096 Daniel Schmachtenberger: Emotional Resilience, Nootropics, & Outsmarting The Modern World

Jan 24, 2017

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"We fully believe that optimized human beings lead to a better world. People being productive and creative in whatever it is that is theirs to do. But in many ways, our modern world works against us.” - Daniel Schmachtenberger, Co-Founder of The NeuroHacker Collective

On this special episode of Wellness Force Radio, Daniel shares far beyond how Nootropics like Qualia can provide a comprehensive hardware upgrade for radical cognitive enhancement and emotional resilience, but also how he believes it is creating the building blocks towards a better planet.

You, The N Equals One [2:47]

In a world of mass distractions, responsibilities, cumulative stressors and more notifications than ever in the palms of hands, millions of Americans have long since met their cognitive and emotional capacity.

Cognitive capacity is a nuanced relationship between many variables. Optimizing for one variable of cognitive function at the expense of other critical ones would not give us the result of comprehensive enhancement of human capability. For instance, having drive without the ability to focus well, or willpower without emotional resilience. For that reason, The Neurohacker Collective have designed a formula that deliberately balances subjective effects to give meaningful enhancement in a comprehensive way – a whole system upgrade called Qualia.

If you're here reading, you felt the call towards Qualia. If you're in the contemplation phase or in the process of learning, this is an optimal time for your N=1.

What is N=1?

N-of-1 or single subject clinical trials consider an individual patient as the sole unit of observation in a study investigating the efficacy or side-effect profiles of different interventions. The ultimate goal of an n-of-1 trial is to determine the optimal or best intervention for an individual patient using objective data-driven criteria.

From baseline to Qualia for 4 weeks, here are the 5 steps to start your own personal N:1 experiment in emotional resilience and cognitive performance:

Inspired Action: Order your 30 day supply of Qualia
Baseline: Once your Qualia is received, take a baseline memory, reason, concentration and/or comprehensive cognitive test(s) on either Quantified Mind or Cambridge Brain Sciences and mark the date
Stage 1: Begin stage 1 of Qualia on an empty stomach each morning for 30 days. Download the Qualia Quick Start Guide for full directions on stage 2 and total program here
Journal: Each day for 30 days, journal for 5-7 minutes after your meditation session, or at minimum, during the same time each day.
After 30 days: Congrats, you did it! How do you feel? What did you learn about yourself and Qualia? Now, reassess the same tests again for memory, reason, concentration and/or comprehensive cognitive performance (then email Josh and tell him how you feel!)

Rising Above All The Noise [11:36]

"What could a person of normal intelligence do with their life if they fully dedicated themselves to developing themselves comprehensively for the benefit of humanity?" - Richard Buckminster Fuller

People of all ages seek thier life purpose and calling. Maybe you've been called to a career or a responsibility that you now realize is keeping you from what you feel is really your life calling?

If you're aware your vocation doesn't coincide with who you really are, you have the power change it because it's never too late to start a new path that benefit yourself and others.

Rising above all the noise of modern society that's distracting you starts by creating the space to look inside.

To begin, use meditation or box-breathing to enter a calm mindset in the stillness and ask yourself these questions:

What does the future of the world look like?
How does this transition look like for everyone? What does it look like for me?
If all my financial needs were met, what would I do?
What would be the most meaningful thing for me to do?

Answering these questions will raise your awareness above the noise and closer to true alignment with your most authentic self.

"By asking yourself these questions, we're not looking to answer how do we gain or how do we win at life. Rather, we're looking at what problems in the world bother us the most and what interest us."- Daniel Schmachtenberger

About Daniel Schmachtenberger [13:08]

Daniel Schmachtenberger is a social engineer and evolutionary philosopher and strategist. He is the Founder of Critical Path Institute, The Emergence Project, and The Co-Founder of The Neurohacker Collective. With an early childhood in the Transcendental Meditation community of Fairfield, Iowa, Daniel was homeschooled on the works of Buckminster Fuller, Fritjof Capra, and David Bohm.

After many relocations in childhood, Daniel returned to Fairfield to further math and eastern philosophy studies at Maharishi University, before delving into the work of his adult life. After accumulating comprehensive inventories on behavioral influence, coupled with an already comprehensive literacy of complex systems and whole systems science, he then founded The Emergence Project and began working with a host of luminaries to tackle global scale problems with global scale solutions.

Concurrently, he researched the epistemological frontier of neuroscience, delving deeply into integrative medicine as well as emergent neurotech tools and psychological techniques to optimize solutions on both sides of the mind/brain interface. All of these approaches, within an overarching framework of whole systems problem solving, have resulted in his axiomatic deconstruction of assumed scientific boundaries, and the emergence of a more integrally connected body of knowledge from which to understand scholarship. Daniel is not only a founder at Neurohacker Collective, but moreover a uniquely educated pioneer who is broadening the definition of scientific rigor itself.

What are Nootropics? [19:57]

A Nootropic is a chemical that enhances some aspect of our cognitive ability beyond our normal capability without any impactful side affects.

When our brain power and cognitive ability drops below normal baseline, Nootropics help to support existing and to create new capacities for our brainpower.

Nootropics like Qualia are not "medicine," but they can optimize our capability to overcome when we face different challenges such as brain fog.

The Difference between Nootropics and "Smart Drugs"

A lot of people will take "smart drugs" such as Adderall to help them focus, but Adderall also has a lot of long term side affects such as irritability, anxiety, loss of empathy and ability for digit span.

Adderall can help enhance one aspect, but unlike Nootropics that support systemic enhancement, it won't fully supplement the brain in a comprehensive manner.

Emotional Resilience, Curiosity & Wellness [24:50]

How many times have you felt the pull of distraction today? Maybe caught yourself looking at your phone too much? Did you try to have a conversation with someone, but they were absorbed by their phone?

It is easy to become slaves to emails, notifications, and social media messages. So much so, that the present moment is lost.

When we're practicing emotional resilience however, we can take on deeper personal connections, and our biggest and brightest goals. When we're present, we're naturally curious, which allows us unlimited access to our wellness force: our ability to create a positive vibration in that moment, and in the collective world.

It's the burning curiosity of visionaries like the Co-Founder of The Neurohacker Collective, Daniel Schmachtenberger, who believes that it is now both possible and necessary for human beings to dramatically upgrade our individual and collective capacities and safeguard the wellbeing of all, and he is on a mission to help build a global alliance of responsible, empowered individuals and like minded groups dedicated to making this vision a reality.

Cognitive Enhancement [28:13]

"We believe that it is now both possible and necessary for human beings to dramatically upgrade our individual and collective capacities and safeguard the well-being of all. Our mission is to help build a global alliance of responsible, empowered individuals and like minded groups dedicated to making this vision a reality." -Daniel Schmachtenberger

At a young age, Daniel realized that he was experiencing brain fog. In order to enhance his thinking, he began to focus on underlying disease structures to find the root of the problem. Unlike some acute diseases that can be cured with one medication, areas of health such as brain fog, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's are more complicated and can have several root causes.

To help end his brain fog, Daniel needed to enhance his brain by providing it with an optimal cognitive bandwidth. So he asked himself, how could a person enhance their own cognitive ability?

To understand the brain's ability and how we can reach cognitive enhancement, Daniel studied the following areas:

Cognitive chemistry
Nootropics
Brain nutrients
Neuro chemistry and structure
Smart drugs
Short term vs. long term memory
Verbal fluency and ability
Digital spain
Focus and concentration
Thinking speed
Neurotransmitters (dopamine, glutamine)

Get 10x More Done In Life [37:01]

"Increasing the quality of our experience means less subjective suffering and more subjective happiness. That's important because human experience is intrinsically meaningful. By experiencing human capability and the pre-disposition to solve problems, we create things of meaning which also ends up increasing the experience of other people." - Daniel Schmachtenberger

Every single one of us has a hidden meaning or purpose, just waiting to be discovered. But we can't find it if we're distracted by incessant messages, media, or outside noise. We're all either motivated or inspired by numerous factors and in different manners.

Our world view, personal beliefs, economic situation, and even knowing our biology can motivate or direct us towards what we feel called to do.

How we can use this motivation to our advantage? We can biologically optimize our lives with technology and biomarker data.

Using technology and biomarker data, we can improve what we has human beings are capable of doing in this world. Sources such as WellnessFX, 23 And Me, and Ubiome can give us the genetics data we need to help us track our progress while using a nootropic like Qualia to enhance our lives and increase our emotional resilience.

"Qualia is not your golden ticket to everything, but it can support you by enhancing your ability to do things more effectively and grow your capability to make better decisions." - Daniel Schmachtenberger

How To Increase Our Emotional Presence [46:12]

"There's circuitry in the brain that actually wired us to care for other people and tribes. That's how we would have survived." - Jason Silva of Brain Games

We are meant to be in a tribe. When we're surrounded by people who give us the compassion and support that we need to grow, we all win. But not everyone is born with or capable of being empathetic towards others. How can we create more empathy and compassion?

According to Daniel, humans have "hardware" and "software" that connects us with the "collective" or the rest of the world. Together, all of our physical and social needs are interdependent upon each other.

Daniel gave a great example of how we can take care of ourselves while also being omni-considerate. To begin, think about life would be like without plants. Our bioshphere created both us and plants. Therfore, without plants, we wouldn't have the means to live- no air nor food. The same goes for water and gravity.

We are completely interdependent with the planet and everyone else.

Our Actions Affect Everything [53:23]

With that thought in mind, we can increase our emotional presence by being more present with our actions or what we buy. Every time we make a decision, we can make the best choice by thinking about not only how it will affect ourselves, but everything else in the biosphere as well.

We're a growing population and we need to be emotionally present with how our actions are affecting not only people, but the planet.

See the World Differently

"Practice looking at the world through other people's eyes." - Daniel Schmachtenberger

One of Daniel's favorite ways to increase emotional presence is just to think about looking at the world through the perspective of other people.

What other people value
What can hurt them
Why they are asking for something
The reason they feel upset or feel a certain way about something

This way of thinking can help us grow our wellness through better relationships with loved ones and create positive connections with everyone else that we come into contact with.

Emotional Resilience [47:30]

With all of the challenges that we face in this world, it can be emotionally draining at times. At some point we may feel like we've lost our original path to living the life that we want. The life we wanted that gave us purpose.

Nootropics like Qualia can support people in get engaged once again with what they are curious about.

As Daniel discusses during the 2016 event "The Hive Panel: The Future of Humanity and Systems Thinking" he believes that only fully optimized human beings can improve the world.

The Hive Panel: The Future of Humanity and Systems Thinking.

QUALIA DISCOUNT CODE

Ready to start your N=1 by enhancing your cognitive performance, and regaining your focus? Click below and enter code WF10

(Use code WF10 for 10% off any single purchase or monthly subscription – and note that the monthly subscription is already discounted 20%, so you get an additional 10% off if you choose the monthly subscription)

Resources Mentioned From Daniel & Josh

Neurohacker Collective official website
Learn more about Qualia
Get a Qualia order discount
The Emergence Project official website
The Hive Panel: The Future of Humanity and Systems Thinking
The Critical Path Institute Facebook Page
Jason Silva of Brain Games: Empathetic Wiring in Our Brains
The life and work of Richard Buckminster Fuller
Get a blood anylsis done with WellnessFX
Learn about yourself with 23andMe
Improve your gut health with uBiome
Listen to WFR episode #055 with Gay and Katie Hendricks: Body Intelligence in a Modern World
Tim Ferris: My Favorite "Smart Drugs"
Dr. Peter H Diamandis of XPRIZE
Quantified Mind
Cambridge Brain Sciences
Tim Ferris - Huperzine-A

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