What motivates great Americans with Ron Chernow
Worklife with Adam Grant
TED
4.8 • 9.4K Ratings
🗓️ 8 July 2025
⏱️ 42 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
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.
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Host: Adam Grant (Instagram: @adamgrant | LinkedIn: @adammgrant | Website: adamgrant.net/)
Guest: Ron Chernow (Website: ronchernow.com/)
Links
Mark Twain by Ron Chernow
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, TED Podcast listeners. It's Elise Hugh here from TED Talks Daily. Thanks for making our |
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| 0:34.0 | Hey, it's Adam Grant from Worklife, a podcast from TED. |
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| 1:10.5 | Have you ever wondered what it really takes to shape young minds? |
| 1:14.5 | On the early years insights podcast, we delve into the world of child care with those who know it |
| 1:19.6 | best. I'm Kathy Leatherbarrow, an early years consultant and former offsted inspector with over 25 |
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| 1:43.8 | This episode is sponsored by Greenhouse, the leading hiring platform helping companies get |
| 1:48.4 | measurably better at hiring. |
... |
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