If you ask me, Stephen Cesaro is a true polymath "alchemist" I'm proud to call a friend. He is a brilliant man with in-depth expertise across a wide array of topics, including politics, economics, tech, and human psychology. The perfect person to grab a glass of wine with and philosophize on just about anything. He is a seeker of truth and does not shy away from expressing that truth when necessary.

Stephen is a former trader (who also worked at Bridgewater Associates with the legendary Ray Dalio), turned professional poker player, turned internet entrepreneur. His company, Traffic Jam, builds ecommerce brands and manages millions in ad spend on platforms like Facebook and Google. 

Shownotes:

• Intro: Arman sets the stage and provides background on Stephen, their friendship and the topic of today’s episode. [00:11]
• Arman describes Stephen as a "master alchemist". [03:47]
• The cultural phenomena that we are currently experiencing. [05:33]
• The importance of allowing nuance in conversations. [10:01]d
• The concept of preference falsification and stronger opinions having to go underground because of the stigma of going against the cultural grain. [11:00]
• Somatic overload in relation to Black Lives Matter. [14:04]
• Communism and Soviet Russia. [17:04]
• Twitter as a gateway to rabbit hole discussions. [21:36]
• What if we could rewind time? [23:39]
• Polarization and extremes when it comes to politics. [24:44]
• Cancel culture in today’s world. [33:56]
• Arman and Stephen get into a discussion about the constraints on free speech. [35:53]
• What the repercussions of Iran’s revolution can teach us about approaching problems while keeping the big picture in mind. [47:31]
• What is the current status of the US economy and are we headed in the right direction? [50:10]
• Monetary systems and the credit bubble. [50:54]
• Would the price of Bitcoin go up if the dollar collapses? [58:24]
• Stephen shares the crazy story of how he became a professional poker.  [01:12:16]
• Stephen talks about what it was like working in for Ray Dalio. [01:17:50]
• Applying poker strategies to business. [01:20:09]
• Innate curiosity, dopamine, and brain chemicals. [01:28:42]
• Inspiring closing thoughts. [01:37:31]

Stephen Cesaro: 

• Connect with him on Instagram
• Connect with him on LinkedIn

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For links to all resources/people/books etc. mentioned and full show notes visit: https://assadi.me/3gQFNbs

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