Disrupt Yourself Podcast with Whitney Johnson

Asi Burak is disrupting how we think about playing games. Asi makes video games. But he’s not content making video games that are just entertaining. He wants to make games that are powerful enough to end conflicts and solve some of life’s greatest challenges. His new book with co-author Laura Parker is “Power Play: How Video Games Can Save the World”. Review this podcast on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/disrupt-yourself-podcast-with-whitney-johnson/id1156483471?mt=2 Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/asi-burak-changing-the-game-for-games/  

Susan Cain disrupted how the world thinks about introverts. Her best-selling book “Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking” and The Quiet Revolution now help businesses and schools rethink the ways in which they serve people of all temperaments. As a writer, Susan actively seeks out questions and topics that might lead her readers to uncomfortable places. Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/susan-cain-disrupt-yourself-podcast/  

Garry Ridge is the CEO of WD-40. He has served in that role for more than two decades, repeatedly disrupting the processes and the culture inside a company that’s best known for a selling a can of oil that silences squeaks. You don’t have to look hard for evidence of his company’s success. Try naming any other can of grease.  Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/garry-ridge-ceo-wd-40/

Marco Rosamilia is a small business owner whose clients are occasionally terrified of the service he provides. He co-founded a trapeze business with his brother in New York City, then added a location in Arizona. He’s in the business of helping people overcome fear. The challenges Marco and his clients face offer some fascinating parallels for how we think about disruption. Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/trapeze-disrupt-yourself-marco-rosamilia/

Meredith Kopit Levien disrupts and is disrupted by the business side of journalism on a daily basis as executive vice president and chief revenue officer at the New York Times. It’s her job to find new ways to pay for quality reporting and innovative storytelling as the very word ‘newspaper’ starts to sound more and more like 8-track.  Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/meredith-kopit-levien-new-york-times/

One day in 2015 Patrick Pichette woke up and realized he no longer wanted to be the chief financial officer at Google. He didn’t want to be an executive at all. What he really wanted to do was spend time with his family, enjoy the outdoors a bit, maybe find out whether or not he had a marathon in him. So he disrupted himself with a letter he posted online detailing the leap he was about to take and off he went.  Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/patrick-pichette-stepping-back-personal-disruption/  

Stacy London is a stylist and fashion consultant who made her name on television as the co-host of the TLC reality series "What Not To Wear". The job was rewarding but it eventually left her feeling burnt out, so she quit. Her planned return to TV has proved challenging on a number of levels. One of them is age and the uncertainty that comes with getting older.  Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/stacy-london/  

In the early 1980s, Bernie Swain left his dream job at a young age to work in a closet with his wife. Their goal was to create the Washington Speakers Bureau. The agency has since represented several presidents, prime ministers, and bold-faced names -- clients he signed with a handshake. Bernie Swain’s new book is “What Made Me Who I Am”. Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/bernie-swain-disrupt-yourself/  

Sarah Feingold is a disruptor with dual passions -- law and handcrafted jewelry. She's a big believer in the fact that people can and should create their own opportunities. Back in 2007, fresh out of law school, Sarah noticed a new crafting community called Etsy didn't employ a lawyer to check the fine print. They weren't looking to hire one. Sarah applied anyway. Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/sarah-feingold/  

James Altucher disrupts himself on a daily basis as a best-selling author and angel investor. His willingness to push himself to explore new opportunities has both paid dividends and taken an emotional toll through the years. From HBO to the highest highs and lowest lows of managing a hedge fund, Altucher’s intense curiosity about disruption and his honesty about what makes it hard offer an important new perspective to this on-going series.  Show Notes: https://whitneyjohnson.com/james-altucher/