How can we use video games to learn more about each other? That’s the story of this week’s Wild Business Growth Podcast guest, Joe Schaeppi. Joe is the Co-Founder and CEO of Solsten. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and your other favorite podcast platforms.
Episode 269: Joe Schaeppi – Video Game Brain Tester, Co-Founder of Solsten
Joe Schaeppi, the Co-Founder and CEO of Solsten, joins the show to share his journey from performing adventure-based psychotherapy to pioneering cognitive assessments using video games. Hear the most interesting things we can learn about humans through video games, the science behind the flow state, how American cities were designed, the power of psychographics, and the Wildest theories about the universe. This episode covers everything from Harry Potter to Google Maps. Here’s a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:
- How was Joe’s adventure in Switzerland
- What is Adventure-Based Psychotherapy
- Where did the idea for Solsten come from
- The World Tour of Examples
- How does Solsten work
- What are the most interesting insights to come out of Joe’s research & work
- Bounded Reciprocity
- String Theory
Connect with Joe at Solsten.io, WellBeing.Solsten.io, and on LinkedIn.
Enjoy the shoooooow! Check out the show notes below for much more detail. You can also find the full transcript here.
Show Notes
- Intro & The North Face Ski Ambassador
- [0:29] Email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast and use it as a business-building tool
- [0:38] Connect with Joe at Solsten.io, WellBeing.Solsten.io, and on LinkedIn
- [1:50] Starting off hot
- [2:11] How did Joe become a The North Face Ski Ambassador
- [2:31] Buck Hill, Lindsey Vonn
- [3:21] Instagram
- [3:26] Jimmy Chin
- [3:57] UX Design (User Experience)
- [4:48] Shoutout, Dana & Adam!
- [5:05] How was Joe’s adventure in Switzerland
- [6:03] Verbier, Switzerland
- [6:07] Human Factors (HF)
- [6:21] Fortune 500
- [6:35] What is Adventure-Based Psychotherapy
- [6:55] Wilderness Therapy, Massage Therapy
- [7:05] Psychologist
- [7:27] Risk Perception, Epinephrine, Adrenaline, Dendrite
- [8:12] Eustress
- [8:20] PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder)
- [10:27] Got ’em
- [10:52] Mental Health
- The Solsten Story
- [11:58] Where did the idea for Solsten come from
- [12:25] Neil deGrasse Tyson
- [12:46] Physicist
- [13:01] Psychological Assessment
- [13:08] Myers-Briggs, ENTJ
- [13:21] Which Harry Potter character are you
- [13:48] Carl Sagan, Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Physics, Consciousness
- [15:07] Flow State
- [15:44] Smartphones
- [16:14] Big Fish Games
- [16:38] Doner Kebab
- [17:51] The World Tour of Examples
- [18:08] Volta Voloshin-Smith – Wild Business Growth Podcast #265: Watercolor Meditation, Founder of Color Snack
- [18:29] What can we learn about humans through video games
- [18:51] Behavioral Psychology, B. F. Skinner, Sigmund Freud, Cognitive Psychology
- [19:16] Theory of Personality
- [19:26] Mark Zuckerberg, Pogs
- [20:07] AI (Artificial Intelligence)
- [20:38] Adaptive Questionnaire
- [21:21] ACT, SAT
- [21:33] Telemetry
- [21:35] ChatGPT, Sam Altman
- [22:28] How does Solsten work
- [23:06] Demographics, Ozzy Osbourne, King Charles
- [23:34] Gen Z (Generation Z), Millennials
- [24:03] Google, Google Maps
- [24:38] Social Anxiety
- [25:13] Push Notification
- [26:03] Podcasts
- [26:27] McDonald’s, Michelin Star
- [26:48] Navigator
- [26:52] NFL (National Football League)
- [27:17] Traits
- [27:29] Netflix, Frozen, Frozen II
- [28:00] Disney+
- [28:22] API (Application Programming Interface)
- [28:32] Psychographics
- [28:48] MaxPodcasting
- [28:58] “Max Branstetter – Save Time with Your Podcast” on The 3-1-3 Challenge with Ryan Foland
- [31:03] Such an honor speaking at Podcast Movement ’23 in Denver! Sign up to grab the slides from my session at MaxPodcasting.com/PM23
- [31:05] Sign up for the Podcasting to the Max newsletter at MaxPodcasting.com/Newsletter and receive How to Edit Your Podcast in Audacity
- Solsten Case Studies
- [32:02] The Matrix
- [32:10] What are the most interesting insights to come out of Joe’s research & work
- [33:55] Supercell, Hay Day, EVE Online
- [34:11] KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
- [34:15] Peloton
- [36:01] Value Proposition (Value Prop)
- [36:09] Mythical Games, NFL Rivals
- [37:07] AAA Game
- [37:30] Bounded Reciprocity
- [38:23] Internet
- [38:42] Head Coach, GM (General Manager)
- Rapid-Fire Q&A
- [38:58] What a segue
- [39:27] Bec des Rosses, Freeride World Tour (FWT)
- [39:49] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
- [40:08] Lauterbrunnen, Wengen, Stechelberg
- [40:32] Google Image: Switzerland
- [40:48] What would be Joe’s dream adventure
- [42:10] Plural: Universes
- [42:47] Theory of Mind, CERN
- [43:03] String Theory
- [43:11] Carl Jung
- [43:49] Connect with Joe at Solsten.io, WellBeing.Solsten.io, and on LinkedIn
- [44:21] The Personality Brokers by Merve Emre
- [44:53] What are Joe’s Final Thoughts
- [45:40] Follow the Wild Business Growth Podcast and tell a friend about the podcast. And show love (or roast me) by leaving 5 stars on Apple Podcasts and/or Spotify
- [46:00] Check out the Wild Business Growth Podcast on Goodpods, where you can see what your favorite people are listening to
- [46:04] Connect with me on Instagram, Twitter (aka X), and LinkedIn @MaxBranstetter
- [46:07] Save time with your high-quality podcast. Email me at to bring your podcast to life and use it as a business-building tool
- [46:11] Sign up for the Podcasting to the Max newsletter at MaxPodcasting.com/Newsletter and receive How to Edit Your Podcast in Audacity
- Theme music: Freestyle Percussion Magik – “Jungle Tribe” – provided by Jamendo
What is the Wild Business Growth Podcast?
Wild ideas. Wild growth. Every Wednesday morning a new entrepreneur joins the Wild Business Growth Podcast to share the wildly creative and unusual ways they grew their business – and teaches you how to do it, too. Hear the minds behind WordPress, Stacy’s Pita Chips, Drybar, NFL RedZone, Big Mouth Billy Bass, the voice of Bart Simpson, and more Wild stories. Hosted by Max Branstetter (that’s me), Founder and Podcast Producer at MaxPodcasting.
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Thanks for listening to Joe Schaeppi on the Wild Business Growth Podcast. To hear more Wild stories like this one every Wednesday morning, follow the Wild Business Growth Podcast and tell a friend about it. And discuss your theories of the universe together. Until next time, Let your business Run Wild…and Bring on the Bongos!!
