Happier with Gretchen Rubin

By Gretchen Rubin / The Onward Project

Education

What's Happier with Gretchen Rubin about?

Gretchen Rubin is HAPPIER, and she wants you to be happier too. The #1 bestselling author of The Happiness Project and Better Than Before gets more personal than ever as she brings her practical, manageable advice about happiness and good habits to this lively, thought-provoking podcast. Gretchen’s cohost and guinea pig is her younger sister, Elizabeth Craft, a TV writer and producer living in Los Angeles, who (lovingly) refers to Gretchen as her happiness bully. Part of the Panoply Network.

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Little Happier: I Get Choke...

10.21.2019

The song and the scene “Edelweiss” from “The Sound of Music” is a reminder that our love for our country can burn brightly, even when events look very dark. Get tickets for our live podcast events in Seattle, Portland, San ...

Happier with Gretchen Rubin episodes:

10.21.2019 Little Happier: I Get Choked Up When I Hear the Song “Edelweiss” from “The Sound of Music” The song and the scene “Edelweiss” from “The Sound of Music” is a reminder that our love for our country can burn brightly, even when events look very dark. Get tickets for our live podcast events in Seattle, Portland, San ...
10.16.2019 Ep. 243: Treat Yourself Like a Dog and How Obligers Can Resist Pressures to Indulge Why you should treat yourself like a dog, why telling someone, “Calm down” is usually a bad idea, and ideas for Obligers who are trying to resist expectations that they eat or drink. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com; happiercast.com/238; ...
10.14.2019 Little Happier: A Moment in the Life of JFK Illustrates How Hard It Is to Know Other People An episode from the life of John F. Kennedy is a terrific reminder of the fact that we don’t know, we can’t really understand, what other people are thinking, why they’re doing the things they do, or how they see ...
10.09.2019 Ep. 242: Buy Some Happiness, Plus Hacks for Taking Medication Regularly We discuss why and how we can buy some happiness, do a hack round-up with terrific ideas for remembering to take daily medications, and tackle a listener’s question about her husband’s brewing Obliger-rebellion. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com; happiercast.com/238; ...
10.07.2019 Little Happier: Novelist John Steinbeck and King Arthur Show Me How to Think Outside the Box Novelist John Steinbeck’s decision to set his King Arthur story in the hazy “before” showed me a solution that I would never have devised—and taught me a great lesson. Get tickets for our live podcast events in Seattle, Portland, San ...
10.02.2019 Ep. 241: Malcolm Gladwell Talks About “Talking to Strangers” Plus a Delicious, Healthy Hack We talk to Malcolm Gladwell about “Talking to Strangers” and explore why taking a shower can boost your happiness, and I reveal the easy, new low-carb recipe I love. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com; happiercast.com/238; 774-277-9336. Get in touch ...
09.30.2019 Little Happier: The Right Thing to Say to a Person Who Has Big Hopes I remind myself and other writers, “There are many ways for a book to succeed.” And many ways for a vacation to succeed, or a college student to succeed. It’s a comforting thought, because it’s true. Get tickets for our ...
09.25.2019 Ep. 240: Use the Emergency Kit for Anxiety, Worry, and Stress For this Very Special Episode, we talk about the Emergency Kit for Anxiety—a long list of strategies to put to work immediately to manage anxiety, worry, stress, and fear. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com; happiercast.com/238; 774-277-9336. Get in touch ...
09.23.2019 Bonus Episode: A Deep Dive into the “Four Tendencies” Personality Framework Want to learn whether you’re an Upholder, Questioner, Obliger, or Rebel—and what that means? Gretchen gives a quick overview of her popular personality framework, and explains how you can use it to end procrastination, reduce conflict, and stick to good ...
09.23.2019 Little Happier: My America Feeling: I’m Grateful for the Sound of Many Languages As a child growing up in Kansas City, I loved to listen to languages other than English, but I rarely had the chance—so I remind myself to feel grateful for hearing so many languages here in New York City. It ...
09.18.2019 Ep. 239: Tackling Life’s Big Questions with Kate Bowler Why you should make a concrete offer when someone needs a hand, how to break the ice using a simple button-maker, and a thoughtful conversation about life’s big questions with writer and podcaster Kate Bowler. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; ...
09.16.2019 Little Happier: Like Oscar Wilde, Do You Find It Hard to Live Up to Your Blue China? I Sure Do. Oscar Wilde famously observed: “‘I find it harder and harder every day to live up to my blue china.” What do you think he meant by that? Get tickets for our live podcast events in Seattle, Portland, San Fransisco, Chicago, ...
09.11.2019 Ep. 238: Back-to-School Habits, and Marie Forleo Talks About How Everything Is Figureoutable Strategies to help you and your family create good back-to-school habits, the fun of undertaking a library quest, and author and host of MarieTV Marie Forleo talks about happiness and productivity. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com; happiercast.com/238; 774-277-9336. Get ...
09.09.2019 Little Happier: An Old and Famous Story about How We Can’t Outrun Our Fate The ancient and haunting teaching story about “an appointment in Samarra” is a wonderful illustration of the inevitability of fate. Get tickets for our live podcast events in Seattle, Portland, San Fransisco, Chicago, Kansas City, Providence, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Atlanta ...
09.04.2019 Ep. 237: #HappierLaborDay: What Career Aims Make Our Work Lives Happier We can use the Labor Day holiday as a catalyst to think about making our work lives happier, healthier, more productive, or more creative. #HappierLaborDay Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Get ...
09.02.2019 Little Happier: The Musical “Song of Spider-Man” and the Problem of the Unknown Knowns A memoir about the failure of the musical “Song of Spider-Man” is a sobering example of how sometimes, we choose not to know the things we know—with very bad consequences. Get tickets for our live podcast events in Seattle, Portland, ...
08.28.2019 Ep. 236: Stay the Course with Your Good Habits Why you should stay the course with your good habits, the challenge of taking daily medication, and a return to a favorite question, “What’s your signature color?” Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & ...
08.26.2019 Little Happier: Dolly Parton and Oprah Winfrey Talk about Humility and Hubris Back in 1992, Dolly Parton and Oprah Winfrey talk about pride, humbility, and hubris. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can be found in the latest post here: https://gretchenrubin.com/podcasts/ Get the ...
08.21.2019 Ep. 235: Talking Happiness with Bestselling Author Rachel Hollis Why you might recreate a childhood menu, a conversation with blockbuster bestseller Rachel Hollis about how to be happier, and technology hack to help keep your phone charged. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin ...
08.19.2019 Little Happier: I Love an Emotion that I Call the “Varsity Team” Feeling. I love being part of the “varsity team,” or witnessing a varsity team at work—and even knowing the phrase varsity team. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can be found in ...
08.14.2019 Ep. 234: Try the SLANT Approach to Listen Better and How to Deal with a Sweetheart’s Unenthusiastic Support Try the SLANT approach to help yourself listen and learn more effectively, an easy way to do a happiness-boosting good deed, and how to deal with a sweetheart who responds very unenthusiastically to good news. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; ...
08.12.2019 Little Happier: What Friendships Tend to Stick? An Observation from Game of Thrones In an interview, Game of Thrones’s John Bradley (Samwell Tarly) makes an important observation about relationships: hard times make strong friends. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can be found in ...
08.07.2019 Ep. 233: Get Rid of Your Wart (Literal and Metaphorical) and Connect Better with Friends Get rid of your wart, an internet-related hack (is it just me?), and a question to help you figure out how to connect better with other people. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & ...
08.05.2019 Little Happier: Churchill’s Life Proves that We Can’t Know What’s Good or Bad Luck Winston Churchill reflects on his eventful life, and how impossible it was for him to discern what was good luck and what was bad luck. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode ...
07.31.2019 Ep. 232: Remember to Consider the Company that Someone Keeps When entering into a relationship, consider a person’s existing relationships, how to deal with podcast overload, and like Gloria Vanderbilt, do you have a “rage to live?” Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & ...
07.29.2019 Little Happier: Winston Churchill and “Game of Thrones” Illustrate the Same Observation About Power Winston Churchill and Games of Thrones’s Lady Olenna illustrate the same point: when confronting a powerful and lawless foe, imagination matters. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can be found in ...
07.24.2019 Ep. 231: Choose Your TV Theme Song Choose your TV theme song; listeners give many suggestions about dealing with getting laid off; why you should wear a new item immediately; and Elizabeth discusses the happiness of humidity. Get in touch: @gretchenrubin; @elizabethcraft; podcast@gretchenrubin.com Get the podcast show ...
07.22.2019 Little Happier: “If He’ll Do It For You, He’ll Do It to You”: My Daughter and Father Hit on the Same Truth My daughter and my father hit on the same truth about dealing with people who play favorites: “If they’ll do it for you, they’ll do it to you.” Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related ...
07.17.2019 Ep. 230: Happier Podcast Book Club: Lisa Brennan-Jobs Reflects on Growing Up as Steve Jobs’s Daughter in “Small Fry” For our second Happier Podcast Book Club, we talk to Lisa Brennan-Jobs about the role of family, love, and identity in her acclaimed memoir Small Fry. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Get the podcast show notes by ...
07.15.2019 Little Happier: How the Gift of a Dollhouse Illustrates the Philosophy of Bertrand Russell In giving the gift of a dollhouse, these loving grandparents illustrate a point argued by philosopher Bertrand Russsell: “To be without some of the things you want is an indispensable part of happiness.” Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & ...
07.10.2019 Ep. 229: Spend 120 Minutes a Week in Nature and an Interview with Sheri Salata about “The Beautiful No” Why you should spend 120 minutes a week in nature, a simple hack to make spending that time in nature more convenient, and an interview with former “Oprah” executive producer Sheri Salata about her memoir “The Beautiful No.” Get in ...
07.08.2019 Little Happier: What’s the Best Way to Persuade? The Sun and the North Wind Disagree. One of Aesop’s most famous fables—the one about the Sun and the North Wind—illustrates the power of persuasion over brute force. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can be found in ...
07.03.2019 Ep. 228: Make Your Own Art and a Lesson from Mr. Rogers Make your own art, a lesson about managing transitions from Mr. Rogers, and dealing with the relationship challenge of “excessive reassurance-seeking.” Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Get the podcast show notes by email every week here: http://gretchenrubin.com/#newsletter ...
07.01.2019 Little Happier: Throughout My Life, I’ve Remembered One Line from the “Little Engine that Could” “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can” may be a bit corny, but the fact is, I find myself repeating that line to myself. The Little Engine that Could put those words in my mind. ...
06.26.2019 Ep. 227: An Interview with Comedian, Actor, and Writer Pete Holmes Create a memory box, enjoy some luxury around your first cup of coffee, and an interview with comedian and author Pete Holmes. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Get the podcast show notes by email every week here: ...
06.24.2019 Little Happier: Reading Isaac Mizrahi Taught Me About Myself Reading Isaac Mizrahi’s memoir I.M. helped me understand something about myself: my uncomfortable reaction to a work of art I admire. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can be found in ...
06.19.2019 Ep. 226: Celebrate the Summer Solstice by Re-visiting your One-Word Theme Celebrate the summer (or winter) solstice by re-visiting your one-word theme for the year, an alternative office activity if you want to avoid being the Evil Donut-Bringer, and how to resist the temptation of the snooze alarm. Get in touch ...
06.17.2019 Little Happier: My Husband Jamie Taught Me a Wonderful, Memorable Lesson About Plans. My husband’s willingness to change plans gave me a lovely memory—and taught me a valuable lesson. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can be found in the latest post here: https://gretchenrubin.com/podcasts/ ...
06.12.2019 Ep. 225: Cultivate Your Casual Friendships Cultivate your casual friendships, an interview with writer Ramit Sethi about money, and a terrific inexpensive gift to give. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Get the podcast show notes by email every week here: http://gretchenrubin.com/#newsletter Order a ...
06.10.2019 Little Happier: How Do We Help? An Observation from the Life of the Creator of the Comic Strip “Cathy.” This story from the life of Cathy Guisewite, the creator of the comic strip “Cathy,” is an example of how we can help people achieve their dreams for themselves. Sometimes. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and ...
06.05.2019 Ep. 224: Design Your Summer (Again) Design your summer, manage the challenge of making transitions throughout the day, and why “the stewing is worse than the doing.” Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Get the podcast show notes by email every week here: http://gretchenrubin.com/#newsletter ...
06.03.2019 Little Happier: This Book Changed the Way I See the World. Christopher Alexander’s book “A Pattern Language” changed the way I see the world; sometimes, at least in my case, it’s only through words that I can learn to see more clearly. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links ...
05.29.2019 Ep. 223: Step Off a Cliff Why you should step off a cliff, an interview with writer Ross Gay, and the fun of making the opposite of a to-do list. Want to watch the "Roadmap to Happiness"? Check your local PBS station listings here: http://pbs.org/gretchenrubin. Tell ...
05.27.2019 Little Happier: Why Did Dolly Parton Identify More with Barbara Walters than Barbara Walters Identified with Her? My fascination with Dolly Parton continues, and her answer to Barbara Walters in a 1977 interview is a good example of why we shouldn’t under-estimate people who are different from us. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links ...
05.22.2019 Ep. 222: Go Someplace Alone Why you might choose to go someplace alone, how to have a good conversation with a child, and listener suggests an easy, clever hack for remembering to bring items. Get tickets for Gretchen's book tour and Happier podcast live events ...
05.20.2019 Little Happier: One of the Greatest Luxuries? The Luxury of Giving a Gift. In Sydney Taylor’s wonderful children’s book “All-of-a-Kind Family,” the girls’ father saw a way to give them a true luxury: the luxury of giving him a gift. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to ...
05.16.2019 Bonus episode: Game of Thrones! Gretchen and Elizabeth Discuss and Speculate Before the Show’s Finale. Is Arya Stark a Rebel? Will Cersei Lannister manage to keep the Iron Throne? And how about that coffee cup! On this special short bonus episode, Gretchen and Elizabeth discuss, debate, and speculate about the upcoming end of the HBO ...
05.15.2019 Ep. 221: Do You Yearn for a Re-Set? Do you yearn for a re-set, how to look better in photographs, and using voice-to-text to make it easier to take notes. And announcing our next Book Club Choice: “Small Fry” by Lisa Brennan-Jobs. Get tickets for Gretchen's book tour ...
05.13.2019 Little Happier: Julia Child Makes a Profound Observation about Life in the Midst of Flipping a Potato On her iconic 1960’s TV show, Julia Child drops a profound truth about human nature, in the middle of trying to flip a potato. Get in touch on Instagram: @GretchenRubin & @LizCraft Links and notes related to this episode can ...
05.08.2019 Ep. 220: Why We Should Deal with Something Negative Right Away Deal with something negative right away, switch to electronic boarding passes if you still use paper, and a Four Tendencies break-down of the “Game of Thrones” characters. Get tickets for Gretchen's book tour and Happier podcast live events at: http://gretchenrubin.com/events ...

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