let's talk about isolation

This is Daniel's way to be a therapist without actually being a therapist

Daniel, shower thoughts, and mowing grass. Amazing combo.

I hope this becomes a regular thing -- these talks really do help me. They make me think, make me breathe... Make me introspective. So much other content just tickles the funny or only engages my thoughtful side on the sciences/engineering side, but this makes me think about ME, which is so, so important... Thanks for these, Daniel

This has actually genuinely helped me a lot. I struggle with self-discipline. i do unity (unfortunately) work and sometimes i simply just stop, i get distracted so often or often forget completely, sometimes i'll open up a project i've been working on and immediately close it. It's so simple yet but the idea of simply putting down a 30 minute timer like you mentioned at 14:20, and especially simply listening and playing/creating along with you in this 30 minute video has got me to simply sit down and work on my creative process. Thanks Daniel, wishing you the best!!

Ah yes, the famous Spider-Man quote: "With great power, comes great rebuhbuhbuly." Inspiring. On a serious note, thanks for these videos Daniel. I just started college, all my close friends are going elsewhere, many of them far elsewhere, and I've been thinking a lot about isolation, and finding the balance between finding time to be alone and being lonely. Thank you very much.

I also have social anxiety. My isolation isn't purposeful, I more call it loneliness. I find it hard to make deep connections (or at least friends that we would go out of the way to hangout; more than friends that just say hi when we're conveniently around each other). Really clicking with people is a lot more difficult than "going out more" (though that's scary as well and initiating interactions with new people take massive amounts of energy), and I've come to see actual friends as a super rare roll of the dice. Socializing is so difficult.

Really enjoying the 30 mins of casual content. Keep up the good work!

"I had to drive 5 minutes to get to a starbucks" is the most LA way to describe an out-of-way place

I’ve been watching Daniel for the longest time. I kinda grew up watching his videos with my friends for the past few years. It really just makes you think like how different this is from his normal videos. How he’s just talking to us. I think it’s so funny how if he wasn’t doing this I wouldn’t be able to fathom that he is an actual person with deep thoughts who puts so much effort into his work. When I was younger I would watch Daniel with my friends being like ‘Oh! It’s funny piano guy’. Now it’s more at least for people watching this stuff. The idea of videos and content being so unedited is pretty unheard of now. And I guess it’s just special hearing a creator talk this deeply about something that we all experience. Idk man

Hey dude, your shorts have brought tons of laughs and joy - but I think these long form deep conversation videos are going to do exactly what you were craving. Making a real difference. Usually these conversations are rare moments in our lives, but this format allows us to engage with the ideas if we choose to take the time. Love it. Thank you.

Thank you for making these. They've helped me with my own anxiety and isolation-depression. It's amazingly therapeutic for a content creator to sit down, for half an hour, and talk about these things which I struggle with too.

Hi, it's the girl who inspired the Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis song, I love these videos I relate so much to this way of thinking and I'm glad you're putting these out there, so thank you Daniel for all that you do

Something my therapist taught me is isolation fuels isolation. The longer you completely isolate yourself, the harder it is stop. That being said, I also agree it is important for your mental health and your creativity to cut out the noise regularly. It's also so important to check in. I think for me, I often hide behind the guise of "I'm being productive in my creative endeavors by locking myself in my room all day, every day." When that's only part of it. The other part is me just being anxious about going out. But it really is about that balance, like you're saying. You need self time as well as people time. I'm also a Christian, and the Bible says "It is not good for man to be alone." I believe we're not created to go through life alone, you need people for a myriad of reasons, your sanity being one of them.

I feel like it’s easier to talk to a camera, then to talk to like a whole crowd of people

This feels like a mix between my dad telling stories and a college lecture, loving the content man

Thank you 🙏🏼 loved this. Loving the format. Not too preachy at all , felt like a chat with a good friend

this is my new favourite series. So incredibly validating. I'm still trying to get out of isolation since moving to the US. I found isolation was helpful for my creativity at first but these days it's beginning to cause my creativity to fully break down & the burnout is kicking in.

I find myself on the extreme side of the spectrum where isolation long ago stopped being a tool for creativity and started becoming everything I am. Sometimes I won't talk to anyone in days and I can barely hold a text conversation without wanting to nope out of it after a few minutes. And the relationship with myself has stopped being one of productivity or being in touch, it's toxic and regressive. You're right though, for a long time being isolated had me achieving the best things I've ever accomplished and if it's used correctly it gives you the space to be the "you-est you" and create your truest artworks. But reaching the extreme of that is probably the point it becomes a disorder and it can make living really miserable sometimes. It can turn you into a miserable person. Especially when it's forced isolation like my case is, a city with no friends or family with no vehicle in a city that has a time limit where it's safe to walk in. Not sure why I vented about this here, maybe I just wanted to feel heard or something idk. At any rate, love these little casual talks. 😊

Sometimes I tend to lie to myself by denying my true feelings, thoughts, or emotions to avoid facing unpleasant truths or to make myself feel better about a particular situation. This becomes so frequent that I even lose touch with my own feelings and thoughts, leading to confusion and uncertainty about myself. It's really important to be honest with ourselves and acknowledge our true feelings to clearly understand who we are and what we want in life. Thanks, Daniel.

I love living by myself, but I definitely have learned that I need to balance it with not just leaving the house but leaving the house and connecting with people in a meaningful way. When I get really busy, I can easily go months without any meaningful human interaction, only leaving the house to get groceries, and then wonder why I am sad.