Malala Yousafzai on finding love and prioritizing joy | ReThinking with Adam Grant

Malala Yousafzai is an activist for girls’ education and women’s empowerment, and the youngest Nobel Peace Laureate in history. In her new book, Finding My Way, is her effort to take control of her story after becoming a public figure at a young age. In this episode, Malala and Adam talk about the pressures of childhood fame, Malala’s struggles with saying no, and her journey to rediscover spontaneity and learn to ski and ride a bike. They also discuss how Malala’s thoughts on marriage have changed, discuss the important role men play in changing structures that hold women back, and debate the merits of teasing the people you love. Host & Guest Host: Adam Grant (Instagram: @adamgrant | LinkedIn: @adammgrant | Website: https://adamgrant.net/) Guest: Malala Yousafzai (Instagram: @malala | Website: https://malalabook.com/, https://malala.org/) Join us in person at a TED conference: https://tedtalks.social/events Become a TED Member to support our mission: https://ted.com/membership Subscribe to a TED newsletter: https://ted.com/newsletters Follow TED! X: https://www.twitter.com/TEDTalks Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ted Facebook: https://facebook.com/TED LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ted-conferences TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tedtoks Podcasts: https://www.ted.com/podcasts The TED Audio Collective is a collection of podcasts for the curious. The TED Audio Collective videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy (https://www.ted.com/about/our-organiz...). For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at https://media-requests.ted.com.

Adam GranthostMalala Yousafzaiguest

Nov 7, 202544mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: November 7, 2025
Duration: 44m
Channel: Re:Thinking with Adam Grant
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Malala Yousafzai is an activist for girls’ education and women’s empowerment, and the youngest Nobel Peace Laureate in history. In her new book, Finding My Way, is her effort to take control of her story after becoming a public figure at a young age. In this episode, Malala and Adam talk about the pressures of childhood fame, Malala’s struggles with saying no, and her journey to rediscover spontaneity and learn to ski and ride a bike. They also discuss how Malala’s thoughts on marriage have changed, discuss the important role men play in changing structures that hold women back, and debate the merits of teasing the people you love. Host & Guest Host: Adam Grant (Instagram: @adamgrant | LinkedIn: @adammgrant | Website: https://adamgrant.net/) Guest: Malala Yousafzai (Instagram: @malala | Website: https://malalabook.com/, https://malala.org/) Join us in person at a TED conference: https://tedtalks.social/events Become a TED Member to support our mission: https://ted.com/membership Subscribe to a TED newsletter: https://ted.com/newsletters Follow TED! X: https://www.twitter.com/TEDTalks Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ted Facebook: https://facebook.com/TED LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ted-conferences TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tedtoks Podcasts: https://www.ted.com/podcasts The TED Audio Collective is a collection of podcasts for the curious. The TED Audio Collective videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy (https://www.ted.com/about/our-organiz...). For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at https://media-requests.ted.com.

SPEAKERS

Adam Grant
host
Organizational psychologist and host of the ReThinking podcast.
Malala Yousafzai
guest
Nobel Peace Prize laureate and activist for girls’ education.

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Re:Thinking with Adam Grant, featuring Adam Grant and Malala Yousafzai, Malala Yousafzai on finding love and prioritizing joy | ReThinking with Adam Grant explores malala reclaims identity, joy, and love amid global expectations pressure Malala describes how global recognition at a young age distorted her self-image and created pressure to live up to a heroic narrative she didn’t choose.

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