The Art of Happiness with Arthur Brooks

Can variety and novelty bring us happiness? Is there ever too much of a good thing when it comes to new experiences? In this episode, Arthur and Ceci discuss the good and bad side of neophilia, the love of new things. Most importantly, Arthur shares how a healthy appetite for life and an openness to experiencing new things can lead to an abundance of beauty, satisfaction, and adventure in our lives.

Were you happy with your life pre-pandemic? Are there toxic relationships or draining activities that might be better left behind as we reemerge from the pandemic? In this episode, Arthur and Ceci discuss how we can use these waning months of the coronavirus pandemic as an opportunity to honestly evaluate our lives and assess our happiness. Arthur also provides a step-by-step guide on how to learn from difficulties and suffering of the pandemic in order to return to “normal” better, and happier, than we were before.

People usually make two mistakes when it comes to their own happiness: First, they assume that happiness already exists, and they just have to go find it. Second, they equate happiness to other complicated problems, solvable through engineering the right formula. However, happiness is complex, and requires a different approach. In this episode, Arthur is joined by co-authors of the #1 New York Times bestseller Designing Your Life and co-founders of the Stanford Life Design Lab, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans. Together, they share some insights from the world of design to help you build a life of happiness and meaning.

Are you making your life harder than it needs to be? Satisfaction is one of the key macronutrients of happiness, but it can prove elusive. And it’s easy to burn out chasing it, and inventing more and more wants in our lives. Can we escape this phenomenon? In this episode, Arthur is joined by New York Times bestselling author Greg McKeown to discuss his latest bestseller, Effortless: Make It Easier to Do What Matters Most. Together, they share some practical advice for living more effortlessly, while doing more of what matters and finding the true satisfaction that we seek.

Can money buy happiness? It’s easy to get trapped in a cycle of working more and more hours, chasing more and more money, in the hopes of getting happier. But after a certain point, despite our hard-wired belief to the contrary, more money doesn’t bring more happiness. In this episode, Arthur and Ceci discuss the sometimes complicated relationship between money, happiness, and satisfaction. They also share how, at any income level, with a little knowledge and practice, we can actually use money to buy a little more happiness.

Meaning and purpose in life are key drivers of happiness. However, we know that to understand happiness, we must also understand unhappiness, as these virtues often come through pain and suffering. In this episode, Arthur is joined by renowned teacher, international facilitator, and author of Healing Collective Trauma: A Process for Integrating Our Intergenerational and Cultural Wounds, Thomas Hübl. Together, they discuss how we can understand and process traumatic experiences. They also share some advice on how we can avoid becoming permanent victims of our trauma and pain, and instead, develop resiliency and experience post-traumatic growth.

How quick are you to rethink your opinions when presented with new information? Can changing your mind make you a happier person? In this episode, Arthur is joined by Wharton organizational psychologist and bestselling author of Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know to discuss the perks of being wrong. They also explore how thinking like a scientist and having the humility to reevaluate our opinions, while staying true to our values, can help us to not only improve ourselves, but our world, as well.

Are you afraid of failure? Has it held you back from living your best life? You’re not alone. The fear of failure is on the rise. Why? In this episode, Arthur and Ceci explore the sources of the fear of failure as well as share some tangible ways to not only overcome this fear, but also to grow in virtue in the process.

Christians around the world have just entered the season of Lent, a time of prayer, fasting, and voluntary sacrifice. However, this practice isn’t limited to Christianity, or even to those who are traditionally religious. In this episode, Arthur and Ceci explore the positive side effects of sacrifice and share some Lenten strategies and best practices for gaining these happiness benefits, whether we are religious or not.

Evidence shows that there’s more loneliness and isolation in the United States than ever before. Former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has even said that we have an epidemic of loneliness in this country. How do we turn back this trend? In this episode, Arthur is joined by thought leader and author of The Lonely Century: How to Restore Human Connection in a World That’s Pulling Apart, Noreena Hertz. Together, they discuss some practical solutions to combat the loneliness epidemic and help those we love who may be suffering.