Blog Posts by Gretchen Rubin

Flowerinsidewalk

In books, movies, plays, television, my favorite scenes are often moments of transcendence-when, in the muddle of existence, characters somehow manage to break through everything to engage with each other, and with higher values.

Just off the top of my head, I can think of moments like this from Gilead, The Wire, Friends, Steel Magnolias, the play Bug which has haunted me for years...such moments are the principal subject of Flannery O'Connor.

I also look for them in real life.

For instance, a few weeks ago, I was talking to a bunch of first-year medical students about happiness-mostly, I was pestering them to get enough sleep. At one point, an older doctor jumped into the conversation. "Remember," he said to them earnestly, "you're going to be doctors. That work is really going to bring you a lot of happiness."

This comment lifted the conversation to a new level. Not that I think everyone should be a doctor, but it's true: being a doctor is a rare privilege. To be

Nielsen

Happiness interview: Stephanie Nielson.

Years ago, when I started out out as a blogger, I heard about a popular blog by Stephanie Nielson called the The NieNie Dialogues. Then in 2008, the sad news swept through blogland that Stephanie been in a terrible plane crash. Her body had been 80% burned, and she was in a coma for three month and underwent several major surgeries.

Her memoir of this experience, Heaven Is Here: An Incredible Story of Hope, Triumph, and Everyday Joy is just hitting bookstores. It's a fascinating book on several levels, but I was particularly interested to read it because Stephanie was very happy before the accident, and she explains how she struggled to find her way back to happiness, after the accident. This is obviously one of the most pressing questions about happiness: How do we grapple with a major catastrophe?

Reading Stephanie's book reminded me of a line that I think (can't swear) comes from ancient Greek literature. If I remember

Eggsinacarton

Feeling overwhelmed? Nine tips for keeping your home feeling serene and organized.

Because of the subject of my next book, Happier at Home, I've been spending a lot of time thinking about-you guessed it!-how to be happier at home. Here are a few very simple suggestions. These aren't the most profound things you can do to make your home feel more serene and organized, but they're steps you can take fairly quickly.

1. Be wary of bargains, sales, hand-me-downs and give-away. Do you really need this thing? Or love it? Beware: because of the "endowment effect," we value things more once we own them. Once that thing enters your home, it will be tough to get it out again.

2. Never label anything "Miscellaneous."

3. Remember: most decisions don't require extensive research. Aim to be a satificer, not a maximizer.

4. Don't let yourself fall into "empty." Keep cash in the house. Keep gas in your tank. Keep an extra roll of toilet paper squirreled away. Keep your phone

2012 Happiness Challenge: For those of you following the 2012 Happiness Project Challenge, to make 2012 a happier year -- and even if you haven't officially signed up for the challenge -- welcome! Each week, I post a video about some Pigeon of Discontent raised by a reader. Because, as much as we try to find the Bluebird of Happiness, we're also plagued by the Pigeons of Discontent.

This week's Pigeon of Discontent, suggested by a reader, is: "I put off making difficult phone calls."

I Put Off Making Difficult Phone Calls.

If you want to read more about this resolution, check out…
Tips for making phone calls that you don't want to make.
Personal productivity: 9 helpful but realistic tips.
6 tips for getting yourself to do something you don't want to do.

Do you dread making phone calls as much as I sometimes do? What strategies have helped you to make those necessary calls?

You can post your own Pigeon of Discontent at any time; also, from time to time, I'll

Saturday, I got a box full of the galleys of Happier at Home. (For you non-publishing industry folk, a galley is a pre-publication, preview copy of a book.)

This should be a thrilling moment, and it was thrilling, but at the same time, for some reason, it sent me into a bit of a panic. I could hardly bring myself to open a book. I get the same feeling when I have a piece run in a newspaper or magazine. Most writers seem to love the moment when they see their work "in print," but not me. I'm not really sure why. Am I afraid of spotting a mistake? Or seeing something that, by this point, I'd do differently? Maybe.

Do you ever experience that? Something that seems to make other people wildly happy-that you think "should" make you happy-for some reason, doesn't?

Nevertheless, getting the galleys is an important marker on the road to publication, so it's exciting as a milestone. And it make me think grateful thoughts, as I do at least fifteen times a day, about how lucky I have

Woodenspoonsrow

I've cribbed some of my favorite resolutions from other people, and when a thoughtful reader posted that one of her resolutions is to "Clean while I cook," I immediately decided to adopt that for my own.

"Clean while I cook" isn't just about cooking, of course. It's about cleaning up after myself along the way, instead of letting clutter and chores build up around me. I've always tried to push myself to behave this way, but for some reason, this formulation has really stuck in my mind.

For instance, I'm trying to follow "Clean while I cook" by also following the resolution to "Hang up clothes while I change clothes." I tend to throw clothes all over the bedroom as I change from one outfit to another, and to leave them there for a few days, and it looks very messy. I'm trying to do a better job of putting clothes away as soon as I take them off. My husband sets a good example here: he always puts his clothes away. (Except his socks. He leaves his dirty socks on the floor,

John-tierney

Happiness interview: John Tierney.

I'm a big fan of John Tierney's science column, Findings, in the New York Times. And I'm even a bigger fan of his new book, Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength. This book, co-written with Roy Baumeister, who is one of the most prominent researchers of self-control, is fascinating. For anyone who wants to be happier, self-command and self-knowledge are crucial areas of study.

As a long-time reader of John's work, I knew that he and I are interested in many of the same subjects, so I was curious to hear what he had to say on the subject of happiness.

Gretchen: What's a simple activity that consistently makes you happier?
John: Exercising, which I do by commuting by bike from Brooklyn to Manhattan. Crossing the East River is especially joyful, but just getting outside and moving is enough to raise my spirits.

What's something you know now about happiness that you didn't know when you were 18 years old?
How

2012 Happiness Challenge: For those of you following the 2012 Happiness Project Challenge, to make 2012 a happier year -- and even if you haven't officially signed up for the challenge -- welcome! Each week, I post a video about some Pigeon of Discontent raised by a reader. Because, as much as we try to find the Bluebird of Happiness, we're also plagued by the Pigeons of Discontent.

This week's Pigeon of Discontent, suggested by a reader, is: "I can't get rid of my stuff."

I Can't Get Rid Of My Stuff

If you want to read more about this resolution, check out…
9 common myths about clearing clutter.
Test yourself: Do you have clutter mentality?
Fighting clutter? Go shelf by shelf.

How about you? Do you ever have trouble moving clutter along its way out of your home? Have you found any good strategies?

You can post your own Pigeon of Discontent at any time; also, from time to time, I'll make a special call for suggestions.

If you're new, jump in right now,