Ep 815 How to Stay Calm During Stressful Conversations & Around Difficult People w/ Dr. Jeremy Pollack

Have you ever replayed a conversation in your head for hours… wishing you had said something differently? Or found yourself shutting down, getting defensive, people-pleasing, or saying something you instantly regretted?

What if the problem isn’t your communication skills? What if it’s your nervous system?

In this fascinating conversation, I sit down with Dr. Jeremy Pollack, psychologist, neuroscience-based conflict resolution expert, and author of Wired for Peace, to unpack why difficult conversations feel so overwhelming, how your brain responds to conflict, and the practical neuroscience-backed tools that can help you stay calm under pressure.

Have you ever replayed a conversation in your head for hours… wishing you had said something differently? Or found yourself shutting down, getting defensive, people-pleasing, or saying something you instantly regretted?

What if the problem isn’t your communication skills?

What if it’s your nervous system?

In this fascinating conversation, I sit down with Dr. Jeremy Pollack, psychologist, neuroscience-based conflict resolution expert, and author of Wired for Peace, to unpack why difficult conversations feel so overwhelming, how your brain responds to conflict, and the practical neuroscience-backed tools that can help you stay calm under pressure.

Whether you’re navigating challenging relationships, family dynamics, workplace conflict, leadership, parenting, or simply want healthier communication, this episode will completely change the way you think about stressful conversations and difficult people.

You’ll walk away understanding why conflict isn’t simply a communication problem, how to regulate your nervous system before reacting, and how to build stronger, more trusting relationships without abandoning yourself in the process.

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

 

{End of Summer Applications are Open} Exclusive 2-Month Private Customized Business Coaching Program: APPLY HERE (both established and new entrepreneurs use the same application) *serious applicants only

Inside The ProjectME Posse, we’re diving into my brand-new Gift of Gab series, where I teach my proven communication and conversion strategies step by step >> JOIN HERE

My Gift to You! Your Quantum Walk guided meditation series + Fire Horse Identity Journal HERE

CONNECT WITH TIFF:

Tiffany on Instagram @projectme_with_tiffany

Tiffany on TikTok @projectme_with_tiffany

Tiffany on YouTube: ProjectME TV

Tiffany’s FREE Email Community: JOIN HERE > The Secret Posse Digest

Connect with Dr. Jeremy Pollack:

Website

Instagram

Book:Wired for Peace: Using 7 Neuroscience-Based Principles to Resolve Conflicts

In this episode, we discuss:

  • Why your nervous system—not your communication skills—is often the real reason conversations break down.
  • The surprising neuroscience behind why you shut down, become defensive, people-please, or emotionally react during conflict.
  • A simple brain-based technique to calm your nervous system before difficult conversations.
  • How to stop taking other people’s reactions so personally.
  • Why conflict can actually become one of the greatest opportunities for deeper trust and stronger relationships.
  • Practical tools for navigating stressful conversations at work, at home, with family members, partners, clients, and colleagues.
  • The biggest mistakes people make when trying to resolve conflict—and what to do instead.
  • How understanding your brain can help you communicate with more confidence, clarity, and emotional resilience.

If you’ve ever searched for how to deal with difficult people, stay calm during conflict, improve communication, regulate your nervous system, stop people-pleasing, or create healthier relationships, this conversation is packed with practical tools you’ll use immediately.

Recent Episodes

Ep 826 Fear of Taking a Risk and How to Manage it

That uncertainty is where many capable entrepreneurs begin to hesitate.
In this episode of the ProjectME with Tiffany Carter podcast, Tiffany explores the fear of taking risks in business and what is really happening when you find yourself repeatedly asking, “What if it doesn’t work?” Whether you are thinking about starting a business, launching a new offer, investing money, becoming more visible online, changing direction, or making a decision that could significantly increase your income, fear can make staying where you are feel safer than moving toward what you actually want.

Fear of failure can show up as overthinking, perfectionism, procrastination, excessive preparation, and constantly searching for more information before making a decision. You may believe you are being careful or responsible when you are actually trying to create enough certainty to guarantee an outcome before you act.

Building a successful business requires making decisions without knowing exactly how every decision will turn out. The goal is not to eliminate fear before taking action. It is to develop the capacity to move while fear and uncertainty are still present.

LISTEN NOW »

Ep 825 What If It Doesn’t Work? The Vulnerability Hangover After Betting on Yourself

You launched the offer, made the investment, raised the price, announced the goal, started the business, or finally put yourself out there. You expected to feel empowered afterward. Instead, you’re questioning everything you were certain about days ago and wondering whether you completely overestimated yourself.

That’s the vulnerability hangover, and it can hit hard when you’re making a major identity shift. Your brain doesn’t have the outcome yet, so it starts searching for evidence. You check the numbers more frequently. You analyze people’s reactions. You compare your results to someone else’s. Before long, “I don’t know how this is going to turn out yet” becomes “I think I made a mistake.”

This is where fear of failure becomes especially convincing because it can start sounding like logic, intuition, or even good business strategy.

In this episode, I’m breaking down what happens when you’re caught in that uncomfortable space between making the decision and getting the evidence, why being seen trying can feel so vulnerable, and what to do before self-doubt convinces you to abandon something that hasn’t had enough time to work.

LISTEN NOW »

Ep 824 My 7-Figure Online Launch Formula: What I’m Doing Differently This Time {PART 1}

What does it actually take to create a 7-figure online launch in today’s market? I’m about to show you in real time.

Tickets for Light It Up are officially open, which means my next major online launch has begun. And instead of waiting until it’s over to give you a perfectly packaged case study of what worked, I’m taking you behind the scenes while I’m actually living it.

This is Part One of my 7-Figure Online Launch Formula series, where I’ll be sharing the strategy, marketing decisions, numbers, wins, disappointments, pivots, and vulnerable moments that normally get edited out of the success story.

Because there’s a big difference between teaching an online launch strategy once you know the outcome and showing you the decisions being made when the outcome is still unknown.

LISTEN NOW »