Plates ready?! This is FOOD SCHOOL: Smarter Stronger Leaner podcast.Wanna feel amazing, love the way you look in the mirror and perform your best in the gym, at work and in be… well, in life.You are definitely in the right place! Food is you – it builds every single cell of you. And if there is one thing every human being must master – it’s food! Because, at the very least, eating - you do it several times a day every single day – you might as well get good at it!I’m your host Angela Shurina from CreateYourself.Today.Your personal nutritionist and plate watcher, your diet guide and explorer, your fat loss coach and food inspector.Just someone with a lot of passion, obsession and curiosity for healthy food, healthy diets, nutrition, optimized human performance, everything and anything you put in your grocery shopping cart, your fridge, on your plate and in your mouth.It’s MY business! Food School. On a mission to help YOU eat better daily.
What if consistency were easy?
We pull back the curtain on how long‑term results come from better decision design, not iron will.
After years of yo‑yo attempts, I found three frameworks that made health, work, and daily choices surprisingly easy to sustain—even through parties, vacations, and stressful seasons.
If you are ready to stop white‑knuckling and start designing for habits that stick, this conversation gives you the playbook to build automaticity, instead of training willpower.
Subscribe, share this with a friend who is stuck in “try harder” mode, and leave a quick review to help more people discover decision models that make goals feel almost effortless.
Claim your sample Executive Coaching Session with Angela: https://calendly.com/angelashurina/executive-coaching-360
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
Ever notice how easy it is to diagnose everyone else’s mistakes while your own patterns stay stuck on repeat?
We dive into a simple, research-backed tool that cuts through bias fast: self-distancing. By stepping just a little outside your story, you cool emotional heat, spot blind spots, and see the strategic move that’s been hiding in plain sight.
We start with the core problem of the inside view—how ego, fear, and history warp our decisions—and show why clarity comes from changing the frame, not collecting more facts. Then we get practical. You’ll learn the Friend Test for emotional regulation, the New CEO Test to pierce organizational inertia, and how to build an outside view with base rates before your hopeful narrative takes over. These aren’t theories; they’re field-tested habits drawn from leadership research, decision science, and emotional intelligence.
If you want different outcomes in your business, health, or relationships, you don’t need endless motivation—you need a better vantage point. Listen for the prompts, try them this week, and watch how your choices shift from reactive to strategic. If this resonated, subscribe, share with a friend who needs a clearer view, and leave a review to help others find the show.
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
What if the real reason your motivation fades isn’t what goals you achieve, but the way you plan your days?
We open up a counterintuitive truth: the way to lasting motivation is understanding that your brain rewards visible progress toward meaningful goals, not big payoffs.
Using the Progress Principle research on 12,000 work diaries, we break down why tracking inputs you control, reps, learnings, foundation work, creates renewable motivation, while fixating on outcomes you can’t control drains it fast.
We get practical and specific.
You’ll hear the exact daily ritual we use with clients to turn motivation into eternal fire that keeps you moving as long as needed. Along the way, we address common pitfalls like bloated to-do lists, optimism bias about timelines, and the quiet shame of missed goals. Instead of judging yourself when results lag, you’ll learn to inspect the system, adjust the channel, refine the offer, and keep stacking reps.
If you’re a founder, builder, or leader searching for a reliable spark, this conversation gives you a simple, science-backed blueprint to keep your internal fire burning. Progress becomes visible, discipline becomes easier, and outcomes become more likely, even if they refuse to happen on your schedule.
Better is always available.
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THE CHALLENGE:
Ready to build systems for health, energy, focus, and consistent productivity? Apply for our free 5-day High-Performing Entrepreneur Reboot.
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
What if the real problem isn’t your willpower, but your timing?
Today we dive into a very practical exploration of how your brain shifts across the day, and how to design a life that cooperates with those shifts instead of fighting them.
From the morning’s high executive function to the evening’s predictable crash, we unpack why your 9 a.m. self feels like a sharp CEO while your 9 p.m. self behaves like a tired intern, and how to use that predictability to your advantage.
We break down the predictability principle and share accessible, battle-tested tools that remove decision friction when you’re depleted. You’ll hear how to apply “system over hope” in real life.
Then we get strategic about the high points. Guard your mornings for high-friction work like writing, strategy, complex learning, difficult conversations, when focus and clarity peak. Shift afternoons to nudge tasks like email, scheduling, and admin, so your best hours serve your most important goals. We also show why coaches wire new habits to early slots for dramatically better odds, and how to run a simple audit: identify where you’re pushing against your biology, realign tasks to your energy, and install one small system tonight to help your future self succeed.
If you’re ready to reduce regret, increase follow-through, and build kinder systems that work even when you’re tired, this conversation is your playbook. Listen, try one tool today, and tell us: which habit are you moving to your morning slot? Subscribe, share with a friend who overplans mornings and underdoes nights, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway.
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
If doing the “right thing” still feels like a daily arm wrestle, you don’t need a pep talk - you need better systems.
Today we dig into systems that make good choices easy and consistent, drawing on Angela Duckworth’s research on grit and practical behavior change to show how environment, routines, and scheduling can carry the load so willpower doesn’t have to.
We start with a simple truth: humans, young and old, choose the path of least resistance.
Phones win when they’re within reach. Late nights win when nothing reminds us to stop. Instead of blaming discipline, we rewire the setup. You’ll hear practical examples: a bedtime cue that ends nightly debates, frictionless food prep like pre-boiled eggs and pre-loaded protein shakers, and a weekly shopping and planning loop that removes decision fatigue. These aren’t hacks; they’re scaffolds that keep your values front and center on the busiest days.
Then we zoom out to time and energy.
Most of us hit a predictable early afternoon slump. Rather than fight biology, we protect morning peak hours for deep work and tough thinking, move admin to the dip, and leave room to finish strong later. We also share a simple weekly outcome planning system: define what success looks like by Friday, block it on the calendar, cancel what doesn’t serve the target, and stack those wins week after week.
By the end, you’ll have a blueprint to make progress automatic: design your environment, align your schedule with your rhythms, and let systems do the heavy lifting.
If you’re ready to stop grinding and start gliding, press play. If this resonates, subscribe, share with a friend who needs it, and leave a quick review to help more people find the show.
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
The finish line is seductive and often the very thing that stalls progress.
We take you inside a behavior-first approach that replaces outcome anxiety with clear, repeatable actions you can control today.
Speaking from nearly two decades of coaching, we break down why revenue targets, weight goals, and follower counts are lagging indicators that reflect the past, and how leading indicators—your consistent behaviors—are the true drivers of future results.
We map the mindset shift from chasing to creating, showing how to use vision as a compass while building daily momentum with quality reps. Expect practical examples across fitness, writing, and business: from scheduling a 45-minute strength session to publishing one deeply researched article a week to delivering two sharp sales presentations.
You’ll learn the 2-step method—realistic assessment and internal release—that translates big aspirations into scheduled, trackable behaviors, then frees your mind from fixating on the scoreboard.
We also reframe failure as feedback.
When the outcome lags despite solid execution, it’s not a moral verdict—it’s data that your plan needs adjustment. We offer three reflection questions to drive continuous improvement and show how to protect your best energy for your most important reps. If you’re ready to swap magical thinking for a system that compounds, this conversation gives you the tools to define, schedule, and honor the actions that move you forward.
Subscribe for more process-driven strategies, share this with a friend who’s goal-stuck, and leave a review to tell us the one behavior you’re committing to this week.
Your next step is the only one that matters—what will you put on the calendar today?
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
What if the best shape of your life has little to do with the willpower problem?
And more with a system design problem.
We break down a practical, science-backed framework that turns cravings from a daily fight into a reliable signal you can trust, that works FOR your health and fitness, not against it.
Drawing on my 10+ years of weight loss and health, coaching and evidence-based nutrition, plus a guided AI co-host experiment, we map out 6 simple, actionable pillars that align biology, behavior, and environment so the right choices feel easy.
We close with a challenge: pick one pillar this week and create a small win that cascades across the rest.
Subscribe, share with a friend who’s tired of white-knuckling cravings, and tell us which pillar you’re choosing so we can celebrate your momentum and keep your accountable!👊
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
What if the real barrier to change isn’t willpower but the context you live in?
And what if you could design it but you rarely do?
Today we unpack 4 invisible forces—systems, social norms, flexible framing, and co‑design—that quietly steer your decisions, emotions, and actions. Drawing on a fresh conversation with behavioral scientist Michael Hallsworth of the Behavioral Insights Team, we translate big‑picture insights into daily moves that make change feel natural instead of forced.
We start by challenging the myth of pure personal agency. Systems determine what is easy, what is hard, and what happens by default. When you redesign cues, constraints, and sequences, you lower friction and stop wasting energy on self-control.
Then we zoom into the social layer. Your choices mirror the norms of your circle, from how you work to what you eat. Rather than fight your social brain, enlist it: align your peers, set shared rituals, and curate the voices you let in.
Next, we practice flexible framing. Stuck problems often need a new lens, not more effort. Reframing “my discipline” as “our design” opens options that were invisible from a narrow view.
Finally, we get practical with co‑design. Telling people what to do sparks resistance; building the plan together creates ownership. Whether you’re leading a team, parenting, or coaching yourself, collaborative design turns compliance into commitment and helps change stick.
You’ll walk away with a simple playbook for an aligned not forced change: audit your system for the results it’s producing, realign your social environment, reframe until better options appear, and co‑design the next step with the people involved—including yourself.
Subscribe, share this episode with someone who needs a nudge toward easier change, and leave a review to help us reach more curious minds. What’s the first context tweak you’ll make today?
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
If there was a pill that consistently and instantly boosts your cognitive and physical performance - it would contain sleep!
If peak performance starts to slip, don’t blame your willpower - look at your sleep.
We dive straight into the 3 levers that consistently turn “I’m fine” into focused, calm, and energetic: the stories you tell yourself, the routine you follow, and the environment you live in. From caffeine myths to all-nighter bragging rights, we call out the habits that quietly wreck deep sleep and show a clear path to better nights that fuel better days.
First, we challenge the big beliefs. Then we move into daily routines that make sleep reliable. Finally, we tackle context - the social and physical cues that shape your sleep quality.
The throughline is simple: sleep is a skill you design, not a mystery you endure.
Share the episode with someone who wants to sleep better with you, subscribe for more practical performance tools, and leave a quick review to support the show.
Your best work starts the night before, ready to claim it?
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
We explore how the questions we repeat shape our focus, emotions, and results, and how a small shift in wording can turn stuck energy into practical motivation.
Drawing on coaching sessions and real-life experiments in fitness, business, and habit building, we show why your brain reliably hunts for whatever you ask it to find, even while you sleep, and how to use that fact to your advantage.
We walk through a simple 3-question sequence that helps you get back on track with your goals.
Along the way, we unpack common traps like asking blame-heavy questions that generate worse stories, and we offer easy reframes that shift you toward agency, clarity, and consistent progress.
You’ll hear practical ways to install “question habits,” plus a lightweight system for tracking proof that your new questions are working.
Whether you’re aiming for better health, stronger leadership, or a calmer mind, the process is the same: ask better, act sooner, and let repetition compound.
If this resonates, follow the show, share it with one person who needs a nudge, and leave a quick review so more people can turn curiosity into change.
What’s the one question you’ll start asking today?
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant
If you’ve ever wondered why people do the strange things we do, this episode is your new favourite rabbit hole!
Today we have Phill Agnew on the show, the mind behind Nudge — the UK’s #1 marketing podcast, downloaded hundreds of thousands of times.
But today?
You get Phill unplugged — telling stories, breaking down psychology, and showing you how a few behavioral science principles can transform your business, your life, your TikTok following and even your marathon time.
How a chocolate bar hijacked Phill’s childhood brain into love for marketing
A caramel wafer + a tiny line on the wrapper (“7 million sold this week”) = the moment Phill discovered the power of social proof… years before he knew what social proof was.
The loyalty card trick that increased customer return rates by 82% and why you are so loyal to your favorite coffee shop
A barista stamping his card twice for free wasn’t kindness — it was the endowment effect and reciprocity in action.
Why Uber wins (and traditional taxis fail)
It’s not price.
It’s not convenience.
It’s the illusion of control, and once you see it, you’ll start spotting this everywhere.
The Peak-End Rule, and how Phill used it to finish 2nd in an ultramarathon
A Nobel Prize–winning principle that helps restaurants delight customers… and helps Phill outrun people and stick with hard training.
The curiosity hack that got Phill 10,000 TikTok followers in one week
Shakespeare used it.
Dickens used it.
Clickbait uses it.
You should too.
Why handwritten notes outperform almost every digital strategy
One South Korean study.
$50+ increase per customer.
And the wild story of a family who bought their dream home on a street where no houses were for sale — just by using this principle.
The biggest mistake companies make when raising prices
And the simple, psychology-backed tweak that reduces cancellations and makes customers say yes almost every time.
How to use behavioral science TODAY
Phill shares easy, immediately applicable ideas you can use at work, at home, in relationships, in your next email or conversation.
It’s packed with stories, experiments, practical tools, and “holy sh*t, why didn’t I know this sooner?” insights you’ll use for the rest of your life.
Phill Agnew is the host of Nudge, the UK's #1 marketing podcast — a critically acclaimed show that brings behavioral science to life through real experiments, research, and practical applications. His work has featured world-renowned thinkers like Rory Sutherland, Richard Shotton, Tali Sharot, Jonah Berger, Dan Pink, and Chris Voss.
His podcast reaches hundreds of thousands globally and has become a go-to resource for marketers, leaders, and anyone who wants to understand human behaviour.
Text Me Your Thoughts and Ideas
Brought to you by Angela Shurina
Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant