Episode
#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
1:09:51
Published: Mon Oct 08 2018
Description
Carl Cederstrom is an Associate Professor at Stockholm Business School, an author of several books and a writer for The Guardian, The New York Times and Harvard Business Review. Carl dedicated a full year of his life to immersing himself in the Human Optimisation Movement. This is the equivalent of going completely dick & balls on a 12 months of back to back Life Hacks episodes and Carl's experience is both hilarious and insightful. We also discuss his new book The Happiness Fantasy which analyses society's obsession with becoming happy and offers a fascinating alternative view to what we should be aiming for in our lives. Expect to learn why optimising masturbation is a difficult process, how you can write an entire book in a single month, what he found to be the single most effective optimisation strategy and why happiness might be a redundant word. Further Reading: Follow Carl on Twitter: https://twitter.com/cederstromcarl The Happiness Fantasy Book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Happiness-Fantasy-Carl-Cederstr%C3%B6m/dp/1509523812/ Desperately Seeking Self Improvement: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Desperately-Seeking-Self-Improvement-Optimization-Movement/dp/1944869395 Check out everything I recommend from books to products and help support the podcast at no extra cost to you by shopping through this link - https://www.amazon.co.uk/shop/modernwisdom - Get in touch. Join the discussion with me and other like minded listeners in the episode comments on the MW YouTube Channel or message me... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/ModernWisdomPodcast Email: https://www.chriswillx.com/contact
Chapters
The speaker shares the best tool he discovered after 12 months of pure optimization that helped him improve every area of his life, from sex and relationships to finance and looks.
00:00 - 04:10 (04:10)
Summary
The speaker shares the best tool he discovered after 12 months of pure optimization that helped him improve every area of his life, from sex and relationships to finance and looks. He is an author living in Sweden and discusses his background and upcoming book.
Episode#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
PodcastModern Wisdom
The hosts of the podcast discuss their new book where they experimented with every possible way to optimize various aspects of their lives for a year, from becoming a "sexual kung fu master" to rejecting ejaculation, and share their experiences.
04:10 - 12:26 (08:15)
Summary
The hosts of the podcast discuss their new book where they experimented with every possible way to optimize various aspects of their lives for a year, from becoming a "sexual kung fu master" to rejecting ejaculation, and share their experiences.
Episode#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
PodcastModern Wisdom
Writer discusses the Pomodoro technique, which is a time-management method that involves breaking work into 25-minute intervals with short breaks in between, in order to increase concentration and productivity, and recommends it for anyone involved in creative tasks.
12:26 - 21:38 (09:11)
Summary
Writer discusses the Pomodoro technique, which is a time-management method that involves breaking work into 25-minute intervals with short breaks in between, in order to increase concentration and productivity, and recommends it for anyone involved in creative tasks.
Episode#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
PodcastModern Wisdom
The pursuit of optimization can provide a sense of fulfillment and meaning in life by helping people overcome obstacles and achieve goals, even if it's just in the short term, and serves as a coping mechanism for the suffering that life can bring.
21:38 - 33:03 (11:25)
Summary
The pursuit of optimization can provide a sense of fulfillment and meaning in life by helping people overcome obstacles and achieve goals, even if it's just in the short term, and serves as a coping mechanism for the suffering that life can bring.
Episode#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
PodcastModern Wisdom
As we become more obsessed with optimizing every aspect of our lives and saving time, we risk losing sight of what it truly means to be human and what we want to do with our lives.
33:03 - 48:40 (15:36)
Summary
As we become more obsessed with optimizing every aspect of our lives and saving time, we risk losing sight of what it truly means to be human and what we want to do with our lives. The self-help movement, which arose in response to a crisis of faith in traditional institutions, values personal authenticity and individual focus over considering the world beyond the self.
Episode#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
PodcastModern Wisdom
The notion of happiness we subscribe to today is largely influenced by the ideas developed by Wilhelm Reich, which emphasize on the body's freedom and authenticity, work, and the pursuit of happiness through consumption.
48:40 - 56:52 (08:11)
Summary
The notion of happiness we subscribe to today is largely influenced by the ideas developed by Wilhelm Reich, which emphasize on the body's freedom and authenticity, work, and the pursuit of happiness through consumption.
Episode#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
PodcastModern Wisdom
The current individualistic and competitive happiness fantasies are constraining, and the author suggests a shift towards a more communal and collective idea of how to live together.
56:52 - 1:08:28 (11:36)
Summary
The current individualistic and competitive happiness fantasies are constraining, and the author suggests a shift towards a more communal and collective idea of how to live together.
Episode#033 - Carl Cederstrom - What Happens When You Dedicate A Year To Optimising Your Life & The Happiness Fantasy
PodcastModern Wisdom
Author Carl Cederström talks with Chris Cooper about his newest book, The Happiness Fantasy, which is set to release in a few weeks.
1:08:28 - 1:09:37 (01:08)
Summary
Author Carl Cederström talks with Chris Cooper about his newest book, The Happiness Fantasy, which is set to release in a few weeks. They discuss self-improvement, the wellness syndrome, and Carl's previous book, Desperately Seeking Self-Improvement.