The Voluntary Life

How do you defend yourself against manipulative people? Part 1 of a discussion about some useful ideas in the book "In Sheep's Clothing: Understanding and Dealing with Manipulative People" by Dr. George K. Simon. Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards!

Sebastian Haffner’s memoirs of his time in Berlin between 1914 and 1933 give a fascinating account of everyday life during the rise of a totalitarian regime. This episode explores the most interesting aspects of his book. I talk about what this extreme situation shows us about the effect that politics has on civil society. Become a Patron of The Voluntary Life for bonus episodes!  

An episode about the best way to inoculate yourself against irrational ideas. Show Notes: Become a Patron of The Voluntary Life for bonus episodes! Argumentum ad Absurdum The Candlemakers' Petition by Frederic Bastiat TVL Episode 225 Comparative Advantage Is Mind-blowing  

A discussion with Hannah Braime about our travel experiences and life as expats in Barcelona. We talk about travel with kids, Barcelona as a destination for expats, current events in Catalonia, and more! Become a Patron to get bonus episodes of The Voluntary Life

Why invest in gold? What is the best way to do so? Is gold obsolete as an investment now that cryptocurrencies exist? This episode answers many listener questions about investing in gold from my perspective as a private investor following the Permanent Portfolio strategy.  I am not a financial advisor. As always with investing, you will need to do your own research. Thanks so much to all the patrons who provided great questions for this topic.  Show Notes: Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! Fail-Safe Investing by Harry Browne The Permanent Portfolio by Craig Rowland TVL Episode 69: Inflation: The Hidden Tax BullionVault (Affiliate link)

Should you leave your adult children an inheritance? Should you base your own financial plans around the expectation of receiving an inheritance one day? These questions are relevant to parenting, financial independence, and many other key topics covered on TVL. Show Notes: Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley

An episode about how to use mind maps as a productivity tool to plan any project and support your creative thinking. Show Notes: The Mind Map Book by Tony Buzan iThoughts Exporting Omnifocus Tasks To Mind Maps Script Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards!  

If you are investing towards financial freedom, you face a decision: which asset classes should you put your money in? This episode is about one of the main asset classes: fixed-income securities, or bonds. Bonds can behave in strange ways as an investment, especially in times when interest rates are very low (as they are at present). I'm not a financial advisor and this episode is just my opinions, so you will need to do your own research, but this episode will give you food for thought. Show Notes: Support The Voluntary Life on Patreon and get Bonus episodes!  

How could you apply the 80/20 Principle to parenting? In this episode, Jake answers this question using evidence from a fascinating empirical study into how childhood experiences can impact your health and wellbeing for the rest of your life. Show Notes: Support The Voluntary Life on Patreon ACE Study Wiki Page Explanation of ACE Study CDC page on ACE Study

Many people who are interested in personal freedom and self-improvement find value in an approach to negotiation called Nonviolent Communication (NVC). In this episode, I provide an assessment of NVC, outlining aspects that I find useful, problems with the approach, and some misconceptions of the framework. Show Notes: Become a patron of TVL Nonviolent Communication By Marshall Rosenberg Psychology Book Club Episode on NVC NVC wikipedia page Getting To Yes by Fischer and Ury Parent Effectiveness Training by Thomas Gordon TVL Review of Better Angels of Our Nature Economics and Ethics of Private Property by Hans Hermann Hoppe