All greed starts with an innocent idea: that you are right, deserve to be right, and are owed something for the efforts you put into establishing your beliefs and opinions. 

It’s a reasonable feeling. But it sets off a chain reaction that leads to an inevitable boom-and-bust cycle. 

This episode explores one of the most important topics in investing: the lifecycle of greed and fear, and why it cannot, and will not, ever go away. 

This episode is about the difference between intelligence and smarts, and why one is valued more than the other despite being less useful in the world.

The core here is realizing that people are not spreadsheets. They are emotional, hormonal, misinformed, status-seeking, insecure creatures trying their best to make it through the day. So if you have to choose between understanding how the world should work in theory vs. how it actually works in practice, lean towards the latter. It’s like historian Will Durant once said: “Logic is an invention of man and may be ignored by the universe.” That is so smart. 

This is a short personal story about a fluke event 16 years ago that changed everything in my life. You probably have a similar story, and there is so much to learn about how everything can change from an event you never saw coming.

You spend years trying to learn tons of new stuff, but then look back and realize that just a few big ideas truly changed how you think and influenced most of what you believe.

Let me share a couple that had a big impact on me. 

I think there’s an “ideal” net worth for everyone, when money not only stops bringing pleasure but becomes a social liability. And that number is probably lower than most people think.

A subtle problem with money is that assets are easy to measure but liabilities can be hidden. Measuring assets is simple. But how do you measure losing your privacy? Or the nagging doubt that some friends only like you for your money? That’s way harder.

My theory is that the more money people have, the more social debt they tend to be burdened with.

Chris Rock joked that Bill Gates would jump out the window if he woke up with Oprah’s money. Like most comedy, it’s funny because it contains a nugget of truth.

There is no objective level of wealth -- everything is just relative to something, or someone, else. That means a billionaire can feel poorer than someone with infinitely less money.

This episode tries to create a spectrum of wealth based on the quality of your life, feelings, and social circles, versus measuring it on money alone. 

A weird thing in life is that everyone strives for a good life because they think it will make them happy. But what actually brings happiness is the contrast between what you have now and whatever you were just doing.

The best drink you will ever taste is a glass of tap water when you’re thirsty.

The best food you will ever eat is fast food when you’re starving.

The best massage you will ever feel is sitting on a couch after a long run.

The best sleep you will ever experience is when your newborn finally sleeps through the night.

This episode is about happiness, and the counterintuitive places it's often found. 

The knee-jerk way to set expectations is to anchor to what everyone else has right now. But imagine the tragedy of there being unbelievable progress throughout your life and you enjoy none of it because you expected all of it.  

This episode is all about expectations, and how the key to happiness in so many things in life is to aim low. 

Sometimes the best you can do when learning about any topic is to memorize a few short stories -- quick, direct, and to the point, that you're likely to remember forever.

This episode shares 15 short stories that have stuck with me, and helped me contextualize so many things in life, work, and investing.

One other note: I have a new book coming out this November. It's called Same as Ever, and you can pre-order it here:  http://amzn.to/41CHgKM

There are so many times in life where what you do is less important than how long you've been doing it for. 

It's true in careers. 

It's true in relationships. 

It's true in sports. 

And it's true with money. 

This episode is about compounding -- and how staying put, uninterrupted, is often the most overlooked skill.