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When Do Leaders Actually Matter? A Conversation with Jared Diamond on Discretion, Timing and the Hamlet Test

In this interview, I spoke to Professor Jared Diamond, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Guns, Germs, and Steel, about when individual leaders genuinely change outcomes. We discussed discretion, timing, his Hamlet Test for irreplaceability, assassination as a…

Vikas Shah 24 min read

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Three thousand moments. Three picked at random.

“The most successful teams are the ones who present with authenticity and passion. You could have the next cancer cure, but unless your audience believes in you, they won't invest in you.”
— Not specified
“Jack Ma went to Jonathan and said, Jonathan, what do you know about finance? He said, 'I don't know anything about finance.' Jack said, 'Well, what do you know about PayPal?' – his response, 'I don't know anything about PayPal'. Jack then said, 'Okay, you're hired, we want you to be the CEO of Ali Pay!'.”
— Brian A. Wong
“I think life matters because it gives meaning to the universe. Without life, the universe is devoid of meaning. We aren't the universe, but we are a vital part of it, we are what gives this universe meaning.”
— Tim Peake British Astronaut & ISS Expedition Commander

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  1. 01 Business & Economics A Conversation with Jesper Kouthoofd, Founder of Teenage Engineering, on Design, Play and Why Every Product Is an Illusion 363 interviews
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  5. 05 Health & Medicine The Continuum of Mind: A Conversation with Professor Michael Levin on Cognition, Bioelectricity and the Future of Being 74 interviews
  6. 06 Nobel Laureates Markets, Morals and the Road Ahead: A Conversation with Nobel Laureate Professor Alvin Roth 21 interviews

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