Modern Wisdom

Alain de Botton is a philosopher, author, and founder of The School of Life. How can we truly understand ourselves? Most of us either ignore our emotions or overthink them, turning simple feelings into complex puzzles. So how do we navigate the minefield of emotion to grow and become better? Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get a Free Sample Pack of LMNT’s most popular flavours with your first purchase at https://drinklmnt.com/modernwisdom Get 35% off your first subscription on the best supplements from Momentous at https://livemomentous.com/modernwisdom Get Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D, and more from AG1 at https://ag1.info/modernwisdom Get $100 off the best bloodwork analysis in America at https://functionhealth.com/modernwisdom Extra Stuff: Main website: https://www.theschooloflife.com/ Newsletter sign up: https://www.theschooloflife.com/signup/ Shop: https://shop.theschooloflife.com/ Get my free reading list of 100 books

Dr. Marc Brackett is a professor at Yale University, the founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, and author. Why is it so hard to actually feel our emotions? In a world that tells us to “be more vulnerable,” many of us don’t even know what that really means. Are we being unregulated when we express emotion, or are we finally being human? How can we reconnect with what we feel so we can actually understand ourselves better? Expect to learn why only 1 in 5 adults can name more than three emotions they feel regularly, what emotional intelligence actually is, why we were taught such few emotional skills, how we can tell the difference between real regulation and repressed emotion, if it is possible to be too self-aware, how you can learn to reframe uncomfortable emotions—like anxiety or envy—into signals instead of shame and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period from Sh

Scott Galloway is a professor of marketing at the New York University Stern School of Business, a public speaker, entrepreneur and an author. Why are so many young men struggling today? In a world that often focuses on the oppression of others, it’s easy to forget that men are part of that story too. What’s actually being done to address men’s challenges, and how can both society and men themselves help turn things around? Expect to learn why men struggling is actually affecting women too, why the left haven't recognised the problems men face and deal with, what is broken in manhood for the current generation, the 4 variables every man should be solving for, the one stat the keep Scott up at night about the state of young men, what boys lose when men don’t have a father figure, the best kind of risks that build men, what healthy masculinity actually looks like and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 35% off your first subscription

Alex O’Connor is a YouTuber, writer and a podcaster. Joe Folley is a philosopher, writer, and host of the Unsolicited Advice YouTube channel. Philosophy has spent thousands of years trying to teach us how to live well. But the deeper you go, the darker it gets. So what’s the point? What can we take from all that heaviness, and how do we find beauty in the darkness to make our own lives better? Expect to learn if philosophy always meant to be practically applicable, or if that is that a modern reinterpretation, which ancient schools have been most unfairly ignored, which branches of philosophy should be jettisoned entirely, why everyone hate philosophy of mind, the differences between academic and practical philosophy, the darkest philosophies you’ve probably never heard of, why modern discourse always feel ironic and why no one speaks earnestly any more and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin

Eliezer Yudkowsky is an AI researcher, decision theorist, and founder of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute. Is AI our greatest hope or our final mistake? For all its promise to revolutionize human life, there’s a growing fear that artificial intelligence could end it altogether. How grounded are these fears, how close are we to losing control, and is there still time to change course before it’s too late Expect to learn the problem with building superhuman AI, why AI would have goals we haven’t programmed into it, if there is such a thing as Ai benevolence, what the actual goals of super-intelligent AI are and how far away it is, if LLMs are actually dangerous and their ability to become a super AI, how god we are at predicting the future of AI, if extinction if possible with the development of AI, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 15% off your first order of Intake’s magnetic nasal strips at https://intakebreathing

Bernie Sanders is a US Senator, former presidential candidate, political activist and an author. What happened to the Democratic Party? After a brutal defeat to Trump in 2024, the Left looks lost, divided, leaderless, and unsure of its future. Bernie Sanders breaks down what went wrong, how Democrats are trying to recover, and whether they’ve learned from their mistakes or are doubling down on them, repeating the very ideas that cost them the election. Expect to learn what the future of the democratic party could look like, Bernie’s thoughts on Kamala’s presidential run in 2024, how much of an own goal identity politics was for the Democrats, why the Democratic party turned their back to the working class, how the Democrats can fix their messaging to men and young men after abandoning them completely, if ICE should be abolished, how worried Bernie and the Left is about the birth rate crisis and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get

Bugzy Malone is a British rapper, actor, and entrepreneur from Manchester, England. From gang life to greatness, Bugzy Malone’s rise is a story of struggle, survival, and self-belief. As one of the most defining voices in UK rap, his journey is equal parts pain and power. Expect to learn why being a role model takes it’s toll on some people, the life altering accident that changed Bugzy forever, how Bugzy deals with pressure, fame and his recent tussle with his ego, how to stay hungry even after you achieved your goals, the story of Bugzy’s upbringing and how it shaped him as a person and an artist, what it was like for Bugzy to work with Guy Ritchie, how Bugzy survived an armed robbery and lived to tell about it, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get $100 off the best bloodwork analysis in America at https://functionhealth.com/modernwisdom Get a Free Sample Pack of LMNT’s most popular flavours with your first purchase at https:

Angelo Somers is a content creator, YouTuber, and author. Why does life sometimes feel like it’s lost its meaning? Everyone hits moments where optimism fades and the world starts to look a little darker. You’re not broken for feeling that way; it happens to the best of us. But why does this quiet pessimism seem to be growing, and how do we find our way back to meaning? Expect to learn what the state of modern world of self help advice on the internet is, where self-belief actually comes from, how to work though what to do when you feel lost in life and how lost people can find direction, why there is such a rhetoric of doubt and irony right now, how pain makes some men great, why more and more young people are having less sex and getting into relationships, why teachers didn’t like Angelo growing up and why Angelo wrote a book about happiness when he was 13, the secret to living a well and fulfilled life, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.c

Dr K is a psychiatrist, Harvard Medical School instructor, co-founder of Healthy GamerGG, Twitch streamer and a YouTuber. Why are we driven by what destroys us? Using anger or jealousy can spark our motivation, but when it goes too far, it consumes us. What are healthier ways to stay motivated, and how do we find peace instead of pressure Expect to learn why mean have become less dangerous and more useless, why toxic motivation is on the rise and how to not fall into it’s trap, why incel violence is not a bad as it could be, how to structure your motivation so it’s actually healthy, why so many men are obsessed with penis size, what women actually find attractive in a man, if having a dad-bod makes you a better dad, the dangers of bro science, why men cry at certain point in weddings and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get a Free Sample Pack of LMNT’s most popular flavours with your first purchase at https://drinklmnt.com/modernwi

Chris Bumstead is a professional bodybuilder, 6x Mr. Olympia Classic Physique title holder, and a business owner. From 6× Mr. Olympia to full-time business owner and stay-at-home dad, it’s safe to say Chris Bumstead’s been enjoying retired life. So what’s he been up to this past year, what’s changed most for him, and what’s he looking forward to next? Expect to learn how retirement is going for Cbum, if Cbum would have retired last year even if he didn’t win, how Chris learned to sit and process his emotions, if Cbum regrets retirement and if he misses the competing yet, how Chris plans on leveling up for baby Bumstead number two, he hardest part of losing that “Mr. Olympia structure” in daily life, if Chris ever plans on returning the stage again, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 35% off your first subscription on the best supplements from Momentous at https://livemomentous.com/modernwisdom Get a Free Sample Pack of LMNT’s

Warren Smith is a filmmaker, educator, and host of the “Secret Scholar Society” YouTube channel. If freedom of speech can be shouted down, does it really exist? When every debate turns into partisan noise, what does honest discourse even look like? If we can’t talk about our problems without resorting to anger or violence, how can we ever solve them? Expect to learn why J.K. Rowling has become such a lightning rod for cultural backlash and why she’s back in the news, why limiting conversation only makes problems worse, whether free speech can truly exist if it can be shouted down, whether young people’s growing support for political violence stems from conviction or desensitization, the fine line between correct and incorrect behavior, what William thinks about today’s rising tribalism, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 10% discount on all Gymshark’s products at https://gym.sh/modernwisdom (use code MODERNWISDOM10) Get 5 Fre

Sam Corcos is an entrepreneur, CEO of Levels, and a special advisor to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). What’s really happening inside the U.S. government? For the first time, a DOGE insider exposes the chaos, corruption, and dysfunction plaguing Washington. How did America’s most powerful system lose its way, and can we climb out of this financial and technological free fall? Expect to learn what is currently happening inside DOGE, why Sam decided to step into a political position, Sam’s biggest misconceptions he had about the government before he went inside, how the government actually operates internally, why it’s so hard to make change in the government, how to scam the US government, how to solve the government contract problem, how the IT in the government got so dysfunctional and how we might get out of this, what the IRS actually does and if tax collection is actually viable to help the debt problem, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend:

Konstantin Kisin is a podcaster, a speaker and an author. Is the UK facing its breaking point? Once the world’s greatest empire, the UK now finds itself engulfed in political chaos and cultural upheaval. From leadership crises to deep divisions, what’s really happening on the front lines, and can Britain be saved from itself? Expect to learn why the UK is in a major crisis right now, why the border operates differently in the UK versus other countries, what Konstantin learned from being on the frontlines of the migrant hotel crisis, if multiculturalism is a failed experiment in the UK, what it means to hold traditional British values, why the UK doesn’t have freedom of speech, if the root cause of the UK’s issues are actually economical, and much more... Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get a Free Sample Pack of LMNT’s most popular flavours with your first purchase at https://drinklmnt.com/modernwisdom Get 35% off your first subscription on t

Andrew Doyle is Titania McGrath, host of GB News, a comedian and a writer. The world has shifted dramatically over the past few years, and the pace of change has only accelerated in recent months. Ideas that once lived outside the mainstream have quickly entered the Overton Window, while others have been pushed out. So what does the future hold for “woke”? Is it fading, primed for a resurgence, or simply mutating into the next cultural battleground? And more importantly, what new culture war is waiting just over the horizon? Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get the brand new Whoop 5.0 and your first month for free at https://join.whoop.com/modernwisdom Get up to $50 off the RP Hypertrophy App at https://rpstrength.com/modernwisdom Get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN at https://surfshark.com/modernwisdom Timestamps: (0:00) Are Liberals Becoming More Violent? (9:42) Why Out-of-Context Clips are So Damaging (14:44) Was Charlie Kirk a Futur

Ryan Holiday is a podcaster, marketer and an author. If intelligence were enough, the smartest among us would also be the wisest. Yet time and again, they stumble over life’s simplest lessons. Wisdom isn’t about knowing more; it’s about seeing deeper. So how do we shed the illusion of being ‘smart,’ and actually grow into wisdom? Expect to learn what Ryan learned from his near-death experience, what most people get wrong about wisdom, how daily habits compound into wisdom across a lifetime, what Ryan learned from studying the Wright Brothers, why in a culture of shortcuts and “life hacks,” how Ryan convinces people that wisdom is worth the long, uncomfortable path, what a Stoic would say about when you’ve lost yourself in life, why humility is such a crucial ingredient for wisdom, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D, and more from AG1 at https://ag1.info/modernwisdom Get $100 off the

Matthew McConaughey is an Academy Award-winning actor, producer and an author. Expect to learn why Matthew says life often “rhymes”, why it’s okay if you do everything right and still not get the result you want, how Matthew views the role courage plays in his life, how to learn to deal with failure, the difference between a nice guy and a good man, the most important principle Matthew refuses to compromise on, the appropriate balance of running toward a life you want vs. away from one that you fear, how to balance self-confidence with humility, the difference between “being” and “acting”, what it means to be more impressed with the wow instead of the how, rumors on Matthew’s return to the True Detective franchise, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D, and more from AG1 at https://ag1.info/modernwisdom Get a Free Sample Pack of LMNT’s most popular flavours with your first purchase at ht

To celebrate 999, almost 1000, episodes of Modern Wisdom, I broke down some of my favourite lessons, insights and quotes from the last hundred episodes. Expect to learn how 999 episodes of Modern Wisdom have reshaped my understanding of happiness, success and relationships, what i've learned on losing points from Naval Ravikant & Roger Federer, the best isnights on self-belief from Vincent van Gogh, what Viktor Frankl’s paradox of meaning versus pleasure means to me, the biggest insights I've gained over 7 years and 1 billion plays, why lowering your threshold for joy makes you stronger, how busyness can act as an emotional gastric band, the paradox men face between ambition and self-acceptance, how our culture rewires romantic attraction around emotional unavailability, and much more... Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 15% off your first order of Intake’s magnetic nasal strips at https://intakebreathing.com/modernwisdom Get 15% off any S

Zack Telander is a musician, weightlifter, coach & YouTuber. Why are we so afraid of being cringe? If being cringe online is the price of success, why don’t more people pay it? So how do you train yourself past criticism and actually do what needs to be done in your life, whether people are watching you or not? Expect to learn why getting over being cringe is the key to unlocking the things you want in life, what it actually means to be “cool”, why using irony may be an overrated conversational tool, the importance of taking pleasure in the little things in life, Zack’s reflections on what it was like running for 100-days straight, the reason the health community pushes back on GLP-1's so much, why so many grifters drive critique online, and much more… Sponsors: See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 35% off your first subscription on the best supplements from Momentous at https://livemomentous.com/modernwisdom Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitam

Louise Perry is a writer, Press Officer for the campaign group We Can’t Consent To This and an author. Bonnie Blue is a British pornographic actress and online content creator. Louise is the author of The Case Against The Sexual Revolution and Bonnie is the world’s most extreme example of the sexual revolution in action, so I figured it might make for an interesting discussion. I wasn’t disappointed. It’s a calm, regulated, deep dive into modern sex culture and feminism. Expect to learn whether Louise thinks Bonnie’s work should be illegal, whether British women are being given a bad name to potential immigrants, whether Bonnie’s fertility problems contributed to her trajectory in life, whether the sexual revolution made women freer or more vulnerable, if Louise thinks that Bonnie is a psychopath, the difference between sex work and performance art and much more… Sponsors: See me on tour in America: ⁠https://chriswilliamson.live⁠ See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx

Stephen J. Shaw is a data scientist and filmmaker. Birth rates in Western countries are collapsing, a trend even Elon Musk calls an existential threat. But what’s the true cause? Is it economics, fear of the future, cultural shifts, or something deeper? And more importantly, can anything actually reverse the decline? Sponsors: See me on tour in America: ⁠https://chriswilliamson.live⁠ See discounts for all the products I use and recommend: https://chriswillx.com/deals Get 5 Free Travel Packs, Free Liquid Vitamin D, and more from AG1 at https://ag1.info/modernwisdom Get the brand new Whoop 5.0 and your first month for free at https://join.whoop.com/modernwisdom Get 10% discount on all Gymshark’s products at https://gym.sh/modernwisdom (use code MODERNWISDOM10) Timestamps: (0:00) Global Birth Rate Decline is Keeps Stephen Up at Night (6:47) Why We Should Care About Birth Rates Why are Falling Birth Rates So Concerning? (18:29) What Will the Population Look Like in 50 Years? What Stephen Thinks the