How do people develop resilience and navigate challenges to become their best? This question has long fascinated Dr. Kate Lund. For more than 20 years, she has practiced clinical psychology centered on helping individuals bounce back from challenges, define their unique contexts, and maximize potential. Dr. Lund’s clients have included children and families, corporate executives, college students, athletes, and others seeking personal and professional resilience.
Dr. Lund’s career passions are connected to childhood experiences of living with hydrocephalus. With this condition, the cerebral spinal fluid does not circulate properly, and pressure builds up on the brain. Hydrocephalus is managed with a shunt, which is inserted in the brain and allows the fluid to circulate.
“I was that kid who felt different and could not do many of the fun things my peers could do,” said Dr. Lund. “All I wanted during those years was to fit in and to be like everybody else. I had not yet gotten the memo on the importance of appreciating and believing in my own unique context and possibility.”
This health journey taught Dr. Lund to lean on her support system and focus on her strengths and all she could do well as opposed to her inabilities. During the first episode of The Optimized Mind, Dr. Lund reflects on this experience and her realization that individual difference contributes to potential and possibilities.
The Optimized Mind podcast features high-profile interviews that uplift an overarching theme of resilience. Episodes emphasize a range of topics and ideas related to maximizing potential, staying motivated, managing challenge, and seeing possibility despite obstacles. Dr. Lund frames hardship as a universal human experience with no one-size-fits-all approach to solutions.
“None of us are immune to challenge. The key is finding ways to navigate the challenge while still moving forward,” said Dr. Lund.
Listeners of The Optimized Mind podcast will hear from accomplished entrepreneurs, athletic and professional coaches, parents, thought leaders, and other figures about their journeys toward success and helping others thrive. For example, recent guests include Dr. Elizabeth Lombardo who uses neuroscientific research to help Fortune 500 companies and other clients decrease stress and experience success. Another interviewee is entrepreneur and coach Damon D’Amore who engages storytelling, legacy, psychological performance, and other tools to strengthen executive leadership.
D’Amore shared, “Sometimes, you’re not okay, but even if you’re not okay and you still wake up that next morning, you’re in it. You’re in the game, but you have some capacity to change the outcome. You can’t change the outcome of external things, but you can change the outcome of your own fulfillment and happiness, your wellness, your own capacity to deal with things and find a silver lining.”
Other episodes have featured experts, such as entrepreneur and founder of Best Seller Publishing, Rob Kosberg, and entrepreneur Arturo Henriquez who discusses leadership and high-performance. Each guest uniquely explores what it takes to have an optimized mind. Across conversations, a recurring perspective is that maximizing individual potential is not a linear, one-size-fits-all process.
Dr. Kate Lund’s Related Endeavors on Resilience
In 2017, Dr. Lund released a book, entitled Bounce: Help Your Child Build Resilience and Thrive in School, Sports, and Life. It outlines seven pillars of a resilient mindset, including navigating friendship and social pressures, developing courage, and building new motivation. The principles outlined in the book apply across the lifespan.
To explore Dr. Lund’s podcast and other resources, you can visit: www.katelundspeaks.com
