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    Back to TED Radio Hour

    TED Radio Hour

    Pursuit of Happiness

    Being happy is a universal human yearning, but this simple goal often eludes us. If we're truly able to attain happiness, then how do we find it?

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    By Guy Raz • Sep 30, 2012 • 1 min read

    Being happy is a universal human yearning, but this simple goal often eludes us. If we're truly able to attain happiness, then how do we find it? Three TED speakers offer some big ideas for achieving happiness.

    Psychologist Barry Schwartz takes aim at a central tenet of western societies: freedom of choice. He says choice has paralyzed rather than freed us, leaving us dissatisfied instead of happy.

    Kathryn Schulz, author of Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error, makes the case for cherishing our worst choices — like her tattoo.

    Tipping Point author Malcolm Gladwell gets inside the food industry's pursuit of the perfect spaghetti sauce — and makes a larger argument about the nature of choice and happiness.

    Learn more or listen again to this week's episode.

    Banner image: Kudryashka/Shutterstock

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      Guy Raz

      Host, 'TED Radio Hour'

      Culture
    Back to TED Radio Hour