Mitch Horowitz is a historian of alternative spirituality and one of today’s most literate voices of esoterica, mysticism, and the occult. Topics Discussed In This Episode: Explaining his new book Cosmic Habit Force Exploring the psychology of mediocrity Harnessing honest self-expression and creativity Asking oneself with brutal honesty, “What do I really want from life?” Breaking through social conditioning The Miracle of a Definite Chief Aim Concentration producing force Gaining perspective on personal “failures” Taoism Paradoxical events in one's life Mitch gives a personal example of how a perceived failure turned into a blessing in disguise Rediscovering himself as a writer in his late 30s after working in publishing Writing his first book, “Occult America: The Secret History of How Mysticism Shaped Our Nation” 2 famous definite chief aims from Octavia E. Butler and Bruce Lee The power of focused aims Healthily dealing with fear and trauma The law of reciprocity  The power of the mastermind Books Referenced: “Cosmic Habit Force” by Mitch Horowitz “Occult America: The Secret History of How Mysticism Shaped Our Nation” by Mitch Horowitz “The Miracle of a Definite Chief Aim” By Mitch Horowitz “No Longer Human” by Junji Ito x Osamu Dazai “The Inner Game of Tennis” by Timothy Gallwey “Non-Violent Communication” by Marshall Rosenberg “Think and Grow Rich” by Napolean Hill People Mentioned: David Foster Wallace (Writer) Jacob Needleman (Philosopher) Barry Zito (Professional Baseball Player) Neville Goddard (Writer) Octavia E Butler (Writer) Bruce Lee (Actor and Martial Artist) Napolean Hill (Writer) ArtistDecoded.com MitchHorowitz.com Mitch’s Twitter Mitch’s Instagram