Life

Bennett Notes

People Who Are Obsessed With Success and Prestige

What does it look like to be obsessed with success and prestige? It probably looks a lot like me at the moment. A guy who …

Derek Sivers

Time is personal. Your year changes when your life changes.

A new day begins when I wake up, not at midnight. Midnight means nothing to me. It’s not a turning point. Nothing …

Freedom House

Freedom in the World 2026: The Growing Shadow of Autocracy

Global freedom declined for the 20th consecutive year in 2025. But even in this especially challenging moment, there are …

Big Think

Over-optimizing your life is making you fragile, not better

Brad Stulberg breaks down the biology, philosophy, and psychology behind genuine excellence and how to reach it.

Quanta Magazine

Why Do We Tell Ourselves Scary Stories About AI?

Our tales of AI developing the will to survive, commandeer resources, and manipulate people say more about us than they do …

Jacob

You Are Not Your Job

Saying “I am a software engineer” is beginning to feel like saying “I am a calculator” in 1950 now …

CNN

A Nordic nation is the world's happiest country for the ninth year in a row

If happiness were an Olympic event, the Nordic countries would be guaranteed a spot on the podium.

Actually, all three spots …

The Guardian

AI could give us our lives back – if we don’t blow it

Could we be at the beginning of a change never before seen by humans – allowing us to escape the drudgery of work?

DW

Social media makes people unhappy — World Happiness Report

The 2026 World Happiness Report found that life satisfaction among those under 25 in some English-speaking countries has …

BBC

Wired headphone sales are exploding. What's with the Bluetooth backlash?

Wired headphones were supposed to die with the headphone jack. Instead, they’re making a comeback as consumers seek out …

Tim Ferriss

The Self-Help Trap: What 20+ Years of “Optimizing” Has Taught Me

The older I get, the more I think that self-help can be a trap. Sometimes the cure is worse than the disease. I say this …

The Guardian

The stranger secret: how to talk to anyone – and why you should

Forget fear of public speaking. A lot of people now shy away completely from speaking to anyone in public. But if we learn to …

Bloomberg

Why We're All Trading Happy Hours for the Bathhouse

The sauna industry is hot and only getting hotter — but the boom reveals more about happiness than it does about health.

The Economist

The most friendless place on earth

If you think rich, individualistic societies are the loneliest, think again.

Candost

The Unbearable Joy of Sitting Alone in A Café

When you let your thoughts wander, they take you on a journey you’ll never think possible. You reflect on the smallest …

Sasha's Newsletter

My six stages of learning to be a socially normal person

The other day, someone told me, “I can’t imagine you ever being awkward with people.” And I thought, oh God, yes, say it to …

Nautilus

The Surprising Benefits of Giving Up

Ditching or adjusting goals in the face of adversity might often be the best thing for us—but we don’t all approach these …

Jeremy Maluf

Indefinite Backpack Travel

In 2015 I got rid of everything I owned that didn’t fit in a laptop backpack, and I’ve been living at this level of …

Cornell Chronicle

A lifetime of social ties adds up to healthy aging

The cumulative effect of social advantages across a lifetime – from parental warmth in childhood to friendship, community …

Newsweek

Americans Are Using PTO to Sleep, Not for Vacation—Report

A large number of Americans are using PTO to sleep rather than take a vacation, according to a new report.

An Amerisleep.com …

Noema Magazine

The Last Days Of Social Media

Social media promised connection, but it has delivered exhaustion.

Locally Optimal

Social anxiety isn't about being liked

There’s this popular idea that socially anxious folks are just dying to be liked. It seems logical, right? Why else …

Nathan Brown

What would you do with 52 hours a week of discretionary time?

I’m not a huge hustler. I’m not necessarily advocating that you spend your 52 hours/week building a startup or …

NBC News

Priced out of traditional housing, more Americans are living in RVs

Moving into an RV may seem like a way to save money, but it can come with unexpected costs and trap families in a cycle of …

Behavioral Scientist

Why We Spiral

You’re 12 minutes late to the weekly staff Zoom. Once you’ve “joined audio,” the first thing you hear is the boss’s voice. …

Harvard Business Review

You Need to Be Bored. Here’s Why.

You need to be bored. You will have less meaning and you will be more depressed if you never are bored. I mean, it couldn’t …

The Guardian

Don’t like joining in? Why it could be your superpower

Some people spend their lives feeling out of place in groups – but this tendency comes with unique opportunities.

The Wall Street Journal

Nobody’s Buying Homes, Nobody’s Switching Jobs—and America’s Mobility Is Stalling

The paralysis has left many people in houses that are too small, in jobs they don’t love or shackled with ‘golden handcuffs.’ …

The Wall Street Journal

Adults Are Going to Sleep-away Camp to Make Friends. It Seems to Actually Work.

Overnight camps are increasingly catering to solo travelers who are looking for in person connection