"You need to be humiliated,"—Josh Radnor opens up about the advice older Ted Mosby would give to his younger self in How I Met Your Mother pilot

On March 27, 2025, Josh Radnor, who is best known for his role as Ted Mosby on the Emmy Award-winning sitcom How I Met Your Mother, opened up on his podcast about the advice he would share with a younger Ted Mosby

"You need to be humiliated"

Joshua Thomas Radnor, who spent nine seasons as Ted, recently launched a rewatch podcast alongside series co-creator Craig Thomas, delving into background facts and tidbits on how the show was created, titled How We Made Your Mother, which was released on March 3, 2025.

In the latest bonus episode titled General Questions | S1E1 "Pilot", the duo, joined by producer Alek Lev, dives into answering fan questions. Upon receiving a question that asked Josh how much he related to his character Ted, Thomas goes on to tweak the question a little bit, asking Radnor for any advice older Ted would give to his younger self.

Looking back at the pilot, Radnor explains what the older, future Ted would tell his younger, more naïve self, who is desperate to find "the one" and believes that love should be a grand, cinematic affair.

"This is what you need. You need to be humiliated. You need to take swings, you need to put yourself out there and you need to get somewhat, you need to get a thicker skin, you need to get immune to the kind of criticism and humiliation and just keep going."

Radnor also draws from instances in his personal life, talking about the rejections and humiliation he faced as a young actor, all of which he considers essential, as they led him to develop a "thicker skin".

He then goes on to appreciate Ted's resilience to get back up after every literal and emotional knockout he receives, reassuring him - and his audience - that everything is going to be all right.

"So I would just tell him, pick himself up, and it's going to...it's all going to be all right. Ultimately, I think all anyone wants to hear is it's going to be OK, yes, like that's all anyone wants to hear ever."

Radnor is met with murmurs of agreement from Thomas, and the duo agrees that this is the "most evergreen piece of like, pep talk advice you could give."

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Josh Radnor had a visceral reaction while rewatching the pilot

How I Met Your Mother follows the reminiscence of Ted Mosby, as he narrates the events of his life to his two children, ultimately leading up to the titular statement, how he met their mother.

The pilot episode witnesses a particularly embarrassing moment where Ted impulsively tells Robin Scherbatsky that he is in love with her on their first date.

During a previous episode of the How We Made Your Mother podcast, Radnor and Thomas discuss the pilot, chatting about the name of the episode and other potential titles.

During this, Radnor confesses that although he knew what was coming, the minute Ted professed his love for Robin, he yelled at his television. Thomas confirms the moment, adding that Radnor had texted his frustration to the co-creator of the show.