Episode notes
You can’t avoid stress altogether, but you can choose the kind that helps instead of harms. In this Quick Fixes episode, Anne and Frances are joined once more by Master Fixer Kelly McGonigal to tackle three listener questions in under 30 minutes. One listener asks how to spot the early signs of burnout, another worries about adding the stress of a new job to their already stressful home life, and a final Fixer wants help breaking a compulsive email-checking habit. Featured guest Follow Kelly McGonigal on Instagram and at https://www.kellymcgonigal.com Buy Kelly's book Joy Is a Risk Worth…
Podcast
Fixable
Frances Frei is a Harvard Business professor. Anne Morriss is a CEO and best-selling author. Anne and Frances are two of the top leadership coaches in the world. Oh, did we mention they're also married to each other? Together, Anne and Frances move fast and fix stuff by talking to guest callers ab
More from Fixable All episodes →
-
15 Jun 2026 · 43 min
Finding Purpose: How to give your work meaning (w/ the New York Times Jodi Kantor)
In uncertain times, purposeful work can feel impractical and out of reach. But award-winning investigative reporter Jodi Kantor argues that meaning is both essential and available to all of us. Anne and Frances dive into the lessons from Jodi’s latest book, “How to Start: Discovering Your Life's Work,” and explore practical strategies for anyone looking to chart a more purposeful career. The three also discuss two key principles for finding work that matters and challenge the idea that economic stability and purpose are mutually exclusive. Featured guest Follow Jodi Kantor on Instagram ,…
-
8 Jun 2026 · 44 min
Finding Purpose: Why you should stop chasing your “dream job” (w/ Emily the Recruiter)
Does your “dream job” really exist? You may know Emily Durham as Emily the Recruiter on social media, where she shares practical, refreshingly honest career advice and coaches people through the biggest professional decisions of their lives. Emily doesn’t believe in the idea of a dream job. In this episode, she joins Anne to make the case for the “awake job” that actively fits into your purpose, lifestyle, and financial needs. Emily reflects on how her own purpose has evolved over time, and answers questions from listeners about how to gracefully quit a job, find a path forward when you feel…
-
1 Jun 2026 · 38 min
Finding Purpose: How to find your purpose (w/ Master Fixer Molly Graham)
What is your true purpose—and how do you find it? This month, Anne and Frances are tackling one of life’s biggest questions in search of answers for Fixers of all ages, from fresh graduates charting their first career moves to seasoned executives craving something more. In this episode, Anne sits down with Molly Graham, a former executive at Facebook and the new host of TED’s WorkLife podcast, to explore what it means to pursue meaningful work and stay open to opportunities you never saw coming. They also answer a question from a new graduate about finding your purpose somewhere between work…
-
25 May 2026 · 40 min
The secret to making the right career decisions with Patty Stonesifer | from WorkLife with Molly Graham
You might think the biggest, most prestigious job is always the right career move. Patty Stonesifer — founding CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and an early Amazon board member — says that’s exactly the wrong way to decide what to do next. So what should guide your career? In this special episode from WorkLife with Molly Graham , Patty shares the nine-word personal mission statement she’s used for decades to filter opportunities, turn down what doesn’t fit, and speak up for what matters. Patty shares how you can write your own, and even coaches Molly through creating hers in real…
-
18 May 2026 · 32 min
Unsolicited Advice: How Alex Cooper and other creators can build a psychologically safe workplace
When people don’t feel safe speaking up at work, fear spreads, trust falls apart, and good people head for the exits. That’s the story emerging from Unwell Networks, the media company led by Call Her Daddy host Alex Cooper and her husband, Matt Kaplan, where reports describe an alleged pattern of intimidation and retaliation inside the company. In this Unsolicited Advice segment, Anne and Frances unpack what appears to have gone wrong at Unwell Networks and break down the concept of psychological safety: why it matters so much to high-performing teams, how leaders can unknowingly undermine…
-
4 May 2026 · 37 min
How to strengthen your stress response (w/ Master Fixer Kelly McGonigal)
We all deal with stress in our lives, and it’s tempting to try to avoid it altogether. But the people who face stress head-on often handle it most skillfully. In this episode, Anne and Frances are joined by Kelly McGonigal, a health psychologist and lecturer at Stanford University who studies different ways people respond to stress. Together, they unpack practical strategies to strengthen your stress response, examine the choices and attitudes of people who thrive under pressure, and explore the benefits of a “challenge” mindset for you and your team. Kelly also shares nine simple strategies…
-
27 Apr 2026 · 33 min
How to prevent burnout (w/ Master Fixer Guy Winch)
Do you feel like work is taking over your life? Guy Winch is a psychologist and author of the book Mind Over Grind: How to Break Free When Work Hijacks Your Life. In this episode, Anne sits down with Guy at the annual TED conference in Vancouver to discuss the insidious ways work can follow you home and how to set boundaries to avoid burnout. They dig into the harmful effects of after-hours rumination, share practical rituals to help you separate work from the rest of your life, and offer tips on how to take a truly restorative vacation. Featured guest Follow Guy Winch on Instagram ,…
-
20 Apr 2026 · 34 min
Unsolicited Advice: How Southwest Airlines lost its way
Southwest has long been a beloved, low-cost airline with free checked bags, minimal fees, and one class of seating that made flying feel simple and fair. But recent reversals of those policies, in favor of the bottom line, have left both customers and employees feeling betrayed. In this Unsolicited Advice segment, Anne and Frances take a closer look at what Southwest got so right in the beginning, the decisions that led to this moment, and what CEO Bob Jordan could still do to turn the plane around. Connect with the team Follow Anne on Instagram and LinkedIn Follow Frances on Instagram and…
-
13 Apr 2026 · 33 min
4 steps you can do to build a better job (w/ Zeynep Ton)
When it comes to many jobs—think food service and frontline retail—conditions can be miserable and demoralizing. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In this episode, Anne and Frances call in MIT professor Zeynep Ton, author of The Good Job Strategy and founder of The Good Jobs Institute, to investigate the systems that make jobs bad and reveal what it takes to make them better for everyone. Zeynep breaks down the four elements of her “good job strategy,” and together they look at companies that have made these changes and are outperforming because of it. Featured guest Follow Zeynep Ton on…
-
6 Apr 2026 · 44 min
How to communicate with confidence, manage your nervous system, and speak the language of executives (w/ Matt Abrahams)
What gets in the way of good communication? In this special Quick Fixes episode, Anne and Frances are joined by Matt Abrahams, Stanford lecturer and bestselling author of Think Faster, Talk Smarter, to answer questions from listeners about how to communicate effectively. One listener struggles giving feedback to their elders, and another has a hard time speaking from the heart. A third listener finds themself getting defensive when asked questions, and the last caller wants to learn to speak like a leader without using empty jargon. Featured guest Follow Matt Abrahams on Instagram , LinkedIn…
Take it with you
The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.
