Why We Don't Truly Want to be Nice episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 21, 2026 · 8 MIN

Why We Don't Truly Want to be Nice

from The School of Life · host tscol

Being ‘nice’ sounds a bit eerie and strange. It shouldn’t really. Enjoying our Youtube videos? Get full access to all our audio content, videos, and thousands of thought-provoking articles, conversation cards and more with The School of Life Subscription: https://t.ly/0M4b7 Be more mindful, present and inspired. Get the best of The School of Life delivered straight to your inbox: https://t.ly/fR90y FURTHER READING “Setting out to try to become a nicer person sounds like a deeply colourless and dispiriting ambition. In theory, we love niceness of course, but in practice, there appears to be something embarrassingly anodyne, meek, tedious and even sexless about the concept. A nice person sounds like something we would try to be only once every other more arduous and more rewarding alternative had failed...” You can read more on this here: https://goo.gl/AH3mv1 MORE SCHOOL OF LIFE Watch more films on Self in our playlist: http://bit.ly/TSOLself Do you speak a different language to English? Did you know you can submit Subtitles on all of our videos on YouTube? For instructions how to do this click here: https://goo.gl/4upNd5 SOCIAL MEDIA Feel free to follow us at the links below: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theschooloflifelondon/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheSchoolOfLife Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theschooloflifelondon/ CREDITS Produced in collaboration with: Mad Adam Films http://madadamfilms.co.uk/ Feature Films: The Truman Show (1998) Barely Lethal (2015) Bridget Jones' Diary (2001) Monsters Inc (2001) 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) Trainwreck (2015) The Life of Brian (1979) Muppets' Christmas Carol (1992) It's a Wonderful Life (1946) The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) Wuthering Heights (2010) Starter for 10 (2006) Jane Eyre (2011) American Honey (2016) A Room With a View (1985) The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) The Social Network (2010) Office Space (1999) Dr. No (1962) The Duke of Burgundy (2014) Fargo (1996) Alfie (1966) 50 Shades of Grey (2015) Honeytrap (2014) Brave (2012) About a Boy (2002) Conan the Barbarian (1982) The Breakfast Club (1986) Paddington (2015) TV Series': Friends The Simpsons Luther The American Office Mad Men #TheSchoolOfLife ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Being ‘nice’ sounds a bit eerie and strange. It shouldn’t really. Enjoying our Youtube videos? Get full access to all our audio content, videos, and thousands of thought-provoking articles, conversation cards and more with The School of Life Subscription: https://t.ly/0M4b7 Be more mindful, present and inspired. Get the best of The School of Life delivered straight to your inbox: https://t.ly/fR90y FURTHER READING “Setting out to try to become a nicer person sounds like a deeply colourless and dispiriting ambition. In theory, we love niceness of course, but in practice, there appears to be something embarrassingly anodyne, meek, tedious and even sexless about the concept. A nice person sounds like something we would try to be only once every other more arduous and more rewarding alternative had failed...” You can read more on this here: https://goo.gl/AH3mv1 MORE SCHOOL OF LIFE Watch more films on Self in our playlist: http://bit.ly/TSOLself Do you speak a different language to English? Did you know you can submit Subtitles on all of our videos on YouTube? For instructions how to do this click here: https://goo.gl/4upNd5 SOCIAL MEDIA Feel free to follow us at the links below: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theschooloflifelondon/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheSchoolOfLife Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theschooloflifelondon/ CREDITS Produced in collaboration with: Mad Adam Films http://madadamfilms.co.uk/ Feature Films: The Truman Show (1998) Barely Lethal (2015) Bridget Jones' Diary (2001) Monsters Inc (2001) 10 Things I Hate About You (1999) Trainwreck (2015) The Life of Brian (1979) Muppets' Christmas Carol (1992) It's a Wonderful Life (1946) The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) Wuthering Heights (2010) Starter for 10 (2006) Jane Eyre (2011) American Honey (2016) A Room With a View (1985) The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) The Social Network (2010) Office Space (1999) Dr. No (1962) The Duke of Burgundy (2014) Fargo (1996) Alfie (1966) 50 Shades of Grey (2015) Honeytrap (2014) Brave (2012) About a Boy (2002) Conan the Barbarian (1982) The Breakfast Club (1986) Paddington (2015) TV Series': Friends The Simpsons Luther The American Office Mad Men #TheSchoolOfLife ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Why We Don't Truly Want to be Nice

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This episode was published on June 21, 2026.

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Being ‘nice’ sounds a bit eerie and strange. It shouldn’t really. Enjoying our Youtube videos? Get full access to all our audio content, videos, and thousands of thought-provoking articles, conversation cards and more with The School of Life...

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