Podcast Notes Playlist: Latest Episodes

• Instead of focusing on how something might fail, consider how big the idea could be if everything worked out 
• You don’t always want to sit behind a defensive moat; sometimes, a high-velocity attack is the best way to win 
• Mental models from one discipline are often applicable in another discipline; cross-pollinate ideas and concepts across disciplines and you may discover something novel 
• The key to success is dumb competition; competing against knuckleheads increases your chances of success
• Focusing on making money will cause you to make less money; nobody wants to give money to people who are too focused on making money 
• It is fine to want money, but wealth is a paradox; the more of it you want, the less of it you get 
  • It is better to focus on things that are upstream of making money, such as solving problems and developing skills that are valuable to other people 
• The greatest returns in investing come from allowing the compounding machine to run; do not make decisions or engage in behavior that interrupts the compounding machine 
• You have a massive arbitrage opportunity if you can avoid mimetic desire in venture capital investing 
• In life and business, you can just do things! You don’t always need permission 

Episode 648: Shaan Puri ( https://x.com/ShaanVP ) talks to Flexport founder Ryan Petersen ( https://x.com/typesfast ) about playing both games: bootstrapping a startup to millions and raising venture capital to build a multi-billion dollar company. 

—

—

—

My First Million is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by The HubSpot Podcast Network // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano

• Prominent people are shifting to the right because they never signed up for the left’s intellectual straight-jacket
• The 2024 presidential election marked a collapse of liberalism and the Democratic Party; it is too narrow of thinking to blame it on a senile Biden or a goofy Kamala 
• If the machine always wins, then you no longer have a democracy nor a democratic process: If Trump would have lost to the machine in 2024, who would have ever been able to defeat it?  
• If we are going to avoid World War III, we must learn the lessons of WWI and WWII; we cannot have excessive appeasement to dictators, but also, we cannot sleepwalk into armageddon 
• On the elite Ivy League institutions: “Maybe they’re good places for training conservatives. If you go to Yale Law School and you’re one of five people in the class who are still conservative at the end, you’ll be pretty good at understanding what’s wrong with liberalism.” 
• Populism and democracy may be a Russell conjugate: It is democracy when people vote the right way and it is populism when they vote the wrong way
• Both extreme dogmatism and extreme skepticism are incompatible with science 
• If you make something into God, you make it into a scapegoat for all the problems too 
• If you’re addicted to the 140 characters on your shiny iPhone screen, you may not realize that the New York Subway and your decrepit apartment building are collapsing around you 
• It matters what people do; there is room for human agency and human thought in the trajectory of the future 

On Tuesday night, president-elect Donald Trump announced that the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, along with entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy will head a new department in the Trump administration: the Department of Government Efficiency, or “DOGE.”

Aside from the very strange fact that internet meme culture has now landed in the White House—Dogecoin is a memecoin—more importantly, what the announcement solidifies is the triumph of the counter-elite. A bunch of oddball outsiders ran against an insular band of out-of-touch elites supported by every celebrity in Hollywood—and they won. And they are about to reshape not just the government but also the culture in ways we can’t imagine.

And there was one person I wanted to discuss it with. He is the vanguard of those antiestablishment counter-elites: Peter Thiel. People describe the billionaire venture capitalist in very colorful terms. He’s been called the most successful tech investor in the world. A political kingmaker. The bogeyman of the left. The center of gravity in Silicon Valley. There’s the “Thielverse,” “Thielbucks,” and “Thielists.” To say he has an obsessive cult following would be an understatement.

If you listened to my last conversation with Thiel a year and a half ago on Honestly, you’ll remember that Peter was the first guy in Silicon Valley to publicly embrace Trump in 2016. That year, he gave a memorable speech at the RNC, and many in his orbit thought it was simply a step too far. He lost business at Y Combinator, the start-up incubator where he was a partner. Many prominent tech leaders criticized him publicly, like VC and Twitter investor Chris Sacca, who called Thiel’s endorsement of Trump “one of the most dangerous things” he had ever seen. 

Well, a lot has changed since then. For one, Thiel has taken a step back from politics—at least publicly. He didn’t donate to Trump’s 2024 campaign. There was no big RNC speech this year. But the bigger change is a cultural one. He’s no longer the pariah of Silicon Valley for supporting Trump.

On the surface, Thiel is someone who seems full of contradictions. He is a libertarian who has found common cause with nationalists and populists. He likes investing in companies that have the ability to become monopolies, and yet Trump’s White House wants to break up Big Tech. He is a gay American immigrant, but he hates identity politics and the culture wars. He pays people to drop out of college, but, in this conversation at least, still seems to venerate the way that the Ivy Leagues are an indicator of intelligence.

But perhaps that’s the secret to his success: He’s beholden to no tribe but himself, no ideology but his own. And why wouldn’t you be when you make so many winning bets? From co-founding the e-payment behemoth PayPal and the data analytics firm Palantir (which was used to find Osama bin Laden) to being the first outside investor in Facebook, Thiel’s investments—in companies like LinkedIn, Palantir, and SpaceX, to name a few—have paid off big time.

His most recent bet—helping his mentee J.D. Vance get elected as senator and then on the Trump ticket as vice president—seems also to have paid off. The next four years will determine just how high Thiel’s profit margin will be.

Today: Thiel explains why so many of his peers have finally come around to Trump; why he thinks Kamala—and liberalism more broadly—lost the election; and why the Trump 2.0 team will be better than last time, with antiestablishment figures who are willing to rethink the system. We talk about the border, trade deals, student debt, Israel and foreign policy, the rise of historical revisionism, the blurry line between skepticism and conspiracy, and his contrarian ideas about what we might face in a dreaded World War III.

If you liked what you heard from Honestly, the best way to support us is to go to TheFP.com and become a Free Press subscriber today.

• Don’t Half-Ass It: Think and try it out beforehand, but when it’s time to go, dive in and finish it 
• You should be able to laugh at the crisis; there is not always tribute in solemnity 
• “Be very serious about your sense of humor.” – McConaughey 
• Analyze the habits and behavior that engineer less pain in your life; you can’t guarantee happiness, but there is a science to satisfaction  
• When things are going well, take time to reflect on why they may be going well so you can learn from your success and hopefully repeat those behaviors in the future 
• In many ways, the things that you don’t get help you find satisfaction in life more than the things that you do get 
• Turn negativity into fuel: Rage, anger, and a thirst for revenge are mighty powerful emotions that can be used as activation energy in pursuit of a goal 
• You have to pay a price to become a person that other people admire; while we all want to be relevant, we should consider what it is that we want to be relevant for 
• Every decision has opportunity costs; choose pursuits that are worthy of the sacrifices that you will inevitably have to make 
• “Life has to be lived forward, but it only makes sense in reverse.” – Søren Kierkegaard

Matthew McConaughey is an Academy Award winning actor, a producer and an author.

Sponsors:

• Carbon dioxide serves as the body’s signal to take the next breath, not oxygen
• Oxygen and carbon dioxide are like yin and yang: pH drops when CO2 goes up – when pH goes down, there’s more oxygen delivered via hemoglobin into mitochondria

• The goal is to reduce respiratory rate so you can become more efficient

• Use a longer exhale to relax
• Fast breathing is the hallmark of stress and hyperventilation

Carbon dioxide therapy has become a highly debated and often misunderstood topic.

Is elevated CO2 beneficial, or could it pose risks? What exactly are the advantages of CO2 therapy, and how might it impact your health?

In this episode, you’ll get to explore the transformative power of breathing with breathwork expert Anders Olsson. From the benefits of food-grade CO2 cylinders to advanced breathing techniques that can boost both mental and physical well-being, Anders shares invaluable insights. As the author of Conscious Breathing: Discover The Power Of Your Breath and creator of tools like the Relaxator and CarboHaler, he guides you through the profound impact breathwork has on emotions and stress management. You’ll uncover the fascinating relationship between CO2 and oxygen delivery, the role of nitric oxide in respiratory health, and how specific breathing patterns can dramatically reduce stress and elevate overall health. Plus, you’ll gain practical advice and discover cutting-edge research to enhance your daily breathwork practice.

Anders Olsson is a breath coach, author, keynote speaker, inventor, and founder of the Conscious Breathing Institute. Anders joins me on the podcast to bring clarity to the benefits, potential concerns, and safe applications of CO₂ therapy. After living most of his life with a high inner stress and a racing mind, Anders was fortunate enough to come across tools that have helped him relax and find his inner calm. The most powerful of these tools has undoubtedly been to change his breathing habits, which made Anders decide to become the world’s most prominent expert in breathing.

That was 15 years ago, and since then, he has inspired hundreds of thousands of people to achieve better health and an improved quality of life. Anders is the author of the best-selling book Conscious Breathing: Discover The Power of Your Breath and the co-inventor of the Relaxator, Sleep Tape, CarboHaler, and BodyStream CO2 Bath.

He is considered an authority on CO2 therapy and coaches high-level executives and elite athletes. In 2018, Anders facilitated and participated in a groundbreaking three-week breathing study at Stanford, highlighted in James Nestor's book Breath.

Tune in and breathe easy as we unpack the science and art of effective breathing to help you reduce stress, boost energy, and enhance your overall well-being.

Full show notes: BenGreenfieldLife.com/CO2podcast

Episode Sponsors: 

LVLUP Health: Head over to lvluphealth.com/BGL for a special discount on their game-changing range of products.

Mimio: Visit mimiohealth.com/bgl and use code BGL20 to get 20% off your first order.

Pendulum: Get 20% off your first month of any Pendulum probiotic with code GREENFIELD at PendulumLife.com/Greenfield.

Ketone-IQ: Save 30% off your first subscription order of Ketone-IQ at Ketone.com/BENG. 

Manukora: Head to manukora.com/ben or use code BEN for $25 off the Manukora Starter Kit.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

• The Trump win represents a dismissal of Wokeism and judgmentalism and is a ringing endorsement of meritocracy and common sense 
• Donald Trump has increased his support across the electorate; except for two demographic groups (65+ and white college women), every single demographic group shifted towards Republican from 2020 to 2024 
• Comparing Trump votes from 2020 to 2024 in areas that are bastions of elitist liberal thinking:
  • In California, Trump lost by 29 points in 2020; he lost by 17 points in 2024 
  • In New York, Trump lost by 23 points in 2020; he lost by 12 in 2024 
• The current Democratic Party base consists of the elites: The overeducated, affluent, and non-religious types who are disconnected from the reality of most Americans
  • If these people stay in control of the Democratic Party, the Republicans will probably have an electoral majority for the foreseeable future 
  • “I think that the Democrats will lose one of California or New York in the next eight years.” – Chamath 
• “The legacy media spell is broken. Their credibility has been destroyed and I think that the repudiation of the legacy media is one of the most important  results of this election. It just shows that the Democrats had a trillion-dollar propaganda machine on their side and Trump was still able to win.” – David Sacks  
• Science is the constant process of questioning whether you are right or wrong; reasserting the scientific process of skepticism in federal agencies may help restore trust and faith in our institutions
• “In the most basic calculation, the bottom fell out of the Democratic Party.” – Chamath 
• Donald Trump won because his focus is on solving real problems that are affecting Americans  
• “Americans love winners and innovation, and they hate socialism and woke nonsense – it’s time for a hard reset.” – Jason 

(0:00) Bestie intros!

(4:55) Sacks recaps election night at Mar-a-Lago

(8:28) Analyzing the results: how Trump won, why Kamala and the Democratic Party lost

(25:55) The failing Democratic coalition, campaign spend disparity, Trump's advantage in earned media

(37:59) What mattered most: Policy, Candidate, or Campaign?

(50:44) GOP will likely win House and Senate, potential cabinet positions, avoiding neocons

(1:10:42) Cabinet positions, shaking up the unelected bureaucratic branch

(1:28:47) California rejects progressives

(1:35:17) Abortion laws being settled around the US

Get tickets for The All-In Holiday Spectacular!:

https://allin.ticketsauce.com/e/all-in-holiday-spectacular

Follow the besties:

https://x.com/chamath

https://x.com/Jason

https://x.com/DavidSacks

https://x.com/friedberg

Follow on X:

https://x.com/theallinpod

Follow on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/theallinpod

Follow on TikTok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@theallinpod

Follow on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/allinpod

Intro Music Credit:

https://rb.gy/tppkzl

https://x.com/yung_spielburg

Intro Video Credit:

https://x.com/TheZachEffect

Referenced in the show:

https://x.com/twobitidiot/status/1854192602985255042

https://www.270towin.com/2024-election-results-live/president

https://x.com/ChrisCillizza/status/1854515791690953066

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e8-KX3XKL8

https://x.com/Jason/status/1854209590424121464

https://x.com/SawyerMerritt/status/1854045298475110779

https://x.com/DavidSacks/status/1854342908356297068

https://x.com/arifleischer/status/1854270972775305291

https://www.fec.gov/data/spending-bythenumbers/?office=P

https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2024-11-01/16-billion-will-be-spent-in-the-2024-election-wheres-it-all-going

https://x.com/DavidSacks/status/1829383729284067659

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trump-very-fine-people

https://x.com/TheRabbitHole84/status/1840977783247286429

https://www.cnn.com/election/2024

https://polymarket.com/event/house-control-after-2024-election

https://x.com/MarioNawfal/status/1854536321282519396

https://www.instagram.com/p/DCFJ4mlsmEG/?hl=en

https://x.com/DavidSacks/status/1854202717637411199

https://www.scotusblog.com/2024/06/supreme-court-strikes-down-chevron-curtailing-power-of-federal-agencies

https://x.com/chamath/status/1854229735477551600

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/la-district-attorney-progressive-loses-re-election-gascon-rcna175906

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/11/05/us/elections/results-abortion.html

• The fundamental aspect of the American Dream is creating a better life for your kids than the one you lived
• Two-thirds of the American workforce has a high school education, and only one-third has a college education; on average, a person with a college education lives seven years longer than a person without one 
• “Right now, I am focused on: ‘What’s the right move for America?’ And that’s why I’m all in with Donald Trump – his policies, his thinking, his way of just looking at things, his intuition. It’s just right.” – Howard Lutnick 
• In the past, the Democratic Party used to be the party for the workers, and the Republican Party was the party for businesses, but this has completely shifted
  • Coastal elite nonsense has infiltrated the Democratic Party; it no longer represents the working class as it once did
• Instead of taxing the hell out of the American people, what if the US government made money off tariffs when other countries bought our stuff?
• All of the fentanyl that makes its way into the US comes from China; something nefarious might be at play, given the damage this drug is doing to America’s youth and working-class 
• After the 9/11 attacks, Howard Lutnick pledged to forgo his salary and bonuses for several years to support the families of Cantor Fitzgerald employees who lost their lives
• “Everytime bitcoin dips, I’m going to be the buyer.” – Howard Lutnick 
  • He has “hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars” worth of exposure to Bitcoin, and one day expects his stack to be worth billions 
• “Bitcoin will be way way way higher, sometimes lower. You just have to have faith.” – Howard Lutnick    

Howard Lutnick is the CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald. Howard is one of the most interesting people in finance, he is a billionaire, and has incredible ideas to improve America. In this conversation, we talk about the national debt, inflation, why he is the co-head of the Trump transition team, what their plan is to balance the budget, how they are going to change things around economically, and a touching story about 9/11. 

=======================

Buy book: https://www.amazon.com/Live-Extraordinary-Life-Anthony-Pompliano/dp/0857199927/

=======================

Gemini is the safe and secure way to trade crypto. Gemini is offering eligible new users the opportunity to earn $100 in BTC when they trade $1000 in crypto within their first 30 days of signing up. Head over to ⁠https://www.gemini.com/partners/pomp⁠ and start trading crypto to earn $100 in BTC.

=======================

The Pomp Podcast is powered by BetOnline.ag, the premier crypto-friendly place to gamble on politics and sports, casino, poker and horse racing. BetOnline.ag gives you the ability to use Bitcoin and more than a dozen altcoins to make deposits and withdraw your winnings. There are no crypto transaction fees, and processing is instantaneous and secure. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://promotions.betonline.ag/pomp⁠⁠⁠⁠ and use PROMO CODE: POMP100 to receive a 100% matching bonus on any crypto deposit. BetOnline.ag is available in nearly every country around the world, making it the top global gaming destination for crypto users.

=======================

Pomp writes a daily letter to over 265,000+ investors about business, technology, and finance. He breaks down complex topics into easy-to-understand language while sharing opinions on various aspects of each industry. You can subscribe at https://pomp.substack.com/

=======================

View 10k+ open startup jobs: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://dreamstartupjob.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Enroll in my Crypto Academy: https://www.thecryptoacademy.io/

• Paradoxically, life gets easier when you choose to do hard things 
• Have a goal that you can strive towards, but be cognizant of how you feel along the way in pursuit of that goal 
• One of the hardest things in life is figuring out what you want 
• “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.” – Jim Carey 
• You have emotional sovereignty in how you choose to react to everything that happens in life; exercise and develop that sovereignty so that you can live the fullest life possible 
• How Cheap is Your Happiness: Don’t let the smallest inconvenience take you out of the beautiful state of being that is happiness
• “I just do what’s cool to me, and sometimes the whole world agrees.” – Mike Posner 

Episode 640: Shaan Puri ( https://x.com/ShaanVP )sits down with Mike Posner ( https://x.com/MikePosner ) about his insane hustle, fame, loss and reinvention.

—

—

—

My First Million is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by The HubSpot Podcast Network // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano

• Check out the episode page

In this thought-provoking episode of Impact Theory with Tom Bilyeu, Tom sits down with tech visionary Mark Andreessen for an insightful discussion on the evolving role of technology in shaping our future. From the promise of AI and robotics to the pivotal lessons from historical economic changes, Mark argues that today's children will live better lives than their parents, thanks to technological advancements.

Together, they delve into the implications of slow and rapid technology adoption across various sectors, highlighting how healthcare, education, and housing can benefit from embracing innovation. They explore the inefficiencies plaguing large corporations and juxtapose them with the rapid, iterative methodologies championed by leaders like Elon Musk.

Mark offers a nuanced perspective on America's unique dynamism, driven by its people and less stifled by regulation compared to Europe. He and Tom also dive into the potential societal conflicts arising from AI, the nuances of free speech in the digital age, and the ever-present need for productivity growth.

SHOWNOTES

CHECK OUT OUR SPONSORS

FOLLOW TOM:

What's up, everybody? It's Tom Bilyeu here. If you're serious about leveling up your life, I urge you to check out my new podcast, Tom Bilyeu’s Mindset Playbook —a goldmine of my most impactful episodes on mindset, business, and health. Trust me, your future self will thank you.

LISTEN AD FREE + BONUS EPISODES on APPLE PODCASTS: apple.co/impacttheory

Dr. Yvonne Burkart is a board-certified toxicologist with over 15 years of experience specializing in environmental health, chemical safety, and human health risk assessment.

15 Daily Steps to Lose Weight and Prevent Disease PDF: https://bit.ly/46XTn8f - Get my FREE eBook now!

Subscribe to The Genius Life on YouTube! - http://youtube.com/maxlugavere

Watch my new documentary Little Empty Boxes - http://littleemptyboxes.com

This episode is proudly sponsored by:

Puori provides IFOS-certified, high potency fish oil to satisfy all of your pre-formed omega-3 needs! Visit Puori.com/MAX and use promo code MAX to get 20% off site-wide.

Manukora makes delicious, creamy, glyphosate-free Manuka honey that’s rich in MGO. Head to http://manukora.com/genius for $25 off a starter Kit, which comes with an MGO 850+ Manuka Honey jar, 5 honey travel sticks, a wooden spoon, and a guidebook!

LifeForce is a powerful, at-home biomarker testing solution (they test important biomarkers like ApoB, LDL, A1C, hormones, and more!). Head to MyLifeForce.com and use code GENIUS for 15% off. 

• The human genome was sequenced 25 years ago, what’s the delay in editing? We know the sequence of the genes but we don’t know what most of the genes do, nor do we fully understand the coding and non-coding sequence (yet)
• CRISPR is an adaptive immune system: After the first infection, the bacteria has been ‘vaccinated’ against the virus

• The next time the virus comes around, it will inject its genetic information into the bacteria but now the bacteria in the CRISPR area have a signature of the virus

• But, solving the delivery issue doesn’t mean CRISPR is suitable for all diseases; its most potent application is for genetic mutations (and likely not cancer which has many different mutations in the cell)

• Slippery slope argument: If we allow X and Y, we will enter an unchartered territory with designer babies, making babies smarter (which we don’t know how to do), etc.

• It’s worth noting that athletics, and intelligence, are more complicated than we want to believe; even with the right genetics, environment plays a huge role in realizing genes

View the Show Notes Page for This Episode

Become a Member to Receive Exclusive Content

Sign Up to Receive Peter’s Weekly Newsletter

Feng Zhang, a professor of neuroscience at MIT and a pioneering figure in gene editing, joins Peter to discuss his groundbreaking work in CRISPR technology, as well as his early contributions to optogenetics. In this episode, they explore the origins of CRISPR and the revolutionary advancements that have transformed the field of gene editing. Feng delves into the practical applications of CRISPR for treating genetic diseases, the importance of delivery methods, and the current successes and challenges in targeting cells specific tissues such as those in the liver and eye. He also covers the ethical implications of gene editing, including the debate around germline modification, as well as reflections on Feng’s personal journey, the impact of mentorship, and the future potential of genetic medicine.

We discuss:

• Feng’s background, experience in developing optogenetics, and his shift toward improving gene-editing technologies [2:45];
• The discovery of CRISPR in bacterial DNA and the realization that these sequences could be harnessed for gene editing [10:45];
• How the CRISPR system fights off viral infections and the role of the Cas9 enzyme and PAM sequence [21:00];
• The limitations of earlier gene-editing technologies prior to CRISPR [28:15];
• How CRISPR revolutionized the field of gene editing, potential applications, and ongoing challenges [36:45];
• CRISPR’s potential in treating genetic diseases and the challenges of effective delivery [48:00];
• How CRISPR is used to treat sickle cell anemia [53:15];
• Gene editing with base editing, the role of AI in protein engineering, and challenges of delivery to the right cells [1:00:15];
• How CRISPR is advancing scientific research by fast-tracking the development of transgenic mice [1:06:45];
• Advantages of Cas13’s ability to direct CRISPR to cleave RNA and the advances and remaining challenges of delivery [1:11:00];
• CRISPR-Cas9: therapeutic applications in the liver and the eye [1:19:45];
• The ethical implications of gene editing, the debate around germline modification, regulation, and more [1:30:45];
• Genetic engineering to enhance human traits: challenges, trade-offs, and ethical concerns [1:40:45];
• Feng’s early life, the influence of the American education system, and the critical role teachers played in shaping his desire to explore gene-editing technology [1:46:00];
• Feng’s optimism about the trajectory of science [1:58:15]; and
• More.

Connect With Peter on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube