How to Reframe Your "Problems" as "Puzzles" | A.J. Jacobs

How to Reframe Your "Problems" as "Puzzles" | A.J. Jacobs

New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers.

---

A counterintuitive way to become more clear, creative, and persistent, via a writer who calls himself a "human guinea pig."


A.J. Jacobs is an author, journalist, podcaster, and human guinea pig. His new podcast "The Puzzler" is produced by iHeart and is in the Top 20 Apple Podcasts. He has written four New York Times bestsellers that combine memoir, science, humor and a dash of self-help. Among his books are "The Year of Living Biblically" and "The Know-It-All." He has told several Moth stories, has given several TED talks that have amassed over 10 million views. His latest book is "The Puzzler," which Booklist called "ridiculously entertaining," and The New York Times called "a romp, both fun and funny."


In this episode we talk about:

  • The "puzzle mindset" and how it can change the way you approach your problems
  • Creating a puzzle that will take billions of years to solve
  • How puzzles can help us during dark times
  • The dark side of the puzzling world
  • How his gratitude project made him better at talking to himself
  • Learning to appreciate everyday objects and people he sees all the time
  • How pretending to be a good person helped him actually learn to be one – most of the time


Sign up for Dan's weekly newsletter here

Follow Dan on social: Instagram, TikTok

Ten Percent Happier online bookstore

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

Our favorite playlists on: Anxiety, Sleep, Relationships, Most Popular Episodes


Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/tph/podcast-episode/aj-jacobs-688


Additional Resources:

Download the Ten Percent Happier app today: https://10percenthappier.app.link/install

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(1101)

Stressed, Anxious, or Drained at Work? Here's How To Follow Your Energy, Take Smart Risks, and Find Work You Actually Like | Molly Graham

Stressed, Anxious, or Drained at Work? Here's How To Follow Your Energy, Take Smart Risks, and Find Work You Actually Like | Molly Graham

Plus: the only two things you really take with you when you leave a job, why following a great boss beats chasing a hot company, and why she thinks "I've missed the boat" on AI is a lie. Molly Graham ...

12 Okt 1h

Calm Your Nervous System: Simple Daily Practices for When You're Wired, Hangry, or Too Busy to Rest | Nadia Narain & Katia Narain Phillips

Calm Your Nervous System: Simple Daily Practices for When You're Wired, Hangry, or Too Busy to Rest | Nadia Narain & Katia Narain Phillips

A tongue-in-cheek jaw release, a 30-second shake-off, and a two-finger trick that tells your body it's safe. Plus: why scrolling feels relaxing but isn't. Nadia Narain and Katia Narain Phillips are th...

9 Okt 55min

Anxious? Rushed? Reaching for Your Phone? Four Buddhist Phrases To Bring You Back | Brother Phap Dung and Kaira Jewel Lingo

Anxious? Rushed? Reaching for Your Phone? Four Buddhist Phrases To Bring You Back | Brother Phap Dung and Kaira Jewel Lingo

Why tensing against pain makes it worse, the difference between acceptance and passivity, and how to plan for the future while staying present—from two of Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh's senior students....

7 Okt 1h 1min

How To Be Sanely Productive | Oliver Burkeman

How To Be Sanely Productive | Oliver Burkeman

The liberation that comes from realizing that you're never going to get everything done. Oliver Burkeman is the author of the Sunday Times bestselling Four Thousand Weeks, The Antidote, and most rec...

5 Okt 1h 10min

Surviving the News: Buddhist Strategies for Staying Sane, Engaged, and Not Completely Furious | Pascal Auclair

Surviving the News: Buddhist Strategies for Staying Sane, Engaged, and Not Completely Furious | Pascal Auclair

You don't get to choose what's thrown at you — only how you respond. Karma as a tool for agency, attention sovereignty as a political act, and what to do when you feel completely helpless. The news is...

2 Okt 35min

Annoying Partners, Aging Parents, Impossible Coworkers: Buddhist Advice for Conflict, Communication, and "Patience with Teeth" | devon and nico hase

Annoying Partners, Aging Parents, Impossible Coworkers: Buddhist Advice for Conflict, Communication, and "Patience with Teeth" | devon and nico hase

Which conflict style are you? Plus: avoiding the "trance of nice," walking the high wire, and an uber-hack for getting over irritation. devon + nico hase serve as guiding teachers of the online dharma...

30 Sep 1h 12min

Your 'Inner Child' Runs Your Life. Here's How To Spot It and Take Back the Wheel. | Dr. Galit Atlas

Your 'Inner Child' Runs Your Life. Here's How To Spot It and Take Back the Wheel. | Dr. Galit Atlas

Six archetypes: Which one are you? Plus, a simple question to help you distinguish real, current fears from old, outdated ones. Dr. Galit Atlas is an internationally renowned psychoanalyst and leader ...

28 Sep 59min

Your Inner Critic Won't Stop Adding Rules. Here's The Fix. | Julian Shapiro-Barnum

Your Inner Critic Won't Stop Adding Rules. Here's The Fix. | Julian Shapiro-Barnum

What kids can teach you about how to handle anger, being uptight, and rejection, according to the creator of Recess Therapy. Julian Shapiro-Barnum is a comedian, writer, and interviewer known for Rece...

25 Sep 46min

Populært innen Helse

fastlegen
rss-gukild-johaug
psykodrama
hvordan-har-du-det-mann
leger-om-livet
rss-kunsten-a-leve
rss-skravla-gar
relasjonspodden-med-dora-thorhallsdottir-kjersti-idem
rss-dagen-for-dagen
foreldreradet
treningsprat
morten-ramm-lar-kakla-ga-til-du-sovner
hjernesterk
rss-lopedrommen
rss-loping-for-nybegynnere
g-punktet
fryktlos
bak-fasaden-en-reise-i-livet-med-sykepleier-ine
helsetipspodden
kjed-deg-i-sovn-verdens-kjedeligste-podcast