“Bonus: Commencement Address Given by Gretchen Rubin: Five Essential Paradoxes for a Happy Life”
In this bonus episode, listen to the commencement address I gave at my daughter’s Eleanor’s high-school graduation. To help the new graduates make sense of their experiences—both what they’ve experien...
15 Juli 202317min
Ep. 438: Act Like a Teenager, Pick Up Your Food in Person, and “Ask Us Anything” About Writing
We talk about how we can boost our happiness by acting like teenagers (the good aspects of being a teenager). We also share a suggestion from a listener about how to cut down on using meal-delivery ap...
12 Juli 202332min
Little Happier: Journalist Connie Chung Influenced a Generation—Without Realizing It
In the New York Times, Connie Wang wrote about why so many families had named their daughters “Connie”: In the journalist Connie Chung, they saw the qualities and opportunities they wanted for their o...
10 Juli 20232min
More Happier: More Strength and Stamina, a New Metaphor for “Empty Nest,” and an Easy Way to Keep a Journal
We talk about why and how we’re redoubling our efforts to work on our strength and stamina. We also try to figure out a better metaphor for the “empty nest,” and talk about a fun, easy way to keep a j...
8 Juli 202319min
Ep. 437: To Make a Good Connection, Talk More; Learn the Lesson of the Enron Corpus; and a Collection of Positive Trends
We talk about the fact that despite the widespread “reticence bias,” research suggests that we appear more likeable and interesting to a stranger when we talk more than half the time. We also discuss ...
5 Juli 202328min
Little Happier: The IKEA Effect, or How We Value Things According to What They Cost Us
As IKEA, instant cake mixes, and meal-kit delivery services demonstrate, we often value things according to how much they cost us—whether that’s in time, money, energy, or imagination.Get in touch: po...
3 Juli 20233min
Ep. 436: We Use Halfway Day to Report on How We’re Doing on Our Aims for 2023: the “Happier Trifecta”
We use Halfway Day as a catalyst to reflect on how we’re doing with our aims for2023. Each year, we choose a one-word theme, make a list of “23 in 2023” thingswe want to accomplish, and give ourselves...
28 Juni 202335min
Little Happier: It Might Be Boring to Read About the “Land of Happy,” But It’s Probably a Nice Place to Live
People sometimes assume that happiness is boring—but as philosopher Simone Weil points out, while that may be true in literature, it’s not true in real life. Get in touch: podcast@gretchenrubin.comFol...
26 Juni 20233min
