How to Be a Better Human
TED
How To Be A Better Human isn’t your average self improvement podcast. Each week join Chris Duffy in conversation with guests and past speakers as they uncover sharp insights and give clear takeaways on how YOU can be a better human. From your work to your home and your head to your heart, How To Be a Better Human looks in unexpected places for new ways to improve and show up for one another. Inspired by the popular series of the same name on TED’s Ideas blog, How to Be a Better Human will help you become a better person from the comfort of your own headphones.Follow Chris on Instagram and TikTok at @chrisiduffy. Buy his book Humor Me at https://t.ted.com/ZGuYfcL Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books
55 snips
Mar 23, 2026 • 39min
How to understand your own consciousness (w/ Michael Pollan)
Michael Pollan, journalist and author who explores food, plants, and consciousness, joins to probe what consciousness really is. He discusses psychedelics and animist thinking, plant sentience and time-scale perception, the paradox of selfhood and rumination, and practical ways to notice consciousness like lantern attention and tolerating boredom.
28 snips
Mar 16, 2026 • 41min
How to find your purpose (w/ Yara Shahidi)
Yara Shahidi, actor and Harvard grad who co-created The Optimist Project, talks about practicing active optimism and why conversation and history sustain hope. She explains her 'Hard Yes' list, how to find your 'highest order' when choices get risky, and why studying deeply helps you speak responsibly. She also celebrates curiosity, eclectic interests, and being okay with being bad at things.
30 snips
Mar 9, 2026 • 39min
How to understand money stuff (w/ Matt Levine)
Matt Levine, Bloomberg Money Stuff columnist who explains finance with wit. He unpacks commodity trading, futures, and how abstract prices link to real goods. They talk about what money really is, how AI might reshape wealth, crypto’s replay of old banking problems, and why humor helps make complex finance clear and entertaining.
57 snips
Mar 2, 2026 • 43min
Your job or your sanity? How to not lose both (w/ Guy Winch)
Guy Winch, clinical psychologist and author of Mind Over Grind, returns to tackle work-related stress and burnout. He discusses why awareness has not curbed rising burnout. He explains how harsh labels and rumination worsen stress, how to reframe problems as solvable challenges, and practical steps to protect downtime and prevent overworking.
7 snips
Feb 23, 2026 • 38min
How to be a caregiver (w/ Courtney Martin)
Courtney Martin, writer who reports on care systems and shares personal caregiving experience, reflects on caring for family through dementia. She explores how dementia reshapes presence and identity. She explains her solutions-journalism approach to care reform. She offers practical ideas for accepting help, making care sustainable, and meaningful ways to support caregivers.
86 snips
Feb 16, 2026 • 37min
How to make (and keep) friends | from A Slight Change of Plans
Dr. Marisa Franco, psychologist and author of Platonic who studies the science of friendship. She talks about how friendships expand identity and boost health. She explains making adult friends intentionally, the mere-exposure effect and the liking gap. She covers mutuality, how conflict can strengthen bonds, navigating life changes, and kindly ending friendships.
57 snips
Feb 9, 2026 • 38min
How to find true love (w/ Francesca Hogi)
Francesca Hogi, love coach and author who helps people examine romantic patterns and build self-worth. She discusses love as a lifelong skill, why inner beliefs shape dating outcomes, prioritizing how you are treated over checklists, and embracing authenticity to attract the right partners.
55 snips
Feb 2, 2026 • 39min
How to confront your inner critic (w/ Anu Gupta)
Anu Gupta, author and educator who helps people reduce bias and deepen inner resilience, shares mindfulness-based methods for addressing the judgmental voice. He tells personal stories of trauma and healing. He outlines practical tools like PRISM, links bias to ecology and culture, and talks about building loving, pro-social practices to shift society.
61 snips
Jan 26, 2026 • 44min
How to make social risks pay off (w/ Ben Swire)
Ben Swire, designer, founder of Make Believe Works and author of Safe Danger, leads workshops on creative risk and team connection. He explains the idea of safe danger and why shallow icebreakers fail. He shares practical activities to build trust, design culture rituals, use humor and curiosity, and practice vulnerability to make social risk useful.
61 snips
Jan 19, 2026 • 47min
What it means to truly pay attention (w/ Kevin Townley)
Kevin Townley, a meditation teacher and comedian, shares his unique blend of art and Buddhist wisdom. He discusses how humor can make museums more accessible and help people feel a sense of belonging. Townley reveals the importance of looking beyond quick judgments, illustrating how longer observations lead to deeper understanding of artwork. He connects creative processes to spiritual growth and emphasizes the significance of patience in finding inspiration, all while reminding us to find humor in daily life.
