Michael Strong has spent decades quietly revolutionizing education by designing innovative schools and programs built around agency, critical thinking, entrepreneurship and creativity.

He is the founder and CEO of The Socratic Experience, a virtual school that equips students for lifelong happiness and success through Socratic dialogue.

Alongside his work in the US, he has educational consulting experience in multiple developing nations.

And… he’s a fellow Minnesotan!

Michael joins the show to discuss whether Socratic education can scale, the benefits of the Mormon model, why high agency is the default, and MUCH more!

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.

Important Links:

Show Notes:

One book a night and mental chess - a Minnesotan childhood.
Can Socratic education scale?
Are we entrenching a new elite?
Why high agency is the default
Creating new subcultures & the benefits of the Mormon model
Experimenting our way to prosperity
Tearing down the citadel, secret censorship & claiming the moral high ground
Prediction markets & why we should be betting on our reputation
The heroic tradition of reason
Michael as World Emperor
MORE!

Books Mentioned:

Dr. Semmelweis vs. the World (Infinite Loops Substack)
Ignore. Fight. Ridicule (Infinite Loops Substack)
The Habit of Thought: From Socratic Seminars to Socratic Practice; by Michael Strong
Be the Solution: How Entrepreneurs and Conscious Capitalists Can Solve All the World's Problems; by Michael Strong and John Mackey
The Case Against Adolescence: Rediscovering the Adult in Every Teen; by Robert Epstein
The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson
Hierarchy in the Forest: The Evolution of Egalitarian Behavior; by Christopher Boehm
Collective Illusions: Conformity, Complicity, and the Science of Why We Make Bad Decisions; by Todd Rose
Can Gambling Save Science? Encouraging an Honest Consensus; by Robin Hanson
Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life; by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Hothouse Earth: An Inhabitant's Guide; by Bill McGuire
Think in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts; by Annie Duke
The Ultimate Resource; by Julian L. Simon
Keep Your Identity Small; by Paul Graham

Episode 498 - Final Trip Thoughts