Episode #61: “Toxic Productivity” and Our Ability to Flourish, with Israa Nasir

Israa Nasir, MHC-LP, is a psychotherapist, writer, and the founder of WellGuide, a digital community for mental health awareness. She recently published Toxic Productivity: Reclaim Your Time and Emotional Energy in a World that Always Demands More (November 2024), a book that demonstrates how to challenge the various masks of toxic productivity and societal pressures around managing time by focusing on emotional regulation.

A Pakistani-Canadian child of immigrants, Israa has a specific focus on mental health, identity formation and healing for the AAPI first- and second-generation immigrant community. Israa has been featured in major publications including NBC, Vox, Huffpost and Teen Vogue, and has been invited to speak at corporations and institutions such as Google, Meta, and Yale University.

Israa sits on the Mental Health Advisory Board for both PopSugar (Vox Media) and the menstrual health product and advocacy brand, August. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from the University of Toronto, a Master’s in Counseling from Adelphi University, and certifications in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy. 

With over a decade of experience as a licensed therapist in Ontario and New York, Israa specializes in empowering individuals through therapy, workshops, and engaging content that addresses emotional well-being.

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• Recently published book: Toxic Productivity: Reclaim Your Time and Emotional Energy in a World that Always Demands More 

Timestamps:

[04:08] Emotional intelligence domains explained.

[11:06] Emotional intelligence in society today.

[19:02] Emotional intelligence and optimal performance.

[23:15] Importance of emotional intelligence in leadership.

[29:29] Emotional intelligence and health.

[34:39] Emotional intelligence and flourishing.

[36:55] Emotional intelligence in education.

[41:40] Learning new habits through mindfulness.

[47:29] Cognitive control and flourishing.

[49:16] Cognitive control's long-term effects.

[58:49] Group-level emotional intelligence.