About this episode
This episode is a two-for-one, and that’s because the podcast recently hit its 10-year anniversary and passed one billion downloads. To celebrate, I’ve curated some of the best of the best—some of my favorites—from more than 700 episodes over the last decade. I could not be more excited. The episode features segments from episode #522 " Anne Lamott on Taming Your Inner Critic, Finding Grace, and Prayer " and #148: " Josh Waitzkin, The Prodigy Returns ." Please enjoy! Sponsors: Momentous high-quality supplements: https://livemomentous.com/tim (code TIM for 20% off) Helix Sleep premium mattresses: https://HelixSleep.com/Tim (25–30% off all mattress orders and two free pillows) Shopify global commerce platform, providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business: https://shopify.com/tim (one-dollar-per-month trial period) Timestamps: [00:00] Start [04:49] Notes about this supercombo format. [05:51] Enter Anne Lamott. [06:21] What is it about Bird by Bird that has affected so many people so deeply? [07:18] Where the title of Bird by Bird originated. [09:40] How Neal Allen helps people tame (but not discard) their inner critic. [10:45] Who controls the dial when you're tuned in to KFKD radio? [11:51] How Anne recommends I pursue my fiction writing aspirations. [12:37] The pros and cons of Anne's upbringing. [19:08] What does being "spiritually fit" mean to Anne? [24:40] How radical self-care became an imperative for Anne. [32:25] The dark night that turned Anne's son Sam's life around. [38:10] Enter Josh Waitzkin. [38:43] On Dreaming Yourself Awake by B. Alan Wallace and Brian Hodel. [39:58] Casual exercise. [40:52] Josh's terrifying experience with the Wim Hof method. [45:52] How Josh uses "flow" as therapy. [48:19] Initiating a flow state. [50:45] Cognitive biases and armchair professors. [55:07] Developing high-level sensitivity and listening to your senses. [57:53] Strategies for on-boarding newcomers to mindfulness training. [1:02:40] Paddlesurfers in peril. [1:03:36] Embracing the funk. [1:06:03] On parenting. [1:15:07] Fixed perspectives and growth mindsets. [1:17:34] On training somatic sensitivity. [1:22:06] On mitigating the dangers of a fixed identity. [1:24:32] Marcelo Garcia and the principle of cultivating quality as a way of life. [1:30:19] Quality and presence in parenthood. [1:33:42] The fire-walking process. [1:40:11] Translating techniques learned from martial arts to less obvious activities (like investing). [1:42:19] Building slack into the system. [1:46:17] Scarcity in the learning process. [1:54:27] Josh's daily journaling process. [1:56:25] Thematic interconnectedness in the context of education. [2:04:08] The Art of Learning Project. [2:05:59] Parting thoughts. * For show notes and past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show , please visit tim.blog/podcast . For deals from sponsors of The Tim Ferriss Show , please visit tim.blog/podcast-sponsors Sign up for Tim’s email newsletter ( 5-Bullet Friday ) at tim.blog/friday . For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts . Discover Tim’s books: tim.blog/books . Follow Tim: Twitter : twitter.com/tferriss Instagram : instagram.com/timferriss YouTube : youtube.com/timferriss Facebook : facebook.com/timferriss LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/timferriss Past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld , Hugh Jackman , Dr. Jane Goodall , LeBron James , Kevin Hart , Doris Kearns Goodwin , Jamie Foxx , Matthew McConaughey , Esther Perel , Elizabeth Gilbert , Terry Crews , Sia , Yuval Noah Harari , Malcolm Gladwell , Madeleine Albright , Cheryl Strayed , Jim Collins , Mary Karr, Maria Popova , Sam Harris , Michael Phelps , Bob Iger , Edward Norton , Arnold Schwarzenegger , Neil Strauss , Ken Burns , Maria Sharapova , Marc Andreessen , Neil Gaiman , Neil de Grasse Tyson , Jocko Willink , Daniel Ek , Kelly Slater , Dr. Peter Attia , Seth Godin , Howard Marks , Dr. Brené Brown , Eric Schmidt , Michael Lewis , Joe Gebbia , Michael Pollan , Dr. Jordan Peterson , Vince Vaughn , Brian Koppelman , Ramit Sethi , Dax Shepard , Tony Robbins , Jim Dethmer , Dan Harris , Ray Dalio , Naval Ravikant , Vitalik Buterin , Elizabeth Lesser , Amanda Palmer , Katie Haun , Sir Richard Branson , Chuck Palahniuk , Arianna Huffington , Reid Hoffman , Bill Burr , Whitney Cummings , Rick Rubin , Dr. Vivek Murthy , Darren Aronofsky , Margaret Atwood , Mark Zuckerberg , Peter Thiel , Dr. Gabor Maté , Anne Lamott , Sarah Silverman , Dr. Andrew Huberman , and many more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .