We’re excited to celebrate a major milestone—Think Fast Talk Smart is approaching its 300th episode! To mark the occasion, Matt will be hosting two free AMA (Ask Matt Anything) events open to everyone via LinkedIn and YouTube Live. We’d love for you to join us on June 3rd at 8AM…
Want a better tomorrow? Start with tonight. Instead of waiting until you’re exhausted, choose a target bedtime. Take 5 minutes to wind down. Create a calm transition before bed. Small shifts in how you approach sleep can improve energy, focus, and how you show up the next day. According to…
Perhaps all your performance has been missing is one good night’s sleep. The single biggest upgrade to your leadership, communication, and performance is something you're already doing every night. Stanford sleep physician Dr. Cheri Mah joins Matt Abrahams on Think Fast, Talk Smart to reveal the counterintuitive science behind why…
Your growth is rarely limited by effort alone. It’s often limited by who you surround yourself with. Strong leaders know this: build a team of people who are better than you in their lanes. That’s how real progress happens. Full episode on fastersmarter.io. #Leadership #TeamBuilding #ThinkFastTalkSmart #SuccessMindset #CareerGrowth
You don’t need to be the loudest voice in the room. You need to make sure that when you speak, it matters. Confidence is not volume. Credibility is not noise. Performance speaks louder than words. Full episode with Susie Wolff on fastersmarter.io. #LeadershipSkills #ExecutivePresence #ThinkFastTalkSmart #Confidence #CareerGrowth
Confident communication isn’t about being the loudest in the room. For Susie Wolff, it’s about displaying assurance before you even open your mouth. Wolff is a former professional race car driver, managing director of F1 Academy, and author of Driven. Throughout her career in one of the world's most male-dominated…
Most people enter disagreement trying to win. A better move: state the other person’s argument first. It builds empathy, reveals misunderstandings, and fosters a real conversation rather than a battle. Full episode with David Epstein on fastersmarter.io. #CommunicationSkills #LeadershipTips #EmotionalIntelligence #ThinkFastTalkSmart #ConflictResolution
If your message feels scattered, it probably is. Before your next meeting, pitch, interview, or hard conversation, ask yourself: What is the one thing I need them to remember? Start there. Everything else is supporting material. Full episode at fastersmarter.io. #EffectiveCommunication #LeadershipDevelopment #ExecutivePresence #ProfessionalGrowth
Communication isn’t clearer when you say more — it’s clearer when you say less. As David Epstein puts it, we’re wired to keep adding, even when “the better solution is often what you take away.” The challenge isn’t having ideas; it’s choosing which one actually matters. Epstein is an author…
Sweaty palms. Racing heart. Voice that won't cooperate. Sound familiar? That's not weakness; that's biology. Your brain is treating public speaking like a physical threat, and your body is responding accordingly. The good news: you can interrupt that response. And it starts with something you're already doing: breathing. Just not…
Your accent is not evidence that you’re less capable. It’s evidence that you learned another language. That’s strength, not weakness. Valerie Fridland reminds us that success in a language isn’t about sounding native. It’s being understood, being confident, and connecting with others. Speak proudly. Full episode on fastersmarter.io. #LanguageLearning #ConfidenceTips…
A conversation can’t work when only one person is doing all the work. Yet that’s how many people approach communication. The speaker must be clear. The listener just decides if they were. Valerie Fridland offers a better lens: communication is collaborative. Sometimes the easiest way to improve understanding isn’t changing…
Whether communicating in our mother tongue or practicing a new language, we all speak with an accent. But that’s not all, says Valerie Fridland — we hear with an accent as well. Fridland is a professor of sociolinguistics at the University of Nevada, Reno, and author of Why We Talk…
You’re probably not going to blank out. Most people think there’s a high chance they will, but in reality, it’s much lower than you think. If there’s only a ~20% chance you’ll blank. That means there’s an 80% chance you won’t. Sometimes, just rationalizing the odds is enough to take…
How do you stay genuine without sounding rehearsed? What helps when your thoughts are moving faster than your words? And how can you handle high-pressure moments with more ease? Strong communication isn’t about having the right lines ready—it’s about being present enough to respond with clarity. In the moment, it’s…
“The choices you make today will determine the choices you have in the future.” — Tina Seelig Luck isn’t something that shows up overnight. It’s built quietly, through the decisions you make, the habits you keep, and the direction you choose every day. It’s a long game. And it compounds.…
Most people think luck is random. It’s not. It’s everywhere; you’re just not positioned to catch it. The people who seem “lucky” aren’t waiting. They’ve built the systems, relationships, and habits that allow opportunity to find them. So the real question is: Are you waiting for luck… or building for…
Good communication isn’t passive. And good luck, says Tina Seelig, is the same. There’s “what the world gives us,” and then there’s “how we respond to it.” Seelig is executive director of the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program at Stanford University and author of What I Wish I Knew About Luck. For…
Ever blanked out mid-sentence… even though you knew what to say? That’s what memorizing does. It’s like having 10 tabs open in your brain. Less bandwidth = more mistakes. Stop memorizing. Use structure instead. #ThinkFastTalkSmart #CommunicationSkills #PublicSpeaking #ConfidenceTips #CareerGrowth
This podcast is built for you, and your input helps shape what comes next. If you have 5 minutes, we’d love for you to complete our audience survey and tell us what’s working, what’s not, and what you want to see more of. As a thank you, you’ll be entered…
Even if you’re not changing jobs, your job is changing. Aneesh Raman highlights that up to 70% of the skills in a role may shift in the coming years. But this isn’t something that simply happens to you. It’s something you actively shape: through how you adapt, learn, and redefine…
What makes us uniquely human? For a long time, we’ve focused on measurable skills: IQ, analytics, technical expertise. But there’s a growing recognition that the most important capabilities are human ones. Aneesh Raman describes them as the “Five Cs”: courage, curiosity, creativity, compassion, and communication. The most important part? These…
Careers aren’t ladders anymore — they’re climbing walls. As Aneesh Raman puts it, “work is changing, not ending,” and success today depends on how well you can navigate change and explain your path along the way. Raman is the Chief Economic Opportunity Officer at LinkedIn and a former presidential speechwriter…
Your voice gives away your nerves before you say a word. Fast, shallow breathing changes your tone, your pace, your presence. The fix? Breathe lower. Breathe slower. Your voice is a wind instrument; change the airflow, change the sound. #ThinkFastTalkSmart #PublicSpeaking #SpeakingAnxiety #CommunicationSkills #PresentationTips