Flourishing in a Complex World with Emiliya Zhivotovskaya

What does it really mean to flourish — not just survive, not just keep up, but genuinely thrive from the inside out? In a world of political polarization, chronic stress, loneliness, and uncertainty, that question feels more urgent than ever.

In this episode Julie sits down with Emiliya Zhivotovskaya — founder of The Flourishing Center, pioneer of the PERMA-V model, and one of the world's leading voices in the science of human flourishing — for a conversation that is equal parts practical, filled with tools and practices you can use today, and deeply human.

What you'll hear in this episode:

Emiliya's origin story — a deeply moving account of losing her brother at 14 and her mother to ovarian cancer a decade later, and how those experiences of grief and adversity became the foundation of her life's work in positive psychology.

The PERMA-V model — Emiliya walks us through the evolution of positive psychology's foundational framework, from the original PEM model to PERMA, and explains why she pioneered the addition of Vitality — and why Martin Seligman ultimately endorsed it. The body is not separate from well-being. It is an integral part of it.

What flourishing actually means — while some definitions might be setting the bar impossibly high,  Emiliya offers a more accessible and deeply resonant definition: flourishing is being able to show up in the world the way that you want to.

Flourishing in a poly-crisis — how do we define and pursue flourishing in a world of political polarization, loneliness, climate anxiety, AI disruption, and social media overwhelm? Emiliya and Julie explore why the answer lies not in bypassing the difficulty but in holding both the hardship and the possibility at the same time.

The neuroscience of helplessness — one of the most surprising and important findings in this conversation. New neuroimaging research suggests that helplessness isn't learned — it's actually biologically wired. What IS learned is efficacy and hopefulness. This reframe changes everything about how we approach flourishing.

The mental health continuum — Dr. Corey Keys' groundbreaking two-by-two model that shows why mental health and mental illness are not opposites. Languishing is not the presence of illness — it is the absence of the skills of mental health. And those skills can be learned and practiced.

From languishing to flourishing — what the pathway actually looks like, and why wellbeing is not something you have but something you do. Just like physical