Jonah Oliver is a distinguished performance psychologist known for his work with elite athletes like golfer Cameron Smith, V8 teams, surgeons, business leaders, and more. Jonah brings his wealth of experience to the table, discussing the intricate details of sustained high performance.

Key Topics Covered:

• Understanding Sustained High Performance: Exploration of what sustained high-performance means and how it can be achieved.
• The Role of Failure in Success: Discussion on why failure is essential to achieving success and how it shapes high-performing individuals.
• Neurobiology of Stress: Insight into the brain's response to stress and techniques to manage and interpret stress positively.
• Psychological Flexibility: Explanation of psychological flexibility and its crucial role in maintaining high performance.
• Vision and Values: The importance of having a clear vision and strong values in both personal and professional life.
• Practical Insights and Strategies: Jonah shares practical advice on dealing with challenges, and adversity, and developing a growth mindset.
• Applying Psychological Science: How psychological principles can be applied across different contexts, from sports to surgery to business.
• Developing a Growth Mindset: The necessity of real-life exposure to stress and adversity for developing a growth mindset.

Key Quotes:

1. "Failure is a prerequisite to success. If you want to achieve great things, you have to be willing to feel the pain, the price of entry."
2. "You do not learn a growth mindset by reading a book on it. You only develop it through in situ exposure."
3. "Life is not about how hard things are. It’s about how important things are."
4. "Psychological flexibility is the beating heart of sustained high performance."
5. "Doing the things that matter with the people that matter in a values-based way is the recipe for a life of sustained high performance."

Attitude is Everything:

"A bad attitude is like a flat tyre. You can't go anywhere unless you change it." This applies to all facets of life: personal, professional, and family.

Three Basic Psychological Needs:

Relatedness: Quality of connection, feeling seen, heard, and valued.

Competence: Feeling good at something, is essential for motivation.

Autonomy: Having control over one's actions and environment.

Positive Energy vs. Energy Vampires:

• Positive Energizers: Individuals who uplift and inspire others.
• Energy Vampires: People who drain energy and enthusiasm.

Building an A+ Attitude:

• Compelling Goal: Must have a clear and motivating purpose.
• Engagement: Being fully invested in what you do.
• Progress: Continuously developing competence.
• Consistency: Regularly showing up and putting in the effort.

The 20 Mile March:
Concept of consistent, disciplined effort towards goals.

Inspirational Practices

• Daily Touch: Simple, consistent gestures of connection with loved ones.
• Positive Interactions: Showing enthusiasm and positivity in daily interactions.

Final Thoughts

• How you show up and your attitude can transform your life and those around you.
• Challenge: Implement one change based on the day’s learnings.

This episode features Jeff McKeon, who speaks on the topics of overcoming adversity and the science of happiness. Jeff's journey from a challenging childhood with an alcoholic father to dedicating his life to neuroscience and helping others reach their potential is both inspirational and educational.

Key Quotes from Jeff McKeon:

• "When you're in that moment, you question everything about your life."
• "You can't be what you can't see."
• "The strongest people are often the ones who are still kind after the world tore them apart."

The Science of Happiness:

• The importance of habits in achieving happiness.
• Explanation of the negativity bias in our brains.
• The power of choice in emotional regulation and happiness.
• Research on the set point of happiness and how daily habits influence our happiness levels.

Practical Tips for Happiness:

• Double inhale through the nose followed by a large sigh to activate the parasympathetic nervous system and calm yourself.
• Importance of gratitude and daily habits.
• The significance of interpersonal relationships as found in the Harvard Study on Adult Development.

Jeff's Conclusion:

• The value of friendships and strong bonds in achieving happiness.
• Encouragement to reflect on whether you live purposefully, love actively, and matter in your daily life.
• "Emotions are contagious. Are yours worth catching?"