The Next Big Idea Daily

What's the most powerful question you can ask in a politically charged conversation? "How did you come to believe that?"

“The paths we walk to our views are rich and long,” Mónica Guzmán says in today’s episode, “and it is not very likely that one meme or mic drop point is going to change someone else’s mind.” So what will?

“I don’t understand this person!” You know you’ve thought it. About the uncle or neighbor or co-worker whose worldview is diametrically opposed to your own. But what would happen if you checked your bewildered outrage and tried curiosity instead?

This week, award-winning journalist Mónica Guzmán stops by to teach us how to cross the political divide, find common ground, and learn from people whose worldviews radically differ from our own. Mónica's new book is "I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times." (Have you checked out our app? It's loaded up with hundreds of book summaries read by the authors themselves. Download it here!)

Alright, it's time to wrap up Seth Stephens-Davidowitz's five-part master class based on his book "Don't Trust Your Gut: Using Data to Get What You Really Want in Life." Today, Seth explains what the data says about finding happiness. • Our newsletter comes out today. Sign up now! • Download The Next Big Idea app

Success depends less on getting lucky and more on using your luck well. In this episode, the fourth in Seth’s mini master class, he explains how to do it.

You might assume that the wealthiest 1% of Americans are neurosurgeons, corporate attorneys, and hedge fund managers. In reality, they're more likely to own car dealerships or run beverage distribution companies. Today, Seth explains why that is.

Good news for all you parents out there: the data says you can relax. But there’s still one parenting decision that matters. A lot. Want to know what it is? Tune in to today’s episode!

Big data. Baseball managers use it to win pennants. Stockbrokers use it to beat the market. And now you can use it to get what you really want in life. That's according to a new book by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz called Don't Trust Your Gut. When faced with difficult life decisions-like "Who should I marry?" and "How can I avoid screwing up my kids?"-we typically follow our intuition. The problem is that our intuition is often wrong. The smarter move, Seth says, is to comb through millions of data points to find statistically significant answers. But who has time for that, not to mention the technical know-how? Well, Seth does. And this week on the show, he'll share the answers he found, starting with the surprising traits you should look for when searching for your soulmate.

Today, we wrap up our week-long master class with David Myers with a discussion of hindsight bias and how it can help you be less hard on yourself. Our newsletter comes out today! Sign up now.

"Others notice us less than we imagine. This is liberating: A bad hair day hardly matters. Few will notice. Fewer will care. Of those, fewer still will remember."

David says we worry about improbable horrors (like plane crashes) while ignoring greater risks (car smash-ups). Today, he explains how performing statistically sound risk assessments can calm our worried minds.

We all know it's good for us to nurture our relationships with close friends and loved ones. Today, David explains why chatting up strangers is also important.

All week long on The Next Big Idea Daily, Michael will be chatting with social psychologist David Myers about the wonder of human thought and action, and how you can use insights from the latest research in David's field to boost your mood, improve your decision-making, and more. Today, David shares his first big idea, and it's a counterintuitive one. It turns out that “much as when we observe others and infer their sentiments, so hearing ourselves talk clues us in to our own attitudes.” Our newsletter comes out every Friday. It features commentary from Michael, links to relevant Book Bites, previews of upcoming seasons, and ways to engage with the show. Sign up now!

In our final episode with Adam Gopnik, the award-winning New Yorker writer and author of "The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery" learns how to box, how to dance, and why there’s “no mastery in the absence of another.” Our newsletter comes out today! Sign up now!

Today: Why mastery requires idiosyncrasy. Our newsletter comes out every Friday. It features commentary from Michael, links to relevant Book Bites, previews of upcoming seasons, and ways to engage with us. Sign up now!

Adam Gopnik's first memory of mastery was watching his mother roll out strudel dough, so in midlife, he asked his mother — a linguistics professor by day, pastry maestro by night — to teach him how to bake.

It's the second day of our week-long master class with Adam Gopnik, New Yorker staff writer and author of "The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery." Today, he explains how learning to drive at the tender age of 55 brought him closer to his father. Have you subscribed to our newsletter yet? It comes out every Friday and features commentary from Michael, links to relevant Book Bites, previews of upcoming seasons, and ways to engage with us. Sign up now!

A few years ago, Adam Gopnik, a longtime writer for The New Yorker and three-time winner of the National Magazine Award, started thinking about all the things he wasn't good at. He couldn't dance the foxtrot or bake a brioche. Well into his 50s, he still had no idea how to drive a car. To make matters worse, when he looked around, he saw people who could do these things — often with great skill. How, he wondered, did they do it? How do any of us get good at the things we're good at? And how do some of us become next-level masters? To answer those questions, Adam set out to master the skills he lacked, and he has written up the results in a profound little book called "The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery." All this week, he'll be sitting down with Michael to talk about how he did it and what he learned. First up: drawing. Our newsletter comes out every Friday. It features commentary from Michael, links to relevant Book Bites, previews of upcoming seasons, and ways to engage with us. Sign up now!

In the final installment of his mini master class, Jonah shares his formula for telling great stories. The latest edition of our weekly newsletter comes out today. It features commentary from Michael, links to relevant Book Bites, details on our next guest, and ways to engage with us. Sign up now!

Does asking questions make you look smart? (Yes!) Our newsletter comes out every Friday. It features commentary from Michael, links to relevant Book Bites, previews of upcoming seasons, and ways to engage with us. Sign up now!

It’s what cult leaders, charlatans, and at least one former president have in common. Our newsletter comes out every Friday. It features commentary from Michael, links to relevant Book Bites, previews of upcoming seasons, and ways to engage with us. Sign up now!

Today, Jonah explains how adding one or two letters to the end of a word can propel you to success. Our newsletter comes out every Friday. It features commentary from Michael, links to related content, previews of upcoming seasons, and ways to engage with us. Sign up now!

Almost everything we do involves words. "Words," says Wharton professor Jonah Berger, "are how we persuade, communicate, and connect. They're how executives lead, salespeople sell, and parents parent. Even our private thoughts depend on language." But while we live in a world awash in words, we're strangely indifferent about which ones we use. We focus on the ideas we want to convey, not the best way to articulate them. And that, according to Jonah, is a big mistake because "subtle shifts in the words we use can have a big effect on our impact." This week on the show, he'll teach you how to make those subtle shifts so you can become a better communicator, a better persuader, a better friend, and a more confident, effective person. Jonah's new book is called "Magic Words: What to Say to Get Your Way."

In the final installment of Jessi’s five-part master class, she explains why setting boundaries is critical if you want to establish healthy relationships. • Jessi Hempel is the author of “The Family Outing: A Memoir.” She also hosts the podcast “Hello Monday.” • Have thoughts about this week’s episodes? Sign up for our LinkedIn newsletter and leave a post a comment! • Don’t forget to download the Next Big Idea app

When it comes to the people closest to you, do you ever regret not showing up? --- • This is day four of our week-long master class with Jessi Hempel, author of "The Family Outing" • Be sure to check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes • And download the Next Big Idea app to hear hundreds of authors summarize their books in 15 minutes or less

What truths emerge when we imagine life as other people experience it? --- • This is day three of our week-long master class with Jessi Hempel, author of "The Family Outing" • Be sure to check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes • And download the Next Big Idea app to hear hundreds of authors summarize their books in 15 minutes or less

First, listen. Then try "Tell me more." --- • This is day two of our week-long master class with Jessi Hempel, author of "The Family Outing." • Be sure to check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes.

This week, Michael sits down with journalist and podcaster Jessi Hempel to discuss her new memoir, "The Family Outing," which tells the remarkable story of how every member of Jessi's immediate family came out — she and her father as gay, her sister as bisexual, her brother as transgender, and her mother as a survivor of a traumatic experience with an alleged serial killer. But "The Family Outing" is more than just a coming-out story: it's a powerful and thought-provoking exploration of what it means to live authentically. In this episode, Jessi and Michael discuss how the subjectivity of memory can be the source of deep empathy.

It’s not enough for us to solve our money and love issues on an individual level. Enter the tempered radical.

Don’t let poor communication ruin your next conversation about money and love. Instead, follow Myra and Abby’s tips. Subscribe to our newsletter if you’d like to ask questions about this episode, give us feedback, or learn more about Money and Love.

In this episode, Myra and Abby share their five-step process for making good decisions. It goes like this: CLARIFY what’s most important to you. COMMUNICATE with those most affected by your decision. Generate a broad range of CHOICES. CHECK IN with friends, family, and trusted resources. And explore your decision’s possible CONSEQUENCES. --- Check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes!

Ready, set … wait a sec. Today, Myra and Abby explain why slowing down is key to making good decisions. --- • Myra Strober is a professor emerita at Stanford University and the founding director of the Stanford Center for Research on Women (now the Clayman Institute for Gender Research). Abby Davisson served as president of Gap Foundation and co-founded the clothing company's employee resource group for parents and caregivers. • Check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes. • And to hear hundreds of authors share the best ideas from their books, download the Next Big Idea app!

Diet Coke and Mentos. Suede and water. Tupac and Biggie. Money and love. What do they all have in common? They don't play well together. Especially that last dueling duo. We've all been taught to make money decisions with our heads and love decisions with our hearts. Mix them up and, well, kaboom. But a new book by Myra Strober and Abby Davisson says that's a bunch of nonsense. In "Money and Love: An Intelligent Roadmap for Life's Biggest Decisions," they make the case that by acknowledging the inextricable link between finance and romance, we can learn to make better life decisions — decisions that utilize head and heart in a balanced, fulfilling way. --- GUESTS: • Myra Strober is a professor emerita at Stanford University and the founding director of the Stanford Center for Research on Women (now the Clayman Institute for Gender Research) • Abby Davisson served as president of Gap Foundation and co-founded the clothing company's employee resource group for parents and caregivers RESOURCES: • Check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes. • Can't wait for tomorrow's episode? Download the Next Big Idea app and you can listen to all five of this week's episodes right now.

In the final installment of her master class, Gloria strikes an optimistic note. “We are not doomed to have short attention spans,” she says. “We can change our relationship with technology.” What might that new relationship look like? Tune in to find out. --- • Be sure to check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes. • And download the Next Big Idea app. Hundreds of authors are sharing the best ideas from their books!

Before checking the news, imagine what your future self will be doing at 10 p.m. Will you be relaxing reading your favorite book or still working on that deadline? --- Gloria Mark is a professor at UC Irvine and the author of the new book “Attention Span: A Groundbreaking Way to Restore Balance, Happiness, and Productivity.” Be sure to check out our newsletter where Michael takes listeners behind the scenes of these episodes.

We are as likely to interrupt ourselves as to be interrupted by others. What can we do about it? Gloria has the answer in today’s episode. --- Gloria Mark is a professor at UC Irvine and the author of the new book “Attention Span: A Groundbreaking Way to Restore Balance, Happiness, and Productivity.” Be sure to check out our newsletter where we take listeners behind the scenes of these episodes.

Today, Gloria explains how you can use rote activities — like solving a puzzle or weeding your garden — to replenish your attentional reservoirs. --- Gloria Mark is a professor at UC Irvine and the author of the new book “Attention Span: A Groundbreaking Way to Restore Balance, Happiness, and Productivity.” Be sure to check out our newsletter where Michael takes listeners behind the scenes of these episodes.

Picture this. You sit down to read a book. You know the one — the book all your friends have raved about. So, okay, you read the first sentence. Maybe you make it to the end of the paragraph. But the next thing you know, your hand, as if possessed, reaches for your phone and calls up Twitter or Instagram or the New York Times, and you let the book drop to the floor before you've even finished the first page. Why does that happen? Why does your attention feel less like a steadily trained spotlight and more like a frantically blinking strobe? And will you ever find a way to get your focus back? "Yes!" says author and UC Irvine professor Gloria Mark. And lucky for you, she'll be here all week to explain why your attention wandered off and what you can do to get it back. Gloria's new book is "Attention Span: A Groundbreaking Way to Restore Balance, Happiness and Productivity."

In the final installment of his master class, Greg McKeown shares the three questions he asks to make life easier: 1️⃣ What is a problem that irritates me repeatedly? 2️⃣ What is the total cost of managing that over several years? 3️⃣ What is the next step I can take immediately, for a few minutes, to move towards solving it? Tune in to learn how to apply this at work and in life. --- • Check out Greg’s book “Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most” • Sign up for our newsletter on LinkedIn. • Listen to hundreds of audio summaries written and read by leading nonfiction authors by downloading the Next Big Idea app.

You need to establish upper and lower bounds. “Okay, but what does that mean?” Listen to find out. --- Greg McKeown is the author of “Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.” He’ll be here all week to share key insights from the book. If you can’t wait until tomorrow to hear the next episode, you can get early access by downloading the Next Big Idea app.

What happens when you stop assuming the answer to every problem is to work harder and instead ask, “What if this could be easy?” That’s effortless inversion. Today, Greg explains how you can use it to tackle problems big and small. --- Greg McKeown is the author of “Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.” He’ll be here all week to share key insights from the book. If you can’t wait until tomorrow to hear the next episode, you can get early access by downloading the Next Big Idea app.

Forget your never-ending to-do list. Greg says you need a “done for the day” list, a rundown of tasks you can actually accomplish and that will leave you feeling satisfied. --- Greg McKeown is the author of “Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most.” He’ll be with us all week to share key insights from the book. If you can’t wait until tomorrow to hear the next episode, you can get early access by downloading the Next Big Idea app.

If you want to accomplish great things, you must work relentlessly, right? Not so, says author and leadership strategist Greg McKeown. In his latest book, "Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most," Greg makes the counterintuitive argument that by working less, you can accomplish more. You just have to learn how to ask the right questions and use the right tools. All this week, he'll show you how.

In our final episode with Marc, he says you’re never too old to forge new relationships. --- • Marc Schulz is the co-author of “The Good Life: Lessons from the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness.” • Sign up for our newsletter on LinkedIn. • Listen to hundreds of audio summaries written and read by leading nonfiction authors by downloading the Next Big Idea app.

Americans spend 11 hours a day interacting with media. From the age of 40 to the age of 80, that adds up to 18 years of waking life. What would happen if we put down our phones, turned off our TVs, and tried talking to each other? --- • Come back tomorrow for the final installment of our micro master class with Marc Schulz, co-author of “The Good Life: Lessons from the World’s Longest Scientific Study of Happiness. • Sign up for our newsletter on LinkedIn. • Listen to hundreds of audio summaries written and read by leading nonfiction authors by downloading the Next Big Idea app.

Relationships may be good for your well-being, but that doesn't mean they're always easy. In this episode, Marc shares what 85 years of research have revealed about how to overcome relationship challenges. --- Marc Schulz is a professor of psychology at Bryn Mawr College and the associate director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development. He'll be with us all week, discussing his new book, "The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness." To get a behind-the-scenes look at the show, sign up for our newsletter on LinkedIn. And to listen to hundreds of audio summaries written and read by leading nonfiction authors, download the Next Big Idea app.

“We tend to think," says Marc Schulz, "that once we establish friendships and intimate relationships, they will take care of themselves. But like muscles, neglected relationships atrophy.” Today, Marc shares the fitness regimen to keep your relationships fit and trim. --- • Marc is a professor of psychology at Bryn Mawr College and the associate director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development. He’ll be with us all week to discuss his new book, “The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness.” • To get a behind-the-scenes look at the show, sign up for our newsletter on LinkedIn. And to listen to hundreds of audio summaries written and read by leading nonfiction authors, download the Next Big Idea app.

What makes for a good life? Over the last 85 years, the Harvard Study of Adult Development has attempted to answer that question. This week, one of the study's directors, Marc Schulz, joins us to share the surprising things they've found. --- To get a behind-the-scenes look at the show, sign up for our newsletter on LinkedIn. And to listen to hundreds of audio summaries written and read by leading nonfiction authors, download the Next Big Idea app.

We are not the sum of our missed opportunities or the unfinished projects we decide to call failures. We are the sum of our starts. --- Today concludes our week-long master class with Becky Blades based on her book “Start More Than You Can Finish,” which is available for purchase here. To get a behind-the-scenes look at the show, sign up for our newsletter on LinkedIn. And to listen to hundreds of audio summaries written and read by leading nonfiction authors, download the Next Big Idea app.