Odds Bodkin: The Profound Creative and Cognitive Benefits of Storytelling

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26 January 2024

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How do ancient myths and legends shape our virtues?

What are the cognitive benefits of listening to and telling stories?

And what's the danger of outsourcing our creativity to artificial intelligence?

Today I’m honored to be here with the one and only Odds Bodkin, Master Storyteller in the Bardic Tradition, published author, educator, and award-winning recording artist who has been mesmerizing audiences since 1982.

I first saw Odds Bodkin perform more than 30 years ago in New Hampshire when I was about 7 or 8 years old, and I have never seen a better storyteller in my life. In fact, Odds was a big part of inspiring me to write and perform music as my first career. And to this day, Odds’ storytelling continues to captivate us on long road trips and we’ll often listen to his stories before bed, which is a wonderful way to spark vivid dreams, and far better for your brain than a Netflix binge.

Odds is a world-class performer, deep thinker, and incredible person. He even brought his 12-string-guitar along for a live demonstration of storytelling and musical techniques. You’re going to love this one.

On this show with the wonderful Odds Bodkin, were chatting about:

The creative and cognitive benefits of listening to and telling stories
The value of contemplating virtues in ancient myths for kids and adults
Why modern superhero movies usually completely miss the point
Why we shouldn't outsource our creative minds to non-human tools, like ChatGPT and AI
The dangers of the transhumanist movement to the future of humanity
And tons more…