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Mark Manson

New episodes every Wednesday. Mark Manson is a three-time #1 New York Times bestselling author and 20-year personal development industry veteran. Solved is the most comprehensive, evidence-based, overly-researched podcast on the planet to help you get an issue in your life, err... solved.

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck Podcast

Meditation has been sold to us as a magic pill for so long that the backlash is almost as overblown as the hype. I spent years deep in Buddhist practice, went on retreats, meditated daily — and then slowly discovered that half the gurus evangelizing it were alcoholics, abusers, or running Rolls-Royce-funded cults. Here's what the more careful research actually shows: there are three things meditation does reliably well, and they’re probably not what you've been promised. More importantly, almost everything you've been told about how to do it is wrong — starting with the idea that the goal is to quiet your mind. If your brain turns into a chaotic mess the moment you close your eyes, that's not a failure. That's the whole point.

Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: https://markmanson.net/breakthrough

Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at https://www.purpose.app

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Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
8:15 Skeptic Claim #1: Meditation Is Overhyped
22:45 Skeptic Claim #2: "Meditation Isn't for Me"
41:36 Meditation Isn't Safe or Helpful for Everyone
48:33 Skeptic Claim #3: The New-Agey, "Woo-Woo" Crowd Turns Me Off
1:01:01 A Secular, Grounded Alternative: Meditation Without Metaphysics
1:07:40 Are We Losing Something by Secularizing Meditation?
1:17:35 Conclusion: What Meditation Really Is
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Meditation, Solved: Is It Actually Worth It?

If you’ve ever felt stuck, or like you’re doing all the right things but something still feels off, there’s a good chance it’s a values problem. Not a discipline problem, not a productivity problem. A values problem. Most people have never actually sat down and figured out what they care about. Not really anyway.

This clip is from our episode How to Find and Live By Your Values, which came out back in May 2025 and is honestly one of the episodes I’m most proud of. Drew and I go through a bunch of exercises to help you actually figure out what you value, not what you think you’re supposed to value. 

We cover things like: 

 
How to identify your core values with a simple hypothetical scenario.

 
How to clearly define what you want your legacy to be

 
Ways to prioritize your values by making tough decisions.

 
How to turn frustrations into your deepest values.

 
Why the hierarchy of your values is more critical than any single one of them.

 
And why your willingness to sacrifice for something says a lot more about you than just what you think you want in life.

Listen to the full Values episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5pdYVl60TqKLNAwKgFdk0C?si=0aa34991b49f4fcc

Get your FREE five-day mini course: https://www.solvedpodcast.com/values-mini-course

Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠⁠https://www.purpose.app

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Solved, Highlights: How to Find Your Values

Focus is one of those things everyone swears they need more of and almost no one is actually addressing correctly. In this episode, we dig into what the science actually says about attention spans (hint: your brain isn't broken, it's just overwhelmed), why the standard advice to "try harder" is probably making things worse, and what's really driving your inability to sit down and get things done. We get into the neuroscience of explore vs. exploit modes, why flow states feel the way they do, and the four hidden triggers behind most focus problems, none of which have anything to do with your phone. Then we get into the practical stuff: environmental design, deep work frameworks, the maker vs. manager schedule, time boxing, batching, and why a dentist appointment in the middle of your morning can ruin your entire day. If you're the kind of person who opens 14 browser tabs, switches between them for 40 minutes, and calls that "working", well, this one's for you.

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Ready to stop listening to podcasts and actually start taking action? Join the Solved Community, a group of like-minded people who are taking small steps every day to make big changes in their lives: https://membership.solvedpodcast.com/

Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: https://markmanson.net/breakthrough

Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠⁠https://www.purpose.app

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

3:06 Chapter 1: The Attention Crisis (Is It Even Real?)

21:55 Chapter 2: The Exploit–Explore Dilemma

29:57 Your Brain on Explore and Exploit Mode

43:48 Technology evolved with Focus

50:33 Chapter 3: The Psychology of Distraction

54:06 Trigger 1: Lack of Importance

56:24 Trigger 2: Lack of Clarity

1:00:01 Trigger 3: Lack of Calmness

1:02:49 Trigger 4: Lack of Health

1:07:21 What about Willpower?

1:18:50 Chapter 4: Flow States and Hyperfocus

1:25:13 Characteristics of flow state

1:37:36 Chapter 5: Mental Health and the Clinical Realities of Focus

1:39:30 ADHD

1:41:56 Hyperfocus vs Flow

1:56:27 Chapter 6: Environmental Design for Focus

2:01:15 Foundations

2:06:38 Setting Up Your Workspace

2:14:15 Working with others

2:22:49 Temperature, lighting. air quality

2:27:30 Nature exposure

2:29:22 Ritual as a “trigger system”

2:34:39 Chapter 7: Productivity Systems

2:53:17 Maker Schedules vs. Manager Schedules

3:00:10 Using Apps for Focus

3:05:29 Chapter 8: The 80/20 of Focus

3:07:51 Is Focus a Skill?

3:11:07 Takeaways
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Focus, Solved

A Hungarian doctor discovered that handwashing saves lives, and was destroyed for proving it. Michael Jordan’s competitiveness made him a legend, then turned him into a prisoner of his own intensity. My ADHD nearly derailed my life and later became the foundation of my career. This video explores an uncomfortable truth: the traits that make you exceptional are often the same ones that create your biggest problems. The real question isn't “How do I change?” but “Is this worth it, and how do I manage it?”

Get one month of BrainFM free with my link: https://go.brain.fm/idgaf

For practical, science-based advice each week that might change your life, sign up for my newsletter here: http://bit.ly/3JRg3NX

Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠https://www.purpose.app

Written & Directed by Mark Manson
Edited by Daniel Johnson
Director of Photography Jess Choi
Thumbnail by Jonathan Sippel
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The Best Thing About You is Also the Worst Thing

We put love on trial — literally. Drew and I squared off in a full debate over whether romantic love is overrated. I made the case that love is basically your brain's con man, a neurochemical hijacking designed to make you delusional about deeply flawed people, and that the most intoxicating relationships are often the most toxic. Drew fought back with the evidence that love is the foundation of social infrastructure, physical health, and long-term happiness. By the end, we came to a gentlemen’s agreement: a framework that explains why we're all chasing the wrong kind of love, and what the right kind actually looks like.

- Ready to stop listening to podcasts and actually start taking action? Join the Solved Community, a group of like-minded people who are taking small steps every day to make big changes in their lives: https://membership.solvedpodcast.com

- Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: https://markmanson.net/breakthrough

- Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at https://www.purpose.app

Check out our sponsors: 

IM8: Transform your daily routine with IM8's Daily Ultimate Essentials at https://www.im8health.com/solved

Factor: Head to https://www.factormeals.com/solved202650off and use code solved202650off to get 50% off and free breakfast for a year. Eat like a pro this month with Factor.

Chapters

0:00 Introduction

2:21 Round 1: Love is the Brain's Conman

23:33 Round 2: Love as Social Infrastructure

45:33 Round 3: Love and Happiness

1:07:14 Round 4: We're Drawn to People Who Hurt Us
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Romantic Love, Solved

This is a segment from the full episode on procrastination.

Procrastination isn't a time management problem — it's an emotional regulation problem, and once you see that, everything changes. We break down how your brain uses avoidance as a mood-management strategy, why every philosopher from Plato to the Buddhists was partially right (but nobody had the full picture), and the specific internal and external levers you can pull to actually get shit done. We also run through the six types of procrastinators so you can figure out which flavor of self-sabotage you've been perfecting — plus the RAIN method, minimum viable actions, and why making boring things fun isn't just a nice idea, it's the whole game.

We also put together a free companion guide for the full episode with all the takeaways, references, and tools to help you get your sh*t together once and for all. Download it here: https://solvedpodcast.com/procrastination

- Ready to stop listening to podcasts and actually start taking action? Join the Solved Community, a group of like-minded people who are taking small steps every day to make big changes in their lives: https://membership.solvedpodcast.com/

- Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: https://markmanson.net/breakthrough

- Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠https://www.purpose.app⁠

Amazing Offers From Our Sponsor: 

Boost your focus with science-backed music from Brain.fm.
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Chapters:

0:00 Introduction
1:44 Understanding Emotional Regulation
9:34 The RAIN Method
14:04 The Six Types of Procrastinators
23:09 The 80-20 of Procrastination
43:39 Conclusion
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Solved, Highlights: The Real Reason You Procrastinate

Most people aren’t bad at dating, they’re just trying to solve the wrong problem. We treat dating like a personality test (“Am I attractive enough? Confident enough?”) when it’s actually a multi-stage process, and each stage punishes completely different mistakes. That one misunderstanding explains why dating feels so confusing, why men and women keep blaming each other, why dating apps feel brutal, and why so much dating advice makes things worse instead of better.

In this episode of Solved, Drew and I break down why modern dating feels so broken, and why it actually isn’t. We dig into the evolutionary psychology behind attraction, why men and women are optimizing for different things, how modern culture and dating apps amplify the worst parts of the system, and the three stages of dating that almost nobody understands. We also talk about confidence, rejection, status, attraction, and why avoiding rejection is often the very thing sabotaging your dating life. If you’ve felt stuck, burned out, or quietly wondering “what the hell is wrong with dating?” — this episode is for you.

- Ready to stop listening to podcasts and actually start taking action? Join the Solved Community, a group of like-minded people who are taking small steps every day to make big changes in their lives: ⁠https://membership.solvedpodcast.com/⁠

- Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: ⁠https://markmanson.net/breakthrough⁠

- Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠⁠https://www.purpose.app⁠⁠

Check out our sponsors:

- Get your first month of Shopify for only $1 at https://shopify.com/solved

- Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Sign up for free: ⁠https://www.rocketmoney.com/solved

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

5:12 Chapter 1: Why Is Dating So Complicated?

11:03 The different challenges men and women face

17:18 Facts

29:51 What Women Find Attractive

38:16 What Men Find Attractive

51:27 Chapter 2: A Brief History of Courtship & Dating

1:06:10 Modern Dating

1:11:41 A Glimmer of Hope: The emerging offline renaissance

1:21:37 Chapter 3: Men's and Women's Dating Advice Ecosystems

1:31:13 Inside the Male Advice Ecosystem

1:44:52 Inside the Female Advice Ecosystem

2:02:07 The Collision: Feedback Loops That Break the Market

2:21:27 Chapter 4: The Pre-Dating Phase

2:36:22 Building Confidence

2:37:59 Halo Effect

2:53:20 Conclusion Pre Dating

2:57:48 Chapter 5: Meeting People and Getting Dates

3:11:17 Flirting

3:23:15 Reading People

3:29:51 Chapter 6: Going on Dates

3:38:39 Trustworthiness

3:47:09 Conversational Skills

3:56:12 Emotional Regulation

4:03:03 Boundaries

4:09:07 F**k yes or no

4:14:44 The 80/20
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Dating, Solved: Why Finding the Right Person Feels So Hard

Most people think ego is either something you need to kill off entirely or inflate to take over the world. Both are wrong. In this episode, we dig deep into what ego actually is—how it evolved, why it matters, and how it secretly runs your life without you realizing it.

We hit Freud, Buddhism, David Hume, Jung’s shadow self, and even the Navy SEALs to unpack why your ego isn’t always the enemy—it’s mostly just misunderstood. Then we get into how to quiet your ego without losing your identity, and yes, we talk psychedelics, too. This is everything you were never taught about ego—but should’ve been.

Check out our sponsors:

- Head to https://www.80000hours.org/solved to start planning a career that is meaningful, fulfilling, and helps solve one of the world’s most pressing problems.

We also put together a free companion guide for this episode with all the takeaways, references, and tools to help you get your sh*t together once and for all. Download it here: https://solvedpodcast.com/ego

- Ready to stop listening to podcasts and actually start taking action? Join the Solved Community, a group of like-minded people who are taking small steps every day to make big changes in their lives: ⁠https://membership.solvedpodcast.com/⁠

- Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: ⁠https://markmanson.net/breakthrough⁠

- Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠⁠https://www.purpose.app⁠⁠

Chapters:

0:00 Introduction

3:31 Chapter 1: Defining the Indefinable — What Is the Ego?

3:33 Napoleon + Gary Snyder

10:15 The Architecture and Function of the Ego

27:15 What is a Healthy Ego?

36:14 The Philosophical Divide: Two Cultures, Two Selves

49:29 Chapter 2: The Ego’s Evolutionary Architecture — How Evolution Built the Self

49:33 Why Evolution Invented “I”

51:46 The Architecture of the Ego: From Refl ex to Reflection

1:00:33 The First Fall: When Knowing Became Our Burden

1:09:07 Why Evolution Built the Ego

1:13:08 Chapter 3: When the Ego Becomes a Tyrant

1:13:20 The Anatomy of Ego Tyranny

1:19:05 Recognizing and Disarming the Inner Dictator

1:47:29 Chapter 4: The Quiet Ego — Beyond a Strong Ego

1:47:34 When Quieter Means Stronger

1:50:58 The Science and Structure of the Quiet Ego

1:57:16 Cultivating a Quiet Ego

2:01:08 Benefits of a Quiet Ego

2:04:27 Chapter 5: The Chemical Dissolution: Ego Death and Psychedelics

2:23:16 Chapter 6: 80/20

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How to Quiet Your Ego (Without Losing Yourself), Solved

This is probably the most comprehensive, no-BS breakdown of boundaries you're going to find anywhere. We cover what boundaries actually are (spoiler: it’s not just telling people to f*ck off), why they matter more than you think, and how your entire life—your relationships, mental health, identity, even career—is quietly shaped by whether or not you have them.

By the end of this, you’ll know exactly how to set boundaries, how to enforce them without being a jerk, and how to stop confusing your preferences, rules, and passive-aggressive texts for actual emotional maturity. Plus, we talk about how the internet has totally mangled this concept and what to do instead. If you’ve ever felt burned out, resentful, overwhelmed, or just vaguely annoyed by everyone around you, this is for you.

We also put together a free companion guide for this episode with all the takeaways, references, and tools to help you get your sh*t together once and for all. Download it here: https://solvedpodcast.com/boundaries

- Ready to stop listening to podcasts and actually start taking action? Join the Solved Community, a group of like-minded people who are taking small steps every day to make big changes in their lives: https://findmomentum.com/boundaries

- Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: ⁠https://markmanson.net/breakthrough⁠

- Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠⁠https://www.purpose.app⁠⁠

Chapters:
(0:00) Introduction
(1:29) CHAPTER 1: Foundations of Boundaries
(2:05) The Breakdown: What boundaries actually are (and aren’t)
(4:42) The Spectrum: Porous, Rigid, Healthy
(9:06) Boundaries vs. Values, Rules, Preferences, and Requests
(13:32) What happens when boundaries erode?
(18:46) The Solution: Boundaries as structure and freedom
(22:57) CHAPTER 2: Boundaries: Freedom Through Limitation
(25:09) Creativity with Limitations
(29:15) Mental Health and Limitations
(38:53) Example
(42:54) Boundaries and Maturity
(45:20) CHAPTER 3: Why Boundaries Matter
(50:00) The Basis of Boundary Formation: Values
(58:30) Translating Values into Boundaries
(1:04:06) The Application: Living Your Valued Boundaries
(1:10:14) CHAPTER 4: Why We Fail to Set and Maintain Boundaries
(1:11:11) Developmental Origins
(1:22:53) Personality and Individual Differences 
(1:29:48) Emotional Regulation and Mental Health
(1:46:06) CHAPTER 5: Types of Boundaries
(1:46:53) Physical Boundaries
(1:49:28) Emotional Boundaries
(1:51:44) Intellectual Boundaries
(1:56:02) Time Boundaries
(2:00:03) Digital Boundaries
(2:09:01) Financial Boundaries
(2:12:42) Family boundaries
(2:18:52) Friendship Boundaries
(2:23:06) Work Relationship Boundaries
(2:28:22) Boundaries around authority
(2:30:02) Self Boundaries
(2:34:39) Chapter 6: How to Set and Maintain Boundaries
(3:13:37) Chapter 7: Boundaries in Romantic Relationships
(3:30:52) Parenting
(3:37:04) Research & Frameworks
(3:40:44) Western Romance
(3:44:48) CHAPTER 8: The 80/20 of Boundaries

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How to Set (And Keep) Your Boundaries, Solved

This one’s different. In this special year-end episode, I answer your questions—from the deep stuff about purpose and motivation, to the uncomfortable realities of change, burnout, failure, and dealing with unsupportive family. I also share the behind-the-scenes chaos of building SOLVED this year, what I learned about making massive, meaningful content, and what’s coming in 2026 (spoiler: boundaries, ego, and maybe some live shows).

This is part personal, part philosophical, and part therapy session disguised as a podcast. If you’ve been wondering what’s next—or why you feel stuck—this one’s for you. See you in 2026.

- Ready to stop listening to podcasts and actually start taking action? Join the Solved Community, a group of like-minded people who are taking small steps every day to make big changes in their lives: https://solvedpodcast.com/qa

- Sign up for my newsletter, Your Next Breakthrough. It will help make you a less awful person: ⁠https://markmanson.net/breakthrough⁠

- Get clarity on what actually matters. Try Purpose, Mark's AI mentor app that learns your patterns, challenges your blind spots, and helps you take action. Get 7 days free at ⁠⁠https://www.purpose.app⁠⁠

Chapters:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:13) Recap of 2025

(03:42) What if I don't have a single purpose?

(06:07) Why don't I feel a strong need for purpose?

(08:32) How do I find purpose when doing things I don't find important?

(12:34) I'm having issues on getting motivated on one thing

(19:35) What if my family doesn't support my purpose?

(23:15) I'm struggling with the idea that purpose must be bigger than yourself

(26:04) How Mark got Purpose AI to work

(32:55) Questions from YouTube

(33:13) How do you change yourself?

(36:43) Finding meaning after AI takeover

(44:01) What would a Models rewrite look like today?

(48:19) Mark's first heartbreak

(54:31) What would Mark put on Voyager 1?

(57:35) Self-doubt on something you make

(1:02:12) Mark's next book?

(1:03:38) Tours around the world 

(1:05:55) Goals for 2026

(1:08:14) Podcast changes for 2026
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Meditation, Solved: Is It Actually Worth It?

Lyt når som helst, hvor som helst

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