Podcast Summary: Office Hours with Arthur Brooks

Episode: 5 Ways to Get Happier Starting Today
Date: August 11, 2025
Host: Arthur Brooks

Episode Overview

In this episode, Arthur Brooks delves into practical, science-backed strategies to increase happiness, drawing on cutting-edge academic research and his own experience as a social scientist and professor. Brooks introduces the top five most effective, proven happiness techniques, exploring both the research behind them and actionable advice for listeners. He also answers audience questions on overcoming breakups and shares a surprising insight about human happiness.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Happiness: What We Know (and What We Get Wrong)

• Brooks debunks common misconceptions about happiness, such as the belief that high self-esteem automatically leads to happiness.
• He highlights that happiness and unhappiness are not opposites, nor managed by the same parts of the brain.
• There are factors we can't control (e.g., genes, family history), but a host of key variables are in our hands.

[07:20] The Groundbreaking Research: Ranking Happiness Techniques

• A major study (2020, Journal of Happiness Studies, lead author Dan Buettner) asked top happiness scholars to rank 68 strategies, distilling the list to the five most effective, practical actions.
• Brooks promises: "You can do the things I’m going to talk about starting today, and you will see results." [13:30]

[14:25] The Top 5 Ways to Get Happier (and the Science Behind Each)

1. Invest in Family and Friends

• The #1 predictor of long-term happiness is close relationships.
• Example: The Harvard Study of Adult Development (tracking people over 90 years) finds that "happiness is love. Investing in your friends and your family is the number one thing you can do today and on an ongoing basis." [18:55]
• Not just marriage—having close friends electrifies lifetime happiness.
  • Quote: "The happiest people have one or both of two things: a loving marriage and/or really close friends." [21:30]

2. Join a Club (Cultivate Shared Interests)

• Surprisingly powerful: "[The research says] number two is join a club... The point is sharing ideas and loves we have in common with other people, which is intrinsically very satisfying." [27:05]
• Draws on Aristotle’s concept of virtuous friendship: real joy comes from deep, shared pursuits.
• Brooks uses both religious affiliation and hobby groups as examples.
  • Quote: "Find something you’re really interested in and do it with other people. That’s really what it comes down to." [31:15]
• Robert Putnam’s Bowling Alone is cited: "[Putnam] showed your life is impoverished when you’re not doing this Aristotelian stuff." [29:40]

3. Stay Mentally Active (Lifelong Learning)

• Lifelong learners are significantly happier as they age.
  • Quote: "Some of the unhappiest people have stopped learning; they’ve gotten bad at learning." [36:25]
• Interest is a basic positive emotion: "We get tons of satisfaction and enjoyment when we’re learning things just naturally." [37:15]
• Don’t limit yourself to traditional learning; audio, video, and hands-on avenues are valid.
  • Personal anecdote: Brooks’ non-reading son is still an avid learner—"because it’s interesting." [39:30]

4. Transcend Yourself: Practice Faith, Spirituality, or Philosophy

• Over-focusing on self breeds misery; transcendence brings peace.
  • Quote: "It’s maddening to be thinking about yourself all the time. Me, me, me. I’m so great. I’m so interesting. No, you’re not. And thank God." [45:00]
• Various practices—religion, walking in nature, studying philosophy, meditation, or great art/music—help make you "smaller" and the universe larger.
• Example: Students leave astronomy lectures feeling more at peace because they realize their small place in the universe. [43:15]
• Encourages trying out faith again as an adult, or at least life philosophy, with open-mindedness.

5. Physical Exercise (Reduce Unhappiness)

• Exercise lowers negative mood, which (for many) is as important as raising positive feelings.
  • Quote: "Physical exercise and physical exertion is actually an unhappiness technique." [52:00]
• Brooks explains: happiness and unhappiness involve different brain systems; managing negative affect (mood) is as crucial as seeking pleasure.
  • Personal routine: Brooks exercises daily at dawn—"By the time I’m going to take my shower, I’m like, yeah, I can face it. Because I’ve just lowered my level of negative affect." [54:20]
• Some people have naturally low negative mood and may not feel the exercise effect as strongly.

[59:30] Making Happiness Stick: The Three-Part Formula

Brooks shares why self-improvement advice often fails—and how to make happiness strategies last:

1. Understand – Know the science and mechanics, not just the prescription.
2. Practice – Regularly apply new habits; repetition and action matter.
3. Teach – "When you teach something, you truly understand it. ... Take what you learn here and share it; become a happiness teacher in your own life." [1:05:50]

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On relationships:
  "Happiness is love. Investing in your friends and your family is the number one thing that you can do today." [18:55]
• On clubs and shared passions:
  "The point isn’t the club. The point is sharing ideas and loves that we have in common with other people, which is intrinsically a very satisfying thing to do." [27:12]
• On learning:
  "Interest is a basic positive emotion. Human beings... are made to learn stuff. We love learning stuff." [37:15]
• On transcendence:
  "It’s maddening to be thinking about yourself all the time. ... Get smaller, make the universe larger." [45:00]
• On exercise:
  "Physical exercise and physical exertion is actually an unhappiness technique. ... Your wellbeing will increase if you take care of your physical body." [52:00]
• On lasting change:
  "...You’ve got to have the knowledge, you’ve got to change your life, and you’ve got to become a happiness teacher." [1:05:50]

[1:09:20] Audience Q&A Highlights

How do I get over a breakup? (Devin Sloan)

• It's normal (average person: 5 heartbreaks, half are 'messy').
• Two evidence-backed techniques:
  1. List what you don’t miss about your ex. "If you think about what a jerk your ex is, you feel a lot better about the breakup." [1:10:38]
  2. Listen to sad music. Activates the right brain and helps you process meaning—"Sad music is actually really good for you." [1:12:00]
• Reassurance: "Your brain is lying—it’s going to get better, and faster than you think."
  • Quote: "Sad music puts into perspective your feelings. It helps you understand what your feelings actually are." [1:12:30]

What’s the most mind-blowing surprise about happiness science? (Papa John G)

• The biggest surprise: Mother Nature did not design us to be happy—just to survive and reproduce.
• Implication: Many biological urges lead us away from authentic happiness. Our "animal" drives often contradict our “divine” aspirations.
  • Quote: "Mother Nature doesn’t care if I’m happy; ... you’re designed for two things: to survive and pass on your genes. ... We do lots and lots and lots of things because Mother Nature gives us an urge to do that and it doesn’t make us happy." [1:14:00]
• Advice: "Think of the person you want to be and then work to become that person, notwithstanding your feelings. Boy, then will you be free." [1:17:00]

[1:17:20] Final Takeaway

• Recap of "Big Five":

  1. Invest in family/friends
  2. Join a club
  3. Keep learning
  4. Transcend yourself (faith/philosophy)
  5. Exercise

• True happiness arises from communal bonds, continuous learning, transcendent perspective, and positive routines.

• Final appeal:
  "Take what you learn here, share it with someone you love—and become a happiness teacher in your own life and community." [1:17:55]

Useful Resources & Next Steps

• Brooks invites feedback and questions via officehours@arthurbrooks.com.
• For a deeper dive, Brooks’ new book, The Happiness Files, compiles essays grounding his advice in academic research.
• Look for future episodes on the science of well-being, including physical and emotional protocols.

Summary prepared for Office Hours with Arthur Brooks, Ep. "5 Ways to Get Happier Starting Today." All timestamps are approximate.