Question This Life questionthislife

This episode of Question This Life is a solo episode with your host. 
 
Key Topics of discussion: 
- The host's return from a long trip to visit the south of England - first time seeing family in years - and visiting multiple enigmatic megalithic and Neolithic sites. 
- Observations about how quickly children develop in the matter of 2-3 years compared to adults - some key takeaways from spending time with a deep-thinking and insightful kid. 
- The importance of the dream state in ancient cultures throughout the world - many which continue to this day - such as the native Australians who in fact speak of our waking world as a dream. 
- The intensity of dreams to a kid vs to an adult - night terrors, nightmares, lucid dreaming - exercises you can do to help children who struggle with these kinds of sleep issues. 
- The concept of interacting with dream characters - especially standing up to the scary ones - and how beneficial this can be to improve sleep and dream quality. 
- The fact that there is occult symbolism and deep knowledge of ancient civilizations, legends, myths and traditions incorporated into pop culture; film universes such as Star Wars. 
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- A description of some of the sights seen on the trip to South England starting with Stonehenge - impressions, reflections on the weathering and the visible size and age of the stones. 
- Tips on how to view Stonehenge for free, and some key things to look out for that not many tourists check out at the site. 
- The fact that people live at the site of Stonehenge in caravans - seeing it as a very important part of their life and worship. 
- A description of Avebury - an under-visited site that is only 30 minutes from Stonehenge, truly incredible - enormous stones, breath-taking site. 
- A description of 3 Rows, and multiple other 'off the beaten track' megalithic and Neolithic sites, artificial mounds, burial chambers, dolmans that are dotted around the whole of the UK.
- Some thoughts on 'Heritage England' and the preservation not for profits, whose efficacy splits public opinion. 
- The discrepancies, speculations and misinformation contained within the information placards at all of the premier sites - and how they use a very specific language to justify their theory of how the sites were built, by whom and for what purpose.
- The concept of 'grounding' - connecting to the ancient sites physically through the earth. 
- Reflecting on the multiple of visitors who were doing rituals at the sites, treating them with reverence and respect, and using them for their own religious / spiritual endeavours. 
- Discussing options of where to post videos taken from these sites - creating the first 'Question This Life' video channel - Rokfin, Odyssey - or any other alternative to the big behemoth. 
 
Shout out to Megalithomania UK for the great content that's constantly being published on Youtube, and is referenced in this episode: www.youtube.com/user/MegalithomaniaUK 
This is a 100% free plug for The Sovereign Individual - an excellent book written in the 90's that foreshadows many of the current goings on in the world in terms of how the advent of digitalisation has brought and will continue to bring opportunity to ever-increasingly sovereign individuals.  
Get Involved.  | Visit: www.questionthislife.com  | Follow: @questionthislifepodcast 

This episode of Question This Life is a solo episode with your host. 
Key Topics of discussion: 
PART 1
- How much we create a 'cocktail of worry' in our own minds - even from the most inocuous events - learning to spot this and not allow it to take control. 
- Update on last week's episode; that moment when you realise the worry you created in your mind and shared with your podcast audience was all much ado about nothing! Which is often the way... 
- Observing the things that affect you, writing about them, reflecting on them - and notice WHY they make you feel defensive, negative or fearful, which in turn doesnt allow those thoughts to take hold. 
- The ever-present concepts of gratitude, abundance and positive thinking - to overcome doubt, fear and scarceity. 
- The concept of your inner child, traumas, worries - and getting past them using new persepectives and growth. 
- Progress update regarding the latest comedy shows on stage; enjoying the latest spell of performing, hosting, running shows and working on being myself, finding a flow and finding my voice on stage. 
- The process of getting more comfortable with conversing with the audience i.e. 'crowd work' - not always relying on material, but rather concocting a nice mix of both aspects. 
- Finally being able to book and hopefully travel to go home, to see close family and friends - the relief. 
 
PART 2
- The feeling of that you're being 'judged' by strangers, or people in a room / environment - when really you are just a spec in their reality like they are one in yours. 
- The highs and lows that come with often feeling empathetic, open and agreeable. 
- Incorrectly feeling that other people are thinking about you - rather than their own thoughts and worries. Turning this concept on its head - when you observe other people.
- Experiencing that feeling in a scenario where no-one is observing you - as a way to help realise that that these feelings of being 'under scrutiny' just come and go in life, and are not reflective of reality.
- Always aiming to be confident and forthright in the world but also to stay humble, not claiming to know the answers to everything, understanding that we can be wrong, make mistakes - and most importantly grow. 
 
This is a completely free plug for a fantastic personality course that will quickly help you Question This Life and understand more about your traits and virtues. 
It's available at: https://understandmyself.com/  
This test and other associated products changed the way I looked at my life, my career, my time, my virtues, my traits - and is a big reason why I am doing the things I am doing today, living a life based in meaning and not wasting my time doing things I don't want to be doing. 
Get Involved.  | Visit: www.questionthislife.com  | Follow: @questionthislifepodcast 

This episode of Question This Life is a solo episode with your host. 
Key Topics: 
 
PART 1
- Being succinct. The challenge of getting your thoughts out through your spoken word quickly and succinctly. 
- The challenges of being long-winded, struggling to get your thoughts out quickly. 
- The feeling like your words are slower than your thoughts - playing catch up with what's already coming out of your mouth. 
- The interesting different types of personalities that you come across in social situations - how people deal with communicating differently. 
- The feeling of 'missing your turn' to speak - in conversation, especially in a group setting. 
- Coming to terms with the fact that you don't have to feel pressured to be entertaining, funny, insightful, interesting - you can also just 'be' there. 
- The advice from professional comedians - including Tony Hinchliffe - regarding removing unnecessary fat and detail from your jokes, and integrating this advice into day-to-day life. 
 
PART 2
- How much the 'stories' we make up in our minds influence our reality - keeping aware of this. 
- An example from the host's week gone by where the possibility to overthink, and make more of a nothing situation, was present and was caught just in time. 
- How your 'inner child' traumas still have the ability to influence your life today, unhelpfully making mountains out of molehills in your mind.
- Remembering the concept that the opinion other people have about you is absolutely none of your business. 
- Remembering the concepts of abundance and gratitude -whenever the possibility to overthink and make negative stories in your mind pops up. 
- Not allowing your mind to wander, and get yourself derailed when fear or anxiety pops up, but rather always choosing to be grateful for what you do have, and remembering that you have everything you need. 
- The concept of not harbouring fear or resentment with anyone from your past - but rather learning from the experience, integrating any pain and suffering and becoming stronger. 
- Realising that when you go through multiple scenarios in your mind this is you causing yourself stress, causing yourself worry - and not helping the situation whatsoever. 
- The principle of sending positive wishes to the people who inluenced you negatively in the past well, 'praying' for them, empathising with their situation that made them so negative to you, and integrating that positive emotion switch into your frame of mind. 
- Realising that all the fear, doubt, worry and pain suffered in the past sharpens you, makes you stronger and points you into the direction where you actually want to go. 
- Realising that if you are doing something unique, worthwhile and interesting - following your heart and your passions - this will definitely rub people up the wrong way. Negative feedback from negative people can also be a sign you are doing things right.
 
This is a completely free plug for an excellent online self-assessment personality test that anyone can quickly and easily do for themselves. 
It's available at: https://understandmyself.com/  
This test and other associated products changed the way I looked at my life, my career, my time, my virtues, my traits - and is a big reason why I am doing the things I am doing today, living a life based in meaning and not wasting my time doing things I don't want to be doing. 
Get Involved.  | Visit: www.questionthislife.com  | Follow: @questionthislifepodcast 

This episode of Question This Life is a solo episode with your host. 
 
Key Topics: 
- Continuing the reflections around being yourself in the moment, getting out of your own way - in the podcast as much as when performing on stage and in day-to-day life. 
- A new few comedy set reflections - calling the room, talking to the audience, feeling the vibes and tensions. 
- The idea that most audience members at a show want to see something, want the performer to do well - playing to this and trying to be as present as possible. 
- Reinvestigating older themes / ideas on stage after some time, to try and draw new perspectives / laughs. 
- Reinvigorating a comedy gameshow idea into a live event having secured a venue - initial thoughts and reflections. 
- Integrating the idea of not 'second guessing' yourself from the stage performance to day-to-day life. 
- The importance of knowing what you don't know. What little you know vs the huge amount that you don't know. 
- Cat update! 8 months since adopting 2 kittens, how they have settled, what their individual vibe is. Building a lovely relationship with them. 
- Interesting things cats do like the 'kneading' action on your stomach, finding and hiding things, playing catch - their interactions with one-another. Becoming a crazy cat person.
- Setting boundaries with pets - keeping one room as the 'human room' - and how they have learnt to accept this.  
 
This is a completely free plug for an excellent online self-assessment personality test that anyone can quickly and easily do for themselves. 
It's available at: https://understandmyself.com/  
This test and other associated products changed the way I looked at my life, my career, my time, my virtues, my traits - and is a big reason why I am doing the things I am doing today, living a life based in meaning and not wasting my time doing things I don't want to be doing. 
Get Involved.  | Visit: www.questionthislife.com  | Follow: @questionthislifepodcast 

This episode of Question This Life is a solo episode with your host. 
Part 1 | 00:00:00 - 00:17:31 | 
Part 2 | 00:17:31 - 00:34:34 | 
 
PART 1 
- More detail about integrating good advice and philosophies gathered from deep conversations with experienced peers in your world. 
- When performing as a a comedian, the challenge of finding the balance between being 100% yourself, alert and ready for whatever happens in the moment - and sharing your written, thought-out ideas. 
- Accidentally 'being yourself' early on in comedy, and recognising this fact later in your career when you start to understand what that actually means.  - How the concept of 'being yourself' is something that brings positive results when integrated into your life at every level. 
- Celebrating securing a regular showcase slot once per month at a comedy club - with 3 fellow comedian friends - and how this will have a positive knock on effect with more experience of running, hosting and marketing a show - as well as performing longer sets on stage.  
 
PART 2 
- The concept of worrying, caring what other people think about what you do, who you are, what you say, how you carry yourself etc. 
- Integrating the idea that everyone around you is in their own reality tunnel, you are a minimal part of theirs - and what their opinion is of you is absolutely none of your business. 
- The freedom that comes with realising your thoughts, emotions insecurities, anxieties - are all in your head - and not something anyone else can hear or see or feel. 
- The fear-based trauma responses of living in a tough city growing up that influence how you feel in the present - no matter how irrational it is, and despite how safe and secure things are. 
- Small town mentality - how it hardens you but also can linger as a negative influence. 
- The 'self righteousness' that sits within the belief that everyone else is thinking about you. 
- The infinite possibilities behind someone else's decision making processes - and how important it is to accept you have close to no influence on that whatsoever. 
- The importance of not falling for the trap of feeling 'triggered' when a stranger judges you. 
- Understanding that everyone has their own issues, triggers, traumas emotions - and these have a huge bearing on how they feel about their surroundings and how they choose to act. 
This is a completely free plug for an excellent online self-assessment personality test that anyone can quickly and easily do for themselves.  
 
This is a completely free plug for an excellent online self-assessment personality test that anyone can quickly and easily do for themselves. 
It's available at: https://understandmyself.com/  
This test and other associated products changed the way I looked at my life, my career, my time, my virtues, my traits - and is a big reason why I am doing the things I am doing today, living a life based in meaning and not wasting my time doing things I don't want to be doing. 
Get Involved.  | Visit: www.questionthislife.com  | Follow: @questionthislifepodcast 

This episode of Question This Life is a solo episode with your host. 
Part 1 | 00:00:00 - 00:29:04 | 
Part 2 | 00:29:04 - 00:54:32 | 
 
PART 1 
- The concept of 'being yourself'- what does it mean? In Lehman's terms. It's prevalence in the self help / motivation niche online. 
- The concept of 'being yourself' in the world of comedy. The idea of having long-term success and hitting new levels by 'finding yourself' on stage'. 
- The different 'schools of thought' and philosophies of what comedy is, and how 'being yoruself' plays a role in that. 
- Improvisation / communication with the audience / living in the moment on stage VS big performance/ material/joke-based events that are more 'monologue' in format. 
- Figuring out your own path in comedy - through trial and error, taking on wisdom from the greats - and creating your own 'self' on stage. 
- Covering the key parts of a fantastic conversation with a professional comedian who mainly improvises and lives 'in the moment' rather than focussing on material.  - Never forgetting to 'call it like it is' in the room. 
- Having pre-conceptions of what you want to achieve from a comedy set - sometimes so much so that you are guarding yourself from what might actually happen in the moment.
- The idea that there is no such thing as 'crowd work' rather it's just a relationship and connection being built with the audience from the second you step on stage. 
 
PART 2 
- One of my favourite performances on stage in recent memory - after truly focussing on integrating the concept of 'being yourself' on stage, connecting with the audience personally, treating the performance as a conversation with the audience rather than a 1-way monologue. 
- A clear description of the way this principle materialised on stage - talking specifically about commenting on the energy in the room, how things felt in the moment, interacting with the audience like they are part of a conversation rather than simply 'audience' members. 
- Truly connecting with the audience - not just looking 'at' them. Being totally present - appreciating the moment for what it is. Feeling the feelings. 
- How a live performance can naturally evolve and grow if you risk failure by truly being in the moment. 
- The contrast of 'laughs' at material vs improvised comments and jokes. 
- How powerful it felt to truly be 'myself' on stage for what felt like one of the first times - and seeing a tiny glimpse of what this actually means. 
- The concept of integrating the 'being myself' part of comedy with the pre-written material / joke-first style. 
- The importance of extrapolating these insights regarding 'being yourself' in comedy - and using them to integrate into other areas of life - other passions, other endeavours. 
 
This is a completely free plug for an excellent book by a fantastic author - The 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris. This book changed the way I looked at my life, my career, my time - and is a big reason why I am doing the things I am doing today, living a life based in meaning and not wasting my time doing things I don't want to be doing. If you want to maximise your time and resources, and think about your life in a much more constructive, forward-thinking way, do yourself a favour and give this book a read!
https://fourhourworkweek.com/ 
 
Get Involved.  | Visit: www.questionthislife.com  | Follow: @questionthislifepodcast