
Why Optimization Culture Is Making You Miserable
- One speaker
This is a bonus episode of The Prof G Pod — beginning this week, we’re publishing an extra Conversations episode every Tuesday. Oliver Burkeman, author of Four Thousand Weeks and Meditations for Mortals, joins Scott Galloway to discuss why our obsession with optimizing every part of life is making us more anxious, not more fulfilled. He explains why productivity systems and “maxxing” culture tend to backfire, how embracing our limits can be freeing rather than defeatist, and why AI won’t solve the deeper problem of trying to outrun our own fi...
Opens the player: the full transcript, every word clickable, with translation and flashcards.
Is this episode right for you?
B2 · Upper-intermediate
Comfortable if you already follow TV news
- 76% of the words are B1 or easier.
- 166 words a minute: natural, fairly fast speech.
- 272 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.
Try it: tap any word
Real sentences from the start of this episode. Every word is marked with its level.
.
Income inequality, entitlements, housing costs,
Tap a word to see its meaning in your language.
Do you know these words?
8 harder words from this episode. Tap one to see what it means, then mark it.
Mark a few words and we'll tell you how this episode fits your level.
Is this episode right for you?
B2 · Upper-intermediate
Comfortable if you already follow TV news
- 76% of the words are B1 or easier.
- 166 words a minute: natural, fairly fast speech.
- 272 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.
Transcript
The opening of the episode. The whole transcript is in the player.
harder words (B2+)
Support for the show comes from USA Facts. Income inequality, entitlements, housing costs, want to really see what the government is up to, what it costs and who's benefiting?
Check out a debate on the American dream between yours truly and conservative Ben Shapiro. It's not your typical sound bites from boring politicians reading talking points.
The debate is framed by an informative set of government facts from USA Facts, and then Ben and I get into it. There are sharp differences, some common ground,
That was the opening. The rest of the episode (50 min) is in the player: every word clickable, with translation, saved words and flashcards.
Continue in the playerAutomatically generated from the audio. May contain errors. Audio belongs to its publisher and is played from their feed. Rights holders can request removal — copyright & takedown policy