Welcome to How Leaders Lead, where every week you get to listen in while I interview some of the very best leaders in the world.

I break down the key learning so that by the end of the episode, you'll have something simple you can apply as you develop into a better leader.

That's what this podcast is all about.

Today's guest is Steve Burke,

chairman of NBC Universal. You know, since taking over NBC Universal in 2011, he almost

tripled the profits. I believe something from like $3 billion to over $8 billion and is leading

the fastest growing media company in the world. Before that,

Steve was the number two guy at Comcast working alongside the CEO, Brian Roberts, as they acquired NBC

Universal. And before that, he led hugely successful efforts at Disney and ABC. He has accomplished so much, but you know, in every

role, Steve just knows how to get the most out of the people around him. It's how he was able to

lead the turnaround at Disney World Paris and how the whole idea of Disney stores even came to

exist. When you sit and talk with Steve, you realize a lot of times the truly breakthrough ideas

are already there within your team, and it's your job as a leader to draw them out. Steve is a

master at doing just that, and I know you're going to learn a ton from him. So here's my conversation

with my good friend and soon to be yours, Steve Burke.

Steve, thanks so much for taking the time to have this conversation. Well, thank you, David.

We're going to get to your business career, but what's the most fun you have right now? What's going on outside of your work that you're having the most fun with? Well, I'm planning what happens next. And I announced that I was leaving in mid-December. I have a great successor, a guy named Jeff Schell, who I've worked with for 15 years, and he's moved around our company, so he's managed a lot of the different aspects of what he is now

in charge of. And I'm planning my third act. And if you're lucky enough to live 90 years, you can

imagine separating your life into three acts. And the first act, it's just like a well-told story. The first act,

you're defining the character, you're defining who you are, you're meeting your spouse,

you're getting educated, and maybe that's zero to 30. And then 30 to 60, in my case, I'm 61,

you're going through your life and the challenges and building a career. And what I want to do between 60 and 90 is have a third act, which is sort of the resolution

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