The Psychology of your 20s
A podcast that explains how everything is psychology. Even your 20s. Hosted by Jemma Sbeg, each Tuesday and Friday we deep dive into the science and psychology behind a topic, concept or universal experience that defines our 20s - from dating, to mental health, career anxiety, friendship, finances and all the growing pains associated with this decade. Listen now. My book is out NOW: https://www.psychologyofyour20s.com/general-clean For business enquires please email psychologyofyour20s@gmail.com
Episodes
At the start of every year, I choose a theme - not just goals, but a guiding philosophy. For 2026, that theme is doing less and achieving more.
In this episode, we explore why focus beats busyness, why saying no creates better outcomes, and how choosing depth over overwhelm can actually lead to more success.
In our final guest episode for the year, we're hearing from the listeners! I asked you all to call in with the biggest dilemmas you've had in your 20s; questions you want answered, or just situations where you may have been desperate for advice and you answered the call!
We answer 7 of your most burning questions, including:
- How do I end a friendship in my 20s
- How do I get my life back after an ex
- How do I deal with disa...
Find your dream job in your 20s is no easy feat, in fact your dream job probably doesn't exist, but you CAN determine what kind of career path is best for you based on your personality. Today we have on George Appling whose research on the 5 career paths can help us determine where to next! Our discussion includes:
- The five main career paths and what they entail
- When should you pursue your passion & when should you p...
Money and love: the two things we stress about most in our twenties, and yet we rarely talk about how deeply connected they are. In this episode, I’m joined by Jack Howard, Head of Money Wellness at Ally, to unpack the psychology of money in our relationships and how it shapes who we date, how we fight, and how we build a life together.
In this episode, we explore:
- Why money and love are so deeply linked
- Spender vs. save...
I'm officially a UK resident! My thoughts on moving and this exciting new chapter for the podcast x
Follow Jemma on Instagram: @jemmasbeg
Follow the podcast on Instagram: @thatpsychologypodcast
For business: psychologyofyour20s@gmail.com
The Psychology of your 20s is not a substitute for professional mental health help. If you are struggling, distressed or require personalised advice, please reach out to ...
Getting diagnosed with ADHD as an adult can feel like both a relief and a reckoning. Suddenly your past makes so much more sense… but now you’re faced with learning a whole new way of managing your brain, your time, your relationships and your self-worth.
In this episode, I’m joined by Chris Wang, founder and CEO of Shimmer, who was diagnosed wit...
Something we may not know is that relationships typically follow a fairly similar life cycle. Author and relationship expert, Thais Gibson has articulated this idea in her new theory on the 6 stages of relationships, and how to know which you're in and when to break away. We discuss:
- How long should you date before you ask for a label?
- Why the honeymoon phase can’t last (and why that’s a good thing)
- Why does every ...
These days it's easy to feel observed and, therefore, judged by everyone for everything, whether that's online or in real life. Eli Rallo is an author and creator who understands this experience better than most of us and today we chat about her journey from a hardworking, theatre loving child to a nearly three time author and the Carrie Bradshaw of this generation. Our discussion includes topics like:
- Why is it so diffi...
Brittney Saunders is the founder of Fayt the Label, one of Australia's biggest clothing brands and empires. She launched the business from a shed in her backyard in her 20s and has grown it into a multimillion dollar brand. Before Fayt, she launched a number of other businesses as well, and today she tells her story and gives her best advice. We discuss:
- Britt’s journey from influencer to business owner
- Why it took...
Plastic surgery rates are on the rise, especially amongst people in their 20s, so what drives people to get plastic surgery? How does it intersect with psychology, insecurity, confidence, class, social media? In today's episode we are joined by Dr Rady Rahban, a board certified plastic surgeon operating out of Beverley Hills to discuss:
- What drives people to get plastic surgery?
- Why are we seeing more and more extreme su...
In your 20s you're told to be as ambitious as you can be, go after your dreams, work hard, be delusional, pursue your passion at any cost. How can we do that without our lives and health crumbling? What is the balance between ambition and appreciation? In today's episode we bring on Amina AlTai, author of The Ambition Trap to talk about:
- Why having more ambition doesn’t always make you more successful
- How a scarcit...
We can be so fixed on a job, a person, an outcome that we fuse our identity to it – and, crucially, forget that we’re okay without it. In today’s bonus episode, we unpack detachment: why we cling so tightly to people and outcomes, what over-attachment does to our mind and mood, and how to loosen the grip in a way that feels calm, kind, and clear.
We explore:
• Why we become ...
There is a huge emphasis on treating romance as the main marker of a successful life – from questions from family, to seemingly perfect online couples – it’s hard to believe anything else when society celebrates this kind of ideal.
In this episode, we look at how romance is often seen as the main focus of our 20s, what it can distract us from, and how we can start to approach it differently.
We explore:
• &nb...
We’ve all been there - telling ourselves that ‘life is short’ as we click add to cart. Whether it’s an expensive dinner, a holiday you can’t quite afford, or another ‘little treat’, doom spending has become the defining financial habit of our generation.
In this episode, we unpack why we spend when the world feels uncertain - the psychology, the emotion, and the cultural forces behind it. F...
Going through a breakup is always going to be devastating. Heartbreak is one of the most gut-wrenching human experiences: it affects our brain, our body, our routines, our identity, and our sense of the future. Why does it hurt so much, and how do we actually get through it?
In this episode, we break down the psychology of surviving a breakup: the science, the emotions, and the practical tools that help you heal, find clarity, and ...
Our 20s are sold to us as the decade of peak desire - full of passion, spontaneity, and effortless intimacy. But for so many of us, that isn’t the reality. When libido dips or fluctuates, it can feel confusing, isolating, and even shameful. In this episode, we ask why it is so common to struggle with libido in our 20s, what’s actually happening beneath the surface when desire feels distant, and how to make sense of the ...
We all have habits we wish we could change - patterns we repeat even when we know they’re hurting us. So why is it so hard to stop? In this episode, we explore the psychology behind toxic habits. How they form, why they become automatic, and what they’re actually doing for us emotionally.
We explore:
• How habits become wired through repetition and reward
• &n...
We’ve all heard someone say, “I’m such a perfectionist”, like it’s a badge of honour. But what does perfectionism really mean - and what’s hiding beneath it?
In today’s bonus episode, we unpack the psychology of perfectionism: the fear, the origins, and how to finally let go of “never good enough”.
We explore:
• The three types of perfectionism - ...
Have you ever met someone who always seems to see themselves as the one who’s been wronged - or maybe noticed that pattern in yourself? The sense that life is happening to you, not for you? It might not just be negativity - it could be a victim mentality, a learned way of seeing the world that often begins as a form of protection.
In this episode, we take a look at the psychology behind the victim mindset - why it develops, h...
We’re always told that gratitude is the route to happiness – that we should be grateful for every experience we have. But when life feels like it’s falling apart, gratitude can feel less like a comfort and more like pressure. In reality, gratitude and pain often have to coexist.
In this episode, we ask whether gratitude actually does make us happier - what it really is, how it rewires the brain, and why it sometim...
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.
"SmartLess" with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett is a podcast that connects and unites people from all walks of life to learn about shared experiences through thoughtful dialogue and organic hilarity. A nice surprise: in each episode of SmartLess, one of the hosts reveals his mystery guest to the other two. What ensues is a genuinely improvised and authentic conversation filled with laughter and newfound knowledge to feed the SmartLess mind. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of SmartLess ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!