Meikles & Dimes

Nate Meikle
  • 4.9 (161)
  • Education
  • Updated Weekly

Meikles & Dimes is a podcast dedicated to the simple, practical, and underappreciated. Monologue episodes cover science-based topics in decision-making, health, communication, negotiation, and performance psychology. Interview episodes, called Layer 2 episodes, include guests from business, academia, health care, journalism, engineering, and athletics.

  1. 6d ago

    264: Professor Tali Sharot, University College London | Where You Are Matters More Than You Think

    Tali Sharot is a Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London and on the faculty of the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT. Tali’s research integrates neuroscience, behavioral economics, and psychology to study how emotion and motivation influence people’s beliefs and decisions. Tali’s award winning books – The Optimism Bias The Influential Mind, and Look Again, have been praised by outlets including the NYT, Time, Forbes and more. Her two TED talks have been viewed more than 17 million times, and she has written multiple Op-Eds for the NYT, Time, Guardian, Washington Post, CNN, and others. In this episode we discuss the following: I was struck by how Tali’s childhood experience of moving between countries gave her a powerful insight: circumstance matters more than we think. Traits like happiness, sociability, and even patience aren’t as fixed as they feel; they can meaningfully change depending on our environment. Thriving isn’t just about changing ourself—it’s about using our agency to find the settings where we function at our best. But doing that requires exploration. And exploration is uncomfortable. We stick with what’s familiar because it feels safe, even if it’s only “good enough.” The risk, of course, is that by avoiding uncertainty, we miss out on discovering what might be an even better fit. Different environments don’t just change how we feel—they actually activate different versions of who we are. We’re not just a single fixed person; we’re a range of possible selves, shaped by where we are and what we’re doing. Who you are is more flexible than you think—and where you are plays a bigger role than you realize.

    16 min

  2. Jun 15

    263: What Great Teams Do Differently | Social Psychologist Ron Friedman

    Ron Friedman is an award-winning social psychologist, and bestselling author of The Best Place to Work and Decoding Greatness. And his new book, SuperTeams draws on data from 6,000 workers. I hope you enjoy learning from Ron Friedman today. In this episode we discuss the following: The best teams are not just a lucky collection of talented people. They work differently. The best teams protect focus. They treat meetings as a last resort, not the default. They create cultures where people do not just answer to the boss—they feel accountable to one another. They seek feedback before the work is finished, and they run experiments looking for new ideas. Recovery is not just doing nothing. Sometimes the best way to recover from work is to do something challenging, energizing, and personally meaningful. Visit this link for a free Masterclass: http://superteamsmasterclass.com/

    15 min

  3. Jun 8

    262: Data Scientist Sebastian Wernicke | Data Doesn’t Convince People—People Do

    Sebastian Wernicke is a leading expert in data and AI strategy who has spent more than 20 years helping organizations—from startups to Fortune 500 companies—turn data into real-world transformation. Sebastian’s work stands out because of his core belief that the power of data isn’t unlocked through better technology—it’s unlocked through better thinking. Through his consulting, speaking, and three TED Talks with over 5 million views, he’s helped leaders rethink how they use data to drive meaningful change. His new book, Data Inspired, makes the case that the future belongs not to organizations that are merely data-driven, but to those that build a true culture of inquiry. In this episode we discuss the following: Data doesn’t convince people. People convince people. Sebastian’s fuel savings example captures this perfectly. A 20% improvement felt like a win to Sebastian, but like an accusation to the employee. So Sebastian repositioned it—not as a “big fix,” but as a gradual, step-by-step pilot—making it feel natural and allowing everyone to save face. And an underappreciate tool Sebastian uses to systematically think through motivations and constraints is checklist. What especially helps companies make the best use of data is psychological safety. Without it, the highest-paid opinion wins, and the data gets ignored. Data is more like an MRI than a clear cut verdict, so it’s important to get people’s perspectives because we can all look at the same data and see a different truth. If we want to use data more, we have to understand people better.

    16 min

  4. Jun 1

    261: Eric Ries, Author of The Lean Startup | The System Isn't Inevitable

    Eric Ries is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Lean Startup, which is responsible for many of the terms commonly used in tech today, including minimum viable product and the build-measure-learn cycle. And his new book is titled, Incorruptible: Why Good Companies Go Bad... and How Great Companies Stay Great. Over the last two decades, Eric’s ideas about continuous innovation, long-term thinking, governance, and market reform have reshaped company building and management practices. He is the creator of the Lean Startup method, is founder of The Long-Term Stock Exchange and Answer.Ai among other companies, and has served as an entrepreneur-in-residence at Harvard Business School and IDEO.  In this episode we discuss the following: Things aren’t always the way they are because they have to be—they’re often that way because someone benefits from them staying that way. And over time, those systems start to feel inevitable, even when they’re not. Eric’s story about using long-term thinking to build the Long-Term Stock Exchange is an inspiring reminder that change often comes from outside the system, and requires persistence in the face of pressure. I love Eric’s perspective on mission primacy. The best organizations aren’t built just to maximize profits—they’re built around a purpose. They exist to solve a real problem, to create something meaningful. And when the mission comes first, profits aren’t the goal—they’re the result. And maybe the most practical takeaway is to not set our goals too low. Before all of the great people became the great people, they were just a student, just a worker, just someone trying to figure things out. As Eric said, “If you see the opportunity for real, lasting, profound change, don’t shy away. Give it a shot. You never know what you might birth in those moments that feel the darkest, that feel the most impossible.”

    19 min

  5. May 25

    260: From Felon to Bestseller | Lara Love Hardin on Why What We Hide Connects Us

    Lara Love Hardin is a New York Times bestselling author, literary agent, and founder of True Literary, known for her memoir The Many Lives of Mama Love. Her story details her journey from suburban soccer mom to opioid addicted felon, eventually becoming a successful, award-winning ghostwriter with four New York Times Bestsellers, including The Sun Does Shine. In this episode we discuss the following: Lara spent years trying to outrun her past—building a résumé of goodness, hiding the worst parts of her story, convinced that if people really knew her, they’d walk away. And then she did the one thing she feared most: she told the truth. And everything flipped. Instead of rejection, she got connection. Instead of judgment, she got empathy. Instead of isolation, she found community. The very things we hide to protect ourselves are often the things that would most connect us to others. Lara’s story teaches us about struggle. At the time, her lowest moments felt like the end. In retrospect, they became the new foundation—making her a better mother, writer, and human being. When you’re managing shame or fear, your cognitive bandwidth is consumed—no room for imagination, long-term goals, or “delusional ambition.” Her inbox of “thousands of secrets” suggests a massive hidden distribution of private struggle across seemingly functional people. First-person, present-tense narrative collapses psychological distance—you simulate the decisions, not just observe outcomes. When we’re in a hard season, sometimes all we can do is look forward to looking back.

    21 min

  6. May 18

    259: Good Things Don’t Happen by Accident | NBA Champion Wayne Simien

    Wayne Simien is an NBA champion for the Miami Heat and two-time All-American and Big 12 Player of the Year for the Kansas Jayhawks. He currently serves as Associate Athletics Director of Strategic Engagement for KU. Wayne also works as a broadcaster for KU Men’s and Women’s basketball on ESPN+. Before joining Kansas athletics, Wayne spent 12 years in campus ministry. He and his wife Katie are the parents of five children. In this episode we discuss the following: Good things don’t happen by accident. Whether good health, meaningful relationships, or a flourishing career, all of them require work. And often a coach who is guiding us and pushing us and a team that holds us accountable. Competitiveness is more about having the drive to prepare than having the desire to win.  From Bill Self Wayne learned the importance of toughness as a leadership trait. By making practice harder than the games, players develop resiliency and grit on a day-to-day basis. From Roy Williams Wayne learned that long term success comes from commitment to a system. Ten years after leaving KU, Roy was winning national championships at North Carolina built around his same system. And what an amazing lesson Wayne learned from Pat Riley. After winning the NBA championship with Hall of Famers, Shaq, Gary Payton, Alonzo Mourning, and Dwyane Wade, the first drill they did the next year was the basic three man weave.

    16 min

  7. May 11

    258: The Anti–Midlife Crisis Mindset | Michael Clinton, Former President of Hearst Magazines

    Michael Clinton is the former president and publishing director of Hearst Magazines and is currently special media advisor to the Hearst Corporation’s CEO. If you don’t know which magazines Hearst owns, here are a few: Cosmopolitan, Elle, Harper's Bazaar, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Country Living, Women's Health, Men's Health, Popular Mechanics, Car and Driver, and O, The Oprah Magazine. Michael is also a regular columnist for Men’s Health, and his work has been featured in Forbes, Oprah Daily, Esquire, Elle, and on CBS Mornings. Michael has traveled through over a hundred countries, has run marathons on seven continents, is a private pilot, part owner of a vineyard in Argentina, has started a nonprofit foundation, holds two master’s degrees, and still has a long list of life experiences that he plans to tackle. He is also the author of the book, Longevity Nation. Michael currently resides in New York and Santa Fe, New Mexico. In this episode we discuss the following: Movement is medicine. Not the pharmacy kind, but the kind we build into our life, day after day, year after year. Longevity isn’t something reserved for the genetically lucky, but rather a choice we can make. And given that people are living longer than ever, it has never been more important to take care of ourselves. It’s never too late to start getting healthy. Michael takes inspiration from 100 year old marathon runner who started running in his 80s. We can avoid the midlife crisis by recognizing it as an opportunity. If we’re going to live longer, then we’re not winding down… we’re just getting to halftime. And that means there’s still time to rebuild, improve, and re-invest in a better version of ourselves.

    15 min

  8. May 4

    257: The 5-Minute Habit That Boosts Energy, Focus, and Health | Manoush Zomorodi, Host of NPR's TED Radio Hour

    Manoush Zomorodi is an award-winning journalist, bestselling author, and host of NPR's TED Radio Hour. Her Body Electric project, a groundbreaking collaboration between NPR and Columbia University Medical Center involving over 20,000 participants, represents one of the largest public health studies of its kind. She’s also the author of the book, Bored and Brilliant, and her TED talk about the attention economy has more than 6 million views.  In this episode we discuss the following: Sitting for extended periods is like kinking a garden hose, which reduces blood flow, oxygen, and glucose regulation. But taking regular five minute breaks helps us think more clearly and feel more energized. We can make small structural changes to encourage movement breaks by scheduling a meeting for 55 minutes rather than an hour. The best part about regular movement breaks is that it isn’t a tradeoff—it’s a win-win where small changes improve our health, mood, and productivity.

    19 min
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4.9
out of 5
161 Ratings

About

Meikles & Dimes is a podcast dedicated to the simple, practical, and underappreciated. Monologue episodes cover science-based topics in decision-making, health, communication, negotiation, and performance psychology. Interview episodes, called Layer 2 episodes, include guests from business, academia, health care, journalism, engineering, and athletics.

Information

  • Creator
    Nate Meikle
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    264
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2021 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Meikles & Dimes

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