Dr. Sahar Yousef and Prof Lucas Miller
PROFILE
Dr. Sahar Yousef and Lucas Miller are both cognitive neuroscientists and MBA faculty at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. They teach one of the most popular MBA classes at Cal, called “Becoming Superhuman: The Science of Productivity and Performance”, and have been featured in Forbes, Wired, The Wall Street Journal, and Business Insider.
At Berkeley, Sahar and Lucas co-run the Becoming Superhuman Lab, which conducts research on how to help busy leaders and their teams get their most important done, in less time, with less stress.
They’ve collectively given over 750 talks and keynotes to knowledge workers in 50+ countries, have advised executive teams at Fortune 100 companies like Google, Visa, and NVIDIA, and have even been invited to speak to the US Congress.
Known for their fast-paced, high-energy style and their science-backed practical tactics, this dynamic duo is consistently rated as the #1 session at events, particularly within the technology, financial services, and private equity industries.
SPEAKING TOPICS
Becoming Superhuman: The Science of Optimizing Productivity and Performance
Key Learnings:
- Leading research on the three biggest mistakes of productivity and performance and the scientific reasons WHY people commonly make these mistakes
- Unnecessary daily drains on our cognitive capacity and how to optimize your digital hygiene
- How to prioritize your most important and valuable tasks, even in the face of urgent demands, by using “Daily MIT Setting”
- Training on Focus Sprints®, a research-backed way of working that helps individuals get more done, in less time, with less energy expended
Becoming Superhuman with AI: Practical Strategies to Enhance Productivity and Performance
Two months of trial and error with using AI collapsed into one practical training session. Includes LIVE prompts generated by the audience. Whether you are brand new to generative AI tools or a power user already, you will walk away with immediately actionable strategies that can save you at least 5 hours/week in your role.
Key Learnings:
- A simple, human-centric explanation of AI, emphasizing generative AI and tools like ChatGPT
- How AI currently performs compared to humans and recent findings on how AI can quickly boost productivity and creative insights by 30%+
- The three fundamental limitations of the human brain, and how AI can fill in for our weaknesses
- Live, practical demos of how to use AI in everyday work scenarios and the primary use cases where AI can help you save time, generate ideas, and make better decisions
- How to use “custom instructions” to automatically increase the quality of all AI outputs and how to talk to AI effectively to minimize frustrating back-and-forths
The Science of Resilience: Managing the Self Through Times of Rapid Change
Key Learnings:
- Why humans are biologically resistant to change and why we can change
- What stress really is in the brain and body and when stress is healthy vs. toxic
- Mental contrasting and how to reduce the anxiety associated with big changes
- How the US Navy uses short guided conversations to quickly build resilience
- Taking care of your brain: how to accelerate neuroplasticity
Training the Brain for Innovation: The Neuroscience of Creativity and Accelerated Insight
Key Learnings:
- Busting the myth of “left-brained” vs. “right-brained” and the real neurological underpinnings of creativity
- How to reliably get into a creative brain state to increase the likelihood of new insights
- Acquire the tools and principles to consistently generate, prioritize, and implement new ideas
- How to create and nurture a culture of risk-tasking/experimentation to make a more innovative business
- Research-based best practices for effective individual and team brainstorming
The Science of Energy Management: Understand Your Biological Chronotype and Increase Your Daily Stamina
Key Learnings:
- New research on the four primary causes of “video fatigue” and their simple fixes
- Discover your biological chronotype and how to optimally schedule your day for peak productivity and creativity
- The most effective “brain breaks” according to science and strategies for avoiding the afternoon dip
- How you can use light, temperature, or short breathing exercises to quickly increase your energy levels
- Caffeine myths and practical strategies to optimize caffeine’s effects
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