Show Notes
This podcast is me reading a little book I put out earlier this year: CANADA IS AWESOME It's an audio book about all the weird, wonderful, beautiful things that make Canada ... Canada. Did you ever notice Canadians speak in the collective? "What do you think of the weather we're having?" "Shall we grab a Timmy's before the meeting?" "Think we have a shot at the playoffs?" We, we, we. We use the word we so much. Why do we feel like such a collective? I don't think it's complicated. I think it's because we are one. We all toss around half of everything we make into a big glass jar and use it to pay for everyone's health care, education, and services. Sure, the system's never perfect, but if you shatter your ankle in an icy Canadian Tire parking lot, need a dozen years of free school for five kids in Kamloops, or want to drive on freshly snowplowed roads from Comox to Cornwall to Cape Spear, well ... we got you. We got you. We got everyone. This is a different type of book than I've done before—in addition to this audiobook (totally free, right here) I also posted in its entirety on my blog (totally free) in HTML and PDF: HTML: https://www.neil.blog/canada-is-awesome PDF: https://www.neil.blog/s/NP_CIA_wCOVER.pdf I also made a 78-page, bright red, self-published hardcover (with colour photos) and paperback (available on Prime, but black and white photos.) HARDCOVER: https://a.co/d/8vjssD3 PAPERBACK: https://a.co/d/aCYDAh6 I made these books at cost so the price you see on your local Amazon page is the same as it costs me to make them. This book was designed by a Canadian in Ottawa (Steve St. Pierre) and the audio and video edited by a Canadian in Toronto (Dave Boire), and even the T-shirt I'm wearing in the YouTube video was designed and manufactured by a Canadian in Toronto (Daniel Torjman), who was also a past guest on the pod: https://www.3books.co/chapters/94 If you're Canadian I hope this holiday season this books help you feel pride in who we are. If you're not Canadian, I hope this helps you see Canada a little clearer. Maybe it will inspire you to visit ... or to move here! (My hood is filling up with Americans like mad these days.) Flip this on for your long road trip and let's let ourselves get inspired by what's possible when grit, determination, and kindness come together across culture and language. Let's reflect on shared goals of spending time with loved ones, hitting best-in-world education rates, and, of course, kicking back by the lake with a Moosehead and a bowl of ketchup chips. This is a piece of writing close to my heart and something I have been working on for over a decade. I hope you like it. And, if you do, share it with someone else. Happy holidays, eh! Neil
More from 3 Books With Neil Pasricha
Happy full moon, everybody! It is the harvest moon and our leaves are falling here in Toronto. Time for change! Unavoidable, right? Sure, but maybe ... we can control how we react to it. My guest today has spent nearly six decades (!) studying learned optimism, authentic happiness, human flourishing, and (his latest pursuit!) agency and his work is cited by thousands and taught in psychology courses worldwide. I am thrilled to come to 3 Books the co-founder of positive psychology Dr. Martin Seligman! In 1998, Marty was elected President of the American Psychological Association by the largest vote in its history. He launched positive psychology—he created it!—with Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the psychologist who gave us 'Flow,' and his work helped shape and influence so much of what we think about our minds and including past 3 Books guests Sonja Lyubomirsky and Shawn Achor. Working at the University of Pennsylvania and founding the Positive Psychology Center, where he's the Zellerbach Family Professor of Psychology, Martin's lab has run everything from the Penn Resilience Program, which has trained teachers and students around the world, to large-scale resilience programs for the U.S. Army, to more recent work on human progress and agency. Which brings us to his new book! 'Agency: The Psychological History of Human Progress' just came out a few weeks ago and it's an ambitious project analyzing millennia of history—from Periclean Athens and the Hebrew Torah through the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, and the Civil Rights Movement—with Martin arguing that the hidden engine of human progress isn't geography or money or war ... but agency itself. Tune in as we discuss what agency is, how humans have progressed over centuries, techniques to overcome overthinking, how to use AI to positively impact our lives, whether AI is a new species, positive psychology tips to building strong marriages, abundant living, sexual desire, the definition of a good leader, and of course ... Martin Seligman's 3 most formative books. Let's flip the page to Chapter 165 now ...
A few years ago I was lucky enough to cross paths with Wagner Moura. He was on the eve of releasing his film 'Sergio' after a long run playing Pablo Escobar in the hit series 'Narcos.' Since then I've watched as his acting career has channeled upwards and onwards into feature roles in 'Civil War', 'Dope Thief', and his star turn in 'The Secret Agent' where he won 'Best Actor' at both the Golden Globes and Cannes and was nominated for 'Best Actor' at the Oscars. Over the years Wag ("Vag") has become a dear friend. He's a massive heart, a fellow "boy dad", and he and his wife San live life with such a deep passion for humanity, always fighting for causes, and endlessly following their dreams. I have been inspired watching him and learning from him and in this chat I think you'll get a taste for the massive beauty that lies inside. In this chat we discuss the hinterlands of Brazil, how we stand up for what we believe in, creating art in times of crisis, and, of course, the incredible Wagner Moura's 3 most formative books. Let's flip back to Chapter 52 now....
Happy full moon, everybody!