Retrospective

Episode 45 – What We Learned in 2020: The Best Ideas from the Best Episodes

In today’s episode we pause to reflect on the lessons we’ve learned in the first year of The Good Life Podcast. In this retrospective, your host, Sean Murray revisits some of the most impactful guests and topics from 2020.

There are a couple of motivations for this. First, we launched in January of 2020, so we’re also celebrating the first year of The Good Life Podcast. Second, the audience has grown tremendously since we launched. Many of you who may have joined in the summer or in fall might not be aware of the episodes and guests from earlier in the year. This may alert you to a topic of interest which might motivate you to go back and listen to an earlier episode. Third, as you know, one of the recurring themes we heard from the guests this year, as they shared with their thoughts on how to live the Good Life, is this idea of taking time for reflection. Whether it’s writing in a journal or going for a walk, or whatever it is that you like to do, it’s beneficial to set aside time periodically to revisit our recent experiences, conversations and reading to just reflect on the lessons we can draw from them.

What You’ll Learn:

  • Brian Portnoy explains the concept of “Hedonic Adaptation” and why it is so important to understanding happiness
  • Ryan Hanley explains the two ways Adam Smith tells us we can live our lives, and which path leads to true happiness and flourishing
  • Elizabeth Samet explains what Seneca means when he seeks “tranquility” and why it is so important for living the good life
  • William Irvine explains why it is important we adapt a “philosophy of life” and why he chose Stoicism
  • Michael Erwin explains what he means by solitude, and why it’s so important
  • James Mustich talks about finding the next book to read and why we need to follow our instincts
    Scott Hambrick makes the case for reading the Great Books
  • Jonathan Clements talks about the role money and wealth play in achieving happiness

Books & Resources

Connect with Guests

Connect with Sean Murray

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