How to Boost Your Happiness by Developing Healthy Mental Models (feat. Dr. Srikumar Rao)
Mental models are our perceptions of external reality and they determine our attitude and our choices in life. That’s why they’re critical to our success and wellbeing.
My guest, Dr. Srikumar Rao, has been teaching people all over the world about how to develop healthy models for many years.
Dr. Rao is a speaker, former business school professor, and head of The Rao Institute. He has taught at several leading business schools, including Columbia and the London Business School, and trained executives in top firms like Google, Microsoft and Merrill Lynch. He’s been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The London Times, and several others.
During our conversation, Dr. Rao offers his insight into the mental models we habitually use and how we can become aware of them. He provides techniques and strategies to shift negative beliefs and cultivate healthier ones to experience more happiness and satisfaction.
Interview time stamps:
04:20 ︳Dr. Rao talks about what inspired him to teach personal mastery and creativity
10:07 ︳What are mental models and how they impact us
12:18 ︳Dr. Rao explains the if-then model
15:48 ︳How social media and other forms of media affect our models
18:02 ︳Understanding the concept of “second arrows” (internal chatter)
22:21 ︳Steps that we can take to shift towards healthier mental models
27:38 ︳Re-framing techniques that can help us view obstacles in a way that empowers us
37:25 ︳How to deal with people around us who have negative mental models
Learn more about Dr. Srikumar Rao at his website.