3 Takeaways™

We are biologically wired to need connection with others, but live in an age of serious and debilitating isolation. What are the ramifications of this to our health and happiness, and even to our longevity? Stanford’s Geoffrey Cohen brilliantly diagnoses the problem and offers stunningly simple solutions.

Are liberal democracies in long-term decline? Why is the U.S. so intensely polarized and how can it recover from it? What is the serious problem with identity politics? Internationally acclaimed political scientist and author, Stanford’s Frank Fukuyama, has valuable answers.

The one and only Alan S. Blinder, former Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve and member of President Clinton’s Council of Economic Advisors, shines a brilliant light on some of today’s hottest economic topics — including the politicization of economic policy, the criminality of cryptocurrency, the likelihood of a soft landing, the prospect of a national digital currency, and more.

There’s an epidemic of deception taking place, and while some lying has a valid function, it helps to know when you’re being deceived. Expert Pamela Meyer reveals why we lie, how to spot deception in work and life situations, and how she knew Bill Clinton’s claim that he “never had sex with that woman” was bs.

At a time when government-imposed racial and ethnic classifications are increasingly used to determine peoples’ rights, it’s important for them to make sense. According to law professor and author David Bernstein, they definitely do not. They’re absurd, have negative consequences, and are widely manipulated by “identity entrepreneurs.” 

Former CIA Director and General David Petraeus (Ret.) continues his brilliant, in-depth analysis of the Ukraine war, including whether or not Putin will use nuclear weapons and the risks of a wider war. Also hear his expert views on China, the battlefield of cyberspace, threats posed by Iran, N. Korea and Islamic terrorists, plus the stunning new importance of NATO. Don’t miss this remarkable talk...

Former CIA Director and General David Petraeus (Ret.), one of the most brilliant military leaders of our generation, talks as only he can about the Ukraine war — how it will end, the likelihood of Putin going nuclear, the risk of a wider war, the weapons Ukraine needs to prevail, and more. Be sure to listen to Part 2 of this engrossing talk next week.

Unlock the secrets to a fulfilling life with Bob Waldinger and Marc Shulz, the heads of Harvard's 80-Year Study of Adult Development, the longest, most in-depth, longitudinal study of human life and thriving ever done. Discover what a good life is, and how we can all have a better one. Even small choices, it turns out, can shape our lives and help us thrive. Learn the simple ingredients that...

Deep personal change that enables you to achieve your goals is absolutely possible. The key: Identify what’s standing in your way, then employ strategies to overcome it. Here, Katy Milkman, Wharton professor and author of the bestseller How to Change, shares many of these powerful strategies. Here’s one: Make hard things fun.

3 Takeaways features revealing conversations with the world’s foremost thinkers, business leaders, writers, politicians, scientists and other newsmakers, who each share three takeaways they consider vital. In this special year-end episode, we present the 10 most powerful and compelling takeaways of 2022.  Can you guess which takeaway is from each guest? The guests include: -  former Prime Minster...

According to former Senator Phil Gramm, inequality in the U.S. is grossly overstated largely because it fails to take into account massive government aid to low income earners. The implications of this are huge, especially given the current debate about remaking capitalism. Don’t miss this important conversation.

What was America’s response to the Holocaust? What did we know and not know, do and not do, as the catastrophe unfolded? These questions resonate today, when the refugee crisis, immigration and antisemitism are making headlines. Don’t miss this powerful conversation with the co-directors of the new Ken Burns documentary film The U.S. and the Holocaust, Lynn Novick and Sarah Botstein.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, we are not living in an age of dwindling resources. Generations of people have been taught that the world's rapidly growing population is consuming the planet's natural resources at an alarming rate. But after analyzing the prices of hundreds of commodities and products over the last 100 years, Marian Tupy and Gale Pooley found that resources became more...

The world as we know it relies on computer chips, and the most important ones are made largely in Taiwan. This renders the U.S. shockingly vulnerable as China continues saber rattling in the region. Don’t miss this enlightening talk with economic historian and author Chris Miller.

Congressional gridlock has created a vacuum that undermines key principles of the Constitution, raising concerns about the country’s future. Yet constitutional expert extraordinaire Kannon Shanmugam believes our future is bright. Learn why.

Hiding what we really think can have devastating social consequences, and helps explain the rise of Donald Trump, why Harvey Weinstein got away with it for so long, the unreliability of election polls, and much more. Don’t miss this eye-opening conversation with Duke’s Timur Kuran.

Countless people knew what Harvey Weinstein, Elizabeth Holmes, and the Catholic Church were doing – but remained silent. Why do good people allow the horrific behavior of others?  Harvard professor Max Bazerman explores this complicity and offers solutions.

Our brains run the show and determine how we relate to the world. Discoveries from the front lines of neuroscience show our brains are creators (as opposed to spectators) of reality and also creator of our emotions. Don’t miss this enlightening talk with Lisa Feldman Barrett, one of the world’s most cited scientists for her groundbreaking research in psychology and neuroscience.

Why will tech and automation never lead to the demise of human work? What qualifies as “good” work? What role will robots and AI play in the fast-approaching future? David Autor, MIT professor and co-chair of the MIT Task Force on The Work of The Future, provides answers in this riveting and enlightening conversation. 

It’s counter-intuitive but true: letting go of being a good person is key to becoming a better one, and often times it starts with acknowledging our unconscious bias. Social scientist and best-selling author Dolly Chugh offers phenomenal insight that can benefit us both at home and in the workplace.

Harvard economics professor and former IMF Chief Economist Ken Rogoff is one of the world’s preeminent economic thinkers. Here he brilliantly dissects today’s U.S. economy and bluntly explains what must happen to tame inflation and sustain growth – and the major role China may play.  He is the co-author of This Time Is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly.

Learn how scarcity of anything - money, food or social connections - affects our daily lives and leads us astray. Scarcity reduces both intelligence and control. Having too little preoccupies and taxes the mind, making life much harder. "Even smiling and being pleasant is hard when your mind is taxed. The employee snaps at rude customers ... The parent snaps at the child ... The server rings...

Lawrence Bacow, President of Harvard University, shares how he sees the future of education and the values he leads by at Harvard. Learn the role of universities in a democracy, the importance of teaching students to think critically and why he believes the value of a liberal education is higher than ever. 

Of the 10,000 business plans Bill Sahlman has read, only 3 companies met their plan. Find out what it takes to succeed.  Entrepreneurs have to be really good at running tests and execution trumps idea. Jeff Bezos is the most effective experimentalist in history. Bill Gates did not invent word processing, the spreadsheet, or presentation graphics; rather he took ideas and out executed everyone else...

The deck is still stacked against women in the workplace. Learn how some women dramatically defy the odds, and what both men and women can learn from them to succeed. Don’t miss this eye-opening conversation with CNBC Senior Correspondent Julia Boorstin.