Mighty Pursuit Podcast

Ivy League Scientist: We Discovered Humans Are Built to Sense God

Maybe you’ve heard people talk about hearing God’s voice or feeling a higher presence — and your first reaction is to roll your eyes. Or maybe you’ve had a moment like that yourself but never known what to make of it. You’re skeptical, but curious.
The truth is, this topic makes people uncomfortable. It’s loaded with religious baggage and often framed as anti-intellectual. But what if — scientifically — it’s real?
That’s why we sat down with Dr. Lisa Miller — an Ivy League scientist, bestselling author, and one of the pioneers in mapping the spiritual brain. Her research proves what skeptics have long dismissed and what seekers have quietly known all along: that we are biologically wired for spirituality. And if that’s true, it changes everything.
In this episode, we explore what happens when you make regular connection with a higher power part of your life. This conversation isn’t about dogma or religion — it’s about what it means to live with rhythms of connection that shape how you move through the world, how you handle suffering, and how you experience joy.
Even if you’re skeptical, this conversation matters. Because if the science is right, it may be the most important capacity you carry inside you.
Chapters:0:00 - Intro2:14 - The Emerging View of Consciousness14:56 - Experiences with Divine Guidance30:49 - Passive Experiences vs. Activating Them43:35 - The Nature of God52:53 - Nontraditional Ways of Connection1:00:50 - Synchronicities, Dreams & Imagination1:11:36 - Relational Spirituality
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Dr. Lisa Miller Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.lisamiller/Awakened Brain:  https://amzn.to/4dhiTIZ
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

25-Year Relationship Scientist: Why You Keep Choosing the Wrong People

Thousands of voices are telling you how to do modern dating and relationships.
Scroll through your feed and anyone with charisma and a microphone can become a relationship expert. Maybe you’ve grown disillusioned with those voices. You’ve tried to follow the advice, but still struggled in your own relationship — or wondered what, if anything, you can actually trust.
And the opportunity to speak into this moment is massive. Because the reality is sobering: divorce rates hover above 50%. And if you factor in the number of couples who are actually happy, the percentages fall much lower.
Here’s the good news: finding a successful, happy, long-lasting relationship is not impossible. But only if you understand the truth — and apply it to your life.
That’s why we sat down with Dr. Ty Tashiro, one of the top relationship scientists in the world. He’s synthesized decades of research across psychology and relationship science, getting to the root of what really makes love last.
In this conversation, you’ll hear why the very things most of us chase in a partner — passion, beauty, and money — can backfire. We’ll explore the consequences of listening to the wrong voices on this subject, and uncover the traits that science says actually predict a happy, lasting relationship.
CHAPTERS:0:00 - Intro1:48 - The Story of Dirty Socks9:41 - Generational Shifts In How We View Love19:20 - The Boom in Bad Dating Advice24:58 - Marrying for Money34:44 - Choosing Someone Because They’re Hot46:36 - Deconstructing Your Wishlist56:54 - Marrying Someone You’re Not In Love With1:22:26 - Gender Dynamics1:32:50 - The Ideal Foundation For A Relationship1:48:09 - Divorce Can Be Predicted With 94% Accuracy
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Dr. Ty Tashiro Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tytashiro/?hl=enBook: https://amzn.to/4ay1Bb6
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

Penn Badgley: How We Get Stuck (And How To Break Free)

Penn Badgley has spent most of his life being watched — the star of two of the more successful TV shows in recent history: Gossip Girl and You.
And in these last five years, You became a cultural phenomenon. People fell in love with Joe Goldberg, and before that, Dan Humphrey. But what few knew what was happening in Penn’s real life while all of this was going on.
Behind the scenes, he was going through an existential crisis that forced him to step back and look at his life in a completely different way. And that shift touched everything: his relationships, how he thought about love, how he understood himself.
The more we chatted with Penn in the week’s episode of the Mighty Pursuit Podcast, the more we realized that this wasn’t just his story— it was actually a mirror for our own. The questions driving his crisis are the ones that define all of our lives.
Over the course of two hours, we go everywhere — relationships, body image, childhood wounds, Joe Goldberg and the spiritual questions that have been forming underneath it all.
What struck us most is Penn’s depth — the honesty and emotional intelligence he brings to each part of this story. You’ll quickly realize that this is one of his most-in depth conversations yet.
Chapters:0:00 - Intro1:17 - The Stairs Incident21:49 - Relationship Patterns & Ideas About Love48:59 - Struggles with Self-Criticism59:46 - The Existential Crisis1:37:22 - Being at War with Joe Goldberg
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Penn Badgley Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pennbadgley/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@iampennbadgleyCrushmore (new book): https://amzn.to/48sGBjk
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

Harvard Neuroscientist: The Fascinating New Science Of Dreams

You’ll spend roughly a third of your life asleep — more than 200,000 hours in another world. The dream world.
Every night, your body lies still while your mind builds entire realities: places, people, and moments that feel as real as waking life. And yet, most of us forget almost everything we experience there.
Maybe you shrug off dreams as random noise. Maybe they terrify you — the nightmares, the paralysis, the strange symbols that stay with you long after you wake. Or maybe you’ve had dreams that felt like they were trying to tell you something.
In recent decades, neuroscience has revealed that dreams are far more than imagination. They’re data — emotional, psychological, even spiritual. They hold powerful clues to who we are, what we fear, and what we’ve yet to face.
That’s why we sat down with Dr. Baland Jalal, one of the world’s leading neuroscientists studying dreams, sleep paralysis, and consciousness itself. Based at Harvard, he’s in a rare position to bridge the gap between science and spirituality.
In this conversation, we explore what dreams reveal about God, consciousness, and the nature of reality — and what they can teach us about mental health and trauma.
We go deep into how dreams process emotion and memory, why nightmares can become windows into healing, what lucid dreaming shows us about consciousness, and how ancient spiritual experiences may not be so different from what neuroscience is now discovering.
Once you hear what’s really happening inside the dream world, you may never see waking life the same way again.
Chapters:0:00 - Intro2:02 - The Neuroscience of Dreams17:51 - Your Dreams Are Speaking To You47:04 - God & Spirituality Invading Your Dreams1:13:26 - Learning New Things In Your Dreams1:31:51 - We Can Now Speak To People In Their Dreams1:44:36 - The Terror of Sleep Paralysis
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Dr. Baland Jalal Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/balandjalal/
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

World's #1 Career Expert: The 3-Step Plan To Finding Your True Purpose

Nothing is quite as soul-sucking as spending 40+ hours a week doing something you don’t like.
Maybe that’s your story. 
You feel like you’re trading your life for a paycheck just to get by. You’re not even sure how you’d get out or what else you’d even do.
What’s even more concerning is that this has become normal. The latest research shows only 31% of people feel engaged at work. That means nearly 7 out of 10 are just going through the motions. People are desperate to do something that makes them feel alive.
That’s why we sat down with Dr. Suzy Welch — Director of the Initiative on Purpose and Flourishing at NYU, former editor of Harvard Business Review, and former host of CNBC’s Get To Work. 
At NYU, she now leads one of the university’s most popular courses, helping people uncover purpose in their careers and beyond.
Over the years, she’s developed a proven methodology for helping people break free from the grind and step into a life of meaning. Her approach is incredibly practical — rooted in evidence, refined by experience, and designed to work in the real world.
CHAPTERS:0:00 - Intro1:44 - Why We’re Trapped In Jobs We Hate24:50 - Is It Ever Too Late To Reinvent Yourself?31:15 - You Need To Understand Your Values47:14 - The Difference Between Values & Virtues58:09 - Aptitudes & Our Inborn Wiring1:12:52 - Economically Viable Interests & Megatrends 1:21:50 - The End Goal of Finding Our Purpose
Take The Values Bridge Quiz:https://thevaluesbridge.com/
Becoming You Book:
https://youtu.be/4MxD3oXOpnY
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Suzy Welch Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/suzywelch/
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

Psychoanalyst Erica Komisar: How Motherhood Became a Crime

How did we get to a point where stay-at-home moms became enemies of the feminist movement? Where the work of raising children is seen as less valuable than climbing the corporate ladder?
You know the moment. You’re at a social gathering and someone asks, “So… what do you do?” You say you’re home with your kids. And the room goes quiet. Blank stares. Maybe even judgment, especially from other women.
If that’s you, it can feel like you’re doing something wrong by attending to your children full time. And if you’re the one giving that reaction, you might rattle off all the reasons career should come first.
But here’s the problem: when we diminish the work of parenting, it doesn’t just drive women into identity crises. It makes kids suffer. When we treat parenting as secondary, children absorb that ambivalence. Especially in the earliest years, when their brains are still forming. 
And when those children grow up to become tomorrow’s leaders — carrying fragile mental health, poor resilience, and broken attachment patterns — society doesn’t hold steady. It starts to fracture.
For a topic this urgent, we knew we needed someone who could cut through the noise. Erica Komisar is a feminist icon in the truest sense — an entrepreneur, a psychoanalyst, and a cultural voice who celebrates that women now have choice. She doesn’t believe every woman should have children. But she’s unapologetic about this: if you do, the first years of life carry consequences our culture can’t afford to ignore.
Over the last two years, millions have tuned into her interviews, drawn to her rare mix of honesty and expertise. After decades of guiding families through the hidden forces that shape children, she’s spent her career showing what it takes to raise kids who are secure, resilient, and ready to inherit the world.
If you’re searching for clarity on your own purpose and value, this conversation won’t just affirm you. 
It will reframe how you see the work of parenting itself.
Chapters:0:00 - Intro2:17 - The Complicated Relationship Between Feminism & Motherhood33:15 - The Fantasy Of Having It All & Deciding To Have Kids53:43 - Is Parenting Harder Than Ever Before?1:09:27 - The Differences Between Mothers & Fathers1:19:20 - The Financial Realities of Having Children1:32:05 - The Decision To Use Daycare or a Nanny1:40:42 - Erica’s Own Story of Parenting & Entrepreneurship
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Erica Komisar Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericakomisar/
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

A Dopamine Scientist, a Spiritual Psychologist, and a Food Doctor Solve The Mental Health Puzzle

Weird, isn’t it?
We have more therapy than ever. More medications than ever. More awareness than ever. We’ve broken free from the stigma of the past — and yet, mental health struggles of every kind are still rising. In some ways, you could argue we’re worse off than before the so-called mental health revolution even started.
Maybe this is your story, or someone close to you. You’ve done all the right things, and yet somehow, it’s still not working. Mental health content floods your feed, but it’s become white noise. You’re tired of grifters, tired of quick fixes, tired of the same recycled slogans.
It’s clear the mental health revolution of the 2010s didn’t deliver what we hoped. But the real question is: why? What are we missing?
To find out, we brought together what you might call the Avengers of mental health — a one-of-a-kind team-up with three of the most influential voices in the world.
At Columbia University, Dr. Lisa Miller has shown how spirituality and mental health are inseparable.At Stanford University, Dr. Anna Lembke has exposed how addiction and new technologies are hijacking the brain.And at Harvard University, Dr. Uma Naidoo has established the gut-brain connection, revealing how what we eat shapes how we feel.
They come from the world’s most prestigious institutions. They’re all bestselling authors, recognized globally. And each brings a missing piece of the puzzle.
Together, they give us the whole story of mental health.
This is the first time these voices have come together — a rare chance to hear from the people who have shaped the global conversation on mental health, all in one place. When you put these pieces together, you’ll see a path forward that’s hopeful, practical, and actually produces real change.
Chapters:0:00 - Intro2:12 - Why Are The Statistics Getting Worse?16:28 - Erasing God Damaged Mental Health30:46 - Medication Has Become a Problem56:46 - How Food Helps Heal Mental Health1:09:14 - The Medical System Profits Off Sickness1:22:50 - Addressing The Loneliness Epidemic1:26:15 - Bad Therapy & Empathy Going Too Far1:56:43 - Going Through Things You Cannot Change
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

Ex-Google Whistleblower: Why Tech CEOs Fear A.I. Could End Humanity

Everywhere you turn right now, it’s about AI. Every headline. Every news segment. It feels like the story of the decade and nobody can escape it.
So of course you’d feel threatened. Is your job safe? Will your industry even exist? What does this mean for your kids, your future, your place in the world?
Everyone’s asking the same questions. But the louder the noise gets, the harder it is to know who to trust. Is this real or just one of the greatest hype machines of all time?
That’s why this is one of the most important conversations you’ll ever watch. Because if there’s one voice to trust right now, it’s Tristan Harris.
You know him as the central figure in The Social Dilemma — the Netflix documentary seen by over 100 million people that changed how the world thinks about social media. Before that, he was inside Google, raising the alarm on how technology hijacks our attention and rewires our minds.
Today, as the founder of the Center for Humane Technology, he’s become the most trusted voice on how tech is reshaping our future. He’s not just another commentator. He’s the one person who can show us what’s really coming, what must be prevented, and what it all means for humanity.
This is a rare opportunity to hear from a voice unlike any other. Tristan Harris has sat in rooms with some of the most powerful people on the planet. He’s briefed Congress, shaped policy conversations, and seen firsthand the danger of this technology. Now he’s here to show us what’s really coming, and what’s at stake for all of us.
Chapters:0:00 - Intro2:07 - Big Tech’s Response to The Social Dilemma11:33 - How A.I. Threatens To Destabilize Everything17:14 - Why Don’t We Build Things That Are Healthy?33:03 - How We’ll Become The New Chimpanzees44:30 - A.I. Is Already Going Rogue54:28 - The Biggest Existential Threats of A.I.1:12:45 - Why Is A.I. Progressing at a Reckless Pace?1:26:47 - How Many Years We Have Left Before No Return1:43:50 - Tech Leaders Are Terrified Of What They’re Building1:51:28 - We Need To Act Now
Related Episodes:https://youtu.be/zXUpebtiLp8
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Tristan Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tristanharris/
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

Dr. Becky Kennedy: The 5 Parenting Mistakes You Never Want To Make

If you’re a parent, you’ve probably wrestled with the question: am I really cut out for this?
The fear of being the one who “messes your kid up” can feel overwhelming. In desperation, you search online, scroll through endless videos and land on posts stamped with the words evidence-based. It reassures you — until you realize most of that advice is built on the wrong goal.
Because a child who behaves on the outside but feels unseen and unsafe on the inside is not a success story.
And today’s parents face challenges no generation has before: a high cost of living, limited support networks, and an online world that threatens your child’s very sense of self. Parenting has never been harder.
That’s why we turned to Dr. Becky Kennedy. 
Ivy League–trained, with years of private practice, she has become the preeminent voice on parenting today. For millions of parents, her work has been a lifeline — translating the science of child development into language that feels both practical and deeply human.
Chapters:0:00 - Intro1:36 - Am I Cut Out To Parent?8:05 - Parenting Is Re-Raising Ourselves14:31 - The Problem With “Evidence-Based” Parenting27:00 - Understanding A Child’s Brain43:17 - You Don’t Want Your Kids To Be Happy54:11 - Setting Boundaries With Your Kid1:06:52 - The Primary Role of a Parent1:24:49 - Should You Always Put Your Kids Needs First?1:45:11 - The Dangers of Devices & Social Media
Dr. Becky Kennedy Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drbeckyatgoodinside/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drbeckyatgoodinsideBook: https://amzn.to/4pBUFyS
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com

Dr. Diana Walsh Pasulka: Why The Smartest Scientists Believe in UFOs

Few questions are more important to our existence than UFOs. If something nonhuman is among us, then everything we think we know about the world gets turned upside down.
Some dismiss it all as fantasy, shaped by decades of sci-fi. Others swallow conspiracies whole. But the middle road  that rejects both gullibility and cynicism is almost never walked. 
That’s the road where we hold nuance, examine the evidence with academic rigor, and ask what it means for our lives.
So here are the facts, all on public record. A network of the world’s brightest scientists has been studying this in silence. And in 2021, the Pentagon admitted what millions already suspected: UFOs are real. 
Between 2023 and 2024, U.S. authorities received 757 UFO reports, 21 of which remain unexplained and under further investigation. Taken together, the picture that emerges isn’t just strange. It’s destabilizing.
And to explore this subject without sliding into conspiracy, we turned to Dr. Diana Walsh Pasulka. A professor at the University of North Carolina, Diana has become the preeminent scholar on UFOs. 
Her two books are now essential texts. She has gained access to secret societies of scientists, interviewed those who claim direct encounters, and earned trust in spaces few are ever allowed.
In this episode, we explore:1) All the different camps of very smart people that are investigating UFOs2) The three things that make up the UFO phenomena3) What it means for the nature of reality and how we live
Chapters:0:00 - Intro2:31 - The Secret Society of Scientists Studying UFOs19:09 - The Government Has Studied UFOs for 75 Years34:16 - How UFOs Defy Physics46:31 - Phoenix Lights & Mass Sightings56:43 - Dr. Pasulka’s Visit To A Crash Site1:11:12 - David Grusch’s Testimony to Congress1:18:40 - What Happens in Close UFO Encounters1:30:47 - Paranormal Aftereffects of UFOs1:55:46 - Connections with God, NDEs & Consciousness2:07:37 - UFOs are Not Aliens?2:14:16 - How Lives Change After UFO Encounters
Mighty Pursuit Links:Website: https://www.mightypursuit.comInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/mightypursuit/TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@mightypursuit/X: https://x.com/MightyPursuit
Dr. Diana Walsh Pasulka Links:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dwpasulka/X: https://x.com/dwpasulkaBooks: https://amzn.to/3Vvv3Gk
For business inquiries: hello@mightypursuit.com