Episode 5: Broken to the Fist

Two years before his death, the famous Samurai Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645) retired from dueling and retreated to a cave to write and reflect upon the true Way of the warrior. The resulting book, The Book of Five Rings, contains the key principles of Musashi’s approach, covering a range of topics such as the importance of constant practice, achieving mental and physical equilibrium, and how to defeat any enemy, large or small, in combat. Throughout the work, Musashi emphasizes that the key to a warrior’s success is strategy and discipline, not brute strength or innate talent.

In this guide, we’ll explain Musashi’s core principles and explore ways in which readers can apply Musashi’s teachings to their personal and professional lives. We will also compare Musashi’s approach to that of other commentators, both historical and modern, from Sun Tzu (The Art of War) to contemporary life coaches.

In "REAL ONES with Jon Bernthal," host Jon Bernthal delves deep into the life of Big Shun, exploring his tumultuous upbringing in Lakeside Kings, his personal struggles with familial trauma, and his effects from the journey to his ancestral 'slave plantation'. Shun's candid, yet heartfelt, discussion paints a vividly striking portrayal of a man molded by struggles and resilience, who seeks respect and understanding in a world dominated by prejudice and misunderstandings.

By tuning into Shun's tales of determination, listeners can get a glimpse of societal structures and confront the harsh realities of bias and neglect. With the podcast stretching its boundaries of expansion via Patreon and its mission to showcase unheard voices, Bernthal truly encapsulates the spirit of the "REAL ONES" community. Bernthal's show provides a platform for dialogue and understanding, making it an enlightening environment for insightful stories.

On "You Should Know Podcast," hosts Peyton Hardin and Armoni Brooks explore the journey of a lifetime that began on a youth basketball court and led to Brooks' NBA career. Highlighting personal stories of triumph, failure and personal growth, they delve into the realities of becoming a professional athlete. From early basketball experiences to the mounting pressures within a high-stakes environment, this episode is packed with gripping tales of their shared journey and Brooks' effort to turn his basketball dream into a reality.

In the second part of the episode, they discuss Brooks' off-court escapades, from his passion for anime and video games to his budding clothing line, Modern View. By the end of this episode, listeners will gain an intimate perspective of professional sports from an insider, revealing the unwavering resilience required and steps beyond fame. The heartfelt conversation adds another layer, showcasing the significance of individuality, creativity, and strategic thinking even when off the court.

Get set for an engaging, intimate conversation in the podcast 'Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus'. Dive deep into this episode as Julia invites her mother, Judith Bowles, and acclaimed author, Amy Tan, to share candid conversations and sincere insights. Starting with a mutual memory from a momentous White House event, they traverse through multi-faceted dialogues about family connections, societal expectations around aging, personal trauma, and the journey of personal development.

In their shared exploration, the world of renowned author Amy Tan unfolds before the listeners' eyes. The acclaimed creator of 'The Joy Luck Club' opens up herself to the sensitivity of Louis-Dreyfus’s audience, sharing her life’s highs and lows, personal trauma, the solace she finds in writing, and the wisdom she would advise her younger self. Wrapped in conversational humor and the genuine warmth of mother-daughter bonds, this podcast discusses everything from literature to family secrets, providing an engaging rapport that leaves the listener eager for more.

Why do we love stories? It’s not just because they’re entertaining; rather, they also satisfy a neurological need that humans evolved over millennia. In Wired for Story, writer and producer Lisa Cron argues that our brains evolved to absorb important survival information through stories, and so writers who want to create compelling narratives should write in a way that satisfies our brains' expectations of story.

In our guide, we’ll explore the formula that the human brain expects to encounter in a story, as well as how you as a writer can employ that formula. We’ll look closely at how to build a protagonist that engages your reader, techniques for creating conflict and advancing plot, and how to create causal links that appeal to the brain’s need for cause-and-effect structure. We’ll also add scientific context for some of Cron’s ideas, as well as additional or alternate advice from expert writers.

If you’ve ever noticed that history seems to repeat itself over the course of centuries, you may be wondering what causes that pattern—and how it may play out in the future. In The Fourth Turning, historian William Strauss and consultant Neil Howe explain how Anglo-American history follows a pattern of four 15 to 25-year periods, called Turnings, and how the behaviors of different generations define these Turnings.

In our guide, we’ll explore the authors’ theories on the Four Turnings, as well as the generational archetypes and their respective roles in the Turnings. We’ll also discuss the authors’ descriptions of the past three Turnings and their predictions for the Fourth. Finally, we’ll examine the authors’ theories in the context of history and modern society, as well as how their predictions about the Fourth Turning have played out in the years since the book’s publication in 1997.

In Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari uses concepts from biology, history, and economics to tell the story of us, Homo sapiens. We start 2.5 million years ago, when Sapiens make their historical entrance, and end in the future, when the creation of an artificially created superhuman race may mark the end of the Sapiens species. Along the way, we learn how our ability to create imagined realities led to our dominance over other species. We watch as the Agricultural Revolution, the Scientific Revolution, imperialism, capitalism, and the Industrial Revolution change our species in lasting, and not always positive, ways.

Ultimately, we’re left with one question: As we design our future, who do we want to become? Asking the right questions may be more important than finding the right answers. Read this summary to explore our history as a species—in doing so, you’ll see today’s world in an entirely new way.