Change Academy

Apr 16 2024 194

Change Academy Podcast artwork

Learn how to cultivate a more productive mindset, form sustainable habits, and create a lifestyle that supports both your goals and your wellbeing with host, Monica Reinagel. Drawing on decades of expertise and experience, Monica provides guidance on navigating the challenging process of behavior change in a fun and accessible way. Learn more and find show notes for every episode at https://changeacademypodcast.com

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How behavior change experts work on their own difficult habits

Apr 16 2024 30 mins

Kurt Nelson and Tim Houlihan are the co-hosts of the Behavioral Grooves podcast and heavy hitters in the behavioral sciences. In this episode, the three of us trade notes on what we've learned from years of podcasting and behavioral coaching and how it impacts our ability to work with our own behavior challenges. (Yup, we still have them!) Key TakeawaysCuriosity allows for both ope

Why we can't help comparing ourselves to others -- MID 5:31

Apr 05 2024 14 mins

It’s a very natural human tendency to compare ourselves to the people around us–and even to the people we see portrayed in the media. And like so many other behavioral tendencies, this one is a double-edged sword. Looking at what others have achieved can inspire us to greater effort. It can also make us feel like crap. And we don't want that!Today, we're delving into the psycho

Why behavioral economics shouldn't be the only tool in the toolbox

Mar 25 2024 33 mins

Behavioral economics has given us a lot of insights into how we can influence our own and other’s behavior. But the approach has some serious limitations, especially when applied to promoting health behaviors.Joining me on the podcast is Michelle Segar, a frequent guest here on the Change Academy. Michelle is an NIH-funded researcher at the University of Michigan. She’s also a

Looking for happiness in all the wrong places, with Oliver Burkeman

Mar 15 2024 36 mins

What if the pursuit of happiness is NOT the path to greater life satisfaction? What if being more productive and getting more done isn’t actually the way to get ahead?In today’s episode, I’m talking to author Oliver Burkeman about some of the ways in which we might want to re-examine our relationship to goals, happiness, and the things that are most important to us.This is so

How to get back on track instead of sabotaging your progress

Mar 05 2024 12 mins

Over the years, I have worked with a lot of people on various aspects of behavior change–mostly having to do with health behaviors. I have witnessed and celebrated some amazing breakthroughs and successes.But I have also seen people stumble and struggle. Regularly. Something happens and they fall back into old habits or patterns that they’d successfully moved away from.It’s d

How to stop complaining and find the path to positive change

Feb 26 2024 36 mins

Is there something in your life that’s been driving you crazy for a while? Some situation at work that you find yourself venting to your spouse about every night at dinner? Or maybe a recurring conflict with your partner or your kids that never seems to be adequately resolved? Do you find yourself ruminating over a problematic situation every time you have a moment alone in the c

The inner work that makes outward change more possible

Feb 15 2024 23 mins

In this conversation with a recent “graduate” of the Weighless program, Lauren shares some of the key insights that helped her permanently transform her physical and mental health.Lauren is a healthcare professional herself, with a front row seat to some of the consequences of unhealthy habits and lifestyles. She had plenty of motivation to change. And yet, she still needed som

Why it’s so hard to convert good intentions into action

Feb 05 2024 15 mins

There’s clearly no shortage of good intentions in the world, and most of them actually have to do with health. People want to get into shape, they want to eat better, they want to lose weight. Unfortunately, very few of these good intentions get converted into reality.Believe it or not, there’s a technical term for this: It’s called the intention behavior gap. And in this epi

How to know when it’s time to make a big change

Jan 25 2024 39 mins

Careers are one of the ways that we find meaning and purpose in our lives. Not the only way, of course. But what if you wake up one day and realize that your true purpose might be better fulfilled by doing something other than what you originally trained for. Now what?!Design thinking offers tools and processes that can help us both imagine and then execute big shifts in our lives.

What if you didn’t have to be more disciplined to succeed?

Jan 15 2024 26 mins

I was recently exchanging emails with someone who was struggling to change some unhelpful behaviors. He wrote: “I do really well for a couple of days and then I go totally off the rails again. It’s such a vicious cycle. I just need to be be more disciplined.”And if there is something that you are struggling to change, you’ve probably thought the same thing. But I don’t th