Controlling Your Dopamine For Memory, Motivation, Mood, And Attention With Tammy Cooper

In today’s fast-paced world, we’re constantly overstimulated—social media notifications, endless entertainment options, and instant gratification at every turn. This can throw our dopamine systems out of balance, leaving us feeling unmotivated, scattered, and even unhappy. In this episode, Tammy Cooper, CEO of Technologent, joins the conversation to explore how dopamine influences our focus, motivation, and overall well-being. If you’ve ever struggled with procrastination, felt stuck in a cycle of distraction, or noticed mood swings after scrolling social media, dopamine might be the culprit. But here’s the good news: we can take control. Tammy shares insights on how understanding dopamine can help us stay focused, enhance memory, regulate mood, and reclaim our motivation in an overstimulated world.

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Controlling Your Dopamine For Memory, Motivation, Mood, And Attention With Tammy Cooper

Welcome back to You Are YOU, Unapologetically. We’re diving into a topic that might sound fancy. It’s something that affects every single one of us. We’re talking about dopamine. Have you ever heard of the word dopamine? If you ever struggle with staying focused on your goals, you feel like you’re stuck, or you may feel it now in a cycle of procrastination, or even notice your mood swing, swinging after scrolling through social media or reading long texts, then dopamine might be the sneaky little chemical culprit behind it all.

If you’re thinking, why should I care about dopamine? Dopamine isn’t just a feel-good chemical. It’s responsible for our drive. It’s responsible for our focus and even our ability to remember things. In today’s world of constant notifications, binge-worthy shows, and quick dopamine hits from junk food like cookies, candy, soda pops, or online shopping, our dopamine systems can get totally out of whack.

I’m not joking. In our fast-paced society, we’re constantly overstimulated with social media notifications, endless entertainment options, and instant gratification at every turn. This causes our dopamine system to get out of balance, leaving us feeling unmotivated, scattered, scatterbrained, and even unhappy. I know this might sound like something only scientists in labs would talk about, but we’re bringing it down to earth. We’re making it real.

I’m joined by an incredible woman and another everyday woman like you and me, who is going to share her personal experiences and struggles with focus, motivation, and mood, and how she learned to work with her brain instead of against it. I’m then going to share with you my personal story. Can’t have an episode without my personal input, can we? Nope. Grab a cup of tea, get comfy, and let’s have an open honest conversation.

I can’t wait to tell you about our guest. Our guest, like all our previous guests, is phenomenal. She’s phenomenal. Here’s who we’re going to be talking with. She is a current Senior Management leader, and CEO/CFO, responsible for the oversight of the corporation, including strategic planning, finance, audit, and HR functions, including compensation reviews at her technology company called Technologent. She’s amazing and so is her company.

She has presided over an unprecedented growth period for the corporation, leading it through an expansive twenty-year period from a twenty-employee, $25 million startup to its current 300-employee operation, pushing the $1 billion mark with an established tier-one client base of multi-billion-dollar clients and running ten offices nationwide.

As an accomplished C-suite executive who has successfully developed long-term growth plans, she helps bring business to the next level. She has developed and expanded her ability to inspire teams to bring novel ideas to life. Our guest has the ability to quickly form connections, establish credibility, and generate buy-in for out-of-the-box solutions. She has managed large P&Ls and has extensive financial acumen.

She also has a heart for community service, which has been demonstrated through leadership positions with Girl Scouts, working from local leaders to national delegates, and currently sitting on the local and service unit board. She also has been active with the Jeremiah Society for over ten years, helping adults with severe mental challenges.

I can’t wait to tell you who she is as I’m sharing this. Meals on Wheels benefits from her leadership in collaborating with more employees on the annual December meal drop-off. She is a current board member of the American Red Cross and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Please help me welcome our phenomenal guest, Tammy Cooper, to YAYU. I’m so happy you’re here. Welcome.

I’m so excited to be here. I’m so excited to be a part of this program. Your words were so inspiring. I can’t begin to thank you for what you said. Thank you.

You’re so welcome. Tammy, you are a powerhouse. You hold back no punches. You are all about getting it done. What an honor it is to have you as a guest on YAYU. I am so grateful that you’re here. Usually, what I do is I’ll ask our guests to share how we met. I would like to share with my audience how we met and how we came together. Tammy won the Enterprising Women of the Year Award for her company. She won this award in 2003. At that time, Tammy grew her company’s revenue to over $680 million. Now she has already surpassed that amount. Isn’t that sweet? That’s amazing.

Monica Smiley is the chief editor and CEO of Enterprising Women magazine. She recommended that I reach out to Tammy to see if Tammy would be willing to give back as a mentor by mentoring a smaller women-owned business. Without a doubt, Tammy said absolutely yes. She is a born servant leader. Another reason for me to say thank you, Tammy, for being awesome. Thank you for being amazing.

I am so blessed and humbled by your introduction. Unbelievable. Thank you. The award was in 2023 for Enterprising Women magazine. I was honored to receive that award against many great contestants. It was wonderful.

Struggling To Get Started: Finding Your Go-To Distraction

You deserve it. Let’s jump into our open, honest, and juicy conversation that we’re going to have here. Let’s start with this. Have you ever had one of those days where you know that you have so much to do, but you can’t get yourself to start? You can’t get going. What is your go-to distraction?

We all have those days. I’m having one of those days now. I can’t say I don’t have one of those days. My computer is breaking. Everything I’m touching is not working. I’m having one of those days too. My normal go-to distraction would be baseball. Baseball is my hobby. If it was live baseball season, I would look up to see the stats. I would like to learn the trades, what’s going on in the fields, and how my teams are doing.

That would be my go-to distraction. That’s my calm, my zen. That would be my distraction. Unfortunately, I’m in hibernation. It’s not baseball season. I’m about a month away. I am distracted by other things. Shopping is a big distraction for me also. I’ve been spending too much money this off-season. I wish baseball was here so I wouldn’t be spending money because I do like shopping. I’ve been wearing a lot of new outfits. That is my distraction.

That’s what we love. We love shopping, particularly for women. There are some men out there who love shopping too. Your go-to distraction is baseball. I’m sorry you’re having one of those days. I do feel you. We’ve all been there because that’s what we’re saying. We’ve all been there and having those days. On a normal day, scrolling through TikTok or Instagram, if you have that time, or even texting for five minutes, can suddenly suck you in. You look an hour later and you’re like, “What have I been doing?” How do you notice when those dopamine traps start pulling you in? That’s what we call them. Dopamine traps.

We all have them. I’m on social media a lot. I’m on LinkedIn. I’m on Facebook. You lose track of your time while you’re engaging in those activities. You feel the urge, “I have to check my phone every minute.” You don’t. There are important things that you have to consider. Everyone has those. The activity might feel rewarding, but it leaves you feeling empty, guilty, or restless because it’s not solving the problem or the task at hand.

It’s pulling you away, making you in your own little world, but it’s useless. It’s not able to solve whatever you’re trying to solve. You’re looking for an escape pattern. You don’t need to escape from everything. You need to be able to find other resources that you can use, that you can throw yourself into, which might be your job, might be work. It’s always good to take a break every once in a while. Don’t get sucked into that for a long period of time.

Improving Focus: Routines, Habits, And Motivation Boosters

You like baseball. That’s your go-to. Have you ever tried anything else that helps you feel more motivated or more focused? Do you have any routines, exercises, or habits that help you in this space?

I read a lot. I heard a nice phrase, and I would love to throw the phrase here, “If you have reached the top in your career or by the top, send the elevator back down to elevate other people.” That’s so important. By reading, I’ve learned that. I put it all over my LinkedIn, “Send the elevator back down.” That should be a big takeaway. There are other things. I like to walk around the block maybe to clear my mind.

The phone, if I didn’t have it ten years ago, I shouldn’t be so dependent upon it. Define your why. Why do you do things? What is your why? What are you passionate about? What do you need to do? Define your goals. What kind of goals? Maybe take small steps toward your goals. Use SMART goals. By SMART goals, I mean Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Make sure you reward yourself when you throw yourself into something that achieves your goals versus something that takes away from your goals.

Rewarding Yourself For Progress: The Power Of Small Wins

I love the fact that you said reward yourself because sometimes as we’re going through the journey, we’re doing and achieving, and the last thing we think of is a reward. Do you have any in mind? What would be a good reward when you accomplish a goal? Something as simple as “I achieved not looking at my phone. I put it down.” What are some of the small rewards?

A small reward for putting your phone down is that I’m not online shopping. I’m saving money. That’s a great reward for putting your phone down. I throw myself, a lot of times, into my nonprofit work, and that feels very rewarding to me. We’re now dealing with the fires out here in California, and I’m very involved with the Red Cross. I’m organizing all these drives, and our company is raising money for the Red Cross so that we can help donate and be part of it. I throw myself into something meaningful to me, something that I’m doing good with. Sitting there buying things is not meaningful to me. It makes me feel good, but it’s not meaningful. It’s not meaningful work. I’m trying to throw myself into something that means something to somebody.

Making An Impact: How Serving Others Fuels Personal Growth

From your bio, you are a true servant leader. You give and you give. By sharing how you’re going to your nonprofit to serve, give, and work in the community, you are the type of person who aims for impact. You want to make a difference. Although we’re talking about dopamine, how can we use this topic to make an impact and help change those who are struggling or stuck?

There are intrinsic values and extrinsic values. Intrinsic values focus on activities that you enjoy or that you value deeply. I go to any of the nonprofits and throw myself into it. If I can’t give something my all, such as your mentorship, I’m not part of it. I need to be able to give something my all. There are extrinsic values, where you’re treating yourself after hitting a milestone. “I felt so good that I did this. I’m going to cut my work off for the day and go out, spend family time, or get some ice cream,” something where I’m rewarding myself because I’ve hit something I’ve been trying to achieve that day.

Intrinsic, extrinsic, what’s meaningful to you? What purpose do you want to have? As I said before, define your why. Why are you here? What are you having yourself do? I am very blessed and humbled that I’m running a company. Not many women CEOs run a tech company. I’m probably one of three. There are not very many. I feel blessed. For me to show my blessing, I want to give back. I don’t want to be remembered as someone who ran a tech company. I want to be remembered as, “She was very involved in this organization and look what she made a difference.”

I want to make a difference. I have a mentorship program I started at my job. It makes a difference. I never want an employee to come to me and say, “I have a dead-end job. I work 9:00 to 5:00.” That is not the case. I have input into their goals and achievements. I want to help them reach their goals in life. Showing them the pathway to achieve this is something that means a lot to me.

I’m so glad that you shared about your mentor program at your business because I remember when I initially connected with you, you shared that with me. I thought that was so empowering, to take an employee, show them their value, help them see how valuable they are, and help them know that they are important and that they matter. Not only that, they’re more than enough. I’m so glad that you shared that.

They’re more than enough. I’m going to help in their career journey. I said, “I don’t want to hear, ‘I go 9:00 to 5:00, I go home. I have no career path.’” You do. I want to provide that for you. Reach out, tell me, I’m here. My door is always open.

How Recognizing A Need For Change Can Lead To Growth

You’re so right. You have been not only open, but you’re so supportive in the small amount of time that we did connect and that we’re communicating. I am so grateful. Can you share a real-life example or a moment when you realized something in your life needed to change? What did you do differently, and how did it feel? Tell me about when you recognized, what was that moment, what did you do differently, and how did it feel?

Personal note to me, over the holidays, I was diagnosed with a heart condition. My left side, going to my heart, is 59% blocked. My right side is clear. I go now to a cardiologist. One of the things I recognize is I’ve got to lose weight, and I’m on a massive weight loss journey, so that’s a big change for me. I normally come home and eat ice cream. I’m not much of a snacker, but I eat ice cream. I have changed my entire diet. I have salads now with protein in them.

Everything I do is with purpose because I can’t take away what’s happened already. I can stop the future, and that’s what I want to do. That’s a big change in my life that has happened, and it’s a lesson for me. I used to eat anything, any kind of candy and chocolates. People gave me chocolates here for the holidays, for Christmas. I gave it away. I said, “I’m not eating it.” I have chocolates on my desk, I’m giving them away to people. I’m not eating it. A hundred percent, it’s a wake-up call. I am changing my entire life, so that’s a change.

How do you feel about all of that? How are you feeling now, knowing what you know now and implementing those things? How is it impacting you? I know you’re saying you’re giving away things and you’re eating differently, but what are you feeling?

I’ve never been as healthy as I feel. The reward of that is finding it early. I could have found it after a heart attack. I could have found it later. Finding it early, going to a cardiologist, she said, “I don’t see people until they’re in their 70s or 80s.” She sees me sitting there with all these older people. She said, “I can’t reverse it, but I can stop it.” That’s all I want to do. I feel very grateful. I feel blessed that it was caught. I feel as healthy as I can be because I’m eating healthy. I’m not snacking. I’m drinking a lot of water.

The Key Takeaway: What You Need To Know About Dopamine

That is so important. Let me ask you this, if there’s one thing that our audience should take away from our conversation about dopamine, what would it be?

My one takeaway for you is to define your why. What is your purpose? Define your why and go forward with that. Why are you here? What are you trying to serve? What are you trying to accomplish? Create accountability for what you do. Focus on growth. Don’t have any negative thoughts. Acknowledge the progress that you’ve made in your life, and keep going forward with it.

Awesome. You’re so amazing. I’m quite sure our audience and those who watch us on YouTube will want to connect with you. Please, let them know how they can connect with you. Feel free to share your website, email, LinkedIn, Facebook, whatever.

You can reach me at my email, it’s Tammy.Cooper@Technologent.com. Please specify that you heard me on the show, on YouTube. I get hundreds and thousands of emails, and I want the audience to reach out to me. I am here. I’m here to help. I want to be a resource. People call me to sell everything in the world, and I don’t know a bad one from a good one. Please, in the heading, make sure that you reach out to me, saying where you heard me.

Thank you for being so open. Thank you for sharing your experiences. Thank you for being transparent and real. I know that our audience is going to relate to what you shared in this episode. Thank you again and again for being here. Thank you for the many ways that you give back, that you serve your community, and give back in so many ways. Thank you so much for being you, unapologetically.

Thank you for what you do, because what you do matters and makes a difference. Thank you for what you do, and for having these shows to enrich other people’s lives. That makes a difference.

I’m so grateful. Thank you. We’re going to say bye for now. We’re going to take a quick little break, and then I will be back. We’re going to give a big warm hug to Tammy for being here and sharing what she shared. Thank you again, Tammy. We will talk to you soon. I’ll be back.

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Welcome back from our small break, and big thanks and lots of love go out to Tammy Cooper. Thank you, Tammy. We truly appreciate you. Let me jump into my personal experiences with controlling my dopamine for memory, motivation, mood, and attention. Let’s start with my mood. I have noticed how certain habits, like eating junk food, I love eating junk food, staying up late for doom scrolling, and too much screen time, affect my mood and how I feel emotionally the next day. It takes a toll. Therefore, I am intentional about not having excessive screen time from either my phone, television, or laptop. I minimize the number of days I stay up late.

I have to admit, I am a work in progress when it comes to eating junk food. I’m being real with it. I’m intentional in doing these things because I know it impacts my mood. When I feel like my life is overwhelming or I feel super overwhelmed, I first have to recognize that I am overwhelmed. That’s the first and foremost thing. I have to recognize, this is what I’m feeling. I do. I feel it in my stomach first, more than anything.

I said again, I’m intentional. I intentionally stop. Once I feel that, I recognize that I’m overwhelmed and that a lot is going on. I stop what I’m doing. I’ll go to a quiet place, maybe my bathroom or I’ll go into one of my closets or a spare room in my home. I’ll sit there with my emotion of overwhelm. Sometimes, I’ll go into these spaces with music. Sometimes, I’ll sit and meditate. The majority of the time, I’m speaking to the emotion. We’re talking about overwhelm. I’m speaking to that emotion.

I speak to all my emotions as well. When I’m speaking to overwhelm, I’m acknowledging that I’m overwhelmed. I say, “I see you, overwhelm. I know that you are here, overwhelm.” I treat my emotions as if it’s tangible. I look at all of my emotions as children, in the sense that children want attention. I stop and give my emotions and all of them attention. When I sit with it, I tell it that I feel it. I see it. I know it’s here. I tell it, “I’m going to sit here with you, overwhelm, until you dissipate.” I sit until it dissipates. That helps a lot with managing my overwhelm and when I feel burnt out.

To protect my dopamine, I have to set boundaries as well. Set boundaries. Put boundaries in place with me. When we’re eating meals, no phones are allowed at the table. I turn off my phone or put it on Do Not Disturb at a certain time, I aim for 9:00 PM every evening. Although, at times, I will drink sodas. I make sure that they are caffeine-free. Most importantly, I exercise every day except Sundays. I make sure that I’m moving, whether it’s lifting weights, walking, or hopping on the elliptical. I’m doing something. This helps me as well to put boundaries in place when it comes to my dopamine.

If you feel stuck in a rut, and you want to start implementing small changes to improve your focus or your mood, I highly recommend creating healthier routines. Take a brisk walk without your phone or with your phone turned off, or you can ride a bike. Here’s something that I also want to encourage, drink plenty of water. We don’t drink enough water. Drink plenty of water. You’ll be amazed at what drinking water will do. Also, watch what you eat. Our diet plays a huge part in how we feel the next day. Especially pay attention to what you eat before you go to bed. In other words, diet and exercise will help, but you don’t have to make a drastic change. It doesn’t have to be big.

Allow the change to take place gradually. I always say baby steps or take micro baby steps. We do not have to have it all figured out. We don’t have to have all the answers. Allow what Tammy shared and what I’m sharing to remind you that you don’t have to have it all figured out. Take micro-baby steps, or you can take small steps.

Believe me when I say this, each step you take will count. Let’s take some steps. Our conversation showed us that dopamine isn’t some mystery chemical we can’t control. It’s something we can influence with our daily choices, from creating healthier routines to setting small, realistic, Tammy said SMART goals. Setting those goals. It is all about awareness and consistency. Being aware and being consistent is important.

Remember, this isn’t about being perfect either. It’s not about being perfect or having it all together. It’s about understanding how your brain works and being gentle with yourself, giving yourself grace as you make changes. Whether it’s taking a short walk, spending less time on your phone, computer, or in front of the television, make sure you’re drinking more water. Every little effort matters.

With all that being said and all that being shared, if this episode resonates with you, share it with a friend or one of your family members. If you have a personal story or tip to share about managing your dopamine, drop us a message. We love to hear from you. I always like to end our episodes with this because I want to remind you guys, as you tune in to our episodes, that society has rigid expectations. They’re rigid and they have endless opinions.

Self-expression and self-appreciation can feel challenging, daunting, heavy, and all of that. When you’re in this space and you feel this, it causes you to push it away. You dumb down, you hide who you are, and you ride the wave. In other words, you go with the flow. I need you to understand that You Are YOU, Unapologetically means being true to who you were created to be. It’s being true to that and not allowing people’s opinions to affect how you show up in life. No doubt, people are going to talk about you all day long for the rest of your life. That’s a given.

You don’t have time to be intimidated by the presence of others and think so little of yourself. You don’t have time for that. When you start showing up without pretense and hesitation, the world can’t and won’t be able to dim your glamour. They can’t. Although they may try, they can’t. Most importantly, you will be inspired to shine so brightly. The light that is within you is going to shine. You’re going to share who you are and your light, serve others and help them tap into their own brilliance.

Let’s all agree to put an end to this disparaging mindset and begin to own our authentic selves. Let’s do that. Join me here, where I create a safe space and initiate influential conversations about being you. That’s right, you being you. Why? It is because you are you unapologetically. No one, absolutely, positively, no one is better at being you than you.

Thanks so much for checking out this show. There’s more to come. I appreciate your support. It is greatly appreciated. Please know that we can’t do this without you. Without you, we can’t. We appreciate you. Keep showing up for yourself. Keep taking the steps, setting the goals, and doing the things that you need to do. Remember, at the end of the day, when it’s all said and done, protect your dopamine and know that you are more than enough. You are more than enough as you are. Until next time, take care and stay true to yourself. I’ll see you soon on YAYU. Bye-bye, or ciao-ciao for now.

Important Links

• Tammy Cooper on LinkedIn
• Technologent
• Meals on Wheels
• American Red Cross
• Big Brothers Big Sisters
• Enterprising Women

About Tammy Cooper

Tammy is a current senior management leader (CEO/CFO) responsible for the oversight of the corporation including the strategic planning, finance, audit, and HR functions (including compensation reviews) of her Technology Company. She has presided over an unprecedented growth period for the corporation leading it through an expensive 20-year period from a 20 employee $25M startup to its current 300 employee operations pushing the $1 Billion Mark with an established tier 1 client base of multi-billion-dollar clients and running 10 offices nationwide.

As an accomplished c-suite executive who has successfully developed long-term growth plans, she helps to bring business to the next level. She has developed and expanded her ability to inspire teams to bring novel ideas to life. Tammy has the ability to quickly form connections, establish credibility and generate buy-in for out -of-the-box solutions. She has managed large P&L’s and has extensive financial acumen.

Tammy also has a heart for community service which has been demonstrated though leadership positions with Girl Scouts – working from local leader to National Delegate and currently sits on the local service unit board. She also has been active with The Jeremiah Society for over 10 years helping adults with severe mental challenges. Meals on Wheels benefits from her leadership in collaborating with her employees on annual December meal drop-offs. She is a current board member for American Red Cross and Big Brothers/Big Sisters.