Wisdom: How to Discover Your Path in Work and Life

By: Barry Schwartz

Narrated by: Barry Schwartz

Length: 6 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's Summary

Barry Schwartz is back! The best-selling author of The Paradox of Choice and Why We Work, this eminent psychologist and leadership guru returns to help you tackle the biggest decisions of your life. His life-changing course weaves vivid case examples, research-based psychological insights, and deep wisdom. You’ll find vital takeaways you can use every day. 

In 2004, Schwartz started a movement to help people and organizations flourish by making smarter choices. Since then, millions have experienced the power of his ideas, including more than 25 million who watched his TED Talks. 

Not just another business book, this is a thoughtful audio course delivered by Professor Schwartz himself. With his signature wit, he distills decades of research and dozens of real-world cases into clear frameworks and practical, science-based answers. 

You’ll investigate fundamental questions: How can we find the best career path for ourselves? Why do so many smart leaders fail to create flourishing workplaces? What is wisdom, and how does help make happiness possible? 

Through this masterful course, you will discover that practical wisdom is the key to happiness. Dr. Schwartz goes one step further, suggesting what is true of work is also true of love. Gain the wisdom you need to become a better worker, manager, friend, romantic partner, and parent today.  

©2019 Now You Know Media (P)2019 Now You Know Media

Critic Reviews

"Barry Schwartz is unparalleled in his ability to bring sophisticated and timely research to life, explaining it in a way that is relevant and full of insight. His research has made crucial contributions to how we make decisions, find motivation, and learn from our experiences." (Amy Wrzesniewski, Michael H. Jordan Professor of Management, Yale University)

"Who better than Barry Schwartz, one of the greatest psychologists of our time, to entertain, fascinate, inspire, and teach us? Every person who wants to be wiser, happier, or more successful - and that includes just about all of us - should listen to this audio course." (Sonja Lyubomirsky, Distinguished Professor and Vice Chair of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, and author of The How of Happiness)

"Barry Schwartz is full of wisdom, so I can’t think of a better person to teach a course on it. He’s a brilliant public intellectual with a remarkable gift for challenging us all to think deeper, work smarter, and lead happier, more meaningful lives." (Adam Grant, New York Times best-selling author of Originals and Give and Take, and host of the TED podcast WorkLife)

It Isn’t About Tips; This Is Life

I do not like Personal Development. Really, I hate being told what to do by someone who knows absolutely nothing about my life. Whoever gives you tips does not know anything about what you have been through and most of them do not work anyway.
So Why Am I here? Well, I once listened to a TED talk by Barry Schwartz. This man does not provide me with tips; he gave me a lifestyle. I was 20 when I listened to him and now I am 25 and listening to him again.

When you start listening to this course, you will find that Barry talks about capitalism. Have you ever listened to a personal development coach who starts his speech by talking about capitalism?

I believe that happiness is a dreamy word. Wisdom needs us to be old enough to gain it. We work long hours in a modern slavery world. However, As Barry said, “Nothing in life is as important as you think when you pay attention to it.” Happiness, wisdom, and work are not important. Life itself is what is important; the details can change but life itself remains the same.
In other words, nothings matters; it is only a matter of the choices and decisions we make when we reach a fork in the road.

I wanted this style of personal development. I wanted someone who understands my problems and gives me a path. Someone who is old enough so that I can trust his words. Someone who talks from a scientific point of view. Professor Barry seems to be who I always wanted to tell me about life.

Thank you, Barry, for being one of the best persons I have ever known.

much better than Jordan Peterson's "12 rules"

This is much better than Jordan Peterson's "12 rules": less sententious and patronizing. I may not agree with each single item, but the advice is reasonable here, unlike Peterson who seems to peddle some idealized, politicized version of the 1950s.

Schwartz is Great

I first was exposed to Barry Schwartz's work via his 'Paradox of Choice' TED Talk on Youtube. This lecture series turned out to be even better than the TED Talk, since Barry gets 6 hours to go into the details of his research. Schwartz gives a plethora of examples and advice about how to make better choices in our careers and everyday lives. Highly recommend this one for any one looking to improve, and also for managers who want to get the most out of their employees.

An interesting analysis of how and why we work.

This was an interesting listen. In it Barry Schwartz links such disparate authors and ideas as Aristotle, Adam Smith, and the advent of modern technology such as the cell phone into a cohesive narrative about what moves us, and why we work.

He pulls back the layers of our assumptions inherited from our understandings of democracy and free market economics, to examine how and why we work as well as how that has changed over time. In a world where many are unfulfilled in their jobs/careers, Barry Schwartz offers an interesting take on why we are so unhappy, what makes us happy, and how we can change.

This program balances (balance itself being a key concept in the course) theory and abstract principles with concrete and pragmatic examples that enliven the discussion.

I would recommend this course to most people as most people have a vested interest in their own happiness and fulfillment, both work-related and personal. This program could be important for workers looking for greater satisfaction from life and work, as well as for employers looking to better morale within the workforce.

My first book by Barry Schwartz, very informative

The common sense of not always relying on common sense may be nonsensical. This sounds weird, but it was one of my thoughts while listening to Schwartz.

Wisdom is a tricky thing, but here, it’s explored in a way as to make it less of a mystical knowledge only old people have and more of a sensible way of approaching the world.Highly recommended.

Useful, practical tips for living a better life

The writer-narrator is a well-known American psychologist with several books to his name, and also a widely successful TED talk. In this audiobook he gives his ideas on how to build your own best life, and I think it's a great read (or listen!) for business owners, freelancers and anyone in any kind of management or leadership role. I enjoyed the narrator's nice, calm voice, the friendly feel, and the sense of humor that comes through, without ever being corny. One of the biggest takeaways for me is how we need to think carefully of the rules we create in our businesses and our lives, now that I realize to what extent an overabundance of rules and procedures undermines workers and stifles initiative. Great title.

Wise and helpful

I like that this series is narrated by Prof. Schwartz himself. Schwartz is a leading expert on the psychology of decision making and behavioral economics. He now teaches business students and executives how to flourish, in their own careers and as change agents for their organizations. In this series, he illustrates real insights into human nature with vivid examples and good advice. As the CEO of our company, I don't have much as much time as I'd like for business/leadership books. Must have just a couple good ideas but take a long time to explain them. This is highly organized as a Learn25 lecture course with useful info in each lecture. If anything, Schwartz has more to teach than the course length allows. If I could go back to business school and take one professor, it would be Barry Schwartz - he's that good.

Disappointing

I would not recommend reading this while driving. There's no new or inspiring insites.

A brilliant look at work/life balance

Barry Schwartz has a real knack for translating complex theories into easy-to-digest ideas that you can take into your every day life to make small changes that can lead to large improvements in your happiness.

Good advice for 13 year olds

It's beyond my comprehension that this is a serious book/lecture.

The basic points are:
- the world isn't black and white,
- simple rules don't cover the complexity of real life.
- use your judgement.

To whom is this a new or deep insight?