I'm Maura Ironsmili, and this is The Anxious Achiever.

We look at stories from business leaders who've dealt with anxiety, depression, or other mental health challenges, how they fell down, how they pick themselves up, and how they hope work will change in the future.

What if life was just a little bit easier?

That's a question that a dear mentor asked of me recently, and I can't get it out of my head. She didn't mean that my life should be paved with riches and perfection, and I'd never face struggle. But she saw me as an anxious

overachiever who was always fretting and worrying and overthinking, and she honestly asked me the question.

And I want to ask it of you right now, my dear listeners, what if life were just a little bit

easier? What if you got yourself unstuck? Which is why I've invited back to the show,

the wonderful Julie Lithcott Hames.

Julie is going to help us tune out the noise, the desire to always please others, the hyperattunement

many of us anxious achievers feel to other people's narratives, and instead focus on ourselves,

our lives, our dreams, and our precious goals.

You know, Julie says, this life is not meant to feel miserable.

It's meant to feel delicious.

What you want is valid and it matters.

Julie Lithcott Hames believes in humans and she's deeply interested in what gets in our way. Her work encompasses writing, speaking, teaching, mentoring, and activism. She's the New York

Times best-selling author of How to Raise an Adult, which gave rise to a really popular TED Talk.

She's written a poetry, prose memoir,

Real American. And her third book, Your Turn, How to Be an Adult, has been called a groundbreakingly

frank guide to adulthood.

Hi, Julie.

Hi, Maura.

Thanks for having me back.

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