{"podcast":{"title":"Office Hours with Arthur Brooks","slug":"office-hours-with-arthur-brooks-7443626","podcast_index_feed_id":7443626,"rss_url":"https://anchor.fm/s/107fc00dc/podcast/rss","website_url":"https://arthurbrooks.com/","image_url":"https://d3t3ozftmdmh3i.cloudfront.net/staging/podcast_uploaded_nologo/44189231/44189231-1754764801223-80431bcc2dada.jpg","author":"Arthur Brooks","episode_count":52,"summary":"Hi Friends, I’m Arthur Brooks, a social scientist, professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School, columnist at The Free Press. I write, speak, and teach about the science of human happiness, blending neuroscience, behavioral science, philosophy, and religion for insights on how to live better and be happier. Each week on Office Hours, you’ll get a glimpse into the cutting edge research on happiness, and explore how you can use it to improve your life—and share what you learn with those you love. Join me in the movement to build a happier world–starting with you.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-27T22:17:04.549075+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/office-hours-with-arthur-brooks-7443626"},"episode":{"title":"The Science Behind Being Good at Leisure","slug":"the-science-behind-being-good-at-leisure","published_at":"2026-02-23T12:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/office-hours-with-arthur-brooks-7443626/the-science-behind-being-good-at-leisure","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/office-hours-with-arthur-brooks-7443626","url":"https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/arthurbrooks/episodes/The-Science-Behind-Being-Good-at-Leisure-e3f2npd","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/APO4010046020.mp3","summary":"Not all leisure is created equal—some of it feels good in the moment (pleasure) but leaves you depleted afterward. Other forms of leisure actually restore you (enjoyment). They lift you up, deepen your sense of meaning, and make you more fully alive. The difference matters, and leisure well used is a skill—and it’s one you can cultivate. In this episode of Office Hours , I explore what leisure truly is and why it’s essential to happiness. Drawing on both philosophy and modern behavioral science, I explain why contemplation, art, time in nature, learning, and deep connection with others feed you in ways that passive diversion can’t. The goal is not to squeeze more activity into your life. It’s to live more deliberately, in ways that genuinely support your happiness. And if you’re not sure where you stand, take The Happiness Scale to see whether enjoyment is an area that needs strengthening . — Where to find Arthur Brooks: • Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://arthurbrooks.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • Newsletter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.arthurbrooks.com/newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/arthurbrooks⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/arthurcbrooks/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/ArthurBrooks/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGuyFRjJQFGCKzfHTBvWM6A⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/arthur-c-brooks/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ • Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠officehours@arthurbrooks.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ — Timestamps: (00:00) Intro (06:15) What enjoyment is, and why pleasure falls short (12:37) Pieper’s case for leisure as the basis of culture (15:22) The kind of leisure to avoid (19:22)…","meta_description":"Not all leisure is created equal—some of it feels good in the moment (pleasure) but leaves you depleted afterward. Other forms of leisure actually restore…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3116,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/office-hours-with-arthur-brooks-7443626/episodes/the-science-behind-being-good-at-leisure/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/office-hours-with-arthur-brooks-7443626/the-science-behind-being-good-at-leisure.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}