Tim Ferriss - 5-Bullet Friday — September 8, 2023

Hi All!

Here is your weekly dose of 5-Bullet Friday, a list of what I’m pondering and exploring. Feel free to forward along if the spirit moves you.

What I’m reading

“Is Bach the greatest achiever of all time?” by Tyler Cowen (@tylercowen).

What I’m listening to

“The Birth of Babylon” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) on The Rest Is History podcast with Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook.
​“The Sumerians - Fall of the First Cities” (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast) on the Fall of Civilizations podcast with Paul M.M. Cooper.
​
Quick reframe for fun: time-wise, you and I are closer to Cleopatra’s life (70/69 BC–10 August 30 BC) than Cleopatra was to the construction of the pyramids (c. 2570 BC).
​
Huge thanks to T. Face for the above recommendations!

What I’m watching

​Arnold. This was recommended to me by at least a dozen friends, and it doesn’t disappoint. This three-part miniseries is from the same producers who gave us The Defiant Ones. The official description: “This intimate docuseries follows Arnold Schwarzenegger’s multifaceted life and career, from bodybuilding champ to Hollywood icon to politician.”

What I’m excited to dig into this weekend and next week

​Your responses here. My podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show, is turning 10 years old next year, and I couldn’t be more excited. After almost 700 episodes and nearly 1B downloads, it’s arguably the biggest thing I’ve ever done, and without you all—my dear listeners—this show wouldn’t exist. Thank you so much for allowing me to do this work. As the big birthday approaches, I’d love to get to know you all better. By filling out this survey, you can help me choose the best guests, formats, topics/questions, sponsors, and much more. And as a thank-you, I’ll be giving away 20 signed copies of The 4-Hour Workweek to 20 people who fill out the survey. Could you please take a moment today and fill it out? It doesn’t take long, and it would mean a lot.

Quote I’m pondering

“To learn to be always in a state of meditation means never to let your vital energy wane. You would never allow it to do so if it were certain that you were to die tomorrow. It wanes because you forget about death. Grit your teeth, fix your gaze, and observe death at this moment. You have to feel it so strongly that it seems as if it’s attacking you. Fearless energy comes from this. At this moment, death is right before your eyes. It’s not something you can afford to neglect.” ​
— Suzuki Shōsan (1579–1655)
(Click here to share on Twitter.)
​

​
You can complement this edition of 5-Bullet Friday with my brand-new interview with Nassim Nicholas Taleb and Scott Patterson, my conversation with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and my interview with Tyler Cowen.
​
And, as always, please give me feedback on Twitter. Which bullet above is your favorite? What do you want more or less of? Other suggestions? Please let me know. Just send a tweet to @tferriss and put #5BulletFriday at the end so I can find it.
​
Have a wonderful weekend, all.
​
Much love to you and yours,
​
Tim