Book · 2014 · Business & Economics
Creativity, Inc.
Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration
Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace has been mentioned in 25 episodes across 10 podcasts (10 episodes recommend it and 15 episodes discuss it), through . Most frequently brought up by Jason Calacanis (4 episodes), Andrew Farah (1 episode) and Becky Kennedy (1 episode) on This Week in Startups (7 episodes), Invest Like the Best (5 episodes) and Lenny's Podcast (4 episodes).
#202 of 16,947 books, ranked by how many different people bring it up on podcasts
- episodes
- 25
- podcasts
- 10
- people
- 14
- episodes recommend it
- 10
It is a real uh thrill to meet you and it's an honor to have you here today to you know share your experience and and and your wisdom everything that's in this book creativity Inc which is just a wonderful mustre for anybody whether whether you're a business person or not.
Rich Roll · The Rich Roll Podcast · Oct 2023 Listen at 2:09 Questions about Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace
Who recommends Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace on podcasts?
Jason Calacanis (4 episodes), Andrew Farah (1 episode), Becky Kennedy (1 episode), Christopher Cole (1 episode) and Dick Costolo (1 episode) have recommended Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace on podcasts. In all, 14 people brought it up across 10 podcasts (6 people recommended it).
Which podcasts mention Creativity, Inc. the most?
This Week in Startups (7 episodes), Invest Like the Best (5 episodes), Lenny's Podcast (4 episodes), David Senra (2 episodes) and My First Million (2 episodes), among 10 podcasts in all.
Is Creativity, Inc. recommended, or only discussed?
Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace was recommended in 10 episodes and discussed without a recommendation in 15 episodes, as of 2026-11-08.
What do people say about Creativity, Inc.?
Rich Roll on The Rich Roll Podcast (2023-10-23): "It is a real uh thrill to meet you and it's an honor to have you here today to you know share your experience and and and your wisdom everything that's in this book creativity Inc which is just a wonderful mustre for anybody whether whether you're a business person or not."
When was Creativity, Inc. last mentioned on a podcast?
Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace was last recommended on Lenny's Podcast by Tulsee Doshi on 2026-11-08.
What they say about it
- Autobiography of Ed Catmull“autobiography of Ed Catmull, Creativity Inc”4
- Book about Pixar“book about Pixar”3

- Most highlighted book“what book has I highlighted the most”3
The best things said about it
I always told the team—and the Pixar president, Ed Catmull, says this as well in his great book Creativity, Inc.—it's not your job as a leader to prevent mistakes from happening; it's your job as a leader to correct mistakes as quickly as you can when they happen.
It's the Pixar story. But I think it actually speaks a lot to like how do you create good culture.
There's that, you know, perfect explanation of how to solve things from the Ed Catmull book about Pixar, Creativity, Inc., where the motto is, 'Be wrong as fast as you can.'.
Steven Soderbergh SmartLess · Jul 2023 The creative process is taking something that sucks and removing suck.
Every great idea starts as this ugly baby that no one wants to like help and pay attention to.
I love this book Creativity, Inc. and I thought I was very touched.
Jason Calacanis This Week in Startups · Nov 2019 Where and when it comes up
How it comes up
14 people who brought it up
Jason Calacanis4 episodes · recommended in 4- Andrew Farah1 episode · recommended in 1
- Becky Kennedy1 episode · recommended in 1
- Christopher Cole1 episode · recommended in 1
- Dick Costolo1 episode · recommended in 1
- Tulsee Doshi1 episode · recommended in 1
- David Senra6 episodes
- Lenny Rachitsky2 episodes
- Ben Gilbert1 episode
- Jordan Harbinger1 episode
Rich Roll1 episode- Shaan Puri1 episode
Why people recommend it
Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace is a behind-the-scenes account of the founding and culture of Pixar Animation Studios. Tulsee Doshi recommended the book on Lenny's Podcast for product managers, noting that it offers valuable lessons on how to build a strong and effective culture that supports creativity. On This Week in Startups, Jason Calacanis frequently brought up the book across multiple episodes, noting that Catmull had been a guest on the podcast and that the story had affected him deeply. Calacanis recommended it as a top read for aspiring founders, cited it alongside other works to explore Steve Jobs's balancing act between Pixar and Apple, and used it to discuss how leaders can give employees permission to speak openly and provide candid feedback. Andrew Farah also mentioned the book on the same podcast, describing it as a great work detailing Pixar's formative years that was a favorite of Dick Costolo. Costolo himself, speaking on the a16z Podcast, referenced Catmull's philosophy to illustrate his own leadership approach, emphasizing that a leader's job is not to prevent mistakes from happening, but to correct them as quickly as possible when they occur. Across these appearances, speakers highlighted the text as an essential guide for cultivating innovative team environments and navigating the realities of creative leadership.
Every mention
Jason Calacanis I love this book creativity Inc and I thought I was very touched and people ask me often what's my favorite… 4
“actually you can read the book creativity inc we had ed catmull on this very podcast um and and steve's biography there were some shaky moments there”
“and sometimes people you know we want to be polite to each other we want to create safety we don't want to create animosity or you know uncomfortable feelings so to give people the green light and say and and i think ed catmull does a good job with this at pixar and under creativity inc another really it's a”
“I like creativity Inc by Ed Catmull he was also on the podcast that gives you a good idea”
“I love this book creativity Inc and I thought I was very touched and people ask me often what's my favorite episode and I don't have a favorite episode but Jackie Miami award-winning producer”
Andrew Farah or you read um uh you know creativity inc about pixar um which is a dick costello special like you he loves… 1
“or you read um uh you know creativity inc about pixar um which is a dick costello special like you he loves that book”
Becky Kennedy I love The Power of Moments. I love Messy Middle and I got a lot from Creativity Inc. as well. 1
“I love The Power of Moments. I love Messy Middle and I got a lot from Creativity Inc. as well.”
Christopher Cole Another book I really enjoyed was, it's called Creativity. It's about Pixar. It's about a history of, yeah,… 1
“Another book I really enjoyed was, it's called Creativity. It's about Pixar. It's about a history of, yeah, wonderful book. Ed Catmull, right?”
Dick Costolo I always told the team—and the Pixar president, Ed Catmull, says this as well in his great book Creativity,… 1
“I always told the team and the Pixar president Ed Catmull says this as well in his great book creativity Inc it's not your job as a leader to prevent mistakes from happening”
“I always told the team—and the Pixar president, Ed Catmull, says this as well in his great book Creativity, Inc.—it's not your job as a leader to prevent mistakes from happening; it's your job as a leader to correct mistakes as quickly as you can when they happen.”
Tulsee Doshi another that's maybe more kind of standard in PM circles is Creativity Inc., which I love. It's the Pixar s… 1
“another that's maybe more kind of standard in PM circles is Creativity Inc., which I love. It's the Pixar story. But I think it actually speaks a lot to like how do you create good culture”
David Senra What's surprising to me is, in a Readwise app, I can segment books by author, when's the last time I read i… 6
“and he tells a story about what a meeting with uh in his autobiography Creativity Inc. what a meeting with Steve Jobs is like.”
“Did you ever read Ed Catmull, the founder of Pixar, his autobiography called 'Creativity, Inc.'?”
“What's surprising to me is, in a Readwise app, I can segment books by author, when's the last time I read it. What's fascinating is I segmented it by, what book has I highlighted the most? I was shocked what it was.”
“I was thinking about this because I just reread Ed Campbell's book, Creativity. The difference is the order in which you learn things has an effect.”
“What's fascinating is, I segmented it by, what book has I highlighted the most? I was shocked what it was. It was the autobiography of Ed Catmull, Creativity Inc., which is the founder of Pixar.”
“What's surprising to me is in Readwise I can segment books by author, when's the last time I read it. What's fascinating is I segmented it by, what book has I highlighted the most? I was shocked what it was. It was the autobiography of Ed Catmull, Creativity Inc.”
Lenny Rachitsky There's also this concept of the ugly baby in creativity. Ain't kind of enough you read that book at Catmul… 2
“There's also this concept of the ugly baby in creativity. Ain't kind of enough you read that book at Catmull about every idea at Pixar, like every great idea starts as this ugly baby that no one wants to like help and pay attention to”
“This makes me think about this concept of an ugly baby from the book Creativity Inc. by I think Ed Catmull where he talks about how new ideas are this ugly baby that nobody wants to look at and deal with that”
Ben Gilbert um it's an old book but i i just finished reading creativity inc the history of pixar 1
“um it's an old book but i i just finished reading creativity inc the history of pixar”
Jordan Harbinger and when I talked to Ed Catmull from Pixar on my podcast the guy who wrote the book creativity I was like w… 1
“and when I talked to Ed Catmull from Pixar on my podcast the guy who wrote the book creativity I was like was that a [ __ ] you from Pixar and Steve Jobs to the critics he said yeah”
Rich Roll it is a real uh thrill to meet you and it's an honor to have you here today to you know share your experien… 1
“it is a real uh thrill to meet you and it's an honor to have you here today to you know share your experience and and and your wisdom everything that's in this book creativity Inc which is just a wonderful mustre for anybody whether whether you're a business person or not”
Shaan Puri Pixar, I think, wrote this book, Creativity, Inc., which is very like they talk about the brain trust that… 1
“Pixar, I think, wrote this book, Creativity, Inc., which is very like they talk about the brain trust that they have of how they show raw kind of like not even the movie but like a single scene and how they created a dynamic of trust.”
Steven Soderbergh there's that you know perfect explanation of how to solve things from the edcapnel book about Pixar creativ… 1
“there's that you know perfect explanation of how to solve things from the edcapnel book about Pixar creativity Inc where the motto is be wrong as fast as you can”
“There's that, you know, perfect explanation of how to solve things from the Ed Catmull book about Pixar, Creativity, Inc., where the motto is, 'Be wrong as fast as you can.'”
Tim Ferriss I remember one of my most nerve-racking interviews very, very early on that I had was with Ed Catmull, who… 1
“I remember one of my most nerve-racking interviews very, very early on that I had was with Ed Catmull, who at the time was president of Pixar, and he wrote a book called Creativity Inc., and it talks about storytelling quite a lot.”
Mentioned on the show without a named speaker2
“and they had a thing where they were like at Pixar they have a book called creativity Inc I creativity Inc yeah and he said it's not people think oh we just come up with the best ideas right away he goes no he goes the creative process is taking something that sucks and removing suck”
“number two for me would be Jason's conversation with Ed cill the president of Disney and Pixar it's an incredible two-parter it will blow your mind if you haven't seen it he had just written creativity Inc check it out”
Other mentions (3: passing, ad reads, own books)
“and he had he actually read my book the Dow of wool and that led to him having an interest in making this into a TV series”
“so you can check out my book the right side of history It talks about a lot of the sort of deeper issues we're talking about judeo-christian values and reason”
“uh if they're interested in the simple path to wealth which is my book there's a link to that will take them to Amazon to buy the book”