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Hello and welcome to Happier, a podcast where we talk about how to become happier.
This week we'll talk about why you might consider the tradition of the Stumptish and what that is, and we'll share some of listeners' excellent one-word themes for 2026.
I'm Gretchen Rubin, a writer who studies happiness, good habits, secrets of adulthood and human nature.
I'm in my little home office in New York City, and joining me today from Los Angeles is my sister, Eliseth Craft.
And Eliseth, you and I could talk about one-word themes all day long.
That's me, Elizabeth Kraft, a TV writer and producer living in LA.
And yes, Gretch, we sure could.
My one word theme is x-ray.
I know, so intriguing.
But before we jump in, we have some updates.
Donna said, thank you for your 25 and 25 reading challenge.
I've been so much happier this year as I scrolled less on social media, stopped reading the news and watching mindless TV.
I can happily say I've read 25 minutes and more every day so far, and it has truly changed my life.
I feel so much better reading classics, memoirs and self-help books that have made me laugh and fed my spirit.
I've read so many books on my To Be Read that I actually have room on my bookshelves for more books.
Woohoo!
I usually read about 50 books each year, and this year I more than doubled that number.
It's mid-December, and I've already read 112 books, and I still have two more weeks to go.
If you told me I'd read over 100 books this year, I would have laughed."
I plan to continue this challenge next year and many to come.
It's exhilarating to finally put a big dent in my to be read pile.
Oh, I love.
Well, this is what we say is reading leads to more reading.
Once you start reading, you're like, I forgot how much fun it is to read.
Yes, so true.
And I just want to note, as I do every year, the anniversary of the happiest day of my life.
We just passed the 11th anniversary of January 9th, 2015.
That's when my husband Jamie was pronounced that the virus was not detected.
He had hepatitis C that he got from a blood transfusion he had from a heart operation that he had when he was eight years old.
He tried many experimental treatments, but nothing worked.
And then, thanks to scientists and brilliant research, on January 9th 2015, the virus was not detected.
And it was just the happiest day of my life.
And you know, what is really nice this year Elizabeth, is that I've heard from a few of the scientists who worked on this medication and saying like oh, it's so nice to hear these stories from actual people who benefited from all of the research that they did.
And actually I found out that a friend of mine from high school was involved in some of the clinical trials that Jamie might have participated in.
Oh, wow.
Yeah.
So anyway, it was the happiest day of my life.
I was just beside myself.
I didn't know what to do with myself.
So it's a private family holiday that we celebrate every year, January 9th.
Yay.
Yay, science.
Yay, science.
And this week, our Try This at Home suggestion is a very good idea.
It's a little hard to pronounce for me, and it's related to my one-word theme of neighbor.
It is to consider the tradition of the Stumptisch.
Okay, so what is that?
You also might want to spell it.
Okay, Stammtisch, and I apologize to German speakers if I am really getting that wrong.
A Stammtisch is S-T-A-M-M-T-I-S-C-H.
Stammtisch.
So Stammtisch is German for a regulars table.
And so the term both refers to the table that's reserved for regulars, but it also refers to that informal, recurring social gathering of the locals who meet there.
And so the idea is that this table is set aside for these people who come.
It's a restaurant, it's a bar, and these regulars come and like this is their spot.
And it also refers to just the idea of the gathering itself.
It's not a structured meeting.
It's like a place where people are talking or playing cards, socializing.
Maybe they're having political discussions or philosophical discussions, or they're talking about something that they're all really interested in.
But it's a bunch of familiar faces who get together at a standing date, a predictable time and place, and then you get together.
And so it's a social activity that you can count on.
It's like you can show up without telling anyone you're showing up or not show up.
It's just there when it's there.
Yeah.
It's just there when it's there.
And I just think that this is a lovely idea, because I think one thing that people have trouble with with social life is the scheduling right.
Elizabeth, you and I were always saying it's the scheduling that makes things hard.
And then also when you're hosting, if it's a book club and people have to like.
In all my book clubs we take turn hosting, which is lovely.
It is more intimate to go to somebody's home, but then it is a little bit more responsibility.
And if there's this table at the back of a diner or a bar or a restaurant and you can just show up or not show up OK, it's the first Tuesday of the month, from six to eight.
We're all going to go to our favorite bar and just have a happy hour.
And then you can count on it.
You can plan on it.
You can try to make it.
If you do, you do.
If you don't, you don't.
But, you know, you're going to see people that you like.
Yeah, a couple of examples of this.
I can think of Gretchen, that my class.
The first Thursday of every month there's an informal gathering, a shuntish, for breakfast after drop-off.
These are the parents in Jack's class.
Yes.
The parents in Jack's class and every class has it on a different day.
Oh, nice.
So you just know to show up at this restaurant.
A lot of times the same people are there, but there's always a little variety.
It's just nice because it's casual.
You don't have to RSVP.
You can just come for five minutes or for an hour.
Right.
Well, and my in-laws have this at a restaurant where there's just a bunch of regulars who and I don't even know how it evolved but they really like to go to sort of check in with these people.
It's lovely.
Well, and the other example I can think of is our grandpa, mom's dad.
Yes.
He did this for, I think decades, where he would go to breakfast two or three days a week at the same coffee shop with the same guys.
But again, he would just show up.
It wasn't like everybody was calling each other about it.
Right.
I think this is such a great idea because it's social time, but very low bar.
Yes.
You know, this is a big thing.
I think in LA probably a lot of people might have this in coffee shops because it is a place where people don't work regular jobs.
Yeah.
Like Adam, I think, had this when we first met.
He would go to this coffee shop called Insomnia and he was friends with people there.
And I think a lot of times people did have their table where they sat.
So, yeah, I think this is something I would like to have more of.
Right.
Well, I'm going to see if I can get this going in my neighborhood, because I do have a lot of people who live within walking distance and I think they would be into it.
So I want to try it.
You know, it reminds me of one of my secrets of adulthood.
And the secret of adulthood is that wise words seem more convincing when they come from faraway lands.
And I think that it's just stumptish, makes it seem like oh, this is more of a thing to try, rather than like oh, let's just get together, you know, like once a month at the same bar.
It kind of elevates it by giving it this phrase.
Okay.
So I am really going to work on that.
This is something that I could try to do is for my 2026 year of neighbor, which is to get this going in my neighborhood with friends.
I would love that.
Yes.
Clearly it's a time when convenience is going to make a big difference.
Absolutely.
It has to be something that you can really fit into your life easily.
Well, let us know, if you do try this at home how, considering a Stumptish, you know what are you thinking.
Do you have this?
What does it look like?
I think we could all learn from examples of successful Stumptishes, as we might think about creating our own.
Let us know on Instagram, Threads, TikTok, Facebook.
Drop us an email at podcast at gretchenrubin.com.
Or as always, you can go to the show notes.
This is happiercast.com slash 569. coming up we've got a happiness hack about how to give life a little more zhuzh but first this break Elizabeth, you know I don't eat sugar, and that means that sometimes it's hard for me to grab a snack when I'm out and about, or I want to just eat something quickly or on the go.
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I'll see you next time.
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All right, Gretch, what is this week's happiness hack?
Well, this is inspired partly by you, Elizabeth, and that is the idea to upgrade the ordinary.
This is the idea that you take something that you use just as part of ordinary life and you somehow do something to upgrade it so that it feels more special or it feels more luxurious, or it just feels nicer.
But it is something that's folded into your everyday life.
So you got this idea because I like to use my fancy China coffee mugs on the weekend.
So on the weekend, I upgrade my ordinary mug to a nice China mug.
Yes, because you are a very mug-focused person, Elizabeth.
I got this idea from you, and then it was sort of reinforced.
We talked about this in the gift guide list.
When I was working with a makeup professional, I always ask makeup artists what products do you like?
And she recommended the La Mer lip balm.
And she said, this is a really wonderful lip balm, and it is expensive.
And so it makes a good gift if there's somebody who really likes to use lip balm.
They're probably not going to buy this for themselves, but you can give it to them as sort of a luxury gift.
And I thought well, that's great, because I myself do not use lip balm.
But everybody in my family, except for Jamie, is using lip balm morning, noon and night.
So I thought well, this is really nice, because this is an elevated version of something that they do use just as part of their ordinary routine.
And Gretch, you kind of did this for me when you gave me my beautiful silver bookmark.
Oh, yes.
I got you the lion bookmark for War 24.
Yes.
Yes.
And I love that bookmark.
I use it every single day.
And in fact, I loved it so much, I went hunting for others like it.
And there's an Elsa Peretti heart bookmark that's very similar at Tiffany's.
That um, sarah and i put on our gift list this year because it's again for a book lover.
It's really upgrading an ordinary bookmark, something you wouldn't buy for yourself, but it really does give you more pleasure.
Yeah, i usually am like ripping something out of the trash and sticking it in there right, speaking of like how elevating the ordinary makes a good gift.
You know I love children's literature and people know that about me.
And from two different people, I got a beautiful edition of a classic children's book.
So I got a gorgeous illustrated.
I know it is a box set when two or more books come in a box, but sometimes just like one book comes in a box.
Is that called like a slipcase or something?
I'm not sure, but you know what that is when it's like in a nice little box.
Yeah.
Beautiful color illustrations, beautiful paper.
One of The Wind in the Willows, which is a very famous children's book.
And then the other is not a children's book but it kind of got a real Narnia feeling to it which I love beyond all measure, which is Piranesi.
And so, of course, I keep my original copies that I've read because those are precious to me.
But I love having these elevated versions of something that I do, really like and really reread constantly.
Yeah.
Some people love a nice pen, for instance.
Exactly.
That might be a really great place to upgrade, instead of just taking something that you stuck in your pocket after you were signing a check at the bank or something.
Absolutely.
All right, Gretchen, let's dive into listener answers.
We got so many one-word themes, and we just love them.
And each is more imaginative than the last.
Like, you just think, I could do all of these one-word themes.
So this one was very funny.
Amy says honestly, considering the word moi, with Miss Piggy as my image to remind myself to take care of myself, be glamorous, dream big and metaphorically, karate chop anyone who tries to thwart me.
Yeah.
That was one of my favorites.
Susan said, my six words for 26, use, nix, or fix in 26.
I'm turning 60 this year and I want to clear out everything that isn't serving me to make room for the very best.
Love that.
Love a rhyming reminder.
And love the fact that it can be one word.
It can be six words.
It's up to you.
Shannon said, Beautiful.
Tanya said track as in track habits.
So I get more consistent, stay on track, make a plan and stick to it and track as in track and field, which I want to take on more in my coaching role and possibly run in a master's track meet next summer.
I love that example of a word can have multiple meanings and that really deepens it and kind of gets you thinking in different directions too.
Katie said, my word of the year isn't exactly a word.
It is row, row, row your boat gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream.
To me, this lyric balances the work of everyday life and serves as a reminder to be gentle and grateful too.
I can definitely be guilty of clinging to my clipboard and I need to find more ease in day-to-day life.
I have picked an oar as my symbol and my oar necklace is currently being shipped from Etsy.
I love the or.
That's a powerful symbol.
It really is.
Courtney said steps because I want to aim for 10,000 steps per day.
My partner and I are working toward buying a house in 2026, literal steps.
And I also want to focus on breaking down tasks into small steps.
Great tie-in for move 26 and 26.
Well, it sure is for anyone who's moving this year.
Yeah.
That's a good tie-in.
Well, that's funny because move 26, there's also the move house.
That's like a big thing a lot of people have to face.
So you can move to get movement in your body and then move.
So yeah, excellent tie-in.
Judy said, I've chosen fall.
Yes.
Full is just one of those words that's appealing.
Yes.
Abigail says soft.
I have found that after having my third slash last baby this year, I've been feeling very rigid in my patterns of tidiness slash, getting tasks completed, and it's not working well for me or my family.
Like a camera, I'm going to zoom in and focus on what's really important and soften my hard edges.
Ooh.
Ooh, that's very compelling.
Bernice says, will is the word.
This is going to be my year of Shakespeare.
But also as I will make things happen and in having the will to say no rather than overextend myself, pleasing others.
I even have a theme song.
Jennifer Hudson singing, you will.
It even includes the lyrics, never think you won't and you will.
Love that.
Love having a theme song.
Yes, that takes it to another level.
And that's funny to think of Will as the year of Shakespeare.
Yes.
Yeah, that's very fun.
Well, I love Joy's word, craft.
Yes.
Crafting my life as a caregiver for my husband with Parkinson's.
How can I use each day to craft a better life for our future selves?
Well, listen, our maiden name is craft.
Yes.
We could do a lot with that.
Paige said, the past five or six years have been a struggle for me, as I have navigated through a life changing faith crisis as well as this feeling of who am I and what do I do now that I'm not primarily someone's mom.
Both of my kids are grown and on their own.
And this open door phase has really affected my sense of purpose and identity.
Thank you so much for having me.
So the word that came to me was emerge.
I am ready to break through the soil, come out of the cocoon, to emerge from the egg and begin to make my way in the world again.
The butterfly image was intriguing, but it felt like the transformation was complete, like the growth process was over.
I'm very aware that growth is a lifelong process and I will continue to change as I experience new people and new ideas.
I'm not a finished product yet.
I was really drawn to the image of a sea turtle hatching and making its way toward the ocean.
They hatch from their eggs but are not yet fully grown.
They carry their shell on their backs wherever they go.
For me this signifies two things.
All the wisdom and the lessons I have learned while in the dark place go with me as I emerge.
I don't leave my old self completely behind.
And when I'm overwhelmed I can retreat into that shell temporarily for stillness or rest or time away from the chaos of life.
Secondly, I picture that shell as God going with me wherever I go.
Even though I am leaving the perceived safety of the egg, I will not be alone as I venture out to continue living.
I've ordered a silver charm of a turtle coming out of its eggshell.
This is a really good example of like really focusing on the metaphor that works for you.
She found ones that were sort of close, and then she found the one that really carried all the associations.
So I think that's a beautiful example of really getting what is that symbol?
What is that vocabulary that carries the most power?
Yeah, it's so poetic and it feels like remembering the word will actually give her the courage to go forth and emerge.
It will actually make an impact on how she proceeds, which is wonderful.
Yes, exactly.
All right, Gretch, coming up, we hear more words for 2026, but first this break.
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Okay, Gretch, we are back with more amazing words for 2026.
Mary Ellen says, I must share the coolest moment I ever had listening to Happier.
I have kept up the practice of creating an annual list since 2021, but 2023 was the first year that I had a word of the year, which was look.
In 2024, I couldn't think of a new word and I was still so attached to look, so I decided to modify it to look up.
One of my 2024 list items was to identify my spiritual masters, and I quickly settled on Anne Lamott.
It was, of course, to my delight that she was a guest on your show in June 2024, episode 487.
But that delight turned to a sense of the divine when you asked Anne for her try this at home tip and Anne replied well, my go-to suggestion is to just keep going outside, no matter what, no matter how busy and important you think you are, and to look up and to look around.
To have my personally identified spiritual master say my word slash phrase through the medium of your podcast, which brought those practices into my life in the first place kismet.
I love that.
It gives me chills.
And I remember Annie talking about that.
Yes, wonderful.
Rebecca says, I just started the divorce process, so it's going to be a rough year.
Landed on release because one I am releasing things that no longer serve me and hopefully, some of the shame and guilt.
And I spelled it as re-lease because hopefully I can start to get a new lease on life.
So that's an interesting way of playing, even with the way the word is presented so that it has more meaning.
Love it.
Yes.
Kristen said Empress, I was inspired for the podcast where you mentioned the listener who does tarot on New Year's Eve.
The Empress card is all about nurturing slash motherhood, abundance, creativity and beauty.
Love that.
That's a pretty word.
Yeah, it is.
It is.
Isn't there an empress butterfly too?
And I think there might be a famous piece of music.
Melanie says, flywheel.
I'm a rower and in the off season we keep in shape with winter training on the indoor rowing machines.
So this is literally a reminder to get myself to the gym on the regular, but it is also metaphorical.
When rowing, you never want to let the flywheel come to a stop, as starting from a dead stop is the most difficult stroke.
I want to avoid the boom and bust cycles I had in 2025 regarding exercise, sleep and even leisure pursuits.
It's my interpretation of your saying, don't let myself get to empty.
Interesting.
And that is, again, fun word, lots of meanings, fun symbol.
Yes.
Nat said, recently I've been really into how colors affects mood and energy.
I love the idea of dopamine decor and dopamine outfits.
Never heard of that.
It honestly started with something very simple.
I bought a pair of bright pink sneakers and noticed that every time I wear them, my mood instantly improves.
It sounds small, but it made me realize how much color can influence how I feel.
That's why I wanted my word for the year to be connected to color.
I ended up choosing neon.
Neon lights make me think of bright, happy colors, fun and a bit of playfulness, and that's exactly what I want more of this year, both literally and metaphorically.
I want to be more optimistic, more open, and a little braver.
I also want to bring more color into my everyday life, into my craft room, my clothes and my surroundings in general.
As a nice bonus.
Apparently, the name of the gas neon comes from the Greek word naos, which means new.
It fits perfectly with a few new beginnings happening in my life this year.
Even sending this email feels new for me.
I usually avoid sharing things like this thinking, who cares?
But this year I wanted to try doing things anyway, even if they feel slightly uncomfortable.
Well, I'm so glad that Nat shared that Gretchen.
Well, I love that.
And I love this color.
I wrote about this in Life in Five Senses.
And maybe this year I'll do my color pilgrimage because it's true.
Color has such a profound influence on us.
There's so much beauty in color.
Maybe I'll have a color-related word next year.
I love that idea.
Thank you, Nat.
Leslie said, for years now, my best friend Julie and I have created happier style yearly lists.
We also follow your lead in choosing words for each year, a practice that has expanded across our circle of friends and many of their partners, kids and colleagues.
For the last several years I've had fobs made word on front, year on back, for these folks to put on their key rings to keep their theme top of mind.
They are actually pet name tags which are easy to find online, highly customizable, very inexpensive and usually sent with a perfect O-ring for keys.
The 2026 set arrived today, so it seemed like a good time to reach out and thank you for a practice that's brought my friends closer, sparked great discussions and helped us to know a little bit more about each other, even after all these years.
And a Try This at Home tip.
Invite people to pick a word.
Not everybody is into it, but I have been surprised by the enthusiasm some have shown.
And then she included a picture of what these look like.
They're like those plastic tags that you can put on your keys if you want to say something like backdoor or whatever.
And the words were ardent, forge, immersive, wayfinding, boundless.
And I think that that's a great idea, because we often get something like a piece of jewelry, but something on a key ring is a great idea.
It's something very inexpensive.
Yes.
And you see it all the time.
And you see it all the time.
Gretchen, let's just go through a list of other great words.
Yeah, just to get everybody's imagination going.
One is terpsichorean, which I had to look up because I wasn't exactly sure.
And that means related to dancing.
Tigress, frolic, summit, distill, recess, tower.
Then there's space magic golden rhizome, which is a horizontal form of plant stem that grows underground and can form roots and shoots that grow into a new plant.
That's evocative.
Yes.
Cup company forage restraint flower, polaroid hygge, which is the quality of coziness, contentment and well-being through enjoying simple, comfortable moments.
Yeah, this is that word, H-Y-G-G-E.
It looks like hygge, and I guess it's really hygge.
But yeah, that's a word that many people are drawn to.
Popular in cold countries.
Yes.
Placement and dice.
See, all of these words are so interesting.
I would love to have all of these.
Yeah.
And I think Leslie's suggestion to like have people pick a word and then talk about what they pick.
That would be a great thing to do, either as an icebreaker with people who don't know each other well or with people who know each other well, because why would they pick what they pick?
You and I enjoy that conversation so much just between us, Elizabeth.
I think that, I don't know why I've never tried to do that.
That's exactly the kind of things I would try to have my friends do and like let's all sit around and talk about it.
That's fun.
Yes.
I love it.
Okay, Gretch, it is time for demerits and gold stars.
And this week you have a happiness demerit.
Okay.
So this is related to putting away Christmas decorations.
So I have a lot of Christmas decorations.
Christmas decorations are a big thing in our family.
Elizabeth, as you know just as well as I do.
Yes.
And this year, our mother was in New York City for Christmas, where usually we're in Kansas City.
So she very, very kindly offered to help me put away the decorations, which really makes a huge difference when you have more people doing it.
So we're putting them away and putting them away.
And she was saying, like, I think you could have a system of boxes that would work better.
Because the thing about our boxes is they've sort of happened over time.
Some of these boxes are decades old.
I never had a theory of it or I never mindfully chose a system.
It's just like a bunch of random boxes.
And then she was really looking to see okay, what boxes would work the best and be the most efficient way and easiest to handle which is great, because that is the kind of work that I'm really bad at, which is looking at a million different options and figure out which one is exactly what you want.
So she gets a gold star for doing that, but here's the demerit that I get.
So we're putting them away and putting them away.
And then near the end, I just want to get this done.
And I was just like slamming those ornaments into the boxes and closing them.
And they'll be fine.
And usually they are.
You know, maybe you've got, you know, a sugar plum fairy or something whose skirts are a little bit rumpled.
Usually they're fine.
But I love these ornaments.
I want them to last forever.
And I don't want to handle them without really making sure that I'm taking care of them properly.
And so by giving myself this demerit Elizabeth, I am pledging.
Really I should have just got the new boxes and then transferred everything before I put them away in the storage unit in the basement.
But I was just like, no, I just want to get the boxes out of the way.
But I am going to do this next year.
I think it'll be easier and better for the ornaments and easier for the people putting the ornaments away.
So I'm giving myself a demerit to pledge myself to rationalizing that system which has grown up in a loose and ineffective way over the year.
But Alyssa, so that's my demerit.
Remind me 12 months from now, what is your gold star?
Well, I am giving a gold star to my writing partner and co-host of Happier in Hollywood Sarah, because with everything we're doing, Sarah is actually starting another sub stack.
Oh, my gosh.
Yes.
It is inspired by the fact that on her 26 for 26 list is to roast a chicken every week with a different recipe.
So she is starting a sub stack called Chickening Out.
I love that name.
That is so funny because she's not letting herself chicken out.
Yes, I love the name.
So every week she's posting the recipe she's using and just stuff about cooking these chickens.
Also part of it is that she wants to use the whole chicken.
So she's then making soups or whatever one makes with whatever's a leftover from a roast chicken.
I don't know.
I have zero interest in roasting a chicken myself.
Yes.
But I love reading about Sarah roasting chickens.
It's very entertaining.
I agree.
I signed up for it.
And no one is less likely to roast a chicken than you and me, Elizabeth.
And yet it's very calming and peaceful.
Yes.
And can I also say, like you're an obliger, Sarah's an obliger, and this kind of substack is useful because it creates accountability, because you feel like well, I have to roast a chicken using some new recipe and try to use it up because I have to write a substack.
Yeah.
Yes.
Post about it because she's at least got you and me reading about it.
Oh, she's got a lot of subscribers.
Might I just say she knew that she was doing it partly for accountability.
Oh, interesting.
A way that she furthered the accountability is that she's numbering them like one of 52, two of 52, three of 52.
And that really puts on the pressure.
To stay accountable.
It's going to be so obvious.
If you, That is the kind of very small detail that could actually make a huge difference in how you follow through with something.
Because I'm often so surprised how these very small shifts...
Just a little detail can make a very significant difference in how consistently somebody can stick to something.
And that's a great example of knowing yourself and saying how can I do this in a way that's fun for me and that I'm going to execute on the way that I want.
And share it with other people.
I'm sure she'll get tons of ideas.
Oh, she's already gotten so many recipes from listeners and readers.
She's got a whole stockpile that she's going through.
So yeah.
So everyone subscribe to Chickening Out on Substack.
I promise you'll love it.
Well, maybe there's the kind of people who love the idea of a roast chicken and the kind of people who don't love the idea of a roast chicken.
But I guess we like the idea of a roast chicken.
We don't like the idea of actually cooking a roast chicken.
Excellent.
Well, good luck.
That's another fun thing she's doing.
That's wonderful.
Yeah.
So go and start as Sarah.
What is the resource this week?
Okay, so Move 26 in 26 has begun.
We mentioned that before.
So if you are participating with us this year to move for 26 minutes a day in 2026, The Happier app is a really easy way to support that habit.
It has all kinds of tracking tools, so you can pick the one that you like.
Some people like certain kinds of tracking tools.
Some people like others.
A lot of people like Don't Break the Chain.
The Streak approach is super popular.
Some people like numbers trackers.
They like to see the numbers pile up.
Some people like a one-sentence journal where they can take a note.
A photo log is probably the easiest way.
You just take a photo of Accountability partners.
This is a very effective thing if you have an accountability partner.
The challenge is free, so with or without the subscription.
And so stay tuned, because next month there will be a new feature to the app that's going to make movement even easier and more fun.
So you can check out all of that if you go to happiercast.com slash move26.
More movement for all.
How's it going for you, Elizabeth?
I've made it so far every day of the month.
Yeah, me too.
And what are we reading?
Elizabeth, what are you reading?
I am reading The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop by Fanny Flagg.
And I am reading Christmas in Austin by Ben Markovits.
And that's it for this episode of Happier.
Remember to try this at home.
Consider the stumptish.
Let us know if you tried it and if it worked for you.
Thank you to our executive producer, Chuck Reed, and everyone at Lemonada.
If you haven't subscribed to Lemonada Premium yet, now is the perfect time.
You can listen ad-free.
Just tap that subscribe button on Apple Podcasts or go to LemonadaPremium.com.
And here's your weekly rhyming reminder.
If you love the show, leave a review to let us know.
You know, Alyssa, I started rating and reviewing myself.
That's on my 26 for 26 list.
That's right.
Until next week, I'm Elizabeth Kraft.
And I'm Gretchen Rubin.
Thanks for joining us Onward and Upward.
Elizabeth, I have to say that I'm a little bit appalled at myself that, after so many years of asking people to rate and review and knowing, both as an author and as a podcaster, how helpful it is when people engage, review and, of course, if they give you five stars and all that, it never occurred to me that that was something that I should be doing.
I don't know how that was.
I did it a occasionally, but I didn't make a habit of it.
So I'm really looking forward to sort of shining a spotlight on the things that I love by rating and reviewing.
Yes.
I think it just feels cumbersome somehow to go through the process to rate and review.
But it's like anything.
But I know that if I do it five times, it'll be the easiest thing in the world.
That's the thing.
It's like if you do it the five times, nothing is easier.
It's just doing this first few times and like making it into something that's easy.
Yeah.
From the Onward Project.
Hi Gretchen, Craig Robinson and my little sister Michelle here.
We host a new podcast called IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson.
We know you're the queen of giving advice, so we wanted to get a few tips from you.
You know, Gretchen, a lot of our listeners are going through some major life changes.
What advice do you have for folks who are trying to stay grounded in the midst of major life transitions?
Craig and Michelle, I am so happy to be talking to you.
Here are a few questions that might help us gain perspective.
So consider questions like this.
What activities take up my time but are not particularly useful or stimulating for me?
Do I spend a lot of time on something that's important to someone else but is not very important to me?
If I could magically change one habit in my life, what would I choose?
And here's a question.
Would I like to have more time in solitude restorative solitude or would I like to have more time with friends?
You know, just thinking about questions like this can help us start to figure out how we might make our lives happier.
With greater self-knowledge, we're better able to make hard decisions that reflect ourselves, our own nature, our own interests, our own values.
In my own case, I have found that the more my life reflects my nature, the happier I get and the more grounded I feel when I'm going through a period of major change or transition.
For more great advice, search for IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson wherever you get podcasts.
You can listen to Issa Rae on letting go of certain friendships, Kiki Palmer on why disappointment is actually the key to career success, Seth and Lauren Rogan on caring for aging parents, and so many more.
