Jake Desyllas's Blog, page 20

270 Harry Browne's Article "A Gift for My Daughter"

This week’s episode discusses a very thought-provoking article by the late Harry Browne, called  “A Gift for My Daughter”. It includes a recording of Harry reading his own words.

Harry’s ideas had a huge influence on me, but I don’t agree with him about everything. This article is particularly interesting because it explains an important truth, and yet I think it also demonstrates one of Harry’s most significant blindspots.

Show Notes:
A Gift for My Daughter by Harry BrowneTVL Episode On How I Found Freedom In An Unfree WorldHow I Found Freedom In An Unfree World by Harry BrowneFail Safe Investing by Harry BrowneJob Free by Jake DesyllasEpisode 265: A Review Of Escape From Childhood By John Holt
Listen to Episode 270

269 Review of A Guide to the Good Life by William B. Irvine

This week I am joined by my wife Hannah Braime to discuss William B. Irvine's book, A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy. This book argues that the philosophy of stoicism is relevant to modern life and can be used to help you live well, according to your own values. We recorded the episode for the Psychology Book Club. I am sharing it here because the themes are highly relevant to The Voluntary Life.

Show Notes:

A Guide To The Good Life by William B. IrvinePsychology Book ClubHannah Braime

Listen to Episode 269

268 A Listener Question About Family Pressure, Expensive Weddings, And Kids

A listener posted a question in The Voluntary Life Community Facebook group. He asked:

How do you cope with family and friend pressure to buy bigger and better and to have an expensive wedding and kids, which leaves you with no ability to save and get ahead in life?

What do you think? Listen to this week's episode to hear my response.

Listen To Episode 268

267 Consumerism Vs Saving: Four Theories

Why do people spend so much of their disposable income on consumption and save so little towards their own financial independence? There are many competing theories that try to answer this question. In this episode, I present four theories:
Theory 1: People are brainwashed into consumerism by advertising.Theory 2: Spending escalates as people try to keep up with their peer groups.Theory 3: Central bank policies have undermined saving.Theory 4: Spending is the path of least resistance, so you won't save unless you have sufficient motivation.Which (if any) of these theories have merit? Is there a better explanation? Let me know what you think!
Show Notes:

Job Free by Jake DesyllasListen To Episode 267

266 Self-Sufficiency And DIY: Good For Financial Independence?

Many people who write about financial independence emphasise the benefits of self-sufficiency and DIY as part of their lifestyle. Will it help your journey to financial independence to try to be self-sufficient? Does it make financial sense to do your own repairs and renovations? This week's episode provides a different perspective.

Show Notes:

Job Free by Jake DesyllasTVL Episode 225: Comparative Advantage Is Mind-blowingI, Pencil by Leonard ReadHow to Make a $1500 Sandwich in Only 6 Months
Listen To Episode 266

265 A Review Of Escape From Childhood By John Holt

John Holt was a leading figure in the school reform movement, who became increasingly interested in how children learn outside of school—what he called “unschooling.” He wrote many influential books about alternatives to schooling and he helped start the modern homeschooling movement.

In his book Escape From Childhood, the subject of this week's episode, he provided thought-provoking insights into many problems with how adults treat children, and a vision of how children could be treated with dignity and given greater freedom.

Show Notes:

Escape From Childhood by John HoltTVL Discussion of Instead of Education by John HoltPrevious TVL Episodes on Unschooling
Listen To Episode 265

264 Thomas Stanley's Wealth Index

Financial independence is one of the core topics of The Voluntary Life. I've heard from listeners at all stages of the journey to FI— just beginning,  already achieved FI, and all the steps in-between. In a previous episode, I explained the milestones along the journey to FI, to help judge how far you have progressed if you are working towards this goal. In this week's episode, I share another tool for judging your progress.

In his book Stop Acting Rich, author Thomas Stanley explained a way to calculate your relative net worth, taking into account both your age and your income. He used this calculation to create a wealth index, which you can use to judge whether you are on the path to FI, or whether you are burning more of your income than you should.

In the episode I explain how the wealth index is calculated and provide commentary on how to use it. There is also a free website that does the calculation for you.

Show Notes:

The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas StanleyStop Acting Rich By Thomas StanleyTVL Episode 80: Financial Freedom MilestonesWebsite To Check Your Wealth Index by Hugh ChouTVL Episode 242: Financial Pros And Cons Of Home Ownership

Listen To Episode 264

263 Thinking Rationally Part 9: Rational Ethics

As part of the thinking rationally series, this episode is about rational ethics. In the episode I provide a historical overview, focussing on the revolution in moral philosophy that happened during the Enlightenment. Although there was amazing progress during the Enlightenment, the contradictions of enlightenment thinkers eventually led them to lose their way on ethics and abandon a rational approach to morality. Understanding this background is helpful if you want to use rational thinking to make sense of ethics for yourself.

Show Notes:
TVL Episode 151 Your Own Moral Compass Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3TED talk by Michael Huemer: The Progress of LiberalismEpisode 227 Review Of The Better Angels Of Our Nature By Steven PinkerAll Previous Episodes in the Thinking Rationally SeriesListen To Episode 263

262 Thinking Rationally Part 8: Popular Irrational Biases

Many ideas have been debunked long ago, but nonetheless remain very popular. This episode highlights three popular irrational biases about economics, taken from Brian Caplan's book The Myth Of The Rational Voter. The biases covered are the pessimism bias, the anti-market bias, and the anti-foreign bias.

Show Notes:
All Previous Episodes in the Thinking Rationally SeriesThe Myth Of The Rational Voter by Bryan CaplanEpisode 90 Rational Optimism Versus Doom PornThe Rational Optimist by Matt RidleyEpisode 227 Review Of The Better Angels Of Our Nature By Steven PinkerThe Better Angels of Our Nature: Why Violence Has Declined by Steven PinkerEntrepreneurship Part 4: Profit Is SanityEpisode 176 The Anti-Capitalistic Mentality by Ludwig Von Mises Part 1  (and Part 2)Episode 225 Comparative Advantage Is Mind-blowing
Listen To Episode 262

261 Thinking Rationally Part 7: The Irrationality Of Politics

Politics brings out the worst in people. As the economist Joseph Schumpeter put it,

"The typical citizen drops down to a lower level of mental performance as soon as he enters the political field. He argues and analyzes in a way which he would readily recognize as infantile within the sphere of his real interests. He becomes a primitive again."

This week's episode is about the problem of political irrationality. Why are political beliefs so irrational? How does this affect your life? Listen to the episode to find out more!

Show Notes:
All Previous Episodes in the Thinking Rationally SeriesThe Myth Of The Rational Voter by Bryan CaplanGeorge Carlin On PoliticsMichael Heumer on The Irrationality Of PoliticsListen To Episode 261