Rodolfo Young: Years in Silence, the Burden of Choice & Responsibilities, and Inspiring Others

01/13/20 • 84 min

Rodolfo Young spent two years in silent practice. He wasn’t sitting in some ashram somewhere. He was out in the world - and chose not to speak. We talk about what he learned during those two years, why he decided to do this (including the heartbreak that was the catalyst), and how others received him as they spoke to him and he didn’t reply.

In addition, we go into some fascinating mental models such as understanding the ego as an ice block, how an umbrella in the rain is useful for understanding our desire to share what we’ve learned whilst also not imposing ourselves on another, cultivating curiosity, and how true choice carries with it the burden of responsibility (and why that’s actually a good thing).

Rodolfo is ex-U.S. military (he served during the Iraq War doing PsyOps), a TedX speaker, an American expat, a fellow Ubudian, a motivational speaker, and an all-around thoughtful and inspiring guy. His goal is to touch a million hearts. Please have a listen and appreciate someone who has probably gone deeper into his own heart and psyche than most!

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Previous Episode

Freya Savage: Entrepreneur, Raw-Food Chef, and Financial Advisor

Freya Savage is an impressive, multi-faceted woman: An established entrepreneur, a devotee to plant-based health & wellness, a certified raw food chef, an ultra-marathoner, and a successful financial planner. She’s heavily involved in food & health as well as finance, which whilst it might seem like an unusual combination at first glance, in Freya’s view this combo all revolves around the same thing: Wealth.

In this episode Freya and I discuss a variety of topics including different methods of building a successful, location independent business, establishing one’s boundaries and healthy routines, what to keep in mind when starting on a new endeavor, how to own your attractiveness, and why (and how!) to make time & space for yourself in an increasingly busy world.

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Next Episode

Andrei Ivanou: Inside Belarus, Europe’s Last Dictatorship

Andrei Ivanou, a Belarusian native, and I sit down to learn more about the fascinating, oft-forgotten country of Belarus. Belarus has the dubious honor of being the longest-running European dictatorship thanks to their leader, Alexander Lukashenko, who seized power in 1994 following the power vacuum that was created by the fall of the USSR. A military man, Lukashenko is often referred to as бацька (“dad”) by Belarusians because he oversees everything and dominates the country.

If you’re like me before this episode, you don’t much about Belarus - or even where it’s located. (Hint: It’s sandwiched predominantly between Russia, Poland, and Ukraine on the eastern edge of Europe.) Nor have you given it much thought in terms of what life is like there. Yet for Europeans, it’s often viewed as a bridge between East and West. And for Russia, it’s long been one of its closest allies because it serves as a critical land buffer between Moscow and the EU across the North European Plain.

Andrei and I discuss what’s changed since the fall of the USSR, what it’s like to live in a dictatorship (especially after having lived in the U.S.), what’s being smuggled into and out of the country, how much locals actually make and which surprising job is the best-paid, the sort of economic propaganda put forward by the press, why Belarusian women are known worldwide for their beauty, how to travel there (spoiler alert: It’s not that easy), and more.

Andrei is the CSPO at TechVice, one of the companies which my software company, CallerSmart, works with. If you’d like to learn more about Belarus and get a “boots on the ground” taste of what life is actually like under “daddy” in Europe’s last dictatorship, then this episode is for you.

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