How To Academy Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Gary Lightbody - On Grief, Love, and the Power of Music Mar 28, 2025

Show notes

How do we comprehend the depths of love in hindsight, and the immensity of grief? How can we say 'I love you' to a listener who is no longer alive? And how do we find forgiveness and learn to forgive ourselves? Lead singer and lyricist of Snow Patrol, Gary Lightbody, shares the raw and emotional story of grief, love, and life, upon losing his father in 2019, a journey which inspired the band's latest album, The Forest is the Path. This conversation is a testament to the power of music and to the endurance of love.

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Kenneth Roth - Fighting for Humanity: Three Decades of Leading Human Rights Watch Mar 25, 2025

Show notes

As the Executive Director of Human Rights Watch for three decades, Kenneth Roth has dedicated his life to investigating and uncovering abuses across the globe – and pressuring offending governments to stop them. From using the power of unyielding honesty to take on the world's most brutal autocrats and their sycophants, to the resilience of civilians' search for truth even under strict censorship, Kenneth reveals the ceaseless fight for accountability and change to shape a better world. From Putin and Trump, to Xinjiang, China, to Israel and Palestine, Kenneth explores the greatest challenges to human rights today, and the power we have to demand change.

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Assyriologist Selena Wisnom - Mesopotamia and the Making of History Mar 21, 2025

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Mesopotamian civilisation filled more than half of human history: a culture with advanced mathematics and astronomy, a religion that influenced both ancient Greece and the Bible, and a literature that continues to inspire the blockbuster movies of 2025. Yet few of us today know anything about it. Taking us into the library of the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal, scholar and playwright Selena Wisnom reveals a world of gods and monsters, poets and bureaucrats that is both utterly strange and strangely familiar.

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Agnes Callard - Socratic Wisdom for Our Modern Times Mar 18, 2025

Show notes

Across the headlines, we appear to be falling into a post-truth world. But the questions that most resonate with humanity—on life, death, love, and leadership—remain as pertinent as they were in the age of Socrates. Now philosopher and University of Chicago Professor Agnes Callard joins us to examine how Socratic thought can continue to guide us and ground us, breathing new life into the rigour of inquiry and the importance of truth.

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Psychologist to the Lionesses Kate Hays - How to Win Mar 14, 2025

Show notes

Whether its the football pitch of the FIFA Women’s World Cup or the diving board of the Olympics, Dr Kate Hays is a woman who knows how to win. Now she joins us to reveal the techniques that create winning mentalities - from breathing techniques to widening the bases from which we draw confidence - that allow us to create the best performance under the greatest pressure.

An essential conversation for any individual who wants to succeed, any team which wants to thrive, and anyone who wants to fulfil their potential.

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Courtney Love and Todd Almond - The Legend of Bob Dylan Mar 11, 2025

Show notes

After Kurt Cobain, Bob Dylan is Courtney Love’s all-time rock’n’roll hero. Todd Almond performed Dylan’s songbook on Broadway. They join us for a deeply personal celebration of the legendary songwriter.

An electrifying, bewitching singer who, in the words of The New York Times can simultaneously imbue a single sustained note with “a plea, a wound, and a threat”, Courtney Love occupies a singular place in the rockstar pantheon.

Her friend and collaborator Todd Almond is a Broadway multi-hyphenate equally acclaimed as a performer, lyricist and playwright, who took us ‘heaven on earth’ (The New York Times) as the star of Conor MacPherson’s Broadway smash hit Girl from the North Country.

We brought Courtney and Todd together to celebrate the work of the greatest American songwriter of all-time: Bob Dylan.

Whether you're a Bobcat, a Dylanologist, or just an old romantic, tune in for a one-of-a-kind celebration of a singular American talent from two extraordinary performers with unique and personal perspectives on his life and art.

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Sumit Paul-Choudhury - Why You Should Be an Optimist Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

Optimism, irrational though it might be, is central to the human psyche: it gives us an advantage both in everyday life and in the evolutionary race. Sumit Paul-Choudhury joins us to share his theory of rational optimism: possibilism.

Without this optimism we would never have survived the unpredictable – and often hostile – world we evolved into. Yet optimism is not reserved for times of extremity. Its benefits manifest throughout our everyday lives: our relationships, careers, bodies and minds. And it will play a critical role in overcoming the challenges of the 21st century.

This is a powerful manifesto for hope and a much-needed new perspective on our prospects. He shows how embracing action, imagination and possibility, we can find a path to the bright side, even – perhaps especially – when the future seems dark.

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George Osborne Meets Tom Holland - The Lives of the Caesars Mar 04, 2025

Show notes

Tom Holland is a storyteller whose range and erudition seem to be as unbounded as history itself. Now he brings us closer than ever to the lives of the first twelve Roman emperors. The ancient Roman empire was the supreme arena, where emperors had no choice but to fight, to thrill, to dazzle. To rule as a Caesar was to stand as an actor upon the great stage of the world. Delving into his new translation of Suetonius’s Lives of the Twelve Caesars, Tom Holland joins George Osborne to illuminate the lives of the Caesars as never seen before.

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Andrew Brodsky - The Secrets of Successful Virtual Communication Feb 28, 2025

Show notes

Yes, that meeting could have been an email. And that email? Maybe it should have been a voice memo. The hidden secrets of virtual communication are many and mysterious, but CEO of Ping Group Andrew Brodsky joins us with an actionable guide on how to communicate better virtually. From how to decide between an email chain and an in-person meeting, to tips for maintaining 'eye contact' on camera, to whether using emojis can help build trust, Andrew's guide backed by extensive research reveals the dos and don'ts of virtual communication, and how tech can improve our work lives for the better.

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Sahil Bloom - How to Design Your Dream Life Feb 25, 2025

Show notes

We’re constantly told that money is the shortcut to a good life, the only type of wealth worth pursuing. But what would it mean to lead a truly wealthy life? It may involve money, but in the end, it will be defined by everything else. Entrepreneur and writer Sahil Bloom joins Chris Donnelly to reveal the five types of wealth—Time, Social, Mental, Physical, and Financial—and how a balance of all five leads to a life truly rich in meaning and satisfaction.

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