Haydn Botts is an entrepreneur and the founder of Pattern Systems, where he builds AI systems and automations for businesses. In this conversation, we start with resilience and the three years of setbacks that forced him to rethink how he does business. From there we get into the danger of relying on one client, the difference between closing a sale and delivering real value, and why he would now rather lose a deal than sell something he doesn’t believe will help. We also talk about client relationships, recurring revenue and the effect that churn can have on a team.

We also explore ambition, family and what financial freedom would actually make possible. Haydn talks about wanting to travel with his children, experience different cultures and build a life that keeps his family together. The conversation moves through home ownership, status, caring for ageing relatives and the tension between working towards freedom and spending all your time working.

We also get into protecting company culture, choosing the right clients and giving your team a clear framework for making decisions.

If this one's got you thinking about goals, I built something for exactly that.

The Chapter System: https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

Chapters:

00:00:00 Trailer
00:01:04 Resilience and rebuilding after setbacks
00:04:05 Learning to put client value first
00:06:36 The risk of relying on one client
00:11:12 Sales, trust and knowing when to say no
00:13:47 Perceived value, status and honest selling
00:18:43 A decision-making framework for your team
00:21:06 Client churn and company culture
00:25:50 Choosing the right clients and protecting culture
00:28:08 Family, travel and a different version of success
00:33:28 Family, ageing and the cost of being busy
00:36:55 Questioning the dream of home ownership
00:40:10 Buying back time and the pull of work
00:42:01 Work as an escape and the plan to move abroad
00:44:23 Where to find Haydn

🎙️ MY STUFF

The Chapter System (the PDF):
https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

All my other stuff: https://awakenoutofcontext.com

Haydn:

Pattern Systems: https://patternsystems.ai

Socials: @hxydnbotts

Joshua Knobe is a Yale professor and experimental philosopher whose research explores identity, morality, human behaviour and the way we decide what makes someone their “true self.” In this conversation, we start with a deceptively simple question: what makes you, you? From there we get into why we see the “good” parts of people as more real, how relationships and first impressions shape identity, and how much of who we are changes depending on the people and situations around us.

We also explore alcohol and personality, the different versions of ourselves we present online and in person, whether authenticity is even possible, and why social media can distort the way we understand ourselves and other people. Joshua also talks about morality, spirituality, art, emotional expression and the strange point where documenting your life starts to become a performance.

If this one's got you thinking about goals, I built something for exactly that.

The Chapter System: https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

If you like this type of episode, you'll probably like any of the following: https://studio.youtube.com/playlist/PLGUpYukY0ZPc/videos

Chapters:

00:00:00 Preview

00:01:29 What Makes You, You?

00:03:11 Why We Think the “Good” Part Is the Real You

00:07:56 Why We Believe There’s Good Deep Down

00:11:38 The Different Versions of You

00:15:44 Why Your Best Work Feels Like the Real You

00:18:05 Alcohol and the “Real” You

00:23:33 Attachment, Shame and Self-Perception

00:29:31 Are You More Real In Person Than Online?

00:34:11 Why Men Communicate Differently

00:40:32 Religion, Spirituality and the True Self

00:41:34 Why Do We Like Sad Art?

00:48:46 When Pain Becomes Art

00:53:43 Travel, Distance and How We See Other Lives

00:56:55 Why Art Stops Being About the Artist

01:02:12 When Does Footage Become Art?

01:03:53 Can You Ever Be Authentic on Camera?

🎙️ MY STUFF

The Chapter System (the PDF):

https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

All my other stuff: https://awakenoutofcontext.com

Joshua Knobe:

Website:

https://campuspress.yale.edu/joshuaknobe/

Yale:

https://philosophy.yale.edu/profile/joshua-knobe

Experimental Philosophy:

https://experimental-philosophy.yale.edu/

Maurice Schweitzer is a Wharton professor whose research explores trust, deception, negotiation, decision-making and the way we manage how other people see us. In this conversation, we start with a deceptively simple question: what makes you, you? From there we get into how culture and travel shape identity, whether AI can deceive us, why humans lie, and the strange line between dishonesty and kindness.

We also explore the downside of goal setting, why ambitious targets can sometimes encourage unethical behaviour, and how easy it is to lose sight of the bigger goal while chasing the one directly in front of us. Maurice also talks about impression management, authenticity, prosocial lies, the cost of bad feedback, and his latest work on how the metaphors we use can shape the way we understand the world.

If this one's got you thinking about goals, I built something for exactly that.

The Chapter System: https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

Chapters:

00:00 What makes you, you?

02:51 How travel and culture change who we are

06:37 AI, context and what makes us human

11:30 Can AI be deceptive?

15:44 Why do humans lie?

20:22 British small talk and socially acceptable deception

22:50 Prosocial lies: when kindness and honesty collide

25:33 The hidden cost of polite dishonesty

30:58 Surprise parties, proposals and “good” deception

35:25 Can goals make us unethical?

41:26 Goal hierarchy, values and knowing when to stop

43:46 Work, travel and competing priorities

46:07 Impression management and authenticity

49:33 How metaphors shape the way we think

🎙️ MY STUFF

The Chapter System (the PDF):

https://bit.ly/4gw6m6x

All my other stuff: https://awakenoutofcontext.com

Maurice Schweitzer:

Wharton: https://oid.wharton.upenn.edu/profile/schweitz/

X: https://twitter.com/me_schweitzer

Friend & Foe: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/205841/friend-and-foe-by-adam-galinsky-and-maurice-schweitzer/