The HighExistence Podcast (HighExistence)

It has to be sustainable. You could have a productivity system of working 72 hours straight at the beginning of the week and get everything done. Cool, you can do that but you're probably going to last two weeks, tops. This is a long marathon. I think the best way to conceptualize it is as a marathon of sprints. So you sprint—you work really hard on something—you stop, you rest, you reassess, you analyze, you improve, and then you sprint again. Fundamentally if that whole arc is not sustainable in the long run, you're just going to crash and burn.

— Eric Brown, HEx Podcast #28

At HighExistence we've had many interns start working with us all excited and eager.

Many told us they had been fans of the blog for years. They would work hard and do anything it takes. They would seize this opportunity with both hands.

Then it came time to WORK.

Crunch time. Effort. Dedication. Good communication. Innovative contributions. Self-discipline.

Let me be clear, many of the interns who worked for us did a stellar job. I'm still friends with many to this day.

But there has only ever been one intern who went from a small unpaid position to a fully fledged HighExistence team member who is not just useful to have on the team, but is indispensable.

Meet Eric Brown: Director of Operations at Apotheosis Retreats, Leader of the Apotheosis Integration Experience, Manager of Social Media, Editor at HighExistence, and all around productivity ninja...

Eric has an amazing ability to practice what he preaches. He's the guy that follows up on his recommendations. Works hard. Meditates. Reads. Organizes. And lives a "HighExistence."

He is someone who is always striving to improve without any of that frantic, frustrated stress most of us have.

To Eric, self-improvement is not about running away from a person he doesn't like, but about skipping toward a reality he prefers.

What you're about to listen to is a 3-hour conversation between Eric and I, and as you might imagine, we cover a lot of topics!

There is more that is real than what you can touch. When you touch money, you're touching cotton or paper. Money is an idea; a country is an idea; a government is an idea, so there are things that we consider real that we can't touch. Once I accepted that... that was a big catalyst. Because then you get into exploring emotion, exploring subtle energy in the body, and so on.

— Eric Brown, HEx Podcast #28

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• How does one balance spirituality with powerful work ethic?
• The systems-based productivity approach Eric learned from startup culture.
• Why everyone needs to start a blog, and how to do it.
• The fear we all have of putting our our creative work and what to do about it.
• How everyone wants to be successful but nobody wants to start at the beginning.
• The comfortable good is holding you back from the difficult great.
• The incredible but forgotten value of apprenticeship.
• Erics step-by-step approach that made him indispensable at HighExistence.
• How to design your own optimal productivity system.
• The way Eric prioritizes his tasks to get a lot done while remaining happy.
• How quick fix culture is preventing us from practicing deep spirituality.
• Mindfulness of the present moment is the foundation Eric's life.
• Jon and Eric make public productivity commitments.
• Eric explains how we can manage our time to get that mysterious "work/life balance."
• The value of psychedelics for both work and contentment.
• Analogue vs. digital productivity tools.
• Why no system will work without the right intention setting ritual.
• Eric's view on the pomodoro technique, with pro tips.
• Why we

Most people have heard of Stoicism.

It's a philosophy dense with practical wisdom.

But how many Stoics do you know?

I don’t mean people who have read Meditations or Letters from a Stoic, I mean actual Stoics…

Individuals who are comparable to the authors of these books in their tranquility, wisdom, self-discipline, and joy.

This was a question I kept asking myself as I embarked on my study of Stoicism 10 years ago.

One of my passions is learning, or more specifically learning through systems.

I’m the guy who measures every workout at the gym, keeps detailed spreadsheets for my martial arts progress, and has pretty much every habit tracking app available on his phone. I believe technology, if harnessed correctly, can be an incredible tool for wisdom.

This is why, when I first started getting into Stoicism, I was disappointed by most peoples answer to “How do you ACTUALLY become a Stoic?”

Most of the time the answer was something like the following:

Read the original Stoic classics multiple times. Reflect on your day by journalling. Do a few visualizations throughout the day. Focus only on the things you can control.

It’s not a terrible answer, but it’s far from great. I needed a roadmap. I needed to know that I wasn’t going to be wasting my precious time focusing on the wrong things. I needed a system.

Since there weren't any available, I set out to create one (this would go one to become The Stoic Quest).

When I first started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu two years ago I realized the deep value of embodied wisdom. You cannot watch technique videos and expect to beat opponents at grappling. So much of the learning comes when you are faced with challenges you must overcome.

With Stoicism, many people spend time filling their heads with ideas and not putting any of it into practice. This means the time spent reading about the Stoic principles acts more like a distraction from problems than an antidote to them.

So how do we get around this? How do we get actually bridge the gap and put theory into practice and stop wasting time in intellectual lala-land??

That's what we discuss on the podcast today. On this episode, I relinquished my usual role as podcast host so I could sit in the hot seat. Fellow collaborator at HighExistence, Mike Slavin wears the interviewer hat and together we explore topics such as:

• How I used Stoicism to overcome my social anxiety
• The exercises I developed for reducing intense fear
• The right and wrong ways to learn Stoicism (and anything else)
• My favorite technique to live with more gratitude
• The key components missing from modern Stoicism
• My thinking process behind the Stoic Quest
• And tons more

Visit highexistence.com/stoicquest to learn more about the Stoic obstacle course.  

In today’s episode of the HighExistence podcast I sit down for a wild and wide-ranging discussion with Eric James.

Eric is a serial entrepreneur, award-winning photographer, magician, app developer, and all-around polymath who has discovered principles that help him engineer his own luck.

It just so happens that I met Eric in a stroke of luck 5 years ago at a dinner party.

He walked in and I instantly recognized him but not as a person I had met before.

He looked like a celebrity to me but couldn’t quite place it.

As I started talking to him suddenly it clicked.

Eric had started one of the first online magic shops.

It just so happened was watching his video when I was in 8th grade trying to become a magician myself.

And now here he was standing in front of me 10 years later.

We hit it off so well that we ended up becoming roommates for 2 years.

And this little anecdote is just scratching the surface of Eric’s stories of surfing serendipity (wait until you hear about Elon Musk and Richard Branson).

Here’s what we discuss in the episode of the HighExistence Podcast:

• White Swans: How positive plot twists and happy curveballs in our lives can change everything (and why it’s important to hold the faith in the face of adversity)
• How a bed bugs, a breakup, and 200K in tax debt lead to an important encounter with Elon Musk
• Eric’s path to meeting Richard Branson in an attempt to become a space photographer (see his photography here)
• The counter-intuitive truth on goal setting: Why big bold goals are easier to accomplish than small ones
• Living laterally, portal jumping and leaving traditional career paths behind
• How Red Light Therapy can be used to boost energy

Mentioned in the podcast:

• Eric’s Photography: https://jamesazure.com
• The Dear Moon Project: https://dearmoon.earth/
• The Overview Effect: https://vimeo.com/55073825
• Excellence vs. Genius: https://www.edge.org/response-detail/23879
• Red Therapy: https://redtherapy.co/ (use code “highexistence” for $25 off)

“We appear to be heading for a level of existence that is beyond our ability to even imagine: the universe is being recalled; we are going home.”

— Bob Frissell

Bob Frissell came into my reality in quite a fitting fashion: By synchronicity.

I was in a bookstore called Myopic Books in Chicago, perusing the esoteric and occult section.

A book caught my eye.

It was called, Nothing in This Book is True, But It's Exactly How Things Are.

I grabbed the book and began to page through it.

In the few days prior I had discovered and begun reading the work of Drunvalo Melchizedek, a fascinating spiritual teacher who discusses things like unity consciousness, sacred geometry, ancient civilizations, miraculous feats of spiritual masters, and Merkaba energy fields.

Paging through Nothing in This Book is True, I was serendipitously surprised and delighted to find mention of Drunvalo Melchizedek.

I realized the book extensively discussed Drunvalo's teaching and elaborated on the same general constellation of topics.

It became clear that it was "heavily indicated" to purchase this book and read it.

I would later learn that the book, originally published some 25 years ago, had become a cult classic and sold half a million copies worldwide.

I devoured the book in the coming days, greatly enjoying its mind-bending contents.

Then, on a whim, I decided to email the author, Bob Frissell, after discovering his website. I mentioned I'd be interested in interviewing him.

Within a couple days, he replied, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Bob and I 'sat down' digitally and had one of the most far-reaching, cranium-detonating conversations I've ever had.

It was a lot of fun.

If you're open to radical ideas that will challenge your understanding of history, the origins of humanity, our purpose on this planet, and what we're truly capable of, you won't want to miss this one.

Visit HighExistence.com for more podcasts. 

"It has to start first and foremost with a real desire and fascination… I think that the best conversations are born from that burning desire."

- Jonny Miller, HEx Podcast #51

If you want to see an example of what happens to those who single-mindedly follow that sense of burning curiosity, then check out Jonny Miller.

Jonny, creator of the Curious Humans podcast, is someone who clearly leads by example. His mind is a treasure trove of embodied wisdom, covering a wide range of topics that have the power to make our lives more joyous for those who share his love of learning.

Jonny is the founder of the Curious Humans podcast and monthly newsletter as well as a breathwork facilitator, meditation teacher, startup and emotional resilience coach and the creator of nervous system mastery.

What we cover:

• Grief as the gateway to the inner Hero’s Journey [17:31]
• How Jonny became a successful digital nomad [20:11]
• Advice for anyone wanting to start a podcast [29:01]
• How to heal the root of trauma [36:06]
• Breathwork for emotional resilience [39:11]
• Jonny’s critique of stoicism [44:35]
• How to remain energized and calm throughout the entire day [56:11]
• Finding the right mentor [1:06:56]
• MUCH MORE

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

To learn more about Richard "Shaky" Shore, Check out the Shake, Rattle, and Roll podcast on Youtube and Spotify

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Today's episode is a very special one for me.

I sit down and speak to Richard "Shaky" Shore, Brazilian JiuJitsu black belt, head coach and owner of Shore Mixed Martial Arts (SMMA), and host of the Shake, Rattle, and Roll podcast, where Richard interviews British sporting icons and rising stars, primarily in the MMA scene.

What Richard has achieved with SMMA is nothing short of spectacular. Coming from a place in the Welsh valleys where there hasn't historically been a ton of opportunity, he created a mixed martial arts gym before the sport became the mainstream attraction it is now, and has gone on to build a truly state of the art training facility boasting 3 UFC athletes, and many top level pro and amateur MMA fighters.

I train at SMMA, and Richard is my Brazilian Jiujitsu coach, so this interview was particularly special for me.

I sat down to talk to Richard about martial arts, his own story and personal evolution as a coach, leadership, facing your fears, the attitudes required to be successful at your passions, and much much more.

"In the last couple years there's seemed to be a... decided shift [in my mind] in the direction of dethroning rationality as... the primary tool that I use to parse reality, and putting it in its proper place... And through deep listening and deep internal experiences and even mystical experiences, arriving at a sense of a felt at-home-ness in reality and in the present moment, in which you're trusting and surrendering to the flow of reality..."

— Jordan Bates, HEx Podcast #23

Today I'm excited to share one of the best conversations I've ever had. 

In sunny Costa Rica just before our recent Apotheosis retreat, I sat down with my brilliant colleague Mike Slavin to talk about transcending rationality. 

Especially in recent centuries, Western culture has placed rationality on a lofty pedestal, increasingly glorifying it as the most powerful tool for parsing / understanding reality.

This misguided over-valuing of rationality has resulted in untold misery.

Rationality is a wonderful servant but a dreadful master. Employing it as one's primary tool for parsing reality tends to result in nihilism, disenchantment, existential aridity, and a paranoid sense of being a stranger in a hostile, alien universe. 

"And that's where mystical experiences or psychedelic experiences can temporarily melt away those linguistic filters so that you come into raw, unadulterated contact with the all-enfolding Ocean of Reality, and you see that you are a wave on that Ocean, just as the tree is a wave on that Ocean. And when you have that direct experience there can be a direct apprehension of this Sacred Sigh of Relief: 'Oh, wow, I don't have to think this rationally, but I just know this in my heart: Everything is Okay.' Everything is deeply, truly Okay, and it's where it needs to be, and I'm where I need to be, and I see now that the neurotic rabbit holes and spirals of my rational mind have functioned as a nihilism-producing trap that was preventing and blocking me from having this direct apprehension of the gloriousness of Reality because I was attempting to use the rational mind for a function for which it is not well-suited."

— Jordan Bates, HEx Podcast #23

Humanity is presently being summoned to transcend obsolete and unsustainable modes of being, and one aspect of this level-up is dethroning rationality, becoming trans-rational, and rediscovering deeper, wiser, intuitive levels of human intelligence that re-enchant / reconnect self and Nature. 

Intrigued yet?

I hope so.

Mr. Slavin and I undertook a mission to spelunk the rabbit hole of trans-rationality, attempting to illuminate the failure modes of rationality, its appropriate function, and to map out a blueprint for transcending rationality to attain a more expansive sense of at-home-ness in Nature. 

This was a tall order, but I must say that I think we did a pretty damn good job...

You can decide for yourself. Without further ado, here is my extra-ordinary conversation with the luminous legend, Mike Slavin.

WHAT WE DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE:

• What may truly be deserving of the word "God"
• Dethroning rationality as one's primary tool for parsing reality
• Realizing

The Ascent is the new 8-week online meaningful work mastermind brought to you by HighExistence.

The experience is designed for those who have already some understanding of self-improvement and spirituality, and now want to turn their passion into an opportunity to do what they love, get paid for it, and make a dent in the universe.

We are bringing together a team of online entrepreneurs and facilitators to walk you through every stage of your own project so you can have the freedom to work from anywhere in the world, doing what makes you feel most alive.

It doesn't matter if you want to do online coaching, run a successful blog, start a podcast, or become an artist...

This will be your chance to take bold action and radically change your situation with support from the HighExistence team and a small tribe of individuals who will help hold you accountable.

Learn more about The Ascent here.

In today's Dialogues, I chat with Mike Slavin and Eric Brown about the reason we set out to create The Ascent.

We noticed that when we asked people who attended our Apotheosis retreats what they really wanted to do with their lives, almost nobody was actually pursuing their biggest ambitions.

Instead, many were settling for local, small self-improvement changes. This approach is definitely useful for some things, like building small habits, but for lifestyle changes and following your bliss, a more nuclear option must be taken. 

In this episode, we look at some of the traps of thinking small in life, as well as...

• Why people struggle to do what they love for work
• The WHY that must come before the HOW
• Classic self-sabotaging strategies
• The value of changing your container, not it's contents
• Downsides of incremental changes
• How we can live our own Hero's journey
• What The Ascent involves
• Way more hidden gems... ;)

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

Plant medicines such as Ayahuasca are big news. More and more shamans are popping up offering their services to create inner-change and healing for those who are willing to drink from the magic cup.

But are there any real shamans left? Are the true masters of plant medicine anywhere to be found? And what negative consequences are coming from trying to heal the world at large with psychedelics? 

To truly consider these questions with an open mind is too painful for those who blindly follow, and likely too unorthodox for those who blindly reject. But for those somewhere in the middle, this podcast is for you.

Jonathon Weisberger was born in California but raised from a very young age in Ecuador. For over 15 years, he has been leading avid adventurers into remote regions of Ecuador, Peru, and Costa Rica to rediscover Nature's beauty and intelligence.

For over 10 years (1990-2000), Jonathon lived and collaborated with 5 distinct indigenous tribes in the Upper Amazon, including the Secoya tribe where he learned to cook the sacred plant medicine Yagé. This plant shares many similarities to Ayahuasca.

In the following mind-bending episode, we ask Jonathon how we deal with life if we're feeling lost, how we can learn to experience the world in an animistic way, and what "real" shamanism is all about.

This discussion is electric. You may feel overwhelmed by the speed at which Jonathon is able to connect raw knowledge with his poetic perspective on life, but it's one hell of a ride.

“Shamanism explores an area that contemporary Western science knows little about- the mind.”
― Jonathon Weisberger

A shaman is someone who can choose the moment of their own death. The shamans are few. People who practice shamanic practices are many.

― Jonathon Weisberger

Jonathon challenges the conventional wisdom on ayahuasca drinking and the new culture that surrounds it as well as how phenomenological truths hold a sacred space in our world of objects and scientific facts.

“If science is defined or understood as a mode of seeking knowledge, a means of interpreting nature in a way that can be demonstrated to others, then the plant-medicine traditions of the Amazon as they have been practiced constitute an authentic scientific discipline.”
― Jonathon Miller Weisberger

Jonathon also talks about his time spent with the Secoya Tribe, explaining their philosophy and warrior way of life. Yagé is for more than just healing, it can make you stronger.

“Among the Secoya, clear guidelines regulate preparation of the medicine. They are adamant about this preparation method and insist that the guidelines be followed. I've already discussed some fundamentals of harvesting the plants. When respected, all the elements and subtle factors combine to make a potent and efficacious medicine, necessary for a positive and healing ceremony.”
― Jonathon Miller Weisberger

We also explore in the discussion with Jonathon:

• The role of a "bad trip" when drinking plant medicine
• What a "dieta" is and how following one may benefit us
• The amazing character traits of Jonathon's Secoya mentor
• How we can improve our spiritual position
• What it means to "sin" and alternatively live a sin-free life

Recommended Products:

Apotheosis: The Ultimate Spiritual Retreat

Jonathon helped facilitate the Yagé ceremony at our first ever HighExistence retreat. To come to one of our upcoming retreats, apply here. 

Jonathon's 

In our first episode of the HighExistence podcast we talk with Rick Doblin who is the founder of the non-profit organization MAPS, a true pioneering group of people researching the healing effects of Psilocybin, MDMA and LSD. We discuss the new wave of research about the healing power of psychedelics, spiritual experiences and what he thinks of the famous quote by Alan Watts, "If you got the message, hang up the phone."

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

Geoff Thompson is a charismatic enigma. A nightclub doorman and martial artist turned award-winning playwright, author, and spiritual teacher – he defies easy description and confounds all expectations.

Geoff grew up with few prospects, under the shadow of his own fears. Inside, he yearned to be a writer, but with no obvious mentors or opportunities in sight, he slid repeatedly into depression and began to reconcile himself to working factory jobs and capitulating in the face of all conflict.

But then Geoff did something incredible: he made fear his mentor.

He constructed a Fear Pyramid. Taking pen to paper, he listed in ascending order of magnitude everything that scared him, from spiders right up to physical violence. And then he began to systematically confront them, one after another.

In this incredible interview, he shares his story and the simple yet life-changing tools which you can employ to discover your hidden strengths and discover the life that's waiting for you.

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

"Are you the same with your best friend as you are with your boss and your mother and the stranger in the bus stop? Are you the same person in all those scenarios? Because if not, you are dishonest. And that's okay. Because, you wanna know who's definitely a dishonest person? Anyone who says that they're an honest person."

— Dan Munro

"Losing your job is nothing compared to losing your Self."

— Dan Munro

Today I sit down and chat with Dan Munro about his new book, The Naked Truth. 

Dan has been on the podcast before where we went deep into Dan's own story with honesty and authenticity and the tactics he uses as a coach to turn people from socially anxious into socially bulletproof. 

In this episode, we focus specifically on the toxic effects of being dishonest, and the blueprint you need to turn your life around and start being boldly... YOU. 

In this discussion, we cover:

• Essentialism and shiny object syndrome
• Self deception and bias
• The mixed messages from society on honesty
• Dan's own story of how dishonesty hurt him
• The various hidden types of lies
• The link between shame and dishonesty
• How to express authentically without harming people
• The validation addiction detox
• Why it's good to be disliked
• Was murderer Chris Watts spurred by dishonesty?

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

Down the Rabbit Hole is your weekly injection of wisdom, wonder, and well being sent straight to your inbox from HighExistence.

Do you hear the call right now?

The call to rise up, to step into your power, to be the hero. To take actions for yourself, your community, and your world.

These are the tests that we've been waiting for.

This is the call to be a Hero.

This is where you can demonstrate the fruits of your inner work.

In times of uncertainty, the best things you can do are often the smallest steps. Take care of yourself and others. Remaining grounded and centered. Check-in on others and see what help is needed. Coordinate information and resources. Contribute. Show Up.

It is under this thread that we embark again today on another Dialogue, sitting down to riff on these concepts and far more, dissecting the mythological significance and opportunity that the COVID-19 pandemic is offering individuals.

With some reframing, some individual empowerment, and a lot of diligence – we can all find space here to step further into our power, to embrace this as an opportunity to rise up and be the Hero in a time that needs more of them.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• Cultivating sovereignty in uncertain times
• The slippery slope of framing humanity as a virus...
• The danger of listening to successful people
• What nobility looks like and why it's been lost
• How the Hero's Journey relates to global events
• The revitalization of the Warrior archetype
• How to be the hero that the world needs
• MUCH MORE...

In our second episode of the HighExistence podcast we talk with Tom Shroder, author of the book Acid Test: LSD, Ecstasy and the Power to Heal, and Nicholas Blackstone, a former marine who suffered from PTSD and how MDMA assisted therapy enabled him to go deep inside and confront the demons that haunted him after heavy combat in Iraq. 

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

We're opening the doors to our accelerated learning course with Justin soon. Add yourself to the early access list here.

What does living in alignment really look like?

How do you define the goals, virtues, and morals that will guide your life? And how do you act them out in your daily life?

This is just one of the many topics we explore today on the latest HighExistence Dialogues – with learning expert Justin Noppé with us.

We explore the systems and techniques of unlocking yourself, living up to the potential you have inside of you, and explore how your culture shapes a lot of this early on and what you can do about it now.

Whether it's new skill acquisition, changing your personality and disposition, or getting a deeper understanding of how to connect with others — this conversation goes into all of that and a lot more.

Justin is already the creator of our Accelerated Learning course, so you can dive in behind-the-scenes as we riff on these topics. To learn more about the course, check out the link at the top of this description.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• Overcoming agreeableness and cultural divisions
• Navigating interpersonal dynamics with expertise
• What an 'aligned human' looks like
• Become anything and anybody you want
• Building a sturdy foundation for the rest of your life
• Hard skills vs. soft skills
• Becoming an interesting person and owning it
• Deconstructing yourself with real-world results
• MUCH MORE...

I get faced with the question, "Why would you do more than one plant medicine retreat or ceremony? What is the value?" And really, fundamentally, after doing one, you're a different person. Really. Completely. Particularly if you dive super deep into process, you can fundamentally transform. And with that brings a whole different life; a whole different set of goals; a whole different personality structure; a whole different set of problems and challenges that you face. So for all the same reasons that enabled you to go into one, you can go into more.

— Eric Brown, HEx Podcast #32

Using psychedelics is a fantastic way to see what your ordinary mind is like and how it works.

For many of us, psychedelics can reveal patterns that are going on all the time, but under the intense spotlight of plant medicine we see it less as a background murmuring and more of a strong soul-punch that makes us writhe around in agonising self-reflection.

There is so much advice out there on set and setting and how to navigate a difficult psychedelic experience, but one of the few people whose advice I would take seriously on this subject is Eric Brown.

Eric is the type of psychonaut that can dive very deep into process and yet still remember his training—breathing, mindfulness, cognitive distancing, trust, surrender.

Whenever I talk to him after an experience of his, I am amazed at how lucid his recollection is and how he navigated the difficult moments with Jedi-level calm.

So it was my pleasure to spend 3.5 hours (longest interview ever) going very deep into Eric's recent 3-week trip to Peru where he partook in a very strict plant diet, which included copious amount of sacred tea drinking, ayahuasca, kambo, and fasting from modern distraction and pleasure.

This episode of the podcast will show you in vivid detail how plant medicine works, how it can transform you, how to prepare, integrate, and generally think about working with ancient plant technologies.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• Eric's retreat and psychedelic experience.
• The trap of viewing retreats as the next spiritual high.
• The difference between lying and bullshitting.
• Eric's view on meditation and how he practices mindfulness.
• How to prepare for a psychedelic experience.
• What do do when a "bad trip" happens.
• Eric's story of the 3-week dieta in Peru.
• How to "communicate" with the medicine.
• The right and wrong way to integrate mystical experiences.
• WAY MORE...

WHERE TO FIND ERIC BROWN

Hangout with him at an Apotheosis Retreat

Read Eric's work here.

Say hi on... Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

At Breaking Convention 2017 we had the chance to sit down with a modern-day philosophical powerhouse.

Peter Sjöstedt-H is a leading voice in the emerging world of psychedelic phenomenology; he's the inspiration for Karnak, Marvel's new, cerebrally-charged superhero; and he's the author behind one of HighExistence's most popular articles ever.

We talk psychedelics and philosophy; Peter's mission to form a bridge between the scientific disciplines; whether our consciousness exists outside our meat-bodies; and if more knowledge really leads to more happiness.

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

HighExistence family, we are back!

If you want to know where we’ve been, what we have been up to, and what we are doing now… This episode holds all the answers. 

To find out about our upcoming retreat go to: https://apotheosisretreat.com/

It’s not every day you sit down with a shaman to explore their life, beliefs, practices, and opinions.

But today, we’re doing just that.

We have the pleasure of sitting down to talk to our friend Marie Lou of Infinity Retreats. We have worked with Marie Lou and her partner Anke at our Apotheosis Retreats, and it was Marie Lou and Anke who ran the diet that Jon and I discussed in Episode 28.

Marie Lou is a true example of where ‘doing the work’ can take you. Through extensive study, diets, and work with the plants, she moves gracefully through the world with the poise and power of someone who walked the path for a long time.

But this isn’t just an exploration of her work, we get the opportunity to go into much more with her.

And much more ground is covered. This is an up close and intimate look at how one moves down the path from just interested to awakened, what work is required to hold space and conduct ceremonies, and why anyone would do this and what results they can see.

It is an exploration into the world of the plants, the nature of reality, and the purpose of the here and now.

We are so honoured to bring this to you, and hope that this will be the start of many more conversations to come.

If you liked this and want to hear more from Marie Lou + Anke, send us an email or give us a comment to let us know.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• How has the past year with COVID been for you?
• How do you describe what you do?
• Exploring Bufo and how to diet the medicine.
• Understanding diets and how to do the work.
• How did you get started doing this work?
• What’s your definition of a shaman?
• German New Medicine and the nature of illness.
• Does a shaman still feel fear? 
• Infinity Retreats and the path forward.
• MUCH MORE…

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

In our fourth episode of the HighExistence podcast we talk with Tim Urban, author/illustrator of Wait But Why and one of the Internet's most popular writers.

We talk with Tim about the secret to Elon Musk's success, world travel, what entrepreneurs do wrong, cryonic preservation, and the dangers posed by superintelligent AI.

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

Jules Evans appeared on the podcast last time to discuss his two previous books: Philosophy For Life And Other Dangerous Situations and The Art of Losing Control.

In that episode, we talked at length about the benefits of Stoicism, and also where reason-based philosophical frameworks might be lacking if one wishes to experience a rich, integrated human life.

We dove into topics like meditation, eastern philosophy, and psychedelics as useful additions in our psychological toolkit.

When I asked Jules what he was working on next, he explained that he was in the process of co-editing a book with psychiatry expert Tim Read all about spiritual emergencies.

Considering I am involved in the psychedelic and spirituality space, I was surprised to find that I knew very little about this important topic.

30, years ago Stanislav Grof and his wife Christina wrote a book called Spiritual Emergency where they defined this phenomenon as follows:

One of the most important implications... is the realization that many of the conditions, which are currently diagnosed as psychotic and indiscriminately treated by suppressive medication, are actually difficult stages of a radical personality transformation and of spiritual opening. If they are correctly understood and supported, these psychospiritual crises can result in emotional and psychosomatic healing, remarkable psychological transformation, and consciousness evolution.

With the resurgence of psychedelics and increased popularity of spiritual practices, information on how one might recognise and navigate their way through a spiritual emergency has never been more important.

In this episode of the HighExistence Podcast, Jules and I discuss the book he edited on this topic Breaking Open: Finding Your Way Through a Spiritual Emergency.

I have read the book, and I can't express how important I found it. If you are in any way interested in pursuing spiritual transformation, this book book is indispensable.

To learn more about Breaking Open and the topic of spiritual emergencies, my conversation here with Jules is a perfect place to begin.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• What is a spiritual emergency?
• Tips for dealing with difficult spiritual experiences
• The creative process behind the book Breaking Open
• Jules' own spiritual emergency and ayahuasca experience
• Useful guidelines for attending psychedelic retreats
• Psychosis vs. spiritual emergency
• Psychedelic intergration
• The usefulness of psychotherapy
• The dark side of spirituality
• MUCH MORE...

Sometimes I don't really like the word enlightenment because it suggests something final. It suggests an end point, and I don't think there is an end point. You can think in terms of a landscape of expansive experience which different traditions or different individuals view in different ways. They may just be sitting or standing on different parts of the landscape so they obviously interpret it in slightly different ways.

— Excerpt from Steve Taylor Interview

Steve Taylor is a British psychology lecturer at the university of Leeds.

He is also the author of several best-selling books including The Fall, Waking From Sleep, Back to Sanity, The Leap, and his most recent book Spiritual Science: Why We Need Spirituality to Make Sense of the World.

Eckhart Tolle described Taylor’s book The Leap as containing “a great deal of precious wisdom, expressed in the straightforward, clear, and down-to-earth language that Steve Taylor is so good at.”

Taylor’s primary interest of study is in the field of transpersonal psychology, where he explores the science of higher states of consciousness, wakefulness, and the claims many of us are familiar with in popular spirituality.

In my talk with Steve, we discuss...

• The problems of the materialistic worldview
• The best way think about enlightenment
• How we can define consciousness
• The three ways we can achieve awakening experiences
• The unlikely benefits of extreme emotional turmoil
• The uses and dangers of psychedelics
• Why telepathy is scientifically possible
• And a lot more...

I really loved my conversation with Steve. He is a very calm, grounded presence but is also able to clearly put forth very important, profound ideas on how we can live a more enriched spiritual existence.

It's a tendency in some spiritual traditions, also in some forms of Buddhism, to denigrate the natural world and the material world, almost as if we're trying to transcend it. In a similar way, some spiritual traditions tend to denigrate the body as well, almost as if the spirit is trying to transcend the body, and the spirit and the body are two different things. So it's important not to fall into that kind of dualistic attitude, I think. You've gotta see the natural world as spiritual—it's full of spirit, it's sacred, and it's alive.

— Excerpt from Steve Taylor Interview

"For those who would say that sugar is addictive, if that was truly at the root of the addictive nature that people have with some foods, you wouldn't see them seeking out cookies, you'd see them seeking out sugar packets. You'd want that raw cut at its most basic form. Heroin addicts don't want things cut with their heroin. So I think we need to think about it in a broader perspective."

Eric Helms is one of the most insightful, unbiased, and respected figures in the nutrition and exercise industry. For most of Eric’s career, he has worked as a coach for drug free strength and physique competitors at all levels.

But he’s not just a coach. Eric is a competitive athlete himself, and has pro status with the Professional Natural Bodybuilding Association and competes with the IPF at the international level as an unequipped powerlifter.

As if that wasn’t enough Eric has also published multiple peer reviewed articles on in exercise science and nutrition journals. He’s taught undergraduate and graduate level nutrition and exercise science and speaks internationally at academic and commercial conferences for fitness, nutrition, and strength and conditioning. He has a Bachelor of science in fitness and wellness, one masters in exercise science, a second masters in sports nutrition, and PhD in strength and conditioning.

Eric is perhaps most well-known for being one of the 3D Muscle Journey coaches and his amazing Nutrition and Strength Pyramid books. 

If you’re even slightly interested in your health or physique, this episode cannot be missed. Eric and I discuss intermittent fasting, how to spot bullshit advice, the problem with formulaic diets, whether sugar is toxic, how you can educate yourself properly, the benefits of lifting weights, and a ton more.

East Forest is a man of many talents.

Composer, explorer, facilitator, innovator, digital shaman — the list goes on.

Many of us know him through the music he produces, the experiences he’s crafted, or for the meditations and retreats that he hosts. He recently burst back into the spotlight with his latest album release ‘Ram Dass’ — a collaboration project he did with the renowned spiritual teacher himself.

It was one of the last public projects that Ram Dass undertook before his passing.

We sat down with East Forest to go into the woods on everything with him: his creative process, his views on spirituality and metaphysics, the value of inner work and exploration, and a whole lot more.

East Forest has the makings of a wise elder — reserved and focused in his speech, but able to convey a level of wisdom and reverence that is truly stunning.

We hope you enjoy this conversation with East Forest, as well as a few samples of songs that appear on the Ram Dass album.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• What East Forest thinks of music and meaning
• The production of music as the birthing of the new
• Navigating uncertainty as a creator
• The metaphysics of meaning and human life
• Collaborating with Ram Dass
• Spontaneous emergence through courageous leaps
• Digital shamanism and the future of psychedelic experiences
• Slow down and tuning in with yourself, for yourself
• MUCH MORE...

"If someone says, “I’m a fucking loser,” that’s a form of dishonesty. What you actually are is a collection of atoms talking to each other. To say that you’re a loser isn’t accurately describing yourself. To say, “right now I’m having a thought that I’m a loser and engaging in some self-pity around that,” that’s more accurate."

— Dan Munro, from HEx Podcast

Daniel Schmachtenberger is truly a modern Renaissance Man. He's a thought leader who crosses disciplinary boundaries with incredible ease. He's an Evolutionary Philosopher, a Systems Designer, a Strategist, and he’s a founder at Neurohacker Collective – a movement dedicated to upgrading our individual and collective capacities and to safeguarding the wellbeing of all.

We sat down with Daniel to discuss the future of humanity, from how to combat looming ecological and economic disaster, to the practical steps we can take in our own lives to be the best versions of ourselves – to (re)open our minds to each other and to think so far out of the box that we forget that it ever existed.

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

I’d like to use me as living proof that nobody was worse than me that I’ve ever met, and nobody was darker or closer to death or more sad. And to have this thing happen... if it happened to me, it can happen to anyone. So just give it a chance and give yourself a chance.

— Gerry Powell, The HighExistence Podcast

Gerry Powell, according to his website, “was the personification of the American businessman: rich, powerful, and unhappy.” In fact Gerry was one of the most miserable people on the planet. Even though he sold his cosmetic surgery company for $94 million dollars, had 5 houses, 20+ cars, and 2 planes, he was suicidal and addicted to drugs and sex.

But if you met him now, you would not see an unhappy man. Instead, you’d see a beaming, glowing, radiant, compassionate guy who is truly addicted to living a tranquil life and seeing others thrive and grow.

So what happened?

Gerry took Plant Medicine:

I realized something was very wrong because the more I acquired the more I suffered. I spent hundreds of thousands of dollars and travelled the world on my journey to heal myself through every self-help and healing modality I could find. A friend introduced me to Plant Medicine and in one night I had an experience that transformed my existence and liberated me from a lifetime of suffering. That was 2 years ago and my life continues to unfold in an extraordinary way.

When Gerry was experiencing his transformation through Plant Medicine, he received instructions in a vision to start a new company:

As a result of my experience I decided to open a center in Costa Rica that would offer all of the modalities that had the greatest impact on my life, enabling me to share them with as many people as possible at a price they could afford. I modeled it after the Club Med philosophy of an all-inclusive resort experience offering modalities, accommodations, organic meals, and first class amenities.

The center that Gerry opened in Costa Rica is called Rythmia. The HighExistence team went here to interview Gerry and experience the Plant Medicine ceremonies firsthand.

Gerry is an amazing, charismatic, hilarious speaker. This is one of our most entertaining podcasts to date. In our interview, we cover such topics as:

• Gerry’s transformation after drinking Plant Medicine
• The reason Gerry created Rythmia
• The HighExistence team’s experience at Rythmia
• How you can introduce a close one to Plant Medicine
• Gerry’s vision for the future of Rythmia
• And much more.

If you are interested in plant medicine …

Visit Rythmia

If you were inspired by the podcast and want to visit Rythmia, you can book your place on their website here. 

Watch the video of this interview here.

Patrick McKeown is the author of the acclaimed The Oxygen Advantage.

I was first recommended this book by my friend and mentor Justin Noppé to help with my breathing during Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

The book blew my mind. I consider myself fairly knowledgeable about topics like health, fitness, anxiety, and stress...

But there was so much highly useful information in this book, I knew I had to started putting the ideas into practice immediately.

Then COVID-19 hit.

The more research I did on this disease, the more I wanted to talk to Patrick about it.

COVID-19 is a respiratory disease, so the world's leading authority on the Buteyko breathing method should surely have some useful input.

I reached out to Patrick and he agreed to speak.

It was an incredibly illuminating 90-minute discussion, and a few days later I attended his masterclass—did not disappoint.

Whether you're new to Patrick's work or already familiar, there will be a ton of value for you in this episode.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• How to breathe to avoid spreading and catching COVID-19
• How to breathe if you are suffering from anxiety
• The insane benefits of nasal breathing
• How to combine breath work and meditation
• The Wim Hof Method and its drawbacks
• How to measure the health of your lungs
• Simple ways to dramatically improve your athletic performance
• Simple techniques to improve your sleep overnight
• MUCH MORE...

WATCH MY INTERVIEW WITH PATRICK HERE:

https://youtu.be/i6bXKYS2mk4

• The best books on Stoicism you've never heard of
• The overlap between Buddhism and Stoicism
• The intersection between psychotherapy and Stoicism
• The Stoic version of enlightenment
• How to think like Marcus Aurelius
• Some of the criticisms about Stoicism
• And tons more...

BOOKS RECOMMENDED

• Stoicism and the Art of Happiness by Donald Robertson
• How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius by Donald Robertson
• Philosophy as a Way of Life: Spiritual Exercises from Socrates to Foucault by Pierre Hadot
• Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
• Discourses and Selected Writings by Epictetus (Handbook and Discourses)
• The Moral Epistles by Seneca
• Dialogues and Essays by Seneca
• Tusculan Disputations by Cicero
• On Moral Ends by Cicero
• The Obstacle Is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph by Ryan Holiday
• A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine
• Philosophical Regimen of Antony, Earl of Shaftesbury by Benjamin Rand
• The Memorabilia: Recollections of Socrates by Xenophon
• Euthydemus by Plato
• The Last Days of Socrates by Plato

PEOPLE MENTIONED

• Ryan Holiday

You may be having the most extraordinary psychedelic experiences. You may be communicating with DMT-entities. Mamma Ayahuasca might be visiting you nightly. But if it's not making you a kinder person. Then it's just a holiday. It's just a thrill. You might as well just be watching a movie. You might as well be watching Disney's Fantasia because it's not making you kinder person. It's not making you a more loving person. It might even be making you a worse person because you're becoming a self-regarding, vein dick.

— Jules Evans, HEx Podcast #19

If you look at the literature on ecstatic experiences, it often just focuses on psychedelic experiences, and it says this is the type of experience you can have when you're on LSD or magic mushrooms or MDMA and so on. That's a rather narrow way of looking at it. In fact, people have similar kinds of ecstatic experiences in lots of different domains, in lots of different fields of human activity. I'm a big admirer of Aldous Huxley, because I think he more than anyone else had this kind of bird's eye view of all the different ways in which people get out of their heads and go beyond their ordinary egos.

— Jules Evans, HEx Podcast #19

• The wonders and limits of Stoic philosophy
• Near death experiences
• Why Aldous Huxley was so great
• The value of ecstatic experiences
• Ayahuasca retreats stories
• The dark side of psychedelics
• Jules' most recommended books
• And tons more...

NOTABLE MOMENTS

What to you is the point of philosophy? [02:54]

How Jules became interested in Stoicism and Greek philosophy. [04:10]

Was your PTSD triggered by a bad LSD experience? [07:27]

What Jules could have done differently to manage the fallout from his difficult LSD trip. [10:06]

Jon discusses how he believes his levels of neuroticism has declined as he's gotten older. [11:36]

Jon shares his interest in Stoicism. [12:36]

Jon explains how he used Stoic techniques to help him cope with the fear of jaw surgery. [13:21]

How Jules used Stoicism to help him cope with social anxiety. [14:09]

Was simply learning about CBT and Stoicism enough for you to reduce your social anxiety, or was there a practical element too? [16:46]

Jules explains how cognitive bias, perfectionism, and poor coping strategies prevented hindered hindered his recovery from anxiety. [19:35]

Jules explains what happened in his near death experience (NDE). [22:02]

How Jules' epiphany from his near death experience led him to CBT. [30:54]

Stoicism is about being true to the god within you. [32:28]

How Jules connected his mystical experience with Stoicism, CBT, and eventually Buddhism. [32:54]

Jules explains his role in the modern resurgence of Stoicism. [34:17]

Some of the areas of human nature Stoicism doesn't address. [37:01]

Why did you call your second book The Art of Losing Control? [39:34]

Jules explains the wide-ranging states of ecstatic experiences. [41:04]

What are the main paths to losing control that you discovered in your research? [43:54]

Alcohol as a means to escape ordinary consciousness. [45:44]

Jules explains what he calls "The Festival of Ecstasy." [46:59]

Jules discusses how war, violence

If you identify as spiritual but not religious, then this one is for you.

In our second interview with John Vervaeke, he urges those who have been traversing the spiritual path on their own up until now to come together and join forces:

“We need the best wisdom we can come up with. The chances that you’re going to get that on your own are very small.”

— John Vervaeke, HEx Podcast #49

What forms as we come together is what John calls, ‘the religion that is not a religion’. 

If you extracted everything that was valuable from traditional religions and left behind what was constricting and harmful, this is what you would get.

“We need to reach deeply into the roots of our traditions in order to grow up into the novelty of the sunlight, if we’re going to grow what we need here.”

Why do we need something like this? And how do we begin to build it? 

Eric and John dive deep into these questions and surface with a stash of nuggets pointing the way to a world of wisdom.

What We Cover:

• Why we need a religion that is not a religion 
• The problems that arise from being ‘spiritual but not religious’
• Why it’s not a religion
• Untangling the supernatural from the spiritual
• How to build up your own community 
• Metapsychotechnologies for curating ecologies of practice
• Yoga’s 4 paths to Union as an example of pluralism
• Western traditions as equally viable paths to wisdom
• MUCH MORE…

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

“We need to have a deep dialogue between science and spirituality.”

John Vervaeke, HEx Podcast #48

It’s easy to say that science and spirituality are being summoned to sit down together for a deep conversation — but much harder to actually make this happen without things devolving quickly.  

John Vervaeke has taken it upon himself to come in and, not only translate, but provide an entire vocabulary and grammar for both parties to use to allow for deeper understanding and more nuanced agreements.

This is a mammoth task. For this reason, John has an entire 50 episode YouTube series called The Meaning Crisis exploring the past, present, and future of this dynamic between science and spirituality. It is one of the most significant series I’ve seen in a while.

If you don’t have 50 hours to spare, fear not, for we have an exhaustive summary of it all for you right here.

Originally posted on John’s Youtube channel under the title ‘Best Synoptic Overview of The Meaning Crisis & my Work’, this interview is an action-packed call to arms against the spiritual challenges we are facing today, featuring misunderstood vampires and re-spawning Hydra heads.

By giving us a strong foundation to stand on and bringing spirituality back down to earth, John is creating a platform for this crucial merging to take place. 

“We can go from these being terms that are wrapped in mystique and obscurity to being a realizable continuum that we can start engaging in right now right here.”

— John Vervaeke

With the groundwork in place, please enjoy this deep dive into the meaning crisis, stealing the culture, and redesigning religion.

WHAT WE COVER:

• An exhaustive summary of The Meaning Crisis
• John’s own personal meaning crisis and how meaning began to emerge in his life
• The deep mechanisms underlying downward spirals/addiction
• Perennial Problems: the eternal spiritual problems of man
• Jordan Peterson’s role in the reawakening
• Hamlet as an example of over-self-consciousness
• The pros and cons of the scientific mindset
• The 4 ways of knowing
• Psychotechnologies
• Strengths and weaknesses of Eastern and Western approaches
• Ecologies of practices: responses to the Perennial Problems
• An introduction to the Religion that is not a Religion
• Serious play as the bridge between two worlds
• MUCH MORE…

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

Paul Austin (@PaulAustin3W) is the founder of The Third Wave, a website designed to improve psychedelic literacy so these powerful tools with great potential can be used in a safe, structured, and responsible way. Paul is also co-founder of Synthesis, the world’s first legal psilocybin truffle retreat in Amsterdam.

This interview was conducted fresh after Paul returned from Burning Man, so he is in a state of new beginnings and processing what I gathered was an extraordinary journey. In the episode we discuss Paul’s path from socially awkward teen to charismatic speaker and entrepreneur, the uses of microdosing, his thoughts on leadership, his current passion projects, favorite books, and much more.

• Connect with Paul Austin:

PaulAustin.co | Twitter | TheThirdWave | Synthesis

• Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization by Dave Logan
• Paul Austin on Microdosing: Psychedelics for Leadership Development | TNW Conference 2017
• Stealing Fire: How Silicon Valley, the Navy SEALs, and Maverick Scientists Are Revolutionizing the Way We Live and Work by Steven Kotler and Jamie Wheal
• Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche
• Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
• The 4-Hour Workweek, Expanded and Updated: Expanded and Updated, With Over 100 New Pages of Cutting-Edge Content by 

Akira is something of a musical-philosophical wizard.

He's been called the DJ of the Intellectual Dark Web and is the innovator of a new genre of music called Meaningwave.

He samples Terence McKenna, Alan Watts, Jordan Peterson, Hunter S. Thompson, David Foster Wallace, Elon Musk, Jock Willink, David Goggins, and a variety of other philosophers, thinkers, artists, and inspiring figures.

And he synchronizes these samples in delicious ways with a wide array of gorgeous beats he conjures to create a uniquely enchanting and mind-expanding listening experience.

His album 'The Path' with Jocko Willink has been particularly influential for me lately; it's a ridiculously motivational album and I highly recommend it, along with the rest of his work.

We'll be interluding some of his music throughout this episode so you can get a taste of his art.

Akira is an extraordinarily insightful and entertaining individual, and we had a lot of fun in this episode exploring a truly vast expanse of territory.

We discuss everything from space migration and the Jungian shadow to transcendental experiences and the wonders of being alive in 2019.

Without further ado, let's get into it; I hope you enjoy this technicolor journey as much as we did.

Talking to Daniel Schmachtenberger is like having an audience with a prophet. His vast knowledge extends across health, economics, technology, strategy and philosophy. More importantly, he’s a brilliant communicator dedicated to bringing those often disparate fields into dialogue, in order to make powerful, genuine change for the betterment of our individual and collective lives.

Last time I met Daniel, we spoke about the collective future of humanity in the face of imminent ecological and economic disaster. This time, we bring the focus back to you and me: the individual life and how we can become the best, most fulfilled and conscious versions of ourselves.

This is a conversation about unlocking our individual potential through empowered responsibility. What steps can and should we make to create the foundations for a truly high existence? Crucially, the aim here is not to feel responsibility as a burden to be shouldered, but as the wellspring of personal power and agency.

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

In the 10th installment of the High Existence dialogues, we welcome a 4th member onto the stage, discuss the life-changing opportunities that come with finding a community of like-hearted individuals, and pull back the curtains on two soul-quenching events coming up on the HEx horizon.

Register for Metamorphosis - A FREE 3-Day online transformational gathering focused on designing sacred rituals: https://highexistence.com/metamorphos...
 
IN THIS EPISODE:

• Harnessing feedback for hyper-growth 
• The value of being around people who actually want to hear about what’s going on in your life
• How finding true community changed the lives of the team members
• Ritual as a portal into the sacred
• What is Metamorphosis 2.0? 🦋
• Arriving in each moment with a sense of completeness rather than needing the world to make you whole 
• A special invitation for the High Existence Soul Family (You!)
• Apotheosis 6.0 Announcement 😆
• The glimpse into the future of High Existence

• How the level of access to knowledge is unprecedented right now, and how tapping into it can change the trajectory of your life
• MJ’s “C-E-N-T-S” framework for coming up with high-velocity business ideas (featuring the Commandments of Control, Entry, Need, Time, and Scale)
• How to increase the magnitude of your contribution and accelerate your profits
• The timelessness of great books and podcasts
• Nassim Taleb’s concept of “antifragility” and how it can help prepare you for any external event that could threaten your safety and security
• The Great Rat Race Escape, MJ’s newest book, a business book/novel hybrid that follows one couple’s personal journey from financial slavery to financial freedom
• ”Value skews” and how you can develop them in order to walk over your competition
• ”Superior Unexpected Customer Service” (SUCS) and why it’s so much easier today for your business to stand out
• ”Expected Value” and why you should always aim for “Excellent” instead of just “Good”
• The latest redefinition of “financial freedom” and why it’s just financial slavery in a different form
• Why investing in your health will improve your life in every other area
• When you should begin your child’s financial education and how to avoid the mediocrity narrative

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

Psychedelics can cause harm. 

Don’t get me wrong, I love psychedelics. But I also acknowledge their potential to bring about profoundly unwanted changes in the psyche.

Yet, with the ever-more abundant influx of news focussing on the life-changing benefits of these substances, the very real risks that pose are getting drowned out, leaving us with only one-half of the full picture.

The way that our information channels are structured these days, if we don’t want to hear about something, we usually don’t. We also tend to be over-eager to find The Solution to all our problems. Psychedelics, for many, are taking on this projection. It’s not uncommon to hear people talking about the psychedelic renaissance as though it were the second coming. 

Ed Prideaux is on a mission to stop some of this psychedelic naivety in its tracks, by speaking up about his experience with hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD). 

Remember those LSD horror stories that your mum told you, about that guy who took LSD and never stopped tripping? Well, this is sort of like that (although HPPD is not the same as ‘permatripping’, as you’ll hear Ed clarify) except this is no horror story. The week after Ed’s fourth LSD trip, he noticed that the carpets were sparkling and the walls were melting. These effects, along with a handful of others, have not totally left him, 6 years on.

This phenomenon is far more common than you might think. A recent study of 2455 psychedelic users reported that a quarter of participants said that they experienced lingering perceptual changes days and weeks after a psychedelic experience and that 1 in 25 found these changes to be so distressing that they considered seeking clinical help.

The conversation that Ed brings to the table goes far beyond just HPPD. It extends into an axiom-altering exploration of the narratives around ‘really bad trips’, the fundamental flaws of the current mental health framework, and the fluid nature of reality itself. 

What We Cover: 

• What is HPPD?
• Ed’s personal experience with HPPD
• The connection between anxiety and perception
• Advice for someone who thinks they might have HPPD
• The problem with overidentifying with a particular form of suffering
• Can you use psychedelics again if you have HPPD?
• The gifts of neurodiversity
• Stan Grof’s controversial treatment for HPPD
• How to make a psychedelic experience as well-held as possible
• The fundamental skill to have in the psychedelic experience
• The intersection of this psychedelic moment with the metaverse
• Psychedelic narcissism 

DIVE DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE and get 5+ mind-blowing ideas, tools, or quotes sent to you every Wednesday.

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

“Our True Desires are deeply sacred. As sacred as a river, or a volcano, or any other natural process. It’s something separate from egoic desire which is, ‘I want this because I saw it in a commercial', but the exploration of those egoic desires might actually help somebody go towards those things. And so I think our desires are sacred. I think it’s something to listen to as if it is the voice of God.”

Jake Kobrin (HEx Podcast #59)

Magick has always been a concept that I've brushed aside as another overly esoteric, new-age fad that I assumed would reveal itself to be built on faulty foundations if I ever actually decided to dig into it.

After listening to this episode, I realize that those assumptions couldn't be further from the truth. Magick is thousands of years older than western psychology. Its' roots run deep and its implications far and wide.

The most controversial magician of the 20th century, Aleister Crowley, defined it as “the science and art of causing change in conformity with our Will”. 

In other words, this is a long-standing tradition that has mastered the art of manifesting the life that is the fullest and most accurate expression of your innermost being (aka the True Will). As you’ll hear in this episode, there is an endless list of techniques that can aid and accelerate this process. 

”If you follow, yeah you can call it whatever you want, some divine intelligence, some deep ancestral wisdom that’s just sown into your DNA, your life will be better than your dreams because man, it’s going to take you on a process. Some of it might be an initiation process, some of it might be really challenging. It might confront you with a lot, but the other side of it is… mind-boggling.”

Eric Brown (HEx Podcast #59)

And that's only one portion of this conversation...

What We Cover: 

• What it means to be a visionary artist 
• Practical examples of how to use language to shape your reality
• An introduction to Magick
• The concepts of The True Will and The Great Work
• Ceremonial Magick as initiatory processes
• Sigil Magick
• A run through the Magickal toolbox 
• The sacredness of desires
• The refreshing sincerity of sex dungeons
• Cryptocurrency, NFT's and Virtual Reality

DIVE DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE and get 5+ mind-blowing ideas, tools, or quotes sent to you every Wednesday.

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

“Here’s the funny thing: when I ask someone to tell me what his or her wildest dream is, they dilute it. Ten times out of ten, people sell themselves short”

Steve Sims 

Our guest on the podcast today should never have been able to succeed in business or in life. Growing up as a bricklayer in London, England, all the odds were against him achieving the kind of outlandish success he’s been able to claim so far, but it’s clear that the universe didn’t expect someone with Steve Sims’ heart, ingenuity, and initiative to appear and to turn traditional forms of networking on their heads. 

I first came across Steve Sims in his absurdly motivating book, Bluefishing, which tells the story of his company that makes seemingly unreasonable requests come true. The company is called Bluefish, and they’re who you call if you want to sing on stage with Journey, eat dinner in front of Michelangelo’s David, or visit the undersea wreckage of the Titanic. He’s orchestrated all of these experiences for his clients and many more besides. 

Steve is just an absolute magician when it comes to making the impossible possible, so listen to today’s episode if you’re open to receiving a ton of inspiration to get out there and make big things happen. 

He teaches that there is a password for every door, a weak spot in every wall, and if we would only stop selling ourselves short and start taking massive action, we might just be able to make that wall come down. 

Especially important to understand, moreover, is that in today’s business environment, mean guys finish last. A new, longer-term, more generous form of networking is making the old, manipulative kind of networking obsolete, and Steve Sims is helping to lead the way. 

I hope that you finish this episode just brimming with inspiration and courage, and leave with the understanding that you can get pretty much anything you want in life, so long as you help enough other people get what they want.

What We Cover: 

• What makes an entrepreneur an entrepreneur?
• The most important skills for futureproofing yourself
• How to break away from the rest and make yourself memorable
• Why being you is the most powerful marketing tactic there is
• Communicating your message clearly, without dilution
• The importance of surrounding yourself with people who are further along than you

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

You’ve gone Down The Rabbit Hole. Now it’s time to walk up The Stairway to Wisdom.

Introducing a brand new weekly newsletter from the minds at HighExistence.

Over the past year, we’ve been publishing the wonder-inducing weekly email known as “Down The Rabbit Hole,” and now we’re taking it a step further.

We want our readers not only to feel a deep sense of enchantment towards the world around them but also to apply deep teachings to their daily life so they can experience the life-transforming benefits of wisdom-in-action.

The Stairway to Wisdom is a premium weekly newsletter for those who are ready to dive deeper. We’ve partnered with independent researcher and knowledge connoisseur, Matt Karamazov, who has taken sharp, meticulous notes on over 1000 books so that he could share the most inspiring pearls of wisdom with the world.

Learn more here

“You can move past these obstacles. You probably relate to them as obstacles right now, but they’re actually a part of the path, right?”

-Mike Slavin (HEx Podcast #61)

In today’s solo cast, Mike leads us down a rabbit hole of discombobulate selves, where we find the true source of our procrastinative tendencies.

He reminds us that we procrastinate, not because we are cursed, but because a part of ourselves doesn’t want us to go where we are trying to go. 

Resistance is not an external force, but rather a part of YOU that is not yet on board with the mission yet.

Instead of slaying the procrastodragon, have you tried communicating with it? Listening to it, and harmonizing with it until it shrinks, or joins forces with you, so you can ride it into the ever-expanding horizon of your dreams 🌅

If you feel like you are being pulled in two directions at the same time, not quite able to actually move in any of them, this one is for you. Enjoy 🙇🏻‍♂️

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast.

For more where this came from, take a dive Down The Rabbit Hole, where you'll find Mike and his magic being dispensed in the form of a weekly newsletter, filled with bite-sized chunks of wisdom and wonder, just like this episode. 🧙🏼‍♂️

Cris Beasley has become a profoundly influential force in my life.

Her ability to go directly to the places where we are hiding, playing it small, and not owning the raw realities of our human experience is remarkable.

Her path from the tech world to being CEO of an AI company, to psychedelic facilitator, medicine woman, and oracle creator is as vibrant and rich as her personality.

Cris has several amazing achievements under her belt:

• Working with Mozilla to shape the open internet.
• The trials and tribulations of being a CEO.
• Creating the ‘Cult of Busyness’ immersive workshop experience
• Psychedelic facilitation and retreat work
• Creating the Becoming Dragon oracle deck
• Her new microdosing experience
• + much more

Cris is as emotionally attuned as she is wise. As witty as she is serious. It’s been an incredible process to watch her grow, evolve, and continue to execute with a combination of quality, speed, vigour, and grace. 

Bridging the shamanic and the scientific, the emotional and the intellectual, Cris is a deeply strong, powerful, and loving voice in the space of emotional intelligence, personal healing, and experience design. 

You can find her at:

• Becoming Dragon
• Substack
• Microdosing Experience

Enjoy this episode of the HighExistence podcast with Cris Beasley!

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

DIVE DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE and get 5+ mind-blowing ideas, tools, or quotes sent to you every Wednesday. 

Order a copy of Verissimus here

In our 3rd interview with Stoic author, philosopher and cognitive behavioural therapist, Donald Robertson, we discuss his brand new graphic novel, VERISSIMUS. 

This is the most epic philosophical project that I am aware of to date. 

If Ridley Scott's Gladiator had a baby with Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations, you’d get Verissimus.

As you’ll hear in this interview, this project was a massive undertaking, taking nearly 3 years to complete. Detailing the life, times, and philosophy of Marcus Aurelius, the book acts as a historically accurate, action-packed entry point into the Stoic landscape.

In this episode, we cover:

• The process of creating this book
• Why Donald decided to make a graphic novel
• Why many Romans actually opposed Marcus Aurelius
• Marcus’ mission to cultivate natural compassion towards all human beings, even his worst enemies
• The absurdity of Stoicism’s most popular criticism 
• Stoicism’s deep influence on early Christianity
• The relationship between intuition and reason
• Jon’s single favourite chapter on Stoicism

Links to Donald's Work:

 Verissimus: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius, by Donald Robertson 

How to Think Like a Roman Emperor, by Donald Robertson

Donald’s website

Modern Stoicism

The Anxiety Masterclass is HERE! 🎊

In this episode, we present to you part 1 of the 3-part series hosted by Mike Slavin and Jon Brooks.

Sign up here for the full 3-part training 💥

These videos are for you if...

- Anxiety paralyzes you, robbing you of your joy, curiosity, and vitality.
- You’re losing your future by missing out on opportunities because of anxiety...
- You struggle to be truly authentic with people and it stops you from building meaningful relationships
- It prevents you from making more money and getting the freedom you want.
- You’re fed up with the chokehold anxiety has on your life and emotions…
- It blocks you from fully supporting your family & friends, and giving your love.
- The fear of failure shuts off your productivity and creative expression.

Here's what's included in this episode:

00:00 Welcome
02:11  What we are going to cover in this Masterclass
02:38 What is anxiety?
11:02 What is possible on the other side of anxiety?
14:23  The pressure to say the "right" things
16:30 The Personal Failing Trap: "Something's wrong with me."
21:47 The Avoidance Trap: "Stay away from triggering situations."
28:29 The Elimination Trap: "I just need to get my anxiety to stop."
33:31 Can you really heal your anxiety?
36:25 Overcome mind blank for effortless conversations
44:16 What's coming in the next video

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

This episode is part 2 of a 3 part series, hosted by Mike Slavin and Jon Brooks

 Sign up here for the full 3-part training 💥
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Overcoming anxiety is the adventure of a lifetime. 

On this adventure, you will become someone your previous self would never have been able to recognise. 

And perhaps it is this journey, and the one you become, rather than the endpoint, that matters most.

That being said, what does this journey look like? Where do we even take the first step? What techniques have the highest hit rate for your particular type of anxiety? 

In this episode, Jon and Mike answer all of these questions and explain how to gamify the battle with your inner demons.

In this episode:

01:12 Welcome 

02:45 How most people deal with anxiety

04:30 The one size fits all STRATEGY to overcome anxiety

06:00 The problem with the magic bullet approach

08:26 Recap on the 3 traps that keep you stuck in anxiety

13:15 Overcoming anxiety is the most epic adventure of your life

17:16 The many beneficial side-effects that arise on the path to overcoming anxiety

20:55 Anxiety is a dream killer

25:42 How going through this journey has made Jon the parent he is today

27:27 How healing our anxiety affects those around us and the space that we hold

29:59 Why should you watch this next video?

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

Anxiety Rewired goes live on Sunday, August 21st. Get a text the moment it becomes available here: https://rewired.ju.mp

"The aim of Anxiety Rewired is to reframe the pursuit of working on our anxiety as a path to mastery. As something that is epic and challenging and fun, and extremely fulfilling and rewarding. That's what it's been for me and that's what I would really like it to be for you too."

In this final chapter of our 3 part series on overcoming anxiety, Jon and Mike dissect the remaining parts of Jon's history with anxiety, extracting massive amounts of wisdom, tools and techniques that allowed Jon to go from being crippled with multiple forms of anxiety, to hosting workshops for thousands of people on how to overcome them all.

We also flesh out our course, Anxiety Rewired, in a way that leaves no stones unturned.

By the end of this video, you will have a clear idea of what the next best step is for you on your journey to overcome whatever specific strain of anxiety you're struggling with at the moment.

IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 Who is Anxiety Rewired Designed for?
00:30 Welcome
01:50 Jon shares his deepest experience of being stuck in an anxiety rut
08:40 Other manifestations of anxiety in Jon’s life
11:10 How to heal from panic attacks
18:20 What doors opened up for Jon as he started to overcome his anxiety
22:25 The story of how this course came to be
25:55 What makes Anxiety Rewired unique?
27:26 The 4 maps that we’ll use to overcome anxiety 
33:06 The magic that happens when you combine practices with insights from the leading research
36:00 What’s included in the course?
43:39 A word from Jon for those sitting on the fence

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

⇨Anxiety Rewired is HERE ⇦

I have tried many different approaches to overcoming my own anxiety.  But never before have I tried them all at once. 

Anxiety Rewired is the first course that, rather than prizing one particular method, introduces and interweaves them all into one anxiety-blasting supernova that aims to rewire your relationship with anxiety, so that it no longer holds you back, but rather propels you towards your dreams and your purpose. 🔆

“It is integration that unlocks the next step, or the next stage, in that process, and if you’re not integrating, you’ll often find yourself looping”

- Eric Brown, HEx Podcast #63

If there’s anyone worth listening to on the topic of integration, it’s Eric Brown.

Eric is the director of Apotheosis, our spiritual-psychedelic plant medicine retreat, as well as a content writer and program creator at Mindbloom, the largest provider of psychedelic medicine therapy in the world. 

He has designed, developed, and run thousands of people through the psychedelic integration process, in both therapeutic and shamanic settings. 

I have heard and read much on the topic of integration, but never before has it been presented to me so clearly and usefully as here, as if it were a chapter out of an ancient shamanic textbook, translated for modern times.

“Making this new way of being so normalized that you don’t even have to think about the thing, it just happens. With this, over time, second nature becomes a way of being, and this is what I would consider a complete and thorough integration of whatever the lesson, experience, insight, or feeling is. It becomes effortless and natural, and it becomes a hallmark of who you are.”
- Eric Brown, HEx Podcast #63

If you have a psychedelic experience coming up, or you feel you may have some not-yet-fully resolved material from a previous one, this is the episode for you.

 In this episode:

·      Eric’s experience in the psychedelic field

·      What is integration?

·      Why is it necessary?

·      The shamanic stages of relationship with the plants

·      The 7 step process of integration

·      The PEMS energetics model

·      The 3-day initiation model

·      Integration timelines, and what usually occurs in each phase

·      Can you integrate with another psychedelic experience?

·      Why you might not be getting any new messages/insights

·      How to know when you’re done integrating

·      Where to find support for this process

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast.

Interested in working with psychedelics in a safe, reliable setting? Check out Apotheosis, our one-of-a-kind plant medicine retreat.

“What if this life were the paradise we were promised, and we’re just squandering it?”

-Naval Ravikant

Being happy and rich are learnable skills, and our guest today, Eric Jorgenson, has learned from the very best. 

His compilation of wisdom and winning business strategies from legendary tech innovator Naval Ravikant took the internet by storm, and his unbelievably popular book, The Almanack of Naval Ravikant, holds a prominent place on the bookshelves of rich and happy people all over the world.

Even more impressively, though, he’s brought these ideas and timeless insights back into the real world again to create the foundations of a legendary career for himself as well. Eric Jorgenson consistently proves the truth and value of this wisdom via his own work and positive example. 

During our conversation, he holds nothing back and lets us inside two fascinating minds, both his and Naval’s.

In this episode, we cover:

- What it’s like working with Naval Ravikant

- How to decide which book to read next

- Why it’s more effective to focus on your trajectory than your current results

- Why everything is getting better all the time

- Using leverage to get to the point where you're only doing what you want to do

- The importance of honing in on your specific knowledge

- Allowing your path to unfold organically as the fast track to genuine expertise

One of the greatest lessons you'll learn in this episode, though, is that where you start off doesn't have to be where you end up. If there's a skill you lack, you can learn it; if there's a big scary problem looming over you, you can overcome it; if you want more out of life, you can have it. 

About Our Guest:

Eric Jorgenson is an entrepreneur, writer, and investor. He is on the founding team of Zaarly, and has been publishing online since 2014. His blog has educated and entertained over a million readers.

Naval Ravikant (not present) is an Indian-American entrepreneur and investor. He is the co-founder, chairman, and former CEO of AngelList. He has invested early-stage in over 200 companies including Uber, FourSquare, Twitter, Wish.com, Poshmark, Postmates, Thumbtack, Notion, SnapLogic, Opendoor, Clubhouse, Stack Overflow, Bolt, OpenDNS, Yammer, and Clearview AI, with over 70 total exits and more than 10 Unicorn companies. He is also a podcaster who shares advice on pursuing health, wealth, and happiness.

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

You’ve gone Down The Rabbit Hole. Now it’s time to walk up The Stairway to Wisdom.

Introducing a brand new weekly newsletter from the minds at HighExistence.

Over the past year, we’ve been publishing the wonder-inducing weekly email known as “Down The Rabbit Hole,” and now we’re taking it a step further.

We want our readers not only to feel a deep sense of enchantment towards the world around them but also to apply deep teachings to their daily life so they can experience the life-transforming benefits of wisdom-in-action.

The Stairway to Wisdom is a premium weekly newsletter for those who are ready to dive deeper. We’ve partnered with independent researcher and knowledge connoisseur, Matt Karamazov, who has taken sharp, meticulous notes on over 1000 books so that he could share the most inspiring pearls of wisdom with the world.

Learn more here

What does it take to become the best fighter on the planet?

And then how do you go from there, to building a Bufo Alvarius (5-MeO-DMT) based NFT collection designed to bring attention to mental health awareness?

This is the incredible journey that we cover in this episode. Rashad Evans is the former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion of The World, Hall of Famer, and current-day desk analyst. He recently co-founded Umbo, a company that supplies the world with high-quality functional mushrooms, and created MetaToads, a collection of 10,000 NFTs based on the psychedelic Sonoran Desert Toad.

In this episode:

• Rashad’s internal shift that has occurred since his fighting days
• The role that plant medicines played in his transformation
• Genuine affirmations as the future speaking through you
• What it feels like to be the best fighter on the planet
• Advice for someone who is trying to find their passion
• The importance of sweet potatoes
• The down low on all of Rashad’s projects
• Why letting go is the most important part of the process

Do you feel the call to serve plant medicine?

Or to become a coach, healer, or helper of human flourishing in any way?

Navigating this path can be tricky terrain.

For myself, it brings many questions up:

• Is this coming from my ego or my soul? 
• What path should I follow? And who are my teachers?
• How often should I work with medicine?
• Do I have what it takes?

I could think of no better person than Maestro Hamilton Souther to help me answer them.

Hamilton is a Master Shaman currently working out of Peru, working primarily with Ayahuasca. He founded BlueMorpho Tours, one of the most reputable Ayahuasca centres in the world, and was one of the first westerners to be initiated into an indigenous lineage in the Amazon over 20 years ago. 

In This Episode:

• The incredible story of Hamilton’s calling
• How to follow your life's calling
• Navigating ego along the way
• What comes after healing on the path to become an Ayahuasquero?
• Space Holders vs Shamans
• Blue Morpho's at-home dieta experiences and what's currently exciting Hamilton most at the moment

Links:

Hamilton's Projects

• Blue Morpho Retreats
• Hamilton's Instagram

HighExistence Presents: Apotheosis - The Ultimate Spiritual-Psychedelic Retreat

• Information
• Trailer

Identity is at the core of all of our personal transformation. It is absolutely central to the process of change, for better or for worse.

After decades of my own work, and the insights gained from guiding thousands through their own transformational experiences, we’ve pulled apart the fundamental mechanics of personal transformation.

This episode is a solocast with Eric Brown, taking you deep down the rabbit hole of personal change, touching on the tips, tricks, mechanisms, and fundamentals of what it takes to change who you are, and who you’re becoming.

This wisdom and insight has been pulled together in a 100-day transformational initiation, the Hero100. We’re inviting a group of courageous individuals to take this adventure with us, one that will be sure to ripple out for a lifetime.


In This Episode:
- The 4 requirements for identity-level transformation
- Key pitfalls and obstacles along the path
- How to maintain transcendent experiences
- A deep humbling 5 days into a medicine retreat
- Unique mechanics to survive and thrive through the change process
- An invitation to join a movement to make heroes

LINKS

• Hero100
• Overview Video

Tim Corcoran is a Nature Based Purpose Guide and the founder of Purpose Mountain.

He is a certified Purpose Whisperer.

For a long time, I cringed whenever I saw people use this word. I thought it was an oversimplistic and biased interpretation of a random series of events.

The first time I heard Tim speak was when that started to change for me. I felt something deep inside, ringing with energy and bursting with potential, held in a sense of knowingness that felt more solid than the chair I'm sitting on.

Your Purpose is that thing, that calling, that direction that your entire life is constantly reorienting and pointing you towards. It's what happens when you surrender to Life.

The instinctual gravitational force that never stops pulling you, no matter how far you feel you have 'strayed from the path.'

If know what I'm speaking about, and want to turn up the volume on this Inner Guidance, or you don't and feel a curiosity tingling in your toes, this episode is going to be medicine for your soul.

In this episode:

• What is Purpose?
• How to find and follow it
• How to discern a true synchronicity from an imagined one
• Sensitivity as a non-specific amplifier
• How to find the right mentor
• The true meaning of prayer
• The ultimate practice for connecting to your Purpose: The Vision Quest
• The Soul Wander: a bite-sized Vision Quest 

Links

Tims Work:

• Purpose Mountain
• The Vision Quest

Other:

• Tim's Interview with Erick Godsey
• HEx Ascent Podcast: How to Make a Living Doing What You Love
• APOTHEOSIS - The Ultimate Plant Medicine Retreat 

"If we’re in a fully awakened state, trauma’s not a problem. In a sense, it’s not trauma. It just becomes something beloved. It becomes washed through with love and acceptance. That’s the healing."

Henry Shukman, HEx Podcast #55

We embark on our healing journeys with intentions to remove the thorns in our sides because these thorns are problematic.

Initially, it seems that the way to go about this is to grab the tweezers and squeeze them out, one by one, until we are rid of them all. This is generally the attitude that the Western mental health paradigm takes towards trauma and mental illness. 

Looking to the East, we see a different approach taken towards suffering. One in which those thorns become enveloped in unconditional love and acceptance, thereby draining them of their problem-ness altogether. 

"Awakening" and "healing" are often used synonymously even though they mean two different things.

Healing is the process by which we become whole again. The word implies a fixing of that which is broken. A bettering of that which needs improvement. An integration of that which has been separated.

Awakening refers to the realization of the non-dual nature of reality. The recognition that, on the deepest level, there is nothing to fix because nothing can be broken. There is nothing to improve because it is all already perfect. There is nothing to be integrated because it is, always has been, and always will be, whole.

So does this mean then that all attempts at healing are a waste of time and that we should just drop everything and head straight for awakening? 

According to Henry Shukman, the answer is no…

There is a middle way. And he has walked it.

Henry is a meditation teacher who has used a combination of various meditative practices alongside psychotherapy, plant medicine, and other healing practices to synergise these two processes in his own life for maximum effect. 

From overwhelming eczema to profound awakening, and then into deep despair and back, Henry eventually forged a path that has led to a long-lasting sense of wholeness and peace that radiates throughout this interview. 

He has found a sweet spot between the paths of healing and awakening and in this episode, he sprinkles the breadcrumbs behind him so that you and me can do the same.

What We Cover:

• Henry’s spontaneous awakening experience and the darkness that ensued afterward
• What happens to trauma when we awaken?
• The ultimate antidote to loneliness
• Where to start with non-duality if you have trauma
• How to work with koans
• Is awakening possible for regular people?
• Henry’s favorite resources on Zen
• How to find the right teachers and practices for you
• Is it possible to make serious progress through online training?

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

JOIN HENRY AT METAMORPHOSIS, A FREE 3-Day online transformational event, to learn a powerful set of transformative practices for peace, passion, and meaning

Can psychedelics cure Autism? It's a question researchers are only beginning to ask, but Andrea Domenichini has already run the experiments – on himself.

Over the past few years, he's taken MDMA and LSD to help connect the parts of his brain that allow most people to understand others, feel their emotions, and make lasting connections.

But before we get to that, what even is Autism Spectrum Disorder? Probably not what you think it is. Most people on the Autism spectrum aren't Rain Man or maths geniuses. They're people whose brains function differently, but in myriad different ways. It's called a spectrum for a reason, and that spectrum involves dozens of symptoms (each highly variable) which are then bundled together under the 'Autism' label.

Dre shares his personal journey from alienation to deep human connection, beginning at a point in his life where jobs and relationships just weren't working out. He stopped, took stock, and asked himself the question that most of us are too scared to ask: Am I the problem?

For me, Autism was being a featureless white room, without windows or doors. MDMA opened a door in that room. Suddenly I could see outside to where "real people" lived. LSD allowed me to leave that room.

These experiences were revelatory: until MDMA, he'd never felt music before. Until LSD, he'd never felt a true sense of peace in himself.

Using his biomedical background, Dre explains how these substances can do such incredible things, what they meant for his own development, and why it's essential that more research is done to help people with Autism.

But do people with Autism even want to be 'cured'?  And is 'cured' the right word to use?

For many people, there's immediate resistance: Autism is a part of their identity and sense of self. And Autism is simply a different way of thinking, not some kind of disease.

For Dre, he wanted to change – he wanted to understand other people and to be able to grow as a person and pursue his dreams in a world that simply isn't set up to accommodate or understand Autistic people. With such potent psychedelic tools available to make that change, at the very least, more Autistic people should be made aware of the possibility of change, if they want to experience it for themselves.

More From Dre:

• Hear more about Dre's experiences with Autism and psychedelics HERE
• Dre's podcast, Voices in the Dark

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

"To me a visionary is someone who really knows that we create our reality from the inside out and has the courage and the willingness to actually go within and create a vision, an image, from within the inner realms of our own mind that we can really hold to and picture on a daily basis and really connect to that vision. And literally from a neuroscience perspective, our mind doesn't know the difference between what we hold in the inner realm of our mind and what we see out there in reality."

— Laura Dawn, HEx Podcast #26

Laura Dawn is a true visionary. The child of two entrepreneurs, Laura learned from an early age that it is indeed possible to manifest the realities you envision, no matter how "crazy" they sound to others. At just fifteen, Laura took her first high-dose of psilocybin, which changed everything for her and opened up previously unaccessible dimensions of reality.

Today, Laura is a published author, speaker, and sacred plant medicine expert who runs visionary retreats. Her business accolades include growing her first online brand to 1.5M people on Facebook, and building a volcanic hot spring retreat center from scratch, all using the visionary techniques she practices and teaches.

"It's been a huge teaching for me understanding the subtlety between trying versus aligning. Trying to make something happen, pushing and striving versus aligning and allowing and really opening to divine alignments and what wants to unfold synchronistically without really me having to make any effort at all."

— Laura Dawn, HEx Podcast #26

I was first introduced to Laura through HighExistence co-founder Martijn Schirp, who worked with Laura at Synthesis retreat, and in this episode you will get to hear Laura and my first ever conversation.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• What is a visionary?
• Are visionaries born or made?
• Laura's upbringing and what she learned from her parents.
• Why we have lost faith in our own inner visionary.
• How do we visualize properly?
• The nuances of embodying the visionary archetype.
• What are the psychological mechanisms behind visualization?
• The difference between trying vs. aligning.
• How Laura manifested her vision for a retreat center.
• How one might use sacred plant medicines like Ayahuasca.
• The power in paying attention to the voice of our intuition.
• Laura's early experiments in micro-dosing.
• Why wee need to check ourselves for spiritual narcissism.
• The problem with viewing psychedelics as a "magic pill."
• Laura's favorite books and thinkers.
• The path of the bodhisattva.
• Laura's advanced visionary retreat training program.
• How might one integrate their psychedelic experiences.
• The ways Laura balances outward productivity and inner work.

LEARN MORE ABOUT LAURA DAWN

AyaVisionary.com — Laura's retreat website

LiveFreeLauraD.com — Laura's personal website

@LiveFreeLauraD — Laura's instagram

LAURA RECOMMENDS:

Getting Unstuck by Pema Chödrön

Noble Heart by Pema Chödrön

Bodhisattva Mind by Pema Chödrön

The Places that Scare You by Pema Chödrön

From Fear to Fearlessness by Pema Chödrön

If you like this podcast, please remember to subscribe and leave a review! <3

Have you been struggling to keep a consistent meditation practice?

Switching around between different types, trying to find the right one for so long that you eventually forgot why you were even doing it in the first place?

This is a common complaint many aspiring meditators face.

Without a clear understanding of why we are doing what we are doing and a way to know that we are doing it right, we are destined to fall off track.

In comes The Mind Illuminated by Culadasa (John Yates, PhD).

The Mind Illuminated is the result of 50,000 hours of meditation and decades of neuroscience study.

This book is arguably the clearest, most systematic, and well-researched meditation manual ever written.

In this episode of the HighExistence podcast, Jon Brooks and Eric Brown discuss the 6 steps Culadasa recommends in the book to prepare the mind for practice.

But these 6 steps, as you'll see, have far reaching applications beyond just meditation.

“This stuff is not separate. The lessons you learn in mediation are lessons that apply to life. The stuff going on in your life will carry on into your mediation practice.”

— Eric Brown, HEx Podcast #47

IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS:

• Why you should meditate
• Culadasa’s 6 steps for preparation for meditation
• How TMI has impacted not only Eric’s meditation practice, but his life
• Is enlightenment actually possible? What does it take to get there?
• Meditation as a tool for tragedy
• How to find and renew the motivation to do anything
• The first 3 stages of the meditation journey
• Meditation as a microcosm for life
• The importance of posture
• How showing up is all you need to do
• The value of taking a moment to clarify intent before starting anything
• MUCH MORE…

(Please remember to leave a review because it helps us improve the podcast!)

“The Stoics can teach you how to find a sense of purpose in life, how to face adversity, how to conquer anger within yourself, moderate your desires, experience healthy sources of joy, endure pain and illness patiently and with dignity, exhibit courage in the face of your anxieties, cope with loss, and perhaps even confront your own mortality while remaining as unperturbed as Socrates.”
― Donald J. Robertson, How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius

Donald Robertson is one of the world's leading experts on Stoicism, especially how it relates to cognitive science and therapy. Donald has spent decades as a clinical psychologist and has been studying the great Stoic classics for just as long. Recently, Donald released a book, part biography, part self-improvement, about the life and philosophy of Marcus Aurelius. It's a truly amazing read, as practical as it is enjoyable.

“When we reason well about life and live rationally, we exhibit the virtue of wisdom. Living in agreement with Nature, in part, means fulfilling our natural potential for wisdom; that’s what it means for us to flourish as human beings.” ― Donald J. Robertson, How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius

In my first interview with Donald, we covered a lot of general Stoic principles, but in this episode we look specifically at decoding the mind of Marcus Aurelius so we can start living more like this philosopher king.

“According to Stoic philosophy, when we assign intrinsic values like “good” or “bad” to external events, we’re behaving irrationally and even exhibiting a form of self-deception. When we call something a “catastrophe,” for instance, we go beyond the bare facts and start distorting events and deceiving ourselves. Moreover, the Stoics consider lying a form of impiety—when a man lies, he alienates himself from Nature.”
― Donald J. Robertson, How to Think Like a Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy of Marcus Aurelius

WHAT WE DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE:

• The Stoic training of Marcus Aurelius
• The role of compassion in Marcus' life
• The battle between Stoicism and sophism
• The biggest influences on Marcus' development
• How Marcus journaled and reflected on his day
• The biggest mistakes and misconceptions when practicing Stoicism
• The Stoic view of pornography and other temptations
• Donald answers, do Stoics ever see themselves as victims of life
• The incredible emphasis and techniques Marcus used to manage his anger
• The hardships that beset Marcus' life
• The level of plagiarism found in Stoic texts
• Western philosophy and psychedelics
• The role of mysticism and psychedelics
• Much, much more!

If you like this podcast, please remember to subscribe and leave a review! <3

What would life be like if we could transcend the ordinary?

Now this journey isn’t for the faint of heart. This is a Hero’s Journey of cataclysmic proportions.

Undoing, overriding, and re-learning decades of distilled and conditioned socio-cultural programming is no small feat.

But on the other side awaits beauty, wonder, and experiences far beyond our present imagining.

This is why HighExistence came into being. To serve as a portal, through which the initiates pass, into a world of wisdom and wonder.

As we take an evolutionary step forward with HighExistence, we riff on what it means to transcend the ordinary and become the creators of our own reality.

Won’t you come along with us?

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• What it means to transcend the ordinary
• The next evolutionary step for HighExistence
• How to modify and amplify the lenses of perception
• The mythological meaning of I.M M.Y.T.H.
• Seeking Truth as the ultimate Hero's Journey
• Courage and wonder in the face of the mundane
• What does it really mean to create your own reality?
• Myth-busting common cultural constructs
• The awe-inspiring wonder of inter-subjective existence
• MUCH MORE...

Learn more about The Ascent here.

~

In the first podcast I did with Justin, we discussed the secret strategies of super-learners.

In the follow up YouTube video we dissected the best ways to get the most from the books that you read.

In today's episode, my main question was to find out Justin's origin story.

I knew that he had suffered from depression as a teen, and also grew up in South Africa, and was curious how he transformed himself from this state to being a nuero-resilience coach and learning expert living out of LA.

My hope is that anyone who is struggling with their current living situation or feels burdened with an overactive mind can find great inspiration in Justin's story, and of course... we will learn a lot along the way.

IN THIS EPISODE WE DISCUSS:

• Justin's origins and childhood
• The issues with the traditional school system
• Science proven learning strategies
• The value of learning to think for yourself
• Justin's experience with life-threatening depression
• The power of stillness practices
• How to get over an emotional slump
• Justin's method for interpreting "negative" feedback
• MUCH MORE…

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

Bonus: Justin's Top 3 Recommended Blog Posts

• The Human OS: Part 1 Introduction to the Principles
• Weakness is Strength
• Models of perception: the light switch, the dimmer switch, and the lighting board

Is it possible to bring the level of reverence and integrity that we see in traditional plant medicine ceremonies into our own homes?

Koen and Sebastian, the team over at Portier Supplies have created a product that is doing exactly this.

"Psychedelics deserve a beautiful place in people’s lives, not shoved in a closet, hidden away somewhere’"

— Sebastian from Portier Supplies, HEx Podcast #50

There is a lot of shame that many well-intentioned psychedelic users carry around due to misinformed stigma and misplaced projections. 

Initiatives such as Portier Supplies are putting that to an end.

This conversation is a dive into psychedelic healing and the exciting realms beyond, as well as a front row seat to the tricky business of psychedelic entrepreneurship. 

What We Cover:

• 2:40 - The journey that led to the creation of Portier
• 11:35 - What the Portal Box is
• 17:00 - The true meaning of luxury
• 20:05 - What comes after healing with psychedelics?
• 24:00 - Maintaining integrity when combining business and spirituality
• 43:25 - Growth as the accumulation of responsibility
• 44:25 - Practices that support psychedelic use
• 53:55 - Bufo vs Ayahuasca

MUCH MORE...

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

"For me the Ascent is about that. It’s about: wow there are so many areas of this map of my life and reality that I thought were not feasible, not possible, and now I see that if I choose to, I can go there."

— Jon Brooks, HEx Dialogues #9

Imagine if Harry never went to Hogwarts…

He had the occasional experience of magic, but before he joined a community of witches and wizards, he didn’t even know that he was one. 

Having just finished the first round of The Ascent, I can truly say that it is a school of witchcraft and wizardry. 

Getting a project off the ground is a messy and sensitive process.

You need room to fail and some form of guidance that lets you know which roads lead to a dead end and which ones lead to gold. Things are also a whole lot easier if you have a tribe to watch your back and lift you up when you fall.

As someone who personally took part in The Ascent, I can say without hesitation that it was the most transformative 8 weeks of my life. 

"Having that initial fertile ground in people, in places that are safe to fail, in community that will lift you back up and in the resources and how to’s of people who have scraped their knees doing this stuff before and have some ideas - that is just a perfect concoction to take you exactly where you want to go or places you couldn’t even imagine you wanted to go."

— Eric Brown, HEx Dialogues #9

Learn more about The Ascent here.

This episode is packed with key lessons that were taught and learned throughout the first expedition, such as:

• Failure being the primary ingredient for success 
• Why creativity is painful
• The necessity of community
• The inner - outer work feedback loop
• Highlights from the first round
• The importance of honest feedback
• Our take on the law of attraction
• Details on The Ascent
• The cultivation of spontaneity
• MUCH MORE...

Please leave a review if you enjoy The HighExistence podcast. 

To join The Accelerated Learning Experience, go here: https://highexistence.com/learningfast/

Read all of Matt's books breakdowns and join his weekly High Existence newsletter, Stairway to Wisdom here

"Once you learn to read, you will be forever free."

— Frederick Douglass

Matt Karamazov has already accomplished multiple lifetime's worths of achievements.

You’d think the topic of this conversation would be about his experience as a world heavyweight boxer, a natural bodybuilder, nightclub bouncer, professional writer, or successful music label owner…

But no… On top of all that, Matt decided that he would take on the mammoth task of reading 1000 books! 

And he doesn’t just read them. He makes detailed notes on them too.

Since this episode was recorded, he has accomplished this goal and extended it to 10,000. With an average of 7 hours a day spent reading, Matt has mastered the art of focusing for long periods of time in pursuit of an aim, and he has joined us on the High Existence Podcast to share key insights and tips for turning our own lofty ambitions into fully realized goals. 

This conversation expands way beyond reading into the depths of a mind that has downloaded 1000 of the greatest pieces of content of all time.

In this Episode:

• Matt’s history with High Existence
• Why he decided to read 1000 books
• How to stay focused for 7 hours a day
• Can you be mindful while reading?
• The secret to retaining what you read
• Is optimism the privilege of someone who hasn’t experienced true difficulty?
• The futility and utility of envy
• Why you should read more fiction
• How reading can improve your creative writing and communication skills
• The importance of enjoying the moment to moment process of working towards the goal
• How to read 5 books a month
• Why you should have a 100-year plan if you’re under 50
• MUCH MORE…

💌 LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR NEW PREMIUM NEWSLETTER “THE STAIRWAY TO WISDOM”

Baba Brinkman is the only peer-reviewed rapper in the world. From evolution to climate change, medicine to religion, he spits rhymes reverberating with provocative questions, hard truths, and an irresistible humor which educate as much as they entertain.

At his core, Baba is a communicator, breaking down the barriers between academic science and psychology to bring the latest research insights and theories to a wider audience. Listening to his work is like taking Human Nature 101, but with a lot more fun and memorability than any class you'll ever take.

The Rap Guide to Consciousness is a mind-blowing tour de force, ranging from the mind-body problem to whether his young child can actually be considered conscious; and from machine intelligence to psychedelic states (including an unforgettable story of meeting an octopus in an aquarium while tripping balls on mushrooms).

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

Important note:

The HighExistence dialogues are where the three creators Jon Brooks, Eric Brown, and Mike Slavin come together to discuss life, the universe, and everything in between.

But if you'd like to follow up with us individually, be sure to subscribe to our new YouTube channels. Here are some places you can find out more...

• Mike Slavin's beautiful video on how to navigate loss

• Jon Brooks's practical video on Stoic strategies for overcoming anxiety

• Eric Brown in conversation shares his masterful insights on how to be productive

When’s the last time you learned something for the first time?

It might have been a while.

For many, education stops the moment school is finished. Should it continue to be this way? How we can learn new skills so that we can stay sovereignty and adaptable to a future that is constantly in flux?

Learning is the ultimate meta-skill.

It is the foundation of acquiring any other skill. It is the foundation that resilient humans are built upon.

To this end, there are a number of techniques, mindsets, and teachers that can be instrumental in helping us move towards mastery.

In the latest instalment of the HEx Dialogues, we dive into the nuance and opportunity present in learning, bending reality, and picking up the pace of skills acquisition.

If you find yourself wanting to become more adaptable, to level up quickly and consistently, this is a blueprint to doing exactly that.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• The great teachers and allies along the path
• A massive list of recommended readings and resources
• Jon, Mike, and Eric's take on what we're learning right now
• The fundamentals of skills acquisition and learning
• Is accelerated learning real? The potential and pitfalls
• The shortcomings of the current educational matrix
• How to bend reality and the journey to being superhuman
• The long and short road to mastery
• MUCH MORE...

See the Full Show Notes and Recommendations Here

NOTE: Before listening, view the model here: http://www.fourgamestheory.com

— — —

When I first saw a visual depiction of the 4Game model I was floored. Instantaneously, all of the studying I had done across everything from metaphysics to productivity systems sorted itself into a coherent narrative, a structure where everything fit together.

Immediately I knew I wanted to explore this further. To my surprise, there was very little information available!

As the trophic cascade of mental imagery and insight continued, I knew this model had the makings of something revolutionary.

This was the Cultural Theory of Everything.

A model so unwaveringly aesthetic, so deeply comprehensive as to give a shared cultural-cognitive grammar to anyone who was blessed to bear witness to it.

The more I dove into the Unified Culture Field Theory, the more I knew the world needed this. This was the foundation for the deep discussion we as a collective need to have. This is the language that unites the masses.

From that point, I reached out to the creator Jamie Combs, and this conversation is what emerged as a result.

Jamie is a brilliant systems thinker, an intrepid designer and thinker, and I'm extremely excited to be sharing this conversation with you now.

What We Cover:

• An introduction/exploration of the 4Game Model
• The personal significance of altering your lenses of perception
• Creating a common cultural language
• Deep dives into the short, mid, long, and deep game components
• Cultivating an individual Way of Being
• Memetically spreading cultural evolution
• MUCH more...

Watch interview on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/TI2dA0M1cfk

Today, Eric Brown and I sit down and speak to Dominic Milton Trott, the author of The Drug User's Bible.

Here are some words from Dominic that really convey the mission behind his book:

"The first casualty of war is truth, and the war on drugs is no different. This book is a step to counter this destructive situation. People Are Dying. They are dying because of ignorance: because unremitting propaganda is denying them essential safety information."

What Dominic has attempted with The Drug User's Bible has never been done before.

Over the course of 8 years, he self-administered over 150 different chemicals and botanicals.

For each of these he documented the vital safety data, inclusive of dose thresholds, onset times and duration.

In addition, he recorded a trip report: a subjective analysis of his qualitative experience, usually at different time-checks.

Amongst the most well known drugs are LSD, xanax, DMT, cocaine, GHB, spice, phenibut, speed, magic mushrooms, cannabis and opium.

In this interview we sit down and speak to a man who has taken detailed reports on 157 different drugs. 

As you might imagine, it has to be heard to be believed. 

“Here’s the thing. You are not responsible for other people’s feelings. They’re not incompetent children. They’re adults who can handle their own feelings. They can work through disappointment, hurt, anger, sadness, and upset. In fact, doing so will make them stronger and healthier in the long run. You cannot stop others from feeling all discomfort, or all pain. It is an impossible task, a fool’s errand.” 

― Aziz Gazipura, Not Nice: Stop People Pleasing, Staying Silent, & Feeling Guilty... And Start Speaking Up, Saying No, Asking Boldly, And Unapologetically Being Yourself

There are four main models of how anxiety is caused.

The first three are fairly obvious:

1. Exposure — we get anxious about the things we avoid
2. Cognitive — our irrational thoughts can make us more anxious
3. Biological — changes in our biochemistry can make us more anxious

The fourth however, is a little harder to grasp:

"The hidden emotion model."

This model stipulates that we can get anxious because there are very obvious things in our life that we are not addressing.

The hidden emotion model, is really just another way of saying "niceness."

When we are "nice" we let things slide, we don't speak up, we suppress our emotions, we make sacrifices we wish we hadn't...

All of this can lead to suppressed feelings, and ultimately anxiety and depression.

This used to be me, until I started consuming information by Dr. Aziz Gazipura.

At its core, being nice is about being liked by others by making everything smooth. No waves, no friction. It’s based on this (woefully inaccurate) theory: If I please others, give them everything they want, keep a low profile, and don’t ruffle feathers or create any discomfort, then others will like me, love me, and shower me with approval and anything else I want. 

― Aziz Gazipura, Not Nice: Stop People Pleasing, Staying Silent, & Feeling Guilty... And Start Speaking Up, Saying No, Asking Boldly, And Unapologetically Being Yourself

Dr. Aziz is someone who has all the charisma of someone like Tony Robbins (who he trained with), but has a PhD in clinical psychology.

What does this mean? His work is both entertaining and scientifically sound.

Dr. Aziz has many profound insights about life, psychology, and transformation, but he specialises in social confidence.

In this episode, I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Aziz.

Here’s what we discuss in the episode of the HighExistence Podcast:

• Why he focuses so much on "niceness" in his work.
• The role of trauma healing vs. self-optimisation.
• The importance of Shadow work, and how to do it.
• Finding balance between being assertive and compassionate.
• Dr. Aziz's transformation out of shyness.
• How to express yourself unapologetically.
• And much, much more...

LEARN MORE ABOUT DR. AZIZ

• Read his book Not Nice (highly recommended)
• Podcast: Shrink for the Shy Guy
• Website
• Youtube channel

Have you ever wished you could be the first one on the dance floor? Or the one who effortlessly jumps on the beat and freestyles without flinching?

I know I have…

We all know that we shouldn’t care too much about what others think of us, yet we struggle to unwind the deep-rooted patterns of self-consciousness and constriction that hold us back from doing socially ‘risky’ things.

Part of us is afraid that if we do such things, we might make a fool of ourselves and everyone will think we’re weird or somehow unacceptable. So we stay stuck in this cage that once protected us when we were young, yearning for deeper levels of freedom and authenticity. 

Until eventually, we decide that we’ve had enough. 

Enough standing on the sidelines. Enough filtering and suppressing that which wants to come through us. Enough being anything other than our messy, unadulterated selves. 

If you have reached this threshold, then this episode is perfect for you.

In it, Jordan Bates explains how he went from being stuck in his head to cultivating a deep sense of core confidence that lead to him becoming a professional rapper.

Are you ready to stop playing small and allow yourself to be exactly what you are in each moment?

If so, I present you with this step-by-step blueprint for how to let go into the life you know you are capable of living.

Before you dig in, here’s a little love letter that Jordan wrote for you.

From Jordan:

I love you, HighExistence family. 

Thank you so much for everything.

You all have a very special place in my Heart, and always will.

I truly hope you enjoy this podcast. I had a lot of fun recording it with my soul-brother, Jon. 

I also want to let you know that starting in a few days on 1/22/22, I’m leading a no-cost 1-month mentorship journey called Infinity Mentorship.

This journey is intended as a gift to all beings. 

If you know you are on the precipice of a great shift toward more fully embodying the Light that you truly are, join us in the Infinity Mentorship Telegram Community.

For further connection, wisdom, and chillaxation, I also invite you to join us in the Ouroboros Soul Family and my personal space, both of which are communities on Telegram.

You are a beautiful poem. 

Perfect just as you are. 

Thank you for existing.

Long live this legendary mind-blowing Vortex, and cheers to a High Existence!

Love,

Jordan

In this Episode:

• Jordan Bates’ journey to become a professional rapper 
• How to unroot doubt
• Travelling as the ultimate skin shedder
• The value of taking massive aligned action in the direction of what excites you
• Difficult experiences as thresholds to cross that life tests us with
• What it means to embody core confidence, and how to cultivate it
• Learning how to let go on a dance floor as a metric for self-actualisation 
• Jordan’s favourite methods for tapping into flow
• Freestyling as a way to give voice to what is alive in the moment 
• The transformational potential of freestyle rap and dance
• The essence of true communication<

Our guest this episode is Dennis McKenna, ethnobotanist, pharmacognosist, brother of the famed bard Terence McKenna, a lecturer, and one of the elders of the psychedelic movement.

We talk with Dennis about human evolution, the psychedelic influence on consciousness, tripping with your parents, and the current state of the world.

[EXCLUSIVE OFFER FOR PODCAST SUBSCRIBERS]

Take the ultimate life experiment, our 30 Challenges to Enlightenment Course, a complete spiritual path to help you overcome the limitations of your mind and to embody the highest philosophical realizations.

Use the code ‘WISDOM’ at checkout to get a huge 25% off the course, available only to podcast subscribers at store.highexistence.com.

“Epigenetics can be passed down inter-generationally. Indigenous traditions have the idea that what you do in your lifetime will impact 7 generations down from you. There’s actually good scientific backing for this idea now.”

— David Krantz, HEx Podcast #29

It took me nearly an hour to pick my jaw up off the floor after speaking with David.

He's just THAT GUY.

Charismatic and approachable. Able to dig deep into the fundamentals of epigenetics and gene editing, and then play you a song from one of his 5 full musical albums at the end of it.

David is someone who walks the walk.

A polymathic mad scientist designing the minds and mental states for the future of humanity. When I think of someone on the bleeding edge of science and performance, David definitely fits the bill.

Currently, David works as an Epigenetic Performance Coach and the Director of Psychoacoustics at the Apeiron Center.

He came into his work through a series of synchronicities, something we dive into more in the conversation — but seems to be right at home consulting for some major players in the business, athletic, and artistic spaces.

“Your natural bias is to think ‘this is the answer, this is how everyone should do it!’ In terms of navigating that, I find there’s a certain ethos or mentality that I look for, and if I don’t find it I instantly become wary. That ethos is acknowledging ‘Hey, I don’t know everything, and this is just one idea’. When I see people who can say ‘hey, here’s one study, and there’s another that contradicts it, and I’m not trying to hide it.’ And to the best of my ability, I try to do that.’”

— David Krantz, HEx Podcast #29

There was nothing off the table for this conversation, and David has a remarkable ability to distill complex scientific concepts into something easily digestible and understandable, for beginners and experts alike.

Whether you're a seasoned biohacker wanting to dive into the nuances of genetic testing, or someone just starting out in the self-optimization space, there's something here for you.

David embodies the archetype of someone living a HighExistence, doing their best work in a way that is sustainable and pushes the edge of what is possible forward.

I think you're going to love this conversation, Jon and I certainly enjoyed being a part of it.

“If you’re just going to try to change one variable, just change diet and nothing else, maybe that is worthwhile for someone who just wants reductionistic data, but that’s not how things work in the world. So let’s look at everything as holistically and fully as we can.”

— David Krantz, HEx Podcast #29

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• What does an ‘epigenetic health coach’ do?
• What bio-markers you should focus on for performance, longevity, and mood
• Davids revealing experience testing his own genome
• What David thinks about sleep and health tracking tools
• How do you transition from making music to epigenetic coaching?
• Noticing the synchronicities in your life and following the path
• How do you separate fact from fiction in the health and bio-hacking space?
• How to break free of the ‘healthy normal’ bias in the standard medical paradigm
• The difference between being healthy and having optimal health
• What does DNA do in our body?
• The impact of epigenetics on your genomic expression
• Exploring the concept of ‘clock genes’
• The science behind transgenerational epigenetic inheritance
• David’s personal story of epigenetic inheritance and healing wounds from the Holocaust
• How your physiology is shaped while in the womb
• Where the notion of ‘past lives’ might come from…
• Trauma work and it’s overlap with epigenetics and genetic expre

What would your life be like if you woke up every day, ready to unleash yourself on the world?

What would our world be like if our aging elders were comfortable and full of healthy vitality?

What gets in the way of us expressing our immense potential? For many of us, our energy levels, mental clarity, and physiological health are the first obstacle we need to tackle.

But the health field is complex, dynamic, and getting to the roots of the matter is paramount. Today we're cutting through the noise, going straight to the signal of what matters for your health, vitality, and the longevity of those you care about.

Today we welcome Dr. Heather Sandison, Medical Advisor at the Neurohacker Collective to the podcast. The breadth and depth of Heather's insight and experience are astounding, and she brings a holistic approach to managing diseases, addressing longevity, and infusing vitality into each and every day.

Your health is foundational. It is the base that the rest of your life is built upon. It is the prime mover of your personal universe. Given this, we need to take it seriously.

If this piques your interest, if you're excited about dialling in the degrees of your DNA, we have an ongoing partnership with NHC, you can use the code 'EXISTENCE' for 15% off of any order.

Part of being of service for the world is being fit for service. You have to have your own foundations covered, and this conversation is a masterclass in mastering those foundations, and how you can adapt with them as you grow, age, and move through your life.

What We Cover:

• Heather's personal health regime.
• The illusion of the dichotomy of natural vs. clinical medicine.
• The need for high-touch care in the medical field.
• Creating personalized health programming.
• The 6 paths of managing dementia.
• How society can shift to accentuate individual wellbeing
• Unlocking elder wisdom and ageing gracefully
• What young adults should be focusing on NOW.
• MUCH more...

"Craft over status; art over praise."

Mike Slavin, HEx Dialogues #6

The core HighExistence team members, Mike Slavin, Eric Brown, and Jon Brooks are back with another roundtable discussion.

Lockdown restrictions are easing and it's time to reflect on all the craziness that's been happening in the months prior.

Four topics that seemed to interlinked during this prolonged period of social isolation are placed, flow, social skills, and depression.

Play is a vital form of expression that helps one keep their sanity, enter into flow state, ward off depression, and bond with others.

Social skills are just that, "skills" and the worsen when we are not practicing them. When we are out of practice we struggle to flow and we lack a childlike playfulness.

Flow is when the challenge perfectly matches the skill level, and this state is vital for good mental health.

Depression has many causes, one of the most common being a build up of stress that overwhelms the system. Such stress can be relieved by play, flow, and social relationships.

In this discussion, the team explores the intersection of these topics to spark new ideas and provide guidance on how to make sense of the world.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• The impact of coming out of the Covid lockdown
• The idea of the upward vs. downward spiral
• The medicinal power of video games
• How to use emotional reward to increase productivity
• How competition can increase bonding
• The fact that being alive is worth a celebration
• The Stoic approach to being successful
• The secret to being a great friend
• How to handle neediness and rejection
• TONS MORE...

In May 2019, Jordan Bates and I (Jon Brooks) met up in London to attend the Rebel Wisdom summit.

Having not seen each other in the flesh for 6 months, we thought we'd celebrate our reunion by recording our first ever podcast together.

Jordan and I have always had incredible, dizzying, profound conversations about topics that frequently come up on HighExistence, and we've been intending to start recording them and releasing them as podcasts for quite a while.

There is this segment of the spiritual or psychedelic or new age community that seems to be participating in these things more from a place of ego and kind of trying to really wear the costume and have this kind of spiritual chic clothing and have all the markers of spirituality. It's kind of like spirituality and psychedelia are a fashion trend for some people, and it's kind of all about what's on your spiritual resumé, how many ayahuasca ceremonies have you had, etc. There's this kind of misguidedness around what spirituality actually means. And some people don't even realize the extent to which they're using spirituality as a persona and another game of appearances and status and virtue signaling rather than being deeply invested in the inner journey which is largely a thing that no-one sees. 

— Jordan Bates, HEx Podcast #22

Personally, some of my favorite podcasts are not strict interviews but more of the "hanging out" genre, were I get to see individuals I'm interested in riff on topics I'm curious about.

If you're a regular HighExistence reader, or anyone interested in spirituality for that matter, I encourage you to hang out with Jordan and me in this episode and leave a comment with your thoughts and questions. Let's keep the conversation going!

Here are some of the themes we delve into on this episode:

• The toxic elements of modern spirituality
• The psychological need to create personas and identities
• The benefits and traps of "not caring what people think"
• Spiritual narcissism and the shadow
• The hidden danger of rebellion and non-conformity
• The beauty and magnificence of ordinary folk
• The limits of mass psychedelic healing in society
• Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as a spiritual practice
• The art of letting go 
• And tons more...

If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe and leave a review! 

<3

Transformational Breath is a type of conscious connected breathing. It's a breathing awareness practice, and it's also a breath control practice. Essentially we breathe in what I'd describe as a conscious, rhythmic way where we don't pause between the inhale and the exhale. So we breathe in one continuous loop. And this type of breathing can help us tap into altered states. So we can use different types of breath to induce a trance-like state.

— Philippa Wilkin, HEx Podcast #21

Philippa Wilkin is a radiant, beaming healer and facilitator who uses the transformational power of the breath to help people let go of blocked emotions and live a flourishing and free existence. 

I first met Philippa at the first HighExistence Apotheosis retreat—she agreed to facilitate in a last minute change to the itinerary.

When I attended her breathwork workshop I was expecting good things, but what actually happened I could never have expected.

It was totally mind blowing and changed my opinion on the breath forever.

The breath is a profound healing tool, and if you're not using it you are missing a very important area for transformation.

HERE ARE SOME OF THE TOPICS WE DISCUSSED...

• What is transformational breath and how it links up with other self-improvement tools.
• Philippa's involvement in Apotheosis retreats.
• Jon's own experiences doing breathwork sessions with Philippa.
• The amazing benefits practicing transformational breath.
• Philippa's unlikely journey as a facilitator.
• The approach Philippa takes with self-improvement and spirituality that differs from the mainstream.
• How we can be better at practicing self-care.
• Philippa's view on having prophetic visions and how they fit in with her understanding of the world.
• Tons more! 

WHERE TO FIND PHILIPPA WILKIN

• Website
• Instragram

"A lot of people talk about art and creativity being as being a spontaneous thing. I don't have those views. For me art is a developed practice as well. You can be truly artistic but have zero developed skill. And you can be not artistic and have a developed skill. There are multiple examples if you go and research it of whoever you think is the most creative painter you can imagine, you'll find that they did hundreds of hours developing a skill."

— Justin Noppé, HEx Podcast #27

Justin from a young age knew he was smart but struggled with learning. He later found out that it wasn't actually learning that he struggled with, but rather poor learning systems that were being used in his school. He set out on a life's journey to learn... how to learn and share his findings with the world. After graduating Justin went on to teach languages to people for 15 years, further decoding the patterns that take someone from fumbling in the dark with foreign grammar to entirely fluent in the shortest amount of time.

"The very simple thing to ask is when you are reading, what do you want? A lot of people are seduced by this idea of being the most efficient reader and speed-reading techniques. But speed reading techniques don't guarantee comprehension. As many people who I've met who say, "I can read a thousand words a minute" I can show you just as many studies that show that after 450 or 500 words a minute there is no more comprehension. So that person was only comprehending 50% of what they were reading any way."

— Justin Noppé, HEx Podcast #27

Justin has an encyclopedic knowledge on learnings systems, memory, the brain, and information processing that makes him able to chunk and complex skillset down into learning curve that is not only fast but extremely effective. I learned a ton just from speaking to Justin, and I know you will too.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• Deep vs. shallow learning
• How to turn raw data into a developed skill
• The best ways to read for maximum absorption
• How knowledge of self is the first step for good learning
• The role of raw talent in creative pursuits
• How to "download" a martial art into your mind like in The Matrix
• The science of drilling and repetition
• The way to use coffee in combination with napping
• Justin's personal morning routine categorization process
• How to use video recordings to cement knowledge in you mind
• Justin's favorite books of all time
• How to actually become wiser not just more knowledgeable
• Tons more...

LEARN MORE ABOUT JUSTIN NOPPE

• Justin's Facebook
• Justin's Website

If you like this podcast, please remember to subscribe and leave a review! <3

Mike Gilliland and Euvie Ivanova sort of remind me of a Sagacious Power Couple from another dimension.

Their Future Thinkers Podcast—focused on evolving technology, society, and consciousness—has garnered 3.5 million downloads since its genesis in 2014.

They've interviewed Titans of Insight such as Daniel Schmachtenberger, Ken Wilber, Jordan Peterson, Charles Eisenstein, Jordan Hall, and Nora Bateson.

They've spent years traveling the world, earning a living as digital nomads, and have spoken at myriad events on multiple continents.

I was fortunate to befriend Mike and Euvie some years ago and first met them while traveling in Bulgaria.

From our original meeting, I've been impressed by their humility, groundedness, centeredness, penetrating insight, and no-nonsense approach to life and spirituality.

I think of them as two of the most actualized humans I've had the honor to know in this lifetime.

As such, I was supremely delighted to have the opportunity to interview them for the HighExistence Podcast.

Naturally, I wanted to ask them about all the juiciest stuff:

Enlightenment...

God...

No Self...

The human shadow...

The future of Earth...

Their relationship...

Their impending parenthood...

And their most profound transformational experiences...

So I did, and we traversed some truly rich and expansive territory.

I hope you enjoy this Kaleidoscopic Journey as much as I did.

The world is currently experiencing an unprecedented historical experience.

Many of us find ourselves somewhere amidst the confusion and seeming chaos, looking for a way to orient ourselves, to be of service to our families and our communities, and for the opportunity hidden somewhere within the fog of emergent confusion.

If you have been doing the work in your life, now is a chance to put this all into practice. To maintain your composure, to rise up in the face of adversity, to become a beacon of light in the dark.

But where do we go? What will we do? How do we make sense of what is happening to us?

These are the questions that we explore in our first HighExistence Groupcast. Come and join the core HighExistence team as we sit and discuss what's been happening and what we can do about it.

We'll be releasing a number of these informal Groupcasts together exploring anything and everything that's coming up for us.

Right now, we feel a strong call to show up, to be of service to our community, to you.

We dig into the what, why, and how of rising up, of how to be the Hero in this time, how to walk towards the Dragon of Chaos and rise up as the world wants to push you back down.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• Discovery of the Presence of God by David Hawkins
• Nondualism and 'lesser emotions'
• Fear and social contagion
• The presence and prevalence of COVID-19
• Practical and tactical steps to take for yourself and others
• The mythological significance of this time
• How Stoics respond to adversity and uncertainty
• Reclaiming play and peace during isolation
• MUCH MORE...

We're releasing an Accelerated Learning course shortly. If you want to learn more, head over to: https://highexistence.com/learnfast/

— — —

After going through the traditional medical paradigm, looking for a solution to treat his debilitating OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) – both medications and therapy were failing him.

Left with no viable options, he turned to an unexpected ally — magic mushrooms.

Adam's citizen science work with psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) gave him space and the breathing room necessary to make some impressive strides in managing his mental space.

The results of his experiments here became the foundation for The Mushroom Cure — a dramatic monologue series that Adam created and performed himself, launching him directly into the psychedelic world and into the public stage here.

This is a raw, vulnerable, and real conversation – nothing was left off of the table for discussion.

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• The value of humor in deep transformation
• The harsh reality of living life with mental illness
• The promise and pitfalls of modern psychotherapy
• How mushrooms transformed Adams OCD
• Where do psychedelics fit in modern society?
• Psychedelic integration and the growth process
• Understanding identity during times of flux
• MUCH MORE...

Sign up here to get early access to The Accelerated Learning Experience with Justin Noppe: https://highexistence.com/learnfast/

To watch the video version of this interview visit: https://youtu.be/Mggo7ayRIdY

--

In my first conversation with learning expert Justin Noppé we spent a couple hours going over the ultimate skill... learning.

Learning how to learn gives you a meta skill that can be applied to any activity you want to master, from cooking to web development and design to martial arts to music to writing to... well everything else you can think of.

Most of the high-level people I've met in my life have a certain confidence that comes from knowing they can do anything they put their mind to.

The world becomes you oyster when you can confidently look at any obstacle and confidently proclaim...

"I can learn to overcome this challenge."

After the podcast aired, I wanted to learn more about Justin's learning process, so I asked him to become my Brazilian JuJitsu learning coach.

This may sound a bit crazy since Justin doesn't actually practice this martial art, but if his process worked it should work regardless of the topic being studied.

After just a few weeks of working with Justin I started seeing the results, and other people started noticing at the gym too.

"How are you getting good so quickly? Last week I was smashing, you and now you're smashing me..."

It was at this point I knew we had to share Justin's 5-step learning process with the the HighExistence readers.

If you want to learn more about this, watch this two-minute video: https://highexistence.com/learnfast/

In the initial podcast I did with Justin, we talked a little bit about reading books, but I wanted to go much deeper on the topic.

So in this episode, Justin and I speak specifically all about optimizing book reading.

If you enjoy books or want to get more from the books you're reading, the next 35 minutes could change your life.

Okay, so what's inside?

WHAT WE DISCUSS IN THIS EPISODE:

• How to pre-read books
• The uses and limits of speed-reading 
• The best ways to read for maximum absorption
• Justin's number one tip when it comes to learning from books
• When you should read super slow 
• The wisdom of book lists 
• The right way to take notes
• Vanity metrics when it comes to reading 
• Tons more...