PODCAST · religion
Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene
by Tom Greene
Insightful and open-minded pieces conversations that help you see the world with greater clarity. The bi-weekly roadmap to a more intentional and fulfilling life.
Episodes
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Where Was the One Good Man?
A young woman at Cornell University alleges that she was sexually assaulted by seven young men. There is plenty of booze involved and even some prescription Ketamine. A lot of bad decisions were made that night. I'm not interested in adjudicating the case. I'm interested in one thing: where was…
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The Quiet Way of Wisdom
With constant ringing, pinging and noise in our daily lives we often forget that the greatest opportunity to impart wisdom is to stop talking and start listening. The wisest souls that ever lived knew this but we've often confused wisdom with words. Perhaps we got it backwards.
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Trusting as Little As Possible in the Future
The famous quote "Carpe diem" we all translate to seize the day. But the more important part of that passage is "Carpe diem. Trusting as little as possible in tomorrow". See, back when people only lived about as long as a Labrador Retriever, it was important to seize the day. But, today, we seem…
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The Inflation of Expectations
Have you ever noticed that you never judge what you have against what you used to have? You always judge what you have verses what everyone else seems to have. It's called the inflation of expectations. That is, our expectations seem to rise in direct correlation to how well everyone else is…
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Why So Many Older Men are Giving Up
Men aged 75 and over have the highest suicide rate in the US. It's not just retirement. It's a loss of identity and purpose. But, you can help. Learn the warning signs and phrases and how you can help. Might just save a life.
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Meaning, Structure and Belonging
What if I had a secret formula that almost guaranteed that your children and grandchildren would get better grades, avoid drugs and pre-marital sex and prevent anxiety and depression. Wouldn't you want to know about it? Listen to find out.
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The Quiet Disappearance of Conversation
We are all communicating more. A lot more. But all this communication and technology is killing something off. We are speaking fewer words per day than ever. In fact, between 2005 and 2019 we lost 3,000 words....every day. And, it's only getting worse. Convenience has a habit of quietly replacing...
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What Do You Want to Want?
We all know what we want: more money, better sex and six pack abs. But, it's much more instructive to understand "what you want to want". Because sometimes we simultaneously desire and reject the exact same thing.
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The Paradox of Progress
Would you believe me if I told you that the happiest young adults were in places like Tanzania, Nigeria and other remote parts of Africa? It's true. And the rest of the kids on earth are struggling in clinically significant ways. You'll have to listen to find out why those kids in Africa have it...
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The Road Not Taken
Most regret doesn’t come from making the wrong decision. It comes from simply making a decision.
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Everything I Ever Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten
From chocolate milk and classroom memories to the simple lessons of kindness, wonder, and slowing down, this heartfelt reflection explores why the values we learned as children may be the ones we need most today.
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The Quiet Surrender
Our birth rates are crashing all across the planet. And, at the same time, several companies are mass producing robots. So, how do these two things collide? Listen to find out.
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What if the American Revolution Never Happened?
As we celebrate our 250th anniversary as a country it's a good time to question what our lives would be like in the US if the revolution had never happened.
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We Suffer More in Imagination Than in Reality
Most of the things we worry about never come to pass. Or if they do, they're never as bad as we think.
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The Anatomy of Slow Moving Disasters
I'm not gonna lie, there are enough things going on right now in the world to make me question if I was born in the final chapter of the human race. But, then I'm reminded of Adam's Law of Slow Moving Disasters. It's saved us from certain demise hundreds of times. Tune if to find out why you…
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Familiarity Breeds Indifference
For a brief moment in the summer of 2026 we have a brief moment to see America clearly. The scale, ambition, the abundance, the contradictions and the optimism as viewed through the eyes of a foreigner. Let's hope we may never be the same.
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Some Things We Have to Learn the Hard Way
There are certain lessons that no matter how many times you are told....you simply have to learn them the hard way. It's a part of growing up...and maybe growing old. Eventually you get punched in the throat by life and everything suddenly becomes clear.
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The Fingerprint of Grief
Grief is almost uniquely human. Few animals grief like we do. No other emotion brings out the best and the worst in people. But grief leaves a fingerprint. An identity long after the person we love is gone. And the only way to move forward is to remind yourself that grief is living proof that…
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Never Give Up; Never, Ever Give Up
Sometimes the worst moment of your life is the turning point of your life. Because, let's face it, you are not the best judge of what your life will become.
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The Great Sexual Divide
Something odd is happening. A divergence between the sexes. It's happening around the world. Men and women are growing further and further apart from one another. And, it's impacting dating, sex, marriage and the number of children being born. So when did this happen and, more importantly, why?...
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The World's Most Interesting Man
We all wonder how our days will come to an end. What will we be on our minds as the days grow very short. Ben Sasse knows. He's dying of pancreatic cancer and is already living on borrowed time. But in his last days on earth he's taking the time to teach us how to live and die with dignity and...
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Nobody Cares
We all live like we are being watched. Like there's some kind of great digital scoreboard in the sky watching our every move. But, as we age hopefully we realize that nobody is paying any attention to us because they are too busy paying attention to themselves.
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What an Insane and Remarkable Time to Be Alive
If you listen to enough of the talking heads on television, you might convince yourself that the world is going to hell in a hand basket. Well, let me be the first to throw cold water on that. Because right now just might be the most remarkable time to be alive. But, it's also the most insane.
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Why Your Dog Might Be Smarter Than You
We spend most of our lives feeling guilty about enjoying life. We try not to enjoy anything too much: food, sun, sex, etc.? Maybe the best example of how to enjoy life comes from our dogs? What if we all sought to live, love, eat and forgive like a dog. The world would be a much better place, right?
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The Quiet Crisis Facing Young Men
Young men are seemingly failing to launch. Spending time gambling on line, watching porn and failing to get out from underneath their parent's protection. Is this a lack of motivation? Is it a laziness? I don't think so. I think it's something totally different but you'll have to listen to find out.
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Six Surprising Secrets of Success
All across the US, anxious high school students are watching their emails and busily refreshing their browsers waiting to hear about college acceptances. It's that time in life where seemingly everything is dependent on a few strangers making a decision in your favor. But what if all of that…
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The Age of Impatience
Wisdom used to be something we expected to grow in to, something we earned through years of trails and errors--years of confusion and uncertainty. We still respect wisdom today, but have we grown too impatient to pursue it ourselves?
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The Things We Leave Behind
As we get on in age, we often tend to spend time thinking about legacy. About what things we leave behind for others. But that's not the right way to think about legacy. We shouldn't be thinking about the stuff that matters to us. We should be thinking about the traits we pass on. The ones that...
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The Hidden Gift of the Detour
Today's conversation started with a simple observation during an ordinary drive. It made me think about how we handle mistakes, detours and the quiet adjustments we are forced to make in life. Those adjustments that often and color and richness to our lives.
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The Quiet Discipline of Letting Go
The older I get the more I realize that wisdom and growth isn't always about adding. It's about subtracting; letting go. Because the life you envisioned isn't always the life you actually want.
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The American Sobriety Experiment
If you're reading this summary then you likely survived dry January. The time when 1/3 of Americans give up booze for 30 days. Or at least try. It's a nice idea and your liver needs it. Alcohol consumption is down in the US already, way down. But what are the unforeseen consequences of all this...
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When Did Empathy Get Hijacked?
The loudest voices, the angriest voices, seem to have taken over the stage. We are naturally empathetic people but only to a point. We used to be able to have a conversation and disagree without being disagreeable. We could have empathy and still disagree. Today empathy is hijacked by movements…
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The Growing Pains of Affluence
Parents today have pulled out all the stops for this kids. During a period of unprecedented prosperity today's kids have enjoyed the finest schools, clothes, neighborhoods, cars, etc. All in an effort to give kids the good life. But what if all we were doing was setting the kids up for...
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Is Civility Really Dead?
We are told constantly that the world is cruel, people are selfish and civility is a relic of a bygone era. Maybe I'm old school but I think that's BS. There are tons of signs that civility is alive and kicking. You'll have to listen to learn why.
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The Growing Pains of Affluence
This generation came of age during the most prosperous time in human history. Parents provided their kids with every advantage and allowed them to sample the good life. It came with the message of study hard, stay out of trouble, get into a good college and all your wildest dreams will come true....
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The Misinterpretation of the American Dream
It's that time of year. The time when we look back at 2025 and figure out which podcasts you liked the most. There were three winners in 2025 that got you really fired up. Jump in and enjoy this "best of 2025" episode of Wit & Wisdom.
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The Ultimate Act of Compassion
Nobody wants to suffer at the end of their life, especially me. But is Canada's Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) the solution? Last year 60K people voluntarily ended their life in Canada. That seems like an awful lot to me. A number of US states are following the lead. Several now have laws…
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Twenty Five Years of Bowling Alone
Twenty five years ago Robert Putnam noticed something odd. More people were bowling, but fewer people were bowling in group leagues. But, why? The answer has to do with a gigantic sociological shift towards aloneness. And that was before the pandemic, work from home, videoconferencing, the iPhone...
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When Everything is Free, Nothing is of any Value
My Dad used to say that nothing in life is free. He was right. So many things we used to hold dear to us are now free. And you and I both know that nothing of any real value is given for free. So what am I talking about? You'll have to tune in to find out.
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Why the Kids Aren't Getting Married (long version)
It's been a confusing time to be a young adult. The pandemic and all the various social movements of the past few years has made it hard to be a kid. Record number of college freshman couldn't or wouldn't identify their gender. By 2022 and 2023 the numbers exploded. But then something strange...
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The Poverty of Abundance
Are you in the second half of life? Are you struggling to find your purpose in life now that things have settled down? Given the abundance of opportunities available, we can often feel overwhelmed or uninspired. Like having 500 channels on TV and nothing to watch. There's an answer to this…
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Three Secrets of Resilient People
Today we're having a conversation about something we'll all need at some point in our lives: resilience. Why? Because regardless of your income, your position in life or your age, resilience is usually in short supply. We all have those moments where life takes your breath away. It's at that…
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Eight Observations from Eight Decades of Life
I wrote another letter to myself. Yeah, I know, but I promise this is the last one. My 80 year old self wanted to give my "younger self" some advice. Just a few adjustments today will make all the difference tomorrow. Some good wisdom here. Hope you enjoy.
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When Did Time Become the Enemy?
Remember when summer days as a kid used to crawl by? And the summer felt like it'd last forever? Yet today it seems as if the days, weeks and even years just fly by. I often wonder if adulthood and technology changed our perspective on time. Listen to find out.
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Did the Boomers Ruin Things for Everyone?
There's a lot of noise on the inter webs about the state of our finances in the US. Specifically, younger Americans are complaining about the deck being stacked against them. Home prices are sky high, interest rates are crazy high and the boomers and squatting on all the good homes--just waiting…
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Dear Younger Me:
Things are crazy today. So I decided to write a letter to Younger Me back in 2000 so I'd be ready for some of the changes coming my way.
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Insightful and open-minded pieces conversations that help you see the world with greater clarity. The bi-weekly roadmap to a more intentional and fulfilling life.
HOSTED BY
Tom Greene
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene have?
Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene currently has 191 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene about?
Insightful and open-minded pieces conversations that help you see the world with greater clarity. The bi-weekly roadmap to a more intentional and fulfilling life.
How often does Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene release new episodes?
Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene publishes regularly with 191 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene?
You can listen to Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene?
Wit & Wisdom with Tom Greene is created and hosted by Tom Greene.
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