Better Humanhood
106 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 4 years ago - ★★★★★ - 4 ratingsMusings on everything from news to running to beer with frequent rants about stupid people.
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Episodes
UNSHARED MEMORIES | Episode 45
December 05, 2019 11:00 - 10 minutes - 11.5 MBWe all have things we remember from our childhoods that match up across generational cohorts. But what are some of the things you're nostalgic about that aren't shared memories? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Hood • Murphy's Pop Stop closes • Frankie & Johnnie • JoshShear.com: Our unshared memories
THANKSGIVING 2019 | Episode 44
November 28, 2019 11:00 - 11 minutes - 12.7 MBHappy Thanksgiving! If you have some elementary school students in your life, they're probably making hand turkeys and dressing up as Pilgrims and American Indians. But how much of what we learned in school is true? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Country Living: Thanksgiving • Wikipedia: Thanksgiving • Wikipedia: The Reformation • National Geographic: Thanksgiving • Native Hope: What Thanksgiving means ...
WHY WE CELEBRATE BIRTHDAYS | Episode 43
November 21, 2019 11:00 - 5 minutes - 5.78 MBWhy do we celebrate birthdays, anyway? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • St. Jude Children's Research Hospital • Fight for the Forgotten • Shriners Hospitals for Children • Pencils of Promise • Charity: Water • Patton Oswalt: You get like 20 birthdays • JoshShear.com: Why do we celebrate birthdays?
OUR SHARED MYTHS | Episode 42
November 14, 2019 11:00 - 6 minutes - 7.7 MBBeyond faith, we actually agree on some myths that help society thrive. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Sapiens, • The Dunbar number • JoshShear.com: The myths we share
WHAT DOES VETERANS DAY MEAN? | Episode 41
November 07, 2019 11:00 - 6 minutes - 7.26 MBOur look into U.S. holidays continues with the history of Veterans Day. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Episode 20: Flag Day 2019 • Episode 17: Memorial Day 2019 • History Channel on Veterans Day • Wikipedia on Veterans Day • The differences between Veterans Day and Memorial Day • JoshShear.com: Veterans Day
HOLIDAYS IN LIMINAL SPACES | Episode 40
October 31, 2019 10:00 - 8 minutes - 9.66 MBWe continue our exploration of holidays with a look at Halloween and Day of the Dead. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Halloween by Robert Burns • Doug Stanhope talking about his mother's suicide • Japanese custom of sorting cremated remains with chopsticks • Samhain • Day of the Dead • Coco • Legend of the jack-o-lantern • Jehova's Witness take on Halloween • JoshShear.com: Origins of Halloween a...
GROWING YOUR CREATIVITY | Creativity, Part 4 of 4 | Episode 39
October 24, 2019 10:00 - 29 minutes - 34 MBJust about everyone who generates prescriptions for creativity includes some version of get some alone time, get out in nature or spend some time in silence. And just about everyone says you have to show up and do creative work for creativity to really shine through. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Flow Research Project • Flow • Steven Kotler • Flow Genome Project • The Rise of Superman • Stealing Fire...
WHAT CREATIVE PEOPLE HAVE IN COMMON | Creativity, Part 3 of 4 | Episode 38
October 17, 2019 10:00 - 19 minutes - 22.6 MBWhat do some of the most innovative minds in history have in common? Not much, which means you can learn to be creative. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Creativity by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi • Creativity by Elkhonon Goldberg • The Creative Brain • Creativity: The Perfect Crime • JoshShear.com: Creative Minds
IN SUPPORT OF CREATIVITY | Creativity, Part 2 of 4 | Episode 37
October 10, 2019 10:00 - 17 minutes - 19.6 MBIt doesn't matter if you want to be part of the creative machine, you're in it. Getting through your day often involves creative decisions that not only didn't our parents have to make when they were our age, but also that no one would have even conceived of a decade and a half ago. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth • Fight for the Forgotten • Creativity • Corporate Creat...
WHAT IS CREATIVITY? | Creativity, Part 1 of 4 | Episode 36
October 03, 2019 10:00 - 14 minutes - 17 MBUntil very recently, neuroscience has had literally no clue what creativity looks like in the brain, but our knowledge of the brain is constantly expanding, and now we finally do have some understanding of the parts of the brain involved in creativity. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • The Origins of Creativity • Creativity: The Human Brain in the Age of Innovation • Fire Up Your Writing Brain • The Psychopa...
PLAIN PEOPLE AND CELEBRITY | Episode 35
September 26, 2019 10:00 - 13 minutes - 15.7 MBIn which we learn that celebrities are really just people. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Sean Lennon on Marc Maron's podcas • Kim Kardashian working on sentencing reform • U.S. malls that don't allow unaccompanied teens • Kurt Cobain's suicide note • JoshShear.com: The myth of celebrity
SHIFTING PERSPECTIVE | Episode 34
September 19, 2019 10:00 - 11 minutes - 13.3 MBBeing able to consider various perspectives gives you power. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • First part of our series on empathy • Empathy: Why It Matters and How To Get It • Revisionist History • Thought experiment: 50-year rollback • Why context matters • America First Committee • Trump tells Jewish Republicans that America is full • JoshShear.com: Gaining some perspective
THE MYTH OF FRIDAY THE 13th | Episode 33
September 12, 2019 09:30 - 8 minutes - 9.35 MBMention Friday the 13th to any Freemason, and you're going to hear about Jacques De Molay and the Knights Templar. But is that really the origin of the myth? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Wikipedia: Knights Templar • Paraskevidekatriaphobia • Vox: Friday the 13th is a meme disguised as superstition • Hesiod's rules • Wikipedia: The Last Supper • The 13th Guest • The Canterbury Tales • A Match at M...
WHAT KIND OF SUPERHERO ARE YOU? | Episode 32
September 05, 2019 09:30 - 6 minutes - 7.83 MBYou already have some super power. What kind of super hero are you? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Mark Henson • Ordinary Superpowers • Mark Henson on JKWD • JoshShear.com: What kind of superhero do you want to be?
WHAT IS LABOR DAY? | Episode 31
August 29, 2019 09:30 - 7 minutes - 8.69 MBWhile today Labor Day is often celebrated as the unofficial end of summer — the last day for beaches, vacation seasons and outdoor pools, and in some cases the last day of summer break for public school systems — its intended purpose is to celebrate the contribution of the labor force. This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • NYT article on first Labor Day march • Oregon celebrates Labor Day • Congress declares a fede...
GET MORE FOCUS, DITCH DISTRACTIONS | Episode 30
August 22, 2019 09:30 - 15 minutes - 17.3 MBWhat is focus? How does it manifest in our brains? How about distractions? How can we avoid them? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Jocko Willink • Brain Balance Guide: The neurochemistry of focus • Donepezil • Galantamine • Scientists pinpoint brain's anti-distraction mechanism • Triggering the brain's autofocus • The case for incorporating mindfulness • The two brain systems that control our focus ...
BOOST YOUR CONFIDENCE | Episode 29
August 15, 2019 09:30 - 8 minutes - 9.56 MBDo you need more confidence? How about less? Here's how to find the right balance. Hold my beer! This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Hold my beer: People with maybe a little TOO much confidence • Creativity by Elkhonon Goldberg • Metacognitive confidence: A neuroscience approach • We can increase confidence using artificial intelligence and brain imaging • American Confidence Institute • JoshShear.com: Conf...
IMPOSTOR SYNDROME | Episode 28
August 08, 2019 09:30 - 16 minutes - 18.9 MBSomething that many people moving on and up in their careers — or starting new businesses, raising their prices, etc. — suffer from is impostor syndrome. What is it? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Impostor syndrome (Wikipedia) • The reality of impostor syndrome • Feel like a fraud? • Carole Lieberman • What is impostor syndrome? • JKWD: In praise of compliments • Valerie Young • 5 different types o...
AGRIPPA'S TRILEMMA | Episode 27
August 01, 2019 09:30 - 10 minutes - 11.7 MBHEY! Who needs a rabbit hole to go down? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Naval Ravikant on Joe Rogan's podcast • Agrippa's trilemma • Pascal's triangle • Falsifiability (Wikipedia) • Snakehead fish • JoshShear.com: Beliefs aren't facts
IN PRAISE OF SILENCE | Episode 26
July 25, 2019 09:30 - 13 minutes - 15.3 MBThere's an adage that says, "Silence is golden." But why? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Dr. Drew on Duncan Trussell's podcast • Oak • Remedy Float • Long bouts of silence can help start growing new neurons • Silence could be a treatment for Alzheimer's • Pauses in music lead to calm • Our brains are more active when not dealing with stimulus • Finland has made solitude part of its tourism marketin...
IS COMPARISON ALWAYS BAD? | Episode 25
July 18, 2019 09:30 - 10 minutes - 11.6 MBTeddy Roosevelt said, "Comparison is the thief of joy." Is that always true? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Social comparison study by two Princeton researchers • Jealousy spikes stress hormones • Pride gives us a strong, positive emotional response • The four-minute mile • 12-year-old skateboarder lands a 1080-degree spin • The Rise of Superman by Steven Kotler • JoshShear.com: On comparison
PATIENCE: What it is, how to get it | Episode 24
July 11, 2019 09:30 - 12 minutes - 13.7 MBThey say patience is a virtue. Where does it live in our brains? How do we get more of it? This episode is brought to you by Kettle & Fire. Save 10% off your order with code BetterHumanhood. Links: • Stanford marshmallow delayed gratification study • Part 1 of our happiness series • Happiness chemicals • Seratonin regulates patience and impulsivity • Selective seratonin re-uptake inhibitor (SSRI) • Human study on delayed gratification • Default Mode Network • Chade-Meng Tan,...
SACRED + UNDENIABLE + DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE | Episode 23
July 04, 2019 09:30 - 18 minutes - 21.5 MBRevolutions are edited. We discuss Thomas Jefferson's first draft of the Declaration of Independence and what self-evident might really mean. We also read the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Links: • Thomas Jefferson's rough draft of the Declaration of Independence • U.S. Declaration of Independence • John Locke's "Essay Concerning Human Understanding" • Walter Isaacson's biography of Benjamin Franklin • JoshShear.com: Who's on your personal board of directors? • JoshShear.com: S...
DO IT FOR YOU | Episode 22
June 27, 2019 10:00 - 7 minutes - 9.05 MBWhat if you stopped listening to what other people said you should do and just did stuff you wanted to do? Links: • Feck Perfuction by James Victore • Shepard Fairey • No More Mr. Nice Guy by Robert A. Glover • JKWD: What drives you? • Cal Fussman's podcast • JoshShear.com: Do it for you Subscribe: • iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Player.fm • Google Play • TuneIn • LibSyn (RSS) • Subscribe on Android
KEEP YOUR FANTASIES ALIVE | Episode 21
June 20, 2019 10:00 - 9 minutes - 10.7 MBWhat happens when we shut down our fantasies? When we stop believing in things we can't see? When we stop dancing? Links: • Feck Perfuction by James Victore • JoshShear.com: Losing our shame • "Pan's Labyrinth" • "Hellboy" • Pirates of the Caribbean • Star Wars • "The Neverending Story" • JoshShear.com: Keep your fantasies alive, and why you should dance at weddings Subscribe: • iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Player.fm • Google Play • TuneIn • LibSyn (RSS) • Subscribe on A...
FLAG DAY + TOAST TO THE FLAG | Episode 20
June 13, 2019 10:00 - 7 minutes - 8.19 MBJune 14 is Flag Day in the United States. Where did it come from? How do we celebrate? We also read the Toast to the Flag. Links: • WikiPedia: Flag Day • Flag etiquette • Toast to the Flag • JoshShear.com: Where does Flag Day come from? Subscribe: • iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Player.fm • Google Play • TuneIn • LibSyn (RSS) • Subscribe on Android
WHAT ARE YOUR EARS FEEDING YOUR BRAIN? | Episode 19
June 06, 2019 10:00 - 17 minutes - 19.5 MBWe discuss how listening makes connections in your brain, and look at what we're taking in through our ears. Links: • JoshShear.com: Notes on Bert Kreischer's conversation with Bobby Kelly • JoshShear.com: Notes on Mike Baker on Joe Rogan's podcast • How much time do people spend reading, listening and watching? • Audiobooks are more engaging than films or TV • Listening is a shortcut to assimilating our brains to our surroundings • Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace • Jason Sega...
HUMAN IMPROVEMENT AND 'FIRST WORLD PROBLEMS' | Episode 18
May 30, 2019 10:00 - 12 minutes - 14.4 MBEvery generation has a "kids these days" moment, but between Gen Xers and Millennials, we had a huge technological leap, and problems today aren't even recognizable to earlier generations. Links: • Millennials are reviving the market for houseplants • #FirstWorldProblems on Twitter • JoshShear.com: Rambling thoughts on innovation • Roger Bannister • The Rise of Superman by Steven Kotler • JoshShear.com: Plant parents, 'first world problems' and human improvement Subscribe: • iTune...
MEMORIAL DAY 2019 | Episode 17
May 23, 2019 10:00 - 5 minutes - 6.23 MBWe often think of Memorial Day as the unofficial start to summer in the U.S., but where does it come from? What does it really mean? Links: • All About History: Memorial Day • JoshShear.com: What Memorial Day means Subscribe: • iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Player.fm • Google Play • TuneIn • LibSyn (RSS) • Subscribe on Android
WHAT MAKES US HAPPY? | Episode 16
May 16, 2019 09:55 - 20 minutes - 23.6 MBIn the third part of a three-part series on happiness, we look at the things that make us happy. Links: • Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker • Age of Anger by Pankaj Mishra • The Myths of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky • The Happiness Hypothesis by Jonathan Haidt • Gapminder test • Man's Search for Himself by Rollo May • Feck Perfuction by James Victore • JoshShear.com: The universe isn't out to get you • Law of attraction • Search Inside Yourself by Chade-Meng Tan • Joy on Dema...
WHEN IS HAPPINESS? | Episode 15
May 09, 2019 09:55 - 12 minutes - 14.7 MBWere you happy? Are you happy? Will you be happy? Heck, will you have been happy? In the second part of a three-part series on happiness, we discuss the time element of being happy. Links: • Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker • Age of Anger by Pankaj Mishra • Man's Search for Himself by Rollo May • Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert • The Happiness Hypothesis by Jonathan Haidt • JoshShear.com: When is happiness?
COCAINE, KITTENS AND CURING CANCER: Introduction to happiness | Episode 14
May 02, 2019 09:55 - 13 minutes - 14.9 MBWhat is happiness? What does it look like? What does it do in our brains? We start a three-part series on happiness, one of the core subjects we love exploring at Better Humanhood. Links: • Which chemicals in our brain are associated with happiness • Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert • JKWD: Control and letting go • JoshShear.com: What is happiness?
KINDNESS AND COMPASSION | Episode 13
April 25, 2019 10:00 - 13 minutes - 15.2 MBIn the fourth of a four-part series on empathy — which will be a recurring theme throughout the podcast — we take a look at empathy's shortcomings, what we really utilize in creating a moral code and the possibility that morality evolved through natural selection. Links: • Against Empathy by Paul Bloom • The Psychopath Inside by James Fallon • Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker • Ordinary Grace by Kathleen Brehony • Practical Wisdom by Barry Schwartz • The Coddling of the American M...
FREE WILL AND THE EMPATHY OF INSTITUTIONS | Episode 12
April 18, 2019 10:00 - 18 minutes - 21.6 MBIn the third of a four-part series on empathy — which will be a recurring theme throughout the podcast — we take a look at what free will and how religions and governments remove our empathy by creating an us-versus-them environment Links: • The Moral Arc by Michael Shermer • The Science of Evil by Simon Baron-Cohen • The Age of Anger by Pankaj Mishra • How to be more interesting • Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker • Episode 9 of the podcast • JoshShear.com: Empathy, religion, poli...
SYSTEMATIZING A MORAL CODE | Episode 11
April 11, 2019 10:00 - 19 minutes - 22.6 MBIn the second of a four-part series on empathy — which will be a recurring theme throughout the podcast — we take a look at how to systematize if not empathy, a moral code. We also talk about the trolley problem, the drowning child, and killing baby Hitler. Links: • Against Empathy by Paul Bloom • The Science of Evil by Simon Baron-Cohen • Andrew Yang • Steven Kotler on Duncan Trussell's podcast • Peter Diamandis • Kroger makes grocery deliveries in autonomous vehicles • Peter Singe...
INTRODUCTION TO EMPATHY | Episode 10
April 04, 2019 10:00 - 24 minutes - 27.8 MBIn the first of a four-part series on empathy — which will be a recurring theme throughout the podcast — we take a look at what empathy is, how it appears in the brain, and what happens when it's missing. Links: • Against Empathy by Paul Bloom • The Science of Evil by Simon Baron-Cohen • Empathy: Why It Matters and How To Get It by Roman Krznaric • The Empathy Exams by Leslie Jamison • As the brain spins • Mirroring People by Marco Iacoboni • Phineas Gage • The Psychopath Inside by...
HOW TO TALK ABOUT THE MUELLER REPORT | Bonus Episode
March 28, 2019 12:30 - 8 minutes - 7.37 MBWe recorded Episode 9 before the Mueller report was released, and before Attorney General William Barr wrote a letter to Congress summarizing it. We do a quick episode on how to talk about it honestly and objectively. Links: • I Side With • Joe Rogan's podcast with Renee Diresta Subscribe: • iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Player.fm • Google Play • TuneIn • LibSyn (RSS) • Subscribe on Android
ELECTION 2020: EARLY EDITION | Episode 09
March 28, 2019 10:00 - 26 minutes - 24.1 MBWe talk about how to talk to people about politics, how to listen to people about politics, and how to be on Team People and Team America, rather than Team D or Team R or Team L or Team G or whatever. We also discuss: The role of government in our lives The role of responsible news media in elections Voting with your head first, then your heart Why it's good for political parties to have rifts Links: • I Side With • Andrew Yang
RESTATEMENT OF PURPOSE | Episode 08
March 21, 2019 10:00 - 12 minutes - 11.8 MBWe are back, with purpose, and a weekly show. Better Humanhood is for you if you are, want to be, or wish for others to be: Smarter More curious More creative Happier Healthier More disciplined More productive Kinder and more empathetic We're all making life up as we go along, and we're sharing our work. In this episode, we restate our purpose, make some promises, and ask for some promises from you. Links: • PostSecret • Humans of New York • JKWD Podcast • Better Huma...
Episode 7: Election recap, how not to be an asshole
November 09, 2018 11:00 - 12 minutes - 11.8 MBWe do a quick recap of the 2018 U.S. election and aftermath, talk flu shots and start laying some groundwork for the future. Show notes and such at JoshShear.com.
Episode 6: Vote! Plus: A little catch-up
November 02, 2018 18:43 - 14 minutes - 12.8 MBIt's coming up on Election Day here in the United States. Don't miss out on your chance to vote. It's important. And you could lose it. We also play a little catch up. Pop on over to JoshShear.com for show notes and such.
Episode 5: Seth Horan
May 31, 2018 10:00 - 1 hour - 115 MBI talk with solo bassist singer-songwriter Seth Horan about that procedure I had, about being a musician on Patreon and about the value of art. No video for this one but we'll have a few links over at http://joshshear.com
Better Humanhood Podcast, Episode 4: Recovery, hanging
May 02, 2018 15:45 - 12 minutes - 17.7 MBWe talk about my varicocele embolization, the ease with which we get drugs in America and upcoming opportunities to hang in Savannah and Syracuse. More at http://joshshear.com/2018/05/better-humanhood-podcast-episode-4-recovery-hanging/
Episode 3: Impending
April 24, 2018 19:55 - 7 minutes - 9.84 MBWe talk about an upcoming procedure to help correct an infertility issue, the Waffle House shooting in Nashville and the van driver who killed pedestrians in Toronto, along with our ongoing theme of walking in others' shoes and being a little kinder. The best things you can do to help support the podcast would be to rate and review it in your podcast app of choice -- that will help more people find it -- and if you know someone who needs the knowledge, please share it with them. More at ...
Episode 2: We return, for real
April 18, 2018 21:33 - 13 minutes - 18.5 MBWe talk a little bit about being kinder, a little bit about how to approach people you disagree with and a bit about male infertility. As always, watch http://joshshear.com/ for more.
Episode 1: Being a Mensch
February 15, 2018 11:00 - 8 minutes - 11.3 MBWe talk Shep Gordon and the late Brian Palefsky. The best things you can do to help support the podcast would be to rate and review it in your podcast app of choice — that will help more people find it — and if you know someone who needs the knowledge, please share it with them.
Episode 0: Statement of Purpose
February 07, 2018 11:00 - 19 minutes - 26.7 MBWelcome to the Better Humanhood Podcast, formerly Josh: The Podcast. We're relaunching under a new name with a new purpose. For now, the best place to catch up is at http://JoshShear.com, but more to come over the next year. See you soon!
Episode 79: Hiatus; see you in April
October 12, 2017 10:00 - 4 minutes - 5.9 MBHey, y'all. Thanks so much for being here the past 18 months! It's so awesome that you've stuck with me. Josh: The Podcast is getting a major overhaul. Listen to find out what you can expect and when you can expect it. Also...who knows? It might come with a new name... Keep up with the back episodes at http://joshshear.com/podcasts and keep your subscribed button on so the next episode will download automatically!
Episode 78: Vegas shooting, self-love and racquetball
October 05, 2017 11:00 - 14 minutes - 19.6 MBLesson from this week's podcast: Just don't be an asshole, eh? Yeah, we're talking about guns again, I feel like I'm kinda talking to myself on it, but at least I make for good company... Show notes at http://joshshear.com/2017/10/josh-the-podcast-episode-78-vegas-shooting-self-love-and-racquetball/
Episode 77: More oomph in your day, more love in your week
September 28, 2017 10:00 - 17 minutes - 24.1 MBWe talk about stuff, because that's what we do. Yay! Full show notes at http://joshshear.com/2017/09/josh-the-podcast-episode-77/