323. Why you believe you’re right, even when you’re wrong, with Owen Fitzpatrick, social psychologist and author

When you hear the word propaganda, you picture a dictator, a politician, or an ad executive. You never picture yourself. But turns out, you are running the exact same campaign on yourself every day.

In this episode, charter occupational psychologist Leanne Elliott and entrepreneur Al Elliott are joined by psychologist, speaker, and author Owen Fitzpatrick. Owen has spent the last 25 years studying how beliefs form, why they change, and how they shape our leadership, choices, and success.

From coaching billionaires and Olympic athletes to speaking across 100 countries, Owen breaks down his concept of Inner Propaganda—the story you sell to yourself—and why logic bullying never works when trying to change minds.

🎙️ In This Episode:

• What is "Inner Propaganda"? Why beliefs aren't based on objective evidence, but on what feels true and protects who you think you are.

• The "It'll Be Grand" Effect: How your brain functions as a prediction machine designed for survival and stability, not necessarily your success.

• Desired Truth vs. Objective Truth: How startup founders (like James Dyson and Melanie Perkins) rely on desired truth to push boundaries—and how to avoid letting it blind you.

• Why "Logic Bullying" Fails: Why bombarding people with data rarely changes minds and why changing how someone feels is the real secret to influence.

• Leading Through AI & Future Change: How to frame organizational shifts around your team’s identity and potential, rather than triggering fear.

• Steve Jobs & Reality Distortion: How legendary leaders shift feelings to paint desired identities for executives and teams.

  
  

  💡 Top Takeaways

1. Stop Leading with Logic: Evidence comes last, not first. Work out how you want someone to feel before you deliver the arguments.

2. Catch Your Desired Truth: Ask yourself whether you believe an idea because the data supports it, or because you need it to be true.

3. Believe in Potential First: The leaders people willingly follow are the ones who believe in who someone can become, long before the evidence proves it.

👤 About the Guest

Owen Fitzpatrick is a psychologist, international speaker, author of 10 books, and host of the Inner Propaganda podcast. He helps global companies, leaders, and individuals master belief leadership to drive better decisions, influence teams, and reduce polarization.

Website: owenfitzpatrick.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/owenfitzp/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/owenf23/

Listen to Owen's Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inner-propaganda-with-owen-fitzpatrick/id1441538919

📬 Connect with Al & Leanne – LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/truthlieswork – Al Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thisisalelliott – Leanne Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meetleanne – Email: hello@truthliesandwork.com – Book a call: https://savvycal.com/meetleanne/chat

Mental health support UK & ROI — Samaritans Call 116 123 or visit https://www.samaritans.org UK — Mind Call 0300 123 3393 or visit https://www.mind.org.uk US — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline Call or text 988 or visit https://988lifeline.org Australia — Lifeline Call 13 11 14 or visit https://www.lifeline.org.au Global helplines https://findahelpline.com

🎧 Truth, Lies & Work is part of the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals.