Reclaiming Power and Agency When Everyone's Depressed (with David Storey)

Another engaging riff with David Storey, Boston College philosophy professor and Spartan Race athlete. This time I take center stage. We explore why Americans are collectively depressed, why Democrats ignore power politics, why turning off phones and turning toward each other feels great, and how all of this is related. I make a case for phone-free schools. Dave helps me see even bigger benefits. We get political. We get personal. We refuse to give advice or answer the question, "What should the average person do?" **Key takeaways** 11:00 Feeling bottled up? Recapture the oomph and lock arms with others 15:00 The Tit-for-Tat strategy from the Prisoner's Dilemma 21:00 Reclaiming power. "Don't step on me." 23:00 Two reasons Democrats get complacent about power politics 28:00 Want advice on what to do? Instead, ask yourself these four questions 32:00 Conscious phone use through PSAs and intentional points of friction 35:00 It's time to make public spaces public again 38:00 Stricter phone policies in schools free teachers to teach, not police 41:00 Adults exerting their agency. "Trust your moral compass." 45:00 Moving beyond the hyper-individualistic story of America 47:00 Laughter is something we create together **Resources** David's web site, including his podcast, Wisdom@Work **Subscribe to the podcast** To hear the origin stories of more big ideas, subscribe to How My View Grew on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. **Share the love** Leave me a rating or review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.