What motivates great Americans with Ron Chernow

08/07/2025 35 min
What motivates great Americans with Ron Chernow

Listen "What motivates great Americans with Ron Chernow"

Episode Synopsis

Ron Chernow is a Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer whose work has deepened our understanding of the men who made history in America, and even inspired Lin Manuel Miranda to write his musical about Alexander Hamilton. In this episode, he and Adam discuss Ron’s new book on Mark Twain, analyze what fuels outsized accomplishments, and dig into what it takes to uncover new insights into the lives of historical figures.FollowHost: Adam Grant (Instagram: @adamgrant | LinkedIn: @adammgrant | Website: adamgrant.net/) Guest: Ron Chernow (Website: ronchernow.com/) LinksMark Twain by Ron Chernow Alexander Hamilton by Ron ChernowSubscribe to TED Instagram: @tedYouTube: @TEDTikTok: @tedtoksLinkedIn: @ted-conferencesWebsite: ted.comPodcasts: ted.com/podcastsFor the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcriptsInterested in learning more about upcoming TED events? Follow these links:TEDNext: ted.com/futureyouTEDAI San Francisco: ted.com/ai-sfReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.