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Jordan Harbinger
Hey, it's Ryan Reynolds here for Mint Mobile.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Now I was looking for fun ways to tell you that Mint's offer of unlimited Premium Wireless for $15 a month is back.
Jordan Harbinger
So I thought it would be fun.
Gabriel Mizrahi
If we made $15 bills, but it turns out that's very illegal. So there goes my big idea for the commercial.
Jordan Harbinger
Give it a try@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Of $45 for a three month plan equivalent to $15 per month. Required new customer offer for first three months only. Speed slow after 35 gigabytes of networks busy. Taxes and fees extra.
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Jordan Harbinger
Welcome to Feedback Friday. I'm your host, Jordan Harbinger. As always, I'm here with Feedback Friday producer the Stainstick, helping me remove those unsightly splotches of life drama. Gabriel Mizrahi.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Oh, laundry related nickname. That's a new category for you.
Jordan Harbinger
Well, I feel like it fits. But two, Just so you know, I did a couple versions before I landed on that one.
Gabriel Mizrahi
I thought I Do you have alts? Let's hear it.
Jordan Harbinger
Well, I thought the tide pod exploding in kids mouths was not a great way to introduce you. It's not quite the theater of the mind that we're going for here on the show.
Gabriel Mizrahi
No, completely inaccurate. And why would you even consider that one? On the way to the stain stick.
Jordan Harbinger
You remember the trend of kids eating Thai dogs?
Gabriel Mizrahi
No, I got it.
Jordan Harbinger
Okay.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Just making sure it makes sense. Just weird way to introduce your co host.
Jordan Harbinger
It is. It's a little graphic somehow. On the Jordan Harbinger show, we decode the stories, secrets and skills of the world's most fascinating people and turn their wisdom into practical advice that you can use to impact your own life and those around you. Our mission is to help you become a better informed, more critical Thinker. During the week we have long form conversations with a variety of amazing folks. Drug traffickers and arms dealers, cold case homicide investigators, hostage negotiators. This week we had a Tosa Abrahamian on where billionaires and dictators hide their money, store their loot, art, et cetera, buy passports so that they can blend in with the rest of us. Really a fascinating peek behind this dodgy curtain for the elite. On Fridays though, we share stories, take listener letters, offer advice, play obnoxious soundbites, and kick our feet up on the timeless ottoman of our dear listeners conundrum. Before we kick off, Jen and I just got back from a trip to Europe. It was quite short. I want to give a shout out to Shannon in Paris, who's a show fan. She helped us find all kinds of amazing things in the city. Shannon made time out of her day, spent Sunday with us, took us to all these really cool places, sent us a bunch of recommendations that really helped make our Paris trip absolutely amazing. She really went the extra mile and it was such an amazing highlight for us to be able to spend time with her and get recommendations from a local in Paris.
Gabriel Mizrahi
That's so awesome that you guys met up. I love this.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah, actually in Taipei. We experienced this in Taipei a few months back. We ran into a random show fan at a cafe that was fun. But we also met with another amazing show fan named Victor. Victor took us out to a really awesome, actually amazing, epic dinner and it was the most fun thing we did while we were in Taipei, hands down. He brought a bunch of his friends who are also American born Chinese, were living in Taipei and we. I haven't laughed that hard for so long, like crazy, like belly ache level laughter. And it was really, really fun. These types of travels, they're always made by the people. It's not the sights you see, you know, it's not the Eiffel Tower, it's not the food, it's the people that you share it with, which means you can go anywhere and have an amazing time. It doesn't have to be Paris, it can be anywhere. You don't have to stay at Maison Proust or whatever, but if you make friends while you're there, the trip was worthwhile. And I've met a lot of show fans in almost every country that I travel to and I have to say it's almost always the highlight of the whole trip. I'm consistently super impressed by the quality of our listeners. They're always really switched on, cool people, they're successful and frankly the Highest compliment that I think we receive is the fact that these people give us their time and attention every week and then actually want to meet up with us in person. Sometimes I feel like that's the highest compliment because there's a lot. I listen to certain podcasts and it's like, I don't need to meet the host.
Gabriel Mizrahi
No. Our show Family is unique.
Jordan Harbinger
Really.
Gabriel Mizrahi
It's really incredible.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah.
Gabriel Mizrahi
And by the way, if you guys are in Lisbon, Porto Madrid, Berlin, Japan, this summer, fall, let me know. It would be really fun to see if we overlap because I'm getting. Getting a little jelly over hearing about Jordan's adventures with our listeners. But, Jordan, we also have some interesting characters in our show. Fam, apparently. Right. They're not all Shannons and Victors, are they? Remember the video that somebody posted to our subreddit? We gotta talk about this.
Jordan Harbinger
This is hysterical. I see. We're really active on the subreddit for the show. Jordan Harbinger. You can find it on Reddit if you're a Redditor. Someone goes, I can't believe this. Check out Go to minute. I don't know, it was like 127 or whatever it was. And there's this video. It's a body cam video, first of all, you know it's going to be something when it's a police body cam video. Right. So I started it. It's a cop's body cam at the baggage claim of, like, I don't know, San Francisco Airport or something. And there's a lot of cops and there's a guy standing there saying weird stuff. I mean, this guy is, like, on some pills or something.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah. He sounded kind of loopy and.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Like he didn't. Wasn't really making sense. He looked really. He looked like he was lost and confused about where he was like, sir, are you looking for your luggage? Are you trying to catch a flight?
Jordan Harbinger
Talking about, like, sexual stuff. And then he's like, my wife's coming to pick me up. And I don't know, he just clearly had been reported by other people at the airport. So this listener who found the video goes, pause it at 127. So of course, 1:27 shows up and the guy's holding his phone, and I just see my own face on this body cam video. He's just got the latest Feedback Friday episode. Just straight pause.
Gabriel Mizrahi
So good.
Jordan Harbinger
And I'm like, okay. All right. He's a show fan, too, to be fair. I feel like we give the guy a break because he probably was super nervous for whatever flight he was on. Popped his annex and then had a GNT or two on the plane and then multiplier effect, whatever. And he just lost his mind.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, he did.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah. So far be it for me to mock somebody who would listen to this podcast while totally wasted trying to find his luggage on the carousel and trying to talk his way out of trouble with airport police. Because that guy could easily be the CEO of a tech company for all we know.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Easily. But also, do you think maybe he was loopy because it was just too much dues?
Jordan Harbinger
Too much dues? He got overdose.
Gabriel Mizrahi
You ever listen to Feedback Friday so hard you can't find your luggage, you.
Jordan Harbinger
Can'T function, you get arrested by the police at sfo. Yeah. So for every victor, there's a this guy getting choke slammed at the baggage claim.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Oh, man, I gotta say, I love when people tell us where they listen to the show. Like, I love when people are like, I'm at the gym and I have to try not to laugh out loud on the treadmill so people don't look at me. Or I listen when I'm at the grocery store or whatever. Like, I love knowing where people listen, but I never in a million years pictured somebody listening to it in baggage claim while intoxicated, while being questioned by the police. That is a new.
Jordan Harbinger
I'm listening to this in the back of a police car while handcuffed.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Hits different in a prowler.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah, it hits different when your face is pushed against linoleum tiles. There's a knee in your back. Oh, my God. All right, we got some fun ones. We got some doozies. Try not to overdo it, folks. All right, Gabe, what's the first thing of the mailbag?
Gabriel Mizrahi
Hi, Jordan and Gabe. I was in a relationship for about a year and a half with a woman I love deeply. She's a single mom and I genuinely grew to care for her six year old daughter too. Our relationships had its ups and downs, especially due to her intense work, training, her health challenges. She suffered from severe sleep deprivation, among other things, and an unexpected pregnancy and failed abortion that took a deep emotional toll on her.
Jordan Harbinger
So what is failed abortion? That sounds terrible, but what does that mean? How is that possible?
Gabriel Mizrahi
So apparently it can mean an abortion attempt that was not successful in terminating the pregnancy and the pregnancy somehow continues to develop. But usually it means that the pregnancy was terminated, but not all of the tissue was removed. I know that's a bit gruesome.
Jordan Harbinger
So. Yeah, it is.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Then you have to have an additional procedure or take medication to complete it.
Jordan Harbinger
Okay.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Either way, rough.
Jordan Harbinger
That's not an easy thing to go through. So this poor woman had to deal with that. I'm sorry to hear that.
Gabriel Mizrahi
I always tried to support her, practically and emotionally, sometimes at the cost of my own needs. I adjusted, listened, and gave, often quietly. But over time, I started to feel like nothing I did was enough and that my efforts weren't truly seen or received. That hurt. Then things unraveled in an abrupt and painful way. A misunderstanding over text escalated into her accusing me of not caring that she had cancer, even though I didn't know because she hadn't told me.
Jordan Harbinger
Okay.
Gabriel Mizrahi
From that point on, she shut me out entirely, removed me from social media, deleted photos in our shared playlists, blocked communication. It was like I had been amputated from her life. Now I'm stuck with this unbearable feeling, not just that the relationship is over, but that she's rewritten me as the villain. It's as if every moment we shared, every caring gesture, has been repurposed to fit a narrative where I was selfish, distant, and unloving, none of which aligns with how I showed up or who I know myself to be. It makes me question whether she ever truly saw me or only the projections of her own fears. I've been reflecting deeply on all this, and I know I wasn't perfect, but I also know I was present, caring and honest. How do you move forward when someone you loved rewrites your intentions and the story you shared into something you barely recognize? And how do I keep my heart open for future love without building walls of resentment or shame? Signed, formerly smitten, now severely frostbitten now that our narrative's been completely rewritten.
Jordan Harbinger
Man. Yeah, good questions. Well, look, I'm very sorry things played out this way. This sounds like a complicated relationship. There was a lot happening beneath the surface for both of you, I think, and it clearly brought up some difficult stuff in another way, though, it actually sounds like there was a lot going unsaid in your relationship and some old patterns that needed to get disrupted or brought to light. So in that way, as painful as it is, I think it's probably for the best. You both have some interesting work to do here, so it's hard to know what to make of this relationship. Obviously, as always, we're only hearing your side of things. We don't fully know how you showed up in the relationship, what her experience of you was, how you communicated all this love and concern and this misunderstanding by text that led to everything unraveling. I'm a little curious to know what that misunderstanding was, because, okay, you said you weren't perfect, which I appreciate that you're making room for that, but to be honest, a lot of the details you've shared, they just kind of strike me as bizarre and irrational and unfair. Like the cancer thing. Getting mad at you for not caring about her cancer when you didn't know she'd been diagnosed with cancer, that just sounds totally odd to me. And frankly, it. It kind of strikes me as manipulative. Understand that emotions run high around a serious illness. That totally makes sense. You also mentioned a number of huge stressors and traumas leading up to that that probably made her snap, kinda. So, again, I really do feel for her. But so much of this behavior, including her turning on you so profoundly and then cutting you out of her life completely, that does raise some questions for me. I mean, I can't even believe she remembered to delete your shared playlist. Like, that's just such a weird. That wouldn't even make the checklist for me. But I know you're not asking for a postmortem of the relationship. I get that. You're asking about how to deal with the fact that somebody you loved has a very different narrative of you and of the relationship, which is a really interesting question. And the only answer, I think, is to accept that that's part of the deal when it comes to breakups, even relatively amicable ones. Because at the end of the day, there are three narratives at play in a yours, the other person's and the truth. The objective ground truth, if there is such a thing.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Right? And each party gets to choose the narrative that they want to live with, even if it's not entirely accurate. Super interesting.
Jordan Harbinger
And as we all know, all of this is so subjective, so of course it's not entirely accurate. Now, all of this is still very raw for you. You just broke up, so making peace with that fact is going to be hard. You're still hurting. I think you're kind of mentally defending yourself. That's perfectly normal. But over time, and this will start soon, it'll become easier and easier to accept that your ex has her own feelings, her own conclusions. And that's okay. You'll come to see that her viewing you as the villain, sure, maybe that was tied to certain things you did or said, but it's largely a reflection of her own needs, her own feelings, wounds. Projections, like you said, that doesn't mean that they're unfair, but it doesn't necessarily mean that you're the bad guy. You didn't abuse her, you didn't cheat on her, you didn't abandon her. So for her to be so black and white about you, I mean, honestly, the more we talk about it, the more I wonder if she might have some mental health stuff going on. I don't want to speculate too much. Point is, accepting these competing narratives, that's part of the grief process, and that comes with some anger, some sadness, some resentment, some embarrassment. All of that is normal, too. But as much as you can, I would make peace with this fact. Let her work through the story she wants to work through, and you work through yours. That's all you can do.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Well said, Jordan. I totally agree. Letting somebody keep their narrative can be really hard. You know, there's a part of all of us that wants to be right, that wants to keep relitigating a relationship or defend certain choices or things we said or whatever. And, you know, when you break up with somebody, there's that open loop that the mind wants to close, and it just can't do that. Also, though, to be fair to her, you know, maybe she had some good reasons for cutting off all contact. I agree that the shared Spotify playlist thing, that's a little petty. It's like, how mad do you have to be at somebody for you to be like, no. And you don't get to enjoy the Rihanna song either. You're gonna have to look that up on your own and re. Add it to a new playlist. Yeah, it's hurtful, it's jarring, and I really do that. But all the other ways that she distanced herself from our friend here might have been appropriate. You know, even if his intentions in the relationship were good, it's possible that she found some of his caretaking difficult for her. Maybe she found it a little disempowering or overwhelming. Maybe she just needed to be on her own for a while. Without his influence, she might not have handled all of this very well. But that doesn't necessarily mean she was being, you know, malicious. And that's part of making room for her narrative, too. Just knowing that she might have some good reasons for herself.
Jordan Harbinger
But, you know, the fact that that feeling is so unbearable, to use his word, I think that's part of the equation too.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yes. Yes. And it is interesting in the context of their dynamic. I mean, he said he always tried to support her practically emotionally, sometimes, as he put it, at his own expense. Then there was that thing he said, how he adjusted, listened, and gave Often quietly, which is also a really interesting thing to include. Even though he started to feel like nothing he did was enough, she didn't really see or receive his efforts. I mean, that's quite a statement. It makes me wonder what the quality of his love was in the relationship.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah, that jumped out at me too. She might have been a tricky person to care for, but the way he cared, why he felt compelled to give her so much at his own expense, I think that's kind of just as important here.
Gabriel Mizrahi
This does sound like a classic case of caretaking and possibly some codependents, both of which have old roots, you know, for both of them, probably. And both of which kick up a lot of intense feelings for the people involved. Like you said, there's resentment and shame and anger and frustration. Even if it is well intentioned. We probably don't even know the half of it. Let's also not forget all the other things that his ex has gone through. Being a single parent, not getting enough sleep, I mean, that alone could drive you a bit insane. Right. But then she also had a failed abortion.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Which must be so unpleasant. And then she got cancer. These are significant stressors. These are pretty big traumas. I do wonder, you know, how she was taking care of herself through all of that. What she might have looked for him to take care of, or what he thought it was his job to take care of, really. I'm curious to know what they might have been working out together in this dynamic and trying to resolve perhaps without fully realizing it. So I guess I want to encourage him to get curious about all of that more than harping on her opinion of him and her narrative of their relationship. That latter piece is interesting, but it's not super productive. The first thing, though, what was playing out between them, that's extremely valuable for him and that is his work to do.
Jordan Harbinger
I also get the sense that he has a bit of an identity wrapped up in being a certain kind of partner.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yes. Yes, because he kept mentioning being seen also as a certain kind of partner.
Jordan Harbinger
Exactly. I was really happy when he said that none of her judgments about him align with who he knows himself to be. That's really commendable that he's still connected to his own values, his own rubric. But there's still something about her disappointment, her rapidly shifting feelings and opinions that's just doing a number on him. And I think that that's what's so distressing to him about her narrative. Not just that it's sad and unfair, but that he might have Lost an important source of validation, an important source of fuel for his self esteem.
Gabriel Mizrahi
That might be part of the codependence as well, you know, part of the unconscious script playing out between them. Because subordinating his own needs and losing himself in this role in order to take care of her so much, that must have served him in a few ways. What you just said is probably one of them. Another one might be feeling the need to prop a person up, hold them together, make sure that they're okay all the time. I am speculating now myself a little bit, but I have to imagine that that echoes something in his past or something in his family of origin. For that to feel so necessary, so.
Jordan Harbinger
Familiar, for sure, it has to, right? As for keeping your heart open to future love, not letting this resentment or shame close you off from people, just the fact that you're keeping an eye on that, I think is great news. That's half the battle. I also think that doing the forensics Gabe was just talking about, really exploring how you showed up in this relationship, how you related to your ex, what this template brought up for you, all of that is going to help you resolve the resentment and shame. And noticing the patterns you fell into in the relationship, especially that caretaking thing, committing to rewriting them in your next one. I think that's the best way to keep your heart open. Because ultimately, caretaking codependence, that's not true love. It's love with an agenda, with an agreement, with a calculus, with all kinds of complicated unconscious material in and around it. So my advice is, in your next relationship, make a conscious effort to stay more connected to yourself. Catch yourself every time you're losing yourself and being there for the other person. Speak up when something bothers you, allow your partner to appropriately struggle, take care of their own stuff, and just see what happens to your dynamic. My hunch is that it might feel weird and scary, sometimes it might even feel like you're being a bad partner. But actually it's just rewriting a very old template. And that frees up more of you, the authentic you, and more territory for a healthier connection.
Gabriel Mizrahi
It also selects for partners who share those values, who have that capacity. And that's the other half of the battle.
Jordan Harbinger
Yes, partners who want a more high functioning relationship and can tolerate these feelings better. So this really does address both sides of the equation, but it begins at home anyway. It's all learning, my man. I'm sorry you're hurting. I know it's intense, but it does sound like this relationship wasn't quite working. And now you get to figure out why and try things in a new way. Good luck. And as Gabe gets ready to go abroad, folks, don't make him start an OnlyFans to support his new lifestyle. Just support the amazing sponsors that make the show possible and keep Gabe just barely closed, as it were, over here with your tank tops, your spiritual gangster tank tops. All right, we'll be right back. This episode is sponsored in part by Oura Ring. Quick gut check. How do you actually feel right now? Now ask yourself, hey, what's behind that? That's the kind of question the Oura Ring helps me answer every day. I've been wearing mine for years now. It's completely changed the way I think about sleep and recovery from my workouts. I got a 90 the other day, which is like, yes, that's a flex, Jen. And I definitely treat sleep scores like a friendly competition. Sometimes in the other direction. But honestly, what I love most is how actionable the data is. I started realizing what actually makes a difference in how I feel. Swapping regular curtains for blackout curtains helped. Layering on an eye mask, huge boost. Same with timing meals, cutting caffeine earlier, wearing blue blockers at night, maybe a little cbd, maybe a little thc. Just saying. I could actually see the changes reflected in my recovery stats. Or not. It's like running controlled experiments with your own body. And the ring itself. Clean design, not bulky, doesn't scream I'm into biohacking. But under the hood, it's tracking over 30 biometrics. Heart rate variability, sleep stages, stress, all the stuff that really matters for staying healthy long term. And the battery lasts up to eight days. It's really comfortable. You don't even need to bring chargers with you if you're on a short trip. I basically, I forget I'm wearing it most of the time. So if you're ready to stop guessing and actually understand what's going on with your body, give aura the finger. Learn more@ouraring.com Jordan this episode is sponsored in part by no Story Lost. Ever thought of turning your parents or loved ones incredible stories into a stunning coffee table book? Meet no Story Lost. This is not a run of the mill DIY project. We tried it out for my mom and I have to say I've. I am blown away. And I don't say that about many things. This is like the Rolls Royce of a personal storybook creation. No need to nag your folks to jot down their memories. No Story Lost lays out the red carpet. They handle interviewing them with a professional writer. They write really well, they edit it really well, they organize family photos, and they bind everything into a gorgeous hardcover book. They don't just like sort of print it off. It's customized with your color scheme of choice. Watching my mom pour over her life story, her eyes wide, big smile on her face, reliving all those precious moments, she actually said, I'm excited to read this. I'm. Who knew I was so interesting? I mean, really, this is priceless. She even joked that she likes herself even more now that she's read it. And I really just she meant it. It was amazing. And the best part is, no story lost can create a book in just three months. This is not a heavy lift, especially for your loved one. They're so confident you'll adore it that they back it up with a solid guarantee that you fall in love with the book. Or they make it right or give you your money back. How is that for top notch service?
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Jordan Harbinger
Thank you for listening and supporting the show. It is your support of our advertisers that keeps us going. All of the deals, discount codes, and ways to support the podcast are searchable and Clickable over at jordanharbinger.com deals. Please consider supporting those who support the show. Now back to Feedback Friday okay, what's next?
Gabriel Mizrahi
Hey, Jordan and Gabe. I'm a frontline manager at a major corporation and my job is very demanding, requiring me to be on call and respond 24 hours a day. As a result, I hold my family time on my days off as sacred. The problem is my direct supervisor is a workaholic. He stays engaged 24 hours a day, seven days a week, often staying at the office after all his work is done just because he feels it's important to be seen there. He tells me that days off are a recommendation, not a right.
Jordan Harbinger
False, but okay, go on.
Gabriel Mizrahi
And expects me to work through my days off as well. I've talked to his supervisor and his supervisor's supervisor about this and they've both told me that I need to make my family time a priority on my days off. When I pointed this out to my supervisor, he told me that that's what they say, but it's not what they really want. The biggest issue is that this guy is in charge of my performance reviews and has given me Negative reviews that have cost me raises and performance bonuses because I'm not as involved as he expects me to be. How do I address this issue that is taking money out of my pocket and still maintain a positive work environment with my supervisor? Signed, Trying to defend these hours I spend with a dude who's content to burn the candle at both ends.
Jordan Harbinger
Man, Gabe, this is one of those letters that makes me so happy that I don't work in corporate life anymore. I'm not trying to pile on here, but working for bosses like this is not something I miss from my law firm days. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for working hard. Bosses are allowed to push their employees to give it their all. I'm still kind of a workaholic myself in some ways, but I get to do it for something that I own and I know makes an impact. I'm not in my studio at 4am to impress progressive Auto Insurance. What this boss is doing, it's not just working hard to accomplish things. He's going for FaceTime, he's doing it for the optics. I'm guessing he doesn't have a partner or kids or much of any kind of life outside of work. Or if he does, he's severely neglecting them and he can get away with that somehow. I mean, it's going to be kids, don't talk to me and he's going to get divorced and you know, his wife's going to leave him. But you know, that's what allows him to make work his top priority. A lot of other people don't have that option. But dude, even if you're Elon Musk putting in 20 hour days at Tesla at its peak or whatever, there's still something just pathological about this. There might be good reasons to work your butt off, but you still have to be a little out of your tree to regularly be checking your email at 3 o' clock in the morning and staying in the office till 10pm on Sundays or whatever. But it also sounds like you work for a pretty intense company. They expect you to be on call respond 24 hours a day too. So maybe this is just the culture there. Either way, I feel for you here, especially as a parent. What frustrates me the most about this is I just, I just cannot with this whole hustle culture. People got to see me working in order for me to feel like I'm actually working. The only thing that ultimately matters is results. If you can get all the same things done in a regular 8 hour day or 10 hour day, even if you have to work a little over the weekends, whatever that looks like. You are not the lazy and misguided one. The guy who sits in his office for a hundred hours a week. That's the inefficient, performative guy. Come on.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, that's a good point. That said, though, I do wonder if your manager might be right about one thing. These higher ups who are telling you to make your family time a priority on your days off, maybe they really mean that. I certainly hope they do. But they might also be saying that to not break any laws or contradict some putative policy about work life balance or discrimination or something, when really they actually do reward people like your supervisor. But I just bring that up because, yeah, it is possible that your supervisor's values and priorities are out of whack, but his understanding of your company is not.
Jordan Harbinger
Good point. He might be a good politician and he could read between the lines, but that doesn't make this a smart policy.
Gabriel Mizrahi
No.
Jordan Harbinger
So you have a few options here. Option one, you stay. You continue to give this company what you're willing to give them. You accept that your supervisor might never be totally pleased with you, which probably means more mixed performance reviews, more lost income. But you make peace with it because you value your family and your free time a lot more. Option two, you stay. But you find some creative ways to shift this situation. One way would be to transfer to another team with another supervisor. I'm not sure if that's doable for you right now, but people do it all the time. Sometimes you just need to get out from under a difficult boss. Another thing you could do is have a very direct conversation with your boss. If I were in your shoes, I'd want to talk to him about why he operates the way that he does, how he measures performance, how he values his time, your time, why putting in so many public hours is so essential to him. That might seem a little scary, but I'm not sure how much you have to lose at this point. All of this is already out in the open. You're already paying a price for it. One goal here would be to really try to really understand this guy. You know, if he's like, I stay till midnight, I work Sundays because I can't look at myself in the mirror. If I don't, and I need the bosses to know that I'm a team player, then you'll know that this is largely performative. It's probably something you don't want to play along with. And maybe it's even a sign that this is not the company for you anymore if they only value behavior like this. But if he's like, I work this much because I have XYZ goals at this place and I'm committed to achieving ABC for the bosses, I've decided to sacrifice my personal life to accomplish things I truly care about. Okay? That kind of thing. That might give you a different opinion of this guy.
Gabriel Mizrahi
That's a good point. Yeah, that's right. Because how meaningful is this time he's spending? But he did say that he spends time in the office after he's done with his work, so that makes me think that it's probably more the former. Yeah, but look, even if this is more meaningful time for the boss, I imagine that wouldn't change things for our friend here if his family is still his top priority. Right? He's not going to give this guy more of his time, even if these long hours spent are important. Also, just because it's meaningful to the boss, that doesn't automatically make it meaningful to him.
Jordan Harbinger
Right? But then the hit to the paycheck, that's something that is meaningful.
Gabriel Mizrahi
That is meaningful. That's right.
Jordan Harbinger
So that's a question too, man. How important is this lost income to you? Because, well, is it more important than family? Is it less important? Is it hard to say which one is more important? That's something I'd really get clear on. But actually, the more interesting goal in this conversation is to try to get your boss to value your efforts differently. And I wonder what would happen, for example, if you said, look, I'm never going to be able to put in the hours you do. I have a family. They need me. I don't want to miss my life. And candidly, I'm not sure it's necessary to fulfill my responsibilities. I accept that you do, and in a certain way, I respect that. But it's just, this is not an option for me. But as long as that falls short of your expectations, it seems like I'm always going to be failing, which is frustrating to me, because I can achieve the impact you want without necessarily spending all these hours in the office. And I'm sure you'd agree that at the end of the day, the results are what actually matter. So if I achieve those results, help me understand why it matters so much that I'm spending as much time in the office. I understand the optics of it. I'm sure you have your reasons. But I'm struggling to understand why this should cost me raises and performance bonuses. So is There a way that I can live up to your expectations while still being a good partner, a good father, Something like that, and just kind of force him to defend his position and consider whether he's being overly rigid here?
Gabriel Mizrahi
It's a bold script, but, yeah, I don't know. I like it. I mean, they're already a little bit. Things are already a little awkward, so I don't know how much he has to lose. Like, it's just stating the obvious.
Jordan Harbinger
Sure. And look, he might dig his heels in, or he might come to understand you better and see that he's holding you to a certain standard, a largely dumb standard that just is not realistic. Or maybe you guys negotiate, Maybe you offer him a little more time and some extra communication that shows him what you're achieving in less time, and he backs off. If that fails, you can try to talk to the higher ups again, maybe even hr, see if there's a way to resolve this. Maybe they need to have a chat with him about how he manages people, whether those expectations that he has are reasonable or. Look, if they refuse to intervene, then you'll know for sure that they actually share his views, most likely, and there's no way around that.
Gabriel Mizrahi
And then it's time to switch teams or you jump to another company. I don't know if that's doable for you right now. I don't know what the market is like, but it might be the only solution here and it might not be a bad one. And if this turns out to be a question of culture or corporate values, then this might be an opportunity for you to find a company that shares your values and that has more flexibility for working parents. And I know those companies are out there, so who knows? Maybe there's a better place for you waiting. I don't know if you can really address this and maintain a totally positive environment with your boss. It sounds to me like things are already a little tense with him. Like I said, not sure if that's going to improve. I hope it does, but who knows? But the way you handle this conversation, like the one that Jordan just pitched, I think that's going to determine how positive this turns out to be. If you go to your boss and you're like, hey, this is ridiculous. You're the reason I can't fund my 401k, you're performative. These hours you spend here are meaningless. What is this about? That's probably just going to piss him off, obviously. But if you go in there and you say, look, I want to find a solution that works for both of us. I understand that our circumstances are different. I want to do right by you and the company and I want to be there for my family. So can we put our heads together? Can we figure this out? It's going to be hard for him to hate you. It might be a little tense. But if he turns on you for being collaborative and wanting to find a solution, then that is kind of on him. And that's one more data point that you probably need to consider some other options.
Jordan Harbinger
I'm also curious to know if anyone else in your department is struggling with this. If so, talk to those people. Ask them how they're navigating these expectations, whether they're capitulating or pushing back or getting dinged for not working 80 hours a week. Also, if you decide to go to the higher ups, maybe you can get a group together. That'll probably make them take this a little bit more seriously. Also, keep documenting your responsibilities, your contributions, your impact, the feedback you're getting across the company. This is a great practice for anyone, no matter what. And then every quarter or halfway through the year or whatever, right before performance reviews, summarize everything in a brief memo or a deck and send it to your boss. And if he still dings you, then you'll have a much more solid case to show that the metrics he's using are just sus. And if he rewards you, it might be because he's forced to recognize that you are having the impact that he wants. But ultimately what this guy's doing is he's forcing you to really prioritize what matters to you. That is stressful, but it is also clarifying. And even if he's right about putting in facetime, this guy doesn't get to dictate your true values. You have to decide that and then create a life that supports them. Which also means accepting certain trade offs sometimes. But that's compatible with finding ways of working smarter, focusing on results, putting in a little extra time to communicate those results. So don't overlook that stuff either. Sorry this is stressful, but it's going to get resolved one way or the other. And we're rooting for you. You can reach us Friday@jordanharbinger.com Please keep your emails concise, use descriptive subject lines. That makes our job a lot easier. If you're finding dead squirrels in your mailbox, your stepdad's got your nudes, your neighbors are eavesdropping on your therapy sessions through the wall, or you just learned that your spouse was accused of sexual assault from decades ago. And as a possible love child out there, whatever's got you staying up at night lately, hit us up Friday@jordanharbinger.com we're here to help and we keep every email anonymous. By the way, our newsletter, wee bit wiser. You'd love it. It's a bite sized gem from a past episode from us to you, delivered right to your inbox most Wednesdays. Lot of wisdom from Feedback Friday, the guests you hear on the show. I invite you to come check it out. You can sign up@jordanharbinger.com news all right.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Next up, hey, Jordan and Gabe. I was an only child, raised in a conservative Christian household. My parents considered themselves missionaries, although they were not affiliated with any church. And when I was 2 years old, they packed up into an RV and moved down to the boonies on the Texas Mexico border, eventually traveling all over the most remote parts of the Southwest. During this time, neither of them worked. They just lived off of their savings.
Jordan Harbinger
Fascinating. What an unusual childhood that must have been.
Gabriel Mizrahi
As I grew, they homeschooled me. That's homeschooled in quotes. They've always been so proud of the fact that they took me out of civilization to protect me from the evils of American culture. The result was that I grew up severely sheltered with a maybe middle school level education and very little memory of my childhood because my brain blocked most of it. That's possibly due to trauma, but likely just because it was so incredibly boring. Being in the middle of nowhere with no friends, no structure, no hope for the future. I read any books I could get my hands on and that's how I learned most of what I know about life. Fascinating.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah, yeah. I'm having so many thoughts over here. We've heard from a few people who've been homeschooled over the years. It can really hamstring you later in life if it's not done properly. But then we did this Skeptical Sunday on Homeschooling. That was episode 1119 and the research was interesting. It shows that the results are actually very mixed. It all, of course, depends on who's doing the teaching. But the fact that you read any books you could get your hands on, that you had that drive on your own, that's just fantastic.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Man. I'm so curious where that quality comes from. Like, why would one kid who grows up in an environment like this want to seek this stuff out and another kid might just settle for the education that they're getting, such as it is.
Jordan Harbinger
I don't know, it is super interesting. Whatever the reason, I'm sure it's made a huge difference in her life. And thank God she had a library card or a Kindle or whatever.
Gabriel Mizrahi
At least when I was 20ish. They moved us to Oklahoma to be closer to my dad's mom who was aging. It was news to me that they cared enough to do that, as they'd always said how much they didn't like either of their families. Regardless, that gave me the opportunity to get my GED and learn more about how to be a human. A couple of years later, we ended up in Colorado, where my parents own land with an old mine, a deteriorating mill building, and mineral rights that they picked up for a song back in the late 90s.
Jordan Harbinger
I am riveted by this. I don't know why particularly.
Gabriel Mizrahi
I know I feel like I'm reading a Cormac McCarthy novel or something. Mineral rights, Weird land.
Jordan Harbinger
I know.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Dusty southwestern landscapes. I'm into it.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah. I'm picturing tumbleweed rolling past some old wooden mill and they're like, yeah, there's gold. And then there he was. What are you talking about? It does sound like the origin story for a Coen Brothers character. I don't know.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, the Ballad of Buster Scruggs or something like that. Have you seen that movie, Jordan?
Jordan Harbinger
No.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Oh, you gotta watch it. Next time we're together, we're gonna watch that. So good. So the letter goes on. I got a job and eventually sneaked my way into college through the back door by starting off as non degree. See? And then changing to degree seeking after a couple of semesters as my SAT scores were just plain embarrassing. Even though college was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life, I ended up thriving and graduated summa cum laude with top honors in my department.
Jordan Harbinger
My friend, you're amazing.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah.
Jordan Harbinger
To go from this childhood to graduating summa cum laude with so few resources. That is remarkable. Also sneaked.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, sneaked instead of snuck. Yeah, I wouldn't say sneaked. And I'm kind of annoying about the grammar.
Jordan Harbinger
I feel like that's the right way to do it. But then everyone just says snuck. So it's one of those. It's going to be one of those where you look it up and they're like, yeah, we changed the entire English language because nobody got this right. So now they're both correct.
Gabriel Mizrahi
I think that's kind of what it is, right? Yeah, sneaked like the formal proper way and snuck is the modern way, but we'll never know.
Jordan Harbinger
And there's no way for us to possibly ever find out through one quick search. So it's never going to. So she's clearly a linguist, even with a 650 or whatever on the SAT. Brilliant.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah. Yeah, she's kind of brilliant.
Jordan Harbinger
Sneakily so.
Gabriel Mizrahi
In fact, well done. My professors strongly encouraged me to go on to grad school, and it will always be a regret of mine that I didn't, choosing to stay in what I saw as a promising job in local government.
Jordan Harbinger
Well, I'm sorry you feel this regret about grad school, but, man, this is a huge accomplishment.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah. She should be incredibly proud of herself. It's just crazy to think about going from the RV to graduating with all these. It's wild.
Jordan Harbinger
Absolutely.
Gabriel Mizrahi
I'm now 39 years old, happily married and building a small design business. My parents are now 76 and 77, live about 45 minutes away still in that old RV, and are two of the most frustrating, codependent, self centered, emotionally immature, stunted people I have ever met.
Jordan Harbinger
Wow.
Gabriel Mizrahi
They have very little money and live off of Social Security, having spent all of their savings while they were off being missionaries. My dad has congestive heart failure and Parkinson's, while my mom has myasthenia gravis, a chronic autoimmune neuromuscular disease. They also still own that mountain land which is their sole focus in life. They've isolated themselves from the world for so long that they have nothing else to be interested in. They've allegedly been trying to sell it to get the money out of it for decades. Two years ago, I offered to step in and help, and while working with a realtor, found a buyer and got it under contract with my parents, panicking every step of the way. Of course, the buyer ended up not having all of the pieces fall into place on their end and ask for an extension of the contract. My parents saw that as God's sign that they shouldn't sell and backed out. It was the perfect storm.
Jordan Harbinger
Can you hear my eyes rolling through the Internet?
Gabriel Mizrahi
Mm.
Jordan Harbinger
Just go on.
Gabriel Mizrahi
I told them I was done trying to help and they've been working along at things on their own ever since.
Jordan Harbinger
Right? Doing nothing. That's what that means.
Gabriel Mizrahi
I was so infuriated for so long about that. Now I'm constantly worrying about how their lifelong bad decisions are going to impact me and by extension, my husband. I absolutely will not have them live with us when they are too old and ill to care for themselves and their rv, because spending much time with them is extremely bad for my mental Health.
Jordan Harbinger
I'm glad you realized that.
Gabriel Mizrahi
But while my husband and I are doing well financially, we aren't wealthy, so paying for expensive care homes won't be an option. But then I also struggle with major guilt. And I know it will be very difficult to tell them that we aren't going to invite them to live with us. Though it helps to get a little angry over the fact that my dad in particular has been pretty clear over the years that he considers me an insurance policy for them.
Jordan Harbinger
Ridiculous.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Meanwhile, my husband has commented about how clear it is how little they actually know about me. Me as a person. Do I wade back in and try to sell the land again, being more firm about making it happen this time? Are there realtors out there who specialize in getting top dollar for unusual properties? Do I continue to stay at arm's length and hope that they don't show up on our doorstep one day because they've been evicted or the RV has fallen apart? Any other approaches to this whole mess that I haven't thought of? Signed, Hoping to say no if my parents think it's their say so to move into our place so they don't have to live in the Winnebago.
Jordan Harbinger
Oh man, I think I just have to start with this.
Gabriel Mizrahi
She.
Jordan Harbinger
This is fascinating, but man, I totally get why this childhood makes you angry. I get why this looming problem makes you even angrier.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, treating your kids like an insurance.
Jordan Harbinger
Policy, that just makes me so angry to hear.
Gabriel Mizrahi
But they're like, especially if you're not doing a few basic things to make it easier for your kids to take care of you.
Jordan Harbinger
Right?
Gabriel Mizrahi
Like you could sell your land, you can financially manage yourself, but they're just like expecting that one day when things become untenable, they're just going to move in 100%.
Jordan Harbinger
It'd be different if it was like, all right, here's all the accounts, here's our care plan, here's our insurance. You're our other insurance policy when we our brains don't function. So I'm showing you where everything is. They're just like, nah, we're just going to be a giant mess and then it's just going to be your problem or we'll die on your front lawn. Not fair.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Difficult.
Jordan Harbinger
But again, I understand the guilt. There's a real conflict here. As frustrating as your parents are, they're your parents. So on the one hand you're probably going, guys, you made your bed, your tiny rv, standard full size bed with a self appointed missionary certificate printed above it. And now you got to sleep in it. And I tried to tell you you didn't want that, but you're making me your safety net. On the other hand, it's like, man, you guys are so hopeless. How do I not step in and save you from yourselves, right? It's a really tough place to be. So should you try and sell the land again? Maybe. It sounds like selling land would be in everybody's best interest. It could mean that you won't have to take them in or support them yourselves down the line. That would be huge. But I have a couple caveats. First. If you do it, I think you got to do it with clear expectations and a solid plan. If this is me, I'm going full Sheriff Jordan mode. Here's how this is gonna go. Here are the terms. Let's get this in writing. We all agree we're moving toward a sale. You can't back out. You can't sabotage the sale along the way because somebody hit a speed bump and now you decided it's God's will, you gotta tear the whole thing up. You take the proceeds, you put em in a high yield savings account, a brokerage account, whatever. Maybe even one that you control, frankly, if you're comfortable with that so they don't spend it all again on a new RV and with no savings or donate it to a missionary organization or. And then you're back where you started. And then you tell them, hey, if you don't honor this agreement, I will not be stepping in to help you again. And you're going to have to figure out your own money and your own retirement plan on your own, whatever those terms look like for you. You don't need to be cold about it. But I think you should be clear about it. And yes, there are definitely realtors out there. Or if you're from Michigan, railaters out there who specialize in rural land, mineral rights, heavy properties who know the buyers for assets like this. I would, I guess, look at land and ranch specialists, brokers who handle grid or mountain parcels. You want somebody who actually understands how to value and sell land like this. Not some dude named Joaquin who sells condos to bumble engineers in Austin or whatever.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, you want someone with cowboy boots doing the sale for sure.
Jordan Harbinger
Exactly. Someone with dust in his stash and an Excel spreadsheet with the current market price of gypsum.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, gypsum. Yeah. Just pick the realtor who looks like an extra on Yellowstone and you should be fine. You know Sam Elliott with a bus stop ad that's the general vibe you want?
Jordan Harbinger
Yes, that's what I. If he's not, when he shows up to the first meeting, fire him immediately.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, you can't bring this job to Compass.
Jordan Harbinger
Sorry, that's right.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Now, about how to handle your parents from here on out, it sounds like you have some good reasons for keeping your distance. I understand that your parents bring up a lot for you, so I really do get the impulse to just stay away and pray that they don't knock on your door one day like, hey, you know, where should the tow truck put the broke down rv? Where's the guest room? And you know, do you have $8,000 so we can pay off the back taxes? It's stressful, I get it. But as we all know, you know, hope is not a strategy. So I'm with Jordan here. Your best bet is probably to try to help them sell this land. And maybe you're more equipped to do that now because now you know how they tend to operate and you know what you need to do to protect yourself and also protect them. So, yeah, a little short term pain, but hopefully long term peace of mind. And maybe part of that conversation is saying to your parents, guys, we need to start planning for the future. We are not in a position to support you. We can't afford a nursing home. We can't take you in. But the good news is that probably will not even be necessary if we plan ahead starting now. So great job buying up this land years ago. That was super smart of you, mom and dad. And now let's make the most of it. And yes, I will help lead the process. If you can use this as an opportunity to set expectations and draw this line early, maybe that'll ensure that they play ball with you on selling this land the second time around because they'll understand that it really is their only option for being secure.
Jordan Harbinger
And if they don't understand, throw them down the mineshaft.
Gabriel Mizrahi
That would officially make this a Coen Brothers movie. Just for the record.
Jordan Harbinger
Yes, I'm just pushing it over the finish line. Also, while we're on the topic of assets, I would chat with an estate planning attorney, make sure your parents have all their paperwork buttoned up, that they have a will, a trust, a beneficiary listed, which should be you. All of that. I don't know about you, Gabe, but something tells me they might be a little loosey goosey about that stuff, you know?
Gabriel Mizrahi
No, seriously, the last thing you want is for one or both of your parents to pass away one day. Let's say that you don't manage to sell the land and then it goes into probate.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Which I hear is a massive headache and so avoidable.
Jordan Harbinger
Definitely. Or you do sell the land and the money is sitting in an account somewhere, but there's no will and there's no beneficiary listed. And then the account gets frozen and that goes into probate. No bueno. A lawyer can also advise on things like guardianship, power of attorney, Medicaid qualification, which they might need if they have no savings and no place to go when they're older, handling debt, which, you know, you might discover some of that. I know you don't want to get too involved, and I understand why. I totally get why you want to stay away. And I hope it all works out. But there's also a way to sidestep a ton more stress in the future and capitalize on the two huge gifts that you do have. This land and time. But while you do that, make sure you're taking good care of yourself. Work closely with your husband. Let him support you through this. Talk to other people who are dealing with similar stuff with their parents. Keep unpacking. This anger you feel, this guilt, it's very old. There's a lot underneath it. I know it would be healthy for you to keep processing it. Sending you and your husband a big hug. Holding good thoughts for your parents. Wishing you all the best, Gabe. You know, it's a great use of that gypsum windfall. The fine products and services that support this here show. Yee haw. We'll be right back. Two shakes of a Lamb's tale this episode is sponsored in part by Northwest Registered Agent. Starting a business sounds exciting until you're knee deep in paperwork and legal jargon. That's why I like Northwest Registered Agent. They help you build your business in a smart way. Just 10 clicks, 10 minutes. You don't need to be a legal expert or know what an LLC operating agreement is off the top of your head. They walk you through it, make the whole thing way less overwhelming. And here's the part I wish I'd known when I first started out. Northwest helps you protect your identity. So instead of putting your personal info out there, you can use their address on your business formation docs. That means your home address stays private. You also get more than a business filing. Northwest can help with a custom website, trademark registration, premium mail forwarding, basically everything you need to look professional and legit from day one without bouncing between a dozen tools. It's 39 bucks plus state fees to get started and they've been doing this for almost 30 years. These folks know their stuff. They've helped thousands of people get up and running with way less stress.
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Jordan Harbinger
This episode is also sponsored by Factor. Summer's here. More sun, more travel, more slipping slides with the kids, whatever workouts where the heat kicks in. You know what I don't want to spend time on when the weather is finally perfect, which is figuring out what to freakin feed everyone. That's why Jen and I are big fans of Factor Meals. They are chef crafted, dietitian approved meals that show up fresh, not frozen. They're ready in two minutes, fridge to plate, done. Even my parents are into them now, which is saying something because my mom cooking's not really ever been her strong suit. Sorry mom. Love you. Factor makes it super easy to eat well and still hit your summer goals. Whether you're doing keto, Calorie, Smart, Protein plus or just trying to avoid another sad ass sandwich. They got 45 options every week. You're never stuck in a food rut. And it's not just dinners. They got breakfasts, quick lunches, snacks, guilt free desserts, which I've tried all of it. I know it's like, oh, I love this food. You're supposed to say that. I actually really love everything that I've had from Factor. Bottom line, enjoy more, cook less, let Factor handle the food so you can.
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Jordan Harbinger
Sponsored in part by the Defender. We all have those big goals that seem just out of reach, right? But the truth is, that's what keeps us moving forward. For the people who embrace challenges and explore their way, there's the Defender. The Defender is built to handle whatever comes its way with legendary capability on road or off. It's engineered with a tough, rigid body, tested to the extreme and built with durable, lightweight architecture for strength and confidence. But it's not just about ruggedness. It's an icon reimagined with a design that feels modern, yet honors its adventurous roots. Plus, there's a Defender for every kind of Explorer, from the Defender 90 to the 110 and even the 130, which seats up to 8 people people. So whether it's just you or the whole family, there's a model for your journey. If you're ready to embrace the impossible, the Defender is your perfect partner. Beyond capable and ready to go wherever you're headed next. Build your defender@land roverusa.com if you liked this episode of Feedback Friday and you found our advice valuable, I invite you to do what other smart and considerate listeners do, which is take a moment and support our amazing sponsors. All of the deals, discount codes, and ways to support the show are searchable and Clickable over@jordanharbinger.com deals and if that doesn't work, you can email us jordanordanharbinger.com we're happy to dig up codes for you. It is that important that you support those who support the show. Now back to Feedback Friday. All right, time for the recommendation of the week. I am addicted to lip filler. So my recommendation, this is A lot of people really loved my hand towels in the bathroom thing, and they were like, oh, we need more like this because that's like 10, 20 bucks. That goes a long way to making it look like you're some kind of baller with blue aristocratic blood. So here's another one for you. If you have a gym outside or you got your garage, you work out in there, you got a studio like me, get a mini fridge or a regular fridge, whatever. Great for summer, especially if you're outside a lot and you take some of those same towels you bought for the bathroom, those little hand towels, you get a bunch of those towels, you get them wet, but you don't just put them in regular water. You take a little bit of maybe peppermint essential oil or something like that, you drip it in the water and you swish it around. Then you soak all these towels in there, roll them up and put them in the fridge. And they'll stay wet. Especially if it's a mini fridge. You get like a little box to put them in, something like that. So then you're outside, you're sweating, you're in your garage, you're sweating, you're working on something, and instead of just wiping off with a dry towel or some paper towel or even that wet towel that's sort of like hot but still wet, you get this icy, nice, cool, peppermint smelling towel, and you just put that on the back of your neck, on your armpits, your back, whatever, your forehead. It is fricking glorious. It is amazing. And if you have guests and they're like, oh, it sure is hot out here, you just hand them one of these things. It's like being in first class on an airplane. You get that little. That steamy towel. It's the opposite. Right? It just makes you feel so refreshed and cool. It's absolutely amazing.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Obviously, I am fully on board with this one, but I am biting my tongue so hard that you are pitching an essential oils related recommendation of the week with zero irony, not even nodding to the fact that you've mocked me for years.
Jordan Harbinger
The oils don't do anything. They're not gonna cure your kid's, you know, adhd. All right. I'm just saying it smells good.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Never in a million years would I pitch that. I never said that. I'm just laughing at the fact that you've. This is such a Gabe move. And I just love that you've come around to the cold towels and the essential oils. I feel like hot yoga had something to do with that. That's all I'm saying.
Jordan Harbinger
I'm just saying.
Gabriel Mizrahi
They have that little refrigerator outside the studio.
Jordan Harbinger
It might align your chakras, but that part I'm unsure. It will make you feel refreshed and cooler, though. That I can guarantee.
Gabriel Mizrahi
It's an amenity that you really only expect at a gym.
Jordan Harbinger
That's right.
Gabriel Mizrahi
So to create it at home is pretty great.
Jordan Harbinger
That's right. Your guests will be blown away. They'll be like, man, you saved by buying these towels in bulk. Clearly. Also, in case you didn't know, there's a subreddit for the show. I mentioned it earlier. The Jordan Harbinger subreddit. Come over there and complain endlessly about our episodes and all of the advice we give on Feedback Friday. Or say something nice for a change. Okay, Gabe, what's next?
Gabriel Mizrahi
Hi, Jordan and gabe. I'm almost 30, and for the last three years, I've been in a relationship with a guy. Over the past few months, as I planned my birthday, the anxiety of turning 30 really hit me. I know logically that life doesn't stop at 30, but I feel uneasy.
Jordan Harbinger
How do you think we feel? Continue?
Gabriel Mizrahi
Around that time, I started searching for a flat for us to buy. I have more savings and financially am in a better position. Despite this, I wanted to make us a unit it and share everything I have with him. But every time I showed him an apartment, he Found an excuse not to like it. He never outright said that he didn't want to live with me, even when I asked. But he subtly disagreed with every option. Eventually, I stopped looking. Deep down, I think I knew something was off. But he's not a decision maker, and I'm a strong, articulate person. For the past year, I've been asking when he would propose and sending him Instagram reels and jokes about married life, stuff like that.
Jordan Harbinger
That's hilarious. Here's a dank meme about a bride, Mel, down at Kmart. So, when are you going to propose?
Gabriel Mizrahi
I knew if I pushed too hard, he would avoid the question. Yeah, he's quiet and I'm loud and direct. I found a way to live with that. But then last week, I finally asked him directly. He tried to dodge the question, but I told him to come back from a shower with an answer.
Jordan Harbinger
Wait, why is that funny?
Gabriel Mizrahi
I don't know. I guess. Do you think he was like, I don't know. I don't know how to answer this. I'm just going to go shower? And she was like, fine, but don't come back from the shower without an answer. Or was he like, I don't know. And she was like. Like, go take a shower. It'll come to you in the shower. Who knows?
Jordan Harbinger
Legend has it that dude is still showering.
Gabriel Mizrahi
He still is. It's been a few weeks since you wrote in as well, so he's like, water bill's $3,000. And he's like, those are some pruny unmarried fingers right there. So he came back from the shower. That is. And for the first time, he said something different. That he doesn't feel sure about marrying me. When I pushed further, he said he didn't feel our relationship was good, he wasn't happy with our intimacy, and on top of everything, he doesn't even want kids.
Jordan Harbinger
Oh, man. Can you imagine hearing all that at once? Hey, I don't like our relationship. The sex isn't good, and I don't even want kids. Yikes.
Gabriel Mizrahi
That's a lot to take in.
Jordan Harbinger
Oof.
Gabriel Mizrahi
This shocked me because I'm outspoken. I always said when something was bothering me, I was upfront about what I need and want in a relationship. And I was always asking him to be open with me. He did voice some of his fears in the relationship along the way, but I never in a million years would have guessed that he felt our relationship was a bad one. I believed we were mostly on the same page.
Jordan Harbinger
So clearly he was holding back a Lot.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, man.
Jordan Harbinger
I wonder if he was being dishonest or if he was just afraid to hurt or disappoint you. Because that's kind of two different things, right?
Gabriel Mizrahi
That night, I couldn't sleep in the same bed. Hours later, he asked me to come back. But only after I couldn't stop crying. By the morning, nothing had changed. When we talked again, he stood by everything he had said. In that moment, I knew this was never going to be what I wanted. So I packed my things, took my dog and left to my only safe place place my parents. Now I'm drowning in shame, fear, anger and confusion. I keep replaying everything in my head, wondering was I stupid? But I know I made the right call. I know that because even though he said he loved me when I left, he hasn't reached out, not even a text. He hasn't asked about me or the dog, which he cared for and asked to call ours. And yet I'm here, turning 30, without a home, without a fiance, crying myself to sleep in my parents flat. I have a job I like, friends, family, everything I should need. But this is so hurtful because he touched all of those important aspects of my life. Even my parents are mourning the relationship. In a way, they too are breaking up with him. And maybe the scariest part, I still want love. I still want a relationship. And as a woman, the biological clock is ticking. But I only want kids. If I'm in a strong and trusting relationship, how do I restart my life? How do I find love again? How do I trust that I can build something better next time? Signed, tending to my heart and charting a new start when everything is falling apart.
Jordan Harbinger
Nice symmetry here, Gabe. We kicked off with a breakup. We're ending with a breakup.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, you noticed that? The Ye Olde circle of do's.
Jordan Harbinger
Indeed.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah.
Jordan Harbinger
Well, these are all very good questions and ones we all face at one point or another. Actually, I think we're lucky to face these questions because they're profound ones, but they're only possible when things break down. And of course that's painful. So I'm very sorry that you're hurting. All breakups are, of course, hard. They are just extra hard when you discover that you and your partner were on radically different pages, that there were huge things going unsaid in the relationship. I'm sure there are lots of angles to your dynamic together, but I'll just say that it sucks to find out that your partner didn't feel comfortable or even brave enough to say how he really felt. The good news Is this had to come out at some point, and I'm glad it finally did, because the relationship obviously wasn't right. And I can already hear that you're looking back and connecting some dots that were hard to connect in the moment. It takes great courage to look at those things squarely in the eye when you still love somebody and say, all right, we need to go our separate ways. So the pain you're feeling right now, it's the price of admission for a very necessary transformation. So the first thing I want to say is, your shame, your fear, your anger, this confusion, they're all totally valid. They're very common after a breakup. There's some very important stuff for you to explore in those feelings. For example, you might feel some embarrassment about discounting certain signs earlier. And that's a great thing for you to look at, even if your boyfriend was in the wrong. But this thought you keep replaying, was I stupid? I'm not sure that one's very helpful. I'm not sure it's even appropriate. Did you ignore your intuition that something was off in this relationship? Did you discount certain data points because they were sad or painful or inconvenient? Maybe? Humans do that all the time. That doesn't make you stupid. It makes you a person who has something to learn about herself, about other people, about how she functions in a relationship. And that's all you can really expect of yourself now. The willingness to reflect on all this and grow, which you're doing by parting ways, studying the relationship, finding your own path. You're already restarting your life, this dark night of the soul, this is where it begins. You have to move through this period of extreme grief, A lot of sadness, a ton of uncertainty in order to begin again. And a lot of your job is just sitting with the hurt, tolerating the uncertainty, allowing yourself to be sad, mourning the end of this relationship, and maybe more than the relationship, all the hopes that you had for it, and taking care of yourself, attending to these feelings, processing the grief, re, engaging with your close relationships, enjoying this time with your parents, as strange as it might be, moving your body as much as possible, getting reacquainted with who you are outside of the relationship. Which, by the way, one of the big upsides of going through a breakup, like I said, a breakup is a crisis that always precipitates a breakthrough. But that breakthrough, it's gonna come in stages, and it has its own timeline. So you have to be patient. You gotta remind yourself not to fast forward through these difficult feelings, just because you want to move on. If anything, I'd say slow down, really feel them. Them, dissect them, learn from them. That's also part of your job right now.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah. And that's also a big part of the healing. But I do hear you. I understand that you want to find love again. But, yeah, I think this is also a fascinating question to ask on the heels of this incredibly intense breakup. I would slow down there a little bit, too. I mean, you just ended things, so allowing yourself this time to learn and heal, that's not just unavoidable. It's also productive. If finding love is really what you want, then the lessons of this relationship are probably going to be key. So I would definitely take this time to explore the patterns and the dynamics that Jordan just talked about and figure out how they showed up with your boyfriend. I'm especially interested in this piece of, like, I noticed some data points, and we kind of talked about some of his hesitation, but, for example, why you overlooked or cramped around certain things with your boyfriend, why you were so outspoken for the most part. And then meanwhile, he struggled to tell you how he was really feeling. And, you know, what it was like to be leading and pushing the relationship in so many ways, like buying the flat when he was kind of dragging his feet. What your true needs and values are, which it sounds like top of the list for future relationships is communication, but also stability, reciprocity, shared goals, shared values. You know, what qualities do you really need in a partner? And I'm also interested in how turning 30 informed all of this. You mentioned it a couple times. It sounds like you feel some pressure to have a child soon, and that might have made you push for things with this guy that weren't entirely right. It might have blinded you to some important signals. It's also possible that you just have some ideas about turning 30 in general that maybe didn't have to do with him or a relationship, but those might also be worth looking at. There's so much to explore here, but the outcome of this process is going to be some really great wisdom, and that's how you can trust that you're going to build something better next time. It's so similar to our friend in question one, Right? There is kind of a postmortem that needs to happen after a relationship. You got to own your piece of it. Figure out how you showed up and what qualities of yours got brought to the surface, and then you get to go, okay, I'm not going to do that next time, and I want to Go work on that quality. That is the one big upside from having a relationship fall apart.
Jordan Harbinger
Agreed. But I do think we need to talk about turning 30 for a moment. I understand why that milestone is so big for people, especially for women. The biological clock thing is real. You obviously need to factor it in. It's not completely arbitrary, but in another way, it is arbitrary. Turning 30, there are so many thoughts and feelings wrapped up in it. Most of them are kind of flimsy or limited at best. Also, I can tell you firsthand, turning 30, pretty awesome. I honestly didn't feel like my personality or my life really began in a real way until my 30s. I remember thinking people are going to take me seriously when I turn 30. I'm well into my 40s, and by the way, it doesn't happen at 30. I'm still waiting for people to take me seriously. But I'm telling you, in my 40s, life just keeps getting better and better again. I'm a man, I'm not you. Our experiences are gonna be different. But talk to any person in their 30s and 40s. These stages bring new challenges. Of course, every life phase does, but they bring so many joys. I can't even name them all. A stronger sense of self, more confidence, more clarity, which you're already seeing. More skills, more knowledge, more opportunities. A heightened awareness of time, what makes life meaningful. I could go on and on, but I don't have that much time. I'm 45. We lose certain things, then's the rules. We gain certain things as well. And we can control the things we gain to a large degree by doing the kind of work that we're talking about. So I know it's kind of trite, but the best thing you can do right now is embrace this period as much as you can. Really lean into it. You are hurting. That makes sense. I promise you're not going to feel the same way in a week or two weeks or in a month. The recovery might actually shock you. Also, all these things you're mourning, your own home, a fiance, the future. Allow yourself to grieve that them, but also know that they were not yours. They're out there waiting if you want them. But one of those concepts that's falling away is the fantasy that they were yours with this guy.
Gabriel Mizrahi
You know, I wonder if that's where some of the shame she talked about is coming from.
Jordan Harbinger
For sure.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Realizing that she was hoping for something that didn't quite make sense with this guy and wanting something so badly with somebody who didn't really want them to. And then pushing so hard for them when she was getting those signs that he might not have been on the same page. And I get it. It that embarrassment might be part of her learning right now, because it's like, oh, yeah, I was a little bit. I had blinders on, you know, I didn't want to look at these things, or I was overly attached to some outcomes that were not quite right and I wasn't willing to see it or whatever it was. That's okay. I think that shame is kind of a fellow traveler of becoming mature, you know, of being in contact with reality.
Jordan Harbinger
Good point. I have a theory that if we're not always a little embarrassed by ourselves, we're probably not really growing. That's also the rationalization I use to humiliated constantly. Now that I think about it. I also wonder if part of her shame is how this outspoken quality she mentioned showed up in the relationship.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, it's interesting. She mentioned that several times in her letter, so I think it's important.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah, I mean, we don't know her. Maybe she's super obnoxious, but I don't get that. I don't get that vibe. She's very strong. She's articulate. She's always said when something bothers her, that's awesome. She was upfront about what she needed in the relationship. I wish most people would do that.
Gabriel Mizrahi
And I think it must be meaningful that he was the total opposite.
Jordan Harbinger
Yeah, that alone is interesting. Just how different they were in that department. I think somewhere in there is a key to their dynamic. But what I'm getting at is, is she maybe a little embarrassed about being so passionate, so ambitious about their plans when he secretly felt differently? And actually is this outspoken quality of hers, which in so many ways is a superpower, but in this relationship, was it possibly a way for her to do a lot of the work for him? Like, if she was always driving, he didn't have to. Which also meant that he didn't have to be totally honest.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yep, I could see that. And did it maybe even crowd out some of his true feelings? Because her vision and her execution were so powerful. There's so much exuberance there.
Jordan Harbinger
Exactly. I'm not blaming her, to be clear, with another partner, I mean, I actually. Personally, I would find those qualities extremely attractive. I think with another partner, it could be incredibly productive and inspiring. But with this particular guy and with what she wanted from him, or perhaps what she didn't want to acknowledge about him, was it also a way to paper over some stuff Sidestep some things.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Yeah, those are great questions. Something else she can explore during this period.
Jordan Harbinger
Anyway, look, I know this is hard. I'm genuinely excited for you. I'd love to hear from you in three, four, six months. Write us an email, let us know how things are going. I wouldn't be surprised if you're in a very different place with a very different lens on all this and you're already starting to see some new pieces come together. That's really the beauty of life. That's how it works. And one last thing, something I've learned over and over, but especially when I restarted this show several years ago. You're not starting over. You are starting forward. This relationship was not a waste. It was essential. It's bringing up these great questions and the answers are going to give you a ton of wisdom to bring to that strong and trusting relationship that you want and that you deserve. So we're sending you a big hug. You got this, Gabe. I do not envy people on the dating market right now. Probably shouldn't have said that because that's you. But anyway, fair enough.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Go on then.
Jordan Harbinger
Go back and check out the atusa. Abraham. That's it. I'm just gonna tap it out. Oh, man. The best things that have happened in my life and business have come through my network. The circle of people I know, like and trust. I'm teaching you how to do the same thing. Build the same thing for yourself in our six minute networking course. The course is free. It is not gross. There are no tricks. I don't need your credit card number. It is not schmoozy. And you can find it on the Thinkific platform at 6minutenetworking.com. These drills are designed to take just a few minutes a day. This is the stuff I Wish I knew 20 years ago. Dig the well before you get thirsty, folks. And if need be, push your aging parents down the shaft. But build relationships before you need them. That's what I'm trying to say. Build relationships before you need them. You can find the course@sixminutenetworking.com show notes and transcripts over at jordanharbinger.com advertisers, deals, discounts, ways to support the show. Where are they? They're@jordanharbinger.com deals I'm JordanHarbinger on Twitter and Instagram. I say my name a lot in these episodes, don't I? Or just hit me on LinkedIn. I'm Jordan Harbinger over there. You can find Gabe on Instagram at Gabriel Mizrahi or on Twitter abemizrahi. This show is created in association with Podcast One. My team is Jen Harbinger, Jace Sanderson, Robert Fogarty, Ian Baird, Tata Sidlowskis, and of course, Gabriel Mizrahi. Our advice and opinions are our own and I'm a lawyer, but I'm not your lawyer. Do your own research before implementing anything you hear on the show. And remember, we rise by lifting others. Share the show with those you love. If you found the episode useful, please share it with somebody else who could use the advice we gave here today. In the meantime, I hope you apply what you hear on this show so you can live what you learn and we'll see you next time. Join us as Mustafa Suleiman, Microsoft AI CEO, discusses the pivotal role of artificial intelligence in shaping the future. From job automation to national security, we.
D
Are a technological species. From the beginning of time we have been manipulating the environment to reduce our suffering. And that is the purpose purpose of a tool. But a tool has always been inanimate. Whereas now I think the profound shift that we're going through is that we're sort of giving rise to these new phenomena that I hesitate to call a tool because it has these amazing properties to be able to create and produce and invent way beyond and disconnected to what we've actually directed it to do. But now we've really crossed this moment, this threshold where now computers can increasingly talk our language and that is just mind blowing. People are still not fully absorbing how completely nuts that is. We want AI to be able to solve our big problems in the world. You know, we want it to help us tackle climate change and improve drugs and improve health care and give us self driving cars. And we want to solve these massive problems that we have in the world trying to feed 8 billion people and growing and so on, right? So that's going to change what it means to be human. It's going to change society in a very fundamental way. It will change work and so on. It's been such a privilege to be creating and making and building at a time like this. Almost 15 years in the field now thinking about the consequences of AI and trying to build it so that it delivers on the upside sides. And it's just a surreal time to.
Jordan Harbinger
Be alive to explore the critical ethical, societal and geopolitical challenges AI poses in the 21st century and what we can do to harness its power responsibly. On episode 972 of the Jordan Harbinger Show.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Race the rudders, race the sails, race the sails. Captain, an unidentified ship is approached coaching.
Jordan Harbinger
Over.
Gabriel Mizrahi
Roger, wait. Is that an enterprise sales solution? Reach sales professionals, not professional sailors. With LinkedIn ads, you can target the right people by industry, job title and more. We'll even give you a $100 credit on your next campaign. Get started today at LinkedIn.com results, terms and conditions apply.
Title: Text Fight Turns You Into a Villain Overnight | Feedback Friday
Release Date: June 27, 2025
Host: Jordan Harbinger
Producer: Gabriel Mizrahi
Description: In this episode of Feedback Friday, Jordan Harbinger and his producer Gabriel Mizrahi delve into real-life listener dilemmas, offering insightful advice to navigate complex personal and professional challenges. The episode covers topics ranging from tumultuous breakups to toxic workplace environments and strained family relationships.
Timestamp: [01:23] – [03:19]
Jordan Harbinger opens the episode with enthusiasm, introducing his producer Gabriel Mizrahi, affectionately nicknamed "the Stainstick." They share anecdotes about meeting fans during their travels, emphasizing the profound impact of genuine human connections over mere geographic exploration.
Notable Quote:
"These types of travels, they're always made by the people. It's not the sights you see, you know, it's not the Eiffel Tower, it's not the food, it's the people that you share it with."
— Jordan Harbinger [03:19]
Timestamp: [07:46] – [17:04]
Summary:
A listener shares a painful breakup experience where his ex-girlfriend, amidst severe personal struggles, abruptly ended the relationship by rewriting his role as the "villain." He grapples with feeling misunderstood and seeks guidance on moving forward without harboring resentment.
Discussion Points:
Notable Quotes:
"There are three narratives at play in a breakup—yours, the other person's, and the truth."
— Jordan Harbinger [12:15]
"Accepting these competing narratives is part of the grief process, and that comes with some anger, some sadness, some resentment, some embarrassment. All of that is normal, too."
— Jordan Harbinger [12:15]
Timestamp: [22:19] – [31:11]
Summary:
A frontline manager faces a workaholic supervisor who undermines his efforts to prioritize family time, leading to negative performance reviews and financial setbacks. He seeks advice on addressing the issue while maintaining a positive work environment.
Discussion Points:
Notable Quotes:
"The guy who sits in his office for a hundred hours a week... That's the inefficient, performative guy."
— Jordan Harbinger [24:13]
"You are not the lazy and misguided one. The guy who sits in his office for a hundred hours a week. That's the inefficient, performative guy."
— Jordan Harbinger [24:13]
Timestamp: [33:11] – [45:02]
Summary:
An only child describes a challenging upbringing with parents who lived as nomadic missionaries, leading to emotional immaturity and codependency. Now, grappling with their parents' declining health and financial instability, he seeks advice on setting boundaries and managing inherited responsibilities.
Discussion Points:
Notable Quotes:
"Your best bet is probably to try to help them sell this land. And maybe you're more equipped to do that now because now you know how they tend to operate."
— Gabriel Mizrahi [43:04]
"Make sure you're taking good care of yourself. Work closely with your husband. Let him support you through this."
— Jordan Harbinger [44:25]
Timestamp: [52:20] – [66:24]
Summary:
A nearly 30-year-old woman recounts her recent breakup after years in a relationship where her partner revealed significant issues, including reluctance towards marriage and parenting. Facing feelings of shame, fear, and confusion, she seeks advice on rebuilding her life and finding love again.
Discussion Points:
Notable Quotes:
"The recovery might actually shock you. Also, all these things you're mourning, your own home, a fiance, the future. Allow yourself to grieve that them, but also know that they were not yours."
— Jordan Harbinger [63:13]
"All breakups are hard. They are just extra hard when you discover that your partner didn't feel comfortable or even brave enough to say how he really felt."
— Jordan Harbinger [56:30]
Timestamp: [66:25] – [68:07]
As the episode wraps up, Jordan offers encouragement to listeners facing similar challenges, emphasizing resilience and the importance of introspection. He reiterates that while breakups and strained relationships are painful, they also offer profound opportunities for personal growth and future happiness.
Notable Quote:
"You're not starting over. You are starting forward. This relationship was not a waste. It was essential."
— Jordan Harbinger [65:35]
"These types of travels, they're always made by the people. It's not the sights you see..." — Jordan Harbinger [03:19]
"There are three narratives at play in a breakup—yours, the other person's, and the truth." — Jordan Harbinger [12:15]
"You are not the lazy and misguided one. The guy who sits in his office for a hundred hours a week. That's the inefficient, performative guy." — Jordan Harbinger [24:13]
"Make sure you're taking good care of yourself. Work closely with your husband. Let him support you through this." — Jordan Harbinger [44:25]
"All breakups are hard. They are just extra hard when you discover that your partner didn't feel comfortable or even brave enough to say how he really felt." — Jordan Harbinger [56:30]
"You're not starting over. You are starting forward. This relationship was not a waste. It was essential." — Jordan Harbinger [65:35]
This episode of Feedback Friday provides a compassionate and insightful exploration of complex personal issues, offering listeners valuable guidance on navigating the challenges of relationships, work-life balance, and family dynamics. Jordan Harbinger and Gabriel Mizrahi adeptly blend empathy with practical advice, making this episode a valuable resource for anyone seeking to better understand and improve their personal and professional lives.