Brené, Adam Grant, and Simon Sinek sitting around a table and talking.

The Highest Performance Strategy is Caring About People ft. Simon Sinek

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In this episode of The Curiosity Shop, Brené Brown and Adam Grant sit down with their first-ever guest, Simon Sinek. Together, they explore the state of organizations globally, including the chaos hitting executives, the human cost of misaligned incentives, AI-driven layoffs, and leaders playing defense when they should be playing offense. They dig into what makes teams high-performing, why caring deeply about the people you lead isn’t soft but essential, and what military cultures of love and loyalty teach us about business. The conversation also moves through nervous system regulation, shame and guilt in parenting and leadership, and what AI can or cannot replace about human connection. This episode is a reminder that the things we’ve been told to leave out of work, such as love, care, and human connection, may be the most important things we can bring to it.

Meet the Guest

Headshot of Simon Sinek wearing a gray button down shirt, glasses, and leaning on a counter.

Simon Sinek is an unshakable optimist who believes in a bright future and our ability to build it together. Simon’s WHY is to inspire people to do what inspires them so that, together, each of us can change our world for the better.

With a vision to change the way businesses think, act, and operate, Simon and his team work with leaders and organizations in nearly every industry to help transform company culture and create a better working world.

As a trained ethnographer, Simon has discovered remarkable patterns about how the greatest leaders and organizations think, act, and communicate. He is fascinated by the people and organizations that make the greatest, lasting impact on the world. He has devoted his life to sharing his thinking, and leading a movement to inspire people to do the things that inspire them.

Simon may be best known for popularizing the concept of WHY in his first Ted Talk in 2009. It has since become one of the most watched talks of all time on TED.com, with 37+ million views.

Simon is a bestselling author and shares his ideas in the books Start With Why, Leaders Eat Last, Together Is Better, Find Your Why, and The Infinite Game.

Show Notes

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