And Andrea Mitchell from msnbc and nbc news is my pleasure to welcome you just might anniversary of the National Book festival presented by the library of congress we are thrilled to have our authors David Rubenstein has authored a new book how to read and it is an extra ordinary conversation the leadership that makes people believers very special people David Rubenstein domestic policy advisor private equity firm and history buff and the philanthropist you saved the great panda and brought the magna carta to the archives is willing having a very Popular Television interview show. I didnt feel i was good as a leader so in the book i really went out to the most famous people that i could those in the business or culture or the arts or sports that is a summary of what they told me of what it takes to be a leader. And to get more specific tell me where you found and that connective thread among them . Persistence is number one. Nobody has ideas that are so brilliant they say yes that is great when jeff pazo said i will sell books on the internet they laughed you have to be persistent and how to communicate with other people. But that skill is very important. Also that gets you further than arrogant. Some people arrogant gets far they are highly ethical and people that want to do something useful with their life they think what is useful and in many cases it is. You are on the board for Johns Hopkins medicine bay didnt graduate college they dropped out of school. He says if he did not drop out microsoft word have dominated the market. A very famous dropout is bill gates. He dropped out because he thought he would have a Software Revolution later he said he was wrong the software resolution waited a couple more years so hattie graduated it wouldnt make a difference. But he didnt know that at the time imagine telling your mother and father well educated your dropping out when nobody knew a software was. Mark zuckerberg did the same thing. Sometimes College Dropouts and Richard Branson is a High School Dropout and he had dyslexia. But very often they tend to be successful without a college degree. Richard branson and told you his secret is to surround himself with great people but as you pointed out he listens to the great people he surrounds himself with. Something like to surround themselves in a listen. Mla interview leftparenthesis the one for you she says i listen to what people say a nasa makes a good interviewer. As a calculated risk taker getting pumped from a commercial flight from we go to the Virgin Islands and decided to charter a plane and then split up with these passengers and ended up going into the business starting with 1747 going up against the 300 plays on the planes are British Airways so he started from scratch. They didnt have the mckinsey report to say this is how you become a leader. And jim baker wants to run a campaign for Herbert Walker bush and he said im a democrat and you are running as a republican. I dont know anything about politics but it worked out. You said oprah is a listener and she tells you she tries to understand the impact of what is being said by people but what makes her connect so directly whether a Live Audience or a film or play . A word recently that has come about is empathy you have to empathize and if they can sense you empathize you connect with them she is the best at that. She does it so well she doesnt need a second name like madonna or share the first name says it all i said when you consider running for president you have to be a show anymore she flirted with that but then she realized oprah is better than presiden president s. And then to discover something thats even better. Misleaders have failed if you have not failed probably will not be very successful something has to make you go down everything that makes you stronger oprah was fired was about to be fired from another when she went to chicago to become famous. Christine the guard. Here she was the director of the Largest Law Firm in the country educated partly in the us but then she ends up in chicago at a big law firm and then head of the imf. And now acting European Central bank. Now shes in europe in a pandemic and about to face the brexit fallout what gives her the qualities to lead the world through this . She would say she was always underestimated in part because she was a woman. The first woman to head the law firm, the finance minister in europe, imf and the central bank of europe. Being underestimated now i said to her tongueincheek the real success as a youngster she was a synchronized around the French National team maybe theres something to synchronize the main we can learn. She knows how to get along with people and have them to follow her. The trick is a leader you have to have people to follow you can be a leader nobody follow so shes good for people to follow you pay being a good communicator. To say this is what we should do and to inspire them but the best way to be a leader is not only through words or writing but by example. So i like to give the example when George Washington of valley forge he didnt have to stay there with his troops in 1977 freezing he couldve went to the seasons in downtown delta but he didnt because he stayed with his troops and thats what made them loyal to him. Talking to Ruth Bader Ginsburg it is the apparent that they have to achieve to get up as they are not picked out for those who make the choices. The amazing thing is we are celebrating the show the 100th anniversary of the womens right to vote. If you read about it, many women including Eleanor Roosevelt were against the womens right to vote women could vote or go to office of the womens right to vote. If you read about it, many women including Eleanor Roosevelt were against the womens right to vote women could vote or go to office and president kennedy who i admire greatly had no women in his cabinet now as president you part of women in your camera to be a good president to hear from people who have a different perspective but its a different world and they all struggled with Bader Ginsburg is a classic example. First in her class and could not get a job. Also Sandra Day Oconnor on the core sheet and get a job so she took a job at a desk outside of a law firm even though she play so well first or second at stanford. Talk about with Bader Ginsburg and the relationship was so special. The oldest justice on the cour court, a rock star and with charm and civility ask if it was awkward when they went to the up and she said no because she loved him for his sense of you are they developed that relationship at the Third Circuit before they were at the Supreme Court when he would whisper jokes to her on the bench as she had herself back from laughing out loud. They love to go to the opera and a couple of times and introduced her as the term and she gets a standing ovation going along with Justice Scalia although he may have disagreed with her they were not disagreeable and in her case was and how does it feel to wake up every morning to the 330 million americans want to know the state of your health i hope will be for quite some time. The true grit she has shown with all that she had to go through homages toughness and intellect that is incredibly overwhelming. With that situation she faced one of the few women in her class and still couldnt get some of the owners also now has had her fourth bout with cancer she is 87 years old less than 100 pounds but has the grit and determination to make her a rock star for those who never served in the Supreme Court anybody as popular as she has been. So to come in with that force like steve jobs and takes in a different direction. There was a great basketball coach at ucla who won ten championships who wanted to succeed him . Succeeding a legend is not easy so tim cook that he will last a short period of time hes been there for quite a while he tripled the value of the company because he said i will not be steve jobs i will do the opposite i will collaborate, get along hes great for what he did but tim cook made it more successful and he recognizes he is not steve jobs and thats important. But those who are successful in those with artists and politicians. Tech ceos tend to be more focused on the technology and does this much time in the outside world so until recently the tech ceos didnt want to come to washington. Where people in politics or the cultural world have to go out and express themselves all the time to a larger audience. The most famous cellist yoyo ma but his greatest strength is his personality. I know how important the Technical Skills of yoyo ma and his passion is his artistry and his enthusiasm with a group of schoolchildren going to native american and on reservations are at the mckenzie center. And a great cultural ambassador. The public personality that is the performance part do you see that and politicians. Someone that has been around politicians much of your career you know they say things off the record and what they will not say on the record but the great politicians are the same insider outsider on the record or off the record. We are both from baltimore have a special connection and in the 250 year history, no woman has even come close to the power she has had and now shes 80 years old celebrating her 80th birthday and in the prime of her power. Its amazing from being a housewife in San Francisco to speaker of the house. Its amazing what she has done. And she but all their children and grandchildren onto the floor. But its something i mail speaker would not have thought of doing that they lost the election in 2010 she fought back in 2018. Resilience is important because you will be beaten up no matter what you do you have to stand up and be resilient to something that happens and you dont come back you will not be an effective leader ive met people who didnt have setbacks when they get older they were not used to the setback so later they cannot come back so i think getting to fiji early on is important dividing life into three parts many people succeed in the second and third failed in the first but they were resilient and kept coming back and you have to be to be the effective leader in my view. About those that were born with wealth or privilege to develop resilience . The hardest thing in the world successfully is to raise children that are happier healthy its very hard if you are a child from a wealthy family. Many are spoiled and dont have the motivation. Yes you do have certain privileges but if you accomplish something you have to overcome that perception so i dont think the most successful people in the world ever come from extremely wealthy families. In fact its very rare and Nobel Prize Winner comes in the forbes 400 it comes from lower middle income or bluecollar families. They have the drive to push forward coming from a wealthy family have to struggle to have the drive. Is all of us are struggling with the pandemic what advice do you have for Business Leaders what conditions or adequate care and what responsibilities do they have . I interviewed a number of Business Leaders recently the highest responsibilities to their employees and they want to make sure they are healthy and can perform in a healthy and safe manner but you have to make sure people who work for you feel that you are empathetic to them and you just a worry about profits after covid is behind us people change the way they live we will not be traveling as much for quite some time doing more things remotely and from home that people are more worried about their health plan ever now im 70 years old. I used to view myself as an aging baby boomer im still active now i am looked at as a Senior Citizen now whole foods says you can come in a little bit early. I realize you are looked at different but the most important thing is the fragility of life. We learn from covid is how quickly life can go away we thought if we make it to 70 well get to 80 and your husband is 94 . We were at dinner the other night and he knows exactly whats going on and is a terrific many people think at this day and age it can make it to 94 but with covid you realize your wife could be wiped out in one or two weeks without a chance to say goodbye it makes me think how fragile life is and how important it is to be safe and healthy and not to take risks and thats i think people should learn. Dont take risks life is very fragile. You are involved with so many medical institutions. How realistic are you we can get through this . In terms of a vaccine, the fastest vaccine developed for moms was four years but they say the average is ten years. We are trying to telescope that into one year. Because we have so much money and so Many Companies are working on it, 130 come i do think we will get it but if it will be as effective as we would like i dont know. But the first half of next year there will be several. The trick is not just to get it to distributed at the affordable cost is the challenge. Do you worry about American Leadership because obviously in a Global Economy but now under a different political system. I do worry about it. The Prime Minister of singapore basically made the plea for america to be an asian power the world is better off of the United States plays the role we did in the sixties and seventies and eighties weve done so many great things but i do worry if we are as effective a leader as we used to be. Mentioning jim baker that was a wonderful interview have never known anyone as chief of staff or anyone who did his homework more. Thats how i got to know him even better coming to the white house it would only the only one he was thinking of his own self. The sunday morning talk shows. When he left he sat in my firm as an advisor for about 12 years. Very often when you meet famous people and spend time with them you see the flaws but its the opposite with him i admire him more than i did before and the statement he got from his father prior preparation prevents poor performance. Its true. Hes always prepared. That didnt hurt him at all he has the great and resilience talk about Warren Buffett a huge influence on bill gates. Its such a surprising figure. In the history of the world nobody has made as much money as an investor for himself as Warren Buffett now one of the richest people in the world giving away both of his money to the bill and Melinda Gates foundation when you sit down with warm buffett you dont see him bragging how rich sheet or smart he is with a selfdeprecating humor and make sure you feel its great to meet people people but they are humble thats i like the leaders to show that selfdeprecating humor and not taking themselves too seriously. You have you not interviewed you would like to . Queen elizabeth doesnt do interviews. The pope doesnt. Have never interviewed Andrea Mitchell maybe i can interview her. That would be a great pleasure. And if i can answer all those questions that come. What is the one of the most unguarded question . I was like to ask people what makes them a leader or i will throw in a whimsical question. One time i interviewed the ceo of an automobile company. When i buy a car and the salesman goes back to talk to the Sales Manager what is he really doing back there . Are they really negotiating or having a cup of coffee she said she had a lot of dealers in the audience and didnt want to say but i think sometimes offbeat questions push the attention a little bit. Did you ask her she fills up her own gas . Yes you are the ceo are you filling up your own gas and she said yes. I asked the ceo of exxon rex to listen does euros go to exxon station and i also asked if theres any difference between the gasoline of exxon or others and he did not give a straight answer on that one. David rubenstein it is such a pleasure. You have captured these people i know everyone will read it and love it as i did. Thank you so much. I hope you can be at my interview of you some point. Thank you very much precisely because i could see both sides or all sides to a problem or an issue that i would then feel that i was making a good decision because i had seen it from different angles. This idea that overthinking problems was or is a weakness in politics, i think is indicative of a culture we want to simplify and eliminate all gray areas and just have a way and beat the other team as opposed to figure out how in fact we come to gather. So to look at this technology that keeps creating monopolies and those Biggest Companies are tech companies. So how come the internet that will equalize us and connect us how does it keep granting these powerful companies and individuals . Will come thank you so much for coming on. Your book brings together