Sometimes you want to update about what is occurring, and shout out the people who make things or do things you know about. This is a nice thing you can do regularly. The people around us are the people we can connect with. In this episode, I discuss:

• Toby Emerson and his cool music I have used on my Youtube and here
• Gary Kazazian music I used for intro, and his planned gig at The Mint
• Kenny bringing NotSocks to the people who want socks but not socks
• Gary Vee and his latest book Crushing It that is out in the public
• Alex and his EDM music I used as an intro, and his music-making
• Alicia from earlier episode bringing life to life, and also clothes/gems
• Jane with the Grayson power plant expansion and good fitness

People are our world, and we have to shout them out as applicable. We can do more things if we reach out and try connecting in different ways.

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We are in the February. This one, episode 95, is on socially-known events like the Super Bowl, and making use of them for social happenings. There are not that many things that a lot of people know about, especially as the amount of niches grows in size. In this episode, I discuss:

• the way that big events causes group energy that is atypical
• making use of things like the super bowl to congregate
• why you should include the people you know in what you do
• some examples of including others in my own stuff

Even if something doesn’t fit you exactly, you can match with the part of it that does fit with you. We don’t have to take in all the elements of something that doesn’t fit, in the same way that you don’t have to eat every food at a buffet. Adjust what you go with, and leave the rest for others to be. Also, inclusiveness is a nice gesture. Through the 90s we go~

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We are in the 90s like it is like 1994. This is episode 94, and the intro music is “Gone Home” by Gary Kazazian, and possibly Kaspar Kazazian as well. It is also in the outro. Music is always good for variety purposes. The Elephant In The Brain is now a book we have gone through and finished, and we move through February. In this episode, I discuss:

• performance of a skill being paramount to preparation and reading about it
• using your abilities in person to hone down what needs to be worked on
• how we see political, religious, and sports fan teams in society
• the teams that I identify with, and what I like to see more of

Taking the concepts from something you learned is important. You can’t just let them float away, or you won’t internalize anything. When I read a book, I include concepts from it in my discussions and actions, so that the book had an impact on my life.

Also, on a separate note, Bill Gates liked the upcoming book Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker(it’s not out yet), and I have read a few books that Bill has also read. We have a similar interest in books and knowledge. Maybe I will get back to getting advanced copies of books like when it was 2010 and my blog was booming. Onward we go.

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This one is the closer as far as the chapters of the latest book I have been reading, which is The Elephant In The Brain. It was a cool book, and informed a lot about why people do much of what they do, and how we can learn about ourselves through that. In this episode, on the first of the month of February, I discuss:

• how the educational system is about signaling and certification
• the ways that medicine is about conspicuous caring more than healing
• the details of religion that make it about loyalty and group effort
• politics and the way it brings people into certain categories

We can do a lot once we realize the hidden motives we have, the ones others don’t share, and the ones that are built into institutions. We can adjust how we present ourselves, and design things so they are aligned with people’s actual motives. Glad to have you check out the content on this book, and keep a look-out for that interview article in February.

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Knowledge is the way, and we keep it moving on The Elephant In The Brain. This one gets into some more of the chapters on sections of society and the hidden motives that go with them. I discuss:

• how laughter represents more than something being “funny”
• the way that conversation is used to showcase one’s own ability
• where consumption is used to present an image of abundance
• the impracticality of art and its underlying subtext of high fitness
• the way that charity is nearly always conspicuous in nature

These chapters flowed well, and the concepts link through them, regarding how a person uses the world to represent themselves better. The next episode will be on the last chapters of the book, which are 13 through 17, and then I will have an interview article in February with the two authors. Glad to have y’all on board this podcast in January, and we move on to February 2018.

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People like looking back at the past and seeing it as a good time. This is also a practical business opportunity of our day. Whether it was Mario or some band, there is an emotional connection to a time we lived in many years ago. In this episode, I discuss:

• how nostalgia has been becoming popular on the internet
• how the age of internet users is related to this
• some of the things I remember from early times
• a separate note about how I am perceived by the general public

We are in now, and the future is later, but many are linked to a time of the past, as it reminds of an easier setting. We connect with that past moment when feeling like it disappeared. Episode 91 represented for the 90s, and for some, it is the 80s or the 70s or the 00s. Onward we go through 2018

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Self-deception is the name of the game. I am continuing to read through The Elephant In The Brain, and it has great insight into the hidden content in our society. Not everything is always revealed, and a lot is kept underneath for multiple reasons. Episode 90 is about:

• self-deception, both as a defense and a method of manipulation
• how our minds process in a modular sense, and piece thoughts together
• the split-brain experiments revealing how the brain comes up with answers
• what body language tells us about status and dominance

There is a lot to look at in the world, and I often focus on the brain, people, and how we relate to each other, based on evolutionary underpinnings of our current moment. This book gets into that. More onward, and chapters to come

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I have not watched many shows on television or the internet in my lifetime, but I have watched a few. This episode is meant to go over some of them. It’s episode 89, and we are here in the land of internet.

• shows like The Office and Entourage that I watched many episodes of
• the categories of content I have checked or know about
• how I have watched more Youtube clips than shows
• the fact that I read more than I watch stuff at times

The tech show I mentioned called Diggnation was not bad, run by Kevin Rose and his sidekick Alex Albrecht, and had some good info on the technology and services of the day. Different shows have different purposes. Hope you enjoyed some info on my past show viewing.

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Double 8’s in the building. I mentioned staying humble in this episode, as it was mentioned that bragging is not a thing to do often in The Elephant In The Brain. This one was mostly about podcasts that are out there, and in this episode, I discuss:

• some of the top and popular personal podcasts
• how the people running them use their abilities/strengths
• why I and others should stick to the strengths that we have
• how socializing has been a part of my life for some time now

Shout outs to Live Room LA that I mentioned in this episode. A lot of realizations happen before the episodes, but some linkages are made during episodes, and what I present is a network of thoughts. Socializing can lead you to a network of people that looks like my network of thoughts.

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You know books will be read, and I will happen to be one of the people who reads them. The Elephant In The Brain is the current one, and it is by Kevin Simler and Robin Hanson. It is mostly about hidden motives people have and act on. This episode is a summary of chapters 1 through 4, including:

• how altruism has a competitive side to it
• types of competition that exist between animals
• how signals are used to identify quality of person or mate
• elements of cheating and ways people do it discreetly

The book reads pretty easily, and has examples from animals and the past. The actual nature of society is represented in it. This is my first book of 2018 I will be reading in full, with a follow-up interview. It was put out very recently(few weeks ago), and I like when books are relatively new. Onward we go to more reading and content.

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I got some new books in and some new content to share as always. This one includes some about those books, tangents like Kaylia’s book club episode, and other variety with people.

• new books I got from the library after I returned Homo Deus
• The Elephant In The Brain, the next book I will read and interview on, by Kevin Simler and Robin Hanson
• also got the book Who Can You Trust? by Rachel Botsman
• my friend Johnny’s birthday, and some socialization(he was in episode 6)

Looking forward to reading this book, and I see out the hidden motives that people present. I always see them quite directly.

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This is another one of those episode where I talk fast. Time goes quickly in it, and a lot is mentioned. These episodes have a fun flair to them, but I don’t know if I will do them often. I might. In it, I discuss:

• being assertive with orders of food like with the haircut
• group messages and how they are not my style
• some book info as I always throw that in
• the concept that you have many years to go to get somewhere

I was able to say a lot here, in the course of the 10 minutes or so. That is a nice feature. It takes a lot of breath, but it’s nice to share the content. 85 episodes in 85 episodes out

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One past listener mentioned that you never know what you will get when you listen to The Armen Show, and he was right, for the most part. There is variety in what I put out, but there are continuous themes I am about. In this episode, I discuss:

• how I view much other publicly available popular content
• my perspective on the world and what we are on it
• how presenting your perspective is needed to speak your side
• seeing similar content across books, and recognizing authors

I look to bring more value through episodes over time, and I seek to find out ways to do that and connect with other material out there. To the show being better and better.

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Hey all in the world. It’s episode 83 in the building, and this is based on the hair cutting I had, as well as some music and happenings in the book world. In this episode, I discuss:

• my hair cut experience, and how responsiveness is good
• plans with upcoming books and what I am looking at
• different types of breads based on their sizes
• the music used in the intro or outro (if you heard it)

I always connect real life situations to what you can take from them. Taking this information, you too can remember to look at your situations.

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What are the stories that we write? What happened with the Laguna Beach show, or the other reality shows with characters from these smaller beach towns? How did they expand the view of who they were in the public eye? In this episode, I discuss:

• the reality shows and how they built up a story
• how it can be embellished or exaggerated to present a view
• to give people your own story, with a beginning, middle, and end
• thinking about what the beginning of a story of yours would be

Marketing and branding has changed how we look at some people, who are, in fact, people like the others who walk by us. Perspective changing takes a lot of strategy, and some people apply it. To more understanding of the world~

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9×9 is 81 and we are here. The weather is colder and we have some wind today. This episode brought out the usual networking of concepts. In it, I discussed:

• putting fear to the side when making moves
• editor John Brockman and his book I’ll be looking at soon
• how books come out after the hard work has already been done
• doing deep work that requires hours of non multi-tasking focus
• keeping insular about the things that matter

Cal Newport wrote that book Deep Work to influence people to stick with a goal for a few hours at a time. This is a good thing. Doing heavy work is the way to be. 81 episodes in and the days fly by.

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We got to another decade in the set of episodes. This one connects off of running into an old acquaintance. What an interesting world we live in. We can connect with many. In this one, I go over:

• connecting with people around the world as much as applicable
• how my acquaintance gave me some good information
• keeping it in the present moment
• not focusing on likes or views
• being about the people

Glad to run into this individual, and he was going to a conference this weekend. The world is a fun place.

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Why do we keep up a rhythm? What does it say about who we are, our consistency levels, or our ability to respond to the world at large? It is a message of sorts. In this episode, I discuss:

• why the show goes up every day
• how I have switch to 128 kbps instead of 320 kbps output
• a little bit about content from Homo Deus on keeping death away
• linear versus networking ways of communicating
• tone-based communication

We can always throw variety into the world that we see. Should it always be structured and regular? Onward~

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Music is a big part of the world. Alex from episode 48 and Gary from episode 3 are two individuals who are into making music. They both get into the technicals, and enjoy the creativity. I like some music too, and in this episode, I discuss:

• types of music I have liked over time
• trance and music with melody or beats
• a lyric from a Jay-Z song that I break down into parts
• vocal music I have enjoyed in years, along with its motivational aspects

Music is a big part of the world, through Spotify, Google Play, iTunes, Pandora, and so on. All of these services bring tunes that give people feelings and energy they use. To more creativity.

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77 in the place to be. I have started reading Homo Deus by Yuval Harari. It’s the sequel to Sapiens, which was one of the top books of the past few years in the category of humankind’s progress over time. This one includes material from that book, and has updated content, and also discusses the future. In this episode I discuss:

• the introduction to this book, and how it is laid out
• plague like Black Death sweeping through nations
• famine no longer being the issue in relation to food levels
• the lack of war and the impacts it has on society

I am looking forward to flowing right through this book, and understanding more about some of the linkages between happenings over time. To more knowledge, and continuing the story.

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