#749: Michael Lewis and Martine Rothblatt

This episode is a two-for-one, and that’s because the podcast recently hit its 10-year anniversary and passed one billion downloads. To celebrate, I’ve curated some of the best of the best—some of my favorites—from more than 700 episodes over the last decade. I could not be more excited. The episode features segments from episode #427 "Michael Lewis — Inside the Mind of the Iconic Writer" and episode #487 "Dr. Martine Rothblatt — A Masterclass on Asking Better Questions and Peering Into the Future." Please enjoy! Sponsors: Shopify global commerce platform, providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business: https://shopify.com/tim (one-dollar-per-month trial period) AG1 all-in-one nutritional supplement: https://drinkag1.com/tim (1-year supply of Vitamin D [and 5 free AG1 travel packs] with your first subscription purchase.) Eight Sleep’s Pod 4 Ultra sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating: https://eightsleep.com/tim (save $350 on the Pod 4 Ultra) Timestamps: [00:00] Start [04:13] Notes about this supercombo format. [05:16] Enter Michael Lewis. [05:54] Why Michael quit his well-paid job to become a full-time author. [12:58] Liar’s Poker is a cautionary tale, not a how-to book. [15:16] On ambition and the metrics of success. [18:31] Maximizing self-satisfaction, optimizing the writing process, and learning to sing. [20:51] The value of having an impolite editor on your side. [23:52] On the merits of productive laziness. [28:13] How Michael determines if a project should proceed. [29:51] Michael's billboard. [32:45] Enter Martine Rothblatt. [33:14] Martine's appreciation for Alan Watts' book on human identity. [35:34] Martine's thoughts on AI-human coexistence in the movie Her. [36:31] BINA48 and realistic human simulations in media. [39:53] Martine's role models and inspirations. [41:20] When Martine started a biotech company to save her daughter's life. [52:44] Glaxo Wellcome's misconceptions about Martine's succes