I've been working at @podcastnotes for almost 2 years.

During that time, I've taken notes on 400+ podcasts.

Here are my top 10 favorite podcasts of all-time.

(thread) 🧵

Naval Ravikant is one of the most respected investors of our time.

He credits reading 1-2 hours per day as the main reason he's been so successful.

Here are 20 books @naval recommends reading:

1/

"The Rational Optimist" by @mattwridley

"The most brilliant and enlightening book I've read in years."

–Naval

2/

"Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!" by Richard P. Feynman

"Learn about the inner mindset and external state of someone who was absolutely brilliant."

–Naval

3/

"Meditations" by Marcus Aurelius

"One of my favorite books of all time."

–Naval Ravikant

4/

"Sapiens" by @harari_yuval

"Best book I've read in [2015]."

–Naval

I asked, "What’s the BEST podcast episode you’ve ever listened to?"

I received 235 replies.

Here are 20 podcasts you should check out:

(links included) 🧵

1/ @naval with @ShaneAParrish

Naval is one of the wisest people you'll ever listen to. In this pod, you'll learn about his legendary reading habits, his favorite mental models, how to overcome bad habits, and so much

2/ @davidgoggins with @joerogan

Goggins is truly one of the hardest men on the planet. He's a former Navy SEAL turned ultra-endurance athlete. If you want to get in shape or become mentally tougher, listen to this

3/ @jockowillink with @tferriss

There's so much to learn from Jocko, I don't know where to begin. From Extreme Ownership, to GOOD, to the truth about war being the best & worst experience, why you should stay humble, and

4/ @tferriss with @jockowillink

Tim Ferriss almost never does podcasts anymore. But here, you have him and Jocko talking about one of their favorite books for 4 HOURS. Listen to learn about the life of a warrior, facing death, and

You could pay $100,000+ for a college degree OR...

You could use the internet to get a top-tier college-level education for free.

Here are 20 FREE online learning platforms:

1/

Coursera (@coursera)

Coursera has 150+ university partners and 2,700+ courses. The instructors are from the world's top universities and courses include recorded video lectures, discussion forums, and graded

2/

Udemy (@udemy)

Udemy has 100,000+ courses in 50 languages. Unlike other online education platforms driven by content from colleges and universities, Udemy allows content creators to curate their own courses and teach them

3/

Codeacademy (@Codecademy)

Codeacademy teaches you how to code in multiple programming languages. They have trained 45+ million people in topics such as web development, programming, computer science, and data

4/

Stanford Online (@StanfordOnline)

Stanford Online offers free online courses, professional certificates, advanced degrees, and executive education. The courses are from Stanford Law School, Stanford Business School, and Stanford Medical

One of the most Monkey's Paw things about my life is my relationship to books. When I was a teenager, I read all the way through the school and public libraries, spent everything I had on books, and still couldn't get enough and dreamt of more.

1/

Today, as a reviewer, I have more books than I can possibly read, huge, teetering mountains of books that I'm desperate to read, far beyond my ability to ever get through them. Periodically, I declare "book bankruptcy," sweep away the backlog and start over.

2/

Even then, my eyes are bigger than my stomach: I keep back a few books that I can't bear to part with and promise myself I'll read them someday. Usually I don't, but I just did, and boy did I ever make the right call with @TheUniverse's BROAD

I have read a LOT of histories of computing, and I had a front row seat for a lot of the events depicted in this book - people I worked with, people I worked against - and yet I was surprised over and over again with details and perspectives I'd never encountered.

4/

For example, for some reason, my ninth grade computer science course included lengthy readings on ENIAC, Univac, the Mark I and the Mark II, but none of those mentioned that they were all programmed exclusively or primarily by women.

5/

Amongst my absolute favourite musicians of all time, one name that is certainly near the top is of Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan sahab. I don’t know if any such data exists, but I am pretty sure he would also be among the most widely sold international artists in India. (1/43)

This is a thread about Nusrat sahab’s connections with India - his first performance here, songs blatantly copied from his compositions, his non-film albums done here, and also his work in Bollywood. So buckle up, coz this is gonna be very very loooong. (2/43)

The story starts in 1979, when a certain legend by the name of Raj Kapoor was invited to a Qawwali show in Birmingham, and heard Nusrat sahab performing there. So impressed by his music was Kapoor sahab, that he made up his mind to invite Nusrat sahab to India. (3/43)

Soon after, in early 1980, Rishi Kapoor was getting married to Neetu Singh, and Raj Kapoor promptly invited Nusrat sahab to perform at one of the sangeet ceremonies. The invitation actually was sent through Pakistani actor Mohammad Ali, a mutual contact of the two. (4/43)

Nusrat sahab accepted the invite, and was apparently excited with the prospect of also visiting Ajmer Sharif. His performance at the sangeet was attended by the who’s who of Indian film and music at the time, and he is said to have performed for hours through the night. (5/43)

The best way to honour Toni Morrison is to continue her legacy by celebrating and supporting Black female writers. So here’s a thread of fantastic women whose work you should read.

.@yomiadegoke is one of the most interesting and exciting writers I know. Her commentary is always spot on, and has a way of getting you to think deeply about things we’re encouraged to take for granted. She co-authored Slay in Your Lane with the phenomenal @lizuvie.

.@salenagodden’s poetry nourishes the soul. She’s brilliant at recognising inequalities without ever being defeatist. There is so much joy in her words. And Salena’s autobiography is luminous from start to finish.

.@LawrencePatrice has written some of the most gripping YA fiction going in modern day Britain. Her characters are compelling and full of complications - their stories remind readers of how important compassion is.

I always recommend @JackieKayPoet - not just because she gave a blueprint for life as a Black Scottish lesbian, but because there is so much delight and generosity of spirit in her work. Every word counts. She’s also really funny. Proud that Jackie is our Poet Makar.