The Dr. Laura Podcast

Episode: Hope and Postponed Disappointment

Host: Dr. Laura Schlessinger
Date: December 27, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Dr. Laura Schlessinger focuses on the concept of hope, dissecting its role and effectiveness in our lives. She critiques the tendency to use hope as a substitute for actionable steps, referencing an article by Alison Carmen titled “Ten Principles of Hope.” Dr. Laura challenges the conventional, optimistic view of hope, offering her own, characteristically practical perspective on how hope can serve or sabotage us, depending on how it is used.

Key Discussion Points

1. Hope as “Postponed Disappointment”

Timestamp: 00:46

• Dr. Laura opens by reaffirming her well-known stance: “Normally when I talk about hope, I go it’s postponed disappointment.”
• She expresses frustration with empty hope, stating, “I hope there’s no teeth. No teeth in hope.”
• Her critique is that hope, when not paired with action or realistic thinking, often leads only to later letdowns rather than productive change.

2. The “Ten Principles of Hope” – Critical Review

Dr. Laura refers to Alison Carmen’s article directly, rapidly reviewing and unpacking each listed principle with her own candid commentary.

Principle-by-Principle Breakdown:

Timestamp: 01:30 – 04:45

• Hope comes from within:

  • Dr. Laura: “Sustainable hope is created from the inside… True resilience comes from cultivating it within yourself. Being more positive—I would call that just being more positive.”
  • She criticizes excessive positivity, analogizing to soup: “Too much salt makes the soup be bitter.”

• Hope is unique to you:

  • “That’s pop psych stuff.”
  • She dismisses the notion as a truism with little practical value.

• Hope thrives in uncertainty:

  • Appreciates the spiritual angle: “I like that. Sort of a spiritual way of handling life.”

• Hope is strength, not weakness:

  • Cautions against naive hope: “Hope is often postponed disappointment. You have to be realistic… It takes resilience… when fear and negativity seem louder.”

• Hope fuels action:

  • Core critique: “It doesn’t fuel action all by itself. Hope mostly is what people resort to when they don’t want to take an action.”

3. Action Versus Passive Hope

Timestamp: 06:50

• Dr. Laura summarizes: “Hope is usually the give up. That’s what I mean by no teeth. Well, I just hope. I can hope, can’t I? Yeah, you can also pick your nose. It’s as useful right now. We need an action. Okay.”
• Her principle: “Hope without action is silly.”

4. Evaluating Remaining Principles

Timestamp: 06:50 – 10:44
Dr. Laura covers the remaining principles, reiterating her preference for actionable steps:

• Hope expands perspective:

  • Questions passivity: “I don’t agree with that because hope usually is. Instead of all those things, I’m just going to hope…”

• Hope makes the present lighter:

  • Equates to escapism: “I think a glass of wine would do the same thing… Why make the present lighter if there’s something you have to solve?”

• Hope is not denial:

  • Sets firm boundaries: “Only if there’s an action attached to it or a decision. Hope by itself is postponed. Disappointment.”

• Hope is practice:

  • Supports the idea if it includes action: “Totally in support of that because there are actions. Hope without action is silly and useless. Hope with action is promise and possibilities.”

• Hope holds the future:

  • Skeptical: “I can’t wrap my head around what that means. You make up a future in your head. I can’t go there.”

5. Final Thoughts

• Dr. Laura closes with a succinct summary:

  “Anything other than an action is postponed disappointment. Needs teeth or it’s just to make you feel better at the moment. I just want to feel better at the moment, so I’m just going to choose to believe it’ll all work out.” (09:50)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Normally when I talk about hope, I go it’s postponed disappointment.”
  (00:46, Dr. Laura)

• “Hope without action is silly and useless. Hope with action is promise and possibilities.”
  (08:35, Dr. Laura)

• “Hope is usually the give up. That’s what I mean by no teeth. Well, I just hope. I can hope, can’t I? Yeah, you can also pick your nose. It’s as useful right now.”
  (06:50, Dr. Laura)

• On glass-half-full thinking:

  “Too much salt is good in soup. Too much salt makes the soup be bitter. So walking around Well, I hope everything has no teeth.”
  (02:08, Dr. Laura)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:46 – Introduction of the topic: Hope as “postponed disappointment.”
• 01:30 – 04:45 – Review and critique of Alison Carmen’s “Ten Principles of Hope.”
• 06:50 – Reframing hope as action versus passivity.
• 08:35 – Distillation: “Hope without action is silly and useless.”
• 09:50 – Concluding remarks on hope needing actionable “teeth.”

Tone & Style

The episode is delivered in Dr. Laura’s signature direct, no-nonsense style. She balances bits of wry humor with tough love, engaging in candid critiques of generalized optimism and the tendency to rely on hope as a crutch rather than as a partner to action. Her language is relatable, peppered with analogies, and at times sharp in its dismissal of what she views as impractical advice.

For those who haven’t listened, this episode offers a pointed reminder: hope without commitment and action won’t yield change. Dr. Laura’s call to add “teeth” to hope is both a challenge and an invitation to take ownership of one’s life, problems, and possibilities.