Ouchie Origami

The conversation covers a wide range of topics, including aviation, redundancy, cloud infrastructure, data sovereignty, and IT security. Spencer shares personal experiences with aviation, discusses the importance of redundancies in systems, and delves into the significance of data sovereignty and IT security. He also explores the roles of CIO and CTO in a company and the concept of company mottos. The conversation covers a wide range of topics, including Apple's Think Different campaign, childhood slogans, LeVar Burton, Star Trek, UIUX Pro, and the importance of sleep. It also delves into the works of authors William Gibson, Neil Stevenson, and Philip K. Dick, as well as the significance of breathwork and the creation of a personal website.

Takeaways

• Redundancy is critical in systems to prevent single points of failure.
• Data sovereignty and IT security are important considerations for businesses and individuals.
• The roles of CIO and CTO in a company have distinct focuses and responsibilities.
• Company mottos and guiding philosophies play a significant role in shaping corporate culture and identity. Think Different: The Apple Think Different campaign and its impact on modern AI engines like Google Gemini.
• Childhood Slogans: The influence of childhood slogans from TV shows and organizations on personal and professional development.

Chapters

• 00:00 Roles of CIO and CTO in a Company
• 47:20 Apple's Think Different Campaign and Modern AI Engines
• 49:01 Childhood Slogans and Personal Development
• 51:23 LeVar Burton, Star Trek, and Reading Rainbow
• 52:10 UIUX Pro and Design Standards
• 01:00:03 Sleep, Breathwork, and Personal Well-being
• 01:20:17 Authors and Literature: William Gibson, Neil Stevenson, and Philip K. Dick
• 01:24:08 Ouchie Origami and Personal Website Creation

Recorded on a two-mile sunrise dog walk, Sunday morning. This one starts with what it felt like to release the first episode, and then goes somewhere I've been careful about for twenty years: where psychiatric medication actually fits.

I'm not a doctor. If I'm anything, I'm a pedigreed compliant patient: I followed the protocols, did the blood draws, took the cocktail, and did the work around it. This episode is what I believe from that seat: meds are tools that reduce symptoms enough so you can function. That's what they're for, and it matters that you know that going in. The train takes time to get moving. And once you're functioning, the work that changes everything is physiology: breakfast, sleep, sunlight, breath.

Along the way: the ghost-operating-a-meat-suit theory of mental health, the day a pair of glasses turned my world 4K, a 1979 Westfalia bus story from the year 2000, what I think we hand kids when we hand them a label, and a Stone-Age thought experiment about why your nervous system hates fluorescent lighting.

One thing I say plainly in this episode: I don't consider myself mentally ill anymore. My psychiatrist recommended the wean years ago: "You're in remission." That word cost me twenty years of work, and this episode is about the parts of that work nobody prescribes.