Transcription
So, I've done a few podcasts over the last year. Wes, very nice to meet you. I found out about my guest today, Wes Huff. Wesley, thank you so much for taking the time. I'm very excited for you to be here. Wesley Huff. Wes Huff all the way from Toronto. Historian Wesley Huff. Wesley, good to have you back on Uncensored. Wes Huff, welcome to the show. Wesley.
And I wanted to pull back the curtain on how I personally prepare for a three-hour long-form, no questions given beforehand, nonlinear program like the ones I've had the privilege to be part of recently. I also want to give some advice on expectations going in and coming out of that type of interview setting, how I've been trying to prepare prior to and debrief after doing something of that nature.
So, let me start off with the most obvious one. Joe Rogan. Joe reached out to me via Instagram DMs on Christmas Eve of 2024. And by the time we sorted out the details, I was in the studio in Austin, Texas in less than a week. So, what did I do within the five days between Joe reaching out and inviting me on to me actually stepping in and recording with him? I had heard Joe speak about a range of topics, knew his personality and his perspectives about the Bible and Christianity, Jesus, church history, and so on, going into the conversation that I had with him. So, in that sense, I had somewhat of a leg up.
So here's what I did. With the help of a few AI tools, I plugged in about five years of Joe Rogan Experience content and figured out approximately how many times Joe had talked about Christianity, Jesus, and the Bible. And then I reduced that to times when the same sorts of topics related to those things were repeated in multiple episodes. I looked at the direction of how those conversations went and I attempted to come up with how I myself would interact with how those discussions typically went in the event that maybe those topics were even brought up.
Having already been a listener to the Joe Rogan Experience, I knew that Joe had a few interests that I could capitalize on. So, for example, I knew Joe was intrigued by the Mongols and by Genghis Khan. So, I figured out when the earliest biographies of Genghis Khan were, when they were written, and by whom. I tracked down the earliest surviving copies of those particular documents and where the manuscripts of those were being kept. At that point, I figured out how that compared to the biblical gospels and to Jesus to illustrate the proximity of the source material to the actual events.
Genghis Khan died on August 18th, 1227. The first biography written about him is in The Secret Lives of the Mongols, penned in 1228 and 1229. Kublai, the grandson of Genghis Khan, reformed the Mongolian language in 1269. And so The Secret Lives of the Mongols was completely rewritten in that updated language at that point. The earliest surviving copy that we have of that document, however, comes from the 19th century. So, compared to the earliest extant copies we have of the Gospels, where we're within a 200-year window for all four, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, between the time when those documents were written and when our earliest surviving copies pop up for Genghis Khan, that's closer to 600 years. And that's not to cast doubt on the biographical material we have for Genghis Khan as much to illustrate the reliability for the biographical material we have for Jesus. The simple fact is for most characters in ancient history, our earliest surviving first copies of said materials for them is still later than our latest surviving first copies of the biographical material for Jesus. This doesn't mean that the source biographies for people like Alexander the Great or Genghis Khan or Gautama Siddhartha, better known as the Buddha, that those are unreliable. It just means that when we're putting them toeto-toe with Jesus of Nazareth, we simply have really, really good evidence for the facts that talk about his life, comparative to the best-documented characters in history, if not better than most.
Now, there's a reason why if you've listened to my episode on the JRE, this is the first time you're hearing me talk about that. And that's because of everything that I prepared for going into my conversation with Rogan, I basically used none of what I'd prepared beforehand. So, do I regret the late nights and the hours upon hours of prep time I did? No. It's always better to be overprepared and use nothing than to be underprepared and needing to have something. So, my number one of my prior-to list for a three-plus-hour podcast is simply to overestimate, to a certain degree, how ready I should be. Scripture tells us that the ant demonstrates prudence by gathering provisions during favorable seasons. That the prepared recognize danger and shelter, whereas the naive proceed recklessly into harm. When Jesus articulates the cost of discipleship in Luke 14, he states that undertaking any task requires calculating whether one possesses sufficient resources to actually complete that task.
And this leads me into another factor of a medium like a long-form podcast. The subject matter that Joe or Patrick Bet David, Julian Dory, Andrew Schultz, Piers Morgan, Shawn Ryan, or Steven Bartlett want to talk about was not a set list of questions discussed or even presented to me beforehand. Of course, I can assume certain topics that are going to come up. I knew Rogan, Bet David, and Schultz wanted to discuss the Billy Carson fiasco. It's pretty safe to assume that everyone wants to talk about, I don't know, the Bible or certain aspects of Christian or church history, given my background and study. But in the specifics, there wasn't some sort of agreed-upon question list that was given prior to stepping into those recording studios.
With long-form podcasts, the conversation has the ability to go in absolutely any direction. Joe Rogan all of a sudden wants to talk about cosmology. Andrew Schultz asks about the state of the unevangelized. Piers Morgan plays me a clip of Jordan Peterson for me to give a live, unscripted reaction to. Patrick Bet David brings up porn addiction. Shawn Ryan is curious about AI, and Steven Bartlett asks if animals have souls. Though I can guess why these people want to talk to me on their platforms and what the conversation may center around, each one has been completely unpredictable in their own right.
And so that brings me to number two on my list. Don't be afraid to say, "I don't know." In other words, I am perfectly fine with Rogan asking me how old the Giza Sphinx could be or what the oldest calendar is. But I am neither an Egyptologist nor a calendarographer. By the way, that is what someone who studies calendars is called. But I Googled it to find it out. Apparently, you can also be called a calendarist or a chronologist. That aside, whether it's on The Diary of a CEO or even just a conversation that you're having with a stranger, it's okay to say, "I don't know." Especially if you don't know. I do it all the time. You can see examples that I just played for you of times I said it on these podcasts. "I don't know." "Good question." "I don't know." "I don't know." "I'm I'm not an Egyptologist or an archaeologist." "I know. Give it a goog." "I don't know." "I don't even know." "Prefacing this by saying I'm not a scientist." "That's a good question. I don't know the answer to that one." "Give it a goo." "I don't know." "Fact check me. I can't remember the date." "Every every once in a while the Canadian bursts out of you." "That's Canadian." "Give it a" "Give it a go."
And if you do have an opinion but realize your understanding of the subject is limited, I found it really helpful just to preface things by saying something like, "I'm not a scientist." But that's perfectly reasonable. You don't have to have a degree to have an opinion. And that doesn't mean you need to be an expert on a subject. I think that formal education helps. But you can communicate what you believe and then reference other people or not. That's also entirely reasonable. Chances are the person you're talking with probably doesn't have a doctorate in cosmology, even if they're wanting to bring up conversations concerning the origin of the universe. You're both allowed to have opinions, and you're both allowed to give your opinions, informed or otherwise.
Number three, it's a bit of a practical thing. Um, but I think I you might be interested in kind of hearing this out. In the week leading up to an event, I attempt, and I in full transparency mean attempt. I have a full-time job, a wife, four children ages seven and under, and church commitments. So, emphasis on attempt. I attempt to make it to the gym on those days leading up to heading to the recording. I personally am a bit of a creature of habit. I've literally been doing the same bro split workouts focusing on the compound lifts of bench, deadlift, and squat five days a week for 20 years. I generally go very heavy for a few reps. That's just kind of been my go-to. So, if I can establish that type of routine in general, but specifically in that time window leading up to knowing I'm going to be in a recording studio, I genuinely feel better physically leading up to it.
I'm also a big fan of both electrolytes and creatine supplementation. I take electrolytes first thing in the morning and generally take 15 grams of creatine a day. When I'm traveling or if I'm jet-lagged, I take 10 grams mixed with electrolytes immediately after waking up and then another 10 grams in the mid-afternoon for a total of 20 grams a day. The research is pretty solid here. Um, I weigh about 180 lb. Uh, 10 grams reaches muscle saturation. After that, the spillover has cognitive benefits. If you're interested in that, I would recommend this particular interview with Steven Bartlett on The Diary of a CEO podcast with Dr. Rhonda Patrick. I will also link it down below. But for those who don't know what I have been talking about and have tuned out the bro talk, basically 10 grams of creatine helps during workouts, and the extra 10 grams after that then goes to your brain and it helps with factors like things like memory recall or alertness. In fact, the literature on this is fascinating as creatine is the most studied supplement, I think, next to protein, but definitely the most studied supplement. And macro-dosing creatine at 20 grams has even been shown to negate the side effects of sleep deprivation. So, just on a practical level, if I can make sure I'm on top of that leading up to an event that I know is going to be taxing mentally, I'm going to do my best to try to accomplish that.
Fourth, pray, pray, pray. No matter what podcast it's been, on the ride over to the studio, I'm praying. I'm praying for proper recall on information. I'm praying for energy. I'm praying for guidance and perseverance. And I'm praying for the host and for the future listeners. Scripture time and time again encourages us to pray as an ongoing discipline. Jesus himself taught through the parable of the persistent widow that followers ought always to pray and not lose heart. Paul instructs the Thessalonians to pray without ceasing. While he urged the Colossians to continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. In the book of Romans, we're encouraged to be constant in prayer as part of our spiritual posture during particularly tricky times. Scripture connects prayer to both defensive and transformative purposes. Jesus commanded his disciples to watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation, positioning prayer as a safeguard against spiritual compromise. Philippians teaches us that rather than anxiety, those who follow Jesus should bring their concerns to God through prayer and supplication, with the result that the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
I'm not naive to understanding the very unusual predicament I find myself in when I'm asked to be on these platforms. I need to be seeking God going into, during, and after all those opportunities. Being well-rested and supplemented up is going to help. But unless I'm approaching things prayerfully, I'm going to be at a deficit, no matter what. Prayer is not a fallback, but a primary line of defense. And so on the Uber rides over, I'm praying. I'm praying for myself. I'm praying for the host. I'm praying for the listener.
But what about coming out of these things? What's going on when I'm walking out of the studio and I'm heading back home? First, let me just say that personality-wise, I'm an introvert. In fact, though it might be a surprise to some who have seen me speak publicly or on these different platforms, I'm like a pretty clear textbook introvert. I'm not kidding when I say that when I get back to the hotel or back home after these sorts of events, uh, I actually am just filled with a combination of adrenaline and just being absolutely exhausted. Some of the podcasts take breaks. So, for example, uh, during Shawn Ryan and Julian Dory, there were multiple bathroom breaks and pauses that took place throughout the recording. My episode of Joe Rogan, The Flagrant Podcast, PBD, and The Diary of a CEO, we just did an extended, you know, one take. And when you record for close to, if not over three hours, I find it even hard to remember what was talked about afterwards. I forgot what felt like an entire quarter of the Shawn Ryan episode until I myself listened to it back after it went live. And then that brought to recollection a whole bunch of stuff that we talked about that I I didn't even remember I didn't remember saying.
And that brings me to my point concerning my attitude post-podcast. And that's that I need to give myself grace. When you're talking for three hours and you're going off the top of your head, you're going to misspeak. You just are. I made a whole response video to myself after Rogan where I pointed out only some, not all, just some of the times I misspoke on my JRE episode. When The Diary of a CEO episode dropped recently and I listened to it, I caught multiple times where I should have ordered something differently or said something completely different altogether. Heck, at one point to Steven Bartlett, I say Joseph of Arimathea, but I clearly mean Simon of Cyrene. It's just a slip of the mind in that moment. I'm recounting the passion narrative leading up to Jesus's death. And I mix up the guy who helps Jesus carry the cross to Golgotha and the guy who offers to have Jesus buried in his family tomb after his crucifixion at Golgotha. Is that a blatant mistake? Sure. Should you make a response video saying Wes Huff doesn't know what he's talking about because of that particular slip? I hope not. It should be obvious from the context that I meant Simon of Cyrene and that I made that mental gaff. And guess what? That happens. It happens to all of us. Whether you're on a three-hour podcast or not, it's happened to me in every one of those podcasts. I'm not going to say everything perfectly.
And in that setting, in the hours-long conversation where you just happen to be on camera and you don't know what you're going to be asked specifically beforehand, you don't have any notes in front of you. The content can take any turn. Any question can come up. You may be asked a question you've never been asked before or all of a sudden on the fly with no notes address a topic that requires maybe even a great deal of complexity, and you're put on the spot. There are just going to be times where you don't say things perfectly and times where you realize afterwards how you should have said things better. I can be very hard on myself sometimes coming out of these things when people ask me how I think it went immediately after. I often sound a lot less confident than I do when I actually listen back to the podcast when it's released. And part of that is that we can be our own worst critics. The internet comment section can also be our worst critic. But I am always second-guessing how I've answered what I can remember that I answered on these programs.
Now, I'm also, a lot of these times, I'm going in having just flown in for the day. I fly in that day, do the podcast, and then fly out and go back home. That's that's more common in these settings than it's not. I'm not, you know, staying overnight at a hotel and then relaxing afterwards and then going home. I'm having just come off a plane and then hopping in an Uber and going back on a plane. And so there's an aspect of my brain not recollecting everything perfectly that is okay. It's it's a very unique position to both know you have no idea where the conversation is going to go next and there's also the potential that what you're saying is going to be listened to by millions of people.
In fact, and this might sound weird to some, but when the cameras are rolling, I try not to think about the audience at all. Not that the audience isn't relevant, but that when I'm sitting in front of Joe or Patrick or Shawn or Julian or Andrew Schultz or the Piers Morgan crew or uh, the group that's with Andrew Schultz or Steven Bartlett, I need to be talking to them specifically. What is the person right in front of me asking? And in that moment, how can I prayerfully and most likely and sufficiently interact with what they're saying or asking?
But hindsight is always 20/20. It was actually in a video I saw James White do last year after I was on Rogan where he was commenting on the fact that he was seeing people say things like, "If I was on there, I'd say this." Or, "Wes should have done this thing instead of that thing." And his feedback was basically that until you're in that moment, you have no idea what you would say or how you would act. And I think that's pretty much true. Until you're sitting in the seat hours into the conversation across from a Joe Rogan or Steven Bartlett, you really don't know what you would say. And I myself sit here saying that and I myself sit here saying that as someone who likewise thought those things prior to being neck-deep in these podcasts. It's really easy to be armchair quarterbacks. And I actually give a lot more slack to people on these things now than I used to. I've basically given up making response-type videos for that very reason. I know how easy it is to say something incorrect without realizing it. Not not a lie, but simply in that moment saying Pantheon instead of Parthenon, or that 1 Corinthians says Jesus appeared to 400 people when Paul said 500. I'm probably never going to live that one down. And those things happen. So I try not to sweat those things. I give the benefit of the doubt that fair-minded people will hear the mistakes for what they are and be able to eat the meat and spit out the bones.
The Bible emphasizes giving people the benefit of the doubt as a foundational expression of love and humility. Rather than rushing to condemn, scripture calls believers to interpret others' actions charitably and to examine their own hearts first. Jesus teaches that judgment returns to the judge. Those who condemn others will themselves be condemned by the same standard they apply. So while we shouldn't let people get away with saying false things, we also can be charitable rather than judging by surface appearances. Believers should exercise, scripture says, right judgment. A judgment that accounts for incomplete information and human limitation. It's super important that charity walks hand-in-hand with discernment and wisdom in this fallen world that we live in. So all that to say, I'm trying to hold that approach to myself while I also try to do that for others.
Now, as I land the plane on this particular video, I also have to make sure that I give a shout-out to Jeffrey Rice over at uh Post Tenner Lux. He's the one who gave me this amazing Legacy Standard Bible in Conac Black with the uh, the five solas on the spine. This is the one that you saw me using in my conversation with Gavin Ortland and it was the one I was reading from on Shawn Ryan and uh was the one that was on the table during The Diary of a CEO podcast. So, a few people have asked me what Bible that was. This is it. So, if you want to find out about that or the great work that Jeffrey does and how you can get your hands on your own, then uh I'm going to go and leave a link to his website down in the description.
And let me just say this has all been kind of a crazy year in regards to me being able to be a guest on these shows. As of right now, I I don't have any more of those type of things scheduled. That's not to say that I I won't be on anymore in the future. I'm just attempting to create more sense of normalcy in my life as it relates to traveling and doing events. There's also some stuff personally behind the scenes that I don't need to make public that needs to be attended to in the coming months that necessitates things like less travel and being away from home, being closer to my family. It's been a super humbling. I'm time and time again amazed at these opportunities. Just after recording on The Diary of a CEO, I just said straight up to Steven Bartlett that it's kind of ridiculous and crazy that he wants to talk to me, that I'm sitting at the same table as him. That that's, you know, every time it happens, it's surreal. And so I just, you know, want to say thank you for watching all of this stuff, for all of the encouragement, and um I hope this particular kind of snippet of behind-the-scenes things you find interesting.