Our world has never been more convenient and comfortable. With just a few taps of our fingers, we can order food to our door, access endless entertainment options, and keep our climate at a steady 72 degrees. We don't have to put in much effort, much less face any risk or challenge, in order to sustain our daily lives.
In some ways, this quantum leap in humanity's comfort level is a great boon. But in other ways, it's absolutely killing our minds, bodies, and spirit.
My guest says it's time to reclaim the currently-hard-to-come-by but truly essential benefits of discomfort. His name is Michael Easter, and he's a writer, editor, and professor, and the author of The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self. Michael first shares how his experience with getting sober helped him discover the life-changing potential of doing hard things, before digging into what fleeing from discomfort is doing to our mental and physical health. We then discuss the Japanese idea of misogis, which involves taking on an epic outdoor challenge, and why Michael decided to do a misogi in which he participated in a month-long caribou hunt in the backcountry of Alaska. Michael shares what he learned from the various challenges he encountered during his misogi — including intense hunger, boredom, solitude, and physical exertion — as well as what research can teach all of us about why we need to incorporate these same kinds of discomforts into our everyday lives.
Resources Related to the Episode#453: Leadership in Turbulent Times
#452: The Warrior's Manifesto
#451: The Daring Escape Artists of WWI
#450: How to Make Time for What Really Matters Every Day
#449: Faster and Cheaper Alternatives to College
#448: Your Son Isn't Lazy — How to Empower Boys to Succeed
#447: On Grand Strategy
#446: How Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Will Make You a Better Man
#445: How to Close the Character Gap
#444: How to Use the Procrastination Equation to Start Getting Things Done
#443: What Building Your Own Coffin Teaches You About Life, Death, and Meaning
#442: Rocky Marciano's Fight for Perfection in a Crooked World
#441: Do Less, Work Better, and Achieve More
#440: The 3 Great Untruths That Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure
#439: Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics
#438: Developing Real-World Situational Awareness
#437: Don't Make Me Pull Over! A History of the Road Trip
#436: The Worth of War
#435: How to Achieve Hyperfocus
#434: Legendary Coach John Wooden’s Secrets of Leadership
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Maverick Show with Matt Bowles