“Don’t feel powerless, ever.”

– Cory Booker

Cory Booker (@corybooker) is an American politician and the junior United States Senator from New Jersey.

I generally have an allergy to politics, but Cory’s story is endlessly fascinating (e.g., he’s faced down death threats from gangs, run into burning buildings, and much more), and we have a few years of history together.

We cover a lot in this wide-ranging catch-up conversation, including his diet, lessons from early mentors and athletics, routines, books that have had an impact, learning how to “street fight” in New Jersey after receiving a Rhodes Scholarship, and much more.

Cory began his political career as a city councilor from 1998 to 2002 in Newark, New Jersey’s largest city. He later served as mayor of Newark, which under his leadership entered its biggest period of economic growth since the 1960s — the first new downtown hotels were constructed in forty years, the first new office towers in twenty.

He then won the Senate Democratic primary in August of 2013, and then won the general election on October 16, 2013, becoming the first African-American U.S. Senator from New Jersey.

Cory is also the author of The New York Times bestseller United: Thoughts on Finding Common Ground and Advancing the Common Good.

I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did!

You can find the transcript of this episode here. Transcripts of all episodes can be found here.

#233: Cory Booker -- Street Fights, 10-Day Hunger Strikes, and Creative Problem-Solving https://rss.art19.com/episodes/65c0d4ff-6af1-4f08-90f2-3644f8561494.mp3 Download

Listen to it on iTunes.

Stream by clicking here.

Download as an MP3 by right-clicking here and choosing “save as.”

Want to hear a podcast with an influencer in the world of politics? — Listen to my conversation with Ezra Klein. In this episode, we discuss influencing the rules of the game by which this country is run (overall politics — not partisan), how Ezra lost 60 pounds, and his ascension into the ranks of the most respected media companies in the world (stream below or right-click here to download):

#208: Ezra Klein -- From College Blogger to Political Powerhouse https://rss.art19.com/episodes/84ada1a3-4b0c-44b0-b1f3-a70981a5976d.mp3 Download

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QUESTION(S) OF THE DAY: What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

Scroll below for links and show notes…

Selected Links from the Episode

Connect with Cory Booker:

Official Senate Website | Campaign Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

Show Notes

Even Cory Booker experiences imposter syndrome. [06:55]

When it comes to parents, Cory feels he “won the lottery.” [08:40]

Lessons Cory learned from his parents about being grateful and paying social debts forward. [10:50]

Cory talks about his college football career. [16:42]

What running a crisis hotline at Stanford taught Cory about empathy, counseling without judgment, and persuasion. [22:06]

Cory’s tactics for defusing tense situations and the importance of relating to our heroes. [29:45]

Cory talks about the benefits of intermittent fasting. [33:48]

How personal experimentation takes us out of our routines and expands our boundaries. [40:05]

On the idea of voluntarily experiencing life in an underprivileged community riddled with violence and drugs. [48:56]

“I’m not here to help; I’m here to learn.” Cory talks about the challenges of trying to make changes in Newark as an outsider. [53:58]

Cory explains the exclusionary policy of “redlining” that created slums, and the challenges these communities still face today. [1:12:06]

On bipartisanship and friendship with Chris Christie. [1:21:15]

What makes someone a good activist? [1:24:15]

“How to Get Straight A’s in College If You’re a Dumb Person” by Cory Booker and Tim Ferriss — coming soon to a bookstore near you! [1:26:45]

Is this podcast really one of the few spaces in America where people of all political persuasions can come together? [1:32:06]

Cory explains what a superfund is, and how it’s a symptom of deeper problems that need to be addressed from both sides of the political aisle. [1:32:39]

On the importance of Americans preserving “an irrational commitment” to one another. [1:36:07]

Even the mayor of Newark doesn’t get to cut in line to vote. [1:37:24]

As overwhelming as we might find the world’s problems, we can’t allow our inability to do everything undermine our determination to do something. [1:38:58]

Cory’s mission statement. [1:42:48]

Being successful at activism is like being successful at anything: start small and build momentum. [1:43:35]

Books Cory has gifted the most. [1:47:03]

A question Cory wishes more people would ask themselves. [1:49:45]

As a man of faith, Cory finds the frontiers of science to be very spiritual — and non-partisan. [1:50:39]

Has capitalism lost its way? [1:53:15]

Parting thoughts and Cory’s ask of the audience. [1:54:32]

People Mentioned

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The Tim Ferriss Show is one of the most popular podcasts in the world with more than 500 million downloads. It has been selected for "Best of Apple Podcasts" three times, it is often the #1 interview podcast across all of Apple Podcasts, and it's been ranked #1 out of 400,000+ podcasts on many occasions. To listen to any of the past episodes for free, check out this page.