Lucy Kellaway, a former journalist turned teacher, and Stefan Stern, an author exploring ambition's complexities, dive into the contradictions of professional desire. They question if relentless ambition truly leads to happiness and highlight the importance of balancing career aspirations with personal well-being. Kellaway shares insights on the benefits of tempering ambition to enhance life satisfaction, while Stern reflects on how societal pressures shape our understanding of success. Together, they argue that ambition can sometimes be more harmful than helpful.

This weekend, we discuss Industry on HBO with chief features writer Henry Mance. The show is part of a trend: like Succession and Euphoria, it depicts a pretty harsh version of the world we live in. So why do we keep getting sucked in? Then you'll hear a conversation between star psychologist Esther Perel and FT contributing editor Lucy Kellaway from the FT Weekend Festival. They discuss how remote work might change us, whether TikTok is teaching kids to be anxious, and more. Listen wherever you get your podcasts, or at ft.com/ftweekendpodcast.-------Here’s the link to leave us a message for our listener callout: https://sayhi.chat/6gci2What’s a topic people would find boring, but you think we could make interesting on the podcast? Challenge us!-------Want to stay in touch? We love hearing from you. Email us at ftweekendpodcast@ft.com. We’re on Twitter @ftweekendpod, and Lilah is on Instagram and Twitter @lilahrap.-------Links and mentions from the episode:– The entire Esther Perel and Lucy Kellaway conversation is here: https://youtu.be/BjdvwbJyyxo– Henry on Industry Season 1: Has TV finally captured the reality of the City in BBC series Industry? https://on.ft.com/3yn8MPu – Henry writing about being on Industry: https://on.ft.com/3ypgl8n – Lucy Kellaway writes about her conversation with Esther: https://on.ft.com/3ynuGlM  – Esther’s podcasts are called Where Should We Begin? And How’s Work?– Henry is on Twitter @henrymance. Lucy is on Twitter @lucykellaway. Esther is on Instagram and Twitter @estherperelofficial and @estherperel-------Special offers for FT Weekend listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, can be found here: http://ft.com/weekendpodcast-------Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam GiovincoRead a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do we define value? How has this changed over time? And who decides what is deemed valuable? For centuries, society has seen value mainly through an economic lens: one takes a job because of its monetary benefits; marriage is a financially beneficial relationship that enables stability; and the true test of a business is its profit at the end of the year. But is this changing? In recent years, factors such as climate change, social justice and the pandemic have forced us to reconsider how we define value. We are in the era of the Value Revolution.In this episode, recorded on July 5 at Y TREE's second live event in the Futureverse series, three experts discuss and debate some of the most pressing issues that have arisen as a result of this critical turning point: Will private equity transform the financial industry? Can capitalism really adapt so that things other than monetary value are considered important in business, including fairness and environmental impact? And are we finally seeing a growing awareness that value is not always quantified by a price tag? Some things, such as time, health, job satisfaction and the survival of our planet are surely worth more than a number in a bank account.  Simon Brewer, host of the award-winning Money Maze Podcast, gives us his thoughts on the dramatic shifts in the economy over the last few decades. Political economist and author Adrienne Buller argues that businesses that engage in sustainability initiatives and ‘green capitalism’ are harming rather than helping the planet. And Lucy Kellaway, former FT columnist, now charity founder, author and maths and economics teacher, offers a fresh way to decide what to prioritise in our personal and professional lives. Expertly hosted by broadcaster Jon Sopel, this is a conversation that is guaranteed to change the way you think about value and worth.To find out more visit https://www.y-tree.com/futureverse Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices