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What if the root of burnout, loneliness, and disconnection is the feeling that we simply don't matter? Today, we're joined by John R. Miles, award-winning author, former Navy officer, Fortune 50 executive, and host of the Passion Struck podcast, which has reached over 85 million downloads. His latest book, The Mattering Effect: Creating a Life of Meaning and Worth, explores why so many people feel invisible and how we can reclaim our sense of significance. John introduces us to the six foundations of mattering: meaning, autonomy, trust, time, energy, and reciprocity. He also shares his Matter Compass, a framework for understanding how we value ourselves, connect with others, honor our emotions, and create meaningful impact. Through small, intentional choices, we can begin rebuilding what we've lost. We also explore how John's personal experiences with adversity, burnout, and his sister's battle with cancer shaped his mission. His message reminds us that it's never too late to create a life that reflects who we truly want to be. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Agency means consciously choosing the life you want rather than simply managing a life you never intended to create. Don't wait until years have passed to recognize what matters most. Start making intentional choices today. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: The Mattering Effect: Creating a Life of Meaning and Worth by John R. MilesPassion Struck by John R. MilesJohn R. Miles' WebsitePassion Struck PodcastThe Ignited Life Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jeff Westphal is an executive, entrepreneur, philanthropist, conservationist, and author of A Work Life Worth Living. After years of building and leading a successful company, Jeff realized that professional achievement alone wasn’t enough to create a fulfilling work life. That realization began a decades-long exploration of purpose, leadership, and the meaning we find in the work we do. We explore why fulfillment doesn’t have to depend on finding the perfect job or waiting for an organization to change. Jeff shares how understanding the contribution behind our work can shift the way we experience it, even when that contribution isn’t immediately obvious. He also introduces Meaning Sphere, a platform designed to help people better understand where meaning comes from in their work and connect with others who are exploring the same questions. Jeff also encourages us to know ourselves more deeply and seek mentors who can give us a safe place to explore our struggles, possibilities, and relationship with work. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway We each have a contribution to make toward building the world we want. Jeff’s message is to discover what your “brick” is, recognize what you’re contributing to the future, and find meaning in making that contribution. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Meaning SphereRead A Work Life Worth Living Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Michael Clinton, former president and publishing director of Hearst Magazines and current special media advisor to the Hearst Corporation CEO, joins us to rethink what it means to live a long life. An author, photographer, adventurer, and marathoner on all seven continents, Michael explores these ideas in his new book, Longevity Nation, examining how medicine, technology, and human behavior are reshaping our healthspan and our expectations for the second half of life. Pasted text We discuss the everyday foundations of longevity, including movement, nutrition, sleep, purpose, and meaningful relationships. Michael also shares how emerging advances in AI, precision medicine, and longevity research could shift healthcare toward prevention. Just as important is what we do with those extra years. Through his concept of “life layering,” Michael encourages us to develop new interests and identities throughout life, rather than waiting for retirement to discover what brings us energy and purpose. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Movement is one of the most important investments we can make in our longevity, healthspan, and happiness. Exercise does not need to be complicated: walk, do squats, take small “exercise snacks” throughout the day, and find enjoyable ways to keep your body moving.  -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Longevity Nation by Michael ClintonROAR: Into the Second Half of Your Life by Michael ClintonThe Longevity Diet by Valter LongoThe Singularity Is Nearer by Ray KurzweilArt Cure by Daisy FancourtThe Anatomy of Wellbeing by Dr. Monisha Bhanote Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Dr. James Walsh is an Air Force veteran, retired Department of Defense civilian, educator, and author with more than four decades of leadership experience. Drawing from his military career, academic research, and years teaching leadership and management, he focuses on the practical skills leaders need to earn trust, strengthen teams, and produce meaningful results. We explore why leadership depends less on having all the answers and more on listening, communicating effectively, and understanding the people around us. Dr. Walsh explains how collaboration, emotional intelligence, and situational leadership help leaders navigate different personalities, cultures, and challenges while keeping teams focused on shared objectives. We also discuss the role of conflict and why disagreement can strengthen a team when it remains focused on solving the problem rather than attacking the person. Through it all, Dr. Walsh returns to a central idea: leadership succeeds when people trust the person guiding them. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Effective leadership begins with trust. Leaders who communicate, listen, and model growth create an environment where their people can become more effective while helping the organization succeed. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Read You’re a Leader, Now What? Build Trust, Inspire Teams, Drive Results Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Dana Killion is an author, speaker, and trauma-informed guide whose work explores what happens after the worst moments of our lives and how we decide who we want to become next. Her newest book, Becoming Unbreakable: A Big Sister’s Guide to Trauma, grew from an eight-year period marked by betrayal, divorce, the deaths of both parents, and the devastating loss of her oldest son to fentanyl. We explore Dana’s process for moving beyond survival toward a deeper definition of healing. Rather than measuring progress by whether the pain has simply become manageable, she asks whether we can trust again, be vulnerable, and live without resentment controlling us.  Dana shares how setting a clear determination to heal, taking small investigatory steps, creating our own story of “why,” and choosing how we tell our story can restore a sense of agency after trauma. Healing may leave scars, but those scars do not have to remain open wounds. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Relief is not the final destination. We are capable of pursuing a deeper healing that allows us to move forward with trust, vulnerability, and wholeness rather than simply learning to tolerate the pain. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Becoming Unbreakable: A Big Sister’s Guide to Trauma By Dana KillionDana Killion’s Website Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Mickey Z is a writer, speaker, activist, and the founder of Cheerful Giver NYC, a grassroots effort supporting people experiencing homelessness throughout New York City. A prolific author and longtime advocate, Mickey joins us to share how his upbringing, personal losses, spirituality, and years of direct service shaped a mission centered on helping others with humility rather than assumptions. We explore what Mickey has learned from nearly a decade of working closely with homeless and recently housed New Yorkers. His experience challenges many common beliefs about homelessness, from assumptions about addiction and employment to the idea that we know what someone else needs. Mickey explains why meaningful help begins by asking, listening, and respecting each person’s dignity, choices, and individual circumstances. His work is also a reminder that we do not need special credentials or enormous resources to make an impact. By paying closer attention to the people within our reach, we can learn to become more compassionate, effective helpers. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Attention is a form of love. Listen closely, remain open to learning, and remember that making a meaningful difference in even one person’s life can be life-changing for them. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: The Cheerful Giver NYCMickey Z’s Instagram Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Karen Olson is the founder and CEO emeritus of Family Promise, an organization that has mobilized more than a million volunteers and helped more than a million people experiencing homelessness. Her work has earned national recognition, including the Points of Light Award and the Jefferson Award, but her path began with something far simpler: stopping to offer a sandwich and conversation to a homeless woman outside Grand Central Station. We explore how that single act of compassion grew into a nationwide movement supporting families experiencing homelessness. Karen shares why meaningful change often begins small, how passion, planning, and persistence helped her overcome resistance, and why serving others can create a deeper sense of happiness and connection. She also reflects on the life-changing accident that left her using a wheelchair and how gratitude, acceptance, and continued service have helped her move forward. Karen’s story reminds us that we do not need extraordinary resources to make a difference. Sometimes the most meaningful impact begins by simply noticing another person and choosing to help. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway This too will change. When life becomes difficult, look up and outward rather than turning inward, because reaching beyond ourselves to help someone else can create healing, connection, and hope. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Family PromiseKaren Olson’s WebsiteMeant for More: Following Your Heart and Finding Your Purpose by Karen Olson Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Scott M. Curran is a social impact lawyer, advisor, educator, and founder and CEO of Beyond Advisers. After serving as general counsel of the Clinton Foundation, where he advised a global nonprofit operating in more than 50 countries, Scott built a career helping leaders and organizations turn good intentions into lasting impact. In his new book, Better Good: A Simple System for Creating Lasting Impact, he makes that work accessible to anyone who wants to do more good in their life or work. We explore Scott’s framework for recognizing the influence we already have. It starts with the three P’s, profile, platform, and passion, and the three T’s, time, talent, and treasure. Scott challenges the belief that impact requires wealth, status, or a large audience. Our everyday roles, relationships, skills, and choices give us opportunities to make a difference right now. At the heart of Scott’s message is awareness and intentionality. When we recognize how much good we are already capable of creating and deliberately act on it, even small moments can create meaningful ripple effects. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Be aware, be intentional, and take action. The more we recognize opportunities to do good and act on them, the more momentum we create in our lives, our work, and the lives of others. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Read Better Good: A Simple System for Creating Lasting ImpactBeyond Advisers Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Jamison Carrier is the founder of Team NavX, a leadership advisory and recruiting firm that helps organizations build high-performing teams through clarity, accountability, and execution. He is also the co-author of Building a Championship Team: A Practical Guide to Finding, Recruiting and Developing Top Performers, which distills lessons from years of hiring, leadership, and team development into practical systems leaders can use immediately. In our conversation, we explore why strong teams begin with clarity. Jamison introduces his MAP framework, which defines a role through its missions, actions, and performance expectations, giving leaders a clearer way to hire, onboard, and coach. He also explains why past performance matters more than credentials alone and shares his 30-minute rule for avoiding the biases that can distort hiring decisions. We also discuss what keeps top performers engaged once they join a team. Clear scoreboards, consistent feedback, autonomy, and specific appreciation create an environment where people know what winning looks like and have the support to perform at their best. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Every leader needs to decide where their organization falls on the spectrum between family and team. Family prioritizes acceptance, while teams prioritize performance, and understanding that distinction helps leaders set expectations and lead with greater clarity. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Read Building a Championship Team: A Practical Guide to Finding, Recruiting and Developing Top PerformersTeam NavX Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Roger Dooley is an internationally recognized author, keynote speaker, entrepreneur, and expert in neuromarketing and behavioral science. His books include Friction, Brainfluence, and The Persuasion Engine, which examines how artificial intelligence is making sophisticated behavioral science tools accessible to businesses of every size. We explore how most human decisions happen beneath conscious awareness and why effective persuasion requires more than listing features and benefits. Roger explains how AI can analyze customer behavior, strengthen marketing messages, simulate eye-tracking research, and provide insights based on the work of leading behavioral scientists. He also shares practical ways to improve AI responses, including providing detailed context, asking the model to identify missing information, requesting a stronger version of the original prompt, and comparing answers across multiple platforms. Roger also challenges the belief that AI cannot understand emotion. While it does not experience empathy, it can often predict emotional reactions and help organizations communicate difficult decisions with greater care, clarity, and awareness. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway AI understands emotion and empathy better than many people realize. Used ethically, it can help us communicate and persuade more effectively while guiding people toward choices that genuinely serve them. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: The Persuasion EngineBrainfluenceFriction Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Phil Cousineau is a writer, teacher, filmmaker, storyteller, cultural historian, and the author of more than 40 books, including The Art of Pilgrimage and The Hero’s Journey. Drawing on decades of studying mythology, working with Joseph Campbell, consulting for major film studios, and leading journeys through Greece, Phil joins us to explore his newest book, The Wisdom of the Odyssey: 24 Life Lessons from Homer’s Epic. We examine why The Odyssey has remained relevant for nearly 3,000 years and how it can serve as a map for navigating trauma, identity, relationships, and healing. Phil reframes Odysseus as a wounded soul trying to find his way home and shares lessons about seeking mentors, reclaiming our personal stories, welcoming unfamiliar ideas, and listening deeply to the people we love. He also explains why ancient stories help us recognize that our pain is not unprecedented and why wisdom begins when we look beneath the surface of our experiences. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Go deeper into the stories, relationships, and experiences that move you. Ask what wisdom and hidden meaning they contain, then listen closely enough to hear the answer. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: The Wisdom of the OdysseyThe Art of PilgrimageThe Hero’s Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Richard Moss is an internationally respected teacher, author, and visionary thinker who has spent nearly five decades exploring human consciousness, presence, and what he calls radical aliveness. After a spontaneous state of illumination ended his career in emergency medicine, he devoted his life to helping people understand how their thoughts shape their emotional experience and how awareness can reconnect them with a deeper sense of self. In our conversation, Richard explains the framework behind his book, The Mandala of Being: Discovering the Power of Awareness. He describes how the mind pulls us into stories about the past, fears about the future, and judgments about ourselves and others. By returning to the present moment, we can observe those patterns without becoming controlled by them. We also explore why resisting fear often gives it more power. Richard shares how meeting difficult emotions with attention, softness, and curiosity can turn fear into aliveness and help us respond to life from a place of love rather than reactivity. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway You have a divine spark within you, and you are not the victim of your mind. Before speaking or reacting, pause and ask, “What does love want right now?” -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: The Mandala of Being: Discovering the Power of Awareness on AmazonRichard Moss’s Official Website Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

DJ DiDonna is a senior lecturer at Harvard Business School and the founder of The Sabbatical Project, where he studies how extended time away from routine work can reshape our health, identity, and direction. In his new book, Big Time Off: The Transformative Power of Sabbaticals and How to Take One, he draws on years of research to show why sabbaticals are far more than extended vacations. We explore how stepping away gives us enough distance to recover from burnout, reconnect with neglected parts of ourselves, and consider what we want from the next chapter of our lives. DJ explains the three common sabbatical archetypes: the achiever, the explorer, and the seeker. He also shares why duration, disconnection, and journaling matter more than creating the perfect itinerary. Our conversation offers a practical way to think about time off, even when family, finances, and professional responsibilities make it feel impossible. A meaningful sabbatical may require years of preparation, but the first step is deciding which experiences are too important to leave undone. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Treat a sabbatical as regret insurance. Make space to identify what you would regret never doing, then begin moving the financial, professional, and logistical pieces needed to make it possible. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Big Time Off by DJ DiDonnaDJ DiDonna’s Website Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

In this episode of The Daily Helping, we’re joined by Paul Ingram, the Kravis Professor of Business at Columbia Business School and author of What Do You Really Stand For? The One Question That Will Transform Your Work and Life. Paul has received Columbia’s highest recognition for teaching, along with numerous teaching awards from students at Columbia and Cornell, and his research has appeared in more than 100 articles, book chapters, and books. Paul shares why clarity around our values is one of the most practical tools we have for improving our work, relationships, and well-being. Through decades of research and teaching, he has found that when people bring their values to mind, they become more resilient, ethical, motivated, and connected to what truly matters. We also explore how values shape workplace culture, strengthen relationships, and help people make better decisions. Paul offers a simple reflective process for identifying values by looking at meaningful experiences and asking why they mattered. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Clarify your values, then make them concrete and easy to access. Keeping them visible, whether on a card, mug, or daily ritual, can ground you, reduce stress, and help you live with greater intention. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources:  Read What Do You Really Stand For? By Paul Ingram Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Kevin Dias is the founder of Ambiki, an EMR and practice management platform built for pediatric speech, occupational, and physical therapy practices. His path has taken him from investment banking to teaching English in Japan, translation technology, and healthcare software, but the thread connecting it all is a deep interest in solving real-world workflow problems. In this episode, we explore Kevin’s book, The Problem First Method, and why teams so often rush into building solutions before they fully understand the problem. Kevin shares how customer requests, investor pressure, competitor moves, and now AI can all make it easier to build quickly, but not always wisely. His framework encourages leaders and teams to slow down, ask better questions, remove solution language from early planning, and build from a clearer understanding of what actually needs to be solved. What we loved about this conversation is how practical and human Kevin’s approach is. Whether you are building software, managing a team, or navigating everyday family challenges, his message is a reminder that thoughtful problem-solving starts with curiosity, not assumptions. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway Don’t fall in love with solutions. Fall in love with understanding the problem deeply enough that the right solution becomes obvious. -- Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. Resources: Read The Problem First Method by Kevin DiasAmbikihttps://problem-first-method.comhttps://www.kevinsdias.com Produced by NOVA Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy