182 What Really Motivates Humans & How to Talk to Anyone About Anything

Do nice guys finish last? Sure, there are a lot of successful nice guys but there are a lot of successful jerks too. So which is it? The answer may actually lie somewhere in between. This episode begins with some interesting insight into that http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/06/why-it-pays-to-be-a-jerk/392066

Humans are motivated by….what? Traditional thinking has been that carrots and sticks – in other words rewards or punishments are the best way to get people to do things. Well that may work but there are other ways that are better says Daniel Pink, author of the book, Drive: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us. Daniel joins me to offer some advice on how to successfully motivate yourself and others.

Friends are important but I bet you didn’t know just HOW important. Let’s put it this way… research shows not having a strong social network is equal to smoking a pack of cigarettes a day. And that’s just one of the things I discuss about the importance of friends. http://www.rd.com/slideshows/friends-facts/#slideshow=slide2

Are you one of those people who hates small talk? Or perhaps you find it difficult to talk to strangers and connect with people. Or maybe you just wish you were better at conversation. If so, you need to listen to Jill Spiegel, author of the book, How to Talk to Anyone About Anything. Jill is an expert when it comes to striking up conversations and making them count. Incidentally, she is also the great granddaughter of Joseph Spiegel, founder of the famous Spiegel mail order catalog.

Please support this podcast by subscribing and telling your friends. To subscribe on iTunes so you never miss an episode. Here is the link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/something-you-should-know/id1150124880