Gurwinder Bhogal's Guide to Modern Survival (Infinite Loops CLASSICS)

Aug 28, 2025

Gurwinder Bhogal, an independent thinker focused on mental sovereignty, dives into how our modern world overwhelms our evolved social instincts. He discusses belief perseverance and its impact on society, emphasizing the need for integrity in activism. The dangers of misinformation and the rise of technology are explored, especially regarding critical thinking. Bhogal critiques gamification, warning against addictive behaviors while advocating for personal growth. Through engaging dialogues, he highlights the power of accountability and long-term thinking in reclaiming agency.

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INSIGHT

Evolutionary Mismatch Drives Today's Problems

Humans evolved for small tribal networks and struggle with global-scale information overload.
This evolutionary mismatch drives polarization, misinformation, and alienation.

INSIGHT

Why Beliefs Persist After Disproof

People protect their worldviews with belief perseverance and rationalize failed predictions.
Disconfirming a core belief feels like toppling an entire edifice, so minds defend the structure instead of updating.

ANECDOTE

The Seekers' Failed Prophecy Example

Gurwinder recounts the Seekers, a 1950s millenarian group whose failed prophecy led them to invent excuses.
They preferred elaborate rationalizations to admitting they were wrong about the world ending.

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Hello everyone, Jim here. We're taking a brief two-week break from new episodes to spotlight a couple of golden oldies from the Infinite Loops archive. Years later, these remain some of my favorite conversations. We’ll be back soon with fresh episodes, but in the meantime, enjoy this trip back to August 2024, when we welcomed the one and only Gurwinder Bhogal.

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“We have created for ourselves a world that we didn't evolve for.”

Gurwinder Bhogal is, for my money, one of the most independent, original and insightful thinkers you’ll find in our corner of the internet.

He returns to discuss how willpower and good old-fashioned human agency can help us reclaim our mental sovereignty and escape the “constant avalanche of concerns that are being vomited over us through our laptop screens, our phones, our TV screens, and in conversations.”

For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other stuff designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.

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Show Notes:

“We have created for ourselves a world we didn’t evolve for”
The dogged persistence of our stubborn beliefs
Gamification; generational differences in agency
The societal impact of the education system’s changing priorities
How to zombify a population
Skin in the game: Gurwinder’s guide to reclaiming agency
LLMs, bullshit, and the atomization of culture
How to play better games
Willpower is the bottleneck
Gurwinder as emperor of the world
MORE!

Books Mentioned:

Why Everything is Becoming a Game; by Gurwinder Bhogal
Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know; by Adam Grant
The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements; by Eric Hoffer
Why the Mental Health of Liberal Girls Sank First and Fastest; by Jonathan Haidt (After Babel)
America’s Colleges Are Reaping What They Sowed; by Tyler Austin Harper (The Atlantic)
Joe Biden and the Common Knowledge Game; by Ben Hunt (Epsilon Theory)
The Emperor’s New Clothes; by Hans Christian Andersen
Futarchy Details; by Robin Hanson (Overcoming Bias)
The Enlightenment Trilogy; by Jed McKenna
The Weirdest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich