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PODCAST

NonTrivial

NonTrivial is a podcast about the patterns that exist at the intersection of science, philosophy and complexity, and how these speak to universal principles related to skills, growth and life.The longer you listen, the more you’ll internalize these universal principles and see how they inform your work, your ideas, and the way you shape the world around you.Become a Member at nontrivialpodcast.com or patreon.com/8431143/joinPremium members get access to the full member app. This includes data

science philosophy

All Episodes

23:00

You Don’t Need Cliches to Fix Your Life

NonTrivial ·

2026/02/08

In this episode I discuss why popular “fix your life” advice often fails, and explain how real, lasting change comes from focusing on a few deep structural levers rather than long lists of habits. I break down how confidence, discipline, and consistency are usually byproducts, not goals, and introduce three core constraints that can reorganize your life: identity, delivery, and rare skill. Support the show Become a Member at nontrivialpodcast.com or patreon.com/8431143/join Premium members g...

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20:45

Stop Caring How Long Things Take

NonTrivial ·

2026/01/22

In this episode I discuss why obsessing over speed and efficiency often slows real progress, and how treating time as the main variable causes people to optimize before they understand what actually matters. I explain that in complex domains like learning, creativity, startups, and decision-making, progress comes from uncovering underlying structure, not from doing more work faster. By focusing on depth, constraints, and conceptual insight, the space of possibilities collapses, breakthroughs ...

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30:00

Don't Educate the Mouth, Educate the Mind

NonTrivial ·

2025/12/28

In this episode I discuss why real understanding and skill come from direct contact with meaning, rather than from verbalization, explanation, or rigid procedure. Using reading, intuition, music, and sports as examples, I explain how meaning is grasped before it’s put into words. I explore how humans naturally decode complex, subtle signals, often knowing something is right or wrong without being able to explain why, and how this same capacity underlies deep learning and mastery. Over-focusi...

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30:05

Always be in the Zone

NonTrivial ·

2025/12/06

In this episode I discuss why strict scheduling goes against the way nature and human creativity actually function. Real progress often appears in spontaneous gaps throughout the day, much like discoveries and insights in science and art that arise unexpectedly rather than through planning. I explain that people struggle with this approach because they feel a kind of energy barrier before starting. This barrier is related to memory. We forget where we left off, so returning to a task feels h...

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28:34

Protect Your Growth: How Not to Betray Your Own...

NonTrivial ·

2025/10/27

In this episode I discuss how building your own constraints can turn fleeting insights into structure, protect your growth, and help you stay aligned with who you’re becoming. Support the show Become a premium member to gain access to premium content, including the Techniques and Mindsets Videos, visual concept summaries of each episode, community forum, episode summary notes, episode transcripts, q&a/ama sessions, episode search, watch history, watch progress and support. Join Now...

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26:51

Learn by Exposure: Immersing Yourself into Real...

NonTrivial ·

2025/09/30

In this episode I discuss the difference between learning rules and recognizing patterns, arguing that genuine understanding comes from immersing yourself in real environments rather than relying on isolated fundamentals. Through examples like chess, programming, language acquisition, and piano, I emphasize that patterns are felt and latent, not definable by textbooks. True learning requires exposure, courage, and creativity. Support the show Become a premium member to gain access to premium ...

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34:15

Spend Before You’re Rich

NonTrivial ·

2025/09/19

In this episode I discuss the idea that attitude must come before action and results, and that true growth requires courage. I explore how mindset shapes behavior, why resilience emerges from maintaining the right outlook, and how stepping into uncertainty allows new patterns to form. By embracing risk and venturing into the unknown, we create the conditions for authenticity, discovery, and ultimately wisdom. Support the show Become a premium member to gain access to premium content, includin...

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26:07

Finding Peace in the How, Not the What

NonTrivial ·

2025/09/15

The episode is about how true peace of mind comes from discovering and practicing a personal process—the “how”—that aligns with who you are, rather than chasing external categories or “what” you do. Become a premium member to gain access to premium content, including the Techniques and Mindsets Videos, visual concept summaries of each episode, community forum, episode summary notes, episode transcripts, q&a/ama sessions, episode search, watch history, watch progress and support. Join No...

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24:17

Essence Generates Abundance

NonTrivial ·

2025/09/05

In this episode I discuss the importance of capturing the essence of things—the single core idea or statement that strips away noise and redundancy while anchoring creativity, learning, and performance. I explain how identifying this essence makes thought and action more efficient, portable across domains, and naturally generative, whether in writing, storytelling, life decisions, or science. Support the show Become a Member nontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Version https://www.youtu...

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20:01

Relentlessness is the Mother of all Skills

NonTrivial ·

2025/08/23

In this episode, I discuss why relentlessness is the mother of all skills, enabling us to push forward despite frustration and setbacks. I explore how techniques and mindsets serve as anchors but ultimately subsume into the higher-level purpose of relentlessness. Through examples from nature, engineering, and AI, I show how consistency of effort amidst life’s complexity leads to long-term growth. Support the show Become a Member nontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Version https://www.y...

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26:07

Chase Patterns, Not Your Reasons for Them

NonTrivial ·

2025/07/29

The extremely effective skill of recognizing and following the patterns that move us. And the detrimental, interfering behavior of attempting to explain those patterns. Support the show Become a Member nontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Version https://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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29:58

Stop Prioritizing

NonTrivial ·

2025/07/21

In this episode I argue that we should choose to work on the first thing that comes to mind, rather than prioritize. While such behavior will cut into the time you would have spent on some other more prioritized task, it will be absolutely worth it. Choosing the non-prioritized action means much more movement, increasing the transition dynamics inside your state of possibilities. The long run outcomes are far better when you work on it the moment you think about it. This is all to highlight a...

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26:11

Doing It All in a Day: Nature’s Way

NonTrivial ·

2025/06/11

In this episode I discuss how doing everything in a day is almost always an impossibility, but is in fact possible if you learn to categorize your work in a fashion akin to how nature operates. Support the show Become a Member nontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Version https://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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36:08

Balance is the Decision

NonTrivial ·

2025/06/06

In this episode I discuss how making decisions in an uncertain world is best handled, not through explicit weighing of choices, but by focusing on high level targets (like balance) that cut through the noise. Support the show Become a Member nontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Version https://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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44:10

Reading as Mental Training, and More

NonTrivial ·

2025/05/23

In this episode I discuss how reading should be done for more than just entertainment and knowledge. Reading should be done every day to train the mind in extended concentration, maintaining a single thread of thought, and holding your attention deliberately. I discuss what I think it means to read well, and show how this skill goes well beyond just reading, amplifying our personal and professional lives. Support the show Become a Member nontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Version http...

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17:46

Build Your Life, Literally

NonTrivial ·

2025/04/08

In this episode I discuss the importance of creating a physical snapshot of your life, to add meaning and direction to your efforts.Support the showBecome a Membernontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Versionhttps://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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31:19

Let the Environment Build You

NonTrivial ·

2025/01/07

In this episode I discuss the idea that our environment should make the "decisions" for us, when it comes to crafting our lives and the things in it.Support the showBecome a Membernontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Versionhttps://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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33:12

Throw it In and See what Sticks: The New Engineering

NonTrivial ·

2024/12/10

In this episode I discuss the new direction engineering is headed, and why it sounds to many as unsophisticated. It's a "throw everything in a pot to see what happens" outlook on how to build things, which I argue is in fact a far more sophisticated approach than best-laid plans. Something we should learn to embrace in our creativity and life in general.Support the showBecome a Membernontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Versionhttps://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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42:11

When the Ink Fades; Why (and How) We are Now the Media

NonTrivial ·

2024/11/28

In this episode I argue that platforms like X are in fact a better source of truth than mainstream news outlets, despite their errors and lack of expertise. I lay out the underlying mechanism behind how truth persists in large collectives, and show how natural dynamics in large complex systems effectively materialize truth.Support the showBecome a Membernontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Versionhttps://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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40:47

AI, Creativity, and the Benefit of Being Chased by...

NonTrivial ·

2024/11/17

In this episode I talk about a recent comment made by Ben Affleck, suggesting that AI does not currently create. I challenge this, outlining how AI follows the same overall approach to creativity as humans. Further, I argue that our creativity should be challenged by AI, as this ensures we challenge ourselves to be as humanly creative as possible.Support the showBecome a Membernontrivialpodcast.com Check out the Video Versionhttps://www.youtube.com/@nontrivialpodcast

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119 results

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