Convergence

By Mark Steadman & Brendan Hutchins

What is the work of a middle-aged man? To improve himself and help those around him contribute to a fairer, more tolerant society.

Mark is a digital producer with a coaching mindset. Brendan is a hom... more

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FAQs about Convergence:

How many episodes does Convergence have?

The podcast currently has 77 episodes available.

Convergence episodes:

July 19, 2024Rattling around like Marley’s ghost
What do you give up once you’ve given up – to quote a popular Irish sitcom – cigarettes, alcohol, and roller-blading? Joy? Is it joy next?

This one’s spicy if you’re a puritan. Otherwise it’s your pretty bog-standard Convergence fare.
(00:00) - Rattling around like Marley’s ghost
(00:23) - Mark's accidentally good idea
(10:39) - Intrinsic motivation
(15:37) - Podiant vs Bramble
(17:53) - Podcast Advocate Network, circa 2017
(21:33) - Naro
(23:22) - Asking for a hand in marriage
(26:37) - Brendan's chain wallet
(30:18) - Asking for permission to get what you want
(31:50) - The proposal
(37:07) - Brendan's dopamine diet
(43:32) - Men's Work
(44:28) - How Brendan "enjoys" himself
(48:17) - How to shame an addict
Links
Men's Work: A Practical Guide to Face Your Darkness, End Self-Sabotage, and Find Freedom, by Connor Beaton
In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction, by Gabor Mate
...more
1h 6min
July 12, 2024Tasty meat fire
The one where Mark and Brendan build a new society.

Links
Ultra-Processed People: Why Do We All Eat Stuff That Isn’t Food … and Why Can’t We Stop?, by Chris van Tulleken
Why doing more exercise won't help you burn more calories – New Scientist
Trying Not to Try: The Ancient Art of Effortlessness and the Surprising Power of Spontaneity, by Edward Slingerland
Top 5 ways we can actually make a difference – List Envy, with Rebecca Bratspies
...more
53min
July 05, 2024This is your podcast on mushrooms
Brace yourself – Mark’s developing a theory of existence.

Links
Cosmo Sheldrake
...more
43min
June 28, 2024We all know blue Dave
Brendan throws down a debate for the boys to chew over. Wish them luck!
(00:00) - I get that reference
(01:47) - Food's effects on personal identity
(17:13) - Group identities
(20:24) - Dunbar's number
(28:29) - Brendan's joke
(29:36) - MA succulent Chinese meal
(31:22) - Brendan likes to get stuffed
(39:52) - Dopamine dieting
Links
This is democracy manifest (”A succulent Chinese meal”)
...more
53min
June 21, 2024The thing about rollercoasters
Strap in, pull the safety bar down tight, and prepare to launch deep into some stuff in this episode.

(00:00) - The thing about rollercoasters
(02:00) - Brendan's sacrificial log
(09:38) - Mark's wormhole
(21:53) - Self-motivation for those that live on their own
(27:18) - Rollercoaster content
(34:54) - The metaphor extends
(47:58) - We do the swiping
Links
Frequency illusion (Baader–Meinhof phenomenon)
I Will Teach You to be Rich: No guilt, no excuses, by Ramit Sethi
...more
59min
June 14, 2024The Darkenshrub epiphany
Mark went to London and met Rory Sutherland, and Brendan has a communion with the universe.
Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism, by Daniel Pinchbeck
The Egg, by Andy Weir
(00:00) - 2024-07-13 Episode 32
(00:18) - Mark at the Podcast Show London
(06:38) - Brendan's Darkenshrub adventure
(26:31) - Brendan's first trip
(37:24) - Thesis
(38:32) - Bad Things
(41:27) - Impermanence
(44:07) - The ego only gets one lifetime
(48:34) - Brendan's second trip
(01:01:34) - Even Heaven Must Burn
(01:09:54) - Everything is Everything

And sorry, you just lost the Game.
...more
1h 17min
June 07, 2024What have you ACTUALLY done, actually?
Mark can’t get arrested in this town, Gen X is clapping back, and Brendan’s playing a game but he needs it for his work.
(00:00) - 2024-07-13 Episode 31
(04:47) - Mark can't get arrested in this town
(09:10) - Gen X is clapping back
(13:37) - Brendan's spicy question 🌶️
(26:10) - You can't be the one who's losing it
(31:19) - 100 $1,000,000 Leads
(42:41) - Karma
(52:37) - Brendan needs it for his work
(57:12) - Bullying as a service
...more
1h 3min
May 31, 2024Anything can be food if you want it to be
The boys wrestle with the question of man vs bear, explore the fertility epidemic, and deliver an update on Brendan’s arbitration.

(00:20) - Mark’s cat is a precious angel
(01:40) - Man vs bear
(03:40) - The case
(14:56) - The fertility epidemic
(39:36) - It’s a Jungle Out There
Links
How pollution is causing a male fertility crisis
Electromagnetic hypersensitivity (WHO)
Three Principles
It’s a Jungle Out There (Monk intro)
Enshittification
...more
50min
May 24, 2024Biscuits the size of cat heads
Brendan kicks the new calorie knowledge, Mark talks about his vision and not his Vision Pro, and Brendan takes Mark on a virtual tour of the NFT Museum.

Links
Web3 is Going Great
The Worst Product I've Ever Reviewed... for Now
The Dropout
Marissa Mayer, этот смех! laugh compilation
Top 5 Korean TV romcoms – List Envy, with Anya Pearse
...more
1h 2min
May 17, 2024Is this what edging is?
The boys discuss Mark's doppelgänger, and Brendan's plans for him (Mark, not the doppelgänger).
(00:17) - Followup
(03:17) - Fasting and food scarcity
(08:22) - Mark’s food and home
(12:12) - Brendan’s 40th
(22:12) - Airport content
(25:59) - Brendan’s Portland plans: Food
(41:39) - Brendan’s Portland plans: Activities
(01:03:55) - Mark’s doppelganger
...more
1h 11min

FAQs about Convergence:

How many episodes does Convergence have?

The podcast currently has 77 episodes available.