, Kevin explains how meaning,...
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275. Engines of Enthusiasm III: Attention and the Cortex
#275: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin explore how the cortex and attention form the capstone of motivation and enthusiasm. Together, they trace how meaning (the septum), willingness (the striatum), and focused presence (the cortex) work in harmony to create clarity, silence, and smoothness: the...
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274. Engines of Enthusiasm II: Effort and the Striatum
#274: In this follow-up to their discussion on meaning and the septum, Sharif and Kevin turn to the striatum—the brain’s engine of effort and challenge. Kevin explains how our willingness to act depends on dopamine, and how love, purpose, and embracing discomfort transform drudgery into freedom…
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273. Engines of Enthusiasm I: Motivation and the Septum
#273: In this conversation, Sharif Younes and Dr. Kevin Majeres explore the brain’s septum—the hidden center where love, meaning, and motivation converge. Kevin explains how “septal resonance” connects our sense of purpose to our relationships, and how practices like sincerity, gratitude, and...
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272. Understanding Depression VI: Ancient Wisdom and Modern Science
#272: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin continue their exploration of depression, burnout, and low energy—this time uncovering a remarkable bridge between neuroscience and classical wisdom. Kevin reveals how adenosine’s “good tired” and “bad tired” states map directly onto Aquinas’ ideas of...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Hosted by Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif Younes, co-founders of OptimalWork, The OptimalWork Podcast will help you learn to challenge yourself in each hour of work according to your highest ideals. We discuss all aspects of Dr. Majeres's approach to work, which he developed in his private practice and teaches at Harvard Medical School, and show how it applies to everyday situations like professional work, study, sleep, and relationships.For personalized plans to help you put the ideas into practice, visit www.OptimalWork.com.Please send questions for discussion to [email protected].
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OptimalWork
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The OptimalWork Podcast have?
The OptimalWork Podcast currently has 320 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The OptimalWork Podcast about?
Hosted by Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif Younes, co-founders of OptimalWork, The OptimalWork Podcast will help you learn to challenge yourself in each hour of work according to your highest ideals. We discuss all aspects of Dr. Majeres's approach to work, which he developed in his private practice...
How often does The OptimalWork Podcast release new episodes?
The OptimalWork Podcast publishes regularly with 320 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to The OptimalWork Podcast?
You can listen to The OptimalWork Podcast on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The OptimalWork Podcast?
The OptimalWork Podcast is created and hosted by OptimalWork.
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