Human Nature with Roni Fouks

In today's episode, I spoke with Delroy Paulhus, a personality researcher focusing on antisocial, Dark Tetrad personality traits such as psychopathy, narcissism, Machiavellianism, and sadism. We spoke about how the internet provides a platform for sadists to get their kicks by trolling others online. And we spoke about the idea of human evil, our own shadow sides, and how we can better understand human malevolence.@YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

In today’s episode, I spoke with John Vervaeke, professor of cognitive science at the University of Toronto and creator of the YouTube lecture series “Awakening from the Meaning Crisis”. In his brilliant 50-part series, John weaves together philosophy, the history of ideas, and cognitive science to explain why we collectively find ourselves today in a crisis of meaning. In our conversation, we spoke about the origins of the meaning crisis, its symptoms today and how modern health issues are connected, and the practices that we can integrate into our lives to regain meaning and enhance our capacity for insight. @YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

In today’s episode, I spoke with Ben Volkow, the CEO and Founder of Otonomo, a company that’s revolutionizing the world of car data. Otonomo offers the leading data platform and marketplace for sharing and utilizing vehicle data, with over 40 million connected cars and 4 billion data points. The opportunities are far-reaching for this unprecedented amount of car data, from traffic management and smart cities, to emergency services and smarter insurance policies. Ben was full of insights from his journey founding Otonomo and bringing the company to IPO at a 1.26 billion dollar valuation. We spoke all about his vision for Otonomo and how this kind of data can completely transform the way we drive, the way entire cities are planned, and much much more. @YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

In today’s episode, I spoke with Prof. Mark Solms, a psychoanalyst and neuropsychologist from South Africa who is well known for his groundbreaking research on the brain mechanisms of dreaming. Today we spoke about the unique field of neuropsychoanalysis, some of his earlier research showing why Freud was right about dreaming, and about his new book The Hidden Spring: A Journey to the Source of Consciousness. In his book, Mark brings forth a revolutionary theory of consciousness that returns emotions and feelings to the center of our mental lives.@YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

In today’s episode, I spoke with David Schapiro, an expert in the insurtech space, who combines his silicon valley cowboy past with the old-school culture of the insurance industry.David explains why we’re seeing the emergence of a great number of tech companies within the insurance space, and why this is just the tip of the iceberg. David has been involved in companies such as ClickSoftware, PLANCK, BoughtByMany, Sayata Labs, and Earnix.We spoke about David’s experience in this space, his insights about insurtech specifically and entrepreneurship more generally, and about the track record we’re seeing of Israeli high-tech companies making a global splash and bringing innovation to the forefront.@YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

In today’s conversation, I spoke with Micha Kaufman, founder and CEO of Fiverr. Fiverr has completely revolutionized the gig economy, making freelance work accessible for people all over the world. Fiverr simplifies the process of connecting freelancers with their customers, which allows freelancers to truly make a living from their work, and provides easy access for businesses large and small to highly skilled individuals. We spoke about where the idea for Fiverr came from, how the company looked in its early days, and what it took to make the Fiverr dream a reality. Micha shared his insights about what it takes to build a strong company culture and what values are important to cultivate in order to keep an ever-expanding company integrated and focused on the grander vision. Fiverr has opened so many doors for so many people around the world, and one of the things that were clear from our conversation was that at Fiverr, they never lose sight of the people they are serving. @YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

In today’s episode, I spoke with Prof. James Pennebaker, a social psychology professor from UT Austin. Needless to say, within the psychology community, Pennebaker is a well known name. James is a pioneer in the field of writing therapy, where he has explored how writing about a past trauma can help people recover, as well as how the language we use can indicate the state of our mental health.  He then went on to explore how people use language differently. For instance, how gender and personality can affect the language we use. One of the surprising things that emerged from James’s research is that the biggest differences between people’s use of language are actually to be found in their use of pronouns - those little words that no one quite pays attention to. Interestingly enough, it’s precisely the way we use pronouns that can tell us a lot about who we are.@YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

In today’s episode, I spoke with Tara Stiles, the founder of Strala Yoga, a revolutionary approach to being, moving, and healing. Strala Yoga is not like other styles of yoga. Strala combines the principles of tai-chi with yoga and delivers an easy-going flow, that allows you to sync with your breath, tune inwards, really listen to your body, and ultimately, to become good friends with yourself. Finally, there’s a style of yoga that really feels like you. In Strala, the focus isn’t on getting the alignment of the pose just right. Instead, poses are thought of as waypoints to move and flow through. This way of practicing yoga shifts your attention from how the pose looks to how you feel as you’re moving and breathing.Tara Stiles was private yoga teacher to Deepak Chopra, walked the red carpet with Jane Fonda, and along with her husband, Mike Taylor, Tara has devoted herself to making yoga accessible for everyone. Strala is all about slowing down, softening, moving with your breath, and practicing being kind to yourself, on and off the mat. There’s no pretentiousness, no strict rules or codes of dress. Strala is open to everyone.In our conversation, we spoke about how Strala Yoga was born, where the philosophy came from, and how the Strala community has developed and grown over the years. I feel really lucky that my introduction into the world of yoga was through Tara’s Strala Yoga videos, and I hope that after hearing today’s conversation, you’ll invite a bit of Strala Magic into your own lives as well. So without further ado, here’s my conversation with Tara Stiles.@YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

Do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? A conversation with Yuval Tal, Founder & President of Payoneer and Managing Partner at Team8 Fintech. Yuval and I spoke about the ins and outs of entrepreneurship. The good, the bad, and the ugly.Yuval shared his lessons and insights from his entrepreneurial journey, and what kind of personality makes for a successful entrepreneur.@YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe

A very special episode with a very special person!In today' s episode I spoke with Irvin Yalom, the author of best-selling books such as When Nietzsche Wept and Love's Executioner, the father of existential psychotherapy and a pioneer in the field of group theory.   We spoke about his latest book, A Matter of Death and Life, which he co-authored with his late wife, Marylin Yalom. Marylin and Irvin weave together a beautiful and touching tale of true love, old age, and a life well-lived. Click here for their latest book:  A Matter of Death and Life@YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBiggerPicturePodcast@Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/biggerpicturepodbyroni/@Website: https://thebiggerpicturepod.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ronifouks.substack.com/subscribe