The OptimalWork Podcast

#321: AI can produce better work in seconds—but what happens to the person doing the work? Kevin and Sharif explore the hidden cost of outsourcing challenges that build skill, judgment, and character. Drawing on Aquinas’s distinction between making and doing, they examine what separates AI assistance that supports growth from shortcuts that bypass it. From student essays to professional work, they show how AI can help p...

#320: What turns “I have to do this” into “I want to do this”—especially when the task is difficult? Kevin and Sharif explore how deeper judgment transforms an apparent loss into a worthwhile cost, and then into an opportunity to grow and serve others. From the pull of doomscrolling to the awkwardness of a difficult conversation, they show how urgency can bypass thoughtful decisions—and how refra...

#319: Fear can make a difficulty seem insurmountable; desire can make getting what we want seem like all that matters. Kevin and Sharif explore how both can distort understanding and turn careful reasoning into rationalization. Drawing on Aquinas’s account of prudence, they connect everyday choices—from buying a car to putting off important work—to three questions that help restore perspective: Whose good is being...

#318: How do people make good decisions without getting trapped by their first impression? Sharif and Kevin explore the first act of prudence—counsel—and why clear thinking begins with making genuine contact with reality. They unpack the role of intuition, experience, memory, and advice, while showing how anxiety and desire can turn an initial hunch into premature certainty. Kevin explains why strong intuition should be...

#317: In this episode, Sharif and Kevin explore prudence as the virtue behind good decision-making — not simply knowing what to do, but discerning what truly serves the people entrusted to us and then putting that decision into action. Drawing on Augustine’s definition of prudence as “love rightly discerning what helps or hinders the beloved,” Kevin breaks prudence into three practical movements: counsel, ju...

#316: Dr. John Gottman identifies four stages in the breakdown of a relationship: defensiveness, criticism, stonewalling, and ultimately contempt. Each of these reflects a deeper issue— a lack of humility. In this episode, we delve into the third stage: stonewalling. Stonewalling means putting up obstacles to forming bonds with others. While defensiveness and criticism most concern one’s attitude, stonewalling goes deep...

#315: Dr. John Gottman identifies four stages in the breakdown of a relationship: defensiveness, criticism, stonewalling, and ultimately contempt. Each of these reflects a deeper issue— a lack of humility. In this episode, we delve into the second stage: criticism, or what we call a critical spirit. A critical spirit often arises from hyperfocusing on someone else’s flaws, conflating those flaws with their identity, and...

#314: Dr. John Gottman describes four stages in the breakdown of a relationship: first defensiveness, then criticism, then stonewalling, and finally contempt. Each of these is a manifestation of a lack of humility. Having laid out the big picture in our previous episode, here we do a deep dive into the first, defensiveness. We explain how it arises and how it relates to key concepts in our approach, like Reframing, Growth Mindset, ...

#313: In this episode of the OptimalWork Podcast, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres delve into the significance of humility in leadership and team dynamics. They explore the concept of humble leadership, the detrimental effects of pride, and the four horsemen of team dysfunction: defensiveness, criticism, stonewalling, and contempt. The conversation emphasizes the importance of cultivating humility as a means to foster better relationsh...

#312: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss the concept of Extreme Ownership, as introduced and developed by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. Willink and Babin learned this concept from their time serving as Navy Seals and have gained popularity adapting it to other contexts, like business and relationships. In this conversation, Sharif and Dr. Majeres discuss the nuances of this approach, and share applications to cha...

#311: In this installment of our series on mastery, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres explore the third and final stage: the optimizing stage. The optimizing stage of mastery has deep connections to other core concepts of OptimalWork like deliberate practice, continual growth, and above all service. In the optimizing stage, we can go beyond the automaticity characteristic of the implicit stage (stage two) and develop our mastery to such...

#310: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres explore the second of the three phases of mastery: the implicit phase of mastery. This phase is the most dangerous, because it is where bad actions can become automatic habits, and where good habits can become plateaus. Fortunately, there are ways to avoid these pitfalls. The implicit phase of mastery is also closely connected with flow. The next episode will cover the final stage...

#309: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres delve into the concept of mastery, focusing on its explicit phase. Broadly, mastery has three forms: mastery over a technical skill, self-mastery, and mastery in the context of bonds. For all these forms, crafting a strategy (a goal plus steps) is essential to developing explicit mastery. As you develop explicit mastery, you can harness dopamine to maintain motivation by setting a...

#307: Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres delve into the significance of breath in regulation attention and managing anxiety. One of the most interesting advances in the understanding of breath is the discovery of the oxygen paradox: breathing too much can actually reduce the amount of oxygen that reaches your brain. Breathing, mood, nutrition, attention, and activity are all interrelated. Understanding the relationship between breathing,...

#306: In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Kevin Majeres discuss the importance of learning how to self-regulate your attention. We often try to address distraction and worrying — two common obstacles relating to attention — by re-arranging our external circumstances, changing aspects of our lives. This can be helpful and even necessary at times. But to get the best results, it is also important to focus on the internals, on...

#305: In this episode, Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif discuss the importance of attention for working at your best. Understanding how your attention works — especially the dynamic between task attention and default attention — can help you improve how you both rest and work. Some may think that focus is a matter of brute force and self-discipline, or of simply arranging your environment. But the understanding of attention...

#304: In this episode, Dr. Kevin Majeres and Sharif discuss OptimalWork's recently launched anxiety course called Overcoming Anxiety. Having the proper attitude toward anxiety is essential. Rather than thinking we must get rid of anxiety or merely cope with it, we need to see how to embrace anxiety and use it to perform at our best and live out our highest ideals. This understanding is key to shaping our actions, and also helping o...

#303: Complaining is very tempting. When experiencing difficulty, it can seem helpful to vent our frustration. But chronic complaining can hinder the development of genuine bonds and can reinforce a negative mindset. Complaining narrows our focus and prevents us from reframing challenges as opportunities for growth. In this episode, Sharif and Dr. Majeres do a deep dive into complaining. Defending oneself or correcting injustices a...