Elizabeth Gilbert — How to Set Strong Boundaries, Overcome Purpose Anxiety, & Find Your Inner Voice

Elizabeth Gilbert is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Big Magic and Eat, Pray, Love. Her latest novel, City of Girls, was named an instant New York Times bestseller. Go to to subscribe to “Letters From Love with Elizabeth Gilbert,” her newsletter, which has more than 120,000 subscribers. This episode is brought to you by: Momentous high-quality supplements: (code TIM for 20% off) ExpressVPN high-speed, secure, and anonymous VPN service: (Get 3 extra months free with a 12-month plan) AG1 all-in-one nutritional supplement: (1-year supply of Vitamin D (and 5 free AG1 travel packs) with your first subscription purchase.) *** Links to everything discussed: Tim Ferriss is one of Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Business People” and an early-stage tech investor/advisor in Uber, Facebook, Twitter, Shopify, Duolingo, Alibaba, and 50 other companies. He is also the author of five #1 New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers: The 4-Hour Workweek, The 4-Hour Body, The 4-Hour Chef, Tools of Titans and Tribe of Mentors. The Observer and other media have named him “the Oprah of audio” due to the influence of his podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show, which has exceeded 900 million downloads and been selected for “Best of Apple Podcasts” three years running. Sign up for “5-Bullet Friday“ (Tim’s free weekly email newsletter): Follow the Tim Ferriss Podcast: Visit the Tim Ferriss Blog: Follow Tim Ferriss on Twitter: Follow Tim Ferriss on Instagram: Like Tim Ferriss on Facebook: [00:00] Start [00:02:53] No cherished outcomes. [00:08:19] Self-compassionate ownership of responsibility. [00:12:35] The daily practice of writing letters from love. [00:20:55] Two-way prayer vs. one-way prayer. [00:29:33] The male approach to this practice. [00:32:31] How do you feel toward yourself vs. about yourself? [00:35:02] Understanding self-hatred to foster self-friendliness. [00:41:48] Setting boundaries and dealing with those who refuse to honor them. [00:49:24] Why (and how) Elizabeth avoids big family holiday gatherings. [00:51:33] Comfort in solitude. [00:53:11] Much abuzz about Elizabeth’s new ‘do. [01:04:19] Boundaries, priorities, and mysticism: a relaxed woman as a radical concept. [01:05:34] What mysticism brings to Elizabeth’s reality. [01:08:05] A better question to ask than “What do I want?” [01:10:14] Elizabeth’s hard-ass approach to project commitment. [01:18:00] Creativity guidance from Elizabeth’s higher power. [01:23:01] How The Morning Pages influenced Eat, Pray, Love. [01:26:39] More productive questions to ask than “Why?” [01:28:39] The pointlessness of purpose anxiety. [01:33:47] Balancing presence with other aspects of a well-lived life. [01:39:42] Comfort with mortality. [01:44:30] What motivates Elizabeth’s Letters from Love newsletter? [01:45:49] What can potential readers expect from this newsletter? [01:51:16] “Is the universe friendly?” — Frederic W. H. Myers [01:54:37] Parting thoughts.