Alchemy For Life

Are You Truly Available? The Critical Difference Between Time and Energy I’m going to ask you a simple question: Are you available right now? Of course, you’re listening to this, so your immediate answer is “yes.” But are you? For years, I’ve talked about the constant negotiation between our time, energy, and resources. Today, I want to zero in on a nuance that seems small at fir...

The CEO Mindset: Why a Fast Decision Beats a Slow Promise In the world of productivity and time management, we’re often told to optimize our calendars and to-do lists. But what if the single most effective habit of top performers isn’t about complex systems, but about one simple principle? A fast “no” is always better than a time-wasting “yes.” This core idea re...

I find it quite illuminating to speak with people from all over the world. The power of our technology and interconnected world is that it allows me to have conversations I could never have. I had the pleasure of chatting with Jamyang in this week’s podcast. Jamyang Loden Jamyang Loden is a monk from Bhutan, the “country of gross national happiness,” (you’ll hear more about...

We deal with decisions every day. Many of the episodes deal with the decision process on both a grand and low level. Three Voices deals with how we communicate these decisions, work through them, talk to both ourselves and others about them. Going with your gut—the universal advice–is telling you to listen to your first voice. Understanding the “Why” Behind Your Choices Sometimes we sa...

The Enduring Metaphor of Angels and Devils The metaphorical representation of a devil and an angel on a person’s shoulders dates back to the 16th century 1 . Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, this concept was prominently featured in plays and allegorical art. By the early 1900s, it had found its way into cartoons as a visual shorthand to depict the internal struggle between virtues and...

A primer on the book BeCAUSE! For those that have yet to read my new book because. Here’s a quick primer. One day, I asked myself a question. If you could have anything you wanted, wouldn’t you? We already know how to do most things and if we don’t, we can Google them or talk to others about it. We want to lose weight, be a better person, learn a new skill, get a new job, pursue...

I’ve done two podcast episodes on large language models. I recently spun up and installed a large language model locally on my computer and built a project around it. I’m an avid user of echoes from Amazon. I have had Grammarly kick in to spellcheck for me. I tell my phone to add an appointment to my schedule all the time. And I have a dire warning for you. MIT study A recent MIT study...

Helpful episodes Every year I create a list of the top, most useful and helpful episodes of the previous year. This year because there has been a lot of interaction on current episodes. I’ve decided to do a midyear pause and reflect if you will. Here are the top episodes in 2025 so far Manuel Rendon of Timeplast and 4d programmable matter Meet Manuel Rendon, certified polymer science invento...

Speaking to the manager I want to speak to the manager. Rather, I want to speak to your manager. What do you think of when I say that? Do you think of the structure of your current employer? Do you make a joke that it’s your cat? Is there a spouse joke in there for you? Or are you immediately defensive? There’s a reason you may be defensive, and rightly so. Hypnosis, logging in as admi...

A philosophical question for you. Don’t forget you can pause the episode to consider the question(s) as you move forward. How would you answer? Alchemy for Life™ podcast explores themes of experimental psychology, relationships, cognitive science, human behavior, mental models, consciousness, and psychological insights. We uncover hidden truths and ways to improve your life and get things do...

Let’s talk about non-local consciousness , who you’re really talking to when you’re on the phone, what happens to me and possibly you when something is put on the back burner , and wish a Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers in the United States, Brazil, Germany, India, China and Japan. Alchemy for Life podcast explores themes of experimental psychology, relationships, cog...

Getting energy and giving energy One of the things I’ve said from the very beginning is that a thing can give one person energy and take energy from another. in other words, one person’s activity that energizes them could also really be draining for another. But that giving of energy is also taking energy. Nobody engages in meaningful receiving of energy without also giving energy. Sim...

The normal format for this show is to introduce you to something and raise your perception. Then we discuss it and you typically leave with homework. This time you are giving me homework. Let’s talk about the importance of feedback and how each and every one of us has a struggle. What’s yours?

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/CuKSdSJmsmw We all know what it is. We have all done it. We’ve all had it done to us. Let’s talk about when it’s appropriate when it’s not, and why it can be so frustrating. Transcript: The Anatomy of Ghosting We all know what ghosting is, and we’re aware that it’s now a verb. But let’s define it so we’re on the same pa...

Time is money You’ve heard that phrase and it is often accompanied by someone clapping, tapping their foot, or some other show of impatience. Chop chop, time is money . In our world of Time, Energy and Resources as separate entities, they are saying time is resources, aren’t they? But it’s actually more accurate to same time is energy . Let’s discuss, and see if you agree....

Fair & Square Here are the rules of the square and triangle universe. Squares sell things to and help that are both squares and triangles. Most triangles gear their products and services for only triangles. Most squares buy from squares and triangles. Most triangles will buy from both squares and triangles but will choose a triangle over a square, especially if the triangle says their product...

A while back we talked about the importance of a catalog and your awareness of that. By revisiting that we are demonstrating (in a rather meta way) the importance of revisiting it. And let’s add how that affects your facets too. Catalog A catalog covers anything and everything you do. This then gets distilled down into your nice brochure and your website. That gets distilled down further int...

I like to apply analogical reasoning, You can call it conceptual metaphors. And if both of those are confusing, how about applying the concept of one domain to another. Still confused? For example, we talked about liminal spaces which don’t look or sound right. But you can then take that into the emotional domain and talk about things like a bride on the night before her wedding, or how it f...

You are living in an era that is coming to an end. There was a time when all pictures were in black-and-white because that was the technology we had. Most people were fit, and men typically wore suits even at baseball games. Then pictures, had color, but it was of a not true to life color with a look that was overly warm with lots of reds and browns. Then we had more color accurate images and what...

I have a new book coming out. it’s my 10th, and it’s based on my take on the pleasure principle and what I believe is a layer just above it. It’s what allows us to accomplish things that others do not. It’s what prevents us from doing things that we think we should be able to. It’s that nagging, (usually invisible thing) that we keep running into. It’s what allo...

(and how it might help you tell your own story) Telling a story in an unfamiliar medium with constraints you’re not accustomed to is a common theme in business. You may be the best story teller in your circle/medium/genre but if you need to tell your story outside of that it can be a challenge, a learning experience, overwhelming or all three. Here’s my experience in writing the screen...

Q&A and the answer (That’s so meta) Have you ever helped a friend who has a question or a conundrum, and the answer was so obvious to you that you easily spelled it out for them? You felt pretty smart. You noticed at some point that when you’ve had issues you turn to others for answers and you realize thatr you also could have come up with the solution? You have a “Well duh,...

A tale of disconnected happiness or Benign Violation Theory. Allow me to tell you a tale of disconnected happiness. Perhaps you can relate? Helpful related (or referenced) episodes: The holy Grail of positivity bias Throwing away the container Benign Violation Theory Have something to say? Come talk about it on Patreon .

Modes What mode are you in right now? You may intuitively know exactly what I’m talking about. Ever interrupt a conversation and the person changes their conversation style/demeanor? That’s an example of someone switching modes. Are modes just putting a mask on, or being disingenuous? No, like so many things in experimental psychology, I look at it like a program, or a template being o...

Meet Manuel Rendon , certified polymer science inventor and CEO of Timeplast, Inc . My first interview episode of 2025. Manuel joins the ranks of Scott Adams , the late John McAfee and others. 4d matter In the world of plastics, everything pretty much repels water. But what if you could create a plastic that truly dissolves in water quickly, leaves no forever chemicals, and is programmable? Oh, an...