He Failed as a Leader at 24. Then Sold 12 Million Books | Thomas Erikson

You can be brilliant at your job and still be terrible at leading people, because the skills that get you promoted are not always the skills that help other people perform. Thomas Erikson learned that at 24 when he became a manager and, in his own words, “messed it up badly.” That failure pushed him into a 30-year journey of self-awareness, communication and human behaviour. Years later, publishers told him *Surrounded by Idiots* was a stupid idea. He published it anyway. The book went on to sell 7 million copies, with the wider series reaching 12 million worldwide. In this conversation, we unpack why self-awareness comes before communication, why first impressions can mislead you, what pressure reveals about your behaviour, and why understanding people may become even more valuable as AI takes over more of the work machines can do. This one will make you question how well you really understand the people around you, and yourself.