Derek Sivers Interview (Full Episode) | The Tim Ferriss Show (Podcast)

A technology company, mentioned as a place where Wealthfront's technologists have worked.

A set-it-and-forget-it investing service using smarter software to offer services previously reserved for the ultra-wealthy at low costs, popular among Silicon Valley investors.

An online music store founded by Derek Sivers in 1998, which became the largest seller of independent music online, generating $100 million in sales before being sold for $22 million in 2008.

Large retail stores, which Derek Sivers imagines parrots infiltrating to spread the message 'it won't make you happy'.

An e-commerce platform where Derek Sivers' book 'Anything You Want' became a #1 bestseller and where books can be filtered by reviews.

A social media platform mentioned in contrast to 'Now pages' for not providing clear updates on what people are currently working on.

An underwear and lounge wear company known for comfortable products made of micro modal, mentioned as a sponsor of the podcast.

A social media platform mentioned as a place where Derek Sivers retweeted Gregory Brown's 'Now page' idea, leading to its widespread adoption.

An online shoe and clothing retailer famous for its exceptional customer service, used as an example of a company that gained free publicity through remarkable actions.

An e-commerce website where Derek Sivers could have sold his CDs initially and where he later bought a box of used toys for his son.

An online payment system that was not readily available for average people to use for e-commerce when CD Baby started.

An American television host, comedian, writer, and producer, whose style Derek Sivers was initially trying to emulate on stage.

A strict music teacher from Hawaii who taught Derek Sivers in four intensive lessons, enabling him to graduate Berkeley College of Music in half the usual time. He instilled the 'standard pace is for chumps' mentality.

A famous athlete and husband of Gabby Reece, who appeared on Tim Ferriss's podcast.

A famous athlete who appeared on Tim Ferriss's podcast, offering the advice to 'go first' in social interactions to improve one's state.

An American hip-hop duo consisting of DJ Eric Barrier and rapper Rakim. Rakim is praised by Derek Sivers as a foundational influence in hip-hop, comparable to Jimi Hendrix for guitar.

An American author, coach, motivational speaker, and philanthropist, whose book 'Awaken the Giant Within' was a major influence on Derek Sivers.

An American billionaire investor, businessman, and former real estate attorney, whose book 'Seeking Wisdom' was recommended by Tim Ferriss to Derek Sivers.

Author of 'Seeking Wisdom: From Darwin to Munger', a book highly recommended by Tim Ferriss.

Author of 'Geek in Japan', a Spanish guy who lived in Japan for 10 years and wrote a book that deeply explains Japanese culture.

An American author, journalist, activist, and professor, known for his books on food, including 'Omnivore's Dilemma' and 'Food Rules'.

An American writer, whose quote 'you are whatever you pretend to be' resonated with Derek Sivers about confidence.

The person who saw Derek Sivers' 'Now page' and created one for himself, prompting Derek to retweet it and spark the 'Now page' movement.

Actor who plays the protagonist in the movie 'Vanilla Sky', referenced as the owner of a publishing company who gets overwhelmed by his life.

Author of the book 'Stumbling on Happiness'.

Derek Sivers' musician friend in New York City, who was the first to ask him to sell his CD through Derek's website, inspiring the creation of CD Baby. He is also the son of the Prime Minister of Finland.

Guest on the podcast, known for founding CD Baby, being a professional musician, circus clown, author, and frequent TED speaker. He's admired by Tim Ferriss for his ability to simplify and question assumptions.

Author of 'The Magic of Thinking Big', a book that changed Tim Ferriss's life.

An American astronomer, planetary scientist, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist, author, poet, and science communicator, whose quote 'billions and billions' was referenced by Derek Sivers.

A brilliant musician and friend of Derek Sivers, who coined the 'Hell Yeah or No' decision-making phrase.

An American guitarist, singer, and songwriter, used as an analogy for Rakim's revolutionary impact on hip-hop music.

A publicist and friend of Derek Sivers, who originally invited him to the music conference in Australia and introduced him to 'The 4-Hour Workweek'.

An American psychologist, author, and teacher of Buddhist meditation, whose book 'Radical Acceptance' is highly recommended by Tim Ferriss.

American comedian and actor, whose movie 'Top Five' sparked Derek Sivers' interest in the history of hip-hop.

A private art and media college in Chicago, where Kimo Williams was reportedly still teaching music.

The organization that managed UPC barcodes (now GS1 US). Derek paid $400 for a company account to help independent musicians get barcodes.

A graduate business school of Stanford University, mentioned by Tim Ferriss as a comparison for the cost and duration of his self-imposed MBA as an angel investor.

An unincorporated community in Los Angeles County, California, mentioned as part of Derek Sivers' bike route.

A country in Oceania, which Derek Sivers initially committed to attending a music conference in but later reconsidered, leading to the 'Hell Yeah or No' philosophy.

The second-largest Hawaiian island, where Tim Ferriss's treehouse experience may have taken place.

A coastal city west of downtown Los Angeles, known for its beach and bike path, where Derek Sivers had a profound realization while cycling.

A country in South Asia, described as having ubiquitous advertising, which Derek Sivers contrasts with places that ban billboards.

A state of the United States located in the Pacific Ocean, where Tim Ferriss had an experience of sleeping in a treehouse rather than attending a Mastermind seminar.

An island country in East Asia, whose unique addressing system Derek Sivers explains in his TED Talk. He also discusses its mindset and culture.

A Nordic country in Northern Europe, mentioned as the home country of Marco Atari's father, who was its Prime Minister.

A state in the Northeastern United States, where Derek Sivers played his first paying gig at a pig show. Also mentioned as a place that bans billboards.

A town in Ulster County, New York, where Derek Sivers lived when he established CD Baby's initial pricing model based on a local record store.

A major city in Oregon, where CD Baby was based and still running when Derek Sivers lived in London. Also the location of the World Domination Summit.

A highway on the east coast of Maui, Hawaii, famous for its picturesque views, mentioned as a possible location of Tim Ferriss's treehouse stay.

A state on the Malabar Coast of India, where Tim Ferriss observed pervasive advertising even in small towns.

A major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment center, and neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City, where Tim and Derek discussed databases.

The capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, where Derek Sivers lived while attending Berkeley College of Music.

A major city in California, where Derek Sivers lived on Santa Monica beach and cycled, also where he moved to follow a girlfriend.

A major city in the United States, where Derek Sivers' musician friends gave him the idea for CD Baby and where he lived before Australia.

Mentioned in comparison to Japan's addressing system, where streets have names and blocks do not.

A country in Oceania, where Derek Sivers is currently living.

The capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, where Derek Sivers lived around 2007 while CD Baby was still running in Portland.

A major platform for independent streaming music and downloads in the late 1990s and early 2000s, which was interested in acquiring CD Baby.

A website created by Derek Sivers that serves as a collection of 'Now pages' from various people, detailing what they are currently working on.

A communication protocol for peer-to-peer file sharing that enables users to distribute data and electronic files over the Internet, mentioned as a way Derek Sivers acquired 'The 4-Hour Workweek' before its official release in England.

A domain-specific language used in programming and designed for managing data held in a relational database management system, which Derek Sivers simplified for Tim Ferriss.

A popular image editing software, which Derek Sivers used to process album art for CD Baby.

A free and open-source flashcard program that uses spaced repetition, which Derek Sivers considered for memorizing book lessons but found difficult to format.

The official website for TED Talks, where Derek Sivers suggests searching for his talk 'Weird or Just Different'.

A book by Peter Bevelin that analyzes aspects of human misjudgment and wisdom, recommended by Tim Ferriss to Derek Sivers.

A book on Stoicism by William Irvine which emphasizes practical, actionable advice rather than philosophical discourse.

A book authored by Derek Sivers that became a #1 Amazon bestseller, described by Tim Ferriss as one of the few business books he has read and listened to multiple times.

A book by Daniel Gilbert that Derek Sivers loved and found to be a great reality check for 'deferred life plans,' which he highly recommends.

A book by David Schwartz that had a significant impact on Tim Ferriss at a formative time in his life, though not as impactful for Derek Sivers.

A shorter book by Michael Pollan, which distills the best information from 'The Omnivore's Dilemma'.

A book by Tim Ferriss, mentioned by Derek Sivers as one he read earlier in his career and that influenced his approach to work and delegation.

A self-help book by Tony Robbins that significantly impacted Derek Sivers and Tim Ferriss at a young age.

A book mentioned by Derek Sivers as one he rated poorly only because he read it after two other books on the same subject, not because of its inherent quality.

A very concise book by Michael Pollan, praised by Derek Sivers for its ability to compress wisdom into simple directives.

A book by Hector Garcia that Derek Sivers highly recommends for understanding the Japanese mindset, and the book he gives most as a gift.

The personal writings of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, providing a philosophical guide for dealing with adversity, which Tim Ferriss uses as inspiration for mental preparation.

A book mentioned by Derek Sivers as an even better book than 'Geek in Japan' for explaining the mindset of a country (France).

A book by Tara Brach highly recommended for Type A personalities, focusing on how most suffering comes from self-focus.

A book by Michael Pollan that explores the origins of food, considered great but long by Derek Sivers.

A documentary series that focused on the history of musicians and bands, noted for always including a moment where 'things took a turn for the worse,' demonstrating the inevitability of disaster.

A Chris Rock movie that inspired Derek Sivers to explore the history of hip-hop by asking about top five hip-hop artists.

An early hip-hop film, mentioned by Derek Sivers as a starting point for his chronological history of hip-hop education.

A major daily newspaper, in which Derek Sivers found an ad for music typesetting that led him to Kimo Williams.

A film that influenced Derek Sivers' decision to delegate tasks at CD Baby rather than abandoning the company.

An e-reader device, which Derek Sivers uses to read books and delete those he doesn't finish, and for exporting notes as text files.

An e-reader that allows users to export notes in text files, used by Tim Ferriss as a tool for filtering and processing books.

A structure built amongst the branches of a tree or trees, Tim Ferriss stayed in one in Hawaii, valuing experience over a conference.

A philosophical paradox where a donkey, placed exactly halfway between a pile of hay and a bucket of water, starves and dies because it cannot make a rational decision between the two.

Rules from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that prevent companies investing money from using client testimonials.