The Anxious Achiever

How much of your life is being driven by fear without you even realizing it? In this episode, I sit down with Harvard Business School lecturer, entrepreneur, and former executive Martin Sinozich to talk about the pressure high achievers carry to prove themselves, stay successful, and never disappoint anyone. Martin shares about divorce, identity, workplace culture, and the freedom that comes from letting go of perfection and learning to trust yourself instead. We also break down the imposter feelings in elite environments, the anxiety of always needing to be “right,” and why so many ambitious people feel like they don’t belong. Get ready to rethink achievement and self-worth.

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Monarch - Use code ACHIEVER at monarch.com to get 50% off your first year

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In this Episode, You Will Learn

00:00 Martin Sinozich on achievement pressure and mental health.

03:00 What happens when high achievers lose their identity at work?

06:30 What do psychologically healthy workplaces look like?

09:30 Why asking better questions matters more than having answers.

11:45 How achievement culture affects relationships at home.

17:30 How divorce forced Martin to confront the fear driving his life.

20:00 What changed after you stopped living for other people’s approval?

24:15 Living with imposter feelings at Harvard Business School.

27:30 How fear and achievement pressure affect marriage, parenting, and identity.

Resources + Links

Get a copy of my book - The Anxious Achiever

Watch the podcast on YouTube 

Find more resources on our website morraam.com

Follow

Follow me: on LinkedIn @morraaronsmele + Instagram @morraam

Follow Martin on LinkedIn: @sinozich

Have you started expecting therapy to do too much? In this episode, I sit down with therapist and writer Megan Cornish to talk about the pressure we place on therapy to solve problems that may actually stem from isolation, lack of community, and modern life itself. Megan shares that many of the struggles we now label as “mental health problems” were once held by friends, neighbors, faith communities, and everyday human relationships. She also breaks down ACT therapy exercises that can help you hold painful thoughts more lightly and reconnect to your values instead of chasing constant happiness. Get ready to rethink therapy, connection, and what makes a meaningful life.

Check out our sponsors:

Shopify - Sign up for a $1 per month trial, just go to shopify.com/anxiousachiever

Chime - Head to chime.com/achiever to sign up

Monarch - Use code ACHIEVER at monarch.com to get 50% off your first year

Physician’s Choice - Use code PCPODCAST10 at physicianschoice.com to get 10% off your entire order

Whatnot - Get free shipping on your first order. Just search W-H-A-T-N-O-T in the app store and start scoring amazing deals

In this Episode, You Will Learn

00:00 How capitalism and work culture affect mental health.

04:15 Megan’s viral experiment with AI, LinkedIn, and gender bias.

10:00 Can therapy really work in the workplace?

14:30 How therapists became substitutes for friendship and community.

21:00 How therapy evolved beyond treating severe mental illness.

25:00 Did people cope better emotionally before therapy existed?

29:15 How AI relationships remove friction from connection.

33:30 The ACT therapy exercise that changed how Megan approaches friendship.

36:30 Why discomfort doesn’t always mean something is wrong.

45:30 Why non-attachment to suffering exists across many traditions.

47:45 Do we actually need life to make perfect sense?

49:00 The “80-year-old self” exercise for perspective and gratitude.

Resources + Links

Get a copy of my book - The Anxious Achiever

Watch the podcast on YouTube 

Find more resources on our website morraam.com

Follow

Follow me: on LinkedIn @morraaronsmele + Instagram @morraam

Follow Megan Cornish on LinkedIn: @megan-cornish

This week we’re sharing a special episode from our friends at How To!, the 2026 Ambie Award-nominated “Best Personal Growth Podcast” that’s back with a new host and new topics to fuel your curiosity. 

Each week on How To!, award-winning journalist Mike Pesca tackles a listener’s question – on topics ranging from travel and finance to health and relationships – with help from world-class experts who actually know what they're talking about. Think of it as eavesdropping on someone else's therapy session, without the co-pay or awkward silence. 

And today, we’re sharing their recent episode “How To Take Psychedelics for Your Mental Health” where Mike interviews psychiatrist Will Van der Veer, a psychedelic researcher, and Myq Kaplan who has taken psychedelics for his mental health and other reasons. I love this episode because you get to hear a bunch of personal experiences of medical psychedelics and learn more about this emerging treatment for mental health conditions. 

And for more interviews like this, make sure to follow How To! on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. And tell them we sent you.

Why do so many capable, high-performing people end up exhausted, and emotionally drained even when they’re doing everything “right”? In this episode, I sit with psychologist Dr. Thomas Greenspon to talk about perfectionism, shame, and self-worth. Thomas breaks down why perfectionism isn’t actually about excellence, then entrepreneur Eleanor Beaton shares how perfectionism shaped her leadership, ambition, and identity and what changed when she stopped chasing perfection and started embracing wholeness instead. Get ready to rethink the way you work, care for others, and define success.

Check out our sponsors:

Shopify - Sign up for a $1 per month trial, just go to shopify.com/anxiousachiever

Chime - Head to chime.com/achiever to sign up

Quince - Head to quince.com/ACHIEVER for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns

Monarch - Use code ACHIEVER at monarch.com to get 50% off your first year

Physician’s Choice - Use code PCPODCAST10 at physicianschoice.com to get 10% off your entire order

In this Episode, You Will Learn

00:00 What is perfectionism?

08:30 What’s the difference between perfectionism and the pursuit of excellence?

10:00 How perfectionism becomes a coping mechanism for anxiety.

14:30 What’s the connection between perfectionism, depression, and hopelessness?

17:00 How childhood experiences shape perfectionism.

20:45 Why humans are wired for connection and belonging.

22:45 How modern culture rewards perfectionism and overachievement.

23:30 What can parents do to help perfectionistic kids?

25:45 The 4 things that help people overcome perfectionism.

32:45 Why perfectionism disconnects you from our wholeness.

35:30 How perfectionism delays growth and keeps people stuck.

41:00 Why entrepreneurship becomes personal development work.

44:00 How perfectionism shows up as avoidance and overwork.

46:30 What are the signs that perfectionism is running your life?

Resources + Links

Get a copy of my book - The Anxious Achiever

Watch the podcast on YouTube 

Find more resources on our website morraam.com

Follow

Follow me: on LinkedIn @morraaronsmele + Instagram @morraam

What if the problem isn’t your brain, but the systems you’ve spent your life trying to fit into? In this episode, I sit down with David Flink, founder of the Neurodiversity Alliance. We talk about what it means to navigate work, leadership, and identity as a neurodivergent person. David shares how he learned to stop forcing himself into systems that didn’t fit, how metacognition changed his life, and why today’s younger workers are approaching neurodivergence differently. Get ready to build your life around your strengths instead of constantly trying to fix your weaknesses. 

Check out our sponsors:

Shopify - Sign up for a $1 per month trial, just go to shopify.com/anxiousachiever

Chime - Head to chime.com/achiever to sign up

Quince - Head to quince.com/ACHIEVER for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns

Monarch - Use code ACHIEVER at monarch.com to get 50% off your first year

Physician’s Choice - Use code PCPODCAST10 at physicianschoice.com to get 10% off your entire order

In this Episode, You Will Learn

00:00 How do you define leadership?

04:00 What became easier for you as you got older as a neurodivergent leader?

08:00 The strengths David has come to love about his dyslexic ADHD brain.

11:15 Why neurodivergent adults spend years unlearning shame.

17:15 Why kids need to become detectives of their own learning styles.

19:00 What metacognition means and why it matters so much.

24:00 Don't let your current environment define your potential.

27:45 Why neurodivergent people often develop extraordinary resilience.

31:15 Can workplaces change for neurodivergent employees?

37:15 How remote work transformed David’s company culture.

41:30 Why Gen Z approaches disability and neurodivergence differently.

45:15 How focusing on deficits causes companies to miss great talent.

47:30 What happens to neurodivergence in midlife.

51:45 What is inter-able relationship?

54:15 Why the best teams are built around complementary strengths.

Resources + Links

Pre-order your copy of David Flink’s book, 20% Smarter HERE

Get a copy of my book - The Anxious Achiever

Watch the podcast on YouTube 

Find more resources on our website morraam.com

Follow

Follow me: on LinkedIn @morraaronsmele + Instagram @morraam

Follow David on LinkedIn @dflink