How Marketing Reshapes Our Brains - Prince Ghuman & Matt Johnson - #180

**Chris Williamson** (0:00)
Oh yes, hello friends, welcome back. My guests today are Prince Ghuman and Matt Johnson, and we are talking about how marketing reshapes our brains. One of the favorite topics that I talk about on this podcast is consumer behavior, behavioral economics and psychology. And today we go through an absolute ton. Matt is a neuroscientist and Prince is a marketer. When you combine those two together, you get some fantastic insights into how marketing affects us in unique and sometimes very counterintuitive ways. So today expect to learn why our brains don't actually experience reality directly, how you can make dog food taste like pate, the role of impulse in decision making, what neurosciences definition of surprise is, how pleasure and pain affect our drive to buy and much more. In other news, I've been thinking about doing some solo podcast episodes. I've been listening to far too much Chris D'Elia recently. You should totally go and check out his podcast if you haven't already. And I love how much freedom he has to just talk about whatever he wants without any agenda or topic. So I'm considering doing that. Let me know what you think. If you think it would be a good idea or whatever, just give me a DM wherever you follow me. What else is going on? We have so many recordings lined up over the next few months, including Ethan Suppley from Remember the Titans on his 100 and 100s of pounds weight loss journey. Sargon of Akkad is coming back on. Michael Matsola, who is the director behind Dr. Stephen Greer's new UFO documentary. Rutger Bregman, who broke the internet with his story about the real world Lord of the Flies situation, which went on with some kids from Tonga. So many amazing guests coming up, and we're still going strong at three episodes a week. Thank you for tuning in and supporting the podcast. If you're sending it to your friends, if you've given us five stars, if you've made sure you've hit the subscribe button, I am giving you a virtual, but yet still socially distanced hug or brofist over the internet. Brofist sounds terrible, doesn't it? You know what I mean, fist bump. Anyway, thank you so much for tuning in. You make my day. And I'm so glad that you're joining me on this journey as we scour the world for interesting and fascinating humans. In other news, this episode of the podcast is brought to you by Eleiko. That's right, the number one supplier of gym equipment on the planet are a Modern Wisdom sponsor and you need their kit in your life. You do not want to get fat or slow or unfit during lockdown. Gyms, when are they going to reopen? No one knows. Get yourself a couple of dumbbells and a kettlebell or a barbell and some plates. And you can start to not only reverse getting fat during lockdown, but you can make some gains. You can come out of it like a jacked monk who's gone away into the mountains for a couple of months and come back out as an absolute freak savage. That could be you. Head to shop.eleiko.com and enter the code MW15 for 15% off everything on their site. This is the best kit in the world. The stuff that is used by the IPF, the International Powerlifting Federation, in the biggest competition on the planet. And you get 15% off everything. Right now, go ahead to shop.eleiko.com and use the code MW15 for 15% off everything that they have online. That's shop.eleiko.com. But for now, it's time for the wise and wonderful Prince and Matt.
This book, this blind sight that I have in my hands is one of the coolest things that I've read in absolutely ages. I get sent tons and tons of books, and this is like soft core porn to me and also to the listeners today, I'm sure as well. Fans of Richard Shotten, Rory Sutherland and some of the other fantastic guests that we've had on. Today, I think you should have your notepads out because this is gonna be a real special one. So first off, gents, congrats on the book, really good.

**Matt Johnson** (4:23)
Thank you so much, Chris. Really appreciate that.

**Chris Williamson** (4:27)
How long were you working on it?

**Prince Ghuman** (4:29)
Two and a half, two and a half years, roughly. I mean, it's still not out yet. So I would say we could even stretch it to three. We were working on for a long time. I think how the book came about is an interesting story as well.

**Matt Johnson** (4:40)
Tell us. I want to know.

**Prince Ghuman** (4:43)