About this episode
Elizabeth Gilbert is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Big Magic and Eat, Pray, Love as well as several other international bestsellers. Her latest novel, City of Girls , was named an instant New York Times bestseller. Go to ElizabethGilbert.Substack.com to subscribe to “ Letters From Love with Elizabeth Gilbert ,” her newsletter, which has more than 120,000 subscribers. This episode was originally published in September 2024. Show notes and links: https://tim.blog/2024/09/26/elizabeth-gilbert-2/ Sponsors: Vanta trusted compliance and security platform: https://vanta.com/tim ($1000 off) Our Place's Titanium Always Pan® Pro using nonstick technology that’s coating-free and made without PFAS, otherwise known as “Forever Chemicals”: https://fromourplace.com/tim (Shop their sale now!) 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: [00:00:00] Who is Elizabeth Gilbert? [00:05:42] No cherished outcomes. [00:10:55] Self-compassionate ownership of responsibility. [00:15:52] The daily practice of writing letters from love. [00:22:22] Two-way prayer vs. one-way prayer. [00:30:57] The male approach to this practice. [00:34:27] How do you feel toward yourself vs. about yourself? [00:36:53] Understanding self-hatred to foster self-friendliness. [00:43:20] Setting boundaries and dealing with those who refuse to honor them. [00:50:15] Why (and how) Elizabeth avoids big family holiday gatherings. [00:52:15] Comfort in solitude. [00:53:38] Much abuzz about Elizabeth’s new ‘do. [00:57:52] Boundaries, priorities, and mysticism: a relaxed woman as a radical concept. [01:04:02] What mysticism brings to Elizabeth’s reality. [01:07:26] A better question to ask than “What do I want?” [01:09:32] Elizabeth’s hard-ass approach to project commitment. [01:16:40] Creativity guidance from Elizabeth’s higher power. [01:21:08] How *The Morning Pages* influenced *Eat, Pray, Love*. [01:24:27] More productive questions to ask than “Why?” [01:26:16] The pointlessness of purpose anxiety. [01:30:59] Balancing presence with other aspects of a well-lived life. [01:36:17] Comfort with mortality. [01:40:21] What motivates Elizabeth’s *Letters from Love* newsletter? [01:41:29] What can potential readers expect from this newsletter? [01:46:33] “Is the universe friendly?” — Frederic W. H. Myers [01:49:29] Parting thoughts. * Show notes for this episode: https://tim.blog/2024/09/26/elizabeth-gilbert-2/ 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 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .