Why Can’t Humans Do Anything In Moderation? - Michael Easter - #690

Modern Wisdom

10/07/23

•

71m

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Michael Easter is a University of Nevada, Las Vegas professor, a journalist and an author who focuses on health and human performance.

Even though we might often feel in control of our impulses, there are regular moments that remind us of our uncontrolled tendencies. From overspending to overeating, there is a secret loop happening inside of our minds that causes our actions and intentions to move further apart

Expect to learn why moderation is so impossible to achieve, what humans actually want the most out of life, what the scarcity loop is and how it drives your behaviour, if it's possible to become dependent on certainty, whether humans are more likely to chase happiness or avoid discomfort, Michael’s contrarian opinion on first world problems and much more...

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Why Can’t Humans Ever Get Enough? (03:50) Explaining the Scarcity Loop (09:51) Why Are We So Hooked? (17:47) Humanity’s Love for Escapism (21:39) The Wild Story of Captagon (30:25) Are We Becoming More Dependent on Certainty? (39:54) The Evolutionary Pursuit of Status & Influence (52:31) Becoming Addicted to Observable Metrics (57:25) The Scarcity Loop of Food (1:04:26) How to Break Through the Loop (1:10:40) Where to Find Michael

Extra Stuff:

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

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Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

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Previous Episode

The Terrifying Impact Of Single-Parent Households - Melissa Kearney - #689

October 5, 2023

•

88m

Melissa Kearney is a Professor of Economics at the University of Maryland, and an author known for her research in the field of economic demography.

Declining marriage and birthrates frequently dominate discussions about the future of society, but what is the impact of separated parents on the kids who grow up in these homes? Melissa has spent years assessing the data, and her findings are absolutely terrifying.

Expect to learn how single-parent households are massively worsening class divides, what happens to kids who grow up with only one parent, what is driving the decline in American marriage rates, what Melissa is hearing from both men & women who don’t want to marry, just how many of the problems we’re seeing in the modern world are downstream from single-parent households, whether the decline in marriage and birthrate are at all correlated, what can be done about this issue and much more...

Timestamps:

(00:00) Response to Melissa’s Book (02:27) What Has Been Happening to Marriage Rates? (07:46) How College Degrees Are Influencing Childbirth & Marriage Rates (14:52) Are Women Misjudging What Men Want? (25:30) Why Are Declining Marriages a Bad Thing? (30:20) Differences in Kids Raised in Two-Parent & One-Parent Homes (41:35) Cohabiting Vs Marriage (50:25) The Lack of Substitute Father Figures for Boys (58:30) Consequences of Eroding Chivalrous Norms (1:08:24) How Many of Societal Problems Are Due to Single-Parent Households? (1:10:10) The Connection Between Marriage Rates & Birth Rates (1:20:25) Melissa’s Interventions to Increase Marriage Rates (1:28:30) Where to Find Melissa

Extra Stuff:

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Next Episode

What It Means To Live A Fulfilled Life - Jimmy Carr - #691

October 9, 2023

•

163m

Jimmy Carr is a comedian, television host and an author.

Jimmy is known as one of the best one-line comics in history, but this episode goes way deeper than you’re probably expecting. It's far less about jokes and far more about Jimmy’s obsession with human psychology, frameworks and thinking tools.

Expect to learn what the most important question to ask yourself is, why you have probably been thinking about luck incorrectly, what the two great myths in life are, the most common misconceptions about being famous, how to survive a cancellation attempt, what kind of relationship we should have with our inner-critic, how to enjoy the passage of time in a graceful way and much more...

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Ask Yourself ‘What Do You Want?’ (10:57) The Intense Schedule of a Popular Comedian (16:15) Are Comedians Ahead of the Curve on Society’s Issues? (25:14) Our Obsession With Ourselves & Individualism (33:40) The Internet’s Culture of Cynicism (41:39) Hidden Vs Observable Metrics (53:25) Using Useful Delusions to Make Life Better (1:06:32) The Rise of Andrew Tate in the Silent Crisis of Young Men (1:16:45) The Experience of Being Cancelled (1:26:47) Our Personas Crave Praise (1:35:37) Fear of What Other People Will Think of Our Failure (1:42:46) Jimmy’s Thoughts on Kindness (1:49:45) Do Men Have a Quarter-Life Crisis? (1:54:45) How We Value Things At Different Stages of Life (2:01:45) How Should We Respond to Critics? (2:08:45) Should We Be Worried About China, AI & Existential Risks? (2:24:09) Going from the Easy Life to Having Children (2:36:04) The Beauty of Flow States in the Passage of Time (2:41:07) What’s Next for Jimmy

Extra Stuff:

Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/

To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom

Episodes You Might Enjoy:

This Is How To Master Your Life - David Goggins - #577: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Goggins⁠⁠⁠

How To Destroy Your Negative Beliefs - Dr Jordan Peterson - #712: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Peterson⁠⁠⁠

The Secret Tools To Hack Your Brain - Dr Andrew Huberman - #700: ⁠⁠⁠lnkfi.re/SN-Huberman⁠⁠

Get in touch.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/modernwisdompodcast

Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/