About this episode
<p>Perfectionism is everyone’s favorite flaw. It’s easy to assume that our push to be perfect is what leads to academic, athletic, and professional success. But how do we distinguish between high standards and unrealistic expectations? This week, we bring you a favorite conversation with psychologist <a href="https://www.lse.ac.uk/pbs/people/Dr-Thomas-Curran" rel="noopener noreferrer">Thomas Curran</a>. He says perfectionism has a dark side, and that there are much healthier ways to strive for excellence. Then, we bring you the latest edition of our segment "Your Questions Answered." Sociologist <a href="https://www.allisonpugh.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer">Allison Pugh</a> returns to the show to respond to listener questions about connective labor — the work of seeing another person, and having that person feel seen.</p> <p><i>The Hidden Brain tour continues this fall! Join us in Baltimore on October 11, Washington, D.C. on October 12, or Los Angeles on November 22. More info and tickets at </i><a href="https://hiddenbrain.org/tour/" rel="noopener noreferrer"><i>hiddenbrain.org/tour.</i></a></p> <p> </p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.</p>
Listen to this episode in English to learn English
Podcast episodes are one of the highest-density ways to absorb English at native pace. Escaping Perfectionism from Hidden Brain gives you natural dialogue, unscripted speech, and vocabulary that actually appears in real conversations.
In the Clue app, every word in the transcript is tappable. Tap an unknown word, see the translation in your language instantly, and keep listening without breaking flow.
Episodes to Learn English
- Waking Up Your Spiritual Brain: Part 2 Jul 6, 2026
- Waking Up Your Spiritual Brain: Part 1 Jun 29, 2026
- Stepping Out of the Shadows Jun 22, 2026
- A Secret Source of Connection Jun 15, 2026
- Who Are You, Really? Jun 8, 2026
- Unleashing Your Creativity Jun 1, 2026
- The Past is Never Dead May 25, 2026
- The Empathy Gym May 18, 2026
- The Cowboy Philosopher May 11, 2026
- Radical Acceptance May 4, 2026
- Designing a Life that Matters Apr 27, 2026
- Do You Feel Loved? Apr 20, 2026
- How to Change the World Apr 13, 2026
- The Debt Trap Apr 6, 2026
- When It's Okay to Lie Mar 30, 2026
- Group Think Mar 23, 2026
- Rethinking Depression Mar 16, 2026
- Yuck! The Science of Disgust Mar 9, 2026
- The Secret of Charisma Mar 2, 2026
- Do You Feel Invisible? Feb 23, 2026
- Why You're Smarter Than You Think Feb 16, 2026
- Coming Clean Feb 9, 2026
- Keeping Secrets Feb 2, 2026
- You 2.0: Trusting Your Doubt Jan 26, 2026
- You 2.0: The Practice of Patience Jan 19, 2026
- You 2.0: How to Get Out of a Rut Jan 12, 2026
- You 2.0: Cultivating Courage Jan 5, 2026
- You 2.0: Stop Spiraling! Dec 29, 2025
- The Reset Button Dec 22, 2025
- The Path to Enough Dec 15, 2025