In this episode, Dan and Sean navigate through numbness, nuance, and the uncomfortable edges of modern life. From tariffs and fentanyl policy to the messy mechanics of entrepreneurship, they discuss the complicated reality of staying engaged in a world that often feels overwhelming. Also on deck: what it really means to be an entrepreneur, thoughts on Prometheus Rising, unfair competition on Amazon, and a shoutout to 23andMe’s vanishing business model.

Oh, and if you see a quarter, pick it up.

Topics include:
– Volatility and numbness in 2025
– Dan’s new startup idea (inspired by Skype’s shutdown)
– Surviving tariffs, uncertainty, and unfair Amazon practices
– Fentanyl and the difference between drug policy and public safety
– Thoughts on Prometheus Rising and reality tunnels
– Survivorship bias, investing parlor games, and the danger of hindsight
– Trying not to get drafted

Books discussed:
– Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton Wilson
– Abduction: Human Encounters with Aliens by John E. Mack
– The Comfort Crisis by Michael Easter
– References to ideas by Jim O’Shaughnessy and Ben Hunt

Hello show notes readers,

What is writing? What is art? Did I create this or did a robot and how would you be able to tell the difference? This week we coin the term "adverbious", hoping to prove we aren't robots and also to give you a tool to figure out who the robots are. We can't define it but we know it when we see it, if you know what I mean?

Later, we delve into Dan's masterful schedule management as an entrepreneur. Dan explains what it took to get there, what it takes to maintain, and why it is one of the biggest benefits of entrepreneurship.

Finally, we get a little woo and explore the work of Robert Anton Wilson. I share some early thoughts from Prometheus Rising and Dan provides some context from other authors.

As always, thanks for listening! We welcome your feedback! Find Dan at www.twitter.com/danielhatke or Sean at www.twitter.com/slowvsm.

📚 Books Discussed

• Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton Wilson
• The Expectation Effect by David Robson
• Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
• Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
• The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Hello show notes readers!

This week, Sean and Dan look into the rhythms of the oil and gas world — how things speed up, slow down, and sometimes just stop. They talk about layoffs making headlines, how organizations expand and contract like they’re breathing, and what it feels like to be on the inside when that happens. Sean explains why fewer rigs don’t always mean less oil, and why the people most affected aren’t always the ones you’d think.

They get into how managers try (sometimes awkwardly) to protect and coach people, what it’s like to get blindsided, and why being chased by a metaphorical predator might not be all bad — at least for keeping you sharp. The converstion takes a detour into parenting, classrooms, and whether pulling your kid out of tough situations helps or hurts in the long run.

Plus: what homeschooling has in common with org charts, why messy code and stuck loops are part of building anything, and a few thoughts on agency, grace, and figuring out when to hold on or let go.

• Prometheus Rising – Robert Anton Wilson; explores consciousness, reality tunnels, and mindset shifts.
• Factfulness – Hans Rosling; emphasizes how the world is improving despite negative perceptions.
• The Fifth Risk – Michael Lewis; highlights essential but overlooked government jobs and inefficiencies.

• Neville Goddard: https://youtu.be/zXsZnDakDVA

00:00 - Weather and Cyclicality

01:07 - Oil Layoffs & Market Trends

02:55 - Why the U.S. Exports Oil

06:38 - Fracking & Efficiency Gains

07:34 - The Workplace "Breathes"

12:47 - The Role of Fear & Agency

16:52 - Education & Homeschooling Trends

28:38 - AI, Coding, and Debugging Frustrations

40:57 - AI Slack Bots for Work Productivity

50:43 - Prometheus Rising & Reality Tunnels

55:15 - Telepathy Tapes & The Tower of Babel

1:02:00 - Manifestation & The Power of Thought

1:06:02 - Government Jobs & Bureaucracy Debates

1:17:05 - Wrapping Up: Big Topics & Future Thoughts

Hello dear show notes reader,

We're 25 episodes in! Woo hoo! (Imagine Leslie Knope. Now read the italicized bit again.)

As the author of these show notes, I feel like 25 should be a significant number, but I also don’t have any valid reason why. Nonetheless, I felt inspired to make these show notes really shine!

What’s good about this episode?
While editing, I had two realizations:

1. Dan is a better podcast host than I am. (I’ll deal with that emotionally later.)
2. This episode’s format unintentionally gave me a meta-analysis moment—right here, in these show notes.

Here’s what I mean: we both read long quotes from books we’ve been chewing on. When one of us shares a quote, we know a follow-up question is coming—something like "What do you think?" Since we expect it, we listen more actively, playing with the idea in real time instead of waiting for our turn to speak. By the time the sharer is done, the listener is already mentally off to the races, turning the quote over, looking for angles. That made for some damn good back-and-forths.

What’s bad about this episode?
The prep work. As you will hear, we listened to the auidobook version of The Sovereign Individual, by Jame Dale Davidson and William Rees-Mogg, and neither of us enjoyed it. But we hope you enjoy our discussion about this slog of a book.

• The Sovereign Individual by James Dale Davidson and William Rees-Mogg
• The Fourth Turning by William Strauss and Neil Howe
• Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton Wilson
• The Tao Te Ching by Laotzi
• Three-Body Problem by Liu Xicin

[00:00] "Should We Just Move to a Tax Haven?"
[02:11] "Books That Should Have Been Shorter"
[04:33] "Did They Predict the Future?"
[06:48] "The Doomers Strike Again"
[10:16] "Technology Changes Power, but Does It Decentralize It?"
[17:59] "The Cyber Economy That Wasn’t"
[24:39] "Populism, Power, and the Small Guy’s Revenge"
[32:40] "Why Build a Few Big Things When You Can Build a Million Small Ones?"
[41:52] "Has the Outrage Faded?"
[45:31] "Should Governments Pay for Performance?"
[54:11] "The Future of Democracy and Its Critics"
[58:39] "Loneliness, Power, and the Failure of Community"

Hello dear show notes readers!

In this episode of Unqualified Advice we discuss our recent experiences writing code for building websites and apps with Cursor. In short, we're having a blast working with these new tools and have a few tips for those just getting started. We've recommended it before, but it's worth repeating Nat Eliason's Course Build Your Own Life Coach is a great course for beginners wanting to get started. And here is a demo of GumLoop from Greg Isenberg's channel on YouTube that impressed us both.

In the back-half of the episode, Dan stumbles across Nietzsche’s Modern Vices and we try to determine our views on overwork, curiosity, and sympathy.

• The Machiavellians, defenders of freedom by James Burnham: Recommended as a read on political freedom and preference falsification.

• Boom by Bern Hobart: Suggested for its fresh perspective on economic and innovation booms.

• Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman: Referenced when discussing modern media, communication, and information overload.

• Abduction by John E. Mack: Mentioned in the context of case studies on alien abductions, altered states of consciousness, and The Telepathy Tapes.

• Nietzsche’s Ideas: The discussion on modern vices is heavily inspired by Nietzsche’s critique of overwork, vague curiosity, and universal sympathy

00:00 Introduction and Current Events
02:56 Navigating Bureaucracy and Organizational Dynamics
05:37 Leadership Styles: Wartime vs. Peacetime CEOs
08:29 Embracing Change and Future Planning
11:17 Exploring New Skills and Content Creation
14:00 Technical Challenges and Innovations in Development
21:37 Exploring Competitors and AI Tools
26:31 Building in Public: Branding and Messaging
30:57 Modern Vices: Overwork, Curiosity, and Sympathy
39:58 Navigating Organizational Changes with Compassion
45:24 Exploring the Concept of Booms in Society
50:13 AI and Contextual Understanding

Hello dear show notes readers!

Welcome to another episode of Unqualified Advice. We recorded this one on Inauguration Day, so a few viewpoints have already been proven wildly-off or dead-on. We hit a lot of topics this week, as we catch up on our recent podcast addiction (The Telepathy Tapes) and what *it all means, man!* If you're a fan of sci-fi or an opponent of generational bashing, this one is for you!

• Generational Differences: Millennials vs. Zoomers, attitudes toward work, alcohol, risk-taking, and mental health.
• Weather & Climate Resilience: Houston’s rare snow event, infrastructure issues, and the impact of extreme cold.
• Telepathy & Consciousness: Discussion of The Telepathy Tapes podcast, skepticism vs. belief, scientific and philosophical questions about consciousness, metaphysics, and the nature of reality.
• Science Fiction & AI: Blade Runner 2049, The Matrix, Star Trek, and their influence on how we think about AI, consciousness, and society.
• News & Media Consumption: The role of cable news, Twitter, and TikTok in shaping public perception, information density, and generational media habits.
• Entrepreneurial Opportunities Under Trump 2.0: Speculative investment ideas based on anticipated policy shifts.
• Personal Growth & Mentorship: Volunteering, teaching, and giving back to the community, including discussions about Minds Matter and mentorship programs.

• The Master and His Emissary by Iain McGilchrist
• Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman
• The Coddling of the American Mind by Jonathan Haidt
• Of Boys and Men by Richard Reeves
• The Martian and Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
• Galápagos by Kurt Vonnegut
• Annihilation (Southern Reach Trilogy) by Jeff VanderMeer

• Manplow: Endorsement of a large snow shovel for efficient driveway clearing.
• TikTok: Discussion about its potential ban and its impact on younger generations.
• Diageo: Mentioned in the context of alcohol consumption declines and industry challenges.
• Jensen Huang/NVIDIA: Brief reference in relation to AI and robotics.
• Trump Coin: Mentioned in the context of speculation and financial opportunities.

1. "Happy Inauguration Day" (00:00) – Opening banter and Houston’s weather chaos.
2. "The Manplow Revolution" (02:47) – Discussion about the oversized snow shovel.
3. "The Telepathy Tapes: Mind-Blowing or Pseudoscience?" (04:06) – Deep dive into the podcast and consciousness theories.
4. "Sci-Fi, AI, and The Matrix" (12:48) – Exploring how science fiction shapes views on AI and the future.
5. "Millennials vs. Zoomers: Who’s Got It Right?" (40:04) – A generational comparison on risk, alcohol, and mental health.
6. "Mentorship, Minds Matter, and Giving Back" (1:09:19) – The role of volunteering and its personal impact.
7. "Making Money Off the Grift Economy" (1:05:57) – Investment speculation under the new administration.

Hello my dear show notes readers,

Welcome back for another episode advice. This one starts of personal for me as I explain how I've been getting into lifting weights. In the process, life reminded me of the old adage
"experience is what you get, when you don't get what you want." In short, I try to be as honest with myself and you as I can about hitting the bit 4-0 and making some important life decisions.

Later, we devolve into our usual banter with a heavy dose of AI talk. Dan and I are both having a blast with Nat Eliason's Course Build Your Own Life Coach. If our convo piqued your interest, you should check it out.

Later, Dan decides to match my energy - if you don't know what I mean, check out the Adam Grant and Charles Duhigg books below - and gets personal on recent challenges facing one of his ecomm businesses.

Y'all, it's simultaneously hard and exciting out there and we get REAL this week.

Cheers,

Sean

• The Sovereign Individual by James Dale Davidson and William Rees-Mogg
• Works of Carl Jung

• Bloomberg
• Amazon
• Google
• Apple
• Walmart
• Peloton
• Academy Sports + Outdoors

Chapters

00:00 Embracing the Big 4-0
03:53 Winding Down Fig: A Tough Decision
09:55 Lessons Learned from Business Ventures
12:48 Setting New Goals and Exploring AI
25:36 The Evolution of AI and Data Privacy
33:31 Personal Updates and AI Coding Adventures
40:28 Challenges of E-commerce and Tariff Enforcement
48:13 Navigating Tariff Codes and Compliance
54:08 Exploring Global Living Options
59:18 Insights from Carl Jung
01:04:16 The Power of Consciousness and Fate
01:08:11 Reflections on Planning and Control

Hello, Show Notes Readers

We find ourselves neck-deep in a discussion about stated versus revealed preferences for the half of the show, as I take us on a trip down memory lane after doing my Christmas shopping. Nostalgia alert! Dan explains his theory on capital flight and we come to the realization that 80s dystopic downtowns were symptoms and not causes of previous preference shifts.

After that, we look into the future as Dan tells us about his experience learning to write code with AI tools. The discussion gets a bit technical, but if you're thinking about how to apply AI in your day-to-day, be sure to listen in for Dan's tips on where to get started.

Thanks for tuning in and we hope you enjoy!

Cheers,

Sean

Highlights include:

• Why the retail landscape continues to evolve and what that means for the future of malls and city centers.
• A discussion on downtown revitalization and population density: can we break the boom-and-bust cycle of urban centers?
• Dan’s hands-on experience with AI-powered coding tools and how they’re changing the game for developers and non-developers alike.
• Practical tips for getting started with AI tools like Cursor, Bolt, and more.

• Sharper Image
• Amazon
• Brookstone
• SLB (formerly Schlumberger)
• Microsoft
• Google
• Tesla
• Simon Property Group

00:00 Holiday Reflections and the Evolution of Gift Shopping
06:44 The Changing Landscape of Malls
10:39 Capital Flight and Urban Revitalization
20:10 The Future of City Centers and Density
26:49 Economic Dynamics in Urban Development
31:48 Shifts in Urban Living Preferences
34:41 The Future of Software Development with AI
41:31 Building Software Solutions for Industry Challenges
47:07 Strategic Opportunities in the Oil and Gas Sector
51:46 Identifying Use Cases in Industries
54:24 Automation and Error Reduction in Business Processes
57:59 The Future of AI and Automation
01:00:37 Comparing AI Tools: ChatGPT vs. Claude
01:04:12 Exploring New Ideas and Recommendations