Jackson Dahl

@jackson

307 Following

83023 Followers

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic 19: Henrik Karlsson - Cultivating a Life that Fits A special one for me: I flew across the ocean to interview one of my favorite writers. Henrik Karlsson wrote two essays I've recommended more than nearly any others—one on finding your wife and the other on designing the rest of your life. Henrik lives a dual-life. Half is intimate and slow: a rural farm on a Danish island with his wife and daughters. The other is connected and wide: he writes to tens of thousands and has created his own corner of the internet. Highlights: - the burden of freedom and the challenge of iteratively designing a life that fits you - what focus really means in practice - why strong opinions and looking foolish help you learn - a nudge to do less "not that" and more "maybe this?" in your criticism - why writing online creates a world of serendipity - what it feels like to spend time with people who expand your world - living in concert with your past and future selves https://dialectic.fm/henrik-karlsson

6 replies

11 recasts

173 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic 19: Henrik Karlsson - Cultivating a Life that Fits https://zora.co/coin/base:0xfe4ab18f7f05e0e14c31e323dc0ce1829bd94878?referrer=0x4cced345763d40e0328d529c8b6c48e03f092e74

0 reply

0 recast

5 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic 19: Henrik Karlsson - Cultivating a Life that Fits https://pods.media/dialectic/19-henrik-karlsson-cultivating-a-life-that-fits?referrer=0x9b902482E62Db8FC486C3f1acAA568006021DbEC

0 reply

1 recast

6 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

Need some weekend listening? I'm really proud of the recent conversations I've had on /dialectic, and the feedback has been tremendously rewarding. The latest run has gone in a bunch of different directions: 18: Tom Morgan - curiosity, mystery, and collective consciousness 17: Alex Danco (@stimps) - gift giving & innovation and why podcasts continue to thrive 16: Anjan Katta - human computing and philosophical design at @daylightcomputer 15: D.A. Wallach - bio investing, rock stardom, and serendipity Available on all platforms below.

6 replies

8 recasts

129 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic Ep. 18: Tom Morgan - Wisdom in the Woo https://pods.media/assets/8453/0x2abb294e94e27d1aa8d0e113c92f42c2ee36af0f/19?referrer=0x9b902482E62Db8FC486C3f1acAA568006021DbEC

1 reply

0 recast

5 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic Ep. 18: Tom Morgan - Wisdom in the Woo https://zora.co/coin/base:0x8dbd60eed304b7ef92b4f6edb141e941787e98a8?referrer=0x4cced345763d40e0328d529c8b6c48e03f092e74

0 reply

2 recasts

23 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

I interviewed Tom Morgan about why your curiosity is smarter than you. Tom is a writer, community builder, explorer, and former Wall Street mind who surfaces modern and historical ideas about consciousness, emergence, and intelligence greater than ourselves. This conversation straddles practical frameworks for living authentically and ideas that lean more “woo”—like the notion of a force that counters entropy, pushing the universe toward complexity. Highlights: - Why the world is wildly over rotated toward left brain precision and abstraction, rather than right brain intuition and connectedness - what following your energy actually means - how to think about life pivots when you have a mortgage - why openness correlates so highly with wisdom - Joseph Campbell's "follow your bliss" and why stories point at truth - "minimum viable woo" and Tom's rational, but humble approach to crazy ideas Skeptical yet? I hope so—and I hope this convo makes you more curious. https://dialectic.fm/tom-morgan

8 replies

30 recasts

314 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

4 replies

1 recast

131 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic Ep. 17: Alex Danco - Innovation Begins with Gifts https://zora.co/coin/base:0x6a6ebab88dedac4d76357a22e5f9af61527aac73?referrer=0x4cced345763d40e0328d529c8b6c48e03f092e74

0 reply

0 recast

29 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

Dialectic Ep. 17: Alex Danco - Innovation Begins with Gifts https://pods.media/dialectic/17-alex-danco-innovation-begins-with-gifts?referrer=0x9b902482E62Db8FC486C3f1acAA568006021DbEC

0 reply

3 recasts

28 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

I interviewed Alex Danco (@stimps) about the magical enzyme that catalyzes creativity in silicon valley and beyond — gifts. Alex is a product leader at Shopify and one of the most generative writers at the intersection of markets, technology, business, and culture. I've read Alex for nearly 10 years as he's covered how VC and startups impact each other, what is happening as we move from a world of scarcity to abundance, how culture shapes and is shaped by tech and business, and more. We cover: - why generosity allows us to solve the coordination problems needed to innovate - VC's as priests and founders as kings, endowed with the power to tell stories about the future - why gifts are the opposite of slop - how originality with AI tools may resemble a guitarist finding her or his sound - why podcasts are dominant and will continue to be - why Sam Altman can't copy Phish - how human beings fundamentally change when they're in a crowd - why you should host more dinner parties All platforms below.

25 replies

138 recasts

923 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic Ep. 16: Anjan Katta - A Sunrise Over Computing https://zora.co/coin/base:0x08785e0bb9376991367dfb70250843cbf6057d0c?referrer=0x4cced345763d40e0328d529c8b6c48e03f092e74

0 reply

2 recasts

9 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

/dialectic Ep. 16: Anjan Katta - A Sunrise Over Computing https://pods.media/dialectic/16-anjan-katta-a-sunrise-over-computing?referrer=0x9b902482E62Db8FC486C3f1acAA568006021DbEC

1 reply

2 recasts

18 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

I interviewed Anjan Katta about @daylightcomputer: the embodiment of his vision for the future of computing. I love computers. But lately they bend me to their will much more than the inverse. My iPhone feels more like a "pacifier for the mind" than Steve Job's dream of a "bicycle for the mind." Anjan imagines a future of computers that amplify our humanity: devices that return agency, designed around light and respect rather than attention extraction. We cover: - SV's optimization of means, yet confusion of goals - building non-inevitable technology and products - relationship as the defining aspect of computers, and how the iPhone is our primary relationship to the world - why light was the starting point for a new computer - avoiding paternalism with products that make it feel easier to focus - developing intuition that is more intelligent than data - computers as magical companions—Hobbes, Dynabook, or The Primer - Harry Potter computing: magical everyday objects dialectic.fm/anjan-katta

8 replies

14 recasts

184 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

5 replies

27 recasts

182 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

Dialectic Ep. 15: D.A. Wallach - Serendipity & Systems https://zora.co/coin/base:0x9d03062540101442c7216a794b97fc7d2e227705?referrer=0x9b902482E62Db8FC486C3f1acAA568006021DbEC

0 reply

0 recast

11 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

I interviewed D.A. Wallach on a curiosity-driven career, systems thinking in medicine, and the thread of beauty across markets, medicine, and music. His unlikely path: - his band Chester French discovered by Kanye & Pharrell while at Harvard - Early angel in SpaceX + Spotify & Spotify’s first Artist-in-Residence - Now co-runs Time BioVentures backing frontier life-science We cover: - Cold-email serendipity & web surfing in the OG sense - Complexity science & the Santa Fe Institute—giving scientists permission to ask basic questions - Pitching the Federal Reserve (in high school) - CRISPR, GLP-1s, and why biotech moves “gradually, then suddenly” - LLMs returning agency to patients and nudging us toward universal care - how tech makes us creatively lazy and what it would mean to be the Herbie Hancock of AI music - Artists reclaiming “cool" over dorks - D.A.’s anonymous, Tylerthe Creator-directed music video And more. Available on all platforms

5 replies

24 recasts

154 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

I interviewed Alex Zhang about the art of bringing people together, building a ski resort with Reed Hastings, and getting into rooms you're not supposed to be in. I've known Alex since he convinced me to let him on the golf cart as I drove Mark Cuban across our college campus. Since then, he's continued to surprise me, inspire me, and find unlikely ways to curate people, spaces, and art. We talked about this and much more: - Can art and commerce really mix? Why are patrons so important for art? - How do you throw a great house party? What about a music festival? or @fwb fest? - How do you successfully blend unlikely domains: music & tech, crypto & culture, skiing & art? - What makes Reed Hastings such a special leader and communicator? - Is "community" anything more than an empty word? - How did Alex convince Elon to come talk at his college club (rather than university-wide commencement)? - Why does playfulness create magic? Why is taste a worthwhile pursuit? Available on all platforms below.

54 replies

48 recasts

354 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

https://pods.media/dialectic/13-nabeel-qureshi-the-will-to-care?referrer=0x9b902482E62Db8FC486C3f1acAA568006021DbEC

0 reply

10 recasts

37 reactions

Jackson Dahl pfp

I interviewed Nabeel Qureshi about some of the most important things that make us human at a time when AI is making us really question what makes us unique. What does it mean to care, and is caring an antidote to a world of increasing "slop?" What actually is slop, and what makes media, art, products, design, or work meaningful? Why do the best new things have elements of strangeness and unpredictability? When every answer is a keystroke away, what does it mean to truly learn and understand things? What does it mean to have "the will to think?" How can we live a life of continuous growth? How can constantly update our thinking? Lots more too, like video games as a template for education; why Palantir's culture is special and able to deal with nuance while working on "grey area" problems; DOGE and bureaucracy, power and tech; what makes Tyler Cowen special; Nabeel's idea maze for his new company; why Tolstoy was wrong about Shakespeare... Nabeel contains multitudes. Available on all platforms below.

3 replies

2 recasts

37 reactions