The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant

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

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. #BrenéBrown #AdamGrant #TheCuriosityShop Don't miss a video! Subscribe NOW: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCuriosityShop About The Curiosity Shop: Research professor Brené Brown and organizational psychologist Adam Grant are partnering on a new weekly podcast grounded in an unflinching commitment to learning and unlearning. At a time when public discourse rewards certainty over inquiry, The Curiosity Shop features two of the world's most sought-after experts on connection, change, and leadership making the case for slowing down, asking better questions, and embracing informed complexity over easy answers. Bringing together their left and right brain sensibilities — she’s a qualitative researcher; he’s a quantitative researcher — they explore some of the defining questions of our time, unpack the research reshaping how we live, lead, and love, and dive deep into the ideas, evidence, and cultural moments intriguing them the most. New episodes drop every Thursday. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Connect with The Curiosity Shop: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecuriosityshop/ Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1730985049 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3oEPsPKDhPVoNNL7pH5db6?si=e2483abb4eed4b03 Connect with Brené Brown: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brenebrown/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brenebrown/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brenebrown/ Connect with Adam Grant: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adamgrant/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adammgrant/ X: https://x.com/adammgrant/ ============================= Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to The Curiosity Shop 2:48 Simon Sinek on the State of Work & Leadership 6:15 AI, Layoffs & Leadership Mistakes 8:44 The Leadership Soccer Analogy 11:50 The Hidden Leaders Inside Every Organization 13:25 Playing to Win vs. Playing Not to Lose 15:49 The Leadership Skill Most People Ignore 19:47 What Elite Tennis Players Teach About Success 23:48 Why Great Teams Outperform Great Individuals 28:25 Leadership, Care & Human Connection 36:40 Do You Love Winning or Fear Losing? 43:03 Organizational Uniqueness Bias 49:46 Audience Q&A: Teaching Kids About Shame 57:16 The Sociology Study on Moral Courage 1:01:12 Cognitive vs. Affective Empathy 1:08:22 How AI Will Affect Jobs 1:12:13 Brené Biggest Concern About AI and Humanity 1:16:13 Final Thoughts Show Notes: http://thecuriosityshop.com/podcast/the-highest-performance-strategy-is-caring-about-people-ft-simon-sinek/ The Highest Performance Strategy is Caring About People ft. Simon Sinek | The Curiosity Shop https://www.youtube.com/@TheCuriosityShop

Brené BrownhostAdam GranthostSimon Sinekguest

Jun 18, 20261h 17mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: June 18, 2026
Duration: 1h 17m
Channel: The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

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. #BrenéBrown #AdamGrant #TheCuriosityShop Don't miss a video! Subscribe NOW: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCuriosityShop About The Curiosity Shop: Research professor Brené Brown and organizational psychologist Adam Grant are partnering on a new weekly podcast grounded in an unflinching commitment to learning and unlearning. At a time when public discourse rewards certainty over inquiry, The Curiosity Shop features two of the world's most sought-after experts on connection, change, and leadership making the case for slowing down, asking better questions, and embracing informed complexity over easy answers. Bringing together their left and right brain sensibilities — she’s a qualitative researcher; he’s a quantitative researcher — they explore some of the defining questions of our time, unpack the research reshaping how we live, lead, and love, and dive deep into the ideas, evidence, and cultural moments intriguing them the most. New episodes drop every Thursday. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Connect with The Curiosity Shop: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecuriosityshop/ Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1730985049 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3oEPsPKDhPVoNNL7pH5db6?si=e2483abb4eed4b03 Connect with Brené Brown: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brenebrown/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brenebrown/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brenebrown/ Connect with Adam Grant: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adamgrant/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adammgrant/ X: https://x.com/adammgrant/ ============================= Chapters: 0:00 Welcome to The Curiosity Shop 2:48 Simon Sinek on the State of Work & Leadership 6:15 AI, Layoffs & Leadership Mistakes 8:44 The Leadership Soccer Analogy 11:50 The Hidden Leaders Inside Every Organization 13:25 Playing to Win vs. Playing Not to Lose 15:49 The Leadership Skill Most People Ignore 19:47 What Elite Tennis Players Teach About Success 23:48 Why Great Teams Outperform Great Individuals 28:25 Leadership, Care & Human Connection 36:40 Do You Love Winning or Fear Losing? 43:03 Organizational Uniqueness Bias 49:46 Audience Q&A: Teaching Kids About Shame 57:16 The Sociology Study on Moral Courage 1:01:12 Cognitive vs. Affective Empathy 1:08:22 How AI Will Affect Jobs 1:12:13 Brené Biggest Concern About AI and Humanity 1:16:13 Final Thoughts Show Notes: http://thecuriosityshop.com/podcast/the-highest-performance-strategy-is-caring-about-people-ft-simon-sinek/ The Highest Performance Strategy is Caring About People ft. Simon Sinek | The Curiosity Shop https://www.youtube.com/@TheCuriosityShop

SPEAKERS

Brené Brown
host
Research professor and bestselling author known for work on shame, vulnerability, and leadership (e.g., Dare to Lead).
Adam Grant
host
Organizational psychologist and Wharton professor focused on work, motivation, and organizational behavior.
Simon Sinek
guest
Leadership author and speaker known for Start With Why and human-centered, long-term organizational thinking.

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant, featuring Brené Brown and Adam Grant, The Highest Performance Strategy is Caring About People ft. Simon Sinek | The Curiosity Shop explores human-centered leadership beats short-termism amid AI disruption and uncertainty today They argue modern work is strained by short-term, shareholder-first incentives that reward layoffs and optics over people, creating distrust and a demand for organizational transformation.

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