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What happens when life doesn’t go according to plan? In this award-winning podcast, cognitive scientist Dr. Maya Shankar explores how we experience change and strategies we can use to better navigate moments of upheaval.

Maya’s life took a dramatic turn when an injury ended her career as a violinist and inspired her to study the science of change.

Named Apple Podcasts’ Best Show of the Year, A Slight Change of Plans features deeply personal stories and scientific insights about who we are and who we become in the face of a big change.

Past guests include Kacey Musgraves, Brené Brown, Ruby Bridges, Amanda Knox, Adam Grant, Angela Duckworth and more.

Whether it’s a sudden pivot or a slow transformation, each episode reveals how change can give us an opportunity to reimagine who we are and unlock greater possibility.

You can follow Maya on instagram @DrMayaShankar and read her free newsletter at changewithmaya.com.

 

Get early, ad-free access to episodes of A Slight Change of Plans by subscribing to Pushkin+ on Apple Podcasts or Pushkin.fm. Pushkin+ subscribers can access ad-free episodes, full audiobooks exclusive binges, and bonus content for all Pushkin shows. 

Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkin
Subscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus

A Slight Change of Plans

Writer Safiya Sinclair grew up on the north coast of Jamaica in a Rastafari family. Her father was the head of the household and he made Safiya and her siblings follow a strict interpretation of Rastafari, a religious and social movement. But as Safiya grew older, living under her father’s rules became suffocating. She talks to Maya about how she broke free from her father's influence and charted her own path.
 
Connect with Maya on instagram @DrMayaShankar.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Breaking Free From Family Beliefs

Charles Duhigg is a journalist who is interested in what makes for a good conversation. He talks to Maya about some science-backed techniques we can try to improve our conversational skills, including the art of asking deep questions.
 
To learn more, check out Charles' book, “Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection.” 
 
If you enjoyed this episode, you might like our episode with champion debater Bo Seo, "Let's Agree to Disagree More."
 
Connect with Maya on instagram @DrMayaShankar.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Secret to a Good Conversation

Welcome back, Slight Changers! 2025 has already been quite the year. Whew. Because so many of us are feeling overwhelmed, we in the Slight Change family produced a compilation episode with wisdom from our past guests about how we can rethink our inner voice and the sometimes negative things it tells us. This episode tackles topics like rumination, stress, and self-compassion. We each found this episode to be a helpful resource on a personal level as we navigate hard times and we hope it helps you too :)
 
If you liked the format of this episode, let us know! You can find me on instagram at @DrMayaShankar.
 
If you want to hear more from the guests featured here, listen to their full-length episodes at the links below.
 
Ethan Kross: The Science of Our Inner Voice
 
Modupe Akinola: The Upside of Stress
 
Kristin Neff: The Science of Self-Compassion

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BONUS: Make Your Inner Voice Work For You

Trust is the glue that holds human connection together – but how do we earn it? Rachel Botsman, an expert on trust and human behavior, explores the subtle and powerful signals we send in relationships. Her new audiobook, How To Trust and Be Trusted, is full of insightful lessons, and today, we’re sharing one of our favorites: “How To Be a More Trustworthy Person.” Whether in work, friendships, or love, trust is everything – and Rachel’s wisdom will help you strengthen it.
 
You can find Rachel’s book at Pushkin.fm, Audible, or wherever you get your audiobooks.
 
 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How To Be A More Trustworthy Person

It’s February – AKA the month when, research shows, we start slipping on our New Year’s resolutions. And so, I’m re-sharing one of my favorite science episodes to help us all get back on track. Behavioral scientist Katy Milkman is an expert on how we can bridge the important gap between who we are right now and who we want to be. She shares a set of concrete, evidence-based strategies - like the fresh start effect and temptation bundling - that can help you reach your goals and become the best version of yourself.
 
Also, I’m starting a newsletter! You can sign up here. Thanks :) 
 
Learn more about the science of motivation with Ayelet Fishbach here.

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New Year, Old You? We Got You.

Psychologist Ethan Kross wants us to stop thinking about our emotions as either good or bad. Emotions carry valuable information, he says, and they are signals that can help us change our behavior. As an expert in the science of emotions, Ethan shares strategies we can use to reign in our negative emotions when they become more harmful than helpful. And he debunks a popular myth that the only healthy way to move past your negative emotions is to persistently engage with them.
 
Sign up for Maya’s newsletter here.
 
Listen to our first conversation with Ethan Kross: The Science of Our Inner Voice.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Case Against ‘Feeling Your Feelings’

Have you ever found yourself saying yes to something you really didn’t want to do? Psychologist Sunita Sah is an expert on why it can be so difficult to say no, especially when our relationships or reputations are on the line. But there's good news! Defiance is actually a skill we can build if we understand the science behind it. Sunita shares a framework we can use in those challenging moments when we want to push back, but just aren’t sure how. 
 
Sign up for Maya’s new newsletter here.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How to Say No

Science writer Olga Khazan didn’t really like herself. A self-described neurotic, she tended to fixate on the negative. She assumed she’d always be this way, but then she came across research showing that personality is something you can change. In today's episode, Olga chronicles her year-long journey to "fix" her personality, and invites us to consider whether it’s truly possible to change who we are.
 
Try the personality test that Olga talks about here.
 
Sign up for Maya’s new newsletter, where she shares the results of *her* personality test (!) here.
 
Get early, ad-free access to episodes of A Slight Change of Plans by subscribing to Pushkin+ on Apple Podcasts or Pushkin.fm. Pushkin+ subscribers can access ad-free episodes, full audiobooks exclusive binges, and bonus content for all Pushkin shows. 
 
Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkin
Subscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Extreme Makeover: Personality Edition

Amanda Knox was just 20 years old when she was found guilty of a crime she did not commit — the murder of her roommate. Amanda spent four years in an Italian prison before she was finally exonerated and allowed to return to her life back home in the U.S. But she soon discovered that that life didn’t exist anymore.
 
Note: this is part one of a two-episode series we’re running this month about Amanda Knox. It was recorded in 2021.
 
Sign up for Maya’s new newsletter here.
 
Get early, ad-free access to episodes of A Slight Change of Plans by subscribing to Pushkin+ on Apple Podcasts or Pushkin.fm. Pushkin+ subscribers can access ad-free episodes, full audiobooks exclusive binges, and bonus content for all Pushkin shows. 
 
Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkin
Subscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Amanda Knox Knows What You’re Thinking

Amanda Knox has spent a decade trying to move on after being wrongfully convicted of murder. But over the years, one question lingered - why had the lead prosecutor in her case, Giuliano Mignini, been so determined to vilify her? Recently, she made the bold decision to reach out and ask him herself. On today's show: Amanda tells me about confronting the man who helped put her behind bars.
 
Note: this is part two of a two-episode series we’re running this month about Amanda Knox. It was recorded in February 2025. Listen to part one here.
 
Sign up for Maya’s newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/pushkin.fm/5yl2vd8wa6
 
Get early, ad-free access to episodes of A Slight Change of Plans by subscribing to Pushkin+ on Apple Podcasts or Pushkin.fm. Pushkin+ subscribers can access ad-free episodes, full audiobooks exclusive binges, and bonus content for all Pushkin shows. 
 
Subscribe on Apple: apple.co/pushkin
Subscribe on Pushkin: pushkin.fm/plus

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is Amanda Knox Finally Free?

Tommy Caldwell’s experience being held captive in Kyrgyzstan unlocks a new state of mind that propels him to become the greatest big wall climber of all time.
 
This conversation first aired in 2021. It is a companion episode to the one we ran last week about Beth Rodden’s experience of the same trip: “A Climber Loses Her Grip.” Same “Slight Change of Plans”, but wildly different reactions. 
 
You can check out Tommy’s memoir here, and Beth’s memoir here.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One Trauma, Two Different Paths

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