Morgan Housel: Understand & Apply the Psychology of Money to Gain

Greater Happiness

Applying Science to Everyday Life

Welcome to the Huberman Lab podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life.

The Psychology of Money: How Finances Shape Our Minds

I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of
Medicine. My guest today is Morgan Housel. Morgan Housel is a partner at the Collaborative Fund and an
expert in private wealth generation and management. He is also the author of the spectacularly bestselling
book, The Psychology of Money. And today we talk about the psychology of money. We talk about how
money can change your psychology. We talk about how most people tend to lie at the extremes of either
saving too much money or spending too much money. And we talk about how most people get it completely
wrong when it comes to framing in our minds what money is, what its real value is, and its ability to generate
happiness within us.

Wealth Beyond Money: Freedom, Independence, and Happiness

And no, I am not going to tell you, and Morgan is not going to tell you that beyond a certain dollar amount,
you don't increase your happiness because as we all know, money cannot buy happiness, but it can buffer
stress. We acknowledge that from the outset. And then Morgan goes on to explain that really what we're
seeking when we talk about seeking wealth or money is freedom. Freedom is really about independence and
that if we are constantly in pursuit of wealth, well, then we are not truly free or independent. So today's
discussion is as much about being happy, being free, feeling independent, feeling free of stress as it is about
this thing that we call money. So in other words, Morgan explains not just how to generate and manage
monetary wealth, he explains that, but he also explains how to organize your life in and around this thing that
we call career, the pursuit of wealth, and happiness.

Rethinking Your Relationship with Money

And I can think of few topics as important as today's topic. I read Morgan's book, The Psychology of Money,
and I loved it. But by asking yourself certain probe questions that Morgan raises today and answering those
questions, you can arrive in a place where your relationship to money and your pursuit of it really clearly
matches your particular goals. Before we begin, I'd like to emphasize that this podcast is separate from my
teaching and research roles at Stanford. It is, however, part of my desire and effort to bring zero cost to
consumer information about science and science related tools to the general public.

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Sponsor Spotlight: Online Therapy with BetterHelp

The APY is subject to change. For more information, see the episode description. Today's episode is also
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A Conversation with Morgan Housel on His Upcoming Book: The Art of Spending Money

And now for my discussion with Morgan Housel. Morgan Housel, welcome. Thanks so much for having me.
Happy to be here. I'm excited that you have a new book coming out next year about the art of spending
money. Is that right? That's right. You got it.

Rethinking Your Relationship with Money

Today I want to talk about how to think about money. Great. Looking forward to it.

People Are Not Crazy About Money

Great. So your book starts off with this notion that people are not crazy. It's in fact the title of the chapter.
Does that mean that people are rational about money? Oh, I think it's very different. No one is really that
crazy with how they spend their money or save their money.

Disadvantaged Children and Academic Struggles

It makes sense to them in that moment. My brother-in-law is a social worker. He works with very
disadvantaged kids, kids who are abused at home, who don't have homes. And a lot of those kids, not
surprisingly, do very poorly at school.

Understanding the Hidden Reasons Behind Behavior

They misbehave. They get in fights. They don't go to school. And it is so common for those kids that the
teacher will look at those kids and say, why are you acting like this? Why don't you do the right thing? It's so
obvious. And he says, there's a phrase in social work, all behavior makes sense with enough information, that
if you look at what those kids are dealing with in life, it would all make sense to you, why they are
misbehaving at school. And I think that's a powerful idea for a lot of things in life that all behavior makes
sense with enough information. And it is very common to look at people who are spending a ton of money.
Well, there's a story behind that. They're spending a ton of money because they want some, you know, for a
lot of them, they want some sort of attention. They're trying to get people's attention. maybe sometimes
they're trying to cover up a hole, maybe they are actually are really enjoying it. People who are hoarding a lot
of money, there's a story there too.

Embracing Personalized Financial Management

They experience something that's causing them to do that. I think that this is really important for two reasons.
One, it forces you to realize that there is not one right way to manage money, to save it, to spend it. You got to
figure out what for you. And what works for me might not work for you.

Embracing Personal Finance: It's Not One-Size-Fits-All

There's not one answer. And it's not like math. Like in math, two plus two equals four for everybody. And in
money, it's like you gotta figure it out for yourself. It's almost like your taste in food or your taste of music.
Like, just find out what you like and do that. The other thing is I think you become less cynical about other
people's decisions. And you don't spend all your day saying, look at that idiot spending their money in a
stupid way. You're just, no, it's just, you've got to figure it out for yourself. And I think you become happier
when you're a little less cynical about how other people are doing it.

The Intertwined Pursuit of Financial Security and Education

For most people, including myself, the whole notion of money and safety are very closely linked. That's very
closely linked to notions of how much and what type of education to get. There were plenty of jobs in
neuroscience and still are.

Pursuing Passion vs. Profit: The Trade-Offs of Higher Education

I wouldn't say that most of them are high paying jobs. So, you know, we know that higher education doesn't
always scale with higher income. As we grow up and move into the world, we're thinking about how to
integrate all these different things, what we want to do because it's interesting versus what will make us
money. I believe that you get the best workout of yourself in terms of going after things you're really
interested in. But there may not be money in things that are highly interesting to somebody. I asked Daniel
Connaman a very similar question about 10 years ago. Conaman is a world-renowned psychologist, won the
Nobel Prize in economics, passed away a year or two ago.

Understanding Your Future Regret: A Key to Financial Success

And he said the trait that you need to do well with money over time, no matter who you are, is a
well-calibrated sense of your future regret. I think most people do not fully understand their own sense of
regret, what they're likely to look back and say, I wish I had not have done this. The other thing is that it
changes over the course of your life. I'll give you a perfect example. I'm a big saver, have been for my entire
adult life.

The Value of Saving vs. Spending: A Lifelong Perspective

Heaven forbid, if I were on my deathbed tomorrow, would I regret the vacations I didn't take, the cars I didn't
buy? The answer right now is absolutely not. I would feel so good knowing that my wife and kids are going to
be okay. So I would take so much pleasure in knowing that I did not spend that money. I saved it for their
protection. Will I still feel that way if I'm 80 years old? Then maybe I will look back and say, I should have
lived a little bit more. I should have given my money away while I could have seen it being given away. So it
changes throughout the course of your life.

Making Decisions Based on Future Regrets

But I think if you're always thinking through the lens of what am I going to regret. It's never about YOLO or
about like, oh, you know, save today so you can have it for tomorrow. I think that's too simple to think about
it. You have to know what you're going to regret in the future and look back. And back to everyone's
different. What I will regret might be very different from what you will regret. Very interesting story from
Jeff Bezos.

Jeff Bezos' Courageous Leap with Amazon

He talked about when he started Amazon back, and I think it was 1994, the reason he started it, and he knew
that there was very little chance it was going to work when he first started it. But he said, if I do not try this, I
will regret it. And if I try it and it fails, I won't regret that. That's an amazing story that talks about his
entrepreneurial spirit.

Respecting Different Approaches to Entrepreneurial Risk-Taking

The other thing, when I first heard that story is, bless him for thinking that, I do not have that personality. If I
devoted my entire life and my family's money and my parents' money to a startup and it failed, I might regret
that. I admire and I'm grateful for the people who do not have that vision, as he does, made the world better.

Understanding and Anticipating Future Regret

But everyone's sense of regret is going to be a little bit different. And sometimes this sense of what one is
likely to regret if we have access to it at all, because it sounds like we're not very good at anticipating this, as
Connman pointed out. Most people lack a well-calibrated sense of future regret. That's going to change over
time, so it's dynamic.

The Value of Investing Time and Effort in Education and Career Development

And here we're talking about investing in two-year or four-year degrees. We're talking about investing in
one's time, that is, in a particular profession. And I think we come up with all these explanations post hoc
about, well, you know, I went to that company, I went into that line of work. I spent 10 years there or the
startup failed, but I learned a valuable lesson that then, you know, really supported me in a future endeavor.

How We Fail to Predict Our Future Selves

And so we rationalize our poor choices from the past in ways that allow us to connect the dots to sort of steal
from the famous Steve Jobs speech. And yet all of this really says that we are very poor at placing our current
experience and our past experience into any kind of future projection of ourselves. You talk a little bit about
this in your book and this really, you know, sunk in for me in a major way that we don't really know or
anticipate how we are likely to change as we get older. Right.

The End of History Illusion: How We Perceive Our Own Growth and Change

So there's a thing in psychology called the end of history illusion, which means that you are very aware of
how much you've changed in the last 20 years. You are smarter, wiser. You have your beliefs about things in
life have evolved. And that's true for most people.

People Often Underestimate How Much They Will Change Over Time

But most people, if you actually dig into it, they think if you say, who will you be in 20 years from now?
They think they'll roughly be the same person they are today. There's always this belief that I have grown so
much in the past, but I'm done growing because it's hard to project how you're going to be different in the
future. A lot of that is if I tell myself 20 years from now, I'll have very different beliefs about politics,
whatever it might be. What I'm effectively admitting is what I believe today is wrong.

The Challenge of Changing Beliefs and Long-Term Decision Making

And you don't want to believe that. Everyone wants to wake up and look in the mirror and say, what I believe
today is the right thing. It's just like a self-justification of your own beliefs, makes it easier to go about the
days. What I believe right now is the right thing. And maybe you have a little bit of doubt around the edges,
but most of it is what I believe is true. So you don't want to believe that you're going to adjust and adapt those
beliefs over time. So it becomes difficult to take a truly long-term view and make a decision today that is
going to be something that you're not going to regret in the future. As I've always framed us, I think the only
anecdote to this of trying to get around this problem is avoiding the extreme ends of financial planning. And a
lot of people are on the extreme ends.

Avoiding Financial Extremes: Finding Balance Between Saving and Spending

Like on one end, you have the fire movement. These people who save 90% of their income and they want to
retire at 28, kind of that kind of thing. And on the other hand, you have like the YOLO crypto traders who are
like, doesn't matter. Like just throw it all down and let's see what happens. Those extreme ends are you are
most likely to regret at some point in the future. And the crypto, look, I think a lot of those people are young
and they have time to make up for their mistakes. I did a lot of really dumb things with my money in my teens
and 20s. But I think a lot of them, that's where they are most likely to look back. You know, it's one thing to
lose a lot of money in your 20s and say, ah, it doesn't really matter.

The Dangers of Extreme Decisions and Future Regret

But then when you're 48 and trying to put your kids through college, that's when you're going to look back,
like, I wish I wouldn't, I wish I hadn't done something like that. So those extreme ends are like have the
highest odds of future regret. In order to, as I described it before, carve a path through this for people.

Two Motivational Paths: Seeking Reward or Avoiding Regret

I'm wondering if people generally fall into either one or the other category of, as you described with Bezos,
not wanting to regret not having done something. Okay, so I think of that in sort of pseudo neurobiological
terms as being drawn toward the possible dopaminergic or other rewards of having succeeded. Really, that's
what he's envisioning, presumably, is the pain of having not had been given himself the opportunity to
succeed. Yeah. Okay, that's one way to put it. And then the other path would be just avoiding the pain of loss.
It seems that some people are just more motivated to try new things because they like doing new things. They
like the sense of reward that can come from doing those things.

Different Approaches to Stability and Uncertainty

And so it really is painful for them to stay in the same place, financially or otherwise. Other people, they like
the sure thing. They like reliability.

Risk vs. Safety: Do People Fall into Two Distinct Camps?

And you can see this in a lot of domains of their life. I mean, I don't want to extrapolate this to all aspects of
their life. But, you know, some people like dogs that, you know, the entire breed would, you know, is known
for rarely ever having bitten somebody. Other people like to raise cane corzos. And while I'm sure there's
some really nice, loving cane corzos out there, they occasionally bite it when they bite it serious. So, you
know, are we really talking about a propensity for risk versus safety? And do you think that people fall into
more or less two camps on that? I think it's true that some people would go nuts if they took the safe path.
And even if they're doing it in the name of like, I don't want to regret this, but they need some sort of
variability in their life.

The Importance of Taking Action

They need to go out and do things. The other element is we don't know the past that we didn't take. And I'll
give you a personal example of this. 20 years ago, I was enrolled in Pepperdine, but I didn't go.

A Fork in the Road: The What-Ifs of a Last-Minute Transfer

I was enrolled in just at the last second I transferred. So I never actually attended, but I was all enrolled. And
of course, I think, what would my life have been if I had gone there? Because the school that I transferred to, I
met my wife, started my career there.
Embracing the Uncertainty of Life's Choices

And it's easy for me to say, God, I'm so glad I did not go there because my life would not be what it is today.
But the truth is, maybe it would have been fine. It would have been better.

Finding a Balance in Financial Decision-Making to Minimize Regret

You never know the past that you didn't take where they're going to end up. So back to Connett's point, a
well-calibrated sense of your future regret, but nobody knows the past that they didn't take and where those
would go. So it just makes it very difficult to have any idea of which which pass you should be on in that end.
So I think just avoiding those two camps of the extreme ends of it. But again, as I said earlier, I think that is
actually more than half of people are on some sort of extreme end of spending way more than they can or
saving way more than they need to. There's a fat-tail distribution in how people manage their money. And so
that's quite a few people. Because managing it in a way that's actually going to make you happier and reduce
your regret and live a more meaningful life is much harder than earning it and accumulating it over time.
When I was growing up, you would see a mixture of newer cars, including some very nice cars, as well as a
lot of older kind of beaten up cars driving around.

Condition of Old Cars Varies by Location

Nowadays, of course, this varies by area. It's actually rare to see really old beat up cars. You see some really
nice old cars that have been restored, but that's a different thing altogether.

How Credit Has Altered Our Relationship with Money

And I assume this is because of credit, that people can now buy things on credit. How has the ability to
purchase things on credit change the way that we think about money generally? I know people who have
tremendous credit card debt. And I think are now at the point where they figure that they're never going to pay
it off. They're just going to probably not live long enough to pay it off. And they're sort of comfortable with
that, which is kind of scary to see. And some of them aren't even particularly big spenders.

Living Outside Your Means: The Debt Trap of Credit

They just accrued this debt early enough and they can't seem to get out from the trap of that. I know other
people who, you know, like myself, pay off my credit card bill every month. I'm like, you know, I hate the
whatever it is, 18 plus percent interest. Even if I'm one day late, I'm like, you know, and at the same time, I'm
not somebody who likes to purchase many things. I'm not a things guy. I own, you know, I own, you know,
one or two watches, one truck. Like, I'm just not a things guy. but I certainly have my own psychological
relationship with money that after talking to you today I'm sure I'm going to realize is not optimized either
right so it's easy to point fingers at people in these different groups. Because today's discussion in your book,
we're talking about money as if it's something that we have, but credit basically is living outside your means.

Credit: A Misconceived Luxury?

By definition. Yeah. I think the knee jerk response would be, oh, it helps you pull your consumption forward
so you can have more toys that you would not have had in a different era. And I actually think for a lot of
people, it's the opposite.

The Ease of Access to Money Can Fuel Consumption Habits

And in previous generations, previous decades, you could not just go out and have a ton of more money. You
earned your money from your paycheck, that was what you had. Today it makes it easier to try to fill that hole
in your life with money. And so you can keep on getting more and more and more.

The Never-Ending Cycle of Material Desire

And for a lot of people, they will wake up and say, oh, if only I had that car, my life would be better. And they
go buy that car and they still feel the same so it's like ah you know what if I had that car and that watch then
I'd feel better they get the watch feel the same ah you know what's missing the house I gotta go get that fancy.
It's this continuous spiral. And since you can finance all of that, it makes it easier and easier to go on that
spiral. Will Smith made this incredible realization I loved from his biography.

Money's Limitations: How Wealth Can Exacerbate Despair

He said said when he was poor and depressed, he had hope because he could tell himself, one day I'm going
to have money and all these problems will go away. And then when he was rich and depressed, he was still
depressed and he lost all of his hope. Because he had more money than he could ever spend. So he could not
tell himself, if only I had more money, these problems would go away. And it keeps you on that path, which I
think if you actually don't have access to that much money, you're more likely to wake up and say, what is
this whole? I need to fix it in a different way.

Money's Role in Reducing Stress vs. Buying Happiness

It's health, its relationships, its purpose, whatever it might be, rather than trying to put a band-aid of credit
over it. So interesting. I sometimes think about the phrase, money can't buy happiness. And my immediate
impulse is to respond with, well, somebody with a lot of money probably said that. Not because I think money
can buy happiness, but money can buffer stress. I have friends who've had children recently who have night
nurses.

The Wealth Gap in Healthcare: How Money Impacts Medical Outcomes

They're looking a lot more rested than the ones that don't because they can't afford them. And on and on. If
you have a medical issue, right, I mean, there's this whole world within hospitals that won't talk about in this
episode, but there's this whole world about wealth and how one is actually even treated as a person in a
hospital. There's a lot of knowledge behind the scenes about people's income level when they come into a
hospital. People are gonna go wide-eyed when they hear this. They'll get shuttled to different rooms, different
conditions that allow them to sleep better, recover better, health outcomes depend on this. I mean, and on and
on. So money can't buy happiness, but it certainly can buffer stress and it can drive outcomes. So how should
we frame that, especially if we are on the or in the pursuit of acquiring more money, more wealth, because a
lot of people are.

Wealth Can Buy Happiness, But Not Directly.

Money absolutely can buy happiness. It's often though an indirect path. And what I mean by that is, will a big
fancy house make you happier? And the answer is probably yes. But the reason it might is because it'll make
it more, it'll make it easier to host friends and family. And that's what's actually making you happy.

What Truly Brings Happiness Beyond Material Wealth

It's those extra connections with those people. Does going on a nice vacation make you happy? An expensive
vacation? Yes, because you're going to form memories with your kids, with your spouse, with your friends
while you're there. That's what's making you happy. So you can't say that money doesn't make people have, it
does. It obviously does. The other thing that's important is what really makes people happy in their core is
some sense of purpose.

Wealth and Happiness: A Matter of Purpose

There's a great quote from the movie Boiler Room where he says, people who say money doesn't buy
happiness don't have any. And I think there's a lot of truth to that, that people who become richer say, of
course I was happier now than I was when I was poor. Of course, I would never want to go back there. But
often what's happening is the reason that you are happier when you were rich is because the reason you got
rich is because you found some sort of purpose.

Achievement, Not Wealth, Defines Happiness

You built a business. You were successful in your career. And that gave you a good sense of purpose and
identity. And those are the people, so many studies that winning the lottery will not make you happy.
True Success Requires More Than Just Achievement

It might for a very short period of time, but over time it doesn't because you didn't get any added purpose.
You can't wake up in the morning and say, I built this business. I did it. I'm so successful.

Debunking Imposter Syndrome: Defending Against Doubt and Criticism After Earning a Doctorate

I got my PhD. I did. There's none of that. You just got lucky.

Money Can Buy Happiness, But It Depends on How You Spend It.

And so that's not going to bring you much happiness. So money does make you happier. I think it can for
everybody if you learn how to spend it in your personality and whatnot. Spending a lot of it, spending a ton of
money can make you happier. I think there's almost no limit to it, but it's different for everybody and it's often
a roundabout way. I think a lot about this when if I go on an expensive vacation with my kids, let's say that's a
10. That's a 10 out of 10 in terms of just happiness, memories, and whatnot.

Independence and Purpose: The Simple Formula for a Happy Life

But actually what was making me happy was spending uninterrupted time with my kids. So staying home and
playing Legos on the living room floor with them, that might be like an eight and a half. Because that's what's
making me happy. You just have to figure out like the actual purpose. I think a good formula for a pretty good
life at the simplest level is independence plus purpose. You need to have a purpose that is bigger than yourself
that you are chasing, family, religion, work, whatever it might be, different for everybody. And you need to
have the independence to make sure you can do it on your own terms rather than chasing somebody else's
goal.

How Financial Independence Supports Psychological Well-being

That's the highest level of psychological well-being, independence and purpose. And money is not one of
those things, but you can easily see how money can help those things. Money brings you independence. It can
allow you to find your purpose in a bigger way. You're not chasing, you're not at your boss's whim.

Using Money to Boost Happiness

You can do whatever you want. You're independent. So using money as a tool can make you happier.
Spending money can make you happier.

The True Source of Happiness: It's Not What You Think

But it's not the thing that is making you happier. It's just a tool to do other things and acquire other things that
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The Value of Unstructured Time with Children

I love the story about spending time with your kids on vacation as unstructured time, as well as spending
unstructured time with them playing Legos at home. My graduate advisor sadly passed away very young of
cancer. And I'm sure they had a great many thoughts and feelings that they didn't share. But the one thing that
really stood out is they appreciated how much unstructured time their mom had spent with them. It wasn't this
like big event or something. It was all the unstructured time that she had spent with them.

Lasting Impact of a Selfless Person

And that was very inherent to the kind of person she was. And so that really stuck with me and God willing,
you live a very long time. And it's, I don't think it's, I don't think it's discussed enough.

Centenarian Wisdom on Money from 30 Lessons for Living

There's a gerontologist named Carl Pillamer who wrote a great book called 30 Lessons for Living. And what
he did is he interviewed about 100 centenarians and he just said, tell me about your life. What advice do you
have for the rest of us? And there's a section of his book about money. And he says, of the thousand people,
it's a thousand people he interviewed.

Centenarians' Greatest Regrets: Relationships Over Riches

Of the 1,000 centenarians he interviewed, not a single one of them looking back at their lives said, I wish I
earned more money. Not one, but virtually every one of them said, I wish I spent more time with my kids. I
wish I was nicer to people.

Balancing Time and Financial Security

I wish I spent more time with my friends, my family. That was universal. But earn more money was not in
there whatsoever. That stuck with me. And as you point out, however, earning money allows for the
opportunity to spend time with kids and loved ones of all kinds. It can, but I think there are a lot of people for
whom it's the opposite.

The High Cost of Success: How Wealth Can Come at a Personal Price
If you are a partner at a law firm, you're earning a ton of money. Congratulations, great. If you have a big
house and a nice car, you're also probably working 100 hours a week. And the things that might fill your soul,
it's different for everybody. This is not universal, but what might actually make you happy, spending time
with your friends, your family, exercising, sleeping late is not available to you.

Wealth vs. Independence: Why Making Millions May Not Be Enough

So that's why it's independence plus purpose. And I think there are a lot of people who make millions of
dollars per year and have no independence whatsoever. They are completely tied to their boss's whims, to
their work, to their employer.

Wealth Without Independence Can Be Unfulfilling

They might love it. I'm not saying you shouldn't do that, but they have no independence at all. I think there are
billionaires who have no independence because they are so tied to doing things whether they like it or not.
And that's, I think a lot of people go crazy in that situation because they're like, I'm making $5 million a year,
but it's not making me any happier. It's like, yeah, what would make you happier as independence? And you
are pushing yourself away from that.

The Paradox of Wealth: Why Money Doesn't Equal Freedom

You were probably more independent when you were 15 and had no money than you are at 40 making
millions of dollars a year. There's an entrepreneur named Felix Dennis, who wrote a book many years ago
called How to Get Rich. And there's a quote in that book. He says, he was at the time maybe in his 70s and
worth about a billion dollars, something like that. And he said, if I knew what I knew now and I could do life
over again, I would make as much money as I could retire age 35, and plant trees and write poetry.

Perseverance and hard work despite success.

And he's like, looking back, that's what I should have done is do. But let's leave aside that of course, not
everybody can do that. What did he do? He kept working. He kept working. Even though he didn't need more
money.

The Psychological Thresholds of Wealth

Absolutely. This is interesting because people who do achieve a high degree of wealth at a young age seem to
keep going. I mean, we can speculate all day, but what this guy Felix said really rings true. It seems like once
people reach a number, and for everyone, it's going to be different.

Beyond a Certain Point, Wealth Loses Its Appeal

It's not going to be a billion dollars for everybody. Once they have enough resources for themselves and the
people they need to take care of, maybe a bit more as a buffer, it makes no sense to continue on that path.
Well, I think there are a lot of people.

Passion Beyond Financial Gain

I think you're one of them and I'm one of them who enjoy what they do. And if you and I got to a point where
we're completely financially independent, all the money will need for the rest of our life, I would still be a
writer. You would still do your research because we enjoy it.

Loving Your Work vs. Loving Money

Yeah, absolutely. I love learning. It's not just, right. And I think if actually if you are the kind of person who
says once I hit my number, I'm done, you probably don't love your work at all. Almost by definition, you
don't. I think what's dangerous, though, is when the money itself is part of your identity.

The Financial Pressures of Being a Writer

I like being a writer. I like the process of writing. But if I were to say, I have to keep writing books because I
need to make more money. I just, I have to have a higher net worth, particularly if I'm past the point of taking
care of my family.

Money as a Double-Edged Sword: Asset vs. Liability

Then at that point, I think money is actually like a liability. It's a financial asset and a psychological liability.
It's taking control over what you're doing in life.

The Characteristics of Addiction

If you're saying, I have to have more of it. I mean, if there's anything in life where you're like, I have to have
more, and even when I get more, my satiation point goes higher and higher. What is that? It's an addiction.

Wealth and Addiction: How Money Can Become a Psychological Liability

And that's controlling you at that point. So there are a lot of people for whom money is a financial asset and a
psychological liability. And I think that's actually true for some of the richest people in society. That the
more, like it grows exponentially over time. The richer you become, the more addicted to having more grows
on you. In the backdrop of everything we've talked about thus far is the biology of dopamine reward.

Dopamine: Beyond Reward, a Driver of Movement and Pursuit

Dopamine, of course, being a molecule that people associate with reward, but it's really about the pursuit of
reward. It's about more. It's about, and it's no coincidence that dopamine is involved in generating movement
in the body. This is why people with Parkinson's who are depleted in dopamine can't generate movement, and
it's also involved in generating cognitive movement and pursuit, paying attention to things.

Addiction as a Quest for Safety and Pleasure

There is this idea that I've been pushing for a few years now that kind of throws its arms around a big
literature on dopamine that says that addiction is a progressive narrowing of the things that bring you
pleasure. But your definition is actually much better, I realize. Addiction is a progressive narrowing of the
things that bring you pleasure and or safety or a sense of safety. Right? Because here we're not talking about
making more money to enjoy things more. We're talking about making more money to avoid the sense that
pain is coming or that we are vulnerable. And for a lot of people, that pain is a social pain, that they're not
going to climb high enough on the social ladder, that their peers are earning more than them, that their
neighbors have a bigger house, whatever it might be. That's the pain that they're trying to avoid.

The Unwinnable Game of Material Comparison

And that is a game that cannot be won because gratefully, thankfully, there are a lot of very wealthy people in
this world. And no matter how much money you're making, there's always somebody out there who's earning
more, living better, and has a bigger house and a nicer car. That's always the case.

The Futility of Keeping Up with the Joneses

So if you are on that path of, I need to earn more to climb that ladder, so I can have more than the next guy. I
mean, that's a game that you cannot win. And I think that game of comparison too also grows the wealthier
you are. The billionaires are more likely to compare themselves to other billionaires than the minimum wage
worker is to compare themselves to somebody making $10 an hour or whatever. You are more likely to
compare your lifestyle the richer you become.

Wealth and Insecurity: A Paradoxical Connection

And since that comparison to other people is what gives you a feeling of inadequacy. There's this irony. It's
hard to wrap your head around it and come to terms with it, but some of the most money insecure people
you'll ever meet are the richest people you'll ever meet.
When Excess Becomes Identity: The Psychological Burden of Wealth

People who live in a 15,000 square foot mansion, yeah, but he's got a 17,000 square foot mansion. Things that
ordinary people would never consider that just consumes their life. And again, that's the point where money is
like the psychological debt, it's psychological liability. It's controlling their, it becomes an integral part of
their identity. They wake up in the morning and look in the mirror and they see a person who makes money.

When Money Defines Your Identity

That's their identity. Who are you? I'm a person who makes money. And that's when like your process of
chasing it just becomes like a detriment to your happiness over time. You're not using it as a tool to live a
better life.

The Illusion of Functionality: How High-Achievers Can Mask Inner Struggles

And for people that can place their addiction within work, it has this feedback of being quote unquote
functional as opposed to dysfunctional. This is also true for people that are continually seeking awards within
their profession. I mean, there are these professions, academia included, but other professions where people
are constantly pinning awards on one another, and it gives this illusion of progress when, in fact, there's a
whole world of things happening. Now, these people often have quite healthy families and relationships, so
they're not mutually exclusive. But I think, I know a few billionaires, not many, but I know some that are very
happy.

Priorities of the Wealthy Shift from Legacy to Health

They tend to be the people that are still working and in pursuit of new things, avid learners. Not through
legacy, although I think many of them like to provide for the next generations in their family, surely. Not so
much by putting their names on the sides of buildings anymore. This used to be the way it was done, but
rather trying to secure their health status. Because the one thing that money can buy sort of is better health
care, but money can't buy you more years of your life, except by virtue of the things that you are willing to
not do and do behaviorally.

Health Becomes the New Status Symbol for Modern Billionaires

Yeah. You still have to exercise. You still have to get your sleep. You have to avoid certain things. And so the
modern billionaires often are talking about what they're doing for their health as opposed to their yacht, their
car, etc. This has now become the kind of metric for comparison. Blood profiles become a sort of point of
bragging for people.

The Paradoxical Relationship Between Wealth and Physical Health

It's pretty interesting, especially given that you just look back about 50 or even 100 years and further back.
And the more wealthy people were, the less physical labor they were doing. Now they're doing more physical
labor to try and live longer. So what are your thoughts on the relationship between physical health and
money? I mean, obviously there's a sweet spot there, but there's no pill that people can purchase to live
longer. Right. I view it in the negative sense of the people who work to get money so hard that it takes a
physical toll on their body. And that is so incredibly common.

The Elusiveness of Measuring Health vs Financial Wealth

And that's another form of debt that you can very easy, you can easily measure your net worth and your
income. You can put a number on it very clean to measure. How do you, it's much harder to measure your
health.

Wealth Doesn't Always Equal Happiness or Health

And it's, I think it's easier for people to say, yes, I'm only sleeping five hours a night and I'm getting, I'm on
my third divorce and I'm overweight, but I'm making a lot of money this year. Because one is very easy to
measure, and the others are much harder. Your happiness, your health, whatnot, is harder to measure that.
And I do think, too, that if you are very wealthy, particularly the very, very wealthy, you get so accustomed
towards, I can snap my fingers and literally get anything, a Gulfstream jet, a mansion, whatever, I can get it
right now. And I think that's, there's a long history of that, going back to the robber barons.

Even Billionaires Can't Buy Happiness

John D. Rockefeller was obsessed with it. Andrew Carnegie was obsessed with it. If you can have everything
material in the world, you're still going to have desire.

Achieving the American Dream Through Homeownership

And ordinary people can sit around and dream and say, one day I'm going to have the mansion. We're not
even a mansion. One day I'm going to have a house of my own.

Dreams Beyond Material Wealth

I'm going to have a car. I'm going to send my kids to college. Everybody wants to dream. So if all that is a
given, you have all the money you could ever spend, you still want to dream. So what do you dream about?
You dream about immortality. And so I think that's been the case for a very long period of time.

Wealthy Britons' Unlikely Demise: A Historical Study

What's interesting too is that there was a, there was a historian who looked back at the British peerage. He got
a lot of data on how long people lived in various points of the UK economy. And what he found was until
about, I think it was 1750, the richest members of the UK had among the shortest lives. The poorest people
were some of them who were living the longest. And he dug into it, so how could this be? The richest people
die the fastest. And what he found is the richest people were the only ones who could afford all the quack
medicines and the sham doctors who were just poisoning them.

The Dark History of False Promises for a Better Life.

They were poisoning them back in the day when we knew nothing about medicine. So I think the idea of I
want a better life and I should be able to buy that. Like there's a long history of that backfiring on people as
well.

Risks of Unproven Stem Cell Treatments Abroad

Yeah, there's a lot of excitement right now about stem cells and treatments that currently are not available in
the United States that are available out of country. And I get asked about these a lot. Most of them don't have
FDA approval yet. Some of them probably never will have FDA approval. We'll probably talk about stem
cells another time. Do you think you see this though where the wealthiest people are spending money on
treatments that you either know are not gonna work or are a very questionable work. All the time. And then
might backfire on you. That might make you less healthy. Oh, absolutely.

Cautionary Tale: Stem Cell Clinic's Questionable Practices Exposed

I mean, I'll just point out, I don't have anything against stem cell therapies. I think they hold great potential.
But there is a true story about a stem cell clinic down in Florida prior to the FDA, you know, bringing the
gavel down on them of injecting stem cells into the eyes of wealthy people who could afford the treatment.

The Rise of Stem Cell Therapy Abroad: A New Frontier in Longevity and Vision Restoration

These people had certain markers for macular degeneration and other things that can cause blindness. And
guess what happened to these people? They all went blind. So that brought the gavel down on stem cell
therapy generally in this country. A lot of people are getting infusions of stem cells and related things out of
country. They're coming back and they're walking and talking and they're calling me and they're asking what
my thoughts are and I have a lot of thoughts. I mean, I think that the basics of longevity are clear, right? I
mean, you want to avoid head trauma and environmental toxins. Those things are real. And if you have
certain mutations, like brachom mutations, you know, you need to be more careful about cancer and avoid
smoking, all this stuff, right? Alcohol turns out to be pro-cancerous and things of that sort.

Wealthy Individuals Seeking Longevity Through Lifestyle and Technology

But then it's, you know, it's physical activity, it's nutrition, it's social connection, it's sleep, it's sunlight, it's all
the things that I've talked about on this podcast and that other people talk about as well. But yes, very wealthy
people are looking for that edge to live longer. Right. We still don't know. With the exception of exercise that
we absolutely know can enrich mitochondrial density, give people more energy and vigor, et cetera, you
know, most of this is still a big question mark. See, I can see a very wealthy person using their money if you
are very sick and you have a rare cancer to throw the kitchen sink at it. Oh, every excellent doctor. Those
million dollar therapies and whatnot, absolutely. I think it's a different animal if you are already pretty healthy
to say, I'm gonna throw my money at trying to become immortal or close to it, whatever it might be.

The Pursuit of More: Dopamine and Human Motivation

That's a different thing. I totally agree. And in some cases, that's the sustaining factor to their well-being. You
say it's also good to be in pursuit, right? Maybe that's with dopamine too, right? We always want more. It's the
pursuit of more.

The Insatiable Pursuit of More

And if you're wealthy enough to have everything, you still have a part of your brain. It's like, yeah, but I want
more. I want more. I want more. By a lot of historical definitions, they have everything. They have everything
you would ever need. But you're always yearning for more. It's always this pursuit of, well, what else don't I
have? And I think nothing, what you want more than anything in life is what you want and cannot have.

The Dopamine Loop: Chasing Elusive Rewards

That's what you're gonna chase with all of your effort is the thing that you want and cannot have. I think that's
where health comes in for a lot of these people. As long as you think that there's a possibility you could get it.
The dopamine circuit loves you want what you feel is just out of your reach, but might be possible to achieve.
I mean, this is why people throw so much money away gambling. But maybe with social media, it makes it
seem so that there are, virtually anything is within your reach.

Social Media Alters Reality: The Unattainable Expectations Created by Curated Online Highlights

Because it used to be before social media that your view of the world was mostly your neighbors and your
coworkers and your siblings. And now everybody's view of the world is a curated highlight real of the most
extreme events in the world. So if you are 15-year-old scrolling through Instagram, then what is within your
reach, what looks within your reach is a Ferrari and a private jet and a mansion in a way that didn't exist when
you and I were kids. I think it makes the aspiration level that much harder. And real examples of people who
went from nothing to immensely popular or wealthy, et cetera.

The Power of Unwavering Ambition

I mean, gosh, I would say about once a month, somebody walks right up to me and says, just watch someday,
I'm gonna have the top podcast in the world on blank. And they're trying to seed this thing that they've seen
on social media, which are examples of people, you know, kind of used to be called rags to riches, but, you
know, the parallels in different universes. But there's a famous musician, I think his name is Ed Sheeran, who
there's still a video of him early on saying like he knew he was going to make it. If you watch the Connor
McGregor documentary, it's amazing. I think it's called Notorious on Netflix, even if people aren't into to
MMA, they should at least watch the first part. Like when he was an absolute nobody, he was practicing his
Grammy acceptance speech of just like absolute ambition of where you're going. Yeah, and I don't know if
this anecdote is true, but there's the anecdote that I heard that, you know, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck
practicing their Academy Awards acceptance speech in the school yard when they were kids.

Skateboarding Heroes of Youth

And then they gave their speech and they were, you know, laughing about that. I grew up skateboarding. So
the, the, when I first got into it, the Tony Hawks and the Mike McGills and Steve Caballeros, these were the
names at the time where like these luminaries, right? The gap between us and them was so huge.

How My Friend Became a Sponsored Skater

By time I was a junior in high school, my best friend at the time, Paul Zawnich sent in a videotape of himself
to a company called Planet Earth. He got sponsored. Next thing you know, we're in the shop watching him
skateboard.

Social Media: A Launchpad to Overnight Success

And within a year or two, he had his own pro model. So I think social media gives us not just the sense of
what's out there, but it gives us very salient examples of people that went from completely unknown to
extremely known. Just this last year, there's the, you know, the so-called Haktua girl, you know, is
interviewed outside a bar, so- now has a very popular podcast. She has sponsors, she's known. Literally
became one of the most famous people in the country. Right. And it has a financial stream now of income
through her podcast.

Rise of Social Media: Influencer Career Aspirations Among Teenagers

And if you look at the studies, when you ask teenagers, what is your preferred career? What do you want to be
when you grew up? It used to be astronaut, used to be doctor, used to be entrepreneur. Now it's influencer by
far is what people want to be. It seems like the quickest path to fame and wealth. And for a lot of people it is.
My sister-in-law is a kindergarten teacher.

Social Media Success Inspires Hope in Younger Generations

She has a girl in her class who has over a million followers on YouTube as a kindergartener. Like that didn't
exist when you and I were kids, or it was so rare. But now, like enough people know stories like that, even if
there are a few of them, enough people know stories to give you the sense of hope of like, well, if they could
do it, I could do it too.

The Dark Side of Fame: How Celebrity Status Can Limit Freedom

Well, I'll tell everyone out there that if you think that fame is what you want, fame restricts your freedom. It
does not increase your freedom. There's a great quote from Naval where he says, what you want to be is rich
and anonymous.

The Ideal Financial Position

That's a sweet spot that you want to be. The opposite, you are poor and famous. And that's the hardest spot to
be in. And you can measure your asset.

The High Cost of Fame: A Social Debt to Happiness

It's not actually debt, it's not like debt you repay the bank, but it's very much a debt in terms of it is an anchor
on your happiness that you have to repay. And fame is the ultimate social debt. And for a lot of people, their
social debt of fame is more than the money that they made from whatever made them famous to begin with.
And there's this anecdote from Tiger Woods where he said, he loves scuba diving because when he's 100 feet
under the ocean is the only time in the world where people aren't taking pictures of him and asking things of
him and gawking at him. Like that's, that sucks. That's not that you have a lot of sympathy for somebody like
that, but it does suck.

The Intangible Costs of Lost Privacy

Like you can measure his net worth very quickly. What's your net worth? Just show me the number. How do
you measure the liability of feeling like you have no privacy unless you are scuba diving? That's a hard thing.
And at various levels, a lot of people have that. Even if you are, earn a modest income.
When Fortune Strikes: Managing Social Debts and Expectations

And all of a sudden, your friends, your family starts saying, hey, I heard you got to raise. I could use it a little
bit myself. That's a social debt. They want you to pay at dinner and whatnot. And for it, maybe you're happy
to do that. You're happy to share it.

The Dark Side of Social Media Addiction: How Tech Giants Manipulate Our Brains

Yeah, the smartest minds of the generation work at Facebook and Instagram and Twitter to figure out how to
give you phomo, how to generate a little bit more dopamine, and they're very good at it. I'd like to take a
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Unlocking Health Insights through Advanced Lab Testing

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Reflecting on Life's Priorities: Writing Your Own Obituary

Function currently has a wait list of over 250,000 people, but they're offering early access to Huberman Lab
listeners. Again, that's functionhealth.com slash Huberman to get early access to function. They wish they had
spent more time with their kids or more time in nature perhaps. Yeah, Warren Buffett brought this up one
time. He said, a good way to think about life is, it's kind of grim, but he said, write what you want your
obituary to say and then work backwards to live up to it. And in that situation, if you were to write, like, what
do you want your obituary to say? Most people would say, oh, I hope it says Morgan was a good father.

Resume Virtues vs Eulogy Virtues: What Truly Matters

He was a good husband. He helped his community. He was admired by his coworkers. That's what I wanted
to say. And for a lot of people, it's different for everyone, but it would be something like that. And why
Buffett said it was important is because nobody who's writing their preferred obituary would say, would
include the size of their house, how many horsepower their car had, how nice their clothes were. Because
everybody knows it doesn't matter. And it's like, forget who made this idea. There's a thing between resume
virtues and eulogy virtues.

The Difference Between Resume Virtues and Eulogy Virtues

David Brooks said that. Thank you. Resume virtues are, you know, how much money you make, your
degrees, everything. Eulogy virtues is he was a great father, he was a great friend, he helped his community,
he was funny.

Pursuing Happiness Beyond Resume Virtues

And I think most people really aspire to have eulogy virtues, but they spend all their day chasing resume
virtues. Resume virtues can be great. I want a good education, I want a good income, but what you're really
trying to chase is to use those things to gain more resume virtues at the end of the day. So I think if you think
about it through that lens, a lot of these things become clear. And that's why, like I said, going on a great
vacation with my kids, if that's a 10, what's really fun about that is spending time with them when I'm
detached from work. I'm not checking my phone every seven seconds. I'm just spending hours with my kids
giving them my full attention. That's what made me happy.

Experiences vs. Possessions: The Value of Time Over Material Wealth

The view was great on the beach, cool, but that's what made me happy and I can do that at home, can I? And
so that's the difference between like going to Maui is a resume virtue, spending time with your kids as a
eulogy virtue. And you can look at the plot. You can look at that line upward into the right. It almost always is
jagged line drifting upward to the right and even just scroll over and see, okay, at age, whatever, I'm going to
have X number of dollars.

Why People Fail to Save Despite Knowing Its Importance

And that value is often very high relative to where one's current wealth is, even if they're a student or they
have very little put away. We all hear this, we can see it, You can run the models. It's almost trivial. And yet
people don't do that, even if they have the income to save.

The Irrationality of Time Perception and Human Decision-Making

I mean, I think we both agree that time perception is a complicated thing. But you would think that people
would just sort of get it, but we're not rational. Most people aren't rational in that way. They don't save.

The Dangers of Not Investing: Missing Out on Compound Interest

They don't invest and they don't compound interest. And so they end up with a lot less money than they could
have and a lot more regret. Yeah. I think there's two ways to think about this. One is my friend Michael
Battenk could phrase it this way.

Our Brains Struggle with Exponential Thinking

He said, if I ask you, what is eight plus eight plus eight plus eight? You figure that out in five seconds. That's
an easy one. If I said what is eight times eight times eight times eight, even if you're a math nerd, it's too hard.
You can't figure it out. We're not wired for exponential thinking. You just can't do it. And therefore, a lot of
this, even if you show you the numbers, hey, invest a small amount, retire with a million dollars.

The Dangers of Overestimating Compound Interest's Impact on Young Investors' Savings Goals

I think it's so counterintuitive that most people see that and you're like, okay, that doesn't really seem right,
doesn't really pass a sniff test, how big the numbers can get, how quickly the numbers can get big. The other
thing is if you tell a young person, hey, you have 50 years in front of you to invest. That's great. Times on
your side. When you're 70 years old, you're going to have $10 million. 50 years from now might as well be
10,000 years from now. You're talking about people who don't know what they're going to eat for dinner
tonight.

The Challenge of Long-Term Thinking

And you're talking about, like, hey, let's talk about the year 2077. It's so far out of there. Even if that's the
right way to think about it, it's a tough way to think about it. And time perception, you mentioned, is so
difficult for people. If I said, you're going to get punched in the face in 10 seconds, like that's a fear. And
you're like, oh, I don't, but if I said someone's going to punch you in the face 50 years from now, I'm like, I'll
deal with it when I get there.

Understanding Personal Finance: Either You Get It or You Don't

It's so easy to put out of sight, out of mind. And so, and the other thing is, Warren Buffett talked about this a
lot. He said, actually it was Charlie Munger who said this. He said, when teaching finance to young people,
people either understand it instantly or never. It's like, some people are just wired to get it and some people
aren't. And that's always been the case.

Financial Success: A Rarity by Math's Design

Munger often said all the time, he said, the iron rule of math is only 1% of people can end up in the top 1%.
And that's why for a lot of people, yes, you should save and invest for 50 years. Let's not pretend that that is
easy or that everybody is psychologically able to do it. Some people are wired differently. Of course that's the
case, as they are with health and intelligence and lots of other things. So I do think there's a thing for financial
education, of getting people to understand what is possible. But I don't think we'll ever live in a world where
everyone gets it and does it. I don't think that world has never existed, I think will never exist, because it's not
math.

Understanding Behavior vs. Knowledge: The Gap Between Knowing Better and Acting On It

It's not a spreadsheet. It's behavior. And we now live in a world where we understand the dangers of smoking
and highly processed foods and whatever it might be. But even if we know it, people still do it because it's
behavioral. It's not intelligence.

Effective Persuasion: Tapping into Rebellion Rather Than Health Fears

So showing people the numbers and getting them to do it is night and day. Do you know how they got people
to stop smoking, in particular young people? It wasn't by scaring them about their health. Turns out the most
effective campaign to get, especially young people to stop smoking, was to hijack the inherent rebellion of
youth and to display ads of wealthy older people in rooms full of smoke. So it became us as the youth
rebelling against them, the older generation that are trying to take our money, it had nothing to do with health.

A Successful Experiment

I love that. And it absolutely worked. Yeah. So I found that to be interesting.

Can the Dopamine Reward System Handle Exponential Thinking?

You used a math example of 8 plus 8 plus 8 plus 8 versus 8 times 8 times 8 times eight. And you said that the
human brain is not capable of exponential thinking or most people's brains are not capable of exponential
thinking. I think you either intentionally or inadvertently hit on something really important. I don't know that
the dopamine reward system, which is the fundamental currency of pursuit and reward across all timescales.
It's incredible and across many species. So it makes me wonder, and I'll have to ask some of my colleagues
that work on these dopamine reward schedules for a living, whether or not the dopamine reward system
actually can do exponential math.

Delayed Gratification: The Key to Long-Term Wealth?

It might not be able to do exponential math. Or if it's like the marshmallow test, which got misconstrued in
many ways, but it's like, yeah, would you rather have one right now or two in the future? I think for a lot of
people, it's just like there. There are some people for whom, like, they're wired so differently for this. So you
hear stories about like the old, the old very wealthy people, the old billionaires of them. When they were 20
years old, they would not get a haircut because they knew that $3 haircut would compound into $100 by the
time they're older.

The Rarity of Long-Term Thinkers

They were just so wired from birth to understand this and to have a very long perception of time to do it. By
definition, that's the rarity. Most people are not like that. And I don't know if they should be either. I don't
know if you should be the kind of person your entire life who is always saving for a future and never enjoying
what you have too. Like that could lead to a lot of regret as well. And there are those people.

The Origins of the Marshmallow Test

So let's parse the marshmallow test. The marshmallow test, I think, initially done at Stanford. I think it was a
Bing nursery school or something like that, or maybe somewhere at Stanford.

Human Self-Constraint Behavior Revealed

If I'm wrong, someone will correct me in the comments. I mean, it reveals as much variation on human
self-constraint behavior as you could possibly imagine. And they're really interesting, as you know.
How Children Resist Temptation: A Key to Self-Control

I would like to know whether the children that were able to wait and therefore get two marshmallows were
trying to resist the temptation or whether or not they were being pulled forward by the anticipation of two
marshmallows. My understanding, and maybe this is not complete, but my understanding, at least part of it,
was neither of those two things. The kids who did the best and resisted it were the ones who distracted
themselves. They weren't even thinking about the marshmallow. They would sing a song, they would start
playing with their shoes, they'd play with another kid, and the ones who could not resist are the ones who just
sat there staring at the one marshmallow that was tempting them.

The Marshmallow Test and Delayed Gratification

That's too hard to resist. Almost everybody will resist that. It was like the environment that they put
themselves in. But they weren't thinking into the future about how great it would be to have two
marshmallows.

Children's Distractibility Affects Parenting Style

I don't think so. I think they were so because their kids are so distracted. They have the memory of a goldfish.
They wanted, they wanted to just go do something.

Waiting is Made Easier with Distractions

They'd sing a song. They'd play with their shoes. They'd play with their friends. And then by dint of doing
that, all of a sudden, they had waited long enough to get the two marshmallows.

The Temptation of Constant Market Updates

I think that was at least part of it. And I think there's true for a lot of people too. Think about the stock market
where so much temptation to always watch it and see what it's doing because we have CNBC and there's the
ticker and the lights are green and red and whatnot. For a lot of people, it's impossible to watch that. Or even
worse, in Robin Hood, you get a push notification on your phone.

Using a Dedicated Phone for Social Media Management

That's too hard to resist. My way of dealing with social media, I would say compulsion, not addiction, is I
now, one could take an old phone. I actually got a phone specifically for social media. So I have Instagram
and X on that phone. I don't even recall the number of that phone. I air drop things onto it if I want to post and
I do what Rogan calls post and ghost.

The Dark Side of Social Media: How Algorithms Can Derail Your Productivity

So you post and then it goes into a box because otherwise I'm just absolutely blown away by how much time
can be sucked away. All of it. You tell yourself, I'm going to just look at social media for a moment, and then
you're pulled down some rabbit hole. It's just incredible the way they've designed these algorithms to get you.
And of course, I like social media. I teach on social media.

The Dark Side of Social Media Addiction

This conversation will probably be, you know, fragments of it will be on social media. But I think that people
don't realize how compulsion inducing the dopamine circuitry is. And once you start getting pulled down it,
you're a different organism altogether. And it's not a coincidence that the people who have the largest social
media accounts spend very little time on social media.

Balancing Social Media Engagement with Content Creation

This is, if you spend too much, it just gets overwhelmed. Well, you're spending time doing things like
commenting and liking and there's a liability to some of that, but there's a reward to it too, an immediate
reward. What you're not doing is going and doing the thing that you bring to social media that brings you
more followers and views.

Cultivating Creativity: How to Replenish Ideas and Stay Inspired

But that's the end point. And so if I stay too long there, then I'm not getting more material. It's almost like if I
were a farmer, you know, this is like, you know, once the crops ship, you know, I'm not going to stand there
just like looking at the road as the truck goes by. by the way field yeah you got to get back and plant more
seeds and plow the field i mean so i like to think about these things in these very basic terms because i feel
that the dopamine circuitry has it it hasn't evolved. Right. Right, but we have new technologies that have
hijacked it to some extent. Jerry Seinfeld said one of the reason he quit his show in the 1990s was because
what made it so good and so funny is that he and Larry David would go like sit in a deli and watch people
order and make a joke.

When Fame Interferes with Inspiration

That's where they got their content from was observing the world. But they got so busy and so famous that
they couldn't do that anymore. And once it came at the expense of that, it didn't work anymore.

Finding a Career with a Pleasure-Pain Balance

Well, this raises a really key point for people, including myself, which is in an ideal world, one can make a
living that is sufficient for their needs doing something that you truly enjoy doing. Or I would say to be
realistic, where 75% of the activities are pleasurable. Maybe 15% are kind of neutral. And then the remainder,
there's some punishing features. There are punishing features in every profession. Jeff Bezos said, if you can
enjoy half, that's pretty good.

A More Optimistic Approach to Work and Life

Okay. All right. So I'm a little more stringent with my, yeah, more of an optimist than Bezos. Hey, I don't, but
then again, he's Bezos. Yeah, I mean, you want to be able to enjoy your work.

The Importance of Effort in Dopamine Release

Not all aspects of it are going to be pleasurable, but ideally that's the case. Because what we're talking about
here is effort that precedes dopamine. And I'm a big believer that dopamine that is not preceded by effort is
very dangerous. It's not just things that are addictive, but by way of example, methamphetamine, cocaine,
dramatically and quickly spike dopamine levels. With no effort put in. With no effort put in. And typically
what people do is when they're below baseline in terms of their dopamine, that's when they really start hitting
the hammer with whatever behavior or substance.

Instant Wealth vs. Sustained Success

And all it does is drive that baseline further and further and further down. Maybe that's a good analogy for the
lottery winner who gets a lot of money, a lot of dopamine in this example, but didn't put anything into it. You
didn't build a business.

The Value of Earned Success vs. Luck

You didn't work at your career. You just got lucky. So it doesn't feel as good. There's no effort put into to like
base it against. Compare it against what you were talking about before, which is time that's unstructured with
your kids playing Legos.

Effortless Experiences as a Source of Reward and Enrichment

It's almost, it sounds effortless. It's not like you're like, oh, I got to go play with my boys, Legos. I'm sure that
you're like, yes, like this is fun. This is the good stuff, as they say. And so there are forms of reward, it seems,
that are not preceded by effort, although you had to raise those kids and your wife had to give birth to those
kids and it's work. But in terms of what's happening in that limited timeframe, it's just so seamless, right? It's
just sheer pleasure. And yet that kind of pleasure is enriching.
The Complexities of Pleasure and Motivation: Beyond Dopamine

This has me very perplexed. As a biologist, I still don't know the underlying mechanisms, but clearly we have
multiple paths to pleasure, but I think we have only one path for motivation, and that's dopamine. But I think
there are multiple forms of pleasure, and I'm certain that dopamine that is high levels of dopamine that are not
preceded by effort are not just bad. They are downright dangerous. I feel like so much of it too with parenting.

Creating Lasting Memories Through Everyday Travel Experiences

This is a slightly different topic, but it's the things that you're not trying to have fun with that build the biggest
memories. And for me, it's when I travel with my son, he's nine, so we go on a lot of trips now. What's fun is
not the event we're going to, whether it's skiing or a football game. That's not the best part of the trip. The best
part of the trip is flying with him, renting a car with him, going out to dinner with him. That's where you get
all the memories.

The Bonding Power of Shared Journeys

It's like it's a process of doing it that's going to you're really enjoying that's going to build all the memories,
not necessarily the final destination where you're going. There's something bonding about traveling with
people. Yeah. It's even in the absence of external input, like you're just, what is that? It must be something
fundamental, some fundamental circuit about journeying with other members of our species. Going through a
challenge with someone, going through a journey of like, we did this together.

Shared Experiences Foster Deeper Connections

We went through it together. I think there's so much of that. If you go on a long hike with somebody at the
top, you want to hug each other. Like we just did that together. And it's not even not being at the top.

Reflections on Life Journeys and the Search for Solitude

It's like the journey you did with each other. So, it's so cliche, but I think it's true for a lot of things. And
what's that movie with Emil Hirsch where it's a true story about the guy that goes out into the Alaskan
wilderness and lives on that bus. And sadly, he passes away there. I just spoiled it for you.

The Psychological Toll of Solitary Confinement

But he has, I think it's called Into the Wild. Absolutely. Yeah. And this is why solitary confinement is such a
torture. The extreme end of it.

Freedom's Alternative to Brutality

Brutal. Brutal. On the other end of the spectrum, there's freedom. So let's talk about freedom.

Two Forms of Enslavement: External Traps and Internal Drives

Yeah. It means different things to different people, but certainly one does not want to be enslaved by
anything, including their own pursuit of work. So there, I think, at least two forms of anti-freedom. One
would be the type that exists within our head. We have to continue on this track because I'm afraid of failure
or I'm in pursuit of something and we are actually enslaved in a way that we create for ourselves in the act of
pursuit. The other is the job where it's providing resources, but we really don't need to be there.

Why People Stay in Unfulfilling Situations

And yet people don't hop off the train. You know, they could. They could escape the dreaded boss or the
dreaded circumstance. You know, I remember a time when all I wanted was a window at work that opened
for fresh air. That's all I wanted.

Longing for a Glimpse of Freedom

All these other things, I just wanted a window that opened. I even tried to find one of these little saws to saw,
but then the maintenance people or whatever, the facilities people told me I'd get in trouble. We yearn for
freedom.

A Boy's Rebellion Against Routine

We hate enslavement for all the obvious reasons. I think he was like five years old. He complained to his
mother one day. He said, my entire life is rules and schedules, and I hate it. So his mom said, okay, Frankie,
tomorrow, you can do whatever you want. The day is yours, anything you want.

True Freedom: Embracing Autonomy Without Abandoning Responsibility

And his mom, Sarah Roosevelt, wrote in her diary that night. He said that day that he could do anything, he
went back to his normal schedule. He did everything on schedule like he was supposed to do, but he was
much happier because nobody was telling him to do it. And I think that's what's true for a lot of people.
Freedom does not mean you do nothing. It doesn't necessarily mean you retire.

Redefining Freedom: Autonomy Over Leisure

It doesn't mean you quit working. I want to be free and independent, which means I want to wake up every
morning and say I can do whatever the hell I want today, even if most mornings what I want to do is work and
be productive and put myself to use. So I think a lot of people misconstrue freedom as I'm going to ride off
into the sunset and do nothing now. It's like, no, I think people have an inherent drive to want to be productive
and social and do things. But there's a big difference between your boss telling you to do it and doing it on
your own terms. When I was a junior in college, like a lot of young men, I wanted to be an investment banker.
That's what looked like power and prestige. So I got this investment banking internship and it was absolutely
miserable.

Toxic Work Culture Leads to Burnout

They had this saying that it's so funny in hindsight. They said, if you don't come to work on Saturday, don't
bother coming back on Sunday. Like just the culture of it was work is work 100 hours a week, just go nuts
with it. And I hated it every single second and I had to leave. But it wasn't because I was not into hard work.

Motivation Through Autonomy: Why People Prefer Hard Work on Their Own Terms

I think I was absolutely willing to work hard, I didn't want anyone to tell me to do it. And so when I became,
you know, not necessarily financially independent, but I could have a job, it was more entrepreneurial, it was
like, oh, I will work very hard. And sometimes I might work as hard as an investment banker. I might work 80
hours a week, but it's on my terms. And I think everyone is way more willing to do that than they are to be
told what to do. I think that is an inherent human driver.

True Freedom: Achieving Independence through Financial Autonomy

That giving yourself independence and autonomy, I think for most people is what's going to drive. That's the
highest tool that you can use with money. And what's important about that is where do you get independence
with money? It's the things you don't spend money on.

The Value of Money Not Spent

It's the car you didn't buy. It's the house you didn't buy. And most people will view that as like idle money.

Viewing Savings as a Path to Independence

You're saving up money. It's just sitting in the bank doing nothing. No, no, no, it's giving you independence.
And once you view as like every dollar that you don't spend is money that you are actually spending on
independence. It's not idle.

Saving Money for Independence, Not Doom

It's giving you a, it's giving you marginal more independence than you had the day before. Then I think that's,
to me, that's why I save money. I'm not saving money because I'm a pessimist. I think it's all going to come
collapsing down.

Saving for Independence and Happiness

I'm saving money because I want to be independent because that's what I think is going to give me the most
fulfillment, the most happiness. And that's where the savings comes from. Wow.

Navigating Career Uncertainty: Should You Stay or Go?

I think this is a super important concept. How should the person who is, let's just say early mid career, who
likes what they're doing, but thinks that this is probably not the thing for them? I hear about this all the time.
It's just like, yeah, it's good, but it's a ton of work. It's unclear how it's going to turn out, but they feel like
they're already on the conveyor belt. There's always this question of do you stay in investment banking
another year to make a bunch of money and then you get out so that you then have the freedom to pursue
something where you have more freedom.

Personal Passion vs Financial Reward

People are always playing this kind of mental math. And I don't think there's a clear answer unless, of course,
you're lucky enough that like you fall in love with science. I mean, I did not become a neuroscientist to make
money.

Despite Prestigious Position, Professor's Income Falls Short

And Lord knows I didn't. I mean, I made some living, but if people heard what I was making as a tenured, 45
year old professor at one of the premier universities in the world where the salaries are relatively high, they
would be shocked. Just shocked that post-tax income is quite low by Bay Area standards. Right.

Valuing Independence in Teaching

But did you feel like you had independence? You could teach what you want, say what you want. There was a
level of independence. Absolutely. Oh, and I loved it. And, you know, and I still teach there. And, you know,
it's one of these things where I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Finding Fulfillment and Autonomy in Work and Life

No one ends up there by accident. So that was and remains extremely exciting. But I think a lot of people,
unless they find a profession that they really love, or there's some feature of that profession that keeps them,
you know, looped in in a way that feels satisfying the people, et cetera. They want to, you hear about these
sort of hobby interests, right? I'll go, I'll write poetry or all, you know, go, you know, ceramics or something
like that. The things that they truly enjoy doing. How should people optimize along those must versus want to
versus sort of aspirational goals? Two things come to mind here. One is like if most people understand
inherently the dangers of communism or something, if the government's telling you what to do, when to do it,
what to say, that's a bad thing that's going to erode society. But a lot of those people work at a job where their
boss tells them what time to come in, what to wear, what to say, how to act, what not. So they really
understand it fundamentally at one level, but they're actually doing some version. Now companies have to
manage their employees, whatnot.

The Peak-End Rule: How the End of an Experience Defines Its Memory

It's not a knock against that. So the thing in psychology called the peak end rule, where to simplify
minimalize it, a lot of how you remember any endeavor that you did in life, a career, vacation, whatever it is,
is how you felt at the very end. And for a lot of people, if you have a great career, you enjoyed your career,
you helped people, you made money, your colleagues appreciated you, but then you got fired or your boss
came to you and said, you're too old to keep doing this. That's bad. You'll never recover from that.

When to Know When It's Time to Step Down

And you compare that to the people who quit on their own terms. They said, look, I'm proud of my career, but
that's enough. I'm going to take a step back and pass the baton to another generation.

The Desire for Autonomy and Control in Life and Death

Those are the people who, even if they didn't really enjoy their career that much, will look back at it fondly.
Because it gets back to freedom and autonomy and control. Most people are not necessarily, particularly as
they get older, are not necessarily scared of death. They're scared of a death not on their own terms. That's
going to sneak up on them where they're not going to have a chance to say goodbye. So I think that's a good
analogy for a lot of these things.

Embracing Independence: Taking Control on Our Own Terms

We're not scared of the ultimate outcome. We're scared of not being able to do it on our own terms. I once
heard Ray Dalio say something along the lines of, you know, the first third of your life is spent trying to learn
how to function in the world. Then there's a kind of middle third where you are acquiring resources to be able
to take care of yourself and people close to you.

Sharing Wisdom with Future Generations

And then in the final third of your life, you want to take your knowledge, take what you've gleaned in terms
of financial and other types of wealth, because of course there are other types of wealth, and put back for
subsequent generations. It's a beautiful model if you think about it. I heard a phrase as when you get older,
you either become an elder or elderly.

Choose Your Path: Eldership vs Disintegration

You get to choose which you want to be an elder and help other people or elderly. You're just going to
disintegrate over time. You got to choose which one. Do you want to be an elder and help other people or
elderly? You're just going to disintegrate over time. You've got to choose which one.

Academia's Silver Tsunami: The Growing Trend of Longer Working Lives

Nowadays, we have both the benefit and the problem of people living longer and maintaining vigor longer
and therefore working longer. This is certainly true in academia. People don't like to retire. They really do not
like to retire.

Why Some Professionals Never Retire: The Drive to Stay Engaged and Active

And I don't think it's just so they can make more money. I think it's so they can stay intellectually active.
People get into science typically because they like learning or academics generally. They have a campus
office where they go to and it makes them feel socially connected. So you can understand all the reasons why
these people in their late 60s, 70s and even 80s, sometimes even 90s continue to continue to go to work. It's
rare for these older generations of people that stay in various professions to continue to glean resources, but it
happens. I mean, how old is Buffett? 93 maybe. He's still investing? Yeah. Oh, yeah, full time.

Philanthropic and Generational Wealth Plans with $100 Billion Already Donated

Okay. And presumably he's going to use that money for what, either philanthropy or generational wealth
within his family. Is that the plan? He's already given away, I think, about $100 billion.

The Philanthropic Plans of the Ultra Rich: Leaving Inheritance for Charity

And the plan is to give away the vast majority. I think he announced recently that he was going to leave each
of his kids a billion dollars for philanthropy, not for their personal use, but for philanthropy. And the rest is all
given away. Oh, yeah, the children of the ultra rich that inherit all their wealth, I don't know what the numbers
are there. I know a great number of them squander it.

Some Wealthy Families Use Their Inheritance Wisely

But I also know a few examples of some that really make good on those incredible assets that they inherited
and are very thoughtful, hardworking people. It does happen. There are a couple of families. I think of all the
big robber barren families of 150 years ago, the Rockefellers probably did it the best. The Rockefellers still
have a lot of wealth.

How the Vanderbilts Squandered Their Fortune

The Vanderbilts by far did it the worst. They just squandered it in a couple generations. And this is fairly well
known now, but it's pretty interesting. The first Vanderbilt heir who did not get a trust fund for whom all the
money was dried up, the first person who didn't get any money was Anderson Cooper of CNN. His mother,
Gloria Vanderbilt, was the last Vanderbilt who got a big trust fund.

Vanderbilt Heir Finds Happiness in Self-Made Success

And Cooper, I think not coincidentally, is the most successful and probably the happiest Vanderbilt air in 150
years. And he's talked about this. He was like, I was the first person in my family who had to make a name for
himself. The fact that his last name is not Vanderbilt, it's Cooper, and he didn't get any money. He was like, I
had to go out and find my own way and find my own identity, whereas all of his ancestors, their identity was
you're rich from birth. That's your identity.

A Contrarian View on Success

You don't need to go out and make a name for yourself. You don't need to work hard. You don't need to create
anything.

Independence Breeds Happiness and Success

All you need to do is sit here and spend your money. And it made them miserable. And Cooper was the first
person. Look, this is very anecdotal. Not saying this is how it's going to work for everyone. But the first
person who had to make a name for himself and work for himself was the one who was the most successful
and probably the happiest. Super important concept.

The Dark Side of Inherited Wealth

Again, incredibly important. I think because people often will think that they, because they were born into
families that didn't have a lot of money, that somehow they were given the short end of the stick. And in some
sense, they were, right? I mean, it's one thing to grow up in a world with assets and another world where you
don't have assets. But we don't often hear about the downside. It's hard to have sympathy for a Vanderbilt heir
who inherited $400 million on their 18th birthday. Well, they're going to have a lot of sympathy for that,
right? Right.

The Rare Breed of High Achievers Who Transcend Financial Motivation

Well, the show succession, right? You know, is all about the horrible interpersonal dynamics of people that
have a lot of wealth because it's never enough and they self-destruct essentially. I think the situation is you
don't have sympathy for them, but you should also realize that if you are in their shoes, you would probably
self-destruct as well. It's very difficult to do. Once in a while, you see someone who was completely
motivated, irrespective of money. You know, Mark Zuckerberg was offered a billion dollars cash for
Facebook when I think he was 22. And he said, no, I don't want it. I'm going to keep going. That's a
ridiculously rare personality. And I think, you know, most people, if I inherited a billion dollars on my 18th
birthday, I probably would have no motivation. But if Musk did, if Elon Musk did, wouldn't slow them down
whatsoever. Jeff Bezos did, Mark Zuckerberg did. Those are very rare people who have a motivation that is
so detached from money. And I have a good friend Patrick O'Shaughnessy who phrased it this way. And
there's a famous Elon Musk interview, I think it was on Lex Friedman, where he was like, you think you want
to be me, the richest man in the world, but you don't.

Navigating Life's Storms and Embracing Entrepreneurial Spirit

And he was like, it's a storm up here. It's a mess up here. I think that's true for a lot of people. My friend
David Senra, I was a great podcast. I love, I love founders.

Meet the One Founder Whose Life He'd Want to Have: Ed Thorpe

Such a good guy. He's one of the best guys in the world I've ever met. But he says of all the 350 founders that
he's profiled, only one of them has he actually said, I would want that guy's life. It was Ed Thorpe.

Appreciating Entrepreneurs' Positive Impact

But put that aside, of the other 349, I think you read their biography and you can say, I'm so glad that they
existed. Most of the time, they did a lot of good in the world. They created products and make us better off.
And never in a million years what I want his life.

The Dark Side of Exceptional Success

It seems miserable. Because most of the time, the simple answer is their financial and career success came.
The reason they're so successful is because they devoted every waking second of their entire life to this one
problem, this one endeavor. And that came at the expense of their family life, of their health, of their mental
health, their physical health. And if you get a full view of there, it's easy to look at Musk and say, oh, richest
man in the world. Wouldn't that be fun? Yeah, but it came because he's had this life of a singular devotion to,
well, in his case, two or three different companies.

The Full Package: Why Envy Can Be Misleading

And I think if you take that full picture, it's less glamorous than it would seem. And it's too tempting in life to
have envy of someone and say, oh, well, I want their money and I want their career and their relationship or
their humor. You're picking little bits and pieces from their life, but it's not how it works. You've got to take
the full package. And when you look at the full package of those people who you might envy, if you actually
take a complete view of their life, maybe some of them you would say, no, that is a great life, like Ed Thorpe.
But I think for a lot of them, if you got the full view, you would look at it and say, oh, that's actually a lot
different than I thought. I frame this one way. If you look at, it's just flagrantly anecdotal, but among the 10
richest men in the world, there are a cumulative 15 divorces among them.

The Reality Behind Envy: Why the Grass Isn't Always Greener

So it's very easy, particularly for young people to say, oh, that's like I'm jealous of that person. I envy that
person. I want to be that person. But I think for a lot of them, if you actually got a full view of their life, it's
not nearly as good as you would think. I think people like Elon Musk, people like Mark Zuckerberg, they
represent these incredibly extreme examples that obviously most people can't even, including me, can't
fathom what a day in their life must be like. You know, Matt Zuck, he was on this podcast and it seems that
he really enjoys doing what he's doing. But I think for me and for most people, it's just so far out of the
stratosphere of understanding, similar to the amount of wealth that they've acquired.

The Overwhelming Scale of Wealth

It's just sort of like, what do you even do with all of that? And people go, well, I'd figure it out. Yeah, I'm sure
you would. But, you know, it's just, it's so astronomically outside the scale of one's normal and of dopamine
reward schedules that it's hard to imagine.

Finding the Sweet Spot for a Fulfilling Life

And what are you going to do by a plane as big as a state? You know, you know. So, but there's a place in
between struggling to quote unquote make it and being at that extreme where people hit that sweet spot. And I
think a lot of your work is really aimed at at least shining light on the possibility of a sweet spot. Yeah. Where
you're doing something that you find meaningful, making sufficient income that your anxiety is buffered you
have meaningful relationships in and out of work and you've essentially built a quote unquote good life.

Necessary Resources for a Fulfilling Life

Right? I mean, I think I heard of all say something recently where he said, you know, you want resources
along the dimensions I just mentioned, a healthy, fit body, a calm mind, and a home full of love. I think it's a
pretty awesome list right there. And it's a lot of work, though. Just to check off even one of those four boxes,
a lot of work.

Why We Prioritize Quantifiable Goals Over Emotional Ones

Right. Because if I were to say, you know, how do I increase my income by 10%? It's like, I can wrap my
head around that. I can give you a number of what that would be and how I might be able to do it. But if I
said, how do I get my kids to love me 10% more? I have no idea how to measure that or how to even pursue
it. So even if I want that, because it's hard, it's not tangible, it's much easier to ignore and just pursue the thing
that you can count, which is money. Do you have a dog? I do, golden retriever. I was going to say, you want
them to love you, 10% more, get them a puppy, but it sounds like you already did that. I'm just, I'm only half
kidding. I would say that, you know, dogs are not only unconditional love, but they have the ability to give on
a, on a, you know, daily basis multiple times per day in a way that, I mean, they give love as, as readily as
they receive love. It's just, it's like this perfect reciprocal loop. And they're constantly in the moment. They're
just living right there.

Finding Happiness in the Present Moment

This is great cartoon. A lot of people have probably seen it. It's a guy and a dog sitting on a lake. And the
guy's thought bubble coming out of his head is he's thinking about money, he's thinking about work, he thinks
he's thinking about stocks. The dog's thought bubble is a picture of them sitting on the lake. They're just, the
dog's just right in the moment, just enjoying what he's doing right there.

The Joy of Living in the Moment

I think that's like, that's my jealousy of my dog, when I look at her 24 hours a day, everyone will, there's a
dog, will recognize this. They're just in the moment. They just enjoy what they're doing, whatever they're
doing.

Appreciating Life's Simple Moments with a Friendly Breed

And everyone, including me, is either worrying, thinking about the past or dreaming about the future. I love
that. What's your dog's name, if I may? Lucy. Golden retrievers are an amazing breed because they also are
universally loving. They love the person that, you know, their owner the most, but they also love people that
stop and meet them on the street.

Social Comparison in Relationships: A Practical Perspective

Not all dogs are like that. The worst guard dogs in the world. You can break into your house, the golden
retriever will just come up in wagg its tail and like you. I love it. Let's talk about this social comparison thing.
I'm trying to make this practical for people that are both partnered and not partnered.

Communicating Financial Needs with Your Spouse

Right. Like you could create a picture where the spouse in either direction is saying, like, we need more.
Right.

Missing Quality Time with Your Spouse

Right. That changes the picture completely. Right. Where the spouse just says, like, I would just like to see
you more.

Longing for Quality Time Over Material Gifts

I don't need any more stuff. I just want to see you more. We want to see you more.

The Impact of Social Messages on Our Fears and Needs

I think to me this is as important as the social comparison of your peers at work or online. The messages that
we received by the people closest to us about what to be afraid of, what the needs are. And I don't know that
people have really parsed how to resolve all that. But I'm guessing you probably have some thoughts about
this. So a lot of things, it's not that you're making a terrible decision.

Defining Enough in Modern Times: A Shifting Paradigm

You're doing what you think is right. And then if you said, well, how much is enough to take care of your
family? By and large, it's a game of comparison. The way that people lived 100 years ago, what is a good life
100 years ago, is a completely inadequate life today.

Redefining the Ideal Life Across Generations

Not even 100 years ago. You go back to our parents' generation and say in the 1950s. There is a nostalgia for
the 1950s of, oh, life was so good then and so great, and the white picket fence and the dog and the
stay-at-home mom. It was a good picture. That's not my definition of a good life today. So that is shifting all
the time.

The Never-Ending Pursuit of Wealth

And therefore, you're saying like, well, how much money do you need to be happy? The truth is I need more
money than the next family than the next person. It's this continuous chain. And I think a lot of that is just
evolution. It's a competition for resources, and it doesn't matter how much money you have. What matters is
that you have more money than the next person.

Will Future Prosperity Bring Happiness?

That's the sad truth for a lot of this. And therefore, you can easily imagine a world in which my grandkids are
earning on average way more money than we are today and have way better resources, better health, better
technologies, and they're no happier for it. And they don't feel any more relieved for it.

Technology Hasn't Reduced Work Hours as Predicted

They don't feel like they can scale back and work less for it because they're going to be competing with other
people that have all those things. John Maynard Keynes, a great economist, very famously predicted a world
where people would be working 20 hours a week because technology was going to make it so we didn't need
to work. And that's not how it works whatsoever. We are working less than we did back when everybody was
a farmer, but not nearly as little as we could be if we still had the expectations of a 1950s family living in an
800 square foot house.

The Never-Ending Pursuit: Why Humans Will Always Strive for More.

If we had those expectations, people could be working way less, but it's all a competition between other
people. So even if 100 years from now, a middle class family is living in a 5,000 square foot house with a
spaceship in their backyard. If that becomes the norm, you don't appreciate it, any of it. You don't get
sunburnt. His jaw would be on the floor. But nobody appreciates that today like he would because it's just
commonplace. Your definition of a good life is, I expect to have that. So it's always going to be the case that
the reason we're working hard is to take care of our family. And what we feel like is an adequate amount is a
growing level over time. I should also say that that is by and large a great thing.

Inadequacy as a Driving Force for Societal Progress

The reason society progresses is because most people wake up in the morning feeling a little bit inadequate.
Whatever I have today is not enough and I need to go work harder to get more. That's why we have good
technology and economic growth over time. So at the macro level, it's a great thing. That's what pushes
society forward and better medical technologies, but all better technologies. And with social media, we now
have access to millions, if not billions, of comparison points. Whereas just 30 years ago, even 20 years ago,
we only had access to local comparison points.
How Social Media Fuels Comparison and Perceived Inequality

Like the people in your neighborhood drove certain types of cars. Now online, you can see people that you
went to high school with that have certain lives and their vacations that are spectacular relative to the ones
that one typically has. I'd like to talk about this notion of social comparison as a function of place.

The Hub of Innovation: Silicon Valley's Global Impact

We can touch on some major cities. We were doing this before we started recording. It's kind of fun to do.
Like in the Bay Area and Silicon Valley area where I grew up, it seems like there's a high value place on the
people who managed to do things that wick out to the entire world, the building of companies or technologies
that go everywhere. It's not just because of Facebook and Instagram. It's also because of biotech. It's because
of all sorts of things.

Exploring City Identities: How Local Narratives Shape Our Minds

Apple, right? I mean, there's a whole history of that. What would you say for, like, New York City? What,
like, what is the dominant message that's being pumped into the psyche of New Yorkers? And by the way, I
love New York City, but it'd be fun to play this game a little bit as an example. And then we'll then wick it out
to people regardless of where they live in the world. Well, this is one of those things where what is so good
and beneficial for society is what makes individuals miserable.

The Double-Edged Nature of Ambition: Driving Growth but also Individual Strife

And you say, I have to chase that person, I have to get what they have. That is great for society. That's where
we get new technologies, new innovations and growth. At the individual level, it's very difficult. I grew up
out in the woods in Lake Tahoe.

Dentists as Local Elite

And in that region, if you are a dentist, let's say, you are on top of the world. You are the richest guy in town.
Everybody looked up to you.

The Paradox of Happiness and Competition

You had the nicest house, the nicest car. If you are a family dentist here in Los Angeles, you don't stick out
whatsoever. You might feel like you are so far behind because you're surrounded by legitimate billionaires.
And so I think it's interesting to ask, is a dentist happier in Lake Tahoe or here? I think it's probably in Lake
Tahoe because your comparison group is so much less, especially back in the pre-social media days. The
states that are statistically the happiest in the United States, it's not for cities, it's not Los Angeles, it's not New
York. It tends to be in the Midwest, where wonderful places, whatnot, but less competitive than the grind of
the big cities. But that's where, you know, at the individual, where are you happiest? It's where you have less
comparison. But for society, what is better? It's when you have a huge competition for getting ahead. So I
don't know, I don't know where I come down on that of like where I would want to be. Of course, I want to be
happy as an individual, but I want to live in a society that is moving ahead. And the reason it's moving ahead
is because most people wake up feeling inadequate.

Growing Up in Tahoe: A Different Time Before Tech Money Changed Everything

You grew up in Tahoe? Yeah. I love Lake Tahoe, but can I ask you, did you grow up being competitive or
thinking about how well people skied or snowboarded? Yes, absolutely. It was also, I lived in Tahoe pre-tech
money. It's very different now because so much Bay Area tech money just flooded into it. It's its own little
Hamptons now. But back in the day, it was like, I felt like when I grew up, normal people drove old pickup
trucks and rich people drove new pickup trucks. That was the difference between rich and poor. And both in a
city like Los Angeles, New York, and in a social media world, especially, it's normal people drive Honda
Civics and rich people have private jets. Like the stratification between them is just blown so far out of
proportion.

How Social Media Influencers Can Distort Kids' Understanding of Money

I see this with my nine-year-old son, who like a lot of kids watches Mr. Beast, who I think is great. I think he's
an awesome, awesome guy, but it's completely warped my son's sense of money. Because Mr. Beas will be
like, oh, keep your hand on the table and the last person with their hand wins a million dollars. It's like, if
that's your sense of money, it's completely warped and skewed.

Adversity Drives Innovation: How Crisis Fosters Technological Advancement

And so look, it's a tough way to live. And I think the more of that angst that people have of I'm inadequate, I
need to get ahead, the better society is going to be, the more technology we're going to have. Great example
of this is what decades were the most technologically innovative? By far, it's not even close. It was the 1930s,
the Great Depression, and the 1940s World War II. When society was on fire, that's when every business,
every scientist, every entrepreneur entrepreneur woke up every morning and said, I need to figure this out
right now, today, immediately. During the Great Depression, if you were a business owner, it was, if I don't
figure out a way to become more efficient, I'm bankrupt tomorrow. So that was the birth of a lot of the
assembly lines. It was the birth of the grocery store, the birth of the laundromat.

Necessity Drives Innovation in Wartime

Every business got more, more, better at what they do. And the ones that didn't went out of business
immediately. World War II was, if we don't figure out new technologies, we're going to lose everything.
Hitler's going to control the planet.

Pressure Drives Progress: How Social Angst and Adversity Fuel Innovation

So that was nuclear energy, radar, jets, go on down the list of things that we benefit from today happen
because of that social angst that we had back then. And so I think there's so much evidence that society
progresses when things are a little bit on fire, not too much on fire, because then you just get overwhelmed
with it. But if you have a little bit of angst of, I need to wake up, I need to do this. And when societies become
fat and happy and decadent, or when companies do this, companies that just are minting money and there's no
pressure on it, they have more money than they know what to do with. That's the downfall of a lot of
companies, Sears, IBM, Intel, Boeing, who are either not around or our shells of their former selves. I think
you can tie a lot of that to the success that they had in the past when there was no pressure to innovate and get
ahead.

The Dangers of Unlimited Freedom: How Wealth Can Undermine Success

It was just a culture of we have so much lying around here that we can do anything that we want. I had a guy
tell me one time who said, every business should have a little bit of debt because it keeps you in check, keeps
your ambitions in line of waking up and being like, no, I have to succeed this year because we have debt to
pay off. And when you have too much freedom and a little bit too much autonomy, you have a higher chance
of just letting it slip away. What made you great when you were young and poor and broke and hungry slips
away when the wealthier you become. Tell me what you think of this mental exercise. I can look to different
things around me that were the forces pulling on me. I like to think in terms of carrot and stick, you know, for
those that don't know what that is, because we have a lot of listeners from outside the US.

The Carrot-and-Stick Motivation in Academia

Carrot is the thing you're working towards, the enticing thing, the reward. Stick is the punishment, carrot and
stick. Because frankly, that's how the brain works, carrot and stick, right? And a lot of what we're talking
about today is carrot and sticks of different sizes, different types, et cetera. For every stage of my career,
graduate student, postdoc, professor before tenure, professor after getting tenure, It's kind of interesting
concept. People think of his job for life, but it's really academic freedom, and you're still on the fundraising
treadmill.

Team Mentality Drives Personal Motivation

There's the, I'm part of a group, I'm part of a team here. I can't let them down. So it doesn't matter how well I
slept last night.
Examining the Motivations Behind Our Life Choices

It happened to sleep pretty well last night, but it doesn't matter. I got to show up. You got to suit up and show
up, as they say. Do you think it's worthwhile for people to stop wherever they are in their life arc and just
think about like where are these these forces pulling us the carrots and the sticks because I think therein lies a
lot of information. Are you working for an expectation that you need to fulfill because you did it before? I
sometimes think about professional athletes. They sometimes have a shorter professional life than in other
careers because just physical capabilities give way. But what drives them? I often want to know what pulls
them.

Managing Identity for Personal Freedom

And if your identity is, I'm a professional athlete, if your identity is I'm a podcaster, I am a rich person,
whatever it might be, then that's what's pulling you. It's that source of our identity. So this gets back to the
Paul Graham idea of keep your identity small.

Maintaining a Small Identity for Clarity of Thought

I think he met it mainly in the context of politics, of politics can just poison your identity and it really affects
your thinking. But keeping your identity small for a lot of things, I think is a great point of view. The more
you look in the mirror and say, I am a blank, doesn't matter what that is. I'm a professor. I'm an author,
whatever it is.

How Professional Identity Affects Retirement Decisions

It's hard to give that up because part of your identity. I saw this with my own dad, who was a doctor and he
retired, and he went back to work a year later. Because I think at least part of it was when he looked in the
mirror, he had to say, I am a doctor. That was his identity. And when he retired, he couldn't say that anymore.

Obsession's Double Edge

And it drove him crazy. I think that's true for a lot of people. Now, that could be great. For him, it was great.

Defining One's Core Identity

And I think for me, my identity, I think my core identity is I'm a father, I'm a husband, I hope to be a friend.
But then maybe it's I'm an author. And if I had to give that up, it might sting a little bit. It's not maybe the core
of my identity, but it's right there.

When Money Becomes a Liability: How Wealth Can Control Our Identity

And I think for a lot of people, if you're successful, core to their identity is I'm a person who makes a lot of
money. I'm a person who makes X dollars per year and they're unable to give that up. And that's, again, I
think if we're talking about money, that's when money becomes a liability is when it's ingrained in your
identity and it's controlling you. You're not using it as a tool. It's using you as its little marionette doll to
control you every day. And I think that's when a lot of people go astray with their happiness with money is
when it starts controlling them because it's so core to who they see in the mirror every day. Yeah, that's like
that cartoon of the person standing with a little cage in front of their face. Like they're giving out freedom by
virtue of some mental construct.

Focusing on Verb-Based Identity Over Titles

I wonder if perhaps even better than Paul's idea of shrinking one's identity to make it operational and make it
verb-based. Because it's one thing to say, I'm going to not use my professional title of podcast or professor,
author, doctor, But if one gets to the verb function that drove the pursuit of things in the first place, I enjoy
doing this. I'm a curious person. Yeah.

On Friendship with Music Producer Rick Rubin

Like, you know, I have the, I seem to mention them all the time and I'm just going to do it because it's my
podcast. Rick Rubin's a close friend and I feel so lucky for that friendship. Of course, I love the music he's
produced. But that's not why I love the friendship. I happen to just really think Rick's a great guy.

Rethinking Creativity: From Audience to Inner Inspiration

And he actually likes to remove the concept of an audience. He actually talks about, this is your offering to
God. And the audience may or may not like it. But that, in his words, are the way, is the way to frame it
because otherwise you end up trying to satisfy people. And then you're no longer in the process of exploring
your curiosity or creativity. So yeah, I've decided at this moment, and I'll put it on record that I'm not going to
think of myself as a podcaster. Or every single one of those pursuits. Because as Rick's taught me, it's the
energy that you need to continue to tap into that is self-rewarding, the feelings of delight, of friction, and then
release when you solve a problem. And that changes over time.

The Power of Passion and Experience in Success

I'm always amazed at these examples like the Warren Buffett's and these people have been investing their
whole life. You pointed this out in your book that one of the fundamental things about Buffett being so
successful is that he's had a lot of time investing. He's been doing it since he was 11 and he's 93. Right.
Doesn't seem like he needs another venue. It seems like he's got it dialed. That's his venue. If you were a
golfer, he'd be dolphin at 93. Yeah, he's doing it because he loves to do it. I think it's true, for me as a writer,
what's always been the case. I don't think this might really apply to your own career. I've always written for
an audience of one, which is myself. I just want to write things that I think are interesting. I want to write
stories that I find appealing.

Writing for Personal Fulfillment

I want to write it in a style that I would enjoy reading. And I don't care that much about the audience who
might read it. Of course, I want them to read it and maybe buy the books and enjoy it, but I'm writing for
myself.

Creating for Yourself, Not an Audience

And I think you always do your best work when you do that if you're writing or producing a podcast for an
audience of one, which is you. And so I think if you're doing it otherwise, it's performative. And people do
much worse work. They're much less creative. They're much less enjoyable when it's performative. When you
start off by asking, what does the audience want to hear or see? Yeah, that never works.

Don't Pander: Building for Passion Over Popularity

But that's what most people do. And even what does every writing 101 teacher teach their students know your
audience? I don't think it's good advice because know your audience very quickly becomes panderer to your
audience. Brian Chesky of Airbnb talks about this. He's like, don't build a product that a thousand people like,
build a product that 100 people love or that one person you love and use it.

Doing Work You Love: The Key to Optimal Performance

That's when you're going to always do your best work. You're not trying to manage a product or a book or a
podcast towards some metric or goal. You're doing it because you love doing it. Much easier said than done
for a lot of careers because if you're working for a company, you do have metrics. You have to follow. You
have formulas and policies you have to follow.

Doing Your Best Work When It's Personal

So it's not that everyone can do this, but it's unavoidable that you're always going to do your best work when
it's yours and you're doing it for yourself, not because you're trying to reach some metric. I guess the phrase,
you know, be a lifer. I used to think that meant if you were a musician, stay a musician.

The Limits of Professional Identity

If you're in finance, stay in finance. And it changed. I mean, the venue changed. But we don't really change as
in terms of identity very much, right? These professions and these bank accounts and we don't actually, we're
not fundamentally changed by them. It's really a bunch of verb states that drive all this. And I actually hope
that in 20 years I'm doing something different, that I'm not writing about the same topic. So maybe I hope I'm
still writing and thinking and reading and learning. But if you're always doing the same thing, I think
someone like Buffett is an incredibly oddball, rare bird who's been doing the same thing for 80 years and
loves it. I want to grow and adapt and evolve in what I'm doing.

When Identity Holds Us Back

But if something becomes core to your identity, then it's hard to release that and let go. You feel like you have
to keep doing it even when it's not that fun anymore. And you're not getting the dopamine rush of trying
something new. You're attached to something. You keep being a lawyer or whatever it might be because that's
your identity even when you don't like it anymore. Think about Michael Jordan playing baseball, which he
did for a little while. He wanted to play professional baseball.

Athlete Embraces Competitive Spirit in New Pursuit

Yeah. So he gave himself the shot. I think it's awesome, even though it didn't turn out as well as it basketball
turned out for him. It's just because it just reflected his inherently competitive, you know, high performance
nature.

Jeff Bezos' Relentless Drive for Innovation Beyond Amazon

I had to keep doing something or Bezo, so I keep bringing up, but you build the biggest most successful
company in the world, Amazon. What do you do in your retirement? You start a rocket company kind of
thing. It's like maybe he did, I don't know this, I don't want to put words in his mouth, maybe he did get a little
bit bored with Amazon. And it was he needed to do something else, but he's not going to retire. He's not going
to play golf. He's not going to sit on his boat. He's going to build another company. Always have to be doing
something, even if it's growing and adapting.

Author Shares Insights into Upcoming Book Due Out September 2025

You're working on a new book, and I eagerly anticipate the release of that new book. When's it coming out?
September 2025. Okay, so we got a little while to wait. Are you willing to share a few things that you're
thinking about or that we might expect to see in that book? Yeah, I think there are pieces of the book that you
and I have talked about today.

The Subjective Nature of Personal Finance

The book is called The Art of Spending Money. And I make a point of the book is not called the science of
spending money, because spending money is not a science. It's not something where you can say, here's the
formula that works for everybody. It's an art.

The Subjective Nature of Personal Finance

And what is an art? It is different for everybody. It's subjective. It's often contradictory. And I think that's
what an appropriate way to spend money should be. So at no point in the book do I say, here's how you
should spend your money, because I don't think anybody can accurately do that for a broad audience.

Understanding the Psychology of Envy and Social Comparison

It's a look at the psychology of envy, of keeping up at the Joneses, of social aspiration, of identity that we've
been talking about, managing money and kids, of being jealous of other people, of wanting to get attention for
yourself. It's a look at the psychology of that without offering any firm concrete advice, which I would say a
lot of people don't like that. A lot of people are like, well, just tell me what to do. But I try to make a point in
the beginning, same with my first book, Psychology and Money of, I can't tell you what to do because I don't
know you. And what's right for you is going to be maybe not right for me. You have to figure it out for
yourself, but I can tell you what's probably going through your head as you're going on that journey. I can tell
you about the psychological pitfalls and challenges and advice of that is that is psychological. It's not what
you should do. But here's how most people and why most people fall for envy and why if you understand the
mechanics of envy, how silly it can be. That's what the book dives into in a lot of ways what sounds like
you're describing is um kind of identifying the sources of self-sidction. Given that we can understand that we
have this propensity to compare and to regret things of past but not be able to anticipate future regret, you'd
think we would be better at that, but clearly we're not.

Evolution Prioritizes Survival Over Happiness

Well, this, I guess this gets back to basic evolution. Evolution doesn't care if you're happy. It cares that you
reproduce and you grow over time. That's, that's what it's maximizing for. It doesn't really care whether you're
having a good time during the process. Make more of yourself and take care of the young and then you're
dispensable. Keep going.

The Elusive Nature of Human Fulfillment

Luis C. Case says more of me. That's what we're trying to do. Happiness doesn't play much of a role. I think
it's so complex.

Historical Context of Family Size and Economic Factors

So if you're living in a poor society, poor economy, or during a poor era, you could have 10 kids because you
knew all 10 of those kids, or at least the ones who survived were going to become farmers. That's what they
were going to do. And that was their only hope. That was all they could do. And you didn't need to provide a
lot of resources for them. If I give them basic food and shelter and clothes, that's all they need to become a
farmer. And I think if you fast forward to today's economy, the expectations are so much higher.

The Evolution of Family Size and Parenting Goals

You want your kid to become a PhD, to become an astronaut, a hedge fund, whatever it might be. And there,
because of that, you need to provide so much more resources for that kid. There's also a very grim statistic
about it used to be, well, why do people used to have 10 kids? Because six of them died before they were five.
And so if you needed those hands on the farm, you needed to have a lot of kids to make sure you had a lot of
teenagers who could help you one day. And so I think we're blessed to now live in a world where thankfully
the infant mortality rate has collapsed so much that we don't need to play that lottery game that we used to.

Teaching Children About Money: When to Start and How to Approach It

What are you teaching your kids about money? And at what age should we start to do that? And for those
listening who don't have kids, I suppose it's never too late to learn. I think one of the points I always make that
I've learned the hard way parenting is I don't think you need to sit your kids down and teach them about
money because they're paying attention whether you know it or not. Kids are so incredibly good at learning.
They're better at learning than adults are, particularly for things like language and whatnot.

Kids Learn About Money from What They See and Hear

But you don't need to say, sit your kids down and say, this is how much we spend and this is what we value
and this is why I say, they're paying attention, they're figuring it out. Every time they hear you say, I can't
afford this. Every time we're at the store and they say, oh, look, this is on sale. Let's get two of these. They're
making a mental note of everything. Every time they hear you bicker about work, every time they hear you
talk about a raise, even if it's just in the next room, they're piecing it all together. And I don't think they even
know it, but they're so good at learning that they're building a mental model. And so even if you never sit your
kids down and teach them, by the time, certainly they're teenagers, they know a lot about money.

Leading by Example: The Key to Positive Influence on Children

And maybe some of those things are good, maybe some is bad, but they're paying attention. And so I think the
only thing you can do as a kid, or as a parent, I should say, is to lead by example. Because we talked about
this earlier, the propensity to rebel as a kid, as a teenager.
Raising Independent Kids: The Power of Leading by Example

You talked about the smoking ads where they just wanted to do the opposite of what everyone else is doing. I
think particularly for teenagers, which I don't have yet, but if you sit them down and say, this is what you
should do, you should always do this, you should never do that. Their propensity to rebel is enormous. So I
think I should think it can backfire if you try to teach them. I think the best you can do, the only thing you can
do is lead by example with people. Even if you're like a middle class family, how do I leave a small
inheritance or help my kids? Should I buy them a new car? Should I help them through college? I think a big
thing that is easy to overlook is two things. You might think as a parent that you are teaching your kid grit and
independence by withholding resources from them. And you're doing it very well intentioned.

Raising Independent Children: Teaching Them to Earn Their Own Success

You need to earn your iron my money and this is mine. You've got to go figure out your own. I think it is very
easy to overlook that you are not teaching your kid independence and grit.

A Billionaire Investor's Cautionary Tale: How Overindulgence Can Foster Resentment

You're teaching them to resent you. And I have a good friend Chris Davis who told the story. He's an extreme
example. Chris Davis's grandfather is Shelby Davis, who is a billionaire investor, one of the greatest investors
of all time.

A Humorous Lesson in Perseverance

And Chris tells a story that when he was a kid and his grandfather took him skiing, his grandfather would say,
if you want me to buy you a lift ticket, you need to hike up the hill first and ski down, hike to the top. And if
you do that, then I'll buy you a lift ticket. And Chris said the lesson that they learned from that was not grit
and independence and hard work. The lesson they learned from it was grandpa's kind of a jerk sometimes.

Modeling the Lifestyle You Want Your Kids to Follow

And I think that's an extreme example, but you see that a lot with kids. One like very practical takeaway from
this is that I think as a parent you have to live the same lifestyle as your kids. It's very difficult to say mom
and dad fly first class, but you're back in coach. Does anyone actually do that? Oh, absolutely. Maybe that's
still a very extreme example. But what you think as a parent that the kid is learning is, oh, if I work as hard as
mom and dad one day, I'll be sitting up there. And they don't. The lesson they learn is mom and dad think they
are superior to us. Or mom and dad are superior to me. I'm inferior to them.

Parental Intent vs. Childhood Reality: The Unintended Consequences of Wealthy Upbringing

I think this is why you see a lot of very wealthy kids who are just psychologically broken. Because I think you
have well-meaning parents who are like, look, we're very wealthy, but you're not. You got to earn your way.
And all the kid hears throughout their life is, I'm inferior, I'm inferior, I'm inferior, I'm inferior, I'm inferior,
I'm inferior.

The Impact of Upbringing on Personal Development and Self-Advocacy

And by the time they become adults, it's so ingrained into who they are that they can't take a step forward.
They can't advocate for themselves. and so look that's that's what the very wealthy deal with but i think that's
what i think a lot about with kids the other thing that every parent with more than one kid will uh understand
recognize this. My two kids could not be more different. Their personalities, their goals, even with the same
parents living under the same roof, they are a million miles apart.

Teaching Children About Money: Balancing Guidance with Personal Goals

And so if you say, like, what are you teaching your kids? Like, I don't know who they're going to be when
they grow up. I don't know what their goals or their aspirations are going to be. So is it right for me to tell my
daughter, like, oh, here's how you can save and become super wealthy over time. What if she doesn't want to
live that life? What if she does have more of a YOLO personality of like, oh, I just want to go travel the
world.

Raising Kids in a Changing World: Letting Go of Assumptions and Embracing Emotional Intelligence

I have no aspirations to become super wealthy and retire early. So you have to let them figure it out for
themselves and realize that what might be right for you and what may have been right for the era in what you
and I grew up in might not be right for them and might not fit the era that they grew up in. I like this saying
none of us know what it's like to be, you know, pick an age, 13 years old in 2024. We think we do because we
were 13 years old at one point. Your earlier descriptions of depriving kids of the first class ticket, putting
them in coach and the parents flying in first class. It makes me realize that we like to think that those sorts of
things will drive integration of the lesson, but each one of your examples pointed to the fact that kids are
integrating based on the emotion they experience at the time. They're not thinking about the larger lesson.

Capturing People in Thought

No. They're thinking about... They're in their moment.

Leading Kids Through Example, Not Humiliation

They're thinking, I'm hiking up this hill and this sucks. And they're not piecing together things over time. And
that is teaching the value of hard work. I'm going to do it with you. I'm going to suffer with you. So leading
by example rather than by humiliation, I think is the way to do it with kids.

Childhood Memories of a Scientist Father

When I was a kid, my dad used to walk me to this point along our street where then he would split off to go to
work. He was a scientist. He would go to his laboratory and I'd go off to kindergarten in first grade.

A Childhood Encounter with a Physicist

And I remember one day asking him what he did for a living. And he's a physicist. And he said, well, I'm a
physicist. And I said, what's that? And he explained a little bit about what it was. And I'll never forget.

A Conversation About Unbridled Optimism

We still talk about this. He and I, I'll never forget. I said, do you like it? And he said, well, you know that
feeling the night before your birthday? I said, yeah. And he said, I feel like that every day.

Finding Joy in the Possibility of Reward

And then I think he also said, and I'm still a little bit murky on this one, I need to touch base with him about
this sometime again soon, but he said, yet you don't always get presents. It doesn't always work out, but the
feeling that you might or that you're likely going to or there's a possibility that just feels so good. That's cool.
And I think I must have internalized that lesson because what I like is work. Yeah.

Tapping into Creative Potential

I don't think I'm addicted to work, although some in my life have accused me of that, and I'm willing to be
open to that possibility, but it wasn't even really about discovery, it was about the possibility of discovery. I'm
not trying to summarize to too fine a point here. But if I may, it seems like, and what Rick Rubin has said
about, you know, he has this like just supernatural track record at bringing out the best creative elements in
people from different genres of music. It seems to be about tapping into these verb states of like what is the
thing that brings out your best as opposed to thinking about the rewards that come from that.

The Unseen Effort Behind Social Media Success

But it's hard, right? We see those numbers. We see those, the followers, the dollars, et cetera. We see the
metrics of comparison. It's tough. There's a work to this that is not obvious. I think it'll always be like that.

Fostering Happiness in Children Amidst Comparison and Inadequacy

We're never going to live in a world where people don't compare themselves to others. We're never going to
live in a world where people don't feel inadequate to others who have more than them. But back to kids, I
think this is a great place to tie us together. If you ask most parents, what do you want for your kids? Most
parents will say, I just want them to be happy. I just hope they're happy one day.

Happiness Over Wealth: Parents' Priorities for Their Children

And then if you said, well, do you hope that your children are rich and successful, parents might say like,
yeah, but mainly just happy. Like I just want them to be happy. Regardless of what they're doing, if they're a
kindergarten teacher, I want to be happy. Now, that's not an argument against money or working hard, which
I want to do. I want to work hard and make money and have more money, of course.

Rethinking Money: From Comparison to Personal Freedom

But I think there's such a stark difference between using money as a tool to make yourself happier versus as a
yardstick to compare yourself against others by. And so much in the modern world is the latter. We're not
using money to make ourselves happier or freer or more independent or to sleep better or to spend more time
with the people we enjoy. We use money to measures ourselves against other people. So we need to think
about money a little differently or a lot differently if we are to get the most satisfaction from our work and
from resources. It requires a lot of looking in the mirror and just saying, like, who am I and what do I want? I
think that's the biggest thing, particularly when we started this conversation by saying, everybody's different.
What's right for me is not right for you.

Creating a Personalized Financial Plan That Works for You

Inherent in that is that you have to understand yourself. And a lot of people, a lot of financial damage is done
when people have a financial plan that is right for another person, but it's wrong for them. And that's
dangerous because it's the right financial plan maybe for a lot of other people. So it makes sense. It's rational.

When Theory Meets Reality

It makes sense on paper. On the spreadsheet, it looks good, but it doesn't fit your personality. That's when a
lot of damage is done.

Aligning Finances with Evolving Goals and Aspirations

So I think to do better with money, you need to spend a lot of time thinking about who you are and your
family and your goals and your aspirations, realizing that all those things will change and adapt over time. So
what was right for you 10 years ago might not be right today. Well, Morgan, thank you so much for doing the
work that you do.

A Fresh Perspective on Money with a Heart of Benevolence

It's an incredibly unique perspective on this thing that we all have to deal with, grapple with, and hopefully
can develop a symbiotic relationship with money. And it's clear from talking to you today and also from
reading your book that there's a strong central court of benevolence in all of this. I don't know if that was your
intent. It seems to just come through in who you are. But when I read your book and as we talk today, it's just
so clear that you want the best for people.

Appreciation for a Guest Speaker's Insights

So for that and the work that you've done and that you're doing, I'm eagerly anticipating your book next
September and for coming here today to educate us. Thank you ever so much. This has been so much fun.

Conversation Recap: Morgan Howsell Discusses His Work and Latest Books

Thank you, Andrew. Thank you for joining me for today's discussion with Morgan Howsell. To learn more
about Morgan's work and to find links to his two superb books, The Psychology of Money, and Same As
Ever, please see the links in the show note captions.
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Introducing 'Protocols': A Scientific Guide to Optimizing Your Body's Performance

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And last, but certainly not least, thank you for your interest in science.

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 Key Insights and Action Items

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The Huberman Lab
podcast provides scientific knowledge and practical tools that can be applied to daily life. **Action Item:**
Tune in to the Huberman Lab podcast to learn evidence-based strategies for improving your everyday life.

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mistakes with their finances by either saving too much or spending too much, and they often have a flawed
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a step back to reframe your thinking around money - consider what its true value is to you and how it can be
used to generate happiness. Reflect on whether your current spending and saving habits are aligned with your
values and goals, and make adjustments as needed.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** True freedom and independence
cannot be achieved by constantly pursuing wealth; rather, it's about finding a balance between financial
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sense of freedom, independence, and happiness? Consider re-evaluating your priorities and values to ensure
they align with what truly brings you fulfillment.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** By reflecting on your
relationship with money and asking yourself probe questions, you can gain clarity on whether your pursuit of
wealth aligns with your goals. **Action Item:** Take some time to reflect on your relationship with money
by asking yourself questions like those raised in Morgan's book The Psychology of Money, such as: What are
my financial goals? Why am I pursuing wealth? How does my relationship with money affect my well-being
and happiness?

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** High-yield cash accounts can be a low-risk way to
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Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealthfront offers a high-yield
savings option with FDIC insurance protection of up to $8 million and flexible withdrawal options, including
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cash account to earn a competitive 4.25% APY on your savings while maintaining easy access to your money
for everyday expenses or long-term investing goals.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealthfront offers a free $50
bonus for new users who deposit at least $500 into their first cash account. **Action Item:** Go to
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Here are one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The host has been
attending regular therapy sessions for over 30 years, initially due to necessity but likely continuing because
they found it valuable. **Action Item:** Consider seeking professional help through online therapy platforms
like BetterHelp if you're struggling with personal issues or simply want to prioritize your mental well-being.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Therapy is an essential
component of overall health, providing benefits such as trust, emotional support, guidance, and expert
insights. **Action Item:** Consider seeking out online therapy through a platform like BetterHelp to easily
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Here is a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** BetterHelp offers online therapy
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discount on your first month.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Morgan Housel has a new book
coming out soon, which suggests that he may have valuable perspectives to share on personal finance and
money management. **Action Item:** Follow up with Morgan Housel's work or wait for his upcoming book
release to learn more about his insights on the art of spending money.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The way we think about
money can be improved. **Action Item:** Reflect on your current mindset and attitudes towards money, and
consider seeking out new perspectives or resources (such as books, articles, or expert advice) to help you
develop a healthier relationship with financial matters.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** People are not necessarily irrational
about money, but rather, they have reasons behind their financial decisions that may not be immediately
apparent. **Action Item:** When trying to understand someone's financial behavior or when reflecting on
your own spending habits, look beyond surface-level assumptions of craziness and instead try to uncover the
underlying motivations and reasoning driving those decisions.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Trauma and unstable living situations can
significantly impact a child's academic performance. **Action Item:** Consider the broader context of a
child's life when evaluating their academic struggles or behavior issues, and provide support services (such as
counseling or social work) to address any underlying trauma or instability.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** All behavior makes sense with
enough information, meaning that people's actions can be understood if we consider their underlying
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seems puzzling or frustrating (e.g., a student misbehaving in school, a colleague overspending on luxuries),
try to approach the situation with curiosity rather than judgment. Ask yourself: What might be driving this
person's behavior? or What story is behind their actions? By seeking to understand their perspective, you may
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Here are the key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** There is no one-size-fits-all
approach to managing money, saving, and spending - individuals must find their own unique approach.
**Action Item:** Reflect on your personal financial habits and values to determine what works best for you,
rather than trying to follow someone else's model or advice.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Personal finance is highly
subjective and individualized, much like personal taste in food or music. **Action Item:** Refrain from
judging others' financial decisions and focus on finding what works best for yourself, which can lead to
increased happiness and reduced cynicism.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The desire for financial security
can influence career choices, including the decision to pursue certain types of education or jobs. **Action
Item:** Reflect on how your desire for financial safety may be influencing your career aspirations and
consider whether there are other factors, such as personal fulfillment or passion, that should also play a role in
shaping your career goals.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Pursuing high-interest activities
may not always lead to high-paying jobs, and there can be a trade-off between doing what's interesting and
making money. **Action Item:** Reflect on your interests and values to identify potential career paths that
align with them, while also considering the financial implications and exploring ways to bridge any gaps
between interest and income.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** A well-calibrated sense of future
regret is crucial for making good financial decisions over time. **Action Item:** Take time to reflect on your
personal values and priorities at different stages of your life, and consider how they may impact what you
might regret in the future (e.g., overspending, not saving enough). Regularly re-evaluate your financial
decisions to ensure they align with your evolving sense of future regret.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Our financial priorities can shift
at different stages of our lives, and what brings us peace of mind in our youth may not be the same as we
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versus what I think I'll want in 10-20 years?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When making decisions, consider
what you will regret in the future, rather than just thinking about immediate gratification or short-term
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think you'll feel about that choice 5-10 years from now. Ask yourself: What would I regret not doing? or
What would I regret doing? and let that inform your decision-making process.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Taking calculated risks and trying
new things can be more important than success or failure itself. **Action Item:** Identify something you've
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yourself What would I regret not trying? rather than focusing on potential outcomes.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Recognizing your personal risk
tolerance and limitations is crucial when considering entrepreneurship or any high-stakes venture. **Action
Item:** Take an honest assessment of your own personality, financial situation, and risk tolerance to
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values.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** People tend to be poor at
anticipating what they will regret in the future. **Action Item:** Consider seeking diverse perspectives or
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Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Investing time and effort in a
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Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** We are poor at predicting how our
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Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Most people tend to
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Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many people struggle to
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Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Humans have a tendency towards
self-justification, making it difficult to consider alternative perspectives or admit that our current beliefs may
not be entirely accurate. This can lead to short-term thinking and poor decision-making. **Action Item:**
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Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** The two extreme approaches to personal finance -
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finances that takes into account your individual financial goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon. This may
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Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Our decisions can lead to higher
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Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** People tend to fall into two
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Here are a key insight and an action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Some individuals are
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Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Some people have a natural
propensity for taking risks versus playing it safe, and trying to change this fundamental aspect of oneself can
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Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The way people manage their
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your values and goals, aiming to reduce future regret and increase overall happiness.
Here is one key insight and corresponding action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** The
perception of old cars has changed over time, with many older vehicles now being restored to their former
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Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The widespread availability of
credit has changed people's relationship with money, leading some individuals to become comfortable with
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affects consumer behavior and consider alternative perspectives that challenge traditional notions of keeping
up with the Joneses or impulsive spending.

**Key Insight:** With the ease of access to credit and consumer debt, people are now able to spend far
beyond their means, attempting to fill emotional voids or gaps in their lives with material possessions.
**Action Item:** Consider implementing a budgeting system that prioritizes needs over wants, and seek to
identify underlying reasons for overspending (e.g., boredom, stress, low self-esteem) to develop healthier
coping mechanisms.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The pursuit of material
possessions can create a never-ending cycle of dissatisfaction, as people constantly seek more things to fill a
perceived void in their lives. **Action Item:** Take time for self-reflection to identify what truly brings
fulfillment and happiness in your life, rather than relying on external purchases or possessions. Consider
journaling, meditating, or talking with a trusted friend or mentor to gain clarity on what truly matters to you.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Having too much wealth can actually erode hope
and motivation to address underlying problems, whereas limited financial resources may prompt individuals
to seek alternative solutions. **Action Item:** Reflect on areas of your life where you may be relying too
heavily on external fixes (e.g. money) rather than addressing the root issues. Ask yourself: What are some
fundamental changes I need to make to improve my well-being, regardless of my financial situation?

Here are the key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Money can't directly buy happiness, but it can
provide a sense of security and reduce stress in certain areas of life, such as childcare. **Action Item:**
Instead of relying on credit or material possessions to alleviate unhappiness or stress, identify the root causes
of your dissatisfaction and invest time and resources into addressing those specific issues.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having more money can lead to
better health outcomes and reduced stress, as those who have the means to afford certain comforts and
treatments may receive preferential treatment in hospitals. **Action Item:** Consider reframing your
perspective on acquiring wealth from simply accumulating riches to recognizing that having a financial safety
net can also contribute to improved well-being and access to better healthcare. Ask yourself: what are my
goals for pursuing more money, and how will it impact my health and overall quality of life?

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Money can buy happiness
indirectly by enabling experiences and connections with others. **Action Item:** Instead of focusing solely
on acquiring material possessions, prioritize using your financial resources to facilitate social connections and
shared experiences that bring you joy, such as hosting gatherings or activities with friends and family.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** What truly brings happiness is not
just material wealth or experiences, but rather the meaningful connections and memories we create with
others through those experiences. **Action Item:** Prioritize creating opportunities for shared experiences
and quality time with loved ones, whether it's a vacation, a weekend getaway, or simply a regular family
dinner night. This can help foster deeper relationships and create lasting memories that bring happiness.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Having enough financial resources can contribute
to happiness, but it's not just about the money itself - it's often a result of finding purpose or meaning that
leads to wealth. **Action Item:** Reflect on what gives you a sense of purpose and fulfillment in life.
Identify what drives you and aligns with your values, as this may be the key to creating financial stability and
happiness, rather than just focusing on accumulating wealth for its own sake.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** External achievements, such as
business success or winning the lottery, do not necessarily translate to long-term happiness. **Action Item:**
Reflect on what truly gives you a sense of purpose and identity beyond your professional accomplishments,
and make time for activities that nourish those aspects of yourself.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Achieving success or building a
business may not bring lasting fulfillment or motivation if it doesn't align with a deeper sense of purpose.
**Action Item:** Take time to reflect on your personal values, goals, and motivations to identify what gives
you a sense of purpose beyond just achieving success.

Here is a possible interpretation: **Key Insight:** Immodesty and lack of self-awareness can lead to an
inflated sense of accomplishment. **Action Item:** When discussing personal achievements, take time to
reflect on the role of luck, privilege, or external circumstances that may have contributed to success. Be
honest with yourself about how much your achievement was truly due to individual effort versus other
factors.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Spending money can bring
happiness, but it depends on how it's spent and aligns with individual personalities. **Action Item:** Reflect
on your personal values and priorities to identify ways to spend money that will maximize your happiness,
whether that's through experiences like vacations or other activities that create lasting memories.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** True happiness often comes from
fulfilling activities that align with our values and purposes, rather than external measures of success.
**Action Item:** Reflect on what brings you joy and fulfillment in your life, and identify the underlying
purpose or value that drives those feelings. Ask yourself: What is my independence-plus-purpose formula for
a good life?

Here are the key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Having sufficient money provides independence
and freedom to pursue one's purpose, allowing for a higher level of psychological well-being. **Action
Item:** Focus on achieving financial stability and security as a means to gain independence and explore your
passions and purposes without undue stress or constraint.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Having independence
and control over your finances can be a key factor in increasing happiness, as it allows you to use money as a
tool to pursue activities and experiences that bring joy. **Action Item:** Take an inventory of your spending
habits and identify areas where you can intentionally allocate money towards activities or purchases that have
been shown to increase your happiness.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** The things we acquire or possess (e.g.,
supplements) are just tools that can facilitate our happiness, but they are not the direct sources of happiness
themselves. **Action Item:** Consider investing in a high-quality supplement like AG1 to provide
foundational nutritional support for your overall well-being, which can have positive impacts on energy,
immune system, gut health, and brain function.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** AG1 is offering a
special promotion for listeners/viewers who want to try their product. **Action Item:** Visit
drinkag1.com/Huberman to claim the special offer, which includes five free travel packs and a year's supply
of vitamin D3K2.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The company Roka has partnered
with the speaker to create a specialized product (red lens glasses) that caters to a specific need or use case
(evening wear). **Action Item:** Consider partnering with influencers, experts, or other brands to co-create
products that meet specific needs or preferences of your target audience.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wearing Roka Red Lens glasses
at night can help improve your transition to sleep by filtering out light that suppresses melatonin secretion.
**Action Item:** Consider wearing Roka Red Lens glasses in the evening, especially if you're exposed to
screens or LED lights before bedtime, to help regulate your sleep and wake up feeling more refreshed.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** It's possible to prioritize
supporting your biology (in this case, eye health) without having to sacrifice style or social life. **Action
Item:** Consider investing in functional yet stylish products like Roka Red lens glasses that can support your
well-being while also fitting into your active lifestyle.

Here is a key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** There is a discount available for new customers of
Roka. **Action Item:** Visit roka.com and use the code Huberman at checkout to receive 20% off your first
order.

Here are the key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Unstructured time with children can have a
profound impact on their lives, even if it's not filled with elaborate activities or special events. **Action
Item:** Make an effort to spend unstructured time with your kids regularly, whether it's playing together at
home, going for walks, or simply hanging out. This can be just as valuable and memorable as more planned
activities.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The impact of someone's values
and character can be lasting and influential. **Action Item:** Reflect on the people who have had a
significant influence in your life and identify what values or characteristics they possessed that you would
like to emulate.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many centenarians (people who
live to be 100 or older) have valuable insights and advice to share about how to live a fulfilling life. **Action
Item:** Seek out wisdom from experienced and successful individuals, whether through reading books like
30 Lessons for Living by Carl Pillamer or engaging in conversations with people who have lived long and full
lives.

Here are the key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** What truly matters in life is
relationships and personal connections, not material wealth or professional success. **Action Item:**
Prioritize spending quality time with loved ones, particularly children, and cultivate kindness and compassion
towards others, as these investments will yield long-term happiness and fulfillment.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** While earning more money can
provide opportunities to spend quality time with loved ones, many people may prioritize making money over
nurturing relationships, leading to regrets later in life. **Action Item:** Regularly schedule quality time with
friends and family, and prioritize these commitments as non-negotiable parts of your routine, rather than
letting work or financial pursuits dominate your life.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** High-earning professionals,
such as law firm partners, may be sacrificing personal happiness and well-being for financial success.
**Action Item:** Take a step back to assess your priorities and consider what truly brings you fulfillment.
Make time for activities that nourish your mind, body, and spirit, even if it means adjusting your work
schedule or lifestyle.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having financial wealth does not
necessarily mean having independence. **Action Item:** Assess your current situation and identify areas
where you may be trading independence for financial gain - then consider making changes to prioritize
autonomy and freedom in your work or career.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having wealth or success does
not necessarily guarantee happiness or independence, and in fact, can sometimes lead to feelings of being
trapped and unfulfilled. **Action Item:** Take time to reflect on what truly brings you happiness and a sense
of fulfillment, and consider whether your current pursuits are aligning with those values. Ask yourself: What
would give me more independence and autonomy, and how can I work towards creating that in my life?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having more wealth does not
necessarily translate to having more independence or freedom. In fact, making a lot of money can lead to new
forms of dependence and responsibilities that can limit our autonomy. **Action Item:** Consider setting a
financial goal to achieve independence by a certain age (e.g. 35), after which you can pursue activities and
passions that bring you joy and fulfillment, rather than solely focusing on accumulating wealth.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Continuing to work and
contribute, even when it's not necessary for financial reasons, can be a fulfilling and purposeful activity.
**Action Item:** Identify what drives your motivation and sense of fulfillment, and consider continuing to
work or engage in meaningful activities even if you don't need the money.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** People who achieve significant
wealth at a young age tend to continue striving for more. **Action Item:** Set clear financial goals for
yourself and recognize that enough will likely look different as your wealth grows - be prepared to reassess
and adjust your targets over time.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Once basic needs are met,
accumulating more wealth may not bring additional happiness or fulfillment. **Action Item:** Reflect on
your own financial goals and priorities to determine what enough means for you, and consider redirecting
excess resources towards experiences, relationships, or personal growth rather than continued wealth
accumulation.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When you enjoy what you do,
financial independence won't necessarily lead to a change in behavior or career path. **Action Item:**
Reflect on why you're motivated to pursue your current career or activities, and consider whether your
reasons are intrinsic (i.e., because you genuinely enjoy it) or extrinsic (i.e., for external rewards such as
money). This self-reflection can help you better understand what drives you and inform decisions about your
future goals and pursuits.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** If you're only motivated to work
for a specific financial goal and plan to stop working once that goal is achieved, it may indicate that you don't
truly enjoy or find fulfillment in your work. **Action Item:** Reflect on your motivations and values: Ask
yourself if you would continue to work and pursue your current career path even if money were no object. If
the answer is no, consider exploring alternative careers or industries that align more closely with your
passions and interests.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The motivation for creating (in
this case, writing books) should come from a place of passion and enjoyment, rather than solely from
financial necessity. **Action Item:** Reflect on your own motivations and priorities to ensure that you're
pursuing creative endeavors because they bring you joy and fulfillment, rather than just for external validation
or financial gain.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having too much money can be a
double-edged sword, as it can bring financial freedom but also psychological burdens that limit one's
autonomy and sense of purpose. **Action Item:** Take time to reflect on your values and priorities, and
consider how your relationship with money might be influencing your choices and goals. Ask yourself: Is my
pursuit of wealth aligning with what truly brings me fulfillment, or is it holding me back in some way?
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Recognizing that constantly
desiring more of something can be a sign of addiction. **Action Item:** Reflect on areas in your life where
you feel like you always need more, and consider whether this behavior might be indicative of an underlying
addiction or unhealthy pattern.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** For many people, including
some of the richest individuals in society, wealth can be a psychological liability, fueling an addiction to
accumulating more money. **Action Item:** Recognize that having more wealth does not necessarily lead to
greater happiness or fulfillment. Take steps to break free from the cycle of constantly wanting more by setting
clear financial goals and priorities, and focusing on what truly brings joy and satisfaction in life.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Dopamine is not just a molecule
associated with reward, but rather with the pursuit of reward and the drive for more. It plays a role in both
physical and cognitive movement. **Action Item:** Recognize that dopamine is motivated by the
anticipation of rewards, and use this knowledge to set goals and challenges that encourage you to take action
and pursue more.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Addiction can manifest
not only in the pursuit of pleasure but also in the avoidance of pain or feelings of vulnerability, particularly
social pain related to status, comparison, and fear of not meeting expectations. **Action Item:** Reflect on
your motivations for seeking financial gain or material possessions. Ask yourself: Am I pursuing wealth and
success primarily to experience joy and satisfaction, or am I driven by a desire to avoid feelings of
inadequacy, vulnerability, or social pressure? Be honest with yourself, and consider how this insight might
inform your goals and priorities.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The game of comparing oneself to
others in terms of wealth and material possessions can never be won, as there will always be someone who
appears to have more. **Action Item:** Focus on your own goals, values, and priorities, rather than
comparing yourself to others. Instead of trying to keep up with others' lifestyles, set your own standards for
success and happiness.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The pursuit of wealth through
comparison with others can be a never-ending cycle, as those who accumulate more wealth tend to compare
themselves to others at their level or above, fueling further desire for more. **Action Item:** Reflect on your
motivations for seeking financial gain and consider whether you are driven by a desire to keep up with others
or achieve true fulfillment. Ask yourself: What would I do if I didn't feel the need to compare myself to
others?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealthy individuals can still
experience feelings of inadequacy and financial insecurity, despite having a significant amount of wealth.
**Action Item:** Reframe your comparison mindset by focusing on your own financial progress and goals,
rather than comparing yourself to others. This can help you cultivate a more positive and secure relationship
with money, regardless of your net worth.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** For some people, wealth can
become a psychological liability that consumes their life and defines their sense of identity. **Action Item:**
Reflect on your own relationship with money and consider how it may be influencing your self-image and
priorities. Ask yourself: Is my pursuit of wealth aligning with my values and goals, or is it controlling me?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When making money becomes an
end in itself, rather than a means to achieve happiness and well-being, it can ultimately detract from one's
quality of life. **Action Item:** Reflect on your relationship with money and assess whether you are using it
as a tool to enhance your life or if the pursuit of wealth has become an all-consuming goal. Consider
re-evaluating your priorities and values to ensure that they align with what truly brings you happiness and
fulfillment.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Functional addiction or obsession
with work can create an illusion of progress and happiness, even among high-achievers who appear to have it
all together. **Action Item:** Take a step back from your busy schedule and assess whether your drive for
success is truly fulfilling you, or if it's masking underlying issues. Consider seeking outside perspectives or
engaging in self-reflection to ensure that your pursuit of achievements aligns with your true values and
priorities.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealthy individuals in this
demographic prioritize securing their health status over leaving a legacy through traditional means (e.g.
having their name on buildings). **Action Item:** Consider how you can offer products or services that cater
to the health and wellness needs of high-net-worth individuals, such as premium healthcare options,
personalized wellness programs, or luxury fitness experiences.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Successful individuals are increasingly prioritizing
their physical and mental well-being as a status symbol, rather than just accumulating wealth and material
possessions. **Action Item:** Invest in your own health and wellness by establishing a regular exercise
routine, getting adequate sleep, and monitoring your blood profiles to ensure you're making progress towards
optimal health.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** There's an inverse
relationship between wealth and physical labor in modern times, where wealthy people are now engaging in
more physical activity to maintain health, whereas in the past, they did less physical labor. **Action Item:**
Assess your own work-life balance and prioritize self-care to avoid overworking, which can take a physical
toll on your body. Make time for physical activities that promote relaxation and stress relief, rather than solely
relying on wealth accumulation as a means to achieve health.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Financial metrics such as net
worth and income are easily quantifiable, whereas measuring health is more subjective and challenging.
**Action Item:** Take a step back to assess not only your financial situation but also your overall well-being
by considering non-quantifiable aspects of your life, such as physical and mental health, relationships, and
personal fulfillment.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealthy individuals may
prioritize measurable success (e.g., wealth) over more subjective aspects of their lives (e.g., happiness,
health), potentially leading to an unbalanced life. **Action Item:** Regularly reflect on your values and
priorities, and consider setting goals that go beyond financial metrics. Ask yourself questions like What truly
brings me fulfillment? or What aspects of my life am I neglecting in pursuit of wealth?

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** No matter how much
wealth or material possessions one accumulates, human desires are likely to persist. **Action Item:** Reflect
on what truly drives your desires and goals, beyond just accumulating wealth or material goods. Ask yourself
what will bring you lasting fulfillment and satisfaction, and prioritize those pursuits in your life.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having a clear goal or vision
(e.g., owning a home) can motivate individuals to work towards achieving it, but it's essential to focus on
making progress rather than just dreaming about the end result. **Action Item:** Identify one step you can
take today or this week that moves you closer to your long-term goal, no matter how small it may seem. This
could be as simple as researching mortgage options, creating a savings plan, or talking to someone who has
achieved what you want to achieve.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Even when basic needs are
met, humans still have a desire to dream and strive for something more, often related to transcending
limitations (in this case, mortality). **Action Item:** Take time to reflect on what you truly want to achieve
or experience in life, beyond just meeting your basic needs. Ask yourself: What do I dream about? or What
would I want to accomplish if money and resources were no object?

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealth does not always
guarantee better health outcomes, and in fact, excessive access to questionable medical treatments can be
detrimental to one's health. **Action Item:** Be cautious of quick fixes or unproven medical treatments,
regardless of your socioeconomic status. Instead, prioritize evidence-based medicine and consult reputable
healthcare professionals to ensure the best possible health outcomes.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The pursuit of a better life
through consumerism has a long history of unintended consequences, including harm to individuals. **Action
Item:** Be cautious and critically evaluate the impact of your purchasing decisions, considering not only
short-term benefits but also potential long-term risks to your health and well-being.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealthy individuals may be
spending money on unproven treatments, including stem cell therapies, that are not FDA-approved and may
not only be ineffective but also potentially harmful. **Action Item:** When considering alternative or
experimental treatments, especially those available outside of the US, thoroughly research the treatment's
efficacy, safety record, and regulatory approval status before making a decision.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Some stem cell clinics may
engage in unregulated and potentially hazardous practices, prioritizing profits over patient safety. **Action
Item:** Research thoroughly and exercise caution when considering stem cell therapies, ensuring that any
clinic or treatment is properly regulated and has a strong scientific basis.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Certain lifestyle choices and
environmental factors (e.g., head trauma, environmental toxins, smoking) can contribute to disease and
decrease longevity. **Action Item:** Assess your personal risk factors and take steps to mitigate them, such
as avoiding environmental toxins, wearing protective gear to prevent head trauma, quitting smoking, and
limiting alcohol consumption.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Despite advances in medicine and
technology, there is still a lot of uncertainty about how to achieve longevity and optimal health, except for
exercise which has been proven to have positive effects. **Action Item:** Focus on incorporating regular
exercise into your daily routine as a foundation for improving overall health and well-being, rather than
relying solely on expensive or unproven methods for achieving longevity.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The pursuit of something
can be a motivating factor for well-being, driven by the release of dopamine which makes us want more.
**Action Item:** Identify areas in your life where you're feeling stagnant or unfulfilled, and set goals that
challenge you to pursue something new or improve upon existing skills, leveraging the motivational power of
anticipation and progress.

Here are the key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Even when we have everything
we need, our brains are wired to desire more, creating a perpetual sense of dissatisfaction. **Action Item:**
Practice mindfulness and gratitude by regularly reflecting on what you already have, rather than constantly
focusing on what's lacking or what you don't yet possess. This can help shift your mindset away from
perpetual dissatisfaction and cultivate contentment with what you have.

Here's one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The brain's dopamine circuitry
drives us to chase things that are just out of our reach but seem possible to achieve, which can lead to
unhealthy pursuits. **Action Item:** Be aware of how social media may be manipulating your desires and
perceptions, and take steps to set realistic goals and boundaries for yourself. This could involve limiting time
on social media, taking breaks from it, or seeking out alternative sources of information and inspiration that
promote a more balanced and achievable sense of what's possible.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Social media has
changed our perception of what is within reach and achievable, making it seem like extreme wealth and
success are more attainable than they actually are. **Action Item:** Be mindful of the impact of social media
on your own aspirations and self-perception. Regularly take breaks from social media and prioritize real-life
relationships and role models to gain a more balanced view of what is truly possible and achievable with hard
work and dedication.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Successful individuals often have
an unshakeable confidence and vision for their future success, even when others may not see it yet. **Action
Item:** Write down your own ambitious goals and practice acceptance speeches or declarations of your
future success, whether it's a speech, a journal entry, or a conversation with a friend. This can help you clarify
your vision, build confidence, and stay focused on what you want to achieve.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The speaker is reflecting on
their past experience with skateboarding and how they perceived a significant gap between themselves and
the famous skateboarders (Tony Hawks, Mike McGills, Steve Caballeros) who were like luminaries to them.
**Action Item:** Identify your own luminaries or role models in your field or industry, and reflect on what
gaps exist between you and them. What steps can you take to close those gaps and achieve your goals?

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Sometimes all it takes is taking initiative and
putting yourself out there to achieve success or get noticed. **Action Item:** Identify an opportunity or goal
that aligns with your passions or interests, and take a proactive step towards pursuing it - whether it's sending
in an application, making a phone call, or creating a video showcasing your skills.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Social media can provide a
platform for unknown individuals to gain widespread recognition and fame, potentially leading to new career
opportunities and financial streams. **Action Item:** Identify your unique strengths or talents and create
content showcasing them on social media platforms to increase visibility and potentially attract new
opportunities.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many teenagers now aspire to
become social media influencers as a way to achieve fame and wealth, indicating a shift in career aspirations.
**Action Item:** Educators and parents should be aware of this trend and consider incorporating discussions
about the realities of being an influencer, including the potential pitfalls and the importance of having a
diverse skill set, into their career counseling and guidance.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The widespread awareness of
online success stories, even if rare, can inspire others to believe that they too can achieve similar success.
**Action Item:** Share relatable stories of online successes with students or individuals who may be
interested in creating content or building an online presence, in order to spark their creativity and motivation.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Fame can actually limit your
freedom, rather than increasing it. **Action Item:** Re-evaluate your goals and priorities, considering
whether wealth and anonymity might be a more desirable combination for achieving true freedom in life.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Being wealthy and anonymous
(the sweet spot) is a desirable state, while being poor and famous is a challenging situation. **Action Item:**
Focus on building wealth through acquiring assets that generate passive income, rather than seeking fame or
external validation.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Fame can be a form of social
debt that outweighs its benefits, causing unhappiness and stress. **Action Item:** Evaluate your motivations
for seeking fame or attention, and consider whether the potential costs to your happiness and freedom may
not be worth it.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Traditional measures of wealth
(e.g. net worth) do not account for emotional or psychological liabilities, such as feelings of lack of privacy.
**Action Item:** Consider taking an inventory of your emotional expenses - what are the things that cause
you stress or discomfort? Are there any steps you can take to mitigate these liabilities and improve your
overall sense of well-being?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When you receive a raise or come
into some extra money, others may start to ask for financial help or favors, creating a social debt. **Action
Item:** Set clear boundaries with friends and family about what you are and aren't willing to do financially,
such as paying for dinner or lending money, in order to maintain healthy relationships and avoid feeling taken
advantage of.
Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Social media companies like
Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are highly effective at using psychological manipulation (e.g., generating
dopamine hits) to keep users engaged. **Action Item:** Consider taking steps to protect your mental health
from social media's influence, such as limiting screen time, taking breaks from social media, or seeking out
more balanced online interactions.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Comprehensive lab testing is
important for health, but can often be complicated and expensive. **Action Item:** Consider trying a lab
testing service called Function (functionhealth.com) that aims to simplify the process, especially if you're
interested in monitoring your health.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Many people have
regrets about how they've spent their time, wishing they had focused more on what truly matters to them.
**Action Item:** Take some time to reflect on your own life and write a hypothetical obituary from the
perspective of someone who has lived a fulfilling life. What do you want to be remembered for? What values
or relationships do you want to prioritize? Use this exercise as a prompt to re-evaluate your priorities and
make intentional decisions about how you allocate your time and energy.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The things that truly matter in life
are often not related to material possessions or external measures of success, but rather to our relationships,
contributions, and character. **Action Item:** Take time to reflect on your personal values and priorities by
writing your own preferred obituary - what would you want people to say about you after you're gone? What
kind of person do you want to be remembered as? Use this exercise to help guide your decisions and focus on
what truly matters in life.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** There are two types of virtues that
we can focus on: resume virtues (e.g. professional achievements, wealth) and eulogy virtues (e.g. personal
qualities, relationships). **Action Item:** Reflect on your own life and priorities - are you focusing too much
on building your resume virtues at the expense of developing eulogy virtues that will truly matter in the long
run? Make a conscious effort to cultivate qualities like kindness, empathy, and humor that will bring joy and
fulfillment to yourself and those around you.

Here are the key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Many people prioritize resume virtues (e.g.,
education, income, career advancement) over eulogy virtues (e.g., character, relationships, personal growth),
but it is the latter that truly bring happiness and fulfillment. **Action Item:** Regularly take time to
disconnect from work and focus on nurturing meaningful relationships and experiences with loved ones, such
as taking a vacation or simply spending quality time together.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Spending money on experiences
like traveling (e.g., to Maui) may bring temporary happiness, but investing time in meaningful relationships
(e.g., with family) can lead to a more lasting sense of fulfillment. **Action Item:** Review your priorities
and budget to ensure that you're allocating sufficient time and resources to nurture relationships with loved
ones, rather than just focusing on accumulating wealth or prestige.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many people fail to take
advantage of saving for retirement or other long-term goals, despite having the means to do so and
understanding its value. **Action Item:** Take a close look at your budget and income to identify
opportunities to set aside money for long-term savings, even if it's just a small amount each month.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** People's perceptions of time are
often irrational, leading to poor decision-making when it comes to saving for the future. **Action Item:**
Take steps to address this bias by implementing automatic savings plans or setting clear financial goals that
account for long-term needs.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Failing to invest and
compound interest can lead to significantly less wealth accumulation over time. **Action Item:** Consider
developing a long-term investment strategy that takes advantage of compounding interest, such as starting to
save and invest early in life or setting up automatic investments.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Humans are not wired for
exponential thinking, which makes it difficult to fully comprehend and appreciate the power of compounding
growth. **Action Item:** When considering investments or long-term financial decisions, use tools or
calculators that can help illustrate the impact of exponential growth, rather than relying solely on mental math
or intuition. This can help provide a more accurate understanding of potential outcomes and inform
decision-making.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Long-term investing can seem abstract and difficult
to relate to when you're young and struggling with short-term financial needs. **Action Item:** When
discussing long-term investments with a young person, try to make the concept more tangible and relevant to
their current situation by using relatable examples or visual aids that illustrate how small, consistent
investments can add up over time.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Human perception of time makes
it difficult for people to worry about or take action towards distant future events, even if they are important.
**Action Item:** When communicating about long-term goals or risks (e.g. climate change), try to make
them more immediate and tangible by highlighting shorter-term consequences or interim steps that need to be
taken, in order to increase motivation and urgency among individuals and decision-makers.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Some people have a natural
inclination towards understanding financial concepts, while others may struggle with them. **Action Item:**
When teaching or communicating financial information to others, take into account their individual learning
styles and abilities, and be patient and willing to adapt your approach as needed.

Here are one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Only 1% of people can end up in the top 1%,
which means that achieving financial success is extremely difficult and may not be possible for everyone.
**Action Item:** Emphasize realistic expectations in financial education, acknowledging that saving and
investing consistently over a long period (e.g., 50 years) is challenging and may not be suitable or achievable
for everyone.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Understanding the risks or
consequences of a behavior (e.g. smoking, eating highly processed foods) does not necessarily lead to a
change in that behavior, as behavior is driven by more complex factors than just knowledge. **Action
Item:** When trying to influence behavior (your own or others'), focus on strategies that address underlying
motivations, habits, and environmental factors, rather than simply relying on education or awareness of the
risks.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Appealing to emotions and social
identity can be a more effective motivator than fear or rational arguments. **Action Item:** Consider
reframing your message to tap into your audience's values, desires, and sense of identity, rather than simply
presenting facts or warnings. Ask yourself: What are my audience's core motivations and aspirations? How
can I craft a narrative that resonates with them on an emotional level?

Here is a key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** The approach or strategy
being discussed was effective. **Action Item:** Investigate what specific aspects of the approach contributed
to its success, in order to apply those lessons to future endeavors.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The human brain may struggle
with exponential thinking, which could have implications for how we understand and interact with complex
systems. **Action Item:** Investigate whether the dopamine reward system, a fundamental driver of pursuit
and reward in humans and other species, is capable of processing exponential math, and explore potential
implications for understanding motivation and decision-making.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Some people have a
unique ability to think long-term and prioritize delayed gratification, which can contribute to their financial
success. **Action Item:** Practice delayed gratification by identifying small expenses that you can cut back
on today, with the goal of investing or saving that money for future returns. For example, consider skipping
one non-essential purchase per week or month and putting the saved funds towards a long-term savings goal.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Being overly focused on planning
for the future can lead to regret if it means missing out on enjoying the present moment. **Action Item:**
Make time to appreciate and enjoy what you have now, rather than constantly focusing on saving and
planning for the future. Strike a balance between preparing for tomorrow and living in today.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** The Marshmallow Test,
which involves delayed gratification to achieve a greater reward, originated from research conducted at
Stanford University. **Action Item:** Research the original study behind the Marshmallow Test to gain a
deeper understanding of how self-control and delayed gratification are developed in children.

Here are one key insight and one action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The author recognizes that
online platforms can facilitate diverse perspectives and corrections, allowing for a collaborative approach to
learning and improvement. **Action Item:** When sharing ideas or opinions online, welcome feedback and
corrections from others by explicitly inviting comments and engaging with responses in a constructive
manner.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The children who were able to
delay gratification (i.e., wait for two marshmallows) did so not by resisting the temptation or being motivated
by anticipation, but rather by distracting themselves from the tempting stimulus. **Action Item:** When
faced with a situation that requires self-control or delayed gratification, try to distract yourself from the
tempting stimulus rather than trying to willpower your way through it. Engage in an activity that takes your
mind off the temptation, such as going for a walk, doing a puzzle, or chatting with someone.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Immediate gratification can lead
people to make impulsive decisions, rather than considering long-term benefits. **Action Item:** When
making important decisions, take a step back to consider both short-term and long-term consequences. Ask
yourself: What are the potential benefits of delaying immediate gratification in favor of a better outcome
down the line?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Today's youth (referred to
as their kids) may be highly distracted and have limited attention spans, often compared to having a short
memory like that of a goldfish. **Action Item:** Consider adapting your communication strategy or
approach to accommodate shorter attention spans, such as using concise language, visual aids, and frequent
breaks to keep young people engaged.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Distracting oneself from waiting
can make the time pass more quickly and make rewards feel earned. **Action Item:** When faced with a
wait or delay, focus on doing something enjoyable or engaging to distract yourself and make the time feel
more productive.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** The constant availability of information about the
stock market can be a major source of temptation for investors, making it difficult for them to avoid checking
their investments too frequently. **Action Item:** Consider implementing strategies to limit exposure to
market updates and notifications, such as turning off push notifications from investment apps or avoiding
watching CNBC and other financial news channels.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Separating social media use from
primary phone use can help manage compulsion and reduce mindless scrolling. **Action Item:** Consider
setting up a secondary device or profile specifically for social media, allowing you to control when and how
you engage with these platforms.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Social media algorithms are
designed to be highly engaging and can easily consume a large amount of time if not managed properly.
**Action Item:** Implement boundaries around social media use, such as setting specific times to check
accounts or using website blockers to limit access to certain platforms during focused work periods.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Social media can be extremely
addictive due to its effect on dopamine circuitry, which can fundamentally change how we behave. **Action
Item:** Limit your own time spent on social media to avoid getting pulled into compulsive behavior patterns.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Spending too much time
engaging with others on social media (e.g., commenting, liking) can be a liability if it takes away from
creating high-quality content that attracts new followers and views. **Action Item:** Set aside dedicated
time to create original, valuable content for your social media channels, rather than just focusing on
interacting with others' posts.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The concept of harvesting
material or ideas can lead to stagnation if not balanced with planting new seeds or generating new content.
**Action Item:** Regularly set aside time to brainstorm, observe, and explore new sources of inspiration to
ensure a steady flow of fresh ideas and prevent burnout.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Success can lead to busyness,
which can cause individuals to lose touch with their original sources of inspiration (in this case, observing the
world). **Action Item:** Schedule time for observation and reflection, even as success grows, in order to
maintain a connection to your core sources of inspiration and creativity.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** It's unrealistic to expect that
100% of your work will be enjoyable, but it's possible to find a career where at least 75% of the activities
bring you pleasure. **Action Item:** Take an inventory of your current job or profession and estimate what
percentage of your daily/weekly tasks bring you joy, are neutral, and are unpleasant. Use this reflection to
identify areas for improvement or potential career changes that could increase your overall job satisfaction.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Even successful individuals can
have different personalities and approaches to work, with some being more optimistic than others. **Action
Item:** Reflect on your own approach to work and whether it aligns with your personality and values.
Consider how you can strike a balance between enjoying your work and pushing yourself to achieve goals.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Dopamine release without
preceding effort can be detrimental to our well-being and may lead to addictive behaviors. **Action Item:**
Engage in activities that require effort and challenge yourself, as this will help you develop a healthier
relationship with dopamine and reduce the likelihood of seeking out unhealthy or addictive behaviors.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Receiving rewards or
benefits without putting in any effort can lead to an unsustainable baseline for happiness and satisfaction.
**Action Item:** Take ownership of your achievements by working hard towards them, rather than relying
solely on luck or external factors. This will help you build a more stable foundation for long-term happiness
and fulfillment.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The satisfaction derived from an
achievement can be diminished if it doesn't feel earned or if there was no effort put into it. **Action Item:**
Reflect on your goals and accomplishments, and identify areas where you may not have put in sufficient
effort. Consider putting in more time and energy to achieve them, which will likely lead to a greater sense of
satisfaction and fulfillment when you succeed.

Here are the key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Certain forms of reward and pleasure can be
effortless and seamless, yet still be highly enriching. **Action Item:** Reflect on activities or experiences in
your life that bring you joy and pleasure without requiring significant effort, and make time for them to
recharge and enrich your life.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** High levels of dopamine without
preceding effort can be detrimental to an individual's well-being. **Action Item:** As a parent, ensure that
children are encouraged to put in effort and work towards their goals, rather than simply being handed
rewards or pleasure without any challenge. This will help them develop a healthy relationship with motivation
and pleasure.
**Key Insight:** The most memorable moments in life often arise from everyday experiences and mundane
activities shared with loved ones, rather than just the main events or destinations. **Action Item:** When
planning trips or outings with family members, especially children, focus on creating opportunities for shared
experiences and interactions during travel, mealtime, and other routine activities, as these can lead to lasting
memories.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The process of traveling or
experiencing challenges with others can be just as valuable and memorable as the destination itself. **Action
Item:** When planning trips or activities with friends or family, focus not only on the end goal, but also on
creating opportunities for shared experiences and bonding along the way. This could involve incorporating
group challenges, team-building exercises, or simply scheduling downtime to relax and socialize together.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Sharing experiences with others
can create strong bonds and a sense of accomplishment. **Action Item:** Seek out opportunities to
collaborate or participate in challenging activities with others, such as team-building exercises or group
projects, to foster deeper relationships and a shared sense of achievement.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The speaker is highlighting the
importance of personal journeys and experiences in shaping our perspectives and understanding. **Action
Item:** Take time to reflect on your own life journey and experiences, both successes and setbacks, to gain a
deeper understanding of yourself and how they have shaped you into the person you are today.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Solitary confinement can
be a form of psychological torture, having severe negative effects on an individual's mental health. **Action
Item:** Consider advocating for prison reform or supporting organizations that work to abolish solitary
confinement, promoting more humane treatment of inmates.

Here is a potential key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Freedom exists at
the opposite end of the spectrum from experiences that are brutal. **Action Item:** Identify areas in your life
where you feel trapped, limited, or brutalized by circumstances, and brainstorm ways to introduce more
freedom and autonomy into those areas.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Our own mindset and fears can
enslave us just as much as external circumstances, preventing us from achieving true freedom. **Action
Item:** Take time for self-reflection to identify areas where your pursuit of work or other goals may be
driven by fear or a need for validation, rather than genuine passion or purpose. Ask yourself if there are ways
to reframe or adjust your approach to break free from these internal constraints and achieve greater autonomy
and fulfillment.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** People often tolerate
difficult situations, even though they have the power to make changes or leave. **Action Item:** Identify one
thing in your current situation that you can change or walk away from to improve your well-being, whether
it's a minor adjustment (like finding a way to get fresh air) or a major decision (like quitting a job). Take the
first step towards making that change happen.

**Key Insight:** People often desire autonomy and flexibility, which can be stifled by bureaucratic
constraints. **Action Item:** Review policies and procedures to identify areas where unnecessary
restrictions may be limiting employees' ability to work effectively or safely, and consider revising them to
provide more flexibility and empowerment.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Children (and humans in general)
crave autonomy and freedom from rigid rules and schedules. **Action Item:** Consider giving children (or
others who may feel restricted) a free day or a designated period of time where they have complete control
over their schedule and activities, allowing them to exercise self-directed choice and experience a sense of
liberation.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Having freedom doesn't mean doing nothing, but
rather having the autonomy to make choices and take actions without being forced or coerced. **Action
Item:** Reflect on your own life and schedule, and identify areas where you feel micromanaged or
constrained. Consider how you can create more autonomy and freedom for yourself in those areas, whether
it's by setting your own goals and deadlines or finding ways to work independently.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** True freedom doesn't mean
quitting work or being unproductive, but rather having the autonomy to pursue activities that bring fulfillment
and purpose. **Action Item:** Reflect on your current goals and aspirations - are they driven by external
expectations (e.g. what others think you should do) or internal desires? Consider whether aligning your
pursuits with your own values and interests could lead to greater freedom and satisfaction, even if it means
taking a different path than initially planned.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** A culture that demands
extremely long working hours (e.g., 100 hours a week) can be unsustainable and drive out talented employees
who value their well-being. **Action Item:** Review your company's work culture and policies to ensure
they promote healthy work-life balance, rather than encouraging burnout. Consider implementing flexible
scheduling, setting realistic expectations for workload and hours worked, and prioritizing employee
well-being.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** People are often more motivated
to work hard when they have control over their own terms, rather than being told what to do by others.
**Action Item:** Consider offering employees or team members more autonomy and flexibility in their work
arrangements, such as flexible hours or independent projects, to tap into their intrinsic motivation and drive.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** True financial independence
comes not from accumulating wealth, but from reducing dependence on money for certain aspects of life.
**Action Item:** Identify areas where you can reduce spending to gain more autonomy and independence in
your daily life. Ask yourself: What expenses can I eliminate or minimize to free myself up?

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** The money not spent on
purchases, such as cars or houses, can be viewed as idle or untapped potential. **Action Item:** Review your
budget and consider redirecting funds that would have been spent on non-essential purchases towards
savings, investments, or debt repayment to make the most of your idle money.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Every dollar saved can be seen as
an investment in financial independence, rather than just idle money. **Action Item:** Reframe your
thinking around saving by viewing each dollar set aside as a deliberate choice to purchase freedom and
independence, rather than just letting it sit in the bank.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Saving money can provide
marginal independence and a sense of freedom, rather than being driven by fear or pessimism. **Action
Item:** Review your current savings habits and goals, and consider setting aside some amount each month as
a way to build independence and confidence in your financial decisions.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Saving money is not just about
achieving financial stability, but also about pursuing personal goals and values, such as independence.
**Action Item:** Reflect on what motivates you to save money - is it solely for financial security or are there
deeper desires driving your behavior? Identify your core values and use them to set meaningful savings goals
that align with your aspirations.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many people, especially those in
high-stress careers like investment banking, feel trapped on a conveyor belt path and are unsure if it's worth
continuing down that road for financial gain versus pursuing something more fulfilling. **Action Item:**
Take time to reflect on your current career path and ask yourself: What are my true goals and priorities?
Consider writing down the pros and cons of staying in your current role versus exploring alternative options.
This exercise can help you clarify what's driving your decisions and whether it's worth continuing down a
path that may not ultimately align with your values and aspirations.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Pursuing a career for financial
gain alone may not be fulfilling, and people often weigh personal interests against potential earnings when
choosing a profession. **Action Item:** Reflect on your own motivations and priorities when considering a
career path - ask yourself what drives you, what you value most in a profession, and whether your choices
align with those values.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Even high-paying jobs, such as a
tenured professor at a top university in a region with a high cost of living, may not yield a high post-tax
income. **Action Item:** When considering job offers or relocation opportunities, take into account not only
the salary but also the local tax rates and cost of living to get an accurate picture of your potential net
earnings.

Here are the key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having independence in a
profession or role can lead to greater job satisfaction and personal fulfillment. **Action Item:** Consider
pursuing roles or opportunities that offer autonomy and flexibility, allowing you to make choices about how
you work and what you teach/say.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many people unknowingly tolerate
conditions in their professional lives that they would reject in other areas of life, such as government control.
**Action Item:** Take an honest assessment of your current work situation and ask yourself: Am I tolerating
any conditions or restrictions that I wouldn't accept in other areas of my life? Identify areas where you may be
compromising your autonomy, creativity, or values, and consider what changes you can make to align your
professional life with your personal aspirations and values.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The peak end rule in psychology
suggests that people tend to remember an experience or endeavor (such as a career) primarily by how they felt
at the very end of it. **Action Item:** When ending a significant chapter in your life or career, prioritize
creating a positive and meaningful conclusion. This could involve having open and respectful conversations
with colleagues or loved ones, finding closure on important projects or relationships, or taking time to reflect
on accomplishments and lessons learned.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Quitting on your own terms can
be a powerful way to maintain control and dignity in your career, allowing you to pass on responsibilities to
others when you're ready. **Action Item:** Consider setting boundaries and planning for a transition that
allows you to step back from your career on your own terms, rather than waiting for external circumstances to
force the issue.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many people value autonomy,
freedom, and control in their lives, and fear losing these things more than death itself. **Action Item:** Take
steps to prioritize your own autonomy and freedom in your career and life choices, so that you can look back
on them fondly and feel a sense of fulfillment.

**Key Insight:** Many people's fears about their futures are not about the ultimate outcome, but rather about
losing control over their lives and being unable to achieve their goals on their own terms. **Action Item:**
Take an honest assessment of what is driving your fears and anxieties about your future. Are you truly
concerned about a specific outcome, or are you worried about losing autonomy and agency in your life?
Identifying the root cause of your fears can help you address them more effectively.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** As we age, our focus should shift
from accumulating wealth to sharing our knowledge and resources with future generations. **Action Item:**
Reflect on how you can use your life experience, financial resources, and other forms of wealth to give back
to others and leave a lasting legacy for subsequent generations.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** We all have a choice in how we age
- we can either deteriorate physically and mentally, or we can focus on growing into wise elders who
contribute positively to society. **Action Item:** Reflect on your personal values and goals for aging, and
consider what steps you can take now to invest in your own physical, emotional, and social well-being so that
you can become a vibrant and contributing elder.
Here are a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many academics (and
professionals) are reluctant to retire, even when they reach traditional retirement age. **Action Item:**
Consider implementing flexible retirement options or phased retirement programs that allow individuals to
transition gradually into retirement, allowing them to maintain some level of engagement with their work
while also giving younger generations opportunities for advancement.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many people, especially in
fields like science and academia, continue to work beyond traditional retirement age not just for financial
reasons but also because they crave intellectual stimulation and social connection. **Action Item:** Consider
how you can design your own career or post-retirement life to incorporate opportunities for ongoing learning,
intellectual challenge, and social engagement, whether that means continuing to work in some capacity or
pursuing other passions and interests.

Here are a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Extremely wealthy individuals
often have a choice between using their wealth for philanthropic purposes or passing it down to future
generations of their family. **Action Item:** Consider how you would like your own wealth (or future
wealth) to be used, whether that's through charitable giving or building lasting legacies within your family.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many children of ultra-rich
individuals who inherit large sums of money may not use it wisely or effectively. **Action Item:** If you're
planning to leave a significant inheritance, consider setting up structures that encourage responsible giving
and philanthropy, such as establishing a family foundation or requiring heirs to use inherited funds for
charitable purposes.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Inheriting wealth or assets does
not guarantee long-term success or responsible management. However, with thoughtful planning, hard work,
and a commitment to stewardship, it is possible for families to build on their inherited advantages. **Action
Item:** If you are part of a family that has inherited significant assets, take the time to research and learn
from examples of successful family legacies, such as the Rockefellers. Consider seeking guidance from
experts or mentors who can help your family develop a thoughtful plan for managing and growing your
wealth over multiple generations.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Wealth can be quickly
squandered if not managed carefully, as evidenced by the Vanderbilt family's experience. **Action Item:**
Develop a thoughtful wealth management plan that considers long-term sustainability and responsible
distribution of assets to future generations.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having a name or legacy that
comes with high expectations can actually hinder personal growth and identity formation. **Action Item:**
Encourage individuals (especially those from privileged backgrounds) to create their own path and identity,
rather than relying solely on family name or wealth. This can involve taking calculated risks, pursuing
personal interests, and developing skills outside of the family business or tradition.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The pressure to achieve and
produce can be self-imposed, and it's possible to redefine what success means to you. **Action Item:** Take
a step back and reflect on your motivations and goals. Ask yourself: What are my true values and priorities?
Am I striving for external validation or trying to meet others' expectations? Identify areas where you can let
go of unnecessary pressure and focus on what truly brings you fulfillment.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Having control over one's own success and
happiness, rather than relying on external factors or others' approval, can lead to greater fulfillment. **Action
Item:** Take ownership of your goals and work towards achieving them through your own efforts, rather
than waiting for opportunities or relying on others.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Growing up in a family with limited financial
resources may present challenges, but it also offers a unique perspective and opportunities for growth that
wealthier individuals may not experience. **Action Item:** Reframe your thinking around socio-economic
status by recognizing both the advantages and disadvantages of each situation, rather than simply assuming
one is better or more desirable than the other.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having extreme wealth does not
necessarily lead to happiness or fulfillment, and may even create self-destructive tendencies due to a lack of
motivation beyond accumulating more wealth. **Action Item:** Reflect on what drives your personal
motivation and goals, and identify whether they are tied to financial success or something else. Ask yourself:
What would I continue to strive for if money were no object?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Founders often experience
turmoil and uncertainty. **Action Item:** Reach out to founders in your network, such as through a podcast
or personal conversation, to offer support and learn from their experiences.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Out of 350 founders profiled, only
one stood out as someone whose life the profiler would want to emulate. **Action Item:** Research Ed
Thorp, understand what sets him apart from other successful founders, and identify any lessons or strategies
that can be applied to your own life or career.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Many people have made
significant contributions to society and improved others' lives through their work, even if they may not be
perfect individuals. **Action Item:** Reflect on the positive impact that individuals in various fields (e.g.,
business, science, arts) have had on your life and consider how you can build upon or learn from their
achievements.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Achieving exceptional financial
and career success often requires an enormous amount of time, effort, and sacrifice, which can come at the
expense of other important aspects of life, such as family, health, and mental well-being. **Action Item:**
Before pursuing a goal or endeavor with singular devotion, take a step back to consider the potential costs and
sacrifices involved, and ask yourself if the benefits are truly worth the trade-offs.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When we envy others' success or
circumstances, we tend to focus on specific aspects that appeal to us, but if we take a closer look at their entire
life situation, we may discover that it's not as glamorous or desirable as we thought. **Action Item:** Next
time you find yourself envying someone else's life or circumstances, try to take a more nuanced view by
considering the potential downsides and challenges they may be facing. Ask yourself what their full package
might look like, beyond just the superficial aspects that appeal to you.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** People often idealize others' lives
without considering the full picture, which may not be as desirable as it seems. **Action Item:** Practice
critical thinking when comparing your life to others', and remind yourself that everyone's experiences are
unique - don't assume someone else's success or happiness is solely due to their circumstances.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When faced with an enormous
amount of information or resources, our brains can struggle to process and make sense of it due to its vast
scale and potential disruption to normal dopamine reward schedules. **Action Item:** Break down
overwhelming amounts of information or resources into smaller, more manageable chunks, allowing your
brain to better process and adapt to the new stimulus.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** There's a sweet spot between
struggling to make ends meet and achieving extreme success, where individuals can find meaning, financial
stability, and strong relationships. **Action Item:** Reflect on your current situation and consider what small
adjustments you could make to move closer to this sweet spot. Ask yourself: What are the essential elements I
need to feel fulfilled and financially stable? What steps can I take to start building a more meaningful life that
aligns with my values and goals?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Achieving well-being requires
effort and dedication in multiple areas of life (physical health, mental calmness, loving relationships).
**Action Item:** Identify one area where you'd like to make progress (e.g., physical fitness, reducing stress)
and create a specific plan with actionable steps to work towards it.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Measurable goals can be a
double-edged sword - while having clear objectives can help us focus, it's also easy to get sidetracked by
tangible targets (like increasing income) at the expense of less measurable but equally important goals (like
building stronger relationships). **Action Item:** Take some time to reflect on your personal and
professional goals. Identify areas where you've been focusing too much on quantifiable objectives, and
consider how you can rebalance your efforts to prioritize more subjective but valuable goals - like nurturing
meaningful relationships or cultivating a sense of well-being.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Being present in the moment can
bring greater joy and appreciation for life, rather than getting caught up in worries about the past or future.
**Action Item:** Take a few minutes each day to practice mindfulness and presence, focusing on your
surroundings and the sensations of the current moment, without judgment or distraction.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Dogs are often fully present and
engaged in the current moment, enjoying whatever activity they're doing without distraction or worry.
**Action Item:** Take a cue from your dog's behavior and practice being more mindful and present in your
daily activities. Try to let go of distractions and focus on the task at hand, savoring the experience and finding
joy in the simple things.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Golden retrievers, as a breed,
embody universal love and affection towards both their owners and strangers. **Action Item:** Take a cue
from golden retrievers and practice unconditional kindness and warmth towards others, whether it's a loved
one or someone you meet in passing.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Social comparison can be
detrimental, especially when it comes to relationships or possessions (like guard dogs). The speaker's
humorous anecdote about their ineffective golden retriever highlights how comparisons can lead to unrealistic
expectations. **Action Item:** Recognize when you're engaging in social comparison and reframe your
thinking. Instead of comparing yourself or your circumstances to others, focus on what works for you and
appreciate the unique qualities that bring value to your life.

Here is one possible key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** The
conversation implies that there may be an unmet expectation or desire for something more in a relationship.
**Action Item:** Have an open and honest conversation with your partner to understand what they mean by
we need more and what specific needs or desires are not being met.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** A simple expression of desire
for more quality time with one's partner can significantly impact the dynamics of a relationship. **Action
Item:** Schedule regular dedicated time with your partner, even if it's just a walk or dinner together, to
nurture your connection and show that you value each other.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** People value relationships and
quality time with loved ones over material possessions. **Action Item:** Make an effort to prioritize
spending quality time with family and friends, and consider gifting experiences or shared activities instead of
physical presents.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The messages we receive from
people closest to us can shape our fears, needs, and perceptions, just like social comparisons with peers at
work or online. **Action Item:** Reflect on the influences in your life and identify any negative or limiting
messages you may have received from others. Consider how these messages may be impacting your decisions
and behaviors, and think about ways to reframe or challenge them if necessary.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Our perception of enough to
take care of our family is often influenced by comparison with others and societal expectations, rather than an
objective standard. **Action Item:** Reflect on your own definition of enough and consider what truly
constitutes a good life for you and your family, independent of external comparisons or societal pressures.
Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Societal definitions of what
constitutes a good life change over time, reflecting evolving values and expectations. **Action Item:**
Regularly re-evaluate your own definition of a fulfilling life to ensure it aligns with your current values,
goals, and aspirations, rather than relying on outdated or nostalgic ideals.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The pursuit of happiness
through wealth is often driven by a comparative mindset, where we feel the need to surpass others in terms of
financial resources. **Action Item:** Reflect on your own values and goals to determine what truly brings
you happiness, rather than focusing solely on accumulating more wealth than others. Ask yourself: What are
my non-monetary sources of joy and fulfillment?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Material wealth and advances in
technology do not necessarily lead to greater happiness or a sense of relief. **Action Item:** Reflect on what
truly brings happiness and fulfillment, beyond just financial gain or access to resources, and focus on
cultivating those things in your own life.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Despite advancements in
technology that should allow for more leisure time, people are working just as much or more due to societal
pressure to keep up with consumerist expectations. **Action Item:** Reassess personal priorities and values
to determine what truly brings fulfillment, rather than striving to keep pace with others' material possessions.
Consider downscaling or simplifying your lifestyle to achieve a better work-life balance and make time for
things that bring joy and satisfaction.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Our perception of what
constitutes a good life is relative and constantly evolving, making it challenging to appreciate the comforts we
already have. **Action Item:** Reflect on your current definition of a good life and what you consider an
adequate standard of living. Acknowledge and appreciate the comforts and privileges you already have, rather
than constantly striving for more.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The constant feeling of
inadequacy drives individuals to work harder and strive for more, which in turn fuels societal progress and
innovation. **Action Item:** Be aware of your own feelings of inadequacy and how they drive your
behavior. Recognize that this drive can be a positive force for personal growth and achievement, but also
acknowledge the potential negative impact of excessive comparison and dissatisfaction on mental health and
well-being.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Social media platforms can
facilitate unrealistic comparisons between our lives and those of others, particularly when we see curated and
spectacular highlights from acquaintances' vacations and lifestyles. **Action Item:** Be mindful of the
potential for social comparison and take regular breaks from social media to focus on your own goals, values,
and accomplishments.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** There are geographic
regions, such as the Bay Area and Silicon Valley, that place a high value on individuals who have
successfully created companies or technologies with global reach. **Action Item:** Consider locating in or
connecting with hubs like the Bay Area or Silicon Valley to tap into their ecosystem of innovation,
entrepreneurship, and talent, potentially increasing opportunities for success and scalability.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The dominant messages or
narratives that are prevalent in a particular location (e.g. New York City) can have a profound impact on the
psyche of its residents, shaping their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. **Action Item:** Take notice of the
messages you're exposed to in your daily life, whether through media, social interactions, or cultural norms,
and consider how they may be influencing your well-being. Ask yourself: What are the dominant narratives
in my community, and are they supporting or hindering my happiness?

Here are one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** While striving to achieve
what others have can drive innovation and progress at a societal level, it can be challenging and potentially
unfulfilling at an individual level. **Action Item:** Reflect on your personal motivations and goals. Ask
yourself if you're chasing something because society expects it of you or because someone else has achieved
it, or if it truly aligns with your own values and aspirations.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** In certain regions or
communities, specific professions (such as dentistry) can hold high social status and prestige. **Action
Item:** Consider the cultural and socioeconomic context of your business or profession when developing
marketing strategies or building relationships with local customers.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Constant comparison with others
can lead to feelings of inadequacy and unhappiness, especially in highly competitive environments. **Action
Item:** Identify areas in your life where you tend to compare yourself to others and make a conscious effort
to focus on your own goals and progress, rather than measuring yourself against others. This could involve
limiting social media use, setting personal benchmarks for success, or finding ways to appreciate your
achievements without comparing them to those of others.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The increasing wealth
disparity in society has led to a significant gap between the lifestyles of normal people and those with
considerable wealth, making it more challenging for individuals to relate to each other. **Action Item:** Be
aware of your own biases and perceptions about wealth and social status, and make an effort to engage with
people from diverse backgrounds to foster empathy and understanding.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Exposure to certain media, such
as Mr. Beast's videos, can create an unrealistic understanding of money and wealth in children. **Action
Item:** Limit or monitor your child's exposure to media that promotes unrealistic financial expectations, and
have open conversations with them about what is realistic and possible when it comes to earning and
managing money.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Times of adversity and
uncertainty can drive innovation and progress, as individuals and businesses are forced to adapt and find new
solutions to survive. **Action Item:** Embrace challenges and uncertainties as opportunities for growth and
innovation. Ask yourself: What problems do I need to solve right now to move forward? or How can I use
this challenge to create something new and better? This mindset shift can help you stay motivated and
focused on finding creative solutions, even in the face of adversity.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Businesses must
continuously improve and innovate in order to survive. **Action Item:** Conduct a thorough review of your
business operations and identify areas where you can implement new technologies, processes, or strategies to
drive improvement and stay ahead of the competition.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Societal progress and innovation
are often driven by a sense of discomfort or angst, which creates a motivation to improve and adapt. **Action
Item:** Regularly assess your organization's level of comfort and identify areas where complacency may be
setting in. Introduce new challenges or pressures that encourage innovation and improvement, before you
become too comfortable and risk stagnation.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having too much freedom and
autonomy can actually be detrimental to success, as it can lead to complacency and a lack of motivation.
**Action Item:** Introduce healthy constraints into your work or personal life, such as setting deadlines or
creating financial goals that require discipline and effort to achieve. This can help maintain a sense of urgency
and motivation, even in the absence of external pressures.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The concept of carrot and
stick applies to various stages of one's career, with different rewards (carrots) and punishments (sticks)
motivating behavior at each stage. **Action Item:** Identify what your current carrots and sticks are in your
career or personal projects, and consider how they may be influencing your motivation and decision-making.
Ask yourself: What are the rewards that I'm working towards? What are the potential consequences of not
meeting my goals?
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Our sense of responsibility to
others (e.g. our team or group) can be a powerful motivator to push through personal challenges, such as lack
of sleep. **Action Item:** Identify people in your life who you feel a strong sense of responsibility towards
(e.g. family members, colleagues, friends), and remind yourself of these relationships when facing personal
challenges - this can help boost motivation and perseverance.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The forces that drive us, both
positive (carrots) and negative (sticks), can be unconscious and may not align with our current goals or
values. **Action Item:** Take time to reflect on what's driving your decisions and actions. Ask yourself:
What are my carrots and sticks? Am I working towards expectations set by others or past experiences? What
truly motivates me? This self-reflection can help you identify areas where you may be operating on autopilot
and make intentional choices that align with your current goals and values.

Here are one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Our identities can have a strong influence on our
decisions and actions, often unconsciously. **Action Item:** Take time to reflect on what drives your sense
of self-worth and purpose (e.g., career, wealth, relationships). Consider keeping your identity small by
diversifying your sources of fulfillment and avoiding over-identification with any one aspect of your life.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Overly identifying with a
particular role or label (e.g., politician, professor, author) can limit our thinking and perspectives. **Action
Item:** Practice keeping your identity small by avoiding over-identification with specific roles or labels.
Regularly remind yourself that you are not defined solely by these identities, and be open to exploring
different aspects of yourself and the world around you.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** A person's professional identity
can be deeply tied to their sense of self, making it difficult for them to give up or transition away from a
particular role. **Action Item:** When considering retirement or a career change, take time to reflect on how
your professional identity is intertwined with your personal identity, and think about what new roles or
activities will help you maintain a positive sense of self.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** What drives someone crazy
can also be what they thrive on or enjoy. **Action Item:** Reflect on your own life and identify things that
drive you crazy, then consider whether any of those things could actually be leveraged as strengths or
motivators with a change in perspective.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Our sense of identity can be
complex and multi-faceted, with different roles and labels holding varying degrees of importance to us.
**Action Item:** Take some time for self-reflection to identify the core elements that make up your own
sense of identity. Consider what aspects of yourself are non-negotiable (e.g., being a parent or partner), and
which ones might be important but not essential (e.g., a particular career or hobby). This can help you better
understand what drives your passions, values, and priorities.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When your identity is deeply tied
to making a certain amount of money, it can become a liability that controls you rather than being a tool for
achieving happiness. **Action Item:** Take a step back and assess whether your sense of self-worth is
overly tied to your income or financial status. Ask yourself: Would I still be happy with myself if my
financial situation changed? Reflecting on this question can help you begin to untangle your identity from
your finances and use money as a tool for achieving happiness rather than letting it control you.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Instead of just shedding
professional titles or identities, it's more effective to connect with the underlying verb functions that drive our
pursuits and interests. **Action Item:** Reflect on what verbs or actions truly motivate and fulfill you,
beyond your current job title or identity (e.g., I enjoy creating, I'm a curious person), and explore how you can
incorporate those verb-based identities into your daily life.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Having meaningful relationships
with people can bring joy and fulfillment beyond their professional accomplishments or work. **Action
Item:** Nurture friendships that are not solely based on mutual benefit or professional gain, but rather focus
on shared values, personality, and genuine connection.

Here are the key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Focusing on pleasing an
audience can stifle creativity and curiosity, whereas framing one's work as a personal offering or expression
can lead to greater fulfillment and self-rewarding experiences. **Action Item:** Reframe your mindset
around your creative pursuits (writing, podcasting, art, etc.) by letting go of the need for external validation
from an audience. Instead, focus on exploring your curiosity and creativity, and tap into the feelings of
delight, friction, and release that come with creating something meaningful to you.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Consistency and longevity in one's
craft can lead to exceptional success, as exemplified by Warren Buffett's decades-long investing career.
**Action Item:** Identify your own passion or area of interest where you can consistently apply yourself
over time, whether it be writing, investing, or another pursuit. Commit to honing your skills and expertise in
this area, with the goal of achieving mastery through sustained effort and dedication.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Writing with personal enjoyment
as a primary goal can be liberating and lead to more authentic creative expression. **Action Item:** When
starting a new writing project, take time to reflect on what kind of writing style and content would genuinely
excite and engage you, rather than trying to cater solely to the expectations of others.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When creating content (writing,
producing a podcast, etc.), doing so with an authentic voice and focus on one's own interests and passions
leads to better work, whereas trying to create for a wider audience or seeking external validation can lead to
less creative and enjoyable output. **Action Item:** The next time you're working on a creative project, try
focusing solely on your own interests and what brings you joy, rather than worrying about what others might
think or want. This means setting aside thoughts of audience expectations and instead asking yourself: What
do I want to express or explore through this work?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Focusing too much on knowing
your audience can lead to pandering to them, resulting in a product or message that lacks depth and
authenticity. **Action Item:** Instead of trying to appeal to a broad audience, focus on creating something
that resonates deeply with a smaller group of people who share your values and passions. This will help you
create something more meaningful and impactful.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** When you create something out of love and
passion, rather than focusing on external metrics or goals, you're more likely to produce your best work.
**Action Item:** Take a step back from your current projects and reflect on why you started them in the first
place. Ask yourself: Am I creating this because I genuinely enjoy it, or am I doing it solely for external
validation or reward? Use this reflection to adjust your approach and prioritize passion-driven creativity
whenever possible.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Doing your best work requires
autonomy and personal investment, rather than external motivation or metrics. **Action Item:** Reflect on
your current projects and goals, and ask yourself: Am I working on this because it's truly important to me, or
am I doing it to meet someone else's expectations? Make adjustments accordingly to align your efforts with
your own passions and interests.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Professions and roles don't
define our identity, and staying in one field or role forever can be limiting. **Action Item:** Schedule time
for reflection and exploration to consider new areas of interest and potential career transitions, aiming to
incorporate growth, adaptation, and evolution into your professional journey.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When something becomes deeply
tied to our identity, we can struggle to let go of it even when it no longer brings us joy or fulfillment.
**Action Item:** Take an honest assessment of your current activities and roles - are there any that you're
holding onto simply because they've become a part of your identity, rather than because they bring you
happiness or serve your goals? Consider what small steps you could take to release attachment to these things
and explore new possibilities.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Embracing a high-performance
mindset can lead to taking bold actions and pursuing challenges, even if they don't always work out. **Action
Item:** Reflect on areas of your life where you may be holding back from taking risks or pursuing challenges
due to fear of failure. Identify one area where you can take a bold action and give yourself permission to try
something new, just as the person in the text gave himself the shot.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Successful individuals like Jeff
Bezos are often driven by a need to constantly create and innovate, rather than simply resting on their past
achievements. **Action Item:** Consider how you can continue to challenge yourself and pursue new
passions, even after achieving success in your current endeavors. This could involve exploring new industries
or interests, taking on new roles or responsibilities, or pursuing entrepreneurial ventures that align with your
values and goals.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The author's new book is
scheduled for release in September 2025, which means it is still over a year away from publication. **Action
Item:** Follow up with the author periodically between now and September 2025 to see if there are any
updates or sneak peeks available from the upcoming book.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Spending money effectively is
more subjective and creative (an art) than a rigid, formulaic process (science). **Action Item:** Approach
personal finance decisions with flexibility and nuance, considering individual values, priorities, and
circumstances rather than relying solely on generic rules or formulas.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** There is no one-size-fits-all
approach to spending money, as it is a highly subjective and personal matter. **Action Item:** Reflect on
your own values, priorities, and goals when making financial decisions, rather than trying to follow someone
else's rules or advice.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Understanding the psychology
of envy and comparison is crucial in managing our emotions and making financial decisions, as it can help us
identify the sources of self-sabotage and recognize how silly envy can be. **Action Item:** Take time to
reflect on your own thought patterns and behaviors when it comes to comparing yourself to others and
experiencing envy. Ask yourself: What triggers my feelings of inadequacy or jealousy? What are some
common pitfalls I fall into, and how can I become more aware of them in order to make better decisions for
myself?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Evolution prioritizes survival and
reproduction over individual happiness or well-being. **Action Item:** Consider re-evaluating your
priorities and goals in light of this insight, recognizing that short-term sacrifices or difficulties may be
necessary for long-term success or growth.

Here is a key insight and an action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** The pursuit of more may
not necessarily lead to happiness, as happiness is a complex outcome that cannot be guaranteed by simply
accumulating more. **Action Item:** Reflect on what drives your desire for more - is it truly aligned with
what brings you fulfillment and satisfaction? Consider re-evaluating your priorities to focus on what
genuinely contributes to your well-being.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The economic context in which
we live influences our decisions about family planning and resource allocation. **Action Item:** Consider
how your own economic circumstances and societal expectations influence your decisions about career
development, education, and resource investment for yourself or your dependents.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The decline of infant mortality
rates means that parents no longer need to have many children as a hedge against child loss, allowing them to
focus more resources on each individual child. **Action Item:** Reassess your parenting goals and resource
allocation in light of this new reality. Consider how you can allocate more time, money, and attention to each
of your children to help them achieve their full potential.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Children learn about money by
observing their parents' behavior, whether intentionally taught or not. **Action Item:** Be mindful of your
financial habits and conversations in front of your children, as they are likely to pick up on them and use them
as a model for their own financial behaviors.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Children learn about money
management not just from explicit conversations with their parents, but also through observing and listening
to their parents' daily interactions and conversations. **Action Item:** Be mindful of how you discuss
finances and money in front of your children, even if it's in passing or seemingly innocuous conversations.
Recognize that they are constantly learning and forming mental models about money, and try to model
healthy financial behaviors and attitudes for them to follow.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** As a parent, you can't control
your child's behavior or decisions, but you can influence them by setting a good example. **Action Item:**
Make a conscious effort to model the behavior and values you want your child to adopt, as they are more
likely to follow your lead than listen to lectures or rules.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Explicitly telling teenagers what
to do can backfire due to their propensity to rebel, whereas leading by example may be a more effective way
to influence their behavior. **Action Item:** Consider modeling the behaviors and values you want your
teenager to adopt, rather than simply instructing them on what to do. For example, instead of lecturing about
the importance of hard work, demonstrate it yourself through your own actions and decisions.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Not allowing children to
struggle or earn their own money can hinder their development of independence and grit. **Action Item:**
Provide opportunities for your child to take ownership of earning their own money, whether through chores, a
part-time job, or entrepreneurial ventures, in order to foster independence and resilience.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Involving children in discussions
about wealth and inheritance can be challenging and may lead to unintended consequences, such as
resentment. **Action Item:** Consider seeking guidance from experts or experienced individuals who have
navigated similar situations, like Shelby Davis or Chris Davis, to develop a thoughtful approach to managing
family wealth and communicating with the next generation.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Well-intentioned lessons can be
misinterpreted or backfire if not executed in a way that takes into account the recipient's perspective.
**Action Item:** When trying to teach someone a lesson, especially children, consider their feelings and
motivations, and be prepared for them to interpret your actions differently than you intend. Ask for feedback
and adjust your approach as needed to ensure they understand the intended message.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** As a parent, your actions and
lifestyle choices can inadvertently teach your children that you consider yourself superior to them if you don't
model the same behavior or values. **Action Item:** Practice what you preach and try to live the same
lifestyle as your kids. If you want to instill certain values or behaviors in them, make sure you're modeling
those yourself, rather than expecting them to adopt a different standard.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** When well-meaning parents try to
teach wealthy children humility by emphasizing that they have not earned their wealth, it can backfire and
lead to feelings of inadequacy and low self-esteem. **Action Item:** Instead of focusing solely on what the
child has not earned, parents should also acknowledge and validate the child's own strengths,
accomplishments, and values, in order to foster a positive sense of identity and self-worth.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Children, even those raised by the
same parents in the same environment, can develop vastly different personalities and approaches to life.
**Action Item:** Recognize and respect these individual differences in your children, and tailor your
parenting approach to each child's unique needs and personality.
Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Parents may not know what their
children's goals or aspirations will be when they grow up, so imposing their own financial values or
expectations on them may not be effective. **Action Item:** Instead of pushing a specific financial approach
(e.g. saving for wealth), have open and ongoing conversations with your children about money, listening to
their values, interests, and goals, and adapting your guidance accordingly.

Here is a key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Children learn and integrate lessons primarily through
their emotional experiences in the moment, rather than by analyzing or understanding a broader lesson or
principle. **Action Item:** Design educational or character-building activities that prioritize creating
positive emotional experiences for children, rather than simply trying to convey a message or teach a lesson.

A very short and intriguing text! Here is a possible key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** People are
often absorbed in their own thoughts and experiences. **Action Item:** Be patient and try not to interrupt
others when they seem lost in thought - give them space to process their moment.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Leading by example is a more
effective way to teach children the value of hard work than using humiliation or punishment. **Action
Item:** When teaching children about perseverance and hard work, join them in their efforts and share in
their struggles, demonstrating that you are willing to put in effort alongside them.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The author's father was a
scientist, which may have influenced their early exposure to STEM fields and potentially shaped their
interests or career path. **Action Item:** Consider how your profession or interests could positively impact
younger generations. Explore opportunities to share your expertise with children, whether through
mentorship, educational programs, or simply being a role model for young people in your life.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Even highly educated or
technical professionals can struggle to explain their work in simple terms. **Action Item:** Practice
explaining your own job, profession, or area of expertise in a way that is easy for non-experts to understand.
This will help you communicate more effectively and build stronger relationships with people outside of your
field.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** The person being spoken to has a persistent sense
of anticipation and excitement in their daily life, akin to the feeling of the night before their birthday.
**Action Item:** Reflect on what sparks joy and anticipation in your own life, and consider how you can
incorporate more of those elements into your daily routine to cultivate a similar sense of enthusiasm.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The possibility of achieving
something can be more motivating than the actual outcome. **Action Item:** Reflect on your own
motivations and goals, and ask yourself whether you're focusing too much on the end result or if you're
allowing yourself to enjoy the process and potential possibilities.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The driving force behind
creative work may not be the actual outcome or reward, but rather the possibility of discovery and the process
of tapping into what brings out your best. **Action Item:** Reflect on what motivates you to create and
work. Instead of focusing solely on external rewards or outcomes, try to identify what internal drivers bring
you joy and fulfillment. Ask yourself: What is it about this project/task that truly excites me? or What verb
state (e.g., flow, curiosity) do I need to be in to produce my best work?

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The constant exposure to metrics
such as followers, dollars, and other numbers can make it difficult to stay focused and motivated, leading to
feelings of inadequacy or competition. **Action Item:** Establish a routine that helps you detach from these
external metrics and focus on your own progress and goals. This could include setting specific, measurable
objectives for yourself, tracking your own growth, and celebrating small wins along the way.

Here are the key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** Despite our efforts to eliminate comparisons and
feelings of inadequacy, these human tendencies will always exist. **Action Item:** Reframe your goals for
yourself or others (e.g., children) from focusing on external metrics (e.g., success, possessions) to prioritizing
happiness as the ultimate outcome.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** What parents often value most for
their children is happiness, not just wealth or success. **Action Item:** Reflect on what you truly hope for
your own life and the lives of those you care about - is it primarily happiness, or something else? Consider
how this understanding can inform your goals and priorities.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** Using money as a tool to
compare oneself with others can lead to dissatisfaction, whereas using it to improve one's own happiness and
freedom can bring greater satisfaction. **Action Item:** Take time for self-reflection to identify your
personal values and goals. Ask yourself Who am I and what do I want? to gain clarity on how you want to use
your resources to increase your happiness and fulfillment.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** A financial plan that is suitable
for someone else may not be suitable for you, even if it seems rational or logical. **Action Item:** Take the
time to understand your own values, goals, and risk tolerance before creating a financial plan or making
significant financial decisions.

Here are the key insight and action item based on the given text: **Key Insight:** A plan or strategy may
look good in theory, but if it doesn't align with your personal values, style, or strengths, it can ultimately lead
to failure. **Action Item:** Before committing to a new plan or strategy, take time to reflect on whether it
truly fits with who you are and how you operate, making adjustments as needed to ensure alignment.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Your financial goals and priorities
will change over time as your personal circumstances, values, and aspirations evolve. **Action Item:**
Regularly take time to reflect on who you are, what's important to you, and what your long-term goals are,
and adjust your spending habits and financial plans accordingly.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** A genuine desire to help others
and promote their well-being can shine through in one's work and interactions, making a strong positive
impression. **Action Item:** Reflect on your own motivations and intentions when creating content or
interacting with others. Ask yourself if you are truly coming from a place of benevolence and wanting the
best for others. Make adjustments as needed to ensure that your words and actions align with this intention.

Here are a key insight and an action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The speaker is enthusiastic
about the guest's work and is looking forward to their upcoming book, indicating that the guest's content and
expertise are highly valued. **Action Item:** Deliver high-quality content and maintain a strong reputation
in your field of expertise to build anticipation and excitement for future projects, such as books or speaking
engagements.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** Morgan Howsell has
written two books, The Psychology of Money and Same As Ever, which may offer valuable insights into
personal finance and behavioral economics. **Action Item:** Check out the show notes for links to learn
more about Morgan's work and consider reading one or both of his books to gain a deeper understanding of
money management and related topics.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Supporting a podcast doesn't have
to break the bank - there are free ways to show your appreciation. **Action Item:** Subscribe to your
favorite podcast's YouTube channel, as well as follow them on popular platforms like Spotify and Apple.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The podcast host values
engagement with their audience and wants to encourage support through various channels, including reviews,
sponsor interactions, and comments. **Action Item:** Consider leaving a review or comment for your
favorite podcast to show support and provide feedback to the host.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** The book Protocols provides a
comprehensive guide to optimizing various aspects of human biology, including sleep, exercise, stress
control, focus, and motivation, backed by scientific evidence. **Action Item:** Pre-order the book Protocols:
An Operating Manual for the Human Body at protocolsbook.com and consider following the author, Andrew
Huberman, on social media platforms (Instagram, X/Twitter, Threads, Facebook, LinkedIn) to stay updated
on his work.

Here are one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** Andrew Huberman has a diverse
online presence across multiple social media platforms, where he discusses science-related topics that may
not be covered in his podcast. **Action Item:** Consider subscribing to the Neural Network newsletter to
access exclusive content, including podcast summaries and protocols in PDF format.

Here is one key insight and action item based on the text: **Key Insight:** There are free resources (one to
three page PDFs) that provide actionable information on various topics related to health and wellness, such as
heat exposure, cold exposure, sleep optimization, and dopamine regulation. **Action Item:** Download the
free PDFs from the mentioned source to access practical protocols for improving overall health and wellness.

Here is one key insight and action item: **Key Insight:** The podcast host values audience engagement and
encourages listeners to stay connected through a newsletter. **Action Item:** Go to Hubermanlab.com and
sign up for the newsletter by providing your email address under the menu tab, ensuring you stay updated on
future discussions.

Here is a key insight and action item based on the provided text: **Key Insight:** The author values their
audience's interest in science. **Action Item:** Engage with others who share an interest in science to build
community and foster further exploration of scientific topics.