How to Stop Work From Taking Over Your Life

How to Stop Work From Taking Over Your Life

Author: Pushkin Industries March 16, 2026 Duration: 43:18

Work doesn’t end when the workday does. Even after we close our laptops, our minds keep replaying awkward meetings, looming deadlines, and unfinished to-do lists. Over time, that “always on” mentality can quietly hijack our relationships, our health, and our happiness.

Dr. Laurie sits down with psychologist and bestselling author Guy Winch (Mind Over Grind: How to Break Free When Work Hijacks Your Life) to explore the science of work stress — and why so many of us get stuck in fight-or-flight mode long after we’ve left the office. 

Plus, Ben Walter, host of “The Unshakeables” and CEO of Chase for Business, shares what he’s learned from working with small business owners who don’t have the option to simply “clock out.”

If you’ve ever felt like work is bleeding into everything, this episode offers science-based tools to help you take your life back.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Mind Over Grind: How to Break Free When Work Hijacks Your Life

"Burnout: A Review of Theory and Measurement"

"The Relationship Between Workplace Stressors and Mortality and Health Costs in the United States"

"How Small Businesses Drive the American Economy"

"Small Business Facts"

The Unshakeables

"Yerkes-Dodson Law Of Arousal And Performance"

The Use of Imagery to Manipulate Challenge and Threat Appraisal States in Athletes

Rebuilding After a Blaze: Luna Gourmet Coffee & Tea

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.


We often chase after things we believe will bring us joy-the next promotion, a perfect vacation photo, a bigger house-only to find the feeling is fleeting. The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos digs into the surprising psychology behind why our instincts about happiness are so frequently wrong. Dr. Santos, a Yale professor, doesn't just offer vague self-help advice; she translates the rigorous research from her record-breaking university course into practical, actionable science. Each episode feels like a personal conversation, where she breaks down complex studies and shares stories from people who've applied these lessons, revealing how counterintuitive changes in our daily routines and mindset can have a profound impact. This Pushkin Industries podcast moves beyond the surface of wellness trends, offering a grounded look at what genuinely improves our well-being across our social lives, personal health, and cultural expectations. Tuning in, you'll hear not just theory, but the tangible steps you can take to rewire your habits, backed by evidence that often contradicts our modern chase for more. It’s a refreshing take that makes the science of a better life accessible and genuinely useful, episode by episode.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 100

The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos
Podcast Episodes
The Joy of Not Being Dead (with Ryan Holiday on The Daily Stoic) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:35
Dr Laurie often uses the teachings of the ancient Stoic philosophers to help her through daily life - so she was invited on Ryan Holiday's hit show The Daily Stoic to discuss what she's learned. Ryan started off asking D…
The Jimi Hendrix of the Cello (with Joshua Roman) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:07
Joshua Roman has been playing the cello everyday since he was three - but then on a concert tour he caught Covid. The illness wouldn't go away and sapped his ability to play the music he loves at the level he was used to…
"Birds Are Like My Afternoon Martini" (Birding with  Lili Taylor) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:15
Lili Taylor loves her acting career - but the emotional intensity of her work and the constant travel can take its toll. But Lili has found a way to relax and unwind - watching birds. As Lili explains in her new book Tur…
How Dogs Changed my Life (with The Dogist) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:29
We all have our own ways of coping - especially when things get tough. So for the next few shows we're going to talking to people with interesting coping strategies. And we start with Elias Weiss Friedman, aka The Dogist…
The Two Words That Saved Mel Robbins (From A Slight Change of Plans) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:30
We’re bringing you an episode of A Slight Change of Plans hosted by Dr. Maya Shankar - the behavioral scientist who also happens to be a former student of Dr Laurie. Maya sits down with bestselling author and popular pod…
How Smartphones Changed Childhood (And What to do About it) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:52
The happiness of young people has taken a big hit since the advent of the smartphone - and social psychologist Jonathan Haidt argues that there is a direct link. He warns that allowing children easy access to the interne…
How to Think Like a Child (with David Yeager) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:06
Why do kids do disruptive, annoying or maddening things? Usually when children behave badly, the first thing adults do is yell at them, tell them they're bad and dole out punishments. Developmental psychologist David Yea…
How to Tackle Bad Behaviour (with Dr Becky Kennedy) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:35
Clinical psychologist Dr Becky Kennedy thinks every child is “good inside” even when they’re behaving badly. So to tackle tantrums or rule-breaking, she argues that parents must set clear boundaries for acceptable behavi…