The Voluntary Life

Recently, I had fun meeting Jeremy and Winnie from Go Curry Cracker in Brighton. You may remember them from Episode 162, in which we talked about their path to financial independence through extreme saving, and their lifestyle of perpetual travel in early retirement. In this week's episode, they talk about about their experience of perpetual travel as a family. Their son Julian makes makes a guest appearance too! I plan to interview other parents who are undertaking perpetual travel with their kids. I already have a couple of people in mind to talk to, but if you have suggestions for guest on this topic, I'd love to hear them. Show Notes: Go Curry CrackerThe Voluntary Life Community On FacebookTVL 162 Spend Little, Save More, Travel the World: Interview with Go Curry Cracker Listen To Episode 254

This week's episode is a review Leo Babauta's book, The Power Of Less. This book is about using habits to help you focus on what matters in life. In the review, I talk about some of the most helpful ideas that I found in the book, especially the suggestions about establishing a productive morning routine to kickstart your day. I also talk about some of the limitations of the book, and make suggestions for other useful books on this topic. Show Notes: The Power Of Less by Leo BabautaGetting Things Done by David AllenThe Power Of Habit by Charles DuhiggTVL Episode 178: Upgrading HabitsAll Previous Episodes On Productivity Listen To Episode 253

Last summer, back in episode 271, my wife Hannah and I spoke about the beginning of our adventure moving to Panama.  In this week's episode Hannah is back, and we talk about a lot of big changes that have happened since then! The episode provides an insight into our story, but it also touches on many themes important to The Voluntary Life. We discuss travel, minimalism, and adapting to big changes in life. Show Notes: TVL Episode 217: Panama Our Adventure BeginsTVL Episode 77: Internationalising YourselfBecoming Who You Are Listen To Episode 252

Entrepreneurship is not just about building a business, it is also about building yourself. I see entrepreneurship as an intensive personal development program. This week's episode is from a recent interview that I gave about this topic on the Valiant Growth podcast. Show Notes: Valiant Growth PodcastBecoming an Entrepreneur by Jake DesyllasJob Free by Jake DesyllasDrive by Dan Pink Listen to Episode 251

This week's episode contains the beginning of the audiobook version of my latest book, Job Free. Whether you want to achieve financial independence and retire early, or simply never work for anyone else again, this book provides an essential guide to the different lifestyle-design strategies open to you. You can get hold of the audiobook on Amazon and Audible, and it will shortly be available on iTunes. If you prefer reading, you can also get a paperback or e-book version on Amazon. Show Notes: Job Free audiobook, paperback, and e-book on AmazonJob Free audiobook on Audible.com Listen to Episode 250

If you are interested in minimalism or a travel-oriented lifestyle, moving to a digital-only book library is a great benefit. Even if you don't plan to travel, switching to e-books has a ton of other advantages over maintaining paper books. This episode is all about the tools and techniques for managing an e-book library, including: Making the transition from a physical to a digital library. Choosing a database application for managing e-books. Organising an e-book library with tags and other metadata. Having a system for keeping your own notes about books.  Show Notes: TVL Episode 115 How To Go Paperless Part 1TVL Episode 157 How To Go Paperless Part 2Free e-books at the Mises Institute and Online Library of LibertyCalibre (Free e-book management App)EvernoteListen to Episode 249

This episode is about the role of rational thinking in life. Rational thinking is a discipline of self-mastery, similar to the discipline of achieving physical fitness. I tackle some misconceptions about rational thinking and answer these questions: What does cognitive science tell us about thinking rationally?What are the costs of thinking rationally, and what are the benefits? Show Notes: How To Think For Yourself Series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3Bill And Ted's Excellent AdventureThey LiveListen To Episode 248

If you want to think rationally, what role do your emotions play? Is there a conflict between thinking rationally and experiencing feelings? In this episode, I explain the history of ideas around reason and emotion, and provide an overview of how to think rationally about feelings. Although the Enlightenment was a revolution in thinking rationally, Enlightenment philosophers never resolved their contradictions about the relationship between reason and the emotions, leaving a legacy of confusion about this topic. Instead of slavishly following feelings or repressing and ignoring them, rational thinking gives you a deeper, richer emotional life. Rational thinking enables you to pay attention to your feelings and make use of their valuable information. Show Notes: Othello by William ShakespeareThe Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat by Oliver SacksEpisode 189— Envy: A Theory Of Social Behaviour by Helmut Schoek Listen to Episode 247

So far, the Thinking Rationally series has generated more listener feedback than any of my previous episodes! In this episode, I respond to feedback on the topic of faith versus reason. Here are the questions covered: Can reason be accommodated within religious faith?Don't we all live by some kind of faith, anyway?Do I argue that we are "nothing more than matter in motion"?Did I present a fair history of Christianity? Show Notes: Episode 243— Thinking Rationally Part 1: Faith Versus ReasonHow To Think For Yourself Series: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3Job Free by Jake DesyllasHow To Leave A Review on AmazonListen to Episode 246

Rational thinking transforms your life, by giving you autonomy and the freedom of the individual. Since it spread during the Enlightenment, rational thinking has also transformed society and created the modern world. Yet many influential philosophers explicitly rejected rational thinking, because they understood where it would lead and did not like what they saw. This episode is about anti-rational ideas. I cover how these ideas emerged as a reaction to the Enlightenment, and why such anti-rational ideas are so popular today among contemporary philosophers. Show Notes: Explaining Postmodernism by Stephen Hicks (free pdf and audiobook on author's website)Intellectuals by Paul Johnson Listen To Episode 245

The biggest challenge of thinking rationally is not learning new techniques, it is overcoming irrational and anti-rational ways of thinking. In Part 1 of this series, I talked about how religious faith conflicts with your rational faculty. This episode is about a secular way of thinking that will derail your rationality. It is a way of thinking about society that seems to be very rational, but is in fact an abuse of reason. Listen to the episode to find out more! Show Notes: The Counter Revolution Of Science by Friedrich Hayek Listen To Episode 244

Rational thinking is the engine behind all the great achievements of the modern world. It is the vital tool for making your own choices and for freeing yourself from prejudices and indoctrination. This series of episodes will summarise all the best ideas that I've found about how to think rationally. Part 1 uses the example of the history of Christianity in Europe to explain the conflict between religion and rational thinking. Show Notes: The Closing Of The Western Mind by Charles FreemanIf A Then B: How the World Discovered Logic by Michael Shenefelt and Heidi WhiteListen to Episode 243

Home ownership is often touted as a financially savvy choice, but is it? In this week's episode, I explore some of the financial pros and cons of buying your own home for those interested in financial independence. Show Notes: The Millionaire Next Door by Thomas StanleyI'm not a financial advisor and you will need to do your own research. Listen To Episode 242

As part of adopting a minimalist lifestyle and becoming expats, we sold everything that would not fit into one suitcase each. The biggest part of our downsizing was selling our apartment and all the furniture in it. This episode is about the practical and psychological lessons from selling the flat, getting rid of all our stuff, and changing from being homeowners to travelling renters. Show Notes: Home Inventory App (mac)Episode 217— Panama: Our Adventure BeginsOther Episodes on MinimalismJob Free  by Jake Desyllas Listen To Episode 241

Back in January, I had a fun chat with Kevin Koskella on the Freedom Lovin podcast. Kevin and I spoke about the ideas in my book, Job Free, as well as life in Panama, entrepreneurship, and the permanent portfolio. Here's a recording of the interview. Show Notes: Freedom Lovin PodcastJob Free by Jake Desyllas (now in paperback and kindle) Listen to Episode 240