Podcast appearances and mentions of Ryan Holiday

Everyone is new to this. We're all figuring it out as we go.

The Stoics studied powerful people not to worship them, but to learn from them. In this episode, Ryan looks at Elon Musk through the lens of courage, discipline, justice, and wisdom, and what his life reveals about the difference between success and virtue.

Ezra Klein is one of the sharpest voices in American politics, but this conversation is not about left versus right. It's about virtue, responsibility, and character. Ryan and Ezra talk about why virtue matters in a democracy, what liberalism has lost by failing to speak clearly about responsibility, and why institutions alone can't save a society if the people inside them abandon restraint, honesty, and self-critique. They also get into what Ezra thinks Stoicism gets right, where it falls short, and why Stoicism, or any philosophy, has to be tested in real life.Ezra Klein is a New York Times columnist and the host of The Ezra Klein Show. He is also the co-founder of Vox, where he served as editor-in-chief and later editor-at-large, and previously worked at The Washington Post, The American Prospect, Bloomberg, and MSNBC.

Whenever someone does something to us—minor or major—we always have this choice.

In this bonus episode, Ryan is takes you inside his office and walks through the books, objects, notes, and reminders that shape how he works and lives.

Will we help or hinder? Will we support or stab in the back? Will we open doors or close them?

You might think your house is a mess. You might be a little embarrassed to have people over. But you shouldn't be.

From one end comes another beginning, nothing lasts forever—nor would we want it otherwise.

With the World Cup underway, it feels like the right time to revisit a conversation with someone who knows exactly what it takes to perform on that stage. In today's episode, Ryan talks with two-time World Cup champion Carli Lloyd about the work behind a championship career: learning to handle pressure, raising your own standards, staying disciplined when talent is no longer enough, and knowing when it's time to move on.Carli is a former American professional soccer player who retired in 2021 and was inducted in the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2025. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion, two-time FIFA Player of the Year and four-time Olympian, competing in 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020.Carli scored the gold medal-winning goal in the final of the 2008 Olympics and both U.S. goals in the gold medal match at the 2012 Olympics. She also helped the United States win the 2015 and 2019 FIFA Women's World Cups, earn bronze at the 2020 Olympics and finish as runners-up at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup.

We are not meant to parent alone. We are not enough people to possibly handle this responsibility alone.

Step outside so that when you come back, you are not carrying the same heat you left with.

Has there ever been a parent who didn't yell, who didn't lose their cool? Probably not.

Archit Gupta went from never having written a line of code to building AI tools that grade hundreds of student cases and a Socratic AI tutor for a graduate class — in one year.  Archit is graduated from Foster's MSBA (Master of Science in Business Analytics) in June, and served on the committee that planned Foster's first AI Spark Day. Before Foster, he worked in M&A at KPMG, founded a consumer fintech startup focused on retail investors, and held product roles at a Singapore-based fintech. He entered the program with no software background and built AI-assisted grading and tutoring tools at UW with Professor Leonard Boussioux. He also founded a student club to pass institutional knowledge between Foster's one-year specialty master's cohorts.  How to get past the AI "cold start" when you've never touched a command prompt How to use AI for grading at scale while staying FERPA-compliant (anonymization + open-source models + human in the loop) Why a Socratic AI tutor can protect learning where an unrestricted LLM undermines it How to design an A/B test that measures retention, not just scores Why "everything that can be automated need not be automated" — and how to tell the difference What rapid iteration looks like when you don't need an engineering team   Resources mentioned: n8n; Claude Code; open-source / frontier LLMs; FERPA; Ryan Holiday's newsletter; Foster's AI Spark Day.

There will be times we have to bend. There will be times we have to collaborate. There will be times we have to adjust, times we have to meet someone where they are.

There are a million reasons not to go. But it's worth asking, as you run through these excuses, how much longer will they want to do this?

My guest this week is Ryan Holiday. If you don't know Ryan, he's an author and a friend of mine. He writes about philosophy, strategy, and life. We talk about what it's like being an artist, being a writer, the quirks of it, and how you deal with it. Make sure you guys follow Ryan, and check out the Daily Stoic. Follow Ryan Holiday: @ryanholiday And check out mxpx.com. We've got tour dates. We're on all the Warped Tours coming up. New song, "The Good Days," is out on the Warped Tour comp CD. New album later this year. We're in Milan September 5 for Punkadeka Festival, our only European show. mxpx.com. UPCOMING MxPx SHOWS: Jul 25-26 — Vans Warped Tour, Long Beach, CA Aug 21-22 — Vans Warped Tour, Montreal, QC Sep 5 — Punkadeka Festival, Segrate (Milan), Italy (only European show) Sep 12-13 — Vans Warped Tour, Mexico City Nov 14-15 — Vans Warped Tour, Orlando, FL --------------------- Questions or comments? Leave a voicemail: 1-360-830-6660 Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi1BJ27GDAFodXuDqgYia5g Follow @mikeherreraTD everywhere https://linktr.ee/Mikeherrerapodcast If you like the podcast, subscribe, rate and review on Apple. Produced and edited by Bob McKnight @Producer_Bob Additional production by Christine Hall @shirtsizesmall   Topics: Mike Herrera Podcast, Ryan Holiday interview, Daily Stoic, Ryan Holiday stoicism, The Obstacle Is the Way, Ego Is the Enemy, MxPx, MxPx new album, songwriting process, Find a Way Home, punk rock podcast, Bremerton, Warped Tour 2026, Bon Iver, Springsteen Nebraska, Deliver Me from Nowhere, audience capture

Bruce Springsteen once said we can be an ancestor for our children, or a ghost. Father's Day is a good time to ask which one we're becoming. In today's episode, Ryan talks with Lieutenant General Mark Hertling about the lessons we hope our children inherit from us. Mark's book, If I Don't Return: A Father's Wartime Journal, began as a way to pass down guidance to his sons during a deployment he knew he might not come home from. Ryan and Mark discuss the idea of an ethical will, the responsibility parents have to talk openly about failure, and the importance of teaching children what our own scar tissue has taught us. Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling served 38 years in the U.S. Army, rising from tank platoon leader to commander of U.S. Army Europe and the Seventh Army. His career included combat tours in Desert Storm and Iraq, where he commanded the 1st Armored Division, prepared U.S. and allied forces for deployment, and helped support military transformation across Eastern Europe.

Some fathers show us who to become. Others show us who not to become.In this Father's Day weekend episode, Ryan looks at two very different examples of fatherhood. First, he reflects on Marcus Aurelius and the extraordinary influence of Antoninus Pius, the adopted father who taught him compassion, humility, discipline, responsibility, and how to hold power without being changed by it.Then Ryan talks with Tom Junod about the harder side of inheritance: what it means to love a father who caused pain, kept secrets, inspired fear, and still shaped the man his son became. Tom's new book, In the Days of My Youth I Was Told What It Means to Be a Man, is about masculinity, moral injury, family secrets, and the lifelong work of deciding which parts of your father you carry forward and which parts you refuse to repeat.Tom Junod is senior writer for ESPN, where his work has won an Emmy and the Dan Jenkins Medal for Excellence in Sportswriting. He is a two-time winner of the National Magazine Award for Feature Writing, and a winner of the James Beard Award for essay writing. Previously he was a staff writer at GQ and Esquire. The film A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood was based on his article in Esquire. Follow Tom on Instagram | @tom_junod

In honor of Father's Day weekend, Ryan talks with Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling about fatherhood, legacy, and the lessons we hope our children take with them. During a wartime deployment, Mark began writing a journal for his sons in case he did not return home. What started as a way to leave them guidance became a reflection on character, failure, leadership, and what it really means to be a father.Lieutenant General (Ret.) Mark Hertling served 38 years in the U.S. Army, rising from tank platoon leader to commander of U.S. Army Europe and the Seventh Army. His career included combat tours in Desert Storm and Iraq, where he commanded the 1st Armored Division, prepared U.S. and allied forces for deployment, and helped support military transformation across Eastern Europe.

Today in the US, we celebrate Juneteenth, the commemoration of the emancipation of slaves in America. It's wonderful to note the moments of historical progress like Juneteenth. But we have to remember that beautiful language pales in comparison to beautiful acts.In today's episode, Ryan talks with General Ty Seidule about memory, monuments, and what it means to tell the truth about the past. They discuss the difference between memory and nostalgia, why commemoration should reflect our values, and how American history is full of heroes worth honoring. Ty Seidule served in the U.S. Army for more than three decades, retiring in 2020 as a brigadier general. He is a professor emeritus of history at West Point and received its distinguished faculty award. In 2021, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin appointed Seidule to the Congressional Naming Commission tasked with redesignating Department of Defense assets which honor Confederates, where he was elected vice chair.Follow Ty on Instagram | @tyseidule

Let them live their life. Let them make mistakes. That's the whole point.

Getting to a place where you know yourself, where you have controlled your needs, where you understand and live by your values is an incredibly wealthy place. Do you have it?

Feeling deeply is not a weakness. The challenge is learning how to experience those emotions without letting them take control. In today's episode, Ryan talks with clinical psychologist and bestselling author Dr. Becky Kennedy about the tools kids and adults need to stay steady when feelings run high.They talk about why some people become overwhelmed more easily, how to speak for a feeling instead of from it, the difference between understanding and approval, and why repairing a relationship often matters more than handling every moment perfectly.Dr. Becky Kennedy is a clinical psychologist, bestselling author, and the founder and CEO of Good Inside, a parenting platform that gives parents practical tools for raising emotionally healthy kids. Named “The Millennial Parenting Whisperer” by TIME, Dr. Becky is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be and host of the chart-topping podcast Good Inside with Dr. Becky.

We want to make sure our kids have opportunities in life. But sometimes, we neglect one of the easiest ways to help them get ahead.

We are in the process of filling our banned books library here in Bastrop, Tx and if you want to be part of this project, you can send your books to:Painted Porch BookstoreATTN: Banned Books912 Main StBastrop, Tx 78602United States

Instead of mistaking feelings for facts, let's pause. Let's get curious.

You've got a long commute to school and then the office. They never sleep. There's drama in the mom or dad group. It's a lot. It's also nothing!

There is the form of poverty that is not having enough. But there was another form of poverty that Seneca talked about...

Plato, with total seriousness (and probably a bit of humor too), said that “of all the wild things, a boy is the most difficult to handle.” A lot of parents would agree to that.

To the untrained eye, ego can be mistaken for confidence. In reality, the person doesn't feel that way inside at all.

One thing far too many parents have in common is that they are always putting off taking care of themselves. This may come from a good place, but the results are good for no one.

Looksmaxxing promises to make you more attractive, more confident, and more powerful. But at what point does self-improvement become obsession? In today's episode, Ryan looks at what the Stoics would say about this viral trend, the dangers of chasing external validation, and what it actually means to become your best self.

Ambition can open doors, but your principles determine where you go from there. In today's episode, Ryan talks with entrepreneur and investor Codie Sanchez about how the four Stoic virtues of courage, discipline, justice, and wisdom can serve as a guide for building a successful career, leading well, and creating a life you actually want. They discuss why most professional risks are less dangerous than they seem, how to stop undervaluing your work, and what it means to pursue success without sacrificing your values, relationships, or reputation. Codie Sanchez is an entrepreneur, investor, and founder of Contrarian Thinking, where she teaches people how to build wealth through business ownership. After starting her career in journalism and later working in finance at firms like Goldman Sachs and Vanguard, Codie went on to buy, build, and invest in Main Street businesses. She is also the author of Main Street Millionaire and host of the BigDeal Podcast. Follow Codie Sanchez on Instagram @codiesanchez, on TikTok @Codie_Sanchez, and on YouTube @CodieSanchezCTCheck out Ryan's episode on BigDeal by Codie Sanchez

Instead of learning everything through trial and error, we can learn from the experiences and mistakes of others. Nowhere is that more important than in parenting. In today's episode, Ryan is sharing some of his favorite parenting books and the best lessons he has taken from them.

You will have to face facts. You will have to get uncomfortable. You will have to take up the burden of history. This will not always be fun.

Heading into the weekend, here's a reminder that not everything you do has to be useful, efficient, or productive. In this bonus episode, Ryan and Chris Guillebeau talk about making space for fun, following strange impulses, and doing the small things that make you feel more alive.Watch the full episode with Chris Guillebeau here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHyEgbTg-BAChris Guillebeau is the New York Times bestselling author of The $100 Startup, Side Hustle, and The Happiness of Pursuit, which have sold over one million copies worldwide. During a lifetime of self-employment that included a four-year commitment as a volunteer executive in West Africa, he visited every country in the world (193 in total) before his thirty-fifth birthday. His latest book, Time Anxiety: The Illusion of Urgency and a Better Way to Live, Chris offers a bold path for redefining our relationship with the clock.Check out Chris' new book Time Anxiety: The Illusion of Urgency and a Better Way to Live and grab copies of The $100 Startup, Gonzo Capitalism, The Art of Non-Confirmity, 100 Side Hustles at The Painted Porch: https://www.thepaintedporch.comFollow Chris on Instagram @193Countries and on X @chrisguillebeau.

In 2024, The New York Times Book Review gathered more than 500 novelists, nonfiction writers, poets and literary enthusiasts to help pick the best books of the 21st century so far. One of those books was Cormac McCarthy's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, “The Road,” which came in at No. 13. That book tells the story of a man and his young son trying to survive in a postapocalyptic United States. Like other books by McCarthy, it combines ornate prose with moments of unforgettable violence. It is also a moving story of love and parenthood under the most extreme circumstances. One of the people who voted on our best books list was Ryan Holiday, author of more than a dozen nonfiction books, host of the “Daily Stoic” podcast and owner of the Painted Porch Bookshop in Bastrop, Texas. We recently invited him on the “Book Review” podcast to talk about “The Road,” and how its meaning changed for him after he became a father. Books Discussed on This Episode: “The Road” by Cormac McCarthy “No Country for Old Men” by Cormac McCarthy “All the Pretty Horses” by Cormac McCarthy “Blood Meridian” by Cormac McCarthy “The Odyssey” by Homer “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald “The Children of Men” by P. D. James “The Plague” by Albert Camus “Revolutionary Road” by Richard Yates “Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius “Of Boys and Men” by Richard Reeves “Outdoor Kids in an Inside World” by Steven Rinella “Letter to His Father” by Franz Kafka “Range” by David Epstein “Good Inside” by Becky Kennedy “Wild Dark Shore” by Charlotte McConaghy “Death Be Not Proud” by John Gunther “The Revenant” by Michael Punke Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Take the time while you can. Experience new places, new experiences together while you can.

Every “yes” is a trade. Every obligation takes its cut. Every distraction leaves with something.

When you look back and wonder where the time went, where their childhood went, it's going to break your heart to have to account for how you spent it, for how much of it you wasted.

The Stoics remind us that everything has its compensation…if we choose to see it, if we choose to welcome it.

Everyone has something they're trying to quit, whether it's a habit, compulsion, or addiction. But what if the secret to getting clean and breaking free from that kind of slavery dates back more than 2,000 years?

They didn't understand you? Of course they're confused. Welcome to being a kid.

Do not trade your soul away. Because once it's gone, you cannot get it back.

One of the great things about kids is that they keep you on your toes. Not just because you have to worry about them all the time, but because they give you so many more things to notice.

We could do it later. We could get serious later. But why? Why not do it while we have the chance?

In 2020, something got installed in your brain — a switch. And every time the media needs a click, they flip it, because they know it still works. This week it's Ebola. Three weeks ago it was hantavirus. The CDC says the risk to Americans is extremely low. The WHO went on camera and said this is not the next Covid. But that's not what the headlines say… because calm doesn't get clicks. Fear does. In this episode I show you the machine behind the fear — the funnel, the business model, the exact script. I teach a framework called Hook, Story, Offer, and when I looked at how the media covers these virus stories, I realized they're running the same three steps I teach marketers… except they're not selling a product, they're selling fear. Then I bring in two books — a 1962 warning from French philosopher Jacques Ellul, and my friend Ryan Holiday's confessions of a media manipulator — to explain not just how they do it, but why. And as a dad, the part that keeps me up at night is who's paying the price. Key Highlights: ◼️The “Fear Funnel” — how the media runs the same Hook, Story, Offer I teach, except the hook is a scary headline, the story buries the CDC's “extremely low risk” at the bottom, and the offer is a subscription to your own anxiety ◼️”Pre-propaganda” — Jacques Ellul's 1962 idea that the most powerful conditioning happens before the message ever arrives… and why Covid installed the switch the word “virus” still flips today ◼️What Ryan Holiday's “Trust Me, I'm Lying” exposes — the media doesn't sell information, it sells attention, and the cheapest attention is fear and outrage that bypass rational thought (your amygdala clicks before you do) ◼️The numbers behind a dying industry — media trust falling from 72% in the 1970s to 28% today (just 8% among Republicans), and fear as the last lever that still works ◼️The “Disclosure Test” — the one question to run on your own urgency: if your audience knew exactly how and why you created it, would they still respect you? Here's the uncomfortable part: urgency itself isn't the enemy. Deadlines work, scarcity drives action, and I use urgency in my business every single day. The line is whether it's real. A cart that's actually closing is real. “The next pandemic” when the CDC says the risk is extremely low — when fear just happens to pay the bills — is manufactured. Ellul predicted this in 1962, Holiday exposed it in 2012, and we're watching it run in real time in 2026, with the most anxious generation in recorded history footing the bill. So the real question isn't whether the next virus is dangerous. It's this: which is more dangerous right now — the virus, or the coverage… and which side of that line is your own marketing on? ◼️DOTCOM SECRETS: The media stole Hook, Story, Offer and turned it into a fear machine — Russell wrote the book on how to use it the RIGHT way. DotCom Secrets breaks down exactly how funnels really work, so you can build a real business that helps people instead of being manipulated by one. Grab a free copy → https://www.DotComSecrets.com ◼️If you've got a product, offer, service… or idea… I'll show you how to sell it (the RIGHT way) Register for my next event → https://sellingonline.com/podcast ◼️Still don't have a funnel? ClickFunnels gives you the exact tools (and templates) to launch TODAY → https://clickfunnels.com/podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The easier life gets, the less prepared we may be for what's hard. In today's episode, Ryan talks with David Epstein about “desirable difficulties,” the challenges that make learning slower and more frustrating in the moment but lead to greater growth over time. David Epstein is the author of the #1 New York Times best seller Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World. His new book, Inside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better, is out now!

82 years ago, thousands of young men crossed the English Channel and stepped into one of the most consequential days in history. In today's episode, Ryan shares the Stoic lessons behind D-Day and Dwight D. Eisenhower's leadership. He explains how Eisenhower prepared for failure, took responsibility before the outcome was known, stayed steady under unimaginable pressure, and saw opportunity where others saw disaster.

We are in desperate need of good, courageous people. Can you fill that need?