My Favorite Conversations of 2021

This past year, we doubled the footprint of my podcast. It gave me the perfect excuse to have some fascinating discussions with thinkers, creators, and leaders who question assumptions that we’ve long taken for granted.

Here are the insights that have kept me thinking and rethinking months later.

1. The task for society is to reduce misery, not increase happiness. – Daniel Kahneman

Going into my conversation with the only psychologist ever to win a Nobel Prize, I was torn between happiness and meaning as the foremost goal of our field. I came away thinking that it’s more important to alleviate suffering than to promote flourishing.

2. You cannot lead people you do not feel affection for. – Brené Brown

Although I’ve long believed that leaders need to care, I’d dismissed affection as too soft and squishy. Then everyone’s favorite vulnerability expert drew this gem from an interview with a military general. If the Air Force can do affection, the rest of us can too.

3. What you pay attention to matters, but maybe what matters most is the kind of attention you pay. – John Green

The novelist behind The Fault in Our Stars reminded me that we reveal our goals through our actions but our values through our attention. If you want to figure out what you care about, pay attention to your attention.

4. Mentors don’t want a captive relationship. They just want to see people soar. They want to give them wings. – Indra Nooyi

Bad managers keep people trapped in dead-end jobs, and good managers create opportunities for people to grow and advance. But according to the leader who took PepsiCo to new heights, great managers encourage people to pursue growth and advancement even if it means leaving for another organization.

5. The idea to make the musical Hamilton actually happened when we were on vacation, on a pool float with a margarita, in a moment when my brain could drift. Creativity doesn't happen without daydreaming. – Lin-Manuel Miranda

Take it from this original: yes, raising your mental shields can keep distractions out, but sometimes you need to lower those filters to let fresh ideas in.

6. Being an alpha doesn’t make you a leader. It makes you the boss—and others will be submissive to you. – Jane Goodall

There’s no one better than a primatology pioneer to convey that although alphas might have an easier time rising to the top, they have a harder time succeeding and staying on top.

7. There are times when you have a moral obligation to keep your mind open – Malcolm Gladwell

I wrote Think Again after realizing that the faster you are to recognize when you’re wrong, the faster you can move to getting it right. When I thought about right and wrong, I was focused on good and bad decisions. This friendly duel with my favorite sparring partner opened my eyes to the moral lens. When the stakes are high, we shouldn’t stop wondering if we might be wrong.