George Saunders, an award-winning author and creative writing teacher, shares his eclectic path from roofer to literary giant. He discusses the importance of rough drafts and feedback in honing one's craft. The conversation dives into how kindness fuels creativity and the significance of aligning personal values with professional endeavors. Saunders also reflects on the art of crafting compelling endings and the challenges posed by AI in storytelling, stressing the enduring power of the human touch in writing.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
Unconventional Path to Writing
George Saunders's career path was unconventional, starting with jobs like roofing and technical writing.
He stumbled into writing after getting sick in Asia, realizing it was his true calling.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Kindness Speech Origins
Adam Grant discovered Saunders through a viral graduation speech about regrets being failures of kindness.
Saunders explains the speech's origin, initially written for his daughter's graduation and later rewritten from memory.
insights INSIGHT
Kindness as a Skill
Kindness is not simply niceness, it's a difficult skill requiring alertness and awareness.
True kindness involves discerning what makes things better, even if it means uncomfortable engagement.
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In 'Think Again', Adam Grant argues that the ability to rethink at personal, interpersonal, and collective levels is crucial in today's polarized world. He uses scientific research, personal anecdotes, and engaging stories to illustrate how people can find joy in being wrong, leverage the benefits of impostor syndrome, and cultivate environments of lifelong learning. Grant emphasizes the need to challenge our convictions, adopt a scientific mindset, and foster curiosity and humility. He provides examples of individuals who have successfully rethought their approaches, from firefighters to business leaders, and offers practical exercises for improving rethinking skills[2][4][5].
The Gift
The Form and Reason for Exchange in Archaic Societies
Marcel Mauss
In 'The Gift', Marcel Mauss explores the concept of gift exchange in various cultures, particularly in societies without monetary exchange or legal structures. He argues that gifts are not freely given but are part of a complex system of social obligations involving giving, receiving, and reciprocating. Mauss examines practices such as the potlatch among North American peoples and the kula in Melanesia, emphasizing the role of gifts in binding people together in a web of reciprocal commitments. The book also discusses the spiritual and economic implications of gift-giving, highlighting its significance in understanding social relations and cultural practices.
Lincoln in the Bardo
Yannick Garcia Porres
George Saunders
Javier Calvo Perales
The novel is set in 1862 during the American Civil War and revolves around the death of Willie Lincoln, the 11-year-old son of President Abraham Lincoln. After Willie's death from typhoid fever, his spirit finds itself in a limbo known as the bardo, a concept borrowed from Tibetan Buddhism. Here, he encounters a diverse group of ghosts who are also trapped between the world of the living and the afterlife. The story delves into themes of grief, both personal and national, as Lincoln grapples with the loss of his son amidst the broader context of the Civil War. The novel is characterized by its unique narrative style, which includes a multitude of voices and historical quotes, and its exploration of the human experience of suffering and love[1][2][4].
Before his stories regularly appeared in The New Yorker, before the MacArthur and Guggenheim Fellowships, and before being named one of the world’s most influential people by TIME, George Saunders was a roofer. And a doorman. And a technical writer. In this episode, George sits down with Adam and shares what he’s learned from his winding path towards becoming a professional author, the secrets of creating work that sticks, and how to receive feedback and elevate our rough drafts.
Available transcripts for WorkLife can be found at go.ted.com/WLtranscripts
Worklife with Adam Grant 
