The New Abnormal
The New Abnormal podcast (which has over 250,000 downloads) focuses on 'Now / Next / Why'. My guests have include a wide variety of experts based in locations from Los Angeles to Shanghai, Rio to Beirut, and Helsinki to Melbourne. Those guests have included activists, creatives, writers, philosophers, strategists, psychologists, lecturers, futurists etc, and asking them to explain their views has led to some fascinating conversations. Re: my bio, I'm a futurist, public speaker, and author whose written two books - my first went to No1 in the business charts whilst my second was shortlisted for the 'Business Book of the Year' Awards. (I'll be writing a third as soon as time allows.) So, I hope you enjoy listening to the series - which was set up during the early days of Covid and is therefore divided into a series per year. All rights reserved. #TheNewAbnormal podcast series © Sean Pillot de Chenecey 2020.
The New Abnormal
Christian van Nieuwerburgh 'Hope vs Optimism re: Mental Health & Psychological Wellbeing'
Series Two
In this episode of #TheNewAbnormal, I interview Christian van Nieuwerburgh, Executive Director of 'Growth Coaching International' and Professor of Positive Psychology at University of East London.
An international authority in the field of coaching, he's a renowned public speaker who regularly presents on the topics of motivation, engagement and leadership.
We discuss his latest book and his motivation for creating coaching cultures for learning which allow people to pursue their aspirations with confidence and mental toughness.
In this fascinating episode, we also talk about his thinking around post-traumatic growth, social polarisation, evidencing compassion, why hope isn't mere wishful thinking - it 's a valuable tool, and why optimism can be dangerous.
Christian explains that while it's important that a vision for the future is believable, it should also be desirable - and he also outlines six evidence-based ways to look after your mental health.
To conclude, we debate the psychology and philosophy of hope vs optimism. This is one of my favourite subjects, so I hope you enjoy listening to Christian as much as I did!