Nita Farahany on Cognitive Liberty

Intentional Performers

Nita Farahany is one of those people that I get the pleasure of interviewing that when I read her bio or hear her speak or read her stuff, I’m thinking to myself how the heck am I going to interview this person who is ten times smarter and more accomplished than I am. And that is the truth, I’m not just lowering my intelligence for the sake of this conversation or this introduction; it is how I feel. I get nervous and anxious talking to people like Nita. And so, I’m going to give you Nita’s bio, and then I want you to listen to this conversation. And more than the bio and more than the information and knowledge and wisdom that she shares, what I appreciate about Nita is how down to earth she was. And I’ve seen her in person on stage, I’ve watched TED Talks, I’ve read her book, and I think if you’re sitting back and receiving that content when she’s in performance mode, it is awe inspiring. She’s someone who’s brilliant and shares her brilliance in an efficient, profound way, which I really struggle with. And once again, this conversation is about as authentic, genuine, real, vulnerable, as any that I’ve had. And so, her capacity to share her knowledge and wisdom in a setting where she’s expected to do so, at a level that is just extremely high, as a world-class thinker, is incredible. And then her ability to bring it down to earth and share it with people like myself is really what I’m truly grateful for.

So, here’s her bio: she’s a pioneering futurist and authority on laws, ethics, and technology. She’s a distinguished professor of law and philosophy and founding director of Duke University’s Science and Society Initiative. In her book, The Battle for Your Brain, which we discuss quite frequently in this conversation, she champions cognitive liberty, which is really at the core of today’s conversation. And a lot of Nita’s work is around this framework, this ideology, this thought, this concept, of cognitive liberty and how that shakes up and shows itself in a digital era, a digital environment, that we are all living in. Her insights shared from TED stages to global policy forums, guide responsible advancements in science and technology. Her background educationally: she received an AB in Genetics, Cell, and Development Biology from Dartmouth, an ALM in Biology from Harvard, a JD and MA from Duke University, as well as a PhD in Philosophy.

You’re going to love this conversation. We go into parenting, we go into philosophy, we go into ethics, we really run a broad range of subjects, and I love people with range, so I know you’re going to love Nina too.

Nita had a number of amazing insights during our conversation. Some of them include:

“Everything gets filtered through a lens for me of kids” (8:30).

“I have girls, and I [want them to see] it’s okay to have a career and it’s okay to have times that are about developing that career” (10:40).

“I say no a lot to external opportunities, especially when my kids are young” (11:20).

“For any working parent with children, we feel that struggle all the time of how do you show up for your kids in ways that are meaningful and impactful and how do you have the impact you want to have on the world, which also could change the world you’re creating for them, not just at the micro level but at the macro level as well?” (12:10).

“When I say that I arm myself with knowledge, that doesn’t come just from books” (14:05).

“A parent who thinks they know everything is quickly schooled by their children that they know nothing at all” (15:25).

“The biggest thing I’ve had to grapple with as a parent is being less of a control freak” (16:05).

“I hope my kids feel like they have the freedom to figure out who they are and what they’re passionate about and know that no matter what I’m there behind them” (24:05).

“Sometimes we become so comfortable in our lesson plans that we forget what we’re trying to teach” (26:15).

“Ultimately what we’re trying to teach is people thinking freely so they can navigate the world” (27:05).

“Cognitive liberty is the right to self-determination over our brain’s mental experiences” (29:45).

“The ability to have an inner monologue, a space of mental reprieve, a place where you can figure out who you are or what you like or don’t like or choose what you share with people or don’t share with people, I think matters so much more to people than they really realize” (35:40).

“Your right to cognitive liberty should be what governs your choices, not somebody else making the choices about what your brain and mental experiences will look like and feel like and be shaped by without any input that you might have otherwise” (38:20).

“Choosing to erase a memory has consequences, and those consequences include developing the resilience to overcome a breakup and to learn from it, to incorporate and understand and refine what it is that you’re looking for and to learn from your mistakes and to learn from your hurt and to learn that you can survive heartache and that you’re strong enough to get through each of those things” (42:10).

“To enable advances in mental health more generally, we need to give people the tools and techniques to be able to see into themselves much better” (49:50).

“If we want humans to emerge from the digital age both having any capacity for freedom of thought and also any capacity to flourish, we have to realign technology with human values” (55:55).

“What we’re doing all day every day is developing a theory of mind of other people and trying to persuade them” (1:00:40).

“Modern technology is being designed to have you check out” (1:01:45).

“Every person when you peel back the layers, I think has an interesting set of complexities” (1:08:30).

“My legacy I hope for people is to be able to think freely in an era in which if we don’t it could go disastrously badly for us, for our children, for the human species, for the planet” (1:10:00).

Additionally, you can purchase Nita’s book, The Battle for Your Brain, anywhere books are sold. You can also check out Nita’s website and follow her on Twitter and LinkedIn. Lastly, I’d encourage you to watch Nita’s most recent TED Talk.

Thank you so much to Nita for coming on the podcast!

I wrote a book called “Shift Your Mind” that was released in October of 2020, and you can order it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Additionally, I have launched a company called Strong Skills, and I encourage you to check out our new website https://www.strongskills.co/. If you liked this episode and/or any others, please follow me on Twitter: @brianlevenson or Instagram: @Intentional_Performers.

Thanks for listening.