Astronauts come back from space describing the same strange shift: a sudden connection to humanity, compassion for living things, and this visceral understanding of how fragile Earth really is.
They call it the overview effect.
Caroline Paul has spent years thinking about a version of that shift closer to home—through flying, through attention, and through awe. And her new book, Why Fly, is built around that question: what changes in us when the world suddenly feels bigger than our problems?
In this conversation, we get into the takeaways you can actually use: how to practice presence without turning your life into a self-improvement project, why awe can act like a mental reset, and how adventure—done thoughtfully—can help you move through hard seasons with more clarity and courage.
