In this episode, I talk to international bestselling author Robert Greene about strategy, seduction, and the sublime. Robert implores us to get comfortable with the dark side of human nature and society. He argues that by acknowledging the reality of human interactions, we can use certain strategies to help us effectively navigate the workplace, our relationships, and daily life. We also touch on the topics of empathy, imagination, charisma, power, and his upcoming book on transcendence and the sublime.Chatting with Robert is always such a delight as we have many mutual areas of interest. I have been a long-time admirer of his books, and remember reading them in college and thinking that he seems to just get it. I hope you enjoyed this high-level discussion as much as I did.BioRobert Greene is an author and speaker known for his books on strategy, power and seduction. He graduated from U.C. Berkeley and the University of Wisconsin at Madison with a degree in classical studies. He has written six international bestsellers: The 48 Laws of Power, The Art of Seduction, The 33 Strategies of War, The 50th Law, Mastery, and The Laws of Human Nature. Recently, he published The Daily Laws: 366 Meditations on Power, Seduction, Mastery. Greene’s books are hailed by everyone from war historians to the biggest musicians in the industry including Jay-Z, Drake, and 50 Cent.Website: powerseductionandwar.comTwitter: @RobertGreene Topics02:12 Robert’s health 03:43 The Daily Laws 04:58 What is a radical realist? 10:10 Empathy is like a telepathic connection14:59 The human desire for fantasy18:50 Etiquette is deception22:17 How to live with the harsh truths of reality28:03 Poeticize your presence31:16 Channel pain into charisma35:36 Stop being so nice all the time39:08 Mix harshness and kindness42:36 The primary law of human nature 46:08 Embrace your dark side50:33 Schadenfreude vs mitfreude53:46 The Pygmalion Effect56:17 The integration of the shadow01:02:05 The Law of the Sublime01:08:14 The “post-mortem life”01:10:03 The sublime is in the everyday