148. How the Brain Works with Melina Palmer

The Easily Distracted Entrepreneur

With so much turmoil going on right now, our world has been turned upside down in so many ways. Many people, including business owners, are feeling this pressure to get a lot of things done or try to make an impact or shift. At the same time, they also are overwhelmed with not knowing where to focus, and so they feel stuck.

There’s a way around feeling stuck, and it takes looking into the brain and how it works. This week on the podcast, behavioral economist Melina Palmer is sharing how to use brain science to be more productive and meet your goals. We discuss why it’s so difficult to change your self-talk, why starting that new habit is so challenging, why you might hate seeing yourself on video (and how to overcome that) and so much more.

Melina, the host of The Brainy Business podcast, is on a personal mission to make your business more effective and brain friendly. Don’t miss this episode to learn more about how the brain works and how to avoid productive procrastination to actually get things done.

About Melina Palmer:

Why do people say one thing and do another? What really drives behavior? How does the brain actually work – and how can we best communicate with it? What does that mean for companies? Melina Palmer, host of The Brainy Business podcast, has dedicated her career to seeking answers to these questions for herself and her clients. Melina uses behavioral economics to help everyone from global corporations to entrepreneurs understand the psychology of why people buy, unlocking the secrets of small changes that make a big difference via her podcast, public speaking, and column on Inc.com. The result is messaging, branding, advertisements, pricing, and products that are more “brain-friendly” (meaning more leads, conversions, and revenue).

Links and Resources:

• Indestructible: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life by Nir Eyal
• Nir Eyal Brainy Busines podcast episode
• Master Your Mindset masterclass
• Samuel Salzer Brainy Business podcast episode
• TheBrainyBusiness.com
• @TheBrainyBiz – Instagram

Time Stamps:

• [1:36] - About Melina Palmer
• [3:13] - Melina’s superpower
• [4:25] - Applicable behavioral science - a new branch
• [5:45] - Getting things done, make an impact, and feeling in the swirl
• [7:01] - 99% of decisions are made by subconscious brain
• [10:50] - Your brain is processing 275,000 things that aren’t important
• [12:17] - What’s coming up may not be what’s useful
• [14:30] - Why it’s so difficult to change your self-talk
• [17:30] - Bikeshedding
• [19:53] - “Busy” isn’t the stamp of awesomeness anymore
• [21:21] - The opposite of distraction is traction
• [23:05] - - “I’ll start Monday” effect
• [26:56] - When you only get 3 things done today and feel bad about yourself
• [29:47] - Perfectionism gets us stuck
• [30:23] - There’s a good enough point where you can keep going
• [31:52] - Set your goal on dream, but focus on the reality of right now
• [33:31] - Our challenge with video is focusing illusion
• [36:20] - The only way we see ourselves is in a mirror; we look different on video
• [38:40] - Invest in what’s important to you