Staying Human with Dr. Vivek Murthy
What if, instead of looking for quick fixes or life hacks, we asked: what does it take to live a fulfilling life? Like so many people, trusted physician Dr. Vivek Murthy grapples with what it means to live well. As U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy started a groundbreaking public conversation around loneliness and the importance of connection. Now, he’s inviting listeners to join him as he explores what makes life meaningful, even when that means going against the grain. Through warm, provocative conversations with people from all walks of life, Dr. Murthy takes on topics that profoundly aff...
Robert Putnam: What Does It Mean To Be a Social Capitalist? (and how does it affect our health?)
How many of us have felt the deep need to belong, but weren’t sure where to start?
In this episode, recorded live at WBUR in Boston, Vivek sits down with the Harvard professor, author, and friend for a wide-ranging conversation on building community. Robert Putnam saw America's social fracturing coming decades before anyone else did. His book, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, put a name to the collapse of community life in the U.S, tracking the disappearance of the bowling leagues, church groups, and civic clubs that used to hold neighborhoods tog...
Maya Shankar: What Happens When Life Changes Our Plans?
Ten years ago, Vivek and Maya Shankar met in a meeting at the White House; he still doesn't remember what the meeting was about, but he remembers being struck by her brilliance, and even more by her warmth. They stayed in touch, became close friends, and now, a decade later, Maya has traded her work as a cognitive scientist and White House advisor for a new mission: helping people understand why change is so hard, and how to come out the other side whole. She's the host of the hit podcast A Slight Change of Plans and the author...
Dr. Robert Waldinger: What does 85 years of research reveal about a Good Life?
What makes a good life? Is it accomplishment and wealth? Meaning and purpose? Relationships?
This is the question Dr. Robert Waldinger, a Harvard psychiatrist, has spent decades exploring as the fourth director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development – the world's longest-running study of adult life and happiness – following hundreds of people since 1938 and still running today. Robert is co-author, with Marc Schulz, of bestselling book The Good Life. He is also a Zen Buddhist priest whose spiritual journey has shaped how he thinks about thriving.
In this episode, Vivek and Robert talk about what the...
Jennifer Wallace: Why Don’t We Feel Like We Matter?
A lot of us move through our days on autopilot, heads down, just clearing the to-do list. And somewhere in there, we stop noticing the small signals that tell us we matter. We stop sending them, too.
In this episode, Dr. Vivek Murthy sits down with journalist Jennifer Wallace, author of MATTERING: The Secret to a Life of Deep Connection and Purpose. They get into why so many people feel invisible right now, how a culture built on individual success can leave us feeling more hollow than whole, and why the men who wrote to Jennie kept...
Atul Gawande: What Does Death Teach Us About How To Live?
Are we paying too much attention to how long we live, and too little to how well we live?
For most doctors, the goal is to help patients live as long as possible. But more time and more life aren’t always the same things. In this episode, host Dr. Vivek Murthy and guest Dr. Atul Gawande, surgeon and author of the landmark book Being Mortal, discuss a question neither of them were trained as doctors: for a patient, what makes life worth living?
This conversation is part interview, part friendship, and part shared reckoning wi...
David French: How Can We Come Together Across Divides?
We’re living in an era where division often feels like the status quo, and it's affecting us on a personal level. A 2025 study from the American Psychological Association found 62% of adults say polarization is a significant source of stress in their lives.
How can we bring people together, especially across divides, whether they’re a friend, neighbor, stranger, or family member? How do we build bridges while staying true to our values?
David French is a columnist for the New York Times who often writes about the beauty and c...
Kate Bowler: Is Joy Possible When Things Are Difficult?
What does it mean to feel joy amid moments of real difficulty and even sorrow? Not in the sense of being falsely upbeat or pretending that everything’s ok—but as a way to sit with and honor what’s going on in our lives.
Kate Bowler is a bestselling author known for her writing about loss, grief, and hope. She’s also a professor at Duke University who studies the history of religion, and host of the podcast Everything Happens. Her latest book is called Joyful, Anyway.
In this con...
Announcing Staying Human with Dr. Vivek Murthy
What if, instead of looking for quick fixes or life hacks, we asked: what does it take to live a truly fulfilling life? Join Dr. Vivek Murthy, 19th and 21st U.S. Surgeon General as he explores what it means to stay human though interviews with people from all walks of life.
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