About this episode

Arthur Brooks joins Shilo to discuss the keys to happiness based on neuroscience, faith, and philosophy.

For tickets to our live recording with Jon Meacham in Philadelphia, CLICK HERE and register. Use code TFP for a 20 percent discount. Life is short. How do we live it well? Harvard professor Arthur Brooks has spent years studying happiness. In this episode, he joins Shilo to explore what neuroscience, faith, and philosophy reveal about how to live a happy life. Most of us are caught up in either the pursuit of empty pleasures or the pursuit of great achievement—“slacker” and “striver” extremes that keep us in a doom loop, like addicts. The real keys to happiness are deepening relationships, cultivating faith, and committing to lifelong learning, without concern for external validation or reward. Above all, we must learn to love and be loved and to accept suffering and heartbreak as features, not bugs, of a meaningful life. Arthur’s latest book, The Meaning of Your Life: Finding Purpose in an Age of Emptiness, comes out March 31, 2025, pre-order your copy today at the link! Old School is proudly brought to you by the Jack Miller Center. If you believe in the importance of civic education and want to help prepare the next generation to carry on our democracy, join us at…

People in this episode

Host: Shilo Brooks

Guest: Arthur Brooks

Topics covered

• happiness
• neuroscience
• philosophy
• relationships
• lifelong learning
• faith

Keywords

• happiness
• Arthur Brooks
• Shilo Brooks
• relationships
• lifelong learning
• faith
• philosophy

Sponsors

Jack Miller Center

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Harvard

Books & works: The Meaning of Your Life: Finding Purpose in an Age of Emptiness

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