- Economics
- Political Philosophy
- Answering Challenges to Advanced Economies
- Understanding the Effects of Technology on Economics and Governance
If you want to change the world, how you spend your 80,000 working hours may be the most important decision you can make. Benjamin Todd, founder of 80,000 Hours, joins EconTalk's Russ Roberts to dismantle the career advice you've been fed since childhood. "Follow your passion" turns out to be a trap. Chasing a big paycheck barely moves the happiness needle. And being a doctor has a smaller impact than you might think, says Todd. Todd and Roberts wrestle with the real ingredients of a fulfilling career—engaging work, supportive colleagues, meaningful problems—while debating whether Jeff Bezos has lived a worthy life and why most people won't part with 10% of their income to save lives abroad. Along the way, you'll meet unsung heroes like David Nalin, whose solution to dehydration saves millions of children's lives.
Listen to the episode here.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Benjamin Todd is the founder of 80,000 Hours, a non-profit that has reached millions of people and helped 3000+ people find careers tackling the world’s most pressing problems. He’s the author of 80,000 Hours: How to Have a Fulfilling Career That Does Good (Penguin May 2026) and writes about how to prepare for advanced AI on Substack. Dissatisfied with the career advice he received at university, Todd began researching the guidance he wished he’d had. Over the next ten years, he grew 80,000 Hours from a student society in Oxford into a non-profit that today reaches 4 million people annually, has over 50 staff, and has raised $30 million of funding. Over 10 million people have read their advice online and over 3,000 have switched to more impactful careers. As CEO for the organization’s first ten years, Ben led strategy, fundraising, and senior management, building an organization with average annual staff retention of 95%, while also writing the Career Guide, Key Ideas series, and over 100 articles. His TEDx talk has been viewed over 6 million times. Today, as president of 80,000 Hours, he writes on Substack about what’s happening with AI and what to do about it and provides strategy consulting to projects aiming to tackle AI risks, including Epoch AI and an AI-focused hedge fund.
