
Create Your Ideal Future Using Science-Based Protocols | Ari Wallach
Andrew Huberman
Oct 14, 2024
Mindsip insights from this episode:
Use aging photo filter to inspire long-term decision making
To make better long-term decisions, take a photo of yourself, use an app to age it, and place it on your bathroom mirror to look at daily.
Pursue protopia for a progressively better future
Instead of striving for a perfect "utopia" or fearing a "dystopia," focus on creating a "protopia"—a future that is not perfect but is actively and progressively better than today.
Write a letter to define your future self
The real benefit of writing a letter to your future self isn't receiving it, but the act of writing it, which forces you to define who you want to become.
Confront death to inspire future thinking
According to Ernest Becker's "The Denial of Death," our fear of mortality drives short-term behavior, and confronting it can free you to become a "great ancestor.".
Recognize future self to improve sacrifice for long-term goals
Brain imaging studies show we view our future selves as strangers, which is why it's hard to make sacrifices for them, like saving for retirement.
Use empty photo frame as reminder for future generations
Place an empty photo frame on your shelf next to family pictures to serve as a daily, tangible reminder of your responsibility to future generations you may never meet.
Use emotions as kedge anchors to pull toward desired outcomes
Instead of being reactive, use emotions as a "kedge anchor" by feeling the desired emotional state of a future outcome to actively pull yourself toward it.
Break free from presentism to foster long-term thinking
Our modern culture has pushed us into "presentism," a state of being trapped in the immediate moment by notifications, which prevents long-term thinking.
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