Michael Easter’s investigations have taken him to meet with monks in ancient monasteries in Bhutan, lost tribes in the jungles of Bolivia, US Special Forces soldiers in undisclosed locations, gene scientists in Iceland, CEOs in Fortune-500 boardrooms, and more. He’s a professor at UNLV and he’s the best-selling author of The Comfort Crisis and Scarcity Brain.
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- “The modern world is designed for short-term survival and pleasure. It is not set up to help us thrive in the long term.” “Have fun, don’t die, read books, and do strange things.”
- Be a 2 percenter. 98% of people do the easy thing. We are programmed to do the easy thing.
- Only 2% of people opt to take the stairs when stairs and escalators are both available, despite knowing the health benefits of stair usage. This metaphor extends to choosing harder but more rewarding life decisions.
- Human Programming for Comfort: Humans are evolutionarily wired to choose the easiest and most comfortable options available. This was beneficial for survival in the past but often works against long-term health and well-being in today’s comfortable world.
- Behavioral Change to Do Harder Things: Choosing the harder path, like taking the stairs, expands one’s comfort zone and prepares individuals for future adversities, both physically and mentally.
- The world was uncomfortable a while ago…
- Incremental Behavioral Adjustments: Small, intentional changes such as not cutting corners, picking up trash, or engaging in phone calls instead of texts can gradually foster a mindset of intentionality and resilience.
- Exercise and Brain Health: Combining physical and mental activities, such as exercising outdoors or reading while moving, can improve brain health and cognitive function.
- It makes sense to do the easy thing. You get the short-term reward for it.
- Handle adversity, adapt, do the slightly harder thing
- Some ideas: do walking meetings, work in silence, embrace hunger, don’t cut corners, pick up the trash, call people on the phone. Ruck the airport. Don’t sit down, walk. Read while exercising. Workout outside. Sprint. Lift weights. The ability to move a limb quickly is what helps old people not fall. Need to be powerful and springy to move quickly (and not fall).
- Diet – One ingredient foods. Tribe in Bolivia with the healthiest hearts in the world. Be outside, eat one ingredient foods.
- Scarcity brain – We all suck at moderation. We overconsume… Casinos, slot machines. Quick, repeatable, predictable. The speed makes it powerful.
- Silicon Valley learned this from casinos and it’s how they build their apps.
- The smartphone withdrawal effect. Worse in short term. Better in the long term.
- Break bad habits – Slow down. Respond, don’t react. Wait 72 hours to buy the thing in your online cart.
- Understanding and Overcoming Addiction: Addiction is not a binary condition but falls on a spectrum. Understanding the underlying causes that drive addictive behaviors is essential for addressing and overcoming them.
- Implementing Delays to Break Bad Habits: Introducing time delays into decisions, such as a 48 to 72-hour rule for online shopping or using intentional apps like ClearSpace for phone usage, can disrupt habitual behaviors and foster better decision-making.
- Junk food is super easy to eat fast. It was designed that way. Your body doesn’t know it’s full because of the speed.
- What did Michael learn from a tribe in a Bolivian jungle?
- They seemed very happy. What did they do? They ate single-ingredient food. They spent a lot of time outside. And they spent a lot of time together. What can we learn from that? Eat healthy, go outside, and spend time with people you love.
- “A lot of problems are not our fault, but they are our problems to solve.” Remember, we are wired to choose the escalator, fast food or to cut the corner. We need to be intentional in taking the stairs, slowing down, and responding instead of reacting.
- How the scarcity loop works: It has three parts: opportunity, unpredictable rewards, and quick repeatability. Becoming aware of it can help you fall into it less often.
- Michael has been sober for 9 years. His drinking addiction stemmed from having a boring life (job he didn’t like). Needed to explore the edges. Booze did that for him.
- Iraq – Sandstorm. We don’t read books here. We don’t have that luxury. We have too many problems to deal with.
- In America, we live in a country where we can read books.
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More Learning:
Episode 078: Kat Cole – From Hooters Waitress To President of Cinnabon
Episode 216: Jim Collins — How To Go From Good To Great
Episode #300: AJ & Keith Hawk – How To Instill Work Ethic & Curiosity In Your Children
Episode #303: General Stanley McChrystal – The New Definition Of Leadership
Time Stamps
01:05 – The Two Percenter Concept
02:29 – The Evolutionary Perspective on Human Behavior
03:52 – The Impact of Small Decisions on Health
05:52 – Real-Life Examples of Choosing the Harder Path
08:36 – Practical Tips for Incorporating Harder Choices
12:15 – The Benefits of Physical and Mental Challenges
13:33 – Create Better Ideas While in an Airport
19:32 – Michael’s Diet and Workout Regimen
27:07 – Understanding Overconsumption and Scarcity Brain
30:04 – The Slot Machine Analogy to Hook You
31:51 – The Loop in Social Media
33:05 – Impact on Kids and Smartphone Withdrawal
34:48 – Breaking Bad Habits with ClearSpace
38:11 – Slowing Down Impulsive Behaviors
41:07 – Respond, Don’t React
44:06 – How Scarcity Brain Changed Michael’s Life
46:53 – Breaking Free From Addiction
55:57 – Future Projects and Closing Thoughts
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