The Knowledge Project with Shane Parrish
Farnam Street
Master the best of what other people have already figured out so you can use their lessons in your life to create an unstoppable advantage. Shane Parrish is an entrepreneur and sought-after speaker. His newsletter (https://fs.blog/podcast) offers timeless insights you can use to change your life. In The Knowledge Project, Shane interviews people at the top of their game. Every episode is packed with hard-earned lessons that you can use in your life. Tune in to create an unstoppable advantage. Sit down and learn from the best. Previous guests include Reid Hoffman, Esther Perel, Daniel Kahneman, Tobi Lutke, Marshall Goldsmith, Kunal Shah, Ander Huberman, David Sinclair, Ret. General Stanley McChrystal, Marc Andreessen, Patrick Collison, Robert Cialdini, Walter Isaacson, Chris Bosh, Kat Cole, Adam Grant, Angela Duckworth, Seth Godin, Matt Mullenweg, Lisa Feldman Barrett, Maria Konnikova, Bill Ackman, Annie Duke, Derek Sivers, Jim Collins, Naval Ravikant, and many others. They reveal hard-earned lessons on leadership, decision-making, hiring and firing, productivity, habits, and more. New episodes are released every second Tuesday. Learn more at https://fs.blog/podcast
Categories: Business
Listen to the last episode:
Throughout his tenure, Brad Jacobs has built multiple billion-dollar companies. While there is no "playbook" for growing a business, he focuses on a few factors above all else in every company he operates, and in this conversation, he reveals them all. Shane and Jacobs discuss how to read anyone during an interview through a series of intentional questions, the exciting role of AI and technology in the future of business, and where money-making ideas hide in companies. Jacobs also shares how his training in math and music made him a better business operator, the one thing he focuses on to grow his businesses, how to spot big trends before everyone else, and the only thing a company should focus on for success. Brad Jacobs has started five companies from scratch and led each to become a billion-dollar or multibillion-dollar enterprise. These include three publicly traded companies: XPO Logistics, where he serves as Chairman and CEO, United Rentals, and United Waste Systems. Before starting XPO in 2011, Jacobs founded United Rentals in 1997 and led the company as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. In 1989, he founded United Waste Systems. (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 takes to take contrarian bets (40:45) Confidence and parents (50:21) Why negative-only feedback is detrimental for employees (56:14) Money lessons (58:13) A deep dive on M&A (Jacobs' secret sauce to growing his companies) (01:07:51) Questions to immediately get to know anyone (01:11:14) On boards and board meetings (01:16:57) On decision-making (01:23:37) The role of capital markets (01:25:41) The type of person you don't want to hire (01:31:16) The best capital allocators (01:33:53) Biggest lesson Jacobs learned from the past year (01:37:20) On success
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Previous episodes
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191 - #190 Brad Jacobs: Building a Business Empire Tue, 19 Mar 2024
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190 - #189 Chris Davis: Three Generations of Wealth Tue, 05 Mar 2024
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189 - #188: Bryan Johnson: Five Habits for Longer Living Tue, 20 Feb 2024
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188 - #187 Dr. Becky Kennedy: The One Thing You Can Say That Changes Everything Tue, 06 Feb 2024
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187 - #186 Tom Gayner: Invest Like The Best Tue, 23 Jan 2024
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186 - #185 Blake Eastman: Learn to Read Anyone Tue, 09 Jan 2024
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185 - #184 Best of 2023: Conversations of the Year Tue, 26 Dec 2023
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184 - #183: Paul Assaiante: Learning to Face Your Fears Tue, 12 Dec 2023
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183 - #182 Todd Herman: Unleashing Your Secret Identity Tue, 28 Nov 2023
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182 - #181 Dr. Gio Valiante (Part 2): Failure and Success Tue, 14 Nov 2023 - 0h
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181 - #180 TKP Insights: Learning and Thinking Tue, 07 Nov 2023
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180 - #179 Dr. Gio Valiante (Part 1): Discipline and Resilience Tue, 31 Oct 2023 - 0h
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179 - #178 Jerry Colonna: The CEO Whisperer Tue, 17 Oct 2023
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178 - #177 Shane Parrish: A Glimpse Into Clear Thinking Tue, 03 Oct 2023 - 0h
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177 - #176: Dr. Leah Lagos and Joe Mazzulla: Control Your Heart, Conquer Your Stress Tue, 19 Sep 2023
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176 - #175: Shreyas Doshi: Better Teams, Better Products Tue, 05 Sep 2023
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175 - #174 Rey Flemings: A Different Definition of Success Tue, 22 Aug 2023
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174 - #173 Frank Slootman: Doing Less, Doing Better Tue, 08 Aug 2023 - 0h
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173 - #172 Dr. Julie Gurner (Part 2): Caring Deeply, Challenging Directly Tue, 25 Jul 2023 - 0h
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172 - #171 Naval Ravikant: The Angel Philosopher (2017) Tue, 11 Jul 2023
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171 - #170: TKP Insights: Philosophy Tue, 04 Jul 2023
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170 - #169 Dr. Julie Gurner (Part 1): Caring Deeply, Challenging Directly Tue, 27 Jun 2023 - 0h
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169 - #168 Adam Robinson: Positioning Yourself For Success Tue, 13 Jun 2023 - 0h
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168 - #167 Dr. Gina Poe: The Science of Better Sleep Tue, 30 May 2023
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167 - #166 Kevin Kelly: Excellent Advice for Living Tue, 16 May 2023
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166 - Proven Strategies to Accelerate Growth, Productivity and Profits with George Stalk, Jr. Tue, 02 May 2023
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165 - #164 Ravi Gupta: The Realities of Success Tue, 18 Apr 2023
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164 - #163 Jason Karp: Live A Healthier Life Tue, 04 Apr 2023
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163 - #162 Nathan Myhrvold Tue, 21 Mar 2023 - 0h
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162 - #161 Jim Dethmer: The Pillars of Integrity Tue, 07 Mar 2023
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161 - #160 TKP Insights: Leadership Tue, 28 Feb 2023 - 0h
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160 - #159 Dr. Anna Lembke: Between Pleasure and Pain Tue, 21 Feb 2023
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159 - #158 Aaron Dignan: Change The Way You Work Tue, 07 Feb 2023
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158 - #157 Carolyn Coughlin: Become A Better Listener Tue, 24 Jan 2023
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157 - #156 Jack Kornfield: Finding Inner Calm Tue, 10 Jan 2023
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156 - #155 Best of 2022: Conversations of the Year Tue, 27 Dec 2022
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155 - #154 Emily Balcetis: Setting and Achieving Goals Tue, 13 Dec 2022
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154 - #153 Keith Creel: Lessons from Life on the Railroad Tue, 29 Nov 2022
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153 - #152 Tobi Lütke: Calm Progress Tue, 15 Nov 2022
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152 - #151 Alan Mulally: The Power Of Working Together Tue, 01 Nov 2022
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151 - #150 TKP Insights: Making (Even) Better Decisions Tue, 25 Oct 2022
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150 - #149 Neil Pasricha: Simple Rules for Happiness Tue, 18 Oct 2022
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149 - #148 Kenneth Stanley: Set The Right Objectives Tue, 04 Oct 2022 - 0h
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148 - #147 Reid Hoffman: Better Decisions, Fewer Mistakes Tue, 20 Sep 2022 - 0h
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147 - #146 Barbara Tversky: Action Shapes Thought Tue, 06 Sep 2022
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146 - #145 Les Snead: Building a Super Bowl Champion Tue, 23 Aug 2022
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145 - #144 Gary Klein: Insights For Making Better Decisions Tue, 09 Aug 2022
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144 - #143 Andrew Wilkinson: Building an Empire Tue, 26 Jul 2022
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143 - #142 Marshall Goldsmith: The Essentials Of Leadership Tue, 12 Jul 2022
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142 - #141 Kunal Shah: Core Human Motivations Tue, 28 Jun 2022