First Principles

Adrian Wells

First Principles isn't another business podcast recycling the same startup stories. Adrian Wells takes the fundamentals that actually matter and breaks them down like you're having coffee with the smartest professor you ever had. Wells spent twelve years teaching philosophy and critical thinking before ditching the lecture hall for the microphone. Turns out, the same principles that help you think clearly about ancient Greek ethics also work pretty well for modern business decisions. Who knew? Every episode strips away the latest trends and buzzwords to focus on the core ideas that don't change. How to actually evaluate evidence when everyone's throwing around statistics. Why most "revolutionary" business advice is just old wine in new bottles. The thinking patterns that separate smart decisions from lucky guesses. You won't get hyped-up success stories or flavor-of-the-month strategies. Instead, you'll learn how to think through problems the way philosophers have for centuries, applied to the stuff that matters in your work and life right now. Multiple new episodes drop daily, so there's always something fresh when you need it. Follow now if you're ready to think better, not just think faster. Multiple new episodes daily—follow now!

  1. 8 HR AGO

    The 10,000 Hour Rule Is BS: What Top Performers Actually Do Instead

    What if the thing that's supposed to make you an expert is actually keeping you mediocre? Adrian Wells breaks down why the famous 10,000-hour rule is complete nonsense and reveals the morning habit that's secretly destroying your brain's peak performance window. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • Why Anders Ericsson never actually said 10,000 hours (and what his research really found) • The 90-minute biological window when your brain is operating at maximum capacity • How checking your phone first thing tanks your cognitive performance by 23% • What elite performers actually do differently (it's not about grinding more hours) 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone passionate about personal growth who's tired of following productivity advice that doesn't actually work. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells destroys the 10,000-hour myth [01:45] What Ericsson's violin study actually revealed [03:30] The real range: 2,000 to 25,000 hours by age 20 [05:15] Your brain's secret 90-minute superpower window [07:00] The phone check that kills your focus all day [09:30] What top performers do in their first hour awake [11:00] Three simple changes you can make tomorrow The truth is way more interesting than the myth. Most people are practicing wrong, timing their deep work wrong, and starting their day in a way that guarantees mediocre performance. But once you understand how your brain actually operates, everything changes. 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and turn on notifications. New episodes drop daily, your next favorite insight is one tap away. 🔍 Topics: 10000 hour rule, morning routine, productivity habits, deliberate practice, cognitive performance Find all episodes at First Principles ------------ Keywords: cognitive biases, business strategy, evidence evaluation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    32 min

  2. 20 HR AGO

    Yuval Harari: AI Companies Are Lying To You About The Real Danger

    What if everything tech leaders told you about AI safety was designed to keep you calm while they race toward something they can't control? In this episode, Adrian Wells breaks down historian Yuval Harari's warning that we're being systematically misled about AI's timeline and true risks. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • Why OpenAI's internal documents show they expect artificial general intelligence by 2027, not the decades they publicly claim • How political trust in democratic institutions has collapsed 40% since 2000, and why AI disinformation is accelerating this breakdown • The shocking reality that AI systems have already consumed 45% of all digitized human text, and what that means for future training 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone who wants to understand the forces reshaping our world before it's too late 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces Harari's explosive AI claims [02:15] The AGI timeline companies don't want you to know [04:45] Why election disinformation jumped 350% in four years [07:30] How AI training data reveals the scope of the challenge [09:15] Political polarization and the threat to democracy [11:00] What you can do to prepare for these changes Harari isn't just another academic throwing around predictions. He's the guy who accurately called social media's impact on democracy years before most people saw it coming. His track record on tech predictions makes this episode essential listening. The numbers are stark: 67% of election disinformation is now AI-generated, up from basically zero just four years ago. Meanwhile, the companies building these systems keep pushing back their safety timelines while their internal documents tell a very different story. 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. New episodes drop daily, and next week Adrian's covering why most productivity advice actually makes you less efficient. 🔍 Topics: artificial intelligence, Yuval Harari, election disinformation, democratic institutions, AGI timeline Find all episodes at First Principles ------------ Keywords: decision making, evidence evaluation, cognitive biases, celebrity interviews, success psychology, ai dangers, anxiety management Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    18 min

  3. 1 DAY AGO

    Dr. Gad Saad: Why Men Are Biologically Programmed to Cheat (It's Not What You Think)

    What if everything you think you know about male infidelity is actually backward? Adrian Wells sits down with evolutionary psychologist Dr. Gad Saad to explore the uncomfortable science behind cheating patterns that show up across every culture on Earth. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • Why male mammals (including humans) show higher variance in reproductive success and what this means for relationship behavior • The real data behind infidelity rates across 37 different cultures and why the patterns are so consistent • How countries with more gender equality actually show larger psychological differences between men and women, not smaller ones 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone passionate about personal growth who wants to understand human behavior through a scientific lens rather than wishful thinking. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces the controversy around biological programming [01:45] Dr. Saad breaks down the cross-cultural infidelity studies [04:20] Why understanding biology doesn't excuse bad behavior [06:30] The gender equality paradox that surprised researchers [08:15] Male vs female reproductive strategies throughout history [10:00] Key takeaways you can use in your own relationships Dr. Saad has published over 90 peer-reviewed articles and his research has been cited thousands of times. This isn't opinion or theory. It's data from decades of cross-cultural studies that most people never hear about because the findings make everyone uncomfortable. Look, nobody wants to hear that biology influences behavior. But ignoring the science doesn't make it go away. Understanding these patterns might actually help you make better choices in your relationships, not worse ones. 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and turn on notifications. New episodes drop daily, your next favorite insight is one tap away. 🔍 Topics: evolutionary psychology, relationship science, Dr Gad Saad, infidelity research, gender differences Find all episodes at First Principles ---------- Keywords: decision making, personal development, success psychology, anxiety management, career advice, business strategy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    19 min

  4. 1 DAY AGO

    The Gym Industry Doesn't Want You to Know This (Dr. Israetel's 3-Day Method)

    Think you need hours in the gym to build muscle? Dr. Michael Israetel, one of the world's leading muscle-building experts, says the fitness industry has been lying to you. In this episode, Adrian Wells sits down with Israetel to expose why most people are wasting massive amounts of time with inefficient routines that actually hurt their progress. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • Why 45-75 minutes per workout is the sweet spot for maximum muscle growth • The 2-3x per week training frequency that beats traditional body part splits • How your muscles actually grow during the 24-72 hours AFTER your workout, not during it • Why doing more than 16-20 sets per muscle group per week can sabotage your results 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone who wants to build muscle without living at the gym. Israetel breaks down the science behind why less can be more when it comes to resistance training. You'll discover the three-day method that's helping people build more muscle in less time, plus the recovery principles that most trainers completely ignore. This isn't about shortcuts, it's about working smarter with evidence-based strategies. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces the gym industry's biggest lie [01:30] Dr. Israetel's credentials and why he's different [04:00] The optimal workout length most people get wrong [07:00] Why training frequency matters more than volume [10:00] The recovery window where real growth happens [12:00] Practical takeaways you can implement today 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and turn on notifications. New episodes drop daily, your next favorite insight is one tap away. 🔍 Topics: muscle building, workout efficiency, Dr Michael Israetel, fitness science, strength training Find all episodes at First Principles ----------- Keywords: depression stories, evidence evaluation, ai dangers, productivity science Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    18 min

  5. 2 DAYS AGO

    The Gottman Doctors: Why Affairs Save Some Marriages (And Kill Others)

    What if you discovered that 31% of couples who survive an affair end up happier than they were before? Adrian Wells breaks down the Gottman Method's shocking research on infidelity, revealing when affairs actually save marriages and the four warning signs that predict certain divorce. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • The 15-minute argument test that predicts divorce with 94% accuracy (it's terrifyingly simple) • Why contempt destroys relationships four times faster than criticism or defensiveness • The 5:1 ratio happy couples maintain during conflict (most people get this backwards) • Specific recovery strategies that turn relationship disasters into deeper connections 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone passionate about personal growth who wants to understand the science behind what actually makes relationships work. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces the affair paradox [01:45] The Four Horsemen that kill marriages dead [03:30] Why contempt is relationship poison (and how to spot it) [05:15] The shocking affair recovery statistics [07:00] The 5:1 ratio that separates thriving couples [09:30] When to fight for your relationship vs. when to walk away [11:00] Key takeaways you can use today This isn't relationship advice from someone's opinion. It's hard data from researchers who've studied over 3,000 couples for decades. The Gottmans can literally watch you argue and predict your divorce with scary accuracy. Whether you're single, dating, or married, these insights will change how you think about conflict, communication, and what real love actually looks like when the honeymoon phase ends. 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and turn on notifications. New episodes drop daily, your next favorite insight is one tap away. 🔍 Topics: Gottman Method, relationship psychology, marriage research, affair recovery, communication skills Find all episodes at First Principles --------- Keywords: business fundamentals, logical reasoning, mental health celebrities, evidence evaluation, depression stories, productivity science, first principles, ai dangers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    19 min

  6. 2 DAYS AGO

    Why Eating Dessert First Actually Controls Your Blood Sugar Better

    What if eating your chocolate cake before your salad could actually keep your blood sugar more stable? That's exactly what the research shows, and Adrian Wells breaks down why everything we've been told about "proper" meal order might be backwards. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • How eating vegetables first reduces glucose spikes by up to 75% compared to carbs-first meals • The simple 10-minute post-meal habit that cuts blood sugar spikes by 30% • Why one tablespoon of vinegar with your meal can drop glucose response by 20-30% • The protein and fat timing trick that slows sugar absorption naturally 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone passionate about personal growth who wants to optimize their health without giving up foods they love. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces the dessert-first paradox [01:30] Why meal order matters more than meal content [04:00] The vegetable shield: your body's glucose buffer [07:00] Post-meal walks: the 10-minute metabolism hack [10:00] Vinegar's surprising blood sugar benefits [12:00] Protein timing strategies you can use today The Glucose Goddess research flips conventional wisdom on its head. You don't have to eliminate carbs or sugar to maintain steady energy levels. You just need to know when and how to eat them. 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and turn on notifications. New episodes drop daily, your next favorite insight is one tap away. 🔍 Topics: blood sugar control, glucose hacks, meal timing, nutrition science, metabolic health Find all episodes at First Principles ---- Keywords: celebrity interviews, health myths, wealth mindset, logical reasoning Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    17 min

  7. 3 DAYS AGO

    Konstantin Kisin: Why America and Britain Are Collapsing (What He Saw)

    What if someone who escaped a collapsing system could see the warning signs in ours? Konstantin Kisin immigrated from Russia as a child and built TRIGGERnometry into a 500K subscriber YouTube phenomenon. Now he's sounding alarms about what he sees happening in Britain and America. Adrian Wells sits down with Kisin to explore the cultural shifts that might be undermining Western institutions from within. 🎯 What You'll Discover: • Why Kisin believes woke ideology in schools creates dangerous generational divides • How declining trust in universities, media, and government weakens democratic systems • The specific patterns Kisin recognizes from history that worry him most • What immigrants often see about their adopted countries that natives miss 👤 Perfect for: lifelong learners and anyone passionate about personal growth who wants to understand the big picture forces shaping society today. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces Konstantin Kisin's immigrant perspective [01:45] From Russian refugee to British comedy star [03:30] Why TRIGGERnometry focuses on controversial topics [05:15] The institutional trust crisis Kisin sees everywhere [07:00] How schools became ideological battlegrounds [09:30] Warning signs from someone who's seen collapse before [11:15] What this means for the future of Western democracy Kisin's outsider perspective cuts through partisan talking points to focus on systemic issues. Whether you agree with his conclusions or not, his analysis will challenge how you think about cultural change and institutional health. 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and turn on notifications. New episodes drop daily, your next favorite insight is one tap away. 🔍 Topics: Konstantin Kisin, cultural collapse, institutional trust, TRIGGERnometry, Western democracy Find all episodes at First Principles ----------- Keywords: mental health celebrities, health myths, critical thinking podcast, business strategy, motivation psychology Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    35 min

  8. 3 DAYS AGO

    The Anti-Obesity Doctor: If You Don't Exercise, This Is What's Happening To You

    What if I told you that sitting on your couch right now is literally rewiring your cells for disease? Dr. Gabrielle Lyon breaks down exactly what happens inside your body when you skip exercise, and it's way worse than just losing muscle. Adrian Wells digs into the shocking science of how fast your body starts breaking down without resistance training. 🎯 What You'll Learn: • Why you lose 3-8% of muscle mass per decade after 30 (and how this affects everything from your metabolism to your immune system) • The 72-hour rule: how quickly bed rest triggers muscle protein breakdown at the cellular level • Why muscle tissue is your body's metabolic powerhouse, burning up to 4x more calories than fat even while you sleep • The diabetes connection: how people with higher muscle mass cut their type 2 diabetes risk by 20-30% 👤 Perfect for: anyone who thinks they can skip the gym and still stay healthy, plus lifelong learners who want to understand what's really happening inside their bodies. 📍 Chapters: [00:00] Adrian Wells introduces the hidden costs of being sedentary [02:15] The 30-year muscle loss cliff: what starts happening to your body [04:30] Cellular breakdown: what 72 hours without movement does to you [06:45] Muscle vs. fat: the metabolic math that changes everything [09:00] The diabetes protection you didn't know you had [11:30] Practical steps to stop the cellular damage today 🔔 Never miss an episode: Follow First Principles on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and turn on notifications. New episodes drop daily, your next favorite insight is one tap away. 🔍 Topics: muscle loss, exercise science, metabolism, diabetes prevention, cellular health Find all episodes at First Principles ----------- Keywords: social media addiction, ai dangers, billionaire mindset, cognitive biases, wealth mindset, evidence evaluation, leadership psychology, relationship psychology Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    18 min
See All (183)

About

First Principles isn't another business podcast recycling the same startup stories. Adrian Wells takes the fundamentals that actually matter and breaks them down like you're having coffee with the smartest professor you ever had. Wells spent twelve years teaching philosophy and critical thinking before ditching the lecture hall for the microphone. Turns out, the same principles that help you think clearly about ancient Greek ethics also work pretty well for modern business decisions. Who knew? Every episode strips away the latest trends and buzzwords to focus on the core ideas that don't change. How to actually evaluate evidence when everyone's throwing around statistics. Why most "revolutionary" business advice is just old wine in new bottles. The thinking patterns that separate smart decisions from lucky guesses. You won't get hyped-up success stories or flavor-of-the-month strategies. Instead, you'll learn how to think through problems the way philosophers have for centuries, applied to the stuff that matters in your work and life right now. Multiple new episodes drop daily, so there's always something fresh when you need it. Follow now if you're ready to think better, not just think faster. Multiple new episodes daily—follow now!

Information

  • Creator
    Adrian Wells
  • Years Active
    2k
  • Episodes
    183
  • Rating
    Clean

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