Name: Barry Diller on how the best ideas are born
Uploaded: 2026-01-09T17:43:57.620Z
Duration: 1 min 46 s
Description: In this clip from CNBC Leaders Playbook, Barry Diller reveals why real breakthroughs come from creative conflict—pushing passionate debate past exhaustion until the truth finally surfaces.

In this clip from CNBC Leaders Playbook, Barry Diller reveals why real breakthroughs come from creative conflict—pushing passionate debate past exhaustion until the truth finally surfaces.

Barry Diller describes his approach to developing the best ideas, highlighting the value of gathering a group of people with differing, passionate viewpoints. He explains that creative conflict and prolonged debate help surface valuable insights, especially when participants push discussions past exhaustion.

Diller notes that after intense debate, a period of reflection helps clarify which ideas resonate with one's instincts. He emphasizes that cynicism can undermine this process and should be actively avoided to allow instincts to guide decision-making.

Barry Diller on how the best ideas are born

To me, the best way to vet an idea is when you've got a group of people around a room and passion, argument from each of them, which usually is in conflict with somebody else's thought. That kind of creative conflict of pushing that idea or that discussion about whatever it is and hearing as many disparate voices, hopefully all argued passionately. That cauldron, if you make it last long enough, I've always thought you push it past exhaustion because that's when the good stuff comes out. That brew makes the decision, if you have an ear, and I'm very lucky because I know how to listen, that you hear something in that and it's a truth for you. You say, wow, that I can pull on. It can be loud and argumentative and somewhat brutal, but I love it. How can others develop that ability to identify the signal through the noise? Let's say after you threw this cauldron, you're in a resting position. What you will hear is what that resting position gives you for your own instinct. Once you've reached that level, it's solid and you can act on it, or at least I can act on it. I don't know that there's a teaching process for that. You cannot be cynical. Cynicism kills everything. If you want to use your instincts, you have to brush that clean every day practically.

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