Many of us in the West have accepted the belief that productivity and efficiency are the foundations for success and happiness but that's not always true. In this episode, we discuss:
- The problems with worshipping at the altar of productivity
- The importance of constraints for the creative process
- How to balance productivity and creativity
So whether you're curious about productivity, want to cultivate more creativity or want to balance these forces in your life, this episode has you covered.
Nelson Dellis is a 4x US Memory Champion and one of the leading memory experts in the world. In this episode we discuss:
- The techniques Nelson and competitive memory athletes use to memorise everything from names and faces, to decks of cards
- The importance of regular mental training for mental health
- The life lessons Nelson has learned from mountain climbing
So whether you’re a beginner looking to boost your memory or want to memorise huge quantities of information, this episode has you covered.
"What's the point of school?" is a question that’s been asked for hundreds of years but we still don’t seem to have a clear answer. In this episode, we discuss:
- The difference between learning and education and why it matters
- The harmful mindsets that education instils in us and how to combat them
- How the method of teaching has evolved in schools across history
So if you want to learn more about the philosophy behind education, this episode will give you all that and much more.
Will Reynolds is a videographer and writer who has become a regular fixture on the podcast. In this episode we discuss:
- How to go from novice to getting paid for new skills like videography
- The importance of cultivating transferable MetaSkills
- The lessons we can learn from autodidacts like Eminem and Frank Zappa
So whether you’re looking to pick up hard skills and get paid for them or navigate the challenges of being an autodidact, this episode will give you all that and more.
Technology is changing the way we learn but it's not a magic pill that will solve all our educational problems. In this short we discuss:
- The best ways to filter information online to get to the good stuff quicker
- The importance of working diversity into your content consumption
- How to protect your precious attention in the digital economy
So whether you're looking to filter content more efficiently or stay focused in a world full of distractions, this episode will give you all that and more.
Uri Bram is the bestselling author of Thinking Statistically and speaks about using data and statistical thinking effectively in the real world. In this episode we discuss:
- The key statistical principals that everyone should be aware of
- How understanding music theory makes you a better musician
- How to learn complex skills from experts
So whether you’re math-phobic or already consider yourself a stats maverick this conversation will give you a whole range of useful insights that.
Anyone can learn another language but the thing that holds most people back is a series of limiting beliefs. In this episode we discuss:
- Whether there is a "language learning gene" that most great polyglots have
- Whether immersion is important for the language learning process
- Whether children are actually better language learners than adults
So if you're looking to learn a new language this episode will eliminate any doubts you have and give you the tools needed to make real progress.
Gabriele Oettingen is a Professor of Psychology at New York University and the University of Hamburg and a bestselling author. Her research focuses on human motivation and goal setting, exploring the impact of the way we look at the future on our emotions and behaviour.
We’re living in an age where positive thinking is all the rage – from pop music to political speeches thee message is the same: think positive, focus on your dreams and they’ll come true before you know it. The problem with following this advice is not only that it’s empty and hard to action – but that it can actually reduce your chances of achieving your goals.
Gabriele Oettingen has spent twenty years researching the science of human motivation and discovered time and again that conventional positive thinking falls short. By changing the way we think about the future her research has proven that we can become healthier, improve our personal relationships and perform better at work.
In this conversation we discuss a range of topics including:
- How people normally set goals and what they’re doing wrong
- The pitfalls of positive thinking and how to avoid them
- The practical tools you can apply to get better results in your life
So whether you’re looking to make some major changes in your life or just level up that extra one per cent, you’ll learn the practical strategies needed to change your mindset and habits in order to achieve your goals.
If you’re someone with multiple interests, you’ve probably been branded a “Jack of all Trades, Master of None” more times than you can remember. And those of us with many interests sometimes struggle because we can’t be put into a box and labelled as an expert in a specific field.
But during the Renaissance, a polymath was seen as a perfected individual, someone who had mastered intellectual, artistic and physical pursuits. Hence the term “Renaissance Man” that’s still often used to describe people with multiple interests to this day.
In this short episode, I'm joined by my friend Will Reynolds, who is a perfect example of a polymath and MetaLearner because he’s taught himself a whole range of skills including writing, playing the guitar and videography – and importantly he’s been able to make a living from these skills.
We discuss a range of topics including:
- The lessons we can learn from great polymaths like Leonardo Da Vinci, Benjamin Franklin and Johann Goethe
- Where society's obsession with specialisation comes from and how to deal with it
- How to balance exploring different fields with focusing on getting things done
So whether you're looking to balance your multiple interests, make progress on your learning projects or learn from the great polymaths of history, this episode will give you all that and much more.