Lean Living Listen

The chapters

Lean Living: An autobiography of intentional experimentation runs 3 hr 2 min: an introduction, 14 chapters and a conclusion. The longest is Chapter 3, "Netherlands transition", at 14 min 50 sec.

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Part 1 Roots

A multilingual childhood across London and the Netherlands, and the first experiments.

  1. Introduction 4 min 11 sec

    The philosophy of trying

    It is 2020 and the world has stopped. Joris quits a stable marketing job to freelance, betting that businesses will need e-commerce help during the pandemic. Year one runs on government funding and arguments about getting a "real job". Year two almost matches his old salary. Year three adds 50% to it. Then the income starts doubling year on year. The introduction sets out the Contribution vs. Distraction lens and the four pillars the rest of the book uses.

  2. Chapter 1 10 min 29 sec

    Multicultural roots

    The first experiments

    Age six. A teacher pulls him out of class: his four-year-old brother is crying in the kindergarten next door, trying to explain a drawing in a language the teachers do not speak. Joris switches to French, finds out it is a castle with towers and a drawbridge, and translates. Born in Paris to a French mother and a Dutch father, he reads the moment back through BJ Fogg's Behavior Model: the first experiment.

  3. Chapter 2 11 min 8 sec

    London years

    Learning to hold multiple perspectives

    A Gothic London school with chapel and Latin, "Harry Potter minus the magic", and parents at home who see organised religion as propaganda. He loves the school and keeps his parents' scepticism. The lesson: you can take real value from an environment without adopting its beliefs.

  4. Chapter 3 14 min 50 sec

    Netherlands transition

    From structure to freedom

    From uniforms and buses to bikes, free Wednesday afternoons and almost no homework, in a Dutch village where he does not speak the language. "It felt like living with locked-in syndrome every single day." One teacher refuses to lower the bar. He has a year and a half to learn Dutch before the national test that decides his school track. Books on philosophy and behavioural science become a lifeline, and two careers appear: diplomat or film director.

  5. Chapter 4 13 min 51 sec

    High school chameleon

    The power of multi-dimensional identity

    Gamer by day, footballer every afternoon, reader of financial newspapers by night. Belonging to several groups at once protects him from bullying and makes him the mediator. The chapter is honest about the cost too: fewer deep friendships, emotional labour, and feeling not quite enough for any one group.

Part 2 Breaking things

First jobs, a dark period, rebellion against authority, then exploration.

  1. Chapter 5 14 min 16 sec

    Early work experiments

    The call center university

    "You want to be a car salesman?" His father hears "call centre" and sees a step down. Joris sees a paid language course and a psychology lab: calls to strangers about mortgages, insurance and investments, Cialdini's principles in practice, and rejection treated as data.

  2. Chapter 6 12 min 37 sec

    The dark period

    When systems break down

  3. Chapter 7 12 min 54 sec

    College rebellion

    The systematic rejection of authority

  4. Chapter 8 11 min 42 sec

    Student life awakening

    From rebellion to exploration

Part 3 Testing it in the real world

A marketing career, Amsterdam, a scam, and a breakthrough during COVID.

  1. Chapter 9 11 min 58 sec

    The marketing career

    From theory to practice

  2. Chapter 10 10 min 20 sec

    The Amsterdam awakening

    Environment as destiny

  3. Chapter 11 13 min 2 sec

    The Scam

    When trust meets manipulation

  4. Chapter 12 12 min 48 sec

    The COVID breakthrough

    Trusting the process

Part 4 Putting it together

Relationships, the synthesis of lean living, and an experiment that keeps running.

  1. Chapter 13 11 min 36 sec

    Relationship Lessons

    The Laboratory of Love

  2. Chapter 14 10 min 33 sec

    The Synthesis

    Mastering the Art of Lean Living

  3. Conclusion 5 min 46 sec

    The Ongoing Experiment

Part names are our grouping. Chapter titles and run times are from the Spotify listing. Summaries cover the introduction to Chapter 5 for now; the rest keep their secrets until you press play. Spotify also offers a free 5 min 43 sec sample.

Sixteen tracks. Start with whichever title made you stop scrolling.

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