Thinking Fast and Slow: How to make better decisions and avoid hidden mind traps
You think you're rational? Think again. We love feeling like thoughtful decision-makers, but the truth is we're riddled with cognitive shortcuts.
Daniel Kahneman's Nobel Prize-winning work breaks down the systems of our mind. We constantly substitute hard questions with easy ones; e.g. Buying a stock because you like the company, not because you've done the data.
This episode cuts through the 300,000-word book to show you exactly how these shortcuts lead to everything from bad investments to pointless stress about the weather. It's time to stop letting your brain’s simple tricks run your whole life.
Stop overestimating the importance of your current stress.
Identify and reduce low-level daily pains (like a bad commute) for massive life returns.
Implement a "sleep-on-it" rule to override System 1's instant commitments.
Why let a lazy brain ruin your best decisions? Start thinking slower today.
Further Reading:
Thinking Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman
Predictably Irrational - Dan Ariely
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NEW SHOW - How to Change the World: The History and Future of Innovation
Learn about the evolving story of the human species and our ideas told in chronological order.
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Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
CHAPTERS
00:00 Understanding Cognitive Biases, comedy and systems of thinking
03:58 Deep Dive into System One and System Two Thinking
05:23 How System 1 and System 2 Work Together
06:49 System 1's Impact on Decision Making
08:26 System 1 and Politics
11:29 The Teenage Brain and System 2 Development
12:32 Cognitive Biases and Their Impact
17:45 The Law of Large Numbers
22:38 Prospect Theory, Risk Assessment and Loss Aversion
23:41 Rationality and Utility Theory in Economics
25:39 Prospect Theory: Perception of Value and Risk
27:16 Probability and Decision Making
29:29 The Experiencing Self vs. The Remembering Self
31:17 The Peak-End Rule and Its Impact on Memory
34:58 Momentary Pleasure vs Long-Term Satisfaction
38:09 The Focusing Illusion: What Really Matters
43:46 Final Thoughts and Recommendations
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Who are you VS. Who do you want to be? - How to align your actions with your desires
We can try all the things: new habits, different mindsets, therapy, medication, or god save us... self-help books.
Yet to no ones surprise: we don't wake up a different person, we don't start doing all the things we keep saying we will eventually do, we don't even lose weight...
What is the deal? Are we broken? Is there a way to fix ourselves?
It all comes down to a single question.
Who are you VS. Who do you want to be?
Thoroughly confused, conflicted and curious. Sam sets out into the realms of psychology and philosophy to consider motivation from different angles.
Learn:
- What do you actually want to do VS What do you want to have done
- How to align your current actions with who you want to be
- Why Sam still leaves clothes all over the floor like a big 35 year old baby...
Journal prompts - Free notes
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NEW SHOW - How to Change the World: The History and Future of Innovation
Learn about the evolving story of the human species and our ideas told in chronological order. The podcast is full of fun facts, surprising stories and philosophical insights.
Found on all major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
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Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
CHAPTERS
00:00 The Two Competing Wants
01:54 Desires as Contracts for Unhappiness
04:09 The Formula for Action
04:45 Finding the Right Level of Challenge
07:02 Discovering Your Path
09:20 Redefining Sacrifice
11:22 Making Tasks Easier
13:14 Simplifying and Prioritizing
15:00 Money vs Happiness Balance
16:32 Aligning Desires with Actions
17:34 Send Off
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The Hidden Psychology of Black Friday - How do shops manipulate us (and make calm aunties fist-fight over PlayStations)?
Inner Peace vs Retail Rage - How do shops design our experience to remove our decisions and make us to FOMO into all sorts of weird situations?
This episode peels back the slick banners and countdown timers to show the tiny psychological tricks that turn shoppers into hunters. Scarcity, anchoring, and anticipation aren’t marketing buzzwords — they’re brain hacks.
Retailers riff off ancient instincts: spot a rare fruit, grab it. Online, those instincts run on caffeine and fast clicks. The result? We chase status, reassurance, and an imagined better life via objects.
Three actionable takeaways:
Pause 24 hours before you buy to let impulse die.
Flag “true needs” vs “story purchases” in a list.
Reframe purchases as stories you’ll tell later.
SPONSORS
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NEW SHOW - How to Change the World: The History and Future of Innovation
Learn about the evolving story of the human species and our ideas told in chronological order. The podcast is full of fun facts, surprising stories and philosophical insights.
Found on all major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
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📧 Email - GrowthMindsetPodcast (@) gmail,com
Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
CHAPTERS
00:00 The Contradiction of Black Friday
00:42 A Brief History of Black Friday
01:02 The Psychology Behind Sales
06:28 The Power of Anticipation
06:47 The Perfect Storm of Psychological Triggers
07:57 Case Studies of Black Friday Madness
09:18 The Dark Side of Black Friday
09:41 The Role of Deindividuation and Competition
10:15 Social Contagion and Polyvagal Theory
10:48 Acts of Kindness Amidst the Chaos
12:19 Cyber Monday and Online Shopping
12:44 The Shift to Online Shopping
16:26 The Environmental Cost of Black Friday
18:32 Global Perspectives on Black Friday
18:44 Black Friday in Brazil and France
19:40 Singles Day in China
20:18 Human Nature Revealed by Black Friday
20:31 The Irrationality of Value
21:35 The Social Dynamics of Black Friday
22:18 Final Thoughts on Black Friday
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Systems Thinking: How to understand the deeper reality of the world around us
Most problems in the world aren't random accidents, they're built into the systems we live in. When we look closer we find systems all around us drive the currents that change the world.
Systems Thinking is a key idea in science, politics and business, but it knows no boundaries as systems show up everywhere.
In every era of humanity we created new systems in politics, law, technology and economics to deal with the problems of the day. As new challenges arise in the 21st century, from the future of AI to global politics, it is up to humanity to build new systems to overcome them.
Systems thinking invites us to discover the threads that bind our actions, cultures, and destinies into unexpected tapestries:
Stop firefighting and get to the root cause.
Search for leverage points where small acts create outsized impact.
Reframe crisis from an isolated disaster to an interconnected opportunity.
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NEW SHOW - How to Change the World: The History and Future of Innovation
Learn about the evolving story of the human species and our ideas told in chronological order. The podcast is full of fun facts, surprising stories and philosophical insights.
Found on all major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
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Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro to systems thinking
01:53 Systems and Families
03:35 Welcome
05:12 What is a System
08:27 ACT 1 - 4 ELEMENTS OF A SYSTEM
08:27 Stocks and Flows
09:56 Feedback Loops
11:46 Delays
12:57 Boundaries
14:27 ACT 2 - MANAGING SYSTEMS
14:35 Leverage Points
21:27 ACT 3
21:52 Resilience in systems
23:44 Self-Organisation
25:00 Hierarchies
27:35 ACT 4 - LOOKING AT TODAY
28:40 Wrap up
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Die With Zero Regrets - Stoic ideas to make the most of your life
What if “enough” wasn’t a number — but a moment?
This conversation explores the quiet art of leaving nothing essential undone. We talk about the trap of “more” — more savings, more time, more planning — and how it steals the urgency that makes life vivid.
To die with zero regrets isn’t to die empty; it’s to die complete. Like an artist who finishes a painting not because it’s perfect, but because it says what it needed to say. We explore how generosity, timing, and intention turn ordinary years into extraordinary ones. It’s not about consuming your wealth — it’s about converting it into meaning.
Takeaways:
Treat time as your most valuable currency.
Design your life around moments that matter.
Give forward — not backward.
SPONSORS
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NEW SHOW - How to Change the World: The History and Future of Innovation
Learn about the evolving story of the human species and our ideas told in chronological order. The podcast is full of fun facts, surprising stories and philosophical insights.
Found on all major podcast players:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/1Fj3eFjEoAEKF5lWQxPJyT
Apple - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-change-the-world-the-history-of-innovation/id1815282649
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@HowToChangeTheWorldPodcast
RSS feed - https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/682b3b86696b5d1232d698a8
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UPGRADE to Premium:
🏖️ Ad-free listening
🤘 Support the show
🔓 Exclusive AMAs and bonus content
💬 Community Discord
GrowthMindset.Supercast.com
Get in Touch
👋 Free Call - Schedule Link - https://cal.com/samwebster/mindset
📧 Email - GrowthMindsetPodcast (@) gmail,com
Growth Mindset Psychology:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.
📺 Watch - YouTube (Growth Mindset)
🛜 Website - Growth Mindset
CHAPTERS
00:00 Regrets of the Dying: Lessons from Palliative Care
01:35 Introducing 'Die With Zero' by Bill Perkins
02:35 Seneca's Philosophy on the Shortness of Life
03:28 The Value of Time and Money
04:35 Hyperbolic Discounting: The Psychology of Time and Money
08:46 Intentional spending and experiences that keep paying
11:59 The Memory Dividend: Investing in Experiences
15:38 The Health-Wealth Curve: Timing Your Experience
17:07 Balancing Life's Experiences and Timing
17:27 Seneca's Wisdom on Life and Death
18:31 The Concept of Peak Utility
19:59 The Inheritance Trap
20:45 Fear and Attachment in Financial Decisions
21:31 The Importance of Giving While Alive
23:21 Bill Perkins' Strategy for Dying with Zero
25:03 Time Bucketing for Life Experiences
27:47 The Final Reflection on Life's True Value
31:11 Conclusion and Next Steps
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About Growth Mindset Psychology: The Science of Self-Improvement
Most self-help advice is guesswork dressed up as wisdom. We dig into psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral science to find what actually changes lives.
WHY LISTEN?
Over 8 million downloads because we answer the questions that matter: How do I build mental strength? What creates lasting motivation? How can I understand my own mind well enough to work with it, not against it?
This podcast is for curious skeptics who want frameworks backed by psychology studies, not Instagram quotes. Whether you're navigating procrastination, building self-discipline, or designing your own philosophy for a life well lived—we explore the hidden psychology behind real change.
WHAT YOU'LL GET
Mental models and simple techniques from cognitive psychology, positive psychology, and ancient wisdom traditions like Stoicism and Buddhism.
Being a human can be confusing, learning about it doesn’t have to be.
We cover everything from emotional intelligence and habit formation to brain health and the nervous system.
WHAT YOU DON’T GET
No pseudoscience. No oversimplified "hacks." No hustle porn.
Just practical insights on mindset improvement, self-development, and human psychology that respect your intelligence and mental health.
THE APPROACH
Instead of telling you what to think, we explore how thinking works. Armed with psychology studies, social science research, and relentless curiosity, we uncover the mechanics of belief change, attitude change, and personal development.
Success is personal. You might want to leverage your neurodiverse strengths, build a business, or simply discover how to be happier. We provide the mental frameworks to pursue your definition of success with mental strength and self-care that fits your life.
YOUR HOST
I'm Sam Webster Harris—a lifelong learner with ADHD and an obsession with finding answers to hard questions. After launching businesses, traveling the world, and nearly dying a few times, I concluded that psychology and science are where real wisdom lives.
This show is my excuse to dive deep into health and fitness research, behavioral psychology, and cool science while helping you build genuine self-discipline and motivation.
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PAST SERIES
Previous guests include Olympians, Scientists, Billionaires, and Sam's Mum.
Past series:
— Psychology vs Stoicism
— Time Management for Busy Mortals
— Independence and Knowing Yourself
— Cognitive Biases and Rational Thinking
— Psychology of Connection and Relationships
— Carol Dweck and the Multiverse of Mindsets
— Addiction and Behaviour Change
— Nervous System Mastery and Polyvagal Theory
— Mental Strength and Self-Discipline
Listen to Growth Mindset Psychology: The Science of Self-Improvement, The Mel Robbins Podcast and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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