An Entrepreneurial Good Life

This course invites students to explore one of the most consequential, personal questions in entrepreneurial practice: Can ambition in business coexist with a meaningful, ethical, and flourishing life? Drawing on philosophical traditions, contemporary perspectives on purpose and well-being, and the lived experiences of business leaders across generations, students will examine how entrepreneurial leaders pursue—and struggle to balance—wisdom, well-being, and wealth. Using a historical lens on the entrepreneurial leader’s journey, the course traces shifting understandings of success in business from Boomers to Gen X, Millennials, and now Gen Z, while asking students to situate themselves within these evolving narratives. Through rigorous commitment to truth-seeking pluralism (e.g., Aristotle, Buddhist thought, Confucianism, Christian monastic traditions, Stoicism), first-person engagement in a community of practice, and an entrepreneur's bias toward action, students explore competing visions of a “good life” and their implications for business.