Ep. 59 - Brian Koppelman: Brian Ruined My Life

James and Brian, although having never met before, instantly bond. They both, albeit at different times, played poker at the legendary Mayfair Club and relive some of those great stories. As Brian says, "You'd leave early in the morning either with a gangsters roll in your pocket or knowing you'd just lost... but somehow as you'd walk out, four, four-thirty, five in the morning and get into a gypsy cab... something just felt right in the world..." The Mayfair Club was Brian and his writing partner David Levien's inspiration for the hit movie Rounders starring Matt Damon. Brian attributes a lot of his success to his ADHD. He's able to laser focus in things that fascinate him. When he came across the singer-songwriter Tracey Chapman, he was hooked. She had something very special and he "knew it." But "knowing it" and getting her to believe he knew it and that he could help her took years of hard work. She originally said no a hundred times in a row. You've got to listen to Brian's story about Phillip Roth and the elevator... It's a classic. They dive deep into the question of how can you turn off that voice inside you that tells you that you suck. Put some kind of practice into your life; walk, exercise, meditate, whatever... as long as it works for you, do it. This is a great interview... one of James' all-time best. ------------What do YOU think of the show? Head to JamesAltucherShow.com/listeners and fill out a short survey that will help us better tailor the podcast to our audience!Are you interested in getting direct answers from James about your question on a podcast? Go to JamesAltucherShow.com/AskAltucher and send in your questions to be answered on the air!------------Visit Notepd.com to read our idea lists & sign up to create your own!My new book, Skip the Line, is out! Make sure you get a copy wherever books are sold!Join the You Should Run for President 2.0 Facebook Group, where we discuss why you should run for President.I write about all my podcasts! Check out the full post and learn what I learned at jamesaltuchershow.com------------Thank you so much for listening! If you like this episode, please rate, review, and subscribe to "The James Altucher Show" wherever you get your podcasts: Apple PodcastsiHeart RadioSpotifyFollow me on social media:YouTubeTwitterFacebookLinkedIn See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.