The Risk of Living Your Childhood Dream at 44 | Ep 44

The Risk of Living Your Childhood Dream at 44 | Ep 44

We love to tell ourselves we'll take the leap when the timing is perfect—when we have enough saved, when the kids are older, when the stars align. But Markus looked around at 44 and realized: if not now, when? This week we're sitting at Markus's winery in the Wachau Valley, drinking his Grüner Veltliner and hearing the unfiltered story of what happened when he left a decade-long political career to become an organic winemaker.  We talk about the exact moment he knew he had to do it, the terror of not knowing if there'd be money at month's end, and why working alongside your partner and entire family is either the most romantic or most insane business model ever invented. We also get into Markus's "be brave and play" philosophy, the reality check of running a high-stakes, low-margin business, and why his most idiotic moments always happen on a tractor. Plus, Paul's train disaster, Marc's F-bomb-filled business meeting, and why apricot jam might be the secret hero of this episode.  Chapters:  0:00 Introduction to Guys Like Us Podcast  3:01 The Journey to Winemaking  5:47 Transitioning from Politics to Winemaking  10:54 Living the Childhood Dream  13:28 The Moment of Decision  18:13 Reflections on the Journey  19:44 Family Involvement in Business  22:37 Balancing Dreams and Reality  25:31 The Romanticized Vision of Winemaking  28:37 Navigating Challenges in the Wine Industry  30:59 Idiotic Thing and Terminator of the Week  | Ep 44

The Friendship Math That Doesn't Add Up | Ep 43

We love to tell ourselves we're just too busy for new friendships, but the truth is way more uncomfortable: most men in their 40s are losing nine to ten friends per decade, and 40% of us report feeling lonelier than any other age group. That's not a scheduling problem. That's a crisis. This week, we wrestle with the mechanics of midlife friendship — the spouse proxy trap, the 200-hour rule Paul swears by and Marc thinks is complete nonsense, and why the bottleneck isn't opportunity, it's time. We cover Paul's realization that he's outsourced his social life, Marc's definition of "fast friends" (which Paul finds deeply suspicious), and the uncomfortable truth that your best shot at a new friend is finding someone whose wife your wife actually likes. We also talk about intentionality — the idea that you should actively choose the five people who shape your average, not just let proximity decide for you. Plus: soccer dad barbecues, Formula One invites from personal trainers, and whether faking a T-ball rain cancellation makes Marc father of the year.  Chapters:  0:00 The Friendship Recession: Statistics and Insights  2:10 Understanding the Dynamics of Male Friendships  9:54 Defining Close Friendships: Quality vs. Quantity  11:56 The Nature of Friendship  13:12 The Loneliness Epidemic  17:22 Challenges of Maintaining Friendships  20:05 The Impact of Parenthood on Friendships  24:10 Intentionality in Friendships  27:51 Diversity in Friendship Circles  31:15 Terminator and Idiotic Thing of the Week  | Ep 44

The Real Reason Men Don't Ask for Help | Ep 42

We love to tell ourselves we'll deal with it when things get bad enough. But by the time most men walk into a therapist's office, they're already at crisis point—and that's if they walk in at all. This week, we sit down to talk about why men avoid therapy like the plague, and what it actually takes to break through that resistance. Paul opens up about the exact moment he put down a self-help book because he knew if he kept reading, he'd have to question his entire life. Marc admits he's been waiting for something to break before he'd consider it. We cover the stats (only 1 in 3 men seek help, yet men are 80% of suicides), the eight reasons men hesitate, and why most of us literally don't have the words to describe what we're feeling. Plus: why coaching might be the gateway drug to therapy, the power of men's groups, and Marc's realization that he'd been calling his frustration "anger" for days because he didn't know the right word.  Chapters:  0:00 Exploring Therapy: A Personal Journey  4:34 The Gender Gap in Therapy: Men vs. Women  9:21 Barriers to Therapy: Why Men Hesitate  13:29 Breaking Down Emotional Barriers: Vulnerability in Men  15:28 The Male Experience: Navigating Emotional Challenges  16:58 Crisis as a Catalyst for Change  18:28 The Role of Therapy in Men's Lives  22:22 Confronting Fears: The Therapy Journey  23:59 Understanding the Value of Therapy  28:07 The Importance of Emotional Vocabulary  32:05 The Path to Self-Discovery and Growth  34:54 Terminator and Idiotic Thing of the Week  | Ep 42

How can we get the ultimate superpower: to stop time! | Ep 41

It's easy to tell yourself you'll slow down once things calm down — but they never do, and suddenly COVID was five years ago and you're wondering where your 40s went. We dig into why time accelerates as we age (spoiler: your brain literally processes less detail), why having kids in your 40s hits different than having them in your 30s, and whether optimization culture is secretly robbing us of the moments that make life feel long. Marc shares his childhood fantasy of stopping time to eat all the chocolates, and why on mushrooms the first thing he does is take off his watch. Paul introduces the "retrospective paradox" — why breaking routines and chasing novelty stretches time in hindsight. We also get into the practical stuff: why journaling works, why taking pictures during an event actually makes you remember it as shorter, and Marc's Nietzsche thought experiment about reliving your life on repeat. Plus, Kurt Vonnegut's story about buying an envelope that nails what we're all missing.  Chapters:  0:00 Introduction  2:52 Reflections on Life Stages  5:49 The Acceleration of Time in Midlife  8:53 The Value of Time and Shared Experiences  11:50 Exploring Presence and Mindfulness  14:13 Understanding Time Perception and Routine  17:09 The Importance of Intention and Experience  19:19 The Role of Dopamine in Memory and Time Perception  21:21 Navigating Life's Trade-offs: Kids and Time  23:17 Being Present: The Key to Slowing Down Time  26:21 Intentional Living: Making Every Moment Count  29:03 Reflection and Journaling: Honoring Our Experiences  31:10 Adding Novelty to Life: Breaking Routines  33:14 Terminator and Idiotic Thing of the Week  | Ep 41

The Manosphere Problem We Can't Ignore | Ep 40

We sat down to watch the new Louis Theroux documentary on the Manosphere, and honestly, it was harder to watch than we expected. Not because it was boring—but because it exposes a system built on exploiting lonely young men, missing father figures, and algorithmic amplification of rage. We dig into why these influencers are so effective (they're frighteningly intelligent), the role women play in amplifying this content, and the real fear every parent should have about their sons stumbling into this rabbit hole. Paul shares why he had to turn it off halfway through, Marc wrestles with whether we can understand the appeal without excusing the harm, and we both land on the same question: what does showing up as a healthy man actually look like when the algorithms are working against us? Also: Paul's men's retreat in the Austrian mountains, Marc's three-night party bender that destroyed him, and why ordering cheap furniture online is always a mistake.  Chapters:  0:00 Introduction to the Manosphere  01:19 Personal Reflections on the Documentary  03:53 Understanding the Loneliness Epidemic  06:53 The Role of Social Media in Amplifying Misogyny  09:42 The Appeal of the Manosphere to Young Men  16:33 The Dangers of Modern Media  19:40 Understanding the Appeal of the Manosphere  22:41 The Role of Influencers and Their Impact  27:27 Navigating Parenting in a Digital Age  34:48 Idiotic Thing and Terminator of the Week  | Ep 40