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George Mack — The Game of Life (Infinite Loops CLASSICS)

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Nov 13, 2025

Guest

George Mack

George Mack, a writer and marketer known for his insights on high-agency thinking, dives into the intriguing idea of treating life as a video game. He discusses how designing projects like game levels can boost motivation and reduce procrastination. George shares how to identify high-agency individuals and emphasizes that agency can be cultivated. He also explores the future of media and how overlooked trends may shape historical narratives. With a focus on curiosity and adapting to change, this conversation is a playbook for living intentionally.

01:43:33

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insights

INSIGHT

Life As A Game Boosts Motivation

Treating life as a well-designed video game explains why people concentrate extreme effort into games but not life.
Improve motivation by redesigning projects into levels, feedback loops, and small wins.

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ADVICE

Design Projects Like Levels

Break big projects into clear levels and tiny milestones to create dopamine-producing feedback loops.
Ship level-one tasks first to build momentum and avoid perpetual procrastination.

insights

INSIGHT

Scoreboards Drive Human Engagement

Money functions as an elegant multiplayer score: a single number you can continuously compare and improve.
Well-designed systems like belt ranks or reps create persistent engagement outsiders call discipline.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Thinking of Life as a Video Game

01:38 • 2min

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Making Projects Feel Like Play

03:30 • 8min

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Identifying Good Game Mechanics in Real Life

11:48 • 1min

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Choosing the Right Metrics

13:01 • 5min

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Designing Your Life's Infinite Game

18:01 • 6min

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Crawl, Walk, Run: Starting Small

23:33 • 1min

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Spotting High-Agency People

24:51 • 4min

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Unusual Habits of High-Agency Individuals

28:24 • 7min

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Can You Increase Agency?

35:08 • 5min

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The VR Regret Visualization Exercise

40:06 • 6min

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The Value of Quiet Time

46:03 • 5min

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Optimism, Pessimism, and Agency Matrix

51:27 • 5min

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Media, Storytelling, and the Future of Creativity

56:08 • 11min

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Will Reading Decline or Transform?

01:06:43 • 5min

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What Historians Will Study Later

01:11:57 • 6min

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Reddit-to-Facebook Continuum for Alpha

01:18:04 • 5min

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Virtue Signaling vs. Action

01:22:43 • 17sec

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The Midwit Phenomenon and Simplicity

01:23:00 • 7min

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Algorithms, Filter Bubbles, and Randomness

01:30:03 • 4min

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Rebuilding Algorithms to Maximize Discovery

01:34:11 • 3min

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Staying Curious with Age

01:37:13 • 4min

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Two Ideas to Incept Worldwide

• Mentioned in 71 episodes

Gödel, Escher, Bach

An Eternal Golden Braid

Douglas Hofstadter

This book by Douglas Hofstadter is a comprehensive and interdisciplinary work that explores the interrelated ideas of Kurt Gödel, M.C. Escher, and Johann Sebastian Bach. It delves into concepts such as self-reference, recursion, and the limits of formal systems, particularly through Gödel's Incompleteness Theorem. The book uses dialogues between fictional characters, including Achilles and the Tortoise, to intuitively present complex ideas before they are formally explained. It covers a wide range of topics including cognitive science, artificial intelligence, number theory, and the philosophy of mind, aiming to understand how consciousness and intelligence emerge from formal systems.

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• Mentioned in 130 episodes

The Beginning of Infinity

Explanations That Transform the World

David Deutsch

In this groundbreaking book, David Deutsch argues that explanations have a fundamental place in the universe and that improving them is the basic regulating principle of all successful human endeavor. The book takes readers on a journey through various fields of science, history of civilization, art, moral values, and the theory of political institutions. Deutsch explains how we form new explanations and drop bad ones, and discusses the conditions under which progress, which he argues is potentially boundless, can and cannot happen. He emphasizes the importance of good explanations, which he defines as those that are 'hard to vary' and have 'reach', and argues that these explanations are central to the Enlightenment way of thinking and to all scientific and philosophical progress.

#2353

• Mentioned in 15 episodes

The Hypomanic Edge

The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot) of Success in America

John D. Gartner

In this book, Gartner argues that hypomania, characterized by heightened energy, creativity, and ambition, has been a driving force behind many of America's most innovative and successful individuals. He examines historical figures such as Christopher Columbus, Alexander Hamilton, and modern-day entrepreneurs like Ted Turner, suggesting that their hypomanic tendencies contributed to their remarkable achievements. Gartner also emphasizes the importance of managing hypomania to prevent it from escalating into full-blown mania, and advocates for recognizing and nurturing the positive aspects of this condition rather than stigmatizing it.

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• Mentioned in 31 episodes

What works on Wall Street

The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time

James P. O'Shaughnessy

In 'What Works on Wall Street', James P. O'Shaughnessy provides an in-depth analysis of over 90 years of stock market data to identify the most effective investment strategies. The book examines various factors such as price-to-earnings ratios, price-to-sales, price-to-book value, dividend yields, and more. It challenges conventional wisdom and offers multifactor strategies that have historically generated the best returns. The book is designed to help investors of all levels, from conservative to aggressive, in selecting the best strategies for their investment objectives.

#1879

• Mentioned in 18 episodes

Happy

Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine

Derren Brown

In 'Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine,' Derren Brown delves into the concept of happiness from various angles, drawing on influences from Stoicism, philosophy, literature, and modern psychology. The book is divided into three sections: 'Beginnings,' which discusses the stories we tell ourselves and the problems with self-help; 'Solutions,' which explores living a considered life, dealing with emotions, and regaining control over our narratives; and 'Happy Endings,' which addresses the fear of death and how to live in the present. Brown argues that true happiness is not found in material goods or external events but in accepting the indifference of the universe and finding contentment in the present moment.

#106

• Mentioned in 133 episodes

The Secret

Rhonda Byrne

The Secret by Rhonda Byrne introduces the concept of the law of attraction, which suggests that positive thoughts can attract positive outcomes in life. The book outlines a three-step process: ask, believe, and receive. Byrne emphasizes the importance of gratitude, visualization, and maintaining a positive mindset to achieve one's desires. The book covers various areas such as prosperity, relationships, health, and happiness, and includes examples and quotes from historical and modern-day teachers who have allegedly used this principle to achieve their goals.

Hello everyone, Jim here. We're taking a brief break from new episodes to spotlight a golden oldie from the Infinite Loops archive. This conversation from December 2023 remains one of my favorites. Fresh episodes return next week, but first, enjoy this conversation with the inimitable George Mack.

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Writer, marketer, entrepreneur, and master of mental models, George Mack returns to discuss the top 0.1% of ideas he's ever come across, from treating life as a video game to spotting high-agency individuals. Important Links:

George's Twitter
The Lindy Library
Roy: A Life Well Lived (Rick and Morty)
How to Spot High Agency People
The Mack Meditation
What is ignored by the media — but will be studied by historians?
The Early-Late Razor

Show Notes:

Treating Life as a Video Game
Finding the Important Metrics
Embrace Momentum; Embrace Constraints
How to Spot High Agency People
How to Increase Your Agency
The Mack Meditation & Silence as Alpha
Why Pessimism vs Optimism is the Wrong Debate
The Future of Media
What is Ignored by the Media but will be Studied by Historians?
The Reddit to Facebook Continuum
George's Most Midwit Opinion
Randomness & Feeding the Algorithm
How to Retain Curiosity
George as Emperor of the World

Books Mentioned:

The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot Of) Success in America; by John Gartner
Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine; by Derren Brown
What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
The Secret; by Rhonda Byrne
Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid; by Douglas Hofstadter
The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations that Transform the World; by David Deutsch

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