Podcast · 328 episodes
Passion Struck with John R. Miles
by Passion Struck Network · English
You built the life you were supposed to want. So why doesn't it feel like enough? Passion Struck is the #1 Health and Fitness podcast — and it exists to answer exactly that question. I'm John R. Miles — Navy veteran, former Fortune 50 executive, bestselling author — and I built this show because I lived the "successful but empty" version of life myself, and I wanted to find a better way. Each week, I sit down with the world's top voices in neuroscience, psychology, medicine, and elite performance — including Angela Duckworth, Susan Cain, Robert Waldinger, Daniel Amen, and Ryan Holiday — to unpack what the research tells us about purpose, connection, and resilience, and how to apply it to your own life. Fridays, I share what I'm learning directly, in solo episodes built around the same ideas. New interviews every Tuesday and Thursday. Solo episodes every Friday.
Latest episodes
Your Kids Don’t Need More Achievement. They Need More Freedom | Dr. Peter Gray - EP 826The episode argues that children (and adults) suffer when they’re denied freedom and agency.29 Sep 2026 · 1 h 17 min
Why What Matters Most Is Almost Never the Loudest | John R. Miles - EP 825The episode argues that people systematically confuse what’s visible with what’s valuable, chasing loud “salient” signals while undervaluing quiet, long-term foundations.25 Sep 2026 · 22 min
The One Question You’re Avoiding Could Change Your Life | Scott Simon & Gregory Stock – EP 824The episode argues that real courage often isn’t dramatic action—it’s asking and answering hard, personal questions.24 Sep 2026 · 58 min
All episodes
Your Kids Don’t Need More Achievement. They Need More Freedom | Dr. Peter Gray - EP 826The episode argues that children (and adults) suffer when they’re denied freedom and agency.29 Sep 2026 · 1 h 17 min · 26 chapters
Why What Matters Most Is Almost Never the Loudest | John R. Miles - EP 825The episode argues that people systematically confuse what’s visible with what’s valuable, chasing loud “salient” signals while undervaluing quiet, long-term foundations.25 Sep 2026 · 22 min · 8 chapters
The One Question You’re Avoiding Could Change Your Life | Scott Simon & Gregory Stock – EP 824The episode argues that real courage often isn’t dramatic action—it’s asking and answering hard, personal questions.24 Sep 2026 · 58 min · 22 chapters
The Psychology Behind Why Smart People Make Terrible Decisions | Alex Edmans – EP 823Why “smart” investors make bad decisions in markets—because biases don’t cancel out when millions act together.22 Sep 2026 · 1 h 2 min · 22 chapters
What If the Proof You're Waiting For Never Comes? | John R. Miles - EP 822What to do when the “proof” you’re waiting for (apology, promotion, someone admitting you belong) never arrives; using a “verification check” grounded in self-verification theory to decide whether to…18 Sep 2026 · 23 min · 7 chapters
Why Nothing You Achieve Will Ever Make You Feel Worthy | Marisa G. Franco – EP 821Episode 821 of PassionStruck features psychologist and researcher Dr. Marisa G. Franco, author of Worth: The New Science of Self-Esteem and Secure Attachment (and NYT bestseller Platonic).17 Sep 2026 · 55 min · 23 chapters
How to Believe in Yourself When Everyone Tells You “You Can’t” | Cole Brauer - EP 820Cole Brauer discusses believing in yourself when others tell you “you can’t,” using her experience as the first American woman to race solo, nonstop, and unassisted around the world.15 Sep 2026 · 1 h 9 min · 25 chapters
The Agency Paradox: Why Real Adaptability Starts Inside the Box | John R. Miles - EP 819Adaptability and “agency” come from choosing constraints and balancing individual action with collective support, not from unlimited freedom or isolated willpower.11 Sep 2026 · 23 min · 12 chapters
You Don't Need More Freedom. You Need Better Constraints | David Epstein - EP 818Constraints as a driver of progress and learning; too much freedom/options can paralyze or misdirect; breakthroughs often start with small problems and require “better constraints” rather than more…10 Sep 2026 · 1 h · 20 chapters
World’s Most Influential Psychologist: The Hidden Force That Drives Human Progress | Dr. Martin Seligman – EP 817Dr. Martin Seligman explains “agency” as the belief that one’s actions can shape what happens next, contrasting it with learned helplessness.8 Sep 2026 · 1 h 2 min · 20 chapters
You Are Not the Only Variable: When to Change Yourself and When to Change Your Environment | John R. Miles - EP 816When to change yourself vs change your environment, using two “fit check” questions: (1) If you vanished from a situation, would the outcome be basically the same?4 Sep 2026 · 23 min · 8 chapters
World-Renowned Historian: When Leaders Actually Change History | Jared Diamond - EP 815Jared Diamond discusses when leaders truly matter—arguing there’s no single “most important” leadership trait, because outcomes depend on both the leader and the moment.3 Sep 2026 · 1 h 11 min · 26 chapters
World-Leading Psychologist: How to Change Your Life by Changing What’s Around You | Angela Duckworth - EP 814Angela Duckworth (author of Situated) argues that grit and willpower matter, but thriving depends heavily on “situations”: the people, places, cultures, and environments that can amplify or diminish…1 Sep 2026 · 54 min · 20 chapters
How to Stop Feeling Like You’re Never Doing Enough | Caleb Campbell - EP 813Caleb Campbell explains why high achievers can feel “never enough” even after major success, arguing the real issue is an identity built on performance and belonging that eventually becomes a cage.28 Aug 2026 · 1 h 8 min · 20 chapters
30 Years of Research Reveals Why Midlife Isn’t a Crisis | Margie Lachman - EP 812The episode challenges the “midlife crisis/decline” narrative using 30+ years of developmental research.27 Aug 2026 · 57 min · 20 chapters
Duke Behavioral Economist: Why You’ll Regret the Risks You Don’t Take | Dan Ariely - EP 811Regret and risk over time; why people often regret not taking risks—especially in romantic love—and how bureaucracy/efficiency at work can suppress passion, autonomy, and motivation.25 Aug 2026 · 53 min · 15 chapters
How to Stop Caring What Everyone Thinks of You & Find Yourself Again | Josh Duhamel - EP 810Josh Duhamel discusses how environments and routines shape identity and stress levels, using his Minnesota cabin as an example of feeling calmer and more “present.” The episode also covers…21 Aug 2026 · 51 min · 21 chapters
How to Change Your Brain's Destiny Before It's Too Late | Dr. David Perlmutter – EP 809How lifestyle and metabolism shape the brain’s immune system (microglia), potentially changing the risk trajectory for Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders.20 Aug 2026 · 1 h 1 min · 27 chapters
Why You’re Not Changing Even Though You Know What to Do | Mark Manson - EP 808Why “insight” doesn’t equal real change; transformation requires uncomfortable action and sometimes letting go of identities.18 Aug 2026 · 54 min · 27 chapters
Why Other People Have So Much Power Over You | John R. Miles - EP 807How belonging and “mattering” shape beliefs, judgments, and behavior; introduces the “mattering check” question: “Whose approval am I actually protecting right now?”14 Aug 2026 · 24 min · 8 chapters
You're Not Losing Time. You're Giving It Away. | Neal Schore – EP 806Emotional self-regulation as the real “time management” problem—people don’t lose time to tasks, they lose it to reactions (negativity, spiraling, “swirl”), which drains focus and attention.13 Aug 2026 · 1 h 2 min · 24 chapters
Why Don’t Facts Change People’s Minds? | Dr. Jay Van Bavel - EP 805Social psychology research on why facts often fail to change minds, how polarization and “certainty” entrench beliefs, and how environment and trust (including psychological safety) shape flourishing.11 Aug 2026 · 1 h 3 min · 25 chapters
Why You're Not Stuck the Way You Think You Are | John R. Miles - EP 804The adaptive brain and neuroplasticity—how repeated thoughts/behaviors physically reshape the brain, so “stuck” patterns aren’t fixed.7 Aug 2026 · 21 min · 9 chapters
You Were Born to Flourish. Here's the Science That Proves It. | Dr. Richard Davidson & Dr. Cortland Dahl – EP 803The science and contemplative case that flourishing is innate and can be nurtured through training, not something you “earn.” The episode frames flourishing as built from four capacities: awareness,…6 Aug 2026 · 48 min · 15 chapters