How to Learn Better & Create Your Best Future | Tim Ferriss

Welcome to the Huberman Lab Podcast, where we discuss science and science-based tools for everyday life. (instrumental music) I'm Andrew Huberman, and I'm a professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine. Today my guest is Tim Ferriss. Tim Ferriss is an author, a podcaster, an investor, and is known for having a near-supernatural ability to predict the future, which has allowed him to obtain success in a huge number of different endeavors. For instance, he is a five-time number one New York Times best-selling author. But, perhaps equally or more important to that, he's also exceptionally good at teaching people how to write, the entire process of writing and marketing a book. His books The 4-Hour Chef and The 4-Hour Body and The 4-Hour Workweek not only explain his own exploration of how to optimize and prioritize his time and learn particular skills, but he teaches you those skills as well. This is really what sets Tim apart. He is an exceptional learner and an exceptional teacher, and today you'll learn why that is, and, in a characteristic Tim Ferriss way, he explains the process in a way that you can apply it. He lists out, for instance, the specific questions that you should ask when approaching any endeavor in order to get the information that you want and to make the process of learning and getting better at something and achieving great success in something that much more likely. That ability that Tim has to identify the specific questions that one needs to ask and answer, and the specific action steps to take in order to achieve success, is really what I believe sets Tim apart from everyone else on the internet or on the bookshelf that's giving advice as to how to become good at something. Tim Ferriss is also dedicated to various philanthropic efforts, the most recent of which is the donation of several millions of his own dollars to research on psychedelics for the treatment of otherwise intractable psychiatric challenges, such as major depression, suicidal depression, eating disorders, and addiction. And he's also brought together other philanthropists, which has really galvanized the whole field of psychedelic research for the treatment of mental health, transforming it from what was recently kind of a fringe area of science to a mainstay that's actually funded not only by philanthropy but by the National Institutes of Health. So he's really transformed this entire scientific field into one that now is transforming the laws around psychedelics and is providing mental health treatment for people that would otherwise suffer. Today's discussion was a particularly meaningful one, because not only is Tim a pioneer in the world of podcasting, but it also marked the nine-year anniversary of his podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show. Now, as I mentioned earlier, Tim is known for being able to see around corners, or predict the future. He really does seem to be about five if not 10 years ahead of everybody else in thinking about tools for optimization in particular domains of life. And so we were very fortunate that during today's discussion, he shares with us his current creative endeavors and how he's thinking about and approaching those. And he also breaks down for us the process of how to think about and prioritize one's schedule, not just on the order of the day, not just on the order of the week, but really thinking about one's life as a journey and how to organize and go about that journey. So today's discussion will provide with you tremendous insight into who Tim Ferriss is and how that incredible mind of his works in order to do all the amazing things that he's done, and, of course, he teaches you how to do it. He will tell you the exact questions that you should ask and that you should answer, and how to step back and think about those questions and then prioritize so that you can decide how to best invest your time. I'm sure many of you are familiar with The Tim Ferriss Show. However, if you're not already subscribing to The Tim Ferriss Show, I highly recommend you do. I still go back and listen to early episodes of The Tim Ferriss Show, and I'm a weekly listener to the new episodes. We provide a link to The Tim Ferriss Show in the show note captions. Also in the show note captions, you'll find links to Tim's many New York Times best-selling books and a link to his excellent weekly blog. Before we begin, I'd like to emphasize that this podcast is separate from my teaching and research roles at Stanford. It is, however, part of my desire and effort to bring zero-cost-to-consumer information about science and science-related tools to the general public. In keeping with that theme, I'd like to thank the sponsors of today's podcast. Our first sponsor is Maui Nui Venison. Maui Nui Venison is the most nutrient-dense and delicious red meat available. I've talked before on this podcast about the key importance of striving to get one gram of protein per pound of body weight. And when one strives to do that, it's also important to maximize the quality protein-to-calorie ratio. In other words, you don't want to consume a lot of extra calories in order to get your quality protein. Maui Nui Venison, in having an extremely high-quality protein and nutrient-to-calorie ratio, allows you to do that very easily. And in addition to that, Maui Nui Venison is delicious. I particularly like their bone broth, which has an unmatched 25 grams of protein per 100 calories. I also love their ground venison and their venison steaks. All of them are absolutely delicious. If you'd like to try Maui Nui Venison, go to mauinuivenison.com/huberman and get 20% off your first order. Again, that's mauinuivenison.com/huberman to get 20% off. Today's episode is also brought to us by LMNT. LMNT is an electrolyte drink that has everything you need, that is the electrolytes, sodium, magnesium, and potassium, but nothing you don't, which means no sugar. It's critical that we get electrolytes, because every cell of our body, but in particular our nerve cells, our neurons, rely on electrolytes in order to function properly. With LMNT, it's very easy to ingest the correct ratios of electrolytes. They come in these little packets. They're really delicious. You mix them up with anywhere from 8 to 16 to 32 ounces of fluid. I like mine pretty concentrated, so I'll drink a 16-ounce glass of water with LMNT in it when I first wake up. I'll also consume another one of those maybe 32 ounces with one packet when I exercise, and maybe another one if I happen to sweat a lot during exercise or if I was in the sauna and sweating a lot if it's a very hot day, et cetera. If you'd like to try LMNT, go to drinklmnt, that's L-M-N-T, .com/huberman to claim a free LMNT sample pack with your purchase. Again, that's drinklmnt, L-M-N-T,.com/huberman.Today's episode is also brought to us by Levels. Levels is a program that lets you see how different foods and activities impact your blood glucose levels, or blood sugar levels, as they're sometimes referred to. With Levels, you can see how the specific foods you eat, when you eat, and exercise, as well as any other activities impact your blood glucose and how those affect things like your energy level or your quality of sleep, or your level of clarity and focus for mental work, or your physical output for physical endeavors. I first started using Levels about a year ago as a way to understand how different foods and activities impact my blood glucose levels, and it's really impacted my entire schedule. In fact, I've shuffled a number of things around such that now I have more stable energy throughout the day. Yes, I eliminated one or two foods. Fortunately, they weren't my favorite foods. I've also added some new foods to my nutrition program that have allowed my blood sugar levels to s- remain much more steady throughout the day, and to achieve better sleep at night. Levels even provides a simple score after any meal you eat, so you can see how different foods affect you and develop a personalized nutrition program that's exactly right for you, and that's really what Levels e- is about. It's really about tailoring things to your specific needs. So if you're interested in learning more about Levels and trying a CGM yourself, go to levels.link/huberman. Right now, they're offering an additional two free months of membership. Again, that's levels.link/huberman. And now for my discussion with Tim Ferriss. Tim Ferriss.