The James Altucher Show

People don't talk about this enough... the life hacks that answer the bigger questions: "How can I make time for things I really love and enjoy?" "How do I get the most out of a day, a week, a year, ten years?" There are a lot of life hacks out there. But I wanted to do something different. I wanted to talk about the little tweaks I do personally to optimize my life and make it a little better bit...

"You're the most disappointing guest ever," I said. "You've done everything you've ever wanted to do, you rose to the top..." Will Shortz is the crossword puzzle editor for "The New York Times." And he took probably the strangest path I've ever heard to get there... he figured out how to be in control of his career, do what he loves and make it all up as he goes along. This episode is going to giv...

The first time Gary Gulman came on my podcast, he was totally depressed. He had difficulty speaking. He was hunched over. I almost felt bad for inviting him. But he was really candid. And I wanted to be his friend. He's likable and his comedy always makes me laugh. This is his third time on the show. And he's not suffering from depression anymore. He told me about the medical changes he's made, th...

One time I was on a plane with an CIA officer. He told me a lot of stories. One thing he said stood out. It was a life hack that I adopted right away. And I've been doing it for years ever since. I try to collect one takeaway from every person I interview. But sometimes I get takeaways from my friends and even myself. And now they're all recorded in this podcast. Oh and one more thing. You can let...

Garry Kasparov is the best chess player in history. He was ranked #1 in the world for 20 years. And in 2007, he ran for president of Russia. Now he lives in exile. Going back to Russia is not an option for him. When I asked him, "Would you be in trouble?" he said, "Trouble is an understatement." He'd be arrested or worse because of his outspokenness and belief in democracy. He believes in America....

Evan Carmichael has a YouTube channel with over 2 million subscribers. He didn't have a master plan. He built it up from scratch. And just followed a few simple rules (which you'll hear in this podcast). My favorite rule out of all of them is this: "Follow your momentum." Evan didn't know he'd be a huge success on YouTube. He just tried it and felt the momentum and followed it forward. Now he has...

Lori Gottlieb is a psychotherapist and the author of an upcoming book called "Maybe You Should Talk to Someone." She also writes a column in The Atlantic called "Dear Therapist." This episode is sort of a behind-the-scenes. Because Lori tells me what therapists really think about their patients, how they might deal with situation X vs. situation Y. And she also talked to me about things she's noti...

Gilbert Gottfried started doing stand-up comedy when he was 15 years old. He dropped out of high school and within 10 years he was on Saturday Night Live. And he built his career up from there. But he's also been the center of a lot of controversies. People get upset at comedians for "going too far." But Gilbert does it for a reason... He said, "I remember, I did this show that was a tribute to Jo...

I got nervous because David Rubenstein is the co-founder and co-chariman of The Carlyle Group, which is the biggest private equity firm maybe in the world. They own hundreds of companies and have $200 billion in assets. He's also the chairman of a lot of other things: The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The Smithsonian and he also has his on show, "The David Rubenstein show," where...

Bryon Allen has 3 rules in business: "Don't let anyone come between you and the customer. Don't run out of money. And don't break rules #2 and #3." But he didn't know these rules when he got started. He says people weren't betting on the young black boy born in Detroit... in the 60's... to a 17-year-old teenage mother. But he defied the odds. And found his passion early on (age 12). This episode w...

John Paul DeJoria is a self-made billionaire and philanthropist who co-founded the Paul Mitchell hair line.   I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltucher.com/podcast.     Thanks so much for listening! If you like this episode, please subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" and rate and review wherever you get your podcasts: Apple Podcasts Stitche...

George Gilder is a 79 year old super futurist. He's the author of  #2 book in China, "Life after Google The Fall of Big Data and the Rise of the Blockchain Economy." I had him on the podcast because he's somehow been able to predict the future for decades. Steve Jobs read his book in 1990 and passed it around to friends. "So I believe I had some vague influence on the evolution of iPhone," George...

David Goggins went from being 300 lbs to becoming a Navy SEAL. He also ran a 100-mile race AND he set the world pull-up record at 4,030 pull-ups in 24 hours. I told him I don't want to do any of that. But... I do want to learn the mindset he developed to achieve all of this and get out of his comfort zone.    I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesa...

This is part 2 of my interview with Amy Morin where we talk about 10 mental health strategies that will make you stronger.  In part 1 of the interview, we talked about her article "5 Ways to Simplify Your Life to Make Room for Things that Matter Most." Both parts have really great tips. Part 1 focusses on what not to do. And part 2 takes it into the positive because it shows you actionable steps y...

Amy Morin in a mental strength trainer. She started out a therapist. And then her husband passed away. And her mom. She was grieving. And tortured by the pain. Then she realized she had the power to strengthen her own mind. She wrote about this in her internationally bestselling book, "13 Things Mentally Strong People Don't Do." Now, she's back on the podcast to talk about an article she just wrot...

TJ Miller is a comedian and actor. You've seen him in Silicon Valley, Deadpool, Ready Player One, and more. I kept asking him about his success. And how he got there. He told me to stop trying "manufacture" it. I laughed. He kept cracking jokes. He'll make you laugh. And think. Because he studies a lot of philosophy. That's where a lot of his comedy comes from. Absurdism + philosophy + storytellin...

I went on Jamie Kilstein's podcast. And the conversation got intense. So I asked to publish it on my podcast, too. Here it is. I wanted to repost it because he told me what he does to make an impact in life. And how this has changed for him over time. I could relate. I used to waste energy on things that don't matter. Or stop me from progressing in a way that actually makes me feel better than I d...

Phillip Stutts has been at the forefront of defining digital campaigning in politics. He has gotten presidents elected. He's gotten senators elected. He's gotten all sorts of political offices elected. I wanted to hear the strategy behind those wins. And how it can be applied to business. But I also wanted to ask Phillip about his rare, incurable disease. Because he set a goal to find the cure in...

First, Tom Bilyeu created one of the fastest growing companies. Sold it. And made millions. Now he's running a super successful media company. Here's a list of what we talked about: - WHY I'M TERRIBLE AT NETWORKING (AND WHAT MAKES TOM GREAT AT IT) - HOW TO MAKE YOUR BUSINESS STAND OUT ONLINE - USEFUL TECHNIQUES FOR STORYTELLING - FINDING YOUR PERSONAL NARRATIVE / CHANGING IT AND IMPROVING YOUR SEL...

Tom Bilyeu grew his company 57,000% in just two years. His company was the second fastest growing company that year. Then he sold it. And overnight, became massively wealthy. Now he runs a media company called Impact Theory. And has a podcast with the same name. This episode will teach you about massive growth in business and everyday life.   Also Mentioned "The E Myth" by Michael E. Gerber's "Pri...

Danica Patrick is a top-level, professional racing driver, entrepreneur and one of the most well recognized female athletes in history. She started racing when she was 10 years old. And knew she'd make a career out of it. I wanted to know what drove her. And how she uses that same drive to fuel her clothing line, wine business, speaking gigs and more today.    I write about all my podcasts! Check...

Kai-Fu Lee is an artificial intelligence expert, venture capitalist and he's probably the reason we have "Siri" and "Alexa." He ran all of Apple's speech recognition back in the 90's. Then went on to work with Google and Microsoft. He's neck deep in innovation. So I had him on to show me the future. And to tell me who the winners will be.   I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post an...

Wyclef Jean is one of my favorite artists/rappers/creators.  He came from the worst ghettos in Brooklyn. And before that, he came from Haiti. I wanted to know how he took the leap... because so many people are afraid to try. He would imagine himself singing in front of audiences when he was just singing behind the counter at Burger King. And eventually, that vision was reality.    I write about al...

AJ Jacobs traveled all around the world to say "thanks" to all the people involved in making his morning cup of coffee. Then he wrote about it in his new book "Thanks a Thousand." He thanked everyone from the farmers to the truckers and so on. Then I did my own gratitude experiment (during this podcast). I called the professor who signed the letter that got me thrown out of graduate school. And I...

Dan Schawbel has the ultimate life plan. He started as the youngest columnist at BusinessWeek, then he created his own personal branding blog, then he became an online contributor for Forbes, then Forbes Magazine (print edition)... He takes each thing he does and leverages it to get to the next level. Eventually, he'll be a coach for c-suite executives. But for now (in this interview) I had him br...