Thriving The Future Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

This year has been the best of times and the worst of times. Okay, maybe not the worst. (after all, I am still employed).

But this is the dichotomy (or is it a contradiction?):

It is performance review time at work.

I just copied last year's review and changed the project names.

But my Goals and accomplishments in real life were off the charts!

This year I:

- Built 4 web sites/side businesses

- Got my Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) from Midwest Permaculture.

- Gained my first 2 paid Food Forest design clients, including a huge 3 acre orchard design and implementation that is a several thousand dollar gig.

- Grew 10x+ trees

- 5x my revenue from last year

- Learned to use a mini-excavator

Come along with me as I share my wins (and losses) and get encouraged!

Sponsors:

Thriving Food Forest Design - We can create an edible foodscape, a perennial paradise so you can grow more food and be more self sufficient. We use fruit and nut trees and perennial plants adapted to the Midwest to create a low maintenance food forest.

Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest.

Permies digital marketplace is YOUR source for all things permaculture for your homestead, side hustle, and designing your intentional life: from video courses, to blueprints, to books.

How Do You Use AI?

Most people use it as a search engine.

Some people use it write blog posts or customer emails.

Some for analysis.

But some assign it a role to do the analysis, like "evaluate this as an executive of XYZ company" or a hiring manager.

My son-in-law, Eric Niday, uses AI for all of the above. Talking with him about his experiences with it was interesting, so I decided to have him on and share it with you.

How far is too far?

In addition to using AI at work to evaluate candidates and write SQL, Eric uses ChatGPT to research and debate theology. He made a chat bot theologian, instructed it with which theologians that he liked, so he could ask it questions. He even made it so it would "counsel" him. The chat bot even offered to "pray" for him (!). Um, that may be going too far.

Episode website: Ep. 148 - How Do You Use AI? - with Eric Niday

Sponsors:

Thriving Food Forest Design - We can create an edible foodscape, a perennial paradise so you can grow more food and be more self sufficient. We use fruit and nut trees and perennial plants adapted to the Midwest to create a low maintenance food forest.

Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest.

Permies digital marketplace is YOUR source for all things permaculture for your homestead, side hustle, and designing your intentional life: from video courses, to blueprints, to books.

Last time, in Ep. 138, Jason Thomas shared stories and we discussed how to design your intentional life.

We talked about the main categories - wealth, health, relationships, and spirituality.

I was contemplating my journey to design my intentional life and I had more to add.

Having an Intentional Life means:

• Aligning your life and actions with your values, as much as possible.
• Being deliberate in your actions and forming good habits.
• Taking positive steps rather than being driven by your circumstances and surroundings.
• Preparing for adversity - both physically and mentally.
• Being more at peace and having a positive view of your future.
• Focusing on your physical and spiritual health.

Write down your values.

Evaluate things to Change:

Make a plan. Start simple.

There are no solutions, only tradeoffs. You won't get to 100% (unless you are very lucky, or you have the right situations). There will be some tradeoffs.

It's not All or Nothing.

Get out of the "I am going to replace my job!" mindset.

Redesign your life by changing your lifestyle and expectations:

Paul Wheaton's (in)famous "Story of Ferd and Gert"

Get out of the "progressive mindset"

Grow your own food.

Find your tribe - Grow community.

Episode website: Ep. 139 - More Tips to Design Your Intentional Life

Sponsors:

Permies digital marketplace is YOUR source for all things permaculture for your homestead, side hustle, and designing your intentional life: from video courses, to blueprints, to books.

Grow Nut Trees - Chestnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, elderberry - all adapted to the Midwest. Now taking orders for shipping in Sept/Oct.

Gift Economy vs Barter - Has Barter really been used anywhere at any scale?

Scott and Perpend have a lively debate on whether barter has been used as the main economy in any culture.

The gift economy applies to the Tribal model, family, or clan.<p>

We also discuss intentional community.

Are we a community? As he states in this episode, Perpend is seeking an intentional community that is willing to sell everything and move closer together.

Perpend also shares his spiritual journey.

Episode website: https://thrivingthefuture.com/barter

Sponsors:

- The Homestead Journal - Find us at www.thehomesteadjournal.net and follow us @thjdotnet on Twitter.

Ken and Sally are #Homesteading in the City. You would be surprised how much they do in their normal backyard - chickens, gardens, tree starts, composting bins, and an elaborate worm bin.

We also discuss how they #Thrive & prepare for retirement.

This is a part of our #Thrivers series.

Episode website: https://thrivingthefuture.com/homesteading-city

Sponsors:

- The Homestead Journal - Find us at www.thehomesteadjournal.net and follow us @thjdotnet on Twitter.

- https://FreedomFarmer.net - Where I focus on #SkillsOverStuff and designing your intentional life

Using the best homeschooling method for the season in a child's life.

Join the conversation with Winter, a mom who is from a homeschooled family and has homeschooled her kids.

Skip the usual homeschool topics - no complaining about public school, no politics here. We want to focus on creating lifelong learners.

- Adapting to your child' s learning style.

- Homeschooling with an ADHD child and a Gifted child at the same time.

- Unschooling

- Science - Instilling a sense of "wonder" in your child.

This is part of our ongoing #Thriver's series.

Episode website: https://thrivingthefuture.com/homeschooling

Sponsors:

- The Homestead Journal - Find us at www.thehomesteadjournal.net and follow us @thjdotnet on Twitter.

- https://FreedomFarmer.net - Where I focus on #SkillsOverStuff and designing your intentional life

Dodging the Regulations and Restrictions Land Mines

Continuing our #Thrivers series, join the conversation with Kurt. He is living on 27 acres in NW MO.

We discuss how he found his land in this tough market, strategies for determining regulations and restrictions. We deep dive into some of what he has accomplished so far with his land and livestock, as well as his plans to thrive in the next year.

Episode website: https://thrivingthefuture.com/finding-land

Sponsors:

- The Homestead Journal - Find us at www.thehomesteadjournal.net and follow us @thjdotnet on Twitter.

- https://FreedomFarmer.net - Where I focus on #SkillsOverStuff and designing your intentional life

Come on into the library, sit down and have a chat.

Join our conversation with Yardbird on culture, the podcast, and Radical Authenticity.

Radical Authenticity: Facing reality. Being authentic. learning to identify problems, and being willing to accept those.

We also discuss:

- The history and next steps for the podcast. <

- Yardbird's Philosophy Garden. He has generously provided an essay on the Philosophy garden that you can read on the thrivingthefuture.com website.

- Wendell Berry's "The Unsettling of America". We are in a competition with nature when it should be a conversation."

- What are YOU reading?

Episode website: https://thrivingthefuture.com/radical-authenticity

<p>You may think that gardening season is late, and you are just harvesting the tomatoes and the root crops and squash. If you live in the midsection of the country or the South, you can get two seasons in. Start succession planting now. Plant that Victory Garden!</p>

<p>Go to the episode website to see a helpful guide to succession planting:

https://thrivingthefuture.com/fall-garden</p>

<p>Sponsors:</p>

<p> - The Homestead Journal - Find us at www.thehomesteadjournal.net and follow us @thjdotnet on Twitter.</p>

<p> - https://FreedomFarmer.net - Where I focus on #SkillsOverStuff and designing your intentional life</p>

<p>Do you Get Stuff Done, or do you change course and start yet another project after seeing a new YT video, saying "I'm gonna try that!"</p>

<p>The result = A bunch of projects that never get done.</p>

<p>But I want to Get Stuff Done instead. Real stuff. Projects that I finish.</p>

<p>I want Proof of Work. I want to actually finish my projects.</p>

<p>It is also #SkillsOverStuff. Building skills, refining skills.</p>

<p>What skills are you building?</p>

<p>Episode website: https://thrivingthefuture.com/get-stuff-done</p>

<p>Sponsors:</p>

<p> - The Homestead Journal - Find us at www.thehomesteadjournal.net and follow us @thjdotnet on Twitter.</p>

<p> - https://FreedomFarmer.net - Where I focus on #SkillsOverStuff and designing your intentional life</p>