Independent Study: Personal Renewal by John W. Gardner (Speech)
Independent Study: Personal Renewal by John W. Gardner (Speech)  
Podcast: Dialectic
Published On: Wed Sep 16 2026
Description: Independent Study is a series of bonus episodes to accompany the interviews on Dialectic. I read essays and other writing that has influenced me. "Personal Renewal" was given as a speech by John W. Gardner to a group at McKinsey & Company in Phoenix, AZ on November 10, 1990. The transcript is available at PBS here. John W. Gardner was a public servant, educator, and public reformer. Learn more at PBS. This is one of my favorite things I've ever read. I hope you are similarly inspired. Transcript and audio for the also mentioned David Foster Wallace's "This is Water" available here, from Farnam Street. https://www.pbs.org/johngardner/sections/writings_speech_1.html⁠