Could a workaround solve your problem? Paulo Savaget is an award-winning researcher and professor of engineering entrepreneurship who went on a three year journey to study how people invent workarounds to solve problems. In his book,The Four Workarounds: Strategies from the World's Scrappiest Organizations for Tackling Complex Problems, he shares his experience and findings in hopes of inspiring others to value workarounds and the possible big changes they enable.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava and Paulo Savaget discuss topics inspired by the book, including the four types of workarounds with case examples, the ethics of loopholes, and the innovations of smaller organizations that large corporations can learn from.

Do you know how social media really works? Tobias Rose-Stockwell’s research on how tech amplifies discontent and disrupts democracy has inspired leading tech companies to adopt key interventions to reduce toxicity and polarization. In his book, Outrage Machine, he combines this research with personal anecdotes to create a guide to understanding how the internet has broken our brains and how we can fix it.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava and Tobias Rose-Stockwell discuss topics inspired by the book, including why we become emotionally arrested by content, content that flirts with the extreme to gain engagement, and the process of changing minds when we live in a period of constant news and opinions.

How To Work With (Almost) Anyone: featuring Michael Bungay Stanier, the award-winning author of The Coaching Habits, as well as teacher and speaker who has sold over 1.5 million books, shares solutions to this question in his book How to Work With (Almosn) Anyone.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava and Michael Bungay Stanier discuss topics inspired by the book, including keystone conversations, how to stay human when working with people, and his mission to infect everyone with the “possibility virus.”

Why do most projects fail? Bent Flyvberg and Dan Gardner explore this question and the pattern of failed megaprojects in their book How Big Things Get Done: The Surprising Factors That Determine the Fate of Every Project, from Home Renovations to Space Exploration and Everything In Between. Bent Flyvbjerg is the first BT Professor and inaugural Chair of Major Programme Management at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School, Villum Kann Rasmussen Professor and Chair at the IT University of Copenhagen. Dan Gardner is the New York Times best-selling author of books about psychology and decision-making.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava, Bent Flyvbjerg, and Dan Gardner discuss topics inspired by the book, including fat-tailed risks, stories of success, why many projects start wrong, mastering project leadership, and how to focus on people rather than technology.

How often do you think about your pockets? Hannah Carlson, an author and lecturer in dress history and material culture at the Rhode Island School of Design, explores this question and the history of pockets in her book Pockets: An Intimate History of How We Keep Things Close.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava and Hannah Carlson discuss topics inspired by the book, including the evolution of pockets, pocket-sized inventions, pocket sexism in the fashion industry, and the history of pockets in literature.

How will you tell your life story and are you thinking about it right now? James R. Hagerty, an obituary writer, author, and previous reporter, editor, and bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal and the International Herald Tribune, explores these questions and shares tips for writing obituaries in his book Yours Truly: An Obituary Writer's Guide to Telling Your Story.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava and James R. Hagerty discuss topics inspired by the book, including why to start writing your obituary when you’re young, how to start writing an obituary plus things not to include, and tips for recording family history while managing the accuracy of memories.

What is afrofuturism and how can we develop a powerful view of the future for African Americans through a cultural lens? Dr. Kevin Strait, the Museum Curator of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, explores these questions and the exhibition in DC as one of the editors for the book Afrofuturism.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava and Dr. Kevin Strait discuss topics inspired by the book, including afrofuturistic literature, rewriting the historical narrative of afrofuturism to reconsider how African Americans are viewed and view themselves, the driver of African American culture, and reviving the platform for free thinking.

How do we bring more culture into the work that we do? Marcus Collins, an award-winning marketer, cultural translator, professor, and author, explores this question and how culture is the most powerful vehicle for influencing behavior in his book For the Culture: The Power Behind What We Buy, What We Do, and Who We Want to Be.

In this episode, Rohit Bhargava and Dr. Marcus Collins discuss topics inspired by the book, including the types and risks of cultural appropriation, the anemia of cultural connection, byproducts of our cultural subscription, and how we can better practice cultural appreciation as a society.