A Bit of Optimism

Your Limits Are Learned (And They Can Be Unlearned) with Brain Coach Jim Kwik

This might sound familiar: you read a full page, get to the bottom, and realize you absorbed none of it. There's a stack of books beside your bed you fully intend to fini

How to Trust Yourself When Everyone Has an Opinion with Love Thy Nader's Mary Holland Nader

Maybe this sounds familiar: you finally get the opportunity you've been waiting for, and the voice in your head says, "I'm not ready, I don't belong here."  Now imagine

What Happens When You Bet on Yourself with Ted Lasso’s Brendan Hunt

Maybe you know the feeling: everyone around you seems to be getting ahead, and every hour you spend on something "frivolous" — the hobby, the detour, the game on a Sunday

How to Say the Hard Thing and Keep the Relationship | A Bit of Optimism: Feelings at Work | PART 5

Every lasting relationship has survived at least a few hard conversations.  But most of us would still rather not have them... So we put them off and tell ourselves the

Why Being Right Is Costing You Trust | A Bit of Optimism: Feelings at Work | PART 4

Everyone says they want more accountability at work… yet few of us think we're the ones who need to learn how to be more accountable. Most of us believe we already know

What Is Your Team Afraid to Tell You? | A Bit of Optimism: Feelings at Work | PART 3

Giving and receiving feedback is one of the hardest things we do at work and most of us just... avoid it. But avoiding feedback has a cost. Everything you need to grow is

The Secret to Better Conversations Isn't Talking | A Bit of Optimism: Feelings at Work | PART 2

The fastest way to improve your relationships isn't talking. It's listening. Most of us hear what's being said. Very few of us know how to make someone feel heard. Feel

The Hidden Cost of Always Saying Yes | A Bit of Optimism: Feelings at Work | PART 1

Welcome to Feelings at Work, a special series from A Bit of Optimism with Simon Sinek.  Work isn't just about deadlines, meetings, and getting things done. It's also wher

Why We Fall for the Wrong Person with Couples Therapist Dr. Harville Hendrix

Maybe this sounds familiar: you fall hard for someone, and over a year later you're fighting about the very things that drew you to them in the first place. And you can't

How to Tell If Fear Is Protecting You or Holding You Back with Extreme Athlete Nelly Attar

We tell ourselves the reason we never chase the big dream is that we're not ready, not brave enough, doomed to fail. Nelly Attar would tell you she felt all of that too…

Remembering Bob Chapman: The Mentor Who Changed My Life

Sixteen years ago, an unknown CEO running a manufacturing company in the Midwest saw my TED Talk and recognized something in it. He sent me a letter and we made plans to

The AI Skills Nobody is Teaching (And Everyone Needs) with AI Expert Ethan Mollick

Be honest: AI makes you a little nervous. Maybe you're afraid it'll take your job. Maybe you're overwhelmed by all the advice about prompts and agents and which chatbot

How to Stop Letting Your Own Thoughts Make You Sick, Stressed, and Stuck with Dr. Ellen Langer

Most of us are so certain about, well, everything. We think we can predict what's coming, what that off-hand comment really meant, what that look was about, what's going

What Happens When You Stop Optimizing and Start Committing with Former LA Lakers President Tim Harris

In a world of job-hopping, side hustles, and an endless LinkedIn feed, Tim Harris did something almost no one does anymore. He stayed put. Few executives spend an entire

Revisited: Choose Your Seven Humans Wisely with Author Fredrik Backman

Hello from Team Simon! We're taking a quick break this week and will be back with brand-new episodes of A Bit of Optimism next Tuesday.  Until then, we're revisiting one

How to Stop Being Socially Awkward (According to Science) with Behavioral Scientist Vanessa Van Edwards

Maybe this sounds familiar: you leave a party and spend the rest of the night convinced everyone was upset with you. Or you replay something you said in a meeting for day

Stop Telling Us Everything Happens for a Reason with Anti-Victim Tom Nash

We often comfort ourselves with the idea that things happen for a reason, or define our struggles as a test of strength. Tom Nash might ask you to reconsider. Tom is a sp

The Real Reason You Feel Empty (Even When Life Looks Good) with Musician Mike Posner

If at some point, you've looked at your life—your job, your relationships, your achievements—and thought: “is this it?” This episode is for you.  Mike Posner had that mom

The Real Reason Young People Don't Have 'The Hunger' for Work (And What Leaders Need to Hear) with Generations Expert Dr. Eliza Filby

Admit it, you've complained about at least one other generation. Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z—somehow, they all end up with reputations built around what's wrong wi

The Leadership Advice Nobody Follows (But Everyone Should) with Top Leadership Expert Don Yaeger

The most successful leaders, coaches, and teams in history share one counterintuitive secret: their main focus wasn’t winning. And yet… they won more than everyone else.