Robert meets World Podcast
This podcast explores unresolved questions around meaning, identity, consciousness and living well, drawing on existential philosophy, therapy, dating and cultural theory of religion. Each episode – whether essays, interviews or side quests – is less concerned with arriving at answers than with taking questions seriously. The host openly describes himself as still figuring it out, giving the show a personal, inquisitive tone. It is produced by Aqua Flamingo Media.
Episodes
Help, I'm 20 (Side Quest 9)
I watched the teenager pull a copy of Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus from the shelf and glance it over with passive interest. Front to back, back to front, then opening a section in the middle to inspect if it sparked any curiosity. I always enjoyed this part of visiting a bookstore, people watching as a cursory delight; It was the complimentary champagne offered at the entry hall reception be
The Hermeneutics of Suspicion (Side Quest 25)
There is a simple way of looking at life. You feel joy, and call it joy. You see a sign and read the letters as they are written. There is a second way of viewing life which asks, what is this sentence hiding from itself. The second way is known by Ricoeur as The Hermeneutics of Suspicion.
Sidemen is a Good Place to Do Nothing (Side Quest 24)
On the Eastern edge of Bali, a few hours from the bustling draw of Ubud is the small rural area of Sidemen.A population of 39,000 split across 10 villages, some people say that Sidemen reflects Bali from 20 years ago. A place before the influx of investment capital into hospitality to support the growing tourism surge on the island.A place of massive rice fields, subsistence farming and the classi
You Technically Need a Permit for That: Spirit of the Law, Letter of the Law (Side Quest 30)
A quiet afternoon DJing in Golden Gate Park took an unexpected turn when a park ranger approached me—triggering a wave of immigration anxiety, panic over losing my visa, and an unexpected dive into legal philosophy.In this video essay, I share a personal narrative about playing music along JFK Drive in San Francisco and how a brief encounter sparked a deeper realization about the "spirit of th
The Most Complex Yoga Asana (Side Quest 16)
To do a plank..Correctly..Is a hard thing to do.The instructor announced as we listened on the veranda of a steamy Costa Rican morning in San Jose.Often, it looks easy to do from the outside...Because we do not see the effort required,From the inside.Immediately, a Tibetan singing bowl was struck in the background: an elongated ringing followed by a trailing silence circling off into eternity - we
Notice The "I" & The "Me" (Side Quest 14)
The quiet voice in my head hummed along as I walked.Notice the “I” and the “Me”.Pay attention to the "Me"In a dream-like state, the sound of my footsteps down Fillmore street filled my ears with a predicable click and clack noise providing a background note for the inward process that was taking place. A process in which I found myself catching each and every thought that the mind attempte
RXW12 - Kathryn Bakos: Climate Adaptation, Financial Losses, Canada Climate, Optimism
CHAPTERS00:00:00 Introduction & What is Climate Adaptation? 00:03:15 The Intact Centre for Climate Adaptation 00:07:15 Insurance Trends as a Climate Risk Proxy00:15:30 How Flooding Impacts the Housing Market 00:21:07 Home-Level Flood Protection for $0, $250, $250+; Municipalities offering $3K+ in subsidies to prevent flood00:26:52 Extreme Weather Risks Across Canada 00:34:08 Corporate Risk &am
Martial Arts without Spirituality is Just Violence (Side Quest 11)
My heart felt just about ready to explode out of my chest.But, before I could catch my breath, Kru Top ran to the push sled.Standing on top of it and yelled out to me:TAXI !I pushed the 75kg fighter across the gym and back in genuine difficulty, as I gasped for air.But, Kru Top’s amusement from his taxi trip was short lived.Despite being one of the more brutal striking sports in martial arts, Muay
On Reasons to Write (Side Quest 15)
What reason is there, really, to do all this writing you ask?Is it perhaps because on the empty pages one can, as Robert Johnson puts, in the domain of the psychological unconscious,“Clothe the invisible forces [unseen and] to make [them] visible.”Inner Work p. 21That is, one can make apparent the continuous inward monologue of the skull and enliven it to reality. But surely it is not only this.
Dress Rehearsal for Life; ambition, self-myth & a cheque as heavy as the world (Side Quest 26)
I’m standing alone in a University Community Center basement classroom. Beige, brown and black tiled, dull, and lifeless walls enclose the space with a cast of around 18 empty chairs and tables.Overhead, a projector scatters light onto a white screen with a PowerPoint presentation reading “Expect The Unexpected” in black font to an orange background (apparently I failed the Intro to Perfect PowerP
Who Are You When You Stop Becoming? (Side Quest 8)
Who are you when you stop becoming?It is common in social groups to give a role to a given person.A role is a box. A safe, bounded, predictable box.The mind is a sophisticated categorizing, perimeter and box constructing machine.It draws divisions on the continuous to create order, logic and reason.Once a box is drawn around something or someone, the mind is set at ease.It no longer says: “What is
The Culture That Could Only Count (Side Quest 20)
Everything today seems to come with a number attached.Followers, likes, watch time, sentiment scores, even influence itself, quantified and ranked.What would happen if we took all of that away?This episode is an open inquiry into a world that has learned to measure almost everything, told through verse, and what the implications may be.
Ain't No Economy Like The Attention Economy: On Leaving (But Never Actually Leaving) (Side Quest 23)
The story of a decade long, still unresolved fight to quit social media, from deleting Facebook in university to running Instagram ads for a DJ business years later. A honest look at notification loops, comparison, and what it actually costs to live inside the attention economy, even when you know exactly how it works.
What Would You Be Secretly Relieved Not to Do? (Side Quest 18)
Several months ago I became a bit obsessed with understanding Human Design (HD), a neo-typology that has emerged in the last 40 years combining Jewish Kabbalah with the Chinese I Ching and Vedic Astrology.While I do wonder if it was an immaculate conception born of counter culture in the bohemian refuge of 1970s Ibiza (the founder “Ra Uru Hu” lived there during his “revelation”), it has stimulated
The Ministry of Self Improvement (Side Quest 19)
Jung personified that place, the Shadow, which Robert Johnson playfully describes as: “[the] unconscious dumping ground for undesirable characteristics of a personality”As a collective, we’ve developed different sanctioned places for those parts of ourselves, and for me, that’s always been fitness and performance training. The gym has always been the place to find comfort in breaking myself down a
The Beauty of Ugly Movement (Side Quest 10)
I laid on the floor in a heavy state as a dark wave of depressive fatigue and heaviness washed over me.A massive pressure weighed on my head, and that characteristic optimism telling me there is always a way out, reframe or way to step back to see the bigger picture, seemed to be failing me. I didn’t see a way out of what was happening to me: the seeming hell of a mind viciously swirling in an anx
The Selfish, The Selfless & An Old Man Laughing At The Two (Side Quest 22)
In this side quest, Robert unpacks the chaotic, messy, and deeply human struggle at the intersection of ego, detachment, and higher minded ideals.Starting with a late-night standoff with a spider, Robert discusses internal conflict between three distinct modes of being that we all cycle through:The Personal Ego: Our defensive, flawed nature trying to get ahead.The Spiritual Ego ("The Yogic Doo
Fear-Cold-Connection (Side Quest 13)
We stood facing the water basins as faux candles let out a soft glimmer in the dark room. Like a 1500s secret Gregorian chanting chamber (or potential incognito cult initiation), four rows of partnered pairs stood above individual plunging pools as sweat dripped off our bodies from the prior sauna session. Inhaling and exhaling deeply into the diaphragm we stared directly into our apparent fate: i
The Validation Hole (Side Quest 6)
Drawing on Sherry Turkle's observation that smartphone-raised kids "know how to be lonely, but not how to be alone," this episode explores what Jungian psychology calls the vas hermeticum, and it's antithesis the validation hole.The validation hole represents the impulse to reach for our devices the moment internal tension rises, bleeding pressure through likes, comments, and digit
Emotional Polyphony (Side Quest 12)
When we feel our emotions like a piece of music, rather than a still photograph, we allow them to move and layer, rather than being pinned down and lodged for inspection; in doing so we're practicing a form of emotional polyphony.Emotional polyphony is the capacity of both the human mind and masterful artwork to sustain multiple conflicting emotional registers in parallel without forcing resol
To 'Say Everything' (On Creatives & The Creative Process) (Side Quest 7)
"'A genuine inspiration has visited me’, he wrote to his friend in October… Stavrogin is everything", Dostoevsky wrote in a note dated August 16, 1870.Once the true protagonist appeared, the materials of [Demons] began to compose themselves around him.The result: neither pamphlet nor poem but recasting of both, to a cost of another two years of work.What is it about the creative proces
Vas Hermeticum (Side Quest 5)
Does the psyche possess a natural trial by fire that pulls the spirit to elevated levels of conscious individuation?
The Reward of a Path is in What it Avoids (Side Quest 4)
Is the reward of a path really found in what it avoids?
RXW11 - Joyce Meng: MBTI, Cognitive Functions, Jung, Identity, Using Type
Joyce Meng is a certified MBTI® Master practitioner and host of the Type Talks podcast entered the world of typology and coaching to fulfill her love for helping others and my passion for psychology. She is also the host of type talks diving into the various aspects of Depth Psychology as it relates to cognitive functions and type indicators.OUTLINE0:00 - Introduction3:23 - Foundations of Myers Br
Sartre's Lack of Being (Side Quest 3)
Content Warning: This episode briefly enters into some heavy topics related to self-harm as presented in literary works such as Dostesvky's Demons. If these are sensitive topics for you, viewer and listener discretion is advised.
Side Quest 2 - Aporia (RXW)
At its most literal, the ancient Greek word aporia translates to "without passage," "impassable," or "a state of being at a loss."In classical philosophy, particularly in the Socratic dialogues, aporia is the moment of profound puzzlement.Socrates would question someone who claimed to be an expert on a topic (like justice or courage) until their logic collapsed in on itself
Archetypal Visitation (Side Quest 1)
In the process of individuation (the journey toward becoming your true, whole self), so-called "Archetypal Visitations" can act as catalysts. While not merely random occurrences, visitations represent an intriguing view into the "self-healing" and "self-growing" nature of the psyche according to the cannon of Carl Jung's work
RXW10 - Aoise Tutty Relational Mirroring, Tantric Relating, Breaking Patterns
Aoise (Isha) Tutty Jackson is an intimacy and relational based guide and mentor. Aoise works to help people cross the threshold of deep transformation and embody their sovereign, radiant presence while navigating relationships.In this conversation, Robert & Aoise discuss0:00 - Introduction1:00 - Mirroring and Aoise’s work with individuals5:41 - Why haven’t we figured out strong intimacy and se
RXW9 - Wes Myers: Modern Dating, Keeper Matchmaking, Dating Apps, Incentive Design, Soulmates
Wes Myers is the Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at Keeper.ai, an experienced matchmaker, and relationship expert. He is working at Keeper to end human loneliness.How? According to Keeper, by giving everyone the opportunity to start a happy, healthy family. Approaching modern dating challenges through a lens of long term relationship formation rather than casual dating.Keeper usesTechnology
RXW8 - Dr. Wolfgang Palaver: Mimetic Theory, Rene Girard, Violence & The Sacred
Dr. Wolfgang Palaver is a distinguished scholar in the field of political theology, christian social thought and the philosophy of René Girard. From 2002 to 2023 Dr. Palaver was professor of Christian Social Thought in the Institute of Systematic Theology at the University of Innsbruck, Austria. His research focuses on the intersection of religion, politics, and violence, drawing extensively from
RXW7 - Danielle Strachman: Backing Young Makers, 1517 Fund, Thiel Fellowship, Challenging Education
Danielle Strachman is the co-founder and GP of 1517 Fund, a premiere pre-seed venture capital firm backing ambitious young high-school, college and makers working on big ideas. With a tag line of “Backing dropouts working on hard problems & sci-fi scientists at the earliest stages of their companies”, Danielle has been working on 1517 for 10+ years backing bright young minds to pursue great wo
RXW6 - MJDorian: Creative Codex, Creative History, Jungian Archtypes, Being An Artist
MJ Dorian is an artist, educator, podcast creator, and award winning composer. He is the host of the podcast production Creative Codex, a compendium and compass to the arcane world of creativity exploring the questions of what is creative genius and where does it come from? Through his original research, composure and production, MJ explores artists such as Alexander McQueen, William Blake, Da Vin
RXW5 - Dr. Shannon Lodoen: Rhetoric of Smartphones, Convergence, Culture & Technology
Dr. Shannon Lodoen is an academic in the field of rhetoric studying the relationship between modern society and the smartphone. Obtaining her doctorate from the University of Waterloo, she has continued to explore the dilemmas present at the intersection of society, technology (in the form factor of the smartphone), and the individual. Using her lens of rhetoric as a framework, Shannon seeks to un
RXW4 - Freddy Gervasi: Soul Expansion, Wellness, Inner Mindset & Entrepreneurial Journey
Freddy Gervasi is a former athlete turned entrepreneur, musician and now founder of the wellness & personal growth concert experience Soul Expansion. Through an 8 piece band offering original music, in a multi-sensory environment using breathwork and meditation, participants experience a community of mutual interest in expanding their sense of self. Freddy was inspired to bring his offering to
RXW3 - Adam Lewis: Intuition, Othership, Exploring Masculinity, Wellbeing
Adam Lewis is a growth strategist, entrepreneur and community builder passionate about empowering people, brands, and movements. Previously leading growth & partnerships at Othership (@othership), Adam took his fixation on wellness, integration and community to co-found MANCAMP (@mancamp.ca), a men's community and festival to explore his own sense and growth of masculinity. In this episode
RXW2 - Ian Timotheos-Pilon: Cultivating Clarity, Design Thinking, AI Agents, Agentic Payments
Ian Timotheos-Pilon is a 10+ year product & experience designer, and author of Cultivating Clarity: The art of discerning what matters using contextual intelligence. In this episode, Robert & Ian catch up to discuss AI, AI Agents, Intelligence, the future and more.0:00 - Intro11:59 - Concerns of AI & Atrophy16:13 - Physical Assembly25:01 - What does AI mean to the human experience?30:0
RXW1 - Udara Jayawardena: Founder Story, UNMS, Design Thinking, Technological Optimism
Udara Jayawardena is a serial entrepreneur and founder of UNMS Technologies a multi-disciplinary practice producing software, media and art. Previously selling his companies Tidl/Alchemy & Clew, he is now working to improve research and individual experience with his ventures at UNMS.In this conversation we cover:Why Udara moved from Sri Lanka when he was 18The importance of physical assembly
