Suneet Bhatt spent 12 years in private equity and venture-backed businesses, and every job followed the same arc: new and exciting at first, then, faster each time, something felt off, and he went looking for the next one. He never noticed he was the common denominator.

It took his wife, after his last business exit, to name what he couldn't see in himself: his happiness at work was getting shorter each time, his exits were getting more acrimonious, and he needed to stop and figure out what actually mattered to him.

On this episode of FINE is a 4-Letter Word, Suneet talks with Lori Saitz about what came after that conversation — the executive coaching practice, the Rutgers class that doesn't mention the word purpose until session 15, and the research-backed exercise he uses to counter the brain's built-in negativity bias.

What You'll Take Away

• Why purpose has to start with reflection, not prediction
• The three consistent through-lines across every popular definition of purpose: personal, forward-looking, bigger than you
• The 18-minute exercise, happy, proud, not yet satisfied, and why the order matters
• What the research on self-forgiveness and procrastination actually shows
• Why 'stuck' is not one problem, and each version of it needs a different response

Guest Bio

Suneet Bhatt has spent more than 25 years helping people gain clarity about who they are and what they want, then move toward it with purpose. He coaches founders and leaders, works with teams as an EOS Implementer, and has guided people from boardrooms to classrooms. He is the author of Making Sense of Purpose, out August 25, 2026 from Morgan James, built on one premise: before you can make sense of your purpose, you have to make sense of yourself.

Chapters & Key Timestamps

01:33Values from an immigrant household: be helpful, above everything else

07:14The corporate route: Fortune 500, an MBA at Duke, then 12 years in private equity

08:30Why he never noticed he was the common denominator

08:58His wife's intervention after the last exit

12:03Why 'finding your purpose' feels like waiting for an Amazon package

13:43Personal, forward-looking, bigger than you: the three common threads in every definition of purpose

14:12The Rutgers bait-and-switch: purpose doesn't come up until class 15

16:07Why you should never build your purpose on a single point of failure like joy

18:16Happy, proud, not yet satisfied: the 18-minute exercise, explained start to finish

22:06Negativity bias: why we respond more strongly to negative stimuli than positive

23:48Plateaus, not stuck: reframing what it means to feel stuck

25:09Self-forgiveness research: the procrastination study and what it proves

Resources Mentioned

• Book: Making Sense of Purpose by Suneet Bhatt (Morgan James, August 25, 2026) — available for pre-order
• Resource: book soundtrack, one song per chapter, on Spotify, YouTube, and Amazon Music
• Resource: Purpose Radar Library — a free, rated map of books, podcasts, and films about purpose
• Song: Da Rockwilder by Method Man and Redman — youtube.com/watch?v=WCYy8jpp7R8

Connect With Suneet Bhatt

Website: makingsenseofpurpose.com

Book: Making Sense of Purpose (Morgan James, out August 25, 2026)

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/suneetbhatt

Instagram: @suneetonpurpose

Continue With Lori

Website: zenrabbit.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorisaitz/

Email: Lori@ZenRabbit.com

Invitation From Lori

This episode is sponsored by Zen Rabbit. Trust is the foundation of all great workplaces, and in today's hybrid, fast-moving work culture, it's built through consistent, clear, human communication.

Quarterly town halls, Slack messages, or team-building events are rarely enough to create the connection employees need. That's why forward-thinking companies are hiring Lori to create internal and private podcasts that bring leaders and employees together through authentic stories and real conversations.

Think of it as the old-school company newsletter reinvented for the modern workplace.

If your company wants to strengthen communication, connection, community, and culture, connect with Lori at Lori@ZenRabbit.com or on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorisaitz/

Related Conversation

Episode 238: Scott Doggett — on purpose, burnout, and what it takes to stop and ask the bigger question.

Research & Sources

• Suneet cites research showing humans respond 2 to 5 times more strongly to negative stimuli than positive. This aligns with well-established negativity bias research, including Roy Baumeister's 'bad is stronger than good' review, Kahneman and Tversky's work on loss aversion (roughly a 2:1 ratio), and Cacioppo's neural response studies showing measurably stronger brain activation to negative stimuli. The exact ratio varies by study and context, but the underlying finding is well replicated.

About FINE is a 4-Letter Word

FINE is a 4-Letter Word is the show for leaders who are tired of pretending everything is fine. We explore what it takes to lead with empathy, vulnerability, gratitude, and courage, especially during the seasons when life and leadership feel anything but fine. Listen for honest conversations about how human connection influences innovation, retention, leadership, and real impact. New episodes every week.

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