What if, instead of looking for quick fixes or life hacks, we asked: what does it take to live a fulfilling life?Like so many people, trusted physician Dr. Vivek Murthy grapples with what it means to live well. As U.S. Surgeon General, <a href="https://vivekmurthy.com/">Dr. Vivek Murthy</a> started a groundbreaking public conversation around loneliness and the importance of connection. Now, he’s inviting listeners to join him as he explores what makes life meaningful, even when that means going against the grain. Through warm, provocative conversations with people from all walks of life, Dr. Murthy takes on topics that profoundly affect our health and well-being, but that most people don’t really talk about, let alone with a doctor: What if we redefined success not in terms of money or status but in terms of meaning? How do we find our sense of purpose? Can we center our lives around connection and community? Can technology help us be more human instead of taking away from our humanity?In a world that can feel harsh and isolating, <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">Staying Human</a> is a show about finding better, more human ways to live, together.Substack <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">vivekmurthy.substack.com/</a>IG <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drvivekmurthy/">@drvivekmurthy</a>

How many of us have felt the deep need to belong, but weren’t sure where to start? In this episode, recorded live at WBUR in Boston, Vivek sits down with the Harvard professor, author, and friend for a wide-ranging conversation on building community. Robert Putnam saw America's social fracturing coming decades before anyone else did. His book, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, put a name to the collapse of community life in the U.S, tracking the disappearance of the bowling leagues, church groups, and civic clubs that used to hold neighborhoods together. More recently, his ideas have reached a new generation through Join or Die, a documentary that has screened hundreds of times in communities across the country.Putnam traces his own lifelong preoccupation with connection back to a lonely childhood in Port Clinton, Ohio, and a mother who refused to let it stay that way. He unpacks “social capital” — what it is, and why it matters for both our health and our democracy. Bob also offers wisdom and hope from the last time America clawed its way back from a time of strikingly similar isolation, inequality, and division during the Progressive Era. From that history, he shares three lessons for us all today today, as we seek to build more connection in our lives. Putnam also opens up about his wife Rosemary, one of the most talented “social capitalists” he knows, and reflects on what he holds onto — quite literally, in old photographs — when he needs to remember what matters most.Join Or Die Documentary: https://joinordiefilm.com/Bob Putnam: http://robertdputnam.com/ ---IG <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drvivekmurthy/">@drvivekmurthy</a>Substack <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">vivekmurthy.substack.com/</a>More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy <a href="https://www.vivekmurthy.com">https://www.vivekmurthy.com</a>#StayingHuman #RobertPutnam #BowlingAlone #JoinOrDie #VivekMurthy #Community #Loneliness #Civics #Duty #Democracy #AmericanLife

How many of us have felt the deep need to belong, but weren’t sure where to start? 
In this episode, recorded live at WBUR in Boston, Vivek sits down with the Harvard professor, author, and friend for a wide-ranging conversation on building community. Robert Putnam saw America's social fracturing coming decades before anyone else did. His book, Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, put a name to the collapse of community life in the U.S, tracking the disappearance of the bowling leagues, church groups, and civic clubs that used to hold neighborhoods together. More recently, his ideas have reached a new generation through Join or Die, a documentary that has screened hundreds of times in communities across the country.
Putnam traces his own lifelong preoccupation with connection back to a lonely childhood in Port Clinton, Ohio, and a mother who refused to let it stay that way. He unpacks “social capital” — what it is, and why it matters for both our health and our democracy. Bob also offers wisdom and hope from the last time America clawed its way back from a time of strikingly similar isolation, inequality, and division during the Progressive Era. From that history, he shares three lessons for us all today today, as we seek to build more connection in our lives. 
Putnam also opens up about his wife Rosemary, one of the most talented “social capitalists” he knows, and reflects on what he holds onto — quite literally, in old photographs — when he needs to remember what matters most.
Join Or Die Documentary: https://joinordiefilm.com/
Bob Putnam: http://robertdputnam.com/


---
IG @drvivekmurthy
Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com
#StayingHuman #RobertPutnam #BowlingAlone #JoinOrDie #VivekMurthy #Community #Loneliness #Civics #Duty #Democracy #AmericanLife

Robert Putnam draws from his 85 years of experience and offers wisdom on how to build community

Robert Putnam: What Does It Mean To Be a Social Capitalist? (and how does it affect our health?)

Ten years ago, Vivek and Maya Shankar met in a meeting at the White House; he still doesn't remember what the meeting was about, but he remembers being struck by her brilliance, and even more by her warmth. They stayed in touch, became close friends, and now, a decade later, Maya has traded her work as a cognitive scientist and White House advisor for a new mission: helping people understand why change is so hard, and how to come out the other side whole. She's the host of the hit podcast A Slight Change of Plans and the author of the instant New York Times bestseller The Other Side of Change.In this conversation, Vivek and Maya talk about why uncertainty can feel worse than bad news itself, and why anchoring our identity in our "why" rather than our "what" can carry us through loss and reinvention. They dig into the mental spirals we all fall into — and the small shifts in perspective that can break them — plus the crucial difference between guilt and shame, and why community and service are often the surest way out of both. Maya also shares deeply personal stories from her own life, including experiences she writes about for the first time in her book, and what she's come to believe change reveals about who we really are.It's a conversation about the hardest parts of being human: uncertainty, identity, rumination, and shame. It’s also about the quiet, durable hope that even unwanted change can show us who we're capable of becoming..   .   .Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at <a href="mailto:hello@stayinghuman.us">hello@stayinghuman.us</a>, on our <a href="http://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">Substack</a>, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN.IG <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drvivekmurthy/">@drvivekmurthy</a>Substack <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">vivekmurthy.substack.com/</a>More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy <a href="https://www.vivekmurthy.com">https://www.vivekmurthy.com</a>

Ten years ago, Vivek and Maya Shankar met in a meeting at the White House; he still doesn't remember what the meeting was about, but he remembers being struck by her brilliance, and even more by her warmth. They stayed in touch, became close friends, and now, a decade later, Maya has traded her work as a cognitive scientist and White House advisor for a new mission: helping people understand why change is so hard, and how to come out the other side whole. She's the host of the hit podcast A Slight Change of Plans and the author of the instant New York Times bestseller The Other Side of Change.
In this conversation, Vivek and Maya talk about why uncertainty can feel worse than bad news itself, and why anchoring our identity in our "why" rather than our "what" can carry us through loss and reinvention. They dig into the mental spirals we all fall into — and the small shifts in perspective that can break them — plus the crucial difference between guilt and shame, and why community and service are often the surest way out of both. Maya also shares deeply personal stories from her own life, including experiences she writes about for the first time in her book, and what she's come to believe change reveals about who we really are.
It's a conversation about the hardest parts of being human: uncertainty, identity, rumination, and shame. It’s also about the quiet, durable hope that even unwanted change can show us who we're capable of becoming.
.   .   .
Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN.
IG @drvivekmurthy
Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com

The cognitive scientist and bestselling author on why change is so disorienting — and who we become on the other side of it.

Maya Shankar: What Happens When Life Changes Our Plans?

What makes a good life? Is it accomplishment and wealth? Meaning and purpose? Relationships?This is the question Dr. Robert Waldinger, a Harvard psychiatrist, has spent decades exploring as the fourth director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development – the world's longest-running study of adult life and happiness – following hundreds of people since 1938 and still running today. Robert is co-author, with Marc Schulz, of bestselling book The Good Life. He is also a Zen Buddhist priest whose spiritual journey has shaped how he thinks about thriving.In this episode, Vivek and Robert talk about what the data reveal about happiness (spoiler alert: it has little to do with achievement or status). They discuss "social fitness" and the need to tend to relationships the way we tend to our physical health, along with surprising insights about marriage and loneliness, and why attention is "the most basic form of love."Robert also shares how his Zen practice has helped him hold onto hope without looking away from the world's hardest problems. And what medicine could learn from all of this about caring for patients, and for each other.If you're wondering what the research says about a good life, this episode is for you.

What makes a good life? Is it accomplishment and wealth? Meaning and purpose? Relationships?
This is the question Dr. Robert Waldinger, a Harvard psychiatrist, has spent decades exploring as the fourth director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development – the world's longest-running study of adult life and happiness – following hundreds of people since 1938 and still running today. Robert is co-author, with Marc Schulz, of bestselling book The Good Life. He is also a Zen Buddhist priest whose spiritual journey has shaped how he thinks about thriving.
In this episode, Vivek and Robert talk about what the data reveal about happiness (spoiler alert: it has little to do with achievement or status). They discuss "social fitness" and the need to tend to relationships the way we tend to our physical health, along with surprising insights about marriage and loneliness, and why attention is "the most basic form of love."
Robert also shares how his Zen practice has helped him hold onto hope without looking away from the world's hardest problems. And what medicine could learn from all of this about caring for patients, and for each other.
If you're wondering what the research says about a good life, this episode is for you.

The Harvard doctor behind the world's longest-running study on adult development, and what makes life good.

Dr. Robert Waldinger: What does 85 years of research reveal about a Good Life?

A lot of us move through our days on autopilot, heads down, just clearing the to-do list. And somewhere in there, we stop noticing the small signals that tell us we matter. We stop sending them, too. In this episode, Dr. Vivek Murthy sits down with journalist Jennifer Wallace, author of MATTERING: The Secret to a Life of Deep Connection and Purpose. They get into why so many people feel invisible right now, how a culture built on individual success can leave us feeling more hollow than whole, and why the men who wrote to Jennie kept reaching for the same two words: useless and worthless. It's also a personal conversation. Vivek opens up about feeling like a void would open whenever he left the hospital during residency. Jennie traces her own sense of mattering back to a church pew and a Spanish teacher who matched her with a struggling classmate. They talk about parenting, AI and what happens to our sense of purpose when work changes, and the small, almost mundane acts that remind us we're not alone. If you've ever wondered whether your presence makes any difference in the world, this one's for you. . . .  Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN.  IG @drvivekmurthy Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/ More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com #stayinghuman  #VivekMurthy #JenniferWallace #mattering #selfworth  #mentalhealth  #mensmentalhealth  #Loneliness #parenting  #HumanConnection #purpose  #wellbeing  #artificialintelligence  #values  #podcast

A lot of us move through our days on autopilot, heads down, just clearing the to-do list. And somewhere in there, we stop noticing the small signals that tell us we matter. We stop sending them, too.
In this episode, Dr. Vivek Murthy sits down with journalist Jennifer Wallace, author of MATTERING: The Secret to a Life of Deep Connection and Purpose. They get into why so many people feel invisible right now, how a culture built on individual success can leave us feeling more hollow than whole, and why the men who wrote to Jennie kept reaching for the same two words: useless and worthless.
It's also a personal conversation. Vivek opens up about feeling like a void would open whenever he left the hospital during residency. Jennie traces her own sense of mattering back to a church pew and a Spanish teacher who matched her with a struggling classmate. They talk about parenting, AI and what happens to our sense of purpose when work changes, and the small, almost mundane acts that remind us we're not alone.
If you've ever wondered whether your presence makes any difference in the world, this one's for you.
. . . 
Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN. 
IG @drvivekmurthy
Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com
#stayinghuman  #VivekMurthy #JenniferWallace #mattering #selfworth  #mentalhealth  #mensmentalhealth  #Loneliness #parenting  #HumanConnection #purpose  #wellbeing  #artificialintelligence  #values  #podcast

Journalist and author Jennifer Wallace joins host Vivek Murthy to discuss the quiet crisis hiding in plain sight.

Jennifer Wallace: Why Don’t We Feel Like We Matter?

Are we paying too much attention to how long we live, and too little to how well we live?For most doctors, the goal is to help patients live as long as possible. But more time and more life aren’t always the same things. In this episode, host Dr. Vivek Murthy and guest Dr. Atul Gawande, surgeon and author of the landmark book Being Mortal, discuss a question neither of them were trained as doctors: for a patient, what makes life worth living?This conversation is part interview, part friendship, and part shared reckoning with what makes a life worth living. Atul reflects on how Being Mortal reshaped his own understanding of what it means to be a good doctor, and why the most important skill in medicine may be the simple act of asking patients what they actually want from life.Along the way, Vivek and Atul get personal, sharing what it means caring for aging parents, the guilt that comes with it, and the loss of Atul's mother and Vivek's grandmother. They talk about belonging, the future of AI in medicine and the risk of human connection becoming a luxury, and the surprising things that make life meaningful — from chocolate ice cream and football to remembering the score in a ping pong game.This episode is a conversation about what dying can teach us about living, and the questions worth asking the people we love before it's too late.. . . Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at <a href="mailto:hello@stayinghuman.us">hello@stayinghuman.us</a>, on our <a href="http://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">Substack</a>, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN. IG <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drvivekmurthy/">@drvivekmurthy</a>Substack <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">vivekmurthy.substack.com/</a>More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy <a href="https://www.vivekmurthy.com">https://www.vivekmurthy.com</a>

Are we paying too much attention to how long we live, and too little to how well we live?
For most doctors, the goal is to help patients live as long as possible. But more time and more life aren’t always the same things. In this episode, host Dr. Vivek Murthy and guest Dr. Atul Gawande, surgeon and author of the landmark book Being Mortal, discuss a question neither of them were trained as doctors: for a patient, what makes life worth living?
This conversation is part interview, part friendship, and part shared reckoning with what makes a life worth living. Atul reflects on how Being Mortal reshaped his own understanding of what it means to be a good doctor, and why the most important skill in medicine may be the simple act of asking patients what they actually want from life.
Along the way, Vivek and Atul get personal, sharing what it means caring for aging parents, the guilt that comes with it, and the loss of Atul's mother and Vivek's grandmother. They talk about belonging, the future of AI in medicine and the risk of human connection becoming a luxury, and the surprising things that make life meaningful — from chocolate ice cream and football to remembering the score in a ping pong game.
This episode is a conversation about what dying can teach us about living, and the questions worth asking the people we love before it's too late.
. . . 
Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN. 
IG @drvivekmurthy
Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com

A conversation about mortality, meaning, and what makes life worth living.

Atul Gawande: What Does Death Teach Us About How To Live?

We’re living in an era where division often feels like the status quo, and it's affecting us on a personal level. A 2025 study from the American Psychological Association found 62% of adults say polarization is a significant source of stress in their lives. How can we bring people together, especially across divides, whether they’re a friend, neighbor, stranger, or family member? How do we build bridges while staying true to our values?  <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/david-french">David French</a> is a columnist for the New York Times who often writes about the beauty and challenges of living in community. His most recent book is called Divided We Fall: America’s Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation. David is also a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Iraq War. In this conversation we explore how we can forge connections to people who we don’t always agree with —and why this is so important not only to our democracy, but to our well-being.  Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at <a href="mailto:hello@stayinghuman.us">hello@stayinghuman.us</a>, on our <a href="http://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">Substack</a>, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN. IG <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drvivekmurthy/">@drvivekmurthy</a>Substack <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">vivekmurthy.substack.com/</a>More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy <a href="https://www.vivekmurthy.com">https://www.vivekmurthy.com</a>

We’re living in an era where division often feels like the status quo, and it's affecting us on a personal level. A 2025 study from the American Psychological Association found 62% of adults say polarization is a significant source of stress in their lives.


How can we bring people together, especially across divides, whether they’re a friend, neighbor, stranger, or family member? How do we build bridges while staying true to our values? 


David French is a columnist for the New York Times who often writes about the beauty and challenges of living in community. His most recent book is called Divided We Fall: America’s Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation. David is also a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Iraq War.


In this conversation we explore how we can forge connections to people who we don’t always agree with —and why this is so important not only to our democracy, but to our well-being. 


Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN. 
IG @drvivekmurthy
Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com

Why more and more people are struggling to connect—and how we can change that

David French: How Can We Come Together Across Divides?

What does it mean to feel joy amid moments of real difficulty and even sorrow? Not in the sense of being falsely upbeat or pretending that everything’s ok—but as a way to sit with and honor what’s going on in our lives. <a href="https://katebowler.com/">Kate Bowler</a> is a bestselling author known for her writing about loss, grief, and hope. She’s also a professor at Duke University who studies the history of religion, and host of the podcast <a href="https://katebowler.com/podcasts/">Everything Happens.</a> Her latest book is called <a href="https://katebowler.substack.com/p/joyful-anyway">Joyful, Anyway.</a> In this conversation we explore how joy is very different from positivity or happiness, and how it can co-exist with struggle. We also get into how constantly seeking to optimize our lives can actually hold us back.  Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at <a href="mailto:hello@stayinghuman.us">hello@stayinghuman.us</a>, on our <a href="http://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">Substack</a>, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN. IG <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drvivekmurthy/">@drvivekmurthy</a>Substack <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">vivekmurthy.substack.com/</a>More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy <a href="https://www.vivekmurthy.com/">https://www.vivekmurthy.com</a>

What does it mean to feel joy amid moments of real difficulty and even sorrow? Not in the sense of being falsely upbeat or pretending that everything’s ok—but as a way to sit with and honor what’s going on in our lives.


Kate Bowler is a bestselling author known for her writing about loss, grief, and hope. She’s also a professor at Duke University who studies the history of religion, and host of the podcast Everything Happens. Her latest book is called Joyful, Anyway.


In this conversation we explore how joy is very different from positivity or happiness, and how it can co-exist with struggle. We also get into how constantly seeking to optimize our lives can actually hold us back. 


Every episode offers a reflection question inspired by the conversation. Share your thoughts and ideas with us at hello@stayinghuman.us, on our Substack, or leave us a message at 1-833-74-HUMAN. 
IG @drvivekmurthy
Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
More about your host, Dr. Vivek Murthy https://www.vivekmurthy.com

A conversation about how to stay open to the possibility of joy

Kate Bowler: Is Joy Possible When Things Are Difficult?

What if, instead of looking for quick fixes or life hacks, we asked: what does it take to live a truly fulfilling life? Join <a href="https://vivekmurthy.com/">Dr. Vivek Murthy, </a>19th and 21st U.S. Surgeon General as he explores what it means to stay human though interviews with people from all walks of life. Substack <a href="https://vivekmurthy.substack.com/">vivekmurthy.substack.com/</a>IG <a href="https://www.instagram.com/drvivekmurthy/">@drvivekmurthy</a>

What if, instead of looking for quick fixes or life hacks, we asked: what does it take to live a truly fulfilling life? Join Dr. Vivek Murthy, 19th and 21st U.S. Surgeon General as he explores what it means to stay human though interviews with people from all walks of life. 
Substack vivekmurthy.substack.com/
IG @drvivekmurthy