The Voluntary Life

Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! This episode presents the implicit principles that underpin non-peaceful parenting, and contrasts them with the principles of peaceful parenting that was discussed in Episode 278. Show Notes: Episode 272 Why I Choose Peaceful Parenting     Episode 278 Three Principles Of Philosophy Applied To Parenting

Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! Is unselfishness a virtue? Or is the idea of unselfishness a trap used to prevent you from living your own life? What is selfishness anyway? This week's episode is about different theories of selfishness, including Harry Browne's idea of the unselfishness trap and an alternative definition of selfishness by Oscar Wilde. Show Notes: Become A...

Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! This week's episode is a response to this listener email: "I am very close to the financial independence. I have listened to some podcasts you have on the topic, but I still have some doubts. I know that my parents will not understand why I am not getting up every morning to go to the office. I know that my friends will ask about my next pr...

Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! There is a saying in investing that "cash is trash", because cash provides such low returns and loses value owing to inflation. Yet every investor has to deal with cash in  some way and there is always some role for cash within a portfolio. So how much of your net worth should you have in cash? Why hold it? When should you rebalance in and...

Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! This week's episode is a response to this listener email: "I've been a long term listener, but honestly I'm having a difficult time  [seeing why I should be] a paid subscriber. I listen to several podcasts and a similar characteristic seems to be FI and hosts who are millionaires. Provide real value for those who don't enjoy that status and...

Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards! The Areas of Responsibility framework is a very powerful productivity technique for sorting your life out. It helps me answer questions such as: What am I doing with my life, and why? Is what I am doing right now a good use of my time? What should I devote my efforts to in order to build the life I want? In this episode, I introduce Areas o...

"Non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals. In particular non-stupid people constantly forget that at all times and places and under any circumstances to deal and/or associate with stupid people always turns out to be a costly mistake." Carlo Cipolla In the 1970s, an economic historian called Carlo Cipolla wrote a provocative article titled "The Basic Laws of...

This week's episode features Hannah and me discussing our move to Girona. We talk about adapting to a travel lifestyle with a baby, the challenges of minimalism and travel, beautiful Girona as an expat location, and many more topics! Show Notes: Hannah Braime TVL 254: Perpetual Travel With Kids Part 1: Interview With Go Curry Cracker Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards!

A response to this interesting listener question: "Hi Jake, I would like to hear your thoughts on making the decision to have a child. I am 33 years old, and there are lots of expectations on this one. I find it difficult to escape this identity trap and to know for myself if I want to become a parent or not.  I know it's a BIG one, and it is personal, but your podcast is probably the only place w...

The identity trap is an idea from Harry Browne's book How I Found Freedom In An Unfree World . Harry suggested that some widely held assumptions about life are false. By accepting such false assumptions, you lose your freedom. He called these false assumptions "traps". The identity trap is the belief that you should be the person that others want you to be, rather than being yourself. There are tw...

This weeks episode is about how to manage your own productivity system for getting things done. It comes from an interview that I did a while ago on the Valiant Growth podcast. In the interview, I talk about various techniques for managing your own productivity system, including: The different components of a productivity system Undertaking regular reviews Choosing between different productivity t...

A response to this listener question: "From what I gather, for much of your 20s and 30s you worked very hard on building your business and for long hours each day. It has clearly paid off for you, as you've sold the business and enjoyed many years of financial independence. But is this something you'd recommend for younger people? What's the best way of thinking about the work/life balance at that...

  Simon writes for digital nomads, perpetual travellers, and location independent entrepreneurs on his blog Freedom Surfer . In this interview, he talks about his own journey to location independence and his thoughts on the pros and cons of this lifestyle. He explains how he tackles the practical challenges of perpetual travel, such as business formation, banking, and taxation. Show Notes: Freedom...

In this week's episode, my guest Sebastian Kühn talks about the benefits and challenges of running a location-independent business. He shares his own experiences setting up businesses in Hong Kong and Estonia, as well as his thoughts on the Estonian E-Residency program. Sebastian Kühn is a the author of a website for digital nomads called  Wireless Life . Show Notes: Wireless Life Recording of Seb...

This week's episode is a review of David Allen's book, Making It All Work . This book is about applying principles of productivity beyond work, to life as a whole. The review is a discussion between myself and Chris Stefanick taken from Chris' podcast, Choice Conversations . Show Notes: Choice Conversations Making It All Work by David Allen How To Read A Book by Mortimer Adler Other episodes on pr...

It is not often that Hollywood makes movies which explore real business challenges. The Founder is a movie about how Ray Kroc created a global restaurant franchise from a small business started by the MacDonald brothers. This podcast episode is about what entrepreneurs can learn from the ideas shown in the movie. Show Notes: The Founder (Movie) Fact Checking The Founder Grinding It Out by Ray Kroc...

Does becoming a parent mean giving up a minimalist lifestyle? In this episode  Hannah and Jake discuss their experience of minimalism and parenting. Some of the topics covered include: Baby-wearing as an alternative to prams Co-sleeping as an alternative to cots Breastfeeding and baby-led weaning as alternative to bottle feeding and baby foods Buying second-hand stuff for babies How attachment par...

Jake is interviewed on The Sample Hour podcast with the host, Drew Sample. We had a wide-ranging discussion covering options for living a job-free life, productivity, minimalism as a parent, and motivation— including the fear that motivates me. Show Notes: The Sample Hour Job Free by Jake Desyllas Becoming An Entrepreneur by Jake Desyllas Become A Patron of TVL to get bonus episodes and rewards!

In this episode, I respond to listener feedback about peaceful parenting. Some of the topics covered include: Is spanking justified? What about minor kinds of aggression in parenting, such as confiscating possessions? One listener's experience of practicing peaceful parenting for 18 years. How come I argue against the use of psychotropic drugs on children? Show Notes: Previous Parenting Episodes T...

Although it might not seem like it, disagreeing is a skill. To disagree well is not only an important skill, but also a learnable one. Most people disagree so poorly that they fail to even make an argument. This podcast episode presents Paul Graham's excellent article " How To Disagree " and discusses the concept of a hierarchy of disagreement. Show Notes : How To Disagree by Paul Graham Graham's...

Hannah  and I discuss ways to design a life without regrets. Hannah talks about how to use  journaling to stay conscious of what really matters to you.  I explain my own journaling exercise inspired by her approach- Each week I complete the following sentence stems: The most courageous expression of my feelings at the moment would be… The best opportunity for quality time this week is … If I were...

This episode is about three principles of philosophy applied to parenting: Children own themselves (all people are self-owners). Parents have positive obligations towards their children (all individuals are responsible for their own actions). It is wrong to initiate aggression against children (initiating aggression against anyone is unjustifiable). Philosophical principles don't provide detailed...

What will you do when you reach financial independence and job freedom? In this episode, I suggest some of the major opportunities that make this lifestyle worth striving to achieve, based on my own experience. Good luck on your journey, and let me know what you think! Show Notes: Job Free by Jake Desyllas Becoming An Entrepreneur by Jake Desyllas Episode 254 Perpetual Travel With Kids Part 1: Int...

Paul Johnson's book, Intellectuals , provides many examples of the disastrous personal lives of intellectuals like Jean Jaques Rousseau, Karl Marx, Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. Why do so many intellectuals—who famously argue for a better society— behave so badly in their personal relationships? Johnson suggests a few explanations, such as their need for attention and desire to post-rat...

Jake's guide to the most helpful books on productivity, including why each one is recommend and what to expect from it. Show Notes: Getting Things Done by David Allen Making It All Work by David Allen Ready For Anything By David Allen The Power Of Less by Leo Babauta ( Review in TVL Episode 253 ) Manage Your Day-to-Day  edited by Jocelyn Glei The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg ( Discussion in TV...