In this episode of The Wrong Ones, we’re putting the therapy couch in the middle of Wall Street. If you’ve ever felt like you were writing blank emotional checks, subsidizing someone else’s healing, or mistaking adrenaline for chemistry, this one’s for you. We blend medicine, psychology, and a little market humor to help you evaluate partners the way a CFO evaluates investments—by looking at fundamentals, risk, and real return on your most limited currencies: time, energy, and emotional labor.

In this episode, we cover:

• The “startup costs” of dating after heartbreak and why your nervous system feels overdrawn

• The IPO Illusion: novelty bias, intermittent reinforcement, and why apps feel addictive

• Due diligence for modern dating: words (press releases) vs. behavior (audited financials)

• Attachment styles as credit ratings (secure = AAA; avoidant = junk bonds)

• How to spot and track emotional burn rate—early

• Portfolio diversification: resisting premature commitment bias and stabilizing your life portfolio

• The exit strategy: cutting sunk costs without guilt and why relief is real data

• Long-term value investing: choosing consistency, reciprocity, and co-regulation that compound

Reflection Question of the Week:

Where in your life are you over-investing your time and energy with little return—and how can you start reallocating your capital toward relationships that actually compound in value?

Resources Mentioned:

• Novelty bias & intermittent reinforcement research (behavioral psychology)

• Decision fatigue and glucose depletion in the prefrontal cortex (self-regulation studies)

• Attachment theory (Bowlby; Hazan & Shaver) and adult attachment outcomes

• Allostatic load & chronic stress physiology; HRV and cortisol basics

• Secure attachment as a health protective factor (relationship longevity & wellbeing)

• Cognitive biases: sunk cost fallacy; premature commitment bias

Come say hi on Instagram @thewrongonespodcast

An Operation Podcast production

In this episode of The Wrong Ones, we’re talking about why single friends matter when you’re single—especially in your 30s. Because let’s be honest: sometimes it feels like everyone else is married, pregnant, or building Montessori Pinterest boards, while you’re the only “party of one” at the table. But being single doesn’t have to mean being lonely. With the right mirrors—friends in your same season of life—it can feel like freedom, belonging, and even joy.

Blending psychology, humor, and real-life stories, this conversation explores the importance of resonance, the health impact of loneliness, and the radical act of building community that reflects your current season back to you.

• Why your “mistakes” in love are actually classrooms, not failures

• How shifting from dating to marry → dating to learn transforms energy and expectations

• The psychology of seasons of life (Erikson, belonging, and social resonance)

• Why being the only single friend can amplify loneliness and comparison burnout

• How attachment theory and co-regulation apply to friendships, not just dating

• The cultural pressure of weddings, baby showers, and social timelines

• Practical ways to find and nurture single friends in your 30s

• Why laughter, rituals, and resonance are medicine for this season

What season of life are you in right now, and how can you find or build community that reflects it back to you?

• Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development (intimacy vs. isolation)

• U.S. Surgeon General’s report on loneliness as a public health crisis

• Attachment theory research (Bowlby, Hazan & Shaver) and co-regulation studies

• Social comparison theory & relative deprivation theory

• Research on collective effervescence (Durkheim)

• Studies on laughter, endorphins, and emotional regulation in friendships

Come say hi on Instagram @thewrongonespodcast

An Operation Podcast production.

In this episode of The Wrong Ones, we’re unpacking the messy, funny, painful, and oh-so-human mistakes we make in love—and why most of them aren’t accidents at all, but patterns rooted in psychology, attachment, and our own unmet needs. From confusing chemistry with compatibility to breaking our own non-negotiables, I share the lessons I learned the hard way—and the science behind why we keep repeating them.

Blending humor, research, and personal stories, this conversation is equal parts therapy session, neuroscience breakdown, and a reminder that every “wrong one” shapes the way we eventually show up for the right love.

• Why chemistry feels intoxicating but often disguises incompatibility

• The trap of trying to change someone who didn’t ask to be changed

• The difference between attention and affection—and why it matters

• How boundaries actually protect love instead of pushing people away

• The psychology of attachment, dopamine, and why your nervous system confuses chaos for passion

• Subtle relationship habits that sabotage intimacy without us realizing it

• The biggest lessons I wish I could tell my younger self about love, standards, and self-trust

• How to move forward without bitterness and keep your heart open

What’s one relationship mistake you’ve made that you can now thank yourself for — because of what it taught you?

• Attachment theory research (Ainsworth, Bowlby, Hazan & Shaver)

• Fisher et al. (2010) on dopamine and early-stage romance

• Doidge (2007) on neuroplasticity and rewiring patterns

• Intermittent reinforcement studies on addiction and relationships

• Research on the Reticular Activating System (RAS) and selective attention

• Studies on boundaries, people-pleasing, and relationship satisfaction

Come say hi on Instagram @thewrongonespodcast

An Operation Podcast production.