Featured Insights

A little less empathy, more compassion please

There is a temptation to believe that empathy is always a virtue. Empathy can be riddled in human biases, and in instances where it does not serve as a helpful moral compass, we can draw on compassion as our guiding star.

Visualisation, Setting goals and Saving the Change

My upcoming book #moneymindsets explores the power of visualisation, setting goals with intention and counting what matters to improve our financial wellbeing

Deviating from the social norm

Uncovering the Asch conformity experiment featured on Candid Camera and the electrifying Brazilian documentary “Espero tua (Re)volta” to explore the enabling conditions for social change.

Two Truths and a Lie about Habits

When we start to effortlessly take actions in anticipation of a future reward, we develop a habit. The formation of neural circuits make some habits more likely to occur and other actions less likely. This is how good and bad habits are birthed.

3 reasons to switch on your “scout mindset”

Julia Galef, author of The Scout Mindset, describes a scout as someone that seeks to explore what’s really out there to form as accurately a map of the world that’s possible. Here are 3 cases why embracing a “scout mindset” can help you paint a more accurate picture of reality.

Neuroscience lessons to foster a growth mindset

As neuroscientists unravel the inner workings of a growth mindset, we can lean new pathways which rewards the process that fosters growth in our lives, our businesses and our communities.

3 Wellbeing Insights to Reduce Loneliness

We dive into understanding why we feel loneliness, the impact of social connectivity on our wellbeing and insights to improve wellbeing in a lockdown.

Neuroscience lessons to enhance gratitude practices

With each subsequent repeat of a gratitude practice, the pro-social neural circuits become more easily activated. An effective practice goes beyond activating circuits in our brain , but also activation of particular circuits in our heart shifting the body's physiology into a more relaxed state.

The Psychology of Trigger Warnings

Many of us have normalised the practice of labelling triggers to express small discomforts. However, a significant distinction exists between a trigger causing mild unease and one that resurfaces traumatic past experiences.

Do our habits matter more than we think?

Habits are not something that we intuitively understand. A better appreciation of why they exist can help us fully embrace good habits into our own lives.

6 frames for anticipating unintended consequences

While every unintended consequence cannot be avoided, drawing attention to some of them can help us design more human experiences, services, and even change systems.

Becoming mindful of our attention

‍“What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention, and a need to allocate that attention efficiently among the overabundance of information sources that might consume it.” ― Herbert Simon

Blueprint to Unlock your Growth Mindset

Have you heard about the neuroscience processes of 'tuning' and 'pruning'? Did you know that your brain may hold a secret blueprint to unlock your growth mindset?

3 Wellbeing Insights To Tackle Micro Stressors

The World Health Organisation has labelled stress as the "health epidemic of the 21st Century”. Many seemingly unrelated symptoms like fatigue, anxiety, mental health, poor memory, low libido, gut problems, high blood pressure and Type 2 diabetes all have stress as a key driver. The big question is how do we manage our stress triggers through new habits, routines and behavioural cues.

Can timefulness equip us for the climate crisis?

As people, we enjoy all the amenities of our land and ransack the bounties without paying attention to whether land might have its own ancient language and customs. In pressing forward on how we might become better ancestors, we enquire why and how the psychology of “timefullness” can be harnessed as a long-term planning tool for tackling the climate crisis.

Dynamic vs Diligent Experiments

Have you heard about the neuroscience processes of 'tuning' and 'pruning'? Did you know that your brain may hold a secret blueprint to unlock your growth mindset?

Mind your behaviour change language

When we use words to share our abstractions, we can better perceive each other’s realities and synchronise on what is 'normal'. In this reflection on the power of norms, we explore the role of words and concepts in shaping our perceptions of what is socially acceptable behaviour.

From "Genius Culture" to "Growth Mindset Culture"

Uncover how the pursuit of perfection and the 'genius culture' led to a major Silicon Valley fraud—and why we should drop these in favour of a culture of growth mindsets.

5 Innovations in Behavioural Design for Physical Distancing

Challenge. How might we make it attractive for people to actively engage in physical distancing in public spaces so that these practices remain top-of-mind?

5 frames for making sense of fake news

Like an onion, the behavioural science and systems design of misinformation has many layers. We explore five sense making frames to unmask the layers of fake news that flourishes on social media platforms.

3 Science Communication Insights to Squash the Curve

We explore three communications insights from a behavioural science lens which have enabled a successful flattening of the curve.

Neuroscience of strange and beautiful experiences

Have you experienced the feeling of déjà vu? By dipping your feet into three thought experiments, we unpack the interactions between the mind, body, past experiences and social environment to create strange and beautiful experiences.

3 dopamine practices for self motivation

As is true of fasting practices, our internal reward system can benefit from disruptions to motivate ourselves to reach our goals. The key for dopamine practices (a.k.a. intermittent rewards) is to exercise protocols adjusting our ability to feel pleasure by engaging in some sort of intermittent reward schedule.

Gamification of pain and pleasure

One of the most significant findings from neuroscience shows that the same parts of the brain processes both pain and pleasure. When we feel pleasure, the balance tips one way and when we feel pain, it tips in the opposite direction. Gamification allows one to tweak the constraints to maximise satisfaction.

Curious about asset-framing and impulse savings?

My upcoming book #moneymindsets explores concepts from behavioural science 🧠, attachment theory 💌 and yogic philosophy 🧘🏾 to improve our financial wellbeing

Tensions of The Placebo Effect

After a hearty laugh reflecting on our own misperceptions, the deeper psychological question to examine is — “What is the function of our delusions?”. Understanding the purpose behind them can give us the tools to dismantle harmful delusions and embrace the useful ones.