author

Chapter 65: Nikki Giovanni on potent poetry, powerful prose, and palling with the purveyor of peace 

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Happy Blue Moon and Happy Halloween everyone!

A singular lunar event is fitting for the release of my next chapter with the venerable Nikki Giovanni. Do you know Nikki? I’m a bit ashamed to admit I didn’t until I came across her wonderful children’s book, Rosa (on American civil rights activist Rosa Parks), which I read to my kids and loved. After Apurna called 1-833-READ-A-LOT in the End of the Podcast Club in Chapter 59 and suggested Nikki as a guest, I watched her TED Talk, read some of her poems and watched this captivating interview she did with James Baldwin back in 1971.  And then I reached out to her and she graciously accepted to be interviewed for 3 Books. 

Nikki Giovanni was born in 1943 and is an American poet, writer, commentator, activist and educator. Wikipedia says she is one of the world’s best known African American poets. I think she’s one of the world’s best known poets, period! (Why do we always hedge it??)

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She is prolific and deeply introspective throughout her poetry, anthologies, recordings and nonfiction essays on topics ranging from race, to social issues, to children’s issues. She was nominated for a Grammy and was named one of Oprah Winfrey’s 25 Living Legends for her prominence in the 1960s Black Arts Movement and as a defender of both the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements. She’s been dubbed “The Poet of the Black Revolution” for her strong militant perspective.

Today, at 77, she is a distinguished professor at Virginia Tech where she still teaches and mentors students to help them find their voices. And it is from her very office that she dialled in to chat with me.

Listen in as we discuss the true meaning of activism, the true meaning of community, why it is important to hate (yes hate!), and to share what she believes is the best thing to do when you get up in the morning. And of course we get into her 3 most formative books. 

I am honored and humbled to bring you this lively conversation with the eminent Nikki Giovanni.

Let’s go!

What You'll Learn:

  • How can we be better at being alone?

  • What is a mirror check in?

  • How does poetry give us hope?

  • How can we learn to write poetry?

  • How was the first black show Soul started on TV?

  • Why was Nikki’s interview of James Baldwin a cultural turning point for the Black community?

  • Why is forgiveness overrated?

  • How can we hate productively?

  • Why is it a good idea to be old?

  • What was it like seeing a movie during segregation?

  • What still needs to be done to combat racism?

  • What is the link between abortion and capital punishment?

Notable quotes from Nikki Giovanni:

“The first person who reads your work is yourself.” – @NikkiGiovanni6 #3bookspodcast

“I think forgiveness is way overblown. I think we should learn to hate.” – @NikkiGiovanni6 #3bookspodcast

“I may not change the world, but I will not let the world change me.” – @NikkiGiovanni6 #3bookspodcast

“I am trying to make a world where people leave people alone.” – @NikkiGiovanni6 #3bookspodcast

“As long as there is a piece of me alive, I am going to carry it to the poll and let it vote.” – @NikkiGiovanni6 #3bookspodcast

“To be a white supremacist is to be a coward.” – @NikkiGiovanni6 #3bookspodcast

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Chapter 64: Rhiannon the Restaurateur on redefining reality

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So I’m walking down the street in downtown Toronto when I glance into a restaurant on my right and see a little chalkboard sign in the window which reads, “Your rights end where another person’s begin. Wear a mask.”

I found the sign to be a tiny display of civic activism. Asking people to wear masks! Demanding it, even. So tough in the service industry. I stop to snap a quick photo and the owner, Rhiannon, seeing me do this, steps outside.

We talk about how tough things are in the industry right now and discuss the challenges of enforcing masks and distance while trying to run a business.   

I decide to order a breakfast burrito, which gives me time to engage Rhiannon in a longer exchange. Turns out she was an English teacher and loves reading so I turn on my recorder and record a short guerrilla chapter of 3 Books right on her patio. (Our second after Chapter 44 with Kevin the Bookseller! And our second bar patio chapter after Chapter 27 with Robin the Bartender.)

Listen into this honest conversation about school politics, engaging reluctant readers, tackling stereotyping, hangover poutine, and of course, Rhiannon the Restaurateur’s 3 most formative books.

As this pandemic endures, we need to support our local corner shops, variety shops, and neighborhood restaurants. The future is going to need small businesses!

Let’s give some love to the beautiful Rhiannon of Grapefruit Moon.

Let’s go! 

What You'll Learn:

  • Why is revisiting books valuable?

  • How can a book inspire action?

  • How do you run a business with your mom?

  • What’s it like growing up on an island?

  • Why should we burn The Ugly Ducking?  

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Chapter 63: Brandon Stanton is harnessing histories of humble human heroes

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“If you are willing to get closer to people who are suffering, you will find the power to change the world.”

That quote by Bryan Stevenson perfectly describes the incredible work of Brandon Stanton of Humans of New York, my guest on Chapter 63 of 3 Books.

Happy Harvest Moon everyone! 

Are you surviving the onslaught of 2020?

If you’re anything like me you’re looking for grounding which is why I’m thrilled to be bringing you this uplifting exchange which completely filled my heart and soul.

Brandon Stanton is an American author, photographer, blogger, activist, and philanthropist. He is the creator of the viral sensation Humans of New York, which boasts a community of over 30 million people around the world who get a regular glimpse into the private lives of strangers through Brandon’s arresting photos and accompanying stories that reflect back to us the deeper nature of humanity.

Brandon is also the author of the New York Times bestsellers Humans of New York, Humans of New York: Stories, Little Humans of New York, and the highly anticipated new book Humans which comes out next week. (Side note: I believe he also holds the Guinness World Record for “Most Books With The Word Humans In The Title”).

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Brandon was listed as one of TIME’s 30 People Under 30 Changing The World, and received the James Joyce award for the Literary and Historical Society for Professional Achievement. Not bad for a roaming flâneur who got fired from his bond trading job and just started walking around taking pictures all day.

In this chapter we discuss:

  • What did Brandon learn while photographing Barack Obama?

  • What’s the difference between schooling and education?

  • What system did Brandon adopt to improve his reading?

  • How do we balance artistic ambition with family contentment?

  • How can cannabis help with creativity?

  • Why is it important that kids fear drugs?

  • How can we rebuild trust?

  • And of course, what are Brandon Stanton’s 3 most formative books? 

In this tumultuous year of ups and downs, pandemic havoc, incessant media and political mayhem, let this conversation be an oasis of energy to fill you back up.

Let’s go! 

What You'll Learn:

  • Why is it so important to never judge a person from one moment?

  • Who was the original inventor of the self help movement?

  • How do we separate reading from compulsion and curiosity?

  • How can you design systems to realize more of your potential? ?

  • How do we tap into our deeper artistic selves to tell better stories?

  • What is freedom and how does success limit it?

  • What is the difference between being an influencer and being an artist?

  • Where does power in a modern democracy really reside?

  • What does it take to be a historical biographer?

  • Why is getting close to people who are suffering so critical to bettering the world?

  • What does it mean to be a moral person?

Notable quotes from BRANDON STANTON:

“You can never judge a person in a moment.” - Brandon Stanton @humansofny #3bookspodcast

“It doesn’t matter how smart you are, if you don’t have knowledge, if you don’t take the time to learn from other people and learn what’s been learned before you are just never going to do anything near what you were capable of doing.” - Brandon Stanton @humansofny #3bookspodcast

“Educating yourself based on your own curriculum is going to lead to a lot more retention and a lot more growth then educating yourself in a more systemic format.” - Brandon Stanton @humansofny #3bookspodcast

“I want to get as good as possible at telling the stories of strangers that I possibly can.” - Brandon Stanton @humansofny #3bookspodcast

“So much of my growth is due to discipline and not the passion.” - Brandon Stanton @humansofny #3bookspodcast

“What marijuana does is it kind of activates that part of your brain which is more imaginative and more playful and more adventurous and your mind wanders a lot more.” - Brandon Stanton @humansofny #3bookspodcast

“Being in the proximity of the deep personal lives of other people definitely gives you more weight within which to lean into being a good person.” - Brandon Stanton @humansofny #3bookspodcast

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Chapter 62: Myriam Gurba is a bold badass with a bronca against baseless bigotry and brutality

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“Xicana AF. Bitch is my pronoun.” So reads the Twitter bio of Myriam Gurba, my guest, our guest, in Chapter 62. 

A Mexican/American writer, storyteller, and visual artist from California, Myriam is the author of the true crime memoir Mean, which was hailed by O magazine as “one of the best LGBTQ+ books of all time.” She is also the author of Painting Their Portraits in Winter, Dahlia Season, as well as a number of chapbooks, all of which pack an audacious punch. And if her infectious written word is not enough, she’s toured with Sister Spit, a lesbian feminist spoken word and performance art collective. 

She traffics in Spanglish and bold truth, the kind of which is raw and fierce. 

“When I tell gringos that my Mexican grandfather worked as a publicist, the news silences them. Shocked facial expressions follow suit. Their heads look ready to explode and I can tell they’re thinking, ‘In Mexico, there are PUBLICISTS?!’ I wryly grin at these fulanos and let my smile speak on my behalf. It answers, ‘Yes, bitch, in México, there are things to publicize such as our own fucking opinions about YOU.’ - Myriam Gurba

Those words are from her viral article, Pendeja, You Ain’t Steinbeck: My Bronca with Fake-Ass Social Justice Literature, in which she takes down Jeanine Cummins’ novel American Dirt. She had been asked to review the book by Ms. Magazine, but they rejected said review on the basis that she, “lacked the fame to pen something so negative.” The controversy came to light, as well as her original critique, and the publishing world erupted. Cultural appropriation, the white gaze, racism, and the lack of diversity in the publishing industry were brought to the fore. 

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Unafraid and unapologetic, Myriam had no choice but to ride the wave of deliberation. Aspersion was only heightened, shortly thereafter, by her very publicized suspension from her teaching job in a local high school by an armed police escort. Her social media presence was deemed inappropriate. And yet, she was, in her words, simply defending students who were accusing teachers of abuse.

She is passionate and energetic, a big thinking firecracker who challenged my views and grew my thinking on so many levels for which I am so grateful. We had a jet-fueled conversation talking about racism, prejudice, growing up queer, police brutality, violence against women, the Mexican obsession with death, and, of course, Myriam Gurba’s 3 most formative books.

Are you ready for a gritty, vulnerable, and honest conversation with the one and only Myriam Gurba?

Let’s go!

(Trigger Warning: This conversation does veer into topics of sexual abuse and trauma.)

What You'll Learn:

  • Why is there so much white supremacy in publishing?

  • How can we use vulnerability to draw strength?

  • What is it like growing up queer?

  • How can we become better activists?

  • Why should the police and prison system be abolished?

  • What constitutes violence against women?

  • What systems fuel misogyny and patriarchy?

  • How can we have a better body image?

  • How do we deal with genital shame?

  • What are the roots of racism?

  • Why is it so important to engage in corporeal politics?

Notable quotes from myriam gurba:

“We are discussed as if we are the problem because we are framed as the problem, but we are never asked or invited to the table to help resolve the problem of white supremacy. “ - @lesbrains #3bookspodcast

“White folks aren’t accustomed to having to work to understand critique.” - @lesbrains #3bookspodcast

“There’s an expectation that women ought to suffer and ought to suffer, quote unquote gracefully, and then if you are a woman of color, the expectation is even greater.” - @lesbrains #3bookspodcast

“If activism matters and liberation matters to you, then you are willing to assume the risk.” - @lesbrains #3bookspodcast

“The police exist to perform spectacles of violence.” - @lesbrains #3bookspodcast

“We’re all pink on the inside is just as gross as telling a dark-skinned person we all bleed red. That might be true that we all bleed red, but some of us are forced to bleed more than others.” - @lesbrains #3bookspodcast

“For folks who are interested in the struggle for liberation, it’s important to start with your community and with the people who are already organizing in your community.” - @lesbrains 3bookspodcast

“We all have power. A lot of us forget that every single human being, if we are alive, we have some sort of power.” - @lesbrains #3bookspodcast

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Chapter 61: Temple Grandin on mixing minds making magic

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Welcome to Chapter 61!

I am delighted to bring you a conversation with the one and only Temple Grandin whose life has profoundly changed our notions about autism and neurodiversity and whose work has heightened awareness of the importance of animal welfare.

Born in 1947 in Boston, she was diagnosed with autism while still nonverbal at age 4. Told her daughter should be institutionalized, Temple’s mother dismissed doctors and worked tirelessly to help her daughter blossom.

A BA, MA, and PhD later, Temple is a lauded faculty member at the College of Agricultural Sciences at Colorado State University. She has authored over 60 scientific papers on animal behavior and is one of the first people with autism ever to raise awareness and document her own journey.

This has contributed to her notoriety on many fronts: she was brought to prominence in the world by Oliver Sacks M.D in his book, An Anthropologist on Mars, she has authored her own books on autism, Thinking in Pictures: My Life with Autism and The Autistic Brain: Helping Different Minds Succeed, her TED Talk “The World Needs All Kinds of Minds” has been viewed over 5 million times and the HBO movie,Temple Grandin, based on her life, and where she was played by Clare Danes, shed light on her incredible story as well as picked up over a dozen awards across the Emmy, SAG, and Golden Globes circuit.

As a respected spokesperson in the animal community, Temple is also celebrated for her redesign of slaughterhouses (yes, you read that right). She is outspoken in her belief that, “alleviating anxiety rather than extending life fully,” should be the priority for those raising animals. Her essay “Animals are Not Things” and her books Animals in Translation and Animals Make Us Human, have garnered her the highest regard, for her ability to empathize with animals is second to none.

In this Chapter, we discuss:

  • What is the state of autism in the world today?

  • How do we nurture diverse minds?

  • What is missing from our education system today?

  • What are the ethics of eating meat?

  • How can we value our elders more?

  • And of course, what are Temple Grandin’s 3 most formative books?

Ready to jump into my conversation with this beautiful and resilient soul?

Let’s go!

What You'll Learn:

  • What is autism and what does ‘the autism spectrum’ really mean?

  • What is missing from the education system today?

  • Why should kids do more hands-on learning?

  • What does it mean to be a visual thinker?

  • What could have avoided the Fukushima nuclear disaster?

  • What is animal welfare and why is it important?

  • What is the future of our species? (big one!)

  • How can we embrace getting older?

  • How do we find our purpose?

Notable quotes from Temple Grandin:

“If you want to know how my mind works, give me a key word and pretend I am Google for images.” - @DrTempleGrandin #3bookspodcast

"One of the worst things the schools have done is taken out hands-on classes." - @DrTempleGrandin #3bookspodcast

“Nature is cruel but we don’t have to be.” - @DrTempleGrandin #3bookspodcast

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Chapter 60: Shane Parrish masters Munger to map mental models and mold maverick minds 

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In Shane Parrish’s first group project during his MBA he watched as his professor got into some verbal fisticuffs with his partner on a project. They were debating the logic behind his group’s presentation. They disagreed about it! And, eventually, his partner got up and shouted, “I am wasting my time here!” before storming out of the room, out of the class, and out of the program in one fell Costanza-like swoop.

Shane fortunately caught up with the unnamed hero in this little caper while he was waiting for a taxi and said, “What happened back there? I thought we did the project right. Why did we get such a different answer than the professor?” His partner’s two-word answer ended up changing Shane’s life.

He said simply: “Charlie Munger”.

Shane Parrish’s Office Library

Shane Parrish’s Office Library

Who is Shane Parrish?

He’s a former spy who, to quote the NY Times, ‘helps Wall Street mavens think smarter.’ He’s become an unlikely guru to the world’s intellectual elite with strategies appealing to an overachieving audience across high finance, Silicon Valley and professional sports. He runs Farnam Street, colloquially known as FS.blog, which aims to ‘help you master the best of what other people have already figured out.’. FS.blog helps readers optimize decision-making through a giant worldwide community of thousands of people, a virtual think tank of professionals who can help “shorten the path to wisdom’ and self-education. FS is also: an award-winning newsletter (Brain Food), a podcast called The Knowledge Project (which I guested on not so long ago) and a series of incredible books called The Great Mental Models that Shane Parrish and his team personally publish. 

So how do you meet a spy? You fly to him. And so I did. Up to Ottawa, Canada and into the new Farnam Street Offices on Bank Street — all pre-pandemic. To say I’m intrigued by Shane is an understatement. He is a voracious reader with  insights and worldly wisdom on big questions like:

  • What does it mean to think better?

  • How should we think about our thinking?

  • What is intelligence and how should we measure it?

  • How do we build trust in relationships?

  • What does it mean to be a gentleman these days?

  • How do you raise boys into great men?

  • And, of course, what are Shane Parrish’s 3 most formative books?

Are you ready?

Let’s go.

What You'll Learn:

  • What does it mean to live a more meaningful life?

  • How should we create trust in the world today?

  • How do we create art with integrity?

  • How do we think about sponsorship?

  • How do you make adult friendships?

  • How do you live life without lawyers?

  • How do we develop trust without contracts?

Notable quotes from Shane Parrish:

“I think of intelligence as adaptability and ability to improve.” - @ShaneAParrish #3bookspodcast

“Whose bread I eat, his song I sing.”- @ShaneAParrish #3bookspodcast

Quoting Warren Buffet: “Do you live your life by an inner scorecard or an outer scorecard?” - @ShaneAParrish #3bookspodcast

Quoting Warren Buffet: “Would you rather be the world’s greatest lover, but have everyone think you’re the world’s worst? Or would you rather be the world’s worst but have everyone think you’re the greatest? - @ShaneAParrish #3bookspodcast

“If you are not paying for information, you are the product, you are what is being sold.” - @ShaneAParrish #3bookspodcast

“Be careful when you outsource your thinking and don’t convince yourself it is your thinking if you are paying for it.” - @ShaneAParrish #3bookspodcast

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Chapter 59: Jeff Speck is pushing the pleasures of pedestrian propinquity

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Where in the world are you right now?

Are you in cramped apartment in a busy downtown core? Are you in a countryside farm beside a tiny general store? Or are you in a basement hotel gym in Ulaanbaatar? 

And, more importantly, why in the world are you where you are? Are you chasing a career? Are you in school? Did you move for love? Does inertia have you wedged deeply into your neighborhood?

Well, where ever you are, I can promise you this: by the end of Chapter 59 you won’t look at where you live the same way ever again.

Why?

Because my next guest is a visionary city planner and urban designer and who will guide us through the power of place and principled planning.

Sidenote: Chapter 59 is our first rabbit hole chapter of 3 Books. You may recall Anne Bogel introduced us to Jeff Speck by picking his book Walkable City as one of her three most formative back in Chapter 57. She was in love with the book, I fell in love with the book, and we ended up inviting Jeff onto the show.

So who is Jeff Speck?

Well, he’s an internationally renowned city planner and urban designer, recognized for his research surrounding, and advocacy for, more walkable cities. He was Director of Design at the National Endowment for the Arts from 2003-2007, he was also Director of Town Planning at DPZ & Co (the founders of the  New Urbanist movement) for over 10 years and now heads up his own consulting practice, advising cities and mayors across the globe. He is a fellow at both the Congress for the New Urbanism and the American Institute of Certified Planners and has made conversations surrounding walkability mainstream via his two TED Talks viewed over 4 million times: The Walkable City and 4 Ways to Make a City More Walkable.  

And as if the above planning pedigree were not enough, he is the author of several books including the aforementioned Walkable City, the top selling city planning book for the past decade, (and #832 in our Top 1000!) as well as Suburban Nation, declared by the Wall Street Journal as ‘the urbanists bible’

In this chapter we deep dive into:

  • What is walkability and what is its true value?

  • What is the relationship between design and well-being?

  • What are the true costs of car ownership?

  • How can city planning combat loneliness?

  • How does poor planning perpetuate racism?

  • What makes a good mayor?

Jeff is a wonder brain. Humble, articulate, passionate, he’s a man on a mission. His mind has these cranks and gears that allow him to see the world with giant perspective and distill things down to simple ideas for us to absorb and reflect upon. 

Are you ready?

Let’s go!

What You'll Learn:

  • What is urban planning?

  • Where and how did urban planning go wrong in the twentieth century?

  • What is necessary to create human-scale livable spaces?

  • Why are many cities failing its citizens?

  • How much is car dependency hurting us?

  • Why is strangeness important?

  • What is the importance of the concept of live, work, play in planning?

  • Why is it illegal to build mixed use walkable communities to this day in the US?

  • How has the pandemic affected how we build and think about our cities?

  • And, of course, what are Jeff Speck’s three most formative books?

Notable quotes from Jeff Speck:

“Great writing is really great thinking.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

Quoting Jane Jacobs: “Almost nobody travels willingly from sameness to sameness and repetition to repetition even if the physical effort required is trivial.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“The bigger the city the more strangeness you can have.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“It’s remarkable how cities give you crowds and interaction but they’re also the place to go for anonymity.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“We have designed out of our communities the useful walk.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“For every dollar that you spend on gasoline, society is paying another nine dollars to get you around.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“If you switch from driving to taking transit you will lose 6 pounds” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“The denser your city is the more patents per capita it is going to generate.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

Quoting Jane Jacobs: “Lowly, unpurposeful and random as they may appear, sidewalk contacts are the small change from which a city’s wealth of public life may grow.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“It is a very different thing to bump into someone while walking then it is to bump into someone while driving.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

“We do everything better when we don’t limit ourselves to our specialty.” - Jeff Speck #3bookspodcast

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Chapter 58: Author David Mitchell on designing dizzily dazzling dreams

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“Never touch your idols: the gilding will stick to your fingers” Gustave Flaubert

I heard David Mitchell mention this quote while I was deep in the rabbit hole preparing to speak to him. It gave me pause. Was there any way he could possibly live up to the pedestal in the clouds I’d long placed him on?

My love affair with David Mitchell began years ago when I became completely transfixed by Cloud Atlas. I then began devouring his other books like a starving man — Ghost Written, number9dream, Black Swan Green, The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, The Bone Clocks, and his brand new masterpiece Utopia Avenue

Every book broke new genre territory while consistently offering vividly realistic characters, leaping plotlines, and hints towards a larger scale multiverse tying everything together. It’s no wonder five of his books have been long- or short-listed for the Booker Prize.

And it’s not just me or the Booker committee, either. The Boston Globe calls David Mitchell, “one of the most electric writers alive”, Esquire calls him, “a genre leaping, mind bending, world-traveling, puzzle-making, literary magician”, and the New York Times Book Review declared him “a genius who writes as though at the helm of a perpetual dream machine.” TIME even declared him one of the world’s “100 Most Influential People”.

I was indeed worried, but after spending two and a half hours talking to David (in what I think may be the longest feature-length interview with him anywhere and his first podcast interview in years) I am pleased to say no specks of gold came off in my fingers. If anything, his grace, humility, and wit only elevated the pedestal higher into the cosmos.

Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, prepare to go deep into one of the world’s deepest minds in the world. Get ready for a ramble across Middle Earth, Russia, Ireland, and Japan as we discuss things like:  

  • How can art be an anti-snobbery force?

  • How books can stop minds from scratching themselves raw?

  • How writers build trust with their readers?

  • How we can we harvest imagination?

  • What is it like raising a child who is non-verbal?

  • What is the power and meaning of the metaphysical?

  • How should writing be judged?

  • Which fantasy author trumps Tolkien and why?

These are just some of the topics we touch on with loving father, master craftsman, mentor to many, and endlessly erudite bibliophile David Mitchell.

Let’s go!

What You'll Learn:

  • Why shouldn’t genre matter in writing?

  • Why doesn’t snobbery belong in the world of books?

  • How do books change after they’re read?

  • How does the metaphor of a TV box set apply to books?

  • How do writers build trust with their readers?

  • How do we harvest imagination?

  • What’s the relationship between health care policy and good writing?

  • Who are The Russians and how does one properly wade into them?

  • Why are we all storytellers?

  • What are some myths surrounding autism?

  • How do you become a better writer?

  • And, of course, what are David Mitchell’s three most formative books?

notable quotes from David mitchell:

“A day doesn’t feel well spent without the writing in it.” – David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“The internet never forgets.” – David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“Art should be an anti-snobbery force.” – David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“Genre is analogous to a paintbox” - David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“It should raise no eyebrows if the writer wishes to treat genre as an organ of the novel” - David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“Trust the advice of your local independent bricks and mortar booksellers of the kind that actually pay tax and have a role in the community.” – David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“All books want to be used, if I was a book, I would want to be used.” - David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“The same way a cellist can play more than one string at the same time with one stroke of the bow, I try to make scenes do more than one thing and lines do more than one thing.” - David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

On writers and ageing: “I’ve got a metaphorical compost heap in my head.” - David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

On Emily Dickinson: “She did not travel and yet you can still find infinity and eternity in her poems.”- David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

On studying different languages: “It is the access to the treasure chest of wisdom and wit that is there in the etymology of words.” - David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“Booksellers are front line workers of the mind.” – David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“If there isn’t justice for everybody then there is no justice for anybody.”– David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

“Going wrong can be your ally; all you have to do is work out why you’ve gone wrong and that is a necessary step to going right, so don’t be discouraged.”– David Mitchell #3bookspodcast

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Surprise Waning Crescent: Confronting courageous coronavirus questions

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Neil Pasricha.png

Look up to the sky.

It’s a slowly waning crescent before Chapter 52 arrives on the exact minute of the new moon next week.

So why this special episode of 3 Books? 

Well, like the “cultivating calm during coronavirus chaos” episode we released a month ago, it’s because we are swimming in wholly unprecedented seas. I am feeling stress around coronavirus and I can tell by your DMs, tweets, comments, and voicemails to 1-833-READ-A-LOT that you're feeling it, too.

Now, as many of you know, I give speeches. I travel around the world giving motivational speeches to organizations, companies, and schools around the world. I am very lucky I get to do this, but guess what?

They’re all cancelled.

Every single speech I was slated to give this spring is now officially cancelled. TED is cancelled. SXSW is cancelled. Any organization running any event with hundreds of people is cancelled.

So I am grounded like many of us are.

But then the phone suddenly started ringing again.

It seems with so many organizations working remotely while managing tectonic changes there’s a new opportunity to talk virtually about cultivating a positive mindset.

So I have started being asked to give virtual speeches.

I was recently supposed to be in Arizona speaking to a group of great leaders at Kao. I gave a speech to them in Cincinnati a couple months ago before coronavirus and was looking forward to seeing them again.

But ...  cancelled.

So instead I gave a speech to them virtually, over a WebEx call, with a few hundred people all dialing in. I spoke for half an hour about resilience. If you’ve read You Are Awesome you can guess what I talked about! The two-minute morning ritual to ground and center us for the day. How developing a weird hobby helps avoid cognitive entrenchment and mental fragility during this uncertain time. And why it’s critical to go untouchable from the news and social media for a dedicated amount of time each day.

After I spoke we opened up the call to a Q&A.

And remember this is a call with hundreds and hundreds of people who can’t see me or each other. There’s a chatroom on the side where I can receive personal messages but we did it together. And I am so amazed at what happened. The leaders at Kao were incredibly vulnerable, brave, and courageous with each other. Their leader Trevor created incredible space for them to share emotions, feelings, and worries in a generous and open-hearted way. I did my best to reflect and add to the thoughts but most importantly they supported each other. I was awed by what you’re about to hear from these folks.

After the call was over the leadership team and I spoke about using this chat as an opportunity to help other people. We are in this together right now around the whole world. We are one giant team. So that’s why we received expressed written permission from every single voice you’re about to hear to share this with you.

The Q&A you are about to hear is being shared with one goal: we think there might be a nugget, tool, framework, or an idea that you can use.

It’s not meant a panacea or a cure-all. This Q&A won’t solve all your problems. But it’s an offering. It’s a little plate with tiny treats on it.

I hope there’s one thing here you can apply to something you are wondering or worrying about.

We discuss things like: 

  • What do we say to children who are struggling?

  • How do we manage overwhelm and disorientation?

  • How do we get through this if we are alone?

  • How do we manage guilt we are feeling?

  • And much, much more... 

 I want to say a giant thank you to the  team at Kao for letting us share this conversation with a special thanks to every voice you are about to hear.

You are true leaders in every sense of the word. 

And now …

Let's go! 

Listen to this Surprise Chapter of 3 Books:

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Chapter 51: Dr. Qing Li on finding faith and freedom in forests

Dr. Qing Li.jpg

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Where are you in the world right now?

Shacked up in Shanghai? Isolating in Iceland? Quarantine in Qatar?

Well, I don’t know where you are but I am guessing that one of the biggest questions you’ve been asking yourself lately is about self-care.

How do you take care of yourself if you are socially distancing or taking care of the others for weeks or months on end? What tools can you use? As the world is shifting, how do we all make sure you are taking care of our personal well-being? My mental health is being challenged right now and I am guessing yours may be, too.

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Well, today I bring you the very first virtual chapter of 3 Books, featuring Dr. Qing (pronounced “Ching”) Li all the way from Tokyo, Japan. Dr. Li is the world’s foremost authority in forest medicine. A medical doctor at Tokyo’s Nippon Medical School, he has been a visiting fellow at the Stanford University School of Medicine, and is the founding chairman of the Japanese Society for Forest Medicine. He’s also the author of several books including the international bestseller Forest Bathing: How Trees Can Help You Find Health and Happiness.

I am so grateful that the kind and generous Dr. Qing Li accepted my invitation to come on 3 Books.

I hope you find the conversation as informative and inspiring as I did.

Let’s go! 

What You'll Learn:

  • How do you take care of yourself during these uncertain times?

  • What is forest therapy? What are the immune-boosting properties of being in nature?

  • What are great books to build your leadership and capacity for hard work?

  • How can you benefit from forest bathing in a city or while stuck inside?

notable quotes from dr. qing li:

“Being in nature slows our senses… it opens the gap between us and the natural world.” – Dr. Qing Li #3bookspodcast

“People can enjoy forest bathing to boost their immune functions.” – Dr. Qing Li #3bookspodcast

“If you want to succeed, you have to work hard.” – Dr. Qing Li #3bookspodcast

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