Passion Struck with John R. Miles
Shige Oishi on How to Live a Psychologically Rich Life | EP 571
Tue, 11 Feb 2025
In this episode of Passion Struck, host John R. Miles welcomes one of the world’s leading psychologists, Dr. Shige Oishi, to discuss his latest book, Life in Three Dimensions: How Curiosity, Exploration, and Experience Make a Fuller, Better Life. Dr. Oishi introduces the concept of psychological richness, a third dimension of well-being that goes beyond traditional notions of happiness and meaning.Through their engaging discussion, they explore the psychological science behind what makes life truly fulfilling, how personal exploration enhances our sense of self, and why embracing novel experiences—even difficult ones—can lead to fewer regrets and a more enriched life. This episode provides practical insights into how we can intentionally cultivate curiosity, challenge our perspectives, and lead a life that is both meaningful and psychologically deep.Link to the full show notes: https://passionstruck.com/shige-oishi-to-live-a-psychologically-rich-life/Key takeaways:1. The Three Dimensions of a Good Life2. How Novelty and Exploration Lead to Fulfillment3. The Global Village Paradox and Social Media's Impact4. Happiness vs. Meaning vs. Psychological Richness5. Why Regret Comes from Inaction6. The Role of Negative Emotions in a Rich Life7. How to Cultivate Psychological RichnessConnect with Shige Oishi: Welcome to Oishi Lab! – Sandbox | University of ChicagoSponsors:Rosetta Stone: Unlock 25 languages for life at “ROSETTASTONE.com/passionstruck.”Prolon: Reset your health with 15% off at “ProlonLife.com/passionstruck.”Mint Mobile: Cut your wireless bill to 15 bucks a month at “MINT MOBILE dot com slash PASSION.”Hims: Start your journey to regrowing hair with Hims. Visit hims.com/PASSIONSTRUCK for your free online visit.Quince: Discover luxury at affordable prices with Quince. Enjoy free shipping and 365-day returns at quince.com/PASSIONNext on Passion Struck:In the next episode of Passion Struck, John sits down with Katherine Morgan Schaffler, a renowned psychotherapist and author of The Perfectionist Guide to Losing Control, a Path to Peace and Power. Katherine challenges the conventional view of perfectionism, suggesting that it can be harnessed as a personal superpower rather than a flaw. Don't miss this enlightening conversation that could transform your relationship with perfectionism.For more information on advertisers and promo codes, visit Passion Struck Deals.Join the Passion Struck Community! Sign up for the Live Intentionally newsletter, where I share exclusive content, actionable advice, and insights to help you ignite your purpose and live your most intentional life. Get access to practical exercises, inspiring stories, and tools designed to help you grow. Learn more and sign up here.Speaking Engagements & Workshops Are you looking to inspire your team, organization, or audience to take intentional action in their lives and careers? I’m available for keynote speaking, workshops, and leadership training on topics such as intentional living, resilience, leadership, and personal growth. Let’s work together to create transformational change. Learn more at johnrmiles.com/speaking.Episode Starter Packs With over 500 episodes, it can be overwhelming to know where to start. We’ve curated Episode Starter Packs based on key themes like leadership, mental health, and personal growth, making it easier for you to dive into the topics you care about. Check them out at passionstruck.com/starterpacks.Catch More of Passion Struck:My solo episode on The Science of Healthy HabitsMy episode with Jason O’Mara on Finding Strength in the Face of SetbacksCan't miss my episode with Arthur Brooks on the 4 Ways to Build the Life You WantCatch my interview with Dr. Elisa Hallerman on How You Reconnect With Your SoulListen to my solo episode on 7 Reasons Why Acts of Kindness Are More than Meets the EyeIf you liked the show, please leave us a review—it only takes a moment and helps us reach more people! Don’t forget to include your Twitter or Instagram handle so we can thank you personally.How to Connect with John:Connect with John on Twitter at @John_RMiles and on Instagram at @John_R_Miles. Subscribe to our main YouTube Channel here and to our YouTube Clips Channel here. For more insights and resources, visit John’s website.Want to explore where you stand on the path to becoming Passion Struck? Take our 20-question quiz on Passionstruck.com and find out today!
What are the three dimensions of a fulfilling life?
But in the long run, we wish we have done it. And then when we examine the obituaries, the New York Times in June 2016, we had 100 over 100 obituaries. And these are very famous, well-accomplished individuals, but we find that some people let what we call like a boring life, like happy maybe, but not so interesting life.
And some people led very tough life, maybe not so happy, but admirable, adventurous life. I think those are the people who led the life of no regret. And perhaps some of the people who led the happy life might have led at the end life of some regret.
So I just want to use one example that you can talk about, because you mentioned in the book, a lot of people, when they think of someone who's led a really deep, creative, meaningful life, think of Steve Jobs. How would you rate him from your own research and what you think is a rich life?
I think that Steve Jobs is an example of psychologically rich life, right? I mean, he dropped out of college, worked in the apple orchard. And when he was 19, he decided, OK, I want to go to India. So he goes to India in search of guru. In the end, he didn't find it. But later, he looks back and says he learned something really important, that the people in the Indian, the small villages,
know how to use their intuitions. And we Americans know how to use our rationalities, but we don't know how to use intuition. And I think he became wonderfully interesting person of using some intuition as well as the rationalities.
And I mean, he founded the successful company, Apple, and then he was fired from the company he established and then started the Pixar and then just brought back and so forth. I think he had So many up and down, twist and turn. I mean, he obviously wasn't that happy. Many times he alienated many people. He yelled at many employees and so forth.
I mean, he wasn't a happy person, but clearly he, I think, led a psychologically rich life and life of adventure, curiosity, learning. At the end, I mean, if you read the biography of Steve Jobs, he says that on the deathbed, I led a good life. I learned so much and I have no regret. I think he's a wonderful example of somebody who led a psychologically rich life.
Well, thank you for going into that. And another thing that really caught my eye was when you looked at different personality structures, extra vision and openness really came out. And you found that openness to experience is strongly linked to leading a psychologically rich life, which obviously Steven Jobs explored throughout his life.
And he had key characteristics of curiosity, imagineness, imagination, willingness to explore intellectual and artistic pursuits. And your research has a fascinating reciprocal relationship Open, if I understand it, openness enhances the likelihood of engaging in psychologically enriching activities. Can you go into this a little bit more and why it's so important?
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