The Second Mountain
The Quest for a Moral Life
by David Brooks · first published 2019
6mentions
3recommended by
4HN commenters
2019–2026first – last mentioned
75% recommend25% neutral
David Brooks is one of the nation’s leading writers and commentators. He is an op-ed columnist for The New York Times, a writer for The Atlantic, and appears regularly on PBS Newshour. He is the bestselling author of The Second Mountain, The Road to Character, The Social Animal, Bobos in Paradise, and On Paradise Drive. #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Everybody tells you to live for a cause larger than yourself, but how exactly do you do it? The author of The Road to Character explores what it takes to lead a meaningful life in a self-centered world. Every so often, you me
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Just picked up a book called "The Second Mountain" by David Brooks. It's a shot in the dark but may actually help with the struggling you are having with your next opportunity. I'm 13 years in my job (same company!) and feel exactly the same as you.…
on “Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World” ↗…from any obligations or commitments, outside what you want for the aesthetic life of your choosing.* But it doesn't seem like it would be the type of existence many people envy. * David Brooks book "The Second Mountain" does a good job explaining the downsides of this approach.
on “Stripe laying off around 14% of workforce” ↗David Brooks has a good book called “The Second Mountain” where he details the shift of priorities later in one’s life. The “first mountain” is what this guy achieved, monumental material success and freedom in pursuit of the “aesthetic life” that is overly…
on “I am rich and have no idea what to do” ↗…other industries and geographies while making use of the skills you have today. I'm sure many people would want to hire you or work with you. You might appreciate this book, too: https://www.amazon.ca/Second-Mountain-David-Brooks/dp/081299...
on “Ask HN: Semi lucrative careers after tech?” ↗If you like Rilke, you'd also really like James Hollis' The Middle Passage (1993). As for as books from the past decade go David Brooks' The Road to Character was pretty good. His follow-up The Second Mountain would have been better if he didn't recycle so much from the previous work. Sam Harris' Waking Up was pretty eye opening as Harris is a very lucid thinker.
on “Ask HN: Best books you read in the past decade?” ↗>I see the second half of my life now as predominantly about “service”. David Brooks articulates this sentiment well in his book “The Second Mountain.”
on “Obituary for a quiet life (2023)” ↗