34. Maya Shankar Is Changing People’s Behavior — and Her Own
Summary
Maya Shankar discusses building the Obama administration’s behavioral sciences team from scratch with no budget, leveraging insights to improve government programs like school lunches and veteran benefits. She reflects on her transition from a violin prodigy to a policy advisor, emphasizing the importance of adaptability and transparency in nudging. The episode also explores her new podcast, *A Slight Change of Plans*, which examines how people navigate unexpected life changes and redefine their identities.
Topics discussed
Introduction and sponsor message
Maya Shankar's background and entry into government
Mentorship and the free lunch program nudge
Building the White House behavioral science team
Overcoming resistance and working with civil servants
Navigating bureaucracy and finding groundswell support
VA veterans' benefits and the endowment effect
Skepticism regarding the scale of behavioral impacts
Military retirement savings and active choice architecture
Institutionalizing behavioral science across administrations
Transparency, failures, and the UK vs US approach
Ethical safeguards and antibiotic prescription defaults
Survivorship bias and advice from unsuccessful people
Maya's violin prodigy past and learning from criticism
Learning Chinese and the joy of small improvements
Identity foreclosure and accepting lack of control
Flow states, Tommy Caldwell, and returning to violin
Conclusion and final sponsor messages
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