Future Skills

Stop thinking linearly. Start thinking exponentially. Everyone who has read economics knows about scale effects. Like economies of scale or economies of scope. But a lot of people don’t know about the scale effects of experience and learning... The Experience Curve states that things become cheaper and more effective to produce over time as you get better at it. The experience curve explains why specialization works so well. This is originally a concept from management consulting, invented by Bruce Henderson, the man who founded Boston Consulting Group. "[UNIT] Costs characteristically decline by 20-30% in real terms each time accumulated experience doubles." —Bruce D. Henderson, 1968 The reason The Experience Curve is important is that it’s a general principle that applies to you as an individual as well. And you can use this to plan ahead better in your own career. Once you specialize, you shouldn’t assume a linear progress, but rather, an exponential effect. How to make use of this idea Investing: Equity

Elkhonon Goldberg, Ph.D., is an author, scientist, educator, and clinician, internationally renowned for his clinical work, research, writings and teaching in neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience. He is a Clinical Professor of Neurology at New York University School of Medicine. Diplomate of The American Board of Professional Psychology in Clinical Neuropsychology and Director of Luria Neuroscience Institute. A student and close associate of the great neuropsychologist Alexandr Luria, Elkhonon Goldberg has continued and advanced his scientific and clinical tradition. He has written three books about his research of the brain: The Wisdom Paradox (about cognitive aging), The New Executive Brain (about executive functions and decision making), and Creativity (the future of innovation). This episode is heavy in the history of neuroscience.  The first 20 minutes we talk about his background. And his mentor Alexander Luria.  And how he escaped Russia during soviet union.... by taking a bold risk and spendi

In this week's episode Syding and Sunström recommends a wide array of physical tools and gadgets for improving your life, and making sure you stay healthy, happy and productive longer. Mikael's two favorite things are noise cancelling in-ear headphones and a Kindle Paperwhite (B&W) e-reader. Ludvig recommends a physical almanack and a whiteboard ========== If you liked this episode, be sure to check out these as well: From  episode 16 -- Avoid Chronic Stress. Blood-pressure monitor. Use about once per week. (Omron). From episode 15 - the Top 3 preventive health tests to do: Vitamins and minerals. --(Werlabs for Sweden.) Hormonal tests (testosterone, estrogen, thyroid, cortisol, etc) Fatty acids (Omega 3, 6, 9 etc.) --Arcticmed. ========== *Subscribe to Future Skills on: iTunes | Android | Stitcher | Spotify  *Join our newsletter for weekly summaries of the episodes.  *Apply for the Future Skills Program

These are tools and resources we use. All free and readily available. Everything from Noisly (ambient sound) to Inflation Calculations. The top advice we give is to try: (1) Have I been pwned (2) Just Delete Me, and (3) Unroll.Me. This will really do wonders if you get lots of spam email. Email us at admin@futureskillspodcast.com if you want to recommend a tool/resource to us! Much obliged, -Jabba Da Hut ========== *Subscribe to Future Skills on: iTunes | Android | Stitcher | Spotify *Join our newsletter for weekly summaries of the episodes. *Apply for the Future Skills Program

In Survivorship Bias we go over 6 practical tips: (1) Remind yourself of the concept of Survivorship Bias. It's very tricky and (2) it's only becoming "stronger" due to social media and network effects (3) Train yourself to be more Contrarian/Stoic, and less pop-culture, (4) Acknowledge success is often the result of a complex combo of things (5) avoid unrealistic expectations, like comparing yourself to 20-year old billionaires whos success you *don't understand* and (6) Choose whom to follow/study/learn from with some caution - some industry leaders are very very very far removed from the basics. You might be better off studying someone just a few years ahead of you. ========== Subscribe to Future Skills on: iTunes | Android | Stitcher | Spotify Join our newsletter for episode summaries: www.futureskillspodcast.com Apply for the Future Skills Program

We describe and discuss a useful metacognition tool: The Myers Briggs Test which is based on Carl Jung’s ideas about 4 Functions. Jung’s functions are based on Input and Output, Information and Decision. How do you gather intel and how do you make your decisions. Fact-based and reasoning, e.g., or intuition and feeling? Use the tests for inspiration on beginning your introspective journey. Use the tests for realizing what others might see in you. Use the tests for checking if what you are thinking is the same thing as others are seeing in you. Here are some of the things you’ll learn in this episode: The biggest takeaway is to know the 4 functions and start thinking about them. The 4 functions are: ● Sensing / Intuition | Are you organizing info (making sense of something), or are you "distant", somewhere else, daydreaming, dwelling in the subconscious? ● Introversion/ Extraversion | Do you want to be alone or with friends now? ● Thinking / Feeling | Are you questioning why things are this and that way, analy

Alexander Bard is most famous for his music career, where he's put together successful groups like Army of Lovers and Bodies Without Organs, and for being the top judge of Swedish Idol. More importantly, however, Bard’s also a futuristic philosopher—one of the most well-informed when it comes to understanding how the Internet and social media is impacting the rest of the world (business, government, public debate). Together with Jan Söderqvist, he's written the 4 books: Netocracy, (recommended), The Digital Empire, The Body Machines, and Syntheism, and soon -- their new book "Digital Libido". Here are some of the things you’ll learn in this discussion: Giants of psychoanalysis: Freud, Nietzsche, Jung... Sensocracy: when sensors measure everything and people willingly give up choice What sex robots mean for the relations between the sexes About Bard’s coming book Digital Libido About psychedelics, LSD, Ayahuasca cycles and rites of passage, Ketamin, the dangers of opiates, of combining the wrong drugs, about

This episode draws on an idea from Ludvig’s Ultimate Commonplace System. The Review File is like a virtual book summary book, only more extreme. It’s based on two learning methods: Spaced repetition and availability bias. Your Review File is where you collect all the best materials related to your work, studies, investing, creative project, etc… and you want to review it every now and then over the long-term to make sure the best ideas stick to your brain, and become internalized. 4 Examples of a Review File: For Creatives: To build a scrapbook of inspirational work. For Marketers: To create a Swipe File of historically proven material For Investors: To collect the case studies of successful/horrible businesses For Everyone: To collect the best learning materials by category. How You Can Build a Review File Now: List your TOP 5 books and other learning resources (articles, videos, audio). Divide this material into relevant categories (if you come up with a lot). Create a Review File in your commonplace and

Barry Schwartz is a professor of Psychology, serving as visiting professor at the University of Berkeley, in California. His numerous TED talks have been viewed and listened to more than 20 million times.  They include:  “Paradox of Choice”, “Loss of Wisdom”, “Practical Knowledge”, and why the way we think about “Work is Broken”.  He has also written several popular books, where The Paradox of Choice is the best-known one.   In our discussion with Barry, we go over things such as:  When too much choice is a bad thing  In which areas do people prefer more choice  How Barry does his research (and the process behind his books and TED talks)   What he did before he find his own niche as a scientist and intellectual, and how long time it took him to do this…  Why we can’t always trust what people say  Why Barry thinks social media should be controlled   His greatest concerns for the 21st Century (and reasons for optimism)   And, finally, why he thinks soft skills and positive values will become m

We cover the fundamental 5 steps to become an investor—based on Mikael’s personal guidelines. Here’s a summary of the steps: 1 Psychology is more important than maths in investing 2 Read books and insightful articles about investing, not testosterone dripping online stock forums 3 Find a strategy that suits you. Refine it in company with likeminded truth-seekers 4 Use real money; it’s the only way to truly stress test your emotions and your strategy-psychology fit 5 Create a feedback loop of continuous improvement, your work as an investor is never done Bonus tip: it’s not easy, anybody who says it is doesn’t know what they are talking about (or are actively trying to fool you). Anybody who has simple one-dimensional solutions to the ‘problem’ of investing is either a narrow minded sheep destined for slaughter, or a snake oil salesman out to trick you. Follow-up: Check out Mikael’s blog post for a list of the books. For serious students of investing: Check out TAOs (The Art of Sprezzatura) for Mikael’s inv

In this expert episode, our guest is Sebastian Marshall, founder of Ultraworking.  Sebastian is also an author. You may recall we talked about the Japanese concept of Ikigai in our last episode. Sebastian's first book was called Ikigai.  Here’s what we cover:  -The different online tools and systems that Sebastian uses -- and also that me and Mikael use. And perhaps more important, the thinking that goes behind it.   -You'll learn what a "Keystone" is--and how you can use it to stay on top of your work  -Sebastian talks about the 3 metrics for improving your productivity (to get more important work done each day)  And finally: Why you don't want to have 2 tools competing for the same purpose  There’s lot of ideas for improving your work in this episode. Hope you like it and use it!   GET SEBASTIAN’S FREE TEMPLATES (WORK CYCLES & LIGHT SPREAD SHEETS)  Work Cycles + Light Spread Sheets: https://www.ultraworking.com/future  ================  THE 2 ESSAYS SEBASTIAN RECOMMENDED TO LUDVIG

Look up the Japanese concept Ikigai.  We talk about how the word ”Passion” has lost its meaning from being overused and why Ikigai is a much better concept—and something that the Western World is missing. We also rant about herd mentality, the Law of Attraction, and “putting out positive intentions on the Blockchain”.  Ikigai can be thought of as the combination of (1) what you love, (2) what the world needs, (3) what you can be paid for and (4) what you are good at.   Then there are intersections between these too:  Love + need = Mission  Need + pay = Vocation  Pay + good at =Profession  Good at + love = Passion  The key takeaway from this episode is to learn the concept, reflect on it, and replace it for “passion”.  It’s easier if you look at the picture.  ================  Subscribe to Future Skills on: iTunes | Android  | Stitcher | Spotify Join our newsletter for episode summaries and monthly Q&As: www.futureskillspodcast.com  Apply for the Future Skills Program =======

Welcome to another expert episode! Today our guest is Jay Campbell.   Jay Campbell is a Champion Men’s Physique Competitor and the bestselling author of ("The Testosterone Optimization Bible”).  In this episode: We’ll go over some of the myths and truths about testosterone, estrogen, and other hormones, according to what the latest science has to say about it.   We start out talking about how a kick to the groin changed Jay’s life when he was just 29, leaving him with deficient testosterone levels. And how he recovered from that and kept playing basketball at a high level while also retaining a successful modelling career (recently appearing on the cover of Iron Man Magazine).   Then we get into the nitty gritty stuff; the practical details and benchmarks for health and hormonal levels. And what diagnostic tests might make sense to do, to find out if this is a problem.  Among other things we find out:  -3 of the most important testosterone-related metrics to keep track of, as a healthy man.  -W

Hi friend – in this episode we talk about how to monitor your blood pressure. It’s not difficult at all once you know how to do it. Then you can do it once in a while to get a sense of whether chronic stress is building up in your body. This is another example of Boundary Testing. Meaning: it won’t give you an indicator of just how good your health is, but it *will* tell you when to be worried. FYI: Those stats are: Diastolic pressure +120 | Systolic pressure +100 | Heart rate +100 beats per minute. ========== Subscribe to Future Skills on: iTunes | Android  | Stitcher | Spotify Join our newsletter for episode summaries and monthly Q&As: www.futureskillspodcast.com  Apply for the Future Skills Program

Which are the most important preventive health tests? What are their benefits? How often should you do them? What do they cost? These are questions answered in today’s episode of Future Skills. Why should you do preventive health tests? Because they will often let you know if something is SERIOUSLY OFF, then you can (hopefully) fix it before your health declines. This is sometimes known as "Boundary Testing"   ========== Subscribe to Future Skills on: iTunes | Android  | Stitcher | Spotify Join our newsletter for episode summaries and monthly Q&As: www.futureskillspodcast.com  Apply for the Future Skills Program

Today we talk to Annie Duke. Annie is best known for her career as a professional poker player, where she has won a World Series of Poker bracelet, the World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, and the NBC National Poker Heads-Up Championship. She has more than 16 money finishes and has won more than $4 million in tournament poker. She’s also a mother of 4 children and the author of the new popular book: Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts ͟Here are some of the things you’ll learn from Annie: Why betting is the ultimate transferable skill How she first got into poker – abandoning a promising academic career in cognitive psychology The Evolution of poker (as a business and from a player’s perspective) How to spot the bluffers on the table And how poker, finance, and other fields are ALL about remaining Adaptable, as the dynamics change up (as they did with televised poker) We talk about this from around 15-30 minutes. This is the best part, I think. Why becoming a

Today we talk to Casey Gauss. Casey is the founder of Viral Launch. Viral Launch is an online business that helps Amazon Sellers sell more stuff on Amazon. He dropped out of college when he was 21. At the time, his family was going through a really tough time and were living on his little brother’s pizza-delivery paychecks. So he spent all his time Coding and (after failing a few times) built an Online business. When I met Casey he wore hats every day. One day, we sat next to each other in the bus. It was then that Casey said he was considering taking a year off, to learn engineering and science on his own. And I said: "Why not?" Fast forward 3 years – and 45 employees. Here are a few things you'll learn: How they've been able to grow the company so fast. The 3 things Casey wish he'd known earlier in life The software and systems Casey uses to manage Viral Launch Why he insists on a strong culture, in a physical office, even though Viral Launch is a 100% online company What Business schools should teach -- o

In this expert episode, we have serial entrepreneur Ola Ahlvarsson [Personal site | Wikipedia] back on the show to tell us how to run successful innovation labs - and to explain his framework of the 5 entrepreneurial types, and how you build a team around your talents. Ola says that 7/10 innovation labs done in-house fail, and that those that do succeed are: Separate, Shared, Seen, Slim, Strategic, and have a Structure. The 5 entrepreneurial types are: the Virtuoso, The all-or-nothing entrepreneur, the better-safe-than-sorry-entrepreneur, the serial entrepreneur, and the "Mr Sleeves Down" entrepreneur.   ========== Subscribe to Future Skills on: iTunes | Android  | Stitcher | Spotify Join our newsletter for episode summaries and monthly Q&As: www.futureskillspodcast.com  Apply for the Future Skills Program

In this episode of Future Skills we talk about what Biological Prime Time is, why it's so important, how you can identify your peak productivity or peak creativity time of day, and how to make the most of it through smart tweaks of your daily habits Try to figure out when your BPT is. For many people, it will be about 1 hour after waking up. There are different times, but this is most common. Use your BPT for the top tasks;#1 priority, like writing an essay or a book. That stuff is very hard to do outside of your BPT. Consider making your daily to-do lists based on BPT Make the list before going to bed Start the next day with “#1” for the top 1 thing to do during your BPT Then you might put a bunch of minor tasks/errands after that. Once you discover your BPT, do not squander it playing video games, playing with your phone or browsing stories on Facebook. FOCUS! Postpone errands/tasks during your BPT. Focus on the #1 priority -- that which forwards your capitals and bring you closer to your major goals

Ola Ahlvarsson is a really really interesting guy (Personal site | Wikipedia). He's founded more than 20 businesses, worked with many of the world's biggest brands that you know of (like McDonalds, Google, Microsoft, Merck, Procter & Gamble, Twitter, IBM.... etc) He's also an avid martial artist, with a Black Belt in Karate, and he's become the European champion in Goju Ryu Karate, the Swedish champion in Kung Fu and in Taekwondo, and the world champion in WAKO kickboxing. Two notable businesses that Ola runs are "Star Stable", the world's largest online Horse game - with more than 6 million users, and "Epicenter", which is Sweden's biggest scale-up incubator. Here are a few tidbits of what you’ll learn from the conversation with Ola: What Ola would do if he were the Benevolent Dictator of the world How to look at the world through multiple dimensions, or lenses, to see things from different perspectives How Ola got Swindled by his Miami employee and how a team of Indians made off with his money The di