Keyword: self-esteem

↕

The Power of Focus with Jack Canfield December 18, 2012

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Jack Canfield, Rachel Hutt
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Personal Growth & Change

Focus, not talent, is the biggest obstacle between most people and success. Jack Canfield, co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series and author of The Power of Focus, joins Armand DiMele and Dr. Rachel Hutt to discuss building focus through meditation and will, replacing bad habits, managing toxic relationships, and why unresolved emotions act as a brake on achievement.

Smart But Feeling Dumb with Dr. Harold Levinson March 2, 2011

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. Harold Levinson
Category: Identity & The Self, The Mind & Neuroscience

Most people with dyslexia, ADD, and related phobias feel stupid despite high intelligence. Dr. Harold Levinson argues the root cause is inner ear dysfunction, not brain damage, and that treating the cerebellum can lift reading difficulties, phobias, and chronic disorganization at once.

The Child Inside You Deserves Kindness August 24, 2010

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Identity & The Self

Self-hatred often masks a frightened inner child, not a moral failing. Armand DiMele traces self-loathing from passive-aggressive behavior and ethnic shame to physical self-criticism, arguing that the antidote is treating yourself with the same protective warmth you would offer a hurt child.

Why We Lie and Why It Works April 28, 2009

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Identity & The Self

Lying is woven into human nature, and Armand DiMele argues it usually traces back to powerlessness, not malice. Drawing on neuroscience (prolactin, oxytocin), animal behavior, and callers’ personal stories, the episode asks why we demand truth from others while punishing them for telling it.

The Fear of Being Rejected July 16, 2008

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Anxiety & Fear, Emotions & Inner Life

Rejection is wired into our DNA as a survival mechanism, but some people’s rejection radar is far too sensitive, turning minor slights into emotional crises. Armand DiMele traces rejection sensitivity from evolutionary roots to modern overpraise culture, body image anxiety, and the self-fulfilling prophecy of paranoid withdrawal. Callers share vivid personal examples.

Body Piercing and Reclaiming the Self with Stephanie Roth June 18, 2008

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Stephanie Roth
Category: Identity & The Self, Trauma & Healing

Body piercing is not about fashion but about reclaiming parts of yourself that were taken away in childhood. Armand DiMele and Stephanie Roth-Goldberg, LCSW, argue that each piercing site maps onto a specific loss: ears to being heard, lips to voice, eyes to perception, genitals to sexual autonomy, and the navel to maternal connection.

The Truth About Self-Esteem May 30, 2007

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Identity & The Self, Personal Growth & Change

High self-esteem is not the simple good we’ve been told it is. Armand DiMele and co-host Roberta examine research showing that abusers and violent criminals often score high on self-esteem scales, why therapists’ reliance on supportive praise backfires, and what honest self-knowledge offers instead.

The Psychology of Lying and Deception April 26, 2007

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Identity & The Self

Why do people lie, and what drives each kind of deception? Armand DiMele walks through six categories of lying, from flattery to self-aggrandizement, then takes calls including a striking conversation with a caller who confesses a history of theft and makes a live on-air apology.

Fixed Mindset and Growth Mindset with Dr. Carol Dweck April 24, 2007

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. Carol Dweck
Category: Identity & The Self, Personal Growth & Change

Can you change how smart or capable you are, or are you stuck with what you have? Dr. Carol Dweck, Professor and Author of the book Mindset, joins Armand to explain how fixed versus growth mindsets shape success, relationships, and resilience, and why treating setbacks as information rather than verdicts changes everything.

Narcissism and Self-Love with Dr. Frank Yeoman March 13, 2007

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. Frank Yeomans
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Identity & The Self

Healthy self-love and pathological narcissism are not the same thing. Armand and psychiatrist Dr. Frank Yeoman trace the spectrum from perfectionistic collapse (illustrated by the poem “Richard Corey”) to envy, aggression, and celebrity worship, arguing that most narcissistic suffering stems from an inability to feel genuinely good about oneself.