How to Stop Cynicism from Stalling Your Career Growth

In this episode, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from a talk by Lord Michael Hastings at the London Interdisciplinary School about leading responsibly in an uncertain world. The conversation sparks the question: what happens when cynicism creeps into our careers? They explore how everyday thoughts like “there’s no point applying", ” “the system is rigged,” or “nothing will change anyway” can quietly stall progress in a squiggly career. Instead of staying stuck in that mindset, Helen and Sarah share practical ways to shift from cynicism to a more proactive and generous approach. If you’ve ever felt frustrated with work, doubtful about opportunities, or tempted to disengage, this episode will help you replace cynicism with curiosity, action, and generosity. Episode 545 🦞 Learn Like A Lobster: 🇺🇸PRH US - 🇬🇧 Amazon UK - (00:00) How Cynicism Shows Up in Your Career (01:54) The London Interdisciplinary School (06:35) Common “cynical” thoughts at work (11:34) The danger of the cynicism echo chamber (13:47) Small actions add up (17:53) Learning from people who think differently (25:05) Why generosity matters at work (29:00) The power of the five-minute favour (31:41) Finding ways to stay grounded 📚 Resources Mentioned LIS - For questions about Squiggly Careers or to share feedback, please email helenandsarah@squigglycareers.com More ways to learn about Squiggly Careers: 📩 Download our free career tools: 🦞 Join the Learn Like a Lobster Sprint: 📮 Get Squiggly Careers in Action in your inbox: 📚 Read our books: The Squiggly Career and You Coach You: Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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How to Stop Cynicism from Stalling Your Career Growth is an episode from Amazing If: Squiggly Careers by .

This episode is 38:47 long.

This episode was published on Mar 24, 2026.

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