David Brooks: Should You Live for Your Résumé … Or Your Eulogy?

David Brooks’ short talk at last mon­th’s TED con­fer­ence is quin­tes­sen­tial David Brooks. If you read his col­umn in the Times, you’ll rec­og­nize his themes and con­cerns right away. It’s a bit preachy, sure. But it will get you think­ing, maybe for a few min­utes, about which self is win­ning out in your life — the self who craves suc­cess, builds a great résumé, and almost invari­ably bruis­es oth­ers — fam­i­ly, friends and strangers — along the way. Or the self “who seeks con­nec­tion, com­mu­ni­ty, love — the val­ues that make for a great eulo­gy.” Just a lit­tle food for thought.