Jonna Mendez is a former chief of disguise in the CIA's Office of Technical Service, and co-author of The Moscow Rules: The Secret CIA Tactics That Helped America Win the Cold War. What We Discuss with Jonna Mendez: What was it like to work as a heavily surveilled CIA operative in the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War? Why did the United States have to rebuild its embassy in Moscow from the ground up in the early '90s? How aspiring artists like Jonna and her late husband Antonio (played by Ben Affleck in Argo) got involved in working for the CIA. How the CIA recruits brilliant scientific minds to develop cutting-edge solutions when it can only offer a fraction of compensation offered by the private sector. The evolution of how disguise has come to be used in the intelligence community since the '70s, and the role Jonna has taken in its progress. And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://jordanharbinger.com/344 Sign up for Six-Minute Networking -- our free networking and relationship development mini course -- at jordanharbinger.com/course! Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!

You have a family history of addiction, and now your clinically depressed little brother is using drugs and alcohol to a degree that goes well beyond rebellious teenage mischief. With parental guidance being nonexistent, can you do something, or is your brother a lost cause? We'll try to address this and more here on Feedback Friday. And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Jason DeFillippo (@jpdef) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in! Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://jordanharbinger.com/343. On This Week's Feedback Friday, We Discuss: Your father has definite ideas of how your educational future should play out and where your career should be headed, but you've chosen otherwise. How do you break the news without breaking his heart? Every time you find a new interest, you initially obsess over it. But after a few months, you lose interest and move on to something else. How can you stick to something long enough to get results? How do you build your network without some contacts getting the wrong idea about your romantic interest/disinterest? You have a family history of addiction, and now your clinically depressed little brother is using drugs and alcohol to a degree that goes well beyond rebellious teenage mischief. With parental guidance being nonexistent, can you do something, or is your brother a lost cause? How can you obtain mentorship or establish great networks when you're financially incapable of hiring a coach or attending high-value networking events? How do you identify what you have to offer to the person from whom you want mentorship? What should you do if you have nothing to offer for the time being? Self-quarantining, you want to start a podcast as a way to step outside your comfort zone and become more social. Using Six-Minute Networking tips, responses from potential guests have been positive. What further advice do we have for a new podcaster? Life Pro Tip: Go start your car and drive it around for 15-20 minutes if it's been a while! Recommendation of the Week: Operation Toussaint A quick shout out to Igor Pavic from Washington for being the first person to report bugs on our brand new website! Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com! Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger. Connect with Jason on Twitter at @jpdef...

Investigative reporter and author David Epstein discusses the pros and cons of specialization and generalization, the benefits of sacrificing depth for breadth in learning, how struggling to generate an answer enhances learning, the hazards of choosing to specialize between ages 18-29, and the advantages of being a generalist in a specialized world.

Julie Gerberding is the former director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and administrator of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). What We Discuss with Julie Gerberding: What makes COVID-19 so uniquely dangerous compared to other diseases and would-be pandemics we've encountered in the past century? Is staying six feet away from other people really safe enough, and will we have to practice social distancing until we get a COVID-19 vaccine? Is the rapid spread of information -- and misinformation -- by way of the Internet more helpful or hurtful to our efforts to contain the spread of the virus? Why did even our most trusted sources -- like the CDC -- initially discourage us from wearing masks and now insist on them for leaving the house? How much does political pressure from a presidential administration affect the job of a CDC director? And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://jordanharbinger.com/341 Sign up for Six-Minute Networking -- our free networking and relationship development mini course -- at jordanharbinger.com/course! Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!

With big changes afoot thanks to technological advances and the need to adapt in a COVID-19 world, what skills should you consider picking up, and what jobs will exist in the new economy that you can prepare to fill? This and more here on Feedback Friday! And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Jason DeFillippo (@jpdef) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in! Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://jordanharbinger.com/340. On This Week's Feedback Friday, We Discuss: As the world rapidly changes around us, what skills should you consider leveling up, and what jobs will exist in the new economy? How do you network and get to know the team at a new company while remote? Should you still pay off the full balance of your credit card to avoid finance charges, or should you hold on to the cash until the pandemic's over? You love every aspect of your current job, but the perks are low and so is the pay. You know you could get full benefits and make three times more as a plumber. Is the choice as easy to make as it sounds? Life Pro Tip: Worried that your favorite restaurant will be hurt by the slow business due to the coronavirus? Buy a gift card from them now and use it later. It’s like a loan, and there are usually pretty decent savings included to sweeten the deal. Recommendation of the Week: Dirty Money Season 2 A quick shout out to Angela Hodges for using advice she's learned from the show to create a Facebook group page where they're sewing facemasks for healthcare workers in NJ! Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com! Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger. Connect with Jason on Twitter at @jpdef and Instagram at @JPD, and check out his other show: Grumpy Old Geeks. Sign up for Six-Minute Networking -- our free networking and relationship development mini course -- at jordanharbinger.com/course!  Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider leaving your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!

Michele Rigby Assad (@michelerigassad) is an international security consultant, trainer, and author of Breaking Cover: My Secret Life in the CIA and What It Taught Me about What’s Worth Fighting For. What We Discuss with Michele Rigby Assad: Is working undercover for the CIA as exciting as it looks in the movies? How does an isolated Florida girl grow up to be a CIA operative in the Arab world? What goes into gathering intelligence from terrorist sources, and what motivates them to cooperate with the CIA? How did Michele overcome a strong case of imposter syndrome while working at the CIA? What does it mean to “get off the X,” and why is it important to understand even if you think you’ll never be ambushed? And much more… Full show notes and resources can be found here: www.jordanharbinger.com/339 Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course! The Art of Manliness Podcast is a podcast that aims to help men become better men; host Brett McKay explores how to live a life of both contemplation and action while having some fun along the way. Do yourself a favor and check out The Art of Manliness Podcast here! Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!

Ozan Varol is a rocket scientist turned award-winning law professor and bestselling author -- which makes him perfectly poised to share the wisdom found in his latest book, Think Like a Rocket Scientist: Simple Strategies You Can Use to Make Giant Leaps in Work and Life. What We Discuss with Ozan Varol: How to apply first-principles thinking in your life. How you can reverse your own processes to find the holes in your logic. The benefits of bringing in outside expertise that has seemingly nothing to do with the problem you're trying to solve. Why brainstorming all the reasons your idea might fail may just ensure its long-term success. How to reframe questions and generate insights you may have missed. And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://www.jordanharbinger.com/ozan-varol-how-to-think-like-a-rocket-scientist/ Sign up for Six-Minute Networking -- our free networking and relationship development mini course -- at jordanharbinger.com/course! The James Altucher Show brings you into the lives of peak-performers: billionaires, best-selling authors, rappers, astronauts, athletes, comedians, actors, and world champions! Check it out here! (Or wherever you prefer listening to podcasts in your ear-holes!) Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!

While we're trying to avoid talking directly about the current pandemic, there's no doubt COVID-19 is clearly crushing careers. Gretchen Rubin helps us ensure we can still be productive during this time. Also, Dorie Clark joins us to talk a teenager through coming out as gay a non-supportive environment. We have a lot happening here on Feedback Friday! And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Jason DeFillippo (@jpdef) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in! Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://jordanharbinger.com/337. On This Week's Feedback Friday, We Discuss: If you're wondering how to come out as gay when you're 13 and surrounded by non-supportive family and friends who might distance themselves because of their religious beliefs, Dorie Clark's got some wisdom to impart. As a freelancer, how do you get more remote-work contracts instead of onsite offers during the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis? Is your ADHD to blame for taking on more work than you can possibly handle, and does your imposter syndrome make you try too hard, or is there something else at play here? Your recently graduated girlfriend needs to get a job, move out of her parents' house, and become independent to make progress, but she doesn't seem particularly motivated even when there's not a global pandemic to navigate around. How can you be encouraging without nagging? You had a great job interview lined up, and then COVID-19 struck. How can you stay on the radar to have a leg up when things have calmed down and it's time to meet your prospective employer -- without coming off as too needy? How has fatherhood changed Jordan? Have new curiosities developed, and does he wish he could ask past guests different questions now? Your dementia-suffering mother's caregiver seems to be getting double-paid -- once by you and once by your mother. She does good work, but it's bothering you. What's the least awkward way to clear up the matter? Is COVID-19 crushing careers? Clearly. Outer Order, Inner Calm author Gretchen Rubin can help us remain productive during these weird times. Life Pro Tip: If you have an iPhone, you can set defined times when "do not disturb" mode goes on. Then you only get calls from your favorites and when they call you three times consecutively. It also works when you connect to a car for phone calls and prevents you from getting notifications while driving. Recommendation of the Week: The Tiger King Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com! Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at

Kevin Systrom (@kevin) is a computer programmer and entrepreneur who co-founded Instagram in 2010 with Mike Krieger. This is part two of a two-part episode. Make sure to catch part one here! What We Discuss with Kevin Systrom: How Kevin and Mike made decisions at Instagram to best avoid project-crippling bottlenecks. Why checking yourself is a good way to ensure that you are less likely to wreck yourself. The game-changing but simple purchase Kevin made when Instagram became a verifiable success. Has Instagram contributed to Kevin's own feelings of FOMO? The strategy Kevin employs for reading books with optimal efficiency. And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://jordanharbinger.com/336 Sign up for Six-Minute Networking -- our free networking and relationship development mini course -- at jordanharbinger.com/course! The James Altucher Show brings you into the lives of peak-performers: billionaires, best-selling authors, rappers, astronauts, athletes, comedians, actors, and world champions! Check it out here! (Or wherever you prefer listening to podcasts in your ear-holes!) Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!

Kevin Systrom (@kevin) is a computer programmer and entrepreneur who co-founded Instagram in 2010 with Mike Krieger. This is part one of a two-part episode. Look out for part two later this week! What We Discuss with Kevin Systrom: Why founding a startup now is probably easier for the average aspiring entrepreneur than ever before. What famous brands have pivoted radically from their origins to become massively successful (including Instagram). How to get honest feedback (and know when you should listen to it). How to get honest feedback (and know when you shouldn't listen to it). The simple idea that led to the creation of Instagram, and what made it stand out in a seemingly saturated market. And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: https://jordanharbinger.com/335 Sign up for Six-Minute Networking -- our free networking and relationship development mini course -- at jordanharbinger.com/course! Like this show? Please leave us a review here -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!