Your Brain Is Lying to You: Why You Don’t Understand Your Decisions | 67

Send us Fan MailThe Grateful Podcast with Jack WagonerEpisode 67In this solo episode of The Grateful Podcast, host Jack Wagoner dives deep into why we make the decisions we make, challenging the common belief in human rationality. Drawing from insights in The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis and the groundbreaking research of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, Jack questions whether logic and reason are really guiding our behavior—or if we’re missing something deeper.He shares a vulnerable personal story of choosing between Harvard and Northeastern and explains why trusting his gut feeling led him to a more expansive, fulfilling decision. This episode explores themes of behavioral psychology, intuition, self-examination, and how to build a life based on internal truth rather than external validation.📚 Referenced: • The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis • The work of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky • Socratic wisdom: “The unexamined life is not worth living”🎧 Listen if you’re curious about: • Why most of us don’t actually understand our decisions • How intuition may be more trustworthy than logic • The self-fulfilling prophecy of rationality • Letting go of needing to explain your choices to others • Designing a life based on inner fulfillment, not prestige⸻⏱️ Chapters & Timestamps:0:00 – The Illusion of Rational Decisions1:24 – Introducing The Grateful Podcast & Jack’s Passion2:40 – The Undoing Project & the Irrationality of Economics5:12 – Thought Experiment: Gains vs. Losses7:00 – The Problem With Over-Rationalizing8:47 – Sponsored Segment: SweetDash10:00 – Examining What You Can Control11:36 – The Harvard vs. Northeastern Decision14:10 – Trusting Gut Feelings vs. External Validation16:03 – The Power of Subjective Evidence17:28 – Temper Tantrums & Learned Behavior18:52 – The Trap of Needing an Explanation20:00 – Final Thoughts: Examine Your Behavior21:30 – Mother’s Day Reminder + Outro📺 Watch the full episode or listen on your favorite platform:Spotify/Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-grateful-podcast-with-jack-wagoner/id1725776061Subscribe for more deep conversations with thinkers, seekers, and soulful creators. 🙏⸻🧠 More from Jack:Newsletter (Magic, Meaning & Momentum): https://magic.beehiiv.com/v1/aa6b0945-43aa-43c8-b320-0fde6998f852?email=%7B%7Bemail%7D%7DInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/jack_wagoner_/1:1 Coaching & Dream-Chasing Guidance: [email protected]💬 If you found this conversation meaningful, send it to a friend and leave a review. It really helps more people find this kind of soul-nourishing content.⸻🎙️ About Jack:I’m an 18-year-old high school student with a big dream: to show the world that you can be grateful and ambitious at the same time. Through The Grateful Podcast, I explore what it means to live a meaningful life—one deep conversation at a time.Support the show☕ Magic Mind — My daily performance shot:→ https://magicmind.com/wagoner20Use code WAGONER20 for 20% off a package or 48% off a subscription.🧠 More from Jack:► Website: https://jackwagoner.co► Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jack_wagoner_/► 1:1 Coaching: [email protected]📺 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Jack_Wagoner⸻🎙️ About Jack:I moved to France alone at 16, started my first business at 17, and launched this podcast because I kept meeting people who had the answers to questions I didn't even know I was asking.  My philosophy: you can set massive goals while being deeply fulfilled right now. That's the duality of gratitude and ambition.Subscribe and turn on notifications so you never miss an episode.Stay grateful, stay hungry.