On today's show, I talk with Scott Hambrick, the founder of Online Great Books, an organization that hosts virtual seminars for people who want to read the Great Books of Western Civilization. Scott talks about what makes the Great Books great, why they are so important, and how they contribute to living the Good Life. We also do a deep dive into Aristotle’s famous work on how to achieve happiness and live the best possible life.IN THIS EPISODE, YOU'LL LEARN:What are the Great Books and what makes them Great?Why should we read the Great Books?What the Great Books have to teach us about the Good Life?How Aristotle defines the Good Life and how to achieve it?How to tackle challenging books?How to find more time to read?HELP US OUT!Help us reach new listeners by leaving us a rating and review!! It takes less than 30 seconds and really helps our show grow, which allows us to bring on even better guests for you all! Thank you – we really appreciate it!BOOKS AND RESOURCESOnline Great BooksHow to Read a Book by Mortimer AdlerMortimer Adler’s Reading List from How to Read a BookFind the best version of yourself with Goodlife Clothing.CONNECT WITH SCOTT HAMBRICKOnline Great BooksCONNECT WITH SEAN MURRAYSean's Twitter AccountSean's LinkedIn AccountEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comWebsite: www.seanpmurray.net"The Good Life" Newsletter: SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

DescriptionOur guest this week is Cal Newport, author of the book: A World Without email: Reimagining work in an Age of Digital OverloadCal is a professor of computer science at Georgetown and he is the best selling author of two previous best-selling books on productivity and managing our time: Deep Work and Digital Minimalism.Cal is at the forefront of figuring out how knowledge workers can thrive and be productive in the crazy environment we find ourselves in, with our inboxes overloaded with email, with constant interruptions via text and instant messaging and social media.Cal has heavily influenced me, and countless others, on the need to carve out large blocks of uninterrupted time to focus on Deep Work, that's meaningful, important strategic work that takes dedicated attention. One of the most important differentiating factors for our career is our ability to carve out this uninterrupted time and complete projects with long-term impact. And in this book, he shows us how to do that.What You'll LearnWhy does our work today prevent us from having long periods of uninterrupted work?What can we do to change how we work so we can get long periods of uninterrupted work?What is the "hyperactive hive-mind" and why has it become the default mode of getting work done?The challenge of the "hyperactive hive-mind" approach to getting work done, and how to overcome itWhy we should design our work to avoid constant context shiftingHow to focus on the process of our work flow and design systems of communication that avoids unscheduled messagesResources A World Without email: Reimagining work in an Age of Digital Overload by Cal NewportDeep Work by Cal NewportDigital Minimalism by Cal NewportConnect with Cal NewportWebsite: https://www.calnewport.com/Connect with Sean MurraySean's Twitter AccountSean's LinkedIn AccountEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comWebsite: www.seanpmurray.net"The Good Life" Newsletter: SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode #57: Learning from Marcus Aurelius with Donald Robertson (replay)On today's show, I talk with Donald Robertson, the co-founder of Modern Stoicism and the author of How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius. Robertson is an expert on both ancient Stoicism and the modern psychotherapy that evolved from Stoicism called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Robertson goes in-depth on the life of the Roman Stoic and Emperor Marcus Aurelius and the lessons we can learn from his life and philosophical practices.IN THIS EPISODE, YOU'LL LEARN:What is StoicismWhy Stoicism is so popular todayWhat to do if your girlfriend or boyfriend dumps youHow to build resilienceThe Stoic view on the pursuit of wealthHow to deal with negative emotions like anger, envy and anxietyHow to calm your mind and emotionsHow to apply Stoic principles to achieve The Good LifeBOOKS AND RESOURCESDonald Robertson's How to Think Like a roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius byThe Good Life Episode #6: Guide to the Good Life with William IrvineCONNECT WITH DONALD ROBERTSONDonald's WebsiteDonald's Twitter AccountGET IN TOUCH WITH SEAN MURRAYSean's Twitter AccountSean's LinkedIn AccountEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comWebsite: www.seanpmurray.net"The Good Life" Newsletter: SubscribeRead the full transcript and show notes on: https://www.theinvestorspodcast.com/the-good-life/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

My guest today is Scott Newstok, professor at Rhodes and author of “How to Think like Shakespeare: Lessons from a Renaissance Education." Scott’s book is ultimately about the craft of thinking and how to improve it. In our conversation we address a very interesting question. How is it that Shakespeare, and his renaissance contemporaries were able to produce such incredible works? What was their education like and what can we learn from studying it? We also discuss what we've lost in education today and how we might begin to recover it.What You'll LearnWhat makes Shakespeare so specialHow Shakespeare’s education shaped his ability to thinkHow imitation can lead to creativityHow the skill of thinking is more of a craft than a scienceHow discipline and constraint can lead to independent thinking and freedomResourcesHow to Think like Shakespeare: Lessons from a Renaissance Education by Scott Newstok Connect with Scott NewstokWebsite: https://www.scottnewstok.com/Connect with Sean MurrayEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comTwitter: @seanpmurray111LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanpmurray/Website: www.seanpmurray.netNewsletter: https://www.realtimeperformance.com/newsletter/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This episode is a replay of one of the most popular episodes from last year. The guest is William B. Irvine, professor of philosophy at Wright State University and the author of A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy and more recently, The Stoic Challenge: A Philosopher’s Guide to Becoming Tougher, Calmer and More Resilient. Professor Irvine has taken the ancient philosophy of Stoicism out of the classroom and adopted it as his philosophy of life. He shares his experience practicing Stoicism and how it’s helping him move a little closer to the Good Life.What You'll Learn• The importance of finding a Philosophy of Life• Why Stoicism works for Professor Irvine, and why it might work for you to• The dangers of the default philosophy of life in Western World: Enlightened Hedonism • How Stoicism helps avoid Hedonic Adaptation• How to maintain tranquility and peace of mind• How to become more resilient Books & ResourcesA Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. IrvineThe Stoic Challenge: A Philosopher’s Guide to Becoming Tougher, Calmer and More Resilient by William B. IrvineConnect with William IrvineWebsite: https://www.williambirvine.com/Connect with Sean MurrayTwitter: @seanpmurray111Website: www.seanpmurray.netNewsletter: www.seanpmurray.net/newsletterLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanpmurray/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The topic of this week’s episode is Warren Buffett’s annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders. My guest is Jake Taylor, the Chief Executive Officer of Farnam Street Investments. Jake has been a previous guest on The Good Life as part of the Decision-Making Mastermind Group. Jake breaks down Warren Buffett's latest Letter to Berkshire Shareholders and helps us understand what we can learn. Jake is an incredibly knowledgeable investor, and he follows Berkshire carefully, so he's familiar with the company and he brings unique insight into interpreting Buffett's letter and his message to the investing community. This show grew out my interest in Value Investing and in helping others to apply the principles of value investing to our lives. Buffett's annual letter is always full of wisdom and Jake helps us unpack this year's edition so we can get the most out of it.What You'll LearnHow to analyze Berkshire’s earningsBuffett’s two primary goals for his leadership of Berkshire in 2020 and why he didn’t meet either of themWhat share repurchases at Berkshire and Apple in 2020 mean for Berkshire shareholdersHow to think about the Retained Earnings at the companies Berkshire partially ownsWhy Buffett is writing down his purchase of Precision Cast PartsThe structural advantages of BerkshireThe “Four Jewels” of BerkshireWhy you should never bet against AmericaThe surprise announcement about this year’s annual meetingBooks & ResourcesBerkshire Hathaway Letter to Shareholders 2020The Rebel Allocator by Jake TaylorEpisode #4 – Jake Taylor Discusses his novel, The Rebel AllocatorConnect with Jake TaylorTwitter: @farnamjake1Farnam Street InvestmentsConnect with Sean MurrayEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comTwitter: @seanpmurray111LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanpmurray/Website: www.seanpmurray.netNewsletter: https://www.realtimeperformance.com/newsletter/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The topic of this week’s episode is walking, and my guest is Shane O’Mara, author of In Praise of Walking: A New Scientific Exploration. Shane is a professor of Experimental Brain Research at Trinity College Dublin and he’s an expert on the physical, psychological and social benefits of walking. We talk about why walking is the trait that makes us “uniquely human” and what that means for us personally. And given that walking is the fundamental way we experience the world, Shane guides us on how to get more walking in our day and more benefit from each walk. What You'll LearnHow walking is the fundamental way we experience the worldWhy walking is the most unique human trait that separates us from all the other animalsThe many physical, psychological and social benefits of walkingHow every benefit of walking benefits every other aspect of our livesWhy the greatest philosophers and writers throughout history have praised walkingWhy walkability of your city and neighborhood is so important to your well-beingWhy you should use a walking app on your phoneWhy you should aim for 5,000 more steps per day than you're currently doing nowWhy we "think better' when we walkWhy conversations are so much richer and more enjoyable when walkingHow to get more walking in our dayBooks & ResourcesIn Praise of Walking: A New Scientific Exploration by Shane O’MaraWebsite: https://brainpizza.substack.com/Connect with Shane O'MaraTwitter: @ShaneOMara3Connect with Sean MurrayEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comTwitter: @seanpmurray111LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanpmurray/Website: www.seanpmurray.netNewsletter: https://www.realtimeperformance.com/newsletter/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The topic this week is How to Keep Your Cool, and my guest is James Romm, a Professor of Classics at Bard and the author of the book, How to Keep your Cool: An Ancient Guide to Anger Management. This is James’ second appearance on The Good Life, he was a guest on episode #9 where he talked about Seneca. In this episode James talks about Seneca’s famous essay, On Anger. Seneca is a Stoic, and his advice on how to control our anger draws heavily on Stoic philosophy. Seneca thinks anger is always harmful, so his advice is to avoid it altogether, and he offers a number of tips on how to do that. However, if we do slip into anger, he offers advice on how to cool ourselves down.  What You’ll Learn:Why anger is always harmful to usWhy Seneca compares anger to “jumping off a cliff”How to avoid anger altogetherHow to stop anger once it shows upHow to help others control their angerThe moral argument for non-violenceHow a close study of anger and it’s causes will make us a better personBooks & ResourcesHow to Keep Your Cool: An Ancient Guide to Anger Management by James RommThe Good Life – Episode #7 – Seneca with James RommThe Good Life – Episode #8 – Stoicism with Donald Robertsonhttp://www.jamesromm.com/Connect with James RommTwitter: @jamesrommConnect with Sean MurrayEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comTwitter: @seanpmurray111LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanpmurray/Website: www.seanpmurray.netNewsletter: https://www.realtimeperformance.com/newsletter/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today’s guest is Massimo Pigliucci, a professor of Philosophy at the city College of New York. He has written extensively about Stoicism, but today's topic is much broader than that. Massimo has a new book out titled " How to Live a Good Life: A Guide to Choosing Your Personal Philosophy." It’s a series of essays, each dedicated to a different philosophy of life, and written by a practitioner of that philosophy. Massimo edited the volume, along with Sky Cleary and Dan Kaufman, and he wrote the essay on Stoicism.In this episode Massimo covers the big ideas, and we compare and contrast, various traditions and philosophies such as Buddhism, Epicureanism, Daoism, Confucianism and stoicism. and we do a deeper dive into Stoicism since that is Massimo's preferred philosophy of life. Massimo also talks about the three components of a philosophy of life, and why it's important for everyone to have a philosophy of life.What You'll Learn• The three components of a philosophy of life• The importance of having a philosophy of life• The benefits of learning about other philosophies of life• Tenets of Buddhism• The "Rapacious Ego"• The Buddhist concepts of suffering and the "no self"• The Daoist concept of "flowing like water"• The Stoic principles of "the obstacle becomes the way" and "dichotomy of control"• Eudaimonia - A life Worth Living• Aristotle's view living a good life• The four cardinal virtuesBooks & ResourcesHow to Live a Good Life: A Guide to Choosing Your Personal Philosophy by Massimo Pigliuicciwww.massimopigliuicci.comConnect with MassimoTwitter: @mpigliucciConnect with Sean MurrayEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comTwitter: @seanpmurray111LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanpmurray/Website: www.seanpmurray.netSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our topic this week is Claude Shannon, a mathematician and engineer known as the Father of Information theory for his landmark paper "A Mathematical Theory of Communication", which he published in 1948. Shannon's seminal work and discoveries ushered in the digital age, and for that alone, his life is worthy of study, but Shannon also had this other remarkable quality to his life – a very playful and creative mind. Shannon was always curious, and he devoted his considerable intellect to a diverse range of activities and interests, that included juggling, unicycles, artificial intelligence, chess playing machines, wearable computers – he even built a chairlift on his property. He was both a mathematical and creative genius.My guests today are Jimmy Soni and Mark Levinson.  Jimmy co-authored a biography of Shannon titled A Mind at Play and Mark directed a documentary about Shannon called The Bit Player which is available on Amazon Prime. In both of these works, Jimmy and Mark seek to explore the incredible mind of Claude Shannon. In this episode we seek to distill the secrets to Shannon's creativity, and we talk about how we can apply these lessons to our own lives.What You’ll Learn:·     The importance of Information Theory and Shannon’s significant contribution to the digital computer and the information age·     How Shannon relied on intuition as a guide when solving mathematical problems·     How Shannon would take a complex problem, simplify it down to its essence, and then build it back up to uncover deep hidden truths that eluded his colleagues·     How Shannon’s disregard for prestige and awards freed up his time and mind for creative work·     How pursuing “trivial” and “whimsical” projects would often lead Shannon to profound insights·     How Shannon used creative dissatisfaction to drive innovation·     How we can apply Shannon’s creative techniques to our own livesResourcesA Mind at Play by Jimmy Soni & Rob GoodmanThe Bit Player directed by Mark Levinson11 Life Lessons from History’s Most Underrated Genius by Soni & Goodman“A Mathematical Theory of Communication” by Claude ShannonConnect with Jimmy Soni & Mark LevinsonLinkedIn for Jimmy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmysoni/LinkedIn for Mark: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-levinson-b400475/Connect with Sean MurrayEmail: seanm@realtimeperformance.comTwitter: @seanpmurray111LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanpmurray/Website: www.seanpmurray.netNewsletter: https://www.realtimeperformance.com/newsletter/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.