The Tim Ferriss Show

#370.5: Derek Sivers on Developing Confidence, Finding Happiness, and Saying “No” to Millions (Repost)

May 11, 2019

Derek Sivers, a philosopher-king programmer and founder of CD Baby, shares insights from his remarkable journey. He discusses the transformative power of saying 'no' using his 'Hell Yeah or No' philosophy, emphasizing the importance of passionate pursuits. Sivers also reflects on his growth from musician to entrepreneur, highlighting how addressing psychic pain can foster genuine success. Additionally, he explores the significance of 'now pages' for personal engagement and critiques the impact of consumerism on happiness, offering wisdom rooted in minimalism.

01:58:59

Episode guests

Derek Sivers

Highlights

AI Chapters

Episode notes

You Are Whatever You Pretend to Be

00:30

Distilling complex information into succinct directives

01:31

How to thrive in an unknowable future

01:13

Personalized and Quirky Automated Emails

00:42

Intro

2min

Navigating Growth and Simplifying Complexity in Business

3min

From Musician to Circus Performer: A Journey of Growth

25min

Building Businesses with Heart

22min

The Power of Saying No and Embracing Enthusiasm

6min

The Significance of 'Now Pages' in Personal Websites

2min

Transformative Delegation and the Power of Literature

26min

Cultural Perspectives on Naming and Categorization

2min

Wisdom through Directives

20min

10.

Exploring the Origins and Impact of Hip Hop

2min

11.

Consumerism, Reflection, and Long-Term Growth

10min

This episode originally aired in 2015. You can find the show notes of the episode here.

“To me, ‘busy’ implies that the person is out of control of their life.” – Derek Sivers

Derek Sivers (@sivers) is one of my favorite humans, and I call him often for advice. Think of him as a philosopher-king programmer, master teacher, and merry prankster.

Originally a professional musician and circus clown, Derek created CD Baby in 1998. It became the largest seller of independent music online, with $100 million in sales for 150,000 musicians.

In 2008, Derek sold CD Baby for $22 million, giving the proceeds to a charitable trust for music education. He is a frequent speaker at the TED Conference, with more than 5 million views of his talks. Since 2011, he has published 34 books, including “Anything You Want,” which I’ve personally read 10+ times.

Enjoy!

You can find the transcript of this episode here. Transcripts of all episodes can be found here.

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