Everything Tim Ferriss has recommended in 5-Bullet Friday — 2,095 books, articles, quotes, films, products and more, gathered from 480 issues since 2015. Browse by category, sort by what the community values or how often Tim has returned to it, and spend your 25 votes on what matters most to you. Each item's note is quoted from Tim's own words in the newsletter.
Naval by Naval Ravikant (@naval). The description is concise, like Naval himself: “Naval on wealth creation.” For more Naval, check out my wildly popular interview with him in 2015, which was nominated for “Podcast of the Year” and came in second place after voting. The winner was another episode with Jamie Foxx.— Tim Ferriss
“Extreme brainstorming questions to trigger new, better ideas” by Jason Cohen. I’m using these to help brainstorm possible future projects, directions for the podcast, and more. From the page: “The following prompts jostle you out of tiny thinking. Each stretches some dimension of reality to an extreme. So extreme that it is nearly nonsense.”— Tim Ferriss
Brilliant Minds of Trash and Sewage. Alec Baldwin (@ABFalecbaldwin) — yes, that Alec Baldwin — is absolutely one of the best interviewers in the podcast game. Polymath Matt Mullenweg recommended this short episode of Here’s the Thing to me, and it doesn’t disappoint. Here’s a teaser: “New York City generates 1.3 billion gallons of wastewater every day. 16 million pounds of trash. Eight million pounds of recyclables. Think of the awesome engineering and effort behind making all of that ‘go away’ without our thinking about it.” Listen to this one for ten minutes. It will help you to see and appr— Tim Ferriss
“A rational conversation on where AI is actually going” on Lenny Rachitsky’s podcast. This is the best AI-related podcast episode I’ve heard in months. This middle-ground discussion, based on a lot of real data, stands out, as I’m tired of armies of techno-optimists selling near-instant superabundance and techno-doomers forecasting Mad Max without any citations. Benedict is sharp, and many of his comparisons and lenses were new to me. The official description from Lenny’s site: Benedict Evans is an independent analyst and former partner at Andreessen Horowitz, where he spent years as their in-— Tim Ferriss
Behind-The-Scenes Live Session with Jake Becraft. The most fascinating conversations I have are often behind closed doors: weekly jam sessions with portfolio startup founders. I’ve long assumed them too confidential to share, but this episode is my first exception. It’s a fun one, as there are clear before-and-after results. This early-stage brainstorming session helped refine talking points that ended up in the Oval Office two months later. My guest is Jake Becraft, CEO and co-founder of Strand Therapeutics, which is building one of the most advanced programmable genetic medicine platforms in— Tim Ferriss
“In Memoriam: Art De Vany.” RIP, Art. You can listen to my conversation with him here.— Tim Ferriss
KETOSPIKE Cocoa. I’ve been getting a lot of questions about exogenous ketones. KETOSPIKE, formulated by Dominic D’Agostino, Ph.D., and Csilla Ari D’Agostino, Ph.D., has become my default, which I use a handful of times per week while on a ketogenic or extremely low-carb diet. This is particularly valuable prior to podcast recordings, as was the case a few hours ago. I’ll mix this into coffee with a few tablespoons of cream, and I get a mild but noticeable cognitive boost for 2–3 hours.— Tim Ferriss
What are successful YouTube channels that were strongly inspired by The 4-Hour Workweek? I’m thinking of interviewing some of these creators on the podcast, plus perhaps more… Please let me know by replying to my post here.— Tim Ferriss
“The US vs. China in the 21st Century” on the Invest Like the Best podcast with Patrick O’Shaughnessy, in conversation with Dan Wang, author of Breakneck. From the description: “Dan is a technology analyst and author who spent six years living in China studying its manufacturing ecosystem and tech development, best known for his new book Breakneck. Dan offers the most nuanced framework I’ve encountered for understanding US-China competition. We explore a critical asymmetry: it’s far harder for the US to rebuild manufacturing capacity than for China to improve scientific research, with profound— Tim Ferriss
“Can A Sleeping Pill Help Fight Alzheimer’s?” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube) by Matt Walker. This is one of many reasons that I’m now experimenting with DORAs for sleep enhancement, given my genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s disease. Be sure to pay attention to the DORA vs. Ambien (zolpidem) comparison. From the episode description: “Matt explores the critical link between sleep and Alzheimer’s disease today, explaining how the brain’s ‘glymphatic system’ clears toxic proteins like amyloid and tau during deep sleep. … Matt goes on to discuss groundbreaking research on a new class of sl— Tim Ferriss
“Etta” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify) on Heavyweight by Jonathan Goldstein and team. Huge thanks to LK for the recommendation! This is one of the best podcasts that I’ve found this year. I’ve been blown away by the writing, which is clever, hilarious, and deep in equal measure. The below might sound boring, but I promise you that it’s anything but. Give it 10 minutes, and you’ll see what I mean. Episode description: “Gregor’s parents are pushing 90. Gregor wants to move them out of their big Victorian home. But they refuse. So, he’s come up with a bold plan.” >From Wikipedia ): Over the years, Heav— Tim Ferriss
“Sriram Krishnan - The Man Leading America’s AI Race Against China” on The Shawn Ryan Show (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube). The portion that I want to highlight has nothing to do with AI. It has to do with how Sriram proved himself very early in his career when no one knew him. Click here to be taken to a great story of Sriram moving to Seattle and impressing one of the all-time best coders at Microsoft. What he did mirrors a lot of what I did after college (in totally different domains) following mentors’ advice, and the strategy still works like gangbusters. The clip is only 4–12 minutes — Tim Ferriss
Our Thing with Sammy “The Bull” Gravano (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube). This was recommended to me by Oz “The Mentalist” Perlman, who’s also kinda scary in his own way. Check out this NFL clip as an example or Joe Rogan calling him a “witch” after a live demo. I was resistant to listening to Our Thing at first, as I don’t like glamorizing criminals, but I decided to give it a shot, since episodes are short and I grew up watching John Gotti in the news. Like a lot of people, I also have a fascination with the mafia from The Godfather, The Sopranos, Goodfellas, and others. From the descripti— Tim Ferriss
“Colors” from Radiolab. This was referred to me by my friend, MN, who knows how much I think about the malleability of perception. Here’s the description: “To what extent is color a physical thing in the physical world, and to what extent is it created in our minds? We start with Sir Isaac Newton, who was so eager to solve this very mystery, he stuck a knife in his eye to pinpoint the answer. Then, we meet a sea creature that sees a rainbow way beyond anything humans can experience, and we track down a woman who we’re pretty sure can see thousands (maybe even millions) more colors than the res— Tim Ferriss
COYOTE! This has been my obsession for two years. COYOTE is a fast, casual card game I created with the amazing Exploding Kittens team. Here’s a video demo. I worked really hard on every aspect of the game (concept, mechanics, cards, characters, art, etc.)! You can finally buy it everywhere, including Amazon, Target, Walmart, and 8,000+ retail locations worldwide. It’s been a huge hit with hundreds of test families, my friends, and at conferences around the world. It now produces guaranteed laughs with kids, adults, tipsy people, serious people, you name it. Freeing your inner trickster is a l— Tim Ferriss
To help next week’s global launch of COYOTE, I did a complete redesign of my oldest and still most important website. No more GeoCities retro! If you squint, I bet some of you will spot the new optimizations. This was quite the task, given 1,000+ blog posts, the podcast, and more. Please take it for a test drive! If you spot any bugs or issues, please let me know on X by tagging @tferriss. I’ll send something fun to the best bug hunter.— Tim Ferriss
RØDE PSA1+ Professional Studio Arm. This is the latest addition to my minimalist podcast toolkit. The Shure MV7+ microphone, the Logitech Brio 4K webcam, and Riverside for remote recordings completes the setup. From the description: “The PSA1+ is the ultimate studio boom arm for podcasters, streamers, and broadcasters. Its innovative parallelogram spring design ensures ultra-smooth movement and precise microphone placement in any position, while its fully damped internal springs and neoprene arm cover eliminate mechanical noise for completely silent operation.” This arm literally took me 1–2 m— Tim Ferriss
“Song of the Cedars.” Past podcast guest Giuliana Furci shared this song with me. Beyond being a lovely and calming listen, as The Guardian explains, there is more to the story: A forest in Ecuador could be recognised as the co-creator of a song under a groundbreaking legal proposal. A petition is to be— Tim Ferriss
Harvard Business School Case Study: “Tim Ferriss: What Might This Look Like If It Were Easy?” Harvard Business School (HBS) reached out last year to create a case study on my entrepreneurial journey, which tracks me from childhood to the current day. On a few levels, this is a full-circle dream come true, as one catalyst for starting my own companies was the ELE 491 “High-Tech Entrepreneurship” class at Princeton taught by Professor Ed Zschau. He used HBS case studies as the backbone of this class, and 20-plus years later, I still have all of them gathered in a three-ring binder. I owe special— Tim Ferriss
My 2018 interview with George Raveling. If you missed my first interview with legendary coach George Raveling, it’s one of the podcast’s greatest hits, according to listeners. We covered a lot, including how he came to possess the original copy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech, how his practice team ended up beating the 1984 US Olympic Dream Team in basketball, his pivotal role in getting Michael Jordan signed to Nike (instead of Adidas), and much more. Also, huge congratulations to George on his new book (with a Michael Jordan preface!): What You’re Made For: Powerful L— Tim Ferriss
“Michael O’Leary, CEO of Ryanair” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify) on the In Good Company podcast with Nicolai Tangen. Nicolai is the inimitable CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), and he has interviewed guests ranging from Jensen Huang to Magnus Carlsen. I’ve been fascinated by O’Leary since I read Ryanair: How a Small Irish Airline Conquered Europe in 2007. The story of Ryanair is truly bonkers, and while O’Leary is controversial, he is brilliant, uncommonly strategic, and unbelievably fast on his feet. Listen to 10–15 minutes of this and you’ll see what I mean.— Tim Ferriss
Chris Sacca. Chris is one of the close friends who mentored me in the startup investing game. His 2015 appearance on the podcast is an all-time listener favorite, so we were overdue for a podcast reunion. We cover AI, favorite books, beneficial youth mischief, and of course, the durable magic of mullet wigs. Click here to watch or listen to our conversation.— Tim Ferriss
Massachusetts will vote on creating legal, regulated, therapeutic access to psychedelic medicines in a few short weeks. I’m supporting this financially and hope Massachusetts residents will do the same by voting (or more). But what is it? Question 4 is a citizen-initiated ballot that creates a regulated framework for supervised use of certain psychedelics at licensed psychedelic therapy centers. It does not legalize retail sales or storefronts. Army veteran CJ LoConte supports “Yes on 4,” and you can watch him tell his personal story here. One of the campaign’s videos features the story of Emi— Tim Ferriss
Big Agnes’s Rapide SL Insulated. I absolutely love Big Agnes’s Q-Core SLX model, which was discontinued and replaced by the above linked Rapide SL. I’ve owned my Big Agnes for years. From the description: “Built with offset I-Beam construction, this proprietary design reduces weight while providing multi-directional support for consistent stability and comfort. This superlight air chamber pad sleeps warmer using two layers of heat reflective film, and is third-party rated with an R-Value of 4.8 for use through three seasons. The Rapide SL Insulated is lighter, tougher, more packable, easy to i— Tim Ferriss
“Brain’s ‘Background Noise’ May Explain Value of Shock Therapy” on the Quanta Science podcast (Apple, Spotify, Overcast). If you prefer a text version, here you go. A preview: “Electroconvulsive therapy [ECT] is highly effective in treating major depressive disorder, but no one knows why it works. New research suggests it may restore balance between excitation and inhibition in the brain.”— Tim Ferriss
“The vital question TaskRabbit founder Leah Solivan wished she asked investors.” What a great trip down memory lane! This is a short and tactical podcast episode. Leah Solivan explains how she founded TaskRabbit, launched it in Boston, and expanded it from an experiment in one neighborhood to a global business that was ultimately acquired by IKEA. If you want to skip around, the genesis story and early prototyping starts around 08:05 with “I’m going to take you back.”— Tim Ferriss
“Jordan Jonas: Survival, Hunting, Siberia, God, and Winning Alone Season 6” on the Lex Fridman Podcast (YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts). I loved this episode, particularly the second half, which includes Jordan’s incredible family history, Siberian adventures, and thoughts on faith. The entire episode made perfect listening for a long hike. It didn’t hurt that Alone is perhaps the only reality TV series I’ve watched at length. Here’s the episode description: “Jordan Jonas is a wilderness survival expert, explorer, hunter, guide, and winner of Alone Season 6, a show in which the task is to su— Tim Ferriss
Had an amazing time recording my first new podcast in a while! New episodes return in roughly two weeks (~September 4th), and it starts with a barn burner of an in-person Random Show with Kevin Rose. I think it’s one of our best. Tons of actionable takeaways and laughing fits. Here is a post-game pic of us. We cover dozens of topics: new projects, what I’ve done on my recent sabbatical after the podcast’s 10th anniversary, Kevin’s latest findings and shenanigans, and much, much more. It even includes some bizarre video of Kevin having his face assaulted by experimental technology. Lots of fun — Tim Ferriss
Concept Art. In the shadows in my top-secret lair, I’ve been working with some of my favorite artists in the world on the expansion and world-building of The Legend of COCKPUNCH. But… That was a joke, right? Or was it? Some of you might recall it as an experiment in Emergent Long Fiction (ELF), as well as a fundraiser for my nonprofit Saisei Foundation, which supports science related to mental health therapeutics. Less obvious is the fact that The Legend of COCKPUNCH, though launched with laughability as an immunity cloak, was designed from the outset to be a viable and extensive fantasy world— Tim Ferriss
“A Postmortem on My Response to Covid” (SamHarris.org, YouTube) by Sam Harris on the Making Sense podcast. This might seem like an out-of-date posting, but it isn’t. This is a world-class example of how a very smart person does a postmortem on their own thinking, and I think it’s worth studying. Excellent poker players might do postgame analysis of their decision-making in similar fashion. Consider this a meta-skill that applies to practically everything.— Tim Ferriss
Live 10th Anniversary Random Show with Kevin Rose! This week is officially the podcast’s 10-year anniversary, and there is no better way to commemorate such a wild milestone than with Kevin Rose, a little tequila, and a huge thank-you to my dear listeners! Kevin was my very first guest for episode one way back in April 2014. Feels like both yesterday and lifetimes ago. Last night, the platform River helped you all run parties around the world in more than 180 cities! More than 4,000 people RSVP’d. I was able to join about 40 cities via Zoom for quick hellos and drinks (huge thanks to Rae and A— Tim Ferriss
Global fan meetups! To celebrate the podcast’s 10th anniversary, I am very excited to launch fan-hosted meetups on Thursday, April 25th, around the world! Now the ball is in your court… Would you like to host fellow fans of the show in your city? Nothing crazy required; any bar or venue that can handle a decent group could work. If so, apply to host here. Want to attend a meetup that someone else hosts? You can RSVP in your area even before a host is decided, so please express interest now!— Tim Ferriss
“Body Electric Part 2: When Human Met Desk” from the TED Radio Hour podcast (Apple Podcasts, Spotify). I recommend the first 7–8 minutes and the last 7–8 minutes. If in a rush, listen to the last 10 minutes. “Body Electric Part 3: Why Our Eyes Are Elongating”— Tim Ferriss
“A former church girl’s search for a new spiritual home.” Sex, drugs, and Pentecostals? Doms and dungeons? You betcha. Not for the faint of heart. There’s something in this that will make nearly everyone uncomfortable. I strongly suggest you feel the discomfort and ride it through. Think of it as an auditory BDSM meditation. There are quite a few gems sprinkled throughout. Sometimes “life begins at the end of your comfort zone” (Neal Donald Walsch), so you might as well get some practice.— Tim Ferriss
Ryan Reynolds on the SmartLess podcast. Special thanks to everyone on Twitter who shared their favorite episodes of SmartLess. This one came up repeatedly and doesn’t disappoint. The official description: “The super-handsome, ultra-talented, and mildly-funny Ryan Reynolds joins us this week on the show. We go deep with the double-R, from stocking shelves label-out, to vulnerability as a performer and business owner… while touching on his ‘humanitarian efforts’ diving for Melo Melo pearls that he bedazzles his new line of toe-loop sandals with. It’s another naughty shipwreck on the S.S. SmartLe— Tim Ferriss
“Psychedelics with Joe Green” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify) on the On with Kara Swisher podcast. I skip most podcasts about psychedelics, but Joe and Kara both did an outstanding job in this conversation, with hard questions and answers that cover specifics. You’ll learn many stats and facts I’d never heard assembled in one place. This is a great “where we are and where we are going” overview of the ecosystem, especially as related to Oregon, MDMA-assisted psychotherapy as the tip of the spear, and reclassification as only one piece of the fascinating puzzle. For those interested in exploring the — Tim Ferriss
A Glimpse of the Future: Electroceuticals for 70%–90% Remission of Depression, Brain Stimulation for Sports Performance, and De-risking Ibogaine for TBI/PTSD. I believe this podcast episode is a sneak peek at what’s coming in the next five years. Pair it with Nolan’s latest groundbreaking study, which was published this morning in Nature Medicine: “Magnesium–ibogaine therapy in veterans with traumatic brain injuries.”— Tim Ferriss
“Ayahuasca and Tobacco Shamanism: An Interview with Ethnobotanist Dr. Glenn Shepard” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify) on the Plants of the Gods podcast. Here is part 1 of the interview, and you can find part 2 here. For more from host Dr. Mark Plotkin, check out his recent guest episode on my podcast, which explored all things coffee.— Tim Ferriss
The Ladder of Inference. This is a framework for finding common ground, or solvable delusions and divergences, rather than simply arguing over conclusions. Paired with The Work by Byron Katie, it’s also a powerful heuristic for stress-testing your own (often limiting) beliefs. Thanks to Sheila Heen of the Harvard Negotiation Project for introducing me to this concept during our conversation on the podcast.— Tim Ferriss
“Ada Palmer on Viking Metaphysics, Contingent Moments, and Censorship” on the Conversations with Tyler podcast. I learned a ton from this podcast, and even though Ada’s audio quality isn’t exactly Carnegie Hall, the content more than makes up for it.— Tim Ferriss
An AI trained on my blog and podcast! I’m sharing this AI tool with 5-Bullet Friday subscribers first. Want to ask about productivity advice, sleep tips, or anything else explored on the blog and podcast? Just ask the AI here. I’d love to hear your feedback, as it’s an early beta, so please share your thoughts on Twitter by tagging me (@tferriss) and using #timai as a hashtag. Special thanks to Matt Mullenweg and the entire team at WordPress.com for building this!— Tim Ferriss
“Mark Zuckerberg: First Interview in the Metaverse” on The Lex Fridman Podcast. Even if you only watch the first five minutes, this is well worth the time. These next-gen, photo-realistic avatars and their motion tracking are truly jaw-dropping. The tech, and lag, are improving in leaps and bounds, and the future is going to get very weird very quickly.— Tim Ferriss
“The Birth of Babylon” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) on The Rest Is History podcast with Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook. “The Sumerians - Fall of the First Cities” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) on the Fall of Civilizations podcast with Paul M.M. Cooper. Quick reframe for fun: time-wise, you and I are closer to Cleopatra’s life (70/69 BC–10 August 30 BC) than Cleopatra was to the construction of the pyramids (c. 2570 BC). Huge thanks to T. Face for the above recommendations!— Tim Ferriss
Your responses here. My podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show, is turning 10 years old next year, and I couldn’t be more excited. After almost 700 episodes and nearly 1B downloads, it’s arguably the biggest thing I’ve ever done, and without you all—my dear listeners—this show wouldn’t exist. Thank you so much for allowing me to do this work. As the big birthday approaches, I’d love to get to know you all better. By filling out this survey, you can help me choose the best guests, formats, topics/questions, sponsors, and much more. And as a thank-you, I’ll be giving away 20 signed copies of The 4-Hour W— Tim Ferriss
“Kings of Kings” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) on Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History podcast. I’m often asked what my favorite podcast is, and Hardcore History is always the answer. Just be aware that these are long-form masterpieces and not quick-fix sound bites. That’s what makes them so special. If you’d like to learn more about the amazing Dan Carlin and how he became arguably the most famous “I’m not a historian” storyteller of history, my vintage interview with him can be found here.— Tim Ferriss
“Hugh Howey: Winning at the Self-Publishing Game” on The Knowledge Project podcast by Shane Parrish of Farnam Street fame. I really enjoyed this episode, especially the last 20–25 minutes, which get into publishing deals, contracts, and specific deal points. From the description: “In this fascinating discussion, Hugh and I talk about the ancient art of wayfinding, why traveling is such a powerful way to connect to other people, and how it has impacted his worldview. Hugh then gives a masterclass in writing and publishing your own book. We talk about his writing routine, dealing with insecuriti— Tim Ferriss
“Making: Jordan Peele” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) on the Making podcast. How are polymaths made? Who was Jordan Peele before Key & Peele? This podcast is a hilarious ride that touches on both. Here’s the episode’s description: “Jordan Peele (@JordanPeele) is responsible for modern classics in the horror genre, including the films Us, Nope, and the Oscar-winning Get Out. Before all that, he was a self-described nerd. He majored in puppetry in college before dropping out with his friend Rebecca Drysdale to pursue a career in comedy. Hear from Drysdale, Peele’s early collaborator Brendan— Tim Ferriss
Personality: The Lloyd Price Musical (@personalitymusical), written by podcast guest B. Jeffrey Madoff (@jeff_madoff), who became friends with Lloyd before his passing. I’m headed to Chicago to see this. Jeff introduced me to Lloyd Price in our 2021 conversation, and I ended up being both shocked (how could I not know this name?) and fascinated. First and foremost, it’s the story of an underdog overcoming unbelievable odds. Lloyd went from digging septic tanks in Louisiana in 1951 to becoming the first teenager ever to sell more than a million records in 1952. Lloyd’s influence ended up going — Tim Ferriss
“Why is consciousness something worth talking about?” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube) on the Philosophize This! podcast. “Consciousness” might seem esoteric, but this podcast does a great job of giving real-world examples of how assumptions about consciousness—even subconscious assumptions—strongly influence how we live our lives. I really enjoyed this one, and there’s a lot that will surprise you. From the description: “Today we talk about consciousness. The hard problem. Why it’s hard. The philosophical zombie thought experiment. What it’s like to be a bat. Blindsight. Hierarchies of cons— Tim Ferriss
FTZ Coffee Blend by Four-Arrows Press. This is the first coffee I’ve ever produced myself! I now drink it every morning. I enlisted the help of world-class experts and tested dozens of variations over many months. After dialing in the sourcing, roasting, and more, this is the combo that finally made me say, “This is the one!” This first run of coffee is limited to 555 bags, and 100% of my proceeds go to the nonprofit Amazon Conservation Team. Check out our strange website. If a few terms are confusing (Varlata? Dalomai?), the answers can be found in my fantasy fiction podcast series. Very spec— Tim Ferriss
“Many-worlds interpretation.” From Wikipedia: “The many-worlds interpretation (MWI) is an interpretation of quantum mechanics that asserts that the universal wavefunction is objectively real and that there is no wavefunction collapse. This implies that all possible outcomes of quantum measurements are physically realized in some ‘world’ or universe.” Pair this reading with my podcast interview with renowned physicist David Deutsch.— Tim Ferriss
“The Free Trade Zone.” This is my first, public fantasy fiction with dialogue and first-person action. I’m having fun thinking about how to create characters people might get attached to, and preserving the Seventh Scribe narration while including new twists was a great challenge. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.— Tim Ferriss
“The Elliotts” on Heavyweight, hosted by Jonathan Goldstein ) (@J_Goldstein). The description: “In 1525, the Archbishop of Glasgow placed a curse on the Elliott family. Now, 500 years later, one very unlucky branch of the Elliotts wants it lifted.” I found this incredibly entertaining and thought-provoking. Placebo effect or not, you’ll have a lot of laughs along the way.— Tim Ferriss
“You 2.0: Decide Already!” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) by Hidden Brain with Shankar Vedantam.— Tim Ferriss
The Legend of CØCKPUNCH™. This is my first scripted podcast, narrated by brilliant voice actors. It launched and landed at #1 in “Fiction” on Apple Podcasts, as well as in the Top 100 overall. I’m having a blast, and the first few episodes are very short—roughly five minutes each. I hope you give it a shot. It’s unusual, to be sure, but that’s the point. The goal is to add some mystery, laughter, and levity to a world dominated by doomscrolling and pessimism. You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.— Tim Ferriss
“The Narrative Holy Trinity of World, Character, and Plot, with Fonda Lee.” You can listen with the embedded web player at that link, or you can find the transcript here.— Tim Ferriss
“Krom the Barbarian” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify) from Hello from the Magic Tavern, hosted by Arnie (Arnie Niekamp), Chunt (Adal Rifai), Usidore (Matt Young), and Krom the Barbarian (Mark Logsdon). This is truly hilarious improv. PLEASE listen through to the end of the dream journal section. Deep bow to Eric and friends for the outstanding recommendation. The “Offices and Bosses” miniseries from Hello from the Magic Tavern is also great, but it makes more sense if you have some D&D experience. “Halfling Bards” requires no D&D background and will make you spit out your coffee. Because of the humor— Tim Ferriss
“Watch Your Mouth” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) from Hidden Brain. This podcast episode really captures why I study multiple languages. Here’s the official description: “If you’re bilingual or multilingual, you may have noticed that different languages make you stretch in different ways. This week, we revisit a favorite 2018 conversation with cognitive scientist Lera Boroditsky. She studies how the structure of the languages we speak can change the way we see the world. Then, a 2017 conversation with linguist and author John McWhorter, who shares how languages evolve and why we’re somet— Tim Ferriss
Ep. 207: “Getting Free with Karma Yoga” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify) on the Ram Dass Here And Now podcast. This was sent to me by a close friend, and it is exceptional. I was extremely skeptical given the title of the episode. Now that I’ve finished listening, it could just as easily be titled “Finding Freedom Through The Everyday.” The host intro is roughly four minutes long, if you want to skip to the meat. Ram Dass also takes a little while to warm up, but it all adds up to a wonderfully useful and sometimes laugh-out-loud funny recording. I will be listening to this one again.— Tim Ferriss
“Off Course” from This American Life. This was just what I needed this week, as my life has taken an unexpected turn. Here’s the episode description: “Three people, and one animal, who know the path their lives will take until, suddenly, they don’t.” My favorite story is the first with Yibin Li, which deeply moved me. Don’t be surprised if your eyes well up. Take 15–20 minutes and thank me later. Huge hat tip to Loni for the recommendation.— Tim Ferriss