If there was ever a year that had us asking those overarching, existential questions at an accelerated rate, it was 2020. But over the past 20 years, the answers to those questions have seemingly become more complicated. As the paradigm of modern society shifts rapidly with the introduction of technology and new ideas, life here in the Western Hemisphere feels, in a way, simplified, compared to what our ancestors dealt with. So much so that ways of finding purpose, work life balance, and examining the rise of mental health awareness in this more ‘ simplified life’ is again newly explored territory. Our guest today, Clay Routledge, is just one of the many doing that exploring.   Dr. Clay Routledge is a psychological scientist, writer, consultant, public speaker, and professor. He studies basic psychological needs and how these needs influence and are influenced by family, social and community bonds, economics, work, and broader cultural worldviews. Much of his research focuses on the need for meaning in life. Dr. Routledge is a Professor of Management for the Challey Institute for Global Innovation and Growth and the Department of Management and Marketing at North Dakota State University, is senior research fellow at Archbridge Institute, nonresident scholar at Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion, and faculty affiliate at the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard’s Institute for Quantitative Social Science. He lives in Fargo, North Dakota with his wife.