Basecamp for Men E53: Envisioning Our Future

E53: Envisioning Our Future with Special Guest Ian Mackenzie

 

E53 Introduction

In the coming episodes, I hope to speak with more futurists and visionaries. I like to have conversations about what is possible as we navigate change.

I am reminded of a Kurt Vonnegut quote. He said,“I want to stay as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all kinds of things that you can’t see from the center.”

It is good for us to listen to alternative perspectives and ideas. It sharpens our intellect and keeps our brains working well. You may not agree or can envision these ideas bearing fruit. But new systems are often started by visionaries and futurists who try and sketch out what they are seeing. And we, as early adopters of these new ideas, work to turn these ideas over in our conscious and sub-conscious minds. Working the fertile ground of our imagination. Trying our best to allow others to contribute as we seek our own place and contribution to the greater good.

I am at a point in my life where I don’t want to close off an idea because it initially feels “out there”. Our greatest transformations, both external and internal, may come from these very esoteric and edgy ideas and concepts.

My guest today is someone I have a great deal of respect for, both as filmmaker and a futurist.

Ian Mackenzie Bio

Ian Mackenzie is a filmmaker and visionary artist and creator and host of the podcast The Mythic Masculine. For over 11 years, Ian has been tracking the global emergence of new culture, seeking out and amplifying the voices of visionaries, artists and activists who have ben working towards planetary system change.

Here is my interview with Ian MacKenzie.

Basecamp for Men E52: Psychedelics and the New Vision

E52: Psychedelics and the New Vision

 

E52: Introduction

Growing up on the west coast, the lore of the 1960’s free-thinking hippie/peace movement was something that was part of our heritage. Within this culture, psychedelics always had a strange, mysterious, and transformative power. An elixir that had the ability to throw open the doors of perception, revealing a sacred, divinely infused electromagnetic field that we are in constant communication with.

The lineage of these psychedelic explorers carried forth into the rave and music culture of the 80’s and 90’s and today is kept alive by festivals like Burning Man. Whatever your take is on this controversial topic, psychedelics seems to be an important part of our mythical Tree of Knowledge.

Tales of seeing the face of God or the Goddess abound. Scores of courageous people have had profound experiences that changed the course of their lives. What these intrepid psychic explorers seemed to discover was a portal in consciousness. A DMT-primed access point that seemed to accelerate their understanding of the underlying design and meaning of the cosmos.

My guest today has built his podcast around profound discoveries made in sacred space, having participated in many ayuhuasca ceremonies with shamans in the Amazon. I am excited to dialogue with him about what he learned from what is commonly called plant medicine.

Alex is the host of the Natural Born Alchemist podcast. The podcast has been going since 2014 and features a wide array of guests. The theme of the podcast revolves around shamanism, psychedelics, philosophy and alternative ideas. www.naturalbornalchemist.com it is also available on Apple podcasts, Spotify and elsewhere.

Alex has had a life long interest in esoteric topics and his quest for meaning eventually led him to visiting many different indigenous groups around the world and discovering his main teacher in life: Ayahuasca

Here is my interview with Alex from Natural Born Alchemist.

Basecamp for Men E51: The Happiness Index

E51: The Happiness Index with Special Guest Nic Marks

 

E51 Introduction

Happiness is something that I have had a keen interest in for a long time. I have enjoyed looking at this topic and experimenting in my own life as to what makes a happy person. I have even created a presentation that I deliver to groups called How To Create Happiness, which I will talk about in an upcoming episode.

What I love about my guest today is that he has studied happiness in countries and workplaces using statistics as a guide. Which is something that you don‘t see every day. What does this data tell us about what makes a happy country or happy workplace? And most importantly, how do we create more happiness, satisfaction, and well-being in the world while treading lightly on our beloved planet? Here is a conversation about this very issue.

Nic Marks Bio– My guest today is Nic Marks and he was once describe as a “statistician with a soul” due to his unusual combination of hard statistical  and soft people skills. He has been working in the field of happiness, wellbeing and quality of life for over 25 years with a particular emphasis on measurement and how to create positive change.

In 2010, he gave a TED talk on his work in public policy, which has now been watched over 2 million times.

Nic as ben applying his creative thinking to the world of work since 2012. He is the founder of Friday Pulse and has worked with over 1000 organizations and teams measuring and improving their happiness at work. Here is my interview with Nic Marks.

 

Basecamp for Men E48: The One You Feed

E48: The One You Feed with Special Guest Eric Zimmer

 

E48 Introduction

I love speaking with people who have risen out of personal challenges. We all do this at different chapters in our Hero’s Journey. I think it’s naturally inspiring for us to hear redemption stories. There is something human and real about somebody who spirals downwards but recognizes their descent before

it’s too late for more courageous choices. We are imperfect people, learning at each choice point, and then sharing what we learned with our tribe. That is the very essence of the Hero’s Journey.

We have been so cultured to cover up our flaws or our mistakes or our character defects, as if we are the only ones that have them. It never occurs to us that by revealing more of ourselves to the world, we draw others in. Being authentic with others is like building a campfire. People want to come over and pull up a seat and listen in. It‘s human nature.

Personally, my life got 10 times better and more interesting when I dropped the pretense that I had it all figured out and started to share my faults, blind spots, and fears and doubts.  I hope these conversations help you in some small way. For we are fellow travellers in the middle of an epic story.

Eric Zimmer Bio-

My guest today is someone who exemplifies the authentic road. Eric Zimmer is a behavior coach, podcast host and author. At the age of 24, Eric was homeless, struggling with drug addiction, and facing jail time. In the years since, he not only found a way to overcome these obstacles to create a life worth living, he now helps others do the same.

Eric is the creator and host of the award-winning podcast, The One You Feed, which is based on the old parable about two wolves at battle within us. With over 300 episodes and over 15 million downloads, the show features conversations with experts across many fields of study about how to create a life worth living.

Here is my interview with Eric Zimmer.

To find out more a about his programs or to listen to his excellent podcast, go to  www.theoneyoufeed.net.

Basecamp for Men E47: The Five-Minute Mystic

Person walking in forest

E47 Firestarters for Men: The Five-Minute Mystic   E47 Introduction Collectively, we are at the point in the Hero’s Journey where the audience is on the edge of their seats and going “Oh shit, this…