The Beautiful Brilliance of Boredom with creative polymath Elle Cordova | A Bit of Optimism Podcast

ℹ️ EPISODE INFO

Released

August 12, 2025

Duration

1h 5m

Channel

Simon Sinek

Watch on YouTube

▶ Open ↗

📝 EPISODE DESCRIPTION

We’re wired to chase the next spark—scrolling, swiping, refreshing—but some of our brightest ideas sneak in when we stop chasing, let boredom settle in, and give our minds room to wander. Elle Cordova knows the power of that pause. When the pandemic hit pause on her life as a touring musician, she stumbled into new creative territory—making offbeat comedy videos about delightfully nerdy topics like particle physics, grammar, and fonts. Those sketches went viral, and suddenly she was thriving as a social media creator with a devoted following. In this episode, we talk about finding what truly lights you up, pushing through writer’s block, working with anxiety—and yes, Star Wars makes an appearance (because of course it does). Plus, Elle treats us to a live, in-studio performance of her song Roswell. This…is A Bit of Optimism. For more on Elle, check out: https://www.ellecordova.com/ --------------------------- This episode is brought to you by True Classic! I really love their T-shirts, so we called them up and asked if they wanted to work together. And they said yes! Check out their clothes at: http://trueclassictees.com/ --------------------------- + + + Simon is an unshakable optimist. He believes in a bright future and our ability to build it together. Described as “a visionary thinker with a rare intellect,” Simon has devoted his professional life to help advance a vision of the world that does not yet exist; a world in which the vast majority of people wake up every single morning inspired, feel safe wherever they are and end the day fulfilled by the work that they do. Simon is the author of multiple best-selling books including Start With Why, Leaders Eat Last, Together is Better, and The Infinite Game. + + + Website: http://simonsinek.com/ Live Online Classes: https://simonsinek.com/classes/ Podcast: http://apple.co/simonsinek Instagram: https://instagram.com/simonsinek/ Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/simonsinek/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/simonsinek Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simonsinek Simon’s books: The Infinite Game: https://simonsinek.com/books/the-infinite-game/ Start With Why: https://simonsinek.com/books/start-with-why/ Find Your Why: https://simonsinek.com/books/find-your-why/ Leaders Eat Last: https://simonsinek.com/books/leaders-eat-last/ Together is Better: https://simonsinek.com/books/together-is-better/ + + + #SimonSinek

🎤 SPEAKERS

• Elle Cordova

  guest

  Creative polymath—musician, poet, and performer known for work like “Roswell” and viral science/space-themed pieces.

• Simon Sinek

  host

  Author and leadership speaker; host of the A Bit of Optimism podcast.

🧾 EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Simon Sinek, featuring Elle Cordova and Simon Sinek, The Beautiful Brilliance of Boredom with creative polymath Elle Cordova | A Bit of Optimism Podcast explores how boredom, curiosity, and space unlock creativity and meaning Elle Cordova describes curiosity—shaped by introversion, books, and a restrictive environment—as the engine behind her polymath creativity across music, poetry, and comedy.

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