Leadership and Happiness (Virtual Course)
Join bestselling author Arthur Brooks for an eight-week virtual journey through the science of human flourishing, giving you practical tools to raise your own well-being and lead others more effectively.
Description
Drawing on his interdisciplinary research on human flourishing, Dr. Arthur Brooks’ course Leadership and Happiness is designed for emerging and current leaders across for-profits, nonprofits, and government. Over eight weeks, students will read and learn the best managerial science, psychology, neuroscience, and ancient philosophy. They will engage in real-time sessions with Dr. Brooks, who will explain this literature for non-experts and show how it is essential knowledge for leaders—and how it can improve work and life for themselves and their employees. Throughout the course, students will learn tactics and strategies to raise their own levels of well-being and life satisfaction. They will also learn how to lead others in ways that increase individual and organizational happiness—both of which are critical for organizational success.
Dates:
- Monday, September 28, 2026
- Monday, October 5, 2026
- Monday, October 19, 2026
- Monday, October 26, 2026
- Monday, November 2, 2026
- Monday, November 9, 2026
- Monday, November 16, 2026
- Monday, November 30, 2026
Times:
10 - 11:30 a.m. CT
Format:
Virtual
Module Topics:
- Module 1: Introduction to Leadership & Happiness (what happiness is, what it isn’t, and how to pursue it well across work and life)
- Module 2: What is Unhappiness? (what unhappiness means, and why leaders are susceptible to it)
- Module 3: Romantic Love (how to understand and sustain long-term romantic love, no matter one’s busy professional life)
- Module 4: Family and Friends (why leaders tend to be lonely, and how to prioritize relationships outside of work)
- Module 5: Finding Life’s Meaning (how to grapple with life’s biggest questions)
- Module 6: Your Calling (how to pursue your professional calling—the idea that I am meant to do this job)
- Module 7: Transcendence (the best ways to transcend yourself, via faith, philosophy, or service to others)
- Module 8: Life’s Protocols (how leaders can tangibly use the science to start their day with energy, end their day with rest, prioritize their relationships, and forgo device addiction)
About Arthur Brooks
Arthur Brooks is one of the world’s leading experts on the science of human happiness, appearing in the media and traveling the world to teach people in private companies, universities, public agencies, and faith communities how they can live happier lives and bring greater well-being to others.
Brooks is a professor at Vanderbilt University and a senior fellow at the Harvard Business School. He is a CBS News contributor, columnist with The Free Press, and host of the weekly podcast "Office Hours with Arthur Brooks."
He is the author of 16 books, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers The Meaning of Your Life: Finding Purpose in an Age of Emptiness, Build the Life You Want (co-authored with Oprah Winfrey), and From Strength to Strength.
For those interested in participating in the three-day, in-person retreat in West Palm Beach from December 7 to 9, please see the Leadership and Happiness (Virtual Course + In-Person Retreat) option.