Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 9 hours ago
Born in 1934, the 18th of 19 children in the small blue-collar town of Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Jean Chrétien was one of the longest-serving Prime Ministers in Canadian history and led three successive majority terms as leader of the Liberal Party from 1993 to 2003.
Let's put on a suit and tie and fly up to Ottawa, Canada to sit in the office of the 91-year-old leader—who still does meetings back-to-back three days a week!—and discuss the secrets of healthy living into your 90s... Canada on the global stage... how to get along with almost anyone... humility as a virtue... lessons from 63 years of marriage... thoughts on Alberta secession... the definition of liberal... how he said no to the Iraq war... and, of course, the Right Honorable Jean Chrétien's most formative books...
Learn more about Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and read the full show notes 👉🏾 3books.co/chapters/150
00:00 91-year-old Prime Minister's Life Lessons
01:35 Who is Jean Chrétien?
05:34 Should Canada be the 51st state?
08:27 Passing the Clarity Act
11:12 Alberta threatens secession
16:35 'The Little Prince' by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
19:31 Does Chrétien steal ideas?
20:46 What is a liberal?
25:13 The end of the American empire
28:46 "I am still the little guy"
31:36 What keeps a marriage happy for 63 years?
32:05 'The Old Man and the Sea' by Ernest Hemingway
33:54 Why details don't matter
37:42 Chrétien's rules for a disciplined life
40:17 "I'm an optimist"
45:45 Why Chrétien said "no" to the Iraq war
46:29 Choose your nation over friendship
51:41 "I was always on her side"
53:42 Creating the Canadian Flag
57:41 Why Canada has less poor people
59:59 'Who will pay?"
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SUBSCRIBE: bit.ly/2HHWPYg
Hey there,
I'm Neil and I spend a ton of time thinking, writing, podcasting, and speaking about living intentionally. I'm the New York Times bestselling author of six books including The Book of Awesome and The Happiness Equation. I've been lucky to speak at places like TED, SXSW, and Google. And I host a huge passion project called the 3 Books podcast.
Want more 3 Books? Check out my top interviews with:
Brené Brown youtube.com/watch?v=X5l-Auv7h8Y
Quentin Tarantino youtube.com/watch?v=VVFdvfiPB-w
David Sedaris youtube.com/watch?v=wzz8tqnz1mI
Want to read more of my stuff?
https://www.neil.blog/archive/
Want to check out my podcast?
3books.co
Want to learn about my live events?
globalhappiness.org/speaking
Want my monthly book recos?
1000awesomethings.com/reading-club
Want my articles on intentional living?
https://www.neil.blog/newsletter/
I am also on the following drugs:
Facebook: facebook.com/NeilPasricha
Twitter: twitter.com/neilpasricha
Instagram: instagram.com/neilpasricha
Lastly, thanks so much for watching this vid.
👊,
Neil
neil@globalhappiness.org
Born in 1934, the 18th of 19 children in the small blue-collar town of Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Jean Chrétien was one of the longest-serving Prime Ministers in Canadian history and led three successive majority terms as leader of the Liberal Party from 1993 to 2003.
Let's put on a suit and tie and fly up to Ottawa, Canada to sit in the office of the 91-year-old leader—who still does meetings back-to-back three days a week!—and discuss the secrets of healthy living into your 90s... Canada on the global stage... how to get along with almost anyone... humility as a virtue... lessons from 63 years of marriage... thoughts on Alberta secession... the definition of liberal... how he said no to the Iraq war... and, of course, the Right Honorable Jean Chrétien's most formative books...
Learn more about Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and read the full show notes 👉🏾 3books.co/chapters/150
00:00 91-year-old Prime Minister's Life Lessons
01:35 Who is Jean Chrétien?
05:34 Should Canada be the 51st state?
08:27 Passing the Clarity Act
11:12 Alberta threatens secession
16:35 'The Little Prince' by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
19:31 Does Chrétien steal ideas?
20:46 What is a liberal?
25:13 The end of the American empire
28:46 "I am still the little guy"
31:36 What keeps a marriage happy for 63 years?
32:05 'The Old Man and the Sea' by Ernest Hemingway
33:54 Why details don't matter
37:42 Chrétien's rules for a disciplined life
40:17 "I'm an optimist"
45:45 Why Chrétien said "no" to the Iraq war
46:29 Choose your nation over friendship
51:41 "I was always on her side"
53:42 Creating the Canadian Flag
57:41 Why Canada has less poor people
59:59 'Who will pay?"
-
SUBSCRIBE: bit.ly/2HHWPYg
Hey there,
I'm Neil and I spend a ton of time thinking, writing, podcasting, and speaking about living intentionally. I'm the New York Times bestselling author of six books including The Book of Awesome and The Happiness Equation. I've been lucky to speak at places like TED, SXSW, and Google. And I host a huge passion project called the 3 Books podcast.
Want more 3 Books? Check out my top interviews with:
Brené Brown youtube.com/watch?v=X5l-Auv7h8Y
Quentin Tarantino youtube.com/watch?v=VVFdvfiPB-w
David Sedaris youtube.com/watch?v=wzz8tqnz1mI
Want to read more of my stuff?
https://www.neil.blog/archive/
Want to check out my podcast?
3books.co
Want to learn about my live events?
globalhappiness.org/speaking
Want my monthly book recos?
1000awesomethings.com/reading-club
Want my articles on intentional living?
https://www.neil.blog/newsletter/
I am also on the following drugs:
Facebook: facebook.com/NeilPasricha
Twitter: twitter.com/neilpasricha
Instagram: instagram.com/neilpasricha
Lastly, thanks so much for watching this vid.
👊,
Neil
neil@globalhappiness.org
