What are some words you would use to describe a leader? Bold, driven, steadfast. How about … anxious? You may not equate leadership with anxiety, but Morra Aarons-Mele — a writer, podcaster, and self-proclaimed anxious achiever — says that’s a mistake. Because anxiety is not a professional defect or character flaw. It’s not something to be ashamed of or something you have to hide. Instead, in Morra’s view, it’s an asset, a resource, a motivator that can bring out your best work. The hard part is figuring out how to master it so that it helps rather than hinders. If you’ve ever struggled with anxiety, that may sound like a tall order, maybe even impossible, but in this episode, Morra, with help from a pen, a banana, and reams of cutting-edge research, will teach you how to do it. 🎙️ Check out Morra's podcast, The Anxious Achiever 📕 Grab a copy of her book here 📩 Subscribe to Rufus's newsletter 🎁 Use code PODCAST to get 20% off a Next Big Idea Club book box subscription at https://nextbigideaclub.com/

You probably know Nate Silver, the founder of FiveThirtyEight, as the statistician with an uncanny knack for predicting election results. What you may not know is that Nate has never been comfortable inside the Beltway. Before his election models made him famous, he made his living playing poker, and it's in that world that he feels most at home. Recently, Nate has been reflecting on his poker-playing pals, and he realized many of them are part of a broader community of analytically-minded, ultra-competitive, not-afraid-to-bet-the-house individuals that he now calls "the River." Members of the River are everywhere. They're tech titans, Masters of the Universe — increasingly, it feels like they run the world. How the River rose to power and what that means for the rest of us is the subject of Nate's sprawling new book, "On the Edge: The Art of Risking Everything.” 🎁 Get 20% off a Next Big Idea Club membership when you use the code PODCAST at nextbigideaclub.com