10 Podcasts Like Diary of a CEO (For Curious, Growth-Minded Listeners)

The Diary of a CEO with Steven Bartlett has built one of the largest podcast audiences in the world by asking a simple but hard question: what does it actually take to build something, and what does it cost you?

Bartlett’s interviews go long, go deep, and regularly surface things guests haven’t said before. The combination of business acumen, personal vulnerability, and careful preparation produces conversations that feel genuinely useful. Not just motivating, but actually informative.

My favorite episode was when Steven talked with soccer legend, Theirry Henry. If you’ve worked through the back catalog and want more, here are 10 podcasts that share that same spirit: long-form, honest, curious about how people think and build their lives.

What makes Diary of a CEO worth following

Before the list, it helps to understand what specifically makes the show work. Bartlett does three things well that most interview podcasts don’t:

He prepares deeply. Guests feel it, and they respond by going further than they expected to.

He’s personally vulnerable. When he talks about his own failures and fears, it creates permission for guests to do the same.

He mixes expertise. Scientists, therapists, entrepreneurs, and athletes all appear on the show, which keeps the angle fresh and the practical takeaways varied.

The podcasts below share at least one of those qualities, usually two or three.

1. The Tim Ferriss Show

Ferriss interviews world-class performers (athletes, investors, musicians, writers, entrepreneurs) and extracts the tactics, routines, and habits behind their work. His questions are exceptionally specific: what do you do in the first hour of your morning, what do you read, how do you make decisions under pressure?

Why it fits: If you like the practical wisdom side of Diary of a CEO, Ferriss goes even further into the granular detail of how exceptional people actually operate.

2. Huberman Lab

Neuroscientist Andrew Huberman brings a scientific lens to topics that Diary of a CEO touches on: sleep, stress, performance, focus, relationships. His episodes often run three hours and cover a single topic in genuine depth.

Why it fits: Bartlett regularly features scientists and researchers explaining the evidence behind human performance. Huberman’s show lives entirely in that space, at much greater technical depth.

3. Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman

LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman examines how companies grow by interviewing founders about the specific decisions that defined their scaling. The episodes are shorter than Diary of a CEO but tighter, with more focus on business mechanics.

Why it fits: If the entrepreneurship and company-building side of Bartlett’s interviews is what draws you in, Hoffman goes deeper into the strategic decisions that make or break businesses.

4. The Knowledge Project with Shane Parrish

Shane Parrish focuses on how people think. His guests are often less famous than those on Diary of a CEO, but the conversations are some of the sharpest available on decision-making, mental models, and clear thinking.

Why it fits: If you watch Bartlett’s episodes with researchers and psychologists, Parrish does that exclusively and with unusual rigor.

5. On Purpose with Jay Shetty

Former monk Jay Shetty combines ancient wisdom with modern psychology in conversations about purpose, relationships, and what makes a meaningful life. His guest list overlaps heavily with Diary of a CEO, but the angle is more philosophical.

Why it fits: Bartlett’s best episodes often shift from business success to personal meaning. Shetty starts from that place and stays there.

6. Lenny's Podcast

Lenny Rachitsky interviews product managers, startup founders, and tech leaders about building products people love. It’s narrower in scope than Diary of a CEO but remarkably deep on questions of craft, creativity, and decision-making in building companies.

Why it fits: If you work in tech or a product-driven business, this is the most practically useful show available. The level of operational detail is unusually high.

7. Dare to Lead with Brené Brown

Researcher Brené Brown explores courage, vulnerability, and what it means to lead well. Her interviews blend personal stories with research-backed insights, and she has a particular gift for turning abstract ideas into usable language.

Why it fits: Bartlett regularly explores the emotional and psychological dimensions of leadership. Brown goes deeper into those dimensions than almost anyone.

8. How I Built This with Guy Raz

Guy Raz interviews the founders of iconic companies about the origin stories behind their success. The show is warm, well-produced, and consistently surfaces the moments of genuine doubt and luck that most founder narratives omit.

Why it fits: The origin story format is one of Bartlett’s favorite interview structures. Raz specializes in it.

9. Lex Fridman Podcast

Lex Fridman’s long-form conversations range from artificial intelligence and science to philosophy and the nature of consciousness. His guest list is extraordinary, and his willingness to ask naive questions sometimes produces answers you can’t find elsewhere.

Why it fits: For listeners who want the depth and length of Diary of a CEO applied to science, technology, and big ideas rather than business specifically.

10. So Many Questions…

So Many Questions… takes a different angle. Host Kendall Guillemette isn’t primarily interested in how guests built their companies or achieved their success. He’s interested in who they are: how they think, what they care about, what shaped them.

The guests on So Many Questions… aren’t always famous. But the conversations are consistently honest, curious, and willing to go somewhere the guest didn’t expect. If you love the moments in Diary of a CEO when the interview stops being about business and starts being about a person, that’s what this show is built around entirely.

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The common thread

The shows on this list share one quality: they take their guests seriously as thinkers, not just achievers. They’re curious about the reasoning behind decisions, the fears behind successes, and the ideas behind the public persona.

Diary of a CEO works because Bartlett is genuinely curious. So do all of these.

FAQs

The Tim Ferriss Show, Huberman Lab, and Masters of Scale share the same combination of depth, practical insight, and long-form conversation. The Knowledge Project is excellent for the thinking and decision-making angle. How I Built This covers the entrepreneurship origin story format specifically.

No. While many episodes feature entrepreneurs and business leaders, the show regularly covers psychology, health, relationships, and personal development. Episodes with scientists, therapists, and researchers are some of the most popular.

Steven Bartlett’s personal vulnerability is unusual in the business podcast space. He regularly shares his own failures and doubts, which creates different conditions for guests. The combination of business depth and emotional honesty is what sets the show apart.

Most episodes are long, but Masters of Scale and Lenny’s Podcast are generally shorter and more focused. If you want the depth without the length, The Knowledge Project episodes vary but tend to be more concise.

Yes. Steven Bartlett is British, and the show is produced in the UK, though it has a global audience. If you’re looking for other excellent UK interview podcasts, see the best UK interview podcasts guide.

Kendall Guillemette | Mar 28, 2026