Episodes

Klaus Kleinfeld has lived one of the most extraordinary leadership journeys of our time. He’s the only executive ever to serve as CEO of two Fortune 500 giants on different continents—Siemens in Germany and Alcoa in the U.S.—and he’s advised presidents and global leaders around the world. What struck me most in speaking with Klaus isn’t just the scope of his career—it’s what he believes makes leadership truly sustainable. His new book, Leading to Thrive: Mastering Strategies for Sustainable Succ...

Laurie Santos is one of the world’s leading voices on the science of happiness and well-being. She’s a psychology professor at Yale University, where her course Psychology and the Good Life became the most popular class in Yale’s 300-year history. So many students enrolled that the university had to move it to a concert hall to accommodate the crowds. Building on that success, Laurie created the online version—The Science of Well-Being—which has now been taken by millions worldwide, making her o...

For the second half of this podcast season, we’ve been focused on employee well-being—why it matters, how to foster it, and what happens when leaders fail to take it seriously. Our new guest, Amy Gilliland, shows what it looks like when a CEO makes well-being a true priority, not a mere slogan. Amy is president of General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT), a $9 billion global technology enterprise with 28,000 employees. Under her leadership, GDIT has achieved four straight years of revenue...

That’s the groundbreaking case made by Dr. Angela Jackson, Harvard University professor and New York Times bestselling author of The Win-Win Workplace: How Thriving Employees Drive Bottom-Line Success. Angela’s journey is remarkable. After losing her mother at age four, she was raised by grandparents who grew up in the Jim Crow South and never advanced beyond sixth grade. Nonetheless, their resilience and determination gave Angela the foundation to earn a PhD, teach at Harvard, and become a lead...

Nick Foster, former head of design at Google X — the “moonshot factory” — and author of Could, Should, Might, Don’t: How We Think About the Future, joins us to discuss his stunning conclusion that human beings are terrible at predicting the future, calling most forecasts “mostly nonsense.” For leaders, this insight is absolutely essential: we’re constantly asked to make or evaluate predictions that shape strategies, investments, and organizational futures. Foster’s book provides a vital framewor...

What’s worse than a boss who emails you at midnight, demanding instant replies? How about one who calls you “Mohammed” instead of your real name, Madhumita, or another who expects you to dive back into work just days after your father’s sudden death. Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author, Mita Mallick has faced these and 10 other toxic manager archetypes in her career, and brings them all to life in her new book, “The Devil Emails at Midnight: What Leaders Can Learn from Bad Bosse...

In this thought-provoking episode, we sit down with Urs Koenig, author of “Radical Humility: Be A Badass Leader And A Good Human,” to explore leadership through a lens of selflessness and authenticity. Drawing from his experience as a peacekeeping mission commander in Kosovo, Urs shares surprising insights on leading in high-stakes environments, revealing how humility shaped his approach in ways that challenge conventional leadership norms. Few could argue that humility is a great strength in w...

Is Bree Groff delusional or naive to believe work should be a source of fun and joy? Having read her bestseller, Today Was Fun: A Book About Work (Seriously) and interviewed her, we’re certain she’s spot-on—and voicing what many of us have long felt: work shouldn’t be a grind that erodes our happiness or well-being. Bree’s expertise stems from a dynamic career in organizational transformation. With over a decade advising leaders at Google, Microsoft, and Hilton as a consultant and former CEO of ...

As a statistician by trade, Cambridge University Emeritus Professor, Sir David Spiegelhalter might seem to be a huge outlier for our leadership podcast. At the beginning of our conversation he even acknowledges feeling this way. But his new book, The Art of Uncertainty, was named an Amazon Best Book of 2025, and his investigations aimed at reducing uncertainty in life: about what is happening, what might happen – even why things have happened – have yielded some remarkably useful insights on how...

Ever wonder what 75 days a year glued to your phone is costing you? That staggering figure—based on a 2024 study showing Americans spend an average of 5 hours and 16 minutes daily on their smartphones—reveals how deeply our devices dominate our lives. Enter Richard Simon and his provocative bestseller, Unplug: How to Break Up with Your Phone and Reclaim Your Life. It’s not just a guide; it’s a rallying cry for anyone trapped by the constant ping of notifications. With Jonathan Haidt’s global be...

We’re thrilled to welcome back Margaret Heffernan to the podcast, a guest whose erudition and insight left us in awe last time! Margaret is one of the most remarkable people we’ve had on the show—an entrepreneur, former CEO, acclaimed author, and thought leader whose uncommon education and thirst for knowledge imbue her work with extraordinary depth. Her TED Talk, “Why it’s time to forget the pecking order at work,” viewed over 15 million times, challenges hierarchical thinking and champions c...

Imagine you’re a leader who’s achieved great success, yet something suddenly feels off: roadblocks appear, your team seems less responsive and productive—and you’re not progressing as hoped. What’s holding you back? Martin Dubin, a clinical psychologist and author of, Blindspotting: How To See What’s Holding You Back As A Leader (being released next week) says career and leadership setbacks like these are often the consequence of our blind spots—hidden habits and behaviors that we don’t see, but...

We’re thrilled to welcome Shigehiro Oishi, renowned psychologist and University of Chicago professor, whose groundbreaking research on well-being has reshaped how we understand a fulfilling life. As the author of Life in Three Dimensions: How Curiosity, Exploration, and Experience Make a Fuller, Better Life, Oishi introduces a transformative framework that adds “psychological richness”—a life enriched by diverse, novel, and challenging experiences—to the traditional pillars of happiness and mean...

For over 40 years, Gary Shapiro has been CEO of the Consumer Technology Association – the organization which runs CES, the world’s largest and most influential technology trade show held every year in Las Vegas. CES long ago became the global stage where innovations like the iPhone, self-driving cars, and AI breakthroughs have been introduced to the world for the first time. In his spare time, Gary has written four New York Times bestsellers, including the focus for this episode, his new book, P...

Wes Adams, co-author of Meaningful Work: How to Ignite Passion and Performance in Every Employee, joins the podcast and shares profound insights from his extensive, multi-year research, on an essential yet often ignored leadership prerogative: ensuring employees feel they’re connected to a shared purpose, empowered to make a difference – and pushed to grow. As a positive psychology scholar, Wes draws on decades of research, including vivid examples from organizations like Patagonia, Ritz-Carlto...

What makes a leader truly successful? To find out, we sat down with Claudius Hildebrand, author of the bestselling The Life Cycle of a CEO: The Myths and Truths of How Leaders Succeed. His core insight? Leadership isn’t a trophy you win or a title you hold—it’s a dynamic, ever-evolving journey that demands growth, grit, and constant reinvention. Whether you’re a team lead, a mid-level manager, or dreaming of the C-suite, this episode is your roadmap to navigating the twists and turns of leadersh...

Melody Wilding, Professor of Human Behavior at Hunter College in New York City, and renowned for her expertise in workplace dynamics, has just published, “Managing Up: How To Get What You Need From The People In Charge.” It’s received outstanding reviews, is already a bestseller – and has become an indispensable guide for building effective relationships with bosses and even peers. In “Managing Up,” Melody addresses the key problems employees face in their careers, from feeling micromanaged to s...

Version 1.0.0 Renowned social psychologist and Columbia Business School professor Adam Galinsky, has dedicated his academic career to understanding the intricacies of leadership and human behavior. His latest book, “Inspire: The Universal Path for Leading Yourself and Others,” offers a compelling exploration of what it takes to be an inspiring leader. Adam is clear that inspiring leadership is rarely an innate trait, but rather a skill we all can develop through conscious effort and practice. ...

Ever wondered what truly drives peak performance at work? As research is now proving, the surprising secret lies in employee well-being. In this captivating episode, we’re joined by Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, professor of Economics and Behavioral Science at Oxford’s Saïd Business School, the Director of the Wellbeing Research Centre & an editor of the World Happiness Report. His remarkable study helps confirms the core belief of the Lead From The Heart philosophy: That there is a a direct correlation...

For our inaugural episode of our new season, we are thrilled to feature two truly extraordinary guests. It also marks a milestone for us as it’s the very first time we’ve recorded an episode where both the host and guests were together in the same room — in this case, at a recording studio at Chevron’s Northern California offices. In this special episode, you’re about to gain sage guidance and leadership insights from two of the world’s top Human Resources leaders: Kathleen Hogan (right) is th...

We’re thrilled to have Ethan Kross accept our invitation to join us for a second time, & to discuss his highly anticipated new book, Shift: Managing Your Emotions-So They Don’t Manage You. (Publishes February 2025). If you’re a regular listener to our show, you’ll recall Ethan’s previous appearance when we discussed his bestselling book, Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It. Amazon named it one of its best books of 2021. Ethan Kross is a renowned psychologist a...

The Financial Times just named Columbia University professor Michael Morriss’ new book, Tribal: How The Cultural Instincts That Divide Us Can Help Bring Us Together, one of the “Best Business Books of the Year” (2024). When we hear the word “tribalism,” it often carries a negative connotation. It gets blamed for everything from political polarization to workplace discrimination. We commonly believe tribalism is a societal divider & therefore a harmful influence on society. But, as we discuss in...

We live in a world where early achievements are celebrated, but what if some of your greatest successes were to come later in life? On this truly provocative episode, we sit down with the brilliant Henry Oliver, author of “Second Act: What Late Bloomers Can Tell You About Reinventing Your Life.” Our conversation is packed with uncommon insights that will challenge your perspectives on career success, personal growth — & surprisingly, networking! In our fast-paced society, we often feel pressure...

Mitch Warner is the Managing Partner of the Arbinger Institute, an organization renowned for its groundbreaking work in leadership & organizational transformation. The Arbinger Institute has just released the fourth edition of its classic book, “Leadership and Self-Deception: The Secret to Transforming Relationships and Unleashing Results.” First published in 2000, “Leadership & Self-Deception” has become one of the top five leadership books of all time. Over the years, this influential book has...