We discuss several suggestions to help start a conversation with someone who wants to delay any discussion. We also share a suggestion from a listener about an unconventional approach to a book group, and we talk to Rohan Gunatillake, host of the podcast Meditative Story, about how to use technology more mindfully. You can learn more and listen to Meditative Story here: https://listen.meditativestory.com/happier Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on Yo...
Jan 17, 2024•42 min•Ep. 465
Growing up, I thought I disliked exercise. When I realized that, in fact, I don’t like games or sports, I was able to find ways to exercise that worked for me. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprising path ...
Jan 15, 2024•5 min
We talk about the one-minute rule, and why following this simple rule is so effective. We discuss the fascinating new “Habits for Happiness” quiz that tells you the next new habit that will make you happier. Also, we explore the question of “Who or what makes you feel more calm?” and share listeners’ insightful and hilarious examples of “X is the new Y.” Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram ...
Jan 10, 2024•31 min•Ep. 464
While ordering her soup, a woman was being a very difficult customer. When she was able to laugh at herself, she transformed the experience for the people around her. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprisin...
Jan 08, 2024•4 min
We talk about the Kansas City-related story of Taylor Swift’s romance with Travis Kelce, discuss plans for revisiting a “happiness project” this year, and come up with ideas for maintaining the habit of hiking. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest New York Times bestselling book Life in Fi...
Jan 06, 2024•34 min•Ep. 53
We discuss the third element of the “Happiness Trifecta”: We reveal our “24 for 24” lists of 24 things we each want to accomplish in 2024, and talk about why making this kind of list can boost our happiness. (The other two elements of the Happiness Trifecta? Choose a one-word theme for 2024 and #Write24in24.) Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every we...
Jan 03, 2024•40 min•Ep. 463
I love color, and I love a “koan”--a question, story, or statement that can’t be understood logically. These thirteen color koans explore the mysteries of color. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprising pat...
Jan 01, 2024•6 min
We discuss surprising new research that suggests that being accommodating doesn’t actually make us more likable. We also mention a hack that makes habit- keeping easier, discuss whether or not we’ve kept childhood vows, and debate a listener’s question about how to handle her unusual challenge with her in-laws. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every ...
Dec 27, 2023•31 min•Ep. 462
Tomorrow always seems like it will be easier than today. Even Michelangelo thought so. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprising path to a life of more energy, creativity, luck, and love: by tuning in to the...
Dec 25, 2023•4 min
We talk about the happiness of finishing the first draft of a book and having a child return home. We also present our five-senses portrait of a Kansas City Christmas, and discuss the recent observances in honor of Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s ne...
Dec 23, 2023•25 min•Ep. 52
As part of the Happier Trifecta, we give ourselves and listeners an annual challenge. We reflect on last year’s challenge of “Go outside 23 in ’23,” and we reveal the challenge for 2024 as well as many suggestions for how to make it part of our daily lives. It’s a terrific challenge – plus, for the first time, we’re suggesting two very different ways of approaching it. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Ti...
Dec 20, 2023•35 min•Ep. 461
Should Money Be Used to Buy Fresh Flowers for a Museum? By posing an interesting question—such as “Should money be spent on flowers?”—we can learn about other people’s values. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a ...
Dec 18, 2023•3 min
Listeners—and we--share the most effective and transformative resolutions we’ve made, as well as our suggestions for keeping them. We also talk about the 21 strategies we can use to make or break our habits. (It’s much easier to keep a resolution when we use the strategy that’s right for us.) Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.c...
Dec 13, 2023•33 min•Ep. 460
Every time I refill my MTA Metro card, I’m reminded to ask myself a crucial question. Do I want to spend time or money? Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprising path to a life of more energy, creativity, lu...
Dec 11, 2023•3 min
In honor of the death of Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Gretchen tells behind-the-scenes stories and personal reflections from her clerkship year. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest New York Times bestselling book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprising pat...
Dec 09, 2023•29 min•Ep. 51
Each year, we make a list of things we want to get done in the next twelve months. We review our “23 for 23” lists and report on what we accomplished (or failed to accomplish). We also reflect on what we learned from the items we did and didn’t do in 2023. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get the resources and al...
Dec 06, 2023•35 min•Ep. 459
As a child, I was deeply moved by this story of a child’s wish to do a good deed, and how she fulfilled that wish, despite making many mistakes. As an adult, I’m even more moved by it. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she disc...
Dec 04, 2023•6 min
Next year marks the fifteenth anniversary of Gretchen Rubin’s #1 New York Times bestselling book, The Happiness Project . To celebrate, she’s leading a one-time, one-year course called “The Happiness Project: Revisited.” In this bonus excerpt from the course, Gretchen and Elizabeth explore the lessons Gretchen has learned over the years, talk about her plans to do a new happiness project in 2024, and discuss how other people can do their own happiness projects. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubi...
Dec 02, 2023•12 min
We review the one-word themes we chose for 2023—“Scale” and “Wave”--and discuss how and why those themes influenced the last twelve months. We also reveal the one-word themes we’ve chosen for 2024, and what symbol we’ll use to represent our themes. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get the resources and all links ...
Nov 29, 2023•33 min•Ep. 458
It’s not pleasant to be criticized, but I remind myself, “The only thing worse that getting criticized is not getting criticized.” Criticism shows that someone thinks that work is worthy of correction. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to...
Nov 27, 2023•4 min
Because listeners asked for another “Clear the Decks” episode--where we suggest a list of manageable, one-minute-ish tasks to do while listening--this episode features a “Deck the Halls” lists of quick tasks. Follow along, and by the end of the episode, we’ll all have accomplished a lot. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/sh...
Nov 25, 2023•30 min•Ep. 50
We discuss how and why we might look for pockets of wasted time (and talk about some wasted time we uncovered ourselves.) We also suggest an easy step to lower anticipatory anxiety, a simple hack for avoiding waste, and discuss a listener’s question about how her Upholder son should spend his time. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happier...
Nov 22, 2023•32 min•Ep. 457
In the Alcoholics Anonymous program, two people decided to take turns every day, acting as the sponsor or the one being sponsored. In helping, we are being helped. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprising p...
Nov 20, 2023•4 min
As we do every year, we share a list of suggestions for great holiday gifts. We also discuss a way to figure out what kinds of gifts someone else would want—and how to think of ideas for great gifts to ask for, for yourself. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get the resources and all links related to this episode ...
Nov 15, 2023•33 min•Ep. 456
I’ve made this mistake before, and I just made it again: During a crunch time, I decided, “With the publication of ‘Life in Five Senses,’ I can’t manage to do all these other tasks. They have to wait until afterward.” Now that the book is on the shelves, I’m dealing with a lot of unnecessarily delayed tasks. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show ...
Nov 13, 2023•5 min
We talk about lucky dates (such as 11/11), the “wrong-shoe theory” approach to getting dressed, and a listener’s entertaining plan to celebrate her birthday month by living the life of a character from a Hallmark holiday movie. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest New York Times bestsellin...
Nov 11, 2023•23 min•Ep. 49
In honor of National Diabetes Awareness Month, Elizabeth talks about living with type 1 diabetes: her diagnosis, how she manages day-to-day, pregnancy, changes in technology, how family and friends can help, and more. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft on Instagram @GretchenRubin on TikTok and YouTube Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get the resources and all links related to this episode here: h...
Nov 08, 2023•35 min•Ep. 455
I laughed when I saw that someone appreciates a good dimmer system as much as I do. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surprising path to a life of more energy, creativity, luck, and love: by tuning in to the fi...
Nov 06, 2023•4 min
We talk about the new gift-giving quiz that divides people into four categories depending on the kinds of gifts they prefer to receive: Tried-and-True, Easy-to-Please, Enthusiast, and Connoisseur. We remind ourselves of the very helpful hack to check behind you each time you leave a place. We also share listeners’ many helpful suggestions about how to handle the final days of a family member or friend. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft...
Nov 01, 2023•27 min•Ep. 454
The old story about “The Dog in the Manger” is a reminder that if there’s something we can’t enjoy or make us of, we should back away and let someone else benefit from it. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.com Follow on social media: @GretchenRubin on YouTube @GretchenRubin on TikTok @GretchenRubin on Instagram @GretchenRubin on Threads Get the podcast show notes by email every week: happiercast.com/shownotes Get Gretchen Rubin’s newest book Life in Five Senses to see how she discovered a surp...
Oct 30, 2023•4 min
