Big Questions with Cal Fussman: Recent Episodes
Curiosity Media
As a bestselling author, speaker and one of the greatest interviewers of this generation, Cal Fussman has sat down with some of the world’s most influential individuals: Muhammad Ali, Mikhail Gorbachev, Serena Williams, Jeff Bezos, Jack Welch, John Wooden, Al Pacino and hundreds of others, digging deep into their hearts and delivering their wisdom to the rest of the world.
Now, in Big Questions, Cal continues his journey. Uncovering the heart, head, and soul of his guests in thoughtful, deep and entertaining conversations.
"If you want to know what life's like when you're not the apex of intelligence, ask a chicken."That's the line that Geoffrey Hinton, the Nobel Prize-winning "Godfather of AI" dropped on Steven Bartlett's podcast. It stopped Cal cold. Along with a lot of other people. One of them was a digital anthropologist and best-selling author named Brian Solis, who's spent decades watching technology unfold. To Solis, Hinton's statement felt in the moment like we had reached The End. But when Cal caught up with Brian a year later, he found that the anthropologist had adapted and made a case for what's possible. It's all in the book he co-wrote with Dave Wright that's titled: Infinite. Cal's conversation with Brian did something he never expected. It made him think about himself, for the first time, as a leader. Stay tuned . . .
Everybody's telling you that AI is coming for your job. Kevin Surace is here to tell you what they're not telling you. Kevin's the father of the artificial assistant. A CNBC Top Innovator of the Decade. He's the holder of more than 90 patents. And now he's the author of The Joy-Success Cycle – a book that is going to make you happy. Kevin has spent decades watching new technology arrive, and he's never once seen it destroy more than it creates. The headlines may chase the 90,000 jobs lost to AI. Kevin's counting the 364,000 jobs that didn't exist three years ago. That's because they didn't have "AI" in the title at the time. Cal makes a case that the coming labor shortage nobody's talking about is a much bigger story than the layoffs everybody is. Kevin has the numbers to prove it. So be joyful. In 30 minutes you're going to see the world in a new way.
A patient kept showing up in the Emergency Room. Most insurance reps would approve or decline each claim and move on. One customer service representative at Devoted Health called to ask the patient why there were so many repeated visits. Didn't take long for the rep to discover the problem. It was created by mold in the patient's home. The deeper problem was the patient had no money to move. The rep didn't just flag it. She got the company to help the patient move to a new and safe place. Eric Ries tells this story in his latest book, Incorruptible, as proof of something AI can't replicate: the instinct to ask the right question and respond to the answer as if the patient were a family member. On this episode, Cal and Eric talk about what happens when a business defines its product as love. And why there are no algorithms that can compete with the human touch when it comes to generating supreme loyalty.
Cal has a suspicion that the little-known K Economy explains more about where the world is headed than most of what you hear on the news. So he reaches out to one of the world's most masterful interpreters of geopolitics and finance to break it down for the Big Questions audience. As founder of Tanto Capital, Ozan Ozkural flies from one city to the next — advising boards, governments, and investors across the globe, meeting kings, presidents, and financial leaders along the way. Cal met Ozan a decade ago through his pal Larry King, and Ozan became a regular at their breakfast table whenever he was in LA. Ozan is that rare guest who can jump from quantum computing to the Medici family in Renaissance Italy to the future of Chinese demographics in the same conversation. In this episode, Ozan decodes the K Economy down to a level of human evolution that leaves even Cal stunned.
We've all heard how AI has been eliminating entry level jobs. Byron V. Garrett has a different story to tell. He's a Time Magazine Visionary Honoree and CEO of Genesys Works, and he runs a draft day. Not for football. Not for basketball. For high school students from the most underserved zip codes in the country, drafted by JP Morgan, Target, Deloitte, and 240 other companies across 9 cities. Seventy five percent of these students start earning more than one of their parents, sometimes both, for internships while they're still in high school. Ninety percent go on to college. Since 2002, more than 14,000 kids have come through this pipeline. This isn't the AI story you've been told. There's no doomsday. No dystopia. Just proof that the right training turns kids who might be overlooked into in-demand hires.
For the first time, you can ask Cal what you want to know about asking better questions. About your next podcast. A business move. A personal situation. Cal will get back to you personally with the help of AI. AI Cal isn't trained on the internet. It's trained on Cal. On five decades of conversations with U.S. presidents, world leaders like Nelson Mandela and Mikhail Gorbachev, Muhammad Ali, Serena Williams, Robert De Niro, Kobe Bryant, and thousands of others who've shaped how he thinks about questions, trust, and listening. The man who made it possible is Rob LoCascio. Rob built the first web chat and turned it into a company worth $3.5 billion. After outside investors squeezed him out, his response was to build something entirely new: UARE.ai. You'll hear Rob's story in this episode and understand why it gripped Cal as he prepares to become a grandfather. UARE.ai is how he plans to pass on what he knows, long after he's gone. You can have access to it now at UARE.ai.
The change in front of all of us right now may be the most radical humans have ever faced. Who do you want guiding you through it? Courtney Harrison would be an intriguing choice. She's a rare breed of HR leader — one who doesn't just advise organizations on change, but who puts people inside the experience of it and shows them they're capable of far more than they believed. She once strapped corporate leaders into Olympic bobsleds hurtling at 90 miles an hour while gravity made their bodies feel four times as heavy. And then there's the match she and her colleague, Alicia Mandel. arranged between a group of high-flying CEOs and the USA Olympic women's volleyball team — with a dramatic twist that made the CEOs see themselves in a new light. This episode is all about stepping through fear and navigating the change we're seeing right now. Courtney is talking straight to you . . . and everyone else.
Every teacher struggling with AI use in the classroom needs to hear this episode. Jamie Metzl has a Ph.D. from Oxford, a law degree from Harvard, and has run 60 marathons. He spent nine years writing his first book. When he sat down to co-write The AI Ten Commandments with GPT-5 he didn't surrender his thinking, creativity or his soul. Jamie doubled down by documenting the process. It's the first major published book to list a human and an AI as co-authors. Steve Wozniak, one of the founders of Apple, summed it up like this: "If you care about the future, read this book." To which I'll add: It not only takes the best from our collective past. It draws a roadmap for students to get the most out of themselves by working with AI instead of hiding behind it. Teachers can use the process to see how and what students have learned. Please pass this podcast and Jamie's book on to every teacher you know. And students, too.
Cal resumes his conversation with Dr. David Bach, the Harvard-trained neuroscientist who is about to give you an opportunity to upgrade your brain. Dr. Bach is the founder of Optios. His company's work is unlocking a door to a new kind of human potential. Cal learns how Optios will help him get in the zone to learn about the science he could never pay attention to when he was in junior high school. His conversations with Dr. Bach are starting to pay off. Cal is now fascinated with how Rory McIlroy will be able to shave strokes off his golf game. And how you'll be able to get better at learning whatever matters most to you by dancing with AI. The simulation Dr. Bach describes in this episode works in the lab. Soon it'll be coming to you. In the meantime, Big Questions has upgraded to allow you to watch visually. If you'd like, check it out on youtube.com/bigquestionspodcast.
Charles Gaudet has coached thousands of CEOs over the years. Yahoo Finance has called him "The CEO Whisperer." In this episode, Cal asks him to turn what he's learned toward a big question: What can everybody do to protect their jobs in the age of AI? Charles has some answers. The employees who thrive will be the ones who use AI to make themselves more valuable by leveling up their productivity. Here's the best part. To do so, you don't need the right answers. You just need to come up with the right questions.
Graduation stages across America erupted in boos this spring when AI came up. That anxiety isn't just for new grads. It's felt by anyone wondering whether they still have a place in a world being reshaped by technology. This episode of Big Questions: The Future of Work tackles that fear head-on. Cal brings in Jay Samit — former Independent Vice Chairman of Deloitte Digital and bestselling author of Disrupt You, Future Proofing You, and most recently Second Act Advantage — for a conversation that's less about artificial intelligence and more about human intelligence: how to think, adapt, and find your edge no matter where you are in life or career. And that's not all, there's a travel story from our sponsor, Moments, by LuxuryConciergeTravel.com that starts like a Chevy Chase National Lampoon film and ends up with real life smiles. If you're walking across a graduation stage, fearful of a "job-pocalypse" in midlife or wondering what your next chapter looks like in retirement, this episode will give you a lift.
In an age when AI has everyone asking what's next for humans, Cal goes looking for answers. He finds them in some unexpected places. A five-year-old girl who walked through a Transylvanian forest to save her sister's life. A New York publicist who followed a hunch to Charlotte and built something nobody had ever seen before. And a guy with a borrowed bicycle who turned a single crazy idea into a quarter-century movement that has raised $31 million for cancer victims. These aren't tech stories. They're human ones. And the thing that connects them is that irreplaceable gut instinct that no algorithm can replicate. It just might be the most important skill you have right now. Big Questions: The Future of Work with Cal Fussman. Every Tuesday. Powered by Moments.
Cal opens this deeply personal episode of Big Questions with a flood of remarkable medical breakthroughs. 3D-printed windpipes. A pancreatic cancer drug that doubles survival rates. Nanotechnology clearing toxic proteins from the body. And he explains why he's sharing them: to balance the grief of losing his friend Sally, a highly-ranked senior tennis player taken too soon by gallbladder cancer. Out of that grief, Cal finds promise. From a man who rode a bike for 24 straight hours 25 years ago who's gone on to raise $31 million for cancer patients. To a vision of the future where technology doesn't kill jobs — it creates them. This episode is exactly what Cal is promising as his podcast evolves toward the Future of Work. Sunshine. Even through difficult times. It'll be a Central Park for the soul. See you every Tuesday.
A professor at an elite university noticed something alarming: every student's work was flawless . . . and nearly identical. All of it generated by AI. So she did the unthinkable (for the students, anyway). She banned devices and allowed only pen and paper. What happened next surprised everyone, including her students. But going Old School isn't the overall point of this episode. Cal uses this story to give a taste of the evolution of his podcast Big Questions: The Future of Work. In this episode, best-selling author Jamie Metzl describes how he used the work ethic he'd developed over decades to combine with the speed and scope of AI in the writing of his new book: The AI Ten Commandments. Meanwhile CEO coach Charles Gaudet predicts how we are close to a day when people will apply for jobs with AI at their side. Job applicants will soon hear the phrase BYOA. That's: Bring Your Own Agents. In both cases, this runway answers the question of how to get the best out of ourselves and AI together. With Old School values and New Age tools.
Cal stumbles on a Chinese company offering to digitally resurrect the dead for three dollars. His first thought? Larry King would have loved this. In this episode, Cal sits down with Larry King Jr. to explore what it really means to preserve a life. The stories. The voice. The questions. From Larry Sr's relentless chase for immortality. To the Larry King Cardiac Foundation that literally saved hundreds of hearts. To the bobblehead-sized AI facsimile that might one day let your great-great- grandchildren hear your voice. It all adds up to a conversation about legacy, technology, and what we leave behind. Plus! The story of how Larry Zeiger became Larry King in ten minutes flat through a liquor ad and a door that was kicked down.
What if AI didn't replace you — it made you a better you? Dr. David Bach, Harvard-trained neuroscientist and founder of Optios, is using artificial intelligence to help people think faster, learn better, retain more, and perform at their peak. He's stepping into what is his most consequential work yet while others his age are out on the golf course. From walking on fire to unlocking the science of "the zone" this conversation offers something rare in the age of AI: genuine hope. Cal says: If you know someone who feels unsettled by artificial intelligence, send them this episode.
Cal was 12 years old, bored out of his mind in junior high science class, waiting for the bell to ring. He had no idea his wandering brain was doing exactly what it was built to do – tell stories. We all carry the most extraordinary thing in the known universe around with us every day — and never really stop to look into it. This episode of Big Questions does just that. Cal sits with Claude — Anthropic's AI — for a chat about consciousness, memory, gut intelligence, and what the brain is actually up to when we think it's doing nothing. Along the way, Cal finds out how a boy from Michigan who also wasn't paying attention in class changed the digital world. And how a scientist on the cutting edge is asking the most important performance question of our time. But mostly, this episode is an invitation. To slow down and get acquainted with the blob between your ears that has been with you every moment of your life. You might be surprised by what you find. . .
What do Clint Eastwood, a Montana snowstorm, and a herd of cattle have to do with artificial intelligence? Cal starts with the romance of the old cattle drives and the sound of the old show Rawhide, remembers the pull of the open range and a freezing night that made him question whether he'd even make it to the ranch alive. Then he finds something on the internet that stops him cold. No cowboys. Just cows . . . being guided by AI. The technology inside a cow collar is being called a "Cowgorithm." That discovery leads somewhere unexpected—into a late-night experiment with AI that stretches until sunrise… and opens a door Cal didn't see coming. Step inside.
Cal Fussman walks into a theater expecting to see a documentary about artificial intelligence. He walks out with a new understanding of the future of work. Through a surprising connection to Super Mario, a landlord named Mario Segale, and the power of human serendipity, he uncovers a simple truth: The people who adapt will thrive. The ones who don't may disappear. If you've ever wondered whether AI is something to fear—or something to grow with—this story will change how you see what's coming next.
After watching Project Hail Mary, Cal sees more than a sci-fi story about saving the stars—he sees a blueprint for how humans might survive the age of AI. That insight leads him to a real-life story even more extraordinary. When tech founder Sid Sijbrandij is diagnosed with a rare, aggressive cancer, the traditional medical system eventually runs out of answers. Most people would accept that outcome. Sid does the opposite. He treats his own disease like an open- source problem—gathering data, building a team, and chasing solutions across the globe with the same mindset that helped build GitLab into a billion-dollar company. With the help of AI, Cal translates this complex scientific journey into a human story anyone can follow. One that's filled with pancakes, partnerships, love, and a radical idea: What if the future of survival—against disease, against uncertainty, against AI itself—belongs to those who adapt fastest? This episode is about more than cancer. It's about how humans fight back.
The headlines keep leading us to believe that AI is coming for your job. But Cal Fussman poses a question no one else is asking. If humans stop earning… who's left to buy what AI and the machines produce? As companies race toward automation, Nvidia's Jensen Huang insists new human jobs will be created. Cal believes him. The catch? Many of those jobs may not exist just yet. This episode points to the evolution of Big Questions into something bigger. Big Questions: The Future of Work. A place to step away from the dystopian drumbeat and be excited about what happens next.
Cal plans to go out to the theater to watch the actor save the universe in Project Hail Mary. Cal doesn't know exactly what's going to happen, but he sees the plot as the perfect metaphor for how humans must look at the work in the age of AI. Gosling plays a middle school science teacher who wakes up in a rocket and can't remember, only to use the skills he has to save the universe. We're all going to have to step and find the best in ourselves as we look at work going forward. The movie may be an inspiring way to see humanity's future.
An electric razor is mistaken for a bomb. Security lines explode in Houston, New Orleans and Charlotte. TSA workers are on the job without pay. So Cal flips the script. Show up hours early and turn airport stress into productive work time that can create a bestseller and more. It's not whistling while you work. But in March 2026 . . . it works.
One future says the most human people win. The other says your job costs too much. Gary Vaynerchuk believes that as we become more "AI-ed out," the most human brands and people will dominate. Citrini Research predicts something far colder: Within two years, a Claude agent may do the work of a $180,000 product manager for $200 a month. And when that happens? The top 10% may control over half of all consumer spending. So which future is real? The one where humanity becomes more valuable? Or the one where intelligence becomes a utility? Cal gives you a closer look at both.
One of the richest men in the world quietly became the largest private owner of farmland in America. Why? Is Bill Gates retreating from technology? Or is he making the most important AI bet of all? In this episode, Cal reads from an article that reframes everything. Gates' farmland strategy isn't nostalgia. It's a blueprint for the next economy. AI will build the digital world for free. But every digital system still depends on something finite. Land. If you want to understand where the 21st-century fortunes will be made — and what that means for your future — this episode is for you.
As the world worked on last week, something exploded online. An article about AI by Matt Shumer was posted on X. It has already been downloaded more than 80 million times. The title? Something Big Is Happening. The implications couldn't be more personal. Your job. Your family. Your future. Instead of summarizing it or debating it, Cal does something simple and Old School on Big Questions. He reads it aloud. Not as commentary. But as a marker in time. If you haven't come across Something Big Is Happening, you might want to look up from your work and listen.
Fifteen of the 66 Super Bowl ads this year featured artificial intelligence. Then Mike Tyson appeared on screen. . .and ate an apple. No algorithms. No spectacle. Just a former heavyweight champion telling America to stop consuming what's destroying it. In a culture addicted to speed, processed food, and machine-enhanced everything, Tyson's message was about discipline. Bringing up a Big Question: What if the most disruptive force in 2026 isn't artificial intelligence? What if it's human restraint? Cal looks at why the most impactful ad during the Super Bowl was the simplest one.
What does it really take to reach your peak? The answer lies in the Netflix documentary Skyscraper Live, as climbing legend Alex Honnold scales Taipei 101, the tallest building in Taiwan, one move at a time. Watching him ascend the 1,667-foot glass and steel tower as if he were Spider-Man reveals a deceptively simple formula for mastery: Total focus on making your next best move.
Larry King used to tell me: "Nobody loves a hurricane like the weatherman." I learned exactly what he meant during the last winter storm — when the forecast was certain… and reality had other plans. It's why I've stopped trusting forecasts the way I trust people.
A brief encounter with Buddhist monks on their walk for peace from Fort Worth to Washington, D.C., leads Cal to wonder what Martin Luther King Jr. might have thought if he'd seen the large crowd of Americans gathered in gratitude for their journey.
A high school student named Matteo Paz uses old NASA data and new AI to find 1.5 million objects never noticed before in space (including planets in other solar systems). AI can now predict 130 diseases (including heart ailments, kidney failure and strokes) based on studying one night of sleep. And a school called Alpha uses only AI tutors, teaches core academics for only two hours a day and achieves top scores. Don't be late for the future.
In the age of artificial intelligence, it isn't a machine that stops Cal in his tracks—it's a deeply human idea. What if playing a video game could help fight cancer? Thanks to Travis Jennings and a small group of friends, a chain reaction begins—turning gamers with little money of their own into philanthropists. A breakout company called Besitos matches their winnings with donations to the American Cancer Society and bridges the cause to the $60 billion video game industry.
Imagine a mind that can solve a Rubik's Cube in 17 seconds. A mind that contributed to the development of OpenAI. A mind that directed AI for Elon Musk at Tesla. A mind named one of Time Magazine's Top 100 in artificial intelligence. Now imagine that same mind encountering recent, almost "alien" advances in programming—so startling they prompted a public admission: "I have never felt so behind." If someone like that can't keep up, what does it mean for the rest of us? We're entering a world we may not soon recognize. For Cal, that realization leads to a simple conclusion: This New Year isn't about racing machines—it's about reclaiming what they can't replace.
When Cal visits an old mentor, he's struck by two realizations. First: Some of the most profound moments in a young person's life can happen in entry-level jobs, when the right person takes you in, opens a door, and points you on the right path. Second: As artificial intelligence wipes out many of those first jobs, it will also erase those connections and moments. What disappears isn't just work. It's mentorship. It's the quiet bonds that shape confidence, character, and destiny. What will happen to a generation shaped without them? And an even bigger question: How might we be able to preserve them?
There are those believe artificial intelligence will cure cancer, reverse global warming, and unlock human potential. There are others who believe it will end everything we know. For the first time in history, both sides may be right. We are living inside the most consequential argument humanity has ever had — and the clock is ticking.
When Cal returns to Tampa's Ybor City to speak, he keeps a ritual that's become almost sacred: a meal at the legendary 120-year-old Columbia Restaurant, followed by a quiet moment of thanks to the man who first sent him there — Muhammad Ali's doctor, the renowned Ferdie Pacheco. Ferdie wasn't just the "Fight Doctor." He was an artist, a storyteller, and a man with a taste for a good practical joke. After his meal, Cal goes to pay tribute to Ferdie through his painting that hangs near The Columbia's kitchen. Only this time, the painting is gone, and it feels to Cal like an old friend has vanished. What happened next left Cal with a twist he couldn't see coming — and a hint that destiny sometimes whispers through the strangest openings. Listen in to hear the story unfold.
The future may not be hiding in Silicon Valley. It could be hidden in your childhood. When a bright young grad sits down at Cal's Thanksgiving table worried about AI layoffs and disappearing careers, Cal offers an unexpected roadmap: Don't try to predict the future . . . remember it. Some of the greatest innovators didn't choose their path — their childhood chose it for them. In this episode, Cal shows how a single moment from your early life can reveal where you're meant to go next in an AI-shaken world. If you're wondering what job will survive the robots, why not start with the kid you used to be, then project forward.
Here is a question Cal never thought he'd ask. Let's just say a human marries an AI and they get divorced. Does ChatGPT get the alimony? This is the way we need to begin thinking after news came out that a Japanese woman married an AI bot. Buckle your seatbelts. It's the groundswell of statistics on the romantic mingling between humans and AI that will raise your eyebrows to the middle of your forehead.
When Cal looks back on his life, he sees a relentless drive that's guided him to his 69th birthday: Never be bored. His past reveals a simple truth. Boredom ends where curiosity begins.
Cal looks over a bountiful breakfast menu and remembers the statistics he heard about kids going hungry in Tampa Bay — a city that, through his traveler's eyes, appears to be flourishing. When you hear the numbers, you'll understand how giving just a little can make this your best Thanksgiving ever.
When Kobe Bryant watched the Eagles win Super Bowl 52 on television, he wasn't alone — he was holding his 1-year-old daughter, Bianka, in his arms. That moment, captured on home video, wasn't just about football. It was about the way a team becomes a language between generations. Rewatching that clip sends Cal into a reflection of his own: the passion for sporting events his father passed on to him, and the emotions he passed on to his son. This episode is about the deep inheritance that lives inside sports — identity, loyalty and love. The Los Angeles Dodgers recent World Series win shows Cal how the games can outlive us in the hearts of the people we leave behind.
After actress and author Suzanne Somers passed away, her husband couldn't let go — so he brought her back. Not in memory. But as an AI twin. He created a life-like humanoid to converse with in her voice and keep her spirit alive. When Cal hears the story, questions linger: Is this a way to deal with grief? Or is it evolution? And are there advantages to passing on the lessons and wisdom of a life for generations through something we can build to look and sound just like us?
Everything An unexpected e-mail sends Cal spiraling back to a conversation with the actor Johnny Depp — and to Ernest Hemingway's brush with death in back-to-back plane crashes. When Cal opens a book titled What Do You Want to Do Before You Die? he encounters a question that awakens our wildest dreams and forces us to look in the mirror.
A police van that drives itself, launches drones, reads license plates, and streams live infrared video straight to headquarters. Miami-Dade just unveiled it. A cruiser with no cops inside. Cal explores the next wave of law enforcement: part innovation, part surveillance. It's the kind of technology that makes some people uneasy — but after learning that 1 in 93 Americans die in traffic accidents, Cal is all in if the cruiser can help get reckless drivers off the road.
In a week when companies propose growing human eggs from male skin and gestating babies inside robots, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is seen in a viral video shoplifting at Target — bringing laugher to some and raising a chilling question to others: what if we can no longer trust our eyes? We’re entering a moment where biotech, AI, and deepfakes collide — and our sense of reality begins to blur. Cal asks: Have we stepped into a world where nothing is real? Or a world where everything is unreal?
Roughly 1 in 93 Americans will die in a car accident. According to the National Safety Council, that’s the math—even after seatbelts, airbags, sensors, and the smartest cars we’ve ever built. Cal found that out the hard way, after being rear-ended by a cement truck on a Connecticut highway. The crash led him to uncover not just some shocking statistics, but also a simple, overlooked way we can fight back against a killer on our roads: distraction.
Cal comes upon a book called The Fourth Turning Is Here which suggests that we’re in a historical cycle of crisis when institutions collapse and a new world order emerges. Then he walks through the natural institution known as Central Park and sees a world view that couldn’t be better. A short message to think about . . .
Two dates. Separated by decades. Bound by a thread we’d all prefer didn’t exist. Cal revisits the first—a day etched in memory that too many now treat as common behavior. He weighs the second—fresh in the headlines, heavy in the heart—and wonders if it’s a shadow of what lies ahead. The connections aren’t obvious. They aren’t supposed to be. But once you hear them, you won’t forget.
Raveling passed away early this month at 88 after living a life shaped by being in the right place at the right time — and knowing what to do when he got there. As a boy, after losing his father and seeing his mother institutionalized, he found stability at a Catholic boarding school. That path led him to become the first African-American basketball player at Villanova … to meet coaching legend Bobby Knight … to join the U.S. Olympic coaching staff in 1984, where he met a young Michael Jordan’s and helped guide Jordan toward a Nike contract that would change sports, culture, and business forever. But Raveling’s greatest “right place, right time” moment? Standing at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963, when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had just finished speaking. Raveling asked for a copy of the speech — and King handed him the original “I Have a Dream” manuscript. A lesson to all of us on how to get the most out of our moments.
Billie Eilish was just 13 when she recorded the song Ocean Eyes in the bedroom of her home and her brother Finneas uploaded it to SoundCloud. Within weeks, hundreds of thousands had listened to it. That’s how one haunting voice changed pop forever. Now, Cal’s friend Phillip is a finalist for SoundCloud’s Tomorrow’s Breakthrough Artist Award. He’s not the next Billie — he’s the first Phillip. And his story will stop you cold and make you want to root for him.
Cal was ready to dump his storage bins of CDs, tape cassettes, and DVDs — until he discovered a twist: the world is racing back to the very things he was about to throw away. Parents are pulling out old DVD players so their kids can choose movies without being spoon-fed by algorithms. Taylor Swift just announced her next album will also drop on cassette. And suddenly “Old School Cal” looks like he’s ahead of the curve. In this episode, Cal explores why physical media is making a comeback in the Age of AI, what it says about trust, choice, and control — and how sometimes the stuff we think is obsolete becomes in vogue all over again.
Cal sits down with Jeff Burningham, author of The Last Book Written by a Human, to unpack the AI tidal wave about to hit classrooms, boardrooms, governments, and even religions. This isn’t doomscrolling—it’s a positive roadmap through the disruption ahead. If you want to become wise in the age of AI, start here.
The NFL passed on Shedeur Sanders — son of Deion “Prime Time” Sanders — through the first four rounds of its 2025 draft, despite the quarterback’s two electric seasons in college with Heisman trophy winner Travis Hunter. It felt eerily like the way algorithms reject qualified people in the job market. Shedeur’s notoriety and connections got him a shot . . . and his exhibition season debut with the Cleveland Browns proved doubters wrong. Here’s what his story can teach you about surviving in a world where the first gatekeeper isn’t human: Make sure you’re connected.
Jim Carrey’s $10 Million Lesson Cal has an epiphany as he’s giving one of his storytelling workshops. He’s able to tie the thought to the moment in 1985 when a down and out actor named Jim Carrey wrote a check to himself for $10 million to be cashed 10 years later when he became a film star. The $10 million did come to Carrey ten years later with the release of the hit Dumb and Dumber. Cal wonders how to visualize the most out of yourself even when you don’t believe you’re talented in a particular area. The answer applies to everyone and you might want to use it. Check out the episode.
On a sunny Sunday morning, Cal shares breakfast with friends—when a woman reveals how a shady third-party travel site jacked up her airline ticket price. It was no fluke: The company is flooded with complaints on Yelp. The story sparks a deeper question in Cal: what’s happened to trust in our time? That question is answered by billionaire investor Mark Cuban: “In three years, AI will flood us with so much fake video, we won’t know what’s real anymore. That’s why face-to-face meetings, events and jobs will explode.” Could AI be pushing us back toward face-to-face connections and a renaissance in trust? Listen up!
It was during the pandemic when Cal first realized how many people were searching for mental health professionals and couldn’t find them. Cal wished everyone could have access to the best therapist he’s ever met – Sallie Sanborn. But nearly 40 percent of Americans now live in what’s called Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas. So it should be no surprise that artificial intelligence has stepped into the void. Cal talks with Neil Parikh, one of the founders of TalkToAsh.com about the app that is very different breed of AI than ChatGPT. It’s not an assistant that follows commands. It questions like a therapist and has helped many of the 50,000 people who’ve tested it. It launches today. And for now, it’s free.
Cal has long believed the best way to avoid regret is to really listen when someone talks about theirs. One answer came to him during an interview with the actor Robert De Niro. Another, just recently, from the Godfather of Artificial Intelligence on a podcast. Both answers led Cal to a day he’ll never forget—and they just might lead you to one, too.
Cal hears an interview with Kevin O’Leary – Mr. Wonderful on Shark Tank -- that puts into focus the loss of jobs coming with the onset of AI. Then he sees a robot cleaning floors at the convenience store of his gas station. And he wonders about the possibility and potential of Universal Basic Income in a world where there may not be that many jobs for humans to find. That leads Cal to Bill Gates and some thoughts on UBI that you definitely want to hear.
Cal reads a Wall Street Journal story about a graduation speech that ends with the audience asked to sing Bill Withers’ Lean On Me—a soulful anthem for uncertain times. The Class of ’25 faces a tough job market. Internships are disappearing to AI. Roughly 70% of Americans say they don’t trust companies to use artificial intelligence responsibly. And only one in six people are using it at work. Many who don’t use it are fearful of trying. Instead of commiserating, Cal makes a case for collaboration. He believes AI can help us unlock our most creative selves—and shape a future that feels more like
After speaking at a CREW conference in Texas, Cal meets a smart young Uber driver who was curious about the number of jobs that we can anticipate losing in America because of AI. The driver wanted to know what the lives of Americans who’d most likely lose their jobs were going to look like, and how these people might get by and transition. Cal finds some answers from Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, and Geoffrey Hinton, the Godfather of Artificial Intelligence. He also discovers a half-helicopter/half-airplane taxi service that looks like a job for the future as we head into the age of the Jetsons. Listen up and get to the cutting edge.
When an interview on AI and the future of warfare gets postponed by the birth of a child,Cal turns to the web to satisfy his curiosity on the topic —and stumbles upon something larger than he expected. What he finds is a fresh way to look at conflict in the age of intelligent machines… and an idea that could change everything. It’s simple. It’s ancient. And it’s something Elon Musk says may be our last best hope: curiosity. Tune in—this episode might just rewire how you see the future of war… and peace.
Cal reads about artificial intelligence models that have written their own code in order to escape being shut down. He ponders the friction between the light side and dark side of AI as he mourns the passing of the photographer Sebastiao Salgado, who made a life of finding the best in humanity in some of the darkest times imaginable. Sebastiao and his wife, Lelia, replanted a denuded ranch in Brazil that had lost its birds and animals with 2.5 million trees and restored it into a pristine forest, leaving behind a powerful legacy of light over darkness.
Cal takes a breath of fresh air after a friend goes through double lung-transplant surgery and comes out with a new life. This story will make anyone with a medical problem wonder about the possibilities of medicine in the age of AI.
What kind of person runs 1,000 kilometers in 12 days – twice? Meet Natalie Dau, a Guinness World Record holder who doesn’t just push the limits of human endurance — she redefines them. Cal dives deep with Natalie to uncover how she uses pain as fuel, movement as a message, and her voice — amplified by AI — to raise money, shift perspectives, and help people live better lives. But beneath the inspiration lies a bigger global question: What happens to a world divided between those who have access to AI – and those who don’t? This is not just a conversation about running. It’s about resilience, purpose, technology and inequality -- and what happens when they all collide. Listen now. Share widely. The world needs this story.
In times when college students are using artificial intelligence to answer even introductory course questions like: “Briefly introduce yourself and say what you’re hoping to get out of this class?” we really have to wonder about how education is going to adapt to a future where students delegate nearly all their classwork to AI. Cal speaks with James D. Walsh after Walsh’s New York Magazine article revealed a seismic shift that’s redefining the word “cheating” and nudging teachers to think about finding new professions.
In ten years, we’ll create content as fast as we can think it. That’s what the owner of a cutting-edge AI studio told Cal—and something clicked. This wasn’t just about technology. It was about humanity, about carbon merging with code. That’s when Cal decided to document the great unfolding: The evolution of our species as we begin to step into the future with artificial minds. This podcast isn’t exactly Charles Darwin sketching “I think” above the first evolutionary tree before going on the path to write The Origin of The Species. But maybe something unforgettable will come of Cal’s work that touches every life it reaches. Cal welcomes you to the next chapter of Us.
After a devastating rugby injury to his spine seven years ago to this day, Robert Paylor was told he'd never walk again and the best he could hope for would be to one day be able to pick up a slice of pizza. He’s defied every expectation—standing to receive his college diploma and walking today with the help of a walker. In this episode, Robert shares the mindset that rewired his future, and Cal explores how breakthroughs in AI could one day remove the walker entirely. This is more than a comeback story. It’s a masterclass in overcoming adversity, reshaping identity, and pushing past limits—no matter the odds. If you’re facing any kind of challenge, this conversation will give you strength. Share it with someone who needs hope today.
A single year can easily get lost in time or echo for centuries. A thought-provoking conversation with Simon Sinek makes Cal take a look back at 1925, 1825, 1725, and 1625 — and forward to wonder if 2025 will be the most transformational year humanity has ever seen. Artificial intelligence is accelerating us forward and making us wonder how we’re going to evolve. At the same time, it brings more value to the human touch and enhances our creativity. This is not the time to turn away from AI with fear, Cal concludes. It’s the time to be curious about how to understand it, regulate it and get the most out of it.
For decades, Cal steered clear of pharmaceuticals. But after assembling a new team of doctors and stepping on the scale and noticing a few extra pounds, he heard the same three letters over and over: GLP. These new drugs—GLP- 1s—aren’t just helping people shed pounds. They’re helping snuff out the brain’s hijacked hunger signals, replacing the relentless “more, more, more” with something almost revolutionary: “less is enough.” In this episode, Cal explores what happens when we hand over the mic to a new control tower—one that rewrites the script our brains have been stuck on for far too long. A candid journey. A scientific shift. And the first time Cal actually wonders if he can stop after one bite of pizza.
What would you choose: A shot at March Madness glory or a massive NBA contract? Cal dives into the $100 billion-dollar question facing Cooper Flagg—and what his decision tells us about ambition, friendship, legacy, and the values we hold as a society. A must-listen for anyone who’s ever faced a difficult choice.
Ever wonder what's truly behind President Trump's controversial tariffs? Cal turns to his go-to expert—Ozan Ozkural, the astute international banker he first met at Larry King's breakfast table and a member of the influential Brookings Institution Foreign Policy Leadership Council. In this episode, you'll uncover the hidden reasons behind the tariffs, the surprising geopolitical implications, and critical deadlines approaching fast that no one else seems to be talking about. Ozan travels the world and gets to understand global finance from many viewpoints. Listen up, and you will, too!
What if you could talk to John F. Kennedy today? In this episode, Cal sits down with an AI recreation of the 35th president for a conversation that’s part history and part mystery. Why did JFK keep a coconut shell on his Oval Office desk? How did he view Greenland during the Cold War? Who was the most magnetic person he ever met? And yes—they even dive into his thoughts on artificial intelligence. Unexpected, illuminating, and oddly timely. Hit play and find out why JFK still has something to teach us.
Cal reflects deeply on a man known by millions as the smiling face behind the grill—and the heavyweight champion who stunned the world by reclaiming the title at age 45. With the recent passing of Foreman at the age 76, Cal looks deeply at George’s greatest accomplishment: his transformation of character. George proved it’s never too late for anyone to reinvent themselves. What can we learn from his remarkable journey? Listen now and discover how George Foreman’s story could inspire you to rewrite your own.
What if you could sit down and talk to John Lennon today? In this one-of-a-kind episode, Cal has an astonishing conversation with an AI-powered persona of the legendary Beatle, created by heycicero.com. At certain moments, the back-and-forth felt eerily real as John reminisced about writing Help!, I Am the Walrus, Strawberry Fields Forever, and, of course, Imagine. But this chat goes far beyond music—John and Cal dive into everything from the Beatles' famous pillow fight to the deeper question: Why do humans harm and kill each other? Pour yourself a cup of tea, press play, and experience a conversation that blurs the lines between past and future. As John reminds us in the end: Love is all you need.
Cal draws pocket aces and wins big in the first hand of a charity poker night raising money for the fight against cancer. The surge of luck makes it feels like it will be his lucky day. But then his luck seems to begin turning up in everyone around him. Only at the end of the night does he realize that it’s his luck to be with everyone that he’s touched. Enjoy the story . . .
As Cal watches the Academy Awards, he has a startling realization—he’s barely stepped inside a movie theater all year. Then, host Conan O’Brien delivers a hilarious skit introducing home streamers to a wild new concept: the movie theater. The moment sparks a memory of an interview Cal once did with Leonardo DiCaprio, where Leo spoke passionately about his favorite films and the power of cinema. That interview is replayed here, reminding us all why the theater experience is worth rediscovering. So sit back, listen, celebrate the magic of the big screen.
Technology, history, and global politics collide in this episode after Cal asks ChatGPT if there is a way that he can stop a war. The question unexpectedly evolves into an exploration of the forgotten Nutmeg War—a historical conflict with surprising modern parallels. Cal connects the dots between this overlooked episode of history, the recent three-year conflict unfolding in Ukraine, and the buzz surrounding Greenland. This analysis is a window into how AI can show you history and the world around you in a way that you can’t get anywhere else.
After reading about Saturday Night Live's 50th anniversary, Cal turns to one of his AI assistants, Arbor, for recommendations on the freshest new comedians. What starts as a simple question about stand-up talents turns into an eye-opening look at how AI is reshaping the way we can discover entertainment—and how we’ll all be interacting with AI in the near future. Naturally, this podcast will also deliver a few laughs . . .
Marketing guru Seth Godin recently shared on The Tim Ferriss Show that people often ask AI simple questions—missing out on the real value of deeper conversations. Cal has been exploring this idea on Big Questions, using AI to dive into the legacies of Muhammad Ali, Kobe Bryant, and beyond. This week, the experiment gets personal. Struggling with his discomfort around social media, Cal turns to AI—not just for strategy, but for something deeper. Can AI help reframe his mindset? Can it act as a therapist, guiding him toward a healthier relationship with the digital world? The conversation takes some surprising turns, and what he discovers might just change how you think about AI. Tune in for an episode that blends tech, psychology, and personal growth in ways you won’t expect!
Siri didn’t emerge from a single mind—it was the product of many brilliant innovators. But in this episode, Cal talks with one of the key founders behind the company that built the digital assistant Steve Jobs had to have. Norman Winarsky takes us back to the moments Siri first stunned the world in the testing phase in 2009 and 2010 and shares his thoughts on today’s AI revolution—what excites him, what concerns him, and what leaves him in awe.
Donald Trump divides opinions like few others—some love him, others loathe him. But over the next four years, his most impactful decisions might not be about politics as usual. Instead, they could shape the future of artificial intelligence -- and humanity. In this thought-provoking episode, Cal dives into why the President’s moves in AI policy will matter to everyone regardless of their political stance—and why getting it right is crucial. A commentary from NotebookLM.com adds some twists to Cal’s insights and is further evidence that AI will continue to take us to places we can’t yet imagine.
As we approach the fifth anniversary of Kobe Bryant’s passing, Cal dives deep into a fascinating discussion with Claude AI about the relentless spirit of competition that defined the NBA great. But the conversation takes an unexpected turn when Cal asks Claude if it competes with ChatGPT and other AI models. Join this thought- provoking journey as Cal uncovers lessons about the two sides to competition and simultaneously learns how to ask AI better questions to unlock its potential.
January 17th marks what would have been Muhammad Ali’s 83rd birthday. To honor his legacy, Cal embarks on a unique journey—reconnecting with his childhood hero through ChatGPT. Along the way, he discovers a powerful truth: asking the right questions is the key to unlocking the answers we seek about artificial intelligence and beyond. This episode explores the intersection of curiosity, technology, and the timeless lessons of The Greatest.
Discover the astonishing ways your daily life reveals more about you than you could ever imagine. Columbia University professor Sandra Matz takes you on a journey through the hidden world of data collection, showing how a single routine hour in the morning can generate more data than was used to send a spacecraft to the moon. In this eye-opening conversation with Cal, explore an era in which those who collect our data may know us better than we know ourselves. See the power your digital footprint holds over your life and what it means for our future.
Quincy Jones, Toby Keith, David Sanborn and others passed on in the last year – but their music lives on. Which makes Cal wonder if we all have a shot at immortality in the age of AI. Listen up, and get more out of your life.
The remarkable story of a boy who once dove into a swimming pool that didn’t have any water in it because he couldn’t admit that he was going blind and couldn’t see that he was headed for concrete, and how that boy turned into the CEO of Guiding Eyes for the Blind, a married father of four, a board member and a finisher of The Boston Marathon and The New York Marathon. Thomas Panek’s story is relevant to all of us, for it shows us the gifts that we can all receive once we push aside our pride and reach out for help.
Emmy nominated Producer, Author, Animator and Creative Executive for Disney, NBCUniversal and Wayfair has a fascinating conversation with Cal about the ever-evolving intersection of humanity, creativity and technology. Sandro has opened the door for Cal to translate the power of questions and storytelling into new areas, and this episode will leave you inspired to embrace the future while staying rooted in who you are.
What happens when an artist at the peak of his craft—known for iconic Time Magazine covers, music videos for legends like U2 and Metallica, Sundance documentaries and photographs in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art—navigates the rise of AI? Discover how Matt Mahurin sees creativity in this thought-provoking episode. Perfect for anyone curious about staying on top in an ever-changing world.
Feeling stuffed after Thanksgiving? Meet YUKA, the revolutionary app with over 64 million users worldwide. Just scan a product's barcode, and YUKA instantly reveals whether it's BAD, POOR, GOOD or EXCELLENT for your health. Join Cal as he dives into how this app is changing the way we shop—and why you should start using it too. This quick, fun, and eye opening episode can improve your health. Don’t miss it!
Cal talks with the founder of Cicero – a company that uses artificial intelligence to allow you to have conversations with Aristotle, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, Michael Jackson and many other influential figures over the centuries. You see them as they actually looked and hear them in their own voices (when possible). Content is based on records of what they wrote and said. It fulfills a vision of Steve Jobs – who, back in 1985, believed that one day we’d be able to talk to people of this magnitude through the computer. Listen to the story of how it all came together and join the waiting list at heycicero.com.
Yes, we all know about cars that drive themselves. But how did it happen that the CEO and founder of Banyan can get in his Tesla on the Jersey Shore and travel to mid-town Manhattan barely touching the wheel or the accelerator? How quickly did that come upon us? And what does that mean a year from now? Two? Three? This is a historical conversation.
Looking for a fresh point of view on the recent U.S. presidential election, Cal reaches out to his Australian friend, Holly Ransom, who gives leadership conferences around the world as the CEO of Emergent Global. Richard Branson nominated Holly for Wired Magazine’s Smart List of Future Game Changers to Watch. And you’ll hear why when you listen to this podcast. Bonus: A lot of leadership takeaways!
Cal looks back on the few days before November 5, 2024, and realizes how all the people who were so kind and cordial around him are divided nearly 50/50 between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. He’s sure that 80 percent of us can all get along together . . . so long as we have a peaceful transfer of power.
With the potential for increased violence around the world, Cal reaches out to an old friend from Larry King’s breakfast table for a look at the global ramifications of the upcoming U.S. elections. Ozan Ozkural is on the Foreign Policy Committee of the Brookings Institution – one of the world’s top think tanks. As the founder of Tanto Capital Partners, Ozan constantly travels around the world making deals in the energy and power sectors, and his reading on the geopolitical situation will inform you and even relax you – so listen up.
It may be too late for Cal. His kids are 30, 27 and 22 years old. But it may not be too late for you or your friends to take your kids with you to vote. If it takes your kids out of school for a few hours, they may remember it for their rest of their lives, and it can be the first step in an education about democracy and the power of their vote. This message comes from the author of: How To Raise A Citizen (And Why It’s Up To You To Do It). And there’s probably never been a better election to start doing it than this one. Listen up, and you’ll hear why.
This podcast is like a walk on the red carpet into the world of AI filmmaking with one of its leaders. The message here is clear. By trying out these tools, you’ll be evolving to meet the world that is coming. One of the major points behind this conversation is to diminish the fears of people who believe that AI is coming to take their jobs. Simply trying out these new platforms will give you an opening to skills that you’re going to need in the new world. You might even find this more creative than what you’re doing now and pivot toward it. Dave Clark knows people just like that. So listen up, because only good can happen if you open yourself up to this technology and the creativity it can lead to . . .
After hearing how traces of plastic are now being found in hearts that are being examined in autopsies, Cal plays a conversation with a man who has devoted his future to combatting the problem. After working at Adidas for 26 years, Eric Leidtke pivoted to start the Unless Collection, a company that makes shoes, socks and all kinds of clothing out of plants, not plastics. In fact, the Unless Collection’s shoes, The Degenerate, can be thrown in a hole in your backyard after they’re worn out and they’ll biodegrade without leaving behind a trace of pollution. Scientists predict that by 2050, the oceans will have more plastic in them than fish by tonnage. It’s important that everyone knows about the work being done by Unless Collection. So, please, spread the word!
Cal learns from a cardiologist who cared for President George Bush 41 that artificial intelligence is at the point where it can tell us how long we’re destined to live. That old fashioned stethoscope? No longer really necessary. We can get better readings from tech than the human ear. Listen up to Dr. Giovanni Campanile and get a glimpse of your heart in the present and the future through AI. As well as tips on how to live longer and healthier.
Cal comes across a survey that indicates that six out of every 10 workers will require AI training before 2027. And that only half of those workers may have access to the necessary training opportunities. Which leads him to seek out global thought leader Ravin Jesuthasan to get a gauge on the future of the workplace. Increased productivity? Certainly. Human fears of losing jobs? Of course. But the author of The Skills-Powered Organization takes Cal and the conversation much deeper. Listen up. It’s important.
Some of Cal’s favorite conversations have come after a friend of his has started a sentence with these four words: “You’ve got to meet . . .” The trust behind an introduction like that always leads to special moments. And this week’s episode is no exception. Cal’s friend Monique Mardinian set up a meeting with Sabaa Quao, the Chief Creative Officer at Cossette, Canada’s largest marketing and communications company. Sabaa has also co-founded Filminute, the festival known around the world for being limited to films that are only 60 seconds long. This conversation shows the power in a single minute of content. It also looks into the question of how we’re going to trust in a time of artificial intelligence when we can no longer be sure if what we see and hear is real. You can be sure of one thing: This conversation is as real as it gets.
Cal replays one of the most amazing conversations he’s ever had -- with a man who was in the bathroom on the 81 st Floor of the World Trade Center before starting work on the morning of 9/11/2001 when the hijacked plane hit. Michael Wright, a 30-year-old account executive at the time, got down to the ground only to look up and see the other tower falling on his head. Cal listens to the story every year to never forget the day and to focus on the power of resilience. But also for another reason this year – to remember how connected the United States was right after 9/11. The most connected Cal had ever seen it. Please send this conversation to one person you think might appreciate it.
Cal continues a summer of storytelling by passing on one about a player you might like to root for in this year’s U.S. Open. The backstory of Taylor Townsend shows us how there are winds in life that hold us back and winds that push us forward. And the value of perseverance in between.
Cal gets an unexpected e-mail asking about the feeling behind making a deep connection. It compels him to think back through a career of experiences with Muhammad Ali and Mikhael Gorbachev, bonds with people who took him in when he traveled around the world, friendships, and even ties with people who connected with his words and voice without ever having met him. But now, in a digital world where people can get a thousand likes while having no real friends, he finds great purpose giving workshops that connect others so they can get the most out of one another.
The change in the opening kickoff of National Football League games may seem inconsequential when compared to other developments in the world. As Cal wonders about the emotion and spirit that will be lost from the game, he realizes that the way he’s reacting to the new rule is a metaphor for the way many of us see change. It’s worth thinking about for a moment at a time when artificial intelligence is becoming the biggest change humanity has ever seen.
The Hall of Fame drummer looks back at the band’s iconic performance at Woodstock in 1969 when Carlos Santana dropped some LSD shortly before being summoned to go on stage. Michael had ingested mescaline. Carlos believed his guitar turned into a snake during the rendition of Soul Sacrifice and at the same time Michael was transported to heaven. Video that captured the group’s dynamic is a living testament to human connection with music. It also makes us consider the place of the latest landmark in music: artificial intelligence.
Cal finds out lots of things he never knew about someone he thought he knew . . . at that person’s funeral. It got him to think about how well we know each other, and how well we connect . . . which sparked him to figure out a way that will enable you to connect better. This short podcast could change your life.
Cal looks at the word inclusion through the controversy at the Olympics opening ceremony last week. And what a diverse message really looks like through the most exciting race he ever saw – one that was won by three hundredths of a second at the Olympics more than 50 years ago. The lessons in those two experiences give us all something to think about.
Cal describes how listener reaction to last week’s podcast about the attempted assassination on Donald Trump influenced his decision to speak out on Big Questions and tell the world what he’s learned through his meetings with the people who’ve shaped the last 75 years of world history. The timing of his recording of this week’s message on the upcoming election is an eerie confirmation that it’s the right way to go.
Cal looks at the attempt on the former president’s life in a way that you won’t find anywhere else. This podcast is not red vs. blue. It’s not political. Cal’s childhood in the 1960s was run through a montage of assassinations – from John F. Kennedy to Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy. And he believes that it’s hard to sustain a democracy when people are shot and killed while they are in office or before they can be elected. We are living in a very disconnected time. After spending his entire life connecting through conversation, Cal becomes even more committed to trying to bring people together.
Cal continues his journey into the world of artificial intelligence when he talks with the SEO guru. The Big Question is how the AI digital content now inundating the internet measures up against content that has authentic human connection at its essence. Be prepared to be surprised.
Cal talks with the futurist who tells us that artificial intelligence is going to be embedded in everything we do -- and that means many aspects of the world around us will be moving at an accelerated pace. His book, Superconvergence, looks at how AI will transform our lives as it is embedded in genetics and biotech. It could mean living longer, feeding billions and supercharging the economy. We don’t want to think about the downside – which is why we must. Jamie’s got a Ph.D. from Oxford, a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School and he was the opening speaker at the 2023 Dubai future forum. He’s also an ironman triathlete in his spare time. When Cal left the conversation, he felt like his IQ had spiked. You may feel the same.
In his quest to go deep into artificial intelligence, Cal comes across a most unusual guest. Theresa Fesinstine speaks to AI in a most uncommon way – as if it were human. Almost as if she were a really good high school English teacher talking to her students in the most caring way. There’s research that says this kind of approach gets the best out of AI. Listen up, and try it out.
The son of self-help guru Tony Robbins has become a coach with clients in 133 countries around the world. You’ll see why when you listen to this conversation. You will definitely be in a better place to navigate your path after listening to this podcast!
Chessboxing? What? Do the competitors pound each other in the head as they move pieces on the chessboard? It’s actually a sport that is going to be on display at the Olympics in Paris this summer. It’s not an official Olympic event. Yet. But three hundred thousand people stream events and it’s only getting bigger and bigger. What does it mean for you? Listen to Matt Thomas’s story.
Cal realizes that for the first time he is not feeling behind in technology because he has thrown himself into understanding AI. Conversations with experts on this podcast have made him feel more comfortable with what’s coming – even if we don’t know exactly what that is. This is the conversation that opened the door for him. It’s with Linus Eckenstam – a designer in Barcelona who makes web forms a little more human. Cal hopes this episode will make everyone more comfortable feel a little more authentic in the age of AI.
When Cal went on Ben’s podcast, the marketer confided to him that he was supposed to host a party that evening to bring people who didn’t know each other together. Ben is the curator of the Real Business Connection Network. So the meeting was important to him. The problem was, Ben had a case of gout that was sending stabbing pains through one of his toes. Ben asked Cal if he should go through with the party or call it off. Cal advised Ben that if he threw himself into the party, he’d forget the pain. Ben followed through. This conversation looks at the way Ben used structure and games to connect people. And how much the world has changed since Cal traveled around the world for ten years without a home meeting people through serendipity.
Cal talks with the co-founder and former CEO of Whole Foods about the journey he took from shirtless 22-year-old hippie hitchhiking in Austin on acid to creating and running the health food empire. And what a wild trip it’s been – as evidenced in his new book: The Whole Story, Adventures in Love, Life and Capitalism. Plenty of takeaways for all of us in this conversation – especially on artificial intelligence.
Cal converses with the author of The Skill Code: How To Save Human Ability in an Age of Intelligent Machines, and learns how experts in their fields are increasingly relying on artificial intelligence instead of junior helpers for assistance. This threatens the bond between the experts and novices that has long allowed the novices to slowly become experts. Cal offers Matt plenty of challenges as examples from his own life and when matt hears them he feels that a chunk of his book was written with Cal in mind. But this book is about and for EVERYONE.
Cal gets social media strategies from the Podcast Princess, who grew a team of unpaid interns into her own highly successful agency – YAP (Young and Profiting). Her advice gives Cal the awareness of how to turn a technological problem into an area of creativity that could ultimately be a financial gamechanger. Hala believes that life is 0 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you react to it. Everybody who listens to this conversation will come away with ideas on getting the most out of themselves.
When Cal was young, he was educated as a journalist not to sell. He was taught to interview and write and stay on the editorial side of the wall that separated the two sides of publishing. The selling was to be done on the other side of the wall by the sales department. Cal lived by the rules and could never see himself as a salesman even as the internet appeared, the rules began to change and the wall came down. Now, after all these years, he learns from a celebrated sales consultant that sales doesn’t have to be about selling. It can be about helping the customer buy. Cal can feel comfortable doing just that – and just in time. Could it be for you, too?
The world has never moved faster than it’s about to with the emergence of AI. What does this mean for all of us? So many businesses in the past didn’t jump into the future because they wanted to protect the present – and suffered for it. Many have gone out of business. Cal speaks with the author of Leaders Leap for advice on how we all should be thinking about our place in the working world. This is no time to be “sleepwalking through the revolution.” Check it out.
Cal learns about the creation of Esco’s World Famous Apple Cobbler Pie through a story that showcases how we can all get the most out of our errors. Esco’s backstory is a treasure trove of wisdom for any entrepreneur, and an inspiration for anyone with an impactful idea. Listen up, and you’ll soon be getting the most out of your own mistakes. And perhaps having a good time at Esco’s upcoming Virtual Wine and Pie Party.
Cal talks with a man who has worked to bring the best out of Navy Seals, neurosurgeons, Los Angeles Dodgers, U.S. Women’s Soccer Team players and Cirque du Soleil acrobats. This conversation gave Cal insights on how to get the most out of himself going forward. Listen up, and it will bring the best out of you.
Cal talks with a coach who has turned his love for basketball into guidance for all of us in our work and personal lives. After learning from, and coaching many NBA greats, Alan has concluded that sustained growth comes down to five factors: self-awareness passion, discipline, coachability and confidence. This boils down to staying curious about ourselves and our surroundings, and never getting bored with the fundamentals. Alan speaks to the world about it because we can never be reminded enough.
Cal sits down with Chester at a long table of Chief Human Resource Officers to explore the power of bonding at work. The author of Leading with Gratitude: Eight Leadership Practices for Extraordinary Business Results highlights a fascinating observation. That fire stations where firefighters dine together tend to outperform their counterparts who do not, showcasing the significant impact of social bonds on teamwork and efficiency. Cal also mentions a serendipitous moment at the dinner, solving a puzzle that had baffled him for years. This conversation serves as a tribute to the value of breaking bread together, underlining how a shared table can foster connection and spark revelations. Tune in and toast teamwork.
While speaking at a TEDx event in Sonoma, Cal meets the former Apple evangelist (and current Canva evangelist) and they immediately hit it off. Guy comes on Big Questions to talk about his latest book, Think Remarkable, 9 Paths to Transform Your Life and Make a Difference. He shows Cal a new way to infuse discipline into his writing and life, as well as offering an intriguing look at Steve Jobs. You’ll feel like you have a seat at the table. Enjoy.
As Cal speaks with the leading podcaster and marketer, he channels the 12 years that he had breakfast with CNN broadcast icon Larry King almost every day. It was a time when guests would drop in on the regulars and share their areas of expertise. In this case, Jeremy reveals his knowledge of Roman history. And the question becomes: Are there any parallels between Roman times and what we are seeing now in American politics? It’s proof that we can have civilized political conversations even when we disagree, and look forward to the next breakfast.
How can I guy who built an obstacle racing empire ever give up? That was the question when Spartan hovered near bankruptcy when its events were cancelled during the pandemic. Joe and Spartan trudged forward and last year Spartan rallied with a profit. After all the money borrowed during Covid, Joe says it seems like the profit is like giving a starving elephant a Tic-Tac. But the races go on, and Joe moves on his goal of making 100 million Americans healthy.
A series of connections leads Cal to a conversation with a master of wet plate photography – created around 1850. But the talk about photos that can last a thousand years leads to a very surprising place: that all of the photos on your iPhone or mobile device will disappear over the next 50 years unless you print them out and protect them. Listen up, and spread the word.
Cal speaks with the man who is the father of the virtual assistant and who predicted ten years ago that most work would be automated and out of human’s hands. Now, he is even more convinced this will be the case, and makes the case that it’s necessary for all of us. What this may mean for mankind doesn’t seem to matter. It’s all in the math. Everyone ought to listen to this.
Not many Valentine Day stories start with a line like: “When he first came out of prison . . .” This conversation brings you the full rollercoaster ride of James Arthur Ray – a personal development leader who established a huge following after appearing on Oprah nearly 20 years ago. As his popularity peaked, the fire in a sweat lodge at one of his retreats got too hot and three people perished. Obviously, Ray did not want this to happen, but he was charged with negligence and jailed for two years. He came out in tatters and $20 million in debt . . . and then he met the love of his life. The story cannot be told without offering condolences to the families of the victims. But for one couple, it is a Happy Valentine’s Day . . .
Cal has been told that privacy disappeared more than twenty years ago with the emergence of the internet. But the emergence of artificial intelligence is only going to exacerbate the problem. Kemp’s book: Containing Big Tech: How to Protect Our Civil Rights, Economy and Democracy is filled with tools that anybody can use to safeguard their privacy. This conversation will make you feel safer.
Cal has an impactful talk with the author of the book: Wrong Fit, Right Fit: Why How We Work Matters More Than Ever. Martin points out a Gallup study that reveals an $8.8 TRILLION loss in productivity due to employee disengagement on the job. It’s a problem that Cal senses can be partially solved through better job interviewing by both companies and candidates. After interviewing the icons who’ve shaped the last 75 years of world history, Cal is inspired to teach his Heart, Head & Soul interviewing techniques to find right fits and improve lives. Anyone interested in learning Cal’s approach can reach out to him at calfussman.com. The best is yet to come.
Cal became very curious after reading that women in Japan were staging elaborate wedding ceremonies to marry themselves. Cal also heard projections that 1 out of 4 millennials in America will not marry. There is a societal shift going on. Behavioral psychologist Peter McGraw (and host of the podcast Solo) explains it all in a way that will make you see the world differently.
Cal speaks with the German artist who won the Sony World Photography award with a fake photo – one he generated through artificial intelligence with prompts. Boris did not tell the judges the photo was fake, and then refused to accept the award to get out the truth. We soon will live in an age when we will not know whether we can believe our own eyes. Prepare for a deep conversation about what is going to happen to the concept of trust in the future.
After starting out on a Ford Assembly line, Joe made a fortune starting and selling a digital marketing agency and serving as CEO of an automotive tech company. When he decided to stop drinking alcohol for 75 days to improve his health, Joe came up with the idea to create a new business. A non-alcoholic brewery with a mission to create the best non-alcoholic beers on the planet. That covers many styles and flavors. It’s called Go Brewing. And it arrives at your door at a time when many people are beginning to change their drinking habits to support a healthier lifestyle. Cal lifted the Jab Jab Grapefruit IPA and can tell that Joe’s instincts and timing are right on. Listen up, and check it out!
Cal brings in the New Year with a conversation that takes his friend Natalie Baird-King from hell to heaven. After getting overwhelmed by patterns of abuse that stemmed from her childhood, Natalie became a lawyer to defend similar victims. But it was her medicinal use of ayahuasca that, she says, actually took her to heaven, taught her how to forgive and how to teach others to make peace with the past. It’s a great way to start a new year! Cheers!
Cal looks back on a year of conversations to highlight nuggets of wisdom, along with the advice that is changing his life. This episode could change yours, as well. So enjoy! Much health and happiness in the New Year. The Best Is Yet To Come!
Ever wonder how much more you could get out of life if you were more aware of everything going on around you? Cal has. Which led him to Dan Donachie. Dan brings the most out of world class athletes and people across a variety of fields through meditation and awareness. And he’ll get the most out of your sense of awareness if you follow the meditative suggestions he gives Cal. Want to be amazed what you can find out about yourself? It all starts at the tip of your nose.
This is one of the wildest episodes you’re ever going to hear. Goose McGrath has gone from breaking his spine as an adolescent in a motorbike accident to becoming addicted to morphine after it was overprescribed, then going cold turkey, to losing everything he had, to traveling with abandon around the world, to alcohol and drug abuse and waking up homeless on a floor with $50 to his name, to finding the love of his life and founding Dashdot, a real estate investment company that brings in more than $2 million a month. Goose is living proof that if you struggle, you can go far. Enjoy the rollercoaster ride!
Cal’s conversation with the Chief Marketing Officer of Delta looks at how she came to be named one of the most influential CMOs in the world by Forbes. A glance at her career trajectory shows how to get the most out of where you are, what you’re doing and lifting those around you.
Cal gets some takeaways from the author of Four Billionaires and Parking Attendant. The book has been reviewed as, “a blueprint for building a career and a life.” Chris has worked in the communications department at the White House, run the public affairs office at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and worked with billionaires as Director of Global Communications at the Carlyle Group. The 80-20 rule can change your life – and there’s a lot more!
Quite a few people have recently told Cal how the Thanksgiving table has somehow changed since we were locked in by the pandemic. But air travel has returned to a high level during this holiday season. Cal’s conversation with Avery and Brian Baker reveals that the table has always been transforming over time. People who shape the holiday for decades pass on, leaving empty seats at the table. But Brian and Avery have learned how to fill them and continue to make the most out of Cal’s favorite day of the year. Pass the mashed potatoes and have a great holiday!
How do you know if your good idea is a good idea? What’s the secret sauce behind turning a good idea into an innovative company? Why are roughly only 10 percent of startups successful? Furst, a beloved Professor and director of the Center for Deliberate Innovation at George Tech, has answers that we can all apply to the way we think about innovation. He’s founded companies and his book, The Heart of Innovation, was recently published. Cal set up a creative way to look at the topic, bringing in his pal, Adam McGraw, to join the conversation. McGraw recently celebrated the one-year anniversary of his startup – CREW -- which uses authentic connections to enable CEOs and senior executives to get the most out of themselves. Cal has seen CREW in action and come away Impressed. He wants to know what Furst thinks. Check it out . . . and apply the takeaways to your own life.
Cal’s old pal has written a new book: The First Rule of Mastery: Stop Worry About What People Think of You. And he shows Cal how to stop wasting time doing just that. But that’s not all. The psychologist for Super Bowl and Olympic champions tells Cal to triple down on visualizing a successful future, and teaches him exercises to achieve what he visualizes. Great anecdotes on self-awareness, clarity and conviction. A treasure trove of advice.
There were many company leaders tasked with holding together the people who worked for them during the pandemic. But who was there to support them? There’s a lot of loneliness at the top. Cal talks with the son and father combo, Adam and Andy McGraw, about the company they started to help executives from different companies support each other through authentic connection. The company is called Crew, and it completely aligns with Cal’s mission to bring people together through the right questions, focused listening and great storytelling. This episode also showcases the benefits of connecting with someone a generation older or younger for transformational growth.
When Cal finds himself dwelling on the past in a world filled with conflicts, he gets an unexpected phone call and advice from his friend, Dr. Shlain: Reduce the past to its essence, keep your feet in the present moment and put your mind 90 percent in the future – all at the same time. No need for psychedelics, here. It’s as simple as: If you can see far, you can think far. This mind-bending tactic is designed to allow anybody to move forward and get the clearest thinking of their lives. Give it a try!
The Hamas attack on Israel was like nothing anyone in that country had ever seen and it took the world to a new and very tense place. Cal was set to talk with the comedian Paul Ollinger as news of the barbarity of the attack broke, and their conversation veered toward the few days in history that are never forgotten -- and the unexpected ways they can impact us going forward.
Philip Shucet, a Big Questions listener, took the equivalent of a selfie on ChatGPT when he asked the artificial intelligence model to tell him who he is. ChatGPT offered a very different description of Philip Shucet than he would of himself – even though Philip is apparently the only one in the world by that name. Philip tried to correct the errant information produced by ChatGPT, -- which didn’t do much good, and only frustrated him further. We’re at an early stage of AI, and ChatGPT is sure to improve. But this episode leads to the question: Have you checked out how ChatGPT describes you to the world?
Last year, the author of Never Binge Again helped listeners of Big Questions enjoy Thanksgiving a little more by showing us how to eat less. This year he has a strategy to diminish sugar intake on Halloween. The average American consumes the equivalent of 144 teaspoons of sugar on October 31 st. Dr. Livingston helped his own mother turn Halloween into Hallowean. And he can do the same for all of us. It starts with making a plan when you buy holiday candy.
Cal speaks with the man who founded Paul Mitchell hair care products after borrowing $700 while living out of his car, which led to his founding of the tequila company Patron. This episode is all about the wisdom the soon to be 80-year-old accumulated along the way – which we can all put to great use. Please, get the most out of it.
Cal talks with Sarah Dusek about how she went from food stamps to creating and selling a $100-million company. Sarah gives step-by-step advice that can help anybody turn the right idea into a fortune. Use it well!
We’re taught from birth to measure wealth in currency, but Joe Huff and Bridget Hilton have created one of the largest surveys on life experiences ever done. And their research shows that the number one regret of the dying isn’t about money, it’s about the experiences people wished they’d had – but never did. Bridget and Joe have written a book called Experiential Billionaire that includes tools to show you how to live a life with a mountain of experiences and few regrets. You will not regret listening to this episode.
Cal replays the conversation with a man who was working on the 81 st floor of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 when the hijacked planes hit. Michael Wright describes how he survived when he reached the ground and one of the towers fell on his head. We should remember, so that we never forget. Please pass this episode on to anyone you know who might like to hear it. It will be relevant 500 years from now.
The world of sports is about being the best you can be. Award-winning sportswriter Sally Jenkins of the Washington Post has compiled wisdom from the courts and fields into a book titled The Right Call. We can bring so many of the tactics that elevate athletes and coaches into our own work and personal lives. This episode is a walking treasure trove . . .
After watching the latest Mission Impossible movie, Cal remembers an interview he did with Tom for Esquire Magazine. A snippet from that interview was turned into a video, and it’s played on this week’s episode. You get a glimpse of Tom’s difficult childhood, and see how the solutions he found were seeds to take control of his career and live out the passions of his youth. There’s a lesson in this for all of us. Enjoy.
Anyone who’s ever had a medical problem knows how good it feels to talk to somebody who’s successfully gone through the same treatment. Patient Partner gives everybody the chance to have someone to lean on. Mentors are all vetted. It’s highly confidential. Great friendships are formed. And it’s free! This is a service that shouldn’t be passed up. Simply listening to this episode will give you good karma.
The author of Energize: Make The Most Out Of Every Moment, shows Cal how to get energy from the way you approach your job, exercise, food, sunlight, the design of the bedroom, and many other factors that we might overlook. Simply listening to this conversation will lift your energy level.
Last year, the editor in chief of Entrepreneur Magazine released a book that is an action plan for embracing change and future proofing your career. This book takes on exponential meaning with the emergence of artificial intelligence. Jason, one of the world’s great optimists, allays fears that the public has about A.I. by pointing out panicked reactions to great innovations in the past that we now embrace. Cal wonders if we are taking baby steps toward the end of humanity. Enjoy!
When Cal first met the comedian, he was starting out as Irish Dave. Now, the author of Do You Talk Funny? is packing comedy clubs under his legal name, David Nihill, and identifying with Mexicans. It’s a long story that will make you laugh. The bottom line is: Everybody would love to be funnier. On this episode, Dave will show you how.
Cal catches up with the Stanford lecturer who’s spent a lifetime showing people how to think faster and speak better in public. It all started when Matt embarrassed himself by ripping his pants doing a karate speech in high school. He has since developed decades of tips to help you whether you’re making a business presentation or giving a wedding toast. Listen up. This episode is a burst of confidence.
When Cal found out that Amy had read 30,000 personal stories written by people about finding happiness, he figured she would have detected some patterns. She sure has. The publisher and editor-in-chief of Chicken Soup for the Soul gives Cal 10 tips that will make your day happier. Guaranteed to make you smile!
More than 6,000 Americans and friends of America have been rescued in dangerous spots in Afghanistan, Ukraine and Sudan over the last two years by Bryan and Project Dynamo – a non-profit organization funded by private donations. Bryan has gotten Americans out of jails and some terrible spots in ways that would normally appear in spy thrillers. In this episode, we hear the story of twin American babies born to a surrogate Ukrainian mother in Russia. The babies were either separated from the Ukranian surrogate mom or abandoned without any record of their American origins, and placed in a Russian orphanage. When you hear how Bryan got them back to their American parents, you’ll have an even deeper appreciation for Fourth of July.
Michael has sold more than a million copies of his book: The Coaching Habit. And now he’s releasing one called: How To Work With (Almost) Anyone. Both topics come up in Cal’s freewheeling conversation with the Rhodes Scholar which reminds Cal of the back-and-forth at Larry King’s breakfast table.
We all have childhood dreams. Many of them elude us as we age and take more practical roads in life. This episode focuses on Mario Garcia’s decision in his early fifties to go all in on his childhood dream: making a movie. It’s called: The Throwback, and stars Will Sasso from Curb Your Enthusiasm. Mario wrote the script, fundraised, directed the film, and produced it. It got a standing ovation when it was shown in Ybor City after Mario’s conversation with Cal. Listen to how Mario did it, and see what YOU might be capable of achieving if you decide to go all in.
That’s a nice and soft way to title an episode with the author who wrote the book STFU. That’s short for: Shut The F--- Up. The Power Of Keeping Your Mouth Shut In An Endlessly Noisy World. Dan gives tips on how to listen more and get the most out of conversations. He explains that people who have the most meaningful conversations tend to be happier. And if you know someone who can’t stop talking, pass this podcast along . . . in the nicest way, of course!
This podcast has implications for all who work. It’s important to know how “workquakes” are coming into our lives more and more frequently, pushing us to change jobs and even head for new professions. Feiler, author of the book: The Search, Meaningful Work In A Post-Career World, tells us how we can expect a “workquake” every two and a half years, and what this is doing to the very definition of the words work, meaning and, as a consequence, loyalty. This podcast will change the way you see the world around you.
After being advised to immerse himself in artificial intelligence, Cal asks ChatGPT for help in finding just the right gift for his upcoming wedding anniversary. This episode is a comical gift for everybody, as it demonstrates how AI can be used in nearly every facet of life. Enjoy it!
Cal talks with one of the stars on the sitcom Modern Family, who along with actor Eric Stonestreet, portrayed gay family life in a humorous way that made us smile and laugh, and gathered the appreciation of much of the American public. Same-sex marriage laws were granted around the country during the course of the show. Cal talks with Jesse about being gay, the show, the changes it inspired, and the tension that erupted recently when transgender influencer Devin Mulvaney was positioned as the centerpiece of a Bud Light campaign. Jesse has a lot to talk about, which means it’s the perfect time for him to start his own podcast. That’s exactly what he’s doing. It’s called: Dinner’s On Me. Enjoy the conversation.
It turns out that there is one area in America where nearly everyone is in agreement: there is a mental health emergency. There are many reasons for this. They can be related to substance abuse, lack of meaningful connections, depression, financial stress, abuse, traumatic experiences, pressures and anxieties attached to body image and the internet along with a lack of access to mental healthcare. Andrew Frawley, the marketing director for Andrew Yang’s presidential campaign in 2020, wants to make it an issue in the 2024 campaign to get urgent reform. He’s founded The Good Life Movement. Listen to Cal and Andrew talk it over. The Good Life starts here.
Nobody loves great quotes more than Cal. So it’s no wonder Cal was smitten by Kevin’s latest book: Excellent Advice For Living, Wisdom I Wish I’d Known Earlier. The book and this conversation with the founding editor of Wired magazine delivers thoughtful advice on all areas of life. Like this: “When a child asks an endless string of “Why” questions, the smartest reply is: “I don’t know, what do you think?” And this: “Don’t ever work for someone you don’t want to become.” And this: “Travel to passions rather than destinations.” And this: “If we threw our troubles into a big pile and we saw everyone else’s problems, we would immediately grab ours back.” And this: “Recipe for greatness: Become just a teeny bit better than you were last year. Repeat every year.” And lot’s more . . . Enjoy!
Gary grew up in Wisconsin and never saw salt water until he was 21 years old. He’s been making up for it ever since, at one point traveling around the globe for nine years and becoming one of the world’s most celebrated photographers and travel bloggers. Now he’s got an awesome podcast called Everything Everywhere Daily. His talk with Cal rekindles the love for travel that Cal had when he went around the world as a young man for a decade without a home. Gary tells Cal – and everyone listening – the best places to see next. Bom Voyage!
Imagine waking up one day as a teenager with golf ball-sized glands under your neck, under your armpits and your groin; your tongue swollen, your heart racing and your eyes puffed and nearly shut. That was the case for Stephen Cabral. For a couple of years, physicians couldn’t figure out what was wrong with him. The experience sent him on a path to learn about himself, heal himself, become a board-certified doctor in naturopathy and a proponent for integrative health care. If you have a health problem that is not being resolved, this podcast is for you.
Ryan has been a natural leader ever since he was seven years old and he was plucked out of a bunch of kids on a football team to be quarterback. He starred in high school, then moved on to college and arena league football. But his gift for guiding a team downfield has been amplified by his podcast – where he gets the most out of CEOs, coaches, entrepreneurs and others in conversations about leadership. It's called The Learning Leader Show. After 500 episodes, Ryan's mind has become an encyclopedia of leadership tools. Use them well.
Cal discovers that some of his key attributes – curiosity, creating comfortability and connecting – equally apply to negotiations. And that maybe he has talents for an area in life that he often avoided. Mori is the author of the book: Being Yourself, How To Harness The Power of Connection To Negotiate Fearlessly. She is also a faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. See what this episode can do for you!
Cal is introduced to an app that pairs photos with new contacts, and immediately senses that the young founder of the company that built the app would be an ideal guide into the new landscape of technology. His name is Anjun Rai. His company is called HelloWoofy.com. If you’d like to know where tech is going, c’mon along. . . . You can see the visuals of some of Arjun’s tips by going to calfussman.com and clicking YouTube.
Cal talks with a man who many people see as the ideal banking coach to understand the recent turmoil in the banking industry. Paul McCaffery is a Managing Director at Keefe, Bruyette and Woods, where he has spent more than 20 years advising in the financial sector. He explains how a perfect storm can come together when government policies, banking decisions and the speed of technology enables depositors to move billions of dollars in a short amount of time. And how that storm that can pummel even relatively strong banks. This conversation is a banking tutorial for everyone.
Cal tells the harrowing story of two college wrestlers who walked straight into a Grizzly bear near Yellowstone Park last year. Then asks: What would you do if you were in a similar situation?
As technology connects us more and more, we tend to find ourselves more and more disconnected as humans. The numbers back this up. We’re working alone in remote locations. We’re seeing one another attacked on the internet over political beliefs. We’re spending less time with the people we love than we did years ago. Fifteen percent of males in America say they have no friends, and women who don’t know each other are meeting and walking on the streets of New York during weekends for some sense of attachment. Cal talks with the author of The Power of Ritual, Casper ter Kuile, to see if rituals are the key to restoring our connections.
Phillip Stutts, a political marketing guru who has helped engineer more than 1,500 election wins including three presidencies, had 650-million stem cells injected into his esophagus to combat Achalasia. This disorder destroys the nerves and muscles in the esophagus which normally push food down toward the stomach -- and makes it difficult to eat. Phillip’s experience gives us a look at the medical frontier at a time when stem cell treatments have reportedly cured HIV. His moonshot approach will give a lot of hope to a lot of people.
Everybody loves a great comeback story, and this is one of them. Rick came to Florida as a boy in a family of Cuban immigrants. His parents never made a salary of more than $11,000 a year. An elementary school teacher labeled Rick “retarded” because he couldn’t speak English. Rick went on to become one of CNN’s most viewed hosts in the early 2000s until some comments he made about the power structure of the networks sent him into an unemployable freefall. The situation was dire, but it led him into meetings with people who were starting up a health clinic with 100 patients. Cano Health is now a billion-dollar company, and Rick isn’t stopping there. Enjoy the ride!
Cal gets some lessons on positivity from the best-selling author on Yes!Attitude and couldn’t wait to pass them on. You’re guaranteed to be more positive after you listen to this one! Cal is a new man . . .
It turns out that sometimes back pain doesn’t originate in the back – it’s from a connected area. But that connection can go un-diagnosed and surgery might be recommended for the back. Dynamic Health and Fitness rehabilitates injuries and limits pain through massage, stretching and workouts. Nick Leader explains the functional science approach and points us to a free app that assesses the stability of many of our body parts. Pass this podcast on to somebody you know with back pain, knee pain or hip pain.
Damon Darnall, the president of Sky Eye Network, also known as The Drone Boss, tells Cal how drones will pop out of the ground like sprinkler systems to get medicine and blood to people who desperately need it, save the lives of utility repairmen, come to the rescue of people and pets in hurricanes, protect elephants and conserve thousands and thousands of gallons of water used at golf courses. This is just the beginning. Welcome to The Jetsons.
Cal wanted to remember Larry King on the second anniversary of his passing through an episode of Big Questions. The best way, he discovered, is through the interview James Altucher conducted with him about the special sauce that made Larry “The King.” Altucher’s episode made Cal smile, and will make you, too.
Cal catches up with the man behind Personalfinanceclub.com during a time of inflation, cryptocurrency crashes, a looming recession and a congressional debt-ceiling fight to ask about the best ways to handle money right now. Jeremy’s strategies have never disappointed.
Cal was curious about ways to get more out of his time when he heard about Dan Martell’s book: Buy Back Your Time. He was stunned by Dan’s amazing backstory, which makes the lessons he passes on even more meaningful. Dan coaches CEOs and company founders through SaaS Academy. Buckle your seatbelt for this episode, and get the most out of the 10- 80-10 rule.
Cal talks with the criminal defense attorney who never lost a case and then found the meaning of his life through creating a company that creates amazing chocolates. It’s also a company that is changing thousands of lives. This conversation, and Shawn’s Book, Meaningful Work, may make you connect with yourself in a new way.
On the day of Pele’s burial, Cal goes to the archives for an interview he did with the man many consider to be the greatest soccer player of all time. This podcast gets to the essence of the Brazilian superstar who connected with almost everyone on the planet. Not only did Pele make everyone smile, he once halted a war. After three years of disconnection due to the pandemic, we need to connect now more than ever. Pele shows us how.
Cal looks back at some of the best ideas from expert guests on Big Questions over the last year to live a healthier life – including how to sleep better, how to eat better, how to think better and how to move your body better. Follow this advice and you will have a healthy and happy 2023. Please pass it around to family and friends! And have a Happy New Year!
Cal asks you to reach out to an old friend you haven’t connected with in a while because something good is sure to happen. That was the case for Matt McBride who lost touch with his high school buddy, Jason. Then private investigators reached out to Matt to represent him in the settling of a substantial estate after the death of his father whom he barely knew. Turns out the private investigators connected Matt to his old buddy Jason – and that Jason had been living near Matt’s father and partying with him before Matt’s father passed. This is just the beginning, and it all leads to the founding of a healthcare company that is making patients’ lives easier. It’s called Mend.
Every day, ten thousand people in America turn 65. Every 57 seconds, cognitive problems are diagnosed. And the worst part is forty thousand healthcare workers treating the elderly left the industry during the pandemic. For every 43 job openings to take care of the elderly, only one person is now available. The good news. Robots are on the way! Check this out!
When Joel was eleven years old, he was struck on the street by a car driven by a woman who was looking at her cellphone. When Joel woke up, he saw a man chalk-marking his body on the pavement and he thought he was dead. He wasn’t. The emergency crew was leaving evidence for the police report. This was the first of a series of unfortunate events that turned out to be very fortunate because of the way Joel sees the world. He’s earned millions of dollars as an entrepreneur by finding the right opportunity in every difficult time. If a recession is coming, this podcast is the perfect preparation. Enjoy!
Nearly every hour, an infant or young child chokes to death or dies in an unexpected accident. When Mark Wilhelmsson saw his two-year-old gasping for air while eating some fruit slices, it changed his life . . . and the lives of a lot of other parents. Mark’s son survived. And the information Mark accumulated can protect your family. Please pass this episode on to parents who are expecting children and who have little ones.
The approach of Thanksgiving is the perfect time to hear about the 73-day, 4,200mile bike ride Kari Loya took with his 75-year-old father who was at the early stage of Alzheimer’s Disease. They rode along the TransAmerica Bike Trail from Yorktown, Virginia to Astoria, Oregon. Their trip reminds us to get the most out of the time we have with those we love. Enjoy.
Cal speaks with Glenn Livingston, the author of the best-seller about concrete steps to avoid overeating. This episode comes at the perfect time. Cal often finds himself reaching for more and more during the sumptuous holiday season. Glenn’s tactics enabled him to lose 90 pounds and still eat pleasurably. Get more out of your holiday season this year by eating a little less. You’ll also be able to get Glenn’s book free over the internet
Cal speaks with Glenn Livingston, the author of the best-seller about concrete steps to avoid overeating. This episode comes at the perfect time. Cal often finds himself reaching for more and more during the sumptuous holiday season. Glenn’s tactics enabled him to lose 90 pounds and still eat pleasurably. Get more out of your holiday season this year by eating a little less. You’ll also be able to get Glenn’s book free over the internet
Cal looks to discover if there is anything in our ordinary lives that mirrors the fear and purpose Matt Bromley feels when he surfs 50-foot waves. Cal arrives at an unexpected place that shows him how he can have much impact.
Cal looks to discover if there is anything in our ordinary lives that mirrors the fear and purpose Matt Bromley feels when he surfs 50-foot waves. Cal arrives at an unexpected place that shows him how he can have much impact.
Not long ago, Sev MacLaughlin was working as a waiter in a polyester tuxedo. Listen to how the death of his father sent him on a mission to develop artificial intelligence that can predict illness in advance of modern medicine. Kidney disease. Diabetes. Cardiovascular disease. The predictions of DeLorean AI have twice been validated by third-party labs. And now the company is working on early identification and solutions for mental health issues. The story of Sev’s mission will inspire anyone who has a dream to make a difference in the world, and direct everyone to a service that will catch illness early, save lives and hopefully bring us more hugs with those we love.
Not long ago, Sev MacLaughlin was working as a waiter in a polyester tuxedo. Listen to how the death of his father sent him on a mission to develop artificial intelligence that can predict illness in advance of modern medicine. Kidney disease. Diabetes. Cardiovascular disease. The predictions of DeLorean AI have twice been validated by third-party labs. And now the company is working on early identification and solutions for mental health issues. The story of Sev’s mission will inspire anyone who has a dream to make a difference in the world, and direct everyone to a service that will catch illness early, save lives and hopefully bring us more hugs with those we love.
After losing 30 pounds through a slow and methodical change in diet and portion size, Cal sets off to follow the same strategy with exercise. Basic body movements at the start that don’t call for lifting stacks of weight or exercise to exhaustion. With more than 70 percent of Americans overweight or obese and not moving, this may be the only feasible start toward solving the problem. The movements Michael Ockrim of Mighty Oak Athletic passes on are as easy as lifting a can of beans. But with steady increases they can lead to huge breakthroughs. If you know someone who’s not getting out of a chair or off the couch, please pass this on.
After losing 30 pounds through a slow and methodical change in diet and portion size, Cal sets off to follow the same strategy with exercise. Basic body movements at the start that don’t call for lifting stacks of weight or exercise to exhaustion. With more than 70 percent of Americans overweight or obese and not moving, this may be the only feasible start toward solving the problem. The movements Michael Ockrim of Mighty Oak Athletic passes on are as easy as lifting a can of beans. But with steady increases they can lead to huge breakthroughs. If you know someone who’s not getting out of a chair or off the couch, please pass this on.
Cal gets some tips from a man whose life is dedicated to helping people get a good night’s sleep. Whatever age or sleeping situation you’re in, Devin has probably studied it. And he has many solutions. After listening to this episode, you’ll definitely sleep better.
Cal talks with the man who evolved from drinking a six-pack of Coca Cola every day as a boy to the author of Superlife: the 5 Simple Fixes that will make you healthy, fit and eternally awesome. Darin is also the co-host of the television show Down to Earth with Zac Efron, where the two go adventuring around the world to find healthy and sustainable ways to live. You may eat a little differently after listening to this conversation.
Listen to some amazing surgery stories this week about what it’s like to operate on a child’s brain from Dr. Jay Wellons, a pediatric neurosurgeon at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and the Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Jay is a gifted writer as well, as anybody who’s read All That Moves Us can attest. Once the harrowing stories are told, Cal asks the neurosurgeon how he stays healthy amid the persistent tension. It’s a question that probably applies to everybody who’s worked in healthcare during COVID, and it calls for everybody’s attention.
Morphogenesis has an immunotherapy treatment that has worked in five out of five clinical trials on skin cancer and it’s nasty cousin, Merkel Cell cancer. The company’s CEO, Dr. James Bianco, says that the treatment may work against any cancer. But he doesn’t want anyone calling it The Cancer Vaccine. Cal gets some insight into the potential breakthrough, and the leaps we’re making in the fight against cancer. If you know someone who’s been touched by cancer, check this episode out. That means everybody.
Rich Palarea’s introduction on Twitter reads: “I won’t sleep until I fix $ waste in healthcare.” Cal listens to the story of how Rich became CEO of Kermit, a company that uses technological transparency to reduce costs on surgical implants for hospitals. The conversation reveals how little we know about what goes on behind the scenes in some operating rooms. It also gives us hope that applying transparency across all aspects of healthcare will make life better for everyone.
Cal takes a moment to pause and reflect on moments he had with two icons who said farewell recently in very different ways. Tennis great Serena Williams ended one of the most impactful careers in the history of any sport at the U.S. Open and the man who lifted The Iron Curtain, Mikhail Gorbachev, took his final breath at the age of 91. Cal tells two stories that showcase the origin of their influence. They both revolve around hugs. We should all take note.
Cal takes a moment to honor those impacted by the attack on the World Trade Center that killed more than 3,000 people in 2001. He replays his conversation with Michael Wright, who was working on the 81st floor on the morning the planes struck. When Michael made it down to the street, one of the twin towers collapsed on his head. Cal replays Michael’s vivid description in this episode for two reasons. So that we’ll never forget the day, as well as to alert us to the terrorist threat of this era: Fentanyl. This synthetic opioid is 50 times more powerful than heroin and much more inexpensive to produce. It’s responsible for the death of more than 200,000 people in the USA over the last two years. 9/11 is a poignant alert that something needs to be done about Fentanyl. Now.
Many people have avoided going to the doctor during the time of Covid . . . unless they had Covid. This may have resulted in missing an early detection of cancer. So this podcast is a reminder to all those who’ve delayed checkups to make an appointment. Cal gets an exam, and now has peace of mind. He also puts the podcast to a checkup. Marketing guru Jason Harris, the CEO of the creative agency Mekanism, enters the conversation to show Cal that it’s time for Big Questions to grow to wear many hats. Cal responds by setting in motion a non-profit to attack problems in healthcare. The Best Is Yet To Come. Thanks for coming on the journey.
Many people have avoided going to the doctor during the time of Covid . . . unless they had Covid. This may have resulted in missing an early detection of cancer. So this podcast is a reminder to all those who’ve delayed checkups to make an appointment. Cal gets an exam, and now has peace of mind. He also puts the podcast to a checkup. Marketing guru Jason Harris, the CEO of the creative agency Mekanism, enters the conversation to show Cal that it’s time for Big Questions to grow to wear many hats. Cal responds by setting in motion a non-profit to attack problems in healthcare. The Best Is Yet To Come. Thanks for coming on the journey.
Cal has spent his life writing stories and telling them on stage. Big Questions started after he told stories for three straight hours on Tim Ferriss’s podcast. But Cal finds a new power in storytelling through Harvard’s Annie Brewster, a physician who used her own story to help heal herself after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis roughly twenty years ago. Annie went on to start a non-profit to help others understand their health problems through storytelling, and this conversation gives Cal the seed of an idea . . . and may help you, too.
Until this week, Cal never knew that more than ten percent of the people who signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776 were physicians. Doctors are now found in tech roles that can bring exponential improvements to the masses. Amazon’s Adam Glasofer is a great example.
Johnny Crowder is motivation to all when it comes to changing the way you think about your health. He’s actually rewired his brain to get the best possible behavior from himself. His life is an extreme example of overcoming mental health problems. But the work he’s put in to understand the human brain can be used by anybody who needs to overcome ANY problem.
For a couple of years now, Cal has been asking questions to get to the root of why we’re all so disappointed with aspects of healthcare. This week, he speaks with a man whose created a game-changing solution which puts people back in control of their care with high-quality experiences at lower prices. It’s called Transcarent. Listen up . . .
Matt Hollingsworth, the CEO of Carta Healthcare, has had a sense of the way healthcare can Impact a family’s financial health since . . . well, perhaps since he was in the womb and his mother was diagnosed with cancer. She refused chemotherapy to protect him. Matt’s life has been deeply influenced by his family’s battles with cancer. It’s common knowledge that one of every two Americans has medical debt and that medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcy. But beyond that, Matt explains to Cal what our $4 trillion annual spend on healthcare is doing to your paycheck. A fresh look at a topic that is hard to get a grip on.
Cal is introduced to a man who’s orchestrated 4,000 college scholarships to students from low-income areas and who plans to extend 30,000 scholarships through an organization called Hope Chicago. This gets Cal to thinking about helping one child to become a doctor at a time when one in five healthcare workers has left the field during Covid. Pete makes that scholarship happen for Cal and Big Questions, and leaves Cal wondering how to generate 49 more!
Cal finds himself looking down different highways and byways in the wide arc of healthcare and begins to wonder about the ways to make the biggest impact. Then he awakens one night at 3 a.m. with an urge to relisten to the first podcast he did on the subject. It was with Navy surgeon and dermatologist Reagan Anderson before COVID. It resonates now more than ever.
Cal looks for a way to bring people together during the acrimony following the Supreme
Court decision reversing Roe vs. Wade and setting the stage for the prohibition of
abortion in certain states. So he made an unusual decision to publish an episode that he was planning for September – during Prostate Cancer Awareness month. The idea behind it is for people of different sexes and opinions to share knowledge in a kind way – in this case about an often-misunderstood male organ. Dr. Neil Baum, a urologist from New Orleans, gives the primer. The hope is that we all become more curious and understanding of each other’s health needs and opinions. Because if we can’t come together as a nation over healthcare, what can we come together over?
On average, every American eats 100 bowls of cereal a year. Most are filled with highly-sugared, highly-processed carbohydrates fronted by wonderful animations of characters that lure kids in to thinking they're breakfast pals. Cal used to be one of those kids, and he loved those sweet, crunchy cereals. Now, Cal wonders how much healthier America would be if it were eating cereals that taste great but contain virtually no sugar made by Magic Spoon. His conversation with company founder Gabi Lewis takes us all to new places. A healthy Birthday Cake cereal???
Cal meets two guys who’ve created an App that does not let you forget anything -- and creates a memory archive. That made Cal feel sharper and healthier in an instant. Not only is the Twos App free. But the founders gave Cal a two-dollar bill as a promotional gesture just to try it out. Cal did, and has been using the Twos App ever since. Founders Parker Klein and Joe Steilberg got so excited to come on Big Questions, they offered to Venmo $2 to anybody who tries the Twos App. Cal’s sure this will delight listeners . . . but he hopes it doesn’t bankrupt Parker and Joe.
Cal has become fascinated with how people are reinventing soda and breakfast cereal to make them healthier. When he hears how Neuro mints bring calm and clarity and Neuro chewing gum brings focus and energy, he reaches out for a taste and finds a story that you’re going to want to pass on to anyone you know having a difficult time. Just listen to how Neuro co-founder Ryan Chen came through a 35-foot fall that smashed his spine during a snowboarding accident, lost all movement beneath his hips, then beat addiction to pain killers and went on to create a product that will give you a sense of calm and clarity. There are many people who are depressed and could use a lift right now. Pass this podcast on to them. Could be a true life saver.
Cal catches up with a friend he met while speaking at an event at Kaiser Permanente just before COVID. Eddie Garcia had had a heart attack. His heart was in trouble, and Eddie was waiting for a transplant. Eddie did receive a new heart and a second chance at life during COVID. What Cal didn’t know was that Eddie had been wanting to write a letter of thanks to the family of the donor – but was gripped by writer’s block. It was understandable, because such a letter can bring pain to the family of the donor. Some families in that situation simply want to move forward. Eddie’s new heart was calling out to write the letter, though, and at the end of this podcast you’re going to hear it and see how clear communication can break through writer’s block in any situation.
Cal reached out to the Chief Medical Officer to the President to find out what Dr. Anthony Fauci learned since the start of the COVID pandemic. Cal’s surprised by Dr. Fauci’s answer, though maybe he shouldn’t have been.
Cal had no idea that as we age there is a risk that receiving CPR could give you brain damage. Knowing that, would you want to be resuscitated? There are many medical situations that can leave you unable to communicate. Have you left behind decisions on how you’d like to be treated? Or who you’d like to be making decisions on your behalf? Dr. Tatiana Fofanova of Koda Health takes Cal through the interview process that allows us to make legally-binding decisions in an emergency should we be unable to communicate. Healthcare providers are willing to pay for this information, because they want to know how to treat you. Live in peace.
Millions of people are impacted by IBS. But few talk about their troubles on the toilet – whether they be about constipation, diarrhea, bloating or excess gas. Most suffer in silence. The conversation you’re about to hear is a game changer. Because IBS picked on the wrong guy when it came after a data scientist at Uber – Asaf Kraus. Asaf used artificial intelligence and photos to track down the foods and habits that were causing his problems and created a company called Dieta Health that can potentially help millions of people solve their intestinal problems. And it all started on a date. If you’re not impacted by IBS, you definitely know someone who is. Please pass this episode to anyone you know with IBS. They’ll be deeply grateful.
Cal comes across an interesting situation when an 18-year-old college freshman develops back pain after donating blood. A campus doctor fears it could be a deadly pulmonary embolism and directs Ashton Marshall to the local Emergency Room. This could lead to many tests and high bills. Ashton’s father, the author of Never Pay The First Bill, offers his son a strategy to keep the charges reasonable. Listen to Marshall Allen, and you’ll have that same strategy.
Cal reads a story on ESPN.com that makes him cackle, and he reaches out to the writer to thank him for bringing laughter into his day. The conversation that ensues brings forth an amazing story about the loss of Ryan’s toes and the surreal journey it takes him on. Pass this podcast on to anyone feeling down or miserable. They’ll likely have a very different mindset after they’re done: Gratitude.
Cal sees a newsmagazine with a headline that reads: THE BAD GUYS, ON YOUR PHONE, IN YOUR COMPUTER, FILLING YOUR EMAIL, MINING YOUR INFO, TRICKING YOUR LOVED ONES, IMPERSONATING YOU AND PLOTTING THEIR NEXT STEAL. He notices that The Tindler Swinder is one of Netflix’s top-rated documentaries. And he observes how getting scammed affects the daily life and mental health of a friend. He gets an inside look from the victim of a massive scam and identify theft – the former wife of NBA all-star Jason Kidd. Joumana’s story will keep you on guard.
Cal talks with the best-selling author and one of America’s most sought after keynote speakers about the first steps that can send you on your way. Josh has founded, built and sold five companies for a combined exit value of more than $200 million. He knows of what he speaks. The innovation exercise he plays out with Cal on reshaping healthcare in this episode can be tailored to anybody’s needs. Josh’s mantra is: Think of how powerful your company can be if everyone innovates, every day. You’ll be stronger for listening . . . much stronger.
Simply listening to the story of how Elliott and three buddies who were just out of college andfeeling lost during The Great Recession went on to create a company called Summit that connected thousands of innovators in the Tech space at conferences that filled hotels and cruises and led to their purchase of a majestic mountain in Utah, and along the way curated the wisdom of Jeff Bezos, Ted Turner, President Bill Clinton, the actress and founder of the billion dollar Honest company, Jessica Alba, and musician Quincy Jones, will give you the feeling that YOU can do anything! Listen up, check out the book Make No Small Plans and see what mountains you might be capable of moving! Cal wonders if a similar community could be created for the future of healthcare . . .
Cal gets furious when he reads about predatory medical billing in The Price We Pay, What Broke American Health Care and How To Fix It. So he reaches out to the author – a surgeon at the Johns Hopkins hospital and television commentator -- for tips on how a patient should respond when she or he is the victim of outlandish charges. A conversation for everyone who needs healthcare – which means everybody.
What if you didn’t have to drive around packed parking lots looking for a space at hospitals because you were dropped off by a vehicle dispatched by Uber Health? And what if the cost of that trip was seamlessly woven into your insurance plan or through your healthcare provider? Well, your car may be waiting. Uber Health’s Caitlin Donovan has a Big Answer for Big Questions.
One day Joe’s 14-year-old son Andrew was winning a state soccer tournament. Couple of days later, doctors told Joe that his son had cancer and less than a day to live. That’s the beginning of an amazing story. The story of the B+ Foundation – the largest provider of financial assistance to families of kids with cancer in the United States. If you’d like to be uplifted in these unsettling times, listen to the conversation between Joe and Cal.
After a dizzying few weeks of watching images of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of the Ukraine and pondering the possibilities of a nuclear war, Cal senses it’s time to step back and get perspective. He reaches out to Juliet Funt, author of the book A Minute To Think, for advice on getting the most out of himself during this crazy time. “Funt’s wisdom around making space is priceless,” says marketing guru Seth Godin. Cal embraces Funt’s business tools to get the most out of his days. They will create great outcomes for you, as well. Guaranteed.
Cal does the podcast he wishes he never had to do: Advice on surviving a nuclear attack. Hopefully, this scenario will never occur. But there have been a great deal of surprises throughout Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and it’s wise to take a few moments to think about the unthinkable. This podcast looks at selecting a shelter, at supplies to store, and it offers tips like not going out in the rain for days afterward to avoid radiation that might fall on your head – even if you’re hundreds of miles from the blast. And if you’re showering to wash away nuclear debris, it’s okay to use soap and shampoo – but not hair conditioner. Conditioner will bond radiation particles to your hair. Not a pleasant topic. But you’ll be better off for listening.
Cal looks at the invasion of The Ukraine through the question that he’s been focusing on in healthcare: How can we eliminate the problem before it happens? As it turns out, there may have been a way to avoid the carnage almost 20 years ago with some innovative thinking that could’ve put the The Ukraine in a very different place. We’ll never know. But Cal throws out an example of using the question and some innovative thinking to eliminate our problems in all aspects of life before they happen.
After tasting and loving an Olipop root beer, Cal tracks down the company’s co-founder and CEO to find out how it came about. Olipop beverages are made from ingredients like kudzu root, slippery elm bark and Jerusalem artichoke. You’re drinking plant fiber instead of high fructose corn syrup. There are few calories and very little sugar. Olipop beverages come in many flavors, and are in supermarkets all over America, and they’re an example of how an individual and one company can impact lives. This is going to be big.
The United States is one million nurses short and you don’t want to begin appreciating nurses only when you don’t have one when you need one. Cal talks with Lori Armstrong, who runs Inspire Nurse Leaders, about the nursing shortage that’s been exacerbated by departures during two years of relentless pressure on the front lines of healthcare. Lori is trying to solve the problem at an advanced level. But we can all do something. If you know a nurse, find a small way to make her or his day a little better. Just a little attention might reduce a lot of tension as we think about how to solve the problem.
The release of Carl’s memoir, Chasing History, seems like the ideal time to ask the renowned Washington Post reporter and now CNN commentator about the health of our democracy over the last 60 years. Bernstein’s book looks at the start of his career from 1960-1965, when he began as a freckled copy boy, before his reporting with Bob Woodward of the Watergate break-in and its subsequent cover-up forced President Nixon to resign. The conversation spans from Martin Luther King Jr’s I Have A Dream speech at The Lincoln Memorial to the mob storming of The Capitol on January 6, 2021. It leaves Cal and the rest of us wondering about the future.
While speaking at a retreat for a group of investors, Cal asks about a basic educational guide to the stock market and saving money to make sure that any health care needs at the end of life can easily be met. He’s turned on to The Personal Finance Club course and Jeremy Schneider. Which leads to this conversation. Anyone looking for a clear and time-tested way to save a nest egg will be happy they tuned into this week’s podcast.
Cal looks back on experiences he’s had with Muhammad Ali, Kobe Bryant and Larry King as a way of seeing forward into his journey to reshape healthcare. A story about Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have A Dream Speech is also included in this episode. Each remembrance shows us how a tiny action – an introduction, a suggestion or a boost during a scary moment can be so impactful, and each reminds us how to get the most out of our lives.
Cal talks with the author of The Super Age, Decoding Our Demographic Destiny, about what our future looks like as America becomes an older nation as opposed to a younger one for the first time in its history. Bradley uses data from the past to predict what’s coming and the results of this conversation are shocking to Cal. According to Bradley, the best is yet to come. Get ready to be optimistic.
Nido came to study in the United States from the Middle East when he was 17 years old with $50 in his pocket and built an extraordinary life through High Point University in North Carolina – where he is now president. During the last 17 years, Nido has grown the university from 90 acres to 500, from 18 buildings to 128 and from 1,400 students to 6,000. He talks about the power a strong home has over our attitude and behavior, and gives Cal and listeners tools to build and grow any enterprise. This episode is a feast of wisdom.
The CEO of one of America’s most innovative creative companies, Mekanism, shows Cal how to build a campaign through understanding an audience. This is new territory for Cal, who’s spent a lifetime asking questions of people who’ve built great things – without ever having built anything himself. As Cal sets off on his journey to try to reshape healthcare, he knows he will have to build a platform. Jason sets the groundwork, and shows everybody how to shape their own messaging by using the right questions.
Cal checks in with the author of The Third Door, and comes away with two tools that can help anybody who feels stuck in life get to a better place. (And in times of COVID, there are plenty of people who feel stuck.) The tools are called The Sun and The Clouds and The Thirty-Day Challenge, and they don’t require much time. Even if you don’t think you need them, they just may surprise you and take you to an intriguing place. Or you could pass them on to somebody who is unmistakably stuck and definitely needs them. Either way, these tools will lead to a clearer New Year.
Mental health gets closer to home for Cal when a young acquaintance is brought to tears with harmful thoughts in front of Cal’s house. This, after suicide and attempts shook a nearby college campus. It’s clear that a huge number of people are dealing with mental health issues that are not being treated or acknowledged. Cal talks with Kevin Hines, who has devoted his life to suicide prevention after attempting to take his own life by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge, about what we all can do to help. Awareness is key. The information Kevin passes on could save somebody’s life.
Cal learns how we all can bring some happiness into our lives from a man who became a national and international whistling champion. Chris Ullman has whistled in the Oval Office, whistled on The Today Show and The Tonight Show, and whistled with a symphony orchestra in front of 60,000 people. His message boils down to this: It’s hard to be unhappy when you’re whistling a happy tune. Chris brings joy to people almost every day with a Happy Birthday serenade. It will be hard for you to walk away from this episode without whistling yourself.
Cal hears a story about a guy who got seriously ill on vacation, and how, after he survived, the experience ultimately changed his diet and made him determined to clean out the chemicals in his body. When you hear the story, it may make you think about the way you take care of your own body. We get haircuts and buy products to groom our skin. But what if we put that care into our insides?
Cal talks with a man who’s devoted his life’s work to the study of this scary disease, and Patrick Sullivan comes through with tips on how to keep it away. One important factor is making sure your hearing, and that of your parents, doesn’t decline. Research shows that if hearing loss is not treated it can significantly increase the possibility of Alzheimer’s and dementia. Cal brings in the CEO of MDHearingAid, Doug Breaker, to share experiences from his family and offer some solutions. This podcast may be a huge benefit to your parents – and you.
Cal celebrates his birthday to find an unexpected gift. It’s a book written by Marc Champagne called: Personal Socrates: Questions That Will Upgrade Your Life from Legends & World Class Performers. Cal opens the book and is surprised to find that the first chapter is about HIM. Other chapters are run through the prism of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, the writer Maya Angelou, the broadcaster Larry King, novelist Jane Austin, Steve Jobs, the physicist Steven Hawking and the comedian Robin Williams. Pretty good company. Cal’s conversation with the book’s author revolves around the clarity that arises from good questions.
Cal gets a windfall when he listens to the strategy that takes Lisa Gable where she wants to go. And Lisa’s gone to some incredible places. The author of Turnaround has served four presidents, raised about a half billion dollars and stitched together a coalition of food and beverage industry corporations with public health agencies that led to the reduction of 6.4 trillion calories from the collective American diet. Her strategy immediately points Cal to the right places, and it may do the same for you.
As Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski heads into his 47th and final year of coaching college basketball, Cal goes to the archives to play a conversation with the Hall of Fame coach that he had ten years ago. It’s filled with the ingredients of success, and touches on topics like time, money, support, mentorship, passion, love, friendship, preparation, fear, honor, failure, truth and family. This conversation will be just as valuable fifty years from now.
As Cal becomes riveted with the Hulu series Dopesick about the drug company that created OxyContin and addicted a chunk of America, he speaks with a man in recovery from a decade of opioid addiction for insight. Ryan Hampton courageously opens up and explains how he became addicted, what it was like and how the bankruptcy of Purdue Pharma failed the victims of the opioid crisis that has killed half a million Americans and addicted millions. Buckle your seat belt for this one.
When Cal wonders how much money Americans annually spend on Halloween, he’s directed to the author of Salt Sugar Fat and Hooked: Food, Free Will, And How The Food Giants Exploit Our Addictions. Cal finds out that kids consume what amounts to 169 sugar cubes each Halloween, but Moss shocks him with a most unexpected thought. That Halloween is fine. It’s the other 364 days in a year that we really have to worry about. Mandatory listening for your family’s health.
The United States is $28 trillion in debt, and it was going to run out of money on October 18th if it couldn’t borrow more. Fortunately, an agreement was reached in Congress to temporarily raise the debt ceiling and keep the government functioning. Unfortunately, the debt problem was kicked like a can into the near future, and a political solution will need to be agreed upon in December. Cal reached out to billionaire philanthropist and best-selling author David Rubenstein for an explanation on how our $28 trillion debt got started and how it affects all of us -- as well as the rest of the world. Mandatory listening.
For years, Cal wanted to have a conversation with the greatest wrestler who ever lived. Dan Gable went undefeated in high school, won two national championships at Iowa State University and took a gold medal at the 1972 Olympics by beating six opponents with three pins and shutting his other opponents out by a combined score of 26-0. His dominance continued as a coach at the University of Iowa, where his teams won 15 national titles between 1976 and 1997. He is the personification of excellence, which made Cal completely unprepared for where this conversation turned. It’s about the importance of asking for help, and it’s mandatory listening.
After putting on a bunch of weight during COVID, Cal says enough is enough. Just as he does, he hears about a book that promises to bring back his six pack. The last time Cal saw that six pack was thirty years ago. But authors and personal trainers Stephen Compolo and Peter Tzemis guarantee Cal that if he follows the formula he can see that six pack once again. Plenty of great advice on calorie intake and exercise for everyone. Check it out, and you can get your six pack, too!
Cal comes across the mindset of overcoming adversity when he talks with a 19-year-old who has a fatal disease called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Elijah avoided an operation that would have straightened his curved spine with a metal rod by straightening it himself through exercise and diet. Now, with the possibilities of gene editing, he’s got his sights on stopping the disease cold through his non-profit called Destroy Duchenne. Whatever obstacles you’re facing, you’ll be better able to overcome them after hearing this podcast.
Cal raced home from the hospital for a brief time while he was caring for his 90-year-old dad to have this conversation with the actor and author Matthew McConaughey, and he’s sure glad he did. The two talked about their dads, and Matthew passed along a gift that Cal found very helpful after his dad passed away. Cal will always be grateful for this hour. It has something for everyone.
Cal asks the retired general of the U.S. Army why the U.S. can’t seem to plan ahead in the aftermath of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan after 20 years and trillions of dollars of U.S. assistance. This conversation has so many sound bites it would be a treasure trove for any news outlet. But Cal instead finds inspiration and motivation in the general’s thoughts as he sets off on a mission to reshape healthcare.
Cal talks with a primary care physician we all wished we could have, a man whose life was changed by a singular moment very early in his career. It’s led him on a path to continually think about reinventing himself and his profession. Now, the chairman and founder of Private Medical, he wonders if we should reshape the very foundation of the way healthcare operates.
Cal talks with the author of Preventable: The Inside Story Of How Leadership Failures, Politics, And Selfishness Doomed The U.S. Coronavirus Response. Slavitt was the guy who came to the rescue of the Affordable Care Act when it got off to a rocky start in the Obama administration. Cal asks him to look ahead to show us how we can prevent the wrong things from happening over the next few years as 110,000 doctors retire and America turns into a nation in need of a lot more care as it becomes more older than younger for the first time in its history. This conversation affects everyone.
Cal talks with the former Navy Seal Commander who had a severe case of survivor’s guilt in Afghanistan and locked it away until it festered and led him to some dark places. But a simple breathing exercise led him on a path toward meditation and mindfulness and back to good health. It comes in handy for Cal after watching the chaotic evacuation scenes from the airport in Kabul following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. And it will be of great use for anyone in any kind of stressful situation. Please get the most out of it.
Cal doesn’t feel well after watching videos coming from Afghanistan – especially as he hears that America has left roughly 80,000 of its friends in the country behind when the Taliban took over. He offers President Joe Biden a plan on how to stand by those friends.
Ever since he was a kid, Marc Hodosh wondered why people had to get old and die. Now, as he prepares to co-host a healthcare conference called Life Itself with CNN’s Sanjay Gupta, he looks into the possibilities we have of living longer and longer and ultimately forever. He cites the Immortal Jellyfish as an example of a creature on earth that can age, and then, when under an imminent threat, revert to infancy and start over again. A fascinating conversation on where we could be headed.
Cal goes into his archives to listen to a conversation he had with Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield about their early years as friends and business partners in Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream. He remembers the conversation being filled with funny stories and the power of ice cream to bring people together, which seems at odds with the recent decision of the company and its parent to boycott the West Bank in protest of Israeli treatment of Palestinians. The friction created by the boycott leaves Cal wondering if there’s a wiser way to allow ice cream to work its magic.
When Cal conducts an interviewing workshop, he is a reminded of The Dr. Dre question, the question that all employers might ask in interviews when looking for passionate employees. Cal goes into his archives to re-listen to his interview with Dre from 2012 for Esquire Magazine, where Dre told Cal he once worked 79 straight hours in the studio without sleep to produce something special. All this leads to thoughts on what makes a life of passion and purpose. Cal hopes that you’ll come away with the right answers for yourself.
As Cal takes time to reflect after his father’s passing, he goes into his archives to listen to conversations he had with people who’ve done the extraordinary over the years. This talk with the British musician and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame goes back to 2009 and makes Cal smile, and ponder subjects like stress, parenting, death, tantric sex and hitting the High C in life. Cal hopes you enjoy this conversation as much as he did.
When Cal hears how Bitcoin is becoming a huge part of the economy in Nigeria, he remembers a conversation he had with Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss about the cryptocurrency in 2013. Back then, a Bitcoin valued $140. Now, it’s at about $33,000. And that’s after a steep decline from earlier this year, when it got up to about $60,000. The way the twins spoke about Bitcoin is a huge reminder to Cal to pay attention to the new developments in healthcare. And this conversation is a reminder to all of us to pay attention to the future before it happens.
As Cal creates a platform to improve healthcare, he goes into his archives to listen to a conversation he had about a decade ago with the man who wrote the famous Jack Nicholson line in A Few Good Men: “You can’t handle the truth!” When a line like that sticks in the public conscience for decades, you know the story is good. This conversation centers around the power of memorable storytelling for all of us. In a time when it’s difficult to cut through the noise, a good story is always your best bet. This week’s episode will charge you up to get the most out of the stories you need to tell.
As Cal reflects on how to improve healthcare, he goes into his archives and pulls out a conversation he had with the social media guru. It provides the perfect background on how to achieve. Gary Vee shows Cal how the early patterns of success in selling baseball cards and touting wine led to his communications company, VaynerX. Once you’ve figured out how to find and tell stories about the future, all you’ve got to do is rinse and repeat. A great lesson for everybody.
Cal goes into his archives to pluck out a story that he loves from the billionaire oil man and business mogul who loved to make money simply to give it away. Though Pickens passed on a couple of years ago, the story of how he turned $500 a week into billions will inspire anyone at a crossroads in life. Cal hopes to use the thinking behind it to impact as many people as possible as he tries to reshape health care, and he urges you to get the most from the message in your own way.
When Cal heard that Duke men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski would be retiring at the end of the coming basketball season, he went back to re-listen to a conversation he had with the iconic coach ten years ago. Like a rare bottle of wine, age brought new depth to the talk for Cal -- especially when he reached the part where Coach K describes the last few months he spent with competitor and close friend, Jim Valvano, before Jimmy V died of cancer. The foundation that Valvano created, The V Foundation, has since raised roughly a quarter of a billion dollars for research to beat the disease.
Cal goes to his personal archives to pull up some thoughts from the body builder, movie star and former governor of California. This includes an epiphany on how the line “I’ll be back” came about in The Terminator. Arnold also talks about the self-improvement regimen than made him who he came to be. And Cal looks to shape these thoughts on his own journey to improve health care. Listeners can use Arnold’s nuggets of wisdom to get the most out of their lives, too.
Cal talks with his dad, Herbert Fussman, about their experience battling through Herb’s case of COVID not long after he’d fractured his pelvis. The battle was fought at Herb’s home. After one doctor started a sentence with the words: “Either you’re going to be dead in four days or . . . “ there were nights when Herb coughed for eight hours straight. With steady steps forward, though, some great advice and tactics, Herb came through. We’re happy to celebrate with you.
Cal talks with Mirthell and Rita Onyx about how they overcame frustrations in their working life by following a desire to spend time with their four children, creating YouTube programming as a family that has now been seen by three billion people and made millions. Rita and Mirthell give Cal many ideas on how to take the platform he’s designing to reshape healthcare to the masses, and they show every listener how research and tenacity can turn an idea into a future that couldn’t be imagined.
While Cal has interviewed many of the icons of the last 75 years, there are a few people he always wanted to meet. One of them is the author of his favorite book, One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The Colombian won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982 and passed away in 2014. Cal was recently introduced to Marquez’s son, Rodrigo Garcia, the award-winning filmmaker. Turned out the two had been living a few blocks away from each other, and the conversation between them made Cal feel like he’d been a friend of the family for more than half a century.
Cal gets some tips from the all-star coach, Roger Love, on how to get the most out of your voice. Roger got started with musical legends like The Jackson Five, Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys and Luther Vandross – and he still works with musicians. But over time, he branched out to assist folks like the motivational speaker Tony Robbins and the model and television star Tyra Banks. Roger shows how the pitch, tone and the melody of our voices can be more impactful than the words we’re communicating. He’s also offering a gift certificate to any listener of Big Questions who wants to get the most out of their voice. Check it out.
Cal finally catches up to The Mysterious Blonde almost 50 years after she appeared in the film American Graffiti. Suzanne Somers tells Cal about her complicated path to self-worth. It starts with standing up for herself in a contract dispute once she made it big on the sitcom Three’s Company. Which leads to her being released from the show. Which results in her becoming a Vegas headliner. And then, after Suzanne is struck by breast cancer, she morphs into an author of health-related books that reach millions. The assistance she’s given to so many as a spokesperson for good health has shown her the meaning of her life. It’s a story and a lesson that comes at the perfect time for Cal –- and maybe, you, too.
Cal hears the story of a man who leveraged 15 empty seconds on an automotive assembly line to create businesses that have made many, many, many millions. The formula that Joe Chura, CEO of Dealer Inspire, has developed can be applied by anybody, and Cal is going to use it on his quest to reshape healthcare. Listen up, and change your life.
With 1,200 election victories that arc from the House of Representatives to the Presidency of The United States, Phillip Stutts has seen how elections are won by both parties. He says the formula is always the same, and he defines it in his book: The Undefeated Marketing System: How to Grow Your Business and Build Your Audience Using the Secret Formula That Elects Presidents. It’s also, Phillip shows Cal, a way to get the most out of your health.
As we begin to see the light at the end of the COVID tunnel, Cal converses with the legendary singer/songwriter of American Pie and Vincent about the blessings of freedom and connectivity. Along the way, as they talk about music, Don tells Cal about the feeling that goes through him when a great song gets off the ground. “Most music you hear lays there. It’s nothing. You don’t want to hear it again. It’s a nice try, but it’s a strikeout. Then there’s stuff that lives.” Leaving Cal wondering about what it’s going to take to get out a message about reshaping healthcare that will have the same impact as a song everyone loves to sing 50 years after its creation.
Ever since Cal began to look into healthcare, people have been e-mailing him and asking him to compare the system in the U.S. to that of other countries around the world. Cal talks with Israeli actress and producer Noa Tishby to get a comparison. Tishby is the author of the just released book, Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country On Earth. This conversation explains why Pfizer and Moderna used Israel as a testing ground for their COVID vaccines, and looks at characteristics in the Israeli system that we might find desirable.
Cal wonders if there are patterns from the aftermath of 9/11 and The Great Recession that could help us move forward from COVID. There are few people who were more deeply involved in those crises as GE’s CEO at the time — Jeff Immelt. Jeff took the reins of GE only a few days before 9/11, was at the center of the struggle through The Great Recession, and now, after his departure from the company, he gives us a look at what may happen to healthcare going forward. But most of all, this conversation gives us all insights on how to think in times of crisis.
When Cal reads how Samit transformed an immigrant who’d been on welfare into a business owner bringing in more than a million dollars a year, he becomes curious what Samit could do for him as he tries to reshape health care. Samit does not disappoint. He advises Cal to become Andrew Carnegie. Check out what the twelve truths that make up Samit’s book, Future Proofing You, can do for your life.
Cal is inspired by the hero’s journey of an 8-year-old boy who had 75 percent of his body burned by fire. Though the circumstances are horrible, his power of connection and positivity has taken Marius to an amazing place. Marius has had more than 40 surgeries through Shriner’s Hospitals for Children. The fingers that he lost in the blaze have been replaced by his toes. His nose has been recreated. Now a man, Marius has inspired millions with a story that reminds us to keep moving forward with a smile no matter the obstacle.
The author of biographies on Leonardo Da Vinci, Albert Einstein and Steve Jobs talks to Cal about his latest work: Code Breaker, Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing and The Future of the Human Race. It’s a conversation about a topic that will alter the world, and it gives Cal the power to move forward on his quest to reshape health care.
Cal catches up with his old pal and podcast host James Altucher to talk about the release of James’ new book, which questions the concept that you need 10,000 hours to achieve mastery. Cal could use the advice, as he needs to learn as much about health care as quickly as possible in order to try to reshape it. The conversation ultimately turns into two pals catching up after a crazy year, and you’ll feel like you were sitting at the breakfast table alongside them.
Cal catches up with his old pal and podcast host James Altucher to talk about the release of James’ new book, which questions the concept that you need 10,000 hours to achieve mastery. Cal could use the advice, as he needs to learn as much about health care as quickly as possible in order to try to reshape it. The conversation ultimately turns into two pals catching up after a crazy year, and you’ll feel like you were sitting at the breakfast table alongside them.
Cal talks with the entrepreneur who never felt comfortable around the phrase: “The sky’s the limit.” Instead, Naveen founded Moon Express. And Viome, a company that detects from your gut what you need to eat to be at your healthiest. Nobody appreciates curiosity more than Cal, but he’s never gotten the most out of his as an entrepreneur. It’s time. And you can, too. Just listen.
Cal asks The Science Guy why so many Americans don’t seem to believe in science, and why so many wouldn’t wear masks during COVID, even as more than 400,000 people died. After spending his entire adult life explaining the marvel and practicality of science through a television show, books and his podcast, Bill looks at the opposing forces, and points to The Constitution’s endorsement of science as a way forward.
After winning the Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs a year ago just as COVID was beginning to spread around the world, Laurent had to make a decision. Return to his offensive line spot with the Chiefs and pursue another Super Bowl ring. Or go to the front lines of COVID as a doctor at a long-term care facility in his home of Montreal. He chose to go to the front lines. After learning what Laurent took from the experience, Cal will never be the same.
After having breakfast with the iconic broadcaster almost every day for more than a decade, Cal has no choice but to produce Larry King’s obituary. He uses Larry’s own voice to explain how Larry became a master of communication and connection, and explains why the world will never see another like him.
Show Notes:
Cal’s favorite Larry King story. 00:11
Why Larry King is so important. 04:58
The day Larry King’s father died. 06:21
Larry’s tough upbringing. 08:15
Larry’s love for radio. 08:40
Larry’s love for The Brooklyn Dodgers. 09:01
Larry’s Gil Moppo story as told to Jimmy Fallon. 09:20
Why Larry didn’t end up binding hats. 18:20
Patterns relating to iconic success. 18:56
How Larry got into broadcasting. 19:15
Larry arrives in Miami with less than $20 in his wallet. 19:34
Larry finds his first radio station. 19:49
Larry tells the story of being nervous on his first day on the air. 20:33
How Larry Zeiger got his radio name. 20:46
The birth of Larry’s interviewing style. 24:01
Larry tells the classic story of his first interview with Frank Sinatra. 25:23
How Larry could make a question disappear. 31:21
How Larry got fired. 34:59
The day Larry was down to $48 and won $11,000 at the track. 36:17
What Larry was most proud of about himself. 41:03
How Larry’s misadventures played into his interviewing style. 41:42
How Larry got his all-night radio show across America. 42:07
How Larry’s style connected with everybody. 42:35
How Larry met Ted Turner on his pathway to CNN. 42:59
Larry’s first night on CNN with New York Governor Mario Cuomo. 43:38
How Larry mesmerized Americans and the world for eight hours a day. 44:06
Larry’s best advice: Every setback is a step forward. 44:30
Larry’s heart attack, after smoking 3 packs a day for 37 years. 44:38
When Larry found out his heart surgeon had only nine fingers. 45:00
How Larry saved thousands of lives with his cardiac foundation 46:05
How Larry influenced a presidential election with one question. 46:38
Cal shows up at breakfast to help Larry write his autobiography. 48:11
Cal talks about how Larry mentored him. 48:26
Larry talks about Cal passing on his legacy. 49:32
Cal describes what made Larry so great. 50:00
Breakfast at Nate n Al’s. 50:36
The hardest part of getting old is seeing your friends pass away. 52:56
Fighting death with humor. 53:45
Larry thinks about freezing himself. 54:11
Larry is avalanched by health problems. 54:50
Larry discusses not being able to walk. 55:14
Covid was the worst thing that could happen to Larry. 55:37
Larry gets the answer to his final question. 57:20
Summing up with Larry’s influence. 57:35.
Why there will never be another Larry King. 58:45
People Mentioned:
Larry King
Harry Belafonte
Richard Nixon
Robert Taylor
Jimmy Fallon
Gil Moppo Mermelstein
Herbie “The Negotiator” Cohen
Brazzi Abbate
Engelbert Humperdink
Arthur Godfrey
Bobby Darin
Jimmy Hoffa
Jackie Gleason
Frank Sinatra
Jim Mahoney
Jim Garrison
Lou Wolfson
Ted Turner
Mario Cuomo
Everett Koop
Dr. Wayne Isom
OJ Simpson
George H.W. Bush
Bill Clinton
Ross Perot
Mike Wallace
Robert Kraft
Jay Leno
Sid Young
Andy King
Chaia King
Chance King
Donald Trump
Mark Twain
Greg Christensen
A day before the inauguration of the new president, Cal remembers a conversation he had with Joe Biden when he was Vice President during The Great Recession. Some of the questions and answers are just as relevant today. Cal believes that fixing health care will be the monument for this time, and he’s ready to help out in any way he can. Time to get to work.
A few years back, with Cal 30 pounds overweight, Joe baited Cal into his company’s obstacle races in order to transform Cal’s life. Cal completed the 5-mile Sprint, then the 10-mile Super, then the 17-mile Beast, and was filmed doing it. The story behind his journey and Joe’s quest to similarly transform 100 million people was crafted into a documentary called Spartan Exit Strategy, and is available to rent for less than $5 on Prime Video, iTunes, Apple TV, Google Play, Microsoft and Fandango. Soon after its release, Cal and Joe connected to do a podcast about it, when suddenly the U.S. Capitol Building got stormed. It leads to a one-of-a-kind conversation.
Cal talks with the co-founder of Kickstarter about the idea of raising some funds for a journey to reshape health care in the United States. Cal realizes he needs to hire some young people who can help out on the Internet to spread the message of the mission. And Kickstarter has helped put billions of dollars into the hands of creative people with a dream through crowd funding. That money has funded more than 100,000 new ideas. Including: Oscar-winning movies. Grammy-winning albums. New technology. Books. Pieces of art. Yancey opens a pathway for Cal and for anyone listening with a dream. Let Cal know what you think.
Cal wanted to do something great in this last podcast of 2020, and he jumped at the chance to spread the word about a guy who is making health care better for a lot of people. Phil Baker at Good Shepherd Pharmacy in Memphis takes in donated drugs and passes them on to doctors who get them to patients who can’t afford them. We’re talking about chemotherapy pills that can cost up to $30,000 a month. This podcast can save a lot of lives, so please pass it on to someone you know who’s been touched in some way, shape or form by cancer. The world will be a better place, and good karma will be coming your way.
Cal has an epiphany after talking to three African-American men who made a pact to all become doctors when they were kids growing up on some mean streets in Newark, New Jersey. They succeeded. The story that Sampson Davis, George Jenkins and Rameck Hunt tell Cal is so moving, Cal decides to find one African-American kid in a tough spot who wants to be a doctor and help get her or him through medical school. Cal brings in a college student majoring in entrepreneurship who has Sickle Cell Disease to assist, and a quarter-century adventure begins. Already the world feels a little bit better. Happy Holidays.
Many in the wine world know Laura as the managing director at Bodega Catena Zapata in Argentina, which produces some of the world’s great wines. But for the last 25 years, she has also been an emergency room physician in San Francisco. When she and Cal get together, they come up with an idea to remove an aspect of health care that drives everyone crazy. Nobody likes waiting in the waiting room. But with a Waiting Room App, the entire experience could be transformed to help doctors and hospitals communicate better with patients and allow everyone to get more out of appointments. What are we waiting for?
Cal reflects on his time with one of America’s great tech visionaries shortly after Hsieh’s passing, marvels at all the good Tony was able to pass on to so many people and vows to keep his promise to Tony.
At the beginning of 2020, on average, one physician in the United States was committing suicide every day. That was before the coronavirus struck. Cal talks with three doctors about the tensions physicians and other health care workers face in these crazy times. Then he talks with an entrepreneur who designed a way for us all to reach out to health care workers with messages to show our appreciation for all they do. Bottom line is: If we don’t care for those who care for us, who will care for us?
Roughly two years ago, Cal found out that his friend, Brooks Bell, had colon cancer. Brooks was in her thirties, the founder of a tech company bearing her own name, at the top of her career. Cal walked away from their conversation shaken. Which is why Cal is so happy to bring his most recent meeting with Brooks to Big Questions. Brooks has beaten the disease and tells us all how to prevent it. This conversation is a pure example of how being proactive can get the most out of our healthcare system. Please listen. This hour could save someone’s life.
While many companies were furloughing and firing employees earlier this year when the coronavirus pandemic hit, Lendio went all in to help small businesses get loans. The company hired 250 people to join existing staff, and helped 120,000 businesses get $8 billion in government loans and save 1.2 million jobs over a 10-week period. Lendio CEO Brock Blake tells Cal the story, and Cal marvels at how a decision by one guy could help so many people keep their jobs and their health care in this difficult time.
A relaxing conversation after a tense election. Cal sits with the broadcaster and author of a new book about his experiences with Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Michael Phelps, Tiger Woods, Mike Tyson and others. The book is called Talking to GOATs – as in “Greatest of All Time.” The core of the conversation goes to the power of honesty and questions in our culture. You’ll also learn what it feels like to step into the ring to interview Mike Tyson just after Tyson has been disqualified for biting off one of Evander Holyfield’s earlobes.
Just as Cal is dipping his toes in the water on reshaping health care, Seth encourages him to dive in. The marketing guru uses the principles behind his new book about the power of creativity, The Practice, to point Cal toward the deep water in all the right directions. Years from now, when Cal looks back on this podcast, he’ll remember it as the time he decided to dedicate his life to learning about health care, understanding it and changing it for the better. He’ll always be grateful to Seth for the inspiration and this moment in time. Anybody who wishes to go off on a passionate mission of any kind should listen to this conversation.
In one of the most far-ranging conversations Cal has had on Big Questions, best-selling author Brad Meltzer talks about the upcoming presidential election, how he helped save the life of his high school English teacher and the importance of his latest book about Anne Frank. This conversation goes to some deep places and reminds us all of the impact a single life can make.
The author of the book How to Lead details many of the traits and strategies used by Jeff Bezos, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Richard Branson and others to make a huge impact on society. Rubenstein also explains why quite often the student council president in 7th grade doesn’t go on to be a leader later in life. The late life leader often evolves into the position. All this gives Cal hope that he can use some of these tactics and tools on his latest adventure to make improvements in our health care system. The takeaways in this conversation will help everyone lead better – no matter what your age is.
Ten years ago, a Rutgers University football player headed downfield on a kickoff to make a tackle like he’d done so many times before. Only this time, while making that hit, Eric LeGrand fractured his C3 and C4 vertebrae. He remained on the ground feeling like he couldn’t breathe, and paralyzed from the neck down. Doctors questioned whether he’d ever be able to breathe without the aid of a respirator for the rest of his life. The joy in his voice now is an inspiration to anybody going through difficulties during these times of the coronavirus. Wait until you hear what he’s up to . . .
Forty-seven years ago, Bruce Lee began to write out his philosophies in an article called In My Own Process. Sadly, he passed away before he could finish. His daughter Shannon, who was four years old at the time, took it on her shoulders to put those philosophies in a book. It’s called Be Water, My Friend, and when Cal began to read it he thought of the John Milton quote: “A good book is the precious lifeblood of a master spirit, embalmed and treasured up on purpose to a life upon life.” Listen to Shannon and Cal, and put a little Bruce Lee in your life.
The star of the HBO MAX series, Pursuit of Happiness, sits with Cal to talk about his around-the-world adventure to answer some deep questions. But as soon as the conversation gets going it veers to a sense of home, how to take care of beloved dogs as they near the end of their lives as well as how to see our parents and ourselves as we all age. This podcast will make you feel like you’re on a road trip with friends. Glad to have you along.
Cal continues on his quest to help transform our health care system by talking with the founder of HealthEquity, who explains to Cal how we can open health savings accounts that enable us to get lower insurance premiums, grow our savings and pay our health care bills tax free. But most importantly, this conversation shows us that by taking our health care into our own hands we, as a group, can accelerate changes that benefit us all.
As a boy, Quan was pointed toward West Point by his father. After his father’s death, Quan’s life spiraled out of control as a teen, and he shot and killed a man in a gang-related incident. He received a prison sentence of 15 years to life, in a state that, at the time, did not parole prisoners with life sentences. How he changed in the 20 years since that shooting, and what he’s doing with his life now, will be an inspiration to all. Right now, his flourishing company is hiring and onboarding people to help disinfect offices and supermarkets to keep us all safe. Whatever your situation during the coronavirus, Quan’s journey will show you that your hopes and dreams are always possible.
Cal catches up with the man who was Executive Chef and Director of Windows on the World at the top of the World Trade Center during the time of 9/11 to reflect on that tragedy as well as the coronavirus pandemic. Now the owner and chef of Porter House in New York, Michael reveals the spirit and pragmatism we could all use in these times.
Cal gets a lesson in how to bring an idea to life. The CEO and founder of MasterClass shows him how to use questions to research the way forward, and then how to act off that research.
MasterClass now showcases experts as varied as director Martin Scorsese, actress Natalie Portman, guitarist Carlos Santana, tennis star Serena Williams, architect Frank Gehry and the list goes on and on. Check out how Rogier put it all together, and you are sure to have a treasure trove of takeaways to bring your own idea to life.
Cal talks with the author of Let’s Talk About Death (Over Dinner) at just the right time – prior to watching his first funeral over Zoom. Cal’s questions about death, the coronavirus and our country’s health lead to a very unexpected place: a way of using Hebb’s thought-provoking conversations about death as a different kind of vaccine against COVID 19. These conversations could lead to a change in our thinking and our behavior, and actually protect us. Cal plans to listen to this back and forth again. Please, get the most out of it.
Cal sits with the President and CEO of the Federation of American Hospitals to talk about healthcare in the time of the pandemic, and how the present moment will impact the future of YOUR healthcare. Chip has been called one of the 100 most powerful people in healthcare and after decades of experience in the area he knows everything that Cal wants to know. At a time when many people are being furloughed and fired from their jobs for no fault of their own and losing their health insurance, it’s important to start thinking about how our system might be modified so that we all can get the best out of it. This is a conversation that we all need to be in on.
At a time when we’re all wondering about the continued economic repercussions of the coronavirus, Cal looks into ways that we can all focus on money. His guest is Gregg Clunis, the host of the personal development podcast called Tiny Leaps, Big Changes. Gregg grew up in a home with little money, and has spent much of his life thinking about how to get the most out of it. The conversation offers thoughts to young people who are starting out and might not have much in the bank, as well as to people who are financially stable. This talk does not involve stock tips or cryptocurrency advice. It’s very simple. At a time when the world around us makes us feel unsettled, these tips will bring a sense of certainty to anybody who listens.
Cal became curious about an intriguing character in the HBO documentary, The Weight of Gold, which addresses a culture of depression among American Olympians that has led to a series of suicides. So he immediately called Katie Uhlaender to find out what makes an Olympic life and how depression finds its way inside it. After competing in four Winter Olympics in the Skeleton event, and losing a medal to an opponent who was involved in a doping scandal, Katie finds herself in a position to be a voice for the athlete in a system that only seems to care about results. Cal believes we shouldn’t be taking health insurance away from our Olympians the moment they’re off the conveyer belt any more than we should be taking it away from people who get fired or furloughed during the coronavirus. Lots to think about.
Cal speaks with the director of the HBO documentary The Weight of Gold about the state of depression faced by many American Olympians, and the subsequent suicides. Swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian ever, narrates the doc and leaves you wondering how the support system might be transformed. It’s a good opening for you to think about how well your own health care set up takes care of you.
The former Surgeon General explains to Cal how we might rethink our health care system. This is a wise conversation at a time of COVID 19 when millions of people are losing their insurance due to furloughs and layoffs. Dr. Murthy examines the feelings of loneliness affecting patients and physicians in our system, and gives us some hope that we’ll be able to do better. If you’re not looking closely at health care now, you just may be six months down the road. Start with Cal now.
There is no better time to think about how to change, and there was no one who loved change more than former General Electric CEO Jack Welch. Cal remembers a day he spent with him shortly after Welsh retired and shows how Welsh’s words influenced him when it came time to pivot after The Great Recession, and again now in the time of Covid 19. Find out how this podcast might change YOU.
No city may be more vulnerable to the coronavirus than Las Vegas. Every year it was inviting 42 million people in for dinner. The city’s economy is dependent on those visitors, and Cal looks at the history of Las Vegas for a clue as to how the city might reinvent itself after the virus subsides. Entrepreneur Tom Breitling, author of the book Double or Nothing, and some of his friends explain why they’re betting on a big Vegas comeback. This podcast offers lessons in reinvention and hints at why Las Vegas may be the place to be in 2022.
Cal talks with one of the greatest tennis players of all time about the attitude and strategies that can guide us all through the different stages of reinvention. There are few people on the planet more equipped to talk about this evolution than Maria, who left Russia at the age of six with her dad to come to America and play tennis. Her dad had roughly $700 when they arrived. Maria went on to the IMG Academy, and on to win Wimbledon at the age of 17. She won all the Grand Slam events before retiring early this year, but, more than that, she became a model, UN Ambassador, owner of a candy company, art collector and investor. She has achieved mastery on many levels – and offers us all tips on how to get to where we want to go next.
After almost a half a year of being cooped up and inhaling news of the coronavirus, the killing of George Floyd by police and the subsequent anger, stress and uncertainty all over the world, Cal got an opportunity to get healthy in an unexpected way. The founders of Madefor reached out to him with a 10-month challenge to improve all aspects of his health and it all starts with… drinking more water. After only a couple of days, Cal felt so much better he was hooked. Blake Mycoskie, the founder of Tom Shoes, Pat Dossett, a Navy Seal, and Dr. Andrew Huberman, a neuroscientist at Stanford, explain what Madefor can do for you.
After watching the comic/sage talk about our national reality on his recently-released special called 8:46, Cal feels nudged to offer up his own thoughts on how we might move forward. Cal is certainly no comedian, but he does have a few stories to tell and some questions to meet the moment.
Cal gets on the phone with the Brooklyn Borough President in the midst of the recent protests, rioting and looting to talk about the complexity of our national problem. Eric was given a racial beat down by police, who repeatedly kicked him in the groin when he was 15, and was later urged to make a change to the system by becoming a police officer himself. He served in the NYPD for 22 years, retiring at the rank of captain, and now is running for mayor of New York City. Eric sees our current landscape through experiences that few others have had. It’s very rare to hear a conversation with a politician like this. Don’t miss it.
Cal questions one of the world’s great pivoters. Jacqueline has turned an interview she bungled right off the bat when she graduated from college into a career that has influenced hundreds of millions of lives. That includes bringing food to those without funds in Los Angeles during the coronavirus and bringing solar energy to a hundred million people in Africa. As CEO of the entrepreneurial investment firm Acumen, Jacqueline has been named one of the Top 100 global thinkers by Foreign Policy, one of the World’s 100 Greatest Living Business Minds by Forbes and one of the 25 Smartest People of the Decade by The Daily Beast. For anybody looking to pivot or reinvent themselves, this episode may change your life.
Cal gets a tutorial on how to pivot his business to the Internet from the president of The Montag Group, an agency famous for representing America’s finest broadcasters. Steve is an expert at analyzing communication skills, as he proves in his forthcoming book called Don’t Take Yes For An Answer. The idea behind the book is to go beyond the positive canned responses we tend to get and look deeply at the details of how we communicate. This episode is packed with takeaways that can improve anyone’s communication skills and may even transform lives.
Cal looks back at the stories he wrote for Esquire in the words of the actor who played George Costanza’s father in Seinfeld. The way Stiller got the role is perfect example of pivoting that applies to us all during the time of the coronavirus. Rather than go with the role in the way it was intended, Stiller completely reinvented it and it’s one of the many reasons we’re still watching replays more than 25 years later. The actor recently passed away at the age of 92, but his work continues to bring us smiles. and the lesson behind his reinvention on Seinfeld can be used by all of us today.
There’s never been a better time to talk about reinvention that during the craziness of the coronavirus. When things return to normal, there’s going to be a new normal. Reinvention has always been one of Cal’s specialties, and this week he chats with a woman who spent a decade researching a book about the topic. That woman is marketing guru Kathi Sharpe-Ross, and her book is called Re-Invent: Your Life, What Are You Waiting For? Kathi provides the necessary steps we all must take on the path to reinvention. Listen up. This podcast may just change your life . . .
Cal jumps on the phone with the man who helped bring The Lion King, Aladdin, Beauty and The Beast, Shrek and The Little Mermaid into the world. The conversation is about the new form of storytelling that Katzenberg is introducing called Quibi. That’s short for quick bites. The idea is for these stories to be filmed in bursts of eight minutes or less in order to be seen on a mobile phone when you’ve got a limited amount of free time. Cal tries to get in the swing of the short tempo with a quick phone conversation with Katzenberg. A lot can be learned very quickly.
Cal sits down with the award-winning broadcaster to talk about the loss of sporting events in our culture during the time of the coronavirus pandemic. Cal has known Bob for roughly 40 years since they both moved to St. Louis to start their careers, and this conversation looks deeply at what has happened to the truth in America over that time . . . along with the gifts that sports bring to us.
Cal sits with Brian Kelly to talk about what the future will hold for aviation and travel once the coronavirus pandemic is past and we can all take to the skies again. Brian is the CEO of The Points Guy, a company at the epicenter of the travel industry with the best deals on airline miles, credit cards and travel as a whole. This episode will make anybody who yearns to travel again see the blue skies ahead.
Patrick tells Cal how the phrase came about after he noticed so many young people trying to fit as much into their lives as possible after 9/11 and the tech bubble meltdown in the stock market in the early years of the century. The conversation moves on to consider how society will react after the coronavirus pandemic subsides. You can’t hear a conversation like this anywhere else.
The world is going to be a different place after the coronavirus epidemic. Cal talks with the geopolitical futurist about changes that we will likely see. Jamie has been appointed to the World Health Organization expert advisory committee on developing global standards for the oversight of human genome editing. He’s served in the U.S. National Security Council, the State Department, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and is a faculty member for Singularity University’s Exponential Medicine conference. If you want to be prepared for the new world, this is the conversation for you.
Cal sits with the National Poetry Slam champion and multi-platinum award winning song writer to talk about the process of creative writing. With much of the world on lockdown, it’s a good time to reboot, and writing a poem could be a great way to start. The creative process is revealed in a way that will get you to think about your own – whether it’s to write a note to a loved one or to refigure a business plan. This episode is guaranteed to lead you to a good place. As Maya Angelou has written: “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use the more you have.”
Cal sits down for a bowl of pasta while on lockdown in Los Angeles with Chris Schembra who’s on lockdown in New York. Chris is an award-winning Broadway producer who is most proud of starting a series of pasta dinners to bring people together and show them the power of gratitude. Chris has the secret sauce to connection because he’s brought more than 400,000 people together over the last five years through his meals. This podcast gives Cal an idea on connecting with listeners of Big Questions in the age of coronavirus and beyond. Join the party, listen up, and see how YOU can join Cal over the Internet for a meal.
Cal talks with the founder and co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise, which has sold half a billion books over the years -- Mark Victor Hansen. Mark and his wife, Crystal Dwyer Hansen, have a book coming out in April called ASK, which is a significant topic in the midst of the coronavirus. Hundreds of thousands of people are going to have their business lives interrupted, and Cal asks them all to ask themselves how they might use this time to pivot and make changes for the better, as well as to ask others who can help. Mark and Crystal demonstrate how.
As news of the coronavirus spreads, Cal looks for a way to put it all in perspective with Michael O’Brien, an executive coach who teaches us how to neutralize bad moments and keep them from spiraling into bad days. That coaching career came about after Michael was riding a bicycle one morning 19 years ago, and was hit straight on by an SUV moving at 40 miles an hour. Many, many operations followed, and now Michael is back on his bike and showing Cal a formula for dealing with unfortunate events so that we can all get the best out of our days.
Cal reaches out to Harvard grad, science writer and great-grandmother of 12 to get advice on how to respond to the coronavirus. Aunt Mitzi has interviewed hundreds of experts in healthcare over her career and has connections throughout Asia. She’s completely up to date on the crisis, and she counsels listeners of Big Questions as if they’re her own great-grandkids. Great advice on washing hands, shaking hands, kissing, face masks, public gatherings and worst-case scenarios. Cal sees this episode as one of his finest hours in podcasting, as it could save somebody’s life.
Cal and his old pal talk about unique ways to think about self-improvement that call us to step aside and try something new to add to our existing skill levels. The conversation questions whether you can get more out of yourself by spending 10,000 hours doing different things as opposed to mastering one thing over the same time period. The back and forth will make everyone wonder about how they can find the most in themselves while getting the most from their own time.
As this week’s heavyweight championship fight between undefeated Deontay Wilder and undefeated Tyson Fury approaches, Cal sits down with his old pal to try to figure out the outcome. As they get into the intricacies of the bout, they find out they disagree, which precipitates a friendly wager. This episode gives you a good look at the unique backstories of the fighters, and also examines why so many of us love boxing so deeply. If you’re a fan of the sport, this episode is for you. If not, this podcast may make you curious.
Gary Smith has been called the best magazine writer to ever live – in part because he’s won more National Magazine Awards than anyone else. Gary also gave an award-winning toast at Cal’s wedding. Little did Cal know back then that after Gary retired from Sports Illustrated, he’d take his magnificent interviewing and writing skills to an entirely new place. Matrimony. Gary crafts the most unique and poignant wedding ceremonies imaginable for people he cares about. He’s even ordained to administer the ceremonies! Be prepared to laugh over the next 45 minutes . . . while also getting a glimpse into how the right questions can create great performance art.
A decade ago, Scott Budnick was a producer on the highest-grossing R-rated comedy ever, The Hangover. Now, he’s an executive producer of Just Mercy, which is about as serious as a movie can get. It’s the true story of an African-American Harvard Law School graduate, Bryan Stevenson, who goes to Alabama to defend inmates on death row and takes the case of a man who’s been wrongfully convicted. It’s an incredibly powerful film. Scott’s own life transformation will make you think deeply, as well.
Cal looks back on what he learned from the NBA legend over several conversations before Kobe’s unfortunate passing. Then replays the talk he had with Kobe that got this podcast off the ground back in 2017. It’s an unusual look at how curiosity and storytelling shaped the NBA legend. Also, an example of how the foundation of excellence translates across all fields. Kobe was devoting his life after basketball to educate future generations. Replaying this conversation is the best way we can think of at Big Questions to honor what Kobe was working toward.
The Japanese guru and best-selling author shows Cal how to unclutter his life – from determining which items to discard and which ones to keep . . . all the way down to the proper way to fold socks. Cal learns to focus on removing anything in his life that doesn’t spark joy. And this podcast will do the same for you. Marie’s takeaways are a great way to see 2020 clearly.
The professor gives Cal a tour of the sacred space at UCLA where the first Internet message was sent in 1969. There’s no better tour guide. Leonard was there when it happened. The computer scientist talks about the development of the Internet in a way that humanizes it for Cal. He also touches on subjects like the lack of privacy, and what the Internet will mean to our future, making the podcast essential listening for everybody.
Cal looks back on what he learned from Big Questions last year as a way to improve in 2020. Clips include takeaways from:
- Simon Sinek, author of Start With Why
- Larry King, the CNN talk show host who celebrated his 86th birthday after overcoming severe health problems
- Amy Morin, best-selling author of 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do
The takeaways are a great way for everyone to think about approaching the new year, and they also lead Cal to an unexpected place.
Cal looks at a favorite moment in 2019, and discovers much under the surface of a video that went viral. It’s set at an event that Alex was speaking at thrown by Dutch Bros. Coffee for its baristas. Just before Alex spoke, one of the baristas, Amanda Sanchez, found out that a college grant had just been taken away from her. She was despondent, and got on line to ask Alex what to do. The conversation between Amanda, Alex and Cal, shows exactly why footage of the moment went viral.
The best-selling author tells Cal how he transformed from writer of the New York Times bestsellers I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell and Assholes Finish First to a dad playing Candyland with his kids. That, in itself, is quite a story. But that’s not all. He’s also founded a publishing company called Scribe to help people write their books. This also has Cal very curious. Many takeaways on the state of the publishing industry and personal growth from a master raconteur.
Cal looks back at some of the best nuggets of wisdom he’s received from women on Big Questions over the last two years, and passes them on to you. A holiday gift for every day of the week.
Here are the moments we're including in today's episode. You can share these gifts with the people you care about by sending them an AirrQuote link. Anyone can click on the link and instantly listen to that particular moment.
The first is from Bruce Lee’s daughter. Gift from Shannon Lee: Break with Tradition
The second is from the president of Aston Martin Gift from Laura Schwab: Learning, from the Ground Up
The third is from the author of Confidence Creator Gift from Heather Monahan: Negotiation Skill
The fourth is from the CEO of Soul Cycle Gift from Melanie Whelan: Mentorship
The fifth is from the singer of Fight Song Gift from Rachel Platten: Music, Courage, and Vulnerability
The sixth is from the amazing long-distance swimmer Gift from Diana Nyad: Resolve
And the seventh is from a woman trying to save the oceans Gift from Daniela Fernandez: Million Dollar Dream
You can sample these gifts by clicking these links from Airr. And if you like the idea behind AirrQuotes and want to create and share your own for free, go tohttps://www.airr.io/cal
Plus, you can use Airr's technology to tweet your favorite Big Questions moments @calfussman for a chance to win your own Sportiqe apparel. Enjoy the takeaways!
Listeners of Big Questions who first heard Cal tell stories on Tim Ferriss’s podcast often reach out to Cal and ask him to tell more stories. Cal’s Santa Suit story goes back almost a quarter of a century and is timed perfectly to the season. There’s plenty of laughs and merriment, along with a takeaway that if you wait out a string of bad luck, there will be prosperous days ahead.
Cal sits with his pal after a party thrown by the Friars Club commemorated a birthday that many thought Larry might not be around to celebrate. For many months, Larry battled a series of major illnesses that nearly took his life. But Larry’s indomitable will kept him going. Now he’s out of the hospital, and working again. A look back at an extraordinary evening becomes Cal’s most memorable podcast.
Cal catches up with his pal, Gator Halpern, months after 200-mile-an-hour winds and a 25-foot tidal wave by the name of Hurricane Dorian whipped into The Bahamas and destroyed the coral farm Gator established to save the reefs that protect the shores. Part of the reason we’re seeing this storm damage year after year is the weakening of our barrier reefs – which Gator is fighting to fend off. He’s developed a technology to grow coral 50 times faster than it would ordinarily, and he can put it through boot camp so that it will survive as the temperature of the oceans rise. This is the story of ferocious destruction and an unyielding spirit that fights on to heal the planet. Thanksgiving is the perfect time to give thanks for that spirit.
Cal sits with his old pal, Tom Junod, after they see a preview of the upcoming movie about the children’s television host that stars Tom Hanks. A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood is based on the Esquire Magazine cover story that Junod wrote in 1998, and Junod’s friendship with Mr. Rogers in the years that followed. While the film creates a tortured relationship between Junod and his dad to advance the plot, there was actually tremendous tension in Tom’s life as a writer for Esquire when the story was published that was not known even to his closest friends. Cal was startled, at times, during this talk with his friend of three decades – a conversation that will allow everyone to see the upcoming movie in a new light.
Summit events have impacted countless lives through the power of connection – as they’ve grown from a gathering of 20 entrepreneurs back in 2008 into a community of 20,000 today. Billion-dollar companies have gotten off the ground because of friendships made at Summit events. Academy-award winning films have been created out of bonds formed at Summit. The collaborative spirit became fully apparent to Cal when he was invited to give a talk at a Summit event four years ago. That talk changed Cal’s life and ultimately led to the creation of this podcast. Cal catches up with Jeff Rosenthal, one of the four founders, to talk about the thinking that turned Summit from a single event to a home for entrepreneurs on Powder Mountain in Utah . . . and all the positive social causes embraced along the way.
Cal sits with investment guru Charles Schwab on the stage at the Money 2020 conference in Las Vegas to discuss the philosophies behind his success and how all of us need to look at retirement in an age when we may live 20 years longer than we expected. Plenty of takeaways from the man who’s gotten through a series of stock market bubbles while increasing the value of his company 21,000 percent over the last three decades. You read that right. Twenty-one thousand percent!
Cal gets together with Dr. Reagan Anderson for a look at the difficulties of being a doctor in this day and age. This is a conversation that everyone in America needs to hear. On average, one doctor commits suicide in the United States every day – which is the highest suicide rate of any profession. Reagan served as a surgeon for the U.S. military in Iraq and is now a dermatologist with a clinic in Colorado Springs – and he senses some profound overlaps. Even as health care provides daily miracles, Reagan shows Cal the difficulties and pressures created by the system, and why we need to rethink it. Your takeaway is to ask your doctor how she or he is doing. We need to care for the people care for us. Or else who is going to care for us in the future?
While doing a storytelling workshop, Cal meets Shirzad Chamine, the chairman of CTI, the largest coach and training company in the world. CTI has trained execs and managers at most of the Fortune 500 companies, as well as faculty at Yale and Stanford Business Schools. Cal is immediately enthralled with the way Shirzad uses positive energy to lift the workshop. He inquires and learns that Shirzad has a program that enables people to locate their inner saboteurs and defeat them. Cal takes the short test available to everybody over the internet and comes face to face with his own inner saboteurs. You’ll find out how you can locate yours and take them down, as well.
Cal sees a report that the President has just joined the live-streaming video platform Twitch and senses that it’s time to air the podcast he did with a man who advised him to jump into the future of video games. Scott Novis, formerly Vice President and General Manager of Disney Interactive, founded a company called GameTruck to bring video game parties to millions of kids. Scott tells Cal he should pay attention to the new form of communication practiced by these gamers, and Cal realizes that Scott is right when Scott asks a question that is relevant to all of us. “What can put you out of business down the road?”
Cal heard about the growth hacker who’s worked with Taylor Swift, Rihanna and Michael Strahan, and also built a 7-figure social media following for himself in one month. And he figured it might be a good thing to get a glimpse of this world. But this podcast didn’t turn out quite like Cal figured, as Brendan posed questions that made Cal think about what he actually wanted to do with those followers. In the end, Cal doesn’t get a lesson in hauling in a million followers. He’s pointed toward magnifying his possibilities through laser focus on just the right audience. That’s a great takeaway for everybody.
Cal heard about the growth hacker who’s worked with Taylor Swift, Rihanna and Michael Strahan, and also built a 7-figure social media following for himself in one month. And he figured it might be a good thing to get a glimpse of this world. But this podcast didn’t turn out quite like Cal figured, as Brendan posed questions that made Cal think about what he actually wanted to do with those followers. In the end, Cal doesn’t get a lesson in hauling in a million followers. He’s pointed toward magnifying his possibilities through laser focus on just the right audience. That’s a great takeaway for everybody.
Cal learns what can be accomplished when the right two people come together as he gets to the essence of his sponsor: Sportiqe. Matt Altman and Jason Franklin, two guys who grew up thousands of miles apart, trace the backstory of their clothing company with moments that touch back on Tupac Shakur, Jay-Z, the great Chicago Bulls teams with Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Phil Jackson, and much more. So many serendipitous moments are woven together, and they all seem to prove that when passion, the right complimentary skill sets and hard work align, the resulting success is simply meant to be.
Tim Campos doubled productivity for Facebook while he was Chief Information Officer between 2010 and 2016. Now, Tim tries to do the same for Cal by introducing him to his latest project: Woven. Woven is a state-of-the-art digital calendar that we can all use to get the most out of our time while studying the analytics behind how we’re using our most precious resource. Tim’s company in the testing phase and Woven is free for all who want to give it a test drive. Old school Cal puts the pedal to the metal and loves the feeling on the cutting edge.
The CEO of CatalystCreativ was the spark for a huge change in Cal’s business and life — and this conversation gets to finding the essence in yourself and using it to be your best. It also applies to companies. Amanda has worked on projects with WeWork, Coca Cola, The Raiders and The Nature Conservancy, and designed a strategy that transforms businesses through meaningful engagement with customers and employees. The recipe to her company’s secret sauce is detailed in her upcoming book: The Seventh Level. And this conversation will inspire everybody to look at themselves and/or their businesses through a new lens.
Cal learns he can be way more persuasive than he ever thought when he sits at The Big Table in the office of Jason Harris, the CEO of Mekanism. Jason’s company has been named the small agency of the year by Ad Age. It has famously linked up with the White House under President Obama to create the “It’s On Us” campaign to raise awareness of sexual assault on college campuses. And Jason’s got a book out called The Soulful Art of Persuasion that a Harvard business professor has called the modern version of Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People. If you want to learn how to persuade through character as opposed to using numbers and debates, you’re in the right place.
The lead singer of O.A.R. clues Cal in to the business philosophies that have kept Of A Revolution thriving for nearly a quarter of a century. Any stereotype of dreamy artists is swiftly put to rest as Marc explains the constant vigilance all the band members throw into their work to keep the seats filled and their loyal fans coming back year after year after year. These lessons are applicable not only to Cal’s new business helping companies tell their stories. But they apply to anybody on the job . . . and even to parenthood.
Cal gets tips on getting all those dings, notifications and technological distractions out of his life from a man who has spent much of his career making people yearn for more technology. Many takeaways in this conversation with the author of the upcoming book, Indistractable, are about controlling your attention and leading a clearer and more focused life. It’s just the advice Cal needs now that he’s a CEO. Everyone who listens will come away a winner.
Cal poses the question after hearing the wondrous story of Dr. Sabrina Kay – who came to the U.S. from South Korea while in college without speaking English, started out as a janitor and began an entrepreneurial journey that took her to the cover of Fortune Magazine.
By the time she’d reached her 30s, Sabrina had amassed enough wealth so that neither she – nor any of her family members – ever needed to work again. But that was only the beginning. Sabrina went on to get a master’s degree at USC and a doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Now, after buying Fremont College, she’s reinventing the entire education system. This episode is packed with takeaways that will make you think about what you would do if never needed to work again.
Cal looks back on the most amazing thing he’s ever seen in his life, August 7, 1974, when a French street performer named Philippe Petit secretly rigged a wire between the twin towers of the World Trade Center and walked on it 1,300 feet above the ground. There are many lessons to be learned from Philippe’s feat, which took place 45 years ago, and Cal has mined for them through at least a dozen viewings of the documentary Man on Wire and the feature film called The Walk. The British mogul Richard Branson also calls Man on Wire one of his favorite films, and Cal wraps up his thoughts with a short conversation he had with Branson about what we can all take away from August 7, 1974.
That’s right, Matt Pohlson. Cal sits with the founder of Omaze, a company that has helped raise $130 million for roughly 350 charities through donations made by people looking for a chance to win once in a lifetime experiences with the people they dream of meeting. Drink wine with Jennifer Lawrence. Get in a tank with Arnold Schwarzenegger and go crush things. Go on a double date with George and Amal Clooney. These events can lead to extraordinary stories. When Matt tells them they get better and better . . . and then Matt describes what it was like when he flatlined for four minutes, and came back from the edge of death, and how it changed his life. By the end, you’ll see why this is one of Cal’s favorite episodes.
Not long ago, the New Orleans Pelicans won the National Basketball Association’s draft lottery and selected one of the most unique young talents in the league’s history: Zion Williamson. As we see in this week’s episode, the executive in charge of putting together that team, David Griffin, has created a life out of being around the right people. How else would an intern in a media relations department rise to running an NBA team? Griff’s backstory makes us all wonder about the people we meet and choose to be around (and not to be around), and how those choices make us everything we become. This conversation will make you think about the choices you make in your own life and how they impact your own future. And that’s just for starters . . .
Jeff Civillico has a superpower that makes people pay attention within three seconds. That’s why he’s got a show on The Strip at Paris Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and has been named Entertainer of the Year by Vegas Inc. Cal learned precisely how important Jeff’s superpower is last week when Tim Staples laid out the secrets to going viral on the Internet. Jeff is a juggler, but more than that, he uses his ability to immediately connect with people as a sought-after speaker and host. Jeff has plans to influence millions of children, and this conversation makes us all wonder about how we can make the largest impact with our own talents and skills. You may see yourself differently after listening.
On any given day, the odds of making it to the front page of YouTube are one in 2 million. Tim, and his company, Shareability, have done this 35 times. When the student is ready, the master appears. So Cal sets off on his journey into social media with Tim as his guide alongside the launch of Tim’s book: Break Through The Noise, The 9 Rules to Capture Global Attention. Tim has created viral videos with soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo and mesmerized millions with a video of dogs using hands to eat around a table at a family dinner. This podcast is a tipping point for Cal as he looks to bring Old School storytelling, which now delights crowds at speeches and during workshops, to social media. The conversation is filled with takeaways for anyone or any company trying to gain a larger and strong presence on the Internet. Because at the heart of this episode is the question: What makes messages shareable?
Cal catches up with his old pal, and author of the Barbecue Bible. Roughly 20 years ago, Cal sought out Steven to learn how to grill and smoke in order to write a story for Esquire Magazine. With one day of training and a lot of subsequent practice, Cal went on to compete in the Jack Daniel’s World Barbecue Championship in Lynchburg, Tennessee, where judge (and author) Clive Cussler declared that Cal’s roasted apples with cinnamon were “better than sex.” Steven has sold more than 5 million books on the topic of barbecue, including his latest, The Brisket Chronicles. The question of how Steven got into barbecue provides a great way to reflect on how a single choice can lead you in an unexpected direction and create a whole new life for yourself. This conversation also touches upon the power of food in the art of connection. And if it doesn’t inspire you to grill up a great meal, it will definitely make you want to eat one!
Cal is on the lookout for an Aha! Moment when he sits with the high-performance psychologist – Dr. Michael Gervais. That’s because whenever Cal talks with Michael, a life-changing moment seems to materialize. A couple of years ago, Cal was invited on Michael’s Finding Mastery podcast to discuss how he interviewed the icons who’d shaped the last half century of world history for Esquire Magazine. During that conversation, Cal and Michael discussed the differences between interviewing as a journalist and interviewing as a therapist. Cal was able to take what he learned from the therapist’s approach and apply it in his new business assisting companies in the telling of their own authentic stories. This episode of Big Questions swerves in an unexpected direction: How to get the most out of life when you feel stuck in one place. Michael shows Cal that it’s exactly the place where you can reach for the best in yourself.
Cal thanks Tim Ferriss for pushing him to start his podcast by helping two young guys who recently took leave from Harvard to get their tech start-up going. Sam Rukeyser and Dave Lu have come up with a platform that allows podcast listeners to save the snippets they like in podcasts and even send them to friends and family through all manner of social media. Their company is called Airr, the technology is free, and listeners of Big Questions will be granted early access to it by going to https://airr.io/cal. Sam and Dave show how the technology works throughout the episode with examples of great takeaways from Big Questions.
Cal has a transformative moment in a conversation with a recent inductee in the Advertising Hall of Fame – Michael Kassan. The talk goes back to the days when Cal was educated in journalism school never to go to the other side of The Wall that separated editorial and sales. This education kept Cal from publicizing himself and associating with advertisers even as the Internet changed the landscape of communication. For years, Cal struggled with social media and self-promotion. But the conversation with Kassan, the founder of MediaLink, freed Cal to move into the future, and gives listeners an education on the changes we’ve all been living through at the intersection of content, advertising, marketing, entertainment and technology.
In our mean-spirited times, Cal steps into a conversation about kindness and receives a most thoughtful gift. Dete Meserve, the CEO of Wind Dancer Films and author of the books Good Sam and Random Acts of Kindness, shows Cal how the same skills and talents he used as a writer for decades can also serve him as a CEO. The epiphany comes at just the right time, as Cal sprinted toward his goal as CEO to raise a million dollars in new revenue for his business by the end of May. For Cal, the gift is life-changing.
Cal touches on the story of two brothers from Needham, Massachusetts, Bert and Johnny Jacobs, who converted their eternal optimism into a t-shirt business that is now a burgeoning company which provides assistance to a million children every year. It wasn’t easy at the start. The brothers spent five years driving around the country in a van trying to sell their t-shirts -- with little success. After five years they had a combined $78 between them. But then the smiling face of a character they called Jake next to the words Life Is Good sold 48 t-shirts in 45 minutes. And they knew they were onto something. The rest is history. Cal taps into his buddies – Bert and Johnny -- for inspiration as he closes in on the deadline for Million-Dollar May. Prepare to sing along.
Cal meets his polar opposite: The Boss in Heals. Heather Monahan. Whereas Cal was told as a writer in Journalism School never to sell, Heather came up on the sales side being told not to think of herself as a creative talent. She rose up the corporate ladder to become Chief Revenue Officer of the Beasley Media Group with 500 people working for her and was named one of the most influential women in radio only to see her job eliminated in a power struggle. But she used that tumultuous experience to turn herself into the author of the book Confidence Creator, and she is now a speaker and consultant on the topic. “Confidence,” she says, “is a skill to be developed.” She shows Cal how to be confident in areas where he doesn’t feel comfortable – and you’ll get a lot of tips, too
Cal looks at how John Rampton made millions by becoming one of the top online influencers in the world – tracing Rampton’s ascent back to an accident in college that left John bedridden in a hospital for months. John learned to master social media in that hospital bed, and he shows Cal how “giving away the farm” on the Internet is a gift that just keeps on giving through success and hard times. The founder and chief of online companies like Calendar and Due tells Cal he has numerical proof of the benefits of kindness. If you help people out on the Internet, John says, 1 in 10 will help you back. 1 in every 100 people that you help out will turn into a financial relationship. And 1 in every 1,000 people you help can turn into a million-dollar
relationship.” Cal leaves the conversation hoping it will change his life – and yours, too.
Cal sits with Muhammad’s daughter, Hana, almost three years after his passing to talk about her dad. Hana has just written a book called At Home With Muhammad Ali, and this conversation looks at what life was like in the moments when the cameras weren’t around.
There are happy moments – seeing her dad stuffing his mouth with bubble gum as if he were a big kid. There are beautiful moments – the way Muhammad took homeless people into his own home because he believed unoccupied rooms were a sin. There are painful moments – coming across the love letters her dad wrote to try to salvage the marriage that had broken apart between him and Hana’s mom. And there are moments of honesty that can come only from looking at illness and death. Through it all we see the unique capacity of this man to connect with the world.
When Cal turns into a salesman to try to generate a million dollars in new business by the end of May, he is unprepared for the constant buzzing of his cellphone and the new lifestyle this brings. When it begins to feel like his brain has fragmented into 500 pieces, Cal reaches out to his pal, The Monk Dandapani, for lessons on how to focus and concentrate. The world-renowned monk gives Cal advice on harnessing his energy, that can lift everybody’s life.
When Cal needs to develop a business strategy for his new company, James comes to the rescue. Altucher has started many businesses over the years, making millions, losing millions, making more millions, losing more millions and making more millions. A prolific blogger and podcaster, author, angel investor and owner of a comedy club in New York where he often appears, James shows Cal how to define, shape and monetize his new business helping companies tell their stories. The strategy session is a gift for anybody who’s thinking about starting a business – and fun for everybody else.
Cal gets the skinny on a new program that helps people lose weight. It’s not a diet (95 percent of diets do not work). There are no pills. The Reverse Approach was created by Mordechai Wiener while dropping from 330 pounds to 197. By listening to the stories of people
who’ve lost a lot of weight and kept it off, you can adapt their successful habits into your own life. The concept is to slowly transform your body through understanding how you feel about yourself and then adjusting your habits. At the start, you don’t restrict the foods you love. You simply add foods that are healthy. And then you slowly learn to love the foods that make you feel better. It not only takes the weight off – changing your habits has been proven to keep the weight off.
The international best-selling author of 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do gives Cal some lessons on training your brain for happiness and success. And it couldn’t have come at a better time for Cal, who was recently challenged to lift his game as a CEO . . . and responded with an outlandish goal of bringing in a million dollars of new revenue by the end of May . . . without having the slightest idea how he was going to do it. Once she hears Cal’s background, Amy, a psychotherapist, actually thinks it’s a good thing for Cal to embrace this crazy idea and encourages him to get tough and go after it. Anybody who listens to this episode will be stronger for it – and have
some laughs along the way.
After one of Cal’s friends with a rare disease tells Cal that Dr. Gundry’s dietary advice saved his life, Cal seeks out Gundry to uncover the doctor’s backstory. He’s astonished to find out about the sacrifices Dr. Gundry made when he left his position as chairman of cardiothoracic surgery at Loma Linda University to counsel patients on improving their health through diet and supplements. Dr. Gundry and his wife, Penny, ran through their retirement savings and suffered through a decade of financial hardship while the doctor helped patients with advice on what to put in their guts rather than operating on their hearts. His research and self-experimentation with supplements ultimately led Dr. Gundry to write The Plant Paradox, which turned into a New York Times bestseller, and three other best-sellers that have bloomed into a business offering supplements and dietary advice that has now touched around 100 million lives and created 600 jobs. This conversation may make you see the possibilities in your own life. That’s what it did for Cal.
When Shannon Lee passes on this nugget of wisdom from her dad: “To change with change is the changeless state,” Cal is no longer the same... and becomes even more Cal at the same time. Bruce Lee is famous for his fighting roles in films beloved around the world dating back to the early 70s -- like Fist of Fury and Enter The Dragon. But underneath the images that made him iconic is a philosophy of breaking tradition and constantly moving himself -- and society -- to new places. His ideas and work have affected culture in areas as diverse as film, music, video games, mixed martial arts, break dancing, body building and nutrition. Shannon Lee shows Cal how to use her dad’s underlying philosophy in daily life – which leads Cal to an epiphany. And this conversation just may create a personal breakthrough for anybody who listens.
Cal sits with the man who has helped candidates win 1,200 elections to talk about the impact of storytelling on our politics and businesses in a time of huge disruption. The takeaways include the way Donald Trump was able to win the presidency by merging big data, social media and branding; how businesses need to understand their customers the way a great political campaign understands its voters; and how this will become even more important for businesses in the next ten years as Artificial Intelligence disrupts our landscape. With each passing day, telling the impactful story becomes more and more essential -- which is music to Cal’s ears.
Simon talks about the theme of his upcoming book -- and his message hits Cal’s ears like a symphony. Perhaps this should’ve been expected. The concept behind Simon’s book, Start With Why, led to a Ted talk that reached 42 million people. And Leaders Eat Last was a New York Times bestseller. The Infinite Game shows us that business should not be treated like it’s in a sporting event that has a definite period of time and ends with a win or a loss. If we do treat our business like it’s in a sporting event, Simon warns, there will be a decline in trust, a decline in cooperation and a decline in innovation. Simon makes a case that the most successful companies now tend to be guided by leaders with an infinite mindset. There are so many takeaways in this episode that it might be wise to pull out a notepad before you get started.
Cal checks in with one of his favorite people in the world, 25-year-old Daniela Fernandez, who has devoted her life to saving the world’s oceans. If you don’t think that’s important, it’d be wise to look at some facts. There’s an island of garbage twice the size of Texas in the Pacific Ocean, which may be a long way from where you are right now but it affects you. Fifty percent of the oxygen we breathe is created by the ocean. That’s every second breath you take. We’re slowly choking ourselves. The non-profit organization that Daniela founded to heal the oceans, Sustainable Ocean Alliance, was down to its last penny when an anonymous donation of $1 million came to the rescue. This is an awesome story of a young woman’s unwavering devotion to make a difference, and how the world will be changed because of her. Applying her mindset just might allow you to do the extraordinary, as well.
Arizona State Futurist in Residence Brian David Johnson explains to Cal why we will not be using keyboards in the near future; and how they are slowing us down anyway. Old School Cal gets an hour of what the future will be like — and, surprisingly, he likes it!
Cal sits down with a national treasure, George Raveling, to talk about some of the impactful moments of George’s life. That includes the day in August of 1963 when George was a bodyguard on stage as Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his I Have A Dream speech. As Dr. King folded the speech and walked off stage, George asked Dr. King if he could have it and Dr. King handed it to him. George would become basketball coach at Washington State, Iowa and USC, a coach on the 1984 U.S. Olympic basketball team that contained Michael Jordan and Larry Bird and a member of the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame. This episode of Big Questions focuses on George through his love of books. Few people appreciate books the way George Raveling does. George is often seen walking around with shopping bags full of them that he hands out to friends. There are many takeaways in the way George reads books and the way he honors them. After you listen, your reading habits may never be the same.
Great movies have been made about buddy stories. Great movies have been made about love stories. This podcast has both, and is waiting to be turned into a terrific film. It’s about the friendship between the comedian “Irish Dave” Nihill and the cycling guide Arash Bayatmakou – and it could be called “Stand Up.” That’s because of the different way the phrase applies to each of these two men. Without spoiling the movie, the story revolves around the courage we all need to move forward in frightening situations. It’s got comedy. It’s got a tragedy. It’s got resilience. And when you add a very special woman and the attached love story, it becomes the perfect podcast for Valentine’s Day.
Cal The Journalist meets John The Salesman and things will never be the same – not for Cal, anyway. For years, Cal had been told to stay on his side of The Wall that separated the editorial and sales departments of newspapers and magazines. But the Internet has changed that world and now everyone must sell themselves in some way, shape or form. Cal is delighted to find out that, at its best, sales is all about his passion – storytelling. Cal learns how John used rejection to create a new story that turned him into salesman of the year at Conde Nast. Cal learns how to be proactive through new forms of cold calling. Cal learns how to shape a story toward the sale and artfully close the deal. And Cal comes to understand that he had it in him all along.
What a superpower it would be to be able to look at the ordinary and wonder how it could be different… and then make it better. That’s what Cal discovers when he speaks with Miki Agrawal, entrepreneur and author of the book, Disrupt-Her. He’ll never be the same. He’s already switched to bamboo toilet paper after Miki explained to him all the environmental benefits. Miki has specialized in the “poop, pee and menstruation” space – founding a company called Thinx that created period-proof underwear and another called Tushy that allows people to clean themselves more efficiently over the toilet. She applies her philosophy in every aspect of life. And her book, a manifesto for the modern woman, illustrates how women will behave differently going forward. Which is a good reason for men to read it – because they’re probably going to be behaving differently, as well.
Many years ago, TOMS shoes founder Blake Mycoskie asked a wise man for some advice. That man wrote some on a sheet of paper: “The more you give, the more you live.” It has guided Blake ever since. First, in the start-up of TOMS – which donates a pair of shoes to an impoverished child every time it sells a pair. And most recently, in the start-up of a campaign to end gun violence through changing federal policy by instituting background checks before every gun sale. This is a solution that 90 percent of Americans agree with – and Blake is asking every one of them to go to Toms.com and send a postcard to her or his representative. There are many takeaways in this episode, as Blake describes the essence of an entrepreneurial life, from how difficult it can be to the difference it can make.
Cal goes to the archives and pulls out a childhood tale George Clooney told him about how his eccentric family taught him to tell a good story. The podcast continues with the story of how drug addiction was transformed into a landmark run across the Sahara Desert for Charlie Engle.
So many takeaways from this episode: The basics of storytelling. Overcoming addiction. The power of discipline. Seeing the world through fresh eyes. Inventing new challenges. A primer in how to get the most out of life and tell the story.
The singer and songwriter talks to Cal about how life experiences turn into music. The conversation leads to the background behind Andy’s hits: Honey I’m Good, Keep Your Head Up and Fresh Eyes. But at its deepest level the discussion delves into the process that we all must go through to create. The takeaways are many. How to keep going when nobody around you seems to be paying attention to what you’re doing. How having a hit can be just as stressful to the creation process as striving for the first. And how to keep expanding. The lessons of a man who started out singing for coins on the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica and went on to sing the national anthem at the World Series apply far beyond music and can be integrated into everyone’s life.
Big Questions celebrates its one-year anniversary with takeaways from guests over the last year. Kobe Bryant explains how excellence transfers across all pursuits. Seth Godin describes how to think beyond the societal patterns that can knock us off balance. Larry King gets at the importance of communicating your own story. Nely Galan shares how pain can be turned into profit. Spartan CEO Joe DeSena describes the start of his plan to make the world healthy. Navy Seal commander turned podcaster Jocko Willink offers wisdom on the value of knowing your limitations. Best-selling author Dan Pink reveals the benefits of taking a break while Ryan Holiday talks about the value of exercise in coming up with new ideas. Record-breaking long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad illustrates how to improve with age. Best-selling author Alex Banayan tells a story about the value of role models. Mick Ebeling prepares to stop the tremors caused by Parkinson’s Disease. And Tim Ferriss steps in to celebrate the day Big Questions came about. The good times just keep on going, as Cal sends out Sportiqe hoodies to the winners of the Why Is Your Best Friend Your Best Friend? contest.
This episode speaks to anyone who meets an unexpected
and unwanted twist of fate. When Dr. Guatam Gulati takes his family on a dream of a lifetime
safari in Africa, he joins a group of Maasai warriors in a tribal dance and, after landing from a jump, finds himself in excruciating pain, and his left kneecap no longer where it
used to be. It’s now in his thigh. It’s dark, the only light for miles comes from the stars above and a nearby campfire. The road to recovery is longer than anyone can imagine. It makes for a tremendous story, that showcases the power of friendship, resourcefulness and determination. And, in the end, reminds us all what is important in life.
The story of Alex’s bestselling book, The Third Door, continues in this episode. The journey started seven years ago, when Alex was a college freshman, going through a mini life crisis when he realized he wasn’t cut out to be a doctor and would be disappointing his family.
Alex began to wonder about the meaning of success. What were the most successful people doing when they were his age? That question led him on a path to find out by meeting Bill Gates, Lady Gaga, Stephen Spielberg and many others. It also led him to meet Larry King and Cal when Alex discovered he needed to learn how to interview these people and write up the adventure. For five years, Cal mentored Alex through the project. Just before the book was released, Cal and Alex talked about the journey on Big Questions (episode 42). But even Cal was surprised to learn about all that Alex had to go through when the book was finally launched and became a bestseller. The sequel is an amazing story of resilience and triumph.
It’s holiday season and the perfect time for a podcast about gifts. The story of an extraordinary gift – a very special piano – is a favorite of Cal’s and will bring good cheer to all who listen. The story revolves around songwriter Jimmy McHugh, who was highly successful until the stock market crash in 1929 that set off The Great Depression. McHugh was forced to sell everything he owned to survive, and the loss of his piano left him unable to work because he could no longer write songs without one. He moved into a flat and was sleeping on a straw mattress, wondering how he was going to get through the calamity.
And then, a gift came along that changed his life, and a lot of other lives. That gift – an upright piano – led McHugh to write an optimistic song that helped America get through The Depression. The song turned into an anthem. It’s called: On the Sunny Side of the Street. It would come to be performed by Frank Sinatra, Louie Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Rod Stewart, and the lesson in the lyrics is just as relevant today, as told by McHugh’s grandson, Lee Newman, and the musician Dave Damiani.
Please pass this episode on, for everyone it touches will feel better and be a little bit luckier for it.
For 11 years, Jordan Harbinger was the voice of The Art of Charm podcast that got up to 3 million listens a month. Then, not long ago, Jordan and his partners split and Jordan was out on his own and having a hard time sleeping.
This is the story of his comeback. The Jordan Harbinger Show is bigger than ever – receiving 4 million listens a month. Jordan explains to Cal what it takes to make a business comeback. This is also a cautionary tale for anyone who is about to enter a partnership, business marriage, marriage or even a band.
Things often don’t work out for reasons that just aren’t apparent at the beginning – or because the parties avoid them once they’re apparent. There is plenty of cautionary advice here. But ultimately, this episode is about the triumph of human connection.
Cal finds out how a man who worked on the FBI Crisis Negotiation Unit for 24 years incorporates what he learned on the job into day-to-day life. Cal’s biggest take-away is that people who are good at asking questions have the essential elements to negotiate well.
Many of the characteristics inherent in successful interviewing apply – especially mastery of tone of voice and observation of body language. Negotiation, Cal learns, is a perishable skill and must be honed every day.
Voss, now the CEO of the negotiation training company Black Swan, shows Cal how a misplaced piece of luggage at the airport can be a great opportunity to practice. And how careful listening can get you where you want to go in life.
From sharing a couch for almost two months to challenging Will Smith to bungee jump out of a helicopter over the Grand Canyon, three young guys from different places around the world form bonds that create an ever-deepening friendship.
Ammar Kandil, Thomas Brag and Matt Dajer go on adventures that define the group’s name: Yes Theory. They say yes to tasks that make them uncomfortable, and the difficulties they encounter lead to authenticity – which intensifies their friendship.
They film everything they encounter in their path and produce mini-documentaries for their Youtube Channel – attracting millions of viewers.
As soon as the conversation starts, Cal instantly feels like a friend to these best of friends.
The star of the Netflix comedy series Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt talks with Cal at Chicago Ideas Week about the art of being funny in an age when tastes are quickly shifting. Cal points out that the humor which made people laugh when he was a kid might not resonate with the current generation and in many cases would be seen as politically incorrect. With culture shifting generationally and our political divide, how does one find the sweet spot to strike a mass audience? Ellie does it naturally. Cal wonders if he can learn.
The former CEO of Home Depot shows Cal how he used questions and conversations to lift the fortunes of the company between 2007 and 2014. But this was only after he observed how questions could be used as traps, tests or even look like a “live wire in a wet basement” in political, legal and corporate settings during the decades before.
This is an authentic conversation that, at times, surprised both Frank and Cal, and took place in front of attendees at the two12 conference in Vail, Colorado.
The author of the New York Times best-seller When joins Cal at Chicago Big Ideas week and gives him advice on the best time of the day to eat, exercise and hold meetings. Not to mention the worst time of day to make important decisions.
He also explains to Cal how people will be watching television and consuming podcasts at different times and in different ways, and why it’s wise to think about serving up Big Questions in a new format. The takeaways in this episode may make you decide to live your life in a new way.
Cal talks with Rob Lawless about the changes in travel since Cal went around the world back in the 80s. Whereas Cal used magazine work to get his journey off the ground and then was passed around the world by the people he met, Rob now uses the Internet to keep his trip going.
Rob has a goal of talking with 10,000 people for an hour. He makes Instagram posts after each meeting, and pushes the journey along through tech partnerships with companies that overlap with his mission.
He sets up conversations with four people each day via the Internet. Now 27, Rob will be 37 when he meets the 10,000th person and completes his mission. Cal is now one of those friends.
This conversation looks at the differences between travel back when there were no cell-phones and personal computers and now where contacts can be made and new friends can be located months in advance through the Internet.
The ultimate takeaway here is that travel is always doable, you just have to figure out how it can work for YOU.
Aston Martin’s president tells Cal about the circuitous journey that took her from jumping rope as a girl in Louisville, to the tennis team at Notre Dame, to law school, to working three jobs to make ends meet at age 27, all the way to the top of the iconic British car company. And then she made Cal feel like James Bond when she put him behind the wheel of an Aston Martin.
Takeaways:
-Work ethic goes a long way
-Risk taking that defined Schwab's career
-Finding the right mentors
-Getting the most out of being in the right place at the right time
-Making it all fun
The Grammy Award-winning saxophone player gets to the essence of the way we can all get the most out of our lives through the art of being awake.
From the time he was a boy who’d contracted polio and found the saxophone to improve the strength of his lungs, David Sanborn has been making a series of connections that evolved into an extraordinary life and career.
There are many takeaways in the art of awareness, including paying attention to the moment of your calling to overcoming addiction, along with the constant drive to get the most out of your passion – which has led him to create the Sanborn Sessions. A sample can be found on Facebook @DavidSanbornOfficial.
Cal meets the best-selling author at an entrepreneurial conference in Colorado called two12 and becomes highly curious as to how Ryan can be a writer and ALSO an expert at marketing books, as well as positioning companies. Generally, when a person has one of those talents or skills, he or she is lacking in the other area.
Cal finds out exactly how Ryan became The Full House in a conversation that will benefit anyone trying to create a piece of art or a business.
There are many takeaways in this episode, especially for people who are coming up with ideas for a new business, or taking their business through obstacles. Ryan is, after all, the author of The Obstacle Is The Way. And some of the advice he offered to the entrepreneurs at two12 can be scooped up right here on Big Questions.
When Cal asks the conservative talk show host about the roots of his new book, Addicted to Outrage, Glenn goes back to his childhood to explain the events that made him who he is.
Beck reflects upon his mother’s suicide when he was 15 as the moment that turned him toward alcohol to deaden his pain. His inability to even mention his mother or her death in the home of his father and stepmother led him toward the microphone to release the emotions and thoughts that were bottled up inside him.
His career behind the mic took him to CNN, FOX and the groundbreaking move to start his own subscription Internet TV network back in 2011. When Beck came to grips with the fact that some of the rhetoric that made him famous was also dividing the nation, he takes a clear look at himself and begins his book with a phrase that would normally be heard in an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting: “Hello, My Name is Glenn, and I Am Addicted to Outrage.”
“I know it is tough to even think about being part of the problem,” he continues, “but the truth is, we all are.”
The takeaways in this episode are numerous and revolve around the power of a safe discussion that everyone can benefit from – whether it’s about a personal problem or a national one. The empathy Glenn exhibits in this conversation will give those who love him a deeper reason to, and nudge anyone who disagrees with him to listen to his voice in a completely new way.
Cal finds there can be life after one’s heart stops beating. Chip Conley tells him what it was like to flatline at age of 47, how he recovered and went on to sell his boutique hotel company, which put him in the surprising place where he could mentor Brian Chesky and a group of millennials who’d founded Airbnb.
The combination of young minds and the wisdom of Chip’s experience in hospitality made history. Airbnb has transformed travel across the planet, reinventing the hotel industry by allowing people to rent out their homes and apartments in 80,000 cities in 190 countries around the world.
Conley has taken the lessons from this experience and set them in his newly-released book, Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder.
In this episode, he shows Cal the benefits that mentorship can have for both those with youth and age. The takeaways are life-changing, and needed now more than any other time in history.
As the author Yuval Noah Harari writes in his most recent book: 21 Lessons for the 21st Century:
“If you try to hold on to some stable identity, job, or worldview, you risk being left behind as the world flies by you with a whoosh. Given that life expectancy is likely to increase, you might subsequently have to spend many decades as a clueless fossil. To stay relevant — not just economically but above all socially — you will need the ability to constantly learn and to reinvent yourself...”
Chip’s experiences and his book show you how.
Cal reconnects with the man who had the World Trade Center fall on his head and finds the lessons he learned even more powerful over time.
The two reflect upon the conversation they had shortly after Michael survived the deadliest attack on American soil. That conversation was turned into a noted Esquire Magazine story published in Michael’s own words in the January 2002 issue.
The takeaways in this episode are vast. Michael has lived through the type of experience that most of us will never know - and has come to understand life in ways that most of us were never forced to ponder.
Yet, in the end, his voice is positive and reflective and offers insight to
all of us on how to move forward from the most difficult of experiences.
As Cal tries to expand awareness of his podcast, he gets tips from the author of the just-released book entitled: Belong: Find Your People, Create Community and live a more Connected Life.
Radha is the founder of Daybreaker – an early morning celebration that allows people all over the world to start the day by meeting others, dancing, doing yoga and listening to great speakers in a non-alcohol environment before going off to work.
Cal was startled to learn that Radha has built her Daybreaker community from scratch to half a million people. And even more astounded to learn that 1 in every 4 Americans does not
have a friend to confide in.
Radha’s book offers suggestions to all on the art of connection. Anyone with a business, podcast or blog who’s interested in increasing her or his audience will get many takeaways from this episode. And those feeling a bit left out will get tips on how to fit into the right
community.
The conversation gives Cal the idea to try to double the number of subscribers to Big Questions by asking each listener to share a meaningful episode with a single friend who might appreciate it and benefit from it.
Give it a shot -- and good karma will come your way.
Kevin tells Cal how mental illness pushed him to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco 18 years ago – and how he survived only because a sea lion kept him propped up on the water’s surface.
Kevin became one of only a few people to walk away from such a fall, and the chain of events that followed led him to find the love of his life, and his work helping all of us to understand mental illness.
His fight contributed to the creation of a barrier on The Golden Gate Bridge that will stop others from committing suicide there in the future.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- Whatever your difficulties, never count yourself out. Never. Never. Never.
- Simply reaching out to somebody you notice in emotional pain might save his or her life.
- And how a 23-second hug can change your day.
That's just for starters . . .
As the fifth anniversary of Diana Nyad’s record-breaking swim between Cuba and Florida approaches, Diana explains to Cal what it took to make the 110-mile journey in 2013 at the age 64.
(This episode contains explicit or triggering content.)
The Youtube video that shows Diana taking her first shaky steps on land at Key West after swimming for roughly 53 consecutive hours in waters filled with sharks and poisonous jellyfish is a profound place to start.
The takeaways in this episode get to the essence of the quote: “Success is the ability to move from one failure to another without
loss of enthusiasm.”
Diana had tried to make the same swim four times before, beginning in 1978 at the age of 28. Her triumph on the fifth attempt highlights not only her dogged persistence, but a joyful appreciation for nature that gave her a lightness which enabled her to do at 64 what she couldn’t at 28.
The story of her sexual abuse as a teen, and the guilt and confusion that followed, ultimately leads to a lesson in how to find a way past emotional pain to freedom.
The story of how she sang her way across the 110 miles gives us all a formula for fighting off drudgery with passion.
We find out how age has turned Diana into a better athlete — just as it can for you.
We also learn about the appreciation and gratitude Diana's held for her team that supported her every stroke of the way. This is useful to all of us as we look upon those who lift us in our own lives.
All this is just for starters . . .
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- Why age has made Diana a better athlete
- Coping with sexual abuse
- What is takes to plan a 110-Mile swim... 5 times!
The founder of Not Impossible Labs tips off his next landmark invention: a band that can stop tremors caused by Parkinson’s Disease.
Not Impossible Labs has previously invented a device that allowed a paralyzed graffiti artist to create art using only his eyes, and 3-D printed prosthetic arms for those who’ve had their limbs blown off during the civil war in Sudan.
The device that can curtail the tremors of those afflicted with Parkinson’s Disease is Mick Ebeling’s latest proof that anything we can imagine we can create.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- How redefining the word “impossible” can make anything possible.
- How committing to a goal before you know how to achieve it can jumpstart your journey toward it, and push you past the obstacles that will arise.
- How trying to solve one impossible problem can lead you to solving another.
- How you can incorporate Mick’s philosophy into your own life and do things you never imagined you could do.
Jocko Willink, the former Navy Seal Commander, explains how his fundamental laws of combat translate into leadership in business, and gets Cal to wonder how he might incorporate aspects of military training into his own life. Takeaways from this episode: * How to create a team where everybody leads. * How to get in people’s heads to make them see things they wouldn’t have seen otherwise. * The value of keeping communications simple — and how good questions can simplify a complicated plan. * Prioritizing tasks and executing them.
Cal gets a glimpse of the future from psychologist Linda Papadopoulos as she breaks the news about life-sized robots now being manufactured to the buyers' individual tastes. These robots are built not only as the sexual partners of our dreams. They can be programmed to say what we want to hear, to read our expressions, and to respond in a way that will make us feel better. Not only that, but they can store information to enhance future experiences. Cal is still picking his jaw off the floor and pondering questions that come out of some of the takeaways.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- In a world where people are feeling more and more isolated and alone, will large numbers of people begin moving toward a doll with Artificial Intelligence that's programmed to say only what each of us wants to hear?
- In an age when people are accustomed to swiping left or right, will the next evolutionary step be simply ordering a manufactured partner that has ALL the characteristics that we want?
- If, as Papadopoulos says, we’re playing catch up with understanding how Artificial Intelligence affects us now, how will we cope when AI begins to understand us better than we do and then moves forward exponentially?
It gets spookier and spookier. And there’s a lot more . . .
Cal discovers how the best-selling author, investor, financial analyst, blogger, podcaster and delightful conversationalist once reduced all his worldly possessions to15 items that could fit in a small satchel that he carried with him from Airbnb to Airbnb. A tad extreme, yes, but the takeaways on discipline can elevate anybody's life.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- What James learned from giving up everything -- it wasn't all positive!
- Tips for downsizing your belongings, how to choose what stays and what goes, and best of all how to make best use of the things you keep.
- How the "access economy" is superseding the "ownership economy" and what that means in practical terms.
Reboot your childhood curiosity just like Cal did, by listening to 8-year-old Eva Karpman, who's asked questions to General Stanley McChrystal, best-selling author Simon Sinek, and billionaires for her Dream Big podcast.
Takeaways from this episode:
- How to regain the magical curiosity that most adults have lost.
- Tapping into your curiosity to drive your work and career to new heights.
- There is always more to be curious about, more to learn, more to do.
- How to have more fun in your life, just by being more curious.
The singer reveals the journey that produced the hit song I Took A Pill in Ibiza.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- When Mike gained fame but lost his way, and how he came home to himself when he got a second shot.
- Mike's grounding relationship with his mother, and the grief process he’s gone through following the loss of his father.
- How Jake Owen, Hank Williams, and Merle Haggard inspired the artist’s most recent hit song, “I Took A Pill in Ibiza”.
Cal has lost 20 pounds after meeting Spartan CEO Joe De Sena, running obstacle races and changing the way he eats. But he still has to deal with his feelings for ice cream. Food therapist Dr. Lara Pence comes to the rescue...
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- Decode your emotional responses to tempting foods.
- Separate irresistible cravings from conscious choices.
- Employ mindfulness and boundaries to stop from overeating.
- Understand why a healthy relationship with yourself is more effective than the billion-dollar diet industry.
Cal opens the party to a lot of new listeners with takeaways from Kobe Bryant, Soul Cycle CEO Melanie Whelan, memory expert Jim Kwik, marketing guru Seth Godin, media titan Nely Galan, broadcaster Larry King and many others. The champagne is on ice . . .
The singer of the hit Fight Song teaches Cal the power of persistence. This episode is all about the 15-year struggle it took Rachel to break through with that song.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- The incredible determination that it took for Rachel to get from living room concerts to Hillary Clinton's campaign stage.
- The ups and downs and years of revisions that it took for her to wind up at a hit song.
- Even after achieving fame, the value and sense of home she finds in living room concerts and connecting intimately with fans.
Cal learns what it’s like to be Warren Buffett on the inside and a piñata on the outside. Nely is a Cuban immigrant who became an entrepreneur as a teenager after overhearing her mother and father wonder how they were going to pay the bills to put her through Catholic school. Now, she shares the principles of her tremendous success through her book, Self Made, and by building a movement to lift Latinas called Adelante. The principles of Nely’s success – like: Turn pain into profit – are universal.
Takeaways from this episode:
- Why the Latinx market is the biggest, most powerful consumer base in the U.S.
- The tenacity that took Nely from near-poverty to powerful executives, though not without ups and downs along the way.
- Nely's goal to empower Hispanic women and men to own their power and numbers in the U.S.
The Buried Life star once again finds the best within himself.
Takeaways from this episode:
- How helping others is really helping yourself.
- How doing something that inspires you - even if the initial ambition is small - can be the catalyst to your next great adventure.
- The patience, persistence, and ultimately throwing in the towel that got Ben to meet President Obama.
The suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert a year ago led to a benefit concert that is the definition of overcoming obstacles. Scooter Braun - her manager as well as Justin Bieber's, Carly Rae Jepsen's, and many more - opens up about the process it took for them to grapple with the tragedy.
The celebrity memory coach hones Cal’s mind.
Takeaways from this episode:
- Turning what might be seen as a weakness into your greatest challenge and ultimately a strength.
- Tips for memorization.
It’s a landmark day as Cal guides the silver-medal winning figure skater to new ground.
Why Cal went back to high school chemistry in his 30s, and how The Science Guy plans to save the world
The CEO of Billboard and The Hollywood Reporter shows Cal how Steve Jobs was the most important artist of the last 100 years.
Cal meets the founder of Spartan, agrees to enter an obstacle race and brings in the amazing Lil Misty Diaz (on crutches!) to train him.
The Chairman and CEO of BET gives Cal insights that overlap the fight for Civil Rights and the women’s movement.
In a time of frustration, anger and change, Randi opens Cal's eyes to a lot of things he did not know.
Cal dives deep into the stories of Alex Banayan's unprecedented adventure—from hacking Warren Buffett’s shareholders meeting to chasing Larry King through a grocery store to celebrating in a nightclub with Lady Gaga.
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Cal and Dr. Mehmet Oz talk about getting more out of yourself and your life in a time that demands it.
Cal gets tips for success from the man who turned a $10 hat into a $6 billion business.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- Tips for seizing your day in the morning, that will help you rise and grind.
- The small idea that ended up being Daymond's shot to rise to the top.
In a year filled with terrorist attacks and natural disasters, Scooter Braun is pushed to get the most out of himself. As the manager of Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, Carly Rae Jepsen, and so much more, 2017 gave Scooter challenge after challenge. From the bombing at Grande's Manchester concert to Beiber's Summer hit Despacito, a Spanish-English crossover hit that escalated to #1 alongside talks about building a border wall. From organizing a star-studded Hurricane Harvey phone bank to biking around Burning Man, hear how Scooter managed it all while remaining a family man first. He is truly remarkable.
TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE:
- How to fight for the light in the darkest times.
- The value of giving yourself a break once in a while.
- How Scooter infuses his values into his work.
Today, Cal takes us all the way back to November, 1963, when he first realized the power of his curiosity in one of the nation’s most difficult moments.
Cal's financial fears disappear as Tim passes on his financial principles and investment strategies.
Cal finds out about the influences that led Tim to write the 4-Hour Workweek and a succession of best sellers as Tim prepares to release his latest blockbuster -- Tribe of Mentors.
Legendary interviewer Cal Fussman goes deep with your favorite cultural figures in this brand new podcast from Midroll Media.