Barbara Tuchman's The Guns of August helped John F. Kennedy avoid nuclear war with the Soviet Union during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The founder of Trader Joe's called it the best management book he's ever read. Acclaimed biographer Robert Caro was inspired by this book to write The Power Broker, which won a Pulitzer Prize. And it's one of my favorite nonfiction books: I've read it twice, and read 11 more books afterwards to chase down curiosities that came up while I was reading it.

This book made Barbara Tuchman a highly influential woman. Today I talk about what I learned from her about strategy, leadership, World War I, and good writing.

At the age of 25, Laufey has become the most listened-to jazz singer alive today -- mostly thanks to her millions of Gen Z fans. She has been winning their hearts systematically on TikTok, and steadily strengthening her brand and fanbase through curated partnerships and events. To me, Laufey is a trailblazer and a blueprint for the modern-day TikTok-age artist. I explain why in this episode.

Stanford professor Fei-Fei Li has been nicknamed the "godmother of AI." She recently wrote a memoir about her childhood in China, struggles as an immigrant in New Jersey, and the curiosity and relationships that propelled her to the top of the AI field. In this episode, I share my takeaways from her memoir, "The Worlds I See."

We unpack how Catherine, born a minor German princess, won the love of the Russian public and overthrew her husband to become Tsarina of Russia. We also examine how she became one of only 3 Russian rulers ever to have "the Great" appended to their name.

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Sources:

• Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert K. Massie
• Catherine the Great: Life and Legend by John Alexander
• A History of Future Cities by Daniel Brook
• "How did Catherine the Great’s reign shape Imperial Russian history?" by Andrew Kahn

In this episode, we do something different: we cover a woman whose power was entirely derived from her husband. We discuss how Lady Bird achieved her ambitions by fighting hard for her marriage to the most powerful man of her time, President Lyndon B. Johnson. We also dive into the political strategies they used to propel his career into the White House.

Sources:

• Lady Bird: A Biography of Mrs. Johnson by Jan Jarboe Russell
• Lady Bird Johnson: Hiding in Plain Sight by Julia E. Sweig
• The Years of Lyndon Johnson, Volumes 1-3, by Robert Caro (Means of Ascent,The Passage of Power, Master of the Senate)

Angela Merkel started her life as a research scientist in East Germany. At 35, within a year of entering politics, she was elected to Parliament, and went on to serve as Chancellor of Germany for 16 years. We analyze her stunning rise to power, and how she managed to combine political cunning with humility and integrity.

Sources:

• The Chancellor: The Remarkable Odyssey of Angela Merkel by Kati Marton
• Angela Merkel: Europe's Most Influential Leader by Matthew Qvortrup
• Belonging: A German Reckons with History and Home by Nora Krug

We analyze the motivations and machinations of the media mogul and fashion icon who inspired The Devil Wears Prada.

Sources:

• Anna: The Biography, by Amy Odell
• Front Row: Anna Wintour: The Cool Life and Hot Times of Vogue's Editor in Chief, by Jerry Oppenheimer