Looking Back on a Year of Flourishing Friday
This week, I realized that Flourishing Friday is now just over a year old. I published my first newsletter on May 24, 2024. I will admit that I was hesitant to start a newsletter because I already frequently write for a bunch of media outlets and I stay pretty busy running the Archbridge Institute's Human Flourishing Lab. But I decided to give it a go. I reasoned that it would be good to have a space where I could regularly share psychological research, trends, and insights that can help us advance human progress and flourishing.
There is considerable negativity in contemporary discourse about humanity and our future prospects. But I think humans are awesome. I don't mean this in an arrogant way. We shouldn't ignore our flaws or mistakes or be narcissistic about our species, but I do think we need to recognize and seek to build upon our fundamental ability to take ownership of our lives and create positive change. Yes, we can be selfish, cruel, prejudiced, and violent, which contributes to a great deal of human and animal suffering. But we can also be extraordinarily compassionate and selfless, driven by deep concerns for the wellbeing of others, even those we will never meet. We've engaged in many destructive actions but we are also builders. We create and grow families, businesses, social movements, and institutions that make our societies more prosperous and humane.
Flourishing Friday is about highlighting human potential and the psychological capacities that enable us to thrive, along with scientific discoveries that can help us better develop and apply these capabilities. You can access the complete archive at flourishingfriday.blog, where you'll find explorations of nostalgia as a future-oriented experience and underappreciated driver of progress; how a hopeful mindset energizes positive action; meaning in life as a crucial ingredient of individual and societal flourishing; the power of popular culture (movies, music, books, video games, etc.) to uplift our mood and motivate prosocial behavior; how patriotism can be a positive force that brings a diverse population together to solve problems; practical strategies for bridging divides; the existential nature of entrepreneurship; outward action-oriented ways to improve mental health; how negative feelings like life dissatisfaction can be useful; public attitudes on a range of issues relevant to progress; positive psychological, social, and professional trends that receive little media attention; and many other topics.
I know from the research our team conducts at the Human Flourishing Lab, as well as from other surveys and prominent public discourse, that people have many concerns about the state of the nation and the world, and that many are pessimistic about the future. But it is worth remembering that history is full of periods when people faced what seemed like insurmountable challenges such as wars, economic collapses, pandemics, and natural disasters. Yet, humans have managed to push forward, fixing mistakes, making improvements, and advancing progress. We haven't solved all our problems and we sometimes make them worse and create new ones. But the historical record of human achievement provides compelling evidence for our species' remarkable capacity for positive change. Consider the cultural, economic, scientific, and technological advances that have lifted billions out of poverty, dramatically increased life expectancy and reduced suffering, expanded individual liberty and equal opportunity, and created unprecedented possibilities for people to develop their talents and pursue their ambitions.
This newsletter is still pretty small but represents a growing community of readers who share a commitment to evidence-based optimism about human potential and possibility. If these explorations resonate with you, I'd love your help growing its readership. Share specific newsletters that speak to challenges in your field or community. Forward insights that might benefit colleagues working on related problems. Recommend it to people who share this belief that understanding and promoting the human capacity for agentic growth can help us create environments where more people can thrive, and to those who might benefit from a more constructive perspective on human nature and our shared future.
When I first started Flourishing Friday I wasn't sure how long I would keep it going. But after this first year, I remain energized by the opportunity to share research and insights that I believe can help people improve their lives and make a positive difference in the world. I plan to continue this newsletter while also writing for various media outlets and, hopefully, beginning work on my next book. All of this is part of my broader mission to translate psychological science into practical wisdom for human progress and flourishing. The research continues evolving, our understanding deepens, and new challenges constantly emerge, ensuring this work remains both relevant and necessary.
Thank you so much for your interest and support. Have a great weekend!
Clay