My guest this week is Barry Diller, one of America's most successful businessmen. At 83, he chose to publish a deeply personal book and open up about his successes and failures.
With surprising candor he details the rules he's lived by: trust first, confront directly, and make the call when the clock starts. In our conversation, he shares why success teaches you nothing, why failure is essential, and why instinct still beats algorithms in a data-obsessed world.
This episode is filled with Hollywood lore and business acumen.
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About Barry: He is the Chairman and Senior Executive of IAC, and is best known for founding the Fox Broadcasting Company with Rupert Murdoch and leading Paramount Pictures. Over his career, he has reshaped television, film, and online media.
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Approximate Timestamps:
(00:00) Intro
(01:48) Vulnerability and Writing 'Who Knew'
(05:20) Lack Of Confidence & Fake It Until You Make It
(17:58) Changes In The Entertainment Industry
(22:35) Instinct Vs Data
(27:17) AI's Impact on the Entertainment and Travel Industry
(42:35) One Dumb Step At A Time
(52:39) Accountability During Conflict
(55:06) Public Broadcasting Regulation And Fair Reporting
(58:04) What Is Success For You
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This episode is for informational purposes only.
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1:00:14
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1:00:14
Ed Stack: Lessons from Dick’s Sporting Goods [Outliers]
Ed Stack built Dick’s Sporting Goods from a struggling family store into an empire of more than 800 stores and billions in sales.
Along the way he nearly lost everything. Multiple times. This episode is the story of what he did, how he did it, and the lessons you can learn.
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Chapters:
(00:00) Introduction
(02:48) Part 1: A Cookie Jar and a Cage
(20:56) Part 2: Battle for Control
(37:09) Part 3: The Race to Survive
(46:39) Part 4: The Devil's Bargain
(1:03:27) Part 5: Epilogue
(1:06:10) Reflections + Lessons
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Upgrade: Get a hand edited transcripts and ad free experiences along with my thoughts and reflections at the end of every conversation. Learn more @ fs.blog/membership
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Newsletter: The Brain Food newsletter delivers actionable insights and thoughtful ideas every Sunday. It takes 5 minutes to read, and it’s completely free. Learn more and sign up at fs.blog/newsletter
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Follow Shane Parrish
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Insta @farnamstreet
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This episode is for informational purposes only.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:20:14
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1:20:14
Lulu Cheng Meservey: How To Build A Cult
Lulu Cheng Meservey is one of the sharpest minds in communications and strategy. She has helped some of the best leaders through their hardest moments.
We talk about why trust and conviction are contagious, how to win attention in a noisy world, and how to handle attacks without losing ground.
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About Lulu:
Having been CCO and EVP of Corporate Affairs at Activision Blizzard and VP of Comms at Substack, she is now the creator of Rostra, the only advisory firm focused on founder-led comms.
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Approximate Timestamps:
(00:00) Introduction
(08:34) The Importance Of The Hook
(14:35) Why Do Governments And Large Corporations Communicate So Poorly?
(21:50) How To Build A Cult
(27:56) How Trust And Likeability Affect Your Messages
(39:19) How To Respond To A Public Relations Attack
(42:57) One Death Is A Tragedy, A Thousand Are A Statistic
(47:34) The Importance Of Being First
(55:22) Overcoming Being The Underdog
(1:00:03) How To Play Offence In PR
(1:05:36) 3 Things To Make A Difference In Your Comms / Storytelling
(1:21:07) The Halo Effect
(1:25:52) Practical Comms Advice For Everyday Work Interactions
(1:46:17) What Is Success For You?
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Thank you to the sponsors for this episode:
Basecamp: Stop struggling, start making progress. Get somewhere with Basecamp. Sign up free at http://basecamp.com/knowledgeproject
reMarkable: Get your paper tablet at https://www.reMarkable.com today
.tech domains: Nothing says tech like being on .tech https://get.tech/
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Upgrade: Get a hand edited transcripts and ad free experiences along with my thoughts and reflections at the end of every conversation. Learn more @ fs.blog/membership------Newsletter: The Brain Food newsletter delivers actionable insights and thoughtful ideas every Sunday. It takes 5 minutes to read, and it’s completely free. Learn more and sign up at fs.blog/newsletter------Follow Shane ParrishX @ShaneAParrish
Insta @farnamstreet
LinkedIn Shane Parrish
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:49:21
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1:49:21
Fred Smith: The Story of FedEx [Outliers]
Fred Smith founded FedEx on an idea everyone told him would fail and built it into an $88 billion empire that changed how the world moves.
In this episode, we dive into how he built FedEx and the lessons he learned along the way.
This story proves that impossible is just another word for opportunity.
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Timestamps:
(00:00) Introduction
(03:36) Part 1: The Boy Who Wouldn't Stay Down
(15:52) Part 2: The Impossible Company
(29:36) Part 3: The Empire Builder
(38:12) Epilogue: From Crisis to Legacy (1993–2025)
(40:55) Important Things That Didn’t Make It Into the Episode
(43:55) Lessons from Fred Smith
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Upgrade: Get a hand edited transcripts and ad free experiences along with my thoughts and reflections at the end of every conversation. Learn more @ fs.blog/membership
------
Newsletter: The Brain Food newsletter delivers actionable insights and thoughtful ideas every Sunday. It takes 5 minutes to read, and it’s completely free. Learn more and sign up at fs.blog/newsletter
------
Follow Shane Parrish
X @ShaneAParrish
Insta @farnamstreet
LinkedIn Shane Parrish
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This episode is for informational purposes only.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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52:10
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52:10
Benedict Evans: The Patterns Everyone Else Misses
Benedict Evans has been calling tech shifts for decades. Now he says forget the hype: AI isn't the new electricity. It's the biggest change since the iPhone, and that's plenty big enough.
We talk about why everyone gets platform shifts wrong, where Google's actually vulnerable, and what real people do with AI when nobody's watching.
Evans sees patterns others don't. This conversation will change how you think about what's actually happening versus what everyone says is happening.
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Approximate Timestamps:
(00:00) Introduction
(01:04) What's your Most Controversial Take On AI?
(05:11) Platform Shifts - The Rise Of Automatic Elevators
(10:07) Profit Margins In AI
(26:37) What Are The Questions We Aren't Asking About AI
(39:41) What Benedict Uses AI For
(44:21) Thinking By Writing
(47:35) Can AI Make Something Original?
(52:31) Advice for Students In The Age Of AI?
(59:32) Who Will Win The AI Race?
(1:11:09) What Is Success For You?
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Thanks to our sponsors for this episode:
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Upgrade: Get a hand edited transcripts and ad free experiences along with my thoughts and reflections at the end of every conversation. Learn more @ fs.blog/membership
------
Newsletter: The Brain Food newsletter delivers actionable insights and thoughtful ideas every Sunday. It takes 5 minutes to read, and it’s completely free. Learn more and sign up at fs.blog/newsletter
------
Follow Shane Parrish
X @ShaneAParrish
Insta @farnamstreet
LinkedIn Shane Parrish
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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