Think First with Jim Detjen

Jim Detjen | Gaslight 360
  • 4.4 (30)
  • PHILOSOPHY
  • UPDATED SEMIWEEKLY

Think First is a short-form podcast that makes you pause — before you scroll, share, or believe the headline. Hosted by Jim Detjen, a guy who’s been gaslit enough to start a podcast about it, Think First dives into modern narratives, media manipulation, and cultural BS — all through the lens of gaslighting and poetic truth. Some episodes are two minutes. Some are an hour. It depends on the story — and the energy drink situation. No rants. No lectures. Just sharp questions, quick insights, and the occasional laugh to keep things sane. Whether you’re dodging spin in the news, politics, or that “trust me, bro” post in your feed… take a breath. Think first. Visit Gaslight360.com/clarity to sharpen your BS filter and explore the 6-step clarity framework. 🚨Distorted is set to release on February 10, 2026, and pre-orders are now available on Ingram, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble. Reserve your copy today — and join me in cutting through the distortion. Paperback and Kindle: Amazon Hardcover: Barnes & Noble

Episodes

  1. Reserve a Free Signed Copy Before February 10

    1D AGO · BONUS

    Reserve a Free Signed Copy Before February 10

    This is a short bonus episode. Distorted — the book behind Think First — is now available as a free Advanced Reader Copy, in signed paperback or eBook, for listeners. If you’ve left a rating for Think First on Apple Podcasts — and plan to review Distorted on Amazon when it officially releases — you can request the ARC here: 👉 https://www.jimdetjen.com/arc No verification. This is built on trust. Early reviews don’t reward popularity. They act as signal — helping thoughtful work surface in noisy systems. Until next time, stay skeptical, stay curious… and Think First. Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    2 min

  2. 3D AGO · BONUS

    When Feelings Replace Reality: The Danger of Narratives That Just "Feel True"

    What if the most powerful lies… don’t look like lies at all? In this episode of Think First, we unpack poetic truth — the kind of storytelling that sounds noble, feels right, and spreads fast… even when it’s not true. From history to Hollywood, we break down how emotional narratives are replacing reality — and why challenging them comes with a cost. Because when facts become optional… the loudest feelings win. Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    7 min

  3. 5D AGO

    FLASHBACK #17 Stolen Land · The Ritual, The Riot, and The Rewrite

    They say we live on stolen land. And now, that slogan has leapt from classroom rituals to street riots. From land acknowledgments to ICE agents being swarmed in the name of justice. But what happens when poetic truth replaces real history — and guilt becomes policy? Jim Detjen breaks down the narrative, the irony, and the gaslight driving the Summer of Selective Sovereignty. Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    7 min
  4. #92 Why Chasing the Future Is Ruining Youth Sports and What Actually Works Instead

    JAN 26

    #92 Why Chasing the Future Is Ruining Youth Sports and What Actually Works Instead

    We love to talk about the future — rankings, opportunities, exposure. But real development doesn’t happen out there. It happens today. After nearly a decade running one of the most demanding youth basketball camps in the country, I’ve watched the same pattern repeat itself: kids grow fastest when the environment protects the present — not the promise. In this episode, we explore why sports like basketball and swimming are such powerful teachers of life, how discipline and belief systems transfer far beyond the game, and what happens when preparation finally meets opportunity. I also share a personal story about my son Elliott — years of five-a-m. workouts, quiet work, and a decision not to chase basketball professionally — and why that outcome mattered far less than who he became. This isn’t about hype. It’s about habits. And why taking care of today changes everything that comes next. Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    14 min
  5. #91 A Year Later · Still Waiting on Justice

    JAN 26

    #91 A Year Later · Still Waiting on Justice

    A year later, many Americans are still waiting — not for vengeance, not for show trials, but for explanation. This episode of Think First isn’t about indictments. It’s about legitimacy… and what happens when institutions ask for patience, but refuse to explain the delay. After a year of publicly granted patience, many Americans are asking the same question quietly: Is anything actually happening — and if so, why won’t anyone say so? We explore why delay can be prudent… but silence is corrosive. Why restraint without communication starts to look like protection. And why trust collapses faster from unanswered questions than from bad headlines. Along the way, we examine the growing gap between public expectations and institutional communication surrounding issues that have dominated the national conversation — including: Jeffrey Epstein and unanswered transparency questionsAllegations of DOJ weaponization and political prosecutionsRussiagate, James Comey, and intelligence community credibilityThe Mar-a-Lago raid and unresolved accountability questionsCOVID lockdowns, mandates, and origin investigationsThe Twitter Files and government–platform coordinationJanuary 6th narratives and disputed law-enforcement claims2020 election concerns and unresolved public trustLarge-scale fraud cases involving NGOs and government oversightQuestions surrounding executive authority and the Biden autopenLongstanding scrutiny of Clinton-era controversies and nonprofit governanceThe role of foreign influence, NGOs, and elite accountabilityNot to relitigate them — but to ask a more dangerous question: What does the public do when institutions ask for patience… but refuse to explain the delay? This episode models restraint over rage, clarity over certainty, and why silence is never a neutral act. Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    16 min
  6. #90 When ChatGPT Boils Everything Down to God

    JAN 21

    #90 When ChatGPT Boils Everything Down to God

    An AI-generated answer landed at the top of my Instagram feed — calmly explaining why, when intelligence strips away scripture, science, and human narrative, it still arrives at the idea of God. Not revelation. Not belief. Just reduction. The conclusion felt familiar. Reassuring, even. This episode isn’t about whether God exists. It’s about what happens when AI compresses reality until one explanation feels inevitable — and how easily certainty settles in when complexity disappears. This isn’t a debate. It’s a moment of recognition — and a reminder that reassurance still deserves discernment. Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    8 min
  7. #89 When Protest Stops Being Speech · Minneapolis, ICE, and the Moment Language Broke the Law

    JAN 14

    #89 When Protest Stops Being Speech · Minneapolis, ICE, and the Moment Language Broke the Law

    What happens when protest quietly becomes interference — and language outruns the law? In this episode of Think First, Jim Detjen examines the Minneapolis ICE shooting not to adjudicate guilt, but to understand something deeper: how stories harden into certainty, how moral language becomes permission, and why video no longer settles anything. Jim looks at: how legal standards actually work in split-second encounterswhy vehicles collapse decision space faster than intent can explainhow narrative drift turns policy into personal threatand how tension can live in the streets and the courtroom at the same timeThis isn’t about sides. It’s about patterns. Because when language breaks before the law does, people step into danger believing it’s justice. Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    15 min
  8. #88 Who’s Actually Conscious? The Animals That Complicate the Question.

    JAN 11

    #88 Who’s Actually Conscious? The Animals That Complicate the Question.

    Some animals don’t just react. They anticipate. In this episode of Think First, we explore a quiet idea most of us already sense but rarely say out loud: animals may notice shifts in the world before we do — emotional, social, and environmental — in ways that complicate how we think about consciousness. From dogs that read the room before anything happens, to crows that plan, elephants that remember relationships, whales that communicate across vast distances, and octopuses that solve problems without a centralized brain, this episode looks at what animal behavior reveals — not about animals becoming human, but about humans reconsidering the frame. No mysticism. No metaphysics. No forced conclusions. Just observation, humor, and an open question that lingers: What if consciousness isn’t rare — just unevenly distributed? Stay sharp. Stay skeptical. #SpotTheGaslight Read and reflect at Gaslight360.com/clarity Support Think First and access the full archive: Gaslight360.com/subscribe

    20 min
  • 8 Episodes

4.4
out of 5
30 Ratings

About

Think First is a short-form podcast that makes you pause — before you scroll, share, or believe the headline. Hosted by Jim Detjen, a guy who’s been gaslit enough to start a podcast about it, Think First dives into modern narratives, media manipulation, and cultural BS — all through the lens of gaslighting and poetic truth. Some episodes are two minutes. Some are an hour. It depends on the story — and the energy drink situation. No rants. No lectures. Just sharp questions, quick insights, and the occasional laugh to keep things sane. Whether you’re dodging spin in the news, politics, or that “trust me, bro” post in your feed… take a breath. Think first. Visit Gaslight360.com/clarity to sharpen your BS filter and explore the 6-step clarity framework. 🚨Distorted is set to release on February 10, 2026, and pre-orders are now available on Ingram, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble. Reserve your copy today — and join me in cutting through the distortion. Paperback and Kindle: Amazon Hardcover: Barnes & Noble

Information

  • Creator
    Jim Detjen | Gaslight 360
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    8
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Gaslight360.com
  • Show Website
    Think First with Jim Detjen