Tyler Cowen is an economist, cultural critic, and intellectual outlier. In this episode, he shares how to build fast filters for truth, how to spot underrated people, and why great thinkers don’t just read — they digest. You’ll walk away seeing ideas, talent, and decision-making differently.
Listen on Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Transcript
Tyler is an economics professor at George Mason University, a regular New York Times columnist, and the author of over a dozen books, including Average is Over, and The Complacent Class.
Here are a few highlights from our conversation:
- How the future of labor will look drastically different than it does today, and what we can do to future-proof our livelihood
- The pros and cons of virtual reality and the impact it could have on society
- The fate of newspapers and how information will be more and more “bundled” according to our tastes and preferences
- Race relations in the world, and how in many ways we’ve taken discouraging steps backwards
- How we’re losing touch with the physical world, and some of the symptoms that indicate that we could be in for a rough ride
- What Tyler suggests doing to improve decision making and how important (and rare) that skill will be in the coming years
- Tyler’s advice to parents about how to foster resilience, tenacity and internal drive in their children
- Tyler’s “quake books” and the reading process he’s developed over the years that keeps him sharp
- Why giving books as gifts can be dangerous
- The one skill every person should possess before Googling anything
- What playing competitive chess as a child taught Tyler about how he thinks and views the world today
And much more, including Tyler’s thoughts on minimum wage, bitcoin, and his favorite television programs.
Don’t miss this fascinating episode if you want to upgrade your thinking.
Enjoy!
