Life's Infinite Games: Understanding Our Choices & Playing By Our Rules

Practical Psychology for navigating life's challenges and cultivating joy.
Sam Webster Harris explores the concept of life as a series of games, blending psychological insights with practical wisdom. He discusses how every aspect of life involves some form of gameplay, from professional networks like LinkedIn to personal decisions and social interactions.
We dig into the intersection of Philosophy and Psychology to understand the experiencing self and how we navigate our moments.
Sam emphasizes the importance of understanding the different 'modes' of approaching life's games—machine, intelligent, and zen. He advocates for living authentically, focusing on self-amusement, and challenging societal norms.
Learn to apply some of the more surreal and abstract concepts of the mind into real life:

How to understand what game you are playing?

Establish what is really at stake

Define the rules for yourself to play your own game

Have more fun


The episode encourages listeners to reassess their motivations and redefine what winning means in their personal game of life.

Further reading:


Godel, Escher, Bach - Douglas R. Hofstedter


Finite and Infinite Games - James P. Carse


The Infinite Game - Simon Sinek


The Way of Zen - The Taboo of Knowing Who You Are - Alan Watts


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Meet Sam

Free Call - Schedule Link


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Growth Mindset pod:
Sam Webster explores the psychology of happiness, satisfaction, purpose, and growth through the lens of self-improvement.


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Mail - GrowthMindsetPodcast(at)gmail.com


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Newsletter - Expansive Thinking



Chapters:
00:00 The Concept of Life as a Game
01:28 The Rules of Life's Games
03:17 The Games of LinkedIn and Appearance
06:30 Life Lessons - Philosophy for fun and success
11:36 Your Point of View is First Player
14:03 The Three Modes for Playing Games
15:00 Applying the Modes to Social Media, News and Health
17:00 Final Thoughts
18:00 Housekeeping and Recommendations

Topics:

understanding life games and personal growth

how to play life games on your own terms

mastering life games for more fun and success

psychological models for better life decisions

navigating life's games with mental models

building mental strength through understanding games

enhancing life strategies with cognitive psychology

applying psychology to everyday life games

tips for playing life's psychological games

dealing with societal expectations psychologically

philisophical insights into life's hidden games

developing self-awareness in life's games

practical psychology for navigating life's challenges


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