The Knowledge Project with Shane Parrish
Michael Ovitz co-founded CAA and helped reshape Hollywood, then took the same playbook into tech investing and advising founders.
In this conversation, he breaks down the operating rules that kept CAA from losing clients, and the personal disciplines that kept him grounded when the stakes got massive.
You’ll learn how to build momentum, tell the truth without hesitation, read for context instead of noise, hire people who raise the standard, and package ideas into outcomes.
—–
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
——
Approximate Timestamps:
(00:00) Introduction
(00:58) Appetite For Learning
(03:41) Always Tell The Truth
(05:50) The Loneliest Professions
(08:17) Where Does Hollywood Go Wrong?
(10:16) Importance of Being Well Read
(16:42) Don’t Fight Your Job
(18:28) Managing Relationships
(19:15) Ad Break
(20:46) Hiring Top Performers
(22:35) Creating Depth in Knowledge
(26:47) Staying Grounded
(30:27) What Do You Look For in People?
(33:28) A Meeting with Marc Andreessen
(36:44) Being Fearless
(42:12) Allow People to Keep Their Dignity
(43:42) You Fail, So What?
(47:48) Advice From Michael Crichton
(49:46) What Drives You Today?
(52:49) What This Generation Really Wants to Learn
(57:51) The Woke Culture Influence
(01:01:30) How Do You Keep Up With the Flow of Information?
(01:11:30) What Makes A Good Leader?
(01:14:13) Business Education Curriculum
(01:16:28) How Do You Gain Momentum?
(01:18:16) How Important is Packaging?
(01:24:43) What Would You Tell Your Younger Self?
(01:26:30) How Important is Trust?
(01:29:15) What is Success For You?
——
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: https://x.com/shaneparrish
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/farnamstreet/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-parrish-050a2183/
——
Thank you to the sponsors for this episode:
Granola AI, The AI notepad for people in back-to-back meetings: https://www.granola.ai/shane
Check out the Granola Notes
Download The League App today and find your perfect match!
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
#19 Rory Sutherland: The Psychology of Advertising
In this info-packed and entertaining interview, Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy & Mather, and I dive deep on advertising, persuasion, and why humans do some of the silly things we do. Go Premium:…
#18 Naval Ravikant: The Angel Philosopher
Naval Ravikant is the CEO and co-founder of AngelList. He’s invested in more than 100 companies, including Uber, Twitter, Yammer, and many others. It’s difficult to nail down exactly what we discuss in our conversation…
Aristotle Koskinas on Greek History
This is one of 2 interviews that I conducted while visiting Greece this summer. Greek history is deep routed in many things as philosophy, democracy and culture and has laid the foundation of so much…
Santorini Wine with Panayiota Kalogeropoulou
The island of Santorini has not only has breathtaking views but also a fascinating history. Traces of its first inhabitants have been linked back to 4500 BC. In 1613 BC the most powerful volcanic event…
#15 Samuel Arbesman: Future-Proof Your Knowledge
Samuel Arbesman is a complexity scientist focusing on the changing nature of science and technology. We discuss learning, reading, and how to optimize both to get the best outcome. Go Premium: Members get early…
#14 Morgan Housel: Reading, Writing, and Lifelong Learning
Financial writer Morgan Housel and I discuss reading, writing, filtering information, admitting error, important qualities to have in friends and so much more. Go Premium: Members get early access, ad-free episodes, hand-edited transcripts, searchable…
#13 Pedro Domingos: The Rise of The Machines
In this interview with AI expert Pedro Domingos, you’ll learn about self-driving cars, where knowledge comes from, and the 5 schools of machine learning. Go Premium: Members get early access, ad-free episodes, hand-edited transcripts,…
#12 Véronique Rivest: Wine Lessons
Véronique Rivest and I explore the fascinating world of wine, including an on-air tasting, tips and tricks for serving wine that will impress your friends and so much more. Go Premium: Members get early…
#11 Ryan Holiday: The Stoic Whisperer
In this episode, I talk with multiple best selling author Ryan Holiday about how he reads, what it means to be a stoic, and how to gracefully deal with freeloaders. *** Go Premium: Members get…
Are we too busy to pay attention to life?
An inbetweenisode of sorts where Jeff Annello and I discuss whether we’re too busy to pay attention to life – on whether we’re too busy to live. If you want more of these let me…