The guest
Chris Williamson: Host of the Modern Wisdom podcast; former club promoter and reality TV personality turned long-form interviewer known for evolutionary psychology, self-improvement, and culture conversations.
What this episode covers
This is a solo Q&A episode marking 600,000 subscribers, with Chris Williamson fielding questions submitted across YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and Locals. He discusses the crisis of masculinity and his critique of the term 'toxic masculinity,' his changed views on hormonal birth control, and his journey through sobriety. He previews major upcoming guests including David Goggins and shares advice on starting a podcast or YouTube channel. Throughout he reflects on dating, purpose, friendship, meditation, and his own struggles with feeling worthy of love.
Recommended on this episode
BookRecommendedISBN verified
Back Mechanic
Stuart McGill
“his book back mechanic is fantastic”
“if you want to go deeper into that his book back mechanic is fantastic he's got three exercises the McGill big three”— Chris Williamson
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Manscaped Lawnmower 4.0
Manscaped
“that's the way that I do it seems pretty useful to me”
“what's the simplest and most effective way to trim your pubes I would say manscaped lawnmower 4.0 that's the way that I do it seems pretty useful to me”— Chris Williamson
BookRecommendedISBN verified
The Moral Animal
Robert Wright
“favorite evolutionary biology books”
“I would say the moral Animal by Robert Wright again moral Animal by Robert Wright the ape who understood the universe by Steve Stewart-Williams”— Chris Williamson
BookRecommendedISBN verified
The Ape That Understood the Universe
Steve Stewart-Williams
“is the number one primer all you need is that book”
“the ape who understood the universe by Steve Stewart-Williams is the number one primer all you need is that book”— Chris Williamson
BookRecommended
An Emotional Education
Alain de Botton
“the last book that he wrote which I really loved”
“the last book that he wrote which I really loved was an emotional education that's a school of Life Book written by him narrated by him”— Chris Williamson
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Zara
Zara
“great quality cotton and they last for a good while”
“where do you buy your t-shirts there's Zara like smart work perfectly well great quality cotton and they last for a good while”— Chris Williamson
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30 Days to a Better YouTube Channel
Video Creators
“it'll teach you a lot of the basics it's very important you should do it”
“I would take video creators 30 days to a better YouTube channel course it's about 200 bucks and it'll teach you a lot of the basics”— Chris Williamson
Also referenced (named, not recommended)
BookReferencedISBN verified
The Coddling of the American Mind
Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff
“so the Jonathan Haidt and Greg Lukianoff thing about the coddling of the American mind and there's this onset of increases in anxiety amongst girls”— Chris Williamson
MediaReferenced
Top Gun
“the more times that a classically masculine show like Top Gun comes out and does really well it reinforces the fact that this is actually what people want”— Chris Williamson
BookReferencedISBN verified
Why We Sleep
Matthew Walker
“Matthew Walker is a guy that wrote why we sleep his episode on Rogan was one of the most important podcasts that I ever listened to”— Chris Williamson
BookReferencedISBN verified
Men Behaving Badly
David Buss
“from that you can tumble into David Buss's Men Behaving Badly or David Buss's the evolution of Desire”— Chris Williamson
BookReferencedISBN verified
The Evolution of Desire
David Buss
“David Buss's Men Behaving Badly or David Buss's the evolution of Desire Jeffrey Miller The Mating mind”— Chris Williamson
BookReferencedISBN verified
The Mating Mind
Geoffrey Miller
“the evolution of Desire Jeffrey Miller The Mating mind but start off with Steve's book that's great”— Chris Williamson
BookReferenced
The White Pill
Michael Malice
“any chance you're going to have Michael Malice yes for his new book the white pill which you can get at whitepillbook.com”— Chris Williamson
ProductReferenced
Headspace
Headspace
“about half of that has been guided through a combination of headspace and waking up and Corey Allen's meditation program”— Chris Williamson
ProductReferenced
Waking Up
Sam Harris
“about half of that has been guided through a combination of headspace and waking up and Corey Allen's meditation program”— Chris Williamson
ProductReferenced
Gymshark
Gymshark
“a lot of gymshark obviously pretty much all of my wardrobe now is gymshark and Zara that's it”— Chris Williamson
MediaReferenced
Cirque du Soleil
“I took a pretty moderate dose of mushrooms when I was with Michaela in Vegas and watched Cirque du Soleil live which was an experience”— Chris Williamson
Big reveals from this episode
- Chris changed his strong opinion on hormonal birth control after his episode with Dr. Sarah Hill, now seeing it as having scary, unsophisticated psychological effects.
- Reveals his special January guest is David Goggins, recorded in Las Vegas, calling it possibly the most beautiful podcast ever recorded.
- Confirms he plans to write two books in 2023: one on the modern mating market and one synthesizing lessons from the podcast.
- Reveals he is flying to Colombia for stem cell treatment, intradiscal injections, and a hyperbaric chamber for his back.
- Confirms he sold and exited his nightlife events business this summer after a difficult valuation process.
- Admits he is still proving to himself that he is worthy of love and battling lingering imposter syndrome despite his success.
- Lists dream guests including Alain de Botton, Joe Rogan, Jordan Peterson, and a desired collaboration with Lex Fridman.
Worth remembering
- 96% of his Spotify audience joined in 2022, despite the show being nearly six years old.
- David Goggins only does two podcasts every four years: Joe Rogan and Modern Wisdom.
- Chris stopped alcohol for 1,000 days and caffeine for 500 days to maintain control over his own behavior.
- He has done roughly 1,000 to 1,500 meditation sessions over six years, averaging 10-15 minutes each.
- Distinguishes genuine activists from performative ones by whether they care about the issue or just chase status and clout.
- He wants two to three children, ideally two boys and a girl, like his business partner Darren.
- Describes being the most unpopular person in school throughout childhood despite later 'pretty privilege.'
- The term 'bro science' came from YouTuber Dom Mazzetti's channel.
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