Ted Audio Collective

Hey everyone, it's Adam Grant. Welcome back to Rethinking, my podcast on the Science

of What Makes Us Tech. I'm an organizational psychologist and I'm taking you inside the

minds of fascinating people to explore new thoughts and new ways of thinking.

My guest today is Brian Little. In 2001, when I was a junior in college, I signed up

for his personality psychology class and it changed the course of my life. I was mesmerized

by his deep insight, his boundless curiosity, and his care for his students. Brian is the

reason I became a professor and a psychologist. I couldn't think of a more meaningful career

than trying to pay forward what I'd learned from him. 15 years later, I got to open for

him on the TED stage. Brian's TED talk on the puzzle of personality has been viewed

more than 17 million times. If you haven't watched it, you're in for a treat. He has a unique

ability to make you think as hard as he makes you laugh. Brian is the best-selling author

of the books, Me, Myself, and Us, and who are you, really? He's won numerous awards

for his excellence in teaching at Harvard, McGill, Carlton, and Cambridge, and for his distinguished

contributions to personality science. He's best known for his pioneering research on

personal projects. Personal projects are the answer to the question, what do you think

you're doing? They're your priorities in life, from walking the dog to raising an independent

child. Today, we're going to do a deep dive into how your projects shape your happiness.

So I love this unscripted podcast format because it gives me an excuse to talk to a

fascinating person every week. However, what I really miss is having a co-host who I can

banter with. I don't think there's been an episode yet where I haven't thought to myself,

oh, I would love to talk to Brian about this. Oh, that's not a cool thing. I figured,

...