ReThinking

What does it take to actually be the greatest of all time? Chuck Klosterman is a cultural critic who studies the lowbrow, taking a closer look at sports, music, and media to discover what it can tell us about society and human behavior. In this episode, Adam challenges Chuck on his controversial take that Tom Brady is not the greatest football player of all time, and the two wrestle with the definition of greatness in the context of modern culture. Chuck also argues that football is headed towards a decline as America’s favorite sport, and invites Adam to reconsider whether or not self-awareness is an advantageous trait. Featured guestFollow Chuck Klosterman on Facebook and at https://chuckklostermanauthor.com/Buy Chuck's book FootballConnect with the teamFollow Adam on Instagram, LinkedIn, and at adamgrant.net/Subscribe to Adam’s substack GrantedWatch ReThinking videos on YouTube at TEDAudioCollectiveFollow TED on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTokReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most of us assume data-driven people make data-driven decisions. Not quite. Adam Grant has built a career helping others think more clearly — but when it comes to his own career, the most important calls he’s made didn’t have clear data behind them. So how did he decide? In this first episode of WorkLife with Molly Graham, Adam joins Molly to talk about how he actually navigates uncertainty — the four questions he asks before committing to any big project, what he calls “deliberate then dive”, and how he measures success when the numbers don’t tell the whole story.WorkLife is a podcast from TED where host and company builder Molly Graham and her expert guests talk through the messy feelings we all experience at work. Ambition and failure, joy and burnout, confidence and self-doubt — this show digs into it all to help you build a career without losing yourself. Listen now: https://link.mgln.ai/BVK6SnReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aliza Pressman is a developmental psychologist who hosts the Raising Good Humans podcast. In this episode, Aliza and Adam dive into the evidence on effective parenting strategies, weighing the advantages and disadvantages of different styles and approaches from “gentle parenting” to “authoritative parenting.” They also reflect on ways that they have each faltered as parents, and suggest guidelines for parents to balance support and autonomy. And they identify which parenting skills are also hallmarks of good management and leadership.Featured guestFollow Aliza Pressman on Instagram, LinkedIn, and draliza.com/Connect with the teamFollow Adam on Instagram, LinkedIn, and at adamgrant.net/Subscribe to Adam’s substack GrantedWatch ReThinking videos on YouTube at TEDAudioCollectiveFollow TED on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTokReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sara Seager is an astrophysicist and planetary scientist whose research focuses on exoplanets—planets outside our solar system orbiting other stars. In this episode, Adam and Sara investigate the possibility of finding alien lifeforms in other solar systems or even on planets or moons closer to home, and Sara breaks down how scientists detect exoplanets and why this kind of science is so important for advancing discoveries here on Earth. They debate the likelihood of discovering intelligent alien life in our lifetime, and Sara reflects on the unique childhood circumstances that led to her groundbreaking work.Featured guestFollow Sara Seager on LinkedIn and at saraseager.com/Connect with the teamFollow Adam on Instagram, LinkedIn, and at adamgrant.net/Subscribe to Adam’s SubstackWatch ReThinking videos on YouTube at TEDAudioCollectiveFollow TED on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTokReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Zarna Garg is a stand-up comic, screenwriter, bestselling author, and one of the busiest people in comedy right now. But before she ever set foot onstage, she went to law school and tried her hand at entrepreneurship, failing at a vegan chili company, a tomato sauce brand, and even a matchmaking service. In this episode, Adam and Zarna reflect on how her daughter challenged her to consider a career pivot, debate the usefulness of a humanities degree, and break down the meticulous process that goes into developing a hit performance. Zarna also delivers some hot takes and tells the story of how she found her husband by posting a shockingly no-nonsense online ad.Featured guestFollow Zarna Garg on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and at zarnagarg.com/Connect with the teamFollow Adam on Instagram, LinkedIn, and at adamgrant.net/Subscribe to Adam’s SubstackWatch ReThinking videos on YouTube at TEDAudioCollectiveFollow TED on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTokReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you’ve ever wondered what “skibidi rizz” means or why kids are so obsessed with the number 67, Adam Aleksic wrote a book on it. Aleksic, better known at @etymologynerd online, is a 24-year-old linguist known for his enlightening and entertaining videos on the origin of words. In this episode, the two Adams discuss Aleksic’s new book Algospeak and the ways in which the internet is shaping the way we communicate both on and offline. Aleksic sheds light on the origins of the seemingly meaningless “brainrot” memes popular with Gen Z and Gen Alpha internet users, and reveals the complex and (sometimes) profound insights they have to offer about culture, the transmission of ideas and information, and how our access to language can change the way we see the world.Featured guestFollow Adam Aleksic on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and at etymologynerd.com/Buy AlgospeakConnect with the teamFollow Adam on Instagram, LinkedIn, and at adamgrant.net/Subscribe to Adam’s SubstackWatch ReThinking videos on YouTube at TEDAudioCollectiveFollow TED on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTokReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ken Burns has won countless awards for his documentary films on Mark Twain, Jackie Robinson, the American buffalo, baseball, the Civil War—and his latest takes on the American Revolution. In this two-part episode, Adam and Ken discuss the importance of origin stories and how they help us to construct a collective identity and narrative about ourselves. Ken reflects on his research about George Washington and the nuance required to tell stories about complicated, contradictory people throughout history, and he and Adam unpack why we’re so hesitant to recognize the flaws in our heroes. They also explore what makes a great leader and the building blocks of a compelling story.Featured guestFollow Ken Burns on Facebook, YouTube, and at kenburns.com/Connect with the teamFollow Adam on Instagram, LinkedIn, and at adamgrant.net/Subscribe to Adam’s SubstackWatch ReThinking videos on YouTube at TEDAudioCollectiveFollow TED on X, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTokReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith.For the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcripts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.