Howard’s Revenge: From Atari to Therapy, Burnout and Personal Growth | S4 EP 10
Description
What happens when the man behind Atari’s most infamous video game becomes a therapist?
Howard Scott Warshaw joins us to talk burnout, chaos addiction, and how programming skills can actually make you a better communicator — and a better human.
In this episode of Mind Cake, we sit down with Howard Scott Warshaw, aka the Silicon Valley Therapist, to explore how a lifetime of high achievement, adrenaline addiction, and public failure became fuel for healing — his own and others’.
We talk about:
🎮 How programming and therapy both rely on language, negotiation, and clarity
🔥 The “firefighter complex” — thriving on chaos until it burns you out
🧠 Why workaholics and high achievers struggle with emotional health
🤝 Attachment theory, decision-making under ambiguity, and choosing partners for growth
👾 The psychology of gaming, "Doers vs. Beers", and the danger of chasing high scores
If you’ve ever worked in a high-pressure environment or felt the weight of doing more, being more, or never stopping — this one’s for you.
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