The Knowledge Project: A Farnam Street Podcast

Brad Jacobs doesn't just build big companies – he builds industry giants. As the founder of eight multibillion-dollar companies, he's cracked the code on scaling businesses from zero to billions. In this conversation, the secrets he's earned over decades. You'll discover where billion-dollar opportunities are hiding in plain sight, how to spot massive trends years before your competitors, and the most crucial factor determining a company's success. Currently serving as Chairman and CEO of QXO, Jacobs brings a mathematician's precision and a musician's creativity to scaling businesses. His track record speaks for itself: every company he's founded has reached billion-dollar status or beyond. (00:00) Intro (04:44) The future of AI (07:21) How to think rationally (08:48) The major trend (10:57) The research process (13:29) On asking better questions (19:35) On rearranging your brain (22:23) On music, math, simplicity, and business (32:26) Leverage, debt, and optionality (35:11) What it

Most families who obtain immense wealth squander it by the third generation. But Chris Davis comes from a family whose grandfather and father all became independently wealthy of each other, and Davis has done the same. How does that keep happening? In this conversation, we find out. Shane and Chris discuss life and investment lessons he learned from his father and grandfather, why writing is more important to clarify one's thinking no matter who's reading it, and the surprising benefit of reading physical newspapers and wearing ties to work. Davis also shares his value-investing philosophy, what he learned from working with and meeting Charlie Munger, and what parents can do to raise kids who aren't entitled. Davis talks about his alcohol drink tracker and why it's important to him, why he never puts himself in situations where envy can grow, and the insights from Warren Buffett's key letter about why investment managers underperform. Chris Davis is on the board of Berkshire Hathaway and The Coca-Cola Compa

What can you do (or avoid) tomorrow to guarantee you can live longer? In this episode, Bryan Johnson reveals the five simple disciplines you can start doing to live healthier and longer. Johnson shares what his daily routine looks like, the ins and outs of his experimentation process, and why he gave his father plasma. Johnson also opens up about the constant hate he receives from people online, how he deals with it all, and what he wishes he'd known when he sold his company. Bryan Johnson is the world's most measured human. Johnson sold his company to PayPal in 2013. Through Project Blueprint, Johnson has achieved metabolic health equal to the top 1.5% of 18 year olds, inflammation 66% lower than the average 10 year old, and reduced his speed of aging by the equivalent of 31 years. Johnson is also the founder of Kernel, creator of the world’s first mainstream non-invasive neuroimaging system; and OS Fund, where he invested in the predictable engineering of atoms, molecules, and organisms. Watch the episo

Dr. Becky Kennedy shares the crucial life and parenting skills you need but didn't get taught on regulating emotions, setting boundaries, and the best sentence you can say when a partner tells you something difficult. This episode applies to EVERY relationship in your life, not just your kids. Get ready to parent more effectively with less stress, repair after a disagreement, regulate emotions, and unlock the next level in all of your relationships.  Dubbed the “The Millennial Parenting Whisperer” by TIME Magazine, Dr. Kennedy is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be. She also hosts “Good Inside with Dr Becky,” the top kids and family show on Apple Podcasts. Follow Becky https://www.instagram.com/drbeckyatgoodinside/ Watch the episodes on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/theknowledgeproject/videos Newsletter - Each week I share timeless insights and ideas that you can use at work and home. Add it to your inbox: https://fs.blog/newsletter

Tom Gayner, CEO of Markel Group, reveals the lessons he’s learned from Charlie Munger and Berkshire Hathaway, how he invests, and the specific way he thinks about opportunity cost. Gayner shares the difference between good debt and bad debt, where he disagrees with Munger, and why he focuses on the basics. This intimate conversation offers a level of insight and honesty that Tom hasn’t offered anywhere else. Gayner is currently the CEO of Markel Group and the Director of The Coca‑Cola Company. He also serves as chairman of the Davis Series Mutual Funds board and on the boards of Graham Holdings and Markel. Listen and Learn. -- Watch the episodes on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/theknowledgeproject/videos Newsletter - Each week I share timeless insights and ideas that you can use at work and home. Add it to your inbox: https://fs.blog/newsletter/ My New Book! Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results is out now - https://fs.blog/clear/  Follow me: https://beacons.ai/shan

Blake Eastman has dedicated his entire life to psychology and nonverbal behavior.   In 2009 he founded The Nonverbal Group, a  behavioral research and education company in New York City which conducts large scale studies on human behavior and uses a wide range of technologies to systematically deconstruct and improve human communication.   Eastman dives deep into how we communicate with one another, including the ability to read nonverbal cues, his thoughts on big talkers vs. silent types, how we can communicate with our partners without complaining, the value of watching ourselves communicate on video, understanding the power structures and social dynamics at work, and so much more.   Eastman has also served as an adjunct psychology professor at the City University of New York for six years where he taught General Psychology, Developmental Psychology, and Group Dynamics. He is also a former professional poker player and the founder of School of Cards, the first brick-and-mortar poker school in New York City.

The Knowledge Project closes 2023 with a look back at some of the best conversations of the year. Featuring interviews from nine of the most downloaded and acclaimed episodes of 2023, this collection of conversations offers a variety of insights into the power of intention, how to become a better listener, how to give and receive feedback at work, the Four Pillars of Integrity, facing the realities of life, the importance of having deadlines, taking responsibility, building trust in a large organization, and when to double-down on your plans for success.   Guests on this episode include: Mindfulness expert Jack Kornfield, executive coach Carloyn Coughlin, organizational expert Aaron Dignan, leadership expert Jim Dethmer, venture capitalist Ravi Gupta, author and Wired co-founder Kevin Kelly, doctor of psychology Julie Gurner, veteran CEO Frank Slootman, and performance psychologist Gio Valiante. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so much more. Lear

When Paul Assaiante announced his retirement from coaching the men's squash team at Trinity College in Connecticut earlier this year, it marked the end of the most successful run for any coach in the history of college athletics. During his tenure, Assaiante guided Trinity to 17 national titles, including 13 consecutive championships and 252 wins in a row from 1999 to 2011. On this episode of The Knowledge Project, Assaiante draws on his 30 years of coaching to discuss the lessons he learned during his career. These lessons include how to conquer fear and anxiety, why safety is actually found when facing adversity, the importance of practice, and what's keeping you from reaching your goals. Assaiante is also the author of the 2012 book, Run to the Roar: Coaching to Overcome Fear. Listen and learn. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so much more. Learn more here: https://fs.blog/membership/ Every Sunday our Brain Food newsletter shares timeles

We all inhabit different identities throughout our day. Perhaps we’re entrepreneurs or employees, mothers or fathers, athletes or CEOs. But how can you harness the strengths of these different identities to get the best out of yourself? And can these different identities be used to get through tough times? Todd Herman calls on more than two decades of experience working with top performers on performance, strategy, mindset, and execution to discuss his thoughts on peak performance, the value of patience, the fear that prevents us from performing our best, imposter syndrome, and how he worked with Kobe Bryant to build the legendary alter-ego of The Black Mamba. Herman has worked with elite athletes, peak performers, and entrepreneurial leaders for over 22 years. He helps them achieve their most ambitious goals by becoming more resilient, creative, confident, and courageous. He is also the author of the bestselling book The Alter Ego Effect. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts

In the second of a special two-part episode, performance psychologist Dr. Gio Valiante calls on his vast experience working with some of the world’s top athletes and entrepreneurs. Shane and Dr. Valiante discuss thoughts on failure and the fear that holds you back from making the most of your talent, shifting from an ego orientation to a mastery orientation, common misperceptions about success and failure, and how we learn when it’s time to cut our losses and move on to a different challenge.   Valiante is regarded as one of the most successful performance coaches in the world. He’s worked extensively with golfers on the PGA and LPGA Tours, Olympic athletes, and leading figures in NCAA football and the NFL, where he served as the Head Performance Coach of the Buffalo Bills. He has also logged over 5,000 hours coaching some of the most sophisticated investors in the world, including hedge fund manager Steve Cohen.   Listen to the first part of this special episode on the Farnam Street blog or wherever you list

In the fifth installment in a series of episodes, The Knowledge Project curates essential segments from five guests revolving around one theme: learning and thinking. This episode will help you create an environment that’s more conducive to clear thinking, improve your intuition, learn the difference between the two main modes of thinking, examine the learning process,  use “online experimentation” to develop good judgment, and eliminate blind spots in your thought processes. The guests on this episode are psychologist and economist Daniel Kahneman (Episode 68), engineering professor Barbara Oakley (Episode 31), author and global macro advisor Adam Robinson (Episodes 47 and 48), economist and professor Tyler Cowen (Episode 39), and author and organizational psychology professor Adam Grant (Episode 112). -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so much more. Learn more here: https://fs.blog/membership/ Every Sunday our Brain Food newsletter shares timel

In the first of a special two-part episode, celebrated performance psychologist Gio Valiante calls on his vast experience working with some of the world’s top athletes and entrepreneurs. Shane and Valiante discuss developing discipline and resilience in work and life. Valiante offers his thoughts on the five ways to gain an advantage and win and how to change your habits. He also discusses the role your environment plays in discipline and how you can develop resilience in yourself and your children. Valiante is regarded as one of the most successful performance coaches in the world. He’s worked extensively with golfers on the PGA and LPGA Tours, Olympic athletes, and leading figures in NCAA football and the NFL, where he served as the Head Performance Coach of the Buffalo Bills. He has also logged over 5,000 hours coaching some of the most sophisticated investors in the world, including hedge fund manager Steve Cohen. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes

Jerry Colonna was a high-flying New York venture capitalist in the early 1990s, but his life wasn’t as glamorous as most made it out to be. He was anxious, overweight, unhealthy, and unfulfilled, and after suffering a panic attack on the streets of Manhattan he gradually shifted into coaching, giving him a new lease on life and a career as one of the premier executive coaches in the United States.   In this episode, Colonna opens up on what went wrong and how he changed it. Offering raw and revealing insights on resilience, discernment, self-esteem, anxiety, motivation, and the rituals that keep him fulfilled in life. Colonna is the Co-Founder of Reboot.io, an executive coaching and leadership development firm dedicated to the notion that better humans make better leaders. He is also the author of Reunion: Leadership and the Longing to Belong. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so much more. Learn more here: https://fs.blog/membership/ Every Sun

Ever wondered why the world’s most successful individuals seem to have an uncanny ability to be in the right place at the right time? It’s not luck; it’s positioning. They are rarely backed into a corner by circumstances, and you don’t have to be either. On this special episode of The Knowledge Project, host and Farnam Street founder Shane Parrish offers a sneak peek into his upcoming book, Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results, by sharing five essential insights from the book you can use for success in life and decision-making. Clear Thinking is not just another self-help book — it's a transformative guide that hands you the tools to master your fate, sharpen your decision-making, and set yourself up for unparalleled success. To learn more about the book, visit fs.blog/clear -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so much more. Learn more here: https://fs.blog/membership/ Every Sunday our Brain Food newsletter shares ti

Internationally renowned health and performance psychologist Dr. Leah Lagos discusses the concept of Heart Rate Variability (HRV) and how you can improve your mental and physical health by using signals from your body to gain control over stress. She’s also joined on this episode by Head Coach of Boston Celtics, Joe Mazzulla, who has worked with Dr. Lagos on HRV training. He discusses how he uses techniques taught by Dr. Lagos to help him manage his HRV and lower stress levels during his first season as an NBA head coach in 2022. Dr. Lagos has served as a Clinical and Performance Psychologist in private practice for the past 14 years. She consults a global hedge fund as well as elite performers in entertainment, business, and sport. Dr. Lagos is the author of Heart Breath Mind: Conquer Stress, Build Resilience, and Perform at Your Peak. Mazzulla took over as the interim head coach of the Boston Celtics in September 2022 and was officially named the team’s head coach in February 2023. In his first full seas

Calling on more than two decades of experience working with some of the biggest companies in tech, Shreyas Doshi joins The Knowledge Project for a deep dive into the connection between building a solid team and building a better product. He also discusses the three levels of product work, the origins of conflict on your team, the difference between measurement and evaluation, the benefits and drawbacks of a writing culture, decision-making, growing your competence, and the agency/talent matrix. Doshi is best known as the leader of some of the most successful products from Stripe, where he was one of the company’s first product managers. He also led and grew several products at Twitter, Google, and Yahoo. He currently advises fast-growing startups on strategy, scaling, and product management. Doshi is also a frequent angel investor and has privately coached product managers from Amazon, Meta, Salesforce, Uber, and LinkedIn. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only ep

Dubbed during his career as “The Man Who Knows What the World’s Richest People Want (and How To Get It),” Rey Flemings has years of experience dealing with success. He sees it every day as the co-founder and CEO of Myria, a company that provides concierge services to fewer than 100 elite clients with a combined wealth of over $400 billion. On this episode, Flemings discusses what he’s learned about wealth, money, success and happiness while on the job, how he makes impossible tasks possible, and what it was like to try and smuggle ventilators into New York City during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.   Flemings founded Myria in 2021 and has worked in the luxury services industry since 2017. He also served as the founder and CEO of Stripple, a web imagery monetization company, and CEO of Particle, an Internet services company acquired by Apple. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so much more. Learn more here: https://fs.blog/membership/ Every

Frank Slootman doesn’t start companies. But no CEO has a better track record for turning the ideas of others into jackpots. On this episode of the Knowledge Project, Slootman dives deep into the no-nonsense, results-based strategies that have made him a leading executive, including how to approach the first 90 days after taking over a company, doing less and doing better, the difference between a good sales organization and a great one, how to get the best out of people, positioning yourself for future success,  and so much more.   Slootman is the Chairman and CEO at Snowflake, a cloud computing–based data company which currently boasts a market capitalization of $81 billion. Prior to taking over at Snowflake im April 2019, Slootman served as the Chairman and CEO of cloud computing company ServiceNow, and he also spent six years as the President and CEO of Data Domain Inc., a venture-backed storage company. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so mu

On the second of two special episodes, acclaimed executive performance coach and doctor of psychology Dr. Julie Gurner goes in-depth on a variety of strategies and actionable advice that will help you perform up to your potential. During this portion of her interview, Dr. Gurner discusses the standards we set for ourselves and others, cognitive ruts, curating friends and relationships, fighting up front, what success means, and much more.   Dr. Gurner has spent the past 14 years working with top percentile executives, talent, and teams operating in fast-paced, competitive environments. She specializes in improving personal productivity, focus, and decision-making strategies, as well as developing high performance cultures, teams, and executives emphasizing ownership and leadership.    Check out Part 1 of this interview in the same feed where you’re listening to this episode, or on the Farnam Street Blog. -- Want even more? Members get early access, hand-edited transcripts, member-only episodes, and so much

No episode in the eight-year history of The Knowledge Project has made a bigger impact than when Naval Ravikant appeared on the show in 2017. Be it for longtime listeners who heard Naval when this episode first aired or for newer fans who missed Naval’s incredible insights, this is a must-listen to fans of The Knowledge Project and for those looking to hear from a deep thinker with an incredible wealth of insight.  On this episode Naval and Shane dive deep into reading habits, getting the best information from the most reliable sources, mental models for making critical high-stakes decisions, avoiding overcommitting and staying focused on the most important projects, how to facilitate better learning for our children and Naval’s definition for the meaning of life. Naval Ravikant is the former CEO and co-founder of AngelList, a platform for startups, investors, and job seekers dedicated to democratizing the investment process. He has also invested in more than 100 companies, including Uber, Twitter, Yammer,