Watson-Howland | Episode 81: The ancient Greeks invented democracy. Oxford classics lecturer Steve Kershaw says they'd look at your government and call it an oligarchy. An outsider looked at Rome and said "that city is for sale, and if it finds a buyer, it's doomed." 2,000 years later, the same corruption is everywhere.

Jacob Watson-Howland (award-winning BBC-featured photographer) is joined by Steve Kershaw: Oxford lecturer, author of Mythologica and A Brief History of the Roman Empire, and BBC history expert (Barbarians Rising, You're Dead to Me, Dan Snow's History Hit).

From the "barbarian" as a Greek linguistic joke to Rome's invisible collapse, Kershaw reveals how ancient political corruption and cultural arrogance mirror modern civilisation with uncomfortable precision.

You'll learn: -Why the Greeks would classify every modern Western government as an oligarchy -How Roman historians used "noble barbarians" to criticise their own corrupt governments -Why a scholar found 210 different reasons for Rome's fall -What Achilles, Odysseus, and Medea reveal about the human cost of getting what you want

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00:00 Intro

02:04 Inventing The Barbarian

06:57 Barbarian As Mirror

11:13 Assimilation Not Erasure

15:29 Polytheism And Tolerance

17:31 Christianity Takes Over

23:32 Pagan Gods And Boundaries

28:53 Healing Sanctuaries Holism

32:51 Greek Heroes Not Saints

40:17 Myths Teach Nuance

42:19 Fate Power And Limits

47:22 Migration Then And Now

53:35 Why Rome Is So Cool

57:22 Roman Fantasy Reality

59:13 Odysseus Cautionary Hero

01:02:42 Medea Revenge Logic

01:05:47 Achilles Revenge Price

01:08:19 What Democracy Saved

01:12:34 Coins as Propaganda

01:14:09 Barbarians Worthy Foes

01:17:10 Ancient Globalization

01:20:36 Fall of Rome Debates

01:26:25 Teaching Classics Today

01:28:34 Why Classics Matter

01:32:29 Rapid Fire Farewell

01:36:30 Super Important Message

Three pillars of the show:

• FRONTIER: Space, AI, science, and the builders of the next century.
• CIVILISATIONS: History, economics, geopolitics and the ideas that run everything.
• AGENCY: Purpose, performance, and genuine character.

Steve: stevekershaw.com | Books: stevekershaw.com/16.html Jacob: jacobwatsonhowland.com Coaching: skool.com/remote-pro-podcast-blueprint-8385 YouTube: youtube.com/@jacobjwatsonhowland Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/0r4v5xgyYz0rTFSLklk0Em Apple: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/watson-howland/id1813625992

A world-leading pastor and mens mental health expert surveyed 5,000 men & found the one lie destroying them from the inside. This is what he discovered.

Bill Perkins is the bestselling Author of "When Good Men Get Angry”, former Senior Pastor of 24 Years and founder of Million Mighty Men.

00:00 Intro

01:18 Finding Faith at Nineteen

06:56 Family Wounds and Words

11:32 Marriage Lessons and Maturity

17:36 Forgiveness and Boundaries

20:26 Setting Hard Boundaries

25:05 Jesus and Healthy Anger

30:12 Respect Bank Explained

34:02 Hearing God and Healing Lisa

42:39 From Skeptic to Supernatural

45:20 Freedom Ministry and Strongholds

47:00 Why Self Forgiveness Is Hard

50:26 Deliverance and Dramatic Healings

50:57 Dramatic Healing Story

52:09 Freedom Is Not Fixing Life

52:40 Where Demons Come From

55:40 Hold Interpretations Loosely

01:00:01 Sin Evil And Suicide Lies

01:05:56 Satan Judas And Temptation

01:09:49 Strongholds And Core Lies

01:13:45 Confession Brings Freedom

01:18:09 Trauma Patterns In Adults

01:22:03 Blended Gospels Project

01:29:15 Christmas Star Reframed

01:32:49 What People Miss About Jesus

01:39:02 Advice Consistency And Wrap

Bills Work

Main site: https://billperkins.com

Jacob’s Work

1-1 Coaching + Podcast Blueprint: ⁠https://www.skool.com/remote-pro-podcast-blueprint-8385⁠

FREE Podcast Tips: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUp5S7ZIZtjA8PMgXJMwppA⁠YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@jacobjwatsonhowland⁠

Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/0r4v5xgyYz0rTFSLklk0Em⁠

Apple Podcasts: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/watson-howland/id1813625992⁠

Follow Jacob: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/jacobwatsonhowland⁠

Jacob’s Website: ⁠https://www.jacobjwatsonhowland.com⁠

Music created using Eleven Music by ElevenLabs

If you or someone you know is struggling, contact Samaritans on 116 123

AI is already training on your work, without asking, without paying, and without waiting for you to catch up. Former Disney and National Geographic executive Adam Leipzig had his own book scraped into an AI model, and he's here to tell you exactly what creatives must do before it's too late.

Adam Leipzig has helped produce over 35 films, including Dead Poets Society and March of the Penguins, generating over $2 billion at the box office and earning 10 Oscars and 11 BAFTA win/nominations. He now teaches at UC Berkeley and is the author of Fearless Persistence.

📘 Fearless Persistence by Adam Leipzig (April 2026): Purchase/pre-order through his official site:

adamleipzig.com

🌐 Adam Leipzig's Official Website:

adamleipzig.com

🎓 Adam at UC Berkeley (Haas School of Business):

haas.berkeley.edu/faculty/leipzig-adam

🎓 Adam at UC Berkeley Executive Education:

executive.berkeley.edu/faculty-directory/adam-leipzig

🎬 MediaU — Adam's Online Film School:

mediau.com

00:00 WATCH THIS BEFORE AI REPLACES YOU

00:27 Meet Adam Leipzig

01:38 AI Is Retrospective

03:22 Jobs Disrupted and Created

04:58 AI as Film Tool

07:50 Formula vs Breakthrough Art

09:36 Spotting AI Outputs

12:29 Copyright Lawsuits and Piracy

14:29 New Book Fearless Persistence

16:53 10 Laws of Omics

20:45 Context and Communication

25:26 Creative Career Curiosity

27:25 Black and White Western Dream

31:42 Choosing Projects and People

34:29 Red Flags and Truth

37:35 Authenticity and Vulnerability

40:52 Deadlines Beat Perfectionism

43:14 Emotional Resilience for Creators

47:53 Meditation and the Power of Next

51:33 Learning From Wins Losses

52:07 Mission And Purpose

52:56 Disney Lessons Katzenberg

55:04 Why Leave Disney

57:47 What Producers Really Do

01:02:53 Workflows That Scale

01:04:49 Joyful Work And Risk

01:09:07 Creative Community Matters

01:13:39 Why Art Shapes Us

01:17:15 Parenting And Boundaries

01:20:47 Love Later In Life

01:23:46 Grief Mortality Presence

01:26:41 Photography And Stillness

01:30:24 Pie Crust Vodka Hack

01:34:49 Communication And Mantras

01:37:03 Final Thanks And Plug

01:38:04 Podcast Blueprint Pitch

01:40:14 Closing Goodbye

Jacob’s Work

1-1 Coaching + Podcast Blueprint: ⁠https://www.skool.com/remote-pro-podcast-blueprint-8385⁠

All images, film artwork, and photos of Adam Leipzig used with permission, courtesy of Adam Leipzig and adamleipzig.com

Music created using Eleven Music by ElevenLabs