Oliver Burkeman

Oliver Burkeman is a British journalist and author. He was born in Liverpool, went to school in York, and studied social and political sciences at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he edited the student paper Varsity. He joined The Guardian and reported from London, Washington and New York. From 2006 to 2020 he wrote its weekly psychology column, "This Column Will Change Your Life", which tested self-help ideas.

His books question the promises of the self-help industry. The Antidote (2012) argues that the effort to think positively often makes people less happy. Four Thousand Weeks (2021) takes its title from the length of an average human life. It argues that productivity methods cannot help us do everything, because our time is finite. Instead, we must choose what to neglect, accept our limits, and give our attention to the few things that matter. Meditations for Mortals (2024) turns these ideas into four weeks of short daily readings.

He now writes a newsletter, The Imperfectionist.