From the fantastic book of the same name:
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Podcast of the week: Adam Savage @ The Tim Ferris Show
For 14 years; 1,015 myths; 2,950 experiments; eight Emmy nominations; and 83 miles of duct tape, Adam Savage regaled us with the scientific method as he and Jamie tacked various myths and movie magic: Which will keep you die walking or running in the rain? How does was escape a sinking car? Thee wee so many…and like all good things, it had to come to an end. Yet, he goes on: He has a book, aptly named Every Tool’s a Hammer, he is making bags out of sail cloths, and has a new show on Discovery: Savage Builds.
Yep, he build an iron man suit out of titanium and a D printer with the gang at Colorado School of Mines.
As you may have guessed, Adam’s greatest strengths must be Creativity and Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence . In this free wheeling interview in which he discusses his love of building and creating from Iron Man to sword scabbards to scrambled eggs, you get a sense of his Humor and incredible Zest for life. This is a guy clearly playing to his strengths. None of that surprised me. I knew this would be a fun interview. What I did not expect was how insightful and down right profound he would be showcasing Perspective his as he s
It’s still very difficult for me to confront the fact that I’m a flawed human being. There’s still some part of me that thinks, “Oh, as long as I perform all these things correctly, everything will go smoothly.” The answer is, no. That’s fiction. Nothing will ever go smoothly. No plan ever survives first contact with implementation and we’re all going to screw up and feel unworthy at a very constant pace in our lives. That’s being a person. The trick is to be honest about that.
- Listen to it on Apple Podcasts.
- Stream by clicking here.
- Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save as.”
- Watch the interview on YouTube.
Podcast of the week: Seth Godin @ Akimbo
“Akimbo is an ancient word, from the bend in the river or the bend in an archer’s bow. It’s become a symbol for strength, a posture of possibility, the idea that when we stand tall, arms bent, looking right at it, we can make a difference.
Akimbo’s a podcast about our culture and about how we can change it. About seeing what’s happening and choosing to do something.” So goes the introduction to Seth Godin’s contemplations on how the world works. This is not your usual podcast: No guests. No fancy production. Just Seth and his thoughts. His very well groomed thoughts. Seth is the thinker’s thinker. Author of 23 books, many best sellers, Seth has long been the go to person for all things marketing every since Purple Cow took the world by storm.
I have long been a fan, having read the said Purple Cow, Linchpin and Tribes (among others and watched his Ted Talks like How ideas spread:
Seth’s podcast listens like a series of essays. Really thoughtful essays. Episode 19, the Big Sort, gets to the heart of arranging. “People strong in the Arranger theme can organize, but they also have a flexibility that complements this ability. They like to figure out how all of the pieces and resources can be arranged for maximum productivity.” Seth gets to the heart of our compulsion to organize, the incredible Discipline it takes.
All of Seth’s shows go beyond the topic at hand, giving incredible Context to listener.
Aikimbo will feed not just your Context but also your
Podcast of the week: Evan Carmichael @ James Altucher Show
My love affair with podcasts continues as I binge listen these past several days the James Altucher Show. James made a name for himself by being an early tech reporter, Hedge Fund Manager and serial entrepreneur and author, with 20 books to his credit. There could be many of the 400 episodes I recommend, but Evan Carmichael stands out for its positivity.
428 – Evan Carmichael: How to Shut Out the Negativity in Your Life and Maybe Get Huge on YouTube
I did not know Evan Carmichael, well not directly. Sure I had seen some of his youtube videos posted on facebook like Steve Job’s 10 Rules for Success:
or Oprah Winfrey’s Top 10 Rules For Success
or 5 PROVEN Ways to FIND Your True PURPOSE!
These make their way around motivational posts as Evan has over 1.7 Million Subscribers. All good great stuff. Evan distills the essence of success through carefully editing interesting and successful people’s stories from other video interviews. And he does it right, focusing on the positive, because that is the heart and soul of what he does and who he is. James and Evan were a fantastic pairing, two uber enthusiasts who love finding just one thing to give them an edge. And they love to share. This is their includer in action.
James is a very enjoyable interviewer. He has a way of connecting with his guest through making his own observations and interjections. Every episode I learn so much from James and his guests.
Strengths fed:
- Evan radiates Positivity and optimism both in his action and how he profiles it
- His number one hashtag is Believe!
- Social Intelligence
- Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
- Achiever
- Maximizer
Podcast of the week: Shawn Achor @ Jordan Harbinger
I love podcasts–heck we all do. Now I thought I would shine the light on specific episodes that caught my ears. First up: Happiness Researcher, Shawn Achor being interviewed by Jordan Harbinger.
144: Shawn Achor | Why Success and Happiness Aren’t Mutually Exclusive
I first encountered Shawn (great name by the way) through his first work, the Happiness Advantage, a book of highly actionable ideas, as his subtitle suggests: “How a Positive Brain Fuels Success in Work and Life.” Shawn has a gift at taking research and bringing i alive. He is even better in person:
In this fast-moving and very funny talk, psychologist Shawn Achor argues that, actually, happiness inspires us to be more productive. His humor is part of why this has been viewed almost 20 Million times.
Jordan Harbinger unpacks with Shawn his new Book, Big Potential: How Transforming the Pursuit of Success Raises Our Achievement, Happiness, and Well-Being
Jordan doesn’t just skillfully interview Shawn, he enters into a a dialogue, looking for ways to help us understand why this matters and how to put it into action. Jordan’s show notes takes it a step further by adding a worksheet to help you take action on the big ideas presented during the conversation. Jordan is an incredible engaging conversationalist that makes his guests feel at ease.
Jordan’s show is well worth subscribing to and mining the back episodes.
Shawn has several books worth reading:
- The Happiness Advantage: How a Positive Brain Fuels Success in Work and Life by Shawn Achor
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Big Potential: How Transforming the Pursuit of Success Raises Our Achievement, Happiness, and Well-Being by Shawn Achor
-
Before Happiness: The 5 Hidden Keys to Achieving Success, Spreading Happiness, and Sustaining Positive Change by Shawn Achor
Strengths fed:
- Social Intelligence
- Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence
- Achiever
- Maximizer
- Shawn also highlights the role sharing optimism plays in success
Watch it grow
A hacker screwed up the previous iteration of this blog…so time to relaunch. You will soon find the best sources of positive psychology and strengths development curated in one place. Where should you start? Take an assessment:
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