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Economic Times
05-07-2025
- Health
- Economic Times
Cheer your brain in 90 seconds: Ex-Google executive shares Harvard expert's hack to beat stress and find happiness
iStock Mo Gawdat's 90-second rule offers a powerful hack to manage negative emotions. Based on scientific insight, it suggests that feelings like anger last only 90 seconds—unless we keep replaying them. (Representational image: iStock) Mo Gawdat, who once served as the chief business officer at Google X — Google's moonshot innovation lab — has spent over two decades analyzing happiness through a mix of logic, philosophy, neuroscience, and lived experience. One of his most powerful discoveries, he recently said on the High Performance podcast, is what he calls the '90-second rule' — a simple mental habit that could dramatically shift how we process negative emotions. In 2014, Gawdat's world came crashing down when his 21-year-old son, Ali, passed away due to medical negligence during a routine appendix surgery. The devastating blow would be enough to leave anyone broken, but Gawdat chose to channel his grief differently. Seventeen days after the tragedy, he began writing Solve for Happy, a book that would go on to become a global bestseller on the science of happiness. It was his way of honoring Ali, and a promise to share what he had learned about living meaningfully despite suffering. The rule is rooted in neuroscience. Gawdat credits Harvard-trained brain scientist Jill Bolte Taylor, who found that when we feel stress or anger, the chemical storm — involving hormones like cortisol and adrenaline — usually flushes out of the body in about 90 seconds. After that, we're essentially replaying the emotional loop in our heads.'But then what happens is, you run the thought in your head again, and you renew your 90 seconds,' Gawdat explained. 'While in reality, what you get after those 90 seconds is a buffer ... [which] allows you to say, 'Now, what am I going to do?''In other words, we extend suffering by reliving painful thoughts over and over. Gawdat encourages using that 90-second biological window to fully feel the emotion — and then decide to move on. Picture this: you're cut off in traffic. Your blood boils, you mutter some choice words, maybe slam the horn. Most people let that irritation simmer for hours — retelling the story, replaying the moment. But what if, as Gawdat suggests, you simply took a deep breath, blasted your favorite song, and focused on something else instead?The 90-second rule doesn't mean suppressing emotion — it's about honoring your reaction, but refusing to be trapped by reinforce the habit, Gawdat relies on three powerful questions that serve as a mental audit during moments of distress: Is it true? Can I do something about it? Can I accept it and move forward despite it? 'Ninety percent of the things that make us unhappy are not even true,' he told High Performance. He gives a relatable example — a partner says something hurtful, and suddenly your mind spirals into believing they no longer love you. But often, it's just an emotional misfire. If the answer to the first question is no, he says, let it go. If it's yes, move to the next. And if there's nothing you can do, accept it — not passively, but with 'committed acceptance,' a term he uses to describe intentional action despite circumstances. Of course, forming a habit like this doesn't happen overnight. A 2009 study by researcher Phillippa Lally found that it can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days to develop a new behavior, depending on the person. But Gawdat believes that even being aware of how we respond to difficulty is a crucial first step.'Life doesn't give a s--- about you,' he said bluntly in another interview on Simon Sinek's A Bit of Optimism podcast. 'It's your choice how you react to every one of [life's challenges]… It's your choice to set your expectations realistically.'For Gawdat, life is not about avoiding pain — it's about learning to live with it, think through it, and choose joy anyway. Mo Gawdat is not just a tech executive and author, he's one of today's leading voices on emotional intelligence in the age of AI and hyper-productivity. After stepping down from Google X in 2018, he authored multiple books including Solve for Happy, Scary Smart, That Little Voice in Your Head, and Unstressable. Across all his work, a central message remains: You may not control what happens to you, but you can absolutely control what happens the next time you're hit by life's curveballs, remember the rule. You've got 90 seconds to feel it. After that, it's your move.
Time of India
05-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Cheer your brain in 90 seconds: Ex-Google executive shares Harvard expert's hack to beat stress and find happiness
Mo Gawdat , who once served as the chief business officer at Google X — Google's moonshot innovation lab — has spent over two decades analyzing happiness through a mix of logic, philosophy, neuroscience, and lived experience. One of his most powerful discoveries, he recently said on the High Performance podcast, is what he calls the '90-second rule' — a simple mental habit that could dramatically shift how we process negative emotions. In 2014, Gawdat's world came crashing down when his 21-year-old son, Ali, passed away due to medical negligence during a routine appendix surgery. The devastating blow would be enough to leave anyone broken, but Gawdat chose to channel his grief differently. Seventeen days after the tragedy, he began writing Solve for Happy , a book that would go on to become a global bestseller on the science of happiness . It was his way of honoring Ali, and a promise to share what he had learned about living meaningfully despite suffering. The 90-Second Rule The rule is rooted in neuroscience. Gawdat credits Harvard-trained brain scientist Jill Bolte Taylor, who found that when we feel stress or anger, the chemical storm — involving hormones like cortisol and adrenaline — usually flushes out of the body in about 90 seconds. After that, we're essentially replaying the emotional loop in our heads. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Mercado Libre CFD: gana hasta 2.700$ a la semana trabajando desde casa TradeLG 'But then what happens is, you run the thought in your head again, and you renew your 90 seconds,' Gawdat explained. 'While in reality, what you get after those 90 seconds is a buffer ... [which] allows you to say, 'Now, what am I going to do?'' In other words, we extend suffering by reliving painful thoughts over and over. Gawdat encourages using that 90-second biological window to fully feel the emotion — and then decide to move on. You Might Also Like: Billionaire Mark Cuban predicts 'who will be the world's first trillionaire?' And it is not Elon Musk Everyday Example, Everyday Escape Picture this: you're cut off in traffic. Your blood boils, you mutter some choice words, maybe slam the horn. Most people let that irritation simmer for hours — retelling the story, replaying the moment. But what if, as Gawdat suggests, you simply took a deep breath, blasted your favorite song, and focused on something else instead? The 90-second rule doesn't mean suppressing emotion — it's about honoring your reaction, but refusing to be trapped by it. Three Questions That Can Break the Loop To reinforce the habit, Gawdat relies on three powerful questions that serve as a mental audit during moments of distress: Is it true? Can I do something about it? Can I accept it and move forward despite it? 'Ninety percent of the things that make us unhappy are not even true,' he told High Performance. He gives a relatable example — a partner says something hurtful, and suddenly your mind spirals into believing they no longer love you. But often, it's just an emotional misfire. If the answer to the first question is no, he says, let it go. If it's yes, move to the next. And if there's nothing you can do, accept it — not passively, but with 'committed acceptance,' a term he uses to describe intentional action despite circumstances. You Might Also Like: Harvard doctor's simple tip can boost your happiness in one minute. A startup CEO is already practicing it Building a Habit for Happiness Of course, forming a habit like this doesn't happen overnight. A 2009 study by researcher Phillippa Lally found that it can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days to develop a new behavior, depending on the person. But Gawdat believes that even being aware of how we respond to difficulty is a crucial first step. 'Life doesn't give a s--- about you,' he said bluntly in another interview on Simon Sinek's A Bit of Optimism podcast. 'It's your choice how you react to every one of [life's challenges]… It's your choice to set your expectations realistically.' For Gawdat, life is not about avoiding pain — it's about learning to live with it, think through it, and choose joy anyway. — alvinfoo (@alvinfoo) Who Is Mo Gawdat? Mo Gawdat is not just a tech executive and author, he's one of today's leading voices on emotional intelligence in the age of AI and hyper-productivity. After stepping down from Google X in 2018, he authored multiple books including Solve for Happy, Scary Smart, That Little Voice in Your Head, and Unstressable. Across all his work, a central message remains: You may not control what happens to you, but you can absolutely control what happens next. So the next time you're hit by life's curveballs, remember the rule. You've got 90 seconds to feel it. After that, it's your move.
CNBC
05-07-2025
- Health
- CNBC
Happiness researcher shares his '90-second rule' to live a better, more fulfilled life—it helps when you're angry or upset
Mo Gawdat's son, Ali, was 21 years old when he died due to medical negligence during a routine appendix surgery in 2014. Gawdat was devastated, confused and in a palpable state of shock. Then, 17 days later, he started writing a book on how to be happy, in his son's honor. Gawdat has researched the science of happiness for over 20 years from a logical and philosophical prospective, using flow charts and formulas to get to the root of unhappiness. A while back, he learned a habit that can almost instantly help you find joy and fulfillment. It's called the 90-second rule, Gawdat told the "High Performance" podcast on June 17. When something angering or nerve-wracking happens in your life, give yourself a minute and 30 seconds to feel upset. Then, choose to focus on other things. The habit is based on insight Gawdat learned from Harvard-trained neuroscientist Jill Bolte Taylor, who found that it takes only 90 seconds for stress and anger hormones, like cortisol and adrenaline, to be flushed out of the body. "But then what happens is, you run the thought in your head again, and you renew your 90 seconds," said Gawdat, who served as chief business officer at Google X, the company's innovation lab, from 2015 to 2018. "You run it again, unconsciously, and you renew your 90 seconds. While in reality, what you get after those 90 seconds is a buffer ... [which] allows you to say, 'Now, what am I going to do?'" Getting cut off while driving, for example, can be really agitating. You might yell or curse from behind the wheel, or even roll your window down to give the other driver a piece of your mind. But ruminating on the situation, telling everyone what happened when you get to the office, won't change it. So, what if you took a deep breath, turned your favorite song on, and sang along instead? To recover more quickly from life's upsets, Gawdat asks himself three questions, he said: "Ninety percent of the things that make us unhappy are not even true. Like your [partner] says something hurtful ... your brain is telling you [they] don't love you anymore," said Gawdat "That isn't true." If your answer to question No. 1 is "no," drop it. If it's "yes," move on to question No. 2 and do the same thing over again. If there's something you can do about it, do it, he said. If not, go into "committed acceptance" – meaning, acknowledge what's happened and accept it as your new normal. Building new habits can be difficult, especially when you're feeling emotional. In a 2009 study, psychology researcher Phillippa Lally found that it can take anywhere between 18 to 254 days to form a habit, depending on the person and their circumstances. But being cognizant of how you respond to tough moments in life is the first step to being happier and more fulfilled, says Gawdat. "Life doesn't give a s--- about you," Gawdat told Simon Sinek's "A Bit of Optimism" podcast on June 24. It puts you in good and bad situations, and lets you figure out the rest. "It's your choice, how you react to every one of them ... It's your choice to set your expectations realistically."
CairoScene
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CairoScene
SouthMED by TMG Brings World-Class Thinkers to Egypt's North Coast
SouthMED by TMG Brings World-Class Thinkers to Egypt's North Coast At SouthMED by TMG, a new chapter in cultural curation unfolds—bringing global thought leaders to Egypt's North Coast for an unprecedented speaker series. What happens when you bring some of the world's most compelling minds together—not in Davos, not in Silicon Valley, but on the shores of Egypt's North Coast? This summer, SouthMED Talks by TMG is answering that question with a bold new speaker series that reimagines intellectual engagement as part of the summer lifestyle. Set against the backdrop of SouthMED by TMG, this private event series invites an exclusive audience into close conversation with some of the most influential thinkers of our time. The lineup is nothing short of remarkable. On July 4, Paul Collier, the celebrated Oxford economist behind The Bottom Billion, will unpack the future of development and global responsibility. One week later on July 11, Jason Silva, the viral futurist and former Brain Games host, will guide guests through an electrifying exploration of consciousness, creativity, and emerging technology. On July 18, Mo Gawdat, former Chief Business Officer at Google X and author of Solve for Happy, brings his visionary framework for engineered happiness and AI ethics to the North Coast. On August 1, the series welcomes tech legend Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple and a cornerstone of the digital age, reflecting on innovation, invention, and the future of human-machine collaboration. Each of these names has graced global stages—from TED to the World Economic Forum—but this marks the first time any of them will speak in Egypt. And the lineup doesn't end there. Further speakers will be announced in the coming weeks, expanding a summer programme already poised to reshape the cultural rhythm of Sahel. With SouthMED Talks, TMG is creating space for conversations that go beyond entertainment and escapism—championing a summer of ideas, dialogue, and curiosity.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Waymo leads in self-driving: Can Tesla's robotaxi take its crown?
Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL), has been working on self-driving cars for years. But now rivals, such as Tesla (TSLA), are starting to catch up. Yahoo Finance Senior Autos Reporter Pras Subramanian takes a closer look at Waymo's rise and the competition. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Market Domination here. Well, Waymo has emerged as a leader in autonomous vehicle technology and robotaxi services. Its roots, of course, are with Google, as its self-driving car project, and Waymo has come a long way. Our senior autos reporter, Pras Subramanian, joins us now to talk about its success as a leader in this sector, Pras. Hey Josh, yeah, you mentioned, yeah, so it started off as a as a as an offshoot of Google, uh, Google X in the X division issue back in those days what they used to call autonomous nine, and after some testing and trying to get permits off the ground in 2016, the project became Waymo. Uh, started testing its Pacifica hybrids and took off from there. 2018, Waymo, uh, worked with Jaguar, paired up with them to get their i-Pace EVs in for testing. You see these now in the streets in LA and places like that. Uh, you know, Waymo uses a combination of vision, radar, lidar, what they call multimodal. They claim this is the safest solution. Now they have the most robotaxi miles driven. They perform around 250,000 trips a week, right? So other rivals like GM's Cruise and AV tech companies like Argo AI are they're gone. Leaving only a few competitors like WeRide and and Zoox in the space. Now, challenges, they need to scale up. They have around 700 to 1000 vehicles in in major markets and can produce at their factory around 1500 a year. An expert tells me that that could be a bottleneck for them in the future, whereas Tesla, right, Tesla with their big test coming up on on I'm sorry their start of their test unofficially on the 12th, if their hardware is sufficient, I have millions they have millions of vehicles on the road already, and when you pair that with their robotaxi software, you could see them easily overtake Waymo. That's a big if. Tesla service is just beginning, years behind Waymo, and if Musk's big bet on a vision-only system paired with the neural network that Tesla built can take on and possibly surpass Waymo, uh, there's still a lot to prove to see whether that can actually happen. Now Pras, have you taken a Waymo? And if so, what did you think of the experience? I ask because I haven't. I did, about a month ago, I was in LA and I took a Waymo, uh, in the western part of the city to to a friend's place and I I was actually deeply impressed by it. I thought that it was a very slick. I used the app to order the the Waymo. It comes to you. It has your it has your initials on the top and little screen so you know it's yours. You open the door with the app. You close the door, get inside, and you and then you start the ride when you're inside the car, hit the button on the app. All of a sudden it pairs your phone, it it says you can stream music, it you can you can change the temperature to your to your liking. It's very pleasant. The car is actually whipped around. I think at a decent pace, not a slow thing in my opinion. Uh, got to me, got me where I need to be and at a competitive rate to Uber. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
