Leonardo da Vinci
by Walter Isaacson
Mentioned once across 1 show · first heard Mar 2026 on My First Million.
The general take
David Placek recommends the Leonardo da Vinci biography (by Walter Isaacson) as a great book about creative curiosity, praising it for showing how creativity requires persistence and tenacity. He seems to view it as a solid read on the topic, similar to how the same author treated Steve Jobs.
About
Now a docuseries from Ken Burns on PBS! The #1 New York Times bestseller from Walter Isaacson brings Leonardo da Vinci to life in this exciting new biography that is “a study in creativity: how to define it, how to achieve it…Most important, it is a powerful story of an exhilarating mind and life” ( The New Yorker ). Based on thousands of pages from Leonardo da Vinci’s astonishing notebooks and new discoveries about his life and work, Walter Isaacson “deftly reveals an intimate Leonardo” ( San Francisco Chronicle ) in a narrative that connects his art to his science. He shows how Leonardo’s genius was based on skills we can improve in ourselves, such as passionate curiosity, careful observation, and an imagination so playful that it flirted with fantasy. He produced the two most famous paintings in history, The Last Supper and the Mona Lisa .
Who said what
David Placek👍 Recommends
…recommending books to read for mastering marketing and positioning
“Then I, I'll, I'll switch and, uh, and I, uh, I would recommend simply because it's about creative curiosity and it's the book on Leonardo da Vinci written by the, uh, the, you know, the famous guy that wrote the one on Steve Jobs. Yes. Yeah. I think that's a great book and it's, it really is. Creativity takes a lot of persistence and tenacity.”
My First Million — This guy names billion dollar brands for a living, here’s his exact 3-step formula.at 55:09
Listener reviews
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