Values, Solved

Episode 01

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What You Choose To Care About Defines Your Life

Welcome to the first episode of the Solved Podcast. Today, we are solving your values.

Over eight years ago, I wrote The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck—a book that, underneath all the swearing and irreverence, was really about one thing: values. What do you care about? What’s actually worth your time, your energy, your life?

So in this kickoff episode of SOLVED, Drew and I are going deep into why your values are the foundation of everything—your happiness, your mental health, your relationships, your sense of meaning—and why so many of us today feel so lost.

We break down the difference between chasing cheap dopamine hits and building real fulfillment, why not all values are created equal, how to figure out what your true values are, how to change your values, how to start living out your values more fully, and how values silently shape your decisions and relationships every day. If you’ve ever felt stuck, directionless, or like you’re living someone else’s life, this episode is the wake-up call you need. It’s time to stop drifting through life and start giving a fck about the right things. Forget the rest.

Welcome to SOLVED.

Episode Notes

Welcome to SOLVED

Episode Roadmap

CHAPTER 1: What are Values?

Characteristics of Values

Values vs. Psychological Needs vs. Preferences

Schwartz’s Values Wheel

Instrumental and Terminal Values

Hierarchy of Values

Values Conflict

Carol Ryff’s Six Dimensions of Psychological Well-being

Aristotle’s Golden Mean as Virtue

CHAPTER 2: Values and Your Relationships

Values and Conflict in Relationships

The Clash of Values in Relationships

Identifying and Navigating Values in Relationships

Understanding Compatibility Through Values

CHAPTER 3: Where Do Values Come From?

Margaret Mead’s Cultural Relativism

Mary Douglas’s and the Grid-Group Framework

Jonathan Haidt’s Moral Foundations Theory

The Allegory of the Taco Truck

CHAPTER 4: Identifying Your Core Values

Thought Experiments to Find Your Values

The Instrumental Value of Golf

The Role of Trauma in Value Change

CHAPTER 5: How to Change Your Values

Kazimierz Dabrowski and Positive Disintegration

On Cults and Cognitive Dissonance

Self-Confrontation and Value Change

Charlie Munger’s Maxim: Incentives and Behavior

CHAPTER 6: Lessons and Takeaways

Aristotle’s Practical Wisdom

The 80/20 of Values

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