In 'Love People, Use Things,' Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus expand on the concept of minimalism by exploring how it can help individuals reevaluate and heal their relationships with seven key aspects of life: stuff, truth, self, values, money, creativity, and people. The book delves into how consumerism hinders true happiness and how adopting a minimalist lifestyle can lead to a more intentional, meaningful, and fulfilling life. It uses personal experiences and expert insights to provide a template for living with fewer distractions and more focus on what truly matters.
This memoir tells the story of Joshua Fields Millburn, who, after losing his mother and his marriage in the same month, began to question the life he had built. He discovered minimalism and, over four years, jettisoned most of his material possessions, paid off significant debt, and left his six-figure career. The book is a heartrending, uplifting, and deeply personal account of his journey, interspersed with insightful and often humorous comments from his best friend, Ryan Nicodemus. It focuses on the 'why' of minimalism rather than the 'how,' exploring themes of simplicity, consumerism, and finding true fulfillment.
In 'A World Without Email', Cal Newport argues that the constant digital communication, which he terms the 'hyperactive hive mind', has become a productivity disaster. He contends that this workflow, driven by email and other messaging tools, reduces profitability, slows economic growth, and makes workers miserable. Newport proposes a workplace where clear processes, not haphazard messaging, define task management. He advocates for each person working on fewer tasks but doing them better, with significant investment in support to reduce administrative burdens. The book lays out principles and concrete instructions for streamlining important communication and reducing the central role of inboxes and chat channels in the workplace.
In this book, Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus share their personal journey of leaving behind six-figure corporate careers and excessive material possessions to embrace minimalism. They explore how minimalism helped them overcome depression, debt, and discontent by focusing on what truly matters in life. The book emphasizes the importance of eliminating excess material things to make room for health, relationships, passion, growth, and contribution.
In 'Digital Minimalism', Cal Newport argues that we need to be more intentional about the technologies we allow into our lives. He proposes a philosophy of digital minimalism, where individuals focus their online time on activities that strongly support their values and ignore the rest. The book highlights the negative effects of behavioral addictions created by technology, such as solitude deprivation and the fleeting nature of social media satisfaction. Newport suggests a 30-day 'digital declutter' process and other practices to help readers integrate digital minimalism into their lives, emphasizing the importance of optimizing technology use to support personal goals and values[2][3][5].
In 'Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life', Steve Martin provides a detailed and candid account of his journey from his childhood to his rise as a stand-up comedian. The book delves into his early jobs at Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm, his development as a magician and comedian, and the struggles and successes he faced in his career. Martin also explores his strained relationship with his family, particularly his father, and how he eventually reconnected with them. The memoir highlights the dedication, discipline, and originality that defined his career and explains why he chose to leave stand-up comedy in 1981 to pursue other creative ventures. The book includes photographs and offers a unique insight into the life of one of the most iconic comedians of his time.
In today's episode, I talk with Joshua Fields Milburn, who along with Ryan Nicodemus make up the powerhouse duo known simply as the Minimalists. You probably know Joshua from the wildly successful Netflix documentaries, MINIMALISM and LESS IS NOW, or the popular podcast he co-hosts with Ryan.
The story of how the Minimalists got started is well-told, so I thought I would focus on a natural follow question: what happened next? Starting with when I first met him in 2012, I ask Joshua to walk us through the building of the Minimalist brand -- how they went from an amateur blog to being recognized on the street a dozen times a day. In doing so, we learn a lot about the inspiring, value-driven approach that Joshua and Ryan have taken in their careers, in which living right is more important than making the most money or accusing the most likes.
Thanks to Jay Kerstens for the intro music.
Deep Questions with Cal Newport 
