Passion Struck with John R. Miles

In this powerful conversation, John R. Miles sits down with Nick Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic and author of The Running Ground: A Father, a Son, and the Simplest Sport. Together, they explore how running became a thread through Nick’s life—a tool for resilience, self-discipline, and understanding his father’s complex legacy.

From the early memories of running beside his dad during the American running boom to surviving thy...

What if the greatest transformation in your career doesn’t come from working harder—but from leading with more heart?

In this week’s episode of Passion Struck, host John R. Miles sits down with Claude Silver, Chief Heart Officer at VaynerMedia, to explore what it really means to be yourself at work—and why authenticity, empathy, and belonging are the most underrated forces in leadership today.

Claude has spent the past decad...

What if the words you speak don’t just describe the world—but design it?

In this week’s episode of Passion Struck, host John R. Miles explores The Words That Lead Us: how language quietly builds the architecture of leadership—creating trust, guiding ethics, and shaping identity.

Drawing on insights from Dr. Sunita Sah, Charles Duhigg, and Dr. Alex Imas, John reveals how the words we choose influence every decision we make—wh...

What if the distance between you and the people who matter most isn’t measured in miles—but in missed conversations?

In this week’s episode of Passion Struck, host John R. Miles sits down with Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and bestselling author Charles Duhigg to explore how extraordinary conversations rebuild connection and trust.

Duhigg’s book, Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection, decode...

In this episode of Passion Struck, host John R. Miles sits down with Dr. Sunita Sah—physician, behavioral scientist, and author of Defy: The Power of No in a World That Demands Yes—to explore one of the most overlooked yet essential human forces: defiance.

Part of our ongoing series The Forces That Shape Us, this conversation dives into why we struggle to say no, even when our inner voice knows we should. Dr. Sah reveals ho...

What if luck isn’t a matter of chance—but a hidden design you can learn to navigate?

In this episode of Passion Struck, John R. Miles explores how some people seem to “always be in the right place at the right time” — not because they’re blessed by fate, but because they’ve learned to read the invisible rulebook of luck.

Drawing on the groundbreaking work of bestselling author Amy Leigh Mercree and economist Judd Kessler, co...

John brings on Wharton economist Judd B. Kessler to unpack why outcomes that look like luck are usually the product of hidden market designs. Kessler explains the three E’s—equity, efficiency, and ease—and why designers must make those tradeoffs explicit. He shows how to win in choose-me markets (jobs, dating, college admissions) by signaling clearly and sometimes prioritizing early commitment (e.g., early decision). In hi...

In this live episode of Passion Struck, John R. Miles sits down with bestselling author and medical intuitive Amy Leigh Mercree to explore the profound connection between energy, awareness, and intentional living. They discuss how tuning into your personal energy field can enhance emotional regulation, deepen intuition, and improve how you show up in the world. Amy shares practical techniques for sensing and aligning energ...

What if doubt isn’t a weakness to overcome, but a gravitational force that pulls us toward meaning?

In this powerful solo episode, John R. Miles kicks off the new Forces That Pull Us series by exploring doubt—an invisible psychological and cultural force that shapes our choices, our growth, and our sense of self. Drawing on insights from performance psychologist Michael Gervais, physician-researcher Brennan Spiegel, and bus...

In this episode of Passion Struck, John R. Miles sits down with Dr. Bidhan “Bobby” Parmar, Shannon G. Smith Bicentennial Professor of Business Administration at UVA’s Darden School and author of Radical Doubt: Turning Uncertainty into Surefire Success. Together, they unpack why doubt isn’t a weakness to overcome but a force to harness.

Bobby explains how our brains rely on three systems—pursue, protect, and pause—and why le...

Gravity is everywhere—yet we rarely think about its impact on our health. In this episode, Dr. Brennan Spiegel, UCLA Professor and author of the groundbreaking new book Pull: How Gravity Shapes Your Body, Steadies the Mind, and Guides Our Health, joins John R. Miles to reframe gravity not just as a force of physics, but as a hidden variable in human health and resilience.

They explore how posture, balance, grip strength, an...

What is the story you’re telling yourself right now?

It may not feel like it, but every single one of us is living inside a story. Psychologists call it a self-narrative — the ongoing script that explains who we are, how we got here, and where we’re headed next. These stories shape what we notice, what we ignore, and what we believe is possible.

If your inner story says, “I’m not enough,” then every critique, silence, or set...

Life has a way of testing us in ways we never imagined. For some, those tests are inconveniences or temporary setbacks. For others, like Sandy Yozipovic, there are battles that most of us could not even fathom. Imagine one day waking up paralyzed from Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare autoimmune disease that attacks the nervous system. And then, years later, you are told you have Stage 4 cancer, and the prognosis is grim.

Mos...

What does it really take to start over — to walk away from something you’ve built and chase something entirely new? In this inspiring conversation, John R. Miles sits down with Joel Beasley, technologist, entrepreneur, and host of Modern CTO, one of the most respected podcasts for technology leaders worldwide.

But this episode isn’t about scaling tech companies, it’s about scaling yourself. Joel opens up about the mindset s...

Most of us spend much of our lives trying to fit in, smoothing our edges, editing our quirks, and becoming who the world wants us to be. But fitting in isn’t the same as belonging.

Belonging is about coming home to yourself and then building spaces where others can do the same. It’s about creating deep connection and living a life that feels both meaningful and aligned.

In episode 669 of Passion Struck, John tackles the ques...

In this episode of Passion Struck, I sit down with Robert Glazer — serial entrepreneur, five-time best-selling author, and founder of Acceleration Partners — to explore his powerful new book The Compass Within. Robert shares why success can still feel empty if your life is out of alignment, and how identifying your actionable core values becomes the starting point for lasting fulfillment.

Whether you’re at a crossroads in y...

In this episode of Passion Struck, John R. Miles is joined by Olga Khazan, staff writer at The Atlantic and author of Me, But Better, for a transformative conversation about the science and promise of personality change.

For much of the 20th century, psychologists assumed that our personalities were largely fixed by adulthood — that who we are at 30 is who we’ll be for life. But Olga’s work brings together groundbreaking r...

What if legacy isn’t what you leave behind, but what you build every day? In this solo episode, John R. Miles shares how to build a personal legacy using the C.H.O.I.C.E. framework: six daily principles that turn values into action and intention into impact. Discover why your quiet choices matter more than loud success and how to lead a life that lasts.

Visit the Link for the Full Show Notes.

Drawing on personal stories, exp...

In this insightful episode of Passion Struck, John R. Miles sits down with psychologist and author William von Hippel to unpack the central theme of his latest book, The Social Paradox: Autonomy, Connection, and Why We Need Both to Find Happiness. Together, they explore how modern life has tilted heavily toward autonomy—careers, smartphones, and endless options—often at the expense of deep connection and belonging.

Drawing ...