Five Questions That Matter | Dr Mike Gervais AMA Vol.28

Michael Gervais (0:00)

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Jeff Byers (1:24)

I suffer from terrible loneliness. Where does that sudden and impelling loneliness come from?

Michael Gervais (1:30)

I think the question is really important for this reason. What questions are tugging at you right now? How might exploring the answers to those questions help unlock your potential? The questions that have come from our community, they're also real. Welcome back. Welcome to a special episode of the Finding Mastery podcast. I am your host, Dr. Michael Gervais.

Jeff Byers (1:51)

A high-performance psychologist named Michael Gervais.

Michael Gervais (1:54)

Who Pete Carroll brought in to work with the Seahawks. Famous for his work with Felix Baumgartner when he jumped out of space in the Stratos Project.

SPEAKER_3 (2:01)

Olympic athletes depend on something more than just training and talent.

Michael Gervais (2:05)

They have to stay mentally tough. And this week, we're turning the microphone around again. And instead of diving into Mastery through the minds of our remarkable guests, we are going straight to you for another Ask Me Anything episode.

Jeff Byers (2:18)

I'm looking for different ways to experience anger without an outward harmful expression of it. Can you explain the default mode network? In the constant pursuit of perfectionism, how do you?

Michael Gervais (2:27)

Stop there. That's it. You have once again submitted really deep and thoughtful and sometimes vulnerable questions about life and performance and relationships and how to navigate the complexities of our human experience. Now, in this episode, we have the help of former NFL player, co-founder and CEO of Momentous and of course, the friend of Finding Mastery, Jeff Byers. All offer insights and perspectives designed to help us all think a little differently, to hopefully live a little better. Our brains dictum is survival.

Jeff Byers (3:00)

Yeah.

Michael Gervais (3:01)

Loneliness is fine. It's normal. Moments of feeling loneliness. But when it's enduring, so much so that it is on the rise as an epidemic, death by despair is a real thing.

Jeff Byers (3:11)

I read loneliness and I was like, oh man, I do feel lonely sometimes.

Michael Gervais (3:15)

As you listen, I hope that you'll pay attention to the questions that resonate most strongly with you. We all know that the answer that perfectionism doesn't exist, this brings up a lot for me. I don't know if I've ever said this publicly, but in high school, so with that, let's jump into your questions, our reflections and an exploration of what matters most right here on Finding Mastery. Jeff, this is awesome that we get to do this. And it's been a long time that we've known each other. We've had a lot of similar friends for a long time. You played at a high level, football. I got to be able to be part of it as a sports psychologist. So this is a treat. And it's also a treat because of the business that you built, Momentous. And you and your partner built something that is real. You're real, the business is real, our experiences have been real. And the questions that have come from our community, they're all so real. So how are you doing?

Jeff Byers (4:15)

I'm doing awesome. And I'm really honored to be back here with you. And I'm also like, like reading these questions out loud and doing all that is going to be really interesting. It brings back a memory of mine. I had an offensive line coach when I played for the Panthers named John Masco, and he would have everybody read openly in front of the O line. Like, hey, here's how this play is supposed to be run. And just like reading in front of public. And it's been a long time since I've actually like read words that were written word for word. Because I'm like you, I'm pretty dynamic and talk.