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Rainy Brain, Sunny Brain, the Science of Optimism with Dr. Elaine Fox

Half Empty or Half Full?
Psychologist and Neuroscientist Dr. Elaine Fox
Shares the Science of Optimism

Do you typically look on the bright side, or turn towards the dark? Were you born that way? And if you had a cheerier outlook, would it affect your business and your health?  Psychologist and neuroscientist Elaine Fox has discovered we actually CAN change the way our brains react to fear and optimism. Her research has been journaled in her book Rainy Brain, Sunny Brain: How to Retrain Your Brain to Overcome Pessimism and Achieve a More Positive Outlook.

Elaine’s discovery of the optimism gene has paved the way for explaining the psychology behind optimistic people. Can we change? Plus – find out why we like our news bloody and our politics dirty!

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Dr. Fox and Pam


About Dr. Fox
Elaine Fox is a psychologist and neuroscientist who has researched widely on the science of emotions. She has always been fascinated by why some people are very resilient and can deal with whatever life throws at them, while others are fragile and at risk of developing anxiety and depression. She grew up in Dublin and has worked at St James Hospital Dublin, University College Dublin, Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand and the University of Essex where she was head of the Department of Psychology & Centre for Brain Science from 2007- 2010, before moving to the University of Oxford in 2013.

Elaine is currently a Research Professor in the Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford and Director of the Oxford Centre for Emotions & Affective Neuroscience (OCEAN), where she leads a program of research combining cognitive psychology, neuroimaging, and genetics. She has recently been awarded an ERC Advanced Investigator Award to support her research in the development of emotional vulnerability and resilience. Her work has been discussed in Nature, Science, New Scientist, The Economist, and the New York Times. A Fellow of the Association of Psychological Science (APS), she lives near Oxford in England.

Her scientific discoveries on optimism, happiness and optimal mental health have been discussed widely across the national media, and led to her appearance in an ABC documentary presented by Michael J. Fox (no relation) entitled The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist in 2010 and in a 2013 BBC Horizon documentary called The Truth about Personality in which she attempts to shift the presenter Michael Mosley’s brain from pessimism to optimism.

To learn more about Professor Fox’s findings please visit www.rainybrainsunnybrain.com.

To purchase her book, click here.

 

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Former Secret Service Agent Evy Poumpouras on Becoming Bulletproof

Want to feel safer, recognize liars, and influence others ?
Former Secret Service Agent Evy Poumpouras tells us how!

We all want to feel safe in this crazy world! But how do we go about doing that? The best people to ask about protection and safety are the experts who do it every day in one of the most stressful, and important, jobs in our nation – the Secret Service.  Former agent Evy Poumpouras is just the person to ask.  Not only has she guarded presidents and heads of state, she was awarded the prestigious Medal of Valor for Her bravery on 9/11and was an investigator for the Department of Defense’s elite Polygraph Unit. And she’s the author of the book BECOMING BULLETPROOF: Protect Yourself, Read People, Influence Situations, and Live Fearlessly, now also available on audiobook.

In our chat with Evy, we find out how we all can create more courage in the world and less fear, and how being fearless isn’t a goal we should reach for. We also learn why Evy says we should WANT someone to hit us, how we have to create a shield to be our own gatekeepers, and how to get out of the problem and into the solution.

Evy also offers real coping mechanisms, and actionable steps towards being safer, in addition to sharing some tips on how to determine if someone is lying. She also busts some big myths about how to tell if someone is being untruthful. We learn about priming language, how using someone’s name changes brain chemistry, and why preserving dignity is so very important.

 

There is a lot of great info in our chat with Evy, along with a few laughs!

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Evy and Pam

About Evy Poumpouras

Evy Poumpouras is a former Secret Service Special Agent and on-air national TV contributor who frequently appears on NBC, MSNBC, and CNN. She also costars on Bravo’s Spy Games, an espionage-inspired reality competition. Evy holds a MA in forensic psychology and a second master’s degree from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.  She is also the recipient of the United States Secret Service Medal of Valor Award for her heroism on 9/11 and has been part of the protective details for former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, William J. Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Gerald Ford. She is also an adjunct professor for The City University of New York where she teaches criminal justice and criminology.

For more about Evy, click here for her website.
For Evy’s facebook page, Click here
Follow her on twitter: Click here
Find her book and audiobook on Amazon here.

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The Incomparable Carl Reiner – When I Got an Hour with the Master

Several years ago I had the most fortunate opportunity to interview the great Carl Reiner. He had just released his book “I Remember Me” and we had a lively chat about all the stories in it.

Normally when you score a big interview (it’s called a “get”), you are allowed between 10 and 20 minutes with the guest.  I was asked how long I wanted and I said “as long as I can get!” and I was offered an hour. AN HOUR!!

And when our hour was finished and the interview was over, Carl spent another half hour with me, discussing the latest book he was reading. I was in heaven.

The only thing that made me cherish my time with him even more was when he said “This is the best interview I’ve ever had. You are the best at what you do.” 

From Carl Reiner. THE Carl Reiner. My eyes may have leaked.

Carl Reiner – Part One

If you love Dick Van Dyke, you have Carl Reiner to thank. Carl created the show that starred Dick and is one of the most beloved sitcoms in entertainment history. On top of that, he was half of the comedy duo that brought us the 2000 Year Old Man, and he delighted audiences as Saul Bloom in the Oceans 11/12/13 movies. He received 12 Emmys and a Grammy, and he wrote several books, of which I Remember Me was one.

We’re delighted to bring you Part 1 of our conversation with Carl,  where he tells a touching story about Frank Sinatra, shares with us about his love for his wife and gives us some relationship advice, and answers questions that listeners asked.

Click on the player below to hear Part One of the chat with Carl and Pam

Carl Reiner – Part Two

In Part 2 we discuss physical comedy, the elegance of Steve Martin, and the genesis of the Dick Van Dyke Show. Oh… and we get some musical moments and a little double speak!

Click on the player below to hear Part Two of the chat with Carl and Pam

About Carl Reiner

Carl Reiner was an American actor, comedian, director, screenwriter, and publisher whose career spanned seven decades.

And a real mensch. Read a tribute to him from award-winning screenwriter/director/baseball announcer Ken Levine here.

Carl’s personal publishing company can be found here.

Check out his facebook page here.

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Bestselling Author Jeffrey Deaver is back with The Steel Kiss!”

Do you trust your refrigerator? Maybe you shouldn’t…
Bestselling suspense author Jeffery Deaver is BACK!

We’re back with our favorite bestselling suspense author Jeffrey Deaver for his latest installment of the Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs series: The Steel Kiss. It’s quite a an unsettling novel as advances in technology create quite the scary scenario!

Jeffery shares what the impact of cloud monitoring has on your everyday appliances, and how on earth your refrigerator may have been a spambot! He also gives insight into the skirmish between Apple and the FBI for control of the infamous San Bernardino iPhone several years ago, and why this time it’s different.  And find out why New York taxi services dropped 5% after The Bone Collector movie came out!

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Jeffery and Pam

About Jeffery Deaver

A former journalist, folksinger and attorney, Jeffery Deaver is an international number-one bestselling author. His novels have appeared on bestseller lists around the world, including the New York Times, the Times of London, Italy’s Corriere della Sera, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Los Angeles Times. His books are sold in 150 countries and have been translated into over twenty-five languages. He has sold 50 million books worldwide.

The author of over thirty-five novels, three collections of short stories and a nonfiction law book, and a lyricist of a country-western album, he’s received or been shortlisted for dozens of awards around the world. His The Bodies Left Behind was named Novel of the Year by the International Thriller Writers Association, and his Lincoln Rhyme thriller The Broken Window and a stand-alone, Edge, were also nominated for that prize, as was a short story. He has been awarded the Steel Dagger and the Short Story Dagger from the British Crime Writers’ Association and the Nero Wolfe Award, and he is a three-time recipient of the Ellery Queen Readers Award for Best Short Story of the Year and a winner of the British Thumping Good Read Award. Solitude Creek and The Cold Moon were both given the number one ranking by Kono Misurteri Ga Sugoi in Japan. The Cold Moon was also named the Book of the Year by the Mystery Writers Association of Japan. In addition, the Japanese Adventure Fiction Association awarded the The Cold Moon and Carte Blanche their annual Grand Prix award. His book The Kill Room was awarded the Political Thriller of the Year by Killer Nashville. And his collection of short stories, Trouble in Mind, was nominated for best anthology by that organization, as well.

Deaver has been honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention and by the Raymond Chandler Lifetime Achievement Award in Italy. The Strand Magazine also has presented him with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Deaver has been nominated for numerous Edgar Awards from the Mystery Writers of America, an Anthony, a Shamus and a Gumshoe. He was shortlisted for the ITV3 Crime Thriller Award for Best International Author. Roadside Crosses was on the shortlist for the Prix Polar International 2013.

His book A Maiden’s Grave was made into an HBO movie starring James Garner and Marlee Matlin, and his novel The Bone Collector was a feature release from Universal Pictures, starring Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie.  In 2019, NBC picked up a series called “Lincoln,” based on the books. Lifetime aired an adaptation of his The Devil’s Teardrop. And, yes, the rumors are true; he did appear as a corrupt reporter on his favorite soap opera, As the World Turns.

He was born outside Chicago and has a bachelor of journalism degree from the University of Missouri and a law degree from Fordham University.

Jeffery Deaver was President of the Mystery Writers Of America organization in 2017 and 2018.

For more about Jeffery, click here for his website.
For Jeffery’s facebook page, Click here
Follow him on twitter: Click here

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Life is Good Co-Founder Bert Jacobs on Optimism and Thriving


Feel good by realizing Life IS Good!
Hear what drives Co-founder Bert Jacobs
And how the company thrives

You may not know the names Bert and John Jacobs but you’ve certainly seen their T-shirts everywhere. Co-founders of the Life is Good company, theirs is a story of amazing growth from selling shirts out of a van to a $100 million dollar enterprise – which coincidentally was the name of their van.

The basis of their business? Optimism! Here are entrepreneurs that not only don’t advertise because word-of-mouth recommendations keep the sales increasing, but Bert actually operates WITHOUT email. And find out what’s prompted them to donate 10% of their profits to children’s endeavors.

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Bert and Pam

About Bert:

In 1989, Bert and John Jacobs designed their first tee shirt. They knew nothing about the business.

For five years, the brothers hawked tee shirts in the streets of Boston and traveled the East Coast, selling door-to-door in college dormitories.

They collected some good stories, but were not very prosperous. They lived on peanut butter and jelly, slept in their van, and showered when they could.

Chicks were not impressed.

By the Fall of 1994, heading home from a long, less-than-fruitful road trip, Bert and John were desperately searching for answers to keep the dream alive. Little did they know, the only answer they needed was back in Boston, hanging up on their apartment wall – Jake.

Jake’s contagious grin, simple as it was, seemed to express everything the Jacobs brothers believed in.

One fateful September day, they printed up 48 Jake shirts for a local street fair in Cambridge, Massachusetts. They laid the shirts out on their rickety card table. By noontime, all 48 of those tees were gone. A star was born.

Soon Jake was introduced to local retailers, and his simple message of optimism was embraced like nothing the brothers had ever seen. As demand for product soared, Jake’s team grew, and the Little Brand That Could began to spread across America.

Today, the New England based brand stays close to its roots, with an emphasis on simplicity, humor and humility. Through Life is good Festivals, positive products, and a steady dose of ping pong, Jake’s crew does its best to keep the good vibes flowing.

For more about Life is Good: Click Here
For the Life is Good facebook page: Click Here
Follow Life is Good on Twitter : Click Here

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Actor Michael O’Neill on Council of Dads and Acting

Michael O’Neill is one of the most consistently GOOD actors you will see. His portrayal of Gary Clark in the season 6 finale of Grey’s Anatomy was a masterpiece. He became a show favorite in West Wing. He had an important part in Scandal’s final season. He plays gave a heartbreaking portrayal of a chaplain in the Sundance award-winning film Clemency. Now he is in what is predicted to be a major hit – Council of Dads.

We talk with Michael about the new show, where he plays AA sponsor Larry, and why he loves the part so much. We also chat about the award-winning film Clemency, how it personally affected him, and how wonderful Aldis Hodge was in it. And how that role on Grey’s Anatomy changed him personally

Plus, how Michael felt about Sons of Anarchy and Sea Biscuit, and what he appreciated about Al Pacino. You will love this guy… I promise!

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Michael and Pam

About Michael:

Renowned actor Michael O’Neill will soon be seen as “Larry Mills” in the highly anticipated new NBC drama series, COUNCIL OF DADS premiering March 24th. His current roles are as “Chaplain Kendricks” in the critically acclaimed feature film, CLEMENCY, which won the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize and “Senator Mitchell Chapin” in Season 2 of TOM CLANCY’S JACK RYAN on Amazon. Other recent appearances for O’Neill include the series’ THE ROMANOFFS, THE RESIDENT, 11.22.63, SHOOTER, S.W.A.T. and a five episode arc in the final season of SCANDAL. Previous television credits include his four season role on the award winning Sundance TV series, RECTIFY, the CBS series, EXTANT with Halle Berry and A&E’s BATES MOTEL. O’Neill’s memorable TV roles include GREY’S ANATOMY and fan favorite “Special Agent Ron Butterfield” on THE WEST WING, as well as NECESSARY ROUGHNESS, VEGAS, THE GRIM SLEEPER, NCIS, SONS OF ANARCHY and THE UNIT. In feature films, O’Neill played FDA Agent “Richard Barkley” in the award winning DALLAS BUYERS CLUB and his vast credits include J. EDGAR, GREEN ZONE, TRANSFORMERS, SECONDHAND LIONS, TRAFFIC, SEA OF LOVE and SEABISCUIT. O’Neill also recently completed two feature films, THE STAND AT PAXTON COUNTY and INDIVISIBLE.

A native of Alabama, O’Neill has a degree in Economics from Auburn University and will be the Winter 2019 Commencement Speaker.  He was also the 2018 commencement speaker at the University of Montevallo in Alabama. He began his acting career under the mentorship of Will Geer, and his daughter Ellen, at the Theatricum Botanicum in Los Angeles. He is married to Mary O’Keefe O’Neill and they have three wonderful daughters, Ella, Annie and Molly.  O’Neill has served on the Board of the Hollywood Branch of the Screen Actors Guild and has often participated in the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s BookPALS program, reading to elementary school children.   He has also been involved in Teach for America, Habitat for Humanity, and Focus on Recovery in Birmingham.

For more on Council of Dads: Click Here
For Michael’s facebook page: Click Here
For Michael’s IMDB page: Click Here

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The Transformative Power of Female Connection with Anne Devereux-Mills


Have you ever wondered how you could make a bigger impact in the world, but you weren’t sure how to start? CEO, entrepreneur, documentary film executive   and author Anne Devereux-Mills has some ideas for us! The founder of Parlay House, Anne shares why the Parlay Effect (also the name of her book) can help us make connections and change the world.

She also shares how we can make those painful transitions in life a little easier, what to do about our fear of not being perfect, and how small things can make a big difference. Plus, she’ll also tell us how to start our OWN Parlay House!

Listen to the chat with Pam and Anne by clicking the player below

Anne Devereux-Mills is the accomplished CEO, entrepreneur and documentary film executive behind Parlay House, a salon-style series of gatherings she founded in 2012. Parlay House is committed to sparking authentic conversations and building meaningful, supportive relationships across a diverse range of women. It currently has over 5,000 participants and operates in seven cities across the U.S. and Europe.

Devereux-Mills is also a dedicated mentor for SHE-CAN, an organization supporting and grooming the next generation of female world leaders coming from post-genocide countries. She was a key member of the team that helped pass California’s Proposition 36, which brought fair sentencing to thousands of non-violent inmates as part of California’s Three Strikes reform. Following that victory, she was the Executive Director for the Emmy-nominated

Anne Devereux-Mills

documentary film entitled, The Return and is currently Executive Directing two additional films, Mississippi Red and The Green Dress. Devereux-Mills supported Stanford University by serving as the Executive Director of Healthy Body Image Programs. Her philanthropic work has been recognized by a range of organizations including SHE-CAN, Advertising Women of New York, The All-Stars Foundation, Project Kesher and Worldwide Women.

Prior to her philanthropic ventures, Anne served in leadership roles at BBDO, LLNS and TBWA/WorldHealth, Consumer Healthworks, a division of Merkley and Partners, as well as Harrison & Star. Anne also helped launch the iHUG Foundation, a not-for-profit school in Uganda supporting some of that nation’s most needy children.

For more about Anne Devereux-Mills, visit her website here.
Learn more The Parlay Effect here: TheParlayEffect.com
Learn more about Parlay House here: ParlayHouse.com
Follow Anne on twitter @annedevmills 
Follow Anne on Instagram @annedevmills
You can find her on LinkedIn: Here
To get Anne’s book The Parlay Effect on Amazon, click here

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Gaia Exec Producer Melissa Tittl Talks Unearthing Nazca Documentary

Are we the only beings in the universe?  You know you’ve thought about it. For decades the American public has postulated that beings from other planets or galaxies have come to earth and lived among us.

Unearthing Nazca: The Complete Story, is a new documentary produced by Gaia that just premiered on their site. It’s about controversial mummies that were found in Peru and covers the latest findings – and controversies  —  and what the experts are saying.  Could these be beings from another planet?

Our guest, Melissa Tittl, is the executive producer of the documentary, and the Director of Original Content for Gaia. We’ll ask her about how these mummies were found, what medical and forensic experts are saying about them, and if they could be a hoax.

Plus – are there more mummies out there? Why is the Peruvian government hindering their investigation, and what we can expect from Gaia in the future.

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Melissa and Pam

About Melissa:  For more than a decade, Melissa has been developing and producing motion pictures and television. Her particular expertise is to create narrative stories around non-fiction subjects. Truth is stranger than fiction.

Melissa is an investigative journalist in the government conspiracy realm and science fields. She produces and writes TV shows for several major networks.

In addition to her production work she also writes graphic novels, screenplays and has become a consultant for new film makers in the investigative government conspiracy space.

Following the viral success of last year’s short-form original series Unearthing Nazca, Melissa produced an original documentary on the latest findings and controversy surrounding the discovery of several ancient and anomalous mummies in Nazca, Peru. Unearthing Nazca: The Complete Story premiered on Gaia.com October 7. See the trailer here.

A Gaia original production, Unearthing Nazca: The Complete Story documents the culmination of years of analysis, patience, and persistence by an international team of professionals attempting to signal to the scientific community what could be one of the most important discoveries in human history.

Curious viewers can watch the full story as we know it today, including the latest scientific findings and CT scans of the mummies, behind-the-scenes politics and efforts to shut down a global investigation into the original of these beings, and never-before-seen footage of the location where the mummies were discovered.

For more on Unearthing Nazca: Click Here
Find out more about Gaia here: www.Gaia.com
Keep up with their twitter here: @YourMotherGaia

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Author Molly Knight Raskin: The Remarkable Life of Danny Lewin, 9/11 Victim, and Co-Founder of Akamai Technologies

Most people don’t know that Danny Lewin was likely the first victim to be lost in the 9/11 attacks. By the same token, most people are unaware that Danny was also one of the people who turned the “World Wide Wait” into the speedy internet we know today, as co-founder of Akamai Technologies, a company that used algorithms to put the zip into the speed needed online.

Amazingly, this is only the tip of the iceberg in Danny’s remarkable, short life. Molly Knight Raskin, author of “No Better Time: The Brief, Remarkable Life of Danny Lewin, The Genius Who Transformed The Internet,” tells a compelling story of an amazing man who accomplished great things during his abbreviated life.

This is a biography that you will truly not want to miss.

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Molly and Pam

For more about Molly Knight Raskin, visit her website here.
Follow Molly on twitter @MollyRaskin
To get Molly’s book No Better Time on Amazon, click here

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Sacred Power- Author and Speaker Caroline Myss

Sacred Power- Author and Speaker Caroline Myss teaches us about our own Sacred Power and how to enhance our lives

When it comes to human consciousness, spirituality, and the science of medical intuition, there is no one more recognizable and respected than Caroline Myss. We talk about her new series on the Gaia network – Sacred Power: Mastering the Nature of Your Soul, and her live event at the GaiaSphere theater in Boulder, CO August 16-18.

Caroline explains how we all are intuitive, how we have to be careful about giving away our power to others, and how everything we do affects others. She also shares how to find trust, why we need to walk our talk, and how we have to tip the world towards compassion and empathy and not towards violence and evil by beating evil at its own game.

We talk about how this is the most pivotal time in history, how we can’t look to the past for answers, and how evil is so very addicting.

Click on the player below to hear the chat with Caroline and Pam

 

Caroline Myss is a five-time New York Times bestselling author and internationally renowned speaker in the fields of human consciousness, spirituality and mysticism, health, energy medicine, and the science of medical intuition. Caroline established her own educational institute in 2003, CMED (Caroline Myss Education), which offers a diverse array of programs devoted to personal development and draws students from all over the world. In addition to hosting a weekly radio show on the Hay House network, Caroline maintains a rigorous international workshop and lecture schedule.

Caroline developed the field of Energy Anatomy, a science that correlates specific emotional/psychological/physical/spiritual stress patterns with diseases. Her research proved so accurate that it became the subject matter of a book co-written by Caroline and Norm: THE CREATION OF HEALTH.

In 1996, Caroline released ANATOMY OF THE SPIRIT, a New York Times bestseller that has been published in 28 languages and has sold over 1.5 million copies.

Caroline followed with two more New York Times bestsellers, INVISIBLE ACTS OF POWER in 2004 and ENTERING THE CASTLE in 2007. Caroline’s latest book, DEFY GRAVITY, was released in October 2009, a book exploring the mystical phenomenon of healing that transcends reason.

In addition to her written work, Caroline has produced more than eighty audio/visual products on subjects that include healing, spirituality, personal development, and the study of archetypes.

For more about Caroline Myss: Click Here
Be sure to watch her series Sacred Power: Click Here
For more about Gaia: Click here