Why did Adobe fail to outpace Figma despite cloud dominance? Howard Yu and Sangeet Paul Choudary join Aidan McCullen to explore disruption in the AI age and how your business can leap forward before it’s too late.
In this final part of our compelling trilogy, Manu Kapur, author of Productive Failure, returns to uncover the psychology behind effective learning. Discover why failing first can drive deeper understanding, greater retention, and lasting mastery.
Hosted by Aidan McCullen, this episode explores real-world strategies rooted in research—from the Zeigarnik Effect to motivational boosts like loss aversion, endowed progress, and goal gradients.
Whether you’re an educator, leader, or lifelong learner, this episode offers tools to rethink failure as a powerful ally in personal growth and innovation.
What You’ll Learn:
-
Why failure can enhance memory and understanding
-
The science of loss aversion and how to hack it for learning
-
Endowed progress and goal gradient theory in practice
-
How to spark curiosity and mastery in children and adults
-
Building learning resilience and overcoming imposter syndrome
-
A practical model for designing learning for yourself and others
Resources & Links:
-
🧠 Manu Kapur’s Book: Productive Failure – https://amzn.to/3WzFuZD
-
🌐 Manu Kapur’s Website: www.manukapur.com
-
🔗 Kyndryl Institute: www.kyndryl.com/institute
-
🎙️ Host: Aidan McCullen – www.TheInnovationshow.io
Timestamps (Chapters):
00:00 Introduction and Sponsor Message
00:38 Welcoming the Guest: Manu Kaur
01:15 Understanding the Zeigarnik Effect
04:00 Affective Boost Levels: Loss Aversion and Endowed Progress
08:16 Goal Gradient and Personal Motivation
12:44 Growth Mindset and Effort
16:46 Children, Uncertainty, and Learning
21:51 Achievement Goals vs. Mastery Goals
26:27 Phenomenological Primitives and Learning
29:01 Understanding the Role of Context in Learning
31:49 The Power of Comparison and Contrast
34:34 Learning Through Metaphors and Case Studies
38:58 Addressing Imposter Syndrome and Embracing Challenges
41:14 Productive Failure in Learning and Growth
45:17 Designing Effective Learning Tasks
49:44 The Importance of Affective Draw in Mastery
56:13 Final Thoughts and Key Takeaways
Simon Hill, author of Expected Value (xV), reveals a powerful framework to measure the true impact of innovation. Learn how to avoid innovation theatre, kill zombie projects, and align creativity with real business value through xV’s blend of confidence, predicted value, time sensitivity, and strategic fit.
Michael Raynor explains why most strategies fail and how CEOs can fix them, exploring the RAP model, BCE’s diversification, and lessons in strategy.
In Part 2 of my conversation with Manu Kapur, author of Productive Failure, we explore the science behind learning from failure, including the Four A’s framework, variability in learning, and why struggle fuels adaptability in today’s fast-changing world.
Manu Kapur joins The Innovation Show to discuss his book Productive Failure, showing how failure fuels deeper learning, creativity, and adaptability in education, business, and life.
In this episode of The Innovation Show, Philip Atkinson — beekeeper, organizational coach, and author of Bee Wise — shares how lessons from the hive can transform leadership, teamwork, and innovation.
Startups like Figma disrupt giants like Adobe not just through technology, but by reshaping mindsets. In this episode, bestselling author Sangeet Paul Choudary joins Aidan McCullen to explore how AI, cloud-first models, and unlearning are transforming the future of work and the knowledge economy.
Join Aidan McCullen as he welcomes Harvard professors Joe Bower and Clark Gilbert to explore how strategy truly emerges—from the ground up. Drawing from their book From Resource Allocation to Strategy, the conversation reveals how real-world decisions, not plans, shape organizational outcomes.
Why do so many women equate self-denial with being “good”? In this episode of The Innovation Show, Aidan McCullen speaks with Elise Loehnen, author of the New York Times bestseller On Our Best Behaviour. Together, they explore how cultural conditioning, the seven deadly sins, and patriarchal narratives have shaped women’s lives for centuries—and how reclaiming wholeness over “goodness” can free us all.