Best Guy Raz | Luminary Podcasts (2025)

1
When the Best People Want to Be on Your Team: Peloton's Dara Tresedor 57:49

2d ago57:49

57:49

As a child growing up in Ibadan, Nigeria, Dara Treseder was often reminded to keep her feet on the ground. But her mother urged her to dream big and pursue her ambitions—especially if they brought her fulfillment. That encouragement propelled Dara across the world, where she attended both Harvard and Stanford, charting a path defined by her desire …

1
A Key Way to Grow Your Confidence: Joe Keohane 45:47

6d ago45:47

45:47

ENCORE EPISODE. Joe Keohane, a seasoned journalist and editor, believes that conversations with strangers can boost happiness, empathy, and even improve the world around us. In his book The Power of Strangers: The Benefits of Connecting in a Suspicious World, Joe dives into research with psychologists, anthropologists, and real-life encounters to u…

1
Small Habits, Huge Rewards: B.J. Fogg 45:38

13d ago45:38

45:38

What drives lasting personal change? BJ Fogg, founder of Stanford’s Behavior Design Lab, challenges conventional wisdom with insights from his groundbreaking book Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything. Drawing from real-life experiments and research, Fogg reveals a practical system for building positive habits and breaking free from…

1
Price and Quality are Not Enough: Foot Locker's Ken Hicks 45:21

22d ago45:21

45:21

When Ken Hicks took the helm as CEO of Foot Locker in 2009, the company was on the brink: the economy was in shambles, sales had cratered by nearly a billion dollars, and the decline of indoor malls spelled further doom. But within three years, Hicks led Foot Locker to a stunning $2 billion rebound. His strategy? A renewed focus on storytelling—con…

1
Define Success and Define Constraints: Etsy's Josh Silverman 43:23

29d ago43:23

43:23

Etsy was on the brink of collapse in 2017—its stock plummeting, cash reserves dwindling, and analysts predicting its demise. Enter Josh Silverman, a turnaround expert with a track record from Evite, eBay, and Skype. As Etsy’s CEO, Josh focused the team on one key metric, sparking a stunning recovery. How did he transform a failing creative marketpl…

1
The Power of Radical Candor: Kim Scott 52:45

1M ago52:45

52:45

"How do you build a team, inspire individuals to pursue their dreams, and scale that impact beyond just one group?" Kim Scott has wrestline with, and answering that question for the majority of her career. After navigating roles from a diamond business in Moscow to Silicon Valley startups and then leadership at Google, she developed 'radical candor…

1
Why Generalists Come Out on Top: David Epstein 1:00:55

1M ago1:00:55

1:00:55

What makes someone excel—whether in sports, science, or life? David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene and Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World, makes a compelling case for the power of breadth over early specialization. From his time as a walk-on track athlete at Columbia University to his time as a science writer and investigativ…

1
Trust via Transparency: Marvel's Peter Cuneo 45:37

2M ago45:37

45:37

What does it take to rebuild a company from the brink of failure? In this conversation from 2020, Guy sits down with Peter Cuneo, the former CEO who famously guided Marvel Entertainment out of bankruptcy and onto a path that ultimately led to its $4.5 billion acquisition by Disney. They explore the career trajectory that got him, as he puts it “off…

1
Mobilizing Talent When it Counts: Best Buy's Hubert Joly 1:07:40

2M ago1:07:40

1:07:40

In 2012, Best Buy was in deep trouble—a crisis so severe that Forbes declared, “Why Best Buy is Going Out of Business.” By March, the company reported a staggering $1.7 billion loss, and by April, its CEO had stepped down amid scandal. Enter Hubert Joly, a leader whose career had shaped him into essentially an elite relief pitcher of the business w…

1
Exceptional Leaders are Integrative Thinkers: Roger Martin 43:08

2M ago43:08

43:08

"You can't analyze your way into something new," says today's guest. Over the course of a career spanning four decades, Roger Martin has been a management consultant, an influential business strategy thinker and author, as well as the Dean of the Rotman School of Management at University of Toronto. He advises CEOs of global companies such as Ford,…

1
Leading Through a Perfect Storm: Carnival's Arnold Donald 50:51

2M ago50:51

50:51

When Arnold Donald took the helm at the Carnival Corporation, a public relations crisis of multiple layers threatened its future. Donald prioritized building a diverse and dynamic leadership team, appointing new heads for seven of the company's nine cruise lines, including more women and minorities. in this 2019 conversation, Donald shares his phil…

1
Values without Action are Propaganda: PayPal's Dan Schulman 41:52

3M ago41:52

41:52

[A 'BEST OF' EPISODE] Combining business with social justice isn’t a path most companies choose, which is why Dan Schulman’s leadership as PayPal’s CEO captured so much attention. In 2016, he halted plans for an operations center in North Carolina in response to the state’s controversial “bathroom bill.” Schulman prioritizes an “employee-first” str…

1
Better Leadership via Failure: General Stanley McChrystal 52:49

3M ago52:49

52:49

[Encore release] General Stanley McChrystal was born into a military family: three generations of men in his family were officers in the armed forces. He followed the family tradition and eventually rose up the ranks to become a General in the Army. While serving as the commander of Allied Forces in Afghanistan in 2010, he was forced to resign afte…

1
Conviction, But Not Certainty: Autodesk's Carl Bass 1:06:47

3M ago1:06:47

1:06:47

An encore episode, exploring the unconventional leadership journey of Carl Bass, a self-described renegade and reluctant executive who took the reins at Autodesk during turbulent times. Facing the global economic crisis of 2008, Bass led with conviction, balancing bold decision-making with the uncertainty of an evolving market. At one point, convin…

1
Effective People Do This 31:36

3M ago31:36

31:36

[Encore episode] In the 1980s, Stephen R. Covey revolutionized leadership thinking with The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, introducing a leadership style centered on empathy, listening, and collaboration—far from the traditional table-pounding, charismatic approach. In this episode, Guy sits down with Stephen M.R. Covey, Covey’s son, who has …

1
Imagine it Forward: Beth Comstock (NBC and General Electric) 42:51

4M ago42:51

42:51

Author, and business executive Beth Comstock says to Guy Raz in this classic 2021 interview "I'm about change." In college, she wanted to be a doctor, but organic chemistry wasn’t her strong suit, so she shifted to journalism. When journalism didn’t work out, she started working in publicity. So, when GE bought NBC in 1986 right as Beth was startin…

1
Getting the Big Ideas Right: General Petraeus 34:52

4M ago34:52

34:52

General David Petraeus is one of those leaders who rose through the ranks to become one of the most well-known military figures of our time. Growing up in the shadow of West Point, General Petraeus defied the odds in a career where becoming a four-star general is nearly as unlikely as being struck by lightning. Petraeus’s rise to prominence began i…

1
Carry Water on Both Shoulders: Terry Lundgren (Macy's and Neiman Marcus) 40:55

4M ago40:55

40:55

Terry Lundgren, former CEO of Neiman Marcus and Macy’s, has been instrumental in shaping the American retail landscape. His believes leadership lies dormant in many until an event challenges you to grow. He also believes playing it safe is the biggest risk of all. Despite an entire career in retail, including taking on the role of president of a lo…

1
Built to Last, Great by Choice: Jim Collins 1:20:29

4M ago1:20:29

1:20:29

Jim Collins is one of the most influential business thinkers and writers of our time. Yet, Collins considers himself more of a researcher than an author.He has made a career of extracting the data embedded in the narrative arcs of companies and drawing lessons from them. With bestsellers like Good to Great, Built to Last, and BE 2.0, each of his bo…

1
Turning Trials into Triumph: Ryan Holiday (The Daily Stoic) 48:34

5M ago48:34

48:34

Can ancient philosophy be the key to modern success? Ryan Holiday, a leading thinker of his generation, believes so. From NFL quarterbacks to corporate CEOs, many credit Holiday's work with introducing them to the transformative power of Stoic philosophy. In this episode, Ryan talks to Guy about the teachings of the Stoics through the lens of Holid…

1
When Staying Small Works: Richard Graeter 34:15

5M ago34:15

34:15

In a world where scale is, for many, their north star, Graeter's Ice Cream stands out by doing things the old-fashioned way. Richard Graeter, the fourth-generation leader of this iconic family business, talks to Guy about the century-old process that makes their ice cream so special—and why they refuse to give it up. Unlike the huge companies that …

1
'The Decency Quotient' in Leadership | Ajay Banga 39:55

5M ago39:55

39:55

What does it take to create a winning culture in the workplace? For Ajay Banga, who transformed Mastercard, success is built on more than intelligence and emotional awareness. For him, it's the "Decency Quotient" that is an essential factor in fostering an environment where people feel supported, respected, and empowered to succeed. And, as he tell…

1
Simple Change, Big Return: Sonic Drive-In's Cliff Hudson 38:51

5M ago38:51

38:51

In today's fast-paced corporate world, the pressure to specialize is immense. But what if focusing on one expertise isn't the key to success? Cliff Hudson, author of Master of None, challenges this very notion, arguing that versatility, not specialization, is the real path to leadership. Hudson's own life story is a testament to this belief. Growin…

1
From Lab to C-Suite, Then Turning Around a Startup, ft. George Scangos (Biogen) 36:02

5M ago36:02

36:02

For George Scangos, the art of decisive leadership is part of his biology, you could say. Scangos is a former lab researcher who rose to the top of the biotech world. Transitioning from a biology researcher at Yale to a pharmaceutical executive, his journey is a testament to the power of interpersonal skills and strategic thinking. As the CEO of Bi…

1
Why Uncertainty Matters: Margaret Heffernan 40:42

6M ago40:42

40:42

Margaret Heffernan, an entrepreneur, CEO, executive leadership coach, and author of six books, delves into her often counter-intuitive insights on consensus-building, and decision-making. She and Guy discuss her book, Uncharted: How to Map the Future, where she explains why attempts to predict the future, even with today's AI and Big Data technolog…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Guy Raz | Luminary Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

1
Wisdom From The Top with Guy Raz

Guy Raz | Luminary

1
When the Best People Want to Be on Your Team: Peloton's Dara Tresedor 57:49

1
A Key Way to Grow Your Confidence: Joe Keohane 45:47

1
Small Habits, Huge Rewards: B.J. Fogg 45:38

1
Price and Quality are Not Enough: Foot Locker's Ken Hicks 45:21

1
Define Success and Define Constraints: Etsy's Josh Silverman 43:23

1
The Power of Radical Candor: Kim Scott 52:45

1
Why Generalists Come Out on Top: David Epstein 1:00:55

1
Trust via Transparency: Marvel's Peter Cuneo 45:37

1
Mobilizing Talent When it Counts: Best Buy's Hubert Joly 1:07:40

1
Exceptional Leaders are Integrative Thinkers: Roger Martin 43:08

1
Leading Through a Perfect Storm: Carnival's Arnold Donald 50:51

1
Values without Action are Propaganda: PayPal's Dan Schulman 41:52

1
Better Leadership via Failure: General Stanley McChrystal 52:49

1
Conviction, But Not Certainty: Autodesk's Carl Bass 1:06:47

1
Effective People Do This 31:36

1
Imagine it Forward: Beth Comstock (NBC and General Electric) 42:51

1
Getting the Big Ideas Right: General Petraeus 34:52

1
Carry Water on Both Shoulders: Terry Lundgren (Macy's and Neiman Marcus) 40:55

1
Built to Last, Great by Choice: Jim Collins 1:20:29

1
Turning Trials into Triumph: Ryan Holiday (The Daily Stoic) 48:34

1
When Staying Small Works: Richard Graeter 34:15

1
'The Decency Quotient' in Leadership | Ajay Banga 39:55

1
Simple Change, Big Return: Sonic Drive-In's Cliff Hudson 38:51

1
From Lab to C-Suite, Then Turning Around a Startup, ft. George Scangos (Biogen) 36:02

1
Why Uncertainty Matters: Margaret Heffernan 40:42

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