Small talk isn’t the problem, it is how we do it. Alison Wood Brooks explains that most people hate small talk because they stay on surface level topics for too long. She says conversations become awkward and draining when they never move up the “conversation pyramid” into something more meaningful. Do you enjoy small talk or avoid it? #podcast #communication #bodylanguage #anxiety

A lot of unhappiness today comes from being told a simple but damaging story: that your suffering is caused entirely by forces outside your control, and that you cannot live a good life until the world changes. That narrative keeps people angry, afraid, and stuck. It turns real pain into a tool, encouraging the belief that happiness depends on winning a cultural or political battle rather than building a meaningful life where you are. This way of thinking strips people of agency. It replaces res