Brad Stulberg is a bestselling author, performance coach to founders & elite athletes, and researcher on sustainable excellence, well-being, and behavior change. His new book, The Way of Excellence: A Guide to True Greatness and Deep Satisfaction in a Chaotic World, is a New York Times and USA Today bestseller. He's also the author of The Practice of Groundedness and Master of Change, and co-author of Peak Performance — books that have sold more than 500,000 copies and been translated into 20+ languages. He's on faculty at the University of Michigan, co-hosts the podcast excellence, actually, and writes regularly for the New York Times, with additional work in The Wall Street Journal and The Atlantic. He coaches founders, executives, and elite athletes — and has spent over a decade studying what actually separates world-class performers from people who just perform intensity.

(02:00) Untangling worth from work(03:18) Mountains and passion(05:47) Clean fuel vs dirty(07:17) Simplicity over optimization(10:01) Stress rest growth cycle(11:14) Rest as the work(15:10) Digital Sabbath reset(18:33) Reclaiming focus(23:27) Dopamine fast reality(25:52) Excellence requires intimacy(29:15) Attention and mastery(32:57) Progress plateaus and curiosity(36:26) Learning mindset in sports(37:58) Steve Kerr values and perspective(40:50) Identity house minimum dose(45:15) Mental toughness responding(48:08) Nature nurture fit grit(51:39) Testosterone status and masculinity(56:05) Closing thanks and where to find

Brad's website

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The Jitterbug phone

Today I speak with Dr. Nina Schwalbe, a public health scientist and former senior leader at UNICEF and Gavi who helped lead a Biden-appointed $7B global COVID vaccine effort, about why she's running for Congress in New York's District 12 in a crowded, money-dominated primary (June 23). We unpack how fundraising, media coverage, Democratic club endorsements, and super PACs shaped by Citizens United create a self-fulfilling "arms race," and she proposes reforms like campaign finance limits, matching funds, and equal-time standards. We also discuss evidence-based, systems-oriented policy priorities: expanding community health centers, lowering drug prices via pooled purchasing and single-payer, restoring CDC/FDA capacity, strengthening Medicare/Medicaid/ACA, investing in public housing, improving transparency and constituent services, and rebuilding trust in science through listening and primary care.

(01:59) Why She Ran(05:55) Money And Primaries(08:26) Minimum Viable Campaign(12:08) Machine And Super PACs(16:13) Fixing Campaign Finance(17:06) Public Health Mindset(20:52) Transparency And Accountability(23:45) Street Level Messaging(26:08) NYC Infrastructure Priorities(27:49) Hyperlocal Transit Problems(28:06) What Congress Controls(30:46) Abundance Agenda Debate(32:46) Fixing Public Housing(33:23) Trust in Institutions(35:38) Rebuilding Health Trust(37:12) Community Health Centers(38:13) Why Drugs Cost More(39:42) Restore Public Health Agencies(41:35) Economics Shapes Health(43:39) Single Payer and Prevention(45:58) Chronic Illness Care Gaps(48:58) Working With Paul Farmer(52:23) Vision for Healthcare Justice

Nina's campaign

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I interview Canadian political scientist Daniel A. Bell (University of Hong Kong) about his latest book Why Ancient Chinese Political Thought Matters and how Chinese political theory broadens a West-centric Anglophone canon. Bell explains major pre-unification traditions—Confucianism (graded love, harmony, ritual, soft power, political meritocracy), Legalism (state-strengthening through uniform, ruthless law and fear), Mohism (populist focus on material welfare and opposition to state-funded ritual/music), and Taoism (skepticism of social engineering and preference for limited state action)—and notes their modern revival after 20th-century anti-traditionalism and the Cultural Revolution. We discuss timeless debates on corruption, family law, culture funding, just war, and idealism vs. realism (including Xunzi vs. Legalists), Bell's argument in The China Model for legitimate variation beyond "one person, one vote," sources of legitimacy in China, Xi's role versus structural pressures, and the need for more people-to-people engagement to reduce demonization and improve US–China understanding.

(02:43) West Centric Theory(04:29) Writing The Book(05:59) Schools Of Thought(06:49) Confucians Explained(08:35) Legalists And Power(10:07) Mohists And Populism(10:56) Taoism And Withdrawal(11:56) Ancient Debates Today(15:08) Idealism Versus Realism(18:49) Confucianism Endures(23:02) Traditions In The 1900s(29:29) Lessons For Western Leaders(30:18) Ritual Music And Order(31:40) Just War And Intervention(32:55) Harmony Not Conformity(33:56) Confucian Harmony Not Sameness(35:44) Just War and Tyranny(37:04) Questioning One Person One Vote(39:17) Why Meritocracy Fits China(43:03) Cultural Fit and Export Failures(46:42) Western Thinkers in China(48:03) Censorship and Reform Prospects(49:38) Xi Versus Structural Forces(52:54) Legitimacy Performance and Trust(56:03) Taiwan Prosperity and AI Optimism(58:30) More Participation Not Elections(59:46) Meritocracy Weak Spots and Dialogue

Read Daniel A. Bell's books