HAPPINESS: Arthur C. Brooks Shares His Roadmap for Finding Purpose, Meaning, and Success

If you do something amazing, truly?amazing, something that changes people’s lives for the better—let’s say you create a new product, write an?astonishingly?beautiful novel, sing a song that just?blows?people away, a song that people can’t stop singing—do you think that would give you a sense of enduring happiness?

Let’s say you were Charles Darwin, or Johan Sebastian Bach, or Aretha Franklin, or Nelson Mandela—would your accomplishments, and the enduring admiration of others, be like a?sun?in which you could bask, for the balance of your days?

On some level, for many years—decades even—I have?believed?that to be true. If what I do is?distinctive?enough,?beautiful?enough,?worthy?enough … if it?lifts?other people up, then I will be able to put up my feet, hang out with my friends, and bask in the afterglow of that accomplishment. Have?you?ever thought this? If you are a?striver, you probably have.

Here’s the bad news for strivers everywhere: people who achieve great success are often among the least happy at the end of their lives. You can’t bank it … The sense of satisfaction we get from accomplishments is like water vapor on a hot day. I’ve been convinced of this thanks to a new book by Arthur C. Brooks,?From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life.

Before writing this book, Arthur?tested?success as a strategy for happiness. He became one of the world’s top French horn players, he ran a leading think tank for a decade, and he was?not happy.?So, he decided to leave the high-powered success track—climb off the “hedonic treadmill,” and slow … down …

What happened? He ended up with a faculty appointment at?Harvard, a column in The?Atlantic, and a number one?New York Times?bestseller. He went from Strength to Strength.

Side Note: While Arthur's book is about "the?second half?of life," this conversation is worth listening to at?any?stage in life. Arthur's insights into how your intelligence works—his thoughts on the relationship between your age and what kind of career you should pursue, his critique of our success-obsessed culture—it's?super?relevant whether you're 18 or 80.

This book changed my perspective on success and happiness. This conversation?might?change yours. Why does success beget dissatisfaction? And more importantly, what can we do to live more satisfying lives? Let’s ask Arthur...

You can listen to the episode above, on Apple Podcasts, or on Spotify. Then head to the comments to join the conversation.

Episode Notes

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