Are You a Preacher, Prosecutor, Scientist, or Politician?

Are You a Preacher, Prosecutor, Scientist, or Politician?

Author: Vox Media Podcast Network May 14, 2026 Duration: 1:01:00
Do you find yourself defaulting to “Preacher” mode when you’re under pressure, or starting to act like a “Prosecutor” when someone challenges your ideas? Brené and Adam unpack four mental modes – Preacher, Prosecutor, Politician, and Scientist – to explore why we often cling to being right rather than getting it right. In this episode, they discuss how these defensive stances are shaping our response to AI, Brené’s “bounce” method for emotional hypothesis-testing, Adam’s go-to “strategy of small losses,” and ways to stay curious when the stakes are high. You can find The Curiosity Shop on ⁠YouTube⁠ and ⁠Instagram⁠ (@thecuriosityshop). 0:00 - Introduction and Emoting 3:00 - Thinking Under Thread 11:00 - Testing Your Gut with Small Experiments 22:30 - The Integrity of Commitment: The Making of This Podcast 27:15 - Four Thinking Modes: Scientist, Preacher, Prosecutor, Politician 33:57 - When Opinions Become Beliefs 42:48 - The Social Costs of Changing Our Minds 51:30 - A Missing Mental Model: Teacher 59:30 - Wrap up Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know - Adam Grant, 2021, Book Eric Ries on ‘The Lean Startup’ - Eric Ries, 2011, Knowledge at Wharton Learning Through Failure: The Strategy of Small Losses - Sitkin, 1992, Research in Organizational Behavior Affective Forecasting - Wilson & Gilbert, 2003, Advances in Experimental Social Psychology Atlas of the Heart - Brené Brown, 2021 (Book) The Science of the Deal - Adam Grant, WorkLife with Adam Grant Podcast The Power of Vulnerability - Brené Brown, 2011, TED The Surprising Habits of Original Thinkers - Adam Grant, 2016, TED Beliefs Are Like Possessions - Abelson, 2007, Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour We Need to Talk about Astrology - Adam Grant, 2024, Substack  The Diplomat - Cahn et al., 2023-present, Let's Not Turn This Into a Whole Big Production & Well Red, Netflix (TV series) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Imagine a conversation where the goal isn't to win, but to wander. That's the space created in The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant. Each week, research professor Brené Brown and organizational psychologist Adam Grant meet not as definitive experts, but as dedicated practitioners of a more thoughtful dialogue. In a culture that often confuses loudness for clarity, this podcast from the Vox Media Podcast Network offers a different rhythm. You'll hear them challenge their own assumptions and gently interrogate complex ideas from society and culture, demonstrating that true understanding often begins with admitting what you don't know. Their discussions are a practical masterclass in intellectual humility, focusing on the power of better questions rather than the delivery of tidy answers. Listening feels like being invited into a rare, thoughtful exchange where curiosity is the highest currency. The result is a series of conversations that don't simplify the world's messiness but engage with it more honestly, encouraging everyone who tunes in to reconsider how they learn, think, and connect with others. It’s a weekly reminder that growth is found in the nuance, and that some of the most important discoveries start with a simple, "I wonder."
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant
Podcast Episodes
Brené with Mike Erwin on Leadership Is a Relationship, Part 2 of 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:56
We’re back with Part 2 of my conversation with Mike Erwin, the founder and CEO of the Character and Leadership Center and the co-author of Leadership Is a Relationship. In this episode, we continue to dig into how the mo…
Brené with Mike Erwin on Leadership Is a Relationship, Part 1 of 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:06
This is the first of two episodes with Mike Erwin, the founder and CEO of the Character and Leadership Center and the co-author of Leadership Is a Relationship, a timely book that details why leaders who prioritize relat…
Brené with Lisa Lahey on Immunity to Change, Part 2 of 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:11
I won’t lie: This conversation was hard as hell. But — I’m so grateful to Lisa Lahey and all the work she and Robert Kegan have done on the “immunity to change” theory. It explains why lasting, meaningful change is damn…
Brené with Lisa Lahey on Immunity to Change, Part 1 of 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:48
I don’t like to think of myself as someone who’s averse to change. But, man, am I averse to change. Enter the amazing Lisa Lahey. She is a Harvard Graduate School of Education faculty member who has built a body of work…
Brené and Barrett on Building Brave Spaces [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:17
Barrett and I invite you into some research thinking and dig into the latest data on how to build brave spaces with our teams — what gets in the way of people showing up, what gets in the way of doing the work, and how j…
Brené with Janice Omadeke on The Mentor Method and Why Values Matter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:50
Janice Omadeke is the creator of The Mentor Method, an enterprise software that transforms company culture through mentorship. We talk about her entrepreneurship journey, from building fan sites as a hobby to being named…