One tiny favor for 2014! If you’re enjoying the podcast, could you please take 30 seconds now to leave a brief review on iTunes? Just click “View in iTunes” under my pic here. If I pass 2,000 reviews before Jan 1 (a goal of mine for 2014!), I will reciprocate by writing a massive, behind-the-scenes post on everything I’ve learned about podcasting. I promise tricks of the trade galore, just as in-depth as the “Hacking Kickstarter” post. Speaking of which…

Ed Cooke is a dear friend and a Grandmaster of Memory.  In 2010, he was interviewed by a journalist named Joshua Foer. Under Ed’s Yoda-like training, Joshua became the very next American Memory Champion in 2011.  It took less than a year for Ed to transform a novice from unknown to world-class.

But how?!?

Aha… This interview explores Ed Cooke’s brilliant techniques (many of which I use), strategies, and practical philosophies.  To boot, he’s also a wicked funny bastard!  If you enjoyed the epic interviews with Kevin Kelly, Josh Waitzkin, or Maria Popova, you’ll love Ed.  He’s one of a kind.

Listen to it on iTunes.
Stream it by clicking for Part 1 here and Part 2 here.
Download both as MP3s by right-clicking and choosing “save as”: Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

This podcast is brought to you by 99Designs, the world’s largest marketplace of graphic designers. Did you know I used 99Designs to rapid prototype the cover for The 4-Hour Body? Here are some of the impressive results.

QUESTION(S) OF THE DAY: What’s one mental feat you’d love to accomplish in 2015? Any tips or tricks you can share? Please share in the comments by clicking here.

Scroll below for links and show notes…

Enjoy!

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Selected Links from the Episode

Ed Cooke on Twitter (@tedcooke). Say hello!
Learn more about Memrise
Learn more about the World Memory Championships
Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer
Theory of Colours by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Read Tim’s thoughts on delayed philanthropy (and the reasons against it) – The Karmic Capitalist
Spectacle by David Rockwell & Bruce Mau
Station to Station by Doug Aitken
In Praise of Idleness by Bertrand Russell
Armando Iannucci and The Armando Iannucci Show
Withnail and I
Learn more about Sensory Substitution and Paul Bach-y-Rita
Touching the Rock by John Hull
The Blind Man Who Taught Himself to See by Michael Finkel
The Joyous Cosmology by Alan Watts
Is Trilled Smell Possible?

Show Notes

Part 1

How Tim and Ed were introduced, and what it takes to be a “grandmaster of memory” [5:02]
The dynamic that produces rapid developments in speed and capability [8:15]
The outcome of the unusual 4-Hour Chef memory competition [13:02]
The story of winning the US memory championships and subsequently training Joshua Foer [21:02]
Exploring the extraordinary skill of imagination [24:22]
Memory techniques which can be utilized in everyday life [32:02]
Recommendations for designing house parties based on memory techniques [39:02]
Clarifying and finding objectivity…and the value thereof [41:47]
Rapid-fire questions [47:45]

Part 2

Balancing intuition and analytical decision making [1:27]
How to set up incentives to flog yourself into self-discipline and systems thinking [5:55]
On merit and virtue [8:05]
Contrasting homelessness with the strange selfishness of Silicon Valley [10:00]
The conundrum of the Bill Gates model of philanthropy [18:25]
What is financial security, and how does Ed Cooke define it? [24:20]
Ed Cooke’s take on Burning Man [30:55]
Quick fire theory about why Burning Man is the most brilliant institution in the world [32:20]
How to extract the Burning Man experience for a group of 20? [41:40]
Escaping existential doldrums [45:55]
Balancing present-state mindfulness with building things [52:25]
More rapid-fire questions [55:40]
A specific defining moment from Ed Cooke’s childhood and the theory of exteroception [1:07:25]

People Mentioned

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Monty Python
Armando Iannucci
Alan Partridge
Withnail and I
Kevin O’Regan
Paul Bach-y-Rita
Seymour Papert
Daniel Kish
Alan Watts