My Friend, Long Time No See

Vol. 43 Don’t let peer pressure change your life

This episode explores how peer pressure shapes lives from childhood through old age — from classroom rankings and parental comparisons to the social expectations of adulthood. The host shares personal experiences of feeling pressured, how self-awareness developed around age 20, and why knowing what you truly want helps dissolve comparison-driven anxiety. The episode encourages listeners to discover their genuine passions early, resist following the crowd, and make choices based on personal values rather than external expectations. Practical reflections include how family support (or lack thereof) affects exploration, and why internal pressure from one’s former self can be especially damaging.

Vol. 42 Information Is Calories — And We’re All Mentally Overweight

If in the future, all food—even gourmet meals—were free and instantly available, wouldn’t we all end up overweight? Well, that future has already arrived—just not with food, but with information. Our minds feel bloated, our brains have gotten lazy. We consume constantly, but rarely digest. Imagination fades. Creativity stalls. We just repeat the “right” things others have said, and our thoughts lose the freedom to be wrong in our own way. Short videos are the fast food. Classics are the five-star meals. Breaking news has the shelf life of milk. Reality shows? They’re like chips—endless, salty, and hard to stop munching on. But if it all leads to mental obesity… does it even matter what we’re consuming? * [00:00:06] – The Core Idea: Spiritual Overweight * [00:00:17] – The Analogy: Food Consumption * [00:03:29] – Information Overload * [00:05:00] – The Consequences: Mental Bloat * [00:06:51] – The Solution: A Mental Diet * [00:08:40] – Actionable Task Personal Blog: https://xing-j.com/ [https://xing-j.com/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrYQCB9OBbW43V170uw-VTQ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrYQCB9OBbW43V170uw-VTQ] Patreon: https://patreon.com/xingj [https://patreon.com/xingj]

Vol.41 Influencers Are the Embodiment of Desire

Hey friends, in this episode I talked about something that’s been on my mind a lot lately—desire. Why do we always want more? Whether it’s craving knowledge, chasing trends, obsessing over food, or just wanting to feel seen and loved, these desires shape so much of who we are. I also explored how influencers, money, even love, all reflect the things we long for deep down. It’s a bit of rambling, a bit of thinking out loud—but all from the heart. Hope it resonates with you somehow. 00:00:00 The Pleasure of Destruction: Symbolic Violence in Online Debates 00:03:30 Desire Adapts: From Primal Urges to Social Conformity 00:05:29 Violence as Entertainment: A Legacy of Human Nature 00:08:00 The Craving to Be Seen: Attention and the Digital Age 00:15:28 Influencers as Mirrors of Collective Desire 00:21:30 Love and Money: The Ultimate Bundles of Human Longing Personal Blog: https://xing-j.com/ [https://xing-j.com/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrYQCB9OBbW43V170uw-VTQ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrYQCB9OBbW43V170uw-VTQ] Patreon: https://patreon.com/xingj [https://patreon.com/xingj]

Vol. 40 Love Born from Shared Suffering

Hey everyone! Ever wonder what truly makes a friendship last? After a recent holiday binge-watch of "Billions," I found myself deep in thought, not about high finance, but about the bonds between people. In this episode, I'm sharing my personal reflections on why shared hardships, more than just happy times, might be the secret ingredient to building truly deep and resilient connections, not just with friends, but with family and loved ones too. Join me as I explore why embracing challenges together can forge the most meaningful relationships and how I'm trying to disconnect from the digital world to find more authentic connections in my own life. 00:00:00 Intro & Holiday Break 00:01:36  My "Billions" Experience 00:03:13  The Real Takeaway: Friendship 00:04:38  Rethinking Friendship 00:06:55  My Fading Connection 00:10:30  A New Approach to Friendship 00:13:06  The Risks and Rewards of Shared Hardship 00:14:02  The Need for Deeper Connections 00:15:55  Reflections on Marriage and Modern Life 00:17:24  What l've Learned About Friendship 00:20:27  The Role of Colleagues in Friendship 00:23:10  My Ideal Friend: Smart and Kind 00:29:31 The Elusive Nature of Friendship 00:34:33 A Slower Pace 00:37:12 Wrapping Up and Looking Ahead Personal Blog: https://xing-j.com/ [https://xing-j.com/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrYQCB9OBbW43V170uw-VTQ [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrYQCB9OBbW43V170uw-VTQ] Patreon: https://patreon.com/xingj [https://patreon.com/xingj]

闲聊，Vol.39：在海边的一些碎碎念

这期轻松一点。 这是半个月之前在韩国江陵市的海边边走边录的一期。看到什么、想到什么就随口说了。希望我们都轻松一点生活吧。