4+Magazine+Issues+(Corcoran,+Ferriss,+Huffington,+Gary+Vee)

Q
FOUNDR: Scientific
data has suggested that
the modern way of life
is damaging. (Stressrelated
illness is the
leading cause of doctors’
visits in the UK). Why
then is the third metric a
new discovery in the age
of information? Why as a
species have the majority
of us opted to live in a
way that is fundamentally
unfulfilling to us?
AH: We are living through an incredible time, when
modern science is validating a lot of ancient wisdom.
That’s why, in Thrive, I’ve included 55 pages of
endnotes to convince even the most stubborn skeptic
that we need to unplug, recharge and reconnect with
ourselves, and by doing so, actually improve every
aspect of our lives.
So many of us have opted to live in a way that’s
fundamentally unhealthy and unfulfilling because, as a
society, we have been operating under the collective
delusion that burning out is the necessary price for
accomplishment and success. Recent scientific
findings make it clear that this couldn’t be less true.
Not only is there no tradeoff between living a wellrounded
life and high performance, performance is
actually improved when our lives include time for
renewal, wisdom, wonder and giving.
Q
FOUNDR: On the
subject of wisdom, we
seem to be informationrich
and wisdom-poor.
Could you explain
further the paradox
that connectedness
isn’t making us wiser?
What sort of effect have
you noticed this lack
of wisdom having on
society?
Q
FOUNDR: Much of
Thrive’s beauty lies in
embracing the tenets
of ancient philosophy
and wisdom and
showing how valuable
and applicable it is in
our lives. Was there
a specific time when
you came to this
realization?
SUCCESS STORY
AH: The first stages of the Internet were
about data and more data. But now we
have plenty of data — indeed, we’re
drowning in it — and all the distraction
we could ever hope for. Technology has
been very good at giving us what we want,
but not always what we need. Wherever
we look around the world, we see smart
leaders — in politics, in business, in media
— making terrible decisions. What they’re
lacking is not IQ, but wisdom. Which is no
surprise; it has never been harder to tap
into our inner wisdom, because in order
to do so, we have to disconnect from all
our omnipresent devices — our gadgets,
our screens, our social media — and
reconnect with ourselves.
AH: Growing up in Athens, I was
brought up on the classics and the
Greek myths. They were taught
to me not as ancient history, as
my children learned them in their
American classrooms, but as my
personal roots and the source
of my identity. Athena was the
goddess of wisdom, and, for me,
the idea of wisdom is forever
identified with her — weaving
together strength and vulnerability,
creativity and nurturing, passion
and discipline, pragmatism and
intuition, intellect and imagination,
claiming them all, the masculine
and the feminine, as part of our
essence and expression.