Debt on a personal level can easily damage your life, remove your opportunities, give you a spirit of fear and always saying no, and hurt your imagination. LIfe was not meant to be this way. In this episode, I give thoughts on: the psychology of debt, how debt keeps us from being our best, and I offer a few solutions.

The national debt is designed to never be paid off--and it costs us our health, prosperity, and many other good things. And it makes it easier for nations to go to war.

But there are two alternative systems that are worth discussing--a hard money system (like gold, silver, and/or Bitcoin), and something I never heard of until about last week: a Sovereign Monetary System.

Join me for what may be a very healthy solution to our current destructive, dysfunctional, rigged game that hurts us, and also hurts the world. These solutions have worked before. They can work again.

In 1963, Eric Berne wrote a book that still sells well today: "Games People Play." It is about ridiculous, repetitive patterns that people fall into, like "I've Got You Now, You Little S.O.B.," and "Kick Me." In this episode (third in a series), I discuss several more of these self- and other-destructive games, as well as two of Dr. Berne's other insightful concepts: "Rackets" and "Stamps." You'll like it! I also provide resources (like other books on this subject, like "Born to Win" and "Scripts for Life.") This episode is #3; the first two were #227 & #229.

"(I've Got a) Wooden Leg"..."(You've Got a) Blemish"..."Kick Me"...and "Look What You Made Me Do!" These are four more Games that People Play.

In the 1960s, psychologist Eric Berne noticed that some people repeat the same silly arguments &/or patterns over & over again. He called these destructive patterns "games." But even though they prevent people from having fun, solving problems, and getting along, they are common. In this episode, I cover four more, as well as get into Berne's solutions. Careful...you don't want a game to become a life-script.

(This episode was recorded on Jan. 25, 2025.)

Spencer Steinert is a guide at Wonder, an Acton Academy which was featured on Jordan Peterson's podcast when Dr. Peterson interviewed Zach Lahn, the founder of Wonder. And now Spencer is opening his own Acton Academy, in Overland Park, Kansas, in August 2025.

Acton Academies are hard to describe—but they are catching on like wildfire, with over 300 of them in the U.S. and other countries, since the first one opened in 2009.

I’d like to say more about Spencer: he is a startup veteran, Innovation Design Expert (he has an M.A.), and a passionate educator who teaches kids to be entrepreneurial, and to tackle their projects (which they choose) with self-discipline and verve. And he's a great marketer.

Read more about Acton (and Spencer) here:

a) https://www.daringtowonder.com

and also here:

b) https://www.actonacademy.org/find

And listen to episode #221 (“Jacob McKnight Is Opening an Acton Academy”) of this podcast.

* * * Contact at spencer@daringtowonder.com * * *

"Games People Play" is a book that explains the social and relationship games that people play. These are no-win situations that we should avoid. I cover three: "I've Got You Now, You Little $$#@!," "Ain't It Awful," and "Yes, But." I also discuss the author, Dr. Eric Berne's solutions. Even though this book is sixty years old, it still sells well because it's so flippin' good. I found it eye-opening. Enjoy!

(This episode was recorded on Jan. 20, 2025.)

Apparently, law school makes people strong, smart, and gives them mesmerizing stories to tell. Reed just completed his third semester; it was agonizing and exhilarating, and (in my view) it made him into a better man in every respect.

(This episode was recorded on Jan. 9, 2025.)

Law school is a stark adjustment for most people. How did Sam Dierberger fare? It lead him to question practically every aspect of his life, and also his beliefs.

(This episode was recorded four days ago.)