A Bit of Optimism

How are you? It’s a question we get asked everyday, but we hardly ever answer it honestly.   When Diego Perez — also known under his penname, Yung Pueblo — started asking himself that question and answering honestly, his entire life changed. In this conversation, Diego opens up about his own struggles with addiction and shares hard-earned wisdom about conflict, spirituality, and so much more. This...

How do people become powerful? Can understanding power protect us from those who wield it too strongly? When Robert Greene first set out to write about power, he didn’t have much of it. He worked odd jobs and was largely at the mercy of other people’s power. Now, his book “The 48 Laws of Power” has given him the power he wrote about. He sat down with me to share what he’s learned on both sides of...

Failure is the secret to success. Our failures are agents of inspiration, iteration, and innovation.   Dr. Amy Edmondson is the Professor of Leadership and Management at Harvard Business School and her newest book "Right Kind of Wrong" is all about how we can change our relationship with failures and start “failing well.”   This is…A Bit of Optimism. For more on Dr. Amy Edmondson and her work chec...

You’ll never achieve perfect happiness. This might sound like bad news, but it’s actually a good thing. Because being happy is not a final destination, it’s an ongoing practice. In short, it’s happier-ness. That’s a term Arthur Brooks and Oprah Winfrey coined in their new book “Build the Life You Want” where together they lay out a blueprint for a better life. And they would know: Arthur has studi...

When should we trust our gut and when should we depend on logic?  Liv Boeree can actually answer that question.  She won the World Series of Poker before retiring from the game to explore big questions about game theory, competition, and how we can all find more win-wins. This is…a Bit of Optimism. For more on Liv and her work check out:  https://livboeree.com/

When should you quit a project and when should you persevere? As one of the world’s leading entrepreneurs, Steven Bartlett has thought deeply about this problem. Steven is used to getting people to open up on his podcast, but it turns out he’s just as insightful when the focus is on him.  This is…a Bit of Optimism. For more on Steven and his work check out:  His new book: https://smarturl.it/DOACb...

How you do anything is how you do everything. Steven Bartlett embodies this old adage.  His high standards and focus on the finest details launched him from a broke university dropout to one of the world’s most influential entrepreneurs. At 30-years-old he has already founded multiple companies, starred on Britain’s hit tv show Dragon’s Den, and he is now the host of one of the planet’s most popul...

Great businesses often look a lot like social movements.   Sharmadean Reid knows this from experience—she has combined technology and culture to create multiple businesses around strong communities. She started her first business at 24, creating a nail salon that changed the beauty industry. Now she runs a media network for the next generation of women in power.   This is…A Bit of Optimism. For mo...

What does it mean to live a long and happy life?   David Von Drehle has spent 40 years covering big stories and important figures as an award-winning journalist. But the best lessons turned out to be right next door. David’s latest book, “The Book of Charlie: Wisdom from the Remarkable American Life of a 109 Year-Old Man,” is a best-seller about resilience, American history, and what it means to l...

For this 4th of July, I wanted to do something special to celebrate the birth of our nation. So I invited Air Force Chief of Staff General CQ Brown, Jr. to join me on the podcast.  General Brown is the head of the Air Force and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He is also the current nominee to be the next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. If he is confirmed as Chairman later this year, it would...

Change is inevitable.  And yet fear, anger, and confusion are often our first reactions to changes.  Cassandra Worthy experienced the negative emotions that stem from change so many times that she now sees them for what they really are: signals for opportunity. Now, she helps companies and individuals thrive during times of major change.  This is… A Bit of Optimism. For more on Cassandra and her w...

Information is power. But how do we adapt now that most of the information we consume comes with a heavy bias?  In an ironic twist of fate, it’s Wikipedia — the encyclopedia that anyone can edit — that has done one of the best jobs maintaining public trust in our polarized era.  I sat down with the founder of Wikipedia, Jimmy Wales, in front of a live studio audience to explore how we got here and...

What does it mean for a life to go well? What matters most in our time on Earth?  These are the most important questions of our lives and yet most of us have no clue how to answer them.  Miroslav Volf is a theologian and professor who has been grappling with these ideas for decades. He is the founding director of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture where he teaches a class called “Life Worth Liv...

Creative success is notoriously elusive, but those who have made the journey insist it comes down to three factors: hard work, luck, and talent.  Steven Pressfield wants to add one more thing to that list: a muse. And he should know. His muse guided him to incredible success as an author of fiction, nonfiction, and movies including hit books like: The Legend of Bagger Vance, The War of Art, and Ga...

On the path to fame, most rising stars abandon their morals. Not Jimmy Darts. He’s done just the opposite.   Jimmy started his career as a YouTuber pulling ill-advised pranks. Two decades later, he and his 20 million fans now make the world a kinder place by donating life-changing money to unsuspecting strangers who are spontaneously kind, compassionate, or generous. This is… A Bit of Optimism. Fo...

Dating doesn’t have to be about finding “The One.”  At its most rewarding, modern love can be about growth, curiosity, and authenticity.   Ana Kirova is the CEO of the dating platform 'Feeld’, a revolutionary app that helps people break free from traditional norms, explore alternative relationships, and discover the boundless potential for love that comes with accepting yourself and others without...

“Soul” is a word that I've never really used, but it perfectly encapsulates what has made David Copperfield the most successful magician of all time.   He has filled global audiences with awe for over 40 years.  He made the Statue of Liberty disappear, escaped from Alcatraz, and walked through the Great Wall of China.   And it turns out, the key to great magic is also the key to any great work: a...

Molly Bloom’s life story is one-of-a-kind.   Her Olympic dreams were dashed, so she planned on going to law school. Instead, she wound up running a high-stakes poker game where hundreds of millions of dollars would change hands in a night.   Molly made a lot of money. Celebrities, mafias, and federal informants soon took an interest in her and her game.  Eventually, she lost everything and had no...

How would you like to be judged for the rest of your life by the worst thing you’ve ever done? Robin Steinberg was a public defender, where she had to learn to see her clients – who were often accused of heinous crimes – as human.   The lessons she has learned about how to find compassion for people with whom we vehemently disagree are absolutely essential for this divided world. This is… A Bit of...

There is a very good chance that Bill Farmer has already made your life brighter and you had no idea. That's because Bill is a Disney Legend. He has been the voice of Goofy since 1987, among countless other Disney and Looney Tunes characters. What started as a simple impression sparked an amazing career that has influenced millions with a message of optimism. He views his work as an act of service...

When you get one of the most successful comedy writers in television history to come on your podcast, naturally the first thing to talk about is...his trip in a homemade submarine to visit the ruins of the Titanic. You see, Mike Reiss isn't just the funniest guy in the room — he's also the most well-traveled.  He's been to Iran, the North Pole, North Korea, and everywhere in between.   Whether he'...

Our time, energy, and emotions are valuable because they are finite. And yet conversations with Seth Godin always leave me feeling more patient, energized, and full of love.   Seth is a prolific author and a marketing genius who knows first-hand how love can take an interaction from transactional to transformational. This is… A Bit of Optimism. For more on Seth and his work check out:  https://www...

Want to go fast? Go alone. Want to go far? Go together. Most entrepreneurs aren’t lone wolves. Founders like Jeff Rosenthal know that the greatest ventures come with partners, mentors, and communities. Being enthusiastic, generous, and kind attracts people who want to help—and together you can accomplish the unreasonable.  This is… A Bit of Optimism. For more on Jeff and his work check out:  https...

Anxiety is the crown jewel of human evolution.  That’s the professional opinion of neuroscience professor and clinical psychologist Dr. Tracy Dennis-Tiwary, who is driving a paradigm shift in how we understand anxiety. The emotion isn’t a sickness or a flaw in human design – it’s an evolved advantage that protects us and strengthens our creative and productive powers.  So even though anxiety doesn...

There are precious few moments in life that guarantee joy. That’s what makes time spent with Richard Curtis or watching his films so special – you just know you’re in for a great time.   Richard is the patron saint of love in the movies.  He’s a writer and sometimes director known for optimistic, funny, and uplifting films like: Love Actually, About Time, Notting Hill, Bridget Jones’s Diary, Mr. B...