Moral Ambition

Stop Wasting Your Talent and Start Making a Difference

De: Rutger Bregman, Erica Moore

Narrado por: Boris Hiestand, Rutger Bregman

From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Humankind and Utopia for Realists—“a more politically radical Malcolm Gladwell” (The New York Times)—comes a bold manifesto daring us to harness our talents and transform our idealism into action, all with the goal of making the world a wildly better place.

A career consists of 2,000 workweeks, and how you spend that time is one of the most important decisions of your life. Still, millions of people are stuck in in mind-numbing, pointless, or just plain harmful jobs.

There’s an antidote to this waste of talent, and it’s called moral ambition. Moral ambition is the will to be among the best, but with different measures of success. Not a fancy title, fat salary, or corner office, but a career dedicated to the best solutions to the world's biggest problems— whether that means tackling climate change, making pandemics history or fighting Big Tobacco.

In Moral Ambition, internationally bestselling author Rutger Bregman reveals how our conventional definitions of success are harming us and the planet, and shows how we can shift the focus from personal gain to societal benefit. In the process, he explains, we will join a growing movement of pioneers who are already living out this ethos. They're the builders, the problem-solvers, the doers who have chosen a path less traveled. A guidebook to finding that path for ourselves, Moral Ambition reminds us that the real measure of success lies not in what we accumulate, but in what we contribute, and shows how we, too, can build a legacy that truly matters.

The audiobook edition features an interview between Rutger and his editor, Alexander Littlefield.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2025 Rutger Bregman (P)2025 Little, Brown & Company

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Rutger Bregman’s latest work isn’t merely a book; it’s a call to action for humanity to re-evaluate our paradigms of success and impact in the world. It serves as a stark wake-up call, urging us to truly utilize our talents to create the future we all wish to live in.”—Trevor Noah

“This book is the wakeup call that our world sorely needs. With his signature clarity and conviction, Rutger Bregman boldly and brilliantly challenges us to hold ourselves to higher standards—and do more for others. Moral Ambition is the rare read that might actually help you become a better person.”—Adam Grant, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and Hidden Potential, and host of the podcast Re:Thinking

"Rutger Bregman challenges the reader to use their lives to improve the world. A bracing but ultimately uplifting wake-up call for a culture increasingly drowning in distraction and consumption!"—Cal Newport, New York Times bestselling author of Slow Productivity and Deep Work

“Fresh, lucid, and persuasive, Moral Ambition gives us hope, humor, and guidance at a time when all are in short supply. Bregman’s version of our century is ever so much better than the one around us, and so we should all read, consider, and act.”—Timothy Snyder, #1 New York Times bestselling author of On Tyranny

Galvanizing even amidst the backdrop of how hopeless the world seems

This book was the galvanizing kick my burnout and hopelessness needed. I highly recommend it

Timely

This addresses so many factors I’ve racked in my own ability, frustration and helplessness. Highly recommend for those looking to drive meaningful impact and not just squawk.

Important call to action at a time of tremendous change

We’ve made so much progress as a species in the past thousands of years, yet there’s so much more that’s needed as our god like technologies advance. We all can make a difference and have a moral obligation to take action. 💡

The stories of those that found a simple way to make a higher difference

Inspiring read with lots of ways to take action. No finger wagging—just great stories.

Everything we need to hear

A fantastic essay on what’s possible, why it’s important, and how any of us with the slightest idea that our world needs to be better can get started on sparking that change.

Great stories

Great stories about how morals with a little ambition can snowball into super human powers

Time to take action!

This is a Very inspiring book to seek your moral ambition and get to work.

The answer to the overwhelming feeling of insignificance in the face of the worlds horrors

This book contains dense nourishment on why, how and what can be done about the overwhelming and prolific horrors that face humanity today. The answers to questions I have been asking myself, and solutions to the deep sense of emotional burnout from scrolling through nightmare after nightmare everyday. Do you look back at the actions of the people on the "right side of history" and believe that you would have done the same? If you were alive during the civil rights movement, or during the Holocaust, you would be doing exactly the same things you are doing today. Does that soothe you or mortify you? Read this book for inspiration and answers.

Great history and inspiring ideas

Shines a light on where we stand in history. Our accomplishments. Our challenges. Our threats.

Fantastic!

I’m motivated. Going to schedule a moral ambition meeting with my besties this week. Well written and well researched and very motivating