The "Intelligence Trap," a phenomenon where cognitive prowess actually fuels irrationality. Our guests argue that motivated reasoning allows smart people to build elaborate intellectual defenses for their biases. Instead of using logic to find the truth, we often use it to protect our "Idols" and maintain the comfortable illusion of being right. Why should you listen to this Podcast, because:

• Smart People are Better Liars: Realize that your brain is primarily a lawyer, not a scientist; it wants to win the argument, not find the truth.

• The Sophistication Gap: The more articulate you are, the easier it is to deceive yourself with complex language (Bacon's Idols of the Marketplace).

• The Only Antidote: To escape the trap, you must cultivate "Intellectual Humility"—the active search for how you might be wrong, despite how "right" it feels.

Here meet three of history’s most formidable minds—John Nash, Chanakya, and Sun Tzu—to dissect the fundamental nature of human interaction. Moving beyond simple "cause and effect," the trio explores Life as Strategic Interdependence: the reality that our personal success is inextricably linked to the decisions made by everyone else around us.

The conversation centers on the transition from Linear Thinking (actions in a vacuum) to Strategic Thinking (actions in a network). They debate three distinct ways to navigate this interdependence:

• The Nash Equilibrium: Finding the "stable point" where no player has an incentive to change their strategy, given what others are doing. It is the math of coexistence.

• The Chanakyan Statecraft: A more proactive approach focused on incentive anticipation. Chanakya argues for actively reshaping the "rules of the game" through rewards and punishments to force others into desired outcomes.

• The Sun Tzu Fluidity: The art of calculated advantage. Sun Tzu views interdependence as a landscape of energy; he seeks to win by "knowing the other" so well that the battle is won before it begins.

Systems promise order. History promises meaning. Words promise truth. But what if wisdom lives elsewhere? Inspired by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Leo Tolstoy, and Laozi, Coherence Is Not Truth explores antifragility, repentance, non-resistance, and the quiet power of living beyond coercion. A meditation on uncertainty, agency, and the courage to exist without guarantees.