Lee Eisenberg - How to Give Life Meaning

Lee Eisenberg was the editor-in-chief of Esquire magazine for two decades. In 1995, he joined Time Inc. as a consulting editor and helped launch a series of new initiatives such as Time.com, Time for Kids, and The Time 100. In 2006, he published The Number, which became a national bestseller. Today, Lee talks to Connor and Roger about his latest book, The Point Is, and why having a personal narrative is so important for our life journey.

Key Takeaways:

[0:30] As of today, we're in Toronto, L.A, and Vancouver.

[0:35] If you're in any of those cities, come out to our event.

[2:55] What was a defining moment for Lee as a man?

[4:25] How do we really build a life story for ourselves?

[5:00] Why did Lee write The Point Is?

[7:15] Why do we endure certain memories and re-write others?

[8:50] Personal narrative requires a lot of self-reflection.

[9:00] Were there any commonalities in how people saw themselves?

[10:35] Lee has only kept a diary once in his life.

[12:20] When you record events in real time, you really don't know what they'll stand for later.

[12:50] Virtually no one is keeping a diary.

[16:25] Lee is a bit cynical about talk therapy; however, it can help reexamine past traumas and bad memories and help you rewrite your life story.

[17:35] Most people feel like they're not using their creative channel efficiency.

[18:45] It's important to uncover your story as well as share your story.

[20:10] You don't necessarily tell your story to others, but at the very least tell your story to yourself.

[20:20] Why do we remember certain things so strongly and why do we attach so much importance to certain things?

[20:55] How can people dive into their personal story a bit more?

[22:25] We create personal myths for ourselves. What is your personal myth?

[23:30] What novel genre would your life story be?

[27:50] The power of narrative is why we can go through life and make some sense of it.

[28:55] Do people get their personal narrative mixed up with other people's view of them?

[30:25] What legacy would Lee like to leave behind?

Mentioned in This Episode:

www.mantalks.com/

www.leeeisenberg.com/

The Number by Lee Eisenberg

The Point Is by Lee Eisenberg

Music Credit:

Parlange & Latenite Automatic (www.jesusparlange.com – www.lateniteautomatic.com)

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