When Your Brain Won’t Shut Up: A guide to internal peace and lasting focus
Let's unpack the heart of attention, addiction, autopilot and self-sabotage.
This episode is a deep dive into the junk food of thought: addictive mental loops that hijack your attention, and keep you stuck repeating the same boring patterns — again and again and again.
We talk about why your thoughts are like badly designed software, why addiction makes your brain less creative, and how to actually take back control. From scrolling email to self-sabotaging loops, it turns out the enemy isn’t the internet… it’s your untrained mind.
Reframe addiction as a self-inflicted cognitive handicap
Break the loop with “internal repulsion” instead of willpower
Interrupt the mental chatter that blocks creativity
You’ll never look at your own thoughts the same way again.
NEW SHOW - How to Change the World
Sam's new show can be found on major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
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Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
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Show: Growth Mindset, psychology of self-improvement
Episode: When Your Brain Won’t Shut Up: A guide to internal peace and lasting focus
Chapters:
00:00 Useful vs bad fixed beliefs
02:37 Dimensions of our thoughts
03:46 Activating our Auto-Pilot
04:55 Understanding Addiction
05:56 Your mind in addiction
09:25 How do addictions impact ability
10:10 Addictions Undermine Growth and Potential
11:48 The Distraction Ritual
12:58 Taking Responsibility for Addictions
15:27 Changing Your Desire, Not Just Your Behavior
18:03 Reframing Addiction as a Self-Imposed Limitation
19:33 Reclaiming Your Mental Capabilities
20:55 The Power of Embracing Boredom
21:34 Support the podcast by helping a friend
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27:32
How to transcend your normal habits and routines to have original ideas
Mental Constraints: How to change your thoughts and break invisible limits you can't see
This episode is a ride through dimensions—space, time, and your own mind. It’s like stepping outside your body mid-coffee to ask, “Wait, what the hell am I doing?”
From Zen bugs to aeroplane windows, Sam breaks down how we’re all stuck in routines that make life two-dimensional. And the worst part? We don’t even notice.
You’ll learn:
Why your habits aren't just habits—they're constraints dressed as convenience
How to inject randomness into your week to break mental inertia
A simple way to use boredom as a creative tool
Don’t let your year pass in fast-forward. Open your thinking to start living in widescreen.
NEW SHOW - How to Change the World
Sam's new show can be found on major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
Can't find it on your player?
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
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🔓 Exclusive AMAs and bonus content
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Get in Touch
👋 Free Call - Schedule Link - https://cal.com/samwebster/mindset
📧 Email - GrowthMindsetPodcast (@) gmail,com
Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
Show: Growth Mindset, psychology of self-improvement
Episode: How to transcend your normal habits and routines to have original ideas
Chapters:
00:00 The Observing Centipede
01:25 Transcendent versus experiential thinking
03:02 The Flatness of Our Existence
05:33 Thinking in Dimensions
07:50 Routines and Potential Decisions
11:51 Introducing Novelty and Chaos
13:36 Entropy and Being Anti-Entropy Machines
15:45 Living with Intention After a Near-Death Experience
18:03 Forgiveness and Letting Go
20:05 Send off
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26:49
How to Tell if Someone Will Be a Good Long-Term Partner (and find them)
What if everything we believe about finding love is designed to keep us searching instead of finding?
This episode debunks some of the worst common advice and showcases what's genuinely useful.
It might start with you. The people most focused on finding the perfect partner often remain alone, while those focused on becoming the right partner tend to attract extraordinary relationships.
Shift from scarcity-based dating to abundance-based connection:
Understand "optimal search theory"
Focus on shared vision for the future rather than identical current interests
Recognise that generosity and a growth mindset matter more than initial chemistry
If you find someone, will you recognise them when you do?
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NEW SHOW - How to Change the World
Sam's new show can be found on major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
Can't find it on your player?
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
-------
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🏖️ Ad-free listening
🤘 Support the show
🔓 Exclusive AMAs and bonus content
💬 Community Discord
GrowthMindset.Supercast.com
Get in Touch
👋 Free Call - Schedule Link - https://cal.com/samwebster/mindset
📧 Email - GrowthMindsetPodcast (@) gmail,com
Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
Show: Growth Mindset, psychology of self-improvement
Episode: How to Tell if Someone Will Be a Good Long-Term Partner (and find them)
Chapters:
00:00 How to choose a partner
00:51 Importance of shared values
03:21 Know what you really want
05:29 What is the "Optimal Choice"
06:08 Increasing the pool of potential mates
06:57 Go on more dates
08:27 Improving yourself to attract better partners
10:10 4 Mistakes and bad advices when choosing a partner
13:22 4 Dating myths to uncover
19:40 4 Signs to look at when choosing a partner
22:45 Past Relationships
27:06 Screening for a positive mindset
28:42 Optimal Search Theory
31:30 Send off
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36:40
Uncertainty: How to Handle Life's Surprises (+ What is a Black Swan event) - w/ Nicolas Vereecke
Ever felt like life just sucker-punched you out of nowhere? That's exactly what Nassim Taleb calls a Black Swan event.
Most people think they can predict the future by looking at patterns. They study charts, analyze trends, and feel safe in their little bubble of certainty.
However, the biggest events that shape our lives—market crashes, pandemics, breakthrough innovations—are the ones nobody sees coming. ..
Beyond that, it's about how your brain tricks you into thinking you understand a world that's fundamentally unpredictable:
Stop trying to predict everything and start building resilience for anything
Rebuild your investment portfolio and life plan to deal with shocks
Prepare for worst-case scenarios instead of hoping for the best
NEW SHOW - How to Change the World
Sam's new show can be found on major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
Can't find it on your player?
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
-------
UPGRADE to Premium:
🏖️ Ad-free listening
🤘 Support the show
🔓 Exclusive AMAs and bonus content
💬 Community Discord
GrowthMindset.Supercast.com
Get in Touch
👋 Free Call - Schedule Link - https://cal.com/samwebster/mindset
📧 Email - GrowthMindsetPodcast (@) gmail,com
Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
Show: Growth Mindset, psychology of self-improvement
Episode: Radical Uncertainty: How to deal with surprises and Black Swan events - w/ Nicolas Vereecke
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction: Navigating Life's Unpredictability
02:02 Understanding the Black Swan Concept
02:41 Real-World Examples and Implications
04:54 Investment Strategies for Unpredictable Events
12:00 Mediocristan vs. Extremistan
18:39 Ludic fallacy
18:39 The Ludic Fallacy and Risk Assessment
21:46 Conclusion and Takeaways
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29:02
10 Mental Models to Create Long Term Thinking and Better Decisions from Jeff Bezos
The tools of thinking that fueled the Growth Mindset and fast decisions behind the success of Jeff Bezos.
Bezos frames business as a series of silent promises: to customers, to colleagues, to the future. Each promise is a primitive—simple, sturdy, waiting to be linked. When those links form, independence evolves into interdependence, and a whisper becomes a flywheel.
In this conversation, we explore how “Day One” thinking keeps the path clear, how a “regret-minimization lens” invites bold choices, and why “single-threaded leadership” protects the soul of a project.
Name your primitives—identify the small assets that can connect to others.
Map the flywheel—draw how each promise fuels the next.
Practice long-horizon thinking—act today as if seven years depend on it.
How to Change the World
Sam's new show can be found on major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
Can't find it on your player?
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
-------
UPGRADE to Premium:
🏖️ Ad-free listening
🤘 Support the show
🔓 Exclusive AMAs and bonus content
💬 Community Discord
GrowthMindset.Supercast.com
Get in Touch
👋 Free Call - Schedule Link - https://cal.com/samwebster/mindset
📧 Email - GrowthMindsetPodcast (@) gmail,com
Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
Show: Growth Mindset, psychology of self-improvement
Episode: 10 Mental Models to Create Long Term Thinking and Better Decisions from Jeff Bezos
Chapters:
00:00 Thinking in Primitives
05:58 Story of AWS
08:32 2 Customer Centric Obsession
10:13 Working backwards from the customer's experience - Why they built Amazon Prime
12:11 3 Long Term Thinking
13:27 Story - Kindle and e-publishing industry
16:10 Willingness to be Misunderstood
16:49 Team - Single Threaded Leadership
17:58 Team - Employ and Empower Builders
19:03 Culture - Meetings are for Decisions
20:03 High Velocity Decision making - Reversible vs Irreversible Decisions
22:15 Regret Minimization Framework
23:51 Disagree and Commit
25:01 Embrace Failure
25:44 Total Fails - Amazon Fire Phone, Amazon Wallet, Amazon Destinations, Amazon Restaurants
28:01 Importance of Timing and Competition
30:16 Day 1 Thinking
32:58 Useful Bonus points
33:06 Flywheel effect
33:34 Word of Mouth Marketing
34:30 Opposing beliefs - Ignoring vs Crushing Competition
36:38 Opposing Beliefs - Stubborn and Flexibility
37:14 How this helps a with Growth Mindset
41:12 Wrap up
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Acerca de Growth Mindset Psychology: The Science of Self-Improvement
There are a lot of opinions on how to master your mind, but then there’s PSYCHOLOGY.
We’re all stuck with the brain we’re born with, but we aren’t stuck with how we use it.
Learn science-backed answers to make the most of your mind and your life.
CURIOUS?
Growth Mindset Psychology is the "self-help sceptic" podcast for the curious.
Whether you want to improve performance, navigate setbacks, or know who you are.
We find answers to the true science of self-improvement.
So put down the astrology chart and start working with your mind, instead of against it.
With over 8 million downloads and 60,000 monthly listeners, you’re invited to join.
PROCESS
Instead of telling you what to think, we discuss how thinking works.
Armed with a stack of science journals, textbooks and a boatload of curiosity, we uncover the mechanics of the mind.
Why? >>> Success is personal!
You might want to make the most of your neurodiverse strengths, start a business, or simply find more reasons to smile.
Hone your ability for independent thinking and growth with mental models to pursue your definition of success.
HOST
I’m Sam Webster Harris, a lifelong learner with ADHD, a raging curiosity, and an obsession with finding answers to hard questions.
After launching several businesses, travelling the world and nearly dying a few times I concluded that science and Psychology are where it’s at.
What actually makes people happy? What’s the best way to treat a brain? How can I get more done?
Studying the answers we find that changing behaviours requires building mindsets, mental models, and a healthy relationship with failure.
I run the show to help listeners enjoy nutritious content that feeds their minds (and I needed a legitimate excuse to cover for my reading addiction).
PREMIUM
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ARCHIVE
Previous guests include Olympians, Scientists, Billionaires, and Sam's Mum.
Past series:
— Psychology vs Stoicism
— Time Management for busy mortals
— Independence and knowing yourself
— Cognitive biases and rational thinking
— Psychology of connection
— Carol Dweck and the Multiverse of Mindsets
Escucha Growth Mindset Psychology: The Science of Self-Improvement, Miss Honey: Slow English Podcast y muchos más podcasts de todo el mundo con la aplicación de radio.net
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