Uploaded September 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
What actually makes a life meaningful, and why do the things we chase so often leave us empty once we get them? I sit down with Arthur C. Brooks, Harvard professor, New York Times bestselling author, and one of the world's leading voices on happiness, to unpack what's really driving our unhappiness and what the science says about building a meaningful life.
In his latest book, The Meaning of Your Life, Brooks argues we're living through an age of emptiness: more distracted, more disconnected, and less sure than ever of what will actually fulfil us. In this conversation, he reveals the two questions he gives his Harvard students to diagnose a meaning crisis, why our brains struggle in a world of constant comfort, and how to use social media without letting it drain you.
You'll learn:
- Why achievement rarely satisfies us for as long as we expect
- What money can and can't do for your happiness
- The five-year exercise that shows whether your priorities match how you spend your time
- What to do in the first and last hour of the day to protect your attention
- The step most people skip that makes new habits actually stick
- How to pursue a big goal without becoming attached to the outcome
- The simple ritual that can lift your baseline happiness by 15% in 12 weeks
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
3:17 The age of emptiness
6:50 The enterprise of life
10:38 Why achievement never satisfies
13:08 Social media without the drain
15:11 Protect your first and last hour
16:36 Ad Break
23:49 Two questions for a meaning crisis
31:00 Wanting without attachment
33:42 Ad Break
37:27 The gratitude ritual that works
38:53 How he met his wife
45:56 The striver's curse
47:57 Ad Break
50:17 What money can and can't do
57:00 Is he actually happy?
1:02:44 The five-year exercise
1:07:40 Made to love and be loved
1:10:33 Rapid Fire
Don't forget to subscribe, we've got so much coming 💛 - youtube.com/@EmmaGrede?sub_confirmation=1
#ArthurBrooks #Happiness #TheMeaningOfLife #MoneyAndHappiness #Purpose #EmmaGrede #SelfImprovement
_____
Emma's book START WITH YOURSELF is out now — grab your copy at emmagrede.com or wherever books are sold.
_____
ABOUT ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
Build the life of your dreams and learn from the world's most successful people.
Emma Grede, one of America's richest self-made women, wants you to make the most of your life. On 'Aspire with Emma Grede', learn through thought-provoking conversations with some of the most successful and smartest minds on the planet, including goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, investor, philanthropist and former chair of Starbucks, Mellody Hobson, podcast host Jay Shetty, billionaire entrepreneur and Shark Tank star Mark Cuban, rapper and cultural icon Cardi B, fashion mogul Kimora Lee Simmons, actress and entrepreneur Issa Rae, bestselling author and motivational powerhouse Mel Robbins, and public luminaries like Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Charlamagne Tha God, Jessica Alba, former First Lady Michelle Obama, and Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos. Each episode will unpack their habits, philosophy, and strategies, covering career advice, well-being, psychology, and, of course, how to win in business. The show offers personal stories, data-driven advice, real-world strategies, and the experience you need to turn your dreams into reality.
LISTEN TO ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
link.pscrb.fm/f0281/Aspire_YT
_______
ABOUT EMMA GREDE
Emma Grede is a founding partner and chief product officer of SKIMS and CEO of Good American. She also made history as the first Black woman to serve as an investor on Shark Tank. Learn more at: emmagrede.com
_________
What actually makes a life meaningful, and why do the things we chase so often leave us empty once we get them? I sit down with Arthur C. Brooks, Harvard professor, New York Times bestselling author, and one of the world's leading voices on happiness, to unpack what's really driving our unhappiness and what the science says about building a meaningful life.
In his latest book, The Meaning of Your Life, Brooks argues we're living through an age of emptiness: more distracted, more disconnected, and less sure than ever of what will actually fulfil us. In this conversation, he reveals the two questions he gives his Harvard students to diagnose a meaning crisis, why our brains struggle in a world of constant comfort, and how to use social media without letting it drain you.
You'll learn:
- Why achievement rarely satisfies us for as long as we expect
- What money can and can't do for your happiness
- The five-year exercise that shows whether your priorities match how you spend your time
- What to do in the first and last hour of the day to protect your attention
- The step most people skip that makes new habits actually stick
- How to pursue a big goal without becoming attached to the outcome
- The simple ritual that can lift your baseline happiness by 15% in 12 weeks
Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
3:17 The age of emptiness
6:50 The enterprise of life
10:38 Why achievement never satisfies
13:08 Social media without the drain
15:11 Protect your first and last hour
16:36 Ad Break
23:49 Two questions for a meaning crisis
31:00 Wanting without attachment
33:42 Ad Break
37:27 The gratitude ritual that works
38:53 How he met his wife
45:56 The striver's curse
47:57 Ad Break
50:17 What money can and can't do
57:00 Is he actually happy?
1:02:44 The five-year exercise
1:07:40 Made to love and be loved
1:10:33 Rapid Fire
Don't forget to subscribe, we've got so much coming 💛 - youtube.com/@EmmaGrede?sub_confirmation=1
#ArthurBrooks #Happiness #TheMeaningOfLife #MoneyAndHappiness #Purpose #EmmaGrede #SelfImprovement
_____
Emma's book START WITH YOURSELF is out now — grab your copy at emmagrede.com or wherever books are sold.
_____
ABOUT ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
Build the life of your dreams and learn from the world's most successful people.
Emma Grede, one of America's richest self-made women, wants you to make the most of your life. On 'Aspire with Emma Grede', learn through thought-provoking conversations with some of the most successful and smartest minds on the planet, including goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, investor, philanthropist and former chair of Starbucks, Mellody Hobson, podcast host Jay Shetty, billionaire entrepreneur and Shark Tank star Mark Cuban, rapper and cultural icon Cardi B, fashion mogul Kimora Lee Simmons, actress and entrepreneur Issa Rae, bestselling author and motivational powerhouse Mel Robbins, and public luminaries like Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Charlamagne Tha God, Jessica Alba, former First Lady Michelle Obama, and Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos. Each episode will unpack their habits, philosophy, and strategies, covering career advice, well-being, psychology, and, of course, how to win in business. The show offers personal stories, data-driven advice, real-world strategies, and the experience you need to turn your dreams into reality.
LISTEN TO ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
link.pscrb.fm/f0281/Aspire_YT
_______
ABOUT EMMA GREDE
Emma Grede is a founding partner and chief product officer of SKIMS and CEO of Good American. She also made history as the first Black woman to serve as an investor on Shark Tank. Learn more at: emmagrede.com
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