You 2.0: Change Your Story, Change Your Life

This is Hidden Brain. I'm Shankar Vedanta. When Leon Flasher was a small child, his older brother took piano lessons. The brother didn't much care for them. But afterwards, little Leon would climb onto the piano bench and play, note for note, the pieces his brother had practiced. That's when his mother realized Leon was the one who should study the instrument. Leon Fleischer made his debut at Carnegie Hall in 1944. He was just 16 years old. Leon Fleischer, who has performed Brahms piano concerto number one in d minor. A New York Times music critic said this performance established him as one of the most remarkably gifted of the younger generation of American keyboard artists. He went on to perform with the world's top orchestras throughout the nineteen fifties and early sixties. Pause this story here and Leon Fleischer's life is a triumph. But then something unexpected happened. He started to notice an odd stiffness in his right index finger. His fourth and fifth finger started curling under. The pain and stiffness grew steadily worse. Within a matter of months, his career as a concert pianist was virtually over. As you can well imagine without becoming melodramatic, it was I was in a very despairing state of depression for about two years. If we were to take stock of Leon Fleischer's life at this point, we might say it was a tragedy. But Leon Fleisher still had so much music in him, so he reinvented himself, becoming a much admired conductor and teacher. Meanwhile, he continued to try every available measure to heal his right hand. Eventually, a combination of Botox injections and deep tissue massage started to help. In 2003, Leon Fleisher made a triumphant return to Carnegie Hall. He was 75 years old. The next year, he released a CD, his first two handed recording in more than forty years. Today, we conclude this year's You two point o series on purpose, passion, and meaning. We'll bring you a favorite episode about the stories we tell about ourselves and the many subtle and powerful ways in which our personal narratives shape who we are. How the way we understand the ups and downs of our lives can shape the ups and downs of our lives, this week on Hidden Brain. As we make our way through life, it can feel as if we are buffeted by a swiftly moving series of events. Sometimes, it's all we can do to keep our heads above water as we wait for the next wave to crash over us. But research in psychology hints at a different process unfolding beneath the waves, an undercurrent that has powerful effects on our well-being, mental health, and life outcomes. At Olin College, psychologist Jonathan Adler studies how our minds are shaped by this undercurrent and how becoming mindful of it can help us better deal with setbacks and failure. Jonathan Adler, welcome to Hidden Brain. Oh, I'm so excited to be here with …