196. What’s Wrong With Being a Little Neurotic?

Is there any upside to negative emotions? What can comedians teach us about dealing with pain? And why did Angela eat off of a stranger’s plate at a sushi bar?

SOURCES:Ludwig van Beethoven • , 18th-19th century composer and pianist. Jen Christensen • , reporter and producer at CNN. Lauren Eskreis-Winkler • , professor of management & organizations at Northwestern University. Sigmund Freud • , neurologist and founder of psychoanalysis. Shirley MacLaine • , actor. George Vaillant • , professor of psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital. Ali Wong • , comedian.

RESOURCES: • " The Sad Clown: The Deep Emotions Behind Stand-Up Comedy • ," by Jen Christensen ( CNN, • 2018). • " Neuroticism • ," by Jennifer L. Tackett and Benjamin B. Lahey ( The Oxford handbook of the Five Factor Model, • 2017). • " Thinking Too Much: Self-Generated Thought as the Engine of Neuroticism • ," by Adam M. Perkins, Danilo Arnone, Jonathan Smallwood, and Dean Mobbs ( Trends in Cognitive Sciences, • 2015). • " Survivor Mission: Do Those Who Survive Have a Drive to Thrive at Work? • " by Lauren Eskreis-Winkler, Elizabeth Shulman, and Angela Duckworth ( The Journal of Positive Psychology, • 2014). • " Age Differences in Personality Traits From 10 to 65: Big Five Domains and Facets in a Large Cross-Sectional Sample • ," by Christopher J. Soto, Oliver P. John, Samuel D. Gosling, and Jeff Potter ( Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, • 2011). • " Adaptive Mental Mechanisms: Their Role in a Positive Psychology • ," by George Vaillant ( American Psychologist, • 2000). The Harvard Study of Adult Development • .

EXTRAS:Big Five Personality Inventory • , by No Stupid Questions • (2024). • “ Personality: The Big Five • ,” series by No Stupid Questions • (2024). Terms of Endearment, • film by James L. Brooks (1983). • " Invictus • ," poem by William Ernest Henley (1888).