A Curious Mind with movie producer Brian Grazer

The Ultimate Infinite-Minded CEO with Trek Bicycle CEO John Burke

The jump from $250 million to $2 billion in revenue doesn't happen overnight. Over 25 years, John Burke transformed Trek Bikes into a global powerhouse — one mom-and-pop bike store at a time.

The key to John's success is simple but powerful. Create value for others first, and you too shall be rewarded.

John and I discuss why the best way to win isn't to focus on "winning," but to focus on "play," and how the principles of The Infinite Game have guided his leadership. And he tells me why creative leadership is exactly what's missing in American government.

This...is A Bit of Optimism.

To learn more about John and his work, check out:

his book, A Bold Plan For America

TrekBikes.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Be Necessary with war journalist Sebastian Junger

War reporters risk their lives to document conflict. And yet, after a career living on battlefields, Sebastian Junger's closest brush with death was surviving an aneurysm.

Sebastian's story of his sudden internal hemorrhage and making sense of what he saw while dying is the subject of his new book In My Time of Dying. As someone who usually writes as an outside observer, it's an atypical and personal exploration of death.

I was privileged to speak with Sebastian about the fragility of life and why being necessary to others is one of our highest needs of all.

This...is A Bit of Optimism.

To learn more about Sebastian and his work, check out:

sebastianjunger.com

his book, In My Time of Dying

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Invention is Reinvention with entrepreneur Eric Ryan

Starting a company from scratch isn't easy. Doing it multiple times seems downright impossible.

Eric Ryan is one of those serial entrepreneurs. Most known as the co-founder of Method soaps, he's also the founder of Olly vitamins, Welly first aid kits, Cast jewelry, and he has more ventures planned.

I sat down with Eric to ask him about his creative process. What follows is a conversation about serial creativity and why reinvention is the key to repeating creative success.

This...is A Bit of Optimism.

To learn more about Eric and his work, check out:

methodproducts.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Definition of Success with author Neil Strauss

In 2005, Neil Strauss published The Game, a book about his years living in the pickup artist community. The Gamesold millions of copies, stirred up huge controversy, and made Neil a bestselling author.

Neil has totally reinvented himself since writingThe Game, and I wanted to talk with him about walking away from that identity of success. This led to a much deeper conversation about what success even is. Is meaning tied to outcomes, or is intention enough?

Neil and I don't see eye-to-eye on everything in this conversation, but I love talking with him because he challenges my ideas. I hope this episode challenges you as well, to continue questioning what the definition of success should be.

This...is A Bit of Optimism.

To learn more about Neil and his work, check out:

neilstrauss.com

The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists

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Happily Friended with author Rhaina Cohen

Society treats marriage like the end goal of human intimacy. Platonic friends can never be as important as romantic partners.

What would life look like if we made friendship the goal? Journalist and producer Rhaina Cohen tackles this question in her book The Other Significant Others.She tells the stories of people who made platonic friends the closest people in their lives, doing things together like buying houses, executing a will, and raising children.

I wanted to talk with Rhaina because redefining what friendship means in our lives lets us connect in new and deeper ways outside the rigid boundaries of a marriage or relationship. And it might take the pressure off our romantic partners to fulfill every one of our social needs.

This...is A Bit of Optimism.

To learn more about Rhaina and her work, check out:

rhainacohen.com

her book The Other Significant Others

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.