The Art of Excellence

John Paul DeJoria epitomizes the American dream, rising from adversity to become a renowned entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is best known for co-founding iconic brands John Paul Mitchell Systems and The Patrón Spirits Company. John Paul has made philanthropy his core mission, establishing JP's Peace, Love & Happiness Family Foundation in 2011 to contribute to a sustainable planet by investing...

Frank Weisser is a two-time Blue Angels Pilot who was deployed in combat three separate times, including to Afghanistan and Iraq. He has accumulated more than 5,000 flight hours and nearly 500 carrier arrested landings. His decorations include multiple Meritorious Service Medals, Strike Flight Air Medals and various personal and unit awards. Because of his experience flying at extreme low altitude...

Aron Ralston's extraordinary story of survival after an 800-pound boulder trapped him in a remote Utah canyon captured global headlines in 2003. In his New York Times best seller, Between a Rock and a Hard Place , the Oscar-nominated film, 127 Hours , and on stage, Ralston takes audiences vicariously through those six days without water, means of communication, or hope of escape, to the ecstatic m...

Amy Boorman is a decorated and globally respected gymnastics coach, whose career included twelve years coaching the sport's all-time greatest, Simone Biles. She was named USA Gymnastics Coach of the Year four times and US Olympic Committee Coach of the Year in 2016. She was head coach of the US Women's Gymnastics Team at the Rio Olympic Games and coached for the Dutch Gymnastics Federation in 2021...

Elizabeth Rowe is a leadership and executive coach whose career sits at the unique crossroads of world-class performance, leadership coaching, and advocacy. For two decades, she was the principal flutist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 2018, she made national headlines with a landmark equal pay lawsuit — an act of courage that earned her recognition as one of The Boston Globe's "Bostonians of...

General Stanley McChrystal is a retired four-star general and former commander of U.S. and International Forces in Afghanistan and the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), where he led the nation's most elite counterterrorism efforts. With 34 years of military service, he's recognized for reshaping modern warfare and pioneering team-based leadership approaches in high-stakes environments. Toda...

Dr. Kwane Stewart is a veterinarian and the co-founder of Project Street Vet, a non-profit that provides free veterinary care for the pets of people experiencing homelessness in cities across the country.   His work earned him CNN Hero of the Year in 2023. His book is titled: What It Takes to Save a Life: A Veterinarian's Quest for Healing and Hope.   Summary In this conversation, Dr. Kwane Stewar...

Michael Grab is one of the world's premier rock balancing artists.   He has created rock art all over the world and has inspired a global movement for stone balancing art.   Summary In this conversation, Michael Grab, a renowned rock balancing artist, shares insights into his creative process, the philosophy behind his art, and the technical aspects of balancing rocks. He discusses how he finds in...

Dean Koontz is an author with fourteen number one hardback bestsellers and sixteen number one paperback bestsellers. His books have sold more than 500 million copies in thirty eight languages.   His latest book is titled: Going Home in the Dark .   Summary : In this engaging conversation, Dean Koontz shares insights into his writing process, the challenges of genre blending, and the impact of his...

James Lawrence has broken two Guiness World Records for endurance racing. He raced a full distance triathlon every day for 100 consecutive days and prior to that he raced 50 full distance triathlons for 50 consecutive days across 50 states. His latest book is titled Iron Hope: Lessons Learned from Conquering the Impossible . Summary In this conversation, endurance athlete James Lawrence shares his...

Adam Galinsky is a social psychologist and a Professor of Leadership and Ethics at Columbia Business School. He has published over two hundred scientific articles on leadership, negotiations, diversity, and ethics. He has been a damages expert in numerous defamation lawsuits that have generated more than $1 billion in verdicts and settlements, including Dominion Voting Systems v. Fox News.   His l...

Diane Boyd has four decades of experience on behavior, conservation and management of wild wolf populations. In 1979 Diane moved to Montana to study wolf recovery in the Rocky Mountains, from the first natural colonizer to approximately 2000 wolves today in the western United States. Diane has worked for the University of Montana, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. S...

Laurie is a Professor of Psychology at Yale University.   In addition to her work on the evolutionary origins of human cognition, Laurie is an expert on the science of happiness and the ways in which our minds lie to us about what makes us happy. Her Yale course, Psychology and the Good Life , teaches students how the science of psychology can provide important hints about how to make wiser choice...

Don Lemon spent three decades on local and national TV – a trusted voice after the Sandy Hook massacre, in war-torn Eastern Europe, and during the riots of 2020. Anchoring Don Lemon Tonight on CNN for eight years, he was known for hard-hitting interviews with public officials and compassionate dialogue with everyday people.   The Don Lemon Show is now streaming on all platforms.   He is the author...

Guy Snodgrass recently served as director of communications and chief speechwriter to Secretary of Defense James Mattis. A former naval aviator, he served as commanding officer of a fighter squadron based in Japan, A TOPGUN instructor, and a combat pilot over the skies of Iraq.   Today he is the founder and CEO of Defense Analytics, a strategic consulting and advisory firm. He is the author of Hol...

Craig Foster is one of the world's leading natural history filmmakers and cofounder of the Sea Change Project, a nonprofit to protect marine life and raise awareness of the importance of the kelp forest. He won an Academy Award for Best Documentary for My Octopus Teacher and has created more than one hundred films and documentaries.   His latest book is titled: Amphibious Soul: Finding the Wild in...

Adrian Newey is Chief Technical Officer for Red Bull Racing.   He has won 13 drivers' championships and 12 constructors' championships across three teams in his career. He is widely regarded as the greatest Formula 1 race car designer in the history of the sport.   Some interesting insights from this episode: ·        Racing teams have three departments: aerodynamics, vehicle design, and vehicle d...

Maurice Ashley is a Chess Grandmaster, a chess commentator, a national championship coach, and an author. In 1999 he earned the title of Chess Grandmaster, making him the first African American Grandmaster in the game's history, and was later inducted into the US Chess Hall of Fame.   His latest book is titled Move by Move: Life Lessons On and Off the Chessboard .   Some interesting insights from...

Gary Hunt is a professional cliff diver.   He is a 10 time Red Bull World Series Champion with 43 overall victories and counting.   He is widely considered the greatest cliff diver in the history of the sport.   Some interesting insights from this episode: ·        Juggling was a practice he used to increase his focus and concentration and take his mind off the stress and pressure of the competiti...

George Mumford is a psychologist, elite performance expert, and author of The Mindful Athlete .   He has worked with worldclass athletes including Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Shaquille O'Neal . He has also consulted with college and Olympic athletes, corporate executives, and inmates, and is a sought-after public speaker at both business and athletic conferences nationally and internationally...

Dr. BJ Miller is a longtime hospice and palliative medicine physician and educator. He currently sees patients and families via telehealth through Mettle Health, a company he co-founded with the aim to provide personalized, holistic consultations for any patient or caregiver who needs help navigating the practical, emotional and existential issues that come with serious illness and disability. Led...

Kara Swisher is the host of the podcast  On with Kara Swisher  and the co-host of the  Pivot  podcast with Scott Galloway, both distributed by New York magazine. She was also the cofounder and editor-at-large of Recode, host of the  Recode Decode  podcast, and co-executive producer of the Code conference. She was a former contributing opinion writer for  The New York Times  and host of its Sway po...

Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant is a wildlife ecologist with an expertise in uncovering how human activity influences carnivore behavior and ecology. She is a National Geographic Explorer, host the PBS podcast Going Wild with Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant , and is the cohost on NBC's Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom Protecting the Wild .   She is the first black woman to ever host a television nature show. Her new book is...

Daniel Goleman is a psychologist, former science journalist for the New York Times, and the author of 13 books including the #1 bestseller Emotional Intelligence .   He has worked with organizations around the globe, examining the way social and emotional competencies impact the bottom-line. Ranked one of the 10 most influential business thinkers by the Wall Street Journal, Daniel has won several...

Kristin Harila is a Norwegian mountain climber who recently set a world speed record for climbing the 14 highest peaks in just 92 days.     Some interesting insights from this episode: ·          She quit her job and sold her home and put everything on the line to achieve this goal.   ·          "If you are happy with less than your goal, then you'll never reach your goal." ·          You have to...