# hope
8 moments across 3 episodes. Click any moment to jump straight to that part of the episode.
16:55Story 3: Hope is the emotion that creates meaning at workAl Elliott: Well, this is very meta, isn't it? What makes work feel meaningful? For me, something where I can create something. So maybe this is why I do like generative AI. If I feel like at the end of the day, somethinEP 276 · 17 Feb 2026·news roundup· 16:55–24:360:00Introducing Matt Poepsel and the hope crisisMatt Poepsel: I had this bottomless pit of achievement as an insecure overachiever and an imposter syndrome sufferer for many, many decades. I knew that that goal wasn't going to bring happiness. And I think that insulatEP 265 · 8 Jan 2026·intro· 0:00–4:304:30What is hope and how it differs from optimismMatt Poepsel: Godfather of Talent Optimization. That's right Al Elliott: What does it do? What do you do there? What does that mean? Matt Poepsel: Yeah, so a lot of it's working with complex organizations that are struggEP 265 · 8 Jan 2026·interview· 4:30–6:419:51Why hope ran out during the pandemicAl Elliott: Well, let's move on to this world of work idea because I've got a note down here from my very clever wife and co-host, something about Peterson and Bryan. And this is what she's written. Research shows that hEP 265 · 8 Jan 2026·interview· 9:51–15:2425:03Installing hope: intentionality, agency, and pathwaysAl Elliott: I think some leaders might be going, okay, okay, Matt, I am 100% on board with this. I don't have the track record, but I do want to introduce into my team a BHAG, a big, hairy, audacious goal, but they don'tEP 265 · 8 Jan 2026·interview· 25:03–31:2742:24Is hope contagious and practical advice for 2026Matt Poepsel: Yeah, I do. I think both are contagious. And again, when I ask my students for their reflections and I talk about things like optimism and hope, that's exactly the term they use. Even without being promptedEP 265 · 8 Jan 2026·interview· 42:24–49:2449:24A leader Matt remembers and final takeawaysAl Elliott: That was Dr. Matt Poepsel, and I really hope, pun very much intended, that you're feeling a bit more hopeful than you were 45 minutes ago Leanne Elliott: What I really enjoyed about Matt's approach is that heEP 265 · 8 Jan 2026·interview· 49:24–51:0539:53Finding trust, speaking words out loud, and the essence of hopeLeanne Elliott: Yes Sophie Wood: And that's the essence of hope, is that looking forward to something in the future. And that's the key to still being around, kind of at the age of 52, as Danielle says, living our dream EP 77 · 8 Feb 2024·panel interview· 39:53–39:53
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