In this episode we discuss improving your “mental nutrition.” Decades ago we realized that our society had started eroding our physical health, with desk jobs and fast food, and we became conscious of the need for fitness and nutrition. Now, we stand at the precipice of an even bigger struggle - we are healthier and happier than ever before and yet anxiety, suicide, and depression are on the rise. How do we improve our mental fitness and take action to challenge our irrationality, our impulsiveness, and our bad habits? Do you want to finally move past inaction, procrastination, and laziness? Do you want to feel happier about the world? Listen to this interview with our returning guest Mark Manson.
Mark Manson is the New York Times and international bestselling author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck and his new already bestselling book Everything Is Fucked. His blog, markmanson.net, attracts more than two million readers per month. He is also the CEO and founder of Infinity Squared Media LLCThe world today is so polarized, mental health issues are on the rise, and yet we are physically safer and healthier than ever before. The better things get, the more anxious humans become about losing them Our world is filled with “hope narratives” that help us hide from the reality that on a cosmic scale we are truly insignificant How do you deal with life if you achieve all your goals early on?What happens when your hope narrative dies? The only defense against our own cosmic insignificance is creating meaning for ourselves Our values and emotions aren’t tethered to our rational thoughts. The thinking brain vs the feeling brain. All the issues around purpose, discipline, control and importance are EMOTIONAL issues, not intellectual issues. The first step to create value and meaning in your life is to develop an action oriented bias. Humans are largely irrational creatures. Most of our actions are impulsive, selfish, and not well thought through, and our conscious mind spends a huge chunk of it’s time and energy coming up with reasons - rationalizations - to explain and justify what the unconscious mind wants to do. You probably think that all your actions are rational and justified - but have you ever really thought about and looked into the narratives and stories you use to explain away bad habits and behaviors in your life?Emotional intelligence is the core of understanding the dialogue between your conscious thoughts and your emotional reactions to your thoughts You must learn to barter with your feeling brain, keep lowering the stakes until your feeling brain is willing to get on board with what your thinking brain wants to do Why is our society, and why are people, so fragile today, and how can we toughen up?Technology today is designed and geared to take advantage and exploit our psychological flaws -what if we had technology that did the opposite, that corrected our cognitive biases? Information diet & mental nutrition - you must take responsibility for your own mental consumption habits, your own mental habits, you must read things that challenge you, consider that your ideas may be wrongHomework: Unfollow or unfriend at least half of the people you follow or friend, including news and media sources Homework: In terms of personal habits think about your goals in terms of thinking brain vs feeling brain - you must find a way to work with your emotions instead of against them. Strike a bargain with your feeling brain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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