Podcast
Nat Chat
Hosted by Nat Eliason · EN
Nat Chat is a wide-ranging podcast hosted by Nat Eliason. It includes his weekly roundup, the Monday Medley, as well as interviews with various guests, solo-episodes on interesting topics, and much much more.
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Medley 233: Solving Problems, Chicken, Youtubing, Double Life, Business Partners, Almanack, Fasting...
Oct 27, 202000:04:46Tap to summarizeHappy Monday! Glad to have you back for another episode of Nat Chat, an audio version of my newsletter Monday Medley. Join me in recapping my best finds from across the Internet with topics ranging from nutrition, finding good business partners, and sleep tech. Make sure to subscribe to my newsletter if you prefer a readable copy of this podcast! Resources mentioned: 6 Big Nutrition Lessons (0:18) How to Migrate from Notion to Roam (0:26) The Almanack of Naval Ravikant (0:31) The Brain (0:41) White Oak Pastures (0:48) Their Most Popular Items (1:12) Cat Lavery (1:21) BestSelf (1:23) In one extensive article (1:37) Sleep Tech video (2:05) Youtube Masterclass(2:19) How Ali balances his double life (2:37) The Hero's Journey(2:45) Intermittent Fasting (2:55) Make Chicken Great Again (3:30) Ethical Meat Eating Article (3:38) Solving Problems by Letting Go (3:52) If you want to support the Medley and my other writing, there are many ways you can do that here. And should you come across anything interesting this week, tweet me @nateliason. I'd love to hear your thoughts and neat things you may come across. Thanks for tuning in, I'll see you next Monday!
Transcribe →
Medley 232: Ketchup, Signaling, Modern Empires, Almanack, Meat, Signature Moves, Mediocrity...
Oct 19, 202000:08:48Tap to summarizeHappy Monday! Glad to have you back for another episode of Nat Chat, an audio version of my newsletter Monday Medley. Join me in recapping my best finds from across the Internet with topics ranging from empires, fruit and vegetable classification, and mediocrity. Make sure to subscribe to my newsletter if you prefer a readable copy of this podcast! Resources mentioned: The Mental Model Behind Every High-Performer I Know (0:21) Starting a $400,000 Side Business in 1 Month (for Free) (0:30) 5 Life Lessons from a Book too Evil for Prisons (0:35) White Oak Pastures (0:45) Avoid the Fate of Empires (1:15) College as an Incubator or Girardian Terror (3:14) Thread on Bill Grundfest (4:36) The Premium Mediocre Life of Maya Millenial (5:22) Brandon Zhang podcast (5:43) Signaling as a Service (6:28) Confusion around tomatoes (6:40) Ketchup was considered a vegetable (7:40) If you want to support the Medley and my other writing, there are many ways you can do that here. And should you come across anything interesting this week, tweet me @nateliason. I'd love to hear your thoughts and neat things you may come across. Thanks for tuning in, I'll see you next Monday!
Transcribe →
Medley 231: Sweating, Making Habits, Wildfires, Energy, Lean Meat, Hedge Funds, Privacy...
Oct 12, 202000:08:26Tap to summarizeHappy Monday! On this week's episode of Nat Chat, I'm covering this week's Monday Medley newsletter. Join me in recapping my best finds from across the Internet with topics ranging from energy, wildfires, and privacy. Make sure to subscribe to my newsletter if you prefer a readable copy of this podcast! Resources mentioned: 9 favorite tools I use for better sleep (0:12) Humanity's relationship with energy (0:18) "Student Mindset" podcast (0:31) Making future habits easy (0:45) Alex Tabarrok wildfire article (2:16) Chaos Monkeys (4:31) The Social Dilemma (4:34) Previous piece for Wired (5:45) Hedge funds (6:12) Protein poisoning (7:12) Getting sweaty (7:24) Purpose by Sovereignty (7:55) If you want to support the Medley and my other writing, there are many ways you can do that here. And should you come across anything interesting this week, tweet me @nateliason. I'd love to hear your thoughts and neat things you may come across. Thanks for tuning in, I'll see you next Monday!
Transcribe →
Medley 230: Commitment, Books, Frequent Fliers, Journaling, Eye Strain, Missions, Contagion...
Oct 5, 202000:10:48Tap to summarizeHappy Monday! On this week's episode of Nat Chat, I'm covering this week's Monday Medley newsletter. Join me in recapping my best finds from across the Internet with topics ranging from airlines, journaling, and limiting beliefs. Make sure to subscribe to my newsletter if you prefer a readable copy of this podcast! I've sent one out every Monday for 230 consecutive weeks now, so don't miss out. Resources mentioned: Why you shouldn't try to read 100 books per year (0:13) Sovereignty (0:28) Purpose product (0:31) Overlooked Variable that's Key to the Pandemic (1:00) Plus Minus Next (4:26) Morning Pages in Roam (5:02) Blue light glasses (5:11) Coinbase is a Mission Focused Company (6:24) Growth Machine (7:37) Zestful (7:41) Airlines depend on their frequent flier programs (8:20) Limiting beliefs (9:52) Analyze how you can work out of your system (10:05) If you want to support the Medley and my other writing, there are many ways you can do that here. And should you come across anything interesting this week, tweet me @nateliason. I'd love to hear your thoughts and neat things you may come across. Thanks for tuning in, I'll see you next Monday!
Transcribe →
Medley 229: Tropical Storms, Dreaming, Investors, Bicycles, Gourds, Sleep Tech, Supersonic Jets...
Sep 28, 202000:08:29Tap to summarizeOn this week's episode of Nat Chat, I'm talking about a wide range of topics featured in my Monday Medley. From supersonic speed to a good night's sleep, join me in recapping my best finds from across the Internet this week. Make sure to subscribe to the newsletter here if you prefer a readable copy of this podcast! And don't forget to subscribe to my Youtube channel. Resources Mentioned: My YouTube channel (0:23) Helping David Perell migrate from Evernote into Roam (0:30) Highlighting important notes in podcasts.(0:35) A marathon 2+ hour interview of me (0:44) Nick Maggiulli (1:10) Retire in Progress (1:12) Sovereignty (1:17) Dream (1:24) Medley 210 (1:50) Boom Supersonic (1:53) The first XB-1 Supersonic Jet (1:58) Article by Patrick Collison (2:16) Fear caused by bicycles (4:31) Lost opportunity to lead Airbnb's seed round (5:40) What makes Y Combinator so special (6:28) My favorite sleep tech this week (6:48) BluBLOX (6:56) Blue Light Filtering Test (7:00) Fascinating Visualization (7:16) It's Decorative Gourd Season (7:40) If you want to support the Medley and my other writing, there are many ways you can do that here And should you come across anything interesting this week, tweet me @nateliason. I'd love to hear your thoughts and neat things you may come across. Thanks for tuning in, I'll see you next Monday!
Transcribe →
Medley 228: Angel Investing, Physical Ability, Youtube, Housing Prices, Purpose, Intellectual Honesty...
Sep 21, 202000:11:04Tap to summarizeToday's episode of Nat Chat features an audio version of my September 21st edition of the Monday Medley, an email newsletter where I provide interesting finds from around the Internet. Make sure to subscribe to the newsletter if you prefer a readable copy of this podcast! Resources mentioned: The Brain (0:44) Infinite Jest (1:02) Sovereignty (1:24) Purpose (1:33) Why I Stopped Angel Investing (2:11) Exercising your options at an early stage company (3:28) Best income producing assets for growing wealth (3:47) Great tweets and lessons from Startup L Jackson (4:10) Invest $7mm in Shopify (4:22) Ali Abdaal (4:55) Thomas Frank (4:56) Final Cut Pro X for YouTubing (5:07) First day practicing archery (5:25) Centenarian Olympics (6:08) Faking the language (7:21) Babbling (2:23) Improving Idea Flow (2:24) Calling Joe Rogan out(8:03) Keep housing prices reasonable (8:44) If you want to support the Medley and my other writing, there are many ways you can do that here. And should you come across anything interesting this week, tweet me @nateliason. I'd love to hear your thoughts and neat things you may come across. Thanks for tuning in, I'll see you next Monday!
Transcribe →
Medley 227: Archery, Blue Light, Terry, Paradigm Shifts, Notion, Live Action Remakes, Sunscreen...
Sep 14, 202000:18:54Tap to summarizeNat Chat is back! I am excited to bring you an audio version of my Monday Medley, an email newsletter where I provide interesting finds from around the Internet, spanning as broad of topics as the rest of my website. Resources mentioned: 75% Rule (1:04) Scale by Geoffrey West (1:52) The Brain (2:09) I sent the authors a couple questions (2:36) Sovereignty (2:51) Their "Dream" product (3:19) Original animated movies and the live action remakes (4:46) Why the "Karen" meme naming is so accurate (5:13) Terry (5:50) Supercharge Your Productivity with Notion (6:02) Effortless Output course (7:17) what my setup looks like now (7:23) The Way of Zen (9:04) Is economic growth over? (10:16) What happened in 1971 (11:11) The Sovereign Individual (11:35) interesting interview of Andy Mant (14:08) Unconventional Medicine by Chris Kresser (14:52) Wearing sunglasses might mess with the signals our body needs (16:02) If you want to support the Medley and my other writing, there are many ways you can do that here. And should you come across anything interesting this week, tweet me @nateliason. I'd love to hear your thoughts and neat things you may come across!
Transcribe →
37: Reframing the Way You Learn and Becoming a MetaLearner with Nasos Papadopoulos
Dec 22, 201700:50:50Tap to summarizeIt's the consistency over a long period of time where you really start to see the breakthrough. In this episode of Nat Chat, I'm joined by Nasos Papadopoulos. Nasos attended Oxford University, where after a while, realized that being on the path with finance and economics just wasn't for him. He took a long break to travel and explore new opportunities, eventually getting into meta-learning and the science of learning. He started the site Metalearn.net where he educates other people on learning more effectively and efficiently. He also has a popular podcast and a course on the topic, all focused on helping people get better at learning. Nasos is an excellent guy to learn from for those wanting to learn more effectively and efficiently, stay motivated, and getting to know their learning strengths and weaknesses. We cover a wide range of topics, including: What Nasos has learned by focusing on learning how to learn The niche and lesser-known aspects of learning The fixed and growth mindsets and their impact on learning Figuring out your own learning strengths and weaknesses Applying Hebb's Law and becoming more self and other-aware Overcoming the sunk cost of highly investing in the wrong area And much more. Please enjoy, and reach out to Nasos on Twitter! If you enjoyed this episode and our discussion on learning and self-education, be sure to check out my episode with Zak Slayback, and my episode with Connor Grooms, where we delve into these topics and more. Find Nasos online: Website [0:35] MetaLearn Twitter [49:18] Nasos' Twitter [49:20] Mentioned in the show: Oxford University [0:15] Metalearn.net [0:35] MetaLearn podcast [0:48] Nat's episode on the MetaLearn podcast [1:24] Italki [20:45] Make Me a MetaLearner course [24:47] Self-authoring Suite [25:44] 5-Minute Journal [30:45] Hebb's Law [31:32] Python [32:58] Duolingo [34:23] Codecademy [34:24] Sesame Street [34:26] Books mentioned: How Will You Measure Your Life [11:12] The 4-Hour Workweek [11:50] Intelligence and How to Get It [21:17] People mentioned: Clayton Christensen [11:13] Tim Ferriss [11:50] Plato [12:05] Aristotle [12:06] Carol Dweck [16:53] Elon Musk [18:24] Richard Nisbett [21:15] Howard Gardner [22:49] Dr. Jordan Peterson [25:36] Scott Adams [45:32] 1:19 - Introduction to Nasos, him detailing his schooling experiences and time at Oxford University, and then rethinking his whole perspective on the educational system. 7:30 - How Nasos' perspective on continuing to work in the financial field changed, after barely missing a top score on one of his finals. Also, a bit on his traveling experiences and what he did after having this huge change in perspective. 10:33 - How Nasos was paying for travel and a few of the impactful books he read shortly after leaving the financial field. 12:18 - How and when Nasos first began his company, MetaLearn. 13:32 - Some of the most important lessons that Nasos has learned from studying the science of learning. 16:44 - Neuroplasticity, the growth vs the fixed mindset, and some explanations on these. Also, why the growth mindset can be harmful towards learning. 19:30 - Using some of these techniques for improving your language learning, speculation how much of a role IQ plays, and some thoughts on intelligence in general. 24:18 - Figuring out your own strengths and weaknesses with learning, re-evaluating yourself, and self-analyzing with external perspectives on yourself. 28:06 - Nasos' personal experience with self-awareness and learning that there isn't a one-size-fits-all. 29:50 - What Nasos has been doing to be more self-aware and other-aware. 31:23 - Nasos detailing a few examples of learning based on making connections to past knowledge. Also, how Nasos has applied Hebb's Law. 34:05 - The gamification of learning (Duolingo, Codecademy, Sesame Street) and Nasos' thoughts on this. 36:42 - Nasos on blending the learning games with effective learning techniques. "I think if you have a piece of your learning process that is purely gamified, that's great as long as it's not the only thing." 38:44 - How Nasos keeps himself motivated with learning new things and working on his entrepreneurial creative project. "I come back to: 'Why am I doing this, why does this matter to me, what impact is this having on the people around me and the wider world?" and that keeps me motivated." 40:26 - Nasos' advice on letting go of the sunk cost of investing heavily in something that you didn't enjoy doing or wasn't meaningful to you. 43:37 - Nasos' current long-term goals with Metalearn and other projects. Also, a bit on systems-based thinking and Nasos' advice for others looking to become more effective with learning in general. 48:55 - Wrap-up and where to find Nasos online. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe at https://nateliason.com/podcast When it has meaning to you, the other motivational stuff just becomes irrelevant.
Transcribe →
36: Isaac Morehouse on How to Get Any Job You Want and Fixing Education
Dec 14, 201700:56:34Tap to summarizeWhen you understand what people are trying to do with a college degree, which is buying a signal that says 'I'm worth hiring', you realize that signal is really not that strong. And if you set your mind to it, you can create a better, more powerful signal in a much shorter amount of time and for much less money. In this episode of Nat Chat, I'm joined by Isaac Morehouse. Isaac's the founder of Praxis, an alternative education system, which focuses on giving participants a lot of applicable skills and a broader understanding of subject knowledge at a self-paced rate. It also pairs participants with startups and gives them more hands-on experience with 6-month apprenticeships. Two previous Nat Chat guests, Hannah Phillips and Zak Slayback, have both had experiences with the system. We cover a wide range of topics, including: Problems with the current education system and how it negatively impacts students. Why going to college is a riskier choice for most people. Why you don't need a degree to get jobs and careers that you're excited about. How you can begin self-educating yourself. Challenging the status quo and dealing with pressure from peers. The mistakes that most people make when learning a skill. And much more. Please enjoy, and reach out to Isaac on Twitter! If you enjoyed this episode and our discussion on self-education, be sure to check out my episode with Zak Slayback. If want more on education and improving college, you'll enjoy my episode with Blake Boles, as well as my episode with William Deresiewicz. Find Isaac online: Website Praxis Twitter Mentioned in the show: Praxis [0:28] MailChimp [7:00] Shopify [10:09] Github [10:22] Stop Telling Good Arguers to Become Lawyers article [19:39] Quora [51:30] Praxis blog [52:45] Isaac's website [53:13] Isaac's books [53:20] Isaac's podcast [53:22] Books mentioned: Smartcuts Shane Snow [34:42] (Nat's Notes) The Inner Game of Tennis [44:22] (Nat's Notes) The Future of School [54:20] People mentioned: Hannah Phillips [0:58] Zak Slayback [1:00] Aaron Watson [1:58] Shane Snow [34:42] 1:43 - Intro to Isaac and some information on the alternative education system Praxis. 4:17 - Isaac's story with developing Praxis, flaws in the college system, what makes a college degree not that valuable, and why it's not the best usage of time and money. Also, why many people will prefer hiring people with hands-on experience compared to people with just a degree. 10:39 - Whether or not Praxis and the self-education process works even if you're not going into a startup or new-age company. Also, a bit on soft-skills and hard-skills, having tangible evidence of work experience, and demonstrating your abilities. "The key is the ability to demonstrate is more important than what it is that you're demonstrating." 13:57 - The safety concerns with the risks associated with leaving college and not getting a degree. A bit on the societal and prestige concerns of not having a degree, as well. "That's the safety you're giving up. The safety of the good opinion of others. Other than that, there is no safety you're giving up." 15:22 - The negative habits picked up through the college system that makes success harder for you. Also, the de-schooling process necessary for some Praxis participants and a bit more on the safety concerns regarding a degree. "Once you have anything more valuable than a degree, which can include a year of work experience, demonstrating a product, nobody asks about your degree." 20:05 - The social pressure of your friends making more than you, and you judging yourself negatively because of that, even if you're enjoying what you do more. Also, the extreme benefits of having low-income as a young person and the extreme importance of opportunity-cost. "It's amazing the number of things that you can do when you stop looking at 'I need a salary and a title that's impressive to other people.'" 23:34 - Traveling and learning, keeping net income low, and being brutally honest with yourself with what you actually value. Also, some discussion on the need to experiment, figuring out what you like and dislike before making a career choice, and not being shackled to your previous definitions of success. 28:09 - Treating everything you do like an experiment, getting real experience in the field you want to go into before actually deciding on it, and some discussion on the transference of skills in one field to other fields. Also, a bit on the unique aspect of having skills in several areas come together. 35:54 - What Praxis does differently compared to the traditional college system and why it's much better for the participant at Praxis. Also, a few of the things that Praxis participants do while there and the importance of getting some real-world practice to theorize and apply feedback upon before you begin learning something. 41:50 - The biggest mistake that people make when teaching themselves something by studying something without ever going out and doing it. Also, this same problem found in schools and a perfect analogy for this at 42:43. 45:00 - Humans being naturally entrepreneurial, how the education system damages this natural entrepreneurial aspect, and rekindling that natural entrepreneurial ember that we all have. 46:58 - The issues with the lonely aspect of going these non-traditional routes and some solutions for this feeling of loneliness. Also, being more vocal about what you're about and what you're interested in and how that attracts people with similar interests. 52:20 - Wrap-up, where to learn more about Isaac and Praxis, and what the best resources are for starting down this path are. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe at https://nateliason.com/podcast Realizing that we can show our work and demonstrate our ability, and get opportunities by building our own credential, just opens things wide up.
Transcribe →
35: How Vincent Nguyen Ditched College to Better Learn from Work and Mentors
Dec 7, 201700:45:08Tap to summarize"If you can get into a job that has a really small team where you can work closely with the founders, you learn at a much more accelerated rate than if you were working in a much larger company dealing with managers." In this episode of Nat Chat, I'm joined by Vincent Nguyen. Early into his college career, he already knew that the traditional college path wasn't for him. He started a blog on the side called Self Stairway and over the course of seven months, he began posting on publications, connecting with influencers, and eventually got the opportunity to take on an apprenticeship with the company Empire Flippers. He took the apprenticeship, dropped out of college, and moved to the Philippines. After six months of working with them, he was promoted to be their marketing director and after a while, he branched off to start his own company, Growth Ninja. He's been doing that for over two years now and helps sites grow through Facebook advertising. Vincent's a good example of the great opportunities that you can gain from getting an apprenticeship, as well as showing that you don't necessarily need a degree to be successful. We cover a wide range of topics, including: The multiple opportunities that an apprenticeship or blog can present you Disregarding college and self-educating yourself Resources for others looking to easily get an apprenticeship Advice for others looking to get into entrepreneurial pursuits The parental concern towards those choosing to not go to college Vincent's journey from being an apprentice to becoming a marketing director And much more. Please enjoy, and be sure to check out Vincent's company Growth Ninja! If you enjoyed this episode and our discussion on entrepreneurship and bypassing college, check out my episode with Zak Slayback, where we deep dive into both of those topics and much more. If you enjoyed the discussion on apprenticeships, check out my episode with Charlie Hoehn, as well as my episode with Cory Ames. Find Vincent online: Growth Ninja Self Stairway Mentioned in the show: Self Stairway [0:24] Empire Flippers [0:42] Tropical MBA [1:39] Entrepreneur On Fire [10:02] Marc and Angel's site [10:11] Vincent's video for Empire Flippers [10:44] Zapier [13:22] Dynamite Circle [28:04] Reddit [36:49] GetApprenticeship [37:34] Jobs.dynamitecircle.com [38:00] Sumo [38:14] We Work Remotely [38:30] Remote Ok [38:31] Tropical MBA podcast [40:45] (Vincent's first and second episodes on there) Books mentioned: The 4-Hour Workweek [39:50] (Nat's Notes) People mentioned: John Lee Dumas [10:01] John Saddington [10:04] Neil Patel [10:07] Marc and Angel [10:11] Joshua Becker [10:14] Taylor Pearson [37:36] (Taylor's Nat Chat episode) Tim Ferriss [39:34] Ramit Sethi [40:15] Derek Halpern [40:24] 1:30 - Introduction to Vincent, a bit on his first apprenticeship, becoming a marketing director for Empire Flippers, and then leaving to start his own company. 3:53 - Some of the internships Vincent was doing before he left for his apprenticeship at Empire Flippers. 6:20 - A bit on Vincent's self-improvement blog Self Stairway and some of the things that he did there. 9:25 - Vincent detailing the video that he did which greatly helped him land the apprenticeship at Empire Flippers that eventually led to him starting his company Growth Ninja. 14:36 - Some more on Vincent's apprenticeship with Empire Flippers, some info on the company being based in the Philippines, and what Empire Flippers does. 17:31 - Vincent's transition from being an apprentice to becoming the marketing director of Empire Flippers and how he developed the skills for that role. 19:37 - Discussion on Vincent dropping out of college and some of the concern that his parents had. Also, some general discussion on the concern that most parents have with their kids going to college. 24:28 - What made Vincent not want to go to college and what peaked his interest in entrepreneurial pursuits. 26:19 - Some of the reasons that Vincent left Empire Flippers to start Growth Ninja. 28:38 - The beginning experiences that Vincent had with starting Growth Ninja. Also, what it was like for him leaving Empire Flippers to start his own company, and how he maintained a relationship with Empire Flippers afterward. 31:09 - What the business has been like for Vincent in the past two years. Also, some discussion on existential crises, finding out what you want to do in life, and some helpful perspectives on choosing something that you want to do. 34:46 - What made Vincent choose to keep his company local instead of remote. 36:05 - A bit on Vincent's first apprentice and how he found her. 37:20 - Some really good resources for people wanting to find apprenticeship opportunities. 39:38 - Some of the books that had the largest impact on Vincent with entrepreneurial confidence. 41:40 - Some last thoughts and things that Vincent wished he had known earlier when getting started with his entrepreneurial pursuits. Some good advice for others interested in making better decisions and being more successful. 43:25 - Wrap-up, where you can learn more about Vincent, and where to find him online. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe at https://nateliason.com/podcast Always be open to criticism and feedback. Don't be so convinced that you're right and don't be so sure of yourself.
Transcribe →