Episode 38 – The courage to be disliked book summary : 4 powerful life lessons (14 min)
“Your unhappiness cannot be blamed on your past or your environment. And it isn’t that you lack competence. You just lack courage. One might say you are lacking in the courage to be happy.”
I do not say the above statement lightly. As someone who has spent a good few years reading, devouring & digesting multiple non fiction books, of the self help kind, of the philosophy kind, of the psychology kind etc, I have a certain level of discernment now when it comes to recommending books.
This book is, in fact, the most recent addition to my list of favourite books.
In this episode of the unlearning playground podcast, I wanted to get into a brief summary of what the courage to be disliked is all about and why I recommend it (and in fact also gift it) to almost everyone looking for some must read books.
I also share 4 key unlearnings (read life lessons) I think everyone should gather from this book, so even if I am not able to encourage you enough to pick this book for yourself, at least spend 14 minutes with me on this episode so that you get a glimpse of the nectar it has to offer.
If I’m able to encourage you enough, you know what to do with the button below.
Episode 37 – Apple vision pro launch | The good, the bad and the ugly (12 min)
There’s no wifi in the forest, but I promise you’ll find a better connection.
Just this last week (early-June 2023), Apple released a video introducing The Apple Vision Pro.
It is a first-generation AR/VR headset, and Apple claims that with this device, the era of spatial computing is here. They claim this to be a life-changing technology.
In this episode of The Unlearning Playground podcast, I decided to record my first impressions about this new device, which is a part of a booming field in technology now – Augmented reality and Virtual reality. My thoughts are divided into three broad categories – the good, the bad & the ugly.
I think what you are about to consume in this episode would serve to be a contrarian viewpoint, when compared to most other videos out there on the internet about the apple vision pro.
Also, consider it to be a genuine request from my side, I want you to stay with me till the ugly part of this episode. That is where the real nectar lies. Trust me.
Episode 36 – Sleep tips from a sleep expert | Why we sleep by Matthew Walker book review (15 min)
“The best bridge between despair and hope is a good night’s sleep.”
E. Joseph Cossman
Why we sleep is an internationally bestselling book by Matthew Walker, an English scientist and professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. He is someone who’s widely regarded as one of the foremost sleep experts in the world.
In this episode, I talk about everything I learnt, and unlearnt, via this brilliant book. I can safely say that it is one of the best non fiction book recommendations of 2023 from me.
The amount of information he covers in this book is simply mind blowing. In close to 400 pages, he condenses close to twenty years of cutting-edge research on sleep and what every person should understand about it.
He talks about HOW MUCH one should sleep. He talks about HOW one should sleep. And he talks about WHEN one should sleep.
And of course, he touches upon various different aspects of these three massive areas – the role that caffeine plays in our sleep, the adverse effects of alcohol & smoking on a good night’s sleep, the positive effects of watching sunlight directly at sunrise & sunset, etc.
And what’s more – he also gives a bunch of real-life tips that you can directly apply to your everyday life as we speak. For instance, he talks in great detail about how to fix your sleep cycle in case it is messed up.
I think overall this is a brilliant book, and if you are one of those people who think they’ll never really get to reading it, you should check out this summary episode of mine where I cover 9 key tips that I learnt, or unlearnt, via it.
Episode 35 – The fundamental attribution error & how to avoid it (4 min)
“He who blames others has a long way to go on his journey. He who blames himself is halfway there. He who blames no one has arrived.”
ZEN PROVERB
Most people wish to become better at handling and resolving conflicts, but out of the dozen or so things that get in the way, one of the main blockers is thefundamental attribution error.
It sounds like a bit of a mouthful, but it is actually one of the easiest cognitive biases to understand. Of course the precursor being that you actually want to understand better rather than seek validation for what you think is already right.
In this episode of The Unlearning Playground Podcast, I delve into this topic in an easy-to-understand and simple manner. I talk about what this cognitive bias, the fundamental attribution error, really is, how to spot it in your everyday life and I also suggest 3 ways to help overcome it in situations where we most need to.
I think, once you get to seeing things from the perspective I try to build in this video, you would be well on your way to managing conflicts in a much more responsible and mature manner. This should enable you to be better at people skills which, as any adult in the room would tell you, is eventually what most of life is about.
I’ll see you in the playground. Hope you bring an open mind and an honest heart. Until next time. Peace out.
Episode 34 – 3 essential learnings the education system misses out (6 min)
“The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with all existence.”
Rabindranath Tagore
What is wrong with our education system?
This is one topic that every adult has strong opinions on. And I think most of those opinions come from a place of genuine concern and good intention.
Growing up, the issues we faced – we do not want our children to bear the same burden, or rather, to be more aware of the burdens they are about to bear.
To improve the education system, while an endless process, is still one of the most critical pieces to solve for us as a community. In this episode of The Unlearning Playground Podcast, I am talking about 3 things that every education system should teach to everyone.
The points I cover here are not limited to any age. I definitely think all adults should know, understand and internalise these concepts, but I also think that everyone in today’s age should be aware of what I talk about here. Let me put it this way – everyone, whether they are gen z, millennials, gen x or boomers, all of them would benefit in one way or the other by internalising the 3 points that I cover here.
Additionally, I would love to hear from you on this topic. Hit me up in the comments section on YouTube and let me know what all do you think the education system, in your country or in general, must teach to everyone. Or should at least try to.
I’ll see you in the playground. Until next time. Peace out.
“I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
Jim Carrey
A few days back, a 24-year-old software engineer from Bengaluru took to Grapevine and penned down a note on how despite earning a hefty salary of 58 lakhs per annum, he is unhappy with his life.
The note has since then gone viral, having amassed a bunch of shares and comments from people talking about it from various different perspectives.
As someone who has been working in the Bengaluru software engineering industry for close to 10 years now, and as someone who went through and outgrew a similar phase in his own life, I think I have an understanding about this problem that most people tend to lack.
So, in this episode, I aim to provide a wholly different perspective on the problem this young man is facing (quite possibly along with a lot many others who simply haven’t asked the internet for a solution yet)
Episode 32 – God, truth, understanding & utility – In collab with The Most Serious Podcast (1h 5min)
Utility is not the test of truth.
SWAMI VIVEKANANDA
Ripudaman Bhardwaj from The Most Serious Podcast is one guy who knows how to hold an honest and engaging conversation. I was recently a guest on his show, and the conversation was so deep and stimulating that I asked him to share it on my network too.
We talked about the truth about God, different perspectives of looking at Life, what it means to differentiate between utility & truth, and so much more.
I genuinely feel this is one of the best online conversations I have been a part of so far.
Do check it out and let me know your honest feedback as always. Until next time. Peace out.
Episode 31 – The most common question that comes up in therapy, counselling & life coaching (9 min)
We do not lack ability. We just lack courage. It all comes down to courage.
Ichiro Kishimi (The Courage to Be Disliked)
In this episode of The Unlearning Playground Podcast, I talk about the most common theme surrounding the questions that usually get asked in therapy, counselling and life coaching sessions.
Now I understand that there are no one-size-fits-all remedies, but what I talk about here is a powerful realisation that might land if you’re ready to receive it.
Big claims? I know. Do I do them any justice? Only one way to find out. Dig right in.
I’ll see you in the playground. Until next time. Peace out.
Episode 30 – Self awareness & spirituality, and their relationship to self improvement in the modern world (17 min)
All spirituality is the discipline to eliminate the unnecessary.
ACHARYA PRASHANT
In this episode of The Unlearning Playground podcast, we sit together for a good & powerful meditation on the topic of spirituality.
I talk about what I find to be the heart of spirituality, what a modern human must unlearn about it, how it actually enhances a person’s self awareness & what is the relation all of this holds to that topic which attracts almost of us (at least the sane ones) – self improvement.
This is a slightly more poetic episode than the usual episodes I have been recording and sharing lately, and as we find out in the video – that has got more to do with the colour of the t-shirt I’m wearing in it!
Let’s dig right in.
I’ll see you in the playground.
Until next time.
Peace out.
<OUTLINE>
00:00
My t-shirt, the wife & the topic for today’s episode
02:21
Spirituality & voodoo rituals
05:14
What really is spirituality?
07:31
Spirituality & self improvement in the modern world
For a lot of us modern humans, the topic of spirituality is introduced to us from the point of view of rituals, and most of them being voodoo ones to be honest.
And what that does is place us somewhere along this spectrum:
On one side, some tend to become so overwhelmed and attached to these rituals that they start to define almost all of their identity, and especially what it means to be truly spiritual.
On the other side, some tend to become so repelled by all the “voodoo” stuff that they start to reject all of spirituality as being just that – the voodoo.
Both of them have a story in their minds. And both are incomplete. And both should check out this episode to get a clearer idea of what spirituality is all about.
As usual, in this episode, I do not provide an argument from authority. I merely try to point my listeners towards the limitations of the usual biased narratives they might be holding, and in doing so, direct them towards what’s objectively true – not true for me or true for someone else – but true objectively.
That, for me, is one of the cornerstones of my work here.
That said, I also did something different in this episode. Like I mentioned before, this ended being a slightly more poetic episode than my usual ones, and I ended it with a poem titled ‘To be spiritual …’
Allow me the pleasure of sharing it here with you.
To be spiritual means to be exploring oneself.
To be spiritual means to unlearn all those aspects of Life that you thought to be true, but realised later that aren't true really, even if your whole identity depends on them.
To be spiritual means to understand that all of Life occurs in the present moment - the past & the future are also arising now.
To be spiritual means to go beyond the realm of thoughts - detach from the whirlwind of thoughts that occupy all of our waking lives almost normally.
To be spiritual means to see beyond your own biases, opinions and delusions.
To be spiritual means to see that a life led only for self-centred pursuits is a limited one.
To be spiritual means to love - to love life and to love Life.
Episode 29 – Understanding free will with Dumbledore & Sachin Tendulkar (4 min)
Man can do what he wills but he cannot will what he wills.
Arthur Schopenhauer
Do we humans have free will? Can we really choose to act? Do our choices matter eventually? Is there an easy-to-understand answer to these questions?
I delve into these questions in this short and meaningful episode via a quote that, for me, defines the legacy of Albus Dumbledore in the Harry Potter movies.
I also take the example of an interview that Harsha Bhogle did on Sachin Tendulkar a while back.
I think this is a very moving intersection of two seemingly dissimilar topics to drive home a point about free will that I find to be very important in our day and age.
Do I do all of this any justice? Only one way to find out. I’ll see you in the playground. Until next time. Peace out.
![Episode 33 – 24-year-old Bengaluru engineer earning 58 lakhs shares viral note on unhappiness [3-step guide] (18 min)](https://chetannarang.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ep-33-podcast-cover.webp)
