The Better Show

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**The Better Show**

The Better Show is a weekly podcast for people who want to get better at all aspects of life, made by people who love getting better. Each week we focus on a single topic relevant to day to day life – such as sleep, managing stress, reducing clutter, relationships and healthy eating. We discuss why that topic matters, stories from our personal experience with that topic, tips & tricks our audience can apply themselves and end with a discussion of things we’re going to try out and report back on.

To join the community go to: www.facebook.com/thebettershow

Latest Episodes:

Better Decisions Jul 08, 2019

Show notes

We discuss various frameworks, tips and tricks for how you can make better decisions.

Show Notes

02:15 - How Pres. Obama prioritized his decision making

04:40 - How your mood and environment can affect your decisions

08:00 - Why we make bad decisions

11:00 - Darren cheating at the lottery & chimpanzees caring about fairness :)

16:00 - Darren, Ian & March share stories about big move decisions

23:00 - The power of asking "Is this decision reversable?"

26:00 - March talks about the limits of pros and cons lists and how to change the frame of how you make decisions

31:39 - Are there some decisions you can't optimize for? How do we deal with decisions with more than one right answer?

36:25 - Darren's shares what he learned from Ray Dalio's 'Principles' & Malcom Gladwell's 'Blink'

44:40 - Ian talks about how 'first principles thinking' has helped him make better decisions

52:00 - Why you should use a decision making framework that aligns with your values rather than the 'perfect' decision

54:00 - March explains the 3 possible outcomes framework and roleplays how to use it with Ian

59:35 - Ian explains the clarifying questions framework - such as 'What would it be like if it was easy?'

1:05:00 - March explains the rational decision making framework and what it is and isn't good for

1:11:00 - The power of asking other people about their experience - March teases a future episode on mentorship

1:13:00 - 'What would you say to a friend?' method of decision making

1:15:00 - Experiments the guys are going to try and report back on

Mentions

📖 Book: Ray Dalio's 'Principles'
📖 Book: Malcom Gladwell's 'Blink'
📃 Essay: Aristotle and the Importance of First Principles
📃 Essay: By Asking Himself This 9-Word Question, Tim Ferriss Changed His Life
📃 Essay: The Rational Decision Making Framework

Better Circadian Rhythms & Sleep Experiments Lookback Jul 01, 2019

Show notes

We discuss how circadian rhythms are crucial to unlocking the best sleep of your life and look back on our sleep experiments from our very first episode.

Show Notes

2:50 - March kicks off the discussion with a background on what Circadian rhythms are and an overview of the basic human Circadian rhythm.
6:40 - How Circadian rhythms affect mental alertness and physical performance.
9:10 - How do our Circadian rhythms change to accommodate different lifestyles?
11:35 - Why do our Circadian rhythms matter and why is it helpful for us to be conscious of our sleep-wake cycles.
15:38 - We discuss Dr. Matthew Walker's book Why We Sleep?
16:33 - We look back on some of the sleep experiments we committed to way back in episode 2 on sleep and Ian discusses his experience with the Oura ring.
19:51 - March shares his experience with using topical magnesium and delta wave sounds to improve sleep quality.
22:01 - Ian shares a new product for sleep improvement he discovered called NuCalm.
25:00 - Darren shares his experience adopting a mediation practice and what effects meditation had on the quality of his sleep.
28:11 - The Oak meditation app and the new mantra meditations the recently introduced.
29:10 - We each share our experiences using the Oura ring and explore the Oura web dashboard to learn more about our sleep and readiness cycles.
33:11 - How the Oura ring calculates its "readiness" score and what does the readiness score really tell us.
36:20 - We compare our levels of various sleep quality measurements including the amount of deep sleep and heart rate variability.
38:50 - How Darren's amount of deep sleep has changed and what he attributes his increase in deep sleep to.
42:14 - Heart Rate Variability - what it is and what it tells us.
46:39 - We each share a few tricks to help improve sleep quality and optimize our schedule with our Circadian rhythms.
53:03 - Darren shares his experience with a recent spike in the amount of deep sleep he's getting and hypothesizes about the cause of that improvement.
56:17 - Ian decides that he is going to "go back to the basics" in terms of optimizing his sleep environment.

Mentions

👍 Product: NuCalm
📖 Book: Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker
👍 Product: Oura ring
👍 Product: Oak meditation app

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Make the most of Summer (Redux) Jun 23, 2019

Show notes

We talk about how to make the most of your summer. We reflect on the power of using the seasons to mark time, the best activities to take up during the summer, and how to fully enjoy those long summer days.

Show Notes

1:10— We discuss the difference between when summer starts astronomically versus when it actually starts from a weather (and cultural) perspective.
4:50— Ian shares Conan O’Brian’s perspective on summer weather and the change of seasons.
6:44— Darren talks about his desire to adopt the “snow bird” lifestyle in retirement.
9:22— Ian and March discuss why it’s important to make the most of our summers and how we can use the seasons to mark the passage of time and fully appreciate life.
12:30 —March talks about the difference in seasons in different geographies around the world.
16:12— March recalls two very different summer experiences — one making the summer feel very long and the other that seemed to cause the summer to fly by.
21:35— Ian reflects on his memories of summer starting lemonade stands as a young child and later on working at his family’s ice cream shoppe, Sprinkles.
26:45— Darren talks about summer road trips and accidentally discovering a beautiful waterfall.
30:05— Darren describes the fun beach trips to St. Augustine that marked his childhood summers.
32:35— March suggests checking in on your goals for the year — you’re half way through the year now so how are you doing?
37:50— March and Darren share that they both have vacations planned to visit Portugal and Ian gets motivated to plan a trip to Portugal himself.
39:05— Darren declares The Pimm’s Cup to be the Official Summer Cocktail of The Better Show and reflects on how he was introduced to this drink while on a ridiculously extravagant business trip. See recipe below.
45:35— We discuss the opportunity that summer presents to eat outside with friends— either at home or at a favorite restaurant with outdoor seating.
46:35— We suggest taking full advantage of the huge variety of fresh produce available during the summer by visiting farmer’s markets during the summer.
49:30— March has an “outside of the box” suggestion for spending the summer starting a small side business.
54:05— Darren notes that many cities organize outdoor theater events like Shakespeare in the Park.
55:38— Ian reminds us about the opportunity to enjoy outdoor movies during the summer.
56:45— March shares another “outside of the box” suggestion for fully enjoying the summer by taking time to visit a friend of mentor whom you don’t often see.

Mentions

Cliff Mass' Weather Blog
Shakespeare in the Park
Seattle Art Museum Sculpture Park hosts free outdoor yoga classes
The Cliveden
History of the road trip
The Better Show New Year's Resolutions Decoded episode
Pimm's Cup cocktail recipe:\
- 1 part Pimm's Cup №1\
- 3 parts Bundaberg Ginger Beer\
- 3--4 slices of cucumber\
- Slice of lemon\
- Spring of mint\
- (optional) razor thin slice of fresh ginger

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Better Look Back Vol.8 - Microbiome and Single-use Plastics Jun 10, 2019

Show notes

Show Notes

0:45 - Darren talks about his mom's experience with a C.Diff (Clostridium Difficile) infection, how our earlier research into the microbiome helped him better understand her condition, and what new things he learned from her experience.

5:22 - Feedback from Ian's friends about our single-use plastics episode.

6:15 - Darren shares an experience he had at The Masters golf tournament this year where single-use plastics continually came up as a topic of concern among attendees.

9:01 - A new development from researchers at the UC San Diego that are using discarded plastics in new road construction.

10:43 - March explains the concept of the "circular economy".

14:40 -Ian's idea for achieving environmental sustainability by developing products that get better with use.

15:55 -We ask, "why do modern treadmills still require external power?"

20:18 -Ian shares a new hacks he learned from his mom on how to reduce his use of single-use plastics.

22:48 -March offers a killer pro-tip on managing different sizes and brands of Tupperware.

24:05 -Reusable bags for dry cleaning and a tip about requesting dress shirts in a box.

25:54 - The magic of the LaundryHeap service and its popularity as a gift to new parents.

30:22 -Remembering the Amazon Tote, other new initiatives from Amazon.com to reduce waste, and the field of study on packaging design.

35:50 - The environmental impact of reusable coffee mugs.

40:30 - In an awkward 30 seconds, the team struggles to remember The Better Show hotline and in the process invents a new hashtag #awkwardnessisauthenticity.

42:10 - Ian defends the honor of Millennials worldwide. 😂

Better Bite: Supplements Jun 03, 2019

Show notes

In this week's show we explore the complicated world of supplements. We explore how they are regulated (or not) and what tactics someone could take to choose which type and brand of supplements are likely safest and most effective. As always when we touch on health topics it's important to mention that we are not medical professionals and you should always consult your doctor before starting or stopping any medication, including supplements.

• Why Ian & Darren are more likely to experiment with supplements than March (and coincidentally why does Darren have two heads while Ian's skin is bright green?!).
• The importance of being aware of how supplements are regulated and how you can protect yourself as a consumer.
• Surprisingly effective (and ineffective) popular supplements
• Proven ways to think and exercise harder :)
• And much more…


• 2:25 - Why does Darren have two heads while Ian's skin is bright green?!
• 2:50 - What are supplements and how are they regulated?
• 5:20 - How do you know what's in the bottle matches what's on the label?
• 8:10 - Helpful websites that review supplements for quality
• 13:10 - Tactics for finding good brands for supplements
• 14:05 - The guys speculate on who would be the Bizzaro superman equivalent of Dr. Rhonda Patrick
• 14:35 - The difficulty with health claims on supplements
• 21:30 - The calculated risk of whether to take a particular supplement
• 24:00 - All about vitamins
• 32:00 - The guys debate the value, safety and effectiveness of vitamin supplements
• 35:00 - What supplements have the strongest evidence of being useful?
• 49:00 - Some useful supplements for performance including creatine 
• 56.30 - March is happy to let Ian & Darren experiment with more exotic supplements :)

Better Packing May 27, 2019

Show notes

This week we have a better bite episode on packing. We have efficiently rolled, folded and bundled a variety of tips and hacks to help you choose the perfect luggage, plan what to bring, maximize space and avoid breakages and messes. Don't leave home without listening to this episode and most importantly make sure you are well stocked with Glad Press 'n Seal!

Highlights
- What are the characteristics of the perfect luggage?
- How your packing strategy should change depending on the destination & activities you plan
- We have the debate on folding vs. rolling vs. bundling. Which method will win?!
- The miracle material that is Glad Press 'n Seal!
- March's patented wrinkle fix formula
- and lots more 🤣

Show notes
- 1.35—Darren shares his secret talent of cramming 5lbs of things into a 2lb bag
- 2:18— March shares 4 pillars for better packing
- 2:47—How to choose the right luggage
- 6:20—Darren shares his favorite luggage brand
- 7:30—How Ian finds his luggage on the carousel
- 8:00—How Darren reduces damage to his bags
- 8:50—Darren shares his laminated packing checklist - travel nerd alert!
- 10:35—How do different type of trips affect what you pack?
- 12:30—The big debate! Fold, roll or bundle???
- 14:20—Should you use vacuum bags?
- 17:00—The miracle that is Glad Press n Seal
- 20:00—Why your sunglasses case should be full of delicate items
- 21:45—March's patented wrinkle fix formula

Mentions
- 🎒 Darren's favorite luggage: https://www.briggs-riley.com/
- 🧳 I ❤️ Baggage Handlers luggage tags
- ⚖️ Luggage scale
- 📺 Bundle packing for wrinkle free clothes
- 🙌 Reusable vacuum storage bags
- 🙌 Glad Press'n Seal
- 🙌 10 Uses for Glad Press 'N Seal Plastic Wrap

Congratulations, Ian & Carine May 25, 2019

Show notes

Darren & March record a special dedication to Ian & Carine on their wedding day.

Better Emotional Intelligence: Part 2 May 13, 2019

Show notes

In part two of our series on Better Emotional Intelligence, we cover the final two components of EQ, empathy and managing emotions in others. We share tips & tricks, do a live role playing exercise, and finish with what experiments we're going to try and report back on for improving our own EQ.

Show Notes

2:20— How empathy relates to emotional intelligence and the role of curiosity in developing empathy.
5:55— The difference between extreme empathy and practical empathy.
9:40— What is active listening and how to use active listening to build your empathy for others.
14:20— We discuss a tactic to teach empathy to children by giving them responsibility for caring for a plant.
18:52— Ian challenges March to model both the good and bad versions of active listening.
24:57— Why going into “problem solving mode” when engaging with your significant other is not an empathetic response.
30:29— March offers a tip for challenging oneself as a way to build empathy for others.
32:22— We explore what it means to manage emotions in others and why that isn’t always a manipulative behavior.
34:24— Tactics for learning how to manage others’ emotions including noticing others’ behavior and being mindful of the way you phrase questions.
39:02— Ian and Darren share their experiences from a time when they each had to use emotional management tactics to calm down someone who was extremely upset.
42:55— How Scott Pelly from 60 minutes uses the phrase “I wonder” to open up his interview candidates.
46:40— What is “non-violent communication” and where can it be useful.
51:12— March shares a tip from the Gottman Institute called a “love map” to understand more about what they care about.
52:25— Ian decides to work on avoiding going into “problem solving mode” in his conversations with his fiancee.
53:46— As part of helping test a training course for non-violent communication, Darren is going through the exercise of caring for a plant to increase empathetic awareness.

Mentions

📰 Article: How to Become an Effective CEO: Chief Emotions Officer (Tim Ferriss Blog)
📰 Article: Daniel Goleman (who popularized the idea of EQ) piece on emotional intelligence
📺 Documentary: Won't You Be My Neighbor
💻 Website: Center for Non-violent Communication
📰 Article: Caring for Living Things Helps Kids Build Empathy
📖 Book: Books from The Gottman Institute
📖 Book: Daring Greatly by Brene Brown

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Better Emotional Intelligence: Part 1 Apr 29, 2019

Show notes

In part one of our series on Better Emotional Intelligence, we explore the definition of EQ, some of the core components, and how it relates to our personal lives and experiences.

Show Notes

1:01— What is meant by the term “E.Q.” or one’s emotional intelligence quotient?
2:51— Why is it important to develop a strong emotional intelligence and how can it help you in your personal and professional life.
12:05— The evolutionary root of our emotions and the different roles emotional responses played in early human society versus modern day society.
16:48— Research about the benefits of developing a strong emotional intelligence, including lower instance of violent behavior and better academic performance.
17:40— What is SEL and why schools worldwide are beginning to implement SEL lessons into their regular curricula.
19:41— March shares an early reference to “emotional intelligence” in a psychology paper written in 1969.
24:24— Ian gives a big shout out and a recommendation for the documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor”, the story behind Fred Rogers and the origin of the TV show Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.
26:44— How many of the characters on Sesame Street were models of different emotions.
29:24— March shares his experience in getting introduced to the idea of emotional intelligence and shares a book recommendation, The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris.
29:35— What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and how does it work.
36:11— Ian shares how empathy is a powerful skill for product managers.
40:32— Tips for developing more self-awareness and the color wheel of emotions and feelings.
44:08— The importance of giving yourself time to reflect on how you are feeling and the effectiveness of incorporating this into your morning routine.
45:01— Tactics to identify an emotion in the moment and creating space for yourself before instinctively acting upon it.
54:32— The effectiveness of journaling in developing awareness of oneself.
55:09— March shares an inspiring quote from Victor Frankl’s book, “Man’s Search for Meaning.”
58:44— Using exercise to diffuse powerful emotions.
1:00:24— The affect of sleep on our emotions and our ability to regulate them.
1:04:15— Using humor to disarm intense emotions.

Mentions

📖 Book: Man's Search for Meaning by Victor Frankl
📖 Book: The Happiness Trap by Russ Harris
📱 App: Mood Notes
📰 Blog post: How to Become an Effective CEO: Chief Emotions Officer (Tim Ferriss Blog)
📰 Article: Daniel Goleman (who popularized the idea of EQ) piece on emotional intelligence
📺 Documentary: Won't You Be My Neighbor
📖 Research: Atlas of Emotions

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Better Budgeting: Part 3 Apr 22, 2019

Show notes

We conclude our series on better budgeting with Part 3, covering tactical tips, tricks and tools you can use to put your new budget into action today.

Show Notes

2:50— How to begin tracking your cash flow using both analog and digital methods.
6:20— How specific should one get when tracking spending.
7:55— Darren’s experience with Quicken and how tracking too many categories created too much overhead for him.
10:25— Ian’s preferred method of budgeting using pen and paper.
13:55— We explore some methods for making saving automatic.
15:05— Ian compares managing personal cashflow to managing email.
18:55— We discuss the pros and cons of debit and credit cards.
24:06— We discuss on of the pioneer services for online budgeting, Mint.
29:01— Ian shares his experience with Betterment.
30:20— Paying attention to monthly subscriptions and the services that help you monitor recurring expenses.
37:37— Darren’s experience with Wealthfront.
39:15— March introduces a service named “You Need A Budget” and “Mvelopes”.
41:35— Ian shares his experience with the virtual bank, Simple.
46:22— Tips for improving the way you spend your money to maximize happiness.
53:40— Tailoring a successful mindset for budgeting.
55:08— March, Ian, and Darren share a list of things that they are going to try for getting better at budgeting and managing cashflow.