Modern Wisdom &#8211; Chris Williamson

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

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Why Can’t Humans Do Anything In Moderation? - Michael Easter - #690 Oct 07, 2023

Show notes

Michael Easter is a University of Nevada, Las Vegas professor, a journalist and an author who focuses on health and human performance.

Even though we might often feel in control of our impulses, there are regular moments that remind us of our uncontrolled tendencies. From overspending to overeating, there is a secret loop happening inside of our minds that causes our actions and intentions to move further apart

Expect to learn why moderation is so impossible to achieve, what humans actually want the most out of life, what the scarcity loop is and how it drives your behaviour, if it's possible to become dependent on certainty, whether humans are more likely to chase happiness or avoid discomfort, Michael’s contrarian opinion on first world problems and much more...

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Why Can’t Humans Ever Get Enough? (03:50) Explaining the Scarcity Loop (09:51) Why Are We So Hooked? (17:47) Humanity’s Love for Escapism (21:39) The Wild Story of Captagon (30:25) Are We Becoming More Dependent on Certainty? (39:54) The Evolutionary Pursuit of Status & Influence (52:31) Becoming Addicted to Observable Metrics (57:25) The Scarcity Loop of Food (1:04:26) How to Break Through the Loop (1:10:40) Where to Find Michael

Extra Stuff:

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Terrifying Impact Of Single-Parent Households - Melissa Kearney - #689 Oct 05, 2023

Show notes

Melissa Kearney is a Professor of Economics at the University of Maryland, and an author known for her research in the field of economic demography.

Declining marriage and birthrates frequently dominate discussions about the future of society, but what is the impact of separated parents on the kids who grow up in these homes? Melissa has spent years assessing the data, and her findings are absolutely terrifying.

Expect to learn how single-parent households are massively worsening class divides, what happens to kids who grow up with only one parent, what is driving the decline in American marriage rates, what Melissa is hearing from both men & women who don’t want to marry, just how many of the problems we’re seeing in the modern world are downstream from single-parent households, whether the decline in marriage and birthrate are at all correlated, what can be done about this issue and much more...

Timestamps:

(00:00) Response to Melissa’s Book (02:27) What Has Been Happening to Marriage Rates? (07:46) How College Degrees Are Influencing Childbirth & Marriage Rates (14:52) Are Women Misjudging What Men Want? (25:30) Why Are Declining Marriages a Bad Thing? (30:20) Differences in Kids Raised in Two-Parent & One-Parent Homes (41:35) Cohabiting Vs Marriage (50:25) The Lack of Substitute Father Figures for Boys (58:30) Consequences of Eroding Chivalrous Norms (1:08:24) How Many of Societal Problems Are Due to Single-Parent Households? (1:10:10) The Connection Between Marriage Rates & Birth Rates (1:20:25) Melissa’s Interventions to Increase Marriage Rates (1:28:30) Where to Find Melissa

Extra Stuff:

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

17 Raw Lessons About Human Nature - Steven Bartlett - #688 Oct 02, 2023

Show notes

Steven Bartlett is the Founder of Social Chain, an entrepreneur, a podcaster and an author.

How to become a functioning human is a difficult skill to work out. Should I focus on achieving goals or inner peace? Can I become confident without being arrogant? Thankfully Steven has spent the last 2 years distilling a ton of lessons into his new book, and today we get to go through my favourites.

Expect to learn Steven’s equation for unbreakable discipline, the biggest lesson from dealing with mainstream media pile-ons, why there are so few actual practitioners in the world, how to stop being your biggest critic, why your weirdness is the ultimate competitive advantage, how Steven discovered he was riddled with fake ambition and much more…⁣⁣

Timestamps:

(00:00) The Frame Matters More Than the Picture (07:33) You Don’t Get to Choose What You Believe (21:29) Why Self Respect is So Important (35:12) Most People Strategise Instead of Executing (47:51) Are You Driven or Being Dragged? (58:54) The Loneliness & Hedonism of Elite Achievers (1:06:30) Why You Need to Sweat the Small Stuff (1:15:09) Do the Thing (1:19:28) Pressure is a Great Privilege (1:25:02) Steven’s Experience Becoming a Person of Public Interest (1:35:49) Do Our Beliefs Limit Us? (1:41:42) Context Is Worth More Than Skills (1:46:25) How to Avoid the Trap of Mono-Thinking (1:58:12) Fame Changes Everybody Around You (2:06:20) Where to Find Steven

Extra Stuff:

Get my free reading list of 100 books to read before you die: https://chriswillx.com/books

Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic: https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get In Touch:

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Most Dangerous Stories From A Professional Card Counter - Steven Bridges - #687 Sep 30, 2023

Show notes

Steven Bridges is a professional gambler and mostly-legal card counter.

If you've seen the movie 21, you'll know that it's possible to count cards while playing Blackjack in a casino to beat the house. But this isn't just limited to the movies, Steven is part of a team who takes on the biggest casinos in the world using hardcore maths, disguises and secret signals to win big.

Expect to learn the details of how a team of players is needed to take on a casino, how Steven chooses which casinos to count at, what are the best and worst places to play Blackjack in Vegas, the most amount of money Steven has made and lost in a single session, how he deals with losing absurd amounts of money, just how difficult it actually is to count cards and much more...

Sponsors:

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Get an exclusive discount from Surfshark VPN at https://surfshark.deals/MODERNWISDOM (use code MODERNWISDOM)

Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D and more from AG1 at https://drinkag1.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied)

Timestamps:

(00:00) What Does Steven Do For Work? (07:29) The Dynamics of a Card-Counting Team (15:30) Is Card-Counting Legal? (19:30) Getting Recognised & Kicked Out of Casinos (23:59) Is Card-Counting Fun or Stressful? (34:58) The Feeling of Losing Significant Money (38:12) Some of Steven’s Best Games Played (40:50) The Challenges of Carrying Huge Amounts of Cash Around (48:14) How to Not Be Recognised When You Are Well-Known (56:04) Building Relationships with Dealers (59:35) Where to Find Steven

Extra Stuff:

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

8 Strategies For Avoiding A Life You Hate - Dr Gad Saad - #686 Sep 28, 2023

Show notes

Dr Gad Saad is an Evolutionary Psychologist, Professor of Marketing at Concordia University, a podcaster and an author.

In today’s fast-paced world, happiness and contentment often seem elusive. By taking an evolutionary lens on happiness, we can gain deeper insight into why we are the way we are and decode the contributing elements to living a good life.

Expect to learn where happiness comes from, why evolution cursed humans with the ability to feel existential discontent, what people get wrong about defining and understanding happiness, what role genetics plays, how to pick the right partner, whether married people are more happy on average, why more more sex equal doesn’t always equal more happiness, how you can become more anti-fragile and much more...

Timestamps:

(00:00) Why Has Evolution Allowed Us to Feel Negative Emotions? (06:33) What We Can Learn About Stress From Zebras (13:19) What People Get Wrong About Happiness (18:49) Key Factors for a Happy Life (27:54) Happiness Differences Between Political Orientations (32:48) Are Married People More Happy? (39:16) How Much Sex Should We Be Having? (41:43) Loving Your Work Vs Being a Workaholic (49:44) The Differences of Optimising for Pleasure & Optimising for Low Risk (1:00:00) Does Everything Happen for a Reason? (1:11:14) How to Be Anti-Fragile to Criticism (1:18:07) A Simplified Guide to Happiness (1:21:34) Where to Find Gad

Extra Stuff:

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stop Making Excuses & Transform Your Life - Rich Roll - #685 Sep 25, 2023

Show notes

Rich Roll is an ultra-endurance athlete, podcaster and an author.

In today’s modern world, relentless pursuit of goals often leads to being overworked and burnout. Finding the balance between working hard enough to achieve your dreams without destroying your sanity along the way is a difficult balance, but Rich seems to have found a solution.

Expect to learn what it means to have “lower companions” who hold you back, why we all are so addicted to progress, why you might be more dependent than you think, who is the most controversial athlete in all of endurance racing, why Rich takes a “Manuary” sabbatical, how to deal with setbacks, the keys to resilience and much more…⁣

Timestamps:

(00:00) When Did Rich Roll Start Sorting His Life Out? (05:33) What People Get Wrong About Turning Their Life Around (17:38) What Are ‘Lower Companions’ in Recovery? (28:39) The Importance of Having Friends Who Inspire You (33:54) Aligning Your Life For Authenticity (46:55) The Tension Between Striving for Success & Feeling Sufficient (58:53) Rich’s Systems for Success (1:09:25) Rich’s Thoughts on Will Goodge (1:16:31) Does the Endurance Community Like Ross Edgley? (1:21:00) Keeping Up with the Pressure of Consistency (1:46:57) How to Get Out of Your Head (1:53:04) Where to Find Rich

Extra Stuff:

Get my free reading list of 100 books to read before you die: https://chriswillx.com/books

Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic: https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get In Touch:

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

7 Semi-Controversial Rules For Success - Shaan Puri - #683 Sep 21, 2023

Show notes

Shaan Puri is an entrepreneur, former CEO, podcaster and an angel investor.

Shaan is kind of an anti-guru. He's a self-identified lazy person but also managed to exit multiple companies for millions of dollars. So today, we’re delving into 7 of his most semi-controversial insights and discuss why much of the advice from business gurus might just be useless.

Expect to learn why hard work is massively overrated, what the two most understated skills in the word are, how to get out of your head and stop overthinking, why many people learn the wrong lessons from failure, how falling behind might not be the great teacher many think it is, why being a billionaire is a stupid goal, why you shouldn’t follow what most people do and much more...

Sponsors:

Get $150/£150 discount on the Eight Sleep Pod Cover at https://eightsleep.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied)

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Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D and more from AG1 at https://drinkag1.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied)

Timestamps:

(00:00) Hard Work is Massively Over-Rated (11:27) The Value of Enthusiasm (30:10) Why You Need to Develop Your Storytelling Ability (45:56) If You’re in Your Head, You’re Dead (56:43) The Power of the Midwit Meme (1:02:45) Clarifying Your Principles (1:11:29) Do You Really Learn From Your Failures? (1:21:47) Aspiring to Be a Billionaire is a Stupid Goal (1:34:01) The Life-Changing Benefits of Hiring an Assistant (1:40:48) Where to Find Shaan

Extra Stuff:

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do This To Build Muscle, Burn Fat & Get Healthy - Stan Efferding - #682 Sep 18, 2023

Show notes

Stan Efferding is a professional bodybuilder, powerlifter, entrepreneur, author and a nutrition expert known for creating “The Vertical Diet”.

Earning the title of the world’s strongest bodybuilder isn’t an overnight achievement. With 35 years of experience in bodybuilding, powerlifting, and dieting, Stan is one of the most accomplished and knowledgeable coaches on the planet, and today we get to dig into his biggest lessons.

Expect to learn what the main causes of the obesity epidemic are, why diet culture is so tribal, the 3 core principles of the Vertical Diet, whether red meat is actually healthy for you, the relationship between sleep and weight loss, Stan's top 10 exercises for building muscle, why a 10 minute walk after eating will change your life, how to hack meal prep for the rest of time and much more...

Timestamps:

(00:00) Why Are People Getting Fatter? (06:42) The Truth About Seed Oils (13:23) What is the Vertical Diet? (26:34) Can Red Meat Kill You? (30:00) Stan’s Thoughts on Aspartame & Diet Soda (35:39) The Science Behind Intermittent Fasting (47:08) Why Do So Many Diets Fail? (51:48) The Gap Between Government Health Advice & Stan’s Advice (59:19) How Legitimate are Blue Zone Studies? (1:03:17) The Usefulness of Grounding for Health (1:07:13) How Sleep & Weight Loss Are Connected (1:10:41) Why Walking Improves Health Significantly (1:24:30) Should You Skip Breakfast? (1:29:44) Principles for a Good Sleep (1:41:52) Best Training Practices for Health (1:54:36) If Stan Could Only Keep 10 Exercises (2:04:00) What Blood-work Metrics You Should Pay Attention To (2:18:32) Life-Hacks for Successful Execution (2:24:15) Where to Find Stan

Extra Stuff:

Get my free reading list of 100 books to read before you die: https://chriswillx.com/books

Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic: https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get In Touch:

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Man Bringing Extinct Creatures Back To Life - Ben Lamm - #681 Sep 16, 2023

Show notes

Ben Lamm is an entrepreneur, CEO of Colossal and a founder.

What if Jurassic Park's dream of bringing extinct creatures back to life was possible? Well it kind of is. And Ben's company is forging ahead in the new frontier of de-extinction, starting with some of the most legendary animals from history.

Expect to learn why Ben is bringing Wooly Mammoths back to life, how you give birth to an animal that died out thousands of years ago, where Ben gets the genetic material from, how bringing back Mammoths could fix climate change, whether artificial wombs will actually work, if we can make humans as strong as Neanderthals using their DNA, why we should bring back the Dodo bird and much more...

Sponsors:

Get the Whoop 4.0 for free and get your first month for free at https://join.whoop.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied)

Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D and more from AG1 at https://drinkag1.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied)

Get 15% discount on Mud/Wtr at https://mudwtr.com/mw (use code MODERNWISDOM)

Timestamps:

(00:00) Ben’s Wild Plan to Fix Global Warming (02:46) How to Extract Ancient DNA (09:40) Making a Mammoth a Reality from DNA (22:55) What Could Go Wrong? (30:55) What Else Would Ben Like to Bring Back? (37:37) Why Mammoths Went Extinct (42:50) How Mammoths Are Useful to the Planet (52:07) Can Genetically-Created Mammoths Reproduce Naturally? (54:10) What Does this Mean for Human Advancement? (58:52) The Ethics of Genetic Enhancement (1:09:20) Where to Find Ben

Extra Stuff:

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast