REBECCA GOLDSTEIN thinks we are all attention seeking

The podcast explores the concept of "mattering" and its connection to living a well-lived life, featuring philosopher Rebecca Goldstein, author of "The Mattering Instinct." Goldstein connects the idea of mattering to the philosophical concept of entropy, suggesting that a life well-lived resists disorder and embraces values like knowledge, clarity, and kindness. She defines mattering as "deserving of attention" and discusses how humans seek to justify the attention they give themselves, with different people finding different ways to feel like they matter, such as through social connections, work, fame, or religion. The conversation also delves into Goldstein's "mattering map," which categorizes people into transcenders, socializers, heroic strivers, and competitors, based on how they seek to fulfill their need to matter.