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Derek Sivers is a TED speaker, an essayist, a businessman, a musician, one of my favorite thinkers on the planet, and the author of many books including his most recent, Useful Not True: Whatever Works For You.------------Book Dan to do an interview or a meeting------------Keep Talking SubstackSpotifyApple PodcastsSocial media and all episodes------------Support via VenmoSupport on SubstackSupport on Patreon------------(00:00) Intro(01:00) Your actions reveal your values(03:25) Obvious to you, amazing to someone else(05:19) How Derek thinks about money(13:03) Deep happy vs. shallow happy(21:00) Following an innate drive and desire(24:07) 18 months of feeling adrift(30:04) To find direction: read a lot and wait for energy(31:18) The power of heroes and anti-heroes(36:05) Egotists and hedonists(40:00) Changing your mind and keeping your identity small(44:37) Think of yourself as a student, not a preacher(47:42) Personal growth over wealth growth(53:00) Prioritizing openness(56:59) What lifestyles or beliefs is Derek against?(01:04:50) The downside of optimism in Derek's personal life(01:14:24) Dating, marriage, and the role of women in Derek's life(01:23:55) How to save a life with $2,000(01:27:50) Derek's thoughts on philanthropy(01:33:54) "Useful Not True"(01:38:39) A prequel to "How To Live"(01:41:13) "Useful Not True": the truth of many answers and perspectives

Russell Foster is a sleep expert, a professor of circadian neuroscience, a fellow of the Royal Society, and the author of Life Time.------------Book Dan to do an interview or a meeting------------Keep Talking SubstackSpotifyApple PodcastsSocial media and all episodes------------Support via VenmoSupport on SubstackSupport on Patreon------------(00:00) Intro(00:55) Views on sleep through time(03:34) Why we have de-prioritized sleep(05:39) Where should sleep rank in our health priorities?(08:22) How do we know we're getting enough sleep?(11:59) The historic and current cost of sleep deprivation(17:44) Why does sleep exist?(21:53) What is happening biologically while people sleep?(27:59) Sleep and mental illness(38:09) What those with mental illness can do to stabilize their sleep(01:00:25) Sleep for new parents(01:03:35) How would a healthy society approach sleep?

Pico Iyer is a novelist, a travel writer, and the author of many books, including his most recent, "Aflame: Learning From Silence," which is the subject of this conversation.------------Book Dan to do an interview or a meeting------------Keep Talking SubstackSpotifyApple PodcastsSocial media and all episodes------------Support via VenmoSupport on SubstackSupport on Patreon------------(00:00) Intro(00:00) Intro(00:58) Santa Barbara, June 1990(04:25) The New Camaldoli Hermitage(07:30) Pico's life when he first went to New Camaldoli(11:08) Silence elicits gratitude, what's shared and what's essential(16:10) Intentionally turning off technology(22:39) Creating a wise amount of "cathedral time"(25:53) Embracing silence as a non-religious person(32:03) Leonard Cohen exploring his inner landscape in silence(36:05) How Pico has developed from his 100+ hermitage visits(41:35) Saying no in order to prioritize space for silence(47:07) How to begin a life with more silence and contemplation(50:41) Silence as an antidote to despair(54:36) What Pico has learned from the Dalai Lama

Joseph Goldstein is an author, the co-founder of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA, and is one of the most influential and important figures to bring vipassana meditation practices into the American mainstream.A rebroadcast from 2022.------------Book Dan to do an interview or a meeting------------Keep Talking SubstackSpotifyApple PodcastsSocial media and all episodes------------Support via VenmoSupport on SubstackSupport on Patreon------------(00:00) Intro(00:45) How Joseph ended up in Asia a young man(04:39) Reason for interest in Buddhism and meditation(08:59) Immersing in the study of the mind(12:41) The Buddha’s teachings(18:52) Joseph's psychological state when first exposed to Buddhism and meditation(21:01) The daily habits, discipline, and rituals to try to achieve Enlightenment(27:14) Deciding to devote his life to meditation(30:11) Communicating to his mother his desire to devote his life to Buddhism(32:59) Metaphysical views pre and post meditation(37:46) Buddhism is non-theistic(40:14) What is the Dharma?(44:48) Integrating Buddhist teachings with practice and The Noble Eightfold Path(53:37) The first step to use mindfulness to ease psychological suffering(01:01:24) Awareness versus the weather pattern of one's mind(01:04:30) Using mindfulness to respond, rather than to react(01:15:37) Dealing with grief(01:24:50) How can we improve our lives by being mindful?

Elizabeth Economy is a political scientist, a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, a China expert, and the author of multiple books, including "The World According to China" and "The Third Revolution: Xi Jinping and the New Chinese State."------------Book Dan to do an interview or a meeting------------Keep Talking SubstackSpotifyApple PodcastsSocial media and all episodes------------Support via VenmoSupport on SubstackSupport on Patreon------------(00:00) Intro(01:00) Xi Jinping's father's story(07:16) The Cultural Revolution(12:02) "China's Holocaust" between 1950's-1970's(13:10) Why Marxism resonated in China(21:43) Darker aspects of the Cultural Revolution(33:48) The rise of Xi Jinping and the rise of China's economy(38:33) The meme of Xi Jinping as Winnie the Pooh(41:43) Xi Jinping's personality and vision for China(46:27) The near-term future of U.S-China relations(53:00) What America can do to win Cold War 2.0

Noam Dworman is a businessman, the co-host of the podcast "Live From The Table," and the owner of the world-famous Comedy Cellar in Greenwich Village, NYC.------------Book Dan to do an interview or a meeting------------Keep Talking SubstackSpotifyApple PodcastsSocial media and all episodes------------Support via VenmoSupport on SubstackSupport on Patreon------------(00:00) Intro(00:59) How The Comedy Cellar came to be(02:38) Noam's dad, Manny(07:05) Why did Manny start The Comedy Cellar?(10:42) Notable comics early at The Comedy Cellar(12:00) The way to fame for comics pre-internet(14:32) Identifying comedic talent(18:36) Patrice O'Neal(24:12) How Noam took over The Comedy Cellar(27:37) The scene at The Comedy Cellar in early 2000's(29:52) Why The Comedy Cellar is so popular(32:19) The design of The Comedy Cellar venue(36:58) Quotes from Noam about free speech(38:11) Louis CK, free speech, and woke culture(43:58) How the left has changed regarding free speech(47:22) Comedy as a refuge(50:23) Defining wokeness and a story about Noam's daughter(56:30) The state of wokeness and cancel culture(59:02) Comedians and intellectuals with courage(01:02:58) What's next for Noam and The Comedy Cellar

Glenn Loury‬ is an economist, a professor at Brown University, a podcaster, an essayist, and is the author of "Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black Conservative" and the essay "The Case for Black Patriotism."A rebroadcast from 2022.------------Book Dan to do an interview or a meeting------------Keep Talking SubstackSpotifyApple PodcastsSocial media and all episodes------------Support via VenmoSupport on SubstackSupport on Patreon------------(00:00) Intro(01:01) Get to know Glenn Loury(03:56) South Side of Chicago culture when Glenn was a boy(06:11) Fatherhood at 18, working at RR Donnelley & Sons, and Mr. Andres(15:01) Opportunity launches Glenn to Northwestern and MIT(19:34) The culture and opportunity of MIT(28:48) The first African-American tenured economics professor in Harvard, at 33(37:30) Glenn's interest in politics and his heterodox political philosophy(47:44) A memorable incident with Glenn's uncle Alfred(55:35) How Glenn's conservatism informs his views on the campus(01:01:57) Glenn's defense of Western culture(01:06:43) "The Case for Black Patriotism"(01:23:17) An American Living "The American Dream"