Lessons Learned From Our FIRST 100 Episodes

Welcome back to the Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning podcast, episode #101, where we will review highlights from the past 100 episodes, that began in June 2019, with a behind the scenes lens, where we will take a look at the results created from this podcast, with the goal to inspire listeners to not just implement the ideas offered in each episode, but to think about what Horacio Sanchez from EPISODE #74 reminded me this week, of “the impact possible when you have an idea, nurture it, and watch it grow.” (Horacio Sanchez, EPISODE #74[i]).

My name is Andrea Samadi, and if you haven’t met me yet, I’m a former educator who created this podcast to bring the most current neuroscience research, along with high performing experts who have risen to the top of their field, with specific strategies or ideas that you can implement immediately, whether you are an educator, or working in the corporate space, to take your results to the next level. 

Before we get to the episode, and the highlights learned from our guests, I want to share some of the unexpected results that have come as a byproduct of this podcast to perhaps light a spark under anyone who might be thinking of new ways to create brand awareness, or market their business in 2021. If you have been thinking of ways that you can extend your voice, message and reach, I highly recommend this mode of delivery. I also want to thank everyone who has supported us with this mission, come on as a guest, or downloaded an episode. We wouldn’t exist without the guests who offer their time, expertise, and strategies designed to help our listeners (in over 132 countries) who tune in on a regular basis and take the ideas offered to make an impact locally in their schools, communities, businesses and workplaces. I appreciate the feedback and messages received via social media and email and look forward to the next 100 episodes. As long as there is still growth, I will continue to produce new episodes.

So Here are 3 Lessons Learned Looking Back at the 100 Episodes.

LESSON 1: WHEN THERE’S A NEED, CAN YOU PUT A SPIN ON IT?

I saw a serious need in the area of social and emotional learning that was being implemented in schools around the country and the world, and many educators didn’t know the best way to begin their implementation.  I thought it would be a good place to gather “best practices” from experts around the world to offer their ideas that we could all learn from and apply to our own lives.

But I knew I needed a bigger idea than just a podcast about social emotional learning in our schools, or emotional intelligence training in our workplaces. Too many people were already doing this. But not that many people were teaching the basics of practical neuroscience as it relates to this topic. The idea to combine neuroscience and social/emotional learning came with the thought that “success in life, and in college and career specifically, relies on student’s cognitive, (the core skills your brain uses to think, read, remember, and pay attention) social and interpersonal skills, (including the ability to navigate through social situations, resolve conflicts, show respect towards others, self-advocate and learn how to work on a team with others) and emotional development (including the ability to recognize and manage one’s emotions, demonstrate empathy for others and cope with stress).” In the corporate world, these skills aren’t new, but they are “newly important” and of high urgency to develop in our future generations. I’ve mentioned this quote before but think it’s important enough to repeat. A recent survey showed that 58 percent of employers say college graduates aren’t adequately prepared for today’s workforce, and those employers noted a particular gap in social and emotional skills. This is where our goal with this podcast began—to close this gap by exploring six social and emotional learning competencies as a springboard for discussion and tie in how an understanding of our brain can facilitate these strategies. 

AHA! MOMENT with LESSON 1

That’s really how I took the need, put a spin on it, and came up with the title Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning in 2016 (3 years before launching the podcast) when I first began presenting on this topic. This title drew the session on the introduction to practical neuroscience to fill up with standing room only, at the YRDSB Quest Conference, in Toronto, Canada. This was my first presentation on the topic, and I knew at that moment that there was a serious interest in this topic.

Back then, I was working one on one with one of the leading neuroscience researchers in the country, Mark Robert Waldman, and he had just finished writing his book Neurowisdom: The New Brain Science of Money, Happiness and Success[ii], When he shared his research with me, I saw how practical neuroscience could help people to gain a deeper understanding of how to create change from the brain level and impact their social and emotional thinking and began to write the outline for the vision I saw. I also found Dr. Lori Desautels this year, who is now a good friend and supporter of our work.

This was how we took a need and put a spin on it. The rest is history.

LESSON 2: THINK IMPACT vs INCOME: GIVER’S GAIN

After the first few months of releasing episodes, I heard from so many people who wanted to know “how did you launch this idea,” and asked about some best practices as they began thinking of ways to replicate the results that inevitably come when you put in consistent daily effort that turns into weekly and then monthly effort until it’s no longer effort, but what you do every day, habitually. If you want to know if launching a podcast would work for you, message me and I can send you some ideas on how to get started, but my first tip would be that you should pick a topic that you love, something that you won’t mind putting in the time and effort to learn more about, as this is what you will be immersed in on a daily basis.

I heard a few times “How do you make money with a podcast?” and that’s a great question and why I wanted the second lesson to focus on the impact you will have, not the income. When you have enough listeners, you can earn money from sponsorships and ads, but the key is to use the podcast as a tool to drive people to your programs and services. Doors will start to open for you in ways that you never imagined. I heard Max Lugavere (an American television personality and health and wellness writer) talking about these incredible types of results at about the 2-year mark of his podcast on Dhru Purohit’s Broken Brain Podcast[iii]. The income will come once you put your focus on service and helping others to achieve their goals.

This is exactly the same concept as writing a book. Most people who dream of writing a book, think that it will take off like the Harry Potter Series, and they will be set, riding off into the sunset as a millionaire. The truth is that most authors never sell more than a few hundred copies of their books, and for it to become a best seller, it should reach 10,000 copies sold in a week. This is easier to do when selling larger volumes (like to schools or organizations that want your book) but not easy at all to do when selling books one at a time, relying on Amazon as your distribution service. Authors know that books, like a podcast, are just a tool to get your message out there. Since I have released content both ways, I can say from experience that putting your best content out into the world, for FREE, with the idea of helping people, will yield better results than thinking of selling your ideas before anyone even knows who you are.

AHA! MOMENT with LESSON 2

This podcast was actually originally going to be an educational course, written for a publisher, but a turn of events had me decide to release this content in the form of a podcast for FREE, to be used by anyone who needed these resources. What was interesting is that when I put a focus on the IMPACT I wanted to create, rather than the INCOME it would give me back in return, something magical happened. Max Lugavere mentioned it happened for him at the 2-year mark, and I would have to say it happened for me around the 100th episode mark after just a year and seven months. The opportunities came disguised as consistent, daily, effort and work.

LESSON 3: MASTER PROLIFIC QUALITY OUTPUT (PQO).

I heard this statement for years, until this experience made me finally understand it. Brendon Burchard, the author of the book High Performance Habits talks about how “High performers have mastered the art of prolific quality output (PQO). They produce more high-quality output than their peers over the long term, and that is how they become more effective, better known, more remembered. They aim their attention and consistent efforts toward PQO and minimize any distractions (including opportunities) that would steal them away from their craft” (Burchard, 2017[iv]). 

 

Over the years, I never really understood what PQO meant. I listened to Brendon explain it a few times, and he would give the example of “Beyonce, who puts out hit after hit, or Ralph Lauren who creates luxury and designer product after product, or even Seth Godin who creates blog post after blog post.” There’s also the WakeUpIt’sDayOne Blog who explains PQO as it relates to athletes as “the type of things you typically don’t see an immediate reward with or have to repeat on a daily basis. Think about Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Lebron James, Tom Brady – the greatest athletes of all time. When you research them and understand how they became who they are today, all you ever read is that they focused on the fundamental things that improved their overall physical and mental skills[v]” their PQO—and I would add consistently, on a daily basis.

AHA! MOMENT with LESSON 3

Then I thought, what is my PQO? What is my output? What am I creating day in and day out? I’ve always been creating content, but it hit me after I had been producing episodes consistently for a year, that my PQO was the podcast episodes. I had created a certain standard with each episode that included the fact that each one had to be my best effort. If I wasn’t ready to interview someone, or had not researched enough, I would not produce the episode until it hit that standard.

I also saw the importance of creating a video interview where I could edit in images and text to explain what the person I was interviewing was talking about. Many times, the concepts discussed are difficult to understand with words alone, so this became another standard. The final standard was that each interview had to be produced and released either that same day, or no longer than 2 days after. Waiting too long in production destroys the momentum created by the interview, so this meant many times that editing went into the night and researching early morning and weekends. Many content producers outsource their video or audio editing and production, but to date, each of the episodes have been produced and edited by yours truly. We will see what happens with this over the next 100 episodes.

If you want to make an impact that goes beyond what your mind can imagine, a global impact, you need to have mastered Prolific Quality Output. Do YOU know what YOUR PQO is?

Now that we have looked at some of the results created from this podcast, that really were unexpected, this episode will take a closer look at some lessons learned from the speakers along the way, as they relate to the 6 social and emotional competencies and how we tied in a connection to practical neuroscience for improved productivity and results.

After each interview, I brainstormed the most important points learned with my husband, since he is also in the field of education. He always asks “what did you learn from this speaker” and there’s always 2-5 AHA points that definitely surprised me. I love making connections between the speakers and mapping out what each one says to other episodes. We really are connected, and what one person says, connects to what someone else will say in a later episode.  I’m always looking for ways to take knowledge and make it applicable for anyone who is willing to apply it and use it.

Just a note: Even though I had a written outline for the podcast, it did take a turn towards health and wellness close to the end of 2020, which I think was important and necessary. I will pull out examples used from our speakers in the following areas:

EXPERTS WHO:

1. Demonstrate Practical Neuroscience to Improve Results
2. Demonstrate the Social and Emotional Learning Competencies (Mindset, Self-Regulation, Self-Awareness, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Decision-Making).
3. Explain SEL in the EDUCATIONAL SETTING
4. Are Involved with PHYSICAL HEALTH, WELLNESS AND NUTRITION

LESSONS LEARNED FROM PRACTICAL NEUROSCIENCE

THE POWER IN LEARNING ABOUT HOW OUR AMAZING BRAINS WORK: This area is where I spent the most time on the podcast, making sure we had a variety of experts, many who are well known with their books and research, to make a case for the importance of learning the basics of neuroscience to improve our productivity and results.

Whether it was tips from 15-year-old Chloe Amen on how you can “Change Your Brain and Change Your Grades,” neuroscientist Friederike Fabritius on ways to “Achieve Peak Performance,” Dr. John Medina on his “Brain Rules” or Dr. Lori Desautels on the power of implementing neuroscience in today’s schools, the one person who tied everything together was Dr. Mary Helen Immordino-Yang with her research that shows “The Brain Basis for Integrated Social, Emotional, and Academic Development.” Her work shows how emotions and social relationships drive learning, bringing the entire podcast full circle as Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning. I saw the importance of these 2 topics, and Mary Helen can prove why they are so important, with her work at the University of SCA in her Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning and Education (CANDLE LAB).  

We will continue to bring more lessons that tie practical neuroscience to social, emotional and academic development in our future episodes as this really is the future of education. What was interesting to note in this area was that EPISODE #68: Neuroscience of Personal Change with Stephen R Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” was the #1 most downloaded EPISODE with over 1100 downloads, showing me that people want to make this connection linking neuroscience to success and of the POWER IN LEARNING ABOUT HOW OUR AMAZING BRAINS WORK.

LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE 6 SEL COMPETENCIES

1. SEL COMPETENCY: MINDSET

“A great attitude does more than turn on the lights in our worlds, it seems to magically connect us to all sorts of serendipitous opportunities that were somehow absent before the change.” Earl Nightingale, author of Think and Grow Rich 

Frank Shankwitz, from EPISODE #40 has modeled what happens when you keep a good mental mindset, for the course of his life. So much so, that they made a movie about his life, called Wish Man, that is based on Frank’s life story (he was a motorcycle cop in Arizona who was haunted by the traumatic separation from his father when he was a boy. After surviving a near-fatal accident, he finds hope with a terminally ill boy, who reunites him with his father. To honor this boy, Frank creates the Make a Wish Foundation, and continues to live a life of honor every day. Nothing can tear this man down. Follow him on social media and you will see for yourself of the importance of a “great mental attitude.”

2. SEL COMPETENCY: SELF-REGULATION with PERSISTENCE and PERSEVERANCE

“Success has to do with deliberate practice. Practice must be focused, determined, and in the environment where there’s feedback.” Malcolm Gladwell

Dr. John Dunlosky from EPISODE #37 started this topic off with his years of research that showed that “deliberate practice” was one of the most effective learning strategies, vs cramming for a test. We’ve all heard this and know that knowledge will be retained and recalled more efficiently when it’s learned over a period of time.  

Todd Woodcroft, the former assistant coach to the Winnipeg Jets, current Head Coach to the University of Vermont Catamounts[vi], from EPISODE #38 puts John Dunlosky’s theory into practice as he explained that the “daily grind in the NHL” begins with “hard work” being a baseline of what is expected of each player, and that to rise above this baseline, players must embrace certain daily habits, without complaining of the work, knowing that “things don’t get easier as you get better, they get harder” with the repetition of these important skills.

Dalip Shekhawat further reinforced Dunlosky’s research with his interview detailing the preparation involved in climbing Mount Everest, and neuroscientist Stephanie Faye from EPISODE #39 shares why this spaced repetition is so important at the brain level when she explains how the neural pathways are formed with this daily, consistent practicing of skill.

3. SEL COMPETENCY: SELF-AWARENESS with MENTAL HEALTH and WELL-BEING

“When I discover who I am, I’ll be free.” Ralph Ellison

Moving into the 3rd SEL competency, self-awareness, this was the area that received the most downloads. The second most downloaded episode was my interview with my mentor, Bob Proctor, that shares where this idea began over 20 years ago. The third most downloaded episode was my solo lesson with a deep dive into everything I learned working directly with Bob, in the seminar industry for 6 years.

Many of the speakers interviewed in this area came from the connections made from these speakers that I met in the late 1990s. It was here that I first saw the power of these social and emotional learning skills with 12 young teens, who would inspire me to keep moving forward with this work.

This section is full of speakers, leaders, entrepreneurs of all ages who have a vision, like I do, for change with our educational system.

EPISODE #66 Bob Proctor #2 MOST DOWNLOADED EPISODE on “Social and Emotional Learning: Where it all Started for Andrea Samadi”

EPISODE #67 “Expanding Your Awareness with a Deep Dive into the Most Important Concepts Learned from Bob Proctor Seminars” (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #68 The Neuroscience of Personal Change with Stephen R. Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People” (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi)

#1 MOST DOWNLOADED EPISODE with over 1100 downloads

4. SOCIAL AWARENESS/RELATIONSHIPS/DECISION-MAKING

These 3 SEL competencies are important with solo lessons for each topic. Greg Wolcott, the author of the book www.significant72.com was dominant in this area. I will mention an aha moment with his work in the next section.

LESSONS LEARNED FROM EXPERTS IN SEL/EDUCATION

1. TAKE ACTION, EVEN WHEN YOU AREN’T READY. My first guest speaker was my husband, Majid Samadi, who always is there to offer ideas, suggestions and support with all of my projects, so of course when I needed to interview someone to launch this idea, I asked him to be my first guest. If you go back to EPISODE #1 that covers “The Why Behind Launching an SEL or Emotional Intelligence Program in Your School or Workplace” you will hear me interview him on his thoughts, from the point of view of someone who spends most of his time, working in schools across the country, as the Regional Vice President of Sales for an Educational Publishing Company. This interview happened 5 minutes after he walked in the door after getting off a flight, I think from LA, and he put his suit jacket on my desk, and I handed him a sheet of questions and said “Answer these and talk into the mic.” I’m sure he had been working since early that morning, and it was well into the evening when we recorded this, but he did it, without rehearsing his answers, or spending time preparing. We launched the podcast when we weren’t 100% ready because if we didn’t, I’m sure I would still be spending my days planning. Take action, even when you aren’t ready.
2. PAY ATTENTION TO EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE: SMALL DETAILS CAN LEAD TO BIG DISCOVERIES AND RELATIONSHIPS THAT LAST My second interview was with educator, Ron Hall, from Valley Day School (who I found from an article I saw through Linkedin, and reached out to him hoping he would say yes to being a guest on the show). He agreed, and we have remained in contact ever since. Something funny to mention is that I had just started using Zoom for these interviews, a year before everyone would be using Zoom, and I hadn’t mastered the audio yet. There was a setting on my end that I needed to fix, and finally figured it out, but I’ll never forget the stress of not being able to hear my first guest for a good 30 minutes (could have been longer) as he tried everything on his end to fix the audio, that we finally figured out was on my end. Once we figured it all out, Ron spoke about how he launched neuroscience into his school with one of his major influencers being an author and speaker named Horacio Sanchez. When I created the video for Ron’s interview, I added an image of Horacio as he explained his story. This became important a year later, when I was introduced to Horacio Sanchez from Corwin Press Publishers for Episode #74. With each person you meet, whether in your life, or work, it’s important to pay attention to small details that can lead to something important to you later on. Always develop and maintain relationships as you never know how that person could be of assistance to you, or you to them, at some point in the future.  I’m forever grateful for Ron Hall being my first guest, for staying in touch with me, and for the introduction to Horacio Sanchez, who I’m working with now on another project. GRATEFUL FOR BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS THAT LAST.
3. KEEP LEARNING AND DON’T GET IN YOUR OWN WAY: One of my early interviews was with Greg Wolcott, and assistant superintendent from Chicago, and the author the book Significant 72[vii]. I had been following Greg’s work since I heard him on an SEL webinar in 2016, where he explained how he was building relationships in schools across the country. Greg quickly became an incredible supporter of the podcast after our interview and referred me to many other guests. We became friends, and kept in touch as each episode was released, he would let me know how useful the information was for the educators he was working with, as he brainstormed the ways that the episodes were helping him. This gave me belief in the content, as I saw it being applied, and made me realize that it was crazy that I was nervous interviewing Greg, who would become an incredible support, leading me to step out of my own way, and into a path of greater opportunity down the line. Reminding me to KEEP LEARNING AND DON’T GET IN YOUR OWN WAY!

LESSONS LEARNED FROM HEALTH/NUTRITION

When I launched this podcast, I had no idea I was going to even go in the direction of health, wellbeing and nutrition. It just happened. Health is my #1 value, and something I put an incredible amount of time towards, so it wasn’t a surprise to me that when the Pandemic hit our world, I saw the importance of interviewing people who were putting a focus on their physical health as well as their mental health and well-being.

I’ve always stayed close to my trainer, Kelly Schmidt, from episode #51, but when I watched a documentary on the health staples that were shown to prevent Alzheimer’s Disease, I decided that I needed to expand what I knew in this area.

 

I took the 5 health staples and began looking for people I could contact who were experts in each of these areas. I met Luke DePron on Linkedin, who connected me to Dr. Stickler, and Momo Vuyisich. I reached out to Shane Creado from Dr. Daniel Amen’s Clinics, leading us to get our brain scans, learn more about the importance of sleep and finally, reached out to Jason Wittrock on Instagram, after his videos had inspired me to make changes with my diet a few years back.

This set of interviews led me to moderate Podbean’s Wellness Week with Dr. Carolyn Leaf and John Kim, who you bet I am working on getting on the podcast for 2021.

I hope you have enjoyed this review of our first 100 EPISODES. There is a lot of information to review, and many lessons that I plan on revisiting over the holidays as a review. I’ll definitely be reviewing EPISODE #66 The Neuroscience of Personal Change (our #1 episode) and will be planning Season 5. Please do send me a message via social media, or email andrea@achieveit360.com and let me know what episodes you have liked, so I can be sure that I am producing the best content I can for you.

See you next year.

Health Staple 1: Daily Exercise  (Luke DePron)

Health Staple 2: Getting Good Quality Sleep (Dr. Shane Creado)

Health Staple 3: Eating a Healthy Diet (Dr. Daniel Stickler).

Health Staple 4: Optimizing our Microbiome (Momo Vuyisich)

Health Staple 5: Intermittent Fasting (Jason Wittrock)

 

EXPERTS WHO DEMONSTRATE PRACTICAL NEUROSCIENCE TO IMPROVE RESULTS:

EPISODE #11: 15-year-old Chloe Amen on how to “Change Your Brain, Change Your Grades”

EPISODE #17: Harvard Researcher Jenny Woo on “The Latest Research, Brain Facts, Myths, Growth Mindset, Memory and Cognitive Biases”

EPISODE #26: Simple Strategies for Overcoming the Pitfalls of Your Brain

(Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)  to Prepare for EPISODE #27

EPISODE #27: Friederike Fabritius on “Achieving Peak Performance”

EPISODE #28: Dr. Daniel Siegel on “Mindsight: The Basis of Social and Emotional Intelligence”

EPISODE #30: Mark Robert Waldman on “12 Brain-Based Experiential Learning and Living Principles”

EPISODE #35: How to Use Your Brain to Break Bad Habits (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #42 Dr. John Medina on “Implementing Brain Rules in the Schools and Workplaces of the Future”

EPISODE #43 Deep Dive into Dr. John Medina’s Brain Rules

(Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #44 Andrea Samadi’s “12 Mind-Boggling Discoveries About the Brain”

(Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #46: As Close to Mind Reading as Brain Science Gets “Developing and Using Theory of Mind in Your Daily Life”

EPISODE #48: Brain Network Theory : Using Neuroscience to Stay Productive During Times of Change and Chaos  (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #56: Dr. Lori Desautels on her new book “Connections Over Compliance: Rewiring Our Perceptions of Discipline

EPISODE #57: Taking Initiative: Your Brain and Change and Your Mentors

(Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #58: James MacDiardmid and Natasha Davis on "The Wise Emotional Fitness Program" (Virtual Reality).

EPISODE #59: Suzanne Gundersen on “Putting the Polyvagal Theory into Practice”

EPISODE #60: The Science and Benefits of Dan Siegel’s “Wheel of Awareness Meditation” (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #68: Neuroscience of Personal Change with Stephen R Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” (#1 EPISODE with over 1100 downloads)

EPISODE #69: Ben Ampil on “Using Your Brain to Manage Your Behavior and Results”

EPISODE #73: Chris Manning on "Using Neurowisdom to Improve Your Learning and Success in Life."

EPISODE #78: David A Sousa on “How the Brain Learns”

EPISODE #81 Critical Thinking and The Brain (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #82 Doug Sutton “How a Brain Scan Changed My Life” PART 1

EPISODE #83 What Exactly is a Brain Scan and Can it Change Your Life PART 2 (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi) 

EPISODE #84 Brain Scan Results PART 3 (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #85: Dr. Sarah McKay on “High Performing Brain Health Strategies That We Should All Know and Implement”

EPISODE #88: Dr. Andrew Newberg on “Neurotheology, Spect Scans and Strategies for the Aging Brain”

EPISODE #97: Kirun Goy and Samuel Holston on “The Neuroscience Behind Our Habits, Addictions, Love and Fears.”

EPISODE #98 Dr. Dawson Church on “The Science Behind Meditation: Rewiring Your Brain for Happiness”

EPISODE #100: Mary Helen Immordino-Yang on “The Neuroscience of Social and Emotional Learning”

 

EXPERTS WHO DEMONSTRATE THE 6 SEL COMPETENCIES: MINDSET

EPISODE #20: Coaching a Growth Mindset: Strategies for Overcoming Obstacles and Cognitive Bias (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #40 Frank Shankwitz on “Lessons from the Wishman Movie”

EPISODE #49: Dr. Jeffrey Magee on “Managing Fear, Focus and Strategy During Challenging Times”

EPISODE #52: “Igniting Your Personal Leadership to Build Resiliency”

(Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi—Inspired by Dr. Bruce Perry).  

EPISODE #55: Torsten Nicolini on “Working Smart: How to Improve Productivity and Efficiency at Work”

EPISODE #61 Maria Natapov on “Building Autonomy, Self-Confidence, Connection and Resiliency Within our Children”

EPISODE #73 Chris Manning Ph. D on “Using Neurowisdom to Improve Your Learning and Success in Life”

EPISODE #74 Horacio Sanchez who Addresses Race, Culture and How to Apply Brain Science to Improve Instruction and School Climate”

EPISODE #86 University of Phoenix President Peter Cohen on “A Positive Vision for K-12 and Higher Ed Campuses”

EPISODE #99 Irene Lyon on “The Science Behind Trauma and a Healthy Immune System”

 

SELF-REGULATION with PERSISTENCE and PERSEVERANCE

EPISODE #14: Self-Regulation: The Foundational Learning Skill for Future Success

(Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #37: Dr. John Dunlosky on “Improving Student Success: Some Principles from Cognitive Science”

EPISODE #38:  Former Assistant Coach to the Winnipeg Jets Todd Woodcroft on “The Daily Grind in the NHL”

EPISODE #39 Stephanie Faye on “Using Neuroscience to Improve our Mindset, Self-Regulation and Self-Awareness”

EPISODE #45: Dalip Shekhawit on “Life Lessons Learned from Summiting Mount Everest”

EPISODE #53: Self-Regulation and Your Brain: How to Bounce Back Towards Resiliency (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #70 Self-Regulation and Behavior Change-Andrea Samadi solo lesson on David R Hawkins’ “Power vs Force” (4th MOST DOWNLOADED EPISODE)

CASE STUDIES

EPISODE #13: Teen Artist Sam Roberts on “Winning a 4-Year Prestigious Leadership Scholarship at the University of AR Fort Smith.”

EPISODE #68: Donte Dre Winrow on “Breaking into a Challenging Career Path”

EPISODE #50: Shark Tank Season 1 Success Story Tiffany Krumins on “Life After Shark Tank”

SELF-AWARENESS with MENTAL HEALTH and WELL-BEING

EPISODE #6: Helen Maffini from the Mindful Peace Summits on “Launching Mindfulness and Meditation in Our Schools”

EPISODE #8: 14- year-old Adam Avin on “Improving Well-Being and Mental Health in Our Schools”

EPISODE #21: Spencer Taylor on his Educational Documentary “The Death of Recess”

EPISODE #23: Understanding the Difference Between Your Mind and Your Brain

(Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #25: Mindfulness and Meditation Expert Mick Neustadt on “How Meditation and Mindfulness Changes Your Life”

EPISODE #29: How to Re-Wire Your Brain for Happiness and Well-Being

EPISODE #31: Nik Halik on “Overcoming Adversity to Create an Epic Life”

EPISODE #32: John Assaraf on “Brain Training, The Power of Repetition, Resourcefulness and the Future”

EPISODE #33: Kent Healy on “Managing Time, Our Greatest Asset”

EPISODE #34: Chris Farrell on “Actionable Strategies for High Achievers to Improve Daily Results”

EPISODE #65 Dr. Barbara Schwarck on “Using Energy Psychology and Emotional Intelligence to Improve Leadership in the Workplace”

EPISODE #66 Bob Proctor on “Social and Emotional Learning: Where it all Started for Andrea Samadi”

#2 MOST DOWNLOADED EPISODE

EPISODE #67 “Expanding Your Awareness with a Deep Dive into the Most Important Concepts Learned from Bob Proctor Seminars” (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #68 The Neuroscience of Personal Change with Stephen R. Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People” (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi) #1 MOST DOWNLOADED EPISODE with over 1100 downloads

EPISODE #80 Samantha Wettje on “Mitigating the Negative Effects of ACES with Her 16 Strong Project”

EPISODE #92 Sarah Peyton on “Brain Network Theory, Default Mode Network, Anxiety and Emotion Regulation.”

EPISODE #95 Dr. Sandy Gluckman on “Reversing Children’s Behavior and Mood Problems”

 

SOCIAL AWARENESS

EPISODE #5: Social Awareness: How to Change Your Social Brain (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi)

RELATIONSHIP SKILLS

EPISODE #7: Greg Wolcott on “Building Relationships in Today’s Schools”

EPISODE #9: Using Your Brain to Build and Sustain Effective Relationships (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi)

DECISION-MAKING

EPISODE #9: Using Your Brain to Build and Sustain Effective Relationships (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi)

EXPERTS IN SEL AND EDUCATION

EPISODE #1: Majid and Andrea Samadi on “The Why Behind Implementing an SEL or Emotional Intelligence Training Program in Our Schools and Workplaces”

EPISODE #2: Self-Awareness: Know Thyself (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #3: Ron Hall from Valley Day School on “Launching Your Neuro-educational Program”

EPISODE #4: Jennifer Miller on “Building Connections with Parents and Educators”

EPISODE #12: Clark McKown on “SEL Assessments Made Simple”

EPISODE #16: Dr. Lori Desautels and Michael McKnight on “The Future of Educational Neuroscience in Our Schools and Communities”

EPISODE #18: Kenneth Kohutek, PhD on his new book “Chloe and Josh Learn Grit”

EPISODE #19: Bob Jerus on “Emotional Intelligence Training and Suicide Prevention”

EPISODE #22: Marc Brackett on his new book “Permission to Feel”

EPISODE #24: Dr. Jeff Rose on “Leadership, Innovation and the Future”

EPISODE #36: James Nottingham on “The Importance of Challenge with Learning”

EPISODE #40: Erik Francis on “How to Use Questions to Promote Cognitive Rigor, Thinking and Learning”

EPISODE #47: Erik Francis on “Transitioning Teaching and Learning in the Classroom to Home”

EPISODE #54: David Adams on “ A New Vision for Education: Living Up to the Values We Want for Our Next Generation.”

EPISODE #62: CEO of CASEL Karen Niemi on “Tools and Strategies to Enhance and Expand SEL in our Schools and Communities”

EPISODE #63: Hans Appel on “Building an Award Winning Culture in Your School or Organization”

EPISODE #64: Greg Wolcott on “Making Connections Between Neuroscience and SEL”

EPISODE #75 Maurice J Elias on “Boosting Emotional Intelligence Through Sports, Academics and Character”

EPISODE #76 Michael B Horn on “Using a Positive Lens to Explore Change and the Future of Education”

EPISODE #77 Doug Fisher/Nancy Frey on “Developing and Delivering High Quality Distance Learning for Students”

EPISODE #79 Eric Jensen on “Strategies for Reversing the Impact of Poverty and Stress on Student Learning:”

EPISODE #91 Drs. Jessica and John Hannigan on “SEL From a Distance: Tools and Processes for Anytime, Anywhere.”

 

EXPERTS IN PHYSICAL HEALTH, WELLNESS and NUTRITION

EPISODE #51: Kelly Schmidt on “Easy to Implement Fitness and Nutrition Tips”

Jason Wittrock on “Nutrition, Intermittent Fasting and the Ketogenic Diet”

EPISODE #71 Self-Regulation and Sleep with Dr. Shane Creado’s “ Peak Sleep Performance for Athletes” (Solo Lesson by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #72 Dr. Shane Creado on “Sleep Strategies That Will Guarantee a Competitive Advantage”

EPISODE #87 The Top 5 Brain Health and Alzheimer’s Prevention Strategies (Solo Lesson with Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #89 Dr. Erik Won on “Groundbreaking Technology That is Changing the Future of Mental Health”

EPISODE #90 Luke DePron on “Neuroscience, Health, Fitness and Growth”

EPISODE #93 Momo Viyisich on “Improving the Microbiome, Preventing and Reversing Chronic Disease”

EPISODE #94 Jason Wittrock on “Nutrition, Intermittent Fasting and the Ketogenic Diet”

EPISODE #96 Dr. Daniel Stickler on “Expanding Awareness for Limitless Peak Performance, Health, Longevity and Intelligence.”

BONUS EPISODE: Top 5 Health Staples and Review of Season 1-4

(Solo Episode by Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #82 "How a Brain Scan Changed My Life" With Doug Sutton PART 1

EPISODE # 83 "What is a SPECT Scan and How Can it Change Your Life?" PART 2 (with Andrea Samadi)

EPISODE #84  "Brain Scan Results" with Andrea Samadi PART 3

 

Each Season at a Glance:

Season 1: Consists of 33 episodes that begin with introducing six the social and emotional competencies (building a growth mindset, making responsible decisions, becoming self-aware, increasing social-awareness, managing emotions and behavior and developing relationships) along with an introduction to cognitive skills that I call Neuroscience 101 where we introduce some of the most important cognitive strategies, or the core skills your brain uses to think, remember and pay attention.

 

CONTENT: In this season, you will learn about understanding your mind vs your brain, mindfulness and meditation, the 3 parts of your brain, achieving peak performance, and improving awareness, mindsight, rewiring your brain for happiness, and experiential learning. We interviewed Ron Hall from Valley Day School who talked about how he launched his neuroeducation program into his school, Jennifer Miller on “Building Connections with Parents and Educators,” Helen Maffini on her Mindful Peace Summit and “Launching Mindfulness and Meditation in our Schools,” Greg Wolcott on “Building Relationships in Today’s Classrooms,” 14 year old Adam Avin on “Improving Our Mental Health in Our Schools,” Clark McKown from xSEL Labs on “SEL Assessments” and how we can actually measure these skills, Sam Roberts on her experience of “Winning a 4 Year Prestigious Scholarship” using these skills, Donte Winrow on “Breaking into a Challenging Career Path” with the application of these skills immediately after graduating from high school, Dr. Lori Desautels and Michael McKnight on “The Future of Educational Neuroscience in Today’s Schools,” Harvard researcher Jenny Woo on “The Latest Research, Brain Facts and Myths, Growth Mindset, Memory and Cognitive Biases,” Psychologist Dr. Kenneth Kohutek on his new book “Chloe and Josh Learn Grit,” Psychologist Bob Jerus on “Suicide Prevention and Emotional Intelligence Training,” Spencer Taylor on his “Death of Recess Educational Documentary” featuring Carol Dweck and Sir Ken Robinson, Marc Brackett on his powerful book “Permission to Feel,” former Superintendent Dr. Jeff Rose on “Leadership, Innovation and the Future,” Mick Neustadt on “How Meditation and Mindfulness Can Change Your Life,” Friederike Fabritius from Germany on “Achieving Peak Performance with the Brain in Mind,” Dr. Daniel Siegel on “Mindsight: The Basis for Social and Emotional Intelligence,” my mentor and neuroscience researcher Mark Robert Waldman on “12 Brain-Based Experiential Learning and Living Principles,” Nik Halik on “Overcoming Adversity to Create an Epic Life,” and John Assaraf on “Brain Training, the Power of Repetition, Resourcefulness and the Future.”

 

Season 2: These 33 episodes build on the strategies from Season 1, with high level guests who tie in social, emotional, interpersonal and cognitive strategies to increase results in schools, sports and the workplace. You will learn about the power of repetition, challenge, creativity, using your brain to break bad habits, how the brain ties into mindset, self-regulation, and self-awareness, cognitive rigor, thinking, learning, brain rules for schools and the workplace, the theory of mind, brain network theory, personal leadership, taking initiative, resiliency, the science behind mindfulness/meditation and your values.

 

CONTENT: You will hear from Chris Farrell on “Strategies for High Achievers,” James Nottingham on “The Importance of Challenge with Learning,” Dr. John Dunlosky on “Improving Student Success,” Todd Woodcroft on “The Daily Grind in the NHL,” Stefanie Faye on “Using Neuroscience to Improve our Mindset, Self-Regulation, and Self-Awareness,” the Co-Founder of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Frank Shankwitz on “Lessons from the Wish Man Movie,” Erik Francis on “How to Use Questions to Promote Cognitive Rigor, Thinking and Learning,” Dr. John Medina on “Implementing Brain Rules in the Schools and Workplaces of the Future,” Dalip Shekhawat on “Life Lessons Learned from Summiting Mount Everest,” Dr. Jeff Magee on “Managing Fear, Focus and Strategy During Challenging Times,” Tiffany Krumins on “Life After Shark Tank,” Kelly Schmidt on Easy to Implement Fitness and Nutrition Tips,” David Adams on “A New Vision for Education,” Torsten Nicolini on “Working Smart,” Dr. Lori Desautels on her book “Connections Over Compliance,” The Wise Emotional Fitness Program delivered via virtual reality with James MacDiarmid and Natasha Davis all the way from Australia, Suzanne Gunderson on “Putting the Polyvagal Theory into Practice,” Maria Natapov on “Building Autonomy, Self-Confidence, Connection and Resiliency Within Our Children,” Casel President Karen Niemi on “Tools and Strategies to Enhance and Expand SEL in our Schools and Communities,” Hans Appel on “Building an Award Winning Culture in Your School or Organization,” Greg Wolcott on “Making Connections with Neuroscience and SEL,” Dr. Barbara Schwarck on “Using Energy Psychology and Emotional Intelligence to Improve Leadership in the Workplace,” and an Introduction to my first mentor, speaker, Bob Proctor on “Social and Emotional Learning: Where it All Started,” where I share how I began working with these skills over 20 years ago,  along with a deep dive into some of the lessons learned from Bob Proctor’s Seminars.

Season 3: These 14 episodes tie in some of the top authors in the world who connect their work to these social, emotional and cognitive skills, with clear examples for improved results, well-being and achievement within each episode.

CONTENT: You will learn about the neuroscience of personal change with a deep dive into Dr. Stephen Covey’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” (that’s currently the most downloaded episode) Self-Regulation and Behavior Change with David R Hawkins’ “Power vs Force,” Self-Regulation and Sleep with Dr. Shane Creado’s “Peak Sleep Performance for Athletes,” Chris Manning on using “Neurowisdom” to Improve Learning and Success in Life, Horatio Sanchez on “Resilience,” Maurice J Elias on “Social and Emotional and Character Development,” Michael B Horn on “Disrupting Education” and the future of education, Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey on “High Quality Distance Learning.” David A Sousa on “How the Brain Learns,” Eric Jensen on “Reversing the Impact of Poverty and Stress on Student Learning” and Samantha Wettje from Harvard on “Mitigating the Negative Effect of ACES.” I conclude this season with a solo lesson from me, on critical thinking and the brain, after being asked to create an episode on this topic for the corporate space.

 

Season 4:  These 18 episodes (82-100) that begin to tie in health, and mental health into the understanding of our brain, productivity and results. The shift to health on this podcast became apparent when we started to see how important our brain health is for our overall results.

 

CONTENT: Everything that we do starts at the brain level, and we dive deep into this with our 3-part episodes on “How a Brain Scan Changed My Life” with a look at what we can learn from looking at our brain using a SPECT image brain scan. The interviews of this season mix in the power of education with an understanding of health and wellness. Dr. Sarah McKay agreed with Dr. Shane Creado (from Season 3) that sleep is one of the most important health strategies we can implement. It became apparent that there were 5 health staples that emerged as so powerful they were showing an impact on Alzheimer’s Prevention, so this season became a deep dive into these top 5 health staples (daily exercise, getting good quality and quantity sleep, eating a healthy diet, optimizing our microbiome and intermittent fasting). You will also hear from Dr. Andrew Newberg and his episode on Neurotheology, Dr. Erik Won and his ground -breaking technology that’s changing the future of mental health, Luke DePron, who is stretching the limits with neuroscience, health, fitness and growth, Sarah Peyton on “Brain Network Theory, Default Mode Network, Anxiety and Emotion Regulation,” Momo Vuyisich on “Preventing and Reversing Chronic Disease by Improving the Health of Your Microbiome,” Jason Wittrock on the Ketogentic Diet and Intermittent Fasting, and Dr. Sandy Gluckman on “Reversing Children’s Behavior and Mood Problems.” We also hear from behavior experts Drs. Jessica and John Hannigan on their new book “SEL From a Distance” that offers simple strategies for parents and educators who are working on implementing these SEL skills into their home or classroom, during the pandemic.

When Season 4 took the direction of health, mental-health, and wellness, I began looking for guests to dive deeper into the Top 5 health staples that seemed to continue to emerge with each guest. Dr. Daniel Stickler came on with the topic of “Expanding Awareness for Limitless Peak Performance, Health, Longevity and Intelligence, Kirun Goy and Samuel Holston from the BrainTools Podcast on “The Neuroscience Behind our Habits, Addictions, Love/Fears,” Dr. Dawson Church on “The Science Behind Meditation: Rewiring Your Brain for Happiness,” Irene Lyon on “The Science Behind Trauma and a Healthy Immune System” and Dr. Mary Helen Immordino-Yang on “The Neuroscience of Social and Emotional Learning.”

 

REFERENCES:

[i] Neuroscience Meets Social and Emotional Learning EPISODE #74 with Horacio Sanchez https://andreasamadi.podbean.com/e/leading-brain-science-and-resiliency-expert-horatio-sanchez-on-how-to-apply-brain-science-to-improve-instruction-and-school-climate/

[ii] Mark Robert Waldman and Chris Manning, Ph.D. Published Jan.31, 2017  https://www.amazon.com/NeuroWisdom-Brain-Science-Happiness-Success/dp/1682303055

[iii] Drhu Purohit’s Broken Brain Podcast with Max Lugavere on “Building a Personal Brand” https://shows.acast.com/broken-brain/episodes/behind-the-scenes-max-lugavere-on-building-a-personal-brand

[iv] High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard Published Sept.19, 2017  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072N6MQ5V/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

[v] WakeUpIt’sDayOne Blog https://wakeupitsdayone.com/2018/07/16/increase-productivity-habit-4-of-high-performers/

[vi] Interview with Todd Woodcroft on Hockey Minds Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/hockey-minds-podcast/id1517330567#episodeGuid=https%3A%2F%2Fpinecast.com%2Fguid%2F7dcaf914-d44a-42e6-a9c5-bca89a40aff6

[vii] Greg Wolcott www.significant72.com