In 2009, a glassblowing artist and former computer scientist in St. Louis named Jim McKelvey lost a sale because he couldn’t accept American Express cards. Frustrated by how difficult and expensive it was to take credit card payments, Jim set out to find a solution for small merchants like himself. He co-founded Square with Jack Dorsey in 2009 and together they reimagined the payment processing industry by turning a mobile phone into a credit card reader. In our conversation, Jim shares how Square survived the competitive threat from Amazon, the innovation stack that enabled their survival, and how we are thinking about innovation all wrong. His new book, The Innovation Stack, is available now.
In 1978, Arthur Blank and his business partner Bernie Marcus were fired from the hardware store chain Handy Dan. Within a year, they co-founded The Home Depot. In his new book Good Company, Arthur shares the powerful principles that have defined his success and serve as the foundation for his diverse businesses, including the Atlanta Falcons (NFL) and Atlanta United FC (MLS). On this episode, we talk about how a values-based approach can transform companies, associates, customers and communities. Arthur’s approach is a playbook for any leader who wants to build a culture that’s rooted in values and powered by purpose.
Priya Parker is helping us take a deeper look at how anyone can create collective meaning, one gathering at a time. Priya is a conflict resolution facilitator, author of The Art of Gathering, and host of the podcast Together Apart.In our conversation, Priya shares how to turn everyday gatherings into transformative group experiences. She shares what works, what doesn’t, and why. At a time when coming together is more important than ever, this conversation will have you reimagining the way you gather—whether it be in person or virtually. And you’ll never be able to look at your next gathering the same way again!
Academy Award-winning actor Matthew McConaughey has starred in movies like A Time to Kill, Dallas Buyers Club, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and The Wolf of Wall Street. His incredible career has spanned 40 feature films that have grossed over $1 billion dollars. Now he’s adding author to his credits with his new memoir, Greenlights. On this episode, Matthew shares the unconventional wisdom he’s learned. We talk about his sudden rise to fame, the self-imposed two-year hiatus from Hollywood that changed the course of his career, and the legacy he wants to leave behind. It’s a conversation about how to catch more “greenlights” and realize that the yellows and reds eventually turn green too.
We all need help, but most of us are uncomfortable asking for it. But here’s the funny thing: even though we hate to ask for help, most people are wired to be helpful. Social psychologist Heidi Grant is the author of Reinforcements: How to Get People to Help You. On this episode, Heidi shareswhy we are thinking about asking for help all wrong… and the things we inadvertently do that make it weird for other people. Discover the simple mistakes you are probably making—and learn what you should do instead!
I decided to try something a little different this week- my first solo episode. Through this podcast, I’ve had the opportunity to connect with more than 100 leaders from all different backgrounds and experiences. I’ve learned so many valuable insights from these conversations, and on this episode I walk you through 7 mindset shifts to reimagine your role as a leader. To take it a step further, I also created this playbook of 7 exercises to accompany each mindset shift. Listen to this special bonus episode where I walk you through each mindset shift and challenge you to reimagine how you lead.
John Mackey is the co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market. He’s led the company from a scrappy startup to a multibillion-dollar business, and launched an organic food revolution. John’s new book, Conscious Leadership, explores his own leadership journey from college dropout to successful CEO, and provides a playbook for values-based leadership. On this episode, John shares his most valuable leadership lessons learned from four decades leading Whole Foods through tremendous growth and innovation. It will challenge you to rethink conventional business wisdom and reimagine how you lead.
Scott Kelly set the record for the single longest space mission by an American astronaut. That year-long mission to the International Space Station was part of an unprecedented NASA study on how space affects the human body and it paved the way for the future of space exploration. On this episode, Scott shares his personal reflections on leadership and teamwork from his journey into space. He also shares what he learned about living in isolation and dealing with uncertainty that we can apply to our own lives.
Guy Raz has interviewed more than 6,000 people from Bill Gates to Mark Cuban to Taylor Swift. Described by The New York Times as “one of the most popular podcasters in history,” Guy is the co-creator of How I Built This, TED Radio Hour and the NPR kids podcast Wow In The World with a combined audience of more than 19 million listeners each month. His new book, How I Built This, shares the behind-the-scenes stories of the world's most inspiring entrepreneurs and the companies they built. On this episode, we talk about how to have more meaningful conversations, the biggest myths of entrepreneurship, and why every business is ultimately a story.
What if you stopped pretending and started getting real? Most of us hide. We play small and don’t live up to our full potential. We’re afraid we aren’t enough… or maybe we’re too much. NFL player, humanitarian and podcaster Sam Acho has been there. In his new book, Let The World See You, Sam encourages us all to discover our true selves and share our gifts with the world. We talk about the importance of not attaching your identity to your career, the highs and lows of being a professional athlete, and how his life changed when he stopped hiding and started living.
If you’re one of the 1.4 million members of the Peloton community, then you probably already know Ally Love. Ally is a Peloton instructor, founder of Love Squad, in-arena host for the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets, and Adidas global ambassador. In other words, she does it all. On this episode, Ally shares how to keep people engaged in a virtual environment, her approach to tough conversations, and how she’s successfully built a multi-dimensional career.
In six seasons as the men’s basketball coach at Auburn, Bruce Pearl has led the Tigers to two SEC championships, back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths and the program’s first ever trip to the Final Four. It’s success he’s replicated at every stop of his 25-year coaching career. A proven winner, Bruce still coaches with a chip on his shoulder and his teams reflect that fighter mentality. On this episode, we talk about his unlikely journey from student manager to big-time college coach, what drives him, and how he consistently gets his teams to outperform expectations.
When the WNBA tips off this weekend, Atlanta Dream guard Renee Montgomery won’t be there. Renee is sitting out the 2020 WNBA season to focus on the fight for social justice reform. A two-time WNBA champion and former standout at the University of Connecticut, Renee has carved out an 11-year career in the pros. Now, she’s focused her attention on another mission. On this episode, Renee shares why she’s trading basketball for a greater purpose and what it means to use your platform for change.
Steven Kotler is the Executive Director of the Flow Research Collective and one of the world’s leading experts on high performance. The New York Times bestselling author of Stealing Fireand The Rise of Superman, Kotler shows companies how to unlock their potential and level up their game like never before. On this episode, Steven decodes the science of flow—an optimal state of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best. We dig into the science of human performance, how to achieve flow, and what it all means for your own life.
Know the feeling of getting bombarded with too many pings, dings and rings? You’re not alone. Nir Eyal writes and consults about the intersection of psychology, technology and business. His latest book, Indistractable, reveals the hidden psychology driving us to distraction. On this episode, Nir shares the practical techniques to control your time and attention—helping you live the life you really want. His four-step, research-backed model will help you manage distractions and finally do what you say you will do.
Where along the way did we trade in our confidence and courage for approval and acceptance? And why? That’s the question Reshma Saujani challenges us with in her book Brave, Not Perfect. Reshma is the founder & CEO of Girls Who Code, an international nonprofit working to close the gender gap in technology and change the image of what a programmer looks like and does. Her TED Talk, “Teach girls bravery, not perfection,” has been viewed more than 4 million times and sparked a worldwide conversation about how we’re raising our girls. On this episode, we talk about how to fear less, fail more and live boldly.
James Franklin is one of the top college football coaches in the country. Since arriving at Penn State University in 2014, Franklin has led the Nittany Lions to three top-10 finishes and a Big Ten championship. His journey took him from Division II quarterback to college coach, where he found unlikely success at Vanderbilt before taking on the challenge of rebuilding the storied Penn State program. On this episode, we dig into how he built trust in a tough environment when he arrived at Penn State and the ways his leadership approach has evolved over the years.
Tony Gonzalez is an analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the podcast WIDE OPEN with Tony Gonzalez. In 17 seasons in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Atlanta Falcons, Tony was a 14-time Pro Bowl selection. He is the NFL’s all-time leader in touchdowns and yards by a tight end and is third-all time in receptions. Tony tackles all aspects of his life with the same drive and curiosity that helped him excel on the field. In this conversation, Tony shares what fuels him, the defining moments that shaped his life, and his powerful habits for success.
We all have stories we tell ourselves that define the way we live our lives. Stories help you make sense of your life, but they can also keep you stuck. How can you become the editor of your life? Therapist Lori Gottlieb is the author of the New York Times bestseller Maybe You Should Talk to Someone and writes the Dear Therapist advice column for The Atlantic. In this conversation, we talk about how to defeat toxic thinking, change our self-limiting narratives, and get unstuck. It’s about changing your narrative to change your life.
How do elite performers mentally train for success? Atlanta Falcons head coach Dan Quinn and Vision Pursue founder Russ Rausch discuss the relationship between mindset and performance. As an NFL coach, Dan uses Vision Pursue’s performance mindset training with his team to strengthen their mental game. In this episode, we talk about how to develop mental toughness, focus through distractions and perform under pressure.
Who were you before the world told you who to be? That’s the question Glennon Doyle asks in her new memoir Untamed. Glennon is a speaker, activist and New York Times bestselling author. Her two previous books- Love Warrior and Carry On, Warrior were both #1 New York Times bestsellers and Love Warrior was an Oprah’s Book Club selection. Glennon writes about addiction, recovery, marriage and faith with no holds barred. In today’s conversation, we dig into becoming attune to our discontent, abandoning expectations, and learning to trust yourself. It’s about how sometimes we forget who we are… and how we find ourselves again.
Leonard Hamilton is one of the most successful coaches in college basketball and a trailblazer in the sport. The head basketball coach at Florida State University, Hamilton is the Seminoles’ all-time winningest coach and the 5th winningest coach in ACC history. This season he won ACC Coach of the Year honors and led Florida State to the #4 ranking in the country and the ACC regular season championship. On this episode, Hamilton shares the moment where he thought he gave up coaching for good, the hurdles he had to overcome in his career, and how he built a reputation as a program rebuilder.
Note: this conversation is updated with Coach Hamilton’s thoughts after the cancelation of the NCAA tournament, where Florida State was expected to be a top seed.
Leonard Hamilton is one of the most successful coaches in college basketball and a trailblazer in the sport. The head basketball coach at Florida State University, Hamilton is the Seminoles’ all-time winningest coach and the 5th winningest coach in ACC history. This season he won ACC Coach of the Year honors and led Florida State to the #4 ranking in the country and the ACC regular season championship. On this episode, Hamilton shares the moment where he thought he gave up coaching for good, the hurdles he had to overcome in his career, and how he built a reputation as a program rebuilder.
Note: this conversation is updated with Coach Hamilton’s thoughts after the cancelation of the NCAA tournament, where Florida State was expected to be a top seed.
Most people believe: if you work harder, you will be more successful, and then you will be happy. But if you think the key to happiness is success, you’ve got it backwards. It’s happiness that fuels success. Shawn Achor is one of the world’s leading experts on the science of happiness. He’s the bestselling author of The Happiness Advantage and Big Potential. More than a decade of research shows that training your brain to be positive first actually leads to greater success at work. On this episode, Shawn shares the four biggest predictors of happiness, how to spark happiness in your own life, and the simple steps you can take to embrace a positive mindset.
Wouldn’t it be nice if leadership came with an instruction manual? In his new book, Welcome to Management, Ryan Hawk is sharing the advice he wishes he knew when he transitioned into a leadership role. Ryan is the host of the popular podcast, The Learning Leader Show, which boasts millions of listeners in 150+ countries. On this episode, Ryan shares how to transition seamlessly from individual performer to exceptional leader. Listen in to discover the common qualities top leaders share and the three skill sets every leader needs to master.