Being a leader of any organization today may be more difficult than ever. What enables some leaders to thrive while others fail? What are some of the qualities and actions vital for success?

Vik Malhotra, McKinsey and Company’s Chairman of the Americas, shares his insights from interviewing and advising today’s elite business leaders. He is a co-author of the New York Times bestseller, CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest.

How can we reduce or neutralize unconscious bias? It’s a critical question these days – especially with DEI in mind – answered by an expert: Iris Bohnet, the former Academic Dean of the Kennedy School and co-Director of the Women and Public Policy Program. She calls it “unfreezing” our minds, and offers some surprisingly simple solutions.

“Education runs on lies. That’s probably not what you’d expect from a former Secretary of Education, but it’s the truth.” Arne Duncan exposes the lies and the broken system that have caused American kids to fall behind. He also shares what really works.

The research is in, and it shows that a large part of being successful is understanding how to form the right habits. In fact, forming habits can be more important than willpower and self-control.

Wendy Wood, noted USC Psychology Professor, shares some of her research findings and simple strategies that enable many people to live successful, satisfying lives. She is the author of Good Habits, Bad Habits: The Science of Making Positive Changes That Stick. 

Steve Jobs once said that the biggest innovations in the 21st century would be at the intersection of biology and technology. Nature offers tantalizing examples of the magical properties of biology—self-assembly, self-repair, self-replication and more. 

Jason Kelly, co-founder and CEO of Ginkgo Bioworks, shares his dream of harnessing nature by reading and writing DNA to program cells like we program computers.

Ginkgo is a synthetic biology company that programs cells for customers in the pharmaceutical, food, agriculture and energy industries.

Laughter, it turns out, is not primarily a response to humor. Neuroscientist Sophie Scott CBE shares why we laugh, how it works and the many sins it covers. 

We explore how laughter bonds us, where it breaks us, and the ways we use it. We should all bring a greater sense of understanding and intention to our laughter. Sophie Scott is a neuroscientist and professor at UCL whose research focuses on the science of laughter.  

The president of Princeton University Investment Company (PRINCO), which manages Princeton’s endowment, talks about investing in today’s world. Andy Golden shares how he selects partners, evaluates investments, and creates a winning environment. PRINCO recently earned nearly a 50% return in a single year. 

Andy also explores the differences in long term and short term investing and how a ten year time horizon is short term for endowments. PRINCO is one of the highest performing endowments in the world.

Dr. Eric Topol explains how we can prepare for the next pandemic, including having stockpiles of variant proof vaccines for the families that are most likely to cause pandemics besides coronavirus and influenza. He also shares recent breakthroughs in medicine which will improve accuracy and diagnosis.

Dr. Topol is the founder of Scripps Research. 

David Gergen, White House Advisor to four presidents, warns us about our failing democracy. He shares how our current government has moved from being able to work across the aisle to create win-win outcomes to creating a win-lose environment stoked by an environment of anger. He reminds us that Millennials and Gen Z are capable and available to step up to the plate if we would just let them, and gives us insights into what makes great leaders. 

David Gergen has advised both Republican and Democratic presidents including Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. He is currently a senior political analyst at CNN and professor at Harvard. His newest book is Hearts Touched with Fire: How Great Leaders are Made.

This podcast is available on all major podcast streaming platforms. Did you enjoy this episode? Consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts.

Receive updates on upcoming guests and more in our weekly e-mail newsletter. Subscribe today at www.3takeaways.com  

Just as there was nothing inevitable about WW1 which came about because of flawed decisions by political and military leaders, former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd worries that mutual non-comprehension and deep suspicion may lead the US and China into war. He believes that an armed conflict between China and the US is a real possibility. The Chinese Communist Party would see itself as fighting for its very survival in a war and a conventional war could easily escalate into one involving weapons of mass destruction, if Chinese forces begin to lose.

Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has studied and lived in China and has worked with China’s leaders, including Xi Jinping, for decades. His new book is The Avoidable War: The Dangers of a Catastrophic Conflict Between the US and Xi Jinping’s China.