Adam Grant

That idea of symphony is something now that gets rewarded in a big way, right? Can you not only cut through all the noise, but then zoom in on what's really important and connect those dots in a way that other people can understand? And I think that maybe this is just a variation on your scavenger forager analogy, but I think that it used to be the dot collectors who were rewarded.

Like the more stuff you knew, the more impressive you were. And people saw that as a mark of expertise. And now it's the dot connectors who are going to rule the world because they can spot the patterns that are invisible to others and then anticipate those. And I think that means you have to see the problems in order to solve them.

Like the more stuff you knew, the more impressive you were. And people saw that as a mark of expertise. And now it's the dot connectors who are going to rule the world because they can spot the patterns that are invisible to others and then anticipate those. And I think that means you have to see the problems in order to solve them.

Like the more stuff you knew, the more impressive you were. And people saw that as a mark of expertise. And now it's the dot connectors who are going to rule the world because they can spot the patterns that are invisible to others and then anticipate those. And I think that means you have to see the problems in order to solve them.

And in order to see the problems in a complex world, you have to connect dots and synthesize. Yeah.

And in order to see the problems in a complex world, you have to connect dots and synthesize. Yeah.

And in order to see the problems in a complex world, you have to connect dots and synthesize. Yeah.

Well, this is fascinating. And in some ways, it takes us full circle to the beginning of our conversation because a lot of people are, I would say, fretting that our struggles with attention are a problem of ability. I hear people say all the time, I can't focus. Kids do not have the capacity to pay attention anymore like they used to. Well, guess what?

Well, this is fascinating. And in some ways, it takes us full circle to the beginning of our conversation because a lot of people are, I would say, fretting that our struggles with attention are a problem of ability. I hear people say all the time, I can't focus. Kids do not have the capacity to pay attention anymore like they used to. Well, guess what?

Well, this is fascinating. And in some ways, it takes us full circle to the beginning of our conversation because a lot of people are, I would say, fretting that our struggles with attention are a problem of ability. I hear people say all the time, I can't focus. Kids do not have the capacity to pay attention anymore like they used to. Well, guess what?

There's a meta-analysis that came out this year looking at every study that's been done over several decades where both kids and adults are tested on attention. And it turns out that kids are no worse than they were 10 and 20 and 30 years ago. And adults are actually better. So we have not lost the ability to pay attention. What I think is in short supply is the motivation to pay attention.

There's a meta-analysis that came out this year looking at every study that's been done over several decades where both kids and adults are tested on attention. And it turns out that kids are no worse than they were 10 and 20 and 30 years ago. And adults are actually better. So we have not lost the ability to pay attention. What I think is in short supply is the motivation to pay attention.

There's a meta-analysis that came out this year looking at every study that's been done over several decades where both kids and adults are tested on attention. And it turns out that kids are no worse than they were 10 and 20 and 30 years ago. And adults are actually better. So we have not lost the ability to pay attention. What I think is in short supply is the motivation to pay attention.

To your point, when there are a million distractions, you're not going to focus on any one thing for a long period of time. Why would you read a whole book when there are lots of interesting articles on the internet? But when you find something that grabs your attention or piques your interest, your capacity to hold it has not been diminished.

To your point, when there are a million distractions, you're not going to focus on any one thing for a long period of time. Why would you read a whole book when there are lots of interesting articles on the internet? But when you find something that grabs your attention or piques your interest, your capacity to hold it has not been diminished.

To your point, when there are a million distractions, you're not going to focus on any one thing for a long period of time. Why would you read a whole book when there are lots of interesting articles on the internet? But when you find something that grabs your attention or piques your interest, your capacity to hold it has not been diminished.

Yeah. I mean, this is a perpetual struggle. It seems to be especially pronounced in knowledge work where people feel like my work is never done. When have I done enough? Yeah. And I think, yeah, I guess I'd say a couple things on this. The first one is my all-time favorite experimental history piece is the article Adam wrote on how there's a place for everyone on how to find your niche.

Yeah. I mean, this is a perpetual struggle. It seems to be especially pronounced in knowledge work where people feel like my work is never done. When have I done enough? Yeah. And I think, yeah, I guess I'd say a couple things on this. The first one is my all-time favorite experimental history piece is the article Adam wrote on how there's a place for everyone on how to find your niche.

Yeah. I mean, this is a perpetual struggle. It seems to be especially pronounced in knowledge work where people feel like my work is never done. When have I done enough? Yeah. And I think, yeah, I guess I'd say a couple things on this. The first one is my all-time favorite experimental history piece is the article Adam wrote on how there's a place for everyone on how to find your niche.

I think it's a must read. Secondly, when have I done it enough? Like, how do I know I've made it? I think there is... There's sort of an endless... Well, let me try to characterize this with a little bit of an analogy, which is... I think... I don't know if this is going to land or not, but you can be the judge. I think that... I see this a ton with my students.