EP 368: Google's Eric Schmidt on Silicon Valley's Trillion Dollar Coach

Former Google Chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt discusses how former college football coach Bill Campbell mentored him and many of Silicon Valley's greatest visionaries from Jeff Bezos and Larry Page to Marc Andreessen and Steve Jobs. Eric recalls how he initially reacted when venture capitalist John Doerr suggested that he work with a coach, how Coach Campbell helped shape the relationship between Eric and Google's founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and how the coach talked Eric out of resigning as Google’s CEO in 2004. He shares why Bill Campbell coached teams more than individuals and talks about the importance of trust and even love to a company's success. Eric opens up about his decision to step down as Executive Chairman of Google's parent company Alphabet in 2017 and his next big bet on the positive potential of artificial intelligence. Plus Eric Schmidt reveals why starting a meeting with a little polite chit-chat isn't just a waste of time and the power of hugs in the workplace.

Order Eric's book Trillion Dollar Coach: The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley's Bill Campbell on Amazon, Audible or wherever books are sold, and follow Eric on Twitter at @ericschmidt. Today's podcast was sponsored by the new Hulu original series RAMY. Subscribe to Kickass Newson Apple Podcastsand leave us a review, follow us on Twitter at @KickassNewsPod, and take our short listener survey at www.podsurvey.com/kick.