Timothy Ferriss's Blog, page 49

John Paul DeJoria — From Homelessness to Building Paul Mitchell and Patrón Tequila (#441)

“Don’t limit yourself in life by your age, or what you think you’re capable of doing. You’re always as old as your mind leads you to believe.” — John Paul DeJoria

John Paul DeJoria is an American entrepreneur and philanthropist who has launched multiple global enterprises and is renowned as one of the “” by Forbes.

John Paul DeJoria’s rags-to-riches biography is incredible and truly exemplifies the American dream. Once homeless, he has struggled against the odds to craft a unique life and many unique businesses.

In 1980, John Paul and hair stylist Paul Mitchell converted a partially borrowed $700 into 

John Paul Mitchell Systems, which is today the largest privately held salon hair care line. In 1989, he co-founded Patrón, the first ultra-premium tequila, and now the world’s number-one ultra-premium tequila, which he sold to Bacardi in 2018. John Paul went on to co-found John Paul Pet, ROKiT, and many other enterprises. 

He has signed The Giving Pledge, along with others like Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, as a formal promise to continue giving back, and he has also established JP’s Peace, Love & Happiness Foundation as a hub for his charitable investments, which span the core values of his companies: sustainability, social responsibility, and animal-friendliness.

This episode was recorded in March of 2020. Due to technical issues, we moved from Skype to phone partway through the interview.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#441: John Paul DeJoria — From Homelessness to Building Paul Mitchell and Patrón Tequila
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/81670a87-aa6a-4ad2-bb18-f7f0ec09e674.mp3Download

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What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to hear an episode featuring mutual friend Robert Rodriguez? Check out this conversation in which we discuss journaling, keeping morale high, embracing the creative process, filmmaker tips, and much more.

John Paul DeJoria — From Homelessness to Building Paul Mitchell and Patrón Tequila (#441)https://rss.art19.com/episodes/a1a49bef-971a-4c1c-b9af-216fd217e7c7.mp3Download

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with John Paul DeJoria:

Twitter

John Paul Mitchell Systems
Welcome to Patrón Tequila | Patrón Tequila
ROK Stars
Navy SEAL BUD/s Training Push-Ups | USNavySEALSWCC
Vegetarian Diet: How to Get the Best Nutrition | The Mayo Clinic
Oats | The Nutrition Source, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Apples | The Nutrition Source, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Daily Body Restore
Caymus Vineyards
Château Lafite Rothschild
Château Margaux
John Paul DeJoria, From Homeless To Billionaire | Forbes
1951 Cadillac for Sale | ClassicCars.com
The Iranian Hostage Crisis | Office of the Historian
The 1980s American Economy | ThoughtCo
Good Fortune | Prime Video
Time Inc. | Wikipedia
Is Redken Cruelty-Free in 2020? | Cruelty-Free Collections
Syntex | Wikipedia
Los Angeles Examiner | Wikipedia
Collier’s Encyclopedia | Wikipedia
Institute of Trichology
John Paul DeJoria: How to Get Your Foot in the Door and Nail the Sale | Big Think Edge
Chutzpah | My Jewish Learning
Baja Cantina | Marina Del Rey
Spago Hollywood | Seeing Stars
Jim Beam
Seagram | Wikipedia
Helping New Orleans | SBP USA
Bacardi Buys Patrón Tequila in $5.1 Billion Deal | The Drinks Business
The Patron Way: From Fantasy to Fortune – Lessons on Taking Any Business From Idea to Iconic Brand: From Fantasy to Fortune — Lessons on Taking Any Business From Idea to Iconic Brand by Ilana Edelstein
How Starbucks CEO Transformed a Small Coffee Bean Store Into a Massively Successful Worldwide Brand | Entrepreneur
The Way I Work: John Paul DeJoria, John Paul Mitchell Systems | Inc.com
Peace*Love*Happiness Ride
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) | CDC
How to Say “No” Gracefully and Uncommit | The Tim Ferriss Show #328
The Golden Rule | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
ROKiT Telecommunications
NASA
Sea Shepherd
Whale Wars | Animal Planet
Sea Shepherd Launches Anti-Poaching Vessel M/V John Paul DeJoria | Sea Shepherd
Grow Appalachia
Community First! Village | Mobile Loaves & Fishes
Waterkeeper Alliance

SHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added very soon. 

In excellent shape at 76, what does fitness look like for John Paul? Does he have a consistent exercise regimen, or does he just pull off Spider-Man moves at parties with Smokey Robinson?
What kind of diet does John Paul observe, and what does he consider to be the breakfast of champions?
Wine recommendations.
On growing up “rich” and happy with only 27 cents to split with his loving mother and brother, and what this taught him about the true meaning of success.
John Paul talks about the circumstances that led to him being homeless not once, but twice, and how he managed to break the cycle.
After a colorful assortment of odd jobs — from janitor to door-to-door salesman — what led to John Paul’s teaming up with Paul Mitchell to formulate the John Paul Mitchell Systems?
Where did John Paul develop his salesmanship superpowers, and what’s the big secret he’s willing to share with us?
What did the pitch look like when John Paul and Paul Mitchell had to keep their business idea going even after an initial promised investment of big money fell through and they pooled together a grand total of $700 between them? How did they convince the links in their supply chain and their first distributor that they were worth trusting with favorable terms as an unknown, unproven line?
Did John Paul inherit his chutzpah genetically, or was it handed down by a wise elder? How might he pass it along to his own offspring?
Aside from sheer persistence in the face of rejection, what insights or techniques does John Paul credit with making him a better salesman than his competition?
John Paul shares the origin story of the Patrón tequila brand and how his salesmanship savvy helped jump-start its adoption in the US — even when heavy hitters in the industry kept telling him and his partners that it would never really catch on. (They were wrong, and Bacardi bought the brand in 2018 for just over $5 billion.)
How was the work of launching and maintaining Patrón divided among the partners, and what does John Paul consider to be some of the best lessons a Harvard Business School class might learn from decisions that were made?
What was John Paul and his partners’ secret to establishing a higher-end, more expensive tequila brand in a market saturated with a much cheaper competition?
As recently as 2013, John Paul’s workflow was devoid of computers and email. What exactly did that look like, and does it still hold true today?
In the course of a regular day, how does John Paul determine what’s important and deserving of attention versus what can safely be ignored — and how does doing things the old-fashioned way (e.g., talking on the phone) beat new-fangled, email-focused conversations?
Why John Paul finds it especially important to recognize first responders — especially during these difficult times.
On the importance of taking personal annual (or even more frequent) retreats, and how John Paul puts them to good use on his quest to live to 125.
What approach does John Paul take to — as kindly as possible — cut ties with people he no longer wants in his life?
During his retreats, has John Paul noticed any patterns that have helped him make better decisions moving forward?
How has John Paul gotten better at saying no?
Are there any new beliefs or behaviors that have had a positive impact on John Paul’s life?
Are there any quotations or maxims by which John Paul lives his life?
Books most gifted and recommended.
Memorable failures that set John Paul up for later success.
How does John Paul choose the for-profit and philanthropic projects to which he dedicates his energy? What does the 80 percent of his time spent on non-business projects look like?
What implements from his own toolkit have helped John Paul through times of doubt or difficulty?
What John Paul would put on his billboard, and parting thoughts.

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Robert Rodriguez
Eloise DeJoria
Smokey Robinson
John Lee Hooker
Alexis DeJoria
Matthew McConaughey
Frances Glandney
Spider-Man
Jerzy Gregorek
John Paul with His Mother and Brother
Lee Meyers
Paul Mitchell
John Capra
Martin Crowley
Francisco Alcaraz
Wolfgang Puck
Ed Brown
Ilana Edelstein
Gary Spellman
Paul Watson
Alan Graham
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

Here’s a Very Unusual $10MM Bet…

(Image credit: LadyDragonflyCC – >;<, Some rights reserved)

“I felt like I went through 15 years of psychological therapy in one night.” 
— Actual patient featured in Trip of Compassion

“The future is already here — it’s just not very evenly distributed.”
— William Gibson

This post is about my largest bet of 2020.

It relates to pain and promise. I’ll start with the pain, but please read through to get to the promise, as the payoff is worth it.

Every year, ~8,000,000 people in the U.S., and tens of millions worldwide, suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Every day, an average of ~22 U.S. veterans commit suicide. Millions more suffer from emotional and physical abuse but never get diagnosed. I would put myself in the latter category.

Based on the events of 2020 thus far, many in public health are projecting sharp increases in both PTSD and PTSD-related suicides.

So, what to do? Historically, PTSD has been notoriously difficult to treat and cure. Conventional treatments fail all the time, despite the fact that treating trauma has never been more relevant or more important.

Now, the good news: it appears that one odd candidate—MDMA-assisted psychotherapy—holds incredible promise. As a patient succinctly put it in Trip of Compassion, a documentary about this treatment: “I felt like I went through 15 years of psychological therapy in one night.”

But that’s an anecdote. Let’s look at some hard data instead: In MAPS’ completed Phase 2 trials with 107 participants, 56% no longer qualified for PTSD after treatment with MDMA-assisted psychotherapy, measured two months following treatment. At the 12-month follow-up, 68% no longer had PTSD. Most subjects received just 2–3 sessions of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy. All participants had chronic, treatment-resistant PTSD and had suffered from PTSD for an average of 17.8 years. On August 16, 2017, the FDA granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation to MDMA for the treatment of PTSD.

2–3 sessions and 68% are asymptomatic 12 months later… after an average of 17.8 years of suffering. This is addressing the root causes of PTSD and not simply masking symptoms, as many maintenance drugs do. It’s actual processing instead of numbing.

Below is a pie chart of results from another cohort of 25 subjects. “CAPS-5” is an assessment of PTSD severity:

It’s truly amazing.

Furthermore, in follow-ups to these studies across hundreds of people, there is no evidence that anyone has abused or become addicted to MDMA following their sessions. Of course, MDMA-assisted psychotherapy isn’t a panacea, and there are risks, but the risks are easily managed and mitigated. The data are incredibly compelling and reflect this.

For all of these reasons and more, I’ve helped organize a $10 million challenge grant for the MAPS Capstone Challenge. I’m contributing $1 million.

Why? Because there is a clear path for making MDMA a legal medicine for millions of people who are suffering.

The MAPS Capstone Challenge will help provide the funds—$30 million total—needed to complete the studies required for FDA approval of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD. 

And just as important: If we succeed on this path, MDMA sets precedent and open the door for dozens of other therapeutic compounds, including psilocybin. This is why I’m putting my muscle behind this lead domino. It matters for much more than MDMA.

MAPS has already raised $10 million. If another $10 million is raised by September 10th, this will unlock a $10 million challenge grant that I’ve helped put together, alongside the Psychedelic Science Funders Collaborative (PSFC), getting us to the finish line. Half of the grant comes from the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation (@cohengive), and the rest is split equally between me; James Bailey from Bail Capital; Peter Rahal, the founder of RxBar (@peterrahal); Blake Mycoskie, the founder of TOMS (@blakemycoskie); and one anonymous donor I hope to say more about soon. 

This challenge grant is all or nothing. If MAPS fails to raise $10 million by September 10th, they do not receive the $10 million challenge grant. There is no partial credit, and there is real urgency. This $10 million challenge grant was just announced in my interview with Rick Doblin, the founder of MAPS. Please give it a listen, as we cover many other topics and stories. 

Every dollar matters, so if the spirit moves you, please consider giving what you can by clicking here. You can also donate cryptocurrencies.

If you can contribute $100,000 or more over two years, please get in touch with Rick and his team by emailing capstone@maps.org. 

MAPS is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit and all donations are tax-deductible.

***

Thank you so much for reading this far.

And remember: this healing is possible now. The tools have been developed. To quote William Gibson, “The future is already here — it’s just not very evenly distributed.”

Let’s help make this treatment more evenly distributed.

Much love to you and yours,

Tim

P.S. I encourage you to watch the short but powerful video below from The Economist. It shows one before-and-after transformation, including actual session footage.

Recommended resources:
Rick Doblin — The Psychedelic Domino That Tips All Others (#440) (The Tim Ferriss Show)
The World’s Largest Psychedelic Research Center (#385) (The Tim Ferriss Show)
Michael Pollan — Exploring the Frontiers of Psychedelics (#365) (The Tim Ferriss Show)
How MDMA is being used to treat PTSD (The Economist)
Business gets ready to trip: How psychedelic drugs may revolutionize mental health care (Fortune)
Johns Hopkins Opens New Center for Psychedelic Research (New York Times)
Tim Ferriss, the Man Who Put His Money Behind Psychedelic Medicine (New York Times)
“Trip of Compassion” — The Most Compelling Movie I’ve Seen In The Last Year

Rick Doblin — The Psychedelic Domino That Tips All Others (#440)

Photo courtesy of MAPS

Rick Doblin, PhD, (@rickdoblin) is the founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). He received his doctorate in public policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, where he wrote his dissertation on the regulation of the medical uses of psychedelics and marijuana and his master’s thesis on a survey of oncologists about smoked marijuana vs. the oral THC pill in nausea control for cancer patients. Rick was also one of the early students under the legendary Dr. Stanislav Grof.

Please listen to this entire episode, as there is a $10M surprise at the end.

If you are interested in learning more about MAPS’s critical work and Phase 3 studies to make MDMA-assisted psychotherapy an approved treatment for PTSD, please visit maps.org/capstone

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#440: Rick Doblin — The Psychedelic Domino That Tips All Others
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/1ee7fffc-f5db-4bce-ab41-305bb7f1f792.mp3Download

This podcast episode is brought to you by Helix Sleep! Helix was selected as the #1 best overall mattress pick of 2020 by GQ magazine, Wired, Apartment Therapy, and many others. With Helix, there’s a specific mattress for each and everybody’s unique taste. Just take their quiz—only two minutes to complete—that matches your body type and sleep preferences to the perfect mattress for you. They have a 10-year warranty, and you get to try it out for a hundred nights, risk free. They’ll even pick it up from you if you don’t love it. And now, to my dear listeners, Helix is offering up to 200 dollars off all mattress orders plus two free pillows at HelixSleep.com/TIM.

This episode is also brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs. Whether you are looking to hire now for a critical role or thinking about needs that you may have in the future, LinkedIn Jobs can help. LinkedIn is an active community with more than 675 million members worldwide. LinkedIn screens candidates for the hard and soft skills you’re looking for and puts your job in front of candidates looking for job opportunities that match what you have to offer.

With LinkedIn, you can hire the right person quickly when you need them. And if you need to hire for healthcare or essential services, you can post your jobs for free. When it’s time to find and hire that right person, LinkedIn is here to help. Just visit LinkedIn.com/Tim to get started! Terms and conditions apply.

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to learn more about psychedelic therapy from another pioneer in this field? — Listen to my conversation with the legendary Stan Grof, in which we discuss the takeaways from guiding 4,500+ LSD sessions, the place and role of wounded healers, limitations and uses of traditional psychoanalysis and talk therapy, the similarities found between holotropic breathwork and MDMA, what humanity most needs to overcome, and much more.

You might also enjoy The Way of the Psychonaut: Stan Grof’s Journey of Consciousness, a documentary honoring Stan Grof. His new training program, Grof Legacy Training, is based on Stan’s research into psychedelic therapy, holotropic breathwork, transpersonal psychology, and spiritual emergencies.

#347: Stan Grof, Lessons from ~4,500 LSD Sessions and Beyondhttps://rss.art19.com/episodes/fb3ec3c9-138c-4d97-a371-062fa64b28b7.mp3Download

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Rick Doblin:

Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Connect with MAPS:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

MAPS Capstone Challenge — Help Make MDMA a Medicine
Earth Metabolic Design Laboratories | Enacademic
MDMA | Erowid Vault
US Will Ban ‘Ecstasy,’ a Hallucinogenic Drug | The New York Times
Drug Scheduling | DEA
MDMA Scientific Literature, Government Hearings, and Archive | MAPS
MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy | MAPS
Truth about Ecstacy’s Unlikely Trip from Lab to Dance Floor | The Guardian
Methamphetamine | Erowid Vault
Mescaline | Erowid Vault
Ego-Dissolution and Psychedelics: Validation of the Ego-Dissolution Inventory (EDI) | Human Neuroscience
Treatment-Resistant PTSD | Psychiatric Times
The Secret Chief by Myron J. Stolaroff | MAPS
The Secret Chief Revealed by Myron J. Stolaroff
How the Starck Club Changed Dallas | D Magazine
The Two Faces of Oxytocin | American Psychological Association
PiHKAL (Phenethylamines I Have Known and Loved): A Chemical Love Story by Alexander Shulgin and Ann Shulgin
TiHKAL (Tryptamines I Have Known and Loved): A Continuation by Alexander Shulgin and Ann Shulgin
DMT | Erowid Vault
Why is Switzerland a Neutral Country? | History
Ayahuasca | Erowid Vault
LSD | Erowid Vault
Psychedelic Science Funders Collaborative (PSFC)
How MDMA Is Being Used to Treat PTSD | The Economist
How the War on Drugs Has Harmed Veterans with PTSD | Time
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-Assisted Psychotherapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Military Veterans, Firefighters, and Police Officers: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Dose-Response, Phase 2 Clinical Trial | The Lancet Psychiatry
Psilocybin & Psilocin | Erowid Vault
“Trip of Compassion” — The Most Compelling Movie I’ve Seen In The Last Year | tim.blog
Mood Drug MDMA Makes Antisocial Octopuses Almost Cuddly | Morning Edition, NPR
Oxytocin-Dependent Reopening of a Social Reward Learning Critical Period with MDMA | Nature
Psychedelic Therapy Offers Hope For Smoking Cessation | NPR
What is Internal Family Systems? | IFS Institute
Parts Psychology: A Trauma-Based Treatment Approach | SocialWork.Career
What Is Hypermnesia? | Psychology Dictionary
MDA | Erowid Vault
US Held Responsible for Death in Secret Army Drug Testing | AP News
Esalen Institute | Big Sur, CA
Spiritual Emergence Network
New College of Florida | Sarasota, FL
The Bastiaans Method of Drug-Assisted Therapy | MAPS
Neurotoxic Effect of MDMA on Brain Serotonin Neurons: Evidence From Neurochemical and Radioligand Binding Studies | Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
Adult Neurogenesis | Scholarpedia
MDMA (At a Rave) Helps Heal Trauma from Sexual Assault | MAPS
Introduction to the Holocaust | The Holocaust Encyclopedia
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) | CDC
Psychological Trauma Is the Next Crisis for Coronavirus Health Workers | Scientific American
RxBar
Bail Capital | Crunchbase
TOMS
Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation
Center for Psychedelic & Consciousness Research | Johns Hopkins
Centre for Psychedelic Research | Imperial College London
Automattic
The Random Show Threesome — Tim Ferriss, Kevin Rose, and Matt Mullenweg (#209) | The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss
Medline | NIH
MAPS Public Benefit Corporation
Update on Tonmya for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder | Tonix Pharmaceuticals
Disabled American Veterans Charity (DAV)
The Coronavirus Pandemic Is Pushing America Into a Mental Health Crisis | The Washington Post
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) | NIH
Burroughs Wellcome Fund
SSRI | Erowid Vault

SHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added soon. 

What is MAPS, and how did MAPS come to be?
What is MDMA — where did it come from, and how did it find its way into the therapeutic context?
What was Sasha Shulgin’s role in the history of psychedelics, and how did he operate a lab to study them openly without suffering legal consequences?
Who is Jon Lubecky, and why did he come into Rick’s life?
Why does Rick believe psychedelic therapy not only allows sufferers of PTSD to tolerably revisit and come to terms with their traumatic experiences, but also enjoy the benefits for months or even years after the chemical components of this therapy have faded?
What are the biggest differences between MDMA and the less well-known MDA?
Rick talks about his first psychedelic therapy sessions with a PTSD patient back in 1984, their short- and long-term effects, and how that patient went on to become an important asset to the MAPS community.
For Rick and his colleagues, what has made the rewards of psychedelic therapy worth enduring its risks — especially in the not-so-distant past when it was legally dangerous and considered career suicide for its practitioners?
The suicide note that reached Rick when help came too late, and what it emphasized about the importance of his life’s work.
What the present and future look like for MDMA reclassification and its therapeutic use, and why matching grants make now the ideal time for prospective contributors to get the most mileage from their money.
Up until recently, anyone associated with psychedelic therapies could expect to suffer a blow to their reputation, but the times are changing, and my own experience has proven quite the opposite. How much would you pay for 100 percent reputational upside in making MDMA-assisted therapies available to the thousands in need?
Parting thoughts.

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Alise Agar
Debby Harlow
Buckminster Fuller
Roland Griffiths
Alexander “Sasha” Shulgin
Ann Shulgin
Leo Zeff
Jon Lubecky
Rand Paul
Mike Pence
Stephen Miller
Gul Dolen
Matt Johnson
Michael Mithoefer
Ann Mithoefer
Harold Blauer
Stan Grof
Christina Grof
Marcela Ot’alora
Jan Bastiaans
Richard M. Nixon
Joe Green
Peter Rahal
James Bailey
Blake Mycoskie
Steven Cohen
Alexandra Cohen
Graham Boyd
Matt Mullenweg
Genevieve Jurvetson
Steve Jurvetson
Austin Harris
Jeff Walker
Michael Pollan
Jared Diamond
Rebekah Mercer
Elizabeth Koch
The Rockefellers
George Soros

Rick Doblin — Psychedelic Breakthroughs, $10M Bets, PTSD Promise, MDMA, MDA, and More (#440)

Photo courtesy of MAPS

Rick Doblin, PhD, (@rickdoblin) is the founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). He received his doctorate in public policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, where he wrote his dissertation on the regulation of the medical uses of psychedelics and marijuana and his master’s thesis on a survey of oncologists about smoked marijuana vs. the oral THC pill in nausea control for cancer patients. Rick was also one of the early students under the legendary Dr. Stanislav Grof.

Please listen to this entire episode, as there is a $10M surprise at the end.

If you are interested in learning more about MAPS’s critical work and Phase 3 studies to make MDMA-assisted psychotherapy an approved treatment for PTSD, please visit maps.org/capstone

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#440: Rick Doblin — Psychedelic Breakthroughs, $10M Bets, PTSD Promise, MDMA, MDA, and More
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/1ee7fffc-f5db-4bce-ab41-305bb7f1f792.mp3Download

This podcast episode is brought to you by Helix Sleep! Helix was selected as the #1 best overall mattress pick of 2020 by GQ magazine, Wired, Apartment Therapy, and many others. With Helix, there’s a specific mattress for each and everybody’s unique taste. Just take their quiz—only two minutes to complete—that matches your body type and sleep preferences to the perfect mattress for you. They have a 10-year warranty, and you get to try it out for a hundred nights, risk free. They’ll even pick it up from you if you don’t love it. And now, to my dear listeners, Helix is offering up to 200 dollars off all mattress orders plus two free pillows at HelixSleep.com/TIM.

This episode is also brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs. Whether you are looking to hire now for a critical role or thinking about needs that you may have in the future, LinkedIn Jobs can help. LinkedIn is an active community with more than 675 million members worldwide. LinkedIn screens candidates for the hard and soft skills you’re looking for and puts your job in front of candidates looking for job opportunities that match what you have to offer.

With LinkedIn, you can hire the right person quickly when you need them. And if you need to hire for healthcare or essential services, you can post your jobs for free. When it’s time to find and hire that right person, LinkedIn is here to help. Just visit LinkedIn.com/Tim to get started! Terms and conditions apply.

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to learn more about psychedelic therapy from another pioneer in this field? — Listen to my conversation with the legendary Stan Grof, in which we discuss the takeaways from guiding 4,500+ LSD sessions, the place and role of wounded healers, limitations and uses of traditional psychoanalysis and talk therapy, the similarities found between holotropic breathwork and MDMA, what humanity most needs to overcome, and much more.

You might also enjoy The Way of the Psychonaut: Stan Grof’s Journey of Consciousness, a documentary honoring Stan Grof. His new training program, Grof Legacy Training, is based on Stan’s research into psychedelic therapy, holotropic breathwork, transpersonal psychology, and spiritual emergencies.

#347: Stan Grof, Lessons from ~4,500 LSD Sessions and Beyondhttps://rss.art19.com/episodes/fb3ec3c9-138c-4d97-a371-062fa64b28b7.mp3Download

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Rick Doblin:

Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Connect with MAPS:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

MAPS Capstone Challenge — Help Make MDMA a Medicine
Earth Metabolic Design Laboratories | Enacademic
MDMA | Erowid Vault
US Will Ban ‘Ecstasy,’ a Hallucinogenic Drug | The New York Times
Drug Scheduling | DEA
MDMA Scientific Literature, Government Hearings, and Archive | MAPS
MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy | MAPS
Truth about Ecstacy’s Unlikely Trip from Lab to Dance Floor | The Guardian
Methamphetamine | Erowid Vault
Mescaline | Erowid Vault
Ego-Dissolution and Psychedelics: Validation of the Ego-Dissolution Inventory (EDI) | Human Neuroscience
Treatment-Resistant PTSD | Psychiatric Times
The Secret Chief by Myron J. Stolaroff | MAPS
The Secret Chief Revealed by Myron J. Stolaroff
How the Starck Club Changed Dallas | D Magazine
The Two Faces of Oxytocin | American Psychological Association
PiHKAL (Phenethylamines I Have Known and Loved): A Chemical Love Story by Alexander Shulgin and Ann Shulgin
TiHKAL (Tryptamines I Have Known and Loved): A Continuation by Alexander Shulgin and Ann Shulgin
DMT | Erowid Vault
Why is Switzerland a Neutral Country? | History
Ayahuasca | Erowid Vault
LSD | Erowid Vault
Psychedelic Science Funders Collaborative (PSFC)
How MDMA Is Being Used to Treat PTSD | The Economist
How the War on Drugs Has Harmed Veterans with PTSD | Time
3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-Assisted Psychotherapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Military Veterans, Firefighters, and Police Officers: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Dose-Response, Phase 2 Clinical Trial | The Lancet Psychiatry
Psilocybin & Psilocin | Erowid Vault
“Trip of Compassion” — The Most Compelling Movie I’ve Seen In The Last Year | tim.blog
Mood Drug MDMA Makes Antisocial Octopuses Almost Cuddly | Morning Edition, NPR
Oxytocin-Dependent Reopening of a Social Reward Learning Critical Period with MDMA | Nature
Psychedelic Therapy Offers Hope For Smoking Cessation | NPR
What is Internal Family Systems? | IFS Institute
Parts Psychology: A Trauma-Based Treatment Approach | SocialWork.Career
What Is Hypermnesia? | Psychology Dictionary
MDA | Erowid Vault
US Held Responsible for Death in Secret Army Drug Testing | AP News
Esalen Institute | Big Sur, CA
Spiritual Emergence Network
New College of Florida | Sarasota, FL
The Bastiaans Method of Drug-Assisted Therapy | MAPS
Neurotoxic Effect of MDMA on Brain Serotonin Neurons: Evidence From Neurochemical and Radioligand Binding Studies | Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
Adult Neurogenesis | Scholarpedia
MDMA (At a Rave) Helps Heal Trauma from Sexual Assault | MAPS
Introduction to the Holocaust | The Holocaust Encyclopedia
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) | CDC
Psychological Trauma Is the Next Crisis for Coronavirus Health Workers | Scientific American
RxBar
Bail Capital | Crunchbase
TOMS
Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation
Center for Psychedelic & Consciousness Research | Johns Hopkins
Centre for Psychedelic Research | Imperial College London
Automattic
The Random Show Threesome — Tim Ferriss, Kevin Rose, and Matt Mullenweg (#209) | The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss
Medline | NIH
MAPS Public Benefit Corporation
Update on Tonmya for the Treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder | Tonix Pharmaceuticals
Disabled American Veterans Charity (DAV)
The Coronavirus Pandemic Is Pushing America Into a Mental Health Crisis | The Washington Post
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) | NIH
Burroughs Wellcome Fund
SSRI | Erowid Vault

SHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added soon. 

What is MAPS, and how did MAPS come to be?
What is MDMA — where did it come from, and how did it find its way into the therapeutic context?
What was Sasha Shulgin’s role in the history of psychedelics, and how did he operate a lab to study them openly without suffering legal consequences?
Who is Jon Lubecky, and why did he come into Rick’s life?
Why does Rick believe psychedelic therapy not only allows sufferers of PTSD to tolerably revisit and come to terms with their traumatic experiences, but also enjoy the benefits for months or even years after the chemical components of this therapy have faded?
What are the biggest differences between MDMA and the less well-known MDA?
Rick talks about his first psychedelic therapy sessions with a PTSD patient back in 1984, their short- and long-term effects, and how that patient went on to become an important asset to the MAPS community.
For Rick and his colleagues, what has made the rewards of psychedelic therapy worth enduring its risks — especially in the not-so-distant past when it was legally dangerous and considered career suicide for its practitioners?
The suicide note that reached Rick when help came too late, and what it emphasized about the importance of his life’s work.
What the present and future look like for MDMA reclassification and its therapeutic use, and why matching grants make now the ideal time for prospective contributors to get the most mileage from their money.
Up until recently, anyone associated with psychedelic therapies could expect to suffer a blow to their reputation, but the times are changing, and my own experience has proven quite the opposite. How much would you pay for 100 percent reputational upside in making MDMA-assisted therapies available to the thousands in need?
Parting thoughts.

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Alise Agar
Debby Harlow
Buckminster Fuller
Roland Griffiths
Alexander “Sasha” Shulgin
Ann Shulgin
Leo Zeff
Jon Lubecky
Rand Paul
Mike Pence
Stephen Miller
Gul Dolen
Matt Johnson
Michael Mithoefer
Ann Mithoefer
Harold Blauer
Stan Grof
Christina Grof
Marcela Ot’alora
Jan Bastiaans
Richard M. Nixon
Joe Green
Peter Rahal
James Bailey
Blake Mycoskie
Steven Cohen
Alexandra Cohen
Graham Boyd
Matt Mullenweg
Genevieve Jurvetson
Steve Jurvetson
Austin Harris
Jeff Walker
Michael Pollan
Jared Diamond
Rebekah Mercer
Elizabeth Koch
The Rockefellers
George Soros

Tools of Titans — Derek Sivers, BJ Miller, and Christopher Sommer (#439)

Photo by Todd White

Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show! It will showcase some of my favorite advice and profiles from the audiobook of Tools of Titans. Thousands of you have asked for years for the audiobook versions of Tools of Titans and Tribe of Mentors, and they are now available.

Go to audible.com/ferriss for more details or to download. 

Today’s episode will focus on Tools of Titans and features the introduction of the book, as well as the profiles of Derek Sivers, BJ Miller, and Christopher Sommer.

Just a few notes on the audiobook’s format: I recorded the introduction and selected three fantastic, top-ranked narrators to handle the rest, along with some surprise appearances from friends. 

The short bios, which you will hear at the beginning of each profile, are read by Kaleo Griffith. Ray Porter reads the bulk of each profile including all of my own words. Ray actually narrated my first book, The 4-Hour Workweek, and did an incredible job. Quotations from female guests are read by the wonderful Thérèse Plummer.

The audiobook of Tools of Titans contains the distilled tools and routines I’ve gathered after interviewing hundreds of world-class performers. 

Everything has been vetted and applied to my own life in some fashion. The techniques, strategies, and philosophies in Tools of Titans have made me more effective, saved me years of wasted effort and frustration, and helped me navigate many periods of darkness and uncertainty. The advice has truly made me a happier, healthier person and changed my life. I hope that they help change yours as well. 

Please enjoy this episode, and if you’d like to listen to the other 100-plus profiles and chapters from Tools of Titans, just head to audible.com/ferriss.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#439: Tools of Titans — Derek Sivers, BJ Miller, and Coach Christopher Sommer
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/febadb96-84d8-4253-9a8e-a4433c560af1.mp3Download

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Derek Sivers:

Website | Twitter | Facebook

Connect with BJ Miller:

Twitter

Connect with Coach Christopher Sommer:

GymnasticBodies.com | Instagram | YouTube | Coach Sommer at Facebook | GymnasticBodies at Facebook

Rue Saint-Jacques: Paris’ Oldest Street | French Moments
Pain au Chocolat | Wikipedia
CliffsNotes Study Guides
Searching for Bobby Fischer | Prime Video
The Matrix | Prime Video
How to 10X Your Results, One Tiny Tweak at a Time | The Tim Ferriss Show #144
The Sixth Sense | Prime Video
The Usual Suspects | Prime Video
Red Teaming | Wikipedia
Tara Brach on Meditation and Overcoming FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) | The Tim Ferriss Show #94
Peter Attia, M.D. — Fasting, Metformin, Athletic Performance, and More | The Tim Ferriss Show #398
The Magic of Mindfulness: Complain Less, Appreciate More, and Live a Better Life | The Tim Ferriss Show #122
chiliPAD Cube 2.0
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger by Charles T. Munger
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini
Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
The “Pros” and Cons of Spec Work | JUST Creative
Place Louis Aragon | No Worries Paris
Paris American Academy
The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York by Robert A. Caro
The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferriss
The 4 Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat Loss, Incredible Sex and Becoming Superhuman by Timothy Ferriss
The 4-Hour Chef: The Simple Path to Cooking Like a Pro, Learning Anything, and Living the Good Life by Timothy Ferriss
Daily Rituals: How Artists Work by Mason Currey
Von Restorff Effect | Laws of UX
The Primacy/Recency Effect | Dataworks Educational Research
Siddhartha: A Novel by Hermann Hesse
CD Baby | Wikipedia
Derek Sivers | TED
Wood Egg
Anything You Want: 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur by Derek Sivers
Books I’ve Read | Derek Sivers
Seeking Wisdom: From Darwin to Munger by Peter Bevelin
Seeking Wisdom Notes | Derek Sivers
Awaken the Giant Within: How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Destiny! by Tony Robbins
Post RE: Dedicating My Next Book to Derek Sivers | Facebook
Derek Sivers on Developing Confidence, Finding Happiness, and Saying “No” to Millions | The Tim Ferriss Show #125
Mona Lisa | Louvre Museum
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Berklee College of Music
Paradox Resolved: Buridan’s Ass by Steve Patterson
How to Say “No” When It Matters Most (or “Why I’m Taking a Long ‘Startup Vacation'”) | tim.blog
Marvin Braude Bike Trail | Wikipedia
The Plight of the Pelican | Los Angeles Times
PostgreSQL
Milford Sound | New Zealand
Worldwide Accent Project: Iceland | Krista Bjork
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World | Prime Video
Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert
Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut
The Most Successful Email Derek Sivers Ever Wrote | tim.blog
BJ Miller: What Really Matters at the End of Life | TED Talk
7 Tips for City Stargazing from Chicago’s Park Astronomer | The Trust for Public Land
Joseph Swan Winery
Scuderia West | San Francisco
Grizzly Man | Prime Video
The Secrets of Gymnastic Strength Training | The Tim Ferriss Show #158
The Secrets of Gymnastic Strength Training Part Two — Home Equipment, Weighted Stretches, and Muscle-Ups | The Tim Ferriss Show #180
Gymnastic Bodies Illustrated | New Territory Fitness
AcroYoga International
Functional Movement Systems
Functional Movement Screen | FMS
Jefferson Curls (J-Curls) | GymnasticBodies
Weighted Pike Stretch | GymnasticBodies
Straddle Lifts (Pulse) | RoutineFit
How to do a Maltese on the Rings | Strength Project
Ring Thing | Power Monkey Fitness
Making a Dream Machine by Michael Traynor | GymnasticBodies
Iron Cross Trainers Review/Demonstration | Ringsking
3 Exercises to Build Better Shoulder Mobility | GymnasticBodies
Thoracic Bridge Progression | GymnasticBodies
Straddle Press to Handstand Tutorial | GMB Fitness
Stalder Press to Handstand Tutorial | Jack Monx
Hypertonicity: Insights on Excessive Muscle Tension | Landis Movement Systems
Hitachi Magic Wand “Massager”

SHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added soon. Thank you for your patience. 

Introduction

How to use this book (and why I wrote it).
What makes the people featured in this book different?
Performance-enhancing details — why 10x results don’t always require 10x effort.
What do the tools presented here have in common?
Two rules for getting the most out of this book.
What do I hope to convey in this book? Here are two principles to remember.
A few important notes on the way this book has been organized — from structure, included quotations, patterns, humor, spirit animals, non-profile content, and the omission of most URLs.
The three tools that allow all the rest, courtesy of Siddhartha (and Naval Ravikant).

Derek Sivers

Who is Derek Sivers?
Derek’s rank-ordered book reviews and two of his life-changing favorites.
How Derek’s first appearance on this show changed a listener’s life.
It’s not what you know — it’s what you do consistently.
The best plan is the one that lets you change your plans.
Who does Derek think of first when he hears the word “successful” — and why is the third person who comes to mind probably more successful?
Just starting out? Say “yes” to everything — even if it’s playing acoustic guitar at a pig show in Vermont.
The standard pace is for chumps.
Advice Derek would give to his 30-year-old self.
Business models can be simple: you don’t need to constantly pivot.
Once you have some success: if it’s not a “Hell, yes!” it’s a “No.”
Feeling busy? Lack of time is lack of priorities.
What would Derek’s billboard say?
On taking 45 minutes instead of 43.
Why Derek has no morning routines.
Treat life as a series of experiments.
The most successful email Derek ever wrote.

BJ Miller

Who is BJ Miller?
What would BJ’s billboard say?
Stargazing as therapy.
What purchase of $100 or less has had the most positive impact on BJ’s life in recent memory?
A good reason to question your “I can’ts.”
The miracle of a snowball in the burn ward.
The power of bearing witness and listening.
How BJ would honor an introverted hospice patient’s request for something to watch, do, or absorb without human interaction.
Some people say laughter is the best medicine. But sometimes it’s cookies. Or art. Or anything that allows us to live in the moment “on behalf of nothing” but the enjoyment of that thing.
Advice BJ would give to his 30-year-old self.

Coach Christopher Sommer

Who is Coach Christopher Sommer?
How did gymnastic strength training and AcroYoga remodel my body at age 39?
“If you want to be a stud later, you have to be a pud now.” — Coach Sommer
Flexibility versus mobility.
Consistency over intensity.
The difference between “diet and exercise” and “eat and train.”
How exactly does someone fail warmup?
Why Olympic gymnasts have gigantic biceps.
Three movements everyone should practice.
Good goals for adult non-gymnasts.
Sometimes you just need a vibrator.

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Kurt Vonnegut
W.H. Auden
Victor Hugo
Gertrude Stein
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Josh Waitzkin
Bobby Fischer
Pierre-Marc-Gaston
Peter Thiel
Tara Brach
Laird Hamilton
Malcolm Gladwell
General Stanley McChrystal
Robert Rodriguez
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Shay Carl
Robert Moses
Walt Disney
Benjamin Franklin
Mason Currey
Franz Kafka
Pablo Picasso
Jamie Foxx
Marc Andreessen
Jane Doe
Tony Robbins
Alexis Ohanian
Scooby-Doo
Hermann Hesse
Siddhartha
Kamala
Naval Ravikant
Charlie Munger
Warren Buffett
Jason Nemer
Kevin Kelly
Albert Einstein
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Daniel Kahneman
Richard Branson
Ricardo Semler
Kimo Williams
Amber Rubarth
Daniel Gilbert
Ed Cooke
Andy Goldsworthy
Randy Sloan
Mert Lawwill
Mark Rothko
Ludwig van Beethoven

Coach George Raveling on This Unique Moment in Time, How to Practice Self-Leadership, Navigating Difficult Conversations, and Much More (#438)

Photo by Jared Polin

“My hope is that we will be who we say we are. All of us.”  — Coach George Raveling

Coach George Raveling (@GeorgeRaveling) is an 82-year-old living legend and Nike’s former Director of International Basketball. Coach Raveling was the first African-American head basketball coach in the PAC-8 (now PAC-12). On August 28, 1963, at age 26, while volunteering as security at the March on Washington, Raveling would humbly become the guardian of what we have come to know as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Coach Raveling has held head coaching positions at Washington State, the University of Iowa, and USC. Following a prolific basketball coaching career, he joined Nike at the request of Phil Knight, where he played an integral role in signing a reluctant Michael Jordan. He’s also been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

Coach George Raveling made his first appearance on the podcast in 2018, and for me, it was one of the most impactful interviews I’ve done, and I came out of it walking on air.

We covered a lot of ground in that first interview, including how Coach Raveling came to own the original copy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, how his practice team ended up beating the 1984 US Olympic Dream Team in basketball, how he helped convince Michael Jordan to sign with Nike, and much more. I strongly urge you to listen to that conversation about Coach’s life, philosophies, and lessons learned.

I invited George back on the podcast to hear his thoughts on everything that is happening right now. These are difficult and uncertain times for millions of people, and my heart goes out to each and every person navigating the depths of sadness, anger, and fear.

As you’ll hear in today’s episode, Coach Raveling has great hope. He’s seen many changes in his lifetime, and we can all strive to be the positive change agents that he implores us to be.

Please enjoy this timely—and timeless—conversation with Coach George Raveling. 

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#438: Coach George Raveling on This Unique Moment in Time, How to Practice Self-Leadership, Navigating Difficult Conversations, and Much More
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/f23c8246-b88c-4b27-a07e-225422057b93.mp3Download

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to hear Coach Raveling’s first time on the show? — Listen to our conversation in which we discussed how he came to possess the original copy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, how his practice team ended up beating the 1984 US Olympic Dream Team in basketball, and much, much more!

#332: Coach George Raveling — A Legend on Sports, Business, and The Great Game of Lifehttps://rss.art19.com/episodes/fcda22c8-9ba8-466b-ae80-25d38e284612.mp3Download

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with George Raveling:

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn

Coach George Raveling — A Legend on Sports, Business, and The Great Game of Life | The Tim Ferriss Show #332
8 Minutes and 46 Seconds: How George Floyd Was Killed in Police Custody | The New York Times
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Jim Crow Museum | Ferris State University
The “I Have A Dream” Speech by Martin Luther King Jr. | YouTube
Greensboro Sit-In Facts, Date & Definition | History
Woolworth’s Lunch Counter | Separate Is Not Equal
Villanova University
The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness by Robert K. Greenleaf
The Mysterious Wrought Iron Gates at 11th and Florida Ave NW Revealed! | The House History Man
Florida Avenue and New Jersey Avenue, Washington DC | Google Maps
Where Was Griffith Stadium in Washington? | Ghosts of DC
Washington Senators | Sports Ecyclopedia
What They Don’t Teach You at Harvard Business School: Notes from a Street-Smart Executive by Mark McCormack
The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements by Eric Hoffer
Tell Me Who You Are: Sharing Our Stories of Race, Culture, & Identity by Winona Guo and Priya Vulchi
The Other America: Poverty in the United States by Michael Harrington
War on Poverty | Wikipedia

SHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added as soon as possible. 

George kicks off our conversation with a prayer for George Floyd and the countless others who have suffered during these times of social change.
George shares the “stop strategy” he goes through — as a successful, 82-year-old black man in modern America — every time he’s pulled over by the police.
A challenge to all of us (George includes himself here): to try to better understand one another beyond our surface impressions.
Why does George collect historically racist paraphernalia?
Having honest conversations — including when they’re with ourselves, and what George believes are two of the most important words in the English language right now.
Why do so many of us actively avoid engaging in difficult conversations that might escalate into emotional debates? George admits he isn’t immune to this phenomenon, but he has some ideas.
Present when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his historic I Have a Dream speech (and in possession of the actual copy read by Dr. King), what are some of the differences and commonalities that George sees between then and now?
Group leadership versus self-leadership for crafting a better future, and the question George asks himself every day. (Here’s a bonus question to ask yourself: disqualifying corporate executives, who do you consider to be the five best leaders in the world today?)
As a voracious reader, what books does George (aka The Human Google) recommend for helping to develop the qualities of self-leadership and self-discipline, as well as for understanding social system inequities?
What would George say to people right now who are feeling consumed by anger — or powerless — at the moment?
What has George found exploring his outer limits — thinking outside of the box paradigm entirely — to look like, and what 21st-century skills does he cultivate in order to stay relevant (and not a relic) at age 82?
Advice — and a pledge — for people who feel a need to do something, but are unsure of what that something might be.
The difference between a statement and a message, and why George has grown weary of corporate and organizational speak.
Sometimes it takes someone else to say “I believe in you” before you really start to believe in yourself.
Advice for parents who are trying to raise their kids to be as empowered and self-enabled as possible.
What George hopes might emerge from these turbulent times.
Parting thoughts and a closing prayer.

PEOPLE MENTIONED

George Floyd
Martin Luther King Jr.
Ezell Blair Jr.
David Richmond
Franklin McCain
Joseph McNeil
Robert Greene
Robert Greenleaf
Mark McCormack
Eric Hoffer
Winona Guo
Priya Vulchi
Michael Harrington

Secretary Madeleine Albright — Optimism, the Future of the US, and 450-Pound Leg Presses (#437)

Photo by Platon

“I’m an optimist who worries a lot.”  — Secretary Madeleine Albright

Madeleine K. Albright (@madeleine) is a professor, author, diplomat, and businesswoman who served as the 64th secretary of state of the United States. In 1997, she was named the first female secretary of state and became, at that time, the highest-ranking woman in the history of the US government. From 1993 to 1997, Dr. Albright served as the US permanent representative to the United Nations and was a member of the president’s cabinet. She is a professor in the practice of diplomacy at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. Dr. Albright is chair of Albright Stonebridge Group, a global strategy firm, and chair of Albright Capital Management, LLC, an investment advisory firm focused on emerging markets.

She also chairs the National Democratic Institute, serves as the president of the Truman Scholarship Foundation, and is a member of the US Defense Department’s Defense Policy Board. In 2012, she was chosen by President Obama to receive the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, in recognition of her contributions to international peace and democracy.

Dr. Albright is a seven-time New York Times best-selling author. Her most recent book, Hell and Other Destinations, was published in April, 2020. Her other books include Madam Secretary: A Memoir, her autobiography; The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs; Memo to the President Elect: How We Can Restore America’s Reputation and Leadership; Read My Pins: Stories from a Diplomat’s Jewel Box; Prague Winter: A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937–1948; and Fascism: A Warning.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can also watch the interview on YouTube.

This podcast is brought to you by Athletic Greens and Helix Sleep. More on both below. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#437: Secretary Madeleine Albright — Optimism, The Future of the US, and 450-Pound Leg Presses
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/29670e47-4625-49ac-af9c-2b784a55a2b8.mp3Download

This podcast is brought to you by Athletic Greens.  I get asked all the time, “If you could only use one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.

As a listener of The Tim Ferriss Show, you’ll get a free 20-count travel pack (valued at $79) with your first order at  AthleticGreens.com/tim .

This podcast episode is also brought to you by Helix Sleep! Helix was selected as the #1 best overall mattress pick of 2020 by GQ magazine, Wired, Apartment Therapy, and many others. With Helix, there’s a specific mattress for each and everybody’s unique taste. Just take their quiz—only two minutes to complete—that matches your body type and sleep preferences to the perfect mattress for you. They have a 10-year warranty, and you get to try it out for a hundred nights, risk free. They’ll even pick it up from you if you don’t love it. And now, to my dear listeners, Helix is offering up to $200 off all mattress orders plus two free pillows at HelixSleep.com/TIM.

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to hear an episode with another dedicated public servant? Listen to my conversation with former Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy in which we discuss chronic loneliness, pandemic preparation, emotion as a source of power rather than weakness, living with depression, and much more.

#417: Dr. Vivek Murthy — Former Surgeon General on Combating COVID-19, Loneliness, and Morehttps://rss.art19.com/episodes/206cd7fc-e344-4897-b31b-d038e19f5330.mp3Download

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Madeleine Albright:

Twitter | Facebook

Hell and Other Destinations: A 21st-Century Memoir by Madeleine Albright
Madam Secretary: A Memoir by Madeleine Albright
The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs by Madeleine Albright
Memo to the President Elect: How We Can Restore America’s Reputation and Leadership by Madeleine Albright
Read My Pins: Stories from a Diplomat’s Jewel Box by Madeleine Albright
Prague Winter: A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948 by Madeleine Albright
Fascism: A Warning by Madeleine Albright
15 Powerful Photos Of The Blitz | Imperial War Museums
Notting Hill: Past & Present | Lewis & Clark London Humanities Program
Madeleine Albright: ‘The Things That Are Happening Are Genuinely, Seriously Bad’ | The Guardian
The Rise of Tito | Defense Media Network
United Nations
Wellesley College
Encyclopedia Britannica
Similarities & Differences Between the Slavic Languages | The Linguist
Hofstra University
Washington National Cathedral
Georgetown University
Center for National Policy
National Security Council | The White House
Albright Calls for Diplomacy in Iraq | The Harvard Crimson
Prof. Madeleine Albright Moves Diplomacy Simulation Online | SFS, Georgetown University
Verbatim: Jul. 24, 2006 | Time
Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello
Why Hungary’s Viktor Orbán is the American Right’s Favorite Strongman | Vox
Madeleine Albright Says Fake News ‘Damaging to Democracy’ | Rappler
Prague 1968: Lost Images of the Day That Freedom Died | The Guardian
Madeleine Albright Is The Fitness Hero We Need In 2015 | HuffPost Life
What is the PDB? | Intel.gov
Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
The Art of the Impossible: Politics as Morality in Practice by Vaclav Havel
The Federalist by Alexander Hamilton
What Fifty Said by Robert Frost | All Poetry
The Shadow War on the Venezuela-Colombia Border | The New Humanitarian
Countries Led by Women Have Fared Better against Coronavirus. Why? | TheHill
National Democratic Institute

SHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added shortly.

Madeleine shares her memory of living as a refugee in a Notting Hill cellar during The Blitz, and her impressions upon revisiting this sanctuary years later.
Madeleine recounts the strongest memories of her father, the Czech-American diplomat and political scientist Josef Korbel, and how discussing foreign policy at the dinner table shaped her early on.
The long journey from aspiring journalist to graduate student to getting her first real job at age 39 — and why Madeleine has always felt about 10 years behind her peers.
On having premature twins who required a long stay in the hospital’s incubators, and how this led to Madeleine taking Russian lessons.
A crash course in how Madeleine went from volunteering to helping a national security advisor find a place to live to landing her first real job at age 39 — why having a PhD and the connections she collected along the way made a difference.
What made Madeleine such a good fundraiser, and how did this skill create such valuable connections that would lead to later jobs?
When did Georgetown and teaching come into the picture for Madeleine, and how did this lead to her connection with later boss Bill Clinton?
On the experience of teaching being a sometimes difficult and lonely profession, and how she came to understand and respect the invisible hard work her father did as a professor when she was a child.
Did Madeleine plan to be teaching for the rest of her career, or was it always intended as a waypoint along the path to something else?
At this point in time, what were the possibilities Madeleine saw for herself in government if she was really dreaming big, and what actually happened?
How would Madeleine encourage someone not well-versed in politics to become more familiar with what it entails — particularly where diplomacy and foreign policy are concerned?
As a member of the UN Security Council and then the first female United States Secretary of State in US history, how did Madeleine navigate the protocols of often being the only woman in the room at home and abroad?
There’s an art to interrupting diplomatically, which is why Madeleine’s students have to speak up if they want to be heard rather than raising their hands. What does Madeleine consider to be the better ways to interrupt — whether it’s when interacting with a teacher, a fellow student, or Slobodan Milošević?
Madeleine elaborates on one of her more famous quotes: “I’m not a person who thinks the world would be entirely different if it was run by women. If you think that, you’ve forgotten what high school was like.”
How did Marie Jana Korbelová become Madeleine Albright?
Was Madeleine’s background as a refugee an asset or a handicap to her work as Secretary of State?
Why does Madeleine consider herself a “worried optimist?”
In her book Fascism: A Warning, Madeleine lists a number of questions that people can ask themselves in evaluating leaders or potential leaders. One is: Do they echo the attitude of Mussolini: ‘The crowd doesn’t have to know,’ all it has to do is believe and ‘submit to being shaped’? How does this fit into historical context, and what can we — as citizens — do to apply it to today’s politics?
At 83 years old, what exercise and self-care regimen does Madeleine use to maintain her trademark high energy?
What are Madeleine’s morning routines?
To what does Madeleine credit her unflappable grace under duress?
What prompted Madeleine to write her latest book, Hell and Other Destinations: A 21st-Century Memoir, and what inspired its title?
Favorite writers, philosophers, or thinkers who Madeleine counts as influential.
How does Madeleine think about what she’d like to accomplish in her life looking forward, and what faith does she have in younger generations to carry the torch of human progress forward?
Madeline is known for the pins she wears. What’s she wearing today?
Parting thoughts.

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Josef Korbel
Anna Korbel
Josip Broz Tito
Joseph Medill Patterson Albright
Ed Muskie
Richard Nixon
Jimmy Carter
Walter Mondale
Zbigniew Brzezinski
Edvard Beneš
George McGovern
Michael Dukakis
Bill Clinton
Warren Christopher
Charles Ruff
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Slobodan Milošević
Henry Kissinger
Thomas Jefferson
Viktor Orbán
Benito Mussolini
Seneca
Marcus Aurelius
Plato
Aristotle
Alexis de Tocqueville
Leo Tolstoy
Václav Havel
Robert Frost
Ludwig van Beethoven

Books I’ve Loved — Maria Popova and Tyler Cowen (#436)

Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is my job to sit down with world-class performers of all different types—from startup founders and investors to chess champions to Olympic athletes. This episode, however, is an experiment and part of a shorter series I’m doing called “Books I’ve Loved.” I’ve invited some amazing past guests, close friends, and new faces to share their favorite books—the books that have influenced them, changed them, and transformed them for the better. I hope you pick up one or two new mentors—in the form of books—from this new series and apply the lessons in your own life.

Maria Popova (@brainpicker) is a reader and a writer who writes about what she reads on Brain Pickings, which is included in the Library of Congress permanent web archive of culturally valuable materials. She is the author of Figuring, the editor of A Velocity of Being: Letters to a Young Reader, and the creator and host of The Universe in Verse, an annual charitable celebration of science through poetry at the interdisciplinary cultural center Pioneer Works in Brooklyn.

Tyler Cowen (@tylercowen) has a personal moonshot: to teach economics to more people than anyone else in the history of the world—and he might just succeed. In addition to his regular teaching at George Mason University, Tyler has blogged every day at Marginal Revolution for almost 17 years, helping to make it one of the most widely read economics blogs in the world. Tyler cocreated Marginal Revolution University, a free online economics education platform that’s reached millions. He is also a bestselling author of more than a dozen books, a regular Bloomberg columnist, and host of the popular Conversations with Tyler podcast.

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. 

This podcast is brought to you by Audible.

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#436: Books I've Loved — Maria Popova and Tyler Cowen
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/cb795bb3-6eaf-410b-8a34-b26e178331cb.mp3Download

“Books I’ve Loved” on The Tim Ferriss Show is brought to you by Audible! I have used Audible for many years now. I love it. Audible has the largest selection of audiobooks on the planet. I listen when I’m taking walks, I listen while I’m cooking… I listen whenever I can. Audible is offering The Tim Ferriss Show listeners a free audiobook with a 30-day trial membership. Just go to Audible.com/tim and browse the unmatched selection of audio programs. Then, download your free title and start listening! It’s that easy. Simply go to Audible.com/tim or text TIM to 500500 to get started today.

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Maria Popova:

Brain Pickings | Twitter | Instagram

Letter to a Hostage by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Love and Saint Augustine by Hannah Arendt
A Madman Dreams of Turing Machines by Janna Levin


Connect with Tyler Cowen:

Marginal Revolution | Conversations with Tyler | Twitter

Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust
Timeless Flight: The Definitive Biography of The Byrds by Johnny Rogan
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Ultralearning: Master Hard Skills, Outsmart the Competition, and Accelerate Your Career by Scott Young

Kevin Hart — The Unstoppable Combination of Positivity and Relentless Improvement (#435)

“I don’t understand how you do something halfway. I did that through high school, and doing that, I saw the instant consequence.” — Kevin Hart

Kevin Hart (@kevinhart4real) was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he launched his career as a comedian during an amateur night at a local comedy club. Over the years, Kevin has become one of Hollywood’s box office powerhouses, opening ten films as the number-one movie on opening weekend. Kevin’s memoir, I Can’t Make This Up, debuted at number one on The New York Times Best-Seller List and remained in the top 10 of the Print Hardcover Best-Seller List for ten weeks straight. The Decision: Overcoming Today’s BS for Tomorrow’s Success—an Audible Original launching May 21st and a follow-up to his memoir—helps people get mentally fit using the same tools and rules he’s developed to elevate his own life. 

Kevin can next be seen in Sony’s Fatherhood, a movie that he is not only starring in but also producing through his production company, Hartbeat Productions. He most recently starred in the Sony franchise Jumanji: The Next Level. In 2019, Hart reprised his role as the white-haired rabbit, Snowball, in Universal’s The Secret Life of Pets 2. Before that, Hart starred in STX Entertainment’s The Upside alongside Bryan Cranston and Nicole Kidman. In 2018, Hart co-wrote, produced, and starred in Universal’s Night School, all under Hartbeat Productions. 

His last live stand-up comedy tour, “The Irresponsible Tour,” was released as a Netflix Original Stand-Up Special in April 2019.  

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can also watch the interview on YouTube.

This podcast is brought to you by Theragun and Athletic Greens. More on both below. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#435: Kevin Hart — Life Lessons from a Comedic Powerhousehttps://rss.art19.com/episodes/2aa3a5ee-3f65-43bd-893a-4f70e27e4553.mp3Download

This episode is brought to you by Theragun! Theragun is my go-to solution for recovery and restoration. It’s a famous, handheld percussive therapy device that releases your deepest muscle tension. I own two Theraguns, and my girlfriend and I use them every day after workouts and before bed. The all-new Gen 4 Theragun has a proprietary brushless motor that’s surprisingly quiet. It’s easy to use and about as quiet as an electric toothbrush.

Go to Theragun.com/TIM right now and get your Gen 4 Theragun today, starting at only $199.

This podcast is also brought to you by Athletic Greens.  I get asked all the time, “If you could only use one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system. 

As a listener of The Tim Ferriss Show, you’ll get a free 20-count travel pack (valued at $79) with your first order at  AthleticGreens.com/tim .

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to hear an episode with another 21st-century funnyman? Listen to my conversation with Jim Jefferies in which we discuss Australian birds, violent hecklers, gun control, Monty Python, the secret to comic longevity, and much more.

#428: Jim Jefferies on Comedy, Life Lessons, and the Magic of Filling Out Customs Formshttps://rss.art19.com/episodes/ccbb433e-f5a4-4785-9b34-5a4787a23cc9.mp3Download

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Kevin Hart: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

The Decision: Overcoming Today’s BS for Tomorrow’s Success
Kevin Hart Opens Up About His Childhood, Empire, and More | Variety
Kevin Hart Calls His Car Accident Recovery a ‘Resurrection’ | People
Remembering Neil Armstrong: First Man on the Moon | ABC News
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Events as They Happen | WHO
The SAT | SAT Suite of Assessments | The College Board
Indianapolis 500
Kevin Hart Plans to Be a Billionaire | Variety
Laugh Out Loud Network
Kevin Hart’s Multivitamin Supplement | VitaHustle
Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud Radio | SiriusXM
Kevin Hart Talks Partnership with Fabletics Men | Essence
Monopoly Ultimate Banking Board Game
Ozark | Netflix
Why Your Brain’s So Bad at Letting Go of Negative Comments | Fast Company
Cowboy Up | Urban Dictionary
Six Years after Flint Water Switch, Residents Fear Justice May Never Come | Bridge Magazine

SHOW NOTES

A mutual friend said Kevin Hart is “the person [he] would most like to be like.” How much of Kevin’s character can be chalked up to the upbringing his mother provided? [06:05]
How has Kevin developed the positivity to reconcile with his father — with whom he shares a troubled history — and reject the energy-draining impact of hatred? [09:11]
What does Kevin’s self-talk look like when he’s immersed in a situation beyond his control — as he was during recovery from his terrible car accident in 2019? [15:25]
How does Kevin maintain the discomfort he feels is necessary to fuel the drive to excel while appreciating the good things he already has? [18:32]
Has Kevin always had the drive to perform at 100 percent? If not, what made him step up? [24:39]
In what ways does Kevin say “no” in order to say “yes” to other commitments? [29:55]
How does Kevin choose his opportunities so they’re steps up rather than steps sideways or backwards? [34:00]
Kevin’s Monopoly strategy. [39:23]
What do the first 90 minutes of Kevin’s day look like? [41:15]
What Kevin considers to be the most unbeatable exercises anyone can do. [42:30]
The storytellers who really stand out for Kevin. [42:58]
Why is now the right time for Kevin to release The Decision: Overcoming Today’s BS for Tomorrow’s Success? [45:15]
For those familiar with Kevin’s first book, I Can’t Make This Up, how does The Decision compare? If the former was a memoir, is the latter more of a set of tools and principles? [50:15]
Parting thoughts. [56:36]

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Bryan Cranston
Nicole Kidman
Neil Strauss
Nancy Hart
Henry Witherspoon
Eniko Hart
The Hart Family
Robert Hart
Neil Armstrong
Eddie Murphy
Bill Cosby
Dave Chappelle
Bernie Mac
Evander Holyfield

Kevin Hart — Life Lessons from a Comedic Powerhouse (#435)

“I don’t understand how you do something halfway. I did that through high school, and doing that, I saw the instant consequence.” — Kevin Hart

Kevin Hart (@kevinhart4real) was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he launched his career as a comedian during an amateur night at a local comedy club. Over the years, Kevin has become one of Hollywood’s box office powerhouses, opening ten films as the number-one movie on opening weekend. Kevin’s memoir, I Can’t Make This Up, debuted at number one on The New York Times Best-Seller List and remained in the top 10 of the Print Hardcover Best-Seller List for ten weeks straight. The Decision: Overcoming Today’s BS for Tomorrow’s Success—an Audible Original launching May 21st and a follow-up to his memoir—helps people get mentally fit using the same tools and rules he’s developed to elevate his own life. 

Kevin can next be seen in Sony’s Fatherhood, a movie that he is not only starring in but also producing through his production company, Hartbeat Productions. He most recently starred in the Sony franchise Jumanji: The Next Level. In 2019, Hart reprised his role as the white-haired rabbit, Snowball, in Universal’s The Secret Life of Pets 2. Before that, Hart starred in STX Entertainment’s The Upside alongside Bryan Cranston and Nicole Kidman. In 2018, Hart co-wrote, produced, and starred in Universal’s Night School, all under Hartbeat Productions. 

His last live stand-up comedy tour, “The Irresponsible Tour,” was released as a Netflix Original Stand-Up Special in April 2019.  

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, or on your favorite podcast platform. You can also watch the interview on YouTube.

This podcast is brought to you by Theragun and Athletic Greens. More on both below. 

Listen onApple Podcasts
Listen onSpotify
Listen onOvercast

#435: Kevin Hart — Life Lessons from a Comedic Powerhouse
https://rss.art19.com/episodes/2aa3a5ee-3f65-43bd-893a-4f70e27e4553.mp3Download

This episode is brought to you by Theragun! Theragun is my go-to solution for recovery and restoration. It’s a famous, handheld percussive therapy device that releases your deepest muscle tension. I own two Theraguns, and my girlfriend and I use them every day after workouts and before bed. The all-new Gen 4 Theragun has a proprietary brushless motor that’s surprisingly quiet. It’s easy to use and about as quiet as an electric toothbrush.

Go to Theragun.com/TIM right now and get your Gen 4 Theragun today, starting at only $199.

This podcast is also brought to you by Athletic Greens.  I get asked all the time, “If you could only use one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system. 

As a listener of The Tim Ferriss Show, you’ll get a free 20-count travel pack (valued at $79) with your first order at  AthleticGreens.com/tim .

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

Want to hear an episode with another 21st-century funnyman? Listen to my conversation with Jim Jefferies in which we discuss Australian birds, violent hecklers, gun control, Monty Python, the secret to comic longevity, and much more.

#428: Jim Jefferies on Comedy, Life Lessons, and the Magic of Filling Out Customs Formshttps://rss.art19.com/episodes/ccbb433e-f5a4-4785-9b34-5a4787a23cc9.mp3Download

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Connect with Kevin Hart: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

The Decision: Overcoming Today’s BS for Tomorrow’s Success
Kevin Hart Opens Up About His Childhood, Empire, and More | Variety
Kevin Hart Calls His Car Accident Recovery a ‘Resurrection’ | People
Remembering Neil Armstrong: First Man on the Moon | ABC News
Coronavirus (COVID-19) Events as They Happen | WHO
The SAT | SAT Suite of Assessments | The College Board
Indianapolis 500
Kevin Hart Plans to Be a Billionaire | Variety
Laugh Out Loud Network
Kevin Hart’s Multivitamin Supplement | VitaHustle
Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud Radio | SiriusXM
Kevin Hart Talks Partnership with Fabletics Men | Essence
Monopoly Ultimate Banking Board Game
Ozark | Netflix
Why Your Brain’s So Bad at Letting Go of Negative Comments | Fast Company
Cowboy Up | Urban Dictionary
Six Years after Flint Water Switch, Residents Fear Justice May Never Come | Bridge Magazine

SHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added shortly. 

A mutual friend said Kevin Hart is “the person [he] would most like to be like.” How much of Kevin’s character can be chalked up to the upbringing his mother provided?
How has Kevin developed the positivity to reconcile with his father — with whom he shares a troubled history — and reject the energy-draining impact of hatred?
What does Kevin’s self-talk look like when he’s immersed in a situation beyond his control — as he was during recovery from his terrible car accident in 2019?
How does Kevin maintain the discomfort he feels is necessary to fuel the drive to excel while appreciating the good things he already has?
Has Kevin always had the drive to perform at 100 percent? If not, what made him step up?
In what ways does Kevin say “no” in order to say “yes” to other commitments?
How does Kevin choose his opportunities so they’re steps up rather than steps sideways or backwards?
How does Kevin approach goalsetting from a career standpoint?
Kevin’s Monopoly strategy.
What do the first 90 minutes of Kevin’s day look like?
What Kevin considers to be the most unbeatable exercises anyone can do.
The storytellers who really stand out for Kevin.
How have Kevin’s own chops as a performer and storyteller developed over time?
Why is now the right time for Kevin to release The Decision: Overcoming Today’s BS for Tomorrow’s Success?
For those familiar with Kevin’s first book, I Can’t Make This Up, how does The Decision compare? If the former was a memoir, is the latter more of a set of tools and principles?
Parting thoughts.

PEOPLE MENTIONED

Bryan Cranston
Nicole Kidman
Neil Strauss
Nancy Hart
Henry Witherspoon
Eniko Hart
The Hart Family
Robert Hart
Neil Armstrong
Eddie Murphy
Bill Cosby
Dave Chappelle
Bernie Mac
Evander Holyfield