A Need To Read

The psychology of personality is a complicated topic. This book argues that the idea of the authentic self is a lie. There are far more contributing factors to personality than we're led to believe, and in this episode, I chat about; the 3 factors that determine who you are, how you can make changes to the fundamental 'you', and how we can finally cut ourselves some slack when we change as people.

You can watch the Ted Talk that inspired the book: https://www.ted.com/talks/brian_little_who_are_you_really_the_puzzle_of_personality 

Support

The best way to support the show is to share it with a friend. Or you can share it with a not-a-friend, I’m not fussy.

To get weekly insightful emails from me head to this link: https://aneedtoread.us19.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0334e9242982fc3b7d0ab8bac&id=e2e171e387 

To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.

Get 5 free travel packs and a years supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Green subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread 

I am reachable here: [email protected] 

To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.

I'm joined by one of my favourite authors, Oliver Burkeman. He's the author of the sensational new book: Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management For Mortals. We discuss; what we get wrong about time, a meaningful approach to goals, why we need problems, accepting your limitations, Olivers top 3 Philosophers, not letting Nazi’s get in the way of your intellectual growth, the efficiency trap, the key to effective decision making, and one of my favorite new ideas, cosmic insignificance therapy.

I've been enjoying Oliver's blog and email list which you can find here:  https://www.oliverburkeman.com/the-imperfectionist

Support

The best way to support the show is to share it with a friend. Or you can share it with a not-a-friend, I’m not fussy.

To get weekly insightful emails from me head to this link: https://aneedtoread.us19.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0334e9242982fc3b7d0ab8bac&id=e2e171e387 

To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.

Get an additional 5 free travel packs, and a years supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Greens subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread 

I am reachable here: [email protected]

We live in a very me-centric society. In the West, our philosophical influences have been focused on the 'I' for the last few thousand years and now, with the age of social media, we are paying the price. This is a review/summary of Will Storr's Selfie- a book that explores the concept of the 'self' and how we can navigate life without becoming totally self-obsessed. 

This is one of my favorite books of all time and has completely changed the way I look at my 'self'.

Support

The best way to support the show is to share it with a friend. Or you can share it with a not-a-friend, I’m not fussy.

To get weekly, insightful, emails from me. head to this link: https://aneedtoread.us19.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=0334e9242982fc3b7d0ab8bac&id=e2e171e387 

To get 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread from there you’ll just need to run through a 5-minute questionnaire and you’ll be matched with a therapist within 48 hours.

Get 5 free travel packs and a years supply of Vitamin D3 with your Athletic Green subscription at www.athleticgreens.com/aneedtoread 

I am reachable here: [email protected] 

Adam Ashton is one half of the What You Will Learn podcast, Australia's best book podcast. He joined me to chat about their new book 'The Shit They Never Taught You', which covers the best lessons from hundreds of non-fiction books. We discuss; note-taking methods, career mastery, podcasting mistakes, picking your next book, whether or not you need to finish your books, the best books for investing and much more. 

For the first 8 minutes, one of us (The one whose name rhymes with Shmadam) was using the wrong mic, but sound quality comes back at 10 mins into this podcast.

Find out more about the boys on their website: https://www.whatyouwilllearn.com/

Books discussed

The Shit They Never Taught You

How to take smart notes 

The Sweet Spot 

Little History of Philosophy 

Four-hour chef 

The Inner Game of Tennis 

Steppenwolf 

Four Thousand Weeks 

Support

The best way to support the podcast is to share it with someone, anyone, like really I don't mind who, I'm not fussy.

For 10% off your first month on online therapy head to: www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread

For all else, including the mailing list head to: https://linktr.ee/Aneedtoread 

Tim Marshall was Diplomatic Editor and foreign correspondent for Sky News. After thirty years of experience in news reporting and presenting, he left full-time news journalism to concentrate on writing and analysis. I spoke to Tim about; his latest best-selling title The Power Of Geography, the geographical reasons behind the rising tension between Russia and Ukraine, Putin’s message to the west, the geography of Palestine, the importance of context, the future of Egypt, China’s interest in African countries, how geographically blessed Britain is and much more. 

Tim writes a weekly column for Reaction https://reaction.life/xi-putin-love-affair-could-reshape-the-world/

and can be found on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Itwitius

Support

The best way to support the podcast is to share it with someone, anyone, like really I don't mind who, I'm not fussy.

For 10% off your first month on online therapy head to: www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread

Use the code: podcast10 for 10% off the 'Reframing Happiness' webinar on Sunday 13th Feb @ 10am

For all else, including the mailing list head to: https://linktr.ee/Aneedtoread 

In this episode, I review Johann Hari's new book: Stolen Focus. A book that looks at the ways modern life steals our focus and attention. Modern life seems to cater only to speed and efficiency, and this does not bode well for our ability to pay attention to what matters. From that increase in speed and tech that is designed to manipulate us, to cruel optimism and the death of sustained reading Johann Hari takes us on an explorative journey of what's really messing with our ability to focus.

Support for the podcast

Please consider sharing the podcast, I'm not fussy who with, it just really helps.

Sign up for emails here! 

Get 10% off your first month of therapy!

This is my review of Letters From A Stoic by Seneca. Seneca was a devoted Stoic philosopher, and he is one of the most widely referenced names in good non-fiction books. I have fallen in love with philosophy again recently and I have this book to thank.

Support

The best way you can support me and help me spread the word is by sharing the podcast with someone. If you like the podcast please share as far and wide as you can. You can also use the links to my sponsors, it helps keep stuff going whilst also giving you handy discounts from great companies I know and love.

Get one month for free with Headspace by heading to www.headspace.com/needtoread 

For 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread 

For Everything else including the email sign up form head to www.Linktree.com/aneedtoread 

A review of Paul Bloom's brilliant book The Sweet Spot, an in-depth look at our pleasure-seeking tendencies and how we may be getting it wrong in our pursuit of the good life.

Support

The best way you can support me and help me spread the word is by sharing the podcast with someone. If you like the podcast please share as far and wide as you can. You can also use the links to my sponsors, it helps keep stuff going whilst also giving you handy discounts from great companies I know and love.

For 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread 

For 10% off your Heights Braincare Supplement subscription head to https://www.yourheights.com/products/the-smart-supplement/?ref=edcunningham 

Get one month for free with Headspace by heading to www.headspace.com/needtoread 

For Everything else including the email sign up form head to www.Linktree.com/aneedtoread 

Dr. Rachael Kent is a lecturer and researcher at Kings College London. Specifically, Dr. Kent’s research focuses on how digital technology influences everyday mental and physical health. Below are some timestamps for this conversation that may prove to be one of the most important I have had so far. I am growing more and more concerned with how technology influences our lives and it was a pleasure to chat about this with an expert.

All you need for Rachael is on her website: https://www.drdigitalhealth.co.uk 

Time Stamps

2 minutes: Intro to Rachael and her motivation behind her research in digital technology.

8 minutes - Apps and their power over us.

12 minutes - Neoliberalism and Margaret Thatcher's influence over our digital health.

20 minutes - Corporate digital and mental health.

23 minutes - What tech & social media has done to us over the last couple of years.

32 minutes - Setting boundaries with technology.

37 minutes - Self-representation on social media and dating apps.

45 minutes - There are more phones on planet earth than there are humans.

53 minutes - Digital activism.

1 hr - Health Tracking.

1hr6 minutes - Moralising health.

1hr14 minutes -  A.I. 

1hr 20 minutes -  My tips for a better relationship with technology.

Support

The best way you can support me and help me spread the word is by sharing the podcast with someone. If you like the podcast please share as far and wide as you can. You can also use the links to my sponsors, it helps keep stuff going whilst also giving you handy discounts from great companies I know and love.

For 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread 

For 10% off your Heights Braincare Supplement subscription head to https://www.yourheights.com/products/the-smart-supplement/?ref=edcunningham 

Protect your data, access other Netflix libraries, and get a 30-day money-back guarantee with Express VPN www.expressvpn.com/aneedtoread

Get one month for free with Headspace by heading to www.headspace.com/needtoread 

For Everything else including the email sign up form head to www.Linktree.com/aneedtoread 

This week I review the book ‘Rethinking Positive Thinking’ by Professor of Psychology at NY & Hamburg, Gabrielle Oettingen. 

I discuss; the cult of positivity, my opinion on positive thinking as a default, the benefits of positive thinking and positive fantasies, the drawbacks of positive fantasies, and using positive and negative thinking to set and achieve your goals.

While I wouldn’t rush to recommend reading the book unless you’re interested in reading all the supporting data to the claims made in this podcast, I would suggest having a quick watch of Gabrielle Oettingen’s talks on YouTube if you need further information. 

You can get the free goal setting template here Www.Woopmylife.org 

Support

The best way you can support me and help me spread the word is by sharing the podcast with someone. If you like the podcast please share as far and wide as you can. You can also use the links to my sponsors, it helps keep stuff going whilst also giving you handy discounts from great companies I know and love.

For 10% off your first month of therapy head to www.betterhelp.com/aneedtoread 

For 10% off your Heights Braincare Supplement subscription head to https://www.yourheights.com/products/the-smart-supplement/?ref=edcunningham 

Protect your data, access other Netflix libraries, and get a 30-day money-back guarantee with Express VPN www.expressvpn.com/aneedtoread 

For Everything else head to www.Linktree.com/aneedtoread