MBA without BS

“You can live your life as if nothing is magical, or as if everything is magical. “  Lior Suchard (@liorsuchard) is one of the world’s most well known and critically acclaimed mentalists. His performances combine his unique talent for mind reading, thought influencing and telekinesis to name a few.  If you haven’t had the rare pleasure of seeing him in action I highly recommend you do. From shows taped before a live audience like The Ellen Degeneres Show and his own Quibi show Gone Mental with Lior, to private events for mind trick enthusiasts around the world, Lior never fails to bring his audience to their knees and often leaves skeptics dumbfound. Referred to as an “Intuitive Social Scientist” by well known behavioral economist Dan Ariely, a previous guest on this podcast, Lior has relied on hard work and old fashion ‘positive’ hustling to perform what is arguably one of his most impressive tricks of all - taking a childhood passion for wonderment and play and turning into a thriving, exciting and unpredictable career. Lior’s book Mind Reader: Unlocking the Power of Your Mind to Get what You Want is a celebration of the limitless capacity of our minds to create and manifest even the most unimaginable. In his book he shares secrets from behind the scenes of his own performances as well as real life personal stories that offer insight into practical techniques that can help every day people tap into the extraordinary in order to bring about positive change in their lives. In our sit down together we speak about: The limitlessly entertaining and highly profound power of the mind The path of least resistance: following the flow of life The power of relationships and building a global network Striking the right balance between story and product The value of recognizing and acting on opportunities that come your way The role of luck and intuition in achieving success Links to the books we talk about: Chariots of the Gods Start Up Nation  Happy listening!

“We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing”. George Bernard Shaw Lior Suchard (@liorsuchard) is one of the world’s most well known and critically acclaimed mentalists. His performances combine his unique talent for mind reading, thought influencing and telekinesis to name a few.  If you haven’t had the rare pleasure of seeing him in action I highly recommend you do. From shows taped before a live audience like The Ellen Degeneres Show and his own Quibi show Gone Mental with Lior, to private events for mind trick enthusiasts around the world, Lior never fails to bring his audience to their knees and often leaves skeptics dumbfound. Referred to as an “Intuitive Social Scientist” by well known behavioral economist Dan Ariely, a previous guest on this podcast, Lior has relied on hard work and old fashion ‘positive’ hustling to perform what is arguably one of his most impressive tricks of all - taking a childhood passion for wonderment and play and turning into a thriving, exciting and unpredictable career. Lior’s book Mind Reader: Unlocking the Power of Your Mind to Get what You Want is a celebration of the limitless capacity of our minds to create and manifest even the most unimaginable. In his book he shares secrets from behind the scenes of his own performances as well as real life personal stories that offer insight into practical techniques that can help every day people tap into the extraordinary in order to bring about positive change in their lives. In our sit down together we speak about: The limitlessly entertaining and highly profound power of the mind The path of least resistance: following the flow of life The power of relationships and building a global network Striking the right balance between story and product The value of recognizing and acting on opportunities that come your way The role of luck and intuition in achieving success Links to the books we talk about: Chariots of the Gods Start Up Nation  Happy listening!

This is the second part of my interview with Peter. If you missed out the first part, I recommend you check it out! “In structuring what you want to do with your life and how you want to do it, think about how you want to treat your fellow humans’. You are not supposed to know Peter Dittus (@Peterdittus), or the organization that employed him for 25 years, the BIS. Even more so, Googling the latter would probably yield conspiracy theories, world schemes, and titles like “the secret bank that runs the world”. Peter, who holds a PhD in Monetary Economics, was the Secretary General of the BIS for 12 years. His story begins 30 years earlier. Disillusioned by the political nature of his work with the World Bank, Peter set out to build a career that could make a difference in the world. The value of transparency and sharing of ideas revealed themselves to be of the utmost importance to Peter and in our talk we delve deeper into his views on the unbalanced distribution of power that an institution such as the World Bank yields. In 1992, Peter joined the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) as an economist and from 1995 assumed increasingly senior responsibilities within the organization. As a bank for central banks, the mission of the BIS to encourage international cooperation and support the pursuit of monetary and financial stability aligned with Peter’s professional and personal interests and in 2000 he became a member of the bank’s senior management team when he was appointed Deputy Secretary General. In his 2017 book Revolution Required: The ticking time bombs of the G7 Model, Peter writes about the public’s justified loss of trust in the policies set forth by G7 countries. He demonstrates how key policies, presented as being in service of the public’s best interest, are in fact counter to it. His book encourages its readers to become well informed, critical thinking members of society.  He advocates for a shift from a model of reckless and power driven decision making to one that supports an “economy for the common good”. Most recently, Peter co-founded SFB Technologies. Partnering up with the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), SFB is developing the technology platform to enable countries to issue digital currencies on the blockchain. RMI is in the process of becoming the first sovereign nation to issue a cryptocurrency called “Sovereign” (SOV) that will be legal tender. In our sit down together Peter describes among other things the personal process that led to his decision to step down from his position at the World Bank . We also talk about: Economics 101 and why the current economic model is fundamentally “broken” The impending financial crisis and its inevitability How the current ‘paper standard’ has no anchor The potential for a shakeup in world currency How humanity, philosophy and critical thinking should play a key role in top to bottom decision making Happy listening!

“In structuring what you want to do with your life and how you want to do it, think about how you want to treat your fellow humans’. You are not supposed to know Peter Dittus (@Peterdittus), or the organization that employed him for 25 years, the BIS. Even more so, Googling the latter would probably yield conspiracy theories, world schemes, and titles like “the secret bank that runs the world”. Peter, who holds a PhD in Monetary Economics, was the Secretary General of the BIS for 12 years. His story begins 30 years earlier. Disillusioned by the political nature of his work with the World Bank, Peter set out to build a career that could make a difference in the world. The value of transparency and sharing of ideas revealed themselves to be of the utmost importance to Peter and in our talk we delve deeper into his views on the unbalanced distribution of power that an institution such as the World Bank yields. In 1992, Peter joined the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) as an economist and from 1995 assumed increasingly senior responsibilities within the organization. As a bank for central banks, the mission of the BIS to encourage international cooperation and support the pursuit of monetary and financial stability aligned with Peter’s professional and personal interests and in 2000 he became a member of the bank’s senior management team when he was appointed Deputy Secretary General. In his 2017 book Revolution Required: The ticking time bombs of the G7 Model, Peter writes about the public’s justified loss of trust in the policies set forth by G7 countries. He demonstrates how key policies, presented as being in service of the public’s best interest, are in fact counter to it. His book encourages its readers to become well informed, critical thinking members of society.  He advocates for a shift from a model of reckless and power driven decision making to one that supports an “economy for the common good”. Most recently, Peter co-founded SFB Technologies. Partnering up with the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), SFB is developing the technology platform to enable countries to issue digital currencies on the blockchain. RMI is in the process of becoming the first sovereign nation to issue a cryptocurrency called “Sovereign” (SOV) that will be legal tender. In our sit down together Peter describes among other things the personal process that led to his decision to step down from his position at the World Bank . We also talk about: Economics 101 and why the current economic model is fundamentally “broken” The impending financial crisis and its inevitability How the current ‘paper standard’ has no anchor The potential for a shakeup in world currency How humanity, philosophy and critical thinking should play a key role in top to bottom decision making Happy listening!

I didn’t make money to have property. I made money so I could live a rich and interesting life. I never wanted to be the richest man in the cemetery. " Morris Kahn is a South African born Israeli entrepreneur and philanthropist who has helped put Israel on the map in more ways than one. He has launched multiple global enterprises including Amdocs, one of Israel’s largest, most established high-tech companies and Coral World, which operates underwater observatories all over the globe.  A self made billionaire, his fortune is most certainly the least interesting thing about him. From building underwater observatories to launching the first privately funded spacecraft to the moon, there seems to be no limit to how far Morris Kahn’s entrepreneurial spirit can take him. Kahn immigrated to Israel from South Africa in 1956, one year after visiting and falling in love with the country. He has since gone on to contribute enormously to its development and in 2016 was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the Israel-America Chamber of Commerce for his contribution to Israeli economy and philanthropic endeavors ranging from medicine and science to the environment, youth leadership and education. In celebration of his 90th birthday, his most recent trip to Ethiopia proves Kahn has no intention of slowing down any time soon. In Ethiopia, his non for profit foundation helped establish an orphanage for abandoned children sentenced to death, set up a hospital equipped with state of the art equipment and cure hundreds of people from blindness. As he sees it “If we can’t help each other in this world, what are we doing here?” Kahn is a natural born leader who doesn’t believe you can encourage people to do something without being willing to do it yourself.  In our conversation he humbly attributes his success to good luck and believes that none of what he has accomplished could have been possible if it weren’t for his partnerships with trustworthy and competent individuals. In our sit down together we speak about: Accidents as the unlikely birthplace of innovative ideas Transforming hobbies into profitable businesses Focusing on the quality of what you are doing not how to get rich How investing in your relationships will pay off big time Giving your all to everything you do and recognizing when it's time to move on Happy listening!

“We are a generation that is overwhelmed with information, but starving for knowledge and wisdom”. Gabrielle Bosché (@saysgabrielle) is the founder and president of The Millennial Solution where she helps companies hire, retain and attract Millennial talent. She is also cofounder of The Purpose Company where she helps people discover their unique life purpose and how to build a life of clarity and meaning. Gabrielle’s persistent dedication to honing in to the purpose of her own life has helped earn her the title of “America’s Millennial Expert”.  A millennial herself, she is a best-selling author of four books on her generation including “The Millennial Entrepreneur and “5 Millennial Myths”. Her new book, The Purpose Factor, is scheduled for publication September 2020. Gabrielle has translated her genuine curiosity about the differences that define a generation into a multi faceted and meaningful career.  If you haven’t heard her TedX speech yet, I highly recommend that you do. From Gabrielle’s perspective, it isn’t what school you go to, what position you land or how much you earn in salary that matters, it’s learning to take action aligned with your purpose that does.  In our sit down together we talk about: How priorities and perspective impact the cultural identity of a generation The importance of finding your unique purpose Tips for how to gain direction and pursue a life of clarity and conviction The value of setting aside alone time for contemplation and introspection How to turn knowledge into action In a time of global scale uncertainty, Gabrielle’s message of looking towards purpose and meaning to serve as the backbone of the big decisions of our lives feels right on point to me. Happy Listening!

All good things must come to an end and this week’s episode is the bittersweet end to our mini series with Dan Ariely. If you missed our previous episodes be sure to check them out here. I have learned so much during my time with Dan and hope you have learned something, however big or small as well. In our final sit down in this series we speak about: Finding hidden pockets of time to pursue personal dreams Clever ways to add depth to our relationships How showing up gets harder the more time you wait Concentrating on the process, not the outcome The powerful hold regret can have over our lives Happy listening!

The third out of our 4 episode mini-series with Prof. Dan Ariely! If you haven't yet, check out the first and second episodes :) Dan Ariely (@danariely) is the modern definition of a renaissance man.  He is a Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics at Duke University and founder of the Center for Advanced Hindsight that aims to empower people with the wisdom of behavioral economics.. His focus on the reality of how people act in the marketplace vs. how they should or would if only they were more rational, sets him apart from many behavioral scientists of his time. Dan’s bestselling books include Irrationally Yours, Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty, Dollars and Sense and Amazing Decisions. Dan’s writing is driven by the motivation to make research and science more ‘user friendly’ so that more people will experience for themselves the thrill of behavioral economics and discover ways this knowledge can benefit their lives. In his “Ask Ariely” column in the Wall Street Journal,  Dan tackles everything from how to manage the uncertainty brought on by the current pandemic to more personal questions of how to establish rituals to get through the painful reality of a break up. His ability to create a safe space for discussing science based arguments as well as more emotionally driven matters of the heart make him a fascinating person to interview.

This is the second part of a 4 episode mini-series. Dan Ariely is a professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University and a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight. He is the author of the bestsellers Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, The Honest Truth About Dishonesty, Dollars and Sense and Amazing Decisions -- as well as the TED Book Payoff: The Hidden Logic that Shapes Our Motivations. He is also co-creator of the film documentary (Dis)Honesty: The Truth About Lies. Through his research and his (often amusing and unorthodox) experiments, he questions the forces that influence human behavior and the irrational ways in which we often all behave. Feel free to check out our first episode in this mini-series. Please enjoy!

This is the first part of a 4 episode mini-series. Bio: Dan Ariely is a professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University and a founding member of the Center for Advanced Hindsight. He is the author of the bestsellers Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, The Honest Truth About Dishonesty, Dollars and Sense and Amazing Decisions -- as well as the TED Book Payoff: The Hidden Logic that Shapes Our Motivations. He is also co-creator of the film documentary (Dis)Honesty: The Truth About Lies. Through his research and his (often amusing and unorthodox) experiments, he questions the forces that influence human behavior and the irrational ways in which we often all behave. Who is it for: First and foremost - for Dan Ariely fans (like me!). If you want to get an insight into Dan’s origin story - this episode is probably for you. We go back in history, and invest a lot of time on Dan’s childhood experiences, and specifically the accident that left him badly burned. Second - for those of you who are looking to dissect successful people stories, in the effort of learning what works and why. We look into why Dan does the things that he does, what are his motivations, and how he translates those motivations to actions. Stay tuned for the next episode, where we talk about experimentation as a way of life, about getting a date with Dan, and much much more… :)