3851: I Am Not the Center of the Universe by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus with Exile Lifestyle

Optimal Living Daily - Personal Development and Self-Improvement

Optimal Living Daily LLC

Education, Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Self-improvement

4.6 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 22 December 2025

⏱️ 10 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3851: Joshua Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus challenge our default self-centered worldview by exploring how cultural conditioning leads us to believe we’re the center of everything. By consciously stepping outside ourselves and embracing contribution over consumption, we can discover deeper freedom, purpose, and lasting happiness beyond material excess. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://exilelifestyle.com/center-universe/ Quotes to ponder: "Everything in my own immediate experience supports my deep belief that I am the absolute center of the universe, it’s pretty much the same for all of us." "It’s impossible to feel fulfilled or satisfied if we do not contribute beyond ourselves." "Minimalism is a tool that can help us regain our consciousness and show us that the real point of our lives is not consumption, but to contribute to other people in meaningful ways." Episode references: This Is Water by David Foster Wallace: https://fs.blog/david-foster-wallace-this-is-water/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	This episode is brought you by Shopify. With Shopify, 2026 is the year you make it happen. It gives you the tools to build your dream store, online and in person. Plus with marketing built in, it'll help you reach exactly who you need to. Join the millions who've already made the leap, like Jim Shark and all birds, and ring in the new year with Shopify.
0:23.3	Sign up for your £1 per month trial at Shopify.com.uk.
0:27.7	It's a minimalist Monday edition of Optimal Living Daily.
0:34.3	I am not the center of the universe by Joshua Fields Milburn and Ryan Nicodemus with
0:39.7	exile lifestyle.com. And I'm your narrator, Justin Mollick, reading you articles every day of the year.
0:45.9	So with that, let's get right to it as we optimize your life.
0:52.8	I am not the center of the universe by Joshua Fields Milburn and Ryan Nicodemus with Exile Lifestyle.com.
1:00.0	Quote, everything in my own immediate experience supports my deep belief that I am the absolute center of the universe, the realist, most vivid, important person in existence.
1:13.4	We rarely think about this sort of natural, basic self-centeredness because it's so socially
1:18.9	repulsive, but it's pretty much the same for all of us. It's hardwired into our boards at birth.
1:24.6	Think about it. There's no experience you have had that you are not the absolute
1:28.1	center of. The world as you experience it is there in front of you or behind you, to the left or
1:34.9	right of you, on your TV or your monitor. Other people's thoughts and feelings have to be
1:41.2	communicated to you, but your own are so immediate, urgent,
1:46.0	and real. David Foster Wallace, 2005 from This Is Water. A different perspective. It's incredibly
1:54.7	difficult to think about the world from a perspective other than our own. We are always worried
1:59.2	about what's going on in our own lives. What does my schedule
2:02.3	look like today? What if I lose my job during the next round of layoffs? Why can't I stop smoking?
2:07.8	Why am I overweight? Why am I not happy with my life? Suffice it to say that we are acutely aware of
2:13.5	everything connected to our own lives, everything good, everything bad, everything in our lives.
2:20.1	Of course, we also worry about other people as well, but not with the same intensity, not with the same
2:25.9	level of focus or connection, and not with the same ferocious subconscious vigor that we apply to
	...

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