Revisited: The Beautiful Brilliance of Boredom with Creative Polymath Elle Cordova
Team Simon is revisiting some of the episodes you helped make our favorites of the year until A Bit of Optimism returns on January 27, 2026, with brand-new episodes. We’re rewinding back to August, wh...
30 Dec 20251h 3min
A Bit of Optimism Will Return in the New Year
Team Simon here! As the year comes to a close, A Bit of Optimism is pressing pause for a short winter break. The show will return on January 27, 2026 and we can’t wait to be back with you. But before ...
23 Dec 20252min
Revisited: Your Unhappy Brain Needs Some Assistance with Happiness Expert Mo Gawdat
Team Simon here! Thank you for being part of such an incredible year—and for helping us grow the podcast through your support, sharing it with others, and showing up week after week. We love seeing yo...
23 Dec 20251h 30min
Prepare for the Life You’re Meant to Live With Chaplain John Fox
Often the biggest transformations we undergo don’t arrive as lightning bolts, but as quiet shifts we’ve been preparing for all along. For John Fox, the transformation from a 25-year career in high fin...
16 Dec 20251h 7min
How Losing Everything Taught Her to Help Everyone: Joan Howard’s Story
Life can change in an instant. One day you’re shopping at Saks Fifth Avenue, and the next you’re sitting in your car with everything you own, and everyone you love, wondering what happens now. Joan Ho...
9 Dec 202551min
A Rebel With a Cause (and a Cone) with Jeni’s Ice Cream Founder Jeni Britton
What if a great business was built like a handmade mixtape? A lovingly crafted experience that is as much a love letter from its founder as it is custom-tailored to its audience. Before Jeni’s Splendi...
2 Dec 202553min
The Culture That Converts Even the Biggest Cynics with former WD-40 CEO Garry Ridge
Who would’ve guessed that one of the world’s best company cultures was hiding behind a can of WD-40? Of all the places to find a leadership masterclass, the blue-and-yellow can in your garage probably...
25 Nov 202556min
Choose Your Seven Humans Wisely with author Fredrik Backman
What if great friendships aren’t found by luck but built through effort? Bestselling novelist Fredrik Backman, the mind behind A Man Called Ove (adapted into the Tom Hanks film A Man Called Otto), Anx...
18 Nov 202558min
