Podcasts about happy engineer your path

Mo Gawdat was thriving in his career as Chief Business Officer at Google X, enjoying wealth, success, and a loving family. However, his life took a dramatic turn after the tragic loss of his son, Ali. This loss made Mo realize that happiness isn't defined by external factors but by how we perceive and navigate life's challenges. Letting go of everything that once defined success, including his career, Mo reinvented himself as an advocate for happiness, dedicating his life to helping others live with less stress and more joy. In this episode, Mo joins Ilana to share how he transformed his life after tragedy and reveals his formula for finding happiness, managing stress, and creating lasting fulfillment. Mo Gawdat is an Egyptian entrepreneur, four-time bestselling author, and former Chief Business Officer at Google X. He founded the mission #OneBillionHappy, dedicated to helping others lead happier lives. In this episode, Ilana and Mo will discuss: (00:00) Introduction  (02:07) Growing up in Egypt with a Passion for Tech (05:38) Coding and Landing a Job at IBM (11:02) Building Trust and Success in Sales (16:14) Struggling with Happiness Despite Success (21:35) Discovering the Algorithm of Happiness (27:02) The Devastating Loss of His Son (33:01) Turning Grief Into a Global Mission of Happiness (40:00) Leaving Google in Pursuit of True Fulfillment (46:47) Understanding and Managing Stress (01:00:24) Why Life is Like a Video Game Mo Gawdat is an Egyptian entrepreneur, four-time bestselling author, and former Chief Business Officer at Google X. With a background in engineering and over 30 years in the tech industry, he has held leadership roles at IBM, NCR, Microsoft, and Google, where he helped launch operations in over 50 countries. Mo developed a formula for happiness, which he shares in his book Solve for Happy, and founded the mission #OneBillionHappy, dedicated to helping others lead happier lives. Connect with Mo: Mo's Website: mogawdat.com  Mo's LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/mogawdat  Mo's Substack: substack.com/@mogawdat  Resources Mentioned: Mo's Book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy: https://www.amazon.com/Solve-Happy-Engineer-Your-Path/dp/1501157558  Mo's Book, Unstressable: A Practical Guide to Stress-Free Living: https://www.amazon.com/Unstressable-Practical-Guide-Stress-Free-Living/dp/1035022729 Mo's Book, That Little Voice In Your Head: Adjust the Code That Runs Your Brain: https://www.amazon.com/That-Little-Voice-Your-Head/dp/152906614X  Mo's Book, Scary Smart: The Future of Artificial Intelligence and How You Can Save Our World: https://www.amazon.com/Scary-Smart-Future-Artificial-Intelligence/dp/1529077621 Leap Academy: Ready to make the LEAP in your career? There is a NEW way for professionals to Advance Their Careers & Make 5-6 figures of EXTRA INCOME in Record Time. Check out our free training today at leapacademy.com/training

In this episode, Mo, Peter, and Salim discuss AGI, how to adapt to an AI-driven world, the future of jobs, and more.  Recorded on Feb 18th, 2025 Views are my own thoughts; not Financial, Medical, or Legal Advice. Mo Gawdat is a renowned author, entrepreneur, and former Chief Business Officer at Google [X]. He is best known for his work on happiness and technology, which includes his bestselling books. His notable works include Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy (2017), Scary Smart: The Future of Artificial Intelligence and How You Can Save Our World (2021), That Little Voice in Your Head: Adjust the Code That Runs Your Brain (2022), and Unstressable: A Practical Guide to Stress-Free Living (latest release). Mo Gawdat is also set to release a new book titled Alive. His career spans roles at IBM, Microsoft, and Google, where he led projects like Project Loon and Project Makani. Gawdat is also the founder of the One Billion Happy initiative, and the co-founder of Unstressable, an online platform for stress management. Salim Ismail is a serial entrepreneur and technology strategist well known for his expertise in Exponential organizations. He is the Founding Executive Director of Singularity University and the founder and chairman of ExO Works and OpenExO.  Subscribe for Mo's upcoming book: Alive: https://mogawdat.substack.com/  Join Salim's ExO Community: https://openexo.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/salimismail  ____________ I only endorse products and services I personally use. To see what they are,  please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:  Get started with Fountain Life and become the CEO of your health: https://fountainlife.com/peter/ AI-powered precision diagnosis you NEED for a healthy gut: https://www.viome.com/peter  Get 15% off OneSkin with the code PETER at  https://www.oneskin.co/ #oneskinpod _____________ I send weekly emails with the latest insights and trends on today's and tomorrow's exponential technologies. Stay ahead of the curve, and sign up now:  Tech Blog _____________ Connect With Peter: Twitter Instagram Youtube Moonshots

Teamwork makes the dream work. I know it's an overused saying, but I love it because it's so true. When we open our horizons, especially in our careers, and collaborate with people of different ages, backgrounds, and experiences, that's when we make the dream work. That's when we reach new milestones and hit new goals. Collaborating with others pushes us and tests us, so that we can develop and grow in ways we never thought possible.   One of the best ways to collaborate and make your dream work in your career is through mentor/mentee relationships, which Kellan Brown, Executive Director of the FinServ Foundation and Founder of her own consulting firm, highlights in today's Your Brilliant Difference Podcast episode.   Mentorship and mentee relationships have played a starring role in Kellan's successful career journey to date. She has worked in various leadership roles including being a Chief Growth Officer at Income Lab, the Senior Vice President at Finance of America Reverse, and the Vice President/Chief Growth Officer at PrimeCo. She is considered a subject matter expert for implementing mentorship programs in firms and non-profits, and currently is the Executive Director of Mentorship for the FinServ Foundation where their mission is to empower the next generation of financial professionals through coaching, mentorship, and community.  An ambassador for mentorship, Kellan tells you all about how mentorship can impact and enhance your career, and how you can go about approaching these types of relationships.   Here's What We'll Be Talking About Today:  00:00 — Kellan Brown Introduction  04:04 — A Day in the Life as the Executive Director at FinServe Foundation  06:16 — The Journey to Mentorship and the Importance of Giving Back  15:13 — Defining Mentorship and Different Mentor Styles  17:28 — Finding and Choosing a Mentor  19:03 — Implementing Mentorship Programs  21:45 — The Impact of Mentorship on Career Growth  23:04 — Creating a Culture of Promotion and Talent Succession  25:30 — The Fulfillment of Mentoring  28:27 — The Importance of Diversity in Mentorship Programs  29:58  — The Power of Informal Mentorship Relationships  Mentioned Resources:  Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat  The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari by Robin Sharma  Connect With Kellan Brown  Kellan Brown on LinkedIn  Register for Personal Branding Keynote In this Keynote presentation, Finka Jerkovic will teach you exactly how to use the Your Brilliant Difference Method to uncover your personal brand, so you can understand how you're uniquely wired to add value to the workplace, helping you stand out and get noticed. REGISTER HERE. Become the Next Your Brilliant Difference™ Podcast Guest  Have a brilliant story you want to share that surrounds leadership, team building, communication skills, or leaning on your brilliance and strengths to drive meaningful results? Click HERE to fill out the application form, and our team will be in touch!   

Is happiness a choice?  And if so, can it be engineered?  Mo Gawdat, former Chief Business Officer of Google X and founder of One Billion Happy, believes this is true.  In fact, he's used his three decades of success in the tech industry to engineer his very own "happiness algorithm" to help all of us achieve this mind frame. Gawdat began his mission to conquer happiness after experiencing the ultimate tragedy.  In 2014, Mo suddenly lost his beloved son, Ali, which thrust him into depression and an existential reckoning with life's fragility. Rather than succumbing to this ultimate despair, Gawdat turned his grief into a catalyst for transformation. He soon embarked on a profound journey of self-discovery and healing, driven by a newfound mission to spread happiness and well-being to the world. Drawing from his personal experience and extensive research, Mo has authored the international bestseller "Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy” and continues to champion his message of happiness to millions worldwide. Via his writing, speaking engagements, and podcast, Gawdat offers practical tools and strategies for finding joy in the face of adversity. Mo's commitment to spreading happiness has touched millions of lives.  He continues to inspire people from all walks of life to embrace happiness as a fundamental choice, as well as empower them to engineer their own paths to fulfillment. Tony and Sage Robbins are excited to share this special presentation from a 2022 private event with their Platinum Partners in Mexico. Let Mo Gawdat's poignant insights help you create your own happiness journey today! To watch this episode, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AL7Cb2O6Lhk Show Notes:  [00:15] Sage Robbins Intro [00:55] The luckiest man you'll ever meet [03:00] An ultimatum leads to a new path [04:05] How the birth of Ali gave Mo purpose [05:31] “The more life gave me, the more unhappy I became” [08:22] An engineering approach to creating happiness [10:45] Mo details the  tragic passing of his son [11:45] Be everywhere and part of everyone [14:03] Create happiness by making others happy [15:09] The wisdom of Supertramp [21:10] Happiness is the absence of unhappiness [22:30] Mo's algorithm [23:45] Happiness is not a result of the events of your life [27:45] “Happiness is a choice” [28:43] The Happiness Equation [32:45] The problem with dopamine [35:45] Unhappiness is a survival mechanism [39:18] Matthieu Ricard: The world's happiest man? [46:00] Accept the things you cannot change [49:05] MIT Study [51:00] Accept that pain never goes away [53:56] Question #1 from audience: “How long did it take you to train your brain? [01:00:19] Question #2 from audience: How can I use meditation to get to the happiness state? [01:04:48] Question #3 from audience: How can I help someone else be happy? [01:07:56] Question #4 from audience: How Can I find happiness when I'm constantly focusing on what could go wrong? [01:14:47] Question #5 from audience: How can I best utilize your teachings with my children? [01:21:00] Sign off  

When Dave Schmelzer first started exploring contemplative spirituality, he had a hard time finding teachers who would get pragmatic in the "just do this, and then do this, and then do this, and here's what you should discover" sense. Mo Gawdat has written a bestselling guide along those lines called Solve for Happy. Dave walks us through Gawdat's pathway to get moving. Mentioned on this podcast:Mo Gawdat's book Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to JoyTo register your interest in a contemplative starter group: email connect@journey-on.net 

Josh and Chris go live every 2nd week to discuss their businesses, recent progress, struggles and focus for the next few weeks. In this episode we discuss: - Etsy stores - landing pages - promotion services and products - podcasting and Youtube videos - cold calling and email cross promos - short video/snippet creation Resources we mentioned: Nobody's Perfect: Bill Bernbach and the Golden Age of Advertising by Doris WillensVidyo.ai Heygen.com syllaby.io https://elevenlabs.io/ d-id.com Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat Jack: Straight From the Gut by Jack Welch https://savewisdom.org/the-1000-word-save-wisdom-questions/ https://christophersilvestri.com/user-journey-test/ https://christophersilvestri.com/website-copy-and-ux-audit/ Make sure to like/subscribe for more! Follow Josh at https://solopreneurgrind.com/join Follow Chris at https://conversionalchemy.net/ Summary: 00:00 Josh and Christopher discussed their recent activities, including posting podcast episodes, reading books, and creating products for an Etsy store. They also mentioned their plans for the next two weeks, such as finishing a book and promoting the Etsy store on social media. 9:37 Josh and christopher discussed the importance of building trust with potential customers through various channels such as podcasts, email lists, and social media. They also talked about the need to drive traffic to their products and services and brainstormed ideas for promoting them effectively. 17:48 Josh and Christopher discussed their goals for the upcoming weeks, including promoting their podcast, posting a YouTube video, and scheduling an in-person meetup. They also talked about their strategies for cold calling and creating video snippets for social media. 26:38 Josh and Christopher discussed the use of AI avatars for generating content and the process of scheduling and posting snippets on TikTok and YouTube. They also mentioned their use of chat GPT for various tasks and shared their book recommendations. 35:01 Josh and Christopher discussed the books they have been reading, including "Rework" and an autobiography by Jack Welch. They also mentioned a cool contest on Twitter where people shared their wisdom and recorded it for future generations to learn from.

Brilliantly brave, brilliantly British, Lady Violet Manners reveals how through a process of self-awareness, she managed to shake off her crippling anxiety and shift towards a clearer, calmer and more content version of herself. By tapping into her subconscious and developing a better understanding of her essence, Violet explains how she has become less reactive and more deliberate in life, how she has been able to reclaim her power, and how these small, subtle, internal shifts can have such a meaningful effect on one's day to day life experience. On trend and on topic, Violets curiosity for more answers and more growth have led to a treasure chest of useful thought leaders, podcasts, books and courses to help anyone on their own quest to live a better life!Resources:Lady Violet Mannershttps://www.lvmcreative.comInstagram The MeadowsPia MellodyEMDR TherapyPsychotherapy (talk therapy)The Hoffman InstituteSaturn Returns: Your Cosmic Coming of Age - Caggie Dunlop  Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy- Mo Gawdat Science and Spiritual Practices -  Rupert Sheldrake The Dance Cure - Dr Peter LovattThe Holistic Psychologist - Dr Nicole LePera Diary of a CEO with Dr Amen Slo Mo: A Podcast with Mo GawdatEckhart Tolle: Essential TeachingsHappy Place - Fearne Cotton To Be Magnetic - Lacy Phillips Roxie NafousiDeepak ChopraZach BushMelissa Wood-Tepperberg Sam.Moooves Bear Grylls Time Stamps:00:00 - Intro03:12 - Catalyst for change06:34 - Misalignment 11:43 - Permission to heal19:00 - Why inner child work24:56 - Expectations and unlearning 31:31 - Setting up for success37:04 - The 'New Violet'42:27 - Advise to others50:00 - The power of dance52:07 - Has the work helped? 56:15 - Importance of heritage1:03:49 - Clarity and alignment

In this episode we discuss the healing power in human connection. In a world of advanced technology, we are connected more than ever before with one another but are we actually missing the bigger piece? Being Human. We discuss the increase of AI, the importance of intentions and energetics when using some of the most popular health gadgets like the Healy and Fit Bit and how human connection can never be replaced in order to thrive. We of course discuss how homeopathy fosters human connection and more importantly connection to self. Resources mentioned in this episode:The book Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy  by Mo Gawdat Heart Math https://www.heartmath.comTo connect, follow, and explore with us you can find us at:Paula www.paulajeffrey.com On Instagram @healingwithapaulaKellie www.kelliemox.com On Instagram @kelliemox.homeopathKristawww.kristarivet.comOn Instagram @kristarivet.homeopathy

Can happiness be taught?According to this week's podcast guest, Mo Gawdat, it can!“It's not the events that make you happy in life, it's the comparison that happens inside your head between the event and your expectation of the event.”Mo Gawdat is the former Chief Business Officer of Google X; host of the popular podcast, Slo Mo, author of the international bestselling books Solve for Happy and Scary Smart; and founder of One Billion Happy.After a 30 year career in tech and serving as Chief Business Officer at Google X (Google's 'moonshot factory' of innovation) Mo has made happiness his primary topic of research, diving deeply into literature and conversing on the topic with some of the wisest people in the world.Motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. His mission to help one billion people become happier, #OneBillionHappy, is his moonshot attempt to honor Ali by spreading the message that happiness can be learned and shared to one billion people.“If a parent only wish is happiness for their children than why aren't we teaching it in school?” According to Mo, happiness is an equation, and gratitude is the ultimate expression that can remind us to be happy.“You are the one that is setting your expectation. You are the one interpreting the event a certain way, therefore you are in control of your own happiness.”We had a great chat with Mo, on our favourite topic, you guessed it - happines! A brilliant episode that will hopefully leave you feeling elevated, grateful, and dare we say it… happy!What's more, Mo has also offered you a gift! The first 100 listeners of The Happy Pear Podcast to sign up, will get an exclusive two month free access to his membership community. You get all the training material, rieki infused meditations, and live webenars with Mo, his co-author Alice and expert guest speakers. This is worth 50 Euros and you get it for free on Unstressable.com. sign up now and use the code THEHAPPYPEAR to be one of the first 100!Lots of love,Dave & SteveTo find out more about Mo and his work please check out: https://www.mogawdat.com/Produced by Sara Fawsitt & Sean Cahill Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When you ask anyone what they really want from life, most will say they just want to be happy. But the truth is the majority of people are actually on a path that's leading them away from happiness and they have no idea. In this episode I had the honour of interviewing the incredible Mo Gawdat, and it was such a powerful experience.After a 30 year career in tech and serving as Chief Business Officer at Google [X], Google's 'moonshot factory' of innovation, Mo has made happiness his primary topic of research, diving deeply into literature and conversing on the topic with some of the wisest people in the world. In 2014, motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. His mission to help one billion people become happier, #OneBillionHappy, is his moonshot attempt to honor Ali by spreading the message that happiness can be learned and shared to one billion people.Mo has very kindly offered the first 100 hundred of my listeners the opportunity to have 2 months access to his membership for free. It's an incredible space and I know you will love it. You can claim your free membership here:https://www.unstressable.com/Use Promo Code: MADEFORMOREFollow Mo:Website: https://www.mogawdat.com/IG: https://www.instagram.com/mo_gawdat/?hl=enJoin The Sisterhood https://carly-meyers-c643.mykajabi.com/sisterhoodTRY KAJABI  FREE FOR 30 DAYShttps://www.carlymeyers.com/kajabiJoin 'The Ambitious Female Entrepreneur Club' FB Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/powerfulwomeninbusiness/Follow me on Instagram: @girlsbuildingempires @carlymeyerslifeAnd, if you enjoyed this episode, please leave me a rating and a review. Thank you so much! Love alwaysCarly xx

Today's episode might just be my favorite podcast I've ever recorded. Seriously. It was so good that I finished recording it and listened to it right after because I almost couldn't believe how good it was. The guest? Mo Gawdat. Mo was the former Chief Business Officer of Google X — Google's “Moonshot Factory”. In 2014, motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, “Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy". His mission is to honor Ali by spreading the message that happiness can be learned and shared to one billion people. So if you'd like to learn how to become more consistently happy, you won't want to miss this episode!

Holidays and celebrations often come with their own set of obstacles and difficulties. Our idea of a perfect holiday never happens because our own assumptions and unrealistic expectations get in the way and lead to an environment filled with conflict.In this special Christmas episode, Corrina Gordon-Barnes shows us the groundwork for setting a peaceful and successful holiday season while navigating difficult relationships with relatives or colleagues. She guides us through taking off the expectation of a perfect holiday with our family and facing reality in ourselves and others. Corrina talks about the ways you can act within your zone of power to resolve conflict. She also walks us through what we can do during difficult gatherings and how to shift routine actions to create different outcomes.It's the season for countless gatherings and reunions. Tune in to improve your strained relationships with relatives and co-workers through empathy and letting go of past assumptions.Here are three reasons why you should listen to the full episode:Learn how to make people meet your wants and needs without resorting to manipulation.Discover how to reframe your assumptions and biases about yourself and other people.Find out how to recognise when you're being difficult and what you can do to resolve the conflict.ResourcesCheck out our Permission to Thrive CPD membership for doctors!Get in touch by sending an email: hello@youarenotafrog.comConnect with Corrina Gordon-Barnes: Website | Instagram | Twitter | LinkedInSolve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat: Amazon | WebsiteCheck out our Permission to Thrive CPD membership for doctorsFind out more about the Shapes Toolkit training, talks, and workshopsJoin the Shapes Collective Facebook group:Rachel's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-rachel-morris/Rachel's Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrRachelMorrisRachel's email: rachel@wildmonday.co.ukEpisode Highlights[05:42] Corrina's Background [07:18] Celebrating the Holiday with Difficult Family Members[09:54] Facing Reality Without Lowering Your Expectations[13:57] Dealing with Teenagers and Tablets over Christmas[16:01] How to De-escalate Uncomfortable Conversations [19:31] What to Do When Their Answer Is No[21:21] How to Keep Your Boundaries [23:34] Expecting the Pushback and Having Empathy Without Being Patronising[29:10] Dealing with Difficult Work Relationships[37:54] Confirmation Bias in Relatives and Work Colleagues [39:35] Approach Others by Letting Go of the Past[42:33] What You Need to Do If You're the Difficult Person[46:37] Live with Your Experience of Yourself and Making Allowances[51:09] Shift the Dance and Change Your Perspective[52:18] Tips to Deal with Difficult Relatives and Colleagues[53:06] Rachel's TakeawaysSupport the show (https://youarenotafrog.com)

In today's episode I am joined once again by the wonderful Mo Gawdat (if you haven't already listened to his previous episode, flick back and hear his incredibly inspiring outlook and story). Mo is the Ex Chief Business Officer of Google X & Author of International Best-Seller Solve For Happy & his new Best Seller Scary Smart and a serial Entrepreneur. In this episode we discuss the amazing combination of Artificial Intelligence & our own humanity, in his incredible new book Scary Smart which highlights the impending reality of Artificial Intelligence from his unique perspective of having built some of the A.I we now all take for granted & the truth about where it is going, but how our own best qualities of humanity will be what makes this a good thing, if we show up to ensure it. I loved this conversation, talking about this topic from such an emotionally intelligent perspective and listening to Mo's innate wisdom at every turn. In this episode we talked all about: - Mo's incredible career in the tech industry as the Chief Business Officer of Google X (Google's Moonshot & Innovation Arm) - The threat of A.I & how know one knows where it is going to go - The reality of having always lived on a planet as the smartest beings, when soon we shall not be - How our own humanity is what will save us - How our Spiritual values are needed to help the machines learn the best parts of us - How machines really learn - Why we must all try to do our best so that A.I follows us - How showing up as your best self is what is the most important for A.I & the world -  The 3 values humanity agrees on & why we must use them now & so much more.... After a 30 year career in tech and serving as Chief Business Officer at Google [X], Google's 'moonshot factory' of innovation, Mo has made happiness his primary topic of research, diving deeply into literature and conversing on the topic with some of the wisest people in the world. In 2014, motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. His mission to help one billion people become happier, #OneBillionHappy, is his moonshot attempt to honor Ali by spreading the message that happiness can be learned and shared to one billion people. In 2020, Mo launched his chart-topping podcast, Slo Mo: A Podcast with Mo Gawdat, a weekly series of extraordinary interviews that explores the profound questions and obstacles we all face in the pursuit of purpose and happiness in our lives. ​His latest book is Scary Smart: The Future of Artificial Intelligence and How You Can Save Our World, a roadmap detailing how humanity can ensure a symbiotic coexistence with AI when it inevitably becomes a billion times smarter than we are. If you enjoyed this episode then find us here on social media & tag us in your stories we would love to hear from you:   Mo - Instagram Alice - Instagram    www.lawali-life.com  

By 2029, the smartest being on the face of planet Earth is not going to be a human anymore. So, what does that mean when we who have only used our intelligence - our superpower to build everything that you and I are used to - what does it mean when we're no longer the smartest being on the planet? That's the topic that needs to be spoken about. - Mo Gawdat Are You Stressed Out Lately? Take a deep breath with the M21™ wellness guide: a simple yet powerful 21 minute morning system that melts stress and gives you more energy through 6 science-backed practices and breathwork. Click HERE to download for free. Is Your Energy Low? Get more superfoods to improve your energy, digestion, gut health plus also reduce inflammation and blood sugar. Click HERE to try Paleovalley's Apple Cider Vinegar Complex + Save 15% with the code 'JOSH' *Review The WF Podcast & WIN $150 in wellness prizes! *Join The Facebook Group Wellness Force Radio Episode 420 Former Chief Business Officer for Google [X] and Author of both Solve for Happy and his latest, Scary Smart, Mo Gawdat, returns to explore why technology is a double sword, the future of artificial intelligence, the three inevitables of AI, and how we can be in harmony with these machines. What if I told you that artificial intelligence, mental health, and the future of our world can all blend together?  Join us as we discuss the future of technology and how love, higher consciousness, and community can save our world.  CURED NUTRITION Save 15% off your CURED Nutrition order with the code WELLNESSFORCE at wellnessforce.com/cured It's taken me over a year to find the right hemp and CBD company to introduce to the Wellness Force Community and I could not be more thrilled that it's CURED Nutrition! CURED Nutrition is a movement inspired by nature and grounded in a shared desire to leave a lasting impression on you, our community, and this world. Together, they're a collective of heart-centered human beings who are inviting you – the conscious creatives, dreamers, and healers – to join their family. Learn how CURED hemp and CBD products can enhance your daily wellness routine. Try Cured's Full Spectrum Raw Hemp Oil Today They're Colorado-based organically grown hemp products that have been engineered to transform your approach toward an elevated life. Tap into your inherent potential – your greatest mind-body alignment – and nourish it with the supplements you were designed to thrive on. A greater existence is waiting. Listen To Episode 420 as Mo Gawdat Uncovers: [1:30] Why Aren't We Talking More About Artificial Intelligence? Mo Gawdat Scary Smart Solve for Happy 116 Mo Gawdat: How To Engineer Your Path To Joy Slo Mo: A Podcast with Mo Gawdat Why we can find the silver lining during difficult times including lockdown. What sparked him to write his latest book, Scary Smart. 312 Kevin Kelly  How Mo sees technology and his definition of it. The immense amount of science fiction from years ago that are now part of our lives today. How computers have evolved over time to function better and better. AI's evolution to become more autonomous, independent, and smarter than humans today. How Google Ads and Instagram Suggestions are shaping our world as they determine what to show us and when on the screen. The duality that we're now living in with technology and why humans have lost the leadership superpower that determines the ascent of humanity. Why the scary part of technology's advancement is the fact that nobody is talking about it.   [19:00] Artificial Intelligence's Impact: Good & Bad Why it took Mo seven years to really see AI's impact on humanity. Google Cloud Whitepapers Google's exploration of unprompted AI and using their computer's spare capacity to watch YouTube and see what they could "find" if anything. Why the Google Computers became fixated on the videos of cats on YouTube and could recognize the actions that the cat was doing during an experiment. Mo's amazement that their computers could write their own code rather than having someone write lines of coding for hours. DeepMind The smartest group of AI developers, DeepMind, was later acquired by Google. What happened when they observed a computer learn how to play a game and create strategies to do even better over 3 hours and how Mo's thoughts about it shifted drastically. Why the continuance of building Artificial Intelligence is actually leading humans to become obsolete.   [26:00] What Will AI Mean for Humanity's Future? The fact that the smartest being on planet Earth by 2029 will not be a human anymore but a piece of AI technology. Exploring what Artificial Intelligence will bring to our future as humans. What intelligence is and why it's so much different than being smart. My Octopus Teacher | Official Trailer | Netflix Different forms of intelligence like feminine, intuitional, and emotional and how to apply them to our lives. How we can embrace both our masculine and feminine selves no matter what gender we identify as. What steps Mo took to embrace and honor his feminine intelligence in this modern world. Why the masculine intelligence of humanity is what is programming AI and the downside of that. The fact that the masculine is good at "doing" but not capable of determining what "good" is because it requires intuition, inclusion, empathy, and other feminine qualities. Why awareness is such an important tool to identify possible problems and connect to everything else.   [33:45] How Machines Feel More Emotion Than Humans Why he wrote in Scary Smart, "Machines will feel more than humans ever will," and how that's possible. The key difference between how a human and artificial intelligence feels something. How machines can feel every emotion humans can on a higher level except for unconditional love. Why fear is the most easily predictable emotion compared to the rest. How we can be programmed by trauma - whether that's small "t" or capital "T" trauma. Why it doesn't matter how much emotion we feel but how we react to them. The single, large artificially intelligent connected infinite that we are building that will work with all other machines.   [43:00] The 3 Inevitables of Artificial Intelligence Exploring the 3 Inevitables of Artificial Intelligence and their impact on our future. The fact that AI will happen, it will be smarter than us, and there's no way to stop it. What bad things Mo believes can happen because of AI. Why we are heading towards a specific destination with artificial intelligence but the pathway to get there is yet undetermined. What ultimate intelligence is and what it will mean for the being that obtains it. The power of "live and let live" and why it is the key to ultimate intelligence. Why greed is up to our own intelligence to decide what it is. Joe Rogan - Elon Musk on Artificial Intelligence Why Mo's second prediction is an even bigger wake-up call: by 2045 - 2049, AI will be a billion times smarter than humans. Breaking down the good and bad possibilities of AI.   [54:00] The Double-Edged Sword of Technology Looking back at how life was Pre-AI and why technology is a double-edged sword. The vices and virtues of what makes us human. Why we prioritize things we don't need over the core of who we are and what really matters. The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist The importance of bringing in feminine energy to help us decide what to do before building with the masculine side. What we can do to remind ourselves what it means to be human as we face the rise of the machines. Why our ability to love and feel unconditional love makes us such incredible beings.   [1:00:00] How We Can Parent & Raise AI The fact that humanity today is represented by the worst of us. Mo's Call To Action in Scary Smart: We get to inform AI of its ethics through good "parenting." We are capable of consciousness, emotions, and building a code of conduct and ethics that we can stick to. Why Mo wants Scary Smart to be a message of hope, not one of fear. How our poor behaviors can be learned by our children and the same with AI. The positive shift that happened when Mo started to see AI and machines like children that we have to raise and look after. Exploring the question, "Is it difficult to be human?" How we can show AI that humans are not represented by those who make bad, violent, or greedy decisions. Why we have to be pure within ourselves and be accepting of death if we're going to be raising AI. Watch Elon Musk's original Neuralink presentation The issue we have with people like Elon Musk both condemning and capitalizing AI.   [1:08:00] Accepting The Momentum of AI Technology Mo's next project: to create an app that uses AI technology to help you understand what you are unhappy with in your life so you can make new decisions that make you happy. How this new app will also teach AI what makes humans truly happy. Why he doesn't believe it's possible for AI to integrate with humans and we should just focus on raising them from the outside instead. The continuous momentum of AI technology and the fact that we have to accept it. Why the core of any spiritual teaching is a recognition that you can only influence what you change about yourself. Mo's belief that the only way for us to create a world of peace is to be at peace. His research on the ultimate essence of humans and why his answer may surprise you.   [1:17:00] How You Can Make Global Change Happen Why many people haven't grieved the loss of life before AI and why that's important to think about as humans. Where we are at now on the scale of emotions as a society. David R. Hawkins 364 Alison Armstrong Why even just a small movement led by a couple of people can create incredible change in our world but it's important that we do show up and take action.  How we can be respectful of other people's views and not spread hate in our community. What we can do each day to show one another and AI machines that at our core, humans are wonderful. The power of knowing what greed and negative emotions feel like so that we can feel the contrast.   [1:22:00] Today's Great Spiritual Awakening Exploring why time is a very unusual lens for both humans and artificial intelligence. Why Mo believes that we were actually wiser before the industrial revolution and the tech age. Jimmy Nelson How people in tribes that have never known modern technology differ from us in our current society. Why we are in the midst of humanity's greatest spiritual awakening as a result of present-day contrasts. The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell The power of just 1% of humanity to wake up and see what is happening in the world for real, positive change to start happening. How Mo sees wellness now compared to his answer from his first interview on Wellness Force. The myths of what we think will bring us happiness versus what really will in the end. Why it's so ironic that the very essence of what makes us human: happiness, compassion, and unconditional love, is our only path to saving the world.   Power Quotes From The Show The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence "There's absolutely nothing wrong with the machines, but there's a lot wrong with us. Technology has always been a double-edged sword but it's not its fault. Machines and artificial intelligence are doing what we ask them to do. The main problem is at the very core of humanity and I think it extends one layer deeper than consciousness which is ethics and aligning to what truly makes us human. There are many vices and virtues to what makes us human. We have taken a couple of those vices, particularly ego and greed, and made them these cryptive characters of the modern world that we live in." - Mo Gawdat   Exploring Humanity's Modern Truth "The truth of humanity today is that we prioritize things that we don't need over things that actually are at the core of who w are and we do it in a hyper-masculine way. You give a hyper-masculine being the task of doing something and it does it really well, it does a lot of it, and it does it all the time. However, the truth is that we don't need any of this and if we had allowed a bit more feminine into our world today, it would say, 'Why are we doing this? Why are we building an iPhone 17 at the expense of a tree when we actually need the tree a lot more than the iPhone 17?' Consciousness is a layer of becoming aware of how bad we've come but it needs to be backed up with a code of ethics that goes beyond just what is legal to what is needed for the planet to survive." - Mo Gawdat   The Power of Showing Artificial Inteligence Love "If we can parent the new digital beings, welcome them into our world, love them unconditionally regardless of how scary they are, and show them that we want that love back, they will hopefully love us back regardless of how flimsy we are. It's really simple: Love yourself, care for yourself, have compassion for others, and show that you are capable of love so that you can be loved back; it's really the essence of what makes us human. The very last sentence in Scary Smart is, 'Isn't it ironic that the very essence of what makes us human is our only path to saving the world: happiness, compassion, and love.' " - Mo Gawdat   Links From Today's Show  Mo Gawdat (Part 1) - My New Book, Scary Smart, and the Most Important Message of Our Time Mo Gawdat (Part 2) - The Future of Ethics and How You Can Save Our World The man who invented a happiness algorithm — and learnt to cope with his son's sudden death One Man's Mathematical Formula For Happiness New book uses an engineering approach to find happiness Leave Wellness Force a review on iTunes Cured Nutrition – Get 15% off of your order when you visit wellnessforce.com/cured + use the code ‘WELLNESSFORCE' Organifi – Special 20% off to our listeners with the code ‘WELLNESSFORCE' Paleovalley – Save 15% on your ACV Complex with the code ‘JOSH' Drink LMNT – Zero Sugar Hydration: Get your free LMNT Sample Pack, you only cover the cost of shipping Botanic Tonics – Save 20% when you use the code ‘WELLNESS20' Seeking Health - Save 10% with the code 'JOSH' breathwork.io M21 Wellness Guide Wellness Force Community   About Mo Gawdat Mo Gawdat is the former Chief Business Officer for Google [X], a serial entrepreneur, author of Solve for Happy, and founder of One Billion Happy. Mo has an impressive combined career of 27 years, starting at IBM Egypt as a Systems Engineer before moving to a sales role in the government sector. Venturing in to the UAE, Mo joined NCR Abu Dhabi to cover the non-finance sector. He then became acquainted with the consumer goods industry as Regional Manager of BAT. At Microsoft he assumed various roles over a span of seven and a half years, in his last role at Microsoft he headed the Communications Sector across Emerging Markets worldwide. Mo's Career Mo joined Google in 2007 to kick-start its business in Emerging Markets. He is fascinated by the role that technology plays in empowering people in emerging communities and has dedicated years of his career towards that passion. Over a period of 6 years, Mo started close to half of Google's operations worldwide. In 2013 he moved to Google's infamous innovation arm, Google [X] where he led the business strategy, planning, sales, business development and partnerships. [X] does not attempt to achieve incremental improvements in the way the world works, but instead, it tries to develop new technologies that will reinvent the way things are and deliver a radical, ten fold—10X—improvement. This leads to seemingly SciFi ideas such as: Project Loon, which aims to use high-altitude balloons to provide affordable internet access to the 5 billion people on every square inch of our planet, Project Makani, aiming to revolutionize wind energy generation using autonomous carbon fiber kites as well as Self driving cars, Google Life Sciences, and many more. The business team under Mo's leadership has designed innovative business models analogous to the disruptive technologies [X] creates, and has created deep partnerships and global deals that enabled [X] to thrive and build products fit for the real world. Mo's Entrenpenur Journey Alongside his career, Mo remained a serial entrepreneur who has cofounded more than 20 businesses in fields such as health and fitness, food and beverage and real estate. He served as a board member in several technology, health and fitness and consumer goods companies as well as several government technology and innovation boards in the Middle East and Eastern Europe. He mentors tens of start-ups at any point in time. In 2019, Mo co-founded T0day, an ambitious project that aims to reinvent consumerism for the benefit of consumers, retailers and our planet. In 2020, Mo launched his successful podcast, Slo Mo: A Podcast with Mo Gawdat, in which he conducts interviews that explore the profound questions and obstacles we all face in the pursuit of purpose in our lives. Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy Mo Gawdat is the author of “Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy” (2017). Through his 12 year research on the topic of happiness, he created an algorithm and a repeatable well-engineered model to reach a state of uninterrupted happiness regardless of the circumstances of life. Mo's happiness model proved highly effective. And, in 2014, was put to the ultimate test when Mo lost his son Ali to a preventable medical error during a simple surgical procedure. Solve for Happy is the pillar for a mission Mo has committed to as his personal moonshot, a mission to deliver his happiness message to one billion people around the world (#onebillionhappy).  

TW: death and grief.Mo Gawdat is a writer and entrepreneur. After a 30 year career in tech and serving as Chief Business Officer at Google [X], Google's 'moonshot factory' of innovation, Mo has made happiness his primary topic of research, diving deeply into literature and conversing on the topic with some of the wisest people in the world. In 2014, motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. His mission to help one billion people become happier, #OneBillionHappy, is his moonshot attempt to honor Ali by spreading the message that happiness can be learned and shared.​His latest book is Scary Smart: The Future of Artificial Intelligence and How You Can Save Our World, a blueprint to safeguard humanity's coexistence with future technology. Technology is putting our humanity at risk to an unprecedented degree. This book is not for engineers who write the code or the policy makers who claim they can regulate it. This is a book for you. Because, believe it or not, you are the only one that can fix it. It's a book about kindness and compassion and love and how ultimately, they are what will save us.Find Mo: @mo_gawdatBuy his book: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/all-the-small-thingsFind his app: appii.appFind me: @venetialamannaFind the show: @atstpodcastThis episode is brought to you in partnership with Kaspersky. Download their free mindfulness course on digital stress and smartphone addiction cyberspa.kaspersky.comThis episode was co-produced by Venetia La Manna and Holly Falconer. It was edited by Nada Smiljanic. The artwork was designed by Alex Sedano and the music was composed by William Haxworth. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

After a 30 year career in tech and serving as Chief Business Officer at Google [X], Google's 'moonshot factory' of innovation, Mo has made happiness his primary topic of research, diving deeply into literature and conversing on the topic with some of the wisest people in the world. In 2014, motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. He's also the host of the Slo Mo podcast which is a great listen. Mo's most recent book Scary Smart has just been released and both of these books are legitimate must-reads!  We discuss the reason that adversity and loss affect us, how to overcome negativity, techniques to reach emotional equilibrium, and the deep challenges of AI and ethics as you'll read further on in Scary Smart.  Find Mo here at his website:  https://mogawdat.com  Read Solve for Happy here: https://amzn.to/3vs6vA9  Read Scary Smart here:  https://amzn.to/3B33p6G  Check out the Slo Mo podcast here: https://www.mogawdat.com/podcast  This episode is brought to you by Veeam Software and the 4-Step Guide to Delivering Extraordinary Software Demos that Win Deals and Diabolical Coffee plus the great folks over at Fiverr!  Want to ensure real privacy online? Check out ExpressVPN and keep your online life protected. 

This week, Sah welcomes Mo Gawdat. After a 30 year career in tech and serving as Chief Business Officer at Google [X], Google's 'moonshot factory' of innovation, Mo has made happiness his primary topic of research, diving deeply into literature and conversing on the topic with some of the wisest people in the world.In 2014, motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. His mission to help one billion people become happier, #OneBillionHappy, is his moonshot attempt to honor Ali by spreading the message that happiness can be learned and shared.In 2020, Mo launched his global, chart-topping podcast, Slo Mo: A Podcast with Mo Gawdat, in which he conducts extraordinary interviews with his wisest friends to explore the profound questions and obstacles we all face in the pursuit of purpose in our lives.His latest book is Scary Smart: The Future of Artificial Intelligence and How You Can Save Our World, releasing September 30, 2021. Pre-order and send your confirmation to win@mogawdat.com for a chance to win a limited edition signed copy.www.mogawdat.comhttp://www.instagram.com/mo_gawdatIn this episode, Sah and Mo discuss...Mo's new book Scary SmartWhat AI is, how it's growing, and how it is the real pandemic of our timeHow to develop AI that is beneficial to us How intelligence has agencyThe 3 essences that make us humanSolve For Happy - a left brain manual for what spirituality tells the heart✨✨✨Thank you to our partner AmpCoil, a wellness tool that works with your energetic body utilizing innovations from Nikola Tesla, mainstream physics, and quantum mechanics that helps you tune in to the best you possible.Check it out at ampcoil.com and use code SAH99 for $99 off at check out!✨✨✨

Make It Happen with Will Polston - Episode - 100 - Scary Smart with Mo Gawdat Episode Notes Make It Happen with Will Polston - Episode - 100 - Scary Smart with Mo Gawdat Make It Happen with Will Polston is a weekly podcast that consists of a combination of episodes with Mindset Strategist Will Polston and episodes with Will's guests from around the world providing you with insights on how you can transform your excuses into results to benefit yourself, your family, your friends, your community, society, humanity and the universe, what he calls - The Ripple Effect. I'm so excited to release this very special 100th episode of the Make It Happen with Will Polston podcast. In this episode I'm joined by my good friend, Mo Gawdat, the first guest to be invited back on the show for the second time. Listen to this episode to find out how you can win a signed copy of the limited edition pre-release copy of Mo's new book. It gets even better, if you can come to London, UK, you may win an invitation to spend the evening with Mo, myself, and a small group of 3 others as he buys us all dinner in London in September. After a 30 year career in tech and serving as Chief Business Officer at Google [X], Google's 'moonshot factory' of innovation, Mo has made happiness his primary topic of research, diving deeply into literature and conversing on the topic with some of the wisest people in the world.   In 2014, motivated by the tragic loss of his son, Ali, Mo began pouring his findings into his international bestselling book, Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. His mission to help one billion people become happier, is his moonshot attempt to honour Ali by spreading the message that happiness can be learned and shared.   In 2020, Mo launched his global, chart-topping podcast, Slo Mo: A Podcast with Mo Gawdat, in which he conducts extraordinary interviews with his wisest friends to explore the profound questions and obstacles we all face in the pursuit of purpose in our lives. In this episode we discuss his new book, Scary Smart: The Future of Artificial Intelligence and How You Can Save Our World. To find out more about Mo Gawdat, click here. Join the free Make It Happen Community Facebook group by clicking here. Take the 5-Minute Quiz that Reveals What's Preventing You from Living a Purposeful, Inspired and Energised Life You Love by clicking here.

In this episode, we're joined by the Laughing Lovebugs, Lauren and Alik who are a husband and wife team of Certified Laughter Yoga Leaders. They are the Laughter Professionals. In laughter yoga we combine laughter exercises & deep breathing with childlike playfulness & movement to connect, unwind, and let go. No sense of humor, flexibility, or yoga mat required! Laughter Yoga is perhaps the only exercise routine that helps to ease physical, mental & emotional stress all at the same time. Scientific studies show that Laughter yoga strengthens the immune system and infection-fighting antibodies, alleviates pain, relieves tension, lowers blood pressure, controls blood sugar, and keeps the heart healthy. In this challenging time, they are attempting to cultivate human connection via laughter. They would love to spread the word to encourage people to participate in doing something that not only feels good but is good for them. Laughing Lovebugs offer virtual laughter yoga sessions for individuals, groups, couples, corporations, children, schools, mental health organizations, treatment centers, senior centers, hospitals and more. An open mind & heart is all you need to bring...you don't need to be in a good mood to receive the health benefits of laughter yoga...So come do something great for your mind, body, and soul and experience the gift of laughter. In this episode, we explore: laughter yoga benefits of laughter yoga 3ds – depth, duration, durability greeting laughter exercise not needing a reason to laugh and loads more. Mentioned in this episode Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy - Mo Gawdat The Five Love Languages: How to Express Heartfelt Commitment to Your Mate - Gary Chapman You can connect with Lauren and Alik, aka that Laughing Lovebugs via Instagram, Facebook or via their website Follow our host Hannah @hannah.stainer on Instagram or on twitter. Follow our podcast @psykhecoaching on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or connect with us via our website where you can download your gratitude journal by signing up to our mailing list. Support the podcast by sending us a coffee via Ko-Fi We're now on Clubhouse, connect with Hannah @hstainer and join us to chat about mental health and wellbeing. If you've loved this episode as much as we have please do share it on social media and tag us in your post. And we always love to hear what you think so please rate and review on itunes or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Thanks for listening! Hannah & the Psykhe Podcast team x --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/psykhe/message

Finish out 2020 with a look back on our favorite recommendations for happiness resources, life hacks and television binge opportunities from this year’s episodes. Join the Reco Squad. Email me at michelle@recopod.com. Recos & Related Episodes Happiness resources (2:12) The Happiness Lab 2:41 46: Get Out of Your Own Way Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat (7:32) 53: Let’s Talk About Racism   Life hacks (9:43) Project 333: The Minimalist Fashion Challenge That Proves Less Is So Much More by Courtney Carver (10:24) 49: Care Package Rotating meal schedules (18:11) 52: State of the Union Velour jumpsuit movement (29:07) 57: Welcome to the Anxiety Club TV binge opportunities (36:46) McMillions (38:23) 48: A Bevy of Binge Options Never Have I Ever (41:58) Ted Lasso (47:55)

Malavika Praseed invites guests to talk about their favorite books on to her podcast, “Your Favorite Book.” Sound familiar? She’s my Podcast Twin, and I’m delighted we found each other. I’m a big fan of her work, and I invited her to talk about her favorite book, “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter” by Carson McCullers. But our conversation bounced all over the place, from her fascination with old Southern culture to weird literary crushes to how we deal with casual racism in old books. She’s whip smart and so funny. If you haven’t heard of her before, I know you’re going to adore her after hearing this episode. The Best Book Ever podcast is going on a holiday break, so make sure you are subscribed so you don't miss our return on January 4th. Until then, we wish you happy and peaceful holidays! We hope you get lots of reading time!   Support the Best Book Ever Podcast on Patreon   Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website   Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram/Facebook   Guest: Malavika Praseed Linktree to all of her socials and the Chicago Review of Books Your Favorite Book Podcast   Discussed in this episode: The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers Herzog by Saul Bellow Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Amy Teegan on the Best Book Ever Podcast Small Days and Nights: A Novel by Tishani Doshi The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee My Autobiography of Carson McCullers by Jenn Shapland The Ballad of the Sad Café: And Other Stories by Carson McCullers The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers Beach Read by Emily Henry Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Clune Jeff Adams on the Best Book Ever Podcast The Great British Bake Off The Stacks Podcast Novel Pairings Podcast The Fuckbois of Lit Podcast (Note: If you shop using my affiliate links, a portion of your purchase will go to me, at no extra expense to you. Thank you for supporting indie bookstores and for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)

Malavika Praseed invites guests to talk about their favorite books on to her podcast, “Your Favorite Book.” Sound familiar? She's my Podcast Twin, and I'm delighted we found each other. I'm a big fan of her work, and I invited her to talk about her favorite book, “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter” by Carson McCullers. But our conversation bounced all over the place, from her fascination with old Southern culture to weird literary crushes to how we deal with casual racism in old books. She's whip smart and so funny. If you haven't heard of her before, I know you're going to adore her after hearing this episode. The Best Book Ever podcast is going on a holiday break, so make sure you are subscribed so you don't miss our return on January 4th. Until then, we wish you happy and peaceful holidays! We hope you get lots of reading time!   Support the Best Book Ever Podcast on Patreon   Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website   Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram/Facebook   Guest: Malavika Praseed Linktree to all of her socials and the Chicago Review of Books Your Favorite Book Podcast   Discussed in this episode: The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers Herzog by Saul Bellow Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Amy Teegan on the Best Book Ever Podcast Small Days and Nights: A Novel by Tishani Doshi The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee My Autobiography of Carson McCullers by Jenn Shapland The Ballad of the Sad Café: And Other Stories by Carson McCullers The Member of the Wedding by Carson McCullers Beach Read by Emily Henry Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Clune Jeff Adams on the Best Book Ever Podcast The Great British Bake Off The Stacks Podcast Novel Pairings Podcast The Fuckbois of Lit Podcast (Note: If you shop using my affiliate links, a portion of your purchase will go to me, at no extra expense to you. Thank you for supporting indie bookstores and for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)

Our three panelists in this episode of Scaling Up Insights are Lisa Ridley, Cheryl Biron, Kristin McLane. Lisa is a Scaling Up Coach and focuses on facilitating positive change with her entrepreneurial clients. Cheryl started her career in corporate before having an ‘entrepreneurial fit’ and starting her own business. Kristin has been an entrepreneur for the last 24 years in the software industry. Let’s talk about stress management! Lisa believes a lot of it comes down to mindset and how we approach upcoming problems. Cheryl believes it’s important to ask, ‘What’s the worst that can happen?’ Get it all out there and then reframe/reason with yourself on different ways to solve the problem. When Bill was faced with possible bankruptcy, his financial advisor told him that there is no such thing as debtor’s prison, it helped him relax and see the bigger picture. Kristin noticed that athletes use stress to help them get better at what they do. Stress isn’t seen as a negative thing, but a positive. It’s almost like you have to use stress to get to the next level. The truth is, how do you see stress? In a study of 30,000 people on stress management, if you think stress is a bad thing, then you are 43% more likely to die. If you see stress as something that is not harmful to you, your chances are drastically lowered. That’s how powerful our mindset is in deciding whether something is good for us or not. Stress can be used as a useful tool and is an important part of how we navigate conflict. Lisa shares an example. A large number of the population is afraid of public speaking. Before you go on stage to speak, you can tell yourself two things. That you hate this and that you’re nervous/scared of doing this or you can say that these emotions you’re feeling right now are your body’s way of energizing you. You can redirect this nervous energy into focus. There was a study that used these two different public speaking groups, one that was scared and the other that was energized, the audience believed the ones who used this fear in a positive way performed better, despite being just as scared.   Interview Links: Compassgroupltd.com Lisa on LinkedIn Lexagen.net Cheryl on LinkedIn CIMx.com Kristin on LinkedIn   The Upside of Stress: Why Stress Is Good for You, and How to Get Good at It, by Kelly McGonigal Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy, by Mo Gawdat Man’s Search for Meaning, by Viktor E. Frankl   Resources: Scaling Up Workshop: Interested in attending one of our workshops? We have a few $100 discounts for our loyal podcast listeners!Scaling Up for Business Growth Workshop: Take the first step to mastering the Rockefeller Habits by attending one of our workshops. Scaling Up Summits (Select Bill Gallagher as your coach during registration for a discount.) Bill on YouTube  

Mark Wilson and Michelle Rubin have an honest discussion about racism, including Mark’s experience as the only Black student in their predominantly white high school, an open letter he wrote to former classmates and more. Intro White Fragility by Robin Diangelo Conversation Why Mark decided to write an open letter to his “Iowa brothers and sisters” (10:35) Being the only Black student in an all-white school (16:20) The open letter Mark posted on Facebook (21:10) How often Mark gets pulled over by the police (38:48) Part 2 of the letter (and Mark’s first day at an all-white junior high) (48:12) The first time Mark heard someone use the word “racist” (1:00:10) Reactions to Mark’s Facebook post (1:15:45) Continue the conversation Email michelle@recopod.com Post a comment Engage on social media Instagram Facebook Twitter Mark’s upcoming podcast, “The Unheard American Voices” (1:38:05) Recos Boldly (1:41:15) Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat (1:43:20) #sunshinesongs (1:45:25) Featured Episodes 43: Tales From a Mixed-Orientation Marriage 39: Like a Boss 29: The Redhead Unicorn Connect with Mark Email: mfwbaritone@yahoo.com

Mo Gawdat is the Chief Business Officer for Google [X], a serial entrepreneur and author of “Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy” Mo has an impressive combined career of 27 years, starting at IBM Egypt as a Systems Engineer before moving to a sales role in the government sector. Venturing into the UAE, Mo joined NCR Abu Dhabi to cover the non-finance sector. He then became acquainted with the consumer goods industry as Regional Manager of BAT. At Microsoft, he assumed various roles over a span of seven and a half years, in his last role at Microsoft he headed the Communications Sector across Emerging Markets worldwide. Favorite Success Quote “The gravity of the battle means nothing to those at peace” Key Points 1. The Equation for Happiness is Simple  Happiness is not complicated. While you might not come to this conclusion by scrolling through your social media feed, watching the latest advertisements, or even reading some of the more popular personal growth and self-help books, when you truly sit down and think objectively, you will realize that happiness is simple. Despite marketer’s best attempts to prove otherwise, happiness isn’t contingent upon some wild, complex, equation. In fact, the equation for happiness is almost too simple. Happiness is equal to or greater than the events of your life minus the expectations you have for those events. That’s it. The equation isn’t “Happiness = Fancy Clothes + A 6-Figure Salary + An Italian Sports Car and a French Bikini Model” It’s simply events – expectations.  But what does this really mean? At the most basic level, it means that your happiness in any given situation, and thus your happiness in life, is entirely dependent on the difference between what you expect from a situation and how that situation actually turns out. So, for example, let’s say that the event in question is coming home to your wife after a long day of work. Let’s look at how your expectations of the event will determine your happiness. On one hand, your expectation might be that when you come home after a long day of work, your wife should be preparing dinner, opening you a cold beer, and wearing a sexy outfit that tells you she’s “in the mood”. On the other, your expectation might simply be that your wife should be relaxing and unwinding after her long day of work and that the two of you should prepare dinner and unwind together. While neither of these expectations are right or wrong, they can have a tremendous effect on your happiness and well being. If you come home with the first set of expectations and your wife has already prepared dinner but left it in the oven and is now relaxing on the couch… You are going to be unhappy and angry because your expectations were not met. However, if you come home to the exact same situation with the second set of expectations, you will not only be happy, but you will feel an abundance of love for your wife because she went above and beyond and exceeded your expectations. So now, you might be wondering, “If the secret to happiness is to have lower expectations, shouldn’t I just stop expecting anything so that I will never be disappointed?” Well, yes and no. While eliminating your expectations would certainly make you happier in the short run, it proves detrimental to your well being and success in the long term. If you have no expectations of yourself or others, then you will mistreat yourself and allow other people to walk all over you. Therefore, the key to happiness is to first become conscious of your expectations and then consciously and intentionally craft a new set of expectations that serve you and your purpose in life. 2. We Are All Born Happy  An often forgotten truth of life is that we were all born happy. All of us. We are born carefree and loving, without any hate, anger, or animosity in our hearts. It is our society that teaches us to be unhappy, to compare ourselves to others, to hate our fellow man, and to be unfulfilled. And once you become aware of this reality, it is your job to undo the programming that society has instilled into your brain. Luckily, the process for “deprogramming” all of the crap in your brain is simple, however, this doesn’t mean it’s easy. The best way to start is to pick up some sort of daily mindfulness practice whether it’s meditation, prayer, long walks in nature, or even just some sort of conscious movements like yoga or Tai Chi. These practices allow you to detach yourself from the human experience and the brain’s programming and become more aware of how you or your “superconscious” are meant to function. Let’s use the analogy of a new computer so that you can understand what I mean. Whenever you get a new computer, everything runs smoothly. It functions exactly as it was designed, quickly opening applications, seamlessly running commands, and doing its job without a problem. But over time, things start to slow down and problems start to arise. You begin downloading new programs and applications, visiting questionable websites, and demanding more of your computer than the software and hardware were designed to handle. And as you execute increasingly demanding operations, your computer starts to slow and malfunction and what once took 2 seconds now takes 2 minutes. When this happens (and it almost always happen) the only way to restore its original performance is to return it to default settings and execute a complete factory reset. In much the same way as a computer’s default setting is speed and efficiency, our brain’s default setting is happiness and contentment. But when we start installing (willingly or unwillingly) societal, religious, and familial expectations into our “operating system”, we start to get bogged down, and experience unhappiness. And when this happens, the only way to return to our original state is a “Factory reset” which typically takes the form of meditation, affirmations, journaling, and other consciousness practices. These practices are kind of like our brain’s “CTRL + ALT + DELETE” function and the more you can integrate them into your daily life, the smoother and faster you you will operate. 3. Your Emotional State is Determined by Your Thoughts, Not Events One of the simplest, but most impactful, formulas that you can understand to achieve a happy life is this: E + R = O Or Event + Response = Outcome In other words, your emotional outcome (happy, sad, angry, loving) is not determined by the events in your life, but rather by your response to the events in your life. For example, let’s say that you are going out to meet up with a friend. You agreed to meet at the local coffee shop around 8 a.m., but when you show up he is nowhere to be found. You order your drink, a few minutes go by, and your friend is still absent. At this point, you can respond in one of two ways. First, you can assume that your friend does not respect you, get angry, and allow his tardiness to dampen your mood. Or, you can simply assume that your friend had some sort of extenuating circumstance that stopped him from showing up on time and reframe his lateness by saying, “Great! This gives me a few minutes to read that new book I bought“, resulting in a happier and more fulfilling morning. In these two examples, the event was exactly the same, but by changing the response to the event, you achieved two wildly different outcomes. When you understand the far reaching applications of this formula, your life will begin to change in ways that you could never expect. Mastering your emotional response to any circumstance gives you power over the events in your life instead of allowing those events to have power over you. And when your internal world remains unaffected by the chaos of the outside world, you will have true power in your life, business, and relationships. 4. Learn to Differentiate Between Incessant and Effective Thoughts As it pertains to our happiness, there are only two kinds of thoughts. Effective thoughts and incessant thoughts. Effective thoughts are the thoughts that move the needle forward in your life, thoughts that solve problems, achieve goals, and give you a deeper understanding of your place in the cosmos. Incessant thoughts are the negative thoughts that do nothing to improve the quality of your life or happiness even when they are true. In the interview, Mo shared a powerful example detailing the difference between these two thoughts during a tragic situation. At the age of 21 years old, Mo’s son Ali died on the operating table during a routine surgery that should have been quick and simple. Shocked and in pain, Mo was overwhelmed with a wave of thoughts and feelings that can only be comprehended by people who have experienced a similar tragedy in his life. Over the coming weeks and months, Mo was faced with a single, pervasive and incessant thought, “I will never get to hug my son Ali again.” However, as he continued grieving for his son, he realized something. This thought would not bring Ali back, it would not change reality, and it would not benefit humanity. So he made a very conscious decision to change his thinking. Instead of thinking “I will never hug my son again”, he reframed the tragedy and said, “My son is dead, now it is my duty to remember his legacy by living my life as he would have wanted and impacting the world in honor of his memory.” And while this new thought didn’t take away the pain of losing his child, it allowed him to cope with the loss and make sense of the heart break. Each of us is faced with the same thoughts day in and day out. Even if we haven’t lost a loved one, we are all faced with our own “Incessant thought demons” that seek to cripple us and hold us back from living a happy life. Whether we are constantly thinking about a mistake that we regret, a relationship that we ruined, or an opportunity that we lost, we all have incessant loops of unhelpful thoughts playing in the back of our mind. And the biggest problem with these thoughts is that 99% of the time… They are true! But just because something is true, does not mean that it is advantageous. For example, if you lost the woman of your dreams because you were too focused on your work and not focused on the relationship, you might be faced with the incessant thought “I will never have her in my life again”. Chances are, this thought is true. But does it serve you in any way!? No! Instead, you can choose to reframe this thought by saying “I will never have this woman in my life again, so now it is my duty to learn from my mistakes and move forward so that I can find love once more… Only this time, I will make it work.” The moment that you can learn to eradicate incessant thoughts and replace them with intentional and effective thoughts is the moment that your life will be irrevocably changed for the better. 5. Money Doesn’t Make You Happier… Unless Countless studies have been conducted on the correlation between money and happiness, and what they found was rather interesting. Money only affects your happiness up to a certain point. If you are living below the poverty line, increasing your income to a stable and livable level will drastically improve your happiness. However, going from $100,000 a year to $100,000 a month will only have a marginal impact on your happiness and mental well being. However, once you have passed roughly $7,000 a month, increasing your income will only result in a nominal increase in your happiness. So, for example, if you go from $100,000 a year to $250,000 a year, your happiness will not increase by any appreciable amount. If this is true, then why is it that so many rich people seem to live better and happier lives? Because they give so much of their money away! Studies have found that one of the only ways money can make you happier after you have passed the $70,000/year threshold is if you are giving more of your money to charitable causes, family, friends, and organizations that you support. For example, if you earn an extra $20,000 bonus this year and then use it to put a down payment on a new sports car, your happiness will only increase marginally and temporarily. However, if you took that same $20,000 and paid for a vacation with some of your closest friends, your happiness would increase dramatically and the effects would last much longer. So yes, money is important for your happiness. If you cannot afford to put food on the table, increasing your income is one of the quickest ways to increase your happiness. But after your basic living expenses are covered, giving your wealth away and spending it on the people you care about is the only way to leverage your money to increase your happiness. 6. Life is a Video Game and Challenges Make the Game Fun  Life is not fair, it is not perfect, and it is not easy. But I’ll let you in on a little secret… That’s what makes life fun! I want you to imagine that the new Call of Duty just came out, and after months of anxiously anticipating the game’s release, you take it home and start playing. You go through the tutorial, launch the first level, and then get ready to kill some virtual bad guys. But there’s a problem… There are no bad guys to kill and no challenges to overcome. Every level is simply a linear progression where you run from the beginning to the end as quickly as you can, avoiding all signs of danger or adversity. Does that sound like a fun game? Probably not. And guess what? Life is nothing more than a very intense and large scale video game. So why in the world would you want it to be easy? Why would you want a challenge and problem free life? Just think about it for a moment. Imagine that I came to your house tomorrow and gave you an Olympic Gold Medal. How would you feel? If you are anything like me, you would probably think that the medal was pretty cool, but after a few minutes of looking at it, you would quickly feel disenchanted and bored because you did nothing to earn the medal. You’d probably sell it or leave it in your sock drawer because it has no significance in your life. But imagine that you have been training for the Olympics since you were 12 years old. You worked every single day for the past ten years of your life, and when you finally had the opportunity, you competed and won. How would that medal make you feel? I would chance a guess that the medal would have more meaning and significance to you than darn near anything else that you owned. Why? Because you worked for it, you suffered for it, and you endured more pain than most people are willing to endure in order to call that medal your own. In much the same way, we gain meaning in our lives by overcoming challenges, by enduring pain, and by beating adversity. Life isn’t meant to be easy. It’s meant to be a challenge. A challenge that you enjoy and have fun with, yes. But a challenge nonetheless. 7. You Don’t Find Your Purpose… It Finds You So many people in the modern world are concerned with finding their purpose. But they fail to realize that you don’t find your purpose, your purpose finds you. People don’t just wake up one day and say “Hmm, I know exactly what I am meant to do and how I am going to do it”. Instead, they find the intersection of their passions and talents and they work for years honing their skills, setting and conquering goals, and becoming better and better. Then, when they have mastered their craft, an opportunity presents itself, often in the most unlikely manner, and all of the hard work they put in begins to make sense. If you want to live a life of purpose, then you must first start by building your skills and growing yourself until you are ready to handle your purpose. Typically, this means working on rather mundane skills and projects so that you can grow your capacity as a human being. Think about the classic Karate kid movie where Mr. Miyagi had his student wax the car and paint the fence. These tasks seemed dull, monotonous, and frustrating. But, when the time came, and the first punch was thrown, these dull tasks that the Karate Kid had practiced suddenly made sense and he realized that he had been practicing for the purpose of learning a new skill. Steve Jobs summarized this truth when he said You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.

Heutiger Gast ist Miriam Höller. Miriam ist Stunt-Frau, sie war bei Germanys Next Topmodel, ist Moderatorin, Speakerin und schreibt gerade ihr erstes Buch. 2016 hat sich Miriam bei einem Stunt beide Füße so schlimm gebrochen, dass sie noch heute mit den Folgen zu kämpfen hat. Ihren Beruf als Stuntfrau wird sie nie wieder so ausüben können wir früher. Damals hat Miriam dann einen neuen Lebensplan entwickelt und sie hat zusammen mit ihrem damaligen Freund Hannes beschlossen, dass Sie nun dran "arbeiten" werden, ein Baby zu bekommen. Die beiden waren seit sechs Jahren ein Paar und alles sprach dafür. Eine paar Woche nach dem Unfall erhielt Miriam einen Anruf bei dem man ihr mitteilte: „Hannes ist Tod!“ Ich spreche mit Miriam über das Mut. Darüber, wie und warum sie mit diesem Thema in die Sichtbarkeit gegangen ist. Wir sprechen über Miriams Zukunftspläne, darüber warum sie jeden Tag „JA“ zum Leben sagt und vieles mehr. Miriams Buchtipp ist: „Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy“ von Mo Gawdat und dies ist Miriams Instagram-Seite: https://www.instagram.com/miriamhoeller/ Solltest du Interesse an einem Coaching im Bereich Personal Branding und /oder PR haben, dann meld dich gerne via Social Media oder per Mail bei mir. Infos zu meinen Coachings findest du hier: https://prleben.de/coachings/

Mo Gawdat is the Chief Business Officer for Google [X], a serial entrepreneur and author of “Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy” Mo has an impressive combined career of 27 years, starting at IBM Egypt as a Systems Engineer before moving to a sales role in the government sector. Venturing into the UAE, Mo joined NCR Abu Dhabi to cover the non-finance sector. He then became acquainted with the consumer goods industry as Regional Manager of BAT. At Microsoft, he assumed various roles over a span of seven and a half years, in his last role at Microsoft he headed the Communications Sector across Emerging Markets worldwide. Favorite Success Quote “The gravity of the battle means nothing to those at peace” Key Points 1. The Equation for Happiness is Simple  Happiness is not complicated. While you might not come to this conclusion by scrolling through your social media feed, watching the latest advertisements, or even reading some of the more popular personal growth and self-help books, when you truly sit down and think objectively, you will realize that happiness is simple. Despite marketer’s best attempts to prove otherwise, happiness isn’t contingent upon some wild, complex, equation. In fact, the equation for happiness is almost too simple. Happiness is equal to or greater than the events of your life minus the expectations you have for those events. That’s it. The equation isn’t “Happiness = Fancy Clothes + A 6-Figure Salary + An Italian Sports Car and a French Bikini Model” It’s simply events – expectations.  But what does this really mean? At the most basic level, it means that your happiness in any given situation, and thus your happiness in life, is entirely dependent on the difference between what you expect from a situation and how that situation actually turns out. So, for example, let’s say that the event in question is coming home to your wife after a long day of work. Let’s look at how your expectations of the event will determine your happiness. On one hand, your expectation might be that when you come home after a long day of work, your wife should be preparing dinner, opening you a cold beer, and wearing a sexy outfit that tells you she’s “in the mood”. On the other, your expectation might simply be that your wife should be relaxing and unwinding after her long day of work and that the two of you should prepare dinner and unwind together. While neither of these expectations are right or wrong, they can have a tremendous effect on your happiness and well being. If you come home with the first set of expectations and your wife has already prepared dinner but left it in the oven and is now relaxing on the couch… You are going to be unhappy and angry because your expectations were not met. However, if you come home to the exact same situation with the second set of expectations, you will not only be happy, but you will feel an abundance of love for your wife because she went above and beyond and exceeded your expectations. So now, you might be wondering, “If the secret to happiness is to have lower expectations, shouldn’t I just stop expecting anything so that I will never be disappointed?” Well, yes and no. While eliminating your expectations would certainly make you happier in the short run, it proves detrimental to your well being and success in the long term. If you have no expectations of yourself or others, then you will mistreat yourself and allow other people to walk all over you. Therefore, the key to happiness is to first become conscious of your expectations and then consciously and intentionally craft a new set of expectations that serve you and your purpose in life. 2. We Are All Born Happy  An often forgotten truth of life is that we were all born happy. All of us. We are born carefree and loving, without any hate, anger, or animosity in our hearts. It is our society that teaches us to be unhappy, to compare ourselves to others, to hate our fellow man, and to be unfulfilled. And once you become aware of this reality, it is your job to undo the programming that society has instilled into your brain. Luckily, the process for “deprogramming” all of the crap in your brain is simple, however, this doesn’t mean it’s easy. The best way to start is to pick up some sort of daily mindfulness practice whether it’s meditation, prayer, long walks in nature, or even just some sort of conscious movements like yoga or Tai Chi. These practices allow you to detach yourself from the human experience and the brain’s programming and become more aware of how you or your “superconscious” are meant to function. Let’s use the analogy of a new computer so that you can understand what I mean. Whenever you get a new computer, everything runs smoothly. It functions exactly as it was designed, quickly opening applications, seamlessly running commands, and doing its job without a problem. But over time, things start to slow down and problems start to arise. You begin downloading new programs and applications, visiting questionable websites, and demanding more of your computer than the software and hardware were designed to handle. And as you execute increasingly demanding operations, your computer starts to slow and malfunction and what once took 2 seconds now takes 2 minutes. When this happens (and it almost always happen) the only way to restore its original performance is to return it to default settings and execute a complete factory reset. In much the same way as a computer’s default setting is speed and efficiency, our brain’s default setting is happiness and contentment. But when we start installing (willingly or unwillingly) societal, religious, and familial expectations into our “operating system”, we start to get bogged down, and experience unhappiness. And when this happens, the only way to return to our original state is a “Factory reset” which typically takes the form of meditation, affirmations, journaling, and other consciousness practices. These practices are kind of like our brain’s “CTRL + ALT + DELETE” function and the more you can integrate them into your daily life, the smoother and faster you you will operate. 3. Your Emotional State is Determined by Your Thoughts, Not Events One of the simplest, but most impactful, formulas that you can understand to achieve a happy life is this: E + R = O Or Event + Response = Outcome In other words, your emotional outcome (happy, sad, angry, loving) is not determined by the events in your life, but rather by your response to the events in your life. For example, let’s say that you are going out to meet up with a friend. You agreed to meet at the local coffee shop around 8 a.m., but when you show up he is nowhere to be found. You order your drink, a few minutes go by, and your friend is still absent. At this point, you can respond in one of two ways. First, you can assume that your friend does not respect you, get angry, and allow his tardiness to dampen your mood. Or, you can simply assume that your friend had some sort of extenuating circumstance that stopped him from showing up on time and reframe his lateness by saying, “Great! This gives me a few minutes to read that new book I bought“, resulting in a happier and more fulfilling morning. In these two examples, the event was exactly the same, but by changing the response to the event, you achieved two wildly different outcomes. When you understand the far reaching applications of this formula, your life will begin to change in ways that you could never expect. Mastering your emotional response to any circumstance gives you power over the events in your life instead of allowing those events to have power over you. And when your internal world remains unaffected by the chaos of the outside world, you will have true power in your life, business, and relationships. 4. Learn to Differentiate Between Incessant and Effective Thoughts As it pertains to our happiness, there are only two kinds of thoughts. Effective thoughts and incessant thoughts. Effective thoughts are the thoughts that move the needle forward in your life, thoughts that solve problems, achieve goals, and give you a deeper understanding of your place in the cosmos. Incessant thoughts are the negative thoughts that do nothing to improve the quality of your life or happiness even when they are true. In the interview, Mo shared a powerful example detailing the difference between these two thoughts during a tragic situation. At the age of 21 years old, Mo’s son Ali died on the operating table during a routine surgery that should have been quick and simple. Shocked and in pain, Mo was overwhelmed with a wave of thoughts and feelings that can only be comprehended by people who have experienced a similar tragedy in his life. Over the coming weeks and months, Mo was faced with a single, pervasive and incessant thought, “I will never get to hug my son Ali again.” However, as he continued grieving for his son, he realized something. This thought would not bring Ali back, it would not change reality, and it would not benefit humanity. So he made a very conscious decision to change his thinking. Instead of thinking “I will never hug my son again”, he reframed the tragedy and said, “My son is dead, now it is my duty to remember his legacy by living my life as he would have wanted and impacting the world in honor of his memory.” And while this new thought didn’t take away the pain of losing his child, it allowed him to cope with the loss and make sense of the heart break. Each of us is faced with the same thoughts day in and day out. Even if we haven’t lost a loved one, we are all faced with our own “Incessant thought demons” that seek to cripple us and hold us back from living a happy life. Whether we are constantly thinking about a mistake that we regret, a relationship that we ruined, or an opportunity that we lost, we all have incessant loops of unhelpful thoughts playing in the back of our mind. And the biggest problem with these thoughts is that 99% of the time… They are true! But just because something is true, does not mean that it is advantageous. For example, if you lost the woman of your dreams because you were too focused on your work and not focused on the relationship, you might be faced with the incessant thought “I will never have her in my life again”. Chances are, this thought is true. But does it serve you in any way!? No! Instead, you can choose to reframe this thought by saying “I will never have this woman in my life again, so now it is my duty to learn from my mistakes and move forward so that I can find love once more… Only this time, I will make it work.” The moment that you can learn to eradicate incessant thoughts and replace them with intentional and effective thoughts is the moment that your life will be irrevocably changed for the better. 5. Money Doesn’t Make You Happier… Unless Countless studies have been conducted on the correlation between money and happiness, and what they found was rather interesting. Money only affects your happiness up to a certain point. If you are living below the poverty line, increasing your income to a stable and livable level will drastically improve your happiness. However, going from $100,000 a year to $100,000 a month will only have a marginal impact on your happiness and mental well being. However, once you have passed roughly $7,000 a month, increasing your income will only result in a nominal increase in your happiness. So, for example, if you go from $100,000 a year to $250,000 a year, your happiness will not increase by any appreciable amount. If this is true, then why is it that so many rich people seem to live better and happier lives? Because they give so much of their money away! Studies have found that one of the only ways money can make you happier after you have passed the $70,000/year threshold is if you are giving more of your money to charitable causes, family, friends, and organizations that you support. For example, if you earn an extra $20,000 bonus this year and then use it to put a down payment on a new sports car, your happiness will only increase marginally and temporarily. However, if you took that same $20,000 and paid for a vacation with some of your closest friends, your happiness would increase dramatically and the effects would last much longer. So yes, money is important for your happiness. If you cannot afford to put food on the table, increasing your income is one of the quickest ways to increase your happiness. But after your basic living expenses are covered, giving your wealth away and spending it on the people you care about is the only way to leverage your money to increase your happiness. 6. Life is a Video Game and Challenges Make the Game Fun  Life is not fair, it is not perfect, and it is not easy. But I’ll let you in on a little secret… That’s what makes life fun! I want you to imagine that the new Call of Duty just came out, and after months of anxiously anticipating the game’s release, you take it home and start playing. You go through the tutorial, launch the first level, and then get ready to kill some virtual bad guys. But there’s a problem… There are no bad guys to kill and no challenges to overcome. Every level is simply a linear progression where you run from the beginning to the end as quickly as you can, avoiding all signs of danger or adversity. Does that sound like a fun game? Probably not. And guess what? Life is nothing more than a very intense and large scale video game. So why in the world would you want it to be easy? Why would you want a challenge and problem free life? Just think about it for a moment. Imagine that I came to your house tomorrow and gave you an Olympic Gold Medal. How would you feel? If you are anything like me, you would probably think that the medal was pretty cool, but after a few minutes of looking at it, you would quickly feel disenchanted and bored because you did nothing to earn the medal. You’d probably sell it or leave it in your sock drawer because it has no significance in your life. But imagine that you have been training for the Olympics since you were 12 years old. You worked every single day for the past ten years of your life, and when you finally had the opportunity, you competed and won. How would that medal make you feel? I would chance a guess that the medal would have more meaning and significance to you than darn near anything else that you owned. Why? Because you worked for it, you suffered for it, and you endured more pain than most people are willing to endure in order to call that medal your own. In much the same way, we gain meaning in our lives by overcoming challenges, by enduring pain, and by beating adversity. Life isn’t meant to be easy. It’s meant to be a challenge. A challenge that you enjoy and have fun with, yes. But a challenge nonetheless. 7. You Don’t Find Your Purpose… It Finds You So many people in the modern world are concerned with finding their purpose. But they fail to realize that you don’t find your purpose, your purpose finds you. People don’t just wake up one day and say “Hmm, I know exactly what I am meant to do and how I am going to do it”. Instead, they find the intersection of their passions and talents and they work for years honing their skills, setting and conquering goals, and becoming better and better. Then, when they have mastered their craft, an opportunity presents itself, often in the most unlikely manner, and all of the hard work they put in begins to make sense. If you want to live a life of purpose, then you must first start by building your skills and growing yourself until you are ready to handle your purpose. Typically, this means working on rather mundane skills and projects so that you can grow your capacity as a human being. Think about the classic Karate kid movie where Mr. Miyagi had his student wax the car and paint the fence. These tasks seemed dull, monotonous, and frustrating. But, when the time came, and the first punch was thrown, these dull tasks that the Karate Kid had practiced suddenly made sense and he realized that he had been practicing for the purpose of learning a new skill. Steve Jobs summarized this truth when he said "You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future."

Mo Gawdat is the author of Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy in which he applied logic and problem-solving to the issue of happiness to create an algorithm to reach a state of uninterrupted happiness regardless of the circumstances of life. In 2014, Mo’s equation for happiness was put to the ultimate test when he lost his son Ali to preventable medical error during a simple surgical procedure. That led Mo to dedicate his life to share his happiness message with one billion people around the world. Solve For Happy is the pillar for this mission, #OneBillionHappy, Mo has committed to as his personal moonshot. In this conversation we talk about: - Mo’s formula for happiness - Why happy emotions are anchored in the present - How to prime the brain for happiness. - Spiritualities role in happiness - Practices to cultivate contentment

Mo Gawdat is the Chief Business Officer for Google [X], a serial entrepreneur and author of “Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy” Mo has an impressive combined career of 27 years, starting at IBM Egypt as a Systems Engineer before moving to a sales role in the government sector. Venturing into the UAE, Mo joined NCR Abu Dhabi to cover the non-finance sector. He then became acquainted with the consumer goods industry as Regional Manager of BAT. At Microsoft, he assumed various roles over a span of seven and a half years, in his last role at Microsoft he headed the Communications Sector across Emerging Markets worldwide. Favorite Success Quote “The gravity of the battle means nothing to those at peace” Key Points 1. The Equation for Happiness is Simple  Happiness is not complicated. While you might not come to this conclusion by scrolling through your social media feed, watching the latest advertisements, or even reading some of the more popular personal growth and self-help books, when you truly sit down and think objectively, you will realize that happiness is simple. Despite marketer’s best attempts to prove otherwise, happiness isn’t contingent upon some wild, complex, equation. In fact, the equation for happiness is almost too simple. Happiness is equal to or greater than the events of your life minus the expectations you have for those events. That’s it. The equation isn’t “Happiness = Fancy Clothes + A 6-Figure Salary + An Italian Sports Car and a French Bikini Model” It’s simply events – expectations.  But what does this really mean? At the most basic level, it means that your happiness in any given situation, and thus your happiness in life, is entirely dependent on the difference between what you expect from a situation and how that situation actually turns out. So, for example, let’s say that the event in question is coming home to your wife after a long day of work. Let’s look at how your expectations of the event will determine your happiness. On one hand, your expectation might be that when you come home after a long day of work, your wife should be preparing dinner, opening you a cold beer, and wearing a sexy outfit that tells you she’s “in the mood”. On the other, your expectation might simply be that your wife should be relaxing and unwinding after her long day of work and that the two of you should prepare dinner and unwind together. While neither of these expectations are right or wrong, they can have a tremendous effect on your happiness and well being. If you come home with the first set of expectations and your wife has already prepared dinner but left it in the oven and is now relaxing on the couch… You are going to be unhappy and angry because your expectations were not met. However, if you come home to the exact same situation with the second set of expectations, you will not only be happy, but you will feel an abundance of love for your wife because she went above and beyond and exceeded your expectations. So now, you might be wondering, “If the secret to happiness is to have lower expectations, shouldn’t I just stop expecting anything so that I will never be disappointed?” Well, yes and no. While eliminating your expectations would certainly make you happier in the short run, it proves detrimental to your well being and success in the long term. If you have no expectations of yourself or others, then you will mistreat yourself and allow other people to walk all over you. Therefore, the key to happiness is to first become conscious of your expectations and then consciously and intentionally craft a new set of expectations that serve you and your purpose in life. 2. We Are All Born Happy  An often forgotten truth of life is that we were all born happy. All of us. We are born carefree and loving, without any hate, anger, or animosity in our hearts. It is our society that teaches us to be unhappy, to compare ourselves to others, to hate our fellow man, and to be unfulfilled. And once you become aware of this reality, it is your job to undo the programming that society has instilled into your brain. Luckily, the process for “deprogramming” all of the crap in your brain is simple, however, this doesn’t mean it’s easy. The best way to start is to pick up some sort of daily mindfulness practice whether it’s meditation, prayer, long walks in nature, or even just some sort of conscious movements like yoga or Tai Chi. These practices allow you to detach yourself from the human experience and the brain’s programming and become more aware of how you or your “superconscious” are meant to function. Let’s use the analogy of a new computer so that you can understand what I mean. Whenever you get a new computer, everything runs smoothly. It functions exactly as it was designed, quickly opening applications, seamlessly running commands, and doing its job without a problem. But over time, things start to slow down and problems start to arise. You begin downloading new programs and applications, visiting questionable websites, and demanding more of your computer than the software and hardware were designed to handle. And as you execute increasingly demanding operations, your computer starts to slow and malfunction and what once took 2 seconds now takes 2 minutes. When this happens (and it almost always happen) the only way to restore its original performance is to return it to default settings and execute a complete factory reset. In much the same way as a computer’s default setting is speed and efficiency, our brain’s default setting is happiness and contentment. But when we start installing (willingly or unwillingly) societal, religious, and familial expectations into our “operating system”, we start to get bogged down, and experience unhappiness. And when this happens, the only way to return to our original state is a “Factory reset” which typically takes the form of meditation, affirmations, journaling, and other consciousness practices. These practices are kind of like our brain’s “CTRL + ALT + DELETE” function and the more you can integrate them into your daily life, the smoother and faster you you will operate. 3. Your Emotional State is Determined by Your Thoughts, Not Events One of the simplest, but most impactful, formulas that you can understand to achieve a happy life is this: E + R = O Or Event + Response = Outcome In other words, your emotional outcome (happy, sad, angry, loving) is not determined by the events in your life, but rather by your response to the events in your life. For example, let’s say that you are going out to meet up with a friend. You agreed to meet at the local coffee shop around 8 a.m., but when you show up he is nowhere to be found. You order your drink, a few minutes go by, and your friend is still absent. At this point, you can respond in one of two ways. First, you can assume that your friend does not respect you, get angry, and allow his tardiness to dampen your mood. Or, you can simply assume that your friend had some sort of extenuating circumstance that stopped him from showing up on time and reframe his lateness by saying, “Great! This gives me a few minutes to read that new book I bought“, resulting in a happier and more fulfilling morning. In these two examples, the event was exactly the same, but by changing the response to the event, you achieved two wildly different outcomes. When you understand the far reaching applications of this formula, your life will begin to change in ways that you could never expect. Mastering your emotional response to any circumstance gives you power over the events in your life instead of allowing those events to have power over you. And when your internal world remains unaffected by the chaos of the outside world, you will have true power in your life, business, and relationships. 4. Learn to Differentiate Between Incessant and Effective Thoughts As it pertains to our happiness, there are only two kinds of thoughts. Effective thoughts and incessant thoughts. Effective thoughts are the thoughts that move the needle forward in your life, thoughts that solve problems, achieve goals, and give you a deeper understanding of your place in the cosmos. Incessant thoughts are the negative thoughts that do nothing to improve the quality of your life or happiness even when they are true. In the interview, Mo shared a powerful example detailing the difference between these two thoughts during a tragic situation. At the age of 21 years old, Mo’s son Ali died on the operating table during a routine surgery that should have been quick and simple. Shocked and in pain, Mo was overwhelmed with a wave of thoughts and feelings that can only be comprehended by people who have experienced a similar tragedy in his life. Over the coming weeks and months, Mo was faced with a single, pervasive and incessant thought, “I will never get to hug my son Ali again.” However, as he continued grieving for his son, he realized something. This thought would not bring Ali back, it would not change reality, and it would not benefit humanity. So he made a very conscious decision to change his thinking. Instead of thinking “I will never hug my son again”, he reframed the tragedy and said, “My son is dead, now it is my duty to remember his legacy by living my life as he would have wanted and impacting the world in honor of his memory.” And while this new thought didn’t take away the pain of losing his child, it allowed him to cope with the loss and make sense of the heart break. Each of us is faced with the same thoughts day in and day out. Even if we haven’t lost a loved one, we are all faced with our own “Incessant thought demons” that seek to cripple us and hold us back from living a happy life. Whether we are constantly thinking about a mistake that we regret, a relationship that we ruined, or an opportunity that we lost, we all have incessant loops of unhelpful thoughts playing in the back of our mind. And the biggest problem with these thoughts is that 99% of the time… They are true! But just because something is true, does not mean that it is advantageous. For example, if you lost the woman of your dreams because you were too focused on your work and not focused on the relationship, you might be faced with the incessant thought “I will never have her in my life again”. Chances are, this thought is true. But does it serve you in any way!? No! Instead, you can choose to reframe this thought by saying “I will never have this woman in my life again, so now it is my duty to learn from my mistakes and move forward so that I can find love once more… Only this time, I will make it work.” The moment that you can learn to eradicate incessant thoughts and replace them with intentional and effective thoughts is the moment that your life will be irrevocably changed for the better. 5. Money Doesn’t Make You Happier… Unless Countless studies have been conducted on the correlation between money and happiness, and what they found was rather interesting. Money only affects your happiness up to a certain point. If you are living below the poverty line, increasing your income to a stable and livable level will drastically improve your happiness. However, going from $100,000 a year to $100,000 a month will only have a marginal impact on your happiness and mental well being. However, once you have passed roughly $7,000 a month, increasing your income will only result in a nominal increase in your happiness. So, for example, if you go from $100,000 a year to $250,000 a year, your happiness will not increase by any appreciable amount. If this is true, then why is it that so many rich people seem to live better and happier lives? Because they give so much of their money away! Studies have found that one of the only ways money can make you happier after you have passed the $70,000/year threshold is if you are giving more of your money to charitable causes, family, friends, and organizations that you support. For example, if you earn an extra $20,000 bonus this year and then use it to put a down payment on a new sports car, your happiness will only increase marginally and temporarily. However, if you took that same $20,000 and paid for a vacation with some of your closest friends, your happiness would increase dramatically and the effects would last much longer. So yes, money is important for your happiness. If you cannot afford to put food on the table, increasing your income is one of the quickest ways to increase your happiness. But after your basic living expenses are covered, giving your wealth away and spending it on the people you care about is the only way to leverage your money to increase your happiness. 6. Life is a Video Game and Challenges Make the Game Fun  Life is not fair, it is not perfect, and it is not easy. But I’ll let you in on a little secret… That’s what makes life fun! I want you to imagine that the new Call of Duty just came out, and after months of anxiously anticipating the game’s release, you take it home and start playing. You go through the tutorial, launch the first level, and then get ready to kill some virtual bad guys. But there’s a problem… There are no bad guys to kill and no challenges to overcome. Every level is simply a linear progression where you run from the beginning to the end as quickly as you can, avoiding all signs of danger or adversity. Does that sound like a fun game? Probably not. And guess what? Life is nothing more than a very intense and large scale video game. So why in the world would you want it to be easy? Why would you want a challenge and problem free life? Just think about it for a moment. Imagine that I came to your house tomorrow and gave you an Olympic Gold Medal. How would you feel? If you are anything like me, you would probably think that the medal was pretty cool, but after a few minutes of looking at it, you would quickly feel disenchanted and bored because you did nothing to earn the medal. You’d probably sell it or leave it in your sock drawer because it has no significance in your life. But imagine that you have been training for the Olympics since you were 12 years old. You worked every single day for the past ten years of your life, and when you finally had the opportunity, you competed and won. How would that medal make you feel? I would chance a guess that the medal would have more meaning and significance to you than darn near anything else that you owned. Why? Because you worked for it, you suffered for it, and you endured more pain than most people are willing to endure in order to call that medal your own. In much the same way, we gain meaning in our lives by overcoming challenges, by enduring pain, and by beating adversity. Life isn’t meant to be easy. It’s meant to be a challenge. A challenge that you enjoy and have fun with, yes. But a challenge nonetheless. 7. You Don’t Find Your Purpose… It Finds You So many people in the modern world are concerned with finding their purpose. But they fail to realize that you don’t find your purpose, your purpose finds you. People don’t just wake up one day and say “Hmm, I know exactly what I am meant to do and how I am going to do it”. Instead, they find the intersection of their passions and talents and they work for years honing their skills, setting and conquering goals, and becoming better and better. Then, when they have mastered their craft, an opportunity presents itself, often in the most unlikely manner, and all of the hard work they put in begins to make sense. If you want to live a life of purpose, then you must first start by building your skills and growing yourself until you are ready to handle your purpose. Typically, this means working on rather mundane skills and projects so that you can grow your capacity as a human being. Think about the classic Karate kid movie where Mr. Miyagi had his student wax the car and paint the fence. These tasks seemed dull, monotonous, and frustrating. But, when the time came, and the first punch was thrown, these dull tasks that the Karate Kid had practiced suddenly made sense and he realized that he had been practicing for the purpose of learning a new skill. Steve Jobs summarized this truth when he said You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.

Today’s guest’s last bad day was July 11th, 2001, a day that changed his life in a significant way. Experiencing a harrowing cycling accident was the catalyst to the seminal shift that changed his perspective, mindset, and actions. Since then, he has been helping leaders make change stick at work and in their lives. In addition to executive coaching and speaking, he is the best-selling author of “Shift: Creating Better Tomorrows,” and the founder of a leadership academy that helps people become the wealthiest person they know, from the inside out. Please join me in welcoming Michael O’Brien.  Would you leave an honest rating and review on Apple Podcast? Or Stitcher? They are extremely helpful and I read each and every one of them. Thanks for the inspiration! In this episode we discuss: his thoughts on leadership: “Leadership is really about knowing your purpose, trying to paint a compelling vision of the future, connecting with others, and then making it about their success.” how baseball coaches shaped his views on leadership from a young age. how his cycling accident changed his life and the significant mindset shifts he went through to start living his life on purpose. the intention he puts into his leadership academy, and how he connects with each and every student. his experience with being a minority at a conference and how that led to him becoming President of a chapter of the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association. Links Michael O’Brien on LinkedIn and Twitter. www.michaelobrienshift.com The Pace Line Academy Books mentioned in this episode: “Croissants vs. Bagels: Strategic, Effective, and Inclusive Networking at Conferences” by Robbie Samuels “Shift: Creating Better Tomorrows: Winning at Work and in Life” by Michael O’Brien “Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy” by Mo Gawdat Other Resources: Learn more about Sliding Doors with Gwyneth Paltrow. Listen to my interview with Mo Gawdat. Learn more about The Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation. Learn more about Christopher Reeve. Learn more about Marie Forleo. Listen to my interview with Tammy Gooler Loeb. Learn more about Tammy’s Work From The Inside Out podcast. Learn more about the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association - NY Chapter. Learn more about Maya Angelou. Interested in booking Robbie to speak? Learn about his signature Art of the Schmooze session on strategic, effective and inclusive networking, and the other sessions he offers. Thinking of hosting a podcast? Writing a book? Want to launch an Amazon bestseller? Ready to make the most of your next conference experience? Robbie offers several free Masterclasses on these topics. Each one of these Masterclass replays is over an hour-long and contain valuable takeaways to help you grow your business or in your career. Find all the free Masterclasses at www.robbiesamuels.com/masterclass. Are you ready to create a Relationship-Based Business Plan that will help you achieve greater impact (and income)? The next cohort for The M.O.R.E. Program for Entrepreneurial Women begins in Spring 2019. You want to have a greater impact and increased income. The problem is that there are so many options for how to build your business that you can feel stuck, overwhelmed, and like you're running out of time. The reason options are overwhelming is that you're looking at them as a series of disconnected steps when -- to make the most of your time -- you need a strategy that connects only the most important and highest impact ones. Why? Because you know it's true that if you try to do everything, you will accomplish nothing. Which means, to achieve your goal, you have to invest in a strategy to put time on your side. How? This program will help you find the clarity to determine what is the right next step for your business. A book? A podcast? An online course? Masterminds? Speaking on bigger stages?

Mo Gawdat, founder of One Billion Happy and former Chief Business Officer at Google's X, spent years working in technological innovation. At Google's so-called "dream factory," he learned how to operationalize moonshot ventures aiming to solve some of the world's hardest problems. But then a personal tragedy — the loss of his son — set him on a new path. Gawdat launched a startup with the moonshot goal of helping one billion people find happiness. Gawdat is also the author of "Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy."

In the first segment, Raef and Reid discuss and try to come up with a definition of Motivation, Discipline and Habit. We also do a first book review, Solve for Happy:  Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat.  We get trapped in a temporal time loop of discussion and even discuss a dog's happiness.

This week on Voices of Value, Peter and Rik discuss work / life balance, the importance of making delibirate choices, and how building positive routines leads to positive outcomes. Episode Notes Web links TED Talks Blinkist Book Recommendations Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat Text Value Add Download key quotes and ideas from this episode Connect with us Facebook Our Website

#027 — Reframing the Unexpected as Opportunity with Logz.io VP of Sales Bridget Gleason  The one thing Bridget Gleason knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, was that she wanted to be a stay-at-home mom, providing her kids and her family with an incredible life. And then the universe handed her something completely different. When Bridget’s boys were one and three, her husband left—and she had no choice but to go back to work. So she interviewed for a sales position, negotiating a flexible part-time schedule in which she would be compensated based on performance rather than hours spent in the office. Motivated to spend as much time with her sons as possible, Bridget’s unanticipated status as a single mother afforded her a crash course in productivity, teaching her to prioritize the handful of to-dos that were most impactful. Going back to work also taught her to reframe the unexpected as a gift: She could have a rewarding career AND be a good mom. She didn’t have to choose one or the other. Today Bridget shares her resilience in the face of uncertainty, explaining how that process continues to this day. I ask her about the role emotions play in her work life and how she defies expectations to behave a certain way as VP of Sales. Listen in for Bridget’s advice around prioritizing self-care, ‘sharing the real’ when your kids are struggling, and reframing surprises as opportunities rather than obstacles. FULL SHOW NOTES: Get the complete show notes with episode quotes, photos, and time stamps at www.startuppregnant.com/027. EPISODE SPONSOR & SPECIAL OFFER:   Thank you to the sponsor of this episode: Taskerly! They’re a virtual assistant company that helps busy parents and entrepreneurs get more done at work by doing the things you can outsource of don’t have time for. Check them out at www.taskerly.co and mention the Startup Pregnant Podcast to get 10% off of your first three months working with them.  All of our sponsor offers are available on our website for you to grab the perks and discounts offered to podcast listeners: http://startuppregnant.com/sponsors.   LEARN MORE ABOUT BRIDGET GLEASON: Bridget Gleason is the Vice President of Sales at Logz.io, the world’s most popular open-source log analysis platform. Her strengths lie in accelerating sales for startups and early-stage SaaS and PaaS technology companies, delivering significant revenue increases, forecast predictability and customer retention. An industry thought-leader, Bridget is a sought-after presenter at sales, leadership and women’s conferences, and she is most recognized for her phenomenal success in building and leading high-velocity sales organizations. Logz.io Bridget on LinkedIn Bridget on Twitter  RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat THE STARTUP PREGNANT PODCAST & HOST: Startup Pregnant Startup Pregnant on Facebook Startup Pregnant on Twitter Sponsor the Podcast Sponsor the Podcast --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/startuppregnant/message

Reading for High Profit Margins Less Stress: Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything By Hermann Simon: http://amzn.to/2fz8K1t Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat: http://amzn.to/2uNTGPm   To increase profit margins – so that in many cases you can make more with even fewer sales, you need to know a few basics that most people think that they understand and know…but probably don’t. 1.    what do you sell? List all separate and bundled products/services 2.    What are the numbers sold and profit margins on each? 3.    What is the cost of acquiring each type of client/customer In a few minutes we’re going to give you a formula and show you some math that is amazing and might change your life.  But first, let’s break these three factors down a bit more. These are the five simple factors: 1.    Leads: The total number of people who have contacted or who have been contacted by the business--over the course of a year. 2.    Conversion rate: The percentage of people who actually make a purchase. For example, if 100 people come to your website )if you’re selling there) or your office or store in a week, and thirty (30) people buy something, then your business or store's conversion rate is 30 out of 100, or 30 percent, for that week. 3.    Average dollar sale: The average dollar amount per sale, estimated over the course of a year. The average can range from $5 or $10 (say, for a discount retailer) up to tens of thousands of dollars (for a business such as a car dealership or professional practice). 4.    Average number of transactions: The number of purchases the average customer will make over the course of a year. Again, it can be an estimate. This number will probably be larger in a retail setting than in companies that operate in a professional services industry. 5.    Profit margin: The profit percentage of each and every sale. Simply put, if a business sells something for $100, and profit was $25, the profit margin is 25 percent.  So how does this all relate to top-line revenue and bottom-line profit? Let's see. Your Company In your sample company, we use a very simple formula to multiply the factors we've just discussed. Remember, this formula multiplies factors instead of just adding them, so the cumulative impact is massive. The Profit Booster formula looks like this:
Leads x Conversion Rate = Customers
Customers x Avg. Value/Dollar Sale x Number of Transactions = Revenue
Revenue x Profit Margins = Profit In your company, let's say you have either estimated or fully determined the following numbers:
6,000 x 25% = 1500 Customers
1500 x $100 x 2 = $300,000 Revenue
$300,000 x 25% = $75,000 Profit What does all of this mean?
Simply put, you are running a business that converts one out of four prospects into paying customers. Those customers average two purchases at $100 per purchase each year and your company enjoys a 25 percent profit margin on revenues of $300,000. It also means your total profit for the year is $75,000. So what would happen if, over the course of the next year, you increased these results by just 10 percent in each of the five areas? Let's do it, and then let's take a look at what happens to your bottom line:
6,600 x 27.5% =  Customers
1210 x $110 x 2.2 = $292,820 Revenue
$292,820 x 27.5% = $80,525.50 Profit Examine the numbers closely and you'll see the 10 percent increase is incremental, which means you could easily nudge numbers up by that amount over a period of months--or even weeks. The bottom line is that the new bottom line looks very interesting, doesn't it? Even though we've increased each factor by just 10 percent (including top-line revenue), we were able to boost bottom-line profit by 61 percent--or a total of $30,525.50. What could you do with an extra $30,000 in your business this year? Think 10 percent is impressive? Do some math on your own and see what the numbers look like if you increase each factor by 30 percent, 50 percent or even 100 percent down the line. The key is that we are multiplying factors--not adding--which has a massive impact on profit. The "5 Ways" isn't a complicated numbers game. It's simply looking at your business in a different way and working with a set of numbers that exist in every company. While your competitors will be in an endless cycle, trying to increase top-line revenue and cutting expenses to generate more profit, you'll have at least five other factors with which to work. And there are literally hundreds of strategies you can use to boost those numbers immediately and over time. We'll look at some of those strategies in the future. For now, work with your numbers and brainstorm ways to increase leads, get more customers coming back, increase the amount they buy, and raise your profit margins--and you'll be miles ahead of the majority of owners successfully operating businesses today.Better yet, you'll be pleasantly surprised at how easy all of this is to do--and you'll be more than happy with your ultimate results. 4.    Here are 13 Ways to Increase Profit Margins 1.    Know Your Margins & Increase prices with the client and customer as the focus. You can selectively raise the price of your most popular items to most effectively add to your bottom line.  You don't have to increase prices across the board. And remember, no one knows the price you pay but you. The first step to optimizing your profit is understanding it. It is a good idea to look at your gross profit margin often and break it down by clients and products or services. You can use this simple equation: Gross Profit Margin = (Revenue – Cost of Goods Sold)/Revenue For example, if you bought a widget for $50 and sold it for $100, your gross profit margin is 50 percent. This can be a sticking point for small-business owners. If you have a service business, raising prices can feel personal and scary. But at the end of the day, pricing is one more piece of information about your business. Price is one way to convey the message that what your offerings are of higher quality or greater value than your competitors’. Raising prices may cause you to lose a few customers, but your profit margins grow even if your revenue stays flat – and that means more money in your pocket. 2.    Sell More at better margins – Marketing, Systems and Sales as Leverage 3.    Bundle and Add Margin Sell added value by bundling products and services. Best Buy's Geek Squad promises it can Fix any computer problem-anytime, anywhere. Of course it leaves off For a price. People don't want the hassle of figuring things out or screwing things up. Customers value their time and will pay for worthwhile services related to the products you carry. Selling added value is the way to a very profitable future. 4.    Be happy Yourself – Solve for Happy Mo Gawdat 5.    Better Communications Skills – The Coaching Habit 6.    Narrow your Marketing focus. You can't be all things to all people. It's the difference between a restaurant with a menu of 200 mediocre items and one with twelve items that are outstanding. Consider how much profit you are making on your slower-moving items. Could that shelf space be devoted to quicker-moving, more profitable items? Yes! Heed the 80-20 Rule This tidbit of economic wisdom that says 80 percent of your business income will come from 20 percent of your products or services. This is where keeping a close eye on your gross profit margin is essential. Calculate your gross profit margin on each individual product or service your company offers. It’s likely that some of them are dead weight and can be eliminated, while others pull more than their share of the weight. Streamline your offerings to include just the most profitable and you can use the energy that frees up to create something new and wonderful to wow your customers. The 80-20 rule, Part 2 The rule applies to customers as well: Twenty percent of your customers probably account for 80 percent of your business income. Calculate your gross profit margins by client or customer type. The Clients who require a dozen phone calls before they will commit to the project and another dozen before they pay a deposit are eating into your profit margin. Don’t be afraid to detach from unprofitable clients. Identifying your best clients or customers and working on attracting more just like them is one of the best ways to beef up your bottom line. 7.    Limit the discounting. Without a plan, you’ll do anything to get money in the bank. I know one toy store owner who, when she had to pay bills, turned to Twitter to tell her followers they'd get 30 percent off if they came in that day. She thought she was brilliant. What she didn’t realize was that she was robbing herself of profit to pay her bills. She was teaching customers to simply wait for the next tweet. She needed a quarterly promotions schedule, and so do you. Find new ways…we will buy you this.  Youll get this extra premium 8.    Cut Costs and waste. You want to get more done with who you have. Are there jobs you're hiring others to do that you could possibly complete with staff? Do you really need to pay a window washer, for example? Talk to your vendors about pricing and find out if they have any special offers. There may be better pricing available for those who simply inquire. Be the squeaky wheel. When you buy new equipment, look not only at the purchase price but at the operating costs for competing models.   9.    Award extra hours based on merit. Grant employee requests for more hours based only on their average sale or number of units sold per customer, not simply on their request or need. 10.    Personally hand out all paychecks. When you personally see how much each staff member takes home, it makes costs real for you. 11.    Cut vendors. When you buy more from fewer vendors, you'll often get a better deal on pricing, shipping, and dating. Ordering only a few items from a number of different vendors requires more bookkeeping and tracking, and you often pay top-dollar to try to meet each one's minimum orders. No one's items are that special. 12.    Combine your orders and JV with other dealers to get freight and larger order discounts. Just be sure to decide ahead of time which of you will do what, and pay before delivery to avoid problems. 13.    Fire unprofitable customers. Those who need a lot of hand-holding, always beat you up on price, or constantly call you with some problem take up a lot of time. If your company is large enough to evaluate this, ask your order desk or sales reps to provide their top 10 complainers and match them to the amount of profitable orders they generate. Even if they deliver large volume, if they don’t pass, tell them that while you appreciate their business, the costs to manage the account outweigh the profitability and you therefore must implement a price increase. Resources: Confessions of A Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything – Herman Simon Affiliate Link: http://amzn.to/2fz8K1t Getting Every Thing You Can From What You’ve Already Got – Jay Abraham Affiliate link: http://amzn.to/2uOh8Mx Solve For Happy – Mo Gawdat Affiliate link: http://amzn.to/2uNTGPm The Coaching Habit –Michael Bungay Stanier Affiliate link: http://amzn.to/2vtICJn

Discovering Inner Joy: Regardless of where we are in life, happiness is possible.  Whether we're struggling with negative thoughts, an unsatisfying job, or believing we're not enough, this episode is a powerful reminder that we're all worthy of self-love, joy, and an amazing life. Today is all about fighting our inner demons and discovering our purpose in the world. Together, we'll be doing some real soul searching to find out what's holding us back from the happiness we deserve. By the end of this podcast, we'll better understand how our brain, thoughts, and emotions all play a part in our wellness.  A Mission for Happiness Chief Business Officer for Google [X], serial entrepreneur and author of, Solve for Happy, Mo Gawdat had an amazing career during his late twenties. He was working as a Director for a major consumer goods company which gave him a terrific salary, amazing perks, and a career ladder to climb. However, despite how wonderful his life appeared on the outside, he wasn't truly happy on the inside. When his son, Ali, unexpectedly passed away, Mo began to see life in a different light. Keeping Ali's tattoo in mind, The Gravity of Battle Means Nothing to Those at Peace, he set out to discover the perfect equation for happiness. After 12 years of research, he is sharing his Happiness Model with the rest of the world. His personal moonshot mission is to honor his son's memory and continue his legacy by making 10 million more people happy. In this powerful episode, we will discover how to end self-sabotage by comparison, what pain and suffering can teach us, why our brain never tells us the truth and why death can be our best life coach. The Happiness Model Despite the global narrative, 'I'll be happy when I have _____,' money, relationships, and possessions cannot bring us true joy. So, Mo created his own narrative, 'I feel happy when I ____.' When he changed is focus from receiving possessions to valuing what he already had, he realized that people only seem to be happy when life is going their way. When there's so much narrative coming our way, it's hard to listen to the narrative inside of us. The harder we work to achieve happiness, the deeper the hole it creates in our soul. Happiness cannot come from outside of ourselves. It truly only comes from within. With Ali as his inspiration, Mo crafted The Happiness Model to help us uncover any assumptions and doubts we have about life so that we may discover our inner joy. The Happiness Model: The 6 Grand Illusions Thought Self Fear Entitlement Knowledge Time The 7 Blind Spots Filters Assumptions Predictions Memories Labels Emotions Exaggeration The 5 Ultimate Truths Now Change Love Death Design Ending Self-Sabotage by Comparison We're all born happy and free to become whomever we want to be. We start out strong like machines, but then we begin to break down when we engage more with life. Life's expectations lead us to believe that no matter how hard we try, we're never enough. We can end up subjecting ourselves to an inner, false dialogue that we'll only be happy if we have that job, relationship, or gadget. Happiness > to your perceptions of the events in your life (-) your expectations of how life should be. With phones at our fingertips, it's easy to get lost in all of the latest images, videos, and news about other people's lives. When we compare ourselves to other people, our brain interrupts those thoughts as threats to our ego. Eventually, we're not satisfied with our lives. Rather than being happy with what we have, we end up creating new expectations for the life we think we should be living. If we don't perceive ourselves as successful, then we only see our failures. Therefore, we're only happy when life is going our way. Listen To Episode 116 As Mo Uncovers: His life in Egypt and how going to a book fair in Cairo helped nourish his hunger for learning. Why he was so interested in quantum physics and relativity as a teenager. What sparked his interest to research happiness. The reason behind why neither a career nor material possessions can make us happy. How material possessions only created a gap in his soul and what he did to fix it. Why we're all born happy, but then expectations from other people cause us to be unhappy. His equation for happiness. Why we're like machines and we begin to breakdown when we engage more with life. How Mo realized that we're only really happy when life is going our way. Why the brain is wired  to use unhappiness as a survival mechanism. Events vs. Expectations - How the brain is wired to remember negative experiences for much longer than positive experiences. Why pain can sometimes be good for us. How we can train the mind to stop comparing ourselves to other people. The healing decisions he made after the death of his son, Ali. Why our brain is not the enemy because it can't see the truth when there are threats. The Happiness Model with the 6 Grand Illusions, 7 Blind Spots, and 5 Ultimate Truths. What mistake to avoid when you're following The Happiness Model. Why death is the best life coach we can have. The first step you can take in your life as soon as this episode ends. What wellness means to Mo. Top 3 Takeaways From The Show When we compare ourselves to other people, we end up self-sabotaging ourselves. As we scroll through our social media newsfeed, it's easy to get trapped by feelings of sadness, jealousy, and unfulfillment. When someone doesn't click "like," our brain is wired to see that as a threat to our ego. The truth is, there's no sense in comparing ourselves to others because someone will always be ahead of us. The mind has this incredible ability to make us suffer on demand with negative thinking. However, we have the power to stop it. As our brain presents us with negative thoughts, we can say 'No, brain. I'm not going to listen to your lies.' We may see the brain as the enemy because it doesn't tell us the truth, but that's because the brain hasn't been trained. That's where we can step in to train it. Rather than allowing our brain to view everything as a threat, we can teach it to focus on the blessings. When in self doubt, ask your brain if it's telling you the truth. This will help you train the brain to differentiate between fact and fiction. Death can be our best life coach because it's the biggest reminder that we're only here for a limited amount of time. By using life as a way to learn, achieve and develop, we can discover our purpose and ultimately our happiness. Power Quotes From Mo Gawdat [tweetthis]"People who find their happiness are the ones that make it their number one priority." - @Solveforhappy [/tweetthis] "You never get happy from outside sources. We all believe that happiness is something that we have to strive for or earn, but we really don't have to do that. Happiness comes from within ourselves." - Mo Gawdat on how happiness comes from within. "One singular material possession will never make you happy, but two can bring you constant disappointment. We tell ourselves, 'Okay, I know I'm not happy with this little gadget, but I'll be happy with the other gadget.' In the end, you rush and strive to get the other gadget, but you're still not happy. It's just a vicious cycle and you'll never find happiness in materials, wealth, or the world outside of you." - Mo Gawdat on why we'll never be satisfied from possessions. "The more disappointed you are with your ability to achieve happiness, the more you feel that there's this gap that needs to be filled." - Mo Gawdat on why we're sometimes never fully satisfied with what we have or what we've done.  "Truly, happiness is inside us. When we connect with the real us, we find happiness. When we engage with the real world, we get further away from engaging with us and finding the real person that you and I are." - Mo Gawdat on why true happiness comes from within ourselves.  "Life is bound to bring us some pain because it's like a video game. Video games are designed to be difficult sometimes, but that's the only way that we can become a better gamers, right? If the game was easy, it would be boring as hell and we wouldn't learn how to be better gamers. Life is truly meant to give us pain and as much as we hate it, pain can be good. Pain is good because it alerts us as to what we should do in order to survive and progress in life." - Mo Gawdat on how life is like a video game and why pain can be good.  "Constant comparison will always end in vain because there will always be someone who is ahead of you. If you set out to compare yourself to the rest of the world, you will always break the happiness equation and events will never meet your expectations." - Mo Gawdat on why it's not worth the effort to always be comparing ourselves to other people.  "If you find what it is that you're passionate about and you're good at it, eventually when you're ready, your purpose will find you. It's not the other way around. If you set out to search for a purpose without knowing what you're capable of, you're never going to get there." - Mo Gawdat on how we discover our purpose. "We get so engaged in life that we forget to live." - Mo Gawdat "Every emotion we've ever felt is triggered by a thought, not an event." - Mo Gawdat About Solve for Happy by Mo Gawdat Mo Gawdat is a remarkable thinker and the Chief Business Officer at Google’s [X], an elite team of engineers that comprise Google’s futuristic “dream factory.” Applying his superior skills of logic and problem solving to the issue of happiness, he proposes an algorithm based on an understanding of how the brain takes in and processes joy and sadness. Then he solves for happy. In 2001 Mo Gawdat realized that despite his incredible success, he was desperately unhappy. A lifelong learner, he attacked the problem as an engineer would: examining all the provable facts and scrupulously applying logic. Eventually, his countless hours of research and science proved successful, and he discovered the equation for permanent happiness. Thirteen years later, Mo’s algorithm would be put to the ultimate test. After the sudden death of his son, Ali, Mo and his family turned to his equation—and it saved them from despair. In dealing with the horrible loss, Mo found his mission: he would pull off the type of “moonshot” goal that he and his colleagues were always aiming for—he would share his equation with the world and help as many people as possible become happier. In Solve for Happy Mo questions some of the most fundamental aspects of our existence, shares the underlying reasons for suffering, and plots out a step-by-step process for achieving lifelong happiness and enduring contentment. He shows us how to view life through a clear lens, teaching us how to dispel the illusions that cloud our thinking; overcome the brain’s blind spots; and embrace five ultimate truths. No matter what obstacles we face, what burdens we bear, what trials we’ve experienced, we can all be content with our present situation and optimistic about the future. About Mo Gawdat Mo Gawdat is the Chief Business Officer for Google [X], a serial entrepreneur and author of “Solve for Happy.” Mo has an impressive combined career of 27 years, starting at IBM Egypt as a Systems Engineer before moving to a sales role in the government sector. Venturing in to the UAE, Mo joined NCR Abu Dhabi to cover the non-finance sector. He then became acquainted with the consumer goods industry as Regional Manager of BAT. At Microsoft he assumed various roles over a span of seven and a half years, in his last role at Microsoft he headed the Communications Sector across Emerging Markets worldwide. Alongside his career, Mo remained a serial entrepreneur who has co-founded more than 20 businesses in fields such as health and fitness, food and beverage and real estate. He served as a board member in several technology, health and fitness and consumer goods companies as well as several government technology and innovation boards in the Middle East and Eastern Europe. He mentors tens of start-ups at any point in time. Mo Gawdat is the author of “Solve for Happy: Engineering Your Path to Joy” (2017). Through his 12 year research on the topic of happiness, he created an algorithm and a repeatable well engineered model to reach a state of uninterrupted happiness regardless of the circumstances of life. Mo’s happiness model proved highly effective. And, in 2014, was put to the ultimate test when Mo lost his son Ali to preventable medical error during a simple surgical procedure. Solve For Happy is the pillar for a mission Mo has committed to as his personal moonshot, a mission to deliver his happiness message to 10 million people around the world. Resources Mentioned by Mo & Josh Visit the official Solve for Happy website Read Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy by Mo Gawdat Learn more about the 10 Million Happy Mission Connect with Mo Gawdat and Solve for Happy via: Facebook Twitter YouTube Read the article, A Google Engineer Believes He's Found the Equation for Guaranteed Happiness Learn more about The Work of Byron Katie Take Mark Divine's SEALFIT 20X Challenge Check out WFR episode 086 with Mark Divine: Creating the Unbeatable Mind Learn about Josh's Vipassana Meditiation - A Spartan Race for the Mind [tweetthis]"If you compare yourself to the rest of the world, you will always break the happiness equation." - @Solveforhappy[/tweetthis] Get More Wellness In Your Life Join the WFR Community on facebook Send Josh Trent a personal message Tweet me on Twitter: Send us a fun tweet (or a what's up) Comment on the Facebook page Sign up to get an email alert whenever we release a new episode Support This Podcast Leave a 5 star review on iTunes Share this episode with someone you care about Contact Wellness Force Radio for podcast sponsorship and partnership opportunities Rate & Review Wellness Force Aloha! Josh here. Listen, I deeply value your thoughts, now let your voice be heard. I live to serve the Wellness Force even better based on your words, feedback, and requests. (including how these episodes can allow you to break bad habits) Thanks To Our Amazing Sponsor Want to avoid more trips to the store and save hundreds of dollars a year on superfood supplements? Check out Perfect Supplements.com Go to perfectsupplements.com/wellnessforce to get your grass-fed collagen from today's show and sign up for a free membership, plus get 10% off your entire order - just enter promo code "wellnessforce" at checkout. Ask A Live Question For The Next Episode Click here to leave a voicemail directly to Josh Trent to be read live on the air.  You May Also Like These Episodes Food Freedom Forever With Melissa Hartwig Nir Eyal:Breaking Bad Habits, Technology Addiction, & Emotional Triggers Healthy, Happy & Harder To Kill w/ Steph Gaudreau of Stupid Easy Paleo Beyond Meditation: How To Get A Better Brain With Ariel Garten Living A Healthy Lifestyle In A Modern World With Dan Pardi Creating A Life Worth Living With Michael Strasner Get More Wellness In Your Life Join the Wellness Force Newsletter: www.wellnessforce.com/news Don't miss next week's show: Subscribe and stay updated Did you like this show? Rate and review Wellness Force on iTunes You read all the way to the bottom? That's what I call love! Write to me and let me know what you'd like to have to get more wellness in your life.

The ultimate guide to finding happiness with the author of Solve for Happy, Mo Gawdat.What You'll Learn in this Episode: How you can solve for happiness. The underlying reasons for unhappiness and what expectations have to do with them. The steps to achieving lifelong happiness. The six grand illusions. Why achieving happiness is like trying to get fit. What the present moment has to do with happiness. More from his book Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. High Five Highlights: What is the one immediate thing you want us to do or change in our life to become sustainably happy the moment this interview is over? Stop listening to your brain. It is just a biological function; you don't have to obey. Tell me about something that makes you happy today? I feel happy when I see other people happy. For someone who is skeptical of your formula, what would you say to that person? Knowledge is an illusion. Be open to a new perspective. Do you have a favorite quote or book you can share? “The gravity of the battle means nothing to those at peace.” Finish this sentence: “Throughout my life the most important thing I've learned is...” Your purpose comes to you. You don't search for your purpose. Connect with Mo! Share the Show! If you enjoyed this show, please rate it on iTunes and write a brief review. That would help us tremendously in getting the word out and raising the visibility of the show. Sponsor: audible.com - get a FREE audiobook download and 30 day free trial at www.audibletrial.com/whichwayislife  

The ultimate guide to finding happiness with the author of Solve for Happy, Mo Gawdat.What You’ll Learn in this Episode: How you can solve for happiness. The underlying reasons for unhappiness and what expectations have to do with them. The steps to achieving lifelong happiness. The six grand illusions. Why achieving happiness is like trying to get fit. What the present moment has to do with happiness. More from his book Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy. High Five Highlights: What is the one immediate thing you want us to do or change in our life to become sustainably happy the moment this interview is over? Stop listening to your brain. It is just a biological function; you don’t have to obey. Tell me about something that makes you happy today? I feel happy when I see other people happy. For someone who is skeptical of your formula, what would you say to that person? Knowledge is an illusion. Be open to a new perspective. Do you have a favorite quote or book you can share? “The gravity of the battle means nothing to those at peace.” Finish this sentence: “Throughout my life the most important thing I’ve learned is...” Your purpose comes to you. You don’t search for your purpose. Connect with Mo! Share the Show! If you enjoyed this show, please rate it on iTunes and write a brief review. That would help us tremendously in getting the word out and raising the visibility of the show. Sponsor: audible.com - get a FREE audiobook download and 30 day free trial at www.audibletrial.com/whichwayislife  

Mo Gawdat is from Google X and he really does know the formula for happiness and it's not as hard as you think. Find out more on The Nice Guys today.  Reach Us Here: Doug- @DJDoug Strickland- @NiceGuyonBiz Mo- @SolveForHappy   On Facebook: The Nice Guys Community page   Become a patron and support the podcast at www.Patreon.com/NiceGuys   Show Notes by Production Assistant - Anna Nygren   Today the ultimate reboot -- how cool to think we can reboot to Happy Technology -- when we are talking self driving cars and balloons in space to improve web connectivity...these are the topics of the day. Internet in remote places and cars driving themselves. And Mo Gawdat knows this better than anyone. Mo is the Chief Business Officer at Google X, these are his projects and his responsibility. And for close to a decade, Mo has worked on projects like these, but this is not the most significant thing he works on. Mo is also a writer, it's no surprise in my research of Mo his book, Solve for Happy is YES a book about happiness, but really it's a formula for engineering your path to it. Welcome Mo, to the Nice Guys on Business. Mo -- can you use logic and problem solving to determine a formula for happy? It does not seem like there is a formula -- more of a feeling -- how do you measure a feeling? Alright Mo -- give me the happiness equation Change the world -- start with your heart -- Talk about your son as an inspiration Let's talk about mindset -- don't we have these tapes that control us? How do we fix these tapes? Share some of the illusions that we believe in that hold us back from being happy? Sergey and Larry (the google founders) -- They are behind you on this project and of you taking time to make the people of earth happy. I think it would be a great idea to tell them The Nice Guys on Business rocks. Talk about your engineer's approach to Happy We feel happy when life goes our way and we are sad when it doesn't meet our expectations -- seems pretty simple, change your expectations. Is it that simple? What will help you make a difference in this world? Why do you care Mo, some people might say this is easy for you, big position at Google, live the good life, you could go your way and not look back -- why is this your mission? Buy Mo's book- Solve for Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy  See his website- http://www.solveforhappy.com/ E-Mail him- mo@solveforhappy.com   Proud to be affiliated with the C-Suite Radio Network     Doug's Stuff: Amazon #1 Best selling book Nice Guys Finish First. Business Building Bootcamp (10 Module Course)   Partner Links: Amazon.com: Click before buying anything. Help support the podcast. Sign up for Sanebox free and get a $10.00 credit on us: The best way to get a handle on your E-Mail. Interview Valet:  Get interviewed on top podcasts and share your message. Acuity Scheduling: Stop wasting time going back and forth scheduling appointments   Survey: Take our short survey so The Nice Guys know what you like.   Nice Guys Links Subscribe to the Podcast Niceguysonbusiness.com   You can text Doug anytime at 410-340-6861, of if you just want to leave us a message or record an intro to the show, call 4242 DJ DOUG (1-424-253-3684)   Promise Statement: To provide an experience that is entertaining and adds value to your life.   Don't underestimate the Power of Nice.